by K. S. Ruff
“Good.” My eyes slid closed. I was praying the elevator wouldn’t stop on any other floor.
Rafael growled his rebuke before biting my neck.
“Awful,” I amended. “The bica was awful.”
“And this?” His tongue traveled the full length of my throat.
My legs clenched his thigh. “This… is good.”
His teeth raked the sweet spot behind my ear. “How was the chocolate mousse?”
“Barely tolerable,” I lied.
He released my wrists so he could slide his hands along my thighs. My dress inched up dangerously high. The elevator pinged. Rafael lifted me so that I was straddling his waist. He pulled the zipper down the back of the dress as he stumbled across the lobby.
I cried out as he yanked one sleeve down and latched onto my breast. My body trembled with need.
Rafael shifted me in his arms so he could swipe the card through the reader. “I could make love to you every minute of every day and still ache for you.”
Our eyes met, and I knew. Knight or not, I belonged to this insatiable man. “I love you,” I whispered.
His pupils dilated as he pushed the door open and kicked it closed. Rafael threw the card and the key fob on top of the counter. He pulled the dress up and over my head while he strode through the apartment.
I fumbled with the buttons on his shirt.
Rafael dumped me onto the bed. The cold satin sheets slid enticingly against my heated skin. Rafael made short work of his clothes before kneeling on the bed. He removed my thong and climbed back up my body until we were perfectly aligned. Then he allowed the full force of his muscular physique to settle on top of me.
I tried not to smile. He’d left the lipstick red heels on my feet. “I believe you were trying to prove something?”
Rafael forced my chin up with his forehead. He licked my neck again. “I intend to prove a lot of things to you.” He pulled my legs around his waist.
I sighed contentedly. Rafael was right where I needed him to be. “Like what?” I demanded breathlessly.
“Like how we should never be parted again.” He abandoned my neck and peered deep into my eyes. His coffee and chocolate infused breath mingled with mine, but his lips stopped just short of mine.
I moaned when he pushed just inside of me. “And?” I whispered across his lips. I tried to pull his head closer so I could kiss him, but he resisted. His mouth was still hovering just millimeters from mine.
His eyes grew dark and possessive. “I’m going to prove that this,” he pushed a little further while still denying the kiss, “is where I belong.”
My eyes fell closed as he began to fill me. I arched against him trying to encourage him along. “And?” I panted, still yearning for that elusive kiss.
“That you belong to me.” His hands fisted in my hair, holding me in place so I couldn’t kiss him. When my eyes opened, his eyes captured and held mine. He thrust deep enough to press against my womb.
My legs parted even more. “Kiss me. I want you to kiss me.” I groaned as he began moving deep and slow. My nipples brushed against the fine hair on his chest. I tried to pull him closer.
He continued thrusting in long, satisfying strokes. “Say it.”
“What?” I whimpered. With each stroke he pushed me higher, wound me tighter, left me yearning for more. I was already nearing release. Still he denied me.
He chuckled softly. I could feel the vibration against my chest. “That sex is better than bica.” He pulled back, abandoning my body.
My thighs clenched as I tried to force him back inside of me. “Sex is a million times better than bica,” I conceded, “but only with you.”
He released my hair and grasped my hands. “It is,” he agreed just before he slammed inside of me.
The world tilted. His tongue thrust deep inside my mouth, seeking… claiming… branding… everything. He kissed me long and hard… drove inside of me while devouring my mouth.
“Rafael,” I gasped. I hated breaking the kiss, but I couldn’t breathe.
His eyes darkened. He thrust even harder.
“Oh, God!” I screamed. The orgasm tore through me, sparked across every nerve ending, shot down every limb, before spiraling back and burrowing between my legs again.
Rafael’s lips slanted over mine. His muscles tensed when he began kissing me again. He thrust one last time, then stilled as he flooded me with heat. He kissed me until our bodies quieted, but he didn’t release me.
