A Stray Drop of Blood (59 page)

Titus rolled his eyes. “How is she enjoying married life?”

Lucius’s amusement was wry. “She is not. She finds her husband a bore, which is not unexpected when one marries a man as old as one’s grandfather. But when one is convinced that only a man in his dotage will forgive one’s lack of innocence . . .”

Titus fended off the old accusation with a raised hand. “It was years ago, my friend, and your sister did not seem so concerned about her ‘innocence’ at the time.”

“
I shall take your word for it.” Lucius did not seem overly concerned as he scanned the room. When his gaze halted on Abigail, his brows flew up. “Delicious. Who is she?”

“
Abigail Visibullis.” He expected jealousy to surge, but instead it was pride that filled him. “You remember Jason? Abigail is his widow. I brought her here from Israel so that she could claim Jason’s inheritance for their son.”

Lucius grinned. “Yes, I am sure that was your only reason. I had, of course, heard that Jason married a Jewess. Was she not a slave?”

“
It depends on your definition of the term. Jason’s parents raised her as their daughter, educated her, clothed her as a gentlewoman. Jason, obviously, did not feel inclined to regard her as a sister, though.”

Lucius sniggered. “I should think not.”

Their continued gazes in her direction brought Abigail’s eyes up, and when she saw Titus, she flashed him a smile.

Lucius shook his head. “I did not realize they were hiding such beauty out there in barbary.”

Titus breathed a laugh. “Call her a barbarian when she can hear you, and you shall find yourself the recipient of a nicely delivered lecture on civilization through the ages of the Greeks versus the unbroken chain of law of her own people. If you are lucky, she will throw in a few musically rendered lines of Homer, and then compare them to Virgil’s attempt at modeling it.”

Lucius laughed. “Come, friend, you must introduce me to this paradigm of charm.” He started in her direction, leaving Titus little choice but to follow. As if foreseeing their lack of need of her, Marcus’s wife stood and moved away, exchanging a few words of greeting with the two younger men as she passed them.

The couch was not designed to hold three of them, but Lucius did not seem too concerned about that. He merely sat on one side of Abigail as Titus claimed the other, exclaiming merrily, “Titus tells me you can sing the Greek poets.”

Abigail glanced at Lucius, then looked with curiosity at Titus. He had pulled her closer to his side to keep as much space between her and Lucius as possible and then left his arm around her waist protectively. “Strange, I do not think Titus has ever heard me sing the Greek poets.”

Titus smiled at her and accepted a glass of wine from one of the slaves. “Perhaps it is just that I have heard you speak
of
the poets, and your voice is always a song.” When his friend laughed, Titus took a sip of his wine. “You would have loved to hear her the first time Jason invited us to his home, Lucius. She chastised us as lawless pagans, subtly rebuked us for staring at her, and proceeded to teach us about our own religious figures so that we were truly ashamed at having not realized ourselves the things she pointed out.”

“
You
were
lawless pagans.” Her expression combined amusement with a hint of irritation. “You spent every moment you could carousing in the city, and you made my husband feel guilty for opting to stay at home with his family.”

“
She knows you well, I see.” Lucius grinned and motioned for a slave to refill his wine. “You should have seen him here before he left, my friend. There was not a party he did not attend, a woman he did not seduce, a wine he had not tasted–and still he was one of the most stubbornly reasonable men I ever had the hardship of knowing! I could not once instigate a fight with him, and trust me, I tried. I even had good reason once or twice, but he would never rise to the bait. Now if his
father
dared to insult him, that was a different story.”

“
Enough of your reminiscing, Lucius. Abigail does not wish to hear about my ill-spent youth.”

He knew Abigail truly did not wish to hear about it, but Lucius apparently thought the comment indicated its opposite. With another laugh, he leaned closer to her. “He was the envy of every man in Rome. Not only was he known to have the most beautiful slaves awaiting his every whim at home, he seemed to be able to merely quirk his finger and have any noblewoman willing to throw aside her virtue and invite him into her chamber.”

