‘Are marital relations considered sinful?’
‘Of course not,’ Berengaria said stiffly. ‘As long as the wife is not enjoying them. My priest says that it is sinful for a woman to enjoy coupling, she is just there to give pleasure to her husband.’ She looked thoughtfully at Edwina. ‘Did you enjoy relations with your husband?’
Edwina shook her head. ‘I did not. However, he was a cold and brutal man, unlike King Richard, who will no doubt treat you with gentleness and understanding.’
‘You think he will?’ Berengaria asked, appearing a mite uneasy. ‘He seems kind and he is charming, he has even written poetry for me. But I spend little time in his company.’
‘Only because he has been busy with his plans to recapture the Holy Land,’ Edwina said reassuringly. As she turned towards Berengaria, she felt the towel pull away from her even more.
‘You think that is the only reason? I fear that he does not like me and that he is unhappy with me in some way.’
‘Not so.’ Stephen had told Edwina that Richard was not altogether enamoured with his betrothed but surely when he got to know her better, he would come to see how sweet-natured and appealing she was beneath her pious exterior. ‘You are wrong in your assumptions.’
‘I hope so.’ Berengaria frowned uneasily. ‘I am beginning to fear that I was wrong to insist on coming here. They have housed us royally yet they have taken away our garments and not provided us with suitable nightclothes. Do you not find that troubling?’
‘It may well be that it is the custom here to sleep unclothed,’ Edwina pointed out. ‘However, to be truthful I do not know if your decision was right or wrong. Perhaps we will discover that in the morning, when you speak to the emperor. If his intentions are in any way dishonourable then he is a fool, because King Richard is a powerful warrior, who could easily crush the emperor and his army underfoot.’
‘Why else would they call him the Lionheart?’ Berengaria said with pride. ‘Yet I feel so confused.’ She slid a little closer to Edwina. ‘And a little wicked being naked beneath the bedclothes.’
‘Why wicked?’
‘Because the soft linen sheets against my bare flesh feel oddly sensual,’ Berengaria admitted shyly. ‘Especially when you are so close to me.’
‘Sensual,’ Edwina muttered, having no idea why her heart was suddenly beating faster. There was a strange kind of excitement about being in bed with Berengaria when she was near naked and the princess was unclothed. Yet what could be stimulating about that?
‘Tell me.’ Berengaria suddenly slid closer and cautiously touched Edwina’s bare arm. ‘What is it like to couple with a man? Your skin is so soft, yet I presume that a man’s would be smooth but more resilient somehow.’ Her spice-scented breath brushed Edwina’s cheek and she could sense the heat emanating from Berengaria’s body.
‘A man’s flesh is different,’ Edwina admitted. The unaccountably strange emotions she was experiencing became stronger and she had no idea why. ‘It is smooth and unyielding because of the strength and hardness of their muscles. Their bodies are far larger and more powerful than ours. It is very pleasant to be close to them and you feel so secure in their embrace.’
Berengaria gently trailed her fingers up Edwina’s arm and she felt the hairs on the back of her neck and arms prickle as if her body was somehow becoming more and more alive. Gently, Berengaria brushed the tangled golden locks of hair away from Edwina’s collarbone and breasts.
‘Tell me more,’ Berengaria said huskily. ‘I know nothing of what men and women do when they come together. My confessor told me that I should not ask, that it was my husband’s place to show me.’
‘A woman should have knowledge of such matters.’ Edwina recalled the gentle, loving way Stephen had seduced her the first time they had made love. The tender understanding he had displayed when she had gifted him her virginity. Richard did not strike her as a man who would bother to be that gentle and cautious with his new bride. ‘Has no one ever told you anything?’
‘Nothing at all. I like you, Edwina, and I feel comfortable in your presence. Although usually I do not find placing my trust in others at all easy.’ Berengaria did not seem concerned by the intimacy of their contact now as she snuggled closer until the soft curves of her stomach pressed against the fabric that was untidily bunched around Edwina’s slim hips. ‘Being close to you is oddly comforting. You can be like the sister I never had, and you can tell me everything you think I need to know about matters of the flesh.’ She smiled innocently at Edwina. ‘First, does he kiss you? I came upon one of my ladies-in-waiting in Navarre when she was passionately embracing a young knight. He was kissing her and she seemed to be enjoying it.’
