“So do I, Tiari mine,” Tomas said earnestly. “I am more sorry than I can tell you for what I did. Once I understood the truth, once I knew the deeper meanings of sex with love, I did wait for you. Is that enough? Will you forgive me?”
“Forgive you for wanting to feel loved?” Tiari asked, caressing his cheek with gentle fingers. “I know what it is to want love, Tomas. I know what it is to need love, and to have that need go unfulfilled. I will forgive you, if you want me to, but I do not see a need for it. Wanting to be loved requires no forgiveness.”
“Thank you,” Tomas said. “You are very generous. Maybe too generous.”
Tiari tilted her head slightly, hearing the guilt and regret that lingered in his voice. “Tomas, tell me, if I had been with another, in that way, would you no longer want me?”
Tomas clenched his teeth together and bit back a growl at the thought of his Tiari with another man. She tugged at her hands and he immediately eased his grip and bent to kiss them in apology.
“I will not pretend that the idea of anyone else touching you isn’t...difficult,” he said. “But it would not change my feelings for you. Yes, Tiari, I would still want you. I will always want you, throughout this life, and whatever comes next.”
Tiari smiled with relief, then another thought occurred to her. “Tomas, what would you do if something happened to me? If I died, I mean.”
Tomas shuddered. “Please do not tempt fate so, my love,” he whispered hoarsely. “I cannot think of such a thing. We have come too close to it already.”
“When my father died, I was too young to remember him,” Tiari said. She knew he didn’t want to discuss this, but it was too important to her to drop now that it had come up. “But I remember my mother, and how sad she always was. When she became ill, I knew, even as young as I was at the time, that she welcomed it. She no longer wished to live in a world without the man she loved, not even for me.”
“I am sorry,” Tomas said, feeling her pain.
“Should we have a child, Tomas, and something happens to me, I must know that you will not abandon our child for any reason.”
For the second time, Tomas wanted to refuse a request from Tiari. The first had been to let her cross a moat of molten rock. This one was no less difficult for him. “That is a lot to ask,” he said. He felt Tiari stiffen and thought of the lonely, sad existence her childhood had been, and relented. “I promise, Tiari,” he said reluctantly. “I will wait until any children we are blessed with are grown and safe before following you into the beyond.”
Tiari wanted to object. He could feel it. “My love,” he said. “I beg you, do not ask more of me, for I cannot give it.”
She reached up and brushed her fingers lightly along his jaw. “It is enough.”
Tomas lowered his head and claimed her mouth with sudden need, his heart pounding with fear at the thought of losing her. He needed to feel her heat, taste her, smell her, touch her, prove that she was there, vital and alive, with him in the here and now.
The soft, low sound of her moan sent him close to the edge. Too close. He raised his head, panting, his eyes closed as he fought to control his desire.
Tiari shivered, but not from cold. Her body felt hot and liquid, her skin so sensitive that she was suddenly hyper-aware of the light silky fabric of her gown and robe rubbing against her. When Tomas released her and stood up, she felt a sudden sense of loss. She whimpered softly before she could stop herself, but Tomas did not leave her. He bent down and lifted her into his arms, then crossed the room and set her on the edge of the bed which, since it was built for one of the tall Argiari, was high enough that she was almost eye to eye with him as he stood before her.
He placed his hands lightly on her shoulders, then ran them slowly down her arms, leaving pebbled flesh in their wake. He reached for the belt of her robe and untied it. When he pushed the robe back and let it fall from her shoulders to the bed, she bit her lip nervously. She wore only a light silky gown that Karma had gifted her with for this night, and she remembered clearly how translucent, and short, it was, revealing far more of her body than it hid.
After a long silence she felt Tomas’s hands at her waist, bunching the fabric in his fists. “I need to see you completely, Tiari,” he said, his voice harsh with need. “Please?” She nodded slowly, ignoring the heat in her cheeks. Tomas wanted this, and she wanted to give him whatever he wanted.
