Hotter Than Hell (45 page)

“King it is then,” Bern said.

“Good,” Lord Ched said, and he and his people marched away.

When they were gone, Ginger asked, “Now what are we going to do?”

Bern was still grinning as he took her in his arms. “Why, rehearse for the fertility ceremony, of course.”

“You’ll have to wear a pair of stag horns, you know.”

He grimaced. “And what will you be wearing?”

“Not a damn thing.”

The grimace turned into a grin. “I can live with that.”

“Yes, but—”

“My name’s Andrew.” He picked her up and carried her toward the narrow bed. “Colonel Andrew Bern. Just Bern to almost everybody.” He kissed her before adding. “Under the circumstances, I thought we ought to be formally introduced.”

She twined her arms around his neck. “Nice name. Kiss me again.”

“All over,” he promised.

Night had fallen, sacred fires were lit, and hundreds of pilgrims were waiting within their glow just outside the front of the estate. The ceremony was ready to begin.

“I wasn’t this nervous at my wedding,” Bern confided. “Or my divorce hearing.”

Ginger rounded on him. “You’re married? I do not have sex with married men.”

“Then you’re in luck, because I’m not married.”

“Oh. Right. Divorced. Sorry.” She rested her forehead against his bare chest. “I amso nervous that I don’t know what I’m saying or doing. I’ve never done anything like this my whole life.”

“Just enjoy the moment. Don’t think about anything but me. I promise, I won’t be thinking about anything but you. You look beautiful,” he told her. “Like the bride of the summer god ought to look.”

They had braided spring flowers into her thick red curls, and she was wearing Morga’s most diaphanous white silk dress. He was wearing a doe-skin loincloth. He had to claim the Summer King’s sword, then be acclaimed by the people. After that they’d get naked and down to business.

They made their way through the watching crowd to where Lord Ched stood between two widely spaced bonfires. Ginger was deeply aware of the expectant mood of the hundreds of watching people.

She told herself that Bern was the only thing that was real here, that everything else was a dream. She concentrated on the feel of him where his skin touched hers. Being near him truly did make her body ripe with need.

When they reached the chieftain, Ched held up a richly decorated sword and shouted, “Behold your priestess and her new Summer King!” While the crowd cheered, Ched plunged the tip of the sword into the soft, spring earth.

“Now what?” Bern whispered to Ginger.

“You say something about accepting the kingship for the love of the Mother and the fertility of the land, and pull the sword from the ground.”

“Okay, then.” He began to step forward, hand out to take the hilt of the sacred blade.

“Wait!” a man shouted from the crowd before Bern could touch the sword.

“Now what?” Bern said, turning toward the man who came rushing forward.

“I challenge!” the man shouted, coming up to glare at Bern.

“Oh, crap,” Ginger muttered. “I forgot about Lanc.”

“Who the hell is Lanc?” Bern demanded.

She pointed at the broad-shoulder, dark-haired man. “He’s this druid from Brittany that’s been trying to get me to run off with him.”

Bern rounded on her. “What? You weren’t going to mention that there’s this other guy who wants to skewer me tonight?”

“You’re jealous.”

“Yes!”

She grinned. “Oh, that’s so cute. Don’t worry. You’re more than a match for him.”

“I challenge!” Lanc shouted again. “Fight me for your kingship!”

Bern gestured at the challenger. “Hold on, I’ll be right with you. What is this guy to you?” he demanded of Ginger.

“Nothing. He’s one of a group of druids going around trying to recruit psychics to come back to Brittany. They’re trying to keep the old religion alive back home.”

“So, he doesn’t want to have sex with you?”

“Not as far as I—”

“Yes, I do!” Lanc cut her off.

“Oh, stop it,” Ginger told him.

“Fight me for her!” Lanc insisted. The crowd was beginning to shout for the battle to begin as well.

“Okay,” Bern said. Without even stopping to take a breath, he turned around and hit the man in the jaw.

Lanc went down, but was up again almost instantly.

Bern took a step back and smiled, glad that the opposition had some fight in him. It was strange, almost as strange as being in another place and time than the one he’d been born to, but he was glad to have some competition. He wanted Ginger, wanted to properly claim the woman as his. Fighting for her hand felt, in some atavistic way, right. Deep in his gut, deep in his heart, he knew Ginger was a woman worth fighting for.

