by LJ Maas
If she had asked me to beg, I most certainly would have. My entire sex throbbed, that was the only word that came to mind. It was as if my clit was being subjected to a delicate massage, but Gabrielle wasn't the cause, not directly anyway.
"Gods, baby... what... what is that you're doing?" I stammered.
I felt her smile against the skin on the inside of my thigh. "A pressure point."
"I know of no pressure point... that will do that."
"That's because you weren't trained as a concubine. Warriors learn the skills they need, and body slaves learn different skills altogether."
"The feeling, Gods it's... ohhh..." she swiped her tongue along the body part in question and I suddenly felt as if I were floating on a cloud of pure delight.
"It's meant to prolong the sensations," she murmured, her fingers beginning to run feather light touches everywhere on my body. "It will cause pleasure, but not release. I can keep you suspended in this state of excitement for candlemarks, but beware, Conqueror. The longer you wish to continue its effects, the more powerful your climax will be."
She slid along the length of my body, stopping to use her teeth and tongue along the way, until she whispered in my ear.
"I wouldn't want you to simply explode, my Conqueror."
I reached for her, to feel her skin, and the way she moved against me, but was stopped by the leather restraints. I groaned in frustration, even as her tongue was tracing the outline of my lips. My groans turned into languid moans when she ground her hips against mine, enhancing the pressure point's stimulation.
It was some time later, however when I learned the truth of her warning regarding the use of the pressure point. I was hovering between intense arousal and ecstasy, but no matter how hard I willed my body, I simply couldn't achieve a release. By the time Gabrielle removed her own particular version of the pinch, my orgasm very nearly stopped my heart. Now, candlemarks later, I lost count of the times she set the pressure point, then eventually released me.
What I was experiencing was unimaginable. I must have looked a mess. My muscles quivered in exhaustion. Sweat and my own juices drenched the sheet below me. The rather pathetic part was that I continued to beg for more.
I must have blacked out after the last climax because when I woke, I didn't feel Gabrielle. I heard noises beside the bed, however, and that feeling of anxiety rose a notch.
"Gabrielle?" I rasped. My throat was raw. Gabrielle was right... I screamed her name out to the heavens... more than once.
"I'm sorry, love," she was there in an instant. She lifted a cup of water to my lips, and I drank deeply. I felt a cool cloth begin its journey across my body, and I couldn't keep from moaning at this simple pleasure. She laid her body down along mine, stroking the flesh gently. She touched me everywhere, but wouldn't allow me to feel her pressed against me. She teased the, now saturated, dark curls covering my sex, and I could feel my desire beginning to smolder once again. My hips moved unconsciously toward her hand.
"Please," I whimpered.
I don't ever remember begging this much. In fact, I don't ever remember begging anyone before Gabrielle, for anything. Certainly not sex. She explained that the pleasure points, as she called them, could be addictive, and needed to be used in moderation. I begged and cajoled, promising her everything for one final release. In truth, I'm sure it would be final, because my body was showing some definite signs of wear. I'd never experienced anything remotely similar to this evening. All I could say was that Gabrielle was certainly putting me through my paces, and I was barely able to keep up.
Gabrielle moved her body over mine, and my breath caught in my throat when she initiated the pressure point once again. She ran the flat of her hands up along my rib cage, still not allowing her body contact with mine. She stopped at my breasts, gently stroking the overheated flesh in small, circular motions. Continuing her upward journey, she stopped at a point just below each armpit. I felt that same, quick jab press into my flesh, and that's when the heat began.
It first started as a sort of tingling sensation, followed by the feeling of pins jabbing at me. In another few heartbeats, my nipples felt like they were on fire. I pulled harder against my bonds over this than at any other time during the evening. It wasn't painful; it was arousing as all Hades. The sensation bordered between a desire to scratch an itch you couldn't reach, to wishing I could put out the inferno. When Gabrielle's tongue took long, slow strokes to cool the area down, I think I cried real tears. I shamelessly arched my back, thrusting my chest outward in hopes that she would take more pity on me.
The throbbing between my legs continued, too, and I wasn't sure which area needed greater attention. Finally, Gabrielle pressed her body against me, and what I felt between my legs made me cry out in relief.
"Is this what you want, Xena?"
Her own voice was rough and shaky, and I realized that she'd denied herself any release during all this time. She pressed the phallus into my wet folds to get it lubricated, using long strokes without any penetration. It had been quite some time since I'd used one of these toys on myself, and longer still since I'd been with a man. Just the thought of the penetration caused a new flood of wetness that made Gabrielle groan in satisfaction.
"Yesss, baby. Gods, please... do it, please, Gabrielle," I pleaded.
I was literally aching with need when Gabrielle pressed full into me in one long stroke. I had wondered if she held the toy in her hand, but I felt her pressed between my legs, and the straps around her thighs rubbed against my skin. Both her hands were on my hips, the phallus thrusting into me, and the pressure point massaging my clit, all at the same time.
The sensation was incredible. As she fucked me with the dildo, her mouth reached down to cover a fiery nipple.
"Harder, please... harder." I moaned, as I strained against the leather restraints.
