Mystic's Touch, page 14




“I do.” He took a couple steps in her direction. “We walk. She tells me her secrets and sometimes she sings. It brings peace to my troubled heart and mind.”
“And the great beast is always gentle with her. He offers her comfort and companionship in her lonely existence.”
He reached for a lock of her hair. “Is it possible that you were the girl turned woman who has haunted my dreams all these years?”
“It is possible but I don’t understand the why.” They stared into each other’s eyes, both unsure what to say or do.
Suddenly Ceros’ legs buckled. Danet moved to catch him. “What’s wrong?”
He shook his head. “A moment of weakness.” He touched his head. “And a bit of dizziness.”
“You should lie down.” She steered him to the raised platform.
“I’ve been lying down for days,” he groused. “I shouldn’t need to in a dream.” Thankfully he was able to climb the platform with nothing more than a little steadying.
He sat on the edge of the bed and she helped raise his feet to the mattress. “We need to do the healing before this gets any worse or you may not recover.”
“At the moment I’m not inclined to argue. What do we need to do?”
“The only information I have is from my mother’s journal. She performed it on my father when he got sick with an unshakable fever.”
“And?”
“She didn’t say exactly what she did.” Danet blushed. “But there was enough information that, as an adult, I believe it was an intimate encounter that was the catalyst for their merging.”
His brows lifted in surprise. “An intimate encounter?”
“Not that I’m suggesting we do the same thing,” she stammered.
“Well, now I’m disappointed.” He gave her a half grin.
“Oh stop. You know you’re attractive. And I’m sure you’ve traipsed around in my head enough to know I’m not immune to your appeal. But I don’t want you to think I’m making this whole thing up just to get into your bed.”
He sat up and leaned closer. “I don’t believe that anyone, much less you, could be deceitful enough to pull this off.” He gestured to the room they were in.
“I suppose it would be difficult to create all of this.” She smiled ruefully.
Ceros lifted her chin until she was looking at him. “I’ve been in your head, Danet. I trust you. And I believe you sincerely want to help me. So, what do you suggest we do to trigger this merging?”
“Touch is probably important,” she suggested.
“I believe touch is very important.”
Danet hesitantly placed one hand over his heart. She looked up into his eyes, seeking confirmation that he was not offended by what she was doing.
The warmth of his skin flowed up her arm and into her chest.
He cupped her face in his hand then slid his fingers into her hair. When he reached the back of her head, he pulled her forward, slowly. Their eyes were locked on each other until their lips met.
She felt as if she were floating on air.
Ceros fell back onto the bed and pulled her with him. Their featherlight kiss quickly turned into one of hunger and need. She was inexperienced, but she knew what she was feeling and that she wanted Ceros. He teased her lips with the tip of his tongue, daring her to follow him.
She took his challenge.
He slid his hands up and down her back, pressing her body even closer against his rock-hard form. His erection pressed into her hip, making her both anxious and excited.
Soon they were both breathless.
He gripped handfuls of her gown and slid the thin material up her back until she felt the cool air on her backside. Using one knee, he parted her thighs then set her back on her haunches, forcing her to straddle him.
With her hair falling about her face as she leaned over him, her weight on her hands at either side of his shoulders, she felt downright hedonistic.
“We probably shouldn’t be doing this,” she whispered.
“I’ll stop if you tell me to.”
“But I don’t want you to stop.”
“Good. Because I don’t want to stop either.”
He pulled her down for another kiss. This one she felt down to her toes. Then he rolled her to one side so they were facing each other. When he pulled her knee up onto his hip his erection pressed against her. The only thing separating them was the cloth wrapped around his waist.
Her hips surged in response.
Ceros tugged at the clasp at her shoulder and the front of her gown fell open. His work-roughened hand palmed one of her breasts. He flicked his thumb across the pink bud, making her moan.
He pushed her back against the bed and leaned down to take the delicate tip into his mouth. Using his lips, his tongue and even his teeth, he teased and tormented first one then the other nipple until she was writhing beneath him.
She grasped his head, trying to pull him closer.
When he slipped one hand between her thighs, her breath caught in her throat. His fingers caressed her then drove her to the brink of madness. The intimate invasion was more than she could take. She thrashed about, afraid of the intensity of the feeling building inside her, but he used his body to prevent her from fleeing.
She felt as if she were a spring and he was winding her tighter and tighter with each flick of his fingers. In her haze of sensation she was vaguely aware of being repositioned. Without warning, he locked his lips onto her core. When she remembered to breathe it came in short gasps. The things he was doing with his tongue wound that spring even tighter, overriding her instinct to run and hide in embarrassment.
Her hands gripped the silky sheets and she tried desperately to hold on to something solid while her body writhed under his ministrations.
Then it happened. A dam burst inside her. She saw lights behind her eyes and she felt as if her body had turned into a river of water that was rushing off a rocky mountaintop. The sensation of falling continued until Ceros wrapped her in his arms.
When she opened her eyes he was leaning over her.