Tomas leaned down to kiss her again, his lips lingering on hers as he slowly slid the gown up her body. She raised her arms and he pulled it off over her head in a quick motion, then dropped it to the floor. She heard him suck in a breath and tried to interpret the meaning of it.
“Damn,” he gritted out between clenched teeth as he stepped back and let his eyes feast upon her body for the first time. “You are magnificent, Tiari mine.”
Tiari relaxed a little. She knew she was still too thin, and a bit too pale, but she could not deny the stark honesty in his voice.
“My turn,” she said, her voice trembling. She heard him moving, the sound of his boots hitting the floor, the slide of cloth on skin as he undressed and dropped his clothes as he had his boots. Then she felt the heat of his body as he stood before her once more. She reached out tentatively, pleased when he took her hands and placed them against his chest. Since she could not see him, she would feel him.
Tomas gritted his teeth, his body tensing at the feel of her small, soft hands on his skin. He shuddered as she slid her hands down his chest, pausing to explore his nipples, which hardened at her touch. They slid further down, across his abdomen, her sensitive fingertips tracing the hard ridges of muscle, pausing for a moment to delve into his belly button before going lower still. When one hand brushed the thick, throbbing head of his cock, she froze. He jerked, then bit back a groan. That single, almost accidental touch, had nearly ended things before they truly began.
Tiari’s breath sped up, her lower lip caught between her small white teeth as she wrestled with indecision. He watched her face, smiling with pride when she made up her mind to be bold and take what she wanted from her husband. Then her hands deliberately returned to his cock.
She ran her fingers around the tip, pausing to explore the small slit and the drop of moisture she found there. Then slowly, so slowly Tomas wasn’t sure he’d live through it, she explored the full length of his heavy member, tracing each pulsing vein, leaving velvet fire in her wake. By the time her fingers reached the base Tomas knew he could stand no more.
He reached down and pulled her hands away from him, his breath coming in harsh gasps. “I’m sorry, my love,” he said when he could speak. “I’m afraid that I cannot take more of your touch at the moment.”
“Did I hurt you?” Tiari asked, frightened she had done something wrong. Tomas’s laugh was rueful.
“No, you did not hurt me,” he said. “Quite the opposite. I am so excited that I am afraid my body will get carried away before you are ready for me.”
Tiari didn’t understand most of what he said, but she understood enough to know that he enjoyed her touch. That was a relief because she very much enjoyed the sensations that had run through her own body while she touched his.
“Would you like more wine?” Tomas asked.
“No, thank you,” she replied.
Suddenly she felt herself lifted into Tomas’s arms. The sensation of her bare skin against his was shocking, but in a very good way. When he laid her down on the bed and released her she felt a sense of loss again, but it was short lived as she felt him climb onto the bed beside her.
“You are so beautiful,” he said as he lay down beside her. “I barely know where to begin.”
Tiari smiled, then reached up with one hand until she found his shoulder. She placed her hand against it, then ran it lightly up to the side of his neck, reveling in the feel of hard muscle beneath smooth, warm skin. She slid her fingers to the back of his neck and tugged him toward her. “Kiss me, please,” she whispered.
Tomas immed
iately complied with his wife’s request, a thrill racing through him when her lips eagerly parted for him, her tongue meeting his stroke for stroke in equal passion. This was his Tiari. Sweet and innocent, yet hot and passionate at the same time. It was a combination that set his blood on fire.
He began thrusting his tongue in and out of her mouth while at the same time he cupped one breast in the palm of his hand. He brushed his thumb over the nipple, unsurprised to find it hard and tight. He tore his mouth from hers, suddenly desperate to taste more of her. He kissed his way down her jaw, across her throat, paused for a moment to trace her delicate collar bones with his tongue, and then, finally, he reached the hard, dark pink nipple that was just a few shades lighter than the red of her lips. The moment he sucked it into his mouth Tiari gasped and arched her back with pleasure and he hummed in approval as he wrapped his tongue around the turgid flesh.
After a few moments he moved to the other breast, already knowing that this would be one of his favorite activities from that moment on. He moved back to the first nipple, smiling to himself when Tiari’s hands buried themselves in his hair and began tugging at him in a silent bid for more.
