Rhapsody sat forward, drawing her knees up in front of her. “I know,” she said; she reached out a wet hand and rested it on his cheek. “I know, and it’s not your fault; it’s mine.”
Ashe wanted to take her in his arms, but he remembered his promise to wait for her invitation to be touched, and he held back. “How can this be your fault? All you did was try and bathe. I’m sorry for being an idiot.”
Rhapsody looked into his eyes, and the confusion she saw there went to her heart. She drew his head forward and kissed him tenderly.
“No, I’m sorry, Ashe,” she said softly. “You didn’t do anything wrong. It’s just that in the Past I’ve been used in unspeakable ways by men to vent their sexual excitement, and it was the worst part of my life. And the element of it I don’t think I’ll ever get over was being put on display and—” Her eyes dropped as her voice broke for a moment.
“I was happy to think that I would never have to experience anything sexual again when I came here—that I could live a chaste existence and be so much better off. And then you came along, and brought it back into my life, for literally the first time in a positive way. I never would have believed that could happen. You made love to me for the first time, really. And making love with you is such an incredible thing, a beautiful thing, that I’ve tried very hard not to let anything in my past touch it; I don’t want them associated at all. And through sheer force of will I’ve prevented myself from becoming inhibited in most ways—I’m sure you’ve noticed.”
For the first time, Ashe smiled, and Rhapsody caressed his face with fingers that were beginning to wrinkle from the warm water. “There are just a few things that still remind me of those days. The truth is I don’t mind anything you want to do with me as long as you are holding me in your arms, or at least on the same side of the room as me. It’s probably screamingly ironic that someone like me turns out to be so old-fashioned sexually, but I can’t help it. Every charm, every fantasy, anything I can do to please you is yours, but only because it’s one of my ways of expressing that I love you. And it’s my choice to give myself to you. I’m no one’s toy any longer.”
He looked into the emerald eyes and it was as if he could see straight into her soul. The honesty of her heart and her words made him tremble.
“Rhapsody, if making love reminds you of something you dislike—”
“Don’t say that,” she said quickly. “That’s not what I meant at all. I do want to make love with you, very much; so much so that when you said you were going to read instead I thought—well, never mind what I thought. It’s just I want you to hold me, you yourself, not some disembodied force. There’s a sort of communion that doesn’t happen when one partner is on the other side of the room. Besides, it gives me a chance to reciprocate.” Her words made his face flush, and he gripped the sides of the tub, straining to keep his promise.
Rhapsody laughed as she watched his knuckles turn white. “I do admire your forbearance,” she said, and leaned forward. She gave him a warm, wet kiss and as she did she unbound the tie of his bathrobe. “Consider this your invitation,” she said, her eyes sparkling with mischief, and she moved back to the far end of the tub to allow him room.
Ashe dropped his robe and stepped into the tub. He knelt down and took hold of the edges of the tub and, holding his own body suspended over her, he leaned forward and gently kissed her.
She returned his kiss warmly, running her hands up his arms, feeling their strength. Her fingers traced the lines in his back, stroking the corded muscles as they held him hovering above her. As her tongue flickered into his mouth she wrapped her arms around him and pulled to draw him nearer. She rose out of the tub as unexpectedly he held his grip; he chuckled at the look of surprise that flashed across her face as her upper body and back were suddenly exposed to the colder air of the room.
“Show-off,” she scolded in mock annoyance. “Very well, have it your way. Stay out here and freeze when it’s lovely and warm in the water.”
“I’m just enjoying the pleasant effect the brisk air is having on you,” he said with a wicked smile, glancing at her chest. He laughed as her body grew suddenly rosier under his gaze, following the reddening glow up her abdomen as it crept into her face.
“Why, Rhapsody; you’re blushing!”
“Don’t tell anyone; you’ll ruin my hard-bitten reputation,” she answered, laughing with him. She gave him another impatient pull.
