Jacinda's Challenge (Imperial 3)

  "She was accepted into Peter's first class?" Jotham couldn't hide his shock. "The elimination process was brutal."

  "So she told me. It's why she was so thrilled to be accepted." Jacinda looked down at her wrist unit amazed at how much time had passed. "I should go."

  "No, please stay, you haven't even had dessert yet."

  "Jotham, I'm fine and it's late. I'm sure you have a full day scheduled tomorrow. You need to rest."

  "Not yet." Rising he extended his hand. "There's something I've been wanting to do since the Ball. Will you indulge me?"

  Jacinda looked up at him and suddenly realized Jotham rarely 'indulged' himself, let alone asked for someone else to. She found she couldn't deny him and was intrigued by what he was about to ask of her and reached out to take his hand. "Alright."

  Jotham pulled her to her feet then led her to the center of the room before he released her hand to move to the wall comm. After pressing several buttons, he turned to face her. Slowly he walked back to her and watched her eyes widen as the music started.

  "Ever since the Ball, I've wanted to dance with you again. I've wanted to hold you the way I really wanted to."

  She was surprised when Jotham pulled her flush against his body instead of holding her at the appropriate distance. "Jotham?"

  "Do you mind?" He looked down at her, enjoying the curve of her neck when she tipped her head back to look up at him. She enjoyed how her steps instinctively matched his, how his hand nearly spanned her lower back when he brought her even closer. It was amazing how her breasts felt pressed against his chest.

  "No," she moved her hand from its traditional place on his shoulder further up so her fingers could brush the skin along his neck. "I don't mind at all."

  They danced silently for several moments, Jotham curling the hand clasped in his to his chest.

  "This is how we should always dance," he whispered against her temple. He felt her smile against his chest and wondered what she was thinking. He should have realized she would tell him.

  "Can you imagine the look on Adelaide Pajari's face if we did?"

  Jotham smiled at the thought. "It can't get anymore... pinched than it already is."

  "Oh yes, it can. You've only ever seen her 'the King is near' face."

  "She has another one?" he asked rubbing his cheek against the hair she'd left down, enjoying its silky feel and hint of roses.

  "Oh yes. It looks like she's biting down on a sour citron."

  "Seriously?" He leaned back slightly to stare down at her. "I would like to see that."

  "Oh, no you wouldn't." She tipped her head back to smile up at him. "It's not a pretty sight."

  "You are though. Here in my arms." Jotham's feet stilled and his hands shifted so they framed her face as his eyes stared intensely down into hers. "I'm going to kiss you, Jacinda. If you don't want me to, say so now."

  Jacinda felt her heart begin to pound with an anticipation she hadn't felt in cycles. It was as if she were a girl again and about to experience her first kiss.

  Jotham’s lips barely brushed over hers, testing her willingness. When the hand on the back of his neck tightened, encouraging him, he brushed them again increasing the pressure.

  "Jotham, stop teasing me," she demanded against his lips, her nails sinking into his scalp.

  So Jotham pressed his lips firmly against hers and Jacinda felt her world tilt.

  Jotham kissed her like a starving man, capturing her lips in a kiss so deep and hard she felt it all the way down to the toes she was standing on to try to get closer to him.

  When was the last time she'd been kissed like this? With such passion? With such obvious need? It wrapped around her and tilted her world off its axis. Groaning, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held on.

  Jotham couldn't believe how amazing Jacinda felt as he ran a hand down her back, pressing her closer against him. How perfectly her body molded against his. Her lips were so soft. She was so responsive. When had any first kiss ever felt so... natural?

  It hadn't with Lata. Their first kiss had been a fumbling of noses and lips and she'd been so young, so innocent. He could still remember the first time they'd truly been together. It had been the night of their Union and it had been both their first times. He knew no one would believe Lata had been his first, not even Will, but she had been. He had always known there could be serious repercussions if he ever acted foolishly. Then, at sixteen he'd met Lata.

