Taurus

by Christine Elaine Black

  There is a place on the outskirts of our province, near the sea, a place where we lived as children, by the town of Thalassia. He intends to live on the old Aquilus estate in a simple house. He knows nothing of you but tried to make discreet inquiries.

  Your dear sister,

  Virga

  The scroll dropped from Kallie’s hand as she struggled from the chair. Taurus in Rome! To think he no longer ruled Panua churned her mind.

  “Mother, I must go to Thalassia immediately.”

  Carissa shook her head. “The baby is coming any day. Your impulsive ways must bend to your impending motherhood.”

  “All the more reason to be on my way today.” She stopped at the door of the house and gripped the edge of the frame, crying out in pain.

  Her father and her uncle came running at the noise.

  “The baby comes soon, whether you have plans or not,” her mother chided.

  “Gods!” Kallie muttered. “Of all the inconvenient times for a child to…” She had no thought to speak further as pain ripped through her body.

  “Maximus, help me get her to bed, and Atticus, you send for the midwife,” her mother coaxed confidently.

  In no condition to do anything but comply with her mother’s wishes, Kallie lay on her bed panting while her mother prepared the room.

  “I’ll track him down and show him how much I’ve suffered on his account,” Kallie gritted her teeth as another sweep of pain washed through her body.

  “You’ll have a sweet baby in your arms soon, and by then you won’t care about the pain and will hardly remember this part by the time it’s over.”

  Kallie shot her mother a withering look. The excruciating spasms came quickly and left just as suddenly, heralding the start of a completely new experience. From now on she shouldered the responsibility of another life.

  “Mother, I don’t think I’m ready for this!”

  “Few of us are ever truly ready,” Carissa soothed, “but we learn as we go.”

  A fierce scream erupted from her mouth even as the midwife arrived. Her mother took the opportunity to speak with her father.

  A somber expression covered the face of Maximus Octavius. “How is she?”

  “Time will tell.” Carissa shrugged.

  “I’ll kill him if anything happens to her or the child,” Kallie’s father vowed gruffly.

  Carissa squeezed his arm. “She is a strong girl, with a will to match.”

  “I mean to go to him, Father,” Kalllie panted between spasms.

  Maximus held his daughter’s determined look. “Why? Your life here with us is a good one. You and the babe will want for nothing.”

  Carissa spoke up. “You of all people know the answer to such a question.”

  Maximus relaxed his stance, nodding at his daughter. “You must make up your own mind about the baby’s father, one way or another.”

  ****

  Kallie lay back on the bed with her infant cradled in her arms and mused, partly in awe and partly in resignation.

  Why must he look so much like his father?

  She traced the contours of the tiny face with her fingertip. The nose and mouth, forehead and cheeks, even his tiny shell-like ears, were all Taurus in miniature.

  The entire family mooned over the new baby as the focus of the Gregorian household firmly fixated on his needs. Grandparents and great-granduncle wrapped willingly around his little finger at merely three days old. Kallie, recovering quickly from the rigors of pregnancy and childbirth, hummed a tune as she nursed him. Her father sat by her side.

  “What will you name him?”

  “I want his father to choose the name.” Kallie voiced her optimistic idea.

  Maximus nodded thoughtfully. “A great responsibility comes with a child,” he reminded her.

  Kallie stared at her father in delight. “Yes, you are right. That’s what I’ll call him for now,” she smiled.

  Maximus waited to be enlightened.

  “The perfect name for the son of Taurus. Magnus!”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Kallie watched from afar as a man walked into the small village of Aquila, returned from a day of laboring in the field. How different he looked from the first time they’d met. Still ruggedly handsome and powerful, but now with an inner peace, absent when he governed Panua. His reaction to her appearance might be anger, but she had little choice. Her secret must be told. It mattered not if the whole world never found out, except for him.

