by Missy Jane
She proved to be a quick study and his patience began to wane. Soon he was no longer satisfied with just her mouth. He moved his lips over her chin and suckled on her jaw. She dropped her head back to allow him freedom of movement and he took full advantage, nibbling his way down her neck to her collarbone. She moaned and clutched at his shoulders, all the encouragement he needed to make his way farther south.
He cupped her breasts in his palms, rubbing his thumbs over her nipples. Her breath hitched, but when he then licked each nipple she cried out. He suckled first one then the other perfect breast and she moved her clutching fingers from his shoulders to his hair. The slight sting from her tugging only incited him further. He nipped at her lightly and she squealed, making him chuckle against her skin.
“I’m loving the sounds you make, darling. Don’t hold anything back.”
He slid his hands and mouth down the front of her body until he knelt before her. A glance up showed her eyes glazed in passion. Her fingers remained loosely in his hair. He kissed a path from her navel to the fine hair over her sweetest spot. Then he lifted one leg and placed it on his shoulder. She gasped as she gripped him for balance. He nuzzled her mons before placing an intimate kiss between her legs.
“Oh! Kephas!”
Those were the last coherent words from her mouth for many long moments. He set to pleasuring her with skill learned over many years in the company of the Kevan. He’d also bedded his share of human women, but none could compare to Theda. Her passionate cries spurred him on, making his loins ache in anticipation of being inside her tight body. For the moment he concentrated solely on her pleasure, and was not disappointed by her reaction to his ministrations.
Even more fulfilling was the confirmation of his suspicions. As he held her leg on his shoulder, he had a perfect view of her inner thigh and the blood-red birthmark hidden there. It was a crescent-shaped mark with a star at one point. He had certainly found the Princess after all.
Theda soared through the heavens. Never before had she imagined a pleasure so intense, so all-consuming she could barely breathe. It took a conscious effort to pull air into her lungs as she clung to Kephas with what strength she still held. All of her concentration centered on a point low in her body that was quickly heating up. The warmth spread out and she gasped as her muscles clenched in anticipation of a mind-numbing climax. She knew what was coming, but had never before experienced one so…huge.
“Oh, by the gods!”
That was all she got out before it hit her like the strongest wind, and nearly blew her over. She cried out and shuddered from head to toe as he continued to lap at her like a child’s treat. Finally she had to push at his head to stop the intense sensation, or she feared she’d collapse.
“Please…please,” she panted.
He pulled back and let her leg slide from his shoulder. Then he caught her when she did indeed collapse.
Her eyes were closed and she fought to catch her breath. “My…god.”
She opened her eyes to find a very satisfied face grinning down at her. “You look…awfully proud of yourself.”
Kephas chuckled. “Why wouldn’t I be, with a beautiful woman in my arms? I take it you enjoyed that?”
“Need you ask?”
He chuckled again and shook his head. “Not really.” He stood with her in his arms and walked to the bed. He set her atop the covers and looked down with his hands on his hips. His very prominent erection proved he wasn’t finished with her, but before he could do anything else there was a knock on the door.
“That’ll be our dinner,” he said. “Cover yourself.”
She did so as he yanked on his trousers. He opened the door at the second knock and found the innkeeper holding a large tray of food. Kephas glanced to make certain Theda was covered before allowing the man to enter and place the tray on a small table.
“Anything else for you?”
“No, thank you,” Kephas replied.
The innkeeper left without once looking toward the bed.
Kephas moved the chairs from the fireplace to the table. When he looked at the bed, Theda still had the covers pulled up to her chin as she watched him.
“Aren’t you hungry?” he asked.
“Um, yes. Will you bring me the drying cloth, please?”
He frowned as he glanced at the cloth before shaking his head. “I’ve already seen your beautiful body and I don’t want it covered up while we’re alone together.”
She gave a startled laugh. “I can’t eat naked.”
“Why not? It’s only us, and as I said, I’ve already seen all of you.” To emphasize his point he stripped off his trousers before sitting at the table. “Come. Let’s eat before the food cools.”
He made a show of rearranging the few dishes on the table to keep from looking at her again. He truly didn’t want to make her uncomfortable, but he was going to have her naked as soon as she finished eating anyway. No use covering up what he wanted to admire.
She took her time, but finally joined him. A deep flush spread from her breasts to her hair. He gave her an encouraging smile but said nothing else. He even pretended to be interested in the food until she finally began to eat. Then he ate as well, but his attention remained on her fabulous breasts. When stew dripped from his spoon onto his chest for the second time, she finally laughed. The enticing movement of her breasts made him want to drop more food on himself.
“Really, Kephas, you need to stop watching me and watch where you’re putting that spoon.”
He grinned and wiped at his chest. Her face was alight with humor, making her even more beautiful than before.
“I can’t help myself. It’s not often I’m able to dine with a beautiful woman, much less a naked one.”
That made the humor drain from her face and he wanted to punch himself, though he didn’t know why his words distressed her.