Ashe’s lips brushed her cheek, moving up the line of her face until they were just above her ear.
“Your secret is safe with me,” he whispered. Then his hands released their hold.
Rhapsody let loose a little cry as together they started to fall, but the water caught them as if it were a cushion, and her yelp turned into a laugh. Then Ashe felt the temperature of the water begin to rise until he was surrounded in a blissful heat. A silky leg brushed the back of his thigh and wound itself sensuously around his own, causing his skin to prickle into the same gooseflesh he was admiring on her a moment before.
Despite the warmth of the bath Ashe began to shiver and as he did, swirling waves swelled from the tub floor beneath Rhapsody and spun around her until they broke over her shoulders and toes, the few remaining areas of her outside the water. Ashe’s hands followed the rhythm of the waves and flowed over her body, gliding upward from her back until they encircled her waist. Her own hands matched his movements, running up his back and over the broad shoulders to his strong neck, where they parted and came together again, cradling his face.
Ashe looked deep into her eyes, wordlessly communicating the depth of the love he felt for her that was rising now into a passion almost beyond his control. Then his own eyes closed and his lips sought hers, crushing them with an intensity that made her tremble beneath him.
Their kiss grew deeper as his hands followed the tremors down her body, enjoying the smoothness of her skin, his palms and fingertips taking in the sensation of the pleasure his touch was giving her and making him tremble in response. One of his hands slid around her back and drew her to him in a strong embrace as the other continued its downward path, tracing the contour of her breast, her side and waist, down the line of her hip and her upper leg, turning artlessly inward. The water surged forward, from her toes, past her knee and met his hand as it moved to the sensitive areas of her inner thigh and upward.
Their lips parted and Rhapsody began to gasp at his touch and the simultaneous pulsing of the water, her back arching as her hands grasped his shoulders again. Ashe’s mouth moved to the hollow of her throat, caressing with fondness the area he had first come to desire when they met, tracing up the long slender neck until his lips touched her ear. In ancient languages he whispered his deepest feelings to her as his hands sought her pleasure, blending carnal delight with the expression of a passionate love the depth of which he could not measure. His own excitement grew as he watched her face transform into radiant happiness at the combination of his efforts to please her.
“I love you,” he whispered.
She echoed his words between broken breaths that grew shallower as his hands intensified their motions, his touch gently increasing in perfect rhythm with her desires. His lips returned to the hollow of her throat and then moved lower, lovingly caressing her breasts as they crested the water, warm with longing and arousal. Tiny whirlpools were left behind, tickling where his lips had been moments before as Ashe descended, brushing her slender abdomen with appreciative kisses.
His head disappeared beneath the waves that Rhapsody’s trembling body was causing in the tub, tracing a careful line as he moved to the top of her thigh, then lower still. The soft musical sounds she was making became airy whimpers, and the water began gradually to warm, becoming almost too hot to bear. She gripped the edges of the tub, eyes closed, waiting for him to come up for air, but he did not stop his efforts until she cried out in delight, shivering beneath his hands that had closed around her waist again.
Warm, peaceful sensations began to
take over her body as she languidly ran a hand over his hair, his head resting on her abdomen. Her eyes remained closed as he sat up slowly in the tub and positioned himself above her again, the warmth of his grin perceptible even without being seen.
At last his lips pressed gently against hers in a final loving kiss, and she opened her eyes. An inquisitive smile was on his face; his eyes, with their strange vertical slits, sparkled warmly in a way she was beginning to treasure. She returned his smile as she ran a lazy hand over his hair again. It was barely damp. He slipped his hand behind her and eased next to her in the wide tub, pulling her into his arms. She snuggled against his chest and sighed, feeling totally happy.
“Now, was that more of what you had in mind?” he asked playfully.
In response, Rhapsody caught him off guard, pulling him over on top of her, aware that his needs were still unmet.
