Those wonderful memories stood in stark contrast to her present reality.
No wonder he haunted her.
Katina turned the simple gold ring on her finger, the one set with a single cabochon carnelian. She’d never taken it off, not since Alexander had placed it on her finger. She knew Cetos wasn’t happy about that—she also wore the much wider golden ring he’d given her, but didn’t remove the carnelian. The russet stone gleamed in the gold setting, making her think of the fire and clay of her pottery.
Katina shaped the pot and reminded herself of her good fortune. She had a home. She had food to eat and wood for the fire, blankets for the night and a few ornaments for her hair. Her son was strong and healthy, even if he was gone. There were others less fortunate than herself.
The clay rose between her fingers, coaxed by her touch to take the shape of a bowl as she turned the wheel with her foot. She tried to find the joy in her craft, but it eluded her. The pot looked heavy and graceless, just like all the others she’d made.
Would Alexander have blamed her for letting their son be taken away? She doubted it. He’d been from Sparta, and they were a tough breed of warriors. Alexander had never been afraid to face difficult choices or to fulfill his duties. In fact, he’d probably endured the same separation and training as a boy that Lysander now faced. He probably would have thought it right for Lysander to go.
He certainly would have kept the pledge to his kind. As much as she had admired his sense of honor, there had been times when she felt Alexander dispassionate. He could be so still and impassive that she’d wondered more than once if he was made of stone.
Was that why he hadn’t come back? Had their marriage been a duty for him? Had he thought his obligation fulfilled when their son had been born?
Katina wanted to believe otherwise. She wanted to believe that she’d given herself to him with a love that had been returned.
But as the years passed with no word, she had begun to doubt.
She closed her eyes as she formed the rim of the bowl, letting her fingers find the way, and began to daydream. She savored the sense that Alexander was close to her, maybe hovering on the threshold, watching her with that little smile on his lips.
When she opened her eyes and turned, he’d be there, she told herself. He’d be in the doorway, watching her in silence, that familiar heat in his eyes. The sign of his desire had always made her heart leap. In bed, she’d never had any doubt of his passion for her, even if it had been carefully hidden away otherwise.
What she wanted was to be with him again.
That wasn’t going to happen. Katina’s daydream shattered and she forced her eyes open. She surveyed the bowl before her without satisfaction. It was, at best, functional. Maybe it needed a pair of handles. Maybe she should roll the clay back into a ball while it was soft.
“A customer, my lady,” the young slave girl, Zeta, said. “A gentleman.”
Zeta’s tone showed her surprise, and Katina was surprised as well. She didn’t do a bustling trade, not by any means. A sale, even one of compassion, might lift her spirits. She draped the bowl with a damp cloth, before wiping her hands with care.
“How can I be of assistance, sir?” she asked, trying to work a last bit of clay from beneath her fingernail.
He said nothing, although she felt his presence. The skin prickled on the back of her neck, her memory of Alexander coming uncomfortably to the fore. Katina frowned with impatience at her own whimsy. There was no point in dwelling on the past.
She pivoted to face the client, a polite smile curving her lips.
It faded at once.
For Alexander did stand on her threshold.
Katina stared. Alexander had changed and not changed. She would have known him anywhere, that was for certain. His hair was still ebony and wavy, so unruly that she longed to push her fingers through its thickness. It was a bit shorter than it had been, but looked tidy and crisp. It suited him. He was tanned to a deeper shade of brown and his clothing was odd, presumably because he had traveled far. She ached at the weariness in his expression and the lines of exhaustion around his mouth. He was still tall and broad and seemingly immovable, a man who might have been a statue—save for his eyes. Her heart clenched with painful force, then began to pound when she saw the heat in his dark eyes.
The passion burned there, the passion she’d never been able to resist. When he looked at her like this, Katina had been certain they were destined to love each other for all time.
“Alexander!” she whispered.
He smiled a little. “You remember.”
“Of course!” she said, then voiced her fear. “I thought you had forgotten me.”
Alexander shook his head, looking so sad that she wanted to hold him forever. “We were so lost, Katina, but now I am found.” His voice was husky with a rare display of emotion, one that brought tears to her own eyes. “My Katina.” Alexander lifted his hand toward her and it was all the invitation she needed. Katina threw herself into Alexander’s arms and lifted her mouth for his kiss, just as she had done a hundred times before. His arms closed around her, unmistakably real and heartbreakingly familiar.
His mouth locked over hers, his kiss as potent as she recalled. He kissed her as if he couldn’t get enough of her, as if he would make up for every lost moment on this very day. Katina tasted her own salt tears in their kiss but didn’t care. She wound her fingers into his hair, running her hands over him, arching her back so that she was pressed against his muscled body. She wanted to feel the lean strength of him against her, and she wanted to feel the heat of his skin pressed against hers. As always, Alexander’s kiss kindled a passion that Katina couldn’t deny and didn’t want to. His touch could make her forget everything except the desire between them, and in his embrace, Katina felt warm for the first time in years.
It was a long, slow kiss and one that left her blood simmering.