‘Kissing can be delightful,’ Edwina cautiously admitted, still confused by the strange emotions Berengaria’s close proximity was arousing in her. The princess’s body was warm and felt incredibly soft and the sweet smell of the perfumed water still lingered on her skin. It was so very different from the feel of Stephen’s firm flesh, yet it was still surprisingly pleasant.
‘But you said that you did not like bedding your husband, so I must surmise that if you say kissing is delightful, then you have kissed other men?’ Berengaria smiled and ran the tip of her pink tongue over her full bottom lip. ‘Have you perchance kissed the Comte?’ This time it was Edwina’s turn to blush and, when she did not reply at once, Berengaria gave a soft laugh. ‘Then you have.’
‘You do not approve?’
‘Approve?’ Berengaria gently touched Edwina’s trembling lower lip with her fingertip. ‘Stephen is handsome and you are no longer married, so it is not wicked at all, is it?’
Edwina suddenly found that she couldn’t move. There was a strange bond between her and Berengaria; an intimacy she could not, or would not, even begin to understand, let alone explain. ‘Whether wicked or not, kissing him is wonderful, especially when he puts his tongue in my mouth and twines it caressingly around mine.’
‘His tongue?’ Berengaria moved her head until it was level with Edwina’s. ‘I don’t understand – you will have to show me.’
‘You mean kiss you?’ Edwina asked in surprise. Yet in truth she was not entirely sure whether she was surprised or even concerned by the suggestion. Part of her was intrigued by the wild notion as she wondered what it would feel like to have a woman’s lips touch hers and share something as intimate as a kiss with someone of her own sex.
‘My priest has warned me against all sins, even listing them for me. Yet he has never said that a kiss between females is sacrilegious. Is it not just a sign of affection between friends?’ Berengaria moved closer until their lips were almost touching. ‘Show me what a kiss is like.’
Berengaria’s warm breath mingled with hers and almost without thinking Edwina moved a fraction closer until their lips made contact. She immediately felt a dart of something inexplicably strange slide insidiously through her body. The treacherous delight made her press her lips closer until their mouths were conjoined; hot, warm, moist lips pressed passionately together in a gesture purely of friendship, nothing more. Berengaria’s tongue moved first, the tip tantalisingly caressing Edwina’s tongue, twining around it like a warm pleasure-giving serpent. It brought with it a wild dissolute emotion that turned Edwina’s perceptions upside down and around and around. She found herself sharing with Berengaria a kiss as passionate and unforgiving as that between a man and a woman.
When Berengaria breathlessly pulled away, she stared incredulously at Edwina, her hazel eyes full of puzzlement and awe. ‘That was extraordinary. It has made me feel strange and full of a wild excitement. My heart is beating so fast.’ Pulling back the sheet, she took hold of Edwina’s hand. ‘I feel as if my insides are melting and I am warm and hot just here.’ She innocently pressed Edwina’s palm against her lower stomach. Unconsciously Edwina moved her fingertips and, as they tantalisingly brushed the sensitive flesh of her belly, Berengaria gave a soft groan. ‘Why should that be?’
‘I am no
t sure,’ Edwina said, conscious that she was also breathless and shared the same treacherous heat in her stomach. She was still confused as she was experiencing something like desire, a feeling more akin to the sensations Stephen aroused in her when he made love to her. How could her body be consumed by this faithless fire when she wasn’t being seduced by the man she adored? It was as incomprehensible to her as it appeared to be to Berengaria. ‘It must be uncertainty, concern for what is happening.’
‘Yes, uncertainty,’ Berengaria agreed. ‘In that case should we not try to comfort one another?’ She plucked at the towel tangled around Edwina’s hips. ‘That must be most uncomfortable. Remove it and then we can go to sleep.’
‘Very well.’ The remaining candle was burning low now, the wax melting swiftly. It flickered unsteadily, making it difficult for Edwina to see Berengaria’s expression in the dim light. Rather awkwardly, she struggled to free herself from the towel’s constrictions and tossed it by the side of the bed.