“Actually, no,” she said, mischief making her eyes darken and flash like an emerald catching the light. “But if you’d like, I’d be happy to show you what I meant.”
Rhapsody parted her legs, and as she wrapped them about her lover, Ashe let loose a deep sigh of pleasure. As always he was amazed at the depths of desire she stirred in him, and at the intensity of longing her touch brought forth. He closed his eyes and began to shiver uncontrollably as she drew him within her; when her warmth closed around him he clung to her, pleading with her softly not to let him fall too fast into the blissful oblivion that threatened to overtake him.
Her answers were tender, reassuring; she comforted him even as she pushed his excitement forward to new heights, assuring him of her love. Then she set about manifesting it physically, and Ashe felt her fire filling him, starting from where they were joined and flowing into the furthest reaches of his soul.
They rolled briefly beneath the surface of the water, Ashe turning in ways she found implausible, so that when they surfaced she lay astride and above him. The ribbon in her hair had been swept away, and as she broke the surface it fell like a golden waterfall around her shoulders. The sight of her reminded him of the legends he had heard long ago when sailing with the Sea Mages, of merrows and mermaids, and of sea nymphs, whose songs could enchant a man into losing his heart forever. He thought for a moment that perhaps this was what she was.
Ashe watched her face in awe, the feelings she was experiencing showing openly, changing like a kaleidoscope as the pleasure grew, transforming her beautiful countenance into something indescribable. She was lost in the joy of a man who loved her, and that man was able to see, clearly and without question, what it meant to her. And his thankfulness for that meaning was immeasurable.
With each caress, each motion, each touch of a wave, Rhapsody felt them moving together toward a dual ecstasy, one that would wildly satisfy their physical desires while, in a deeper, more profound way, comfort their wounded souls with the healing salve of trusting love that neither had believed in for many years. The heady, daredevil feeling of risk she felt in their earliest moments of exploration had given way as each barrier disappeared, and the sickening reminders of how far she had gone past the point of no return were fading away. Even the knowledge of the temporary nature of their relationship, the danger of what was coming, the lack of future in it all no longer dampened the happiness they were discovering, layer by layer, together.
And in that moment, as he made love to her with his body, and his soul, and his words, and even the water around them, Rhapsody lost forever her fear of that part of his nature that was alien to her, the strange dragonesque part, and the power it held over the elements. It was just another piece of him to be cherished, along with the rest. The dragon in him was no different than the music in her; it was something powerful that made him special. And as she sought to please the man she loved, she wanted to make that part of him happy as well.
She took his hands in her own and guided them through her hair, knowing how that excited the dragon, and as she drew them over her body she let him envelop her, wrapping herself up in him. Ashe began to tremble violently; she knew she was reaching both parts of his nature, and the knowledge mixed with the sweet excitement that his efforts were causing in her, pushing their lovemaking toward a culmination that threatened to consume them both.
Rhapsody closed her eyes as the waters of the tub surged around them, caressing her back. She could feel a tingling warmth that started in her fingers and toes begin to move inward, building in intensity; she knew when it reached her center there would be an explosion. She clung to Ashe, who was in the midst of his own battle for dominion over the moment; he was losing. She opened her eyes and studied his face. It was enthralled but pensive, in the struggle to maintain control.
“You’re holding back,” she scolded gently between breaths. “Let go.”
His eyes closed in response, and he shook his head slightly.
Rhapsody was at the edge of a realm she had no desire to enter alone. She slowed the delicious rocking slightly, and Ashe’s hands gripped her waist tighter. “Please,” she whispered. “I’m not going without you. Let go.”
He did. The waves began to churn with vibrancy like a raging river, rapids tumbling over themselves as the rhythm of their movements increased. The water roared white with the force of their passion, sloshing over the edges of the tub and flooding the floor. The currents in the tub, responding to his rapture, crashed over Rhapsody like waves against the rocks on a shoreline. Even the air of Elysian took on an electric hum, and in the distance she was vaguely aware that the musical sounds of the waterfall had been replaced by a raging torrent. The fire on the hearth in the next room leapt and roared in response.
