AND LOVE THEE AFTER

The Mayor's Mansion: Alexandria, 1925

virtuous means.

Delphine rolled over in bed and giggled, her big eyes aglow as she saw the flash of Ardeth's bright teeth and heard his deep laugh. Sunlight poured in through the windows, just barely tainted by the bluish curtains. Her skin looked like porcelain in the light - so perfect, he thought, so perfect. Ardeth had always been a virtuous Middle Eastern man, and he hadn't bent to the mocking of his Western comrades when they learned he hadn't bed a woman since the passing of his first wife many years ago. Besides that brief time with his first wife, when he was still a very young man, Delphine was his only lover, and he was hers. He liked to think that (despite having only one other woman to compare her to) no other woman had skin so perfectly smooth, without blemish. She didn't have a scar on her body - not even a mole or a birth mark. She was as clean as snow, like an angel. And he couldn't imagine there ever being a mark to disrupt the loveliness of her skin.

His fingers trailed over her stomach. He watched the goosebumps flare across her skin before settling down again. He looked up into her eyes and couldn't help but bury himself in the sweet solace of her kiss. She moaned quietly and wrapped her arms around his neck.

He could feel desire tightening inside of him, and he leaned over her - ready to take her again this morning. But her hands were on his chest, gently pushing him away. She giggled again when she met his surprised gaze.

"It's nearly one o'clock," she said, "and we haven't eaten yet."

"Oh, is that all?" Ardeth flashed a smile and settled down to kissing her again. But when his lips left hers and started down her neck, she stopped him again.

"I'm hungry."

Breathing a sigh, Ardeth leaned away from her and sat up. His hand ran up and down her arm as she pulled herself to a sitting position beside him. She leaned into his shoulder, tracing her fingers over the scars on his abdomen. For a moment, they just sat in silence, the room filling with the satisfied lull of their breathing.

"Let me go get us something," she said finally.

But Ardeth shook his head. "Oh, no. I can go - "

Delphine smiled and put a hand on his arm. "I want to do it. You've had a long week dealing with that - that - Lord Chamberlain. You stay up here and rest, and I'll be back in just a moment."

Ardeth opened his mouth to protest, but she stopped him with a kiss.

"I'll be right back."

She hopped out of the bed and pulled on her underthings and a frock. She didn't bother putting on shoes. Blowing him a kiss, she slipped out the door and started happily down the hallway, humming to herself. She tried to decide what she would want to bring up to Ardeth as she skipped down the stairs, and her thoughts were caught somewhere between figs and cookies when she nearly ran into Rick and Evelyn - just about to start up the stairs.

"Oh, hello," she smiled. She touched Evelyn's cheek playfully. "You look positively radiant today, Evy!"

Her cousin blushed and looked away, but she couldn't hide a smile. Delphine grinned and continued down the stairs. She barely noticed Rick and Evelyn turn around to follow her.

"Delphine," Evelyn said, "could we speak with you a moment?"

Delphine stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at them curiously. "Of course - but would you mind if we spoke in the kitchen? I'm starving."

Rick shrugged and Evelyn assured her that was fine. When the three of them entered the kitchen, the cook looked annoyed (and still a little under the weather), but she gave them her most polite, toothless smile. Delphine ignored her and started searching through drawers. When the cook offered to help, Delphine shooed her into the other room with a pretty, girlish grin.

"Delphine," Evelyn said, her eyes searching desperately to gain her cousin's attention. "Ri - Lieu - Major O'Connell has something he would like to ask you about."

Delphine paused in her search and turned to look at Rick with interest.

"What's that, Major O'Connell?"

Rick cleared his throat and glanced at Evelyn a few times before finally managing, "Well...it's not really that big of a deal - "

"It certainly seems like it," Delphine said, taking a few apples from the counter. "You two are making quite the fuss."

Rick opened his mouth to say something, but Evelyn recovered for him before he had a chance to utter a word.

"Delphine, Ardeth has ordered Major O'Connell out of the governors manor, and he's an officer. It's really not at all right that he was demoted at all, but - well, considering Lord Chamberlain's reaction, it needed to be done." She glanced apologetically at Rick before continuing. "You need to speak with Ardeth about throwing Major O'Connell out of the manor. It isn't right for him to bunk with the other men - they'll lose respect for him, and it's quite a public embarrassment. Won't you do this for him?"

Delphine's eyes were wide. She looked between the two of them, first with disbelief, and then with great sympathy. She hurried over to Rick and touched his arm, gazing up at him with childlike, comforting eyes.

"Oh, Major O'Connell - what a shame!" She squeezed his arm. "But don't worry. I'm sure there's a reason Ardeth has done this, but I'll change his mind. Don't you go getting all packed up just yet."

She patted his face and winked before returning to her apples. Managing as many in her arms as she could, she gave them a dazzling farewell smile and traipsed out of the kitchen.

Rick looked at Evelyn. "Well, she's awfully...sweet."

But Evelyn's brilliant smile melted away his amazement at Delphine's sugary disposition. She took his hands in excitement.

"See? She was just the person to speak with."

He nodded without a word, gazing deeply into her green-gray eyes. Her smile faded seriously as he reached a hand up and touched her cheek. Her eyes closed at the feeling of his rough fingertips, and she sucked in a little breath. Rick pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply, his tongue tangling with hers. He heard her moan as she pulled him closer, her heart racing against his chest. Everything inside of Rick throbbed, and he needed her. He was barely thinking as she pulled out of his embrace gently and led him across the room to the pantry and closed the door behind them.