by Margaret Kay
“We still approach this strategically. This man is used to complete power, right?”
She nodded.
“And he commands complete respect through fear, right?”
“Yes. So, what do we do now?” She asked in a breathy voice accompanying the frown that was on her face.
“We give him that respect and do what they say. And most of all, I’d say, we don’t go out of our way to piss them off.”
“I’m not putting that dress on,” Elizabeth spat.
“Now that would be going out of your way to piss them off.” Doc shook his head. “You can bathe first, and I’ll stand guard, and then you are going to put the dress on.”
“You know what they’re going to do to me, don’t you? Do to us? They want me in that dress to look like a woman for a reason.” She said no more. She didn’t need to.
“If we can make it till nightfall, my team will mount a rescue operation,” Doc said.
“How can you be sure?”
“I know my team. Trust me, they’ll come in for us.”
“How will they even know where to find us?” Elizabeth asked, not wanting to get her hopes up.
“They’ll know exactly where we are, down to this very room. It’ll be a surgical strike. They’ll come in quiet and with precision and get us out. Don’t worry, Elizabeth.”
She shook her head, not believing him.
“There is a tracker planted under the skin in my shoulder,” he said, tapping the spot in his upper back. “My team knows exactly where we are.”
Elizabeth shook her head again, a frown drawing her lips down. “I am afraid nighttime will be too late. The General is due back in a few hours. I don’t think they’re going to wait that long to do to us what they’re going to do to us.”
Doc grabbed both of her hands. They trembled. “We need to cooperate with them and be strong. Live through whatever they do to us till rescue can come. We’ll deal with healing from it after. I’m asking you to have faith in that, Elizabeth. Have faith in me and my team.”
Tears filled her eyes. Faith was one thing that seemed to be in short supply inside her. She prayed to God to give her faith in Him on the truck ride here. So far, none had filled her. Her eyes wandered over this man’s face. He was scruffy, had dark blonde and gray stubble over his cheeks and strong jaw. He had dirt on his face as well as some dried blood. But his light gray eyes bore into her with such conviction and strength, she couldn’t help but believe in him and his team.
She nodded her head yes.
He pulled her to her feet. “I promise I’ll keep you safe while you bathe. Close the door. I won’t interrupt you.”
Elizabeth removed her tunic and dropped it to the floor. Beneath, she wore a black tank top and those gray athletic shorts. Around her neck on a long lanyard was her passport in its protective pouch.
A grin formed on Doc’s face. “This is how a Sister dresses beneath her habit?”
Elizabeth returned his small smile. “Well, this one, but I’m not a Sister any longer, remember?”
“Yeah, you probably don’t want to tell our captors that.” He fingered her passport. “I guess you wouldn’t want to get caught anywhere in this country without it.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “That was one piece of advice I heeded. Always have your U.S. Passport with you.”
She hurried into the bathroom and closed the door. She drew the water in the tub as she disrobed. She did feel and smell terrible. She grabbed the bar soap from the sink and brought it into the bathtub. She used it on every inch of her body. She found small tubes of both shampoo and conditioner on the ledge against the wall. They were lightly scented, French. She used those as well.
Doc was surprised when the bathroom door reopened just twenty minutes after it had closed. Elizabeth emerged with a towel wrapped around her tiny frame and another around her head. A light, fresh scent wafted out with her as she stepped into the room.
“Your turn,” she said softly.
Doc nodded, his eyes fixed on her pinkened cheeks, the exposed creamy white flesh of her neck and chest that was also flushed pink against the white towel she had wrapped tightly over her small bosom. She looked even younger; a child bundled in oversized towels.
“I’ll be fast, so you are not alone and unprotected too long.”
“I don’t think it matters. We both know what they will do to me when the General returns. Now or then is irrelevant. You won’t be able to protect me.”
“You don’t know for sure,” he began to say.
She shook her head, silencing him. She’d been in this region long enough. She did know.
During the short ten minutes he was sealed behind the closed bathroom door, she put on the beautiful dirac. This one was finely crafted in a well-appointed fabric. It fell long to her ankles. Its sleeves were short, which she appreciated as the heat of the midday sun was warming the air. She finger-combed her hair and towel dried it.
When the bathroom door opened, she stopped and gazed at Alexander as though she’d never seen a man before. His chiseled torso glistened with water. A purple bruise in the middle of his stomach reminded her of the danger they were in. A towel was wrapped low around his waist, so low she saw the muscles of his abs point downward in a V into the towel. She’d never seen a man who was not injured dressed in as little as a towel before. He was not a patient standing before her. He was a man, a red-blooded, breathing, virile man. That was when a thought came to her that she knew was right.
“I just need the pants,” he said, pointing to the pile of clothes. He took a few steps into the room, but was stopped by Elizabeth, who met him half-way.
“Alexander, will you do me a favor?”
Doc looked into her beautiful ocean-blue eyes, which were alive with something he couldn’t identify. “If I can.”
