Beloved (35 page)

Christina’s passion, which had been buried so long by her grief, was slowly and expertly rekindled by a man who made love to her sweetly, passionately, with consummate skill and great consideration and Christina accepted it all with joy and gratitude.

“Are you happy?” Stefano asked, as she lay nestled against his chest.

“Oh, yes,” she whispered dreamily. She had not felt so safe, or content for longer than she cared to remember.

“You know,” he said stroking the dark, shining strands of her hair, “That’s all Guy ever wanted for you.”

Christina’s heart stopped, but Stefano’s soothing voice went on as his fingers continued to caress her. Surely she’d misheard.

“And I’m glad I make you happy, because I make Guy happy, too.”

Confused, she tried to push away from him, but he held her tightly.

“Come, join us, dear,” he said softly, looking over Christina’s shoulder.

Unable to free herself from Stefano’s embrace, she turned her head just enough to see the movement in the shadows on the other side of the room. Then Guy, naked and smiling, stepped out of the darkness and came toward the bed. Christina, paralyzed with fear, couldn’t move, yet couldn’t look away from the terrifying apparition.

Guy’s eyes glittered as he slipped under the covers behind her. His hand slid slowly down her back and fondled her buttocks. Then he leaned across her, pressing himself against her and slowly kissed her fingers where they lay, frozen against Stefano’s chest.

“I told you the three of us were meant to be together, Christina,” Guy whispered. Then he kissed Stefano.

Stefano slowly began to loosen his hold on her, but Christina immediately started to struggle in an attempt to free herself from the two men.

“Christina, don’t,” Stefano commanded as he grabbed her wrists and pinned them over her head. He put his lips close to her ear and whispered, “It will be so much easier if you don’t fight it. I promise, I won’t let him hurt you.”

She found no reassurance in his words and continued to squirm and kick until Guy, furious with her behavior, struck her hard in the face.

“Stop it!” he said, leaning over her, threatening to strike her again.

“Now, now, that’s not necessary,” Stefano said soothingly as he brushed the hair out of Guy’s eyes. “She’ll behave, won’t you, Christina?”

Christina heeded the warning and lay still, afraid to resist as Guy began to caress her body. She looked at Stefano, her eyes begging him to release her, but he only smiled. She turned her head away, but he tightened his crushing grip on her wrists. When she opened her lips to cry out against the pain, his mouth covered hers.

Christina’s resistance drained away, convinced her situation was hopeless. She no longer cared what they did to her. She closed her eyes and tried very hard to think of something else—
anything
else. She remembered the meadow she’d imagined when Richard led her on those fanciful mental excursions so long ago. She concentrated on the feel of the grass and the smells of the summer afternoon and ignored the sensation of Guy’s mouth moving over her skin.

Guy was pleased with his wife’s faint smile as he thrust into her. He knew his plan had been a good one. The three of them belonged together.

Christina dozed fitfully between the two men. Twice she wakened and tried to slip out of bed, but each time her movements woke Guy and he forced her to lie down again. In the morning, Guy made love to her once more and this time she offered no resistance, though she was sickened by the addition of Stefano’s hands and lips.

Guy ordered breakfast brought to their room and then, thinking his wife subdued, arranged for a carriage so that the three of them could tour the town and the surrounding countryside. Christina thought she might yet escape them, but just as she was about to bolt, Stefano seemed to sense her intention and he seized her by the wrist, whispering that he could not protect her if she continued to misbehave. The incident went unnoticed by Guy, but effectively convinced Christina she was trapped.

She was docile for the rest of the day and Guy seemed in the best of spirits and quite pleased with his wife’s agreeable behavior. She watched Stefano carefully, surprised that he seemed content as well, not at all discomfited by the peculiar situation. In fact, Christina soon began to believe that she was the only one who thought their little
ménage
the least bit unnatural.

Guy stood up after dinner and announced that he’d planned something very special for the three of them, then left to complete the arrangements. Christina and Stefano were alone. When he came to sit beside her on the little sofa, she abruptly stood up, having no desire to be anywhere near him. He caught her and pulled her back down.

