Kiss of the Dragon (16 page)

Bianca was so furious, she did not notice the old gypsy
woman standing in the alcove behind her until she nearly tripped over her.

“Pardon me,” Bianca murmured, and tried to pass, but the old
woman sidestepped her and planted herself in front of Bianca, effectively
blocking her escape. Looking closer at the woman, Bianca gasped and stumbled
back, a feeling of real panic filling her.

“Pray, do not fear me, child. I mean you no harm.”

The words were said in a low, soothing tone, which
penetrated the haze of fear and calmed Bianca enough that she could catch her
breath. “What do you want here?”

“I came to see you.”

“Why?”

“Need you ask that, child?” A small, reproachful smile lit
up the old, wrinkled face. “I realize that I have not been around in a long
while, but we have been on the road a great deal the past few years. You know
that a gypsy has no real home except for her family.”

“Yea. But why have you come back? And why now?”

“I sensed that you needed guidance. All the signs I have
studied pointed to it. You are of an age where you need your own man and to
start a family.” The old woman shrugged her shoulders slightly. “I thought that
perhaps I could advise you in some small way. Everyone needs a little help from
time to time. Do you not agree? Come, let us talk for a while.”

Hesitant to take the old, proffered hand, Bianca gaze into
the soulful bluish-purple eyes uncertainly. But as she considered her words,
she saw only trust and compassion and, she gasped, yes, there was love shining
in her eyes for Bianca. Was it possible that this old woman, who had popped in
and out of her life over the years and who always managed to appear when she
most needed advice on a life-changing matter, loved her as well as any
grandmother loved her granddaughter?

In all the years she had known this woman, she had come to
no harm. Which made it hard for Bianca to understand her own attitude toward
the Rom. They had for the most part treated her as family. It had been the
incident when she was a young child that still haunted her in her dreams that
had her mistrusting any gypsy who came within any distance of Neige. To this
day, she still had nightmares, even if the incident had dimmed somewhat and all
the details seemed to blur over the years. It seemed foolish now that it was
all in the past, but the tragic happenings at that time in her young life had
changed her whole perspective about trusting anyone.

Taking a shuddering breath, Bianca closed her eyes as she
made an effort to push the sadness away. Slowly she offered her hand and felt
it clasped by rough, bony hands. A warmth seemed to race up her arm, and she
opened her eyes to gaze down at the old woman’s hand. Whether it was her
imagination or reality, a blue flame formed a soft aura around their hands and
a feeling of quiet enchantment rushed up her arm to warm her body as it settled
in her heart. She blinked once and then it was gone and she was left wondering
if it were real.

“Now then.” Her grandmother’s words brought her back to her
surroundings. “About this man you care so much about, the one you are going to
lose, not to that debauching little dancer doing her best to seduce him, but to
your own lack of fortitude. You know your heart, but you are letting your
jealousy work against you. He is yours, granddaughter, believe it. Use the
knowledge that he cares deeply for you and only you to help you find a way to
get the words from him.”

“That is easier said than accomplished. What do I do, go and
dance for him as well?” Sarcasm dripped from her lips as Bianca laughed
mirthlessly, helplessness echoing off the cold, stone corridor walls. It was a
sound that matched her disposition.

“Yea, if that is what it takes, do so, but not in the hall
where every ravenous male can feast his eyes upon your lovely flesh. No, you
must do something for him and him alone. If dancing is what it will take, then
dancing he shall have.” Taking Bianca by the arm, the old woman ushered her
down the twisting turns of the corridors and up the stairs to her tower
chambers.

“I cannot dance for him, grandmother. I would not even know
how.”

“That is a defeatist attitude, my dear. If your mother had
believed that, you would not be standing here today.”

“Yes, I suppose you are right.” At the mention of her
mother, Bianca’s lagging fortitude did an about-face. “What must I do? Teach me
the dances that will seduce him and I will do it.”

“Good, child. That is the attitude you must take. Never do I
want to see your lower lip trembling again. It does no good to wallow in
self-pity.” The old woman kissed Bianca’s forehead gently and hugged her close.
“There, now first things first, we must find something suitable for you to wear.”