‘Come. Lie down now and relax,’ Berengaria said softly, but Edwina detected an underlying tension in her words. She understood why, she also felt the tension and her heart was still beating out of control as she snuggled down on the pillows with Berengaria next to her. Rolling onto her side to face Edwina, the princess added, ‘Before we sleep you can tell me what happens next, after the kisses. Which I would like to practise again when you will permit me.’
‘Again?’ Edwina repeated, conscious that her entire body felt weak now as if her limbs were melting like the candle wax. Cautiously, she laid her hands on Berengaria’s full bosom. ‘Well, apart from kissing you, he will no doubt touch you here. Men appear to like breasts,’ she said, feeling as though her whole body were on tenterhooks. The princess’s breasts were fascinating to touch, so soft and malleable in contrast to her own which were small and firm.
Edwina was so enthralled that she barely heard Berengaria’s indrawn hiss of breath as she caressed the soft globes. ‘That feels so good,’ Berengaria gasped, trembling as Edwina’s fingers, almost of their own volition, suddenly moved to her nipples. The princess’s teats were larger than she had expected and already stiffly erect. Recalling how Stephen had pleasured her, Edwina rolled the nipples between her fingers and thumbs, pulling at them gently until Berengaria whimpered with delight. ‘They lied to me, they told me that women did not enjoy this,’ she said hesitantly. ‘Edwina, there is a strange unfamiliar ache between my thighs.’
‘Desire makes you feel like that,’ Edwina told her, still continuing to caress her because in truth she did not want to stop. She was unable to comprehend this strange conundrum. She loved such intimacies with Stephen, but had loathed them with Hugh. She had always believed that she only enjoyed them because she loved the man who gave her so much pleasure. Yet that was not the case here; she was enjoying fondling a woman.
For a moment Edwina did pause to wonder if this might be considered sinful, but even in Hugh’s disreputable household she had never heard such matters ever mentioned. He had always been crude in his conversations and disgustingly frank at times and she had often heard him speak with derision about men who performed sinful sexual acts on one another, but he had never in such conversations mentioned women. It appeared that the Church did not even acknowledge such a likelihood, let alone speak of it at all, so it was logical to presume that this was not wrong.
Tossing all concerns aside, Edwina gave herself up to the wild temptations, telling herself that she was just helping Berengaria. She was teaching her about the intimacies she would be expected to share with her husband. Now, she would not go to the marriage bed without the necessary knowledge about matters of the flesh.
‘What happens next?’ Berengaria prompted breathlessly.
‘Perhaps this.’ Edwina couldn’t resist kissing one of the temptingly stiff pink nipples. She pulled it between her lips and gradually drew it deeper into her mouth.
The pulsing heat between Edwina’s thighs increased as she sucked hard on the sweet little nipple until it began to turn scarlet. All the while she continued to pull and tweak the other teat until the princess’s entire body was trembling with desire.
It seemed prudent now to let the lesson continue and show Berengaria the full measure of what happened between a man and a woman. Rather cautiously, Edwina’s hand slid lower, over the quivering belly, aiming for the core of Berengaria’s womanhood. She slid her hand between the plump thighs and brushed her fingers against the crisp pubic curls.
Marvelling at the many differences between a man and a woman, Edwina slid her fingertips between the cleft of flesh, finding in the interior a seductive smoothness and a moist warmth that prompted her to explore further. How soft and velvety the valley of a woman’s sex felt. She found the small nub that had always given her so much pleasure when Stephen touched it. She heard Berengaria’s loud gasp of surprise and felt her entire body tense. ‘Do you want me to stop?’ Edwina whispered in the darkness, as by now the candle had flickered and died.
‘Please, no,’ Berengaria whimpered. ‘Touch it again. It feels so delightful, like nothing I have every experienced before . . .’ Her words descended into a moan of pleasure as Edwina circled the tiny bud, then stroked and teased it until it began to grow and stiffen much like Berengaria’s pinkly abused teats.
The velvety soft tissue gradually became slippier beneath her fingertips as more moisture filled the pink valley. Flesh moved slickly against flesh until Berengaria was shuddering with bliss.
