by Jane Godman
Because the feel of Ged’s mouth on hers was devastating, breaking down her defenses and changing every perception she had about herself. She had already known that with him she was vulnerable, but this was like opening her heart to him. There was no part of her that wasn’t his.
Her fingers caressed his neck, avoiding the wig. He tasted like toothpaste and coffee. When he eased her mouth further open, she gave a soft moan. Her fear of losing herself was forgotten. This was a new self, a different persona. Nothing mattered except Ged and the feel of his lips, the strength of his arms, the warmth of his body.
She could feel his rapid heartbeat answering her own, hear his ragged breathing, the slight trembling in his hands as they moved upward along her spine. When he broke off the kiss and raised his head, he looked stunned.
“Don’t stop.” She would beg if she had to.
Begging wasn’t necessary. This time the kiss was fierce and hungry, both of them abandoning any attempt at restraint. Ged’s mouth was demanding, his hands gripping her hips and pressing her tightly to him.
Lidi gave herself up to need and sensation, to the seductive dance of their tongues and the delicious movement of his lips against hers. When the kiss finally ended, she was breathing hard, but not as hard as Ged.
He rested his forehead against hers. “Um...we should go down to the square.”
She closed her eyes, still clinging to him. “My knees don’t seem to be working.”
“If this is an excuse not to dance...”
She opened one eye. “I mean it, Ged. You kissed me into immobility.”
“That’s never happened to me before. Admittedly, I haven’t kissed many people.” He scooped her up into his arms. “If I carry you down the stairs, maybe your knees will start working by the time we reach street level?”
Lidi rested her head on his shoulder. “I don’t know. I don’t know anything anymore.”
Laughter shook his large frame. “I think you’ll recover.”
She was glad they could make light of something so momentous. It meant she could hide her emotion behind amusement. And she liked Ged’s confidence. So he thought she could be restored to normality? It was good news that one of them did. As for Lidi herself, she wasn’t convinced she would ever get over the enchantment of his lips on hers, or the raw, uncontrollable emotion he had stirred in her. More importantly, she wasn’t sure she wanted to.
Chapter 8
Kissing Lidi had been one of the best things that had ever happened to him. Even so, as Ged emerged from the hotel into the brightly lit square with her still in his arms, he did spare a moment to regret the awfulness of their timing.
He needed to keep his wits sharp in case Vasily’s men were close by. Instead, his mind was filled with the memory of Lidi’s lips on his and the feel of her body tight against him.
“You can put me down now.” Even her breath on his cheek was a delightful distraction.
“Are you sure?” He smiled into her eyes as he set her down. “You’re not going to fall at my feet?”
She rolled her eyes, but not before he caught a glimpse of her mischievous smile. “Really, Ged. The kiss was good, but it wasn’t faint inducing.”
She was about to turn away, but he caught hold of her wrist. To hell with common sense. Drawing her close, he pressed his lips to her ear. “Does that mean I need to try harder next time?”
Her tiny indrawn breath and the little shiver that ran through her were worth every second of increased danger. Next time. He liked those words and, from the added sparkle in her eyes, he could see Lidi did too.
Clasping her hand, he navigated the crowded square. Shoppers and tourists were out in large numbers and they passed booths selling wooden toys, scented candles, carved angels, ceramic tree ornaments and music boxes. The mingled aromas of gingerbread and spiced wine made his stomach rumble, reminding him that they hadn’t eaten. He made himself a promise. Once this performance was over, he was going to find a cozy Italian restaurant and order an enormous pizza. Briefly he was going to put everything else to the back of his mind and pretend he and Lidi were a normal human couple on a normal human date.
Since “everything else” included a group of dangerous bear shifters who wanted to assassinate him and kidnap Lidi, he forced himself to remain vigilant. The stage had been erected in front of a church. Darkness had fallen, and lights twinkled amid the greenery that surrounded the canopy and bright spotlights illuminated the scene. A choir sang traditional songs, and nearby, a group of musicians were tuning their instruments.
Ged felt comfortable in this setting. It wasn’t on the same scale as one of Beast’s arena concerts, but the fundamental details were the same. There were artists, and an audience, and a performance would take place. Okay, so he was usually behind the scenes making those things happen. It still felt like a safe place.
It was clear that Lidi didn’t share his peace of mind. Casting a glance over her shoulder at the crowded square, she moved closer to Ged. “Couldn’t we have simply paid these people to pretend we are part of their theater company? That way we could travel to Frankfurt with them without actually having to take part in the show.”
“We could do that,” Ged agreed, as he paused at the side of the stage.
He took a moment to scan the immediate area. As Lidi had already pointed out, stealth was not one of the strengths of their species. That was the case in the wild and for bear shifters living among humans. They were creatures who relied on their size and strength. Their natural confidence gave them an unmistakable swagger. If Vasily’s men were in the vicinity, they would be hard to miss.