“Ah, Christina, when are you going to stop behaving like this?” Stefano spoke to her as though she were a disobedient child. “What’s upsetting you so? Don’t you realize how fortunate you are to have two men who care so deeply about you?”

“How dare you say you care about me? You betrayed me merely to satisfy my husband’s sick delusion.”

He put his arm around her shoulders, ignoring the fact that she remained as rigid as a stone statue.

“I’m afraid you just don’t understand how much your husband cared for Richard. As long as Guy is content, you and I can still be lovers. That way he can have Richard back and so can you, my dear.”

Christina couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Did Stefano really believe that she could care about him after all that had happened?

Stefano smiled as his hand slid down and covered her breast. “You’re very beautiful, Christina, you know that. Why should I not be content to be your lover?”

“But why didn’t you take me away as you promised? I wanted to go with you.”

“Take you away to what? To live in squalor in some nameless village where I’d have to work from dawn to dark just to keep a little food on the table? Why should I, when I can please your husband as well and live like a gentleman while I do it?” He saw the look of disgust on her face, but it only made him smile. “Is it really so difficult to imagine that I’m this Richard of yours? Afterall, we both know I’m quite capable of pleasing you, don’t we?”

For a moment he allowed himself to enjoy her expression of dismay and profound embarrassment. Then he changed his tone to one he hoped sounded sincere.

“I promise to be gentle with you, Christina, if you’ll just make an effort to abide by your husband’s wishes. If you don’t, I’m not sure I can protect you. He’s got quite a temper, as I’m sure you’ve noticed.” Stefano looked at her for a moment. “Come now, give me a kiss. I don’t mind at all if you pretend I’m Richard.”

Even as he kissed her, she began to wonder if he was right. Maybe the only thing she could do was go along with Guy’s sick fantasy of the three of them living happily together. Maybe Stefano could keep Guy from hurting her and maybe that was as much as she could hope for.

When the kiss ended, Guy was standing behind them, smiling.

“Excellent,” he said happily. He’d been drinking.“I knew you’d come to your senses, Christina. You may even find you’ll enjoy the little surprise I have planned for the three of us.” Guy touched the top of her head, then ran his fingers along the back of her neck. He smiled when he felt her shiver.

“Stefano, why don’t you go ahead and get changed. We’ll meet you there.”

Stefano got up, stopping just long enough to bring Christina’s fingers to his lips. Then he handed her over to her husband, who quickly escorted her out the door, forcing her to put her arm through his as they descended the stairs. He had a good grip on her wrist, just in case she might decide to rebel, but it was unnecessary. Christina made no attempt to pull away and obediently followed where he led.

She did hesitate when they reached the stable behind the hôtel, but when Guy opened the door for her, she stepped through ahead of him as he directed. The row of stalls on either side of them was illuminated by lanterns hanging from the rafters down the center of the building. The horses snuffled and a few stopped munching their hay long enough to turn and look at the intruders.

Guy said nothing as he walked Christina to the far end of the building and then turned to the left where there was a plank door set in the stone wall. When she saw the door she stopped, dreading what might lie beyond, but Guy pulled her along with him as he took down the lantern and opened it.

Christina shuddered when she saw the little room. A fire burned in the fireplace and there was a large bed against the far wall, a bed much bigger than the one she had shared with Richard that night in the stable at Beauvu. She turned to look at her husband, wondering just what he had in mind. His eyes glittered with an unnatural excitement.

“Guy, please, I beg you…”

“What? I hoped you’d find this all very nostalgic. Afterall, I thought that night was one of the happiest in your life. Will it really be so bad to relive it?” Guy put his arm around her, but there was no comfort in his embrace. “Christina,” he said patiently, “You just don’t understand. I’ve done all this for you. I’ve done everything I can to make you happy. I’ve even brought Richard back to you…to both of us.”

He released her quite suddenly, then went to the little table and set down the lantern beside a tray that held a bottle of wine and three glasses. He uncorked the bottle, poured and handed one to her. She stepped back.

“Drink it,” he commanded.

Christina just looked at him.

“Drink it!”

Her hand shaking, she took the glass and sipped at the wine.

“All of it,” he said firmly.