‘Don’t be afraid.’ Edwina’s voice had suddenly become huskier and she pressed her thighs together, trying to increase the pressure on her own hungry, aching sex. Gently, she slid two fingers into the princess’s vagina, knowing she had to be cautious. She could not venture too deep, she had to retain the proof of Berengaria’s virginity.
It didn’t appear to matter too much about the lack of depth because by now Berengaria was moaning with pleasure. ‘Do not stop,’ she begged.
Edwina continued to gently move her searching fingers, while teasing the princess’s clit with her other fingers and caressing the quivering mound of the princess’s stomach with her lips. Soon Berengaria was moaning softly, overcome by erotic delight. Then, she suddenly gave a sharp scream of bliss, her entire body wracked by convulsions as her climax came.
As the trembling of her limbs ceased, Berengaria gently pushed Edwina back against the pillow. ‘That was wonderful but there must be even more to this. Let me try it on you.’ Her soft lips clamped over one of Edwina’s already stiffened teats, while a cautious hand slipped between her aching thighs. Relaxing, Edwina sighed, prepared to let the princess do anything she wished to her.
Edwina stood by Berengaria’s side as they both stared at the small insignificant man, dressed in outrageously ornate garments. Emperor Isaac Comenius was short and incredibly skinny and even the kindest person would not have been able to call him attractive. With his large misshapen nose and pockmarked skin he was, in truth, remarkably ugly. Edwina thought that compared to the Emperor of Cyprus, the ill-favoured King Philip of France was an attractive man.
Isaac’s manner was imperious and rather condescending, as if Berengaria was of little consequence compared to him. This angered Edwina, especially as Berengaria had been as polite and charming as she could be in these difficult circumstances. There was no way this insolent upstart should speak so disrespectfully to the future Queen of England.
‘So you will both be allowed to move around the palace unhindered,’ Isaac ended his long diatribe, ‘at all times, while you are here as my guests.’
‘We are very grateful for your kind hospitality,’ Berengaria said in a surprisingly calm voice, appearing untroubled by the fact that she was forced to stand here while Isaac lounged dissolutely in his carved, throne-like chair.
Edwina admired her self-control at this moment in time. It couldn’t be easy maintaining a regal demeanour while dressed in garments more befitting a courtesan than a princess. Whether their own garments had
been washed or not, she had no idea as they had never been returned to them. Instead they had been provided with low-cut undershifts of a thin clingy silk and dresses of a similar, slightly thicker fabric, which clung suggestively to every curve of their bodies. The buttercup-yellow gown Edwina had been given fitted quite well considering, but Berengaria’s red gown was far too tight around the bust, which forced her full breasts to spill obscenely out of the low neckline. In an attempt to preserve the princess’s modesty, Edwina had fastened the thin white veil, which should have covered her head, around Berengaria’s neck to cover her bare breasts. Now she was forced to stand before the emperor bareheaded, which increased her discomfort even more.
‘I think perhaps that your future sister-in-law, Queen Joanna, might also like to benefit from my hospitality?’ Isaac continued in thickly accented French.
‘Regretfully, I think not,’ Berengaria replied.
Edwina knew full well that Joanna would not be so foolish as to go against the advice of others on board their ship as Berengaria had.
‘A pity,’ said Isaac with a troubled frown.
Berengaria cleared her throat rather awkwardly. ‘I think, in the circumstances, despite all the kindness you have extended, that I should return to my ship. No doubt King Richard has sent out search parties to locate us, and will soon be sending some of his forces to escort me safely back to the fleet.’
‘I would prefer that you did not.’ Isaac paused and then added, ‘So you do not think that this magnificent Lionheart would wish to accept the hospitality of a fellow monarch?’ He stared with dark penetrating eyes at Berengaria.
‘He wishes to reach Acre as soon as possible, to strengthen the forces already besieging the city,’ she replied. ‘So no doubt he would be forced to refuse your honourable invitation.’
‘Then it is a pity he lingered so long in Sicily, at least six months, I understand,’ he challenged her. ‘He does not appear to be in that much of a hurry, does he?’
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