“You speak truth,” Antonius agreed.

“I would have you take her,” I said as I grasped his forearm, “and the child.”

Widening his eyes, he straightened his back and raised his eyebrows at me.

“You are my oldest friend,” I said. “I would trust no one else with their care.”

Antonius blinked a few times before resolve settled in his eyes.

“I will,” he said simply. “You are my commander and friend. I would treat them as my own family as long as they live.”

I gripped his arm slightly before releasing him.

“You have my gratitude,” I said. I nodded towards the large trunk near my sleeping area. “I have placed inside my trunk the necessary documents for the sale of her and her offspring to you, along with enough coin to provide for them. If I fall, retrieve this immediately—before my father learns of my death. Move Aia to your tent and speak nothing of her unless pressed. It would be better for others to assume she had been in your hands for some time.”

“Of course,” he said. We clasped arms once more before Antonius retired to his own tent.

As soon as the flap of the tent shielded us from those outside, Aia was quickly by my side and began to remove my armor. She laid it expertly aside before retrieving a bowl of water, warmed by the fire. I watched her in silence as she took a soft cloth, wet it, and began to wash me. She appraised my body with her eyes as she went about her work, and the deep devotion I saw in them brought a smile to my lips.

It had been like this since the day we arrived at camp. Aia adjusted quickly to her surroundings and took joy in caring for me as if she were my legal wife. The others did not notice her as anything more than a common slave in my eyes, which served us both well.

With the washing complete, she silently tore pieces of bread from the loaf and slipped them past my lips. It was a silent undertaking and one I found most enticing. Once fed, I retreated to the bed and pulled back the coverings.

“Come lie beside me,” I commanded. “I’ve been cold and desire your warmth.”

Aia obliged, dropped her dress to the floor, and then curled herself against my body as I wrapped my arms around her. I trailed my fingers over the flesh of her stomach and breasts as she reached up to touch the side of my face.

“I feared when you did not return last night,” she said.

Watching her eyes, I saw her deep concern for my well-being inside of them. The conversation with Antonius played through my mind. I hadn’t considered how much she may have indulged in similar thought and wondered if it was something that worried her greatly.

“Have no concern,” I said to her as I stroked her cheek. “I will not fall.”

She nodded, for she would not disagree with me. I toyed with thoughts of explaining to her what I had arranged, but I could not risk it. If she were to tell anyone else, even the child after it was born, it could jeopardize the legality of their sale, and I would not risk such a thing. My father knew nothing of my slave lover, and I would keep it that way.

Moving to distract her from brooding thought, I brought my lips to her neck and kissed her softly. She responded with tilted head to grant ease of access and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. I moved my mouth up her throat until I reached her ear.

“I desire the embrace of your thighs,” I said.

“Anything, Dominus.”

“Not here,” I whispered in her ear. She was always so careful when she addressed me, I wondered if she sometimes forgot my feelings for her.

“Faustus,” Aia corrected herself.

“No, not that name either.” My lips moved back down her throat and I nipped at her skin. “In this bed, I am always Lucius to you.”

“Lucius,” she echoed. She ran her hands up my sides and over my arms to my shoulders. She tightened her fingers against my skin as I continued moving down her throat with my mouth.

With practiced touch, I found the warmth between her legs with my fingers, and brought forth her moisture as her hips rocked against me. As soon as her breath turned to panting against my chest, I guided my cock to her entrance and delved into her body.

I moved slowly, not just to save my strength or for the sake of my exhausted body, but also to give her the full pleasure of my deep penetrations. Only she saw this other side of me—the gentler man who desired nothing more than her company and her warm sex—and only when we were alone inside the tent.

Moving my hips, I thrust deep inside of her, enjoying her muffled cries of pleasure against my shoulder. I continued back and forth until Aia arched her back. She pressed her head to the sheets as she gripped my forearms and cried out into the cool night air. I followed soon after, muffling a moan against the skin of her neck.

For many minutes, I held her tight against me. I listened to her breathing as it slowed and felt her light touch over my arms. She soothed me, and the memories of battle violence faded from my head as her touch consumed all thoughts.

“I want you to be mine,” I whispered in her ear as I trailed kisses up and down her throat. My hand graced over the swell of her stomach, and Aia laid her hand over the top of mine.

“I already belong to you,” she reminded me.

“Owning your body is not enough for me,” I replied. I moved my hand to the place right above her left breast. “I want your heart, for that is where your true worth lies.”

She looked at me, and her eyes shone with tears.

“It is yours, Lucius,” she said. Her voice broke slightly. “Since the day you first touched me, it has been yours.”

In my own heart, I knew I could never make it more than this—more than her in my bed as my slave and concubine—but I would do everything within my power to make her feel like more. With every touch, I would show her what she meant to me.

Her worth was mine.

~the end~

Thank you to my Facebook Street Team - each and every one of you for your continued support and reminders that yes, I could write this story, because time and time again, I had my doubts!

To Ashlee Porte, who I can always count on to tell me like it is - love you!

To my comrades in The Erotica Consortium: C.D. Reiss, Shay Savage, K. Bromberg, JA Huss, KI Lynn, Ella James, and Alessandra Torre - you ladies are awesome and I totally love what you write! It was an honor and a pleasure to have my novella introduced as part of "Bend."

And a special shout-out to Author Kennedy Kelly, Janett Gomez, Nicole Duke and Kandace Milostan for beta feed-back! You ladies rock!

Cover Design: Louisa Maggio @ L.M. Creations

Editing: Janell Parque

Formatting: Tami Norman

"Sexual Thing" - Poison

"My Prerogative" - Bobby Brown

"I Want Your Sex" - George Michaels

"Money for Nothing" - Dire Straits

"Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.

"Waiting on the World to Change" - John Mayer

"Something To Talk About" - Bonnie Raitt

"Who Says You Can't Go Home" - Bon Jovi

"Dreams" - The Cranberries

"We Belong" - Pat Benatar

"I'll Stand By You" - The Pretenders

I'd been on the road for three days and, to be honest, I was tired of seeing green and white signs along the side of the road, charting my progress, or lack thereof, as the case might be, and staying in flea bag motels because of my strained budget. Traveling across the country sounded awesome until around the end of day two. Now, it was simply a matter of my being impatient to reach my destination.