Rafael was still inside of me when we fell asleep, cocooned within those black satin sheets. The last thing I saw was the flickering of flames from the fireplace, dancing along those mysterious swords.
* * * * *
Rafael rose from the couch. “Dear God, what are you wearing now?”
I glanced down at what I assumed was a rather chic ensemble. “I’m not entirely sure.” The gray fitted tunic, black leggings, and smoky looking infinity scarf had been draped around a single hanger. I briefly contemplated black heels but chose the knee high boots instead.
He walked a tight circle around me before running his hand up my leg. “I think I like these even better than your yoga pants. Why don’t you wear pants like this at home?”
I shrugged. “I just never thought to shop for leggings.”
“You should.” His hand slid beneath the tunic while he kissed the sweet spot behind my ear. Within seconds he was fondling my breasts. “You should buy a lot of leggings.”
“Remind me to thank Eva for this wardrobe,” I murmured while his lips grazed my jaw. I wasn’t taking a single kiss for granted, so I kissed him with everything I had when his lips sought mine.
Grudgingly, he ended the kiss. “Eva will never forgive me if we cancel dinner tonight. She’s anxious to meet you.” He twined his fingers with mine before retrieving his keys and a bottle of wine from the counter. He tugged me toward the door. “I promise we’ll explore Lisbon tomorrow.”
We’d spent the entire day in bed, intermittently drinking bica, eating pastries Rafael secured from the corner bakery, planning our wedding, sleeping, and making love. “I’m far more interested in meeting Benjamim and Eva,” I confessed. I was hoping they’d offer some insight on the man I’d just agreed to marry.
My stomach did a little flip when he tucked me inside the Porsche.
“You ready?” Rafael asked after buckling up.
“As I’ll ever be.” Excitement won over fear when he turned the key.
The tires squealed when he peeled out of the garage. “They don’t live far.”
Curiosity got the best of me when Rafael drove outside the city center. We appeared to be driving along the Atlantic coastline. “They don’t live in Lisbon?”
He shifted gears. “They live in a nearby parish called Cruz Quebrada.”
We drove past a number of post-apocalyptic looking buildings. Low income housing, I presumed, based on the crumbling architecture, the decaying lawns, and the laundry draped outside the windows. “What’s up with all the graffiti?”
He glanced at the building on our right. “Graffiti is considered street art here. It’s encouraged in some areas, discouraged in others. The city council decided to make neglected and abandoned buildings available to street artists, so they’ll leave the historic sites alone. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always pan out that way.”
I wished I could read Portuguese so I could decipher the words marring the buildings. Abruptly, the landscape changed. This area boasted large single family homes. Most of them were white with red tiled roofs. Rafael turned off the main road and climbed a small hill. He turned down another street before parking next to a house with a swimming pool overlooking the ocean.
“Rafael!” Eva cried warmly. She kissed him on both cheeks and offered him a fierce hug before lecturing him in both Spanish and Portuguese.
Rafael laughed. “This is my fiancé, Kristine.”
Eva smiled and kissed both of my cheeks. “Welcome. Welcome.” She tugged on my arm while
pushing Rafael inside.
Benjamim strode across the room. “Rafael!” The two men hugged while exchanging hearty slaps on the back. “This must be Kristine, the woman who unwittingly stole your heart.” He scoffed at my outstretched hand and pressed a kiss to my cheek instead. “Welcome to the family.”
“Thank you, Benjamim, for everything. I understand you had the car serviced and the apartment stocked in advance of our arrival. We haven’t had to worry about a single thing.” I turned to Eva. “You must take me shopping while I’m here. I love your taste in clothes. Everything you picked out for me has fit beautifully. The red dress and heels…”
Eva laughed when a low growl rose from Rafael’s chest.
“… had the desired effect,” I finished with a lighthearted laugh.
Benjamim popped open a bottle of wine. “We’re happy to help, although we do have an ulterior motive. We’d like you to spend more time in Lisbon.”
Rafael pulled me close. “I’ll admit, I miss being here. Paris was nice, and I do enjoy living in Alexandria, but there’s no place quite like Lisbon.”