  He shared a laugh with a few men before they wandered away to find a watering hole to slake their thirst and return home for the night. The last drops from his waterskin dripped into his mouth before he turned onto the north road heading out of the village.

  Kallie remained hidden under low-hanging branches. Her horse and cart waited behind the thick cover of the trees. She breathed in and out slowly, her head full of reasons to turn and leave without ever looking back. Perhaps a woman filled his nights. One who erased his interest in the past and the memory of those he once knew. And perhaps he didn’t care to be found.

  She bit her lip and steeled her resolve after the long journey with Atticus. She glanced to the trees where her uncle waited, a sentinel. Her faithful guard for many months must be free of the responsibility placed on him. From this day forward she must either live off her brother’s good graces or tread an unknown path with a man who could bring her absolute misery if he desired. She risked everything. As soon as Taurus knew her secret he would gain power over her. He might want the child but leave her to face life alone. The question was whether he would do such a thing. Would Taurus be so cruel, break her world in two and shatter her heart with one swift move?

  She followed his path into the woods. A small home lay in a clearing amidst the heart of the undergrowth. She had lost sight of him as the cottage came into view and guessed he was inside making use of the last hours of daylight to eat and prepare for the next day.

  For a long time she stood in the same place. Dressed in her boyish clothes, her hair tied back in a tight knot at the nape of her neck, she hesitated, knowing it foolish. But once done, there was no going back. Afraid of her future, she turned from the cottage to think clearly. Words tumbled inside her head, and as she took her first step away from the clearing, a voice rang out.

  “If you mean to harm me, I will take action against you.” A familiar voice echoed in the clearing.

  Kallie froze but called back, “I mean you no harm.” She scanned the trees, waiting for his reply. It came from a different direction.

  “Drop your weapons.”

  “I have no weapon. I am unarmed.”

  “You are playing with your life by delaying,” an amused voice taunted her.

  Kallie warmed at the flood of memories. “We could make camp together. I have supplies enough for both of us.” She heard him chuckle nearby.

  “With you and your giant friend? I think not.” Taurus stepped out from the cover of the trees. His voice broke with emotion. “How did you find me?”

  “With help from a friend,” Kallie whispered, overcome with both joy and fear at seeing him face-to- face.

  He stood his ground, unsure of her purpose. “Why?” he rasped.

  Unable to speak, she quenched her parched mind at the sight of him. Strength, power, and raw masculinity enveloped him.

  His hand raised in a gesture of resignation. Pain flitted over his face. “You have every reason to think me a complete fool. I had no right to treat you as a possession. I took your precious gifts and never once spoke of your beauty or how special you are, Kallie. I care for you more than I have ever cared for anyone.”

  “Taurus…” she began, “there is something...”

  He shook his head. “I am a poor laborer, and you are filled with the finest Roman blood. I am nothing but a peasant adopted by Lidia and named after a vile creature who clawed his way through life.” He gave a wry laugh. “I am simply Taurus Aquilus. That’s who I truly am, Kallie, merely an orphan witho
ut a rich benefactor.”

  Staring at each other, the tension threatened to force Kallie to her knees. “You are the same man I knew in Panua. I see no difference because your name has changed.”

  “I command no army or city. I have no fortress or palace to call home.” Taurus rubbed his forehead, dirt smudged across his face. “I have nothing, and I want for nothing in return.” He shot a look at the cottage. “Even that sorry shack is borrowed,” he mocked.

  “And your wife, the woman you married, where is she?” Kallie forced the hope out of her voice.

  His brows creased together. “You think me married all this time?”

  “I am not sure. I truly heard no news from Panua until I received a letter from your sister.”

  Taurus tilted his head in confusion, eyes glinting in the setting sun. “You traveled all this way unsure if I married another? What then is your purpose?”

  The blood drained out of her face. The time to share the reason for her need to find him had arrived, and the explanation failed to materialize. “Come with me. It shall be revealed.”

