Read Online The Walls of Byzantium by James Heneage - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: James Heneage
Tags: Fiction, Historical
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father does business, prince.’
‘But you have a brother. I heard he was hurt.’ He paused. ‘Such a misfortune.’
Zoe glanced at him. He seemed to be serious. She remained silent.
‘So you will go in his place. Is he like you?’
Zoe said nothing.
‘He is not like you,’ the Prince said quietly. ‘And that, I suspect, is the problem.’
She stopped and looked directly into Suleyman’s face. ‘And you also have brothers,’ she said. ‘We have that in common.’
The Prince laughed. She saw there was a bead of sweat on his forehead and that his face had new colour. He looked up and down the corridor. It was dark.
‘This is assuredly a great palace,’ he said softly. ‘What part are we in now?’
‘These are the storerooms, lord,’ she answered, adding unnecessarily, ‘where we keep food.’
‘And would they be occupied at this time?’
Zoe tilted her head and smiled as she stopped beside a door. ‘I have no idea, lord. Shall we look?’
Zoe opened the door behind her and led Suleyman into a narrow room with a low, vaulted stone ceiling and a smell of damp. In the centre of the room stood a table.
She leant against the end of the table, her arms spread to hold its edges. Her breasts felt tight against the constraints of her tunic. She opened her mouth slightly to allow her breathing to come more evenly.
Suleyman quietly closed the door and turned the key in its lock. Then he walked over to the table and began, very slowly, to unbutton the front of her tunic, his eyes never leaving hers. She did nothing to stop him.
At the fifth button, just below Zoe’s navel, Suleyman stopped and parted the tunic to reveal a white cotton chemise, alsobuttoned at the front. This time, using both hands, he tore it open. Only now did Suleyman’s eyes travel down and his mouth curved into a smile of untrammelled lust.
He took each breast in a hand and bent down to kiss them.
Then Suleyman dropped to his knees and began to lift the bottom of her tunic, gathering the folds as it rose to her thighs.
As his tongue made contact, Zoe let out a low moan and, taking a handful of his hair, pushed his face into her groin, thrusting her hips up to meet him. Waves of pleasure rolled up her body and her other hand came up to caress her breast.
Suleyman rose to his feet. He began to lift his caftan and, as it rose to his waist, Zoe grasped him with her hand.
‘You’ve done this before, I think,’ said Suleyman thickly.
Zoe was guiding him between her thighs, stroking him as she did so.
Then he was inside her and the hard edge of the table was digging into her back as his rhythm became more urgent. His arms were either side of her head and she could see the fine knots of muscle in his upper arms, feel their tension in every part of the body above her.
She opened her legs wider, gathering him deeper, deeper, feeling him move inside against her bottom as it rose to meet him.
As the surge swept over her, she felt his body go rigid and he arced away from her, his bearded chin rising as if in summons. He grunted once, twice, then let out a long, long sigh as his body came to rest against hers.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
Then he rose, letting his caftan fall. He made a little bow.
‘Zoe Mamonas, I think we will be friends.’
CHAPTER FOUR
MISTRA, SPRING 1394
Anna sat on the balcony of her home in Mistra with an untouched meal on the table beside her. It was her favourite: garon , a fish soup, followed by Cretan cheese and pancakes with honey.
But Anna wasn’t hungry. She was too miserable to eat.
Her brother Alexis sat on the other side, staring hard at the floor and tracing the delicate curve of the tesserae with his left shoe.
Neither of them spoke. It had all been said.
It wasn’t that Anna had expected to escape marriage. She’d always known that it would be required of her one day, and very likely that it would be to someone she’d never set eyes on. But was she really ready to take on the
‘But you have a brother. I heard he was hurt.’ He paused. ‘Such a misfortune.’
Zoe glanced at him. He seemed to be serious. She remained silent.
‘So you will go in his place. Is he like you?’
Zoe said nothing.
‘He is not like you,’ the Prince said quietly. ‘And that, I suspect, is the problem.’
She stopped and looked directly into Suleyman’s face. ‘And you also have brothers,’ she said. ‘We have that in common.’
The Prince laughed. She saw there was a bead of sweat on his forehead and that his face had new colour. He looked up and down the corridor. It was dark.
‘This is assuredly a great palace,’ he said softly. ‘What part are we in now?’
‘These are the storerooms, lord,’ she answered, adding unnecessarily, ‘where we keep food.’
‘And would they be occupied at this time?’
Zoe tilted her head and smiled as she stopped beside a door. ‘I have no idea, lord. Shall we look?’
Zoe opened the door behind her and led Suleyman into a narrow room with a low, vaulted stone ceiling and a smell of damp. In the centre of the room stood a table.
She leant against the end of the table, her arms spread to hold its edges. Her breasts felt tight against the constraints of her tunic. She opened her mouth slightly to allow her breathing to come more evenly.
Suleyman quietly closed the door and turned the key in its lock. Then he walked over to the table and began, very slowly, to unbutton the front of her tunic, his eyes never leaving hers. She did nothing to stop him.
At the fifth button, just below Zoe’s navel, Suleyman stopped and parted the tunic to reveal a white cotton chemise, alsobuttoned at the front. This time, using both hands, he tore it open. Only now did Suleyman’s eyes travel down and his mouth curved into a smile of untrammelled lust.
He took each breast in a hand and bent down to kiss them.
Then Suleyman dropped to his knees and began to lift the bottom of her tunic, gathering the folds as it rose to her thighs.
As his tongue made contact, Zoe let out a low moan and, taking a handful of his hair, pushed his face into her groin, thrusting her hips up to meet him. Waves of pleasure rolled up her body and her other hand came up to caress her breast.
Suleyman rose to his feet. He began to lift his caftan and, as it rose to his waist, Zoe grasped him with her hand.
‘You’ve done this before, I think,’ said Suleyman thickly.
Zoe was guiding him between her thighs, stroking him as she did so.
Then he was inside her and the hard edge of the table was digging into her back as his rhythm became more urgent. His arms were either side of her head and she could see the fine knots of muscle in his upper arms, feel their tension in every part of the body above her.
She opened her legs wider, gathering him deeper, deeper, feeling him move inside against her bottom as it rose to meet him.
As the surge swept over her, she felt his body go rigid and he arced away from her, his bearded chin rising as if in summons. He grunted once, twice, then let out a long, long sigh as his body came to rest against hers.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
Then he rose, letting his caftan fall. He made a little bow.
‘Zoe Mamonas, I think we will be friends.’
CHAPTER FOUR
MISTRA, SPRING 1394
Anna sat on the balcony of her home in Mistra with an untouched meal on the table beside her. It was her favourite: garon , a fish soup, followed by Cretan cheese and pancakes with honey.
But Anna wasn’t hungry. She was too miserable to eat.
Her brother Alexis sat on the other side, staring hard at the floor and tracing the delicate curve of the tesserae with his left shoe.
Neither of them spoke. It had all been said.
It wasn’t that Anna had expected to escape marriage. She’d always known that it would be required of her one day, and very likely that it would be to someone she’d never set eyes on. But was she really ready to take on the
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