Tangles and Temptation (11 page)

Kyra forced her eyes away from the disturbing and somewhat-confusing sight and concentrated on the woman. She was full-bodied, carved with delicate detail. Her breasts were thrust up proudly, her nipples protruded, aroused. Her nether frontal parts and buttocks were obscured from sight with the looping snake entwined around them. Kyra’s breath caught in her chest as she studied the face of the woman. Her face showed not fear as she expected—no stretched features of wide eyes and screaming mouth. There was no terror, no abhorrence. What she saw frightened her. It was something she herself had experienced. The woman’s eyes were half closed, her mouth lax. Her face was filled with pleasure, bliss, riddled to overflowing with
passion
. Kyra kept her eyes trained on the woman’s features as a single word forced its way through her suddenly dry, parched lips. “
Explain.
”

The queen sighed. “This is the engraving of many centuries past. It is the evidence of the past. This drawing is of
Erpo,
the snake. Each gladiator has his own place upon the wall, depicting one thing—
his marking of his mate.
While you found the act Eris applied upon your person barbaric, it is actually within his nature. It is the very beast within him.” She reached out and tenderly ran her hand over the body of the snake. “The snake chooses its mate and marks it. Eris had no power over his beast, Kyra. He was, in that instance, as powerless as you. The snake was, in that instance, master over you—
and
over Eris.”

Kyra whispered, “You speak of the snake, but what of the man? What harbors he within the tight confines of his heart?”

The queen whispered back, “That is something only the mate can decipher or influence.
You, Kyra
.”

SAGA Te’sseris

Eris watched the beauty lying in the bed. Indeed her name suited her well. She radiated and glowed just like the sun. Her lashes fanned thickly against her cheeks, which blossomed into healthy red patches like sun-ripened peaches. Her skin was creamy and smooth. His fingers jerked with the need to touch her, to test her softness. But he held still. Cautiously he leaned over her, breathing deeply of the scent upon her lips. It was fresh and sweet, giving evidence of the sweetness of her dreams that might have possessed her this past night. His sleep, not for the first time, had been ravaged by lusty dreams and unholy yearning, leading him into yet another day with a foul temper, pounding head and heavy scrotum. He envied this innocent female whose dreams were unplagued by the torments of the past she remembered not, undeterred by the sexual stirrings that assaulted his body and mind nightly. Their breaths mingled as his shaft jerked eagerly. Were it any other, he would have plunged his heavy, rock-hard tool right into her softness. But this was not just anyone. This was the plague upon his very existence.
This was Kyra.

Kyra came awake with a startled gasp. Eris grinned in amusement. Somehow, within the deep unconsciousness of sleep, she had detected the presence of another. He knew the moment she had experienced the niggling feeling at the nape of her neck. She had stirred against her pillow, restless. Her eyes sprang open just as Eris cupped his hand gently over her mouth, sealing in her scream effectively. Kyra stared at him with eyes wide in surprise. As he lowered his body, pressing her deeply into the soft kline, the look on her face quickly turned to annoyance. As she struggled beneath him, her body imprisoned by his hard, unrelenting length, he rejoiced in the undeniable stab of his arousal. It grew and hardened with each forced abrasion against her soft belly.

She arched an eyebrow and smirked at his obvious discomfort.

“Cease, you wretched witch.”

Of course that was too much to ask for. She ever so slowly and ever so purposefully ignored his command. With yet another enticing thrust up with her hips, Eris growled. The strength of her motion beneath him changed and grew, attesting to her own awakening. Her thrusts became more forceful, aggressive, threatening to unseat him completely in its fierceness. Eris released her mouth and grabbed both her hands while he forced his midsection down hard. He burrowed his throbbing shaft within the heated juncture at her thighs. The sheets, sleek and slippery in their silky texture, dragged down under their wriggling motions and pooled around her waist, baring her breasts. Eris grunted his satisfaction. She was just as exquisite in the morning light as she was bathed in candlelight. Her body lay trapped snuggly. But most satisfying was the knowledge.
She sleeps in the nude!
He growled as he felt the urge to surrender to the bidding of his aching lance, to bury himself deep within her sheath.

