When he said nothing, she risked a glance at the man lounging opposite her. His legs stretched nearly the entire length of the litter and his tunic was rather shorter than strictly necessary. She could see the powerful muscles in his legs and arms, muscles that had come from years of working on board his ships. The memory of how his limbs had so recently entangled with her swept over her, filling her with a sweet languor.
Lydia leant forward, and tucked the skirt of her gown more firmly about her body.
‘You don’t look the sort who normally takes a litter,’ she said to fill the silence and to keep her mind off his legs and the curve of his calves.
‘Whenever there is a beautiful lady involved—’ there was a hint of amusement in his voice as if he knew his pose disturbed her ‘—it is the only time I would consider it.’
Lydia regarded her husband, lying back amongst the cushions with a nonchalant air. It was all too easy to imagine him seducing women in this litter. With its green gauze curtains and matching cushions, it breathed sensuality and Aro knew it. He had anticipated her reaction and thought she would slide into his arms.
Lydia stiffened her backbone and resolutely turned her face away. Less than an hour into their wager and she was already thinking of being seduced.
‘And I expect it is a regular occurrence.’ She forced herself to think about the tales Sulpicia had whispered about the Sea Wolf and his women. How many had he coupled with here in this litter? No doubt it was a tried and tested method with him. ‘This litter positively cries out for such behaviour.’
‘Not in recent memory,’ Aro said with a frown. He raked his hand through his hair, making the black curls spring up. His eyes danced. ‘But for you, I am prepared to make an exception.’
Lydia examined her hands, unable to think of a suitable scathing retort and unable to keep her heart from skipping a beat and a warm curl rising from deep within her.
She could fight against this attraction. She would show him that she was made of sterner fibre than he thought, than the women he was used to.
She turned her gaze resolutely away from his gold-flecked eyes and towards the swirl of humanity that crowded around the litter. The sixth hour had not sounded yet and the carts vied with the market stalls for space. Several times, the litter had to stop and wait for the road to clear. In the distance, Lydia could see the temple of Janus as well the temple of Hercules at the edge of the cattle market. She felt herself sliding closer towards Aro and struggled not to fall into his lap. Her sandalled foot touched his thigh. She jerked it back.
‘It appears the way is blocked.’ Lydia twitched the cushion from behind her back and carefully put it between her and Aro.
‘Is it truly?’
Aro drew on all his training as a negotiator to keep his face a blank. He did not know whether to be flattered that Lydia felt the need to have a barrier between them or annoyed at her determination to avoid all physical contact with him. It was an uncomfortable thought.
‘The baths are around this corner. It won’t be long now.’
‘Are the baths any good? What sort of treatments do they have? The ones at the Palatine had very good masseuses and hairdressers.’
Aro drew the curtains of the litter back a bit further so Lydia could peep out better. ‘They may not be as new as the baths on the Palatine, but the treatments are good. Try any you like.’
‘Don’t worry. I plan to.’
The litter came to a stop and was lowered to the ground. Before Aro had time to say anything more, Lydia had stepped from it and started towards the baths without a backward glance. Aro put his hands on his hips and stared at the way her hips swayed. His body hardened. He gave a wry smile. Perhaps this was not going to prove as easy as he had thought.
Lydia had spent time scraping her skin with the strigil until it glowed with a pink healthy tinge. With each pass of the blade she thought about how she was scraping away the remains of the passion she had shared with Aro. When she emerged from the hot room, all things seemed possible. She knew she was clean and the time she had spent entangled with Aro a memory. She could concentrate on winning the wager, rather than remembering the feel of his skin against hers.
She tapped her finger against her mouth. Aro was correct about the bath’s treatments—they ranged from the traditional hot bath to a variety of massages. The hairdressing and make-up area had seemed particularly promising. Her hair now was much more in keeping with the elaborate curls and braids that Beroe had favoured than her own simple efforts.
She took another look in the bronze mirror. More than presentable. With a few twists, the woman had managed to tame her curls and was now busy applying gold gilt to the hair.