  Taurus hesitated for half a heartbeat but accompanied her to the road. The horse and cart waited at the end of the track. Taurus slowed, wary upon seeing the giant, but the big man ignored him, mindful of Kallie’s instructions.

  Taurus drew up behind her, holding back a few paces.

  “Ave,” Atticus said gruffly.

  Taurus inclined his head. “Ave,” he replied cautiously.

  “We need time alone, Uncle.” Kallie paid no attention to the men sizing one another up.

  Atticus grunted, headed for the road, and disappeared around a bend.

  “I always intended to fight him to the death, but now I hold no animosity for him.” Taurus shrugged.

  Kallie shook her head, distracted. “Taurus, do not be angry with me. When I fled Panua I did not know. Truly, had I known I might have considered staying, even though you shamed me before the whole world.”

  Taurus listened while she stammered in disconnected statements.

  “I could have put up with it. I might even have liked the girl you were to marry, even though I don’t believe sharing a man is…”

  Taurus placed his hands on her shoulders to shake her lightly into the present.

  “What are you saying?” Her eyes locked onto his warm and inviting stare. They hadn’t touched in almost a year. “Kallie,” he murmured, as their eyes held. “You are more beautiful than I even dared to dream.” Her lips parted and he bent to kiss her, tender and gentle. Their warm breath mingled in the cool evening air.

  “Taurus, I want you to know I didn’t mean for it to happen this way. Fate adds a twist and a turn that we…”

  “You talk in riddles,” he chuckled patiently, unaware that fate planned to change him in a way no one could believe possible.

  Kallie edged nearer the cart and cooed in her peculiar way.

  “Are you truly all right?” Taurus asked, as a bundle of swaddling filled her arms.

  She hesitated, knowing his world was about to shift and alter with the first glimpse of his baby. She offered the boy to his father for the first time, pride and joy filling her heart and soul.

  “I haven’t given him his true name, but I call him Magnus. You’ll know why after you spend time with him. He has a big presence for such a little person.”

  Taurus lifted the child out of her arms in awe. “This is my doing.”

  “Yes, it most certainly was.”

  “I paid the crone to switch your herbs into a mix to help bring a child. She tried to explain on her deathbed but I did not understand, at the time, that she meant a child.”

  Kallie looked skeptical. “Why?”

  “I thought it a way to annoy Rome and the East. Perhaps, all along, I searched for a way to keep you with me.” Taurus’ fascinated gaze held fast to his child. The baby’s hand moved in the air and grasped at nothing. Tiny eyes opened at the sound of a new and deep voice. He gurgled at Taurus, and then his attention strayed toward his mother.

  “He’ll be hungry soon. There won’t be much time for talk while he is in need of milk.”

  Arms and legs kicked wildly and the tiny mouth opened in excitement. Kallie sighed and took him into her arms.

  “I can feed him in this wagon or at the house. I’d prefer indoors, away from the cool night air.”

  Taurus jumped into action and led the horse and cart down the path, while she hurried alongside him. The house was meager but comfortable. Taurus drew up a chair and lit the fire. As Kallie sat feeding the baby, Taurus poured the wine and broke the bread.

  “Here, you must be hungry. But what of your uncle?”

  “Atticus will return later.” Kallie smiled down at the baby.

  Taurus looked on as she fed their child, compelled to marvel at his son. “He’s so small and yet perfectly formed. A strange thing—children never interested me, and now I find I want to know everything about him.”

  Kallie nodded. “Yes, he is all I can think about day and night.” She raised her head and looked him straight in the eye. “And his father, too. Taurus, I intended to write, once settled with my parents, but I heard rumors of Panua and the emperor’s proclamation—it is now a part of Rome.”

  Taurus briefly outlined his trip and his meeting with Caius and Virga. Magnus dozed in her arms, drunk on his mother’s milk. Kallie passed him to his father, and Taurus held him like a man holding his most precious possession. He gazed tenderly, his lips curved in a satisfied smile as the baby lay sleeping in his arms.

