"Listen to me!" Nicholas yelled as he slapped Sarah across the face. It was always a wonder to her how he expected her to listen when all she could hear was the ringing in her ears from his slap and the painful sting radiating up her jaw.

Sarah knew she wouldn't be able to escape her husbands jealousies. The man didn't desire her, but since she was his wife and therefore in his eyes his property he refused anyone to look at her. Sarah refused to yell back at him it only enraged him more. It had been nearly a year since the last time he had struck her, and this was all over a few dance proposals. It was a mystery to her why he brought her extravagant dresses if he didn't want attention brought to her.

Nicholas raised his hand, his eyes an icy black as he snarled at her laying sprawled on the inn floor.

"Silence Picolla don't force me to return and finish what I started!" Antonello shouted over the storm to the small women nestled in his arms.

Antonello had spent most of the night drinking liquor and contemplating what he should do next to get Sarah back. He had sat alone in shadows with nothing but a bottle of liquor and his turbulent emotions. He wanted nothing more than to be with Sarah but he feared she may have feelings for her husband.

The entire palazzo was deadly silent before Antonello refused to sit and wonder any longer so set out to find her and ask her what she felt, if she felt anything for him at all. He had walked instead of ridden to the village in an attempt to clear his head and his aggressions.

His head had cleared.

His aggressions hadn't.

He had walked into the small inn on the outskirts of the village and found out where Sarah was. Outside her bedchamber he had rehearsed and rehearsed what he would say to regain her love. He had been about to knock when he heard yelling coming from inside the room. Fearing burglars Antonello had broken down the door.

It hadn't been burglars.

Sarah had tears in her eyes and was holding the side of her face.

Her husband was yelling.

Antonello wasn't sure what happened as he allowed his blood to lead his head. Jealousy and aggression where prominent in his family and for once he was thankful for it. He only realised he was walking back to the Palazzo with Sarah in his arms when he had felt the wind wiping his hair harshly across his face. Sarah had yelled at him to let her walk and return her to the inn but Antonello would be damned before he allowed that man to ever lay a hand on her again. Nothing had felt more satisfying then hitting her husband hard enough to break bones.

Under the circumstances Antonello should have been thinking about Nicholas but all he comprehended was Sarah was in his arms at last. She had put on some weight since they had last met but it only made her more womanly, and enhanced her beauty. Her body heat was soothing against his chest and once again he wondered how he had ever lived without her.

His need for her was well beyond his capabilities of understanding.

The storm intensified and the rain began to pound down upon them.

Entering the palazzo Antonello's stride didn't slow as he walked straight to his bedchamber.

Setting Sarah down upon his bed he fell to his knees to inspect the damage to her face.

Luckily their seemed no permanent damage.

For the first time in nearly an hour Antonello breathed.

She would be ok.

Sarah watched the gentle way Antonello's hands cradled her face as he checked for bruising. His hands where so large she was surprised they could be so tender. His palms where rough against her soft cheeks due to the harshness of hunting and the outdoors.

The rough feel of his skin sent a shiver down her spine.

Droplets of water was falling from the loose strands of his midnight black hair. His eyes where blazing with intensity on her face. And for the first time Sarah saw a glimpse of the boy within the man. He still had that flicker of compassion hidden within his eyes, and despite the changes in his body he could still show tenderness.

He wore only a shirt which was now transparent from the heavy rain. The body hidden beneath the thin sodden material made Sarah's breath catch. Every line, contour and muscle was visible.

When Antonello had pressed her up against the study door she had felt a jolt of awareness.

His strength and power contained within his body no longer frightened her, it excited her.

She was not the innocent girl she had been in need of a gentle touch.

His muscular frame and passion no longer held any fear within her but sparked a flame of desire.

Sarah run her fingers along his now sheer shirt and followed the ripples of muscles along his abdomen. She could feel his body shudder with every inch her fingers travelled.

She wanted to feel the bronzed skin beneath her fingertips.

Skin to skin.

Sarah allowed the whole world to slide away from them as she slipped the first button through and moved down to the next. All she could hear was the rain beating against the window pane, and their breathing. There was nothing else.

Antonello made no attempt to stop or aid her but watched her hands slide down his torso exposing more skin to her gaze.

The rain continued to pound against the window illuminating the room only when the lighting split the darkened sky. Sarah peeled the soaked material away revealing the skin beneath. Sliding the cloth down his arms she allowed the shirt to fall to the stone floor. Sarah's hands rested on Antonello's wrists as she contemplated what she wanted to do, a finger gentle skimmed the inside of his wrist. She knew Antonello would let her rediscover his body in her own time and would allow her to set the pace. It made her feel empowered in a way she had never felt before. Whenever her husband had bedded her it had been when and how he wished, now she had that power.

