Taurus (7 page)

“Oh.” Kallie understood but was irritated that he called her virtue into question in front of the men in the room.

He lifted her out of the water and carried her to the bedroom. “You understand that, as long as you enjoy my hospitality, I will enjoy you?”

Kallie could not complain at his rationale. Free of the emperor’s plans, she must now concentrate on freedom from Panua. If she could reach Corinth and her mother’s people, she had the chance to live the life she wished and not be subjected to the will of men who sought to use her to produce heirs in a game of chauvinistic domination.

“I understand, and I agree as long as you treat me with respect. I am the granddaughter of Primus Gregorian, and as such…”

His eager kisses smothered her words. She fought to resist, but her body responded to him without command. Understanding the physical nature between a man and a woman no longer remained a mystery, but the emotional connection formed when a couple surrendered their bodies to one another added an unexpected element to her confusion.

****

Taurus pressed his mouth over hers, unwilling to listen to her plea. Since early morning he had thought of taking her but did not have the heart to rouse her from a sound sleep.

Speechless during their first encounter, how could he express himself to the most beautiful woman he had ever known? He had not lain with noblewomen—that would be a grave error. He kept his distance from entanglements with those ladies. Noble families would know if he favored one above the other, and he kept them on equal footing. Lidia had schooled him to keep them at bay, and he intended to maintain the advantage. Panuan women were pretty, some lovely to look at, but something about the girl in his arms outshone all of them. In looks alone she carried a room, but apart from that she was the most interesting girl he had ever met.

During their lovemaking the urge to please her entered his mind. Pinned under him, sighing in his ear as his powerful body rubbed over hers, the erotic sensation of his hairy chest and legs brushing her smooth sleek skin obviously drove her wild with desire.

She gasped his name. “Oh, Taurus.”

“Tell me what you want,” he whispered in her ear.

“Don’t stop,” she panted. “By all the gods, don’t stop!”

He gushed between her legs and she sighed in unexpected satisfaction.

Taurus held her as his heartbeat slowed to a regular pace.

“I will take you to the mountain this afternoon,” he offered. “The fresh air will do us both good.”

“Truly? But my riding clothes have been taken away.”

“Kristokus will take care of the details. Be ready for the noon meal.”

Her soft lips pressed against his shoulder. “I will be ready,” she complied happily.

****

The meal passed slowly for Taurus once Lidia and Virga joined them on the terrace.

“The Verragius family have invited us to their villa in the country, tonight,” Virga said.

“We must attend,” Lidia grumped. “It would be rude to refuse after the disastrous evening we hosted last night.”

Taurus held back a smirk. Hardly a disaster; in his opinion the evening had numerous delights. “See to it,” Taurus looked curtly at Virga.

An awkward pause passed between them. “Who shall I say is attending?”

“My honored guest will accompany us,” Taurus replied acidly.

Barca and Hamilcar arrived in time to find the food served and half-eaten. They ate their fill without a care. Hamilcar watched Taurus’ every move, like a dog waiting for its master’s approval. Barca threw sidelong glances at the Lady Virga. She in turn ignored him and concentrated on Lidia and Taurus.

Weeks on the run with Atticus had given Kallie a good appetite. “She eats like a man,” Lidia snorted in disgust.

Taurus laughed. He enjoyed Lidia’s annoyance, purposely inflaming her further. “She rides and shoots arrows like a man, too. Is it not so, Barca?”

Barca burned to teach her a lesson. No one apart from Taurus knew he had been pinned to a tree by her arrows.

“’Tis so.” Barca nodded in quiet agreement, but his eyes betrayed his fury.

“Governor, may I join your riding party this afternoon?” Hamilcar asked, a tinge of desperation in his voice.

Taurus shrugged. “If you wish. But I plan to spend the time with our guest, viewing the mountain up close. My escort merely acts as a guard to block the way up the mountain.”

“Why do you wish to see the mountain?” Suspicion laced Lidia’s voice.

Taurus waved off Lidia. “Because I wish it.”

Barca growled. “You are better off with me, Hamilcar. We have work to do.” He gave his brother a look to deny argument.

“Do you still search for the giant?” Kallie jibed.

Barca snapped. “I will have his head on a platter by the end of the day.” Atticus roamed free and Barca itched to catch him.

“You will not find him,” she mused. “He is skilled in the wild.”