He hissed instead, “I have come to exact my revenge for your little tirade yesterday. Did you think to run from me forever?”

Kyra shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. “Was I a cowardly person, trembling with fear and trepidation, I would have found accommodations more difficult for you to find than my very own bed. And as to the tirade yesterday, that was the exacting of
my
revenge for your aggression upon my body. We are now even.”

Eris stared at the feisty female beneath him. This was not at all the reaction he had expected when he’d snuck into her chamber. It was not the reaction he had expected as he’d watched her face, through the curtains surrounding her bed, limp and innocent, dragged fully in blissful sleep. But she was not asleep anymore. She was awake and spitting like a little female cobra. Eris conceded her this round with reluctance and a good measure of unwelcome admiration. Kyra was not frightened easily. Even now, as she lay trapped beneath him, clearly at a disadvantage, she fought back with the same vigor and proud determination he had come to respect in able-bodied adversaries he had met in the battlefield. “I will accept that. However, be warned, female, I will not be so forgiving should you find the urge to repeat such an action.”

Kyra smiled indulgently. “Just as I shall be forgiving and remind you I shall tolerate no repeat of aggressive male domination over my person.”

“It was never my intent to harm you.”

Eris scowled as she remained silent. He enjoyed the plying of argument and debate with a well-versed tongue as much as the next man, but right now this verbal sparring was the last thing on his mind. His body had begun to strum once again as he felt the moisture between her thighs dampen the sheet and greet the tip of his shaft in welcome. The welcome could not go unheeded. “Were you to ply that wicked tongue of yours to something more pleasurable than the spitting of heated words, a man would find it irresistible to take a taste of your wares.”

The pupils of Kyra’s eyes darkened. She whispered, “Were it a
man
in my bed rather than a beast, I would be tempted to accept the challenge.”

Eris drew back slightly at her insult, but he did not release her completely. He stared into her heated eyes. “I would think a woman of your obvious indulgent cravings would moisten quickly with longing for a man with the appetites and stamina of a beast.

Kyra narrowed her eyes. “And I would think there are women aplenty to slake the thirst of your beast. I have tasted and am quite appeased at present.”

Cocking his head to the side, he smiled coyly. “Lies drip from your tongue, pungent and heavy, as freely as the truth drips from your nether lips.”

She nodded, much to the surprise of Eris. “I admit your tool still has the power to elicit the tender trembling of my inner muscles. Do not mistake my words. I say not that I shall not taste of your mighty lance ever again. I say simply, when I am ready for you, gladiator, you will come to me.”

Releasing her hand, he trailed his fingers across her red, plump lips. “Such confidence uttered of these ripe lips. Be warned, Kyra, the cock of an eager man waits not on the plying of a woman’s devious machinations. Stretch a man no further than you are willing to bear the consequences for. When it pleases me, I shall simply take my pleasures of you, and I shall prove your foolish assumptions wrong. You will not deny me again. You will be
unable
to, my kallos, my beauty.”

Kyra held her breath and kept her eyes forcefully open as he lowered his head. He took his time, allowing the full extent of his intention of show clearly in his passionate green eyes. The message was clear.
One taste would not be enough.

The first touch of her taste on his lips sent a thrill through his body, igniting the lusty throb of his erection. Her bosom throbbed with urgency as he forced her to lie still under the assault of his teeth and tongue. He swept his tongue across her lips, testing and tasting the sweet tenderness. He stroked her lips patiently, caressing them from corner to corner. The teeth nibbled liberally, soft, gentle nips. He waited and acted patiently for what he wanted. Finally she reacted.

Her lips parted, allowing his searching tongue access. He plunged in without hesitation. The taste within her mouth exploded upon his tongue, rich nectar and golden honey, sweet and spicy. His tongue stroked her tongue gently at first, urging her to the next height of arousal. The moment her tongue caressed his own, he acted. His tongue swept in deeply, tasting the darkest crevices and most secret corners of her mouth. Her tongue came up fencing, dueling for equal pleasure. Eris murmured in response, “Limit your tongue to
this
art and we shall have endless hours of passion.”

