Sweet Dream

PROLOGUE

In the halls of Minas Tirith, as mistress to the newest Steward of Gondor, she is a welcome member of the new court. Her Lord Boromir is returning from a task for King Ellesar. Strong, ruggedly handsome her beloved Boromir captures her from behind, causing her to squeal in surprise.

He turns her abruptly, lifting her so that she is face to face with him, her feet dangling nearly a foot above the marble floor. He captures her mouth with his silencing her cries with a kiss of desperate, yet subdued passion. She has missed him so, he has been away more than a month.

"My beautiful Katerina," he murmurs into the hollow of her throat. "My sweet "Kat", how much I've missed you my love."

Her arms encircle his neck, glad tears soaking into his tunic at his shoulder.

"Shhh…, my beautiful treasure," he mumbles against her mouth, "Don't cry, my darlin', I have returned to you safe and unharmed…"

His words are spoken with a devil-may-care arrogance, that while infuriating at times such as this one, on other occasions she finds intrinsically endearing. "Tis only that I have missed you very much m'lord."

His grin broadens, laughter dancing in Boromir's emerald gaze. "We shall see, my love, we shall see…"

Boromir drags her into the closest room and bolts the door behind them—He is most impatient. "Lift those skirts, sweet beauty." His voice is husky with desire and she complies with his wishes without question as he rapidly works his laces loose to free his swollen erection. With impatient fingers, he tests and finds her ready for him. He impales with her with one quick thrust, crushing her back against the cold stone wall. Hard, fast and deep, his hand clamped over her mouth to muffle her cries.

"Oh sweet love," he moans into her shoulder as he quickly sends them both soaring to climax….

They straighten their clothes as they struggle to recover. Boromir cradles her to him as she murmurs her love for him against his chest and he gives her his reply. "Aye my treasure and I love you..."

Shortly thereafter they find themselves naked in his bedchambers, his fingers performing a gentle exploration, caressing her again after after a second punishing round of passion. Lost in his touch her mind drifts back over time to remember…

She will never forget the first time she saw him up close on one of her rare attendances at court. It was several years earlier. The silver trumpets sounded announcing his return and all gathered in the main hall of the palace for the celebration.

He was Boromir of Gondor, son of the steward, heir--apparent to the rule of Minas Tirith. He was returning from a well won victory and Lord Denethor had demanded every member of court to be present to honor his son's return.

It was simple fact that when Boromir entered a room he commanded it….taking second place to no one. Men would strand straighter, women's hearts would flutter. He was a warrior, a patriot, a devoted guardian of his people and he was also a man of passion. Although to those whom he did not know he may have seem reserved, aloof and detached; nevertheless he gave his love wholeheartedly to those he deemed worthy

Much to her own wonder and joy, she would soon find herself fortunate enough to be one whom he had deemed worthy of his affections. Sadly, she would not meet with Lord Denethor's approval. As daughter of one of the lower nobility while it was true I was a member at court, She seldom found opportunity to attend. Her father wasn't really of noble blood but had been raised in status, a valuable merchant in city, a shrewd trader and businessman, granted a title by Lord Denethor for one reason or another. Her father still had a business to run and she was expected to work for him in the shop.

And therefore she became the cause of a major rift between Boromir and his father, but they would have the generous heart-felt support of his brother Faramir. We would survive many trials and troubles to reach the point at which they found themselves today…

He moved over her again, this time taking her sweetly, gently, his lips moving along the line of her throat, his tongue laving her breasts with attention, suckling at her dark rose- colored nipples, biting gently around the hard peaks, sending sensation through her once more. She arched into his caress, revel joyously in each touch, marveling at the intensity of the emotion this man is capable of. He brings her often to tears with the intensity of their mutual passion and she has been honoured to the very depths of her soul that on more than one occasion their passion has moved him to tears as well.

He enters her this time almost reverently, thrusting slowly as they both revel in the sweet burning sensations as he strokes in and out of her. She meets him with all her passion, giving him everything and he returns it to her. Still, even after the first round of intense, almost violent passion, they still find release swiftly, sinking deeper into sensual oblivion. This time he silences her cries of release with his mouth on hers…

Chapter One

Katerina was born and raised in Minas Tirith, the youngest living child and only daughter of Gustov, a successful shop keeper. Her mother had died in childbirth from pre-term delivery, the mid-wife had been unavailable and her mother was alone when her time came. She'd hemorrhaged and subsequently bled to death. Born far too soon the premature infant died with her. Katerina was but five years old.

***

They were growing up rapidly and already her two brothers Willem at 17 and Aidyn 19 had joined in with rangers, serving alongside the steward's youngest son Faramir. Katerina's father had until this point counted on her brothers to keep a watchful eye out for their baby sister, but once they were gone Katerina was left to her own devices.

She was twelve or so, and by the time she was thirteen she was far from the innocent girl-child her father believed her to be. She had much more carnal knowledge than her father would have ever believed, and certainly more than most of the well-bred women of the upper nobility knew even after marriage. Being motherless she was very lonely for feminine company and was inquisitive, and she didn't have any female kin and so she had not hesitated to ask questions of some the taverns wenches who were more than happy to answer her questions.