Holding his wrists she moved them to rest on either side of her hips. With a gentle squeeze she showed him that is where she wished them to stay.

Sarah looked at the skin she had exposed.

Rain water was sliding slowly down the deep valley between the muscles in his abdomen making his skin gleam in the flashes of light. The whole of this upper torso was muscular and an irresistible golden tan complexion like a dark honey. She bent her head and kissed along the column of his neck.

His hands clutched her bottom and hips as she ran her hand down his torso. She played and toyed teasingly with the button on his trousers until she could feel all his muscles in his arms and chest flex with anticipation.

She smiled against his neck as she slipped the button and lowered his trousers to pool around his knees next to the shirt.

The large hands gripping her bottom tightened as she rested her head against his, and ran her hand further down his abdomen. A moan escaped Antonello's lips as she wrapped her hand around him.

Antonello couldn't breath as each finger slowly curled around his length.

He was already fighting against his rising need and with each wet, slim finger tightening around him he felt closer to the edge of his restraint.

Antonello bit down on his lower lip at the agony of her hand on him. She had begun to caress him, her fingers tight but moving sensuously slowly that he felt on the verge of insanity.

Every stroke had a near constant moan escaping his lips, his hands tightened even more on her and his breathing was becoming more and more laboured.

He grasped either side of her thighs and parted them. Lifting his eyes he stared into hers as he slid his hand beneath the material of her blue dress and began an intimate caress up her calf. He rubbed his finger back and forth across the sensitive skin at the back of her knee in time to her slow strokes. He could feel the tiny jolts of pleasure radiating up her thighs.

His mind was filled with erotic memories and fantasies so that he desperately wanted to feel her body wither against his hand… his tongue.

Unable to stand the combined torture of her caress and his fantasies he began to slip his hand further beneath the material of her dress to begin slow, hot circles up her inner thigh.

He could now feel her body begin to twitch in anticipation.

He clenched his teeth as her strokes on him became more insistent and her grip increased until he arched his neck and was forced to shift his knees wider to prevent falling back. His fingers pressed firmly against her inner thigh as he came beneath her touch.

His body was wracked with shudders as he dropped his head, his hands where firmly gripping her inner thighs wide, as his head rested between her legs, his breath falling heavily against her lap.

He pulled his hands away from her inner thighs to push her dress further up her exposed legs. He never moved his head from her lap as he watched the blue material ride further up as he desperately tried to gain control of his breathing.

He run the pad of his thumb up and back across the junction of her thighs to feel her wet heat through the shift she wore beneath her dress. Ripping the material, Antonello peeled the shift away from her heat and lowered his head and allowed her to first feel his warm breath.

Antonello could feel her creamy white thighs shuddering, and pulsing with desire as his tongue snaking out and delved deep through her moist folds.

She released her grip on him to grab hold of his hair to push him closer as she undulated her hips towards his mouth. Pushing her thighs further apart he devoured her without restraint so he could hear her panting. Her panting, her whimpers for him not to stop, made him grow instantly hard and aching for her once again. He knew where she wanted him to tease, she was pleading with him in her mind, showing him exactly where she needed his touch but he wanted her to desire him with the burning uncontrollable ache he did. Her thighs where begin to shudder against his rough whiskered cheeks. He continued his assault until he knew she was near the edge of her climax. Removing his mouth from her momentarily, he slid two fingers deep inside her welcoming heat and began to flick and roll this tongue on her most sensitive place. Antonello watched as her body begin to wither around him as her orgasm took hold of her. Antonello continued to lick at the sweet wetness his tongue and mouth had created as her grip on his hair relaxed as after shocks flowed through her with every touch he continued to give her.

Sarah was panting as she fell back onto the bed. She stared at the ceiling, the same ceiling she had stared at over a decade ago. Then, she had been an innocent, in body and mind. Now she was neither. She smoothed Antonello's hair back from his face as he lay his head on her stomach. Both where still breathing heavily.

She was too engaged in thinking of their first night together and her life since, that a small gasp escaped as Antonello flipped her over onto her front. She felt him move onto the bed so he was straddling her hips. Sarah was curious about his actions until she felt him beginning to untie the lacings and buttons of her dress. Sarah lay still as she felt him slowly release each button and loosen each tie until he separated the material of her dress so it lay on either side of her, exposing her bare back.

His fingertip trailed down her spine which sent an answering shudder to follow it.

Do you know how perfect you are, picolla?