He ran his hand down her side, exploring her ribcage, her tiny waist, her flat, silky stomach, and then the soft triangle of curls. He stroked the seam between her thighs lightly with his fingers, coaxing her gently. She froze for a moment, as though considering, then she relaxed beneath him and parted her legs. The scent of her moist arousal sent a rush of desire and need through him that was so strong he nearly lost control of himself. He lifted his mouth from her breast and clenched his entire body for long moments.
“Is something wrong?” Tiari asked uncertainly.
“Not at all,” he replied. “I’m just forcing myself to wait and as much as I want you, that is not an easy thing to do.”
“Then don’t,” she whispered.
Another wave of heat poured through him. He clenched his teeth together and forced it back. “I must,” he said. “I have to be sure you are ready.”
“I’m not sure what you mean by that,” she said. “I do know that I...want...something. Very much. Right now. Is that what you mean?”
Tomas groaned, then shook his head, denying himself the image her words conjured up. He shifted himself further down the bed and moved so that he was lying between her legs, which he held open wide with his hands. “You are so beautiful, Tiari mine,” he said as he gazed down at the moist pink petals surrounded by dark curls. Then he lowered his head and licked her lovingly, his body shuddering uncontrollably at the sweet, hot taste of her. Her high, gasping moans of pleasure spurred him on and he continued to lick the delicate flesh, exploring each fold and crevice, urging her higher and higher. He inserted one finger into her feminine channel, shuddering at the velvety heat that surrounded him. He added another finger, then carefully began to scissor his fingers, stretching her slowly. Before long she began arching her hips in a silent bid for more, so he added a third finger and began thrusting them gently in and out of her, deeper and deeper. When he felt her body tighten he sucked the tiny, hard nub of her clit into his mouth and flicked it with his tongue.
The taste of her orgasm was more erotic than anything he’d ever experienced in his life, and he knew he would never forget it. He continued to caress her with his tongue as her orgasm eased, then he crawled up her body, pausing to kiss her nipples which were now the same luscious red of her lips.
“Tomas, please,” she gasped, “I need...please.”
“Yes, Tiari mine, I need too,” he said, knowing that neither of them could stand another moment of waiting. He reached down between them and placed the tip of his cock against the center of her heat, then began pressing slowly into her. The hot, tight grip of her most sensitive flesh surrounding his was so intensely pleasurable that for a moment his vision darkened around the edges and he had to remind himself to breathe. He held himself still, his arms trembling while he gasped for air. When his vision cleared, he pressed in another inch and stopped again.
Tiari’s face was drawn with passion, her eyes closed, her hands gripping his shoulders tightly, her white skin flushed pink with her arousal. “How are you doing?” he asked.
“More,” she gasped, “please, more.”
He hesitated a moment, worried that he was going too fast, then realized that her need and desire was as strong as his own. He pressed in another inch and she whimpered, her head going from side to side. Another inch and he felt the thin barrier of her innocence.
“Please, Tomas,” she begged, nearly sobbing with need.
“This is the part that will hurt, Tiari-mena,” he said, his entire body so stiff with the tension required to hold himself back that he found it difficult to talk.
“Good, hurry,” she said, her hips arching up toward him.
Tomas pulled back, then gritted his teeth and plunged forward, tearing through her hymen and burying himself deep inside of her at long last. His body shuddered with the effort to hold himself still and wait until she was ready to go on.
“Are you all right?” he asked, vaguely remembering her soft gasp of pain beneath the harsh groan of his own pleasure.
“Yes, I’m fine,” she said, and he smiled at the impatience in her voice as she arched against him. Realizing suddenly that the moment of pain was now past, Tomas relaxed and let his body take over. He pulled back, then plunged into her depths again, groaning with pleasure as she arched upward to meet him stroke for stroke. Before long he was pounding into her, harder and deeper with each stroke, the pleasure rising so fast, and so high that he worried for one horrifying moment that he would climax before Tiari. Then he felt her slender legs wrap themselves around his waist and squeeze as she opened her mouth and screamed her pleasure. At the same time her tight walls clamped around his cock, and his own orgasm ripped through him, the pleasure so intense that his mind couldn’t quite encompass the reality of it.