Bianca glanced down at her lovely gown. “What is wrong with
this?”

“It is very beautiful, my child. But you need something
more; something that will dazzle him, something that will take his breath away
when he sees you in it. A costume he will remember and dream of long after you
have performed for him.”

Swallowing the lump in her throat that threatened to choke
her, Bianca’s eyes widened with wonder, and just a little fear. She hesitated
even going so far as to open her mouth to tell her grandmother that she didn’t
think she could do it. But then she remembered that last time she had been
alone with Lord Draco, in his rooms, and the memory of the gleam of desire in
his dark eyes.

Yes. She would dance for him. This would be her time to
seduce the stubborn man.

“Are you seeing it as it could be, granddaughter? Yea, I can
see that you are.”

With a slight nod of assurance, Bianca let her mind’s eye
picture exactly what the old woman spoke of and then her courage wavered.

“I have nothing so enchanting.”

“Hmmm… Do you still have any of your mother’s wardrobe?”

“Yes, whatever is left is stored in those chests in the
corner.”

Not needing an invitation, the old woman moved across the
room and opened a chest. She rummaged through it for a moment or two, murmuring
quietly to herself.

Bianca walked up behind her and peered over her shoulder as
she shifted through the items that had been so reverently packed away and never
again disturbed. The scent that rose from the depths of the long closed chest
brought back precious memories of a long ago time. It was like making a journey
into the past. The exotic perfume that Marilis de Neige once wore filled the
air. Jasmine and myrrh had always been her mother’s favorite perfume. Bianca
felt emptiness wash over her. The feelings that had taken her so long to bury
arose to meet her in a crashing wave of pain, nearly felling her to her knees.

It had been nearly nine years since Marilis had died of
fever only days after attempting to birth a male child, an heir for her
husband, the Duke de Neige. Neither mother nor son survived the birthing.
Marilis left behind a brokenhearted young daughter and a husband so wrapped up
in his own despair that he nearly forgot about his only child, until that
horrible, fateful night, the memory of which still gave Bianca dark, troubling
dreams.

“Ah, child, this is perfect. I knew your mother would not
throw all of her costumes away. She had a great fondness for this one. She wore
it the first time she met your father. He was enthralled with my beautiful
Marilis. I believe it will look just as sultry and ravishing on you as it did
on her.”

Never in all of her life had Bianca laid eyes upon anything
as exquisitely exotic as the diaphanous gold and black piece that was held
before her.

* * * * *

After managing to free himself from the persistent Carmen
with her too bold, roaming hands, Draco followed Bianca from the hall. He knew
from the moment that Carmen began to dance for him that it had outraged Bianca.
By the fierce look she gave him, it was obvious that she was jealous and angry.
He just hoped that both emotions were short-lived, and would fade as soon as
rational thought returned. Although, he had to admit that having a woman
jealous over him gave him an odd sense of arrogance and restored a great deal
of his confidence as a man. Being a soldier, a badly scarred one at that, he
was unaccustomed to that kind of feminine attention. Women had never been hard
to come by if you had the coin, but he had never had a woman show any emotion
for him other than revulsion.

By the time Draco reached the end of the darkened corridor,
Bianca was nowhere to be seen, and after squelching an impulse to follow her to
her chambers, he decided to retire to his own bedchambers.

Lighting the candle on the bedside table, he stripped down
and collapsed on the mammoth sized bed with a great sigh. He lay there for some
time, his arm thrown over his eyes, his mind in turmoil over what he should do
about the lovely Bianca. He could no longer deny his desire for her. She enraptured
him from the first moment he had laid eyes on her dressed in her outrageous
maidservant’s clothing. Still he was not about to admit there was any more to
his attraction for her than pure lust.

If he had any sense left in his muddled brain, he would pack
up and prepare to leave Castle Neige at first light as he had originally
planned. But that thought no longer appealed to him. The memory of her lush
curves pressed against his hard body, and her sweet, kissable mouth came to
mind and his body clenched and tightened in response. Damn but he wanted her.
He wanted her badly.

