“I did not see much of Kathryn’s world but there were weapons that were unknown to me. Powerful things that could kill a man without even having to get close to him.” Marc sucked in a large breath, letting it out slowly. “My skills were all but useless there. If not for the element of surprise, I would probably be dead.” She heard Jarek’s cry of denial, even as she knew Marc spoke the truth. The thought of him injured or dead was almost too much for her to bear. She bit her lip to keep from crying. She longed to wrap her arms around his waist and bury her face against his chest. But now was not the time.
“Marc speaks the truth.” Kathryn slowly turned her head so she could see Tienan as he spoke. “Guns, they’re called. For some reason they didn’t come with us when the tapestry brought us here and that isn’t a bad thing. In our world, there are weapons that could blow a hole in the side of the castle in a matter of seconds. It’s a brutal place.” Tienan paused. “Yet there is much good there too.” Reaching out, he stroked the side of her face.
Kathryn stretched her hand up to touch his, their fingers entwining. She hadn’t forgotten that their world was still in turmoil, waiting for them to return. Sighing, she forced herself to move, knowing she had to finish this.
There were women and children in the crowd now, drawn by the drama of what was unfolding. She saw Christina was beside Jarek and the Bakra wives had joined their husbands.
“I know that the laws of your land are for the protection and happiness of all, but the tapestry is magic, it does not recognize your laws. The tapestry is what it is and you must accept the decisions it makes.”
“And if we don’t,” one man countered.
“Then I can make certain that the tapestry never returns here.” Kathryn waited for the explosion, which wasn’t long coming.
Men yelled and protested but underneath it all she sensed panic and fear. It was then that she realized that these were mostly good men who only wanted wives and children. Families of their own.
She started to step away from Marc but his arm tightened around her. He wasn’t hurting her but she was locked in his embrace. “I have to do this,” she murmured. She felt his reluctance as his muscles slowly uncoiled and his forearm fell back to his side.
“Thank you.”
Kathryn took the five steps that led her up to the large stone landing in front of the heavy oak castle door. Stuffing the journal in her pocket, she faced the west where the sun was a blinding ball of orange in the sky. The afternoon was half gone and it would begin its descent behind the mountains in the distance within a few short hours.
She began to chant the words under her breath, having no idea if this would work.
As a woman of science and reason, she felt half foolish thinking that a few spoken words could actually make the tapestry appear. As a woman who’d experienced all she had the past two days, she knew that anything was possible.
Opening her heart and her mind to the magic, she shut out the scene around her and concentrated on the words that had been written in the journal. They were a mishmash of languages—Latin, Arabic, French and some she’d never spoken before.
Yet she knew how to pronounce them and their meaning. That in itself was magic. It also bespoke of the unassailable fact that her ancestor had traveled to many different places, some on Earth and some on unknown planets.
The air began to swirl around her and she could almost hear a voice on the wind.
She began to chant louder and faster, the words blurring together to create more of a rhythm than individual meaning.
Lightning streaked across the pale blue sky. People screamed and yelled but no one moved as the scene unfolded around them all. The hair on her arms and on the back of her neck rose. Power filled Kathryn and she rose up on the tips of her toes as her body jerked.
She heard her name yelled in anguish. She wanted to reassure Marc that she was fine but her lips wouldn’t stop chanting. It poured from her, a river of power.
Kathryn focused on the energy, channeling it the way it was meant to be. Calling on the tapestry to come. There was a blinding flash of light. She blinked to clear her vision and it was then she saw it, drifting as if held by an unseen hand in front of her.
The air all around it hummed with power. Several women screamed and Kathryn knew that the tapestry brides from this generation were frightened. Marc scrambled up the steps with Logan and Tienan hot on his heels. He grabbed her, his hold so tight she could barely breathe.
She pushed at his arm and he loosened his grip but only slightly. She could almost hear his thoughts. And if the tapestry was going to take her, he was determined to go with her.
Shocked, she froze in place. It had never even occurred to her that Marc would leave Javara and return to Earth with her. That wasn’t how it was done. But hadn’t they already broken every rule?
Kathryn needed to think about this.
Instead, she turned to Christina and Jane. “There is no need to fear. You have made your decision and the tapestry would never unmake it.” The tapestry drew her gaze, the design was swirling, never settling. Forests, castles and faces all came into view for a split second before disappearing. “This is the tapestry that was given to this world. It has changed the rules this time. Possibly because I am a descendant of the original sorceress, I have been given knowledge.” A woman’s voice floated on the wind, spilling over the forest and the tall stone castle, swirling around the people where they stood. “This was my gift to you, yet for some of you it is not enough.”
Voices protested and many men and women fell to their knees where they stood as fear overtook them. Kathryn blinked as the vision of a woman’s face appeared in a large cloud. Her hair was white, yet her skin was unlined. Her eyes were sad and kindly at the same time. The cloud grew in size until her entire body was revealed, floating in the air. She appeared ageless, ethereal, her long hair flowing around her simple silver robe.