  Jacinda pulled her mouth from Jotham's to look at him. The passion she felt coming from him suddenly seemed.... subdued and she didn't know why. "Jotham?"

  Jotham saw the question in her eyes and wanted to kick himself. How had he allowed himself to be distracted by the past? He rested his forehead on hers. "I'm sorry."

  "For what?" She saw the conflict in his eyes. "Talk to me, Jotham. Tell me the truth. That's the only way this even has a chance of working."

  Leaning back he told her bluntly. "I was thinking of Lata." He watched her pale.

  Jacinda jerked her arms from around his neck. She couldn't believe how that hurt or how much guilt she felt because she hadn't given Stephan one thought during that kiss.

  "I see." When she moved to leave his embrace he refused to let her.

  "I'm sorry."

  "There's no reason to be sorry for being honest, Jotham." Reaching up she touched his cheek.

  "There is if it hurts you."

  "No." Slowly she took a step back and this time he let her. "Pretending would hurt more. You loved Lata. I know that. I loved Stephan. It's not something either of us can or should deny." Turning, she reached down and picked up their glasses, handing him his.

  "No." Jotham took his glass from her and watched her sit down on the couch. "Where does that leave us?"

  "I honestly don't know." Jacinda took a bracing sip before looking up at him still standing there, looking so confused. "Maybe nowhere."

  "I refuse to accept that. I think about you all the time, Jacinda. I walked in the garden the other night and wished you were with me."

  "Me or Lata?"

  "You!" Jotham set his glass down and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I know I'm no good at this. I have so little experience."

  "No good at what?"

  "Relationships. With a woman. Lata was the only one I ever really had one with and that was so long ago..."

  Jacinda slumped back into the couch trying to figure out what Jotham was telling her. "Are you saying that..." she snapped her jaw shut, she knew she had to be wrong.

  "Ask Jacinda, no pretending."

  "Alright, are you saying that Lata was your first?" She hoped she wouldn't have to get more explicit than that.

  "Yes, just as I was hers."

  "I... I never once considered that." Jacinda raised an eyebrow as she thought. "But the more I think of it, the more it makes sense. Lata was two cycles younger than you. Only eighteen at your Union."

  "Yes. I never would have pressured her like that."

  "You never... strayed, when you were away from her?"

  "No. Would you have strayed from Stephan after you had met him?"

  "No. Never." There was no doubt in her voice.

  "So you understand."

  "I do." Jacinda gave him an understanding look. "I remember how hard it was to reach out that first time after Stephan's death. I was lonely and alone, it had been four cycles and he was an old family friend. It didn't work out."

  "There was another?"

  "Hmmm... several cycles later. He was everything I once thought I wanted."

  "Which was?"

  "Quiet. Unassuming. Undemanding. Not in the public eye. I found myself quickly bored out of my mind." Jacinda found herself smiling sadly as she remembered Paul. "He was a good man."

  "Just not for you."

  "No. You?"

  Jotham knew she was asking him to share and wondered how much he could. "I honestly can't tell you how Rani happened. I barely remember it. I just knew she wasn't someone I want
ed to remain with, but then she discovered she had conceived and..."

  "You were as shocked as the rest of us," she finished for him.

  "Yes."

  "The others?"

  "Others?"

  Jacinda gave him a small smile. "You've always done an excellent job at keeping your private life... well private, Jotham. Except for Rani, there's never been any talk about your other women."

  "Is that what you think?"

  "I... well... yes."

  "The reason there's been no talk, Jacinda, is because there's been no one since Rani. I couldn't believe I'd done that. It felt like I had betrayed Lata and after that I couldn't allow any other woman close."

  "What?!!" Jacinda shot straight up off the couch. "Jotham, that's been over thirty cycles ago!"

  "I know that."

  "So I'm only the..."

  "Second woman I've seriously kissed? Yes."

  "You don't count Rani?"

  "I don't remember ever kissing her."

  "I see."

  "Do you? Because I don't. I'm attracted to you, Jacinda. Very attracted, but I feel like I'm sixteen again and have no clue what I'm doing."