“I suppose you dine with women often,” she said quietly.
She stirred her stew and kept her head bowed. He reached across the table and used a finger to lift her chin so she faced him again. “Not as often as you might think. However, I’m over seventy years old and was created as a full grown man. So, of course there have been other women in my life.”
She released her spoon and turned her head away, but he wasn’t going to let her go so easily. He rounded the table and pulled her into his arms.
“Right now you’re the only woman that matters. To be honest, I can’t think of any other who came before you.”
He didn’t want any to come after her either, but feared it might be too soon to mention that.
Surprise widened her eyes but she remained pliant in his arms. “I’m not sure I believe that.”
He took a deep breath and considered how much to say to allay her doubts. “I’ve never been in a relationship before, Theda. That hasn’t been our way. But with you, I can imagine being with only you. I like the images that brings to mind.”
“But once our journey ends—”
“I’m taking you to Halstrid, by your own request. That is also my home.”
“But once we get there, we don’t know where I’m going or what will happen.”
He nodded in agreement but wasn’t very concerned. “I am free to travel with you for as long as you’re willing to have me along.”
A hint of guilt snaked up his spine at his lie of omission, but it wasn’t his place to reveal who she was if she didn’t already know. He still needed to find out more about her mother and learn if the woman had ever revealed Theda’s birthright. Plus there was the fact that her name had been changed. This was going to get a little tricky. In the meantime, he still had plans for her tasty body.
“Are you finished eating?” he asked.
She looked at her nearly empty bowl and his half full one. “Um, yes. But you still have—”
She gasped as he l
ifted her into his arms and headed for the bed. “I still have places on you I haven’t kissed yet. My food can wait.”
“Oh…but it’ll grow cold.”
He set her on the bed and stretched out beside her. “I don’t mind cold stew. Especially when I’m trying to cool down from all the things I plan to do with you tonight.”
For a moment she looked worried, but then he pulled one nipple into his mouth and she sighed in pleasure. The next time he glanced at her face, all her concerns had cleared away.
Much later, he watched her sleep as he finished his now cold meal. He grimaced at the taste but ate it anyway. He needed to be at full strength as they continued their journey north, in case Albain returned. So far the piece of Wizard Stone around his neck seemed to be working. He certainly felt as if he retained his strength. Hopefully he wouldn’t be tested before reaching the gates of Halstrid.
* * * * *
Albain cursed his bad luck, but how was he to know the gargoyle had been following them so closely? Now the Princess was with the Master instead of with him where she should be.
No matter. There were still many miles between the inn where they were spending the night and the King’s castle. Albain would find a way to get her back in his clutches. The King would pay dearly to have his precious daughter back.
Chapter Ten
Weeks had passed since the attack on her brother, and Zephara and Wynn were now at Frederik’s castle, the final wizard on her apprenticeship tour. Zephyr remained in Gregori’s care, fully healed physically but not, she feared, emotionally.
Damn that stubborn gargoyle, Steinn, for tying her brother in knots over their interrupted affair. She had never seen Zephyr pine after a man before. He usually remained carefree as he flitted about from lover to lover. But now something about this particular gargoyle had arrested him and stolen the light that usually shone in his every gesture. She hadn’t seen him smile since the attack.
Wynn entered the library, far larger and less tidy than Gregori’s, and his gaze immediately found her among the stacks of books. Her breath caught at the sight of his grin, as it did every time she looked at him. He closed the distance between them and pulled her into his arms.
“You’ve been in here for hours,” he grumbled.
It was so out of character she laughed. “It’s been no more than three hours, my love. Have I missed dinner?”
“Not yet. I told Frederik I would find you before the beef had time to cool.”
“Ah, then I best clean up so we can eat.”
He pulled back enough to look her over. “Clean up what? You’re beautiful as ever.”
“Most of these books are dusty. I don’t think Frederik allows the servants in here to clean.”
He chuckled. “Perhaps, but that hasn’t had an impact on you at all. Come. Bastien and Gregori have also come for dinner and we shouldn’t keep even one wizard waiting, much less three.”
She conceded his point and allowed him to lead her to the dining room. The wizards were deep in conversation in their own language, which she hadn’t quite mastered yet. She caught a word or two she understood, but couldn’t grasp their deeper meaning before they silenced.
“Ah, Zephara, good eve,” Bastien said.
She nodded at him and Gregori as Wynn pulled a chair out for her. “Good eve, sirs. What a pleasant surprise.”
Gregori winced. “I wish our conversation could be more pleasant, but I’m afraid we’re here on unpleasant business.”
She sat and Wynn took the seat to her right so they faced the two wizards. Frederik sat at the head of the table to her left.
“Does this have to do with my brother?”
“It does. But fear not, he is fully recovered and being escorted back to the King’s castle,” Bastien replied.
“Escorted by whom?” Wynn asked.
“Dunstan and Sakhr will be escorting him. Then Sakhr will remain for his month with the King.”