His lips followed the path his finger had taken. He treaded his right arm under her stomach and lifted her off the bed so she was positioned on her hands and knees. The material of her dress had begun to drape off already, so with his other hand he removed the dress from her arms, and pushed it down her hips. Sarah didn't know how to respond as he hurriedly undressed her, so she enjoyed the heat radiating from his chest pressed tightly along her back. When her dress was fully removed Antonello flipped her back onto her back and slid from the bed to pull her dress down her legs to lay in a heap on the floor and remove his own trousers fully.

Sarah watched the lightning highlight his naked body.

There truly was no more perfect man.

His chest wasn't the only part of his body well formed, his legs where just as sinewy, and his skin was an all over delectable golden tan.

Antonello stared at Sarah laying naked upon his bed once more. It was like some many of his previous fantasies and dreams, but unlike them he wouldn't wake alone in a cold bed, soon he would have his little nymph back where she belonged. Her body wrapped around his, her breath along his cheek, her heart beating in rhythm to his. He smiled at the sight of her golden brown hair falling in disarray around her face after becoming unravelled.

Open your legs for me picolla

Sarah breath hitched at the whispered command flowing into her mind. Even in her mind, his voice was husky with his need an desire.

Please

Without her permission her body responded to his aching plea. She bent her knees slowly, and separated her legs to his riveted gaze.

After a few minutes Antonello knelt between her legs and pulled her upon his lap. Repositioning them towards the centre of the bed he held her tight against his chest. This is the way he wanted to make love to her, with her tight in his embrace, their breath merged together.

Sarah lifted up from her place in Antonello's lap, allowing him to feel the softness of her breasts and stomach against his firmer frame, before lowering herself down upon his hardness. Biting her lip as she pushed down until she was firmly seated in his lap, she wrapped her arms around his neck.

Antonello couldn't resist the rose lips inches from his, and kissed her while she moved for them. He wanted her to feel in control this time, but mostly he wanted this night to last.

Her body was sliding sensuously against his, as she moved up to his waiting mouth and then push back down upon his lap. Antonello rubbed up her thighs feeling the muscles within them working as she controlled their pleasure, to lay his hand flat against her stomach so his thumb could stimulate her while she rode him. Sarah moaned at the feel of Antonello's thumb caressing her, she tightened her arms around his neck and couldn't help moving faster against him.

Lightning cast shadows of the lovers across the far wall. The storm was still beating against the window of the bedchamber. Antonello wondered absently if Sarah knew how beautifully erotic she looked in the moonlight. His little nymph.

Antonello stilled Sarah's hips and he plunged into her with a hard, deep stroke, that teamed with his thumbs continuous caress sent Sarah over the edge of her orgasm. Antonello bit out a curse as he attempted to control his own body, but he wanted to take her one more time… in the moonlight and lightning of the storm.

Cradling her hips against his he stepped off of the bed and walked to the large window. The window over looked the gardens which where being beaten by the storm. Sliding himself from Sarah's tight heat was an unbearable agony, especially with her feminine muscles still clenching around him. He kissed her lips tasting the velvet interior before turning her so she faced the window.

"Antonello?" He stifled a moan at the husky tone in her voice.

Do you know how beautiful you look in the moonlight my little nymph?

Sarah let out a gentle moan as Antonello stood behind her, as he separated her legs, whilst pressing her hands firmly against the window pane. The wild rain was pounding against her palms through the glass. The window was cold against her heated skin.

So perfect He whispered absently.

His hand came around to touch her intimately. His fingers caressing her slowly had her back arching, her hair tumbling down her bare back. She could feel how swollen with need he was, his shaft was a burning brand against her lower back. His hand curled her hair around his fist as he entered her from behind.

His hand never stilled its caress as he began to surge into her softness. The beating of the rain set an erotic pace to their love making. The flashes of lightning light up the front of her body to his gaze, the silver flashes only complimented her porcelain skin more. As he knew it would. Antonello kissed up Sarah's neck as he felt the exquisite softness of her slim back and hips flowing against his. He groaned as she pushed back against him. Deepening their pleasure. Her cries and the erotic picture she portrayed standing naked before the raging storm was Antonello's un doing. He pounded into her at a faster, and deeper pace, aiming to be so deep within her core she could never remove him. Would never want to remove him. He wanted to demonstrate his need and love for her and if he had to make love to her all night, so be it.

LATER THAT NIGHT:

He could feel her safe in his arms, finally. He wasn't thinking of the Nicholas or their situation, all he comprehended was Sarah was back with him. He sheltered her body against his, smoothing her hair away from her beautiful face, peaceful with slumber. He rubbed his thumb back and forth soothingly against her arm as he watched her sleeping.

MORNING AFTER:

As soon as Sarah had felt Antonello's arms surround her and remove her from the inn her world and vision seemed to shrink to contain only the two of them. She should have been thinking what Nicholas would think, say and act when he found out where she had gone and how they knew each other. Yet she hadn't thought of Nicholas, or the past, all she had focused on was the warmth and safety that had enveloped her in Antonello's presence.