  "Thank the ancestors it's not just me."

  "You feel that way too?"

  "Yes," Jacinda found herself laughing. "I haven't been kissed like that... well, I'm not sure I ever have, but I'm like you, Jotham, just trying to find my way. I never once thought that might include you."

  A firm knock on the door interrupted him from saying more.

  "Enter," Jotham ordered, not happy at the interruption.

  "Majesty," Deffand stepped in bowing slightly. "Sorry for the interruption, but the High Admiral in on the comm. He says it's important."

  Jotham knew it would have to be for Will to call him at this time of night. "Alright. Jacinda." He turned to her, his eyes full of regret.

  "It's okay. I need to be going anyway."

  "I..." He wanted to ask her to stay, but he had no idea what Will needed, or how long it would take. "I'm sorry."

  "Don't be. It's late and these things happen."

  "Unfortunately they do. Deffand, you will see Jacinda to her transport." He gave his Captain a hard look.

  "Of course, Majesty."

  "Jacinda." He turned, pulling her close.

  "It's alright, Jotham." She let her hands rest on his chest, gently moving them in a soothing motion. "I understand."

  "Thank you." Ignoring Deffand, he leaned down capturing her lips in a hard kiss. "I'll contact you tomorrow."

  "Okay," she whispered slightly breathless then reached up to caress his cheek. "Remember, no caffeinated drinks this late at night then you'll be able to get a good night’s sleep."

  "Thank you." Jotham found himself kissing the tip of her nose before he forced himself to step away and leave the room.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  "Thank you for the escort, Nicholas." Jacinda entered the code that opened the door to her transport.

  "It was my pleasure, Jacinda, truly." Nicholas paused then found himself asking. "How is your daughter? Did she get to Kisurri okay?"

  "Don't you know?" Jacinda found herself having to fight to hide her smile.

  "How would I know?" Nicholas frowned at her.

  "Well, you are the Captain of King Jotham's Guard."

  "Yes, but I would never abuse that power for a personal situation."

  "And is my daughter a 'personal situation'?"

  "I..." Nicholas felt his skin darkening.

  Jacinda took pity on the man. "She made it there just fine, Nicholas. I don't expect to hear from her again for several weeks, but I will let you know when I do."

  "I... thank you, Jacinda. You will drive carefully?"

  "I always do, Nicholas. You make sure you get some sleep too. You can't do your job if you're exhausted." With one last smile, she slipped into her transport.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  Jacinda found herself smiling as she drove through the quiet streets of Pechora. She'd never had a night like this one before. Stephan had been experienced, something he'd been proud of and Jacinda had never had anything to complain about. She'd enjoyed everything he'd shown her, everything she'd experienced with him.

  Yet with Jotham it was different. Neither of them was sure of themselves. Both had doubts, fears left by the lives they'd lived. But they still seemed to be finding their way to each other.

  She couldn't wait to see what tomorrow would bring.

  A sudden flash was her only warning, causing her to look to her right just as her transport was suddenly struck on the passenger's side, sliding the entire vehicle across the road until it slammed into a luminaire pole.

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  "Madame! Madame! Are you alright?"

  Jacinda shook her head and tried to focus on the face that was in front of her. What was going on?

  "Madame! Madame, can you tell me your name?"

  "Jacinda... Jacinda Michelakakis," she told him and wondered why her voice sounded so strange. Forcing her mind to function she took in the situation around her. She was still sitting in her transport, but instead of it being the beautiful vehicle Stephan had insisted she had to have, it was now half its normal size and its windshield was shattered.

  "What happened?" she asked lifting a hand to her suddenly aching head.

  "You were involved in an accident, Madame Michelakakis."

  "An accident? Was anyone hurt?"

  "Just you, ma'am."

  "Me? I'm not hurt." But she grimaced as she moved to show him.

  "Please, ma'am, be still."

  "I'm fine, young man. A little shaken up but otherwise fine. If you'd just help me out of my transport."

  "Yes, ma'am." Reluctantly he helped her out.