"Harder here?" She thrust into me and my smile grew larger. "Or here?" She sucked the flesh harder, nipping at the tip of the flesh with her teeth as she pulled away.
"Dear Gods! Yes! Everywhere, harder everywhere!" I begged.
That's exactly what Gabrielle gave me, too. I could hear her breathing pick up, and listened her own moans of pleasure. I knew she was close herself
"Please baby, now. Let me come now." I asked weakly.
The moment the pleasure points were released, I could feel myself soaring higher. I was caught in that perfect spot, where it feels as though you're outside your body watching everything that is happening to you. I remember freezing, becoming completely motionless. I was barely breathing, but I could feel the heartbeats passing as if they were candlemarks. Then, all the feelings, and sensations, swirled, melding into one. They focused all their energy and direction back into my body. I could hear Gabrielle, crying out, and arching her body forward, determined not to lose contact with my body. I came with a scream of my lover's name, just as Gabrielle had predicted, again.
I didn't pass out this time, but it was sheer will alone which caused me to stay coherent. I couldn't even lift my arms. My muscles were shaky and uncooperative, so I lay there, patient and unmoving as Gabrielle released me from my bonds. She offered me more water and I downed the entire cup. Finally, we curled up around one another and fell into an instant slumber.
I believe that for all my fear and nervousness regarding the evening, I managed to fall asleep with a massive smile on my face.
CHAPTER 9
WOMAN OR GODDESS, WHICH IS SHE?
I OPENED MY EYES and slammed them shut immediately. "Gods!" I groaned aloud.
Rarely had my body felt so completely lacking in physical vitality as it did at this moment. I was alone in the large bed with the sun filtering through the open-air windows. By the amount of light in the room, I judged it midmorning. Gods, I was clearly getting old.
I raised my head, searching the room for Gabrielle. I rolled myself off the bed, but had to reach out and steady my shaking knees as I stood. My legs felt like so much warm liquid, and not
the sturdy bones meant to hold my body upright. I stumbled to the pitcher of water on the table, and drank right from the carafe. Water spilled along the sides of my mouth, thin rivulets running down the front of my body. I felt as if I'd been pummeled on the field of battle and not made love to all night.
I stumbled into the bathing room, intent on dunking my head in cool water, but someone had beaten me to the use of the large tub. I halted my progress, leaning heavily on the wooden doorframe for support. The sight before me was certainly enough to cause the weakest of lovers to fall to their knees.
Gabrielle lay reclining in the tub, her head lying back against the copper rim. Her eyes were closed, and I smiled, knowing that she often dozed off in the warm water. Her golden hair was piled high atop her head, and she looked so pleasantly relaxed that I hated to disturb her. After all, last night she earned every bit of sleep she was catching up on now.
"I'm not sleeping," her voice spoke, although her eyes remained closed. When she opened them and focused in on me, I was touched at the concern visible there.
"You look as though you're as weak as a day old colt," she commented.
"Well, this newborn colt feels like an old warhorse this morning. A very old warhorse," I added.
She smiled and laughed softly, holding her hand out to me. "Come in here and let the warm water relax you."
I didn't have to be asked twice. I sunk into the tub behind Gabrielle and immediately pulled her back against me, just to feel the softness of her skin. She relaxed and settled against my chest easily. There was a long pause while I sorted out my thoughts. One question lingered in my mind after such an incredible night's pleasure. Up to this point in my life, I thought that I'd experienced everything sexual, at least those proclivities I was interested in trying. Gabrielle's expertise, however, caused me to feel like a babe in the woods. I'm sure it was simply my more jealous nature, but I wanted to know where, or from whom, Gabrielle acquired her considerable skills. We hadn't spoken of it before. We never actually discussed much of Gabrielle's life spent as a slave. I had always thought she would rather not be reminded of the time when she had no choices in her life. Now, however, I wondered if her silence persisted because she was afraid of how it would affect me.
I reached in and kissed her ear, tightening my hold around her waist. Her hand came to rest on mine, and she idly stroked the skin there with her fingers.
"Last night was," I paused realizing I didn't have words to effectively express it. "Well, I don't know what it was, but it was damn wonderful," I said with a chuckle.
"Did you enjoy it then?" she asked. Her voice held the slightest bit of apprehension.
"I think the word enjoy is completely inadequate to express how magnificent it was. I admit; I wasn't sure I could do it, but it was because of you, little one. You know that don't you? I've never given anyone control over me like that, never given anyone that kind of faith. I felt completely safe, Gabrielle. For the first time, in as long as I can remember, I trusted someone else to take care of me. It felt very right being protected by you."
I felt her hand squeeze mine, and her voice sounded thick with emotion. "Thank you, Xena. For all that you give to me."
"I'm only afraid my skills will look ordinary in comparison."
She turned her head toward me then, and I was able to see the love shining from her emerald eyes. "You need have no fear, my love," she settled back against me. "Your skills are more than enough," she finished.
"You want to know how I know such things, don't you, Xena?" she asked.
Gods! Is she truly a Goddess, to know what I'm thinking all the time?
"No," I lied.