So distracted by his lascivious thoughts, he barely heard
the light tapping on his chamber door. He was not sure he had actually heard
anything, so he waited and after a moment or two, it came again, a light, timid
tapping.

He swung his long legs over the edge of the bed and pulled
on his leggings before padding across the room in his bare feet. He opened the
door and the sight that met his eyes had his jaw going slack with amazement.
For a moment he thought he had fallen asleep and was in the middle of an erotic
dream, but then her soft fragrance enveloped him, settled over him like a
caress, and he knew this dream was no dream. She was very real.

Her face hidden behind opaque golden scarves, Bianca found
the courage that she lacked just moments before while standing in the cold
hallway, her hand raised to knock on the scarred door. But the hot gaze that
swept over her veil-covered body left her flushed with uncertainty and
embarrassment. She blushed at her own audacity to come to his room dressed in
such a way. Was this a mistake? Had her grandmother been wrong?

Draco’s eyes lingered over the full breasts before moving
down to the tiny waist and over the curve of her hips. The dark triangle at the
junction of her thighs showed through the thin layers of shimmering fabric. The
sight of such beauty displayed so erotically send his manhood into full-blown
arousal, testing the sturdiness of the stitching at his crotch.

He had been daydreaming of Bianca just moments before as he
lay on his bed and here she was in the most wondrous costume possible. As he
stood there staring at his Beauty, his heartbeat accelerated and he had to
clench his hands into fists and thrust them behind his back to keep from
reaching for her and taking her down on the floor right there in the hallway.
Thoughts of long hot passionate kisses and sweaty intertwining naked bodies
clouded his brain and he had to shake his head to clear it.

“Yea?” He barked hoarsely, not knowing what else to say at
that moment. The last thing he wanted was to frighten her away. He swallowed
painfully, his throat was suddenly very dry.

“I have come to dance for you, m’lord.” Her long black
lashes fluttered down seductively. She peeked up through them to gauge his
reaction to her boldness and barely controlled the smile of triumph that
threatened to tilt up the corners of her lovely red lips as he hastily pulled
the door wide and motioned for her to enter. After she stepped across the
threshold, he glanced down the corridor to see if anyone had witnessed her
arrival and was relieved to find the hall vacant.

Draco closed the door and leaned against it as he watched in
amusement as the feisty little beauty walked across the room to stand by his
bed, her hips swaying seductively, tempting him. As she stood there, the glow
of the candlelight reflected off the gold threads of the veil she draped around
her shoulders and the silver threads in her diaphanous trousers she wore making
her look like a goddess. And he could think of no better way to show his
appreciation for her existence than worship her body with his own.

Before he could make a move in her direction, Bianca started
to hum a gypsy love ballad. The tune was seductive and as she hummed it low,
she began to move. Her hips undulated from side to side slowly; her hands
roaming suggestively over her body. Then, with slow, rolling movements, she
lifted them above her head with erotic grace. She turned slowly around and
around, her small bare feet keeping rhythm as her arms and hips swayed like
reeds in the wind, every angle of her lush, little body coming into his view.

Never had Draco seen anything so erotic, so arousing. That
she did this exclusively for him made it all the more significant. His arousal
was great and his need to bury himself deep within her soft body nearly
uncontrollable. Draco stalked her like a predator moving slowly behind her,
around her. His eyes narrowed as he watched her every movement and soon he had
only one thing in mind and that was to touch her, to feel her moving body
underneath his hands. He wanted to feel her, kiss her, taste her soft, satiny
flesh that peeked out from beneath the thin veils.

So caught up in her dancing, Bianca failed to noticed Draco
move up behind her and then suddenly his hands were on her hips. He pulled her
flush to him and began to move with her, absorbing her. The heat of his nearly
naked body at her back excited Bianca and she leaned into him, reaching up and
caressing his neck and shoulders. She felt the hard evidence of his mighty
arousal prodding into her back as they moved together. The heat from of his
body was enormous and she feared she might get burned if they went any further.
But she was determined to carry this seduction to its conclusion. This was her
best opportunity and she meant to make the most of it.