So she had learned much about both the male and female body. These women kindly explained to her what was happening when she had her first woman's time and thought she was going to die and also about getting with child-or not, about maidenhood, what to expect the first time a man took her body and what she was entitled to in return. And couple of them took great pleasure in explaining to me the workings of the male body and the ways to pleasure a man. HER mother was probably spinning in her grave, and her father and brothers would have been horrified.

Katerina had watched the guard of the city come and go from one war or another all her life. Even as a young teenager she had heard the tales of the steward's eldest son, Boromir, who was in his mid-twenties, and his womanizing ways. She'd also heard he was sinfully handsome, and that he always had a soft bedmate to warm him in the night.

On occasion, she had seen the rangers and Faramir as well, although typically it was from a distance. However, it was Faramir who'd rescued Katerina on a certain occasion. Although her brothers and father were acutely inattentive to the changes overcoming her body, some the local lads were not, and had taken a definitive notice in the increasingly feminine curves of Katerina's young body.

On that particular afternoon Katerina was fourteen and walking alone as she did regularly and a trio of lads accosted her, in broad daylight no less, dragging her down a side alley. They were clearly aware that Katerina had spent time with some of the city's less than genteel women. They assumed that if she was seen in the company of whores then she must be one herself. Far from it, if anything Katarina's female friends were adamant that she not end up as they were, she had family to take care of me, she had no need to earn a living in the manner that they did.

Usually there wasn't a lot one girl could do when she's outnumber three to one. However, the women had taught Katerina well how to defend against unwanted advances. And she managed quite handily to dispatch one of them with a quick knee to his groin and he dropped to his knees, and when the second advanced she made a quick grab and twist in the fabric at his crotch. As he went down however the third managed to slip behind Katerina and pinned her arms behind her back. The first one had a fist drawn back to hit her when a strong male voice sounded behind him.

"What goes on here?"

All eyes turned to the steward's son, the newly appointed Captain of the rangers, who spoke again, with even more authority this time, "Let the girl go…"

Katerina's attackers looked as if they would test the command until Captain Faramir was suddenly flanked by at least a half dozen other rangers, all on horseback. The first two simply backed away from her and the one holding Katerina let her go roughly, giving her a forward shove so that she landed on the ground on her hands and knees.

Faramir dismounted coming forward as her attackers took flight down the opposite end of the alley. He stopped before her, extending his hand to her, "Here, let me help you up."

Embarrassed to the core, Katerina took the offered hand, she didn't need to add rudeness to her embarrassment. He tugged on her hand pulling her up, "Your name lass?"

With her eyes still downcast she responded, "Katerina."

"Katerina? Daughter of the merchant Gustov?"

"Yes m'lord."

Faramir looked back at one of his men, "Find Willem or Aidyn, I wish to see one or both immediately."

There was movement around the corner and Katerina wholeheartedly wished for the ground to open and swallow her whole rather than to have to face her two brothers. Yet in matter of no more than a couple of minutes she raised her gaze to both their faces.

Aidyn spoke first, his voice full of concern, "Kat' are you all right, they told us some lads were attacking you?"

"I'm fine Aidyn, no sense in making a fuss, I'd like to go home please."

"Are you sure," questioned Willem, his gray eyes studying his sister's deeply. "What happened, did they hurt you?"

Faramir gave a slight laugh, "From what I saw she was the one doing the hurting. If there had had only been two of them, she was doing just fine, it was having a third one that caused her some problem. If only all my rangers fought with such fervor."

Great, Katerina thought, call attention to the fact that she knew how to fight men and win. It certainly wasn't something her brothers or father would approve of. Women were supposed to be weak and helpless, needing guidance and protection, like her mother had done. But Katerina wasn't her mother and she was trying to make her way in an otherwise male household, finding out what she needed to know where she could find it.

Aidyn had heard enough, reaching out to grasp her wrist and pulling her along like a disobedient child, "Come Katerina, let's get you home."

She jerked my hand away from him, "I'm not a baby Aidyn, I can walk by myself."

"Yes, Kat, and look what walking by yourself got you."

"Now Aidyn, she's right," interceded Faramir, "She should be treated like the lovely young lady she is."

"Young lady," snorted Willem, "She's just a little girl."

Faramir looked incredulously at Katerina's two brothers. "You both must be blind, she's not a grown woman yet, but she's well past being a child. Why do you think she was accosted by those lads? It wasn't because they wanted to play, they were interested much more intimate activities. For just a moment look at her like a man, don't look at her as your sister; see what the rest of us see--a lovely lass on the brink of womanhood. Then maybe you'll take seeing to her protection much more seriously."

Katerina wanted to hug Faramir and throttle him at the same time. She appreciated him coming to her defense as it were, but to have him demanding she have increased protection was going to seriously curtail her freedom.

And Katerina wasn't wrong. As soon as they arrived home and their father informed of the afternoon's occurrence Katerina was virtually a prisoner. Kept under her father's close scrutiny, and Gustov had just the way to keep her right under his watchful eye. He put Katerina to work in his shop.

And that is where she spent the next several years…