Feeling Abigail’s shoulders tense, Titus interjected calmly. “That is enough, Lucius, take pity on the lady. You will offend her sensibilities with such talk.”

“
I only thought to make sure that she truly does know whom she has aligned herself with.” Lucius took a long draught of his drink.

Abigail put a hand on Titus’s knee, aligning herself with him even more. “I know Titus. I know the kind of man he was. And I also know him as a man far different from the one you describe.”

Lucius arched a brow and looked over her head at Titus. “Really? How interesting. I have never known him to hide his nature.”

“
Nor have I.” Abigail smiled. “But even the most lawless of boys can grow into decent men.”

Titus heard her defense of him with an amused smile. He had a hard time focusing on her words, though, with her hand on his knee. He could feel the warmth of it through the layers of cloth, it seemed, and the awareness only grew until he could feel her nearness at every nerve ending. As Lucius rejoined and directed the conversation along a different path, he felt her relax again and took the chance to draw her a little closer, until her back was resting against his side. She darted a curious look at him over her shoulder once, as if wondering what he was up to, but she was soon turned back to Lucius, laughing at something he said. Her hand stayed where she had put it. It alone told him she was not as relaxed as she seemed, since the longer Lucius prattled, the more tense her fingers became.

“
Are you all right?” he whispered into her ear when Lucius’s attention was diverted by a tray of food.

“
Fine. Why do you ask?”

He chuckled. “Because you seem to be trying to reshape my knee.”

Abigail loosened her grip abruptly, and would have removed her hand had he not covered it with his own. “Sorry.”

“
I do not mind.” He measured her for a moment. “You have not eaten much.”

She pressed a hand to her stomach. “I cannot. Miriam has tried to tempt me with everything here, but I would rather just wait until later, or tomorrow.”

He nodded, since Lucius had made his selections and turned back to them again. At that point the party was in full swing, and Titus marveled at how large it had become. He had somehow managed to forget how easily a small gathering could turn into something so massive in his father’s house. Many of the guests had settled onto couches or chairs by that time, more furniture having been brought in quietly as more people arrived. His father was not far from him, seeming deep in conversation with Cornelius Cossus.

After another hour, Abigail shifted beside him. “Excuse me, I must go tend Benjamin. I will be back in a few minutes.”

Titus nodded, moving so she could rise. He exchanged a glance with Phillip to direct the eunuch to accompany her, and the two slid from the room.

Lucius sipped again from his wine. “Once again, Titus, you have outdone us all. She is devoted to you.” He gave an exaggerated sigh. “A pity. I would like to see what she hides under that stola.”

“
I am glad you waited until she left before you announced that.” Titus motioned for a slave to refill his cup. He was not sure how many he had already had, but it was a fine vintage.

Lucius laughed. “I am not a complete scoundrel, Titus. At the very least, I realize that saying such a thing to a woman will ruin any chances I may have to begin with.” He grew suddenly pensive. It was not an uncommon thing for him, shifting moods so suddenly. “It is not fair that you have her, Titus, your mother is even now trying to find you a wife.”

“
Abigail will return to Israel soon. I have a feeling my mother is wise enough to wait until her departure before insisting I wed.”

“
You have no respect for the property of your friends.” At least his proclamation was quiet enough not to draw the attention of any of the other groups nearby. “You take whatever you want, never considering to whom it actually belongs.”

Titus felt his brows draw together. “You are mistaken in that, Lucius. When she was Jason’s, I honored that bond. If I take her now, it is because that claim no longer exists. Jason is gone. I miss him, but he is gone. Abigail’s mourning has passed.”

“
And how convenient that you are the one nearest her when it has. Titus Asinius, the tempter of the temptresses.”

“
I have not missed your moods, Lucius,” Titus returned dryly. “Jealousy always makes you foul. Just accept that you will never so much as touch her and move on to another conquest.”