Lydia bit her lip. She probably would have to apologise to Aro. She had made such a fuss about going to the Palatine baths, when in truth these baths had proved more than adequate for her needs. The new hairstyle made her eyes seem bigger, her mouth more inviting. She thought the shade of wine dregs the tire-woman used suited her colouring far more than the harsher reds that Beroe had used.
‘The lady likes?’ the tire-woman asked in her faint Gallic accent.
‘Very much.’
‘Is good. Your man will like as well.’ There was a knowing look in the woman’s eyes. ‘All the ladies, they come back and tell me—my man likes this.’
‘My man…’ Thoughts of Aro and his expression when he saw her danced through her head. Lydia placed the mirror down and stood up. Privately she thought the tire-woman had been overly generous with the kohl about her eyes and the wine-dregs on her cheeks, but the results were impressive. ‘It doesn’t matter if Fabius Aro likes it or not.’
The room went silent. All the other hairdressers and women stared at her. Lydia wondered what she had done wrong. Was the Sea Wolf so disliked here?
‘Your man is the Sea Wolf?’
‘My husband.’ Lydia lifted her chin and dared them to tell her their tales.
‘He is a good man, that one.’ The tire-woman clapped her hands together. ‘He paid for this bath to be refurbished and for the grain dole last month. I know my man plans on voting for him in the next elections.’
The other women murmured their agreement.
Lydia tapped her finger against her mouth. The appreciation of Aro seemed genuine enough. Perhaps some of Sulpicia’s stories had been exaggerated. ‘Has he done much for the district?’
The women started detailing all the building projects he had sponsored, small ones that were designed to help the people rather than the large ones favoured by men on the make. The list was impressive.
Lydia stood up and asked for the bill, but the woman waved her hand. ‘For the wife of the Sea Wolf, it is nothing. He has already done me a great favour. Any time you like, I will do your hair. The Sea Wolf is a great and generous man.’
Lydia hurried through the courtyard, where a variety of games and contests were played, towards the entrance. As she rounded a corner, she caught sight of Aro deep in conversation with another man, a senator from the broad purple stripe on his toga, but one Lydia was not familiar with. Lydia stood to one side and waited. But Aro showed no sign of noticing her. She tapped her sandal impatiently.
She cleared her throat. The pair turned. Lydia inclined her head. She made an effort to keep her expression serene.
‘What a pretty piece that one is,’ the senator drawled. ‘I know you are renowned for your…art collection and she makes an admirable addition.’
‘My wife.’ Lydia heard the anger in Aro’s voice, and wondered if she should have waited. Publius was always upset when she interrupted his business meetings.
‘Indeed. I must apologise, Fabius Aro, for not attending the ceremony. I was…unavoidably detained in Ostia.’
‘The entrails were good,’ Lydia began, wondering where this line was leading.
‘Yes, yes, the entrails—’ the senator waved a dismissive hand ‘—but the Lupan House’s main warehouse burnt that very night. Augurs have made mistakes be
fore.’
‘It depends on how one looks at it,’ Lydia replied in a rush. The last thing she needed was someone saying the marriage was ill founded. She needed this marriage. ‘Fire can be good or bad. The warehouse is rising again like a phoenix from the ashes. I understand the augurs decided it was a favourable omen.’
‘A phoenix.’ A sudden gleam appeared in the senator’s eye. ‘I do like that. Your wife is an intelligent woman, Aro. I regret that you no longer find it necessary to pay for my services in ensuring your place in the Senate when the censors next meet. No doubt your wife would love to be a senator’s wife.’
‘My father, Veratius Cornelius, has enough influence with the censors to enable Aro to be enrolled without paying for a fixer.’ Lydia spat out the last word with distaste. ‘Not that the enrolment of my husband would be in any doubt. You only have to look at what my husband has accomplished in this district, from the refurbishment of these baths to the employment of the men in rebuilding the warehouse. It is the people who matter. Some day he will be a magistrate and perhaps even a people’s tribune.’
