Redemption

Chapter Twenty

RAVEN

I stretchand enjoy the luscious afterglow of the orgasm. Until now I have never known that it can actually make one’s toes curl. Closing my eyes, I hug the lingering sensation of his fingers running all over my body, leaving a hundred sizzling trails in their wake. I realize my perfect idea for this holiday would involve us never leaving the bedroom. Cindy is right. I’ve seriously deprived myself.

Now that I have a taste for him, I just want to keep tasting.

After a few moments of staring at the intricate needlework that has gone into the tapestries, I get up and, ignoring my wet thong on the floor, drift down the stone steps. I try to imagine what this castle must have been like in its heyday. The men and the women who must have made this same journey down these stone steps.

My hand trails over the smooth table top. The feasts they must have had here though. Konstantin has left one of the small low doors open so I go in through it. I pass various spaces with low beams and rough walls to get to the kitchen. It is large and cool. The stone floor is smooth and shiny with use. It boasts a very expensive modern range cooker and an American style double refrigerator. On a thick wooden slab, Konstantin is smashing garlic under the flat of a knife.

I stand at the doorway. “Whatcha making?”

He looks up and grins. “The only thing I know how to. Steak and salad.”

“What’s the garlicfor?”

“My secret ingredient, garlic butter.”

I raise my eyebrows, impressed. “Can Ihelp?”

“Nope. Everything is ready.”

There is an open bottle of red wine and he nods towards it. “Want a glass?”

“Okay.”

He pours the wine into two glasses. I walk into the room and take the glass he holds out to me. He swirls his wine, brings it to his nose and sniffs. I take a sip. The wine is smooth and very fragrant.

“Mmmm. It’s really delicious.”

“Also potent. That’s an Amarone Valpolicella. Sixteen-percent strength,” he warns.

Leaning my hip against the table and taking small sips of the heady wine, I watch him work. I can’t help but relish the sight of his powerful hands as he chops tomatoes and tosses slices of onions into the salad bowl. I’ve never had a man cook for me before.

He completes a series of tasks the same way he does everything else—with practiced, precise movements, and in complete silence. It’s strange but I no longer have the compulsion to fill the silence with chatter. I feel comfortable and relaxed in his long silences. I feel the wine going straight to my head, making me feel almost woozy.

He shaves parmesan on the salad, then lays the meat on the griddle. It sizzles and spits.

“How do you want your steakdone?”

“Medium.” He nods and I look around me. “Can I at least lay the table?”

“Already done. We’re eating outside.”

He turns the meat and looks at me with a smile. “Nearlydone.”

My heart does a little skip. I don’t know why this man has such a startling effect on me. I know something about all this is not right, but I can’t stop myself from falling for him. Like a lamb to slaughter Igo.

When the steaks are cooked, we carry the food outside to a wooden table just outside the conservatory. The sun shines down on us as we take our seats. The air is so fresh and there is no constant noise of the city here, instead the air is filled with the sound of birds. It feels like we are the only human beings around. There is nothing but rolling, empty land in all directions and open skies.

In my tipsy state, it feels like we have stepped into a painting. If only I could stay in the castle forever withhim.

“How’s your steak?”

“Tender and juicy,” I say, breaking off a piece of baguette and butteringit.

“Good.”

I lift a parmesan flake with my fork. “How did you find this place?”

“I once did some work for the man who ownsit.”

“What exactly do you do for a living?”

“I invest in the city and I fix problems,” he says, his gaze set far on the horizon.

I glance up at him, but his light eyes remain occupied elsewhere. Emboldened by the alcohol surging in my veins I try again. “What does thatmean?”

He turns to me, his smoldering eyes secretive, his handsome face drawn close. It’s a safe I’ll probably never learn the combination to. It takes a few seconds before I realize I’m holding my breath. Even in all this fresh air, it’s difficult to breathe when he turns the full intensity of his attention onme.

“You are full of questions today,” he notes, his voice much lighter than his expression. “Would you like to go exploring after lunch?”

The look in his eyes tells me he’s changing the subject for a reason and that I should just let this go. I’m desperate to know more about him, but I don’t want my curiosity to ruin a great weekend.

I take his hand and brush it against my cheek. “I’m not trying to be nosy. I only want to figure you out. You’re like a puzzle.”

He kisses the top of my head gently. “All mysteries reveal themselves in time.” He says each word with care. It’s the kind of deliberation that comes with practice, as if he has learned to speak this way. I chalk it up to another part of the mystery, though it niggles atme.

“Do you like it here?” heasks.

I frown at the loveliness around us, the green hills and clear blue sky. “Yes, it’s very beautiful.”

He shifts and his hand reaches out to me, before he suddenly decides the better of it and changes direction, pointing to the left of me instead. “There is a very lovely spot over that hill. We can have a picnic there tomorrow, if youlike?”

I nod, and put the last piece of meat into my mouth. “I’d like that very much. Thankyou.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” he says with a lopsided smile.

“I wish I could have brought Janna. She would have loved it here,” I say with asigh.

He looks at me curiously. “Isn’t it too remote for a child?”

I put my knife and fork down and meet his eyes, my lips curving into a smile. “No, Janna is a very special child. She’s in love with birds and animals. She won’t even let me kill any spiders that stray into the apartment. I have to carefully trap them between a glass and an old birthday card, and set them free on the window ledge. She stands over me to check that I have not broken any of their legs. This would be like a paradise forher.”

Something flashes in his eyes, then he blanks it, and glances at his watch. “We should go.” He stands and takes me by the hand, and I do what I’ve done since the night I saw him in that alley—I followhim.

We walk for a long time until we get to an ancient oak tree. The bark is rough against my back as Konstantin stands me up against it and takes me. It is quick and furious. As if neither of us can get enough of each other. Our shouts of ecstasy scare some birds that were nesting in the branches.

Their frantically flapping wings make us laugh.

I realize it is the first time I have seen him laugh properly. I stare at him in astonishment. What a beautiful man he really is. I can hardly believe that such a man would even turn to look at me, let alone fly me away to a secluded castle to have his way withme.