Liaison (10 page)

I was alone with Carina’s father at last. He wanted to compensate me for what I had done. I was offered my choice of any of the family heirlooms, several of which he said were priceless relics dating back many centuries.

“Manuscripts too,” he smiled knowingly, “these, too, I possess. I can understand the language of only a handful, but of those with which I am acquainted, I know a few were written by sorcerers many, many years ago.”

As touched as I was by his generosity, there was only one thing I sought, and that with or without his consent.

To my relief, he proved more than consenting when he heard my words. He jumped up and summoned the entire family to the table. Carina came back amidst her cluster of friends and listened attentively as her father announced to her my intentions. The whole house waited in silence for her to respond. Her mouth formed a startled circle, and her face smoldered pink. But as her eyes sought out mine, I knew her answer. And with a demure smile, she rose to her tiptoes and delivered a tender kiss to her father’s cheek.

“Yes, certainly. I will marry our brave schoolmaster.”

Cheers resounded through the house. They congratulated us heartily and broke open a fresh keg of ale. Carina’s friends pressed her toward me, and I rose and embraced her, kissing her with all the shameless pagan passion my love for her had inspired. Her family and friends only cheered louder. One of Carina’s uncles brought out his fiddle, and the little children sang while the others danced the whole night long.

Before morning came, I took Carina’s hand and led her outdoors to the lawn. We talked until dawn emerged of future and sweet promises yet to be fulfilled. And as the sun gilded the eastern horizon, I watched Carina as she silently welcomed it. Its light splayed against her face, bringing out all the subtle hues of her eyes and the healthy tones of her skin. I had never been so content as I laid my head in her lap. She twisted my hair between her fingers, soliciting a lusty warning if she dared pull too hard. I took pride in the blush that crept into her face, and daydreamed about all the ways I could compel these blushes when and where she least expected.

My revelry was intruded upon by a faraway wail. My chest panged warily, but Carina’s amorous smile attested she had not heard the bird’s melancholy cry. And so, I pulled her down beside me on the dewed grass and pushed concern for it aside for a time in the pure, shameless enjoyment of her.

Anya Howard
is the pen name of a Tennessee born and bred
author, columnist and screenwriter. Since childhood she has
had an avid interest in the paranormal, and her stories and
novels are often inspired by European folk tales and legends.
Anya’s writing incorporates fantasy elements, and she
describes her Romance work as, “Erotic oriented,
Alpha-male friendly and written with a positive emphasis on
sensual M/F bondage & discipline fantasy.”
Anya makes her home in a small town in the Smokey
Mountains region with her always-encouraging husband
and their children. Visit her on the web at anyahoward.com.

* * *

Gillian has answered her calling as a Disciple. Student and
Submissive, she desires only to satisfy masters and mistresses
alike-and in doing so, taps into her own deepest fantasies.
She longs to forget the life of frustrated yearning she left
behind . . . and when a powerful new lover makes her part
of his harem, the new Submissive must surrender to pleasures
she never imagined-and enter a realm from which she
will never want to return . . .

* * *

An Aphrodisia trade paperback and e-book on sale now!

ISBN: 978-1-5161-0061-3