The Angel of Soriano: A Renaissance Romance (17 page)

Face under a dark veil, Aurelia’s unknown patient moaned. She wore an expensive Florentine dress and lay on a bed in one of Orvieto’s most exclusive homes. The reward for coming to her aid would no doubt be significant. Perhaps, if the birthing went smoothly, Aurelia would be able to move out of the underground cave and get a small room with a window.

Her bird-like mask, used by many doctors during the plague, hid the upper part of her face. So far, no one seemed to have the slightest suspicion that the doctor behind the mask was a woman.

She knelt beside the pregnant patient in the bed and spoke in a manly rasp. “Don’t worry, signora, I’ll help you through this. Is this your first child?”

Suddenly a large male hand reached out from under the feminine sleeves and gripped her arm like a talon.

“Yi!” She tugged back from the pain with heart racing while picturing how she might be tortured for her deceitful practice. Would they tear her between two horses, pull off her fingernails, or hang her?

A familiar hand covered her next scream while a voice calmed her, whispering in her ear. “It’s me, Aurelia. Nod if you understand.”

Bernardo?
She bobbed her head.

He released her and in the same move pulled away the black lace, revealing his handsome Spanish features that she’d prayed to someday forget. Dear God, she still loved him with every grain of her being.

At that, Fulvio stepped out from behind a curtain with a small grin, nodded, and waited outside the door. No doubt his sword was drawn, daring anyone to enter.

After the drumming in her ears calmed and her heart realized she was not going to die today, her anger flared. How dare he fool her with ridiculous woman’s clothing? A pillow for a baby?  Bernardo was going to ruin everything she’d worked so hard to build.

“What’re you doing here?” she hissed.

“Scusami? I’m here to bring you home. To Soriano.” He seemed genuinely surprised.

“No.” She tore the leather beak away from the top half of her face.

“No?” Standing, his dress fell to the floor and his magnificent naked chest loomed over her. He was so damn beautiful that she thought she might die but this foolishness had to come to an end.

“Si. I said, no.” She stared for the longest time as the lips between her legs grew moist but she had to stay strong for both of them.

The crease between his brows furrowed and his dark eyes stormed. “I’ve been searching for days. To save you.”

It broke her heart but he had to understand.
I am the Nardini whore and you’re the steward of Soriano.

She toned her voice with disdain and turned her back to him. “Well, you’ve found me and obviously I don’t need saving. Go back to your wife.”

He reached for a shoulder a bit too roughly and twisted her back around. His voice cracked and his eyes were moist. “Have you taken a lover? Borgia?”

She put her hand to his cheek, dying inside that she was the one who caused him so much pain. “No, my love. There’s no other. I’ve simply decided I like the freedom of being a man. I like to earn my own money and make my own decisions.”

Shaking off her touch, he paced like a caged and injured animal. “I’m not comfortable with this.”

With a gentler voice, she took both his hands in hers, kissed them, and left them at her face. “Bernardo, the woman you fell in love with was an illusion, a myth. I’m no angel. I’m real. With real problems that cannot be solved just because you want them to go away.”

Slowly his eyes scanned her from her feet to the top of her cap. “You think I don’t know you’re flesh and blood. I’ve dreamed of your soft skin, the folds between your legs, and your shivers as you reached heavenly bliss at my touch. I ached for you. I haven’t slept since I lost you. Please, you need to come home with me.”

Tears threatened to overflow and one spilled down her cheek. When he reached out to wipe it, she slapped his hand away. “It cannot be.”

“You love me. I see it in your eyes. Why Aurelia? Why?”

The hurt in his face was too much to bear so she blurted out, “I love you so much that I cannot be your ruin. That’s why!”

His mouth dropped open, and a wry smile cracked on the corner of his mouth. “Is that what this is all about? Why you ran away from me?”

She nodded, unable to hold back from weeping and running into his open arms.

Then he kissed her cries away without mercy as his hands ran up and down her back. “Shush now.”

Out of control, her fingers dugs into his silky hair, holding him in place, wanting him so much even while knowing it could never last.

He lifted her onto the bed, held both hands over her head, and pressed a knee between her legs. “I thought I’d lost you.”

“I’ve missed you so much.” Senses on fire, she squirmed and moaned, a delight to be his prisoner.

His kisses grew fierce with intensity, he fumbled with her clothes, and cursed. Afraid he’d tear them to shreds, she tugged the many layers over her head. Then she lay before him in hose and boots, her breasts wrapped tightly in a long linen bandage.

He pulled out a stiletto and cut free her bindings with a growl. “Never cover these again.”

Gently, his hands rubbed away the soreness around her chest from the too tight wrappings. Then he moved to her front, sucking and adoring her.