Behind her, Christina gasped. “That’s the woman from the shop. The one who sold me the tapestry.”
“She’s the woman from the thrift store.” Kathryn hadn’t been introduced to the woman who spoke but she knew it had to be Jane.
Kathryn knew that this was her ancestor, the original sorceress. The resemblance to her mother was uncanny. Kathryn might not have known her mother but she’d seen pictures and the two women looked enough alike to be sisters.
“She looks like you,” Marc breathed. “If your hair was white, you would be almost identical.”
Now that he’d mentioned it, it made perfect sense. She looked like her mother, so she also bore an uncanny resemblance to the sorceress. The woman looked at her and smiled. “Are you enjoying my gift to you?” Her voice, though soft and melodic, reached to the far edges of the crowd.
“Ah…yes. It’s been interesting.”
Sarainta laughed. “You will make your choice as all tapestry brides do. Go or stay.
It is your choice.” Then she turned toward the crowd. “This was a gift. A thank you to your world for the time I spent here. You will accept the will of the tapestry.” As one, everyone in the crowd nodded.
“Then all is good.” She returned her gaze to Kathryn. “You have one more day.” With that there was another blinding flash. Kathryn barely managed to bring her arm up to shield her eyes. Hands grabbed her, holding on tightly. When she could finally see again, both the woman and the tapestry were gone.
Marc, Tienan and Logan were holding various parts of her body. “Ah, you can let go now.” Fingers and hands slowly unpeeled from her arms but Marc kept his forearm wrapped around her.
“This is done.” Jarek’s voice rang out authoritatively over the crowd. “You will accept the will of the tapestry and Kathryn’s decision.” One by one the men and women passed her on their way back into the castle. They all nodded, most of their gazes darting away. Great. Now she felt like a freak in this world too. No matter what, she seemed destined to be different.
Abrah paused before her. Bending down, he bru
shed her cheek with his lips. “I will accept your decision. But, if you get tired of this group…” His eyes twinkled as he made his offer.
Kathryn rather liked the man and his brother, who stood by his side but not enough to leave Marc. “Thanks.”
Marc growled behind her but she ignored him for the moment. She had a feeling he was going to have a lot to say later.
The last to stop and stand before her was Jarek, with Christina by his side. He stared down at her from his great height. “Our home is your home.” Cupping her chin in his large hand, he stroked the line of her jaw. “You have brought much excitement here.”
Kathryn felt her cheeks flush. Excitement, her ass. More like chaos and bloodshed.
“You make Marc happy and that means everything to me. Please consider staying.
Do not let what happened here today taint your decision. Take tonight to…think about things.”
She knew what he really meant was, take tonight to have hot monkey sex with Marc. Her nipples tightened and her sex clenched as if to let her know how much they approved of that idea.
“Tomorrow, tour the castle. Talk to the people here. Get to know us all before you decide.”
“I will,” she promised Jarek.
“That is all I can ask.” He dropped his hand back by his side.
Christina stepped up and threw her arms around Kathryn. Shocked, she patted the other woman’s back with awkward movements. She wasn’t used to public displays of affection. “I hope you stay,” Christina whispered in her ear. “I could use another woman around here, one who understands what I’m going through. Jane and I are friends but I don’t get to see her as often as I’d like.”
“I will make your apologies to our guests.” With that, Jarek draped his arm over his wife’s shoulders and they walked into the castle, leaving the four of them alone on the landing.
“What did Jarek mean?” She turned to face Marc and the undisguised lust and longing in his eyes had her body softening and her limbs shaking. A quick glance down assured her that he was fully aroused. Her mouth went dry at the thought of making love with him once again.
“He meant, sweet Kathryn, that it is time for us to retire to my room.” Bending down, he licked her bottom lip before nipping it with his teeth. She gasped, blood surging through her body. Her core was moist and hot and pulsing to a primal rhythm.
“Umm…” She glanced at Tienan and Logan and wasn’t shocked by the carnal gleam in their eyes. Her gaze fell and, sure enough, they were both fully aroused.
“What do you mean, it’s time for us to retire to your room?” Marc sheathed his sword and swept her into his arms. “Just what I said. It’s time for us to pleasure you. To lick every inch of your delectably soft skin, to touch every satiny curve and hollow and to pleasure you until you scream your release. Then we’ll fuck you until you come again and again and again.” His lips came down hard against hers, claiming her, marking her. She knew she’d never forget the taste of his mouth or the feel of his lips for as long as she lived.
When he pulled back, they were both panting for breath. He raised an eyebrow as he turned to the other two men. “You coming?”
Chapter Ten
Although the fight was over, Marc’s body was still poised and ready to react.
Adrenaline pumped through his veins and he needed an outlet for all the emotions raging within him. Fear, anger, lust and love all vied for dominance.