Lucius brightened again, an impish smile on his lips. “Probably, that is not such a great loss. I suspect she is not nearly as talented behind closed doors as imagination would suppose.”

Titus raised his cup to his lips and looked straight ahead. “Never in my life have I lowered myself to answering your prying questions. Do not expect me to start now.”

Lucius laughed again, his humor restored, and was content to change the subject.

~*~

Abigail took her seat beside Titus again after returning. She felt more at ease simply because the pain of needing to nurse had been relieved, but now she was beginning to feel tired. Her eyes sought Miriam and found her making the rounds with the other maids, a pitcher of wine in hand. The girl met her eye and lifted a brow in question, but Abigail gave a small shake of her head.

Titus and Lucius were deep into talk of politics, with the occasional reference to someone she had never met, so Abigail’s mind wandered around the room. She kept looking over at her maid simply to make sure all was well with her. Twenty minutes after her reentry into the room, Miriam ended up by Caius.

Abigail’s breath caught as the man raised his cup and slid a hand up Miriam’s leg. He was not the first to touch the girl, but the others had made it look casual–a hand to the back, on the arm. Miriam had not seemed disturbed by those, but now her face froze in an expression Abigail knew well: panic.

She stepped away at the first possible moment, glanced toward Abigail. Their gazes clashed, and Abigail saw the panic mount. Miriam headed her way, eyes spewing apology.

Titus looked up at her approach too. “Ah, good. More wine, please.”

Miriam lifted a trembling arm. Abigail stood, put herself between Miriam and Titus, and halted her with a hand on her arm. “It is not your fault,” she said in Hebrew, softly. “You are not to blame for Caius’s actions. If you do not calm yourself, you will spill the wine.”

Miriam flushed, but some of the panic eased from her eyes. “I am sorry, Mistress.”

Abigail smiled. “I am not rebuking you, my friend.” In Greek she added, “Would you go check on my son for me? See if he has settled?”

“
Of course.”

Abigail pried the wine gently from her fingers. “Go.” She watched for a moment as her shaken maid turned and left unobtrusively, then she turned back around to Titus.

He smiled when he saw her with the pitcher. “It has been a long time since you have poured for me, sweet one.”

Abigail narrowed her eyes at him. “I think you have had more than enough to drink, Titus Asinius.” To prove it, she handed the pitcher to a passing maid and then waved her away.

Titus scowled, but it was not long lasting. He put his empty cup aside, then put his hands on Abigail’s hips to urge her back down beside him, pulling her as close as he had before. “It does not matter.” He nipped at her ear, making her jump. “You are sweeter than any wine, anyway.”

Abigail sighed, even if a smile tugged at her mouth. “You have most assuredly had enough to drink, my love.” She elbowed him in the ribs to drive the point home.

Titus chuckled. “You may be right. Ah. My mother is taking the women away. I suppose that means you must leave me.”

Abigail lifted a hand to rub at her neck. “I suppose so. I will only stay a moment with them, I think. I am tired.”

“
Do not retire before I get to say good night.”

Abigail smiled at him and stood, said her farewells to Lucius, and left the room with Miriam, Phillip falling in behind.

~*~

Caius’s voice grabbed Titus’s attention. “What do you think of our Hebrewesses, Cornelius?” he was asking his friend, who was every bit as inebriated as he. “Pretty, are they not? The new maid is a fine creature, Titus picked her out.”

Titus considered correcting his father on that one, but Cornelius replied before he could.

“
The maid?” He laughed. “Why waste your time on the maid when you can have the mistress?” He raised his cup to Titus. “My compliments, my friend. An enviable trophy.”

“
Say thank you, Titus,” Caius instructed with a sloppy grin.

Titus smiled; only his father could treat him like a child while congratulating him on a seduction. And in that particular moment, it was more entertaining than annoying. “Thank you, Cornelius.” His obedient echo inspired laughter from both Cornelius and Lucius.