A Reluctant Empress (2 page)

Obedient as ever, Kalliope let Stelios fuck nearly every inch of her, and then she gave him a blowjob that guaranteed he would never forget. Stelios was a good lover, but Kalliope knew that this was more than just work; this was also a business transaction. By the end of their time, Stelios seemed sexually satiated and he left Kalliope’s room with her payment, promising to send his workers over with the furniture the next day.

Kalliope spent a few minutes in her room to recover. Stelios had bound her by her ankles, and she rubbed at the sore pink marks where the rope had cut into her skin.

Straightening her peplos, she went out in search of her next client.

* * *

True to his word, Stelios’ workers arrived the next day carrying some of the most beautiful pieces Kalliope had ever seen. Harmena watched enviously as the new furniture was placed about her room.

“Your bed is so big,” she said enviously, fingering the delicate blankets draped across the top. Once the workers left, Kalliope and Harmena sprawled across the bed.

“We should do something productive,” Kalliope said, not moving.

“This is productive,” Harmena insisted, “We’re testing out your new bed. This is your place of business after all.”

Kalliope laughed and looked around her new room. Stelios had even sent over a hand-painted partition that separated the bed from the sitting room. After the women finished talking they parted ways to begin preparing for the evening.

Kalliope dressed in her new room, making sure to fasten her mother’s clip into her upswept hair. She was excited to have her own space to work in and glad that she would no longer need a borrowed room.

As she walked towards the hidden lobby of Hera Selene she watched some of the other women slink down the hallways with eager men following behind them. Kalliope was beginning to recognize some of the more frequent customers. A general who always came for Elektra, a politician that preferred only a handful of women, and a few soldiers who would take the first woman they laid eyes on.

Kalliope entered the lobby and let the sounds and smells wash over her. The low murmur of discreet voices, a hearty laugh, and the sound of wine goblets clinking against the stone resonated throughout the hall.

Kalliope could smell the fresh flowers in the lobby, hints of cinnamon and jasmine from the female perfumes, as well as the musky scent of men. As Kalliope’s eyes moved about the room, she could feel someone watching her from behind. Slowly she turned around, her eyes searching until they fell on the culprit.

It was Damianos.

Kalliope hadn’t been expecting him to return until the end of the week.

His bright blue eyes were smoldering with an intensity that made her skin flame, and she knew that he had been watching her since the moment she entered the room. 

Time seemed to freeze as Kalliope made her way across the room towards him. Her feet seemed heavy as lead and she could feel her dress gently grazing against her legs. Damianos’ gaze never faltered and Kalliope found herself standing before him, looking up into his beautiful face.

“Kalliope.”

He said her name with so much feeling, so much passion, that Kalliope couldn’t bring herself to respond, and instead let the name hang there in the heated air between them.

“I wasn’t expecting you home so soon,” Kalliope said feebly. She wanted to tell him about the overwhelming relief she felt to see him safe and sound before her.

Damianos smiled a sly grin. “Hoping I would be gone longer?”

“No!” she said a little too quickly.

Damianos’ grin became slyer. She had given herself away.

“Why don’t you take me back to one of the rooms?” His voice was deep and throaty and he rose slowly until he was towering over Kalliope.

She gulped as her insides clenched and molten hot desire filled her stomach. She straightened her shoulders and looked up at him.

“You missed a lot,” she said coyly, “I have my own room now.”

Damianos’ eyebrows raised and he couldn’t hide his surprise. “Well, well. Now that is unexpected.” His eyes clouded over. “You must be doing quite well.”

Kalliope shrugged his comment off. “I guess that will be for you to decide.”

Damianos’ eyes were playful once again and he grabbed Kalliope’s hand. Her hand felt small and safe in his large grip.

“Take me to your room.”

Without another word, Kalliope led the way to her room. The walk seemed to take years, and by the time Kalliope stepped into her new bedroom, she felt as if her entire body would combust.

Damianos seemed to be feeling the same way, because he let go of her hand and took a giant step away from her.

Kalliope moved towards the bed, and Damianos walked toward her slowly, like a predator stalking his prey.