He’d stood beside Kathryn and watched but he could still hardly credit what he’d seen. The tapestry, the sorceress, the magic and power in the air—it was the stuff of legends. Yet, he didn’t care about any of it. All that mattered was the woman in his arms. He still had a night and a day to convince her to stay with him.
But he also had to give her the choice and not merely the choice between leaving and staying. She’d arrived with Tienan and Logan and it was obvious she had feelings for them. That had to be addressed if any of them were ever going to be satisfied with the outcome. Marc didn’t want to be second best this time. If Kathryn chose him, he wanted it to be because she wanted him and maybe even loved him. Nothing else would do.
No matter what happened, he would stay by her side because he loved her. There was no denying his feelings. He would kill any man who threatened her. He would even face down a sorceress to keep her by his side. But he would not deny her right to choose. Still, even if she picked one of the other men or decided to return to her own time, he wanted to be part of her life. Unlike Christina, whom he knew he could live without, he now understood that there was no other woman for him but Kathryn.
“Marc?” He could hear the question in her voice as he carried her though the door of the castle and up the staircase. The stone was solid beneath him but he felt as if he were on uneven ground. The next few hours would decide his fate.
“All will be well,” he promised. “Trust me.” Logan and Tienan were close behind him, listening to every word. And why not? Their fate was to be decided as well.
“I do,” she whispered, resting her head against his shoulder. His cock jerked, pressing hard against his leather pants, a physical reminder of precisely how much he needed the woman in his arms.
He carried her down the hallway and into his room. If he only had this night with her, then he wanted her in his bed, spread across his sheets. His arms tightened possessively around her for a fraction of a second before he made himself relax as he crossed the threshold.
Logan went straight to the fireplace and lit the kindling. The flames crackled as they caught the wood. Tienan closed the door and went around the room, lighting all the candles. The light flickered against the walls. It wasn’t dark yet but the room was dim.
The candles and firelight would allow them to see Kathryn more clearly as they made love to her.
As much as he wanted to continue holding her, Marc slowly released her legs until she was standing. When he was certain she was steady, he backed away to stand beside the other two men.
“You know the laws of this land?”
“I do.” She crossed her arms across her chest. She appeared tired and fragile and just looking at her hurt his heart. But this had to be done.
“You came with two men and they have a prior claim to you.”
“But they don’t want me. Not like that.” Her eyes widened as her gaze went to her friends. Marc could tell that she didn’t really believe the words she was speaking.
“Yes, we do.” Tienan spoke up, his voice thick with need. “We’ve always wanted you, Kathryn.”
She swallowed and the delicate column of her neck rippled. He wanted to kiss the vein that pulsed there. To distract himself, he unbuckled his sword belt and laid it carefully aside.
“You’re an incredibly brave and beautiful woman.” Logan never took his eyes from her as he stripped off his sword and placed it on the table.
“I don’t understand.” Kathryn took a step back, bringing her one step closer to the large bed behind her.
“It is simple.” Marc released the armbands encircling his upper arms and tossed them aside. “We all want you but only one of us can be your husband. If you will allow us, we will pleasure you, so you will be able to chose which one of us you want.”
“This is crazy.” Her words were little more than a breathy sigh but Marc could see the excitement and growing desire in her eyes. She parted her lips, licking them. The sight of her pink tongue darting out of her mouth made his balls draw up tight against his body.
“This is perfectly natural and accepted here. You are not in your world, Kathryn.
You are in mine.” He felt that the only resistance to the idea was because it was not acceptable on her planet. He’d learned much from Christina about Earth and, though they were from different times, the basic accepted sexual practices did not seem to differ greatly.
“Let us touch you.” Logan slid his vest off and let it fall to the floor.
Tienan moved fluidly to her other side, his white bandage stark agains
t his swarthy skin. “I want to taste your lips, your mouth and your moist pussy.” Kathryn’s mouth fell open and her breathing quickened. Her chest rose and fell with each breath, accentuating the sway of her breasts and the fact that her nipples were hard buds, outlined by the fabric of her tunic.
“Let us pleasure you.” Marc stepped in front of her, so close they were almost touching. Her breasts grazed his chest with each breath she took. He stripped off his vest and tossed it aside. “Let me have you,” he murmured as he leaned toward her, nuzzling her jawline.
He placed tender kisses along the curve of her neck before twirling his tongue along the delicate shell of her ear. “Let me fuck you.” He was desperate now, his body throbbing, his soul crying for release that only she could give him. He kept his arms straight by his sides and his hands fisted to keep from grabbing her, tossing her on the bed, stripping her and driving his cock into her waiting heat. He wanted to pound into her body until they both shattered and yelled their release.
“Kathryn.” He breathed her name and held still as he awaited her decision.
Kathryn could barely breathe, let alone think. Her mind was still reeling from everything that had just happened. Magic did exist and so did the sorceress—an ageless, powerful entity that had given her the gift of freedom and choice. But with choice came responsibility and Kathryn knew that, whatever decision she made, there would be consequences she’d have to live with for the rest of her life.
Threads of Destiny t-4 Page 12