There was a silence. Lydia shifted slightly, wondering if she had gone too far.
‘Your wife is right.’ The senator inclined his head. ‘You will not need to give me a gift, Fabius Aro. You have already done much for the people of Rome. You may count on my vote when you decide to stand in the elections for magistrates.’
‘This is indeed an honour.’ Aro gave a bow, but his face remained inscrutable. ‘I had not considered asking for such a boon.’
Lydia forced a smile on her face. At the very least, he could be polite. Her quick thinking had saved the situation. She had no wish to see his business suffer from an unavoidable accident.
‘Nonsense, Fabius Aro, I knew your father. A good man and an honest one. The proscription was a pity, but the water has flowed for a long time under that particular bridge.’
Lydia stared at Aro, unable to quite take in what she had heard. Things started to make sense. The augur at the wedding, the few bits of very old statuary in the garden, the death mask on the wall. She had thought he was playing at having an ancestry, but obviously not. It was also a clue as to why he wore his father’s signet ring around his neck. She had a very good idea what sort of vow he must have made.
‘Are you saying that Aro is the son of one of the proscribed?’ Lydia asked.
The senator paid no attention to her question. ‘Of course, there is no question of compensation. Such things were in the past. Sulla was a wise and generous ruler while he lasted.’
‘I believe we understand each other.’ Aro gave a smooth bow. ‘Now I must attend to my bride.’
‘You must bring her to dinner.’ The senator raised Lydia’s hand to his lips. ‘It has been a long time since someone so lovely and with such intelligence has graced my table. I look forward to learning more about you, much more.’
‘Another time.’ Aro’s voice was nearly a snarl.
The senator made his farewells and left. Lydia turned towards Aro. She placed a hand on her hip.
‘Are you going to tell me what that was all about?’
‘Ask me no questions.’ Aro’s face looked thunderous.
‘But you are offering yourself up as a senator when the censors next meet.’
‘I plan to.’ Aro gave another bow. ‘I made a vow and I intend to keep it.’
‘Then why didn’t you accept his dinner offer?’ Lydia decided she would quiz Aro later about his father, but not here and not in front of so many people. People were starting to stare at them even now.
‘Because I disliked him staring down my wife’s cleavage.’ Aro’s eyes glittered dangerously. ‘He is noted for his exotic tastes in women.’
Lydia rearranged her shawl to make sure her chest was more fully covered and concentrated on the fresco of Greek goddesses cavorting in a glade while Pan played his pipes. ‘Where his eyes went had nothing to do me.’
Aro shrugged. ‘His patronage does not matter now, in any case.’
‘Yes, you will have the support of my father and his friends.’
‘You changed your hairstyle.’
Lydia put a hand to the tumble of curls that now adorned the top of her head. ‘Do you like it? The tire-woman assured me that it is the latest fashion. She wouldn’t let me pay for it either, said she owed you something.’
‘I preferred your hair the way you had it before.’ His eyes raked over her and, if anything, his expression became harder. ‘Your make-up is a little overdone.’
‘How I choose to wear my hair has very little to do with you. I happen to like it.’ She glared at him, daring him to say another word. If he dared say that she had made cow eyes at the overgrown senator…‘You were the one who brought me here and told me to use this woman. You can hardly complain if the results are not what you desire.’
Aro raised his eyebrow. ‘I never said that. I said I objected to an ageing roué looking down my wife’s cleavage. Another matter entirely.’
Aro signalled to one of the servants. Lydia caught her tongue between her teeth. He would go and she’d be sent home in disgrace. Lydia started, dismayed to discover she wanted to spend time with him. She wanted to tease out his secrets and learn more about the man who was her husband.
‘What are you going to do?’ she asked.
‘I thought to enjoy the evening with a stroll up the Aventine past the temple of Diana. A much better proposition than listening to a fat senator and his cronies gossiping, don’t you think?’