But now lying in his arms, in his bed with the morning rays casting coloured patterns along the far wall, the same wall that the night before had held the shadow of their love making, her thoughts and worries began to crowd in on her contentment. Making love to Antonello last night had seemed so natural, it seemed whenever they where together the world and all their problems melted away. She couldn't have denied him last night.

Sarah sighed, here she was nestled in the arms of the man who adored her, who she loved and yet he was not her husband, he was not the man she had sworn to love for all her life before God. Nicholas wouldn't walk away. He wouldn't give her up to another, their twisted relationship was based on a balance of power, he had it all, but leaving him for another shifted all the power to her, she knew Nicholas couldn't want to lose the dominion he held over her, and obviously enjoyed, and he definitely wouldn't allow her to leave him for another man. Yet she knew she couldn't return to him. She had suffered her last black eye, her last split lip. The degradation and humiliation where over. No more.

Antonello lay freighting sleep as he waited for Sarah's reactions. He had feared this moment all through their lovemaking and throughout the night. As he felt her body begin to move restlessly as she awoken he had waited, holding his breath to see what her reaction would be. He could feel her bodies tell tale signs, she was tense and was obviously deep in thought. He wanted to tighten his grip on her and keep her within his arms always, but he wanted her to come to him by her own choice. He hadn't expected them to be back in bed together so quickly, he had assumed he would need to court and seduce her all over again, properly. Yet she seemed to have the same needs and longings he did and couldn't help herself either. He hoped she hadn't made love to him just because she had been angry with her husband. It hadn't crossed his mind the night before but now he was plagued by all types of scenarios. Although if she looked back on her reactions to him last night they where not false, they where pure.

Sarah rolled over to her other side so she could watch the sunlight shimmer over Antonello's sleeping face. She reached up and smoothed back a loose strand which was obstructing the perfection of his face. She couldn't resist running her hand through the midnight black silken locks. Rubbing a strand between her thumb and forefinger she wondered if his family would accept them together. She was a married women, a foreign women, who had lost her virtue out of wedlock – granted it was to Antonello – but still it was not a desired attribute in a wife for an aristocrat. She had been so deep in thought she hadn't realised Antonello had awoken, and gasped when she saw his dark eyes intent on her face. A slight smile was curving his sensuous mouth as he watched her twirling a strand of his hair absently.

PREVIOUS NIGHT: Nicholas

Nicholas wiped at the blood pouring down his face.

That little bitch.

He wouldn't allow her to embarrass him like this. And what the hell was she doing at the palazzo with him? He would kill her before he allowed her to disrespect him by taking a lover. He slipped once again on the hilly mounds along the through routes meandering across the cliffs towards the palazzo. He could see it loaming over the sea and surrounding villages.

Nicholas cursed as the spray from the turbulent waves stung his cuts and scraps. He probably looked near death. He could hardly see to walk with the combination of blood, sweat and rain blocking this vision.

His hand still seemed to sting from where he had hit his wife, thinking back Nicholas wished he had hit her harder or better yet strangled her with his bare hands.

He had once been a respectable aristocrat, but his father had spent the money on liquor and gambling, leaving him with nothing but a name. His name and previous reputation had saved him many times. He had been forced to make money however he could, but now he had landed on his feet, so to speak, he liked to think of himself as a modern day cupid. He could grant men their desires and pleasures whether it be whores, liquor or opium. He had the connections and the name to mingle with the rich and gain their business. Yet now he found himself walking over cliffs to a palazzo of death in the middle of the night, covered in his own blood. His face was in agony, shooting pains kept radiating from his jaw and nose straight through his head, he was pretty certain his nose was broken and possibly his jaw.

He slipped through the extensive gate and circled the house for a entry point. He wasn't leaving without her. He may not want her after his, but he sure as hell wouldn't allow anyone else to. She was his wife and he planned to deal with her in his own way. Once again he was forced to wipe the blood from his face, specifically his eyes to search the length of the building for an entrance point he could sneak in undetected. He scanned the gardens first for people before searching up the buildings.

His breath hissed out as he caught sight of something between the continuous flashes of lightning. He could see her. Naked. With him. He ground his teeth as he watched the emotions of elation, passion and love swarm her face. To him she had always been unreadable and cold, an yet here in the rain and storm he could make out all her emotions. His thoughts darkened as he watched her come apart in the other mans arms. Before they kissed passionately right before the window. It was as if they knew he could see and they where allowing him to see them mock him. He growled between grinding his teeth. This wasn't over.

One way or another he would have his revenge.

If he couldn't have her, no one else could.