“We have a few hours before they will be back for us. We both know what they are going to do to me. I don’t want to know abuse without ever knowing what a lover’s touch feels like,” she breathed out, her voice getting shakier as she spoke. “Will you make love to me?”
Doc’s gut clenched tighter than it ever had. He fought the urge to shake his head no. “Elizabeth, you don’t know that’s what is going to happen.”
She grabbed hold of his hands, which were firmly rooted on his hips. “I’ve been here three years. I know what the men here do, know how they treat women. Yes. I know what’s going to happen.” Her tear-filled eyes met his. “I’ve treated their injuries. I know fully well what is in store for my body. Please, Alexander. Show me passion before I know pain.”
Doc raked his fingers through his wet locks. Holy hell. “Elizabeth, I’d be taking advantage of you, of this situation. You’re a Sister for God’s sake!”
“I’m not a Sister any longer. I decided over a year ago to leave the order. It is only an administrative filing recognizing me as one. Please, Alexander it would be for you too, before you die. You know what they’ll do to you too. If this general is with Al-Shabaab, you’ll be beheaded or burned alive, and that’s after you are beaten and tortured. Please.” She went silent when Alexander engulfed her in an embrace and held her to himself.
Doc held her tiny frame against his chest. Holy hell, what was he going to do? He couldn’t have sex with this girl. He would not take advantage of her. Fuck, and she was a virgin on top of it. Nun or no nun, she was innocent and untouched. No, he would not be the man that would take that from her.
He felt her hands, reach around him and caress his back, felt her breath across his chest. Against his wishes, his dick reacted. He pushed her away and held her at arm’s length. He gazed into her young face. Fuck, she looked young enough to be his daughter. “Elizabeth stop it. It’s not going to happen. You’re a nun. It would be wrong.”
“I will be raped, brutalized, most likely killed. You would have that happen to me never knowing what it feels like to be held by a man, kissed, my body made to feel good? I’ve taken medical classes. I know the chemistry, have read about orga
sms. Since deciding I wasn’t being called to be a nun, I’ve thought about being with a man. I’ve never touched myself as masturbation is a sin,” Elizabeth said, with a new-found bravery. “Please, in what could be your last act of protecting me, will you please show me what it feels like to be a woman?” She watched indecision play over his face. “Please, Alexander. I’m begging you.”
Doc felt his resolve crumble, brick by brick, with each of her words. She had a right to go out on her own terms, if that was what was going to happen. And although he desperately tried to think of any other way this could play out, he couldn’t. Elizabeth was right, again. They were both going to be tortured and killed. He also doubted they would live to see the rescue attempt by his team, which he was sure would happen after dark. Despite how wrong he felt this was, he found himself nodding yes.
A small smile curved Elizabeth’s lips. He stepped into her and gently placed a soft kiss on them. He was surprised to feel it returned, hesitantly at first, but then with more vigor than he was anticipating. He held her, taking in the sensation of her body against his.
He pulled away, staring at her with half-hooded eyes. Her pupils were dilated, her jaw slack. “If you change your mind at any point, just say stop.”
She shook her head. She would not change her mind. She knew this was what she wanted.
“I’ll be gentle. I promise.” His voice was soft.
“It will be a sin if we do not vow before God, our maker, to be faithful unto each other. We’re both going to die here, Alexander, we both know that. Will you say vows with me before God?”
The knot in Doc’s gut tightened so much it sucked the air from his chest and caused his heart to skip a beat. He nodded. He couldn’t dispute they were going to die, something, in his line of work he always knew was a possibility. It was just that he never had to face it with such certainty, with such immediacy. Having sex without marriage was a sin in her mind. He would do whatever he could to protect her, and this would give her that protection in her afterlife. He nodded yes.
A gratified smile spread over her face. “Thank you,” she whispered. She said the first thoughts that came to her mind. “I, Elizabeth, take you Alexander, to be my wedded husband, to have and to hold, forsaking all others, until death do us part before God, my creator.”
Doc swallowed hard and his chest constricted. Memories of the last time, the first and only time he had said similar words flooded his head, as well as images of Victoria in her white gown contrasted by her dark hair, smiling. Then more images flashed through his mind. Victoria, against the white sheets of the hospital bed, the sonogram of his son, and the headstones. His breath caught in his chest. He hadn’t thought about any of those things in more years than he could count. Tears filled his eyes as a crushing anxiety overtook him.
“Alexander, please,” she pled.
He snapped from the memories and back into the room. He found that his hands held Elizabeth’s arms tightly.
“It’s the only way I can, otherwise, sex outside of marriage is a sin.”
“We shouldn’t do this,” he said.
“We are both going to die horrible deaths in just a few hours. Please do this for me, Alexander.” She felt a surreal courage, speaking the words, believing them, but hoping against hope that she was wrong.
