bought you?”
“No. That would imply I’m happy to wear your chain. I’m not. But I…I don’t resent that you did.”
He brought them to a bench and, sitting, pulled her down next to him. He kissed her temple. “I couldn’t be happier. You don’t have to give me anything in return, you know. Just because I love you and you don’t love me doesn’t mean you owe me anything. It’s not a debt you need to pay.”
She rested her head on his shoulder. There was a wonderful warm breeze, and the air smelled rich with flowers and summer blooms. She could hear birds chirping happily, and the sound of two giant dogs wrestling around in the grass nearby. Nero must have let them off the leash.
“Thank you, Nero.”
He turned her face up to him and kissed her. It was gentle and full of love. It made her heart skip a beat. Her madman tasted like bonfires and summer nights. And tangled up in his anger was the sweetest man she had ever known.
Her madman?
When had that happened?
When did she start falling in love?
Or was it already too late?
He broke away and held her close. “The equinox celebration is in three weeks. I want to go out to my villa in the country by the beach. I always throw a big party. Will you come with me? We can go swimming in the ocean.”
“I’ve never been to the ocean.”
“Never…you’ve never been to the ocean?” He lifted his head and must have been looking at her in surprise.
She smiled sadly and put her hand on his cheek, stroking his jaw and cheekbone. He must be so beautiful. “I’m a slave, Nero. I belonged to the temple. Why would they take us on summer holiday?”
He sighed heavily. “Well, then, we’re going to fix it. I’m going to take you to the shore, and I’m going to chuck you into the ocean just so I can swim out and save you from drowning. Then I’m going to make love to you in the surf. I’m going to make sure you get sand everywhere it shouldn’t be.”
She laughed and shoved him playfully.
“What, no slap?”
“I only have one more. I’m going to make it count.”
He chuckled and hugged her again. “That’s fair.” He paused. “I don’t think I can ever remember being happy, Hope. Not really. Moments of amusement, maybe…but not happy. I’ve always been angry. I’ve always been sad. I’ve never…felt like this. I don’t want to ever lose it.”
She shifted to sit with her back against the arm of the bench and pulled him down into her arms. He came willingly, his head nestling close to hers. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed the top of his head. He smelled like wood smoke. “I don’t think you will. I just need time. You’re a lot to handle.”
He snickered. “That’s the truth.”
She hugged him, and he let out a breath in contentment, lounging on her. At least for a few moments. “Brutus! Don’t eat that!”
He shot up to chase the dogs.
And she sat there, laughing and smiling.
I’m in love, aren’t I?
Well, shit.
16
Three weeks came and went in the blink of an eye. Hope spent nearly all of it at Nero’s side. He was always hungry for her company, it seemed. Even during his meetings and matters of state, he had her sit in the room with him.
And in all their private moments, she never left his arms. His vehement hunger for sex cooled somewhat after the first few days—but it was still voracious.
She found she didn’t really mind.
She met each of his challenges and loved challenging him back. He was a funny, playful thing beneath all the terrifying rage that could spark in him in a heartbeat. In a weird way, even when he was harsh with her, she trusted him, and he trusted her in return.
It felt…real. Whatever they had. It had begun to dig a hole into her heart and make itself a home.
When the time came for the equinox celebration, they took a train to his villa in the country. The beach smelled different than the city, and she found she loved it. The air was cleaner, the breeze was stronger, and it carried with it the constant underlying whiff of saltwater.
They had walked up and down the beach for hours already. She never tired of feeling the water licking at her feet and the sand between her toes. If she stood still, the waves displaced the sand out from under