Ged knew exactly what he was looking for. He had been raised among werebears. Although wild bears were solitary animals, the shifters of his homeland lived a human lifestyle. A group of Callistoyan men together would exude off-the-scale levels of confidence. They would behave as they did in Callistoya, jostling among themselves for the alpha position and not caring who was watching their antics. Unless Vasily’s men had adopted a new, subtle approach, he was certain they weren’t nearby.
Protecting another person was new to him. He’d failed at it once without ever really having a chance to succeed. He was going to make sure he got it right this time.
“We have to blend in.” He returned to Lidi’s question with a sense of relief, keeping his voice low so that only she could hear. “There are at least a dozen performers in this group. We couldn’t swear each individual to secrecy. If they started discussing the two strangers who were traveling with them, that information could fall into the wrong hands. This way, they might talk about the performers who have joined their group.” He grinned. “They could even speculate about what terrible dancers we are. But anyone overhearing that information is unlikely to make the connection between Lidiya Rihanoff and Gerald Tavisha and the new recruits.”
Her expression remained unconvinced. Or possibly nervous. He lifted her hand and lightly grazed her knuckles with his lips. “Trust me, Lidi?”
The troubled look lightened. “You know I do.”
Her response ignited a new glow in the center of his chest. He had shut himself off from companionship for so long, believing himself unworthy of those basic elements that others took for granted. Friendship, loyalty and trust in their truest sense had seemed far beyond his grasp. Now this beautiful woman, with her warm, honest eyes and open smile, was offering him all of those things—and more—in one package.
For the first time, he glimpsed what lay beyond the instant attraction he had felt when he knew she was his mate. He finally understood what his friends had. It was a connection of brave hearts, strong minds and healed souls. A contentment that was almost mystical. Lidi offered him completion.
And...why now? Not just this realization, but all of it. Meeting her at a time when Callistoya needed him to step back in and be the hero his people needed almost seemed too good to
be true. He needed her strength and she was there. As if they had been brought together by an unseen guide.
The thought hung in the air for a moment, like the shimmering cold of his exhaled breath. Then it was gone as a man’s voice hailed him in halting English. “You are the dancers?”
They turned to face a tall man who wore the same costume as the other musicians. He looked harassed. “I am Rico. Every year I tell myself someone else can do the organizing.” He shrugged. “Yet here I am again. So, the person who called me said you are called Romanzo. Si?”
“That’s right.” Ged didn’t elaborate or offer their individual names. The less information Rico and his colleagues had about them, the less they could give away.
Rico didn’t appear to notice the omission. Glancing over his shoulder as though something was demanding his attention, he gave them an apologetic smile. “There are other performers, but we don’t really have a schedule. You have music?” Ged handed him a note, and after scanning it, Rico nodded. “We can play that. Just let me know when you are ready.”
There was a crash and an exclamation from among the musicians and Rico hurried away in that direction. Reminding himself that it wasn’t his responsibility, Ged resisted the temptation to take charge. Instead, he turned back to Lidi, who was looking bemused.
“I guess we don’t get top billing?” She studied the stage, where a man dressed as an elf was juggling oversize candy canes. He was being watched by a small, chocolate-colored dog with a Santa hat perched on top of its long, floppy ears.
“Are you complaining?”
She linked her arm through his. “No. But if I’d been aware in advance of the standard, I might have been less worried about my own ability.”
He regarded the juggler for a moment or two. “You think you’re better than that?”
Lidi choked back a laugh. “Maybe equal?”
He gently patted her hand. “Just keep telling yourself that.”
She gasped. “You...” Struggling to regain her composure, she shook her head at him. “Do you find something to laugh at in every situation?”
He gazed down at her, drinking in the smile that was lifting the corner of her mouth even as she tried to maintain a severe tone. “No. My friends would tell you I’m actually a very serious person.”
It was true. His friends would also say he used humor as a shield. Get close to anything resembling real emotion and Ged would be guaranteed to make a joke to keep the mood light. But this zest for life? This was new. In spite of the danger facing them, he was enjoying himself. So this was what having fun felt like. It seemed that every minute of this adventure added a new layer of discovery, not only about Lidi, but also about himself.
“It looks like the warm-up act is almost over.” Lidi pointed to the stage.
Ged had been caught up in the moment of just relaxing and savoring her company. Postponing reality wasn’t an option, but for an instant, he wished it was. Wished he could suspend time and not have to think about anything except the smile in her eyes.
Reluctantly, he sighed. “Let’s get on with this.”
* * *
In the end, dancing on the stage didn’t feel too bad. That probably had something to do with the atmosphere. It was festive and lighthearted. People paused to watch as they sipped their mugs of aromatic wine or hot chocolate, but they didn’t linger. Possibly, it was also because the whole setup had an amateurish charm. Although the musicians played the music Ged had asked for, it wasn’t quite perfect. As they danced, the little dog with the Santa hat sat at the edge of the stage and watched as though critically assessing their performance.
None of those things relaxed Lidi quite as much as the smile in Ged’s eyes and the feel of his arms around her. She allowed herself a tiny daydream in which this was all there was. No kingdom to be saved. No father to be rescued. No evil usurper to be defeated. Just this dance. This moment. This man.