Her words were pleading, as were her eyes. He was humbled how bravely she spoke. Yes, he too was sure that they would be killed. He wasn’t sure if a Hail Mary was out there, but he wasn’t going to bet on it either. This woman had more faith in her than anyone he knew. He could do this for her. He nodded yes. “I, Alexander take you Elizabeth to be my wife, before God as our witness. I will forsake all others until death do us part.”
Then he kissed her again, his tongue parting her lips this time. He held her small frame against his and allowed his body to react. He pushed from his thoughts how young she looked as his hands felt over her. Her butt was firm and round, her breasts small, but perky and her nipples reacted to his touch. He trailed kisses down her neck and heard her sigh out loud, a womanly sound that was mixed with a pleasure-filled moan.
Elizabeth pushed the fear from her thoughts as she felt Alexander’s kisses become more intense and as his hands touched her in intimate places. They were married before God. This was not a sin. This was a God-given pleasure married men and women enjoyed. And she knew the biology of it, about blood flow, erection and arousal.
That knowledge was nothing compared to the sensations his kisses elicited, especially on her neck. His fingers on her breasts brought about incredible arousal that was nearly overwhelming. Then his hand ran up her leg, flesh against flesh. It rose higher, over her knee and tingles shot into her very core as his hand lightly brushed her inner thigh. She couldn’t help but moan out and shiver in response.
“Should I stop?” He whispered, his breath blowing over her ear.
She could barely think, let alone answer.
“Elizabeth, should I stop?” He repeated, hoping her answer would not be yes. This was wrong. There was no doubt about it. But his dick was rock-hard. His whole body hummed in anticipation of having her.
“Dear Lord in Heaven, what you are making my body feel is indescribable. I never knew,” she paused mid-sentence and moaned as his hand made contact with her between her legs, his warm hand on her in a way that no one ever had. She felt his finger penetrate her and she whimpered, her whole-body trembling.
Doc found her wet and hot to his touch. Her body quivered and her breath panted. He slid his index finger inside her. Fuck, if she wasn’t the tightest thing he’d ever felt. He moaned out unconsciously, his already hard member becoming steel at the thought of going where his finger was, going where no man had been.
He brought his lips back to hers and kissed her again like he’d never kissed anyone in his life. He knew he was overwhelming her senses. Her hands gripped his shoulders so tightly he was sure he’d have marks. But he couldn’t stop himself. She felt too good to stop. He pulled her dress up and pulled his towel free. He pressed his anxious dick to her, skin to skin between her legs. He wouldn’t penetrate her yet, she wasn’t ready, but he wanted her to feel him at her entrance. If anything would freak her out and panic her, it was that. She gasped but didn’t tell him to stop.
Elizabeth knew what was poking her as soon as he made contact with her, skin to skin, and the full weight of his body on hers. She pulled her lips away from his to drag in a deep breath. She felt as though she were suffocating. An excitement laced with terror gripped her. Their intimate parts were aligned. He pressed to her with a hardness that she knew meant he was ready to make love to her.
When he pulled away, she was confused. He pulled her to her feet and took the dress from her, leaving her standing naked before him. Her eyes went to his hard member, jutting out proudly before him. Then they went back to his eyes, the embarrassment she felt that his eyes raked over her bareness, flushed her cheeks pink.
“Your body is beautiful,” he said in a raspy voice.
She cringed when he angled his head, his mouth taking her breast and nipple. Then, he moved to the other. He directed her to sit on the edge of the bed and then lie all the way back, her butt just dangling over the edge. She felt his hands cup each butt cheek as he dropped to his knees before her, spreading her legs with his body between them. Now she wanted to die of embarrassment. He pressed a kiss to the inside of each thigh right near her private parts.
“You know about orgasms?” His voice whispered, his breath blowing over her lips.
She trembled from the intensity of it. “Yes,” she forced out.
“I’m going to give you one before I make love to you, so you are nice and wet,” he said in a seductive voice that instantly increased the moisture between her legs.
Then he licked, lapped, sucked, and nibbled while his finger entered her with gentle strokes, stretching her, so when his dick penetrated her it wouldn’t be as painful. Her scent and her taste were addictive. He soon forgot she was untouch
ed, the purposeful reserved lovemaking he’d planned was replaced with his ravenous hunger to have her. Her whole body trembled. She quaked with a release that gripped her so strongly that she cried out as a deluge coated his fingers.
Before her mind registered what had happened, she felt him enter her very slowly. He groaned out a sound unlike she’d ever heard. It was a sound that she knew meant he was in the grips of a sensation so intense, an experience so overwhelming that he was having a near out of body experience. There was a brief stabbing pain followed by only the awareness of being stretched and pulled apart as he pushed deeper within her. It wasn’t comfortable.
Doc was lost to the sensations, the perfect wet, hot, vice grip around him. He moved slowly, burying himself all the way inside her before he remembered where he was and with whom. He pulled out and then pushed back in, gasping every inch of the way. He felt her tense.
“Breathe and relax your muscles,” he whispered. “It’ll feel better in a second.”