“Why not return to Rome? Your plan was to come here and avoid marriage. You have what you want. Is there another reason he would stay?” Taurus asked.

“He waits until I am free to travel to Greece. Once my brother’s word is broken with the satrap and they no longer expect me to marry…”

“You will not be free, ever! You are a prisoner of Panua. You will die in a filthy cell fit for a Gregorian brat.” Lidia hissed.

“Perhaps.” She glanced at Taurus. He studied her as she chewed her last bite of food. “I would rather die than be trapped in a gilded cage,” she uttered defiantly. Taurus removed the plate from her hand and took her by the arm. “Hamilcar, stay and help your brother.”

Hamilcar’s face fell in disappointment, and he shot a look of irritation at Barca. Taurus shook his head. Lately the brothers had moved further and further apart, and Taurus must put a stop to their enmity soon, before it led to greater problems.

****

As Taurus pulled Kallie from the terrace, she glanced back at Lady Virga, who watched them passively. Not knowing if Virga held enmity toward her halted any possible overture to friendship. She respected Virga and sought to avoid making an enemy. But how could they be friends when Taurus blocked every opportunity? Kallie itched to remind him of his manners, but she dared not take liberties, not even to voice a mild protest as the governor handed her off to his capable steward. She must not jeopardize their riding plans.

Kallie donned her riding clothes and rushed to the stable, where Taurus waited, mounted on a superior horse, and she beamed at the equally spectacular mount waiting for her.

“I call this horse after Hannibal,” Taurus said. “He tried to defeat the Romans, and I will finish the job.”

Kallie needed no further explanation. “And the name of my horse?”

“Pilum. He rides true and straight, like a spear.”

They rode together, with a party of eight men riding well back. Kallie, dressed in her boyish clothes, secretly enjoyed the fact that Taurus knew every curve hidden under her disguise.

He avidly watched her handle the horse even though she had a less challenging mount; it allowed her to concentrate on the magnificent views ahead. They slowed to a trot after racing out over the flat plain toward the mountain. Kallie thrilled at the sheer joy of freedom from the enclosed walls of the fortress.

“This is wonderful!” she yelled above the noise of the horses. “What is the name of this mountain?”

“Black Mountain,” he answered. “Dark, and mysterious, and unforgiving. Men who tangle with her may lose their lives or their souls.” Taurus stared at Kallie as he spoke. Was he referring to the mountain?

She shrugged. “If you are afraid, Governor, I will go alone and report the mysteries waiting beyond.”

Taurus laughed loudly. “I have conquered her many times, Kallie. She holds no fear for me.”

“Indeed,” she mused, “the Monster of Panua is afraid of nothing.” She thought of Lidia. “Except for an old woman who calls herself your grandmother. Now there is a forbidding mistress.”

“I am her master.” Taurus balked. She had found his weakness. It irked him that Lidia tried to rule through him.

“You are master because she allows it. If you crossed Lidia, you would soon find out the truth of it.”

Taurus reached out and grabbed the reins of her horse. “Lidia is an old woman who lives in the past. Soon she will be dead, and Panua will remain in my grip. I hold the power, not Lidia.”

“Hmm.” She was unconvinced Lidia posed no threat. Kallie knew from experience that spies were everywhere. Lidia had at one time controlled a network that led from Panua to the door of Primus Gregorian.

“’Tis strange to think I could have been her granddaughter, if my mother had married Paulinus.” She laughed, and Taurus joined in.

“Strange indeed to think we could have met under different circumstances,” he mused.

Closer to the mountain Taurus signaled to the men. They broke into a gallop and reached their general. “Make a camp here and wait for our return. Let no one pass unless I give the order.”

They took the path leading into the mountain. She turned often to gaze at the view. “It is beautiful from here,” she sighed. “I knew it would be.”

Taurus followed her gaze to the distant fortress. Towering walls and magnificent architecture loomed over the valley. The city below was a jumble of rooftops dotting the expanse, with roadways crisscrossing through tightly packed buildings.

“This mountain is much like the place I grew up, near the town of Actinium, remote and wild.”

The breeze stirred her hair as she dismounted and tied the reins to a tree. Taurus joined her. It felt good to stretch their legs after the long ride. He sat on a large rock and watched as she climbed a tree, lightly teasing her on her agility and the height she climbed before pausing to look down.