If they only had this short moment in time, she’d revel in it.  She kicked off her boots, scooted out of her hose, and tossed them aside. Then she spread her legs wide, watching him as he undressed.

His desire sprung free, hard, swollen, and pointing. Then he crawled up her length, kissing and laving. He stopped to nip at her already tender nipples and put a finger to the folds between her legs. There he lingered, circling, until she thought she might die.

Her legs wrapped around him, and she dug her heels into his back. “Bernardo.”

“Angel. Come for me.”

Just as the heavens broke free in colors and quivers, he pushed into her, moaning her name.

Madonna
. He was fierce, claiming, and wonderful. She clung, her thighs tight, as he pulsed, rocking her again to the heights of ecstasy.

Suddenly his eyes rolled back, her body took him in fully and he shouted. When his seed spewed, his shaking sent her over the edge again. Together, their bodies found a perfect harmony as they pulsed together as one.

When he finally pulled out, more tears streamed down her face. How could she ever give him up?

“Did I hurt you?” He frowned, touching her wet cheek.

“No, my love. It was just so, so beautiful. I’m temporarily overwhelmed.”

His cocky smile reminded her of the first time they met. After the beating of their hearts calmed, and their breathing returned to normal, he reached into a leather bag. “I’ve something I need to show you.”

She gasped at the familiar dowry papers with the red wax seal now broken. “Now it’s worthless.”

He came back to the bed and wrapped himself around her from behind and whispered into her ear, “No. It's worth a fortune. It is I who am now unworthy of you, wife.”

“Why do you insist on using that endearment?” Surely he must know how it hurt that he’d wed another.

His brows furrowed in confusion. “Because you are.”

“But Lucella?”

“How could I marry her if I was already married to you?” A lock of her short locks twirled through his fingertips, then he kissed the tip of her nose.

“I just assumed your father annulled the first marriage.” She lay flat on her back and leaned up on her elbows.

His voice saddened. “He probably would’ve if he’d lived long enough. Ahh...it all makes more sense to me, now. When you left, you thought I was married to Lucella?”

What an idiot I was.
She nodded.

“And yet you still made love to me here? Knowing I could get you with child? Willing to be my mistress.”

“Si.”

“Christo, and I thought I couldn’t care for you more than I already did.” His cock jumped to attention and she smiled.

But instead of making love again, he enthusiastically showed her the map and the will written in Latin. “My cousin showed this to Pope Innocent. There’s no denying it. You hold a fortune in lands in Naples.”

Her mouth dropped open but what difference did it truly make? She still had to remain hidden away or they’d both die.

She shook her head, sadly. “I’m so pleased that it’s in your hands, but I still cannot come back to Soriano with you. Nothing has changed.”

He growled, “Everything has changed. I’ve found you, explained all, and now you’re coming home.”

Even though he looked stricken, he had to understand. “How? Your people will never accept a Nardini as your wife.”

“Damnation, Aurelia. You saved them.”

“Si, si. But what proof do we have?”

His mouth was grim and he showed no signs of giving in. “Come. Put on my dress and come home with me. There, we’ll talk more.”

She cupped her palms to his cheeks. “My love. Your people will stone me.”

“After all we’ve been through, you don’t trust I can keep you safe?” He glared, suddenly angry again.

How could she explain? No one in her life had ever kept her safe, not even him. When she shook her head no, he acted as if she’d slapped him.

Cursing, he grabbed his clothes, and dressed. “I do not beg, wife. Stay here if you must.”

Without giving her a chance to say more he shouted, “Fulvio. We go.”

“But—”

“Send word when you’ve changed your mind. Only then.” His face, only moments before loving, stared at her with pure hatred.”

After that, he was gone. She walked home wondering if she’d done the right thing. That night she sobbed, wishing she’d nodded yes instead of no.

When she woke, she found that Fulvio hadn’t left with Bernardo. He kept watch over her during the days that followed. Funny how all of a sudden, she was inundated with pregnant women needing her service and yet not one man.

She sat with him for a meal after a particularly difficult day. “I see that I’m not ever going to have any male patients?”

He grinned and poured them some wine. “Apparently Orvieto has only females with aches and pains.”

“I assume my husband had something to say about that?” She handed a coin to the tavern keep, feeling good that she’d earned it all by herself. Then she focused on pulling apart the hen on her plate.

He shrugged and drank his wine. “Believe what you will.”

For the longest time she said nothing, then blurted out, “Why do you stay here? I’m no child, requiring a nursemaid.”

The man could be so annoying but if she wasn’t so infatuated with her husband, she’d certainly consider taking up with Fulvio. His dark Roman features, bedroom eyes, and strong form would make most women swoon.

His brows raised with amusement. “What do you think?”