She had no idea how long the pleasure actually lasted, but it seemed almost long enough to erase a lifetime of sorrow. Finally fire and water melded in ecstatic release, and they cried out together as the waves broke over them, submerging them in froth.
After a moment Rhapsody broke the surface again, and put her head down on Ashe’s chest as it rose from the water. She gasped for breath, and caressed his shoulder as he held her tightly in his arms. The waters, still hot but now calm, had drenched the floor, and through her weary delight Rhapsody was glad for the marble tiles.
They lay in the tub for a long time without speaking until the water finally grew tepid. Ashe kissed her forehead and looked down at her, his heart in his eyes.
“You all right? Didn’t breathe in any water, did you?”
A long sigh escaped her, and she turned to look at him, smiling. Her eyes shone up at him like starlight reflected on the water. Ashe felt his throat tighten.
“Amariel,” he said softly to her, in the language of her childhood. “Merei Aria. Evet hira, Rhapsody.” Star of the Sea; I have found my guiding star. It is you, Rhapsody. Her eyes twinkled; his idiomatic usage was perfect.
“What a romantic thing to say.”
He smiled at her. “I guess you’ve made me a romantic. What a feat.”
Rhapsody laughed and leaned up to kiss him. “A romantic dragon. Isn’t that a contradiction in terms?”
“Yes.” His face began to shine. “Do you love me anyway?”
She looked seriously at him and spoke, using her ability as a Namer for declaring the truth. “Always.”
He drew her closer, kissing the top of her head. “Aria,” he whispered again. And from that moment on Aria became his special name for her, the name he used in the most intimate moments and as an expression of a love that no other language or image could approximate.
Grunthor waited impatiently in the afternoon sun at the edge of Kraldurge’s guardian rocks, listening to the howl of the wind as it whined through the fanglike formations. He had come in answer to Rhapsody’s call, and was growing more frantic by the moment, wondering where she was. The message she had sent him on the wind had contained no hint of fear or panic, just a simple request, amplified out through the gazebo, to meet her in the meadow above Elysian.
At last he could see her coming out of the shadows, wrapped in her fa
miliar cloak, despite the sweltering summer heat.
“About time you checked in, Duchess,” Grunthor groused as she approached. “If one more day ’ad passed, Oi would have been down there with my entire elite regiment.” He swept her into his arms and held her tightly, feeling the panic and annoyance drain out of him like water through gravel. “Ya all right?”
“I’m fine, Grunthor,” Rhapsody answered, laughing as he put her down again. “In fact, I’m better than fine.”
Grunthor eyed her suspiciously. “And why is that, exactly?” he demanded, noting her glowing countenance and gleaming hair, unbound from its ever-present black ribbon. Before she could answer, he held up a massive hand. “Ah. Never mind. Please don’t say it, miss.”
The light in her face diminished a little. “Why?”
“Just don’t, please,” said the sergeant simply. He sighed deeply. What she intended to say was as clear as glass to him. What he feared would happen had come to pass. A dragon had taken her as its treasure, just not the one he had believed would.
He thought about how Achmed would react, and shuddered. Grunthor looked away from her face, now wreathed in a puzzled frown, and off into the sunlit crags of the Teeth, their rocky trails green in the fervent bloom of high summer. “You’re not in any trouble then, or need any ’elp, do ya?” he asked finally.
“No, of course not,” Rhapsody said falteringly: “I would have called for you right away had that been the case.” She tried to swallow the knot in her throat that his reaction had formed. She reached up and touched his broad face, turning it gently back toward her. When the amber eyes met hers there was great sadness in them, but his face was set in his standard mask of nonchalance.
“I thought you wanted me to be happy, Grunthor,” she said softly.
Grunthor looked down at her thoughtfully. “Oi do, miss. More than anythin’.”