It was the wrong thing to say. Eris felt the unmistakable sting of the tip of a blade. The point pressed in, stretching the taut skin just above his still-healing wound from the boy’s attack in the arena.

Kyra’s voice was left breathless, but her tone was deadly. “And I shall ply it at
my
bidding. Now I believe I have had enough sampling and allowed you sufficient liberties. Release me, or I shall plunge this blade straight into your gut. And be warned, my strength is not as weak as that of a boy.”

Eris drew back but refused to release her. It was not an easy feat adjusting from one volatile situation of heightened sexual awareness to another brutal position of harmful bodily intent. This woman seemed to constantly test his patience.

His reaction came without thought—the path to irk her. Pressing his still-stiff lance hard against her softness, he gritted out, “And you said you were asleep in your own bed due to your bravery and lack of fear of me. Pray tell, what do you with a blade beneath your pillow?”

Kyra smirked. “I said I was unafraid, not foolish. And trusting you would be foolish. Now remove yourself before I am forced to use this weapon.”

Eris did not budge. He grinned mischievously as he felt the sharp tip press in harder, breaking neatly through the surface of his skin. “Have your previous acts of lovemaking not taught you a lesson, dear Kyra? There is need for only one lance in your bed.”

Kyra applied more pressure on the weapon, widening and deepening the wound. “Then shall we have a contest right now between the two to judge the victor?”

Eris laughed boisterously at her daring as he drew fully away. The sudden movement was made without the removal of the blade. It came away, after slicing a notable gash in his middle. He ignored the wet stickiness that dampened his tunic and watched in amusement as she in turn stared first at the blood-stained weapon she held in her equally tainted hand, then at the wound she had unintentionally delivered. His voice held humor but contained an unmistakable promise for retribution. “That would be the second blow you have delivered me. While our earlier acts were pardoned, we have now returned to an uneven status. I look forward to my redemption for this.”

* * * *

Eris’s attention turned once again to the entrance of the palace impatiently. The courtyard was brimming with activity. The meat upon his platter had long since grown cold and unappetizing. The queen had assured him that Kyra would make an appearance. From the look of things, she had not promised a
timely
appearance. Eris had a strong urge to go in and fetch her, kicking and screaming, if need be. But before he could successfully leave the airy outdoors, he was stopped on the threshold of the great doors.

“Do not say you are retiring yet, Eris. This ceremony is being held in your honor. It would not do for you to displease the Gods in such an offensive manner.” The queen quickly latched onto his arm and expertly maneuvered him in the opposite direction he had been headed. He peered over his shoulder at the doorway dolefully. There was no polite way to extract himself now. He sighed.

The grinning woman seemed to be unaware of his lack of conversation and chattered on. “Sappho seems to be in high spirits. It is good he shows his support through his presence at this banquet. It would surely please the Gods and add favor to your forthcoming venture.”

Eris watched as his brother grabbed yet another serf wench willing enough to handle his drunken gropes and submerged his head directly into her bosom. He had no illusions as to his brother’s presence here tonight. It had nothing to do with lending support to his venture. Sappho was never one to shy away from duty. While he did not consider Eris a brother anymore, he still had his duty as gladiator to consider. And his brother would never allow that duty to be interfered with by anything.

As if sensing Eris’s thoughtful gaze, Sappho drew his face back from his nuzzling of the woman’s breasts and looked up. He pushed the wench off his lap and made his way, stumbling and staggering, toward them. Eris sighed again. This confrontation could not be avoided. The best he could do was to attempt to keep it as civil as possible. And judging from his brother’s staggered steps, he did not hold much hope.

Sappho arrived with a cloud full of intoxicating wine fumes. He raised the vassal he drank from and gave them a mocking salute. “So, brother, it seems it will be
you
who will leave first. May your enemy defeat you soundly and leave your rancid entrails for the picking of vicious vultures. And may a more worthy successor fill your useless place.”