“There you are.”
“Here I am.” She smiled and ran her hands up his broad back to his shoulders.
“I wanted to make sure you were with me when we were joined.” He shifted his hips and aimed the tip of his cock at her entrance. “Tell me you want this, Danet. There will be no going back once we do. Our joining will mark you as mine.”
“I want this, Ceros,” she whispered and urged him to kiss her.
“Thank the Gods,” he groaned as he captured her lips and her body in one swift motion.
His invasion made her stiffen in resistance, but his kisses and the flicks of his thumb across her breast distracted her. Her instincts flared to life, urging her to wrap her legs around his thighs. She arched her back, encouraging him to show her more. Slowly he began to move, creating a delicious friction between her legs.
It didn’t take her long to join his rhythmic movements.
She clung to his back, silently begging for more. In the haze of her mind she was aware of Ceros’ grip on her hip and his heavy breathing.
The tension quickly built inside her until the fluttering where they were joined began. She arched her back and let go of all that she knew.
Ceros called her name as the starburst went off in her head.
Instead of the free fall sensation she expected, they were surrounded by a pulsing white light. It beat in time with their combined hearts and pounded a rhythm in their ears. Still they clung to each other as they floated in nothingness.
Danet was beyond speech. She got lost in Ceros’ gaze as she caressed his chin and the base of his throat with the pad of her finger.
It was peaceful there, hovering above any physical plane of existence, locked in each other’s arms.
But something called them back to reality.
Danet felt their bodies being pulled back to the bed, then from the gold room and through the frail curtain.
She tried to call out to Ceros but had no voice.
As she became aware of her body, her physical body, she realized how heavy her limbs felt. She forced her eyes open and found herself slumped against Ceros’ chest. It took considerable effort to lift her head to check on him.
Relief swept through her when his eyes opened. She said a prayer of thanks for having been able to remove enough of the poison from his system.
“You,” he whispered when his eyes landed on her. His voice was rough but didn’t sound as weak as she expected. “You did it.” He lifted a hand to stroke her cheek. “Thank you.”
“I’m just glad it worked.” She let her head fall onto his chest. Exhaustion weighed heavily on her.
“Are you all right?” he asked as he tilted her head back. A frown formed a little V in the middle of his forehead.
“Just tired.” She smiled at him.
He gently slid out from underneath her then rolled her onto her back. He kissed her and said, “I feel as if I could drink all of the water in the Genoa River.”
Danet sighed against his lips. Despite her exhaustion, her blood still ran hot for Ceros. She wished she had the strength to physically do what they had just done in spirit form.
“You rest. I need to see Gehiji.”
“Be careful getting up,” she cautioned him. “You haven’t used your legs for several days.” Even to her own ears, her voice sounded weak. She knew there would be a price for doing the healing and right now she felt as if she could sleep for the next five moons.
“I will go slow.” Ceros’ words faded as she succumbed to her body’s demand for rest.
Chapter Fifteen
Ceros sat on the edge of the bed, watching Danet sleep.
Curled on her side, she rested her hand where his body had been. As if she reached for him, even in her sleep.
She was an amazing woman. Whether she understood what he had meant or not, she was now his. She would be his bride and his queen. There could be no other for him. He would deal with any court politics that came about.
No stranger to injury and recovery, Ceros followed her advice and took his time getting up. It was good he hadn’t been down any longer than he had and felt certain his strength would return quickly. A few rounds of training would probably help him sweat out the last of the poison.
Now he needed to find out who was behind it.
He paused at the door to take one more look at Danet. His body burned with unfulfilled desire. Their joining gave him a feeling of completion, but his physical need remained. He promised himself he would have her in his bed without the threat of someone trying to kill him hanging over their heads.
And it would be soon.
He stepped into the hallway and softly closed the door behind him. He listened for sounds to determine which way to go.
Before he had taken two steps, Runihura blocked his path.
“Ceros.” Runihura seemed surprised. And that was a hard thing to do. “We thought you were near death.”
Ceros smiled and leaned against the wall for support. “I might have been.”
“Let’s get you to the kitchen before you fall over and that little lady comes after me again.” Runihura offered his assistance.
Ceros declined his help but used the wall to steady himself. “Again?”
Gehiji laughed as he turned the corner and stepped into the hallway. “Our big friend here startled Danet when he arrived unannounced. She was just about to call down the heavens on him when I came in and stopped her.”
Ceros wasn’t sure which he was more surprised by, Runihura’s discomfort or the fact she defended him so fiercely. “What did she threaten you with? One of the poisonous thorns?”
They both shook their heads as Runihura helped him take a seat at the small kitchen table.
“I don’t know what she was doing or what she is capable of doing but her eyes glowed and I swear there was smoke coming from her fingertips,” Runihura said. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Gehiji chuckled. “It’s the first time I’ve ever seen him ready to leave a fight.”
“You would have too if she’d been looking at you that way,” Runihura said defiantly.
“True. But she wasn’t, so it’s funny,” Gehiji jested with Runihura.