“I’m glad dogs in the human world don’t get a sense of who we really are.” Ged twirled her around as he spoke. “Otherwise that little guy would be spoiling our artistic endeavors by trying to attack us.”
“He seems lost in admiration,” Lidi agreed.
There were no dogs in Callistoya. There was a myth dating back to the time of Callisto, the hunter-goddess-turned-bear after whom their homeland was named. According to the legend, canines and bears were natural enemies. In Callistoya, there was a belief that dogs brought bad luck to werebears, signaling their intention by attacking their age-old adversaries whenever they met. Since her entry into the mortal realm, Lidi had encountered several canines, all of whom had calmly accepted her. She had even met Ged’s werewolf friends, although they were shifters, and their half-human genes gave their instincts a rational edge.
Ged was right. Clearly dogs in the mortal realm couldn’t recognize bear shifters. Either that, or the Callistoya fables had it all wrong.
Since the musicians mistimed the piece of music, ending several bars before Ged and Lidi had finished dancing, she didn’t have time for any more thinking. Unexpectedly, she was released from Ged’s arms and the small crowd clustered at the edge of the stage were clapping, whistling and stamping their feet.
“My goodness, is that for us?”
“I guess so. Unless it’s for the Christmas mutt over there—” Ged indicated the dog. “We should take a bow.”
Laughing, they clasped hands and moved to the edge of the stage to acknowledge the applause. With a bark of delight, the dog accompanied them.
“I think we have a new friend,” Lidi said.
“Well, he can buy his own pizza.” The audience was dispersing as Ged led her from the stage.
All around the square, the streets were an intricate muddle of ancient alleys. They found a small restaurant in the center of the maze. Although the place was busy, they were shown to a table overlooking the cobbled road.
“I’m so hungry I could eat everything on the menu,” Lidi confessed.
“Be my guest.” Ged signaled to the waiter to bring them a bottle of red wine.
She smiled. “I may be half-human, but my appetite is all-bear.”
By the time they had ordered several dishes and Ged had poured them each a glass of wine, Lidi was starting to unwind. At the back of her mind there was still a feeling that this was wrong, that she should be racing back home to rescue her father. Every moment she delayed felt like a betrayal, but she had placed her trust in Ged. Although his methods might be unconventional, she believed he would make good on his promise to rescue her father from Vasily’s clutches.
“Relax.” Ged watched her over the top of his wineglass. “We’ll do this.”
“Are you a mind reader?”
“You have a very expressive face.” The look in his eyes warmed her insides almost as much as the wine. “Tell me about your family.”
She toyed with her wineglass. “There isn’t much to tell. My parents were very traditional. All they ever wanted was for me to marry well.”
“Doesn’t that mean your father should be happy with Vasily’s proposal? He would see his daughter on the throne of Callistoya.”
Lidi, who had been taking a sip of her wine, gave a little choke. “No, absolutely not. The Rihanoff family has always been loyal to your father. And, indirectly, I believe Vasily was responsible for my mother’s death and my father’s disability.”
“Indirectly?” He seemed content to sit back and watch her as she talked.
“My home is in the northernmost part of the kingdom. When Vasily rebelled against your father, he drew the worst elements in our society to him. Our peaceful corner of the world became plagued by lawless mobs who claimed they were fighting against the king.” She frowned at the memory. “In reality I believe they were out for what they could steal. My father and the other landowners in the area waged a constant battle to protect their property. My mo
ther was murdered by one of those gangs, and my father was left incapacitated by his injuries.”
“But the attackers weren’t acting on direct orders from Vasily?” Ged asked.
“I’m not sure, and I don’t think we’ll ever find out. As far as I know, Vasily didn’t know my parents. When he decided he wanted to marry me, we had never met. The only reason he proposed to me was that he felt an alliance with one of the oldest and most respected families in Callistoya would strengthen his claim to the throne. He sent an envoy to Aras with a letter informing me of the time and date of the ceremony.”
“Romantic.”
She considered the comment, then shrugged. “It wasn’t the lack of romance that made me refuse.”
“What was it?”
“Vasily is a weak, cowardly bully who thinks he can make himself look strong by murdering his opponents. No amount of flowers and presents would have made him acceptable to me.” Her lip curled at the idea. “But my future doesn’t include marriage with anyone.”
Ged had been leaning back in his chair, watching her with a lazy smile in his eyes. At those words his brows snapped together. “Why ever not?”
“When you get your throne back, you will have to work hard to stabilize your kingdom, and I will be your most loyal subject. But even before Vasily broke away from your father, the lands in the north had grown increasingly lawless.”
He nodded. “It was one of my father’s biggest worries.”
“The problems are centuries old. Those groups who live off the land have suffered as a result of the changing climate. Milder winters, warmer summers and melting ice caps in the mountain regions have reduced the traditional hunting grounds. Where there was harmony there is now competition.” She grimaced. “You know what that’s like among bears.”
“Bloody?”
“And bitter.” She twirled her wineglass, staring into the depths of the ruby liquid. “Before my father became ill, I pleaded with him to let me join the king’s peacekeeping army.”