Alexander finally lifted his head, his regret obvious, but didn’t release Katina. He studied her and smiled. Katina knew she wasn’t the alluring virgin she’d been when first they met, but Alexander clearly liked what he saw. He wiped her tears from her cheeks with his thumb and arched one brow. His dark eyes twinkled, as if they were filled with stars, and Katina smiled back at him.
“In the courtyard,” he teased and she blushed, knowing they’d been so impetuous more than once in the past.
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” she replied and his smile broadened.
“How you tempt me, my bold Katina.”
His tone was so affectionate that she impulsively kissed him again. “Still?”
“Still,” he said with conviction, his gaze slipping over her face as he surveyed her closely. She knew he did not miss a single change, and also that he loved her all the same. “Always,” he murmured and her heart leapt.
“I would tempt you more,” she whispered wickedly. “But the slave girl...”
“Will be glad to have gossip to share,” Alexander said with that lazy confidence Katina had so missed. There was something so steady about him, a rocklike conviction that made Katina’s world seem secure.
How she’d yearned for his return.
He glanced down at her hand, smiling with real pleasure when he saw his ring still on her finger, and Katina’s heart skipped with joy. Alexander brushed his lips across hers, then let his mouth hover over hers as he held her gaze. As always, he gave her the choice, which only made him more irresistible. “Or maybe you didn’t miss me in this way?” he murmured, clearly knowing she had. When he teased her, his eyes sparkling and his manner playful, Katina wanted him all the more.
“Of course!” She laughed at him, then caught his head in her hands, pulling him down for another kiss. This time, she was purposeful and passionate, intending to leave no doubt in his mind of his welcome. Alexander caught his breath when her tongue slid between his teeth, then hauled her even closer, kissing her with crushing intensity. His erection strained against his clothing, so
large and hard that Katina had no doubt of his desire.
It was intoxicating to know that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. She met him touch for touch, loving the sense of communion she felt in these encounters. Alexander groaned, then swept her into his arms. He strode across the courtyard, never breaking his kiss. Katina wound her arms around his neck, wanting all he had to give.
It had been so long.
His touch felt so right.
In fact, nothing had felt right without him. Katina was on her back on her bed, her belt untied and Alexander’s hands beneath her tunic before she opened her eyes. He kissed her again, the intoxicating leisure of his kiss making her forget everything but the magic of his touch. She could think of nothing but this man she loved with all her heart, this man she had feared to never see again.
Alexander’s hand closed over her breast, and Katina moaned as he rolled the taut peak between his finger and thumb. He lifted her tunic and bent to take her nipple in his mouth, suckling her so that Katina thought she would be overwhelmed by pleasure. His hands felt large on her body, strong and warm and firm, yet he was so gentle that she couldn’t have denied him anything. He was so determined to find pleasure together that Katina knew he had dreamed of this moment, too.
Alexander’s fingers slid beneath the hem of her chiton, and she knew what he would do. Her heart skipped a beat, because she had loved this kind of play. She caught her breath at the heat of his hand on her leg, his touch sliding ever upward, and fell back in surrender. She was his for the taking, and she heard from his chuckle that he knew it. His fingers slipped between her thighs, his caress on her wet heat making her gasp with delight.
“Katina,” Alexander whispered with awe, then caught her mouth beneath his own once more. He kissed her again, his fingers tormenting her until she writhed on the bed. Her body was filled with a pleasure that surged to greater intensity, like a flame coaxed to burn brighter and brighter. Her hands were on Alexander’s shoulders, her fingers gripping his solid strength, his body providing an anchor for her in the storm he roused with his touch.
She was desperate to feel his skin against hers and see him nude again, but his clothing was so strange that she didn’t know how to begin to disrobe him. She ran her hands over him repeatedly, then shoved her fingers into his hair.
Alexander lifted his head, his eyes twinkling.
“Don’t stop,” she whispered and he grinned.
“Not yet.” Alexander slid down the length of her, parted her thighs with his hands, and lowered his head to flick his tongue across her arousal. Katina moaned from the depths of her soul. Only Alexander could give her such pleasure. Only Alexander could make her act like a wanton.
And Katina didn’t care.
She wanted him, over and over and over again. No matter what price she had to pay, she would have this moment, with no regrets. She felt the heat of Alexander’s breath as he paused in his torment of her, then he kissed her in that intimate place and all coherent thought left her mind.
There was only Alexander, only the pleasure he gave and the surety of her love for him.
And in this moment, that was enough.
* * *
Alexander’s welcome couldn’t be mistaken. Katina’s body told the truth of her thoughts, as it always did. It had always been easier for them to communicate by touch than with words, and as far as Alexander was concerned, they could talk later. First, they would restore the power of their union. First, they would recover the magic.
Then they could resolve the details.
There was nothing in his universe in this moment except Katina, and his joy to be with her again. For the moment, there was the love shining in her eyes, the dark majesty of her hair, the supple strength of her body and the wet welcome between her thighs. She was as much of a feast as Alexander recalled, so sweet and hot and responsive that he knew there could never be another woman for him. There was no pretense in her and he loved the honesty of her passion. He had never doubted what Katina had wanted of him, and he was profoundly glad to learn that had not changed.