“It has been too long,” Eva scolded.
Benjamim handed us each a glass of wine.
I looked at Rafael. “How long have you been gone?”
“About a year. I spent the entire month of December here last year while you were with your cousin in Great Falls.”
Eva snorted. “Four weeks was not enough, besides you’ve been gone far longer than that.”
Rafael looked thoughtful, as if doing some additional math. “I moved… well, it was two years ago in September. I spent the holidays in Lisbon that first year while Michael was in Virginia and returned again in March when Kristine was in the Bahamas. So, I’ve been gone a little over two years, but I’ve been back three times… four, counting this trip.”
“They’ll visit more once Kristine is done with school,” Benjamim predicted. “You know how grueling school can be, and Kristine’s working while attending school full time.”
My eyes widened with surprise. A man I knew nothing about seemed to know all about me.
“You’re all he ever talks about,” Eva explained. “He’s also shared a number of pictures. That’s why it was so easy to shop for you.”
They led us out onto a large patio where plush outdoor furniture framed a square coffee table. A variety of olives, bread, cheese, and thinly sliced meat were sitting on the table, along with a stack of appetizer plates, cloth napkins, four sparkling waters, and two bottles of wine. The furniture was nestled between a palm tree and a large swimming pool with a built in hot tub. Two stainless steel patio heaters were glowing softly between the chairs and couch. “The temperature drops once the sun falls,” Benjamim explained.
Rafael and I sat next to one another on the couch. Eva claimed the chair closest to the house, and Benjamim settled into the chair opposite her. The patio had an amazing view of the Atlantic Ocean, although it felt odd, seeing the sun set on the same ocean where it rose in Virginia.
I scooted closer to Rafael. “I’d love to hear some stories about Rafael.”
Benjamim topped off our wine. “I assume she’s heard about the GOE?”
“Grupo de Operacoes Especiais, the Portuguese Police Special Operations Group,” Rafael explained.
I nodded.
Benjamim smiled. “Rafael was the youngest officer to be admitted to the GOE. He applied shortly after securing his master’s degree from the Higher Institute of Police Sciences and Internal Security. Only five percent of the applicants survive the first stage of training. Unlike Rafael, most of the candidates have spent years on the force. He’d been on the force for less than a year when he applied for the group.”
Rafael snagged a couple of olives. “The first stage of selective training is brutal, but it only lasts seven days. The second stage of selective training takes two months. You still have to undergo basic training when you’re admitted to the group, but that part was fun.”
“Fun?” Eva repeated incredulously.
Rafael shrugged. “We were trained in VIP protection, precision shooting, hostage extraction, hostage negotiation, and martial arts. I learned how to drive fast, and I got to blow stuff up.”
I laughed. “That explains why you’re so adept at driving the Porsche.” I knew Rafael was glossing over things, but I suspected he’d been trained to do that as well. He joined the special operations group because his parents were murdered. He wanted to protect others from that same dark fate. Those other candidates may have been more skilled and more experienced, but Rafael’s demons had rendered him a fiercely determined candidate.
“He served in the special operations group for six years before agreeing to work for Michael,” Benjamim continued. “Two years in counter-terrorism, four years in VIP protection.”
I felt… guilty. I couldn’t believe Rafael endured all that training and relinquished that career so he could babysit me.
Rafael’s eyes softened. “I wasn’t planning to leave the force, at least not initially. I only agreed to use my personal leave to watch over you while Michael checked on the renovations in Paris. The day I decided to leave the force was the day I discovered you crying on that park bench.” He scowled. “Michael wasn’t entirely honest about where things stood between the two of you. Kadyn threw me for a loop. You went to Montana, and then Justin kidnapped you. Michael couldn’t stay away after that. He sent me back to Paris to oversee the security installation for the mansion, and… well, you know the rest.”
I grasped his hand. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not.” He brushed a tear from my cheek before he kissed me.