Still shaking, she downed the contents of the glass with difficulty. Guy smiled. He took the glass from her, refilled it and handed it back to her.

“No, please, no more!” Christina had hardly eaten all day and she was afraid she’d be sick.

Guy grabbed the hair at the back of her head and held the glass to her lips. Terrified, Christina did her best to swallow, but he was too hasty and some of the wine ran down her chin and dripped onto the front of her dress, staining the pale silk like drops of blood. He released her, smiling as he set the glass back on the table. He looked at her a moment, then slowly ran his finger over the red liquid that stained her chin. Christina was afraid to speak, afraid to move. Guy frowned briefly, then turned and picked up a package from one of the wooden chairs and handed it to her.

“Here. Hurry and put this on.”

Christina unwrapped the stiff brown paper and unfolded the contents. It was a white cotton nightdress, but as she looked at it more closely she realized it was hers. She’d made the lace that edged the neckline and had embroidered her initials there herself. Unless her memory was failing her, it was the same gown she had worn that night.

“Where did you get this?” she whispered. How long had he been planning this? The implications terrified her.

“It doesn’t matter. Go on, put it on.”

Christina undressed nervously, ever aware of Guy’s eyes on her.

“Come here,” he said, when she’d pulled the gown over her head.

She went to him and he began to pull the pins from her hair. When they were all out, he took her brush from his pocket and began to brush her hair.

“It was down that night, do you remember?”

Christina remembered all too well and, though she tried, she couldn’t stop the tears. Guy heard a sob and spun her around. Then, for some reason, his angry expression softened.

“That’s right!” he said softly, sounding pleased. “I’d forgotten. You were crying that night, too, weren’t you?” Instantly his expression became more threatening. “You were crying because you knew you had to marry me, weren’t you?” He gave her an abrupt shake.

Just then, the door opened and Stefano came in. Guy let go of her so suddenly she nearly fell, but she caught herself on the edge of the table. Her gaze followed her husband’s and what she saw defied belief. Had she not known herself to be trapped in the midst of some terrifying nightmare, she would have sworn it was Richard who’d just entered the little room, Richard, exactly as he had been that night six and a half years ago. The linen shirt, the black breeches, the tall, black boots that Richard had always worn and that face—the face she’d always loved.

Guy stepped behind her as Stefano came toward her and for a moment she couldn’t move. When Stefano reached out to take her hand, she turned to flee, but Guy was there, taking her roughly by the shoulders and turning her back to face the demon who threatened to rob her of her sanity.

“No…” she cried, even as Guy pushed her into Stefano’s arms. He caught her and held her fast, but she struggled and squirmed.

“Christina, please, please don’t do this,” he whispered into her hair. “I told you, I can’t protect you if you behave this way.”

She looked up at him in horror. Before she could say anything, she was suddenly drenched as Guy poured a bucket of cold water over her head. Gasping, she turned to look at him as he ran his hand over her dripping hair.

“It was raining that night. You were wet,” he said reasonably. But then his expression changed. “Don’t you remember?” His hand tightened on her hair, slowly pulling her head back. Through clenched teeth he hissed, “Don’t spoil this for me Christina, I’ve waited far too long.”

With that he released her and took one of the chairs from the table, dragging it over to the door. He slid the bolt home and sat down to watch.

Christina, terrified, looked back at Stefano. Her teeth began to chatter, from fear as much as from the cold water that had soaked her hair and her gown and caused the soft cotton to cling to her body.

Stefano looked down at the fabric, which clearly delineated her breasts and smiled. He relaxed his hold on her and brushed the wet hair back from her face. She was trembling as he moved a little, placing his body between her and Guy.

“Christina, you must trust me,” he whispered. “I know what to do and I promise I won’t hurt you. Just try to relax. Please.”

Stefano led her over to the fire, picked up the coverlet that lay beside the hearth and unfolded it. She looked at him and then at Guy who sat watching them. Stefano held the coverlet up between her and Guy and the look in his eyes begged her to take off her gown. Having no other choice, she pulled the soaked fabric over her head and stood unmoving as he wrapped the coverlet around her body. She put her hand against his shirt, turning her head away from Guy as Stefano pulled her into his arms.