Runihura made a less-than-polite hand gesture at Gehiji.
Smoke? Ceros was stunned. He needed to learn the extent of her abilities. Abilities that she had somehow kept hidden from the world, until now.
Gehiji turned serious. “So how is it that an hour ago, you looked as if you were ten steps from death’s door and now you’re walking around?” He grabbed Ceros’ shoulder. “Even if you aren’t walking steady, it’s more than you’ve done for days. What did she do to you?”
“I’m not entirely sure.” He wasn’t about to disclose everything that occurred between them but he wasn’t going to lie. Especially not to Gehiji. “She connected her soul with mine and somehow that joining forced the poison out.”
“Where did the poison go?” Runihura asked with his usual bluntness.
“I don’t know.” Ceros frowned. “Out, I guess.”
“It couldn’t have just vanished. It was a tangible thing,” Runihura reasoned. “It had to go somewhere.”
“Maybe she burned it up?” Gehiji suggested with a grin.
Runihura gave Gehiji a dark look.
“Where is Danet?” Gehiji asked.
“She fell asleep,” Ceros said.
“The water is hot enough to make her tea. Do you think I should take it in or wait ’til she comes out?”
“What tea?” Ceros asked.
Gehiji shrugged. “She asked me to make it for her. Said she’d probably need it after the healing.”
“I suppose I should take it to her if she asked for it. It may have herbs she needs.”
“I’ll take the water off the fire and add the tea. That will give it a chance to cool first.” Gehiji went to take care of it.
“What have I missed the last couple of days?” Ceros asked. The three of them took up more space than the tiny kitchen was meant to accommodate.
“Don’t ask me. I only know what he,” Runihura pointed to Gehiji, “has told me.”
“After you went down, I monitored your immediate area,” Gehiji said. “When I saw your mother had things under control, I expanded my watch to the palace in general.” He grinned. “Found a helpful little thing in the dining hall who provided me with insight into your staff.”
“Did you learn anything other than someone is smart enough to put the pretty girls in the dining hall as opposed to the sleeping quarters?” Ceros asked.
“Some. After Danet said you wanted me to look into the council members, I started digging.”
“Are they as stodgy as I fear they may be?” Ceros asked with a grimace.
“Stodgy isn’t the right word. I couldn’t place my finger on it, but my alarms went off anytime I heard the top members speak. They just ooze lies.”
“Wonderful,” Ceros mumbled. “What about Danet?”
“You have nothing to worry about there. From what I could tell she is well-respected at the palace by both servants and the queen. By your sisters too. Haven’t learned much on her father yet, but it hasn’t been a priority.” He gave Ceros a meaningful look. “I can step up the efforts if I need to rush it.”
Ceros waved his answer away. “No, not yet.”
Gehiji made a harrumph sound. “Back to the council. I did learn who their top picks would be if the council were to have to choose the next ruler.”
“Who?”
“A man named Shenti and your cousin, Aleric.”
“Aleric?”
“Apparently there is some belief that he would be a natural choice since he is the closest male relative through your father’s line,” Gehiji said.
“He would be the closest male relative but I’ve never had any indication to make me think he would even be interested in sitting on the throne.”
“People change,” Runihura reminded them.
“True,” Ceros said, a frown forming between his brows. “What do you know about Shenti?”
“He’s a third-generation council member. Not a very strong personality. Easily led. If the council wants a figurehead sitting on the throne, he would an ideal choice.”
Ceros grunted. “So he’s not someone who could or would orchestrate the poisoning?”
“Highly unlikely,” Gehiji said. “And given his preference for cleanliness and the pampered life, I don’t see him getting his hands dirty gathering thorns from a hard-to-find plant.”
“What do you think the next move will be?” Ceros asked.
“They’re going to want to seat their own man on the throne,” Gehiji speculated. “If not on the throne, at least in a position of power. The council meeting will give them that chance. We need to make sure you are there. And healthy. You will have to demonstrate you are able to rule.”
“Thanks to Danet, that won’t be a problem,” Ceros said proudly.
As usual, Runihura pointed out the obvious. “We still have to get you into the meeting.”
“Mother will know where it will be held.”
“We’ll just need to keep you away from thorns until then,” Gehiji joked.
Ceros?
I’m in the kitchen with Gehiji and Runihura. Are you all right?
I woke and you were gone.
Everything is fine. I’ll come back in a moment.
“Danet is awake,” Ceros relayed. “I should take her tea in.”
“Can you carry it?” Gehiji asked with a lift of his eyebrow.
“I think so. My energy has been returning even as we talked.”
“How about if you only take the cup instead of the whole pot. Just in case,” Gehiji suggested.
Ceros grinned ruefully as he stood. “Perhaps that isn’t a bad suggestion.”
“I’ll send a note to your mother asking for the information on the council meeting.”
“Good idea.” Ceros took the cup of tea from Gehiji. “I’ll be out shortly.”
“Take your time,” Runihura said. “You’re going to need the rest.”