The druid was a big, fit guy with some hand-to-hand skills. They circled, then sparred against each other, flesh and muscle straining, moving through firelight and shadow while the crowd cheered and shouted. Sweat stung Bern’s eyes, and he tasted blood when Lanc got past his guard once to strike him in the face. Excitement built deep in Bern’s gut and the clarity that only came with combat focused his whole attention on the struggle.

For a while he almost forgot the purpose of the challenge while he concentrated on the fight. Then he caught sight of Ginger. She was flushed and her eyes were bright with excitement that sent a zing of lust straight to Bern’s groin. But her arms were tensely crossed, and she also looked annoyed.

“Enjoying yourself?” she called sarcastically when she had his attention.

The momentary distraction almost cost him, but he caught Lanc’s sudden kick out of the corner of his eye and quickly countered. He ended up with a hard foot grazing his thigh as he turned. He returned the favor with a hard kick to Lanc’s solar plexus that brought the man down.

Enough of this toying with his prey.

When Lanc tried to struggle up again, Bern knocked him unconscious.

Ginger rushed up to him “Are you all right?”

“Oh, yeah.” He grinned, and kissed her, pulling her tightly against him. “Never better.” The loincloth left nothing to her imagination about how he was feeling. The cheering crowd faded away from his attention as he concentrated only on the woman in his arms.

Her hand brushed against the erection straining against the soft leather. Then she pried herself out of his tight embrace. “Not yet.”

“Oh, come on!” he complained. But he understood when she pointed toward the sword buried in the ground. He laughed. “Right. Well, at least I don’t have to pull it out of a stone.”

“Uh…”

“What?”

She looked at him strangely, and asked, “Doesn’t Bern mean ‘bear’?”

“Yeah…” He crossed to the sword. Bits of earth clung to the blade as he pulled it out and held it up for all to see. He waited for the cheering to die down, then shouted, “For Britain and the White Lady!”

The roar this time was deafening.

“Must have sounded good,” he murmured.

Ched came up to him, taking both him and Ginger by the hand. A trio of young women accompanied him. One of the girls held a stag-horn headdress. The other girls made quick work of stripping off his and Ginger’s clothes.

After fastening the headdress on Bern, Ched turned to the crowd and proclaimed, “Behold the queen and king of summer. This mating will bring fertility to the land! Let the festival begin!”

“You know, I’m beginning to think—” Ginger started.

“Don’t.” Bern grabbed her and kissed her.

He swung his naked lover up into his arms and covered her mouth with his. While his tongue probed inside that sweet, responsive warmth he carried her to the cloth-covered mound of grass and flowers that was to serve as both bed and altar for them to mate upon.

“Put me down!” she demanded.

“Don’t chicken out on me now,” he pleaded.

Ginger laughed wickedly. “Not a chance.” She remembered his directions to just look at him, but the crowd was the last thing on her mind at the moment. She wanted to taste him, and that was what she did.

The crowd cheered. A wave of raw sexual energy washed over her. The lust channeled by the masses shot through her, and she projected it back to the people around them. In that moment the goddess filled her, and she worshipped the god of summer and king of the land with all the fervor and passion due him.

Bern pushed her gently onto her back on the soft, fragrant altar. He knelt over her, poised at the moist opening of her vagina. He waited while her hips rose pleadingly.

“Now!” she demanded.

But he didn’t move until her gaze finally met his. “The night is just beginning,” he told her.

Then he entered her, and his worship of the goddess began in earnest.

“Ahem.”

The embarrassed throat-clearing, followed by a second voice demanding, “Cover your shame, woman!” was the last thing Ginger expected to hear after the night she’d enjoyed.

Besides, she wasn’t sure how shame was supposed to be covered, especially when what she felt was marvelous. All right, she was sore and tender in places, and rather hung over, though not in the having-drunk-too-much-alcohol way. Who knew too much great sex could make you groggy?

Could you have too much great sex?

If it could be done, she’d done it tonight.

“Colonel, sir,” the embarrassed voice whispered. “Excuse me for waking you up, but—”

“Rouse yourself, man!” the other voice boomed.