“Why did you go away?” Kalliope asked softly.

“Business.”

“What kind of business?” There was an erotic tone in their conversation as Damianos’ greedy eyes drank in her body.

“I own land that must be overseen. I have people that must be managed.”

Kalliope nodded, not sure if she completely understood his explanation. Her eyes were drawn to his full lips and she felt a sudden swell of desire when she realized that in any moment those full lips would be on her body.

Damianos moved towards her, his body strong and powerful.

“I thought of you everyday.” His voice was but a whisper, but Kalliope clung to every word.

“I dreamed of you every night.” He continued as he came to stand before the bed. “The other women here no longer hold my interest. It’s only you that fills my mind.”

“And what if I disappoint you?” Kalliope asked quietly.

Damianos kneeled on the bed and grasped Kalliope by her ankles and quickly pulled her to him. She gasped.

“You won’t.”

Before she could cry out with excitement, Damianos crushed his lips to hers, his body hovering above her own. Kalliope froze and then slowly worked her lips in sync with Damianos. His mouth was warm and eager and Kalliope’s body hummed to life beneath him. Damianos mouth tasted sweet and Kalliope wanted more. Sensing her eagerness, Damianos kissed her harder, pushing his tongue between her lips.

Kalliope parted her lips to allow Damianos entry and he groaned as his tongue slipped inside her. With lush strokes he licked the inside of her mouth and their tongues crashed against one another. Damianos lowered his body onto Kalliope and she felt the delicious weight of him on top of her. She reached up to run her hand through his dark hair, but he was too quick, and he caught her wrist in his hand.

“Not unless I give you permission,” he said smoothly. Kalliope pouted, but kissed him harder. Damianos pulled away from her, his breath shallow and ragged.

“I’m going to get carried away,” he chided, “I have a plan for you.”

“A plan?” Kalliope gasped, her hormones raging out of control.

Damianos nodded and crawled across the bed, leaving Kalliope disheveled and panting.

“First things first,” he said slowly, “I want to see that beautiful body underneath your dress.”

Kalliope sat up shakily, her body still reeling from their intense kiss. She smiled somewhat shyly. She knew the way men liked things at Hera Selene.

“Tell me how you want me to undress.”

Damianos’ eyes lit with excitement. “You’re learning fast.” He situated himself on the bed and his eyes turned dark with arousal.

“Stand up and come before me.”

Kalliope scooted off the bed and came around until she stood before Damianos. She couldn’t help the way her eyes slid up his exposed thighs and she would be lying if she said she didn’t want to know what lay between them.

Damianos gave her a wicked grin and she knew she had been caught. She fixed her eyes on him and waited for his order.

“Undo your belt and hand it to me,” he seductively commanded.

Mesmerized by his full lips, Kalliope looked back to his eyes and obeyed. She unknotted her roped belt, and with exaggerated slowness, pulled it from her waist. She felt her dress widen once her waist was no longer cinched. She moved towards Damianos and outstretched her hand, the length of her belt resting lighting in her palm. Damianos took the belt from her, his eyes dancing with amusement.

“I’m going to put this somewhere nearby,” he said softly, reaching behind him and placing her belt at the top of the bed. “I know we will need it later.”

A thrill of anticipation ran through Kalliope and she knew she would obey any command that Damianos gave her. She still couldn’t believe that she was here with Damianos at this very moment.

Damianos looked back at her. “Take off your sandals.”

Kalliope bent over, knowing full well that her dress would hang low at the neck, giving Damianos a peek of her breasts. She heard Damianos suck his breath in and she knew he had glimpsed inside her gown. She slipped off each sandal, tossing them carelessly aside to show Damianos that all her attention was on him.

“Very good. Now slide your dress off your shoulders.”

Kalliope took a deep breath and slipped her arm through each armhole. She held the dress up over her breasts, exposing both her shoulders.

Damianos’ hand grazed across his lap and rubbed between his thighs.

“Good,” he said in a throaty voice, “Drop it to your waist.”

Kalliope let the material fall to her waist and she felt the cool air hit her breasts.

Damianos groaned audibly. “Better than I imagined,” he breathed. His eyes drank in her round breasts. Kalliope had never felt so exposed and so sexy.

