Chapter 1
"Charles...my darling."
Ellen stretched and stroked her lover's back as he lay naked beside her.A slight breeze wafted through the open window and ruffled the curtains and yards of rose and ruby tulle draped over the bed.Charles called it her harem room, but Ellen loved the feel of soft material, and had used lots of satin, silk and tulle when decorating their private bower.
Charles stirred and rolled over to face her."What time is it?"
"Just after twelve, I believe.Would you like a cup of coffee?"
Stretching his lean body, he donned a sly smile."Perhaps in a little bit, my love.Do we have anything planned for the afternoon?What about the evening?"
Pursing her lips, Ellen thought for a moment."I don't believe so.In fact, I think we have the rest of the day and the night to ourselves."
"Isn't that wonderful?"Hooking his arm around her, Charles scooped her into his embrace.
"Very wonderful," she murmured as she gazed at him-Charles Henry Edward Lambert, a very handsome, elegant and charming man.He came from a wealthy, aristocratic family and he still wore his heritage well despite the many years since leaving kin and country behind.Charles had been made a peer of the realm and knighted by King George III in his former life; although, he had quite sensibly shed the title of Sir Charles, the fifth Duke of Bellmore.In today's world, such formal affectations meant very little or nothing at all.
Ellen drank in the color of his eyes, a clear ocean blue, bright and shimmering on the surface, but filled with the cool, dark, fathomless shadows of time and circumstances.He had never regretted what she had done to him, changed him so irrevocably that he could never go back to his homeland and claim what was rightfully his.
Beside his arresting eyes, Charles possessed noble features, a Roman nose, high cheekbones and a firm, sensuous mouth.His chestnut hair fell in soft waves around his face and brushed his regal neck.He wore his hair a little shorter than he had in the past when men tied their long tresses back with silk bows or concealed their hair under powdered wigs.And in the old days, men of his caliber and station would never have considered a tattoo since body art had been associated with the lower classes, the tars-or sailors-the soldiers and pirates who had experienced exotic locales where tattooing was common.
But today everyone from all walks of life sported tattoos, and so Charles joined the trend, his tat of a golden lion standing on his hind legs and wearing a jeweled crown, the closest link he had to his home and identity.
Now Ellen traced the tattoo with her index finger and gazed into his eyes."I love you madly," she murmured.
"Same here, darling."Despite his many years of traversing the globe, Charles still maintained a hint of his smooth, erudite accent.Like the blood that flowed in his veins, he could never quite shed all that made him a British aristocrat.
Slipping out of his embrace, she rose from the bed. "Now I'm going to take a shower."
With balled hands, Charles stretched again."You're no fun, my dear."
"We'll see."She offered a sly smile.
Padding over to the bathroom, Ellen gazed in the mirror over the sink before turning on the tub faucet for a shower.Despite living, loving and surviving for so many years, she still maintained an attractive face with smooth, porcelain skin, sparkling golden-brown eyes, and lustrous blond hair.And since her body had defied gravity, her breasts remained firm and her flesh supple over slim hips and thighs.All these years she had no complaints, no reason to feel sad, lonely or guilty.Yet, she let out a wistful sigh.She had seen the first signs of degeneration in Charles, just little things but there nonetheless.
And I thought we had conquered the after effects, she thought.This time around she had wanted to believe that success had come at last, she knew it, felt it, and yet... There was no denying the subtle changes.Had Charles noticed?He appeared and acted the same as always, laughing and joking in that cavalier manner of his, and talking about their future plans, a trip to Europe this summer, perhaps even back to his native England.With all her heart, Ellen hoped her lover would survive long enough to realize his dream.
She suffered so brutally with each loss of a loved one, but perhaps she had no choice.She had defied the gods, had defied the universal laws of life and death, and now had to pay for her sin...forever.