He was more than ready to give her all she desired and wished he could make her dreams come true.
He felt a strange flutter on his skin when his heart swelled with love, but couldn’t make sense of the sensation that he’d lost something. He’d found something precious here, against all odds, and he was going to make the most of it.
Alexander urged the tide to rise within Katina, proud beyond all that he could still please his wife so well. He teased her and drove her higher, then withdrew in the right moment, knowing her well enough to extend her torment and her pleasure. She moaned and protested incoherently, but Alexander wanted this union to be perfect.
He wanted to prove that it was worth the wait.
The third time her passion rose, he waited until that ideal moment to graze his teeth across her turgid clitoris. Katina gasped, then gained her release in a shaking torrent. Her legs locked around his head involuntarily and she moaned as if her world was ending. Alexander savored her pleasure. She was flushed when her breathing returned to something like its regular pace, and her eyes were sparkling.
She was so beautiful that his heart ached at the time they’d lost. He did not want to know, not yet, just how months he had been gone. Even if it had been a year, he would make it up to her.
For now, Katina and this reunion was enough.
Alexander rose to his feet, knowing that Katina watched him with a hunger for more. Her thoughts were so easily read when they made love, and he was glad that she’d never had any inclination to play games with desire. She was impetuous and passionate, but utterly true.
Alexander unbuckled his belt and cast it aside, liking how she smiled as he shed his clothes. She sat up on the bed, reaching to touch each exposed increment of skin, as if she were as anxious to caress him as he was to caress her. Alexander shed his clothing and boots with record speed, his boots falling to one side, his shirt and trousers to the other.
“Your clothing is so strange,” she said, and a question filled her gaze. “I wouldn’t have known where to start.”
Alexander didn’t want to talk about where he had been. Not yet. The tale would take too long and he wanted this reunion first.
“Is that why you watch me so closely?” he teased. “To have me naked whenever you so choose?”
“Maybe I’ll keep you naked for a while. Until you please me enough.” Katina laughed, then stopped, confusion lighting her gaze. She stood up and reached a fingertip to touch the tattoo on his upper arm, the one souvenir he still bore from the future. Alexander winced when she touched it, not because it hurt but because he didn’t want to explain all of that as yet. “A magical beast upon your skin,” she said with wonder, and met his gaze. She clearly was curious.
“It doesn’t matter,” Alexander said, his voice rougher than he intended. He knew that once her questions began, she would not fall silent until she knew everything of where he had been. Her inquisitiveness was a trait he admired, but he needed her touch first. He put a fingertip on her lips, savoring their softness. “This first,” he urged, knowing he would beg if he had to. “I’ve been without you too long to keep to the thread of any story otherwise.”
“So honest.” She smiled. “You never could lie.”
Alexander shook his head. “Not to you.”
Katina was clearly pleased by this. She drew him into her embrace, then granted him a thoughtful glance. “How many other women?” she whispered when he would have kissed her again. Her gaze was searching. “Just tell me that.”
“None,” Alexander said with finality. “For there can be no other woman for me.”
“Only you could have managed that feat,” she said with pride, which confused him.
“I don’t understand.”
“Your word is your bond, Alexander. I knew that long ago. It is something I admire about you.” She ran her hands over his head again and her eyes glowed. “Only you could have denied y
our pleasure so long to keep a pledge to me.”
Alexander took that as an invitation. He kissed her and his embrace soon turned hungry, his passion for her contained far too long. Now that he was with Katina, he wasn’t certain how long he could last. He’d denied himself for so long, and his passion was a tide that couldn’t be stopped. He moved them with purpose to the narrow bed, not wanting to rush her, but compelled by his body’s need. Katina smiled and leaned back, opening her thighs to him in invitation.
She’d always understood him so well. Alexander couldn’t have refused her to save his life. He slid into her wet heat with a sigh, unable to remember when any sensation had felt so good.
Or so right.
Katina ran her hands over him, delight in her eyes. Alexander rolled on the bed so that he was on his back and she was sitting astride him. She smiled as she pulled her tunic and chiton over her head, then tossed them to the floor. She was even more beautiful than he had recalled. Her nipples were tight and dark, her breasts high and just large enough to fill his palms. Her waist was narrow and her belly not quite flat. He ran his hands over her, remembering how he had loved the look of her when she’d carried his son and wondering if they would have more.
The idea made his chest tighten. It seemed impossibly wonderful that he could have a future again, that he could plan his days and nights with his beloved, that the darkfire had given him such a gift as this.
Then Katina unfastened her hair, letting it fall over her shoulders like a dark veil. It was as glossy and thick as he remembered, as wavy as the curl of the ocean’s tide and darker than a river at midnight. It flowed over her shoulders and down her back, cascading all the way to her hips. He’d always loved her hair. At the sight of its loosened splendor, Alexander was lost all over again.
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