Lydia looked at her husband and knew the sensible course would to be go home in the litter—alone. It would mean she would not have to battle her growing attraction to this man, but after her experience with the women, she wanted to learn more about him. She wanted to learn what he hoped to accomplish in the senate and why.
‘Can I join you?’ She gave in to an impulse and touched his arm, then jerked her hand back as if his arm might have burnt her. ‘The temple of Diana is one of my favourites. My mother and I used to go when the midsummer’s moon was at its height.’
A dimple appeared in his cheek, making him look rather roguish. ‘Very well, I won’t make you beg.’
‘I had no intention of begging. I merely asked,’ she said, twisting her necklace with her hand.
‘I was teasing you.’ The corners of his eyes crinkled. ‘You respond so well to teasing. Your company will be most welcome, my lady wife.’
The crowds and market stalls had thinned. Only a few wine shops remained open. Here and there in the dusk of the evening were pools of light beckoning from doorways where scantily clad women lounged and workmen sauntered.
Lydia enjoyed speaking with Aro about the latest plays, and prospects for the upcoming races at the Circus Maximus. She was a bit disconcerted to discover that they supported different factions. Lydia had been a passionate supporter of the Greens for as long as she could remember. The last conversation she had had with Titus had been a disagreement over the races. He had wanted her to support the Green’s great rivals, the Whites, while he was away and had become petulant and angry when she refused, telling her that she had no idea about horses or racing. Aro, despite his support of the Blues, did not try to change her allegiance and they discussed the relative merits of the horses and the charioteers.
‘And what will you wager if the Blues win and the Whites lose on the day?’ he asked softly.
‘A ribbon for my hair.’ Lydia wet her suddenly dry lips. She was almost tempted to say a kiss and see what he would do. Her mouth tingled at the thought. ‘Nothing more and nothing less.’
‘Are you sure?’ His gaze was fastened on her lips. ‘I can’t tempt you to wager something else? Something more stimulating, shall we say?’
‘A ribbon.’ Lydia nodded her head decisively. ‘I have no intention of losing. The Whites’ team is very strong.’
‘Neither do I. There again, I rarely do.’ His eyes held hers in a steady gaze. Lydia looked down at her sandals. ‘May the best team
win!’
Before Lydia could reply, two men hailed Aro and asked for work as they had heard of the building project. Aro indicated both should appear at the warehouse at first light when their request would be considered.
‘And what is your opinion of the men?’ Aro asked after the pair had departed.
Lydia hesitated. This was her chance to show Aro she was more than an accessory, that she could be of some use in his business. ‘It seems odd two men are desperate enough for work that they approach you on the street, rather than going to see your stewards at the warehouse.’
‘Times are hard. The numbers receiving the grain dole have increased this year.’
‘That makes no difference. They know the way the system works.’ Lydia stared after the pair. ‘Something strikes me as not quite right about them. I think I have seen the larger one somewhere before, but can’t remember where. Perhaps they came with Ofellius when Publius and he signed the deal about the garum. I have a good memory for faces.’
‘You may be right.’ In the shadowy light, Aro stroked his chin and stared after the men. ‘I will question them closely when I see them at the warehouse tomorrow.’
‘If they are Ofellius’s men, they will only lie. It is probably better to set them to work on some unimportant project where a discreet eye can be kept on them.’
Lydia fancied that he looked at her with a bit more respect as they climbed narrow and twisting streets towards the top of the Aventine.
‘What did you vow to your father?’ she asked quietly.
‘That I would restore my family’s name and fortune.’ Aro’s hand went under her elbow, guiding her away from an uneven stone. ‘It happened a long time ago.’
‘Is that why you want to be in the Senate?’ Lydia asked. She could well understand the pressures. Every Roman patrician male was brought up to believe that his rightful place was in the senate, governing.
‘I want to be in the Senate to do some good. The people of the Aventine need just laws to protect them from men like Ofellius. I have no desire to have what happened to my family happen to anyone else.’
Sold and Seduced Page 13