"It's all right, love. You've made me feel safe enough not to fear thinking of the past. It's a gift more precious than all the wealth in your Empire, Xena. You've taken away my shame. Now, I can say that this happened to me, but I had no choice. I did what I had to do to stay alive."
"And I'm so glad you did, my little one."
I meant it too. Had I ever wished that I had met Gabrielle under different, more ordinary circumstances? Of course, I will not lie, even to myself. If the choices were to have Gabrielle as the woman I found her, or never to have met her at all, then I would choose what I have right now. I would choose this way time and time again. There is nothing more precious in this life than love, and I curse my heart for realizing the fact so late in my life. At the same time, I bless Athena. She was the one who kept that small part of me safe, just waiting for the day when Gabrielle would walk into my life.
"Do you want to know?" she asked me again.
"Yes," I answered truthfully this time.
"The summer I turned twelve, I knew I would have to leave Persia. I was more than a body slave; I was Greek. Female foreigners are only allowed to serve as house slaves and laborers after their first bleed. It was a part of their culture, and so I was prepared to be brought back to my homeland, to be placed on the auction block."
I listened to her explanation, already knowing the rather bizarre ideas and customs the Persians had regarding their sexual inclinations. They used children to pleasure them, but they treated them like royalty. The children were schooled alongside the nobleman's children, sometimes being treated better than a man's own child. I had always found the practice completely distasteful, even in my Warlord years when I was known to bed just about anyone to get what I wanted.
"I was surprised when I was given as a gift to a visiting Warlord from the Far East. He lived in Chin, and came up from a place they called the wild reaches. He was very wealthy, but he seemed to accept me much as you did the first time. He acted as though he really didn't want me, but it was a matter of protocol that he take me.
It was a full season before we found our way to his homeland. It seemed as though he was traveling through the lands, meeting with allies. He appeared to be raising funds for a war he was waging with a man some said was his brother, I never knew for certain. I was surprised, though, at the size of his palace. I would never have taken him for a man of wealth.
I found my time there very odd because I was a body slave to the master of the house, but he was rarely there. I was treated quite well since he had no wives. I was allowed to learn the language, and read, but they never let me write. I was told some time later that they always feared spies, and so they could never take a chance that messages might leave the palace.
One day an army swept through the palace and all the women were rounded up and brought before a new Warlord. It seems my master lost his war and this was to be our new master. He was very methodical about the way he met with each of us, inventorying his new property. It was apparent he would have no need of me either. I finally learned from one of the female cooks that to these men, honor was everything. Women had no say in their world, but they were treated better than many of the lands I had been in. This new master had one wife, and I was told it would be dishonorable for me to be in the palace. I just assumed that meant he would sell me to someone new, but he told one of his officers to take me to the Mi Tou province.
I had no idea where I was going, or why I was to be taken to this new land, but I did as I was told, and followed along. When we drew near the base of a steep mountain range, the officer indicated a spot high up. It was a castle carved from the very rocks. It took us another fortnight to reach it. When we arrived, I was given a warm bath, hot tea, and a meal. I was led to a large room where the officer that brought me there was still standing. They had offered him nothing to eat or drink, but he looked most uncomfortable, and in a hurry to be on his way.
A very elegant woman came into the room and he bowed deeply. I had learned much of the language and I was able to understand the few words he spoke before he left the castle.
A gift from your brother…
I thought I was to be a body slave to this woman, or perhaps her husband or son, but that was not to be. She introduced herself as the Madame Li Tzo, and she said that she was the last in a long line knowledgeable in the sec
ret ways of women. She told me I was to be an initiate, and that some day a person of great wealth would travel across the immense distance that separated Mi Tou from the rest of the world, just to purchase me for the talents I would learn there.
And so, I became initiated into the ways of the chinzho."
"The Order of the Rose," I whispered. They were the first words I'd spoken since Gabrielle began her account. As always, she was mesmerizing when she spoke, as if she were telling a tale, and not relating the events of her life.
Gabrielle turned slowly to look into my face. "You know of the place?"
"I lived in Chin for quite a while, but I always thought Mi Tou was imaginary, something soldiers made up to keep their spirits up on cold nights," I replied. "I'm rather amazed that it's real, and that you served there."
"I didn't serve there. I was taught there. It was the only time during my servitude that I was treated as the owner and not the slave."
"It was never on any map. I truly thought it was a fantasy." I murmured to myself. "So, this is where you learned those pressure points?"
"Yes, and much more. I lived and learned for three seasons with Madame Li. We were expected to learn every waking moment, with no time for ourselves. The first rule is that you exist for another's pleasure, not your own. It was more than what to do in bed. It was every aspect of life. We were trained to be intelligent and well informed, well read, and well rounded; the perfect companions in the bed chamber or at the dinner table.
She was right. A man of considerable wealth did travel across the known world to purchase me from Madame Li. She honored me with the symbol of her lineage before I left the castle."
Gabrielle lifted herself from against my chest, leaning forward slightly. Pushing aside the stray strands of hair that fell across her neck, she parted the locks at the base of her skull. I looked at the spot she indicated, and there, weaving its way upward onto her skull, hidden by her golden hair, was the tattoo of one perfect rose.