“I think you do Bernardo’s bidding and he prefers that I don’t see naked men.” She emptied her glass and poured another, almost as a dare.

“That would be very astute of you to assume.” A chuckle came from deep within his chest and he downed another.

She laughed and leaned back against the wall, the spirits making her speak a bit too freely. “Bernardo told me you’re a first born Orsini?”

“Si. I am.” He eyed her over his mug.

“What happened?” She held his gaze and wondered if he’d answer.

Finally he sighed and looked away. “My sister. She refused an offer. I got involved. I got disowned.”

“Was the man who offered marriage so very bad?” She remembered her almost wedding to the old doctor in Vignanello and Borgia’s lust. Women in this world needed a champion.

“It was not an offer of marriage.” Something about his face made her stop and stare. The fact he’d given up everything for his sister made her ache for his loss.

“Did your family need the money?”

“Power. Land. It always comes down to that, doesn’t it?”

As he stood to go, she held him back. “I think you should try to make things right. Talk to your father.”

He snorted.

“No really, I do. I’d give anything to have mine back, even with all his flaws. Family should be everything.”

“Perhaps, if I ever finish guarding you, I might give it a try.” He sighed and took her hands. “Why not go home to your husband? I hear you crying every night.”

“It’s too late. I hurt him badly. I injured his pride. I’m not good for him.”

He shook his head. “Take your own advice. He’s your family now. He’s already requested I take you home by force if necessary. He just wanted to give you time to come willingly.”

She sprang out of her chair and gave him a big hug, temporarily forgetting she was a man. “Thank you!”

He actually blushed at the uncomfortable glances in the tavern and cleared his throat. “I think we should go.”

Bernardo paced the main hall of Soriano while people gathered in the piazza. Everything needed to be perfect.

“Fulvio. Dammit. Where’s Aurelia? Did she refuse my invite?”

“I’ve arrived. You don’t need to shout.” His wife appeared from out of the shadows of an arch in the door.

As in the first day he met her, the sun took that moment to come out and bathe her in yellow light. What was it about her, that even the sun acknowledged her beauty when she walked into a room?

His pride did not allow him to grovel, though he would’ve if he thought it’d make a difference. Damn, he needed her beside him, not in Orvieto. Although he’d trusted Fulvio with her well-being, it was high time for her to come home.

Today he’d prove to her how much he understood her. Besides, he’d run out of pregnant noblewomen and would soon need to scout the ghettos of Rome to keep her busy and out of trouble.

He nodded as one might a royal acquaintance, not one in whom moments of passion had been shared. Certainly, not a wife.

Then he found it hard to swallow and turned to look up at a pigeon, cooing in the rafters. “You have been well, Signora Nardini?”

Her voice sounded as strained as his. “Si. Si.”

“Did you get the coins I sent? My letters?”

She stared ahead, wringing her hands in front of her. “Si. Fulvio has been most vigilant. I would guess he hardly has time to see to your needs.”

Her needs were his. Soon she’d understand all of that and more. “I’m sorry that I needed to ask for your presence here today but the pope insisted.”

Her brows furrowed and she bit her lower lip. “Oh. I thought maybe...”

“Si?”

“Oh, nothing.” She stood as small as a waif, hidden deep inside the white fur that lined her green hood. Would she but say a single word and he would scoop her up, take her to his chambers, and love her forever.

He cleared his throat. “I want you to see something before His Holiness arrives. Would you walk with me?”

She nodded and put her small hand into the crook of his arm. It took all his self-control not to push her into that same dark alley where they’d once shared so much.

At the fountain, he pointed to a building with a cross over the door. The sculpture of an angel graced the top of a round tower way overhead. Busy nuns wandered in and out of the arched doorway.

“This is yours.” Very pleased with himself, he watched her mouth drop open.

“Scusami?”

“It’s an apothecary and more. A place where people who are ill can be cured. A place where a woman doctor could easily come and go in a mask and yet still remain safe.”

She turned to him with eyes wide. “You did this for me?”

He fell to one knee. “I would give you the world. If you need to be a doctor, do it here in Soriano, with me.”

The wide smile made him wish he’d thought of this weeks ago.

“Can we go in now?” She pulled at his arm.

He laughed. “No. Later. Did you forget His Holiness is planning a celebration?”

“Mio Dio. I did.”

“Si. And he wishes to meet the miracle angel who warned the town from the hill in Bastia.”

“But it was me.” She frowned.

It wasn’t long before he kissed it away. “Of course it was.”

“But...”

“He is the pope and we will tell him the truth. Come.” He lifted her up into his arms and carried her.

She kissed him back. “And what if the people don’t accept me?”

He smiled to himself and hummed all the way up the hill.