“I’m going to check on dinner,” Eva interjected softly. She disappeared into the house.
“Rafael seems much happier,” Benjamim mused, “despite all of the horrific experiences the two of you have endured.”
My eyes sought Rafael’s. “So he knows?”
“He knows about your ex-husband, the Trout Lake incident, the attack in Paris, the Ukraine, and Mexico.” He squeezed my hand reassuringly.
“In a way, I’m relieved. Although, I can’t imagine what you must think of me.” I forced myself to meet Benjamim’s gaze.
“I see a strong and courageous woman who has given my friend a reason to choose life and love over death,” Benjamim answered frankly.
Rafael glanced at him in surprise.
“Michael wasn’t the only one questioning your decision to join the force. I thought you joined so you could fulfill some sort of death wish,” Benjamim explained. “Now the Order… that’s an entirely different story.”
Surprise turned to alarm.
Benjamim’s eyes widened. “You haven’t told her?”
Rafael didn’t respond.
“The Order?” I repeated. “What Order?”
“You have to tell her,” Benjamim whispered.
Eva returned with a large metal bowl. Tiny tendrils of steam curled in front of her. “Arroz de Tamboril cons Gambas,” she announced cheerily.
Benjamim stood. He pinned Rafael with a stern look. “I’ll get the bowls.” He turned Eva around and steered her back inside the house.
Rafael looked at me. “I…” He swallowed nervously.
“Rafael?” My heart skipped a couple of beats. He was not the type of man to get nervous… about anything.
“Do you remember our conversation from last night?”
“Oh, God.” I jumped to my feet. “You’re not. Please tell me you’re not.”
He stood.
I backed toward the pool. “Rafael,” I breathed. “You’re not. Tell me you’re not!”
Rafael took a single cautious step toward me. “I’m a Templar. I was inducted into the knighthood when I took a bullet for the Prime Minister five years ago.”
“A bullet?” I took another step back. I’d seen the man naked multiple times. I couldn’t recall any scars.
Rafael stepped closer. He lifted his arm and shirt. There, under his arm, wa
s a thin white scar. “The bullet grazed me when I dove on top of the Prime Minister and shoved him to the ground.”
Rafael’s swords, the knight, the king, and queen all flashed before my eyes. “You can’t be,” I argued. “You’re not poor or celibate.”
He took another step, just as my heel struck the edge of the pool. His words rushed out all at once. They sounded rehearsed but jumbled up. “The Knights Templar were dispensed from their vow of celibacy in 1496 and from their vow of poverty in 1505. They were secularized under Queen Maria’s rule… Queen Maria I of Portugal.” He took a deep breath. “Globally, there are two orders; one civil, one religious. The Templar faction in Portugal is strictly civil.”
“Faction?” I edged away from the pool. I couldn’t believe the Knights Templar still existed, that they were secular and global, and Rafael belonged to this archaic Order? What did that even mean? I shook my head in disbelief. The man standing in front of me was a complete stranger. I thought I knew who he was… but I didn’t. I’d agreed to marry him, and I didn’t even know who he was.
Rafael froze. He knew I was about to bolt. “I tried to tell you last night, but you seemed upset by the idea. The restaurant wasn’t the best place to explain. I’ve been trying to tell you all day, but…” He trailed off uncertainly. “I was worried you wouldn’t want to marry me.”
A strangled sound caught in my throat. “I don’t know you,” I whispered. “I don’t even know who you are.” He had a home, a car, and friends I knew nothing about. That was difficult enough, but this? This was...
Rafael lunged for me. His hands clamped over my arms as he pulled me against his chest. “You do know me. You know me better than anyone else. Look at me. Feel me!”
Every inch of his body strained against mine... his muscular thighs… an abdomen and chest carved from granite… broad shoulders… fiercely determined eyes. Every inch of this man screamed… knight.
He shook me gently, forcing me to meet his stormy gaze. “This doesn’t change anything. I’m still the same person you fell in love with… the man who loves you more than life itself.”