  Jacinda took in the scene around her and felt her heart drop. There was another transport, its front-end crushed in, just a few feet away from hers. A young man no more than eighteen cycles sitting on the curb his head in his hands.

  "I thought you said no one else was hurt!" She turned hard eyes to the man helping her.

  "He isn't hurt, ma'am, not a scratch on him. He's just upset that he wrecked his father's transport." He gave the boy a disgusted look.

  "You’re sure he's not hurt?"

  "Yes, ma'am. Ma'am, is there someone I can call to come get you?

  "My transport’s not drivable?"

  "No, ma'am, and honestly I wouldn't let you drive even if it was. You've got a pretty good bump on your head. I'd like to have you transported to a medical unit, just to have you checked out."

  "No, I'm fine. If you would call my son for me, I'd appreciate it. His name is Danton. Assemblyman Danton Michelakakis and his comm contact is..."

  Chapter Thirteen

  "Anything I need to be aware of?" Deffand demanded from his second-in-command Lieutenant Kort Green. After seeing Jacinda to her transport last night, he had finally ended his shift for the day and done as she had recommended and gotten some sleep. Now, ten hours later, he was back at the Palace ready to protect his King.

  "Nothing pressing. King Jotham has meetings in his office all day so he won't be leaving the Palace." He flipped a page. "The guards along the south perimeter reported that a group of kids attempted to gain access to the outer wall overnight."

  "What?!!"

  "They were apprehended twenty feet from the wall. They carried no weapons and were petrified when confronted. It seems the boys were trying to impress the girls, who were with them, which made them brave enough to sneak up and touch the wall."

  "Stupid kids," Deffand muttered. "They could have been killed."

  "Yes, and that was strongly explained to them and their parents when they arrived to retrieve them. We won't be having any problems from them again."

  "Good."

  Green turned another page. "There will be groups of children from Pechora touring the Public Wing today for Heritage Day."

  "Is it that time of cycle again?" Deffand groaned.

/>   "I'm afraid so."

  "Double the guards on all doors and put a set on the inside of the corridor leading from the Public Wing. It never fails, somehow one of those little brats finds a way in."

  "Already done," Green grinned at him. "They are inventive, aren't they?"

  "That's one word for them. Anything else?"

  "No." He was just about to close the report when one more thing caught his eye. "Oh, Pechora transit reported that they responded to an accident early this morning involving the family member of an Assemblyman."

  "Injuries?"

  "Just bumps and bruises. She was lucky. All her transport safety devices deployed. Her transport, on the other hand, is a total loss."

  "It was that serious an accident?"

  "The other transport was going twice the limit and struck her directly on the passenger side as she was going through an intersection."

  "She was taken to the hospital?"

  "No, she refused and insisted they call her son to pick her up."

  "Her son..." Deffand started to get a sick feeling in his stomach and grabbed the report from Green rapidly reading until he found what he hoped he wouldn't. "Jacinda Michelakakis."

  "Yes," Green frowned at him. "She's the mother..."

  "Of Danton Michelakakis. Why wasn't I immediately made aware of this?!!" Deffand demanded his eyes piercing Green's.

  "I... it was late, sir. She wasn't seriously injured. There was no reason to contact you."

  "Do you know who this is?"

  "She's the mother of an Assemblyman."

  "She is also the widow of Assemblyman Stephan Michelakakis and..." Deffand cut off the rest of the sentence and headed for the door as he snapped out orders. "Get the men ready. All of them! Notify Scheer to prepare the King's transport."

  ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

  Chesney sighed silently as he reviewed his King's schedule. It was full again. The first moon cycle at the start of a new Assembly was like this. Everyone wanting to make sure the King heard about what they thought needed accomplished.

  Looking across the room, he watched Assemblyman Fiala reading through the stack of papers he'd brought with him as he sat, waiting for his appointment with the King. It was Chesney's job to try and keep the King on schedule, to make sure meetings didn't go longer than their allotted time. He could already tell he was going to have a hard time doing that today.