Ginger giggled. “Please don’t,” she murmured. “Not on my account. Not just yet, anyway.”

“Wha? What?” Bern muttered.

She felt his breath brush her cheek when he spoke, and realized that he was the warm weight lying half on top of her. The cool morning breeze skimmed across the rest of her, teasing one bare nipple to a hard peak. Maybe that was the shame the guy was talking about. Was that any way to talk to the goddess’s own—

That voice…There was something familiar about it…

“Is that you, Dr. White?”

Ginger’s eyes flew open and she caught sight of a familiar, concerned face.

“Sergeant Kaye?” Oh, good Lord, she was naked in front of a colleague! She didn’t recognize the man standing next to him, but the stranger was frowning down at her with utter disgust written all over his face.

“His name’s Percy Perkins, and he’s a jerk,” Bern whispered. He sat up and said, “I hope you brought us some clothes, Kaye.”

The sergeant held out the dress Ginger had worn last night, and a long tunic for Bern.

“Of course you realize that I intend to report this infraction,” Percy said.

“Infraction of what?” Bern asked. “There’s no rule against team members fraternizing.”

“You led an orgy! Your disgusting behavior roused the indigenous population to—”

“He didn’t get any, sir,” Kaye put in.

Bern scratched his jaw. “I can see how that might make him cranky.”

“Not to mention being named Percy,” Ginger added. “That alone probably put the guy into years of therapy. Could you sue your parents for giving you a name like that?” she asked Bern.

He shrugged. “Ask Percy.”

“Well?” she said.

Percy declined to respond. But his posture, though it seemed impossible, became even more tense.

“I could use a shave,” Bern said. “And a bath.” He sprang to his feet and helped Ginger up. “How about you, sweetheart?”

“Definitely.”

“Have the team meet us at the bath, Kaye. But give us a few minutes, will you?”

They could hear Percy spluttering as they walked away.

She slipped the white dress over her head, and they walked arm in arm across the field toward the villa, frequently stepping over and around still-sleeping revelers.

The spring ceremony had apparently been a great success.

Kaye went off to his assignment, and Percy followed behind them, making the occasional disapproving sound. The morning sun shone down, the sky was blue, the earth was green, birds sang, and Ginger was happier than she’d ever been before. They had the blessing of the goddess, she supposed.

They passed the old bishop preaching to a small group of revelers who looked thoroughly hangdog and hung over. Myrdyn gave them a pleasant nod when he saw them pass him by.

“We must be good for business,” Bern said.

“If he baptizes all those people, the energy in the pool is going to be whacked out for days,” Ginger said.

“That is hardly a scientific explanation of a temporal malfunction, Dr. White,” Percy complained.

They both ignored him.

Once they reached the bathhouse, Ginger led them into the preparation room where oils scented the bathers’ bodies before they got into the hot water of the bathing pool. Benches lined the walls, and the floor was tiled in a beautiful leaf-patterned mosaic.

“This is where I meant to bring you yesterday,” she told Bern.

He pulled her close. They looked into each other’s eyes. “It was worth the detour.”

“You two are being disgusting,” Percy said.

Bern sighed. “You know, this time I think I agree with him.” He let her go. “We do need to make plans.”

“We have work to do,” she said.

“Do I detect some professionalism at last?” Percy whined.

“Shut up, Percy,” Ginger and Bern said together.

“And that’s an order,” Bern added.

Ginger took a seat on a bench against the back wall. Within a few minutes Kaye and the rest of the team joined them. Bern allowed his people a few minutes of teasing him before the introductions.

“This is Gareth and Lamorak.”

Ginger smiled. “Of course they are.”

He didn’t understand what amused her, and didn’t ask. “Let’s get down to business.”

“Now that we have recovered Dr. White, it’s time to continue surveying the nexus points,” Percy said immediately.

“Percy’s a douser,” Bern explained to Ginger. “He’s working on a new nexus map. But he hasn’t yet found a spot with enough energy to get us home.”

“It’s hardly my fault that this island is swamped with more energy points than anywhere else on the planet, especially in this area. It was a mistake to send a team this far back, and especially to this geographic location.”

“Yeah, I think we’re all aware of that,” Gareth said. “We noticed the problems. And that’s before you started telling us every five minutes.”