“The unpleasant business we speak of has to do with his and Steinn’s attackers,” Gregori said.
“They’ve been found?” Wynn asked.
“Yes,” said Bastien.
“And no,” added Frederik.
Bastien looked at Zephara. “Have you heard much of the Varish in the Eastern Isles?”
“The Eastern Isles? Aren’t they mostly myth?”
“Mostly, but not all.”
“Then, no I haven’t,” said Zephara. “Only tales. Ones I’m not inclined to believe.”
“They are a very private people,” Frederik conceded.
Gregori nodded his agreement. “A few of us met a handful of them many, many years ago, before the Masters were created. They choose to stay on their island for the most part, but it isn’t unheard of for one or two of them to cross the waters every few moon cycles.”
“And these Varish are the ones who attacked our brothers?” Wynn asked.
The wizards nodded.
“All signs points to them as the most likely culprits, but we found further evidence at the campsite,” Bastien said.
“What evidence?” Zephara asked.
“Traces of magic that only the Varish could leave behind. You will soon learn how to differentiate between flavors of magic from various beings,” Gregori said. “They have their own unique essence.” He turned to Wynn. “We’ve taught you very little about them, but it is all we know. Physically they look like any human. They do nothing to draw attention to themselves but have very strict religious beliefs they adhere to. Attacking your brother, a known protector of the realm, is very out of character. However, we believe they may have been offended in some way, and that prompted the attack.”
Zephara clutched her hands together and Wynn’s jaw tightened. It wasn’t their story to tell. Zephyr wouldn’t care if the wizards knew every lover he’d ever taken, but Steinn would be upset if his actions with her brother were revealed.
Wynn cleared his throat. “It’s not my place to tell you anything other than what Steinn has already revealed. However, he may have offended them that night…unintentionally, as he didn’t know of their presence until after the attack.”
The wizards nodded.
Bastien ran his fingers through his long beard. “They are a mostly male race as nearly all children born of a Varish coupling come out male, but they are strictly heterosexual. When they visit the mainland, they usually convince a female or two to accompany them back to the isle to have more children.”
“It’s not unheard of for more than one man to share a woman,” Gregori added. “But for a man to bed another is a criminal offense.”
Frederik leaned on the table and looked Zephara in the eyes. “We do not judge Zephyr or any man he takes as a lover. It’s not our concern. However, this is a problem, because the Varish have broken a peace treaty by attacking a Master. We’ve asked your brother to remain with the King until this mess is sorted out and we can ensure his safety.”
She nodded. “I believe that is for the best. We are not expected home anytime soon. If need be, I can report home briefly to update my father and the High King. But for now, a messenger will do. They may wish to know why Zephyr lingers.”
“That can be arranged,” Bastien replied.
The conversation steered away from the serious to the casual and they ate a delicious dinner, but Wynn couldn’t ignore the tightening in his gut that forewarned of something bad. He saw Zephara smile as Bastien told a funny story, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She still worried over her brother, of course, but was that all? Her final test loomed mere days away and Wynn had done all he could think of to support her in every way. Now, when she needed him most, he had no idea what to do for her.
“Your final test will be the day after tomorrow,” Bastien said. “In the morning you will sit with the Nineteen to ask questions and clarify any of the lessons you’ve been tau
ght. Perhaps you should have an early night.”
“Yes, of course,” Zephara replied.
That was his cue. Wynn rose quickly and pulled her chair out, holding out his arm for her to take as she stood. They said their goodnights to the wizards and headed to their room.
“Are you worried?” he asked.
She gave him a small smile and shook her head. “Terrified. I’ve run through every spell, every conjuring, every bit of information I’ve learned these past weeks, and I still have no idea what I’ll be facing.”
“Perhaps they’ll give you a better idea in the morning.”
“Perhaps.”
She didn’t sound encouraged.
He had her sit by the fireplace as he filled a hip tub for her bath. Then he knelt beside it and washed her slowly, sensually, until all thoughts of the coming test eased from her mind.
“You spoil me so.”
Wynn smiled and kissed her lightly. Then he stood and held out a hand to help her from the tub. “Of course I do. You deserve no less.”
She ran both palms over his chest. “As do you, my mighty Gargoyle. I hope I’ll have the opportunity to spoil you nightly.”
“I like the sound of that.”
He wrapped her in a drying cloth and carried her to the bed. She’d learned not to try talking him out of carrying her when the mood struck him.
As he stood over her gloriously naked body and ran the towel gently down her skin, his breath caught and he was reminded of how lucky he’d been in finding her.
“You’re so beautiful. I’ll never tire of looking at you, touching you.”
“I can say the same of you.”
He grinned. “I don’t know that I’m beautiful.”
“Glorious? Amazing, perhaps? There are other words with much the same meaning.”
“And you are all of those as well.”
She smiled and held her arms open. No way would he ever ignore that invitation. He joined her on the bed and kissed her.
“The wizards suggested an early night,” he teased.
