"I don't know if it's the soup or not, but you sure taste good…" he murmured against my lips, licking them in the process. "I would eat you up in a heartbeat. "
Everything in me began to pulsate at his words.
" Would you now?" I seductively answered, unable to control my suddenly ragged breathing, and before I realized what I was doing, my index was languidly tracing the line of his strong, masculine jaw, my eyes mesmerized by the unique perfection of his beautifully chiseled lips, and as his warm hand moved once again at the back of my neck, gripping my hair and pushing me closer to him, tilting my head slightly to the side - so close that our lips were now brushing against each other- I could physically feel the fire burning inside him, a magnetizing, maddening heat that drove my body absolutely on the wall…..By all Gods I wanted him so much! All that time, I had done even the impossible to keep myself away from him, away from the bewitching effect he had on me, stubbornly refusing my body that primal, basic need to be with him, and there I was, on the verge of throwing everything away, crushed by the feeling that – in less than seconds- the strong wall separating us was going to come tumbling down like it had never even been there, regardless of my notable efforts to keep it standing, leaving me completely defenseless against him….
He didn't answer this time, no words were needed anyway, and though my reason kept screaming at me that I should have ended it all there, with that previously stolen kiss, my body refused to stop. It was like the fire that had ignited inside him had somehow spread inside me too, burning between my thighs, making me lose all judgment once the taste of his mouth invaded my senses again, and for a few brief moments everything went blank inside my mind, and as his lips pressed harder and his tongue pushed deeper, far more passionately than I could ever recall being kissed, I had that distinct feeling that everything around us froze in place- even time- and the only thing I could hear anymore were my low moans bouncing off the walls….
Just as things began to really heat up though, once again, a soft knock at the door followed by Draja's honeyed voice interrupted us, bringing me back to my senses, and pulling Ares' eyebrows together in a menacing frown.
"What do you want?" he snapped at her as soon as she entered the room, making her stop dead in her tracks before she took another step.
" I'm sorry my Lord. I had no idea you were here. I assumed you wouldn't be back tonight so I came to check on my Lady…."
"At this late hour?" he continued, on his trademark slashing tonality. "
" I was worried that the wound might have gotten infected….I brought some herbal tea- for the fever- just in case…." she answered, in a small, shaking voice, her gaze never leaving the floor, just like she knew she was supposed to.
"It's ok, Draja. " I intervened, gently pushing Ares a few inches away from me. "I wasn't sleeping anyway. Tea would be ….great…" I said, trying to smile as she slowly made her way towards the bed, not even daring to meet Ares' furious gaze.
For a split second, as she handed me the warm cup, our eyes met though and for the first time, in a very long time , I became self- conscious, suddenly aware of just how flushed my face must have been and how red and swollen my lips must have appeared as a result of the War God's hungry kisses.
I immediately shifted my glance to the silver cup in my hand, overly embarrassed by the whole situation.
" Thank you…" I murmured, taking a long sip from the deliciously aromatic drink, trying hard not to think at how trashy I must have looked.
" You're welcome my Lady…..Is there anything else I could do for you?" she inquired in an utterly sincere voice, taking two steps away from the bed, as if wanting to give me a bit of space- but she was more likely trying to hold herself at a safe distance from her Lord…
" Yeah. Go to sleep! " Ares rudely barked, staring daggers at her. " I'll watch over Xena for the night. "
" It's ok, Draja. Get some rest…" I rephrased, trying to somehow sweeten the War God's previous outburst, squeezing his hand lightly.
" Good night then, my Lady. …." she whispered. " My Lord." she added before turning around to leave, bowing her head respectfully.
"Ares!" I finally exploded once she was out the door. " Do you always have to scare the life out of them ?! She was just trying to be nice!" I said, taking another long sip from the cup- the perfect opportunity to maintain that blessed distance between us, hoping that the rich aroma of the drink would magically wash away his addictive taste from my mouth….I was obviously deluding myself….
" How's that tea?" he ironically bit, probably noticing that I was stupidly clinging on for dear life from that goblet, in a desperate gesture to get a grip of myself, hopelessly looking for that self control that I had completely lost during our last contact.
" Just what I needed…" I answered with a plastic smile, feigning to have missed the acid in his voice.
" I'm pretty sure that's not what you needed, but have it your way…." he remarked, gazing intently at my slightly trembling hands…" I think I'll let you enjoy it…."
An affectionate kiss – that I didn't actually deserve- on my forehead, crowned the night before he got ready to leave.
"Where are you going?" I suddenly heard myself asking in the alarmed voice of a paranoid house wife.
" I need to check on some wars…You know just how incompetent my generals can be….Those morons can't get one thing right…."
I had to chuckle at his frustration. I just couldn't help it.
" You've always said that sometimes the best man for a job is a woman …"
" Show off! " he immediately responded, arching a pensive eyebrow at my statement though. " There's just no one like you, Princess. One can't even find a decent warrior these days, let alone a general…"
I tried to wipe that smug smile off my lips but it was useless….
"Thank you." I simply answered, not really knowing what else to say.
" No need to thank me. It wasn't a compliment. It's the heart sickening truth of my life... " he replied, and the bitterness in his voice was like a slap in the face.
" Anyway.." he continued, without leaving me too much time to chew on what he had just said. " Make sure to get some more sleep will you? It was an exhausting day…."
I wanted to say something but no words came out. Instead, I clutched that accursed cup even tighter, smothering the desire to beg him not to leave….My needy gaze must have given me away though…
" Don't worry…It's in my arms that you'll wake up in the morning…"
With that , he vanished in a rain of blue sparkles, and, as I nervously gulped down the rest of my tea I suddenly felt my eyelids so very heavy that I could hardly keep my eyes open….Gods, I was so sleepy! ….
XXX
In the meantime, back in Draja's room, Discord was pacing back and forth like a caged lioness, her hurried, agitated steps meaning to calm her down somehow.
The instant the priestess returned, her eyes sparkling with visible enthusiasm, all her tension dissipated like fog.
" Did you do it?"
" I sure did. Mission accomplished!" the woman exclaimed, flashing the Goddess a devilish, conniving smile.
" Perfect! The Warrior Princess is officially out of the game!"