“I can see your men at the base of the mountain from up here. They are behaving well.” She scooted down with even more speed, jumping the last few cubits to the ground, and screeched with laughter as she tumbled head over heels, clumsily breaking her fall.

Taurus laughed at her antics. Free of duty and responsibility, he watched with interest to see what she would do next.

“My father always made a fire-ring in the wild before we hunted game and searched for water.” Kallie gathered a pile of rocks. “Point in the direction of home often, and you will not forget the way, he always said.” She formed the stones into an arrow shape, its point aimed at the fortress. Throwing the extra stones into the centre of the ring, she rubbed the dirt off her hands. Taurus quietly watched as she climbed onto the rock with him and took the water-skin to quench her thirst. “Did you bring rations?”

He reached into a pouch, withdrew a small ration, and held it with a firm grip as she tried to wrestle it free. Fierce as she was in her attempt to uncurl his fingers, he held tight the more she struggled. He withdrew his hand. “I will give it to you for a kiss,” he teased.

“Only a kiss?” Kallie considered his request easily fulfilled. “I agree. Give me the ration, and I will kiss you.”

“No, kiss me first, and then I will give you the ration.”

Kallie leaned in to kiss him. She hovered over him, her breath caressing his face. She touched his lips with the hint of a kiss.

“That was hardly a kiss,” he complained.

“You did not specify the exact nature of the kiss,” Kallie teased. “I will give you a better kiss for two rations.”

Taurus chuckled at the game. “What will you give for the lot?”

She jumped off the rock. “Follow me and find out.”

Under the cover of the trees she turned to face him and raised her arms. He caught her in his embrace, lifting her to meet his lips. Her fingers twisted into his tangle of tawny hair, taming its waves. Clothes dissolved as they kissed, and they stood naked in the forest, sighing with pleasure. Kallie nibbled his ear as they dropped to the ground. He handed her the rations. She popped one into her mouth, and relaxed as his eyes roved across her naked body. She reached for him, guiding him to her, as the warm breeze rustled through the surrounding leaves.

“Wait.” Taurus said, coming out of his haze of desire.

Kallie paused, “What’s wrong?”

Taurus eyed her for a moment. “The Greeks have a word.”

“What word?” Kallie asked, confused.

Taurus whispered in her ear. “Orgasmos.”

“What does it mean?” She had Greek blood through her mother, but this strange word meant nothing.

“Better if I show you the meaning.” Taurus dropped his head and showered her body with kisses.

“Oh, I see,” Kallie murmured, as he took her on a journey she would never forget. She sailed on a river of ecstasy provided by the governor. Slow and deliberate, his concentration stayed solely on pleasing her. She lay in his arms, limp and exhausted. “Gods! Now I know why lovers do this with eagerness,” she moaned, drunk with satisfaction.

“Not all women have such a moving experience, but if the woman is eager the man may try a little harder.”

She noted his smug attitude at her newly discovered rapture. “How often do a man and woman do such a thing?”

Taurus laughed at her inquisitive nature. “Each coupling is different, but the choice is for the man to make.”

“Oh.” Kallie bit back a scalding reply. This was not the time or the place to disagree. She had a brief vision of Taurus and Virga together, but a passionate encounter between an ice-cold beauty with good graces and flawless manners and the vigorous governor eluded her fertile imagination.

“Come,” Taurus commanded. “We must return or the men will search for us soon.”

Dressed and ready to leave, Kallie took one last look at the fortress in the distance before turning her horse to the path down the mountain. She inspected Taurus from under narrowed eyes. His tawny hair hung loose around his face, and his hazel eyes shimmered in the daylight. A magnificent example of a man, but he knew it. She smiled as they began their descent. A trip to the mountain proved to be exactly what she needed, but not for the reasons he thought.

Chapter Six

Taurus glanced back once as the mountain receded into the distance. He shook off an uneasy sensation and kept close to his charge. For a long time he rode without speaking, lost in his thoughts. His encounters with women normally centered solely on his pleasure alone; most women were mere vessels to fill and refill at his convenience. But this one was different. Even though she had no prior experience with men she pulsed with a vibrant carnal energy that fired his sexual awareness. He recognized the urge to dominate a woman, but the unfamiliar desire to please one infuriated his sense of good judgment.