“Touch them,” Damianos croaked.

Kalliope gathered the material of her dress in one hand, and using her other hand, fondled her breasts. Her delicate skin was smooth and she felt her nipples under her fingers. She squeezed each breast in her hand, letting her nipples harden in her palm, and the sensation aroused her.

“Yes, Kalliope, yes,” Damianos rasped. “Drop the dress all the way.”

Kalliope had no undergarments on and she knew that once she dropped the dress she would be completely nude. She didn’t think twice, and she let the material fall to the floor in a soft heap.

Damianos groaned as Kalliope stood naked before him.

“Come to me.’’

Kalliope stepped towards him and Damianos lifted his hands to her body. He held them in midair as if unsure of where to touch her first. He laid his palms flat beneath her collarbone and slowly moved them down until they moved over her soft mounds. As his palms brushed across her hardened nipples, Kalliope felt a tug straight to her groin.

Damianos moved his hands further south, and then fanned them out along her hips and cupped her backside in his hands. He squeezed lightly and then spread his fingers along each of her cheeks. He brought his hands back to the front of her body, and gently ran them down her inner thighs, just brushing the edges of her sex and making her delirious with her need.

Grinning to himself, he reached down, gliding across her calves, making sure that he touched every inch of her.

“Perfection,” he whispered. He looked at Kalliope’s face and gently touched her hair. “I like your hair down.”

Kalliope nodded and reached up to pull it out. She held her mother’s clip in her hair and gently shook her long curly hair down her back. She moved to put the clip away but Damianos stopped her.

“I like this. Let me,” he said, opening her palm to retrieve the broach. He stood up and Kalliope could easily make out his erection under his tunic. He towered over Kalliope and gently fingered her hair as he tried to find a good place for the broach.

Kalliope couldn’t help herself and moaned at Damianos’ gentle touch. There was something incredibly erotic about Damianos playing with her hair. He brushed a piece from her face and let his hand glide across her cheekbone and against the back of her ear.

He pinned the broach in her hair and looked back at her, his eyes liquid desire.

“We’re going to start off slow. I don’t want to try too much at once.”

He sat back on the bed.

“Move behind me, Kalliope, and unhook my cloak. I want to feel your tits against my neck.”

Kalliope obeyed and climbed onto the bed. She kneeled behind Damianos and brushed his hair over one shoulder. She leaned her breasts against his neck and reached for the tiny clasp and button that held his garment in place. The material of his cloak was thick and finely made, and Kalliope wondered more about this mysterious man before her.

She unhooked the garment and felt the heavy weight of it in her hand. She gently pulled the drape with his war medals and honors and held it in her hands. She looked at the many decorations and fingered one of them. She wanted to spend more time looking at his honors but right now she was too focused on Damianos himself.

Once Damianos felt that his cloak was undone he reached back and clasped Kalliope’s hands.

“Pull my cloak down and press your breasts against the bare of my back.”

Kalliope followed his instructions and she felt the heat of his skin as she pushed her body flush with him. It felt glorious and she couldn’t help lowering her mouth to the base of his neck and tracing her tongue down his back.

Damianos shivered, but he growled, “I didn’t give that order.”

“I’m sorry,” Kalliope whispered, pulling away.

Damianos turned back to her. “Don’t be. I like a little misbehaving. It makes things interesting,” he said darkly.

Kalliope wasn’t sure what he meant, but she liked the thrill of being disobedient. Damianos stood up, holding his cloak against his body.

“Stand up and undress me.”

Kalliope hurried off the bed, gloriously nude, and moved behind Damianos. He let go of his cloak and she grabbed it, as she pulled it off his body.

The first thing she saw was his backside.

And what a backside it was.

Fine, sculpted and muscular, Kalliope wanted to squeeze it to see if it felt just as amazing as it looked. She looked further down to see his muscular thighs and calves. Kalliope longed to run her tongue along his legs, up his thighs, and all the way to his groin.

Damianos turned toward her, a look of desire and appreciation on his face. Kalliope wondered if he could tell how much he was making her salivate.