And then, in the depths of his intense pleasure, he felt his soul touch hers, felt them meld together, joining as their bodies were joined, for one brief, timeless moment. This was what he’d hoped for, dreamed of, waited twelve long years for. It was real. Not just story or legend. Real. Their souls had touched, and neither of them would ever be alone again.
When he was able to think again he rolled to his side carefully, taking her with him, unwilling to leave her body just yet. He wrapped his arms around her and she rested her cheek against his chest, their hearts pounding in time with each other as they allowed their bodies to calm. Then he felt something hot and wet on his chest and his heart stuttered in fear.
“Tiari-mena,” he said, “are you crying? Did I hurt you?”
“No, you didn’t hurt me,” she said, then sniffled delicately. “I am crying with happiness, Tomas. When I’m done, can we do that again?”
Tomas laughed, then rolled over again so he could lean down and kiss her. “Yes, Tiari mine,” he said. “I think we can do that again. And again. And again. We have the rest of our lives to love each other.”
“It’s a start,” she said, then grinned. “I love you, Tomas.”
“As I love you, Tiari mine,” he said. “So very much.”
Chapter Twenty Four
“Lady Techu, awaken please,” Nikura called.
Karma’s eyes snapped open and she sat up while still trying to process what had awakened her.
“Lady Techu,” Nikura called again.
“Nikura?” she asked, confused. Nikura had never awakened her before. “What’s wrong?”
“We have a visitor,” Nikura said. “I apologize, but she insists that I wake you.”
“We’ll be right there, Nikura,” Zakiel said, surprising Karma. She looked down to see him watching her with a hint of worry in his eyes.
“I keep forgetting you can do that,” she said, smiling. “Do you know who the visitor is?”
“No, but I know that Nikura would not wake us for just anyone,” Zakiel said as he sat up and reached for h
er robe. Karma took the robe and slipped her arms into it while Zakiel pulled his pants on. When they were both dressed, after a fashion, Zakiel went to the door and opened it, gesturing at Karma to stay where she was, seated on the edge of the bed.
Nikura entered with an apologetic expression in his eyes. Right behind him floated the misty figure of an old woman, her figure bent, her hair as white as the remaining snow on the Hidden Sister. “Greetings, Cadusar Zabeth,” Karma said in surprise. She glanced at Zakiel who nodded slightly, indicating that he saw her as well.
“Greetings, Cadusar Zabeth,” Zakiel said, moving to stand beside Karma as Nikura sat on the floor at her other side.
“Greetings, Prince and Princess of Isiben,” Zabeth replied. “I apologize for awaking you, but there is no time in the Beyond, and events must take place at the time they are intended. My visit to you is intended to take place now.”
“We understand,” Karma said, her stomach clenching at the sadness she saw in Zabeth’s misty eyes. “What message do you have for us?”
“I bring troubling news,” Zabeth said. “Zamon Worrow of the Sirelina no longer walks the land of the living.”
Karma and Zakiel both gasped softly in surprise, then bowed their heads in sadness. “Worrow was a good man, and a wise one,” Karma said.
“He will be greatly missed,” Zakiel added.
“His spirit is rare and pure,” Zabeth said. “Only spirits such as his may become Spirit Guides, and only if torn before time from the land of the living.”
“Worrow was murdered?” Karma asked.
Zabeth nodded solemnly. “He will not be able to advise you for some time yet, but has asked, and been granted, the right to send you a message. I am the messenger. The message is this; I, Worrow of the Sirelina, was murdered by the flesh of Bredon, yet not by his spirit. My friends, know that Bredon is fudaso, an unknowing sacrifice, and conduit of necessity to an enemy you must treat with, else Rathira will fall to the Djinn. Without him at your side, Rathira will be lost to the enemy.”
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