  “What do you think of Magnus Aquilus?” Kallie asked during a lull in their conversation.

  “He is strong and sturdy,” Taurus said, solemnly.

  “I meant his name. Perhaps you would prefer we call him Taurus, or some other family name.”

  Taurus shifted, accommodating the baby’s weight in his arms. His long lean legs stretched out casually. “Hmm,” he thought for a moment. “He suits Magnus. It is a grand name for the nephew of an emperor.”

  “He is your son. You must choose his name,” Kallie insisted, worrying he might later regret the boy’s name.

  “Will you be my wife, Kallie?”

  Caught off guard, she whispered, “I thought you didn’t want marriage. We discussed it in Panua, remember?”

  “I didn’t want marriage with any woman until I met you, but I stupidly thought I could have you and Panua. I deluded myself with the fantasy of keeping the citizens of a petty little state happy, even if it meant hurting you.”

  Kallie caressed the baby’s downy head, not daring to believe he truly meant it.

  “Convinced that you were content with our arrangement, I foolishly considered you would settle for less than an equal part in our bond. Your brother is a wise man. He has with Virga what I wanted with you. A woman, a friend, and a companion, as well as the love of my life.”

  Taurus glanced away in shame at the memory of his actions. “You suffered as my prisoner when I should have honored you as my guest. I am no better than the satrap and his minions.”

  Kallie lifted Magnus and placed him in a reed basket beside her chair. He made a little squawking sound, and she soothed him for a moment until he settled. “I enjoyed our arrangement, except for the fact you were marketing for a wife,” Kallie mused.

  “You’d do better to take the babe and return to Rome. Allow your brother to arrange a decent union, a suitable match for your station.”

  “I want my son raised by his true father, not by a social climber who wishes to advance a political ambition.”

  “You could have any man you laid your eyes on. A senator, a governor, even a king, if you set your mind to it. Your hesitation in the woods belies the sureness of your decision.”

  “I know who I can have,” Kallie replied without arrogance, “but I want my son’s father.” She flashed a defiant yet playful look. “As the father, you hold dominion over your child’s life—and your wife.”

  “No woman affects me th
e way you do. It is you who hold dominion over me. I am mad to suggest an alternative, even if it’s better for you and the babe.” He took her into his arms. “Are we in agreement? You and I, and Magnus, are a family.”

  “Yes,” Kallie echoed, “we are a family.” She glanced at their son, sleeping peacefully after drinking his fill. “We have some time before he needs mothering again.” She tilted her face up to his. Her lips parted and her eyes invited him to make advances upon her.

  “I hardly deserve your attention, Lady,” Taurus groaned as he kissed her cheek.

  “But I merit yours.” Kallie sighed as his hands found their way under her clothing. She reached for and tugged the hair knotted at her neck. It tumbled down in long, dark waves. Her fingers found the lacings of his tunic, and after a few kisses they withdrew into the next room, shedding the last few garments separating their desire to be together.

  ****

  They slid between the cool sheets, caressing one another. Kallie gasped at the boldness of his exploration. Enough time had passed since her baby’s arrival, but she blushed at the uninhibited delight her newly enlarged bosom brought to her beloved. He stroked and petted her tender breasts, licking and nibbling with a minimum of restraint, until she pleaded for him to release the milk straining to burst from her swollen mounds. “Your son will fuss if you take all his milk,” she moaned.

  “I may leave him something to suck on,” Taurus growled. He reached for her hips and pulled her close, his hard shaft trapped between their bellies. She braced against his body, anticipating the moment they came together as one, rekindling their love and passion with a familiar intimacy shared so often in the past.

  “Every day I missed you, Taurus.” Kallie pressed her lips against his forehead.

  “Before we join as one, know that I adore you and only you, Kallie. I pledge my fidelity to you, and from this day forward I give you my everlasting love.” He took her hands and kissed her fingertips.