Catching Moonlight (Man Season) (3 page)

“No, I only think you acted on
impulse, and it was the same impulse I had. I was watching you sleep before the
storm hit. I thought then how good it might be with you.”

“But you don’t even know me. We
really are strangers, I guess, though it doesn’t feel that way.”

“
It’s
how we
feel that counts. We are strangers no more, forever.”

“I like the sound of that.”

“You are a beautiful girl, Toby
Styles. Will you meet me here, tonight?”

“Won’t you be having dinner at the
house?”

“I never stay there. I live here,
behind the temple.
Aella
brings me my dinner.”

“Why do you live by yourself,
Dio
? Are you shy?”

“No, I just prefer to be alone.”

“Oh, that isn’t true. I can see in
your eyes that you’re lonely. I suppose that’s why I kissed you, to try and
drive away the sadness in your eyes.”

“You did, for a moment.”

They stared at each other; Toby had
to restrain a sudden urge to kiss him again.

“You know, I had the craziest dream
before the storm. It was all about
Hera
and Zeus, and
a young woman who had a son who looked like you.” She stood, began to glance
around. “This is the temple of the moon goddess,
Selene
.
Was she the young goddess in my dream? I wonder.”

“Do you believe in the Three Fates,
Toby?”

“I suppose, if you mean, do I believe
in things happening because they’re meant to.”

“That’s what I mean. I’ve been
praying to them for so long, begging them to send me someone. That someone is
you.”

She turned, looked deep into the
emerald eyes. A smoldering fire was burning within them; it stirred her,
frightening her with its intensity. She wanted him at the instant she’d seen
him standing near the temple. In her heart she knew immediately that
Dio
was the man she’d longed for her whole life. But was it
real - or merely an overreaction to the romance of the island – and that dream?

“
Dio
, I’m
sorry I came onto you. I guess this trip has unhinged me somehow. I wouldn’t
want you to think I’m easy with everyone.”

“I don’t. And don’t you ever be
sorry. I want you, Toby. I’ve waited for you so long.”

He surrounded her in those pale,
strong arms, began to kiss her again – this time he took the lead, working his
tongue like an expert. His hands moved over her muddied sundress, prickling her
breasts. She felt an all-consuming need to be out of her clothes, wouldn’t let
her mind think about what would happen afterwards. She knew there’d be
consequences later but right then the touch of him, the earthy, wild scent of
his skin, was enough to blot out the world.

He removed her dress, raising it up
over her head and tossing it on the stone floor of the temple. The rain was
slamming the roof, entering in through weathered spots here and there. The
thunder roared over the sea, lightning smacking at the water. The air was
alive, tense and dark. She could see him whenever the pale sun peered out of
the black clouds, like the flashing of neon signs in the city. He was naked
above her, his hips smooth and firm, moving rhythmically; his heart pounding so
fiercely it shook his chest.

She was a virgin. She briefly thought
she should mention it to him but it seemed unimportant. Her first time was
going to be special, unexpected and oh so magical, wrapped in the cool, white
arms of a sad-eyed angel of a boy. He was gentle and kind with her, making
moves that he must have imagined doing as he watched her sleep. She encouraged
him with soft glances and whispers, nodding and smiling each time he sought
approval for his actions. Toby gave herself up to him eagerly, enjoying his
lingering, tantalizing kisses, his admiring caresses,
his
hard, ready flesh. Then they merged, he shivered inside her, bringing her to a
crest of pleasure she’d never experienced before. She groaned, almost afraid of
the force of it but he calmed her by cupping her face in his hands and
smothering her moans with another wet, delicious kiss.

He moved slowly away from her, sat
staring at her face. She was suddenly ice cold.
Dio
rushed into a back room; came back out with a jacket. He wrapped her in it then
echoed the gesture with his arms.

“Warmer, now?”

“Yes, thank you.” She felt shy under
the close examination of his stare. “Was I … was it okay?”

“The best I ever had!”

“Are you sure? I mean, I’ve never
gone that far with anyone. I wasn’t sure I was any good.”

“You must have a natural talent for
it.” He
grinned,
the sadness left him for a moment
then returned. “I guess you’d better get back to the house.
Aella
doesn’t like people showing up late to dinner.”

“Did she raise you?”

“Raise me? Oh, yeah, you could say
that. Toby …” he paused, his eyes glistening in a shower of light as it
filtered through the holey roof. The storm had passed; a brilliant sunset was
spreading orange and purple plumes across the sky. Farther up, the moon had
taken its nightly position, pointing at the temple like a searchlight. “You
will come here, later? You’ll spend the night with me?”

“Do you have a bed?”

“Sure. I have a small apartment in
the back here. It’s pretty nice.
Aella
takes good
care of me.”

“I don’t know; seems to me if she
cared for you she’d make you sleep in the house! Unless, of course, my dream
was real, and you’re tied to the temple by a rope of shame, I think
Hera
called it.”

The expression on his pale face
changed; it shocked Toby with the sheer ferocity it revealed. She wasn’t one to
believe in fairy tales or myths. Her dad had trained her to have a practical,
realistic view of the world. In his mind, people made up myths and religions to
help them cope with the unknowns of life, things they couldn’t explain
rationally. And he had passed that observation to her without much resistance.
Her mother Lauren was raised with a strong faith but hid it whenever Matt was
around, to avoid his stern reproach. Yet she’d managed to let a bit of that
faith seep into Toby’s heart, giving the girl cause to turn to Kismet – or the
Three Fates, as
Dio
believed - whenever things didn’t
go her way.

But the idea that
Dio
was the son of Zeus and
Selene
, cursed by
Hera
to suffer eternity alone, was too radical for Toby’s
practical mind to comprehend. Maybe someone had conditioned him to believe such
a fantasy - why, who could say? But it could not be reality. And yet, how could
she explain the dream? The wild imagination of a young woman who’d spent most
of her life burying her nose in books, maybe?

“You’re making fun of me,”
Dio
said, pain infusing his eyes with sorrow.

“No, I’m not! But
Dio
,
you can’t expect me to believe that you are bound here, and have been for
centuries!”

“Believe anything you like! I gave up
caring about escape a long time ago! But I need you, Toby. If you don’t want to
be with me, say so.”

“Oh, I do! I swear I do! I’ll come
back after dinner and spend the whole night in your arms! If you’ll have me …”

“I’ll take as much of your love as
you offer! Kiss me!”

She eagerly obliged. One kiss led to
three, then six, and they were well on their way to heaven again when a voice
struck the air like a clap of thunder.

“
Dio
!
Come out! I know she is in there!
Come out, now!”

It was
Aella
;
she sounded in a furious state. Toby jumped, glanced round for something to
sheathe her – her poor sundress was dry but hard and caked with mud.

“Here,”
Dio
helped her slip her arms into the jacket. It was thankfully long enough to
cover any embarrassing flesh. She scraped mud from her legs, tried to grab hold
of some kind of dignity before
Aella
entered.
Dio
dressed quickly; tidied up the area so it looked
undisturbed.

“There you are! You had me worried
sick! What’s been going on here?”

The woman glanced with angry eyes
from
Dio’s
face to Toby’s; her former likeable
persona disintegrating into the scowls of a harpy.

“I slipped off the cliff after the storm
began,” Toby stated, “and
Dio
saved me. My dress was
ruined so he offered me his jacket. I was a bit shook up. We decided to stay
here until the sky was clear.”

Aella
put a hand to her mouth, physically
trying to calm herself before speaking again. She sighed, “I am sorry. I worked
myself up into
a frenzy
. Kosmas will tell you it’s a
flaw I have.”

“I can tell you, too,”
Dio
smiled, hoping to diffuse the tension in the air.

“That you can, dearest!
Forgive me, Toby, I don’t know what
I was thinking. Let’s get you up to the house so you can shower before dinner.
Dio
, I’ll bring yours directly.”

“No hurry,
Karthoula
Mou
.”

Aella’s
eyes watered. “You haven’t called me
that in a very long while,
Dioscuri
. Come, Toby.
You’ll catch a chill in the night air.”

She scooted Toby out of the temple
and up through the olive grove. Toby cast her head back, catching moonlight
from
Dio’s
eyes. He was standing in the doorway of
the structure, glowing like some ethereal being - as beautiful as the moon
itself, and just as ageless. Maybe it was true. Maybe the dream was telling her
what she needed to know to save him.

“I’ve set you out some towels and a
robe,”
Aella
said quietly as they took the stairs to
Toby’s room.

They entered; Toby was silent, lost
in a thousand new feelings and thoughts and desires. It made her head swim,
trying to take stock of it all.

“Stephan
Cristos
rang up earlier. He invited himself to dinner. I think he has what you
Americans call a crush, on you. Do you like him? He’s very handsome.”

“Oh, yes, I guess he is.
Aella
, what did
Dio
say to you?”

“It’s nothing, just an endearment.”

“Please, tell me.”

“It is
Karthoula
Mou
. It means my little heart. He used to call me
that a very long time ago.”

“But he’s so young. Oh …” It hit Toby
then that if
Dio
had been there so long,
Aella
must have known him since she was a child. “
Dio
is … old for his age, isn’t he?”

Aella
glared at her strangely. “I don’t
know what you mean.”

“I think you do.”

“I don’t. Take your shower now.
Stephan will be here soon.”

She left without another word. Toby
dropped
Dio’s
jacket and stood naked towards the open
windows. The cool night wind bathed her in goose pimples. She breathed deeply,
letting the wind tickle her nipples. It was almost like
Dio
was there, touching her. She looked at the moon, realized that the light from
it was pouring in on her. It caressed her, invaded her; sent her into delicious
shivers. She glanced down at the temple.
Dio
stood
there, gazing up at her window. Could he see her? Could he tell how much she
needed him, wanted him? If only the cold hands of the moon were his. But were
they? Was it him, invading her like the very essence of the moon? Was that
possible? Or was she dreaming again?

He entered the temple. Toby felt as
though the moon had gone out. She stepped into the bathroom, showered away the
remnants of the storm.

“You look like a goddess!” Stephan
Cristos
observed as Toby came down the stairs. “This may
not be the right time but I feel I must speak truthfully … I have fallen in
love with you, Toby Styles. I think I did the moment we met.”

“You probably say that to every
female client at some point,” she countered. “I recall how you flirted with the
ones in your office, filling their heads with praise. But I’m not so easily
swayed by pretty words.”

“I never thought you would be.” His
black eyes were stripping her of her fresh blue evening dress and heels. “You
will learn that I am not a man who plays around. I felt I should wait until all
the legal business was done before I made my intentions clear. But now that
it’s through I will tell you this … I want you. And I will have you.”