Rhapsody (30 page)

Misha quickly got to his feet and crossed to
the mini- bar. He grabbed a towel and squatted down to wipe up the
puddle on the carpeting.

"Oh, here, let me," Serena said. "I did
it."

"It's okay," Misha said, scrubbing the rug
vigorously. After a minute, he stopped and examined the spill.

"Gone," he announced, getting back to his
feet. "It's as good as new."

As he handed the towel to Serena, his long
tapered fingers brushed hers, and Serena jerked involuntarily.
Misha looked at her with a startled expression, and saw that her
face, beneath its healthy tan, was flushed bright red.

She must have felt the same jolt that I felt,
he thought. The same rush, the same thrill, the same precursor to
...?

He wasn't sure what, but he knew what he
wanted. She had drawn him to her like a siren from the moment he
had first seen her, and he felt like a helpless victim who had
fallen under her spell. It was a physical reaction—a chemical
reaction, he thought—that he had never before experienced. Not with
anyone.

As they sat back down, Manny looked over at
Misha, stifling a yawn. "Excuse me," he said sleepily. "I'm a bit
knackered and have an early morning meeting, you know." He began
getting to his feet.

"Serena," he said, proffering his hand. "It
was a delight to meet you and get to know you better."

"It was great to get to know you, too,
Manny," Serena said, starting to get back up again.

"No, no," Manny said. "Please keep your seat.
I can show myself out." He turned to Misha. "Why don't you two
carry on the discussion?" he said. "I'd better hit the sack. Long
day tomorrow."

Misha looked up at him, then turned to
Serena. She smiled at him knowingly.

"Fine," he said, his dark eyes still on
Serena. "Get a good night's sleep, Manny."

Manny let himself out, quietly pulling the
door shut behind him.

Misha got up and walked over to the couch
where Serena sat, watching him with her huge hazel eyes. He stood
before her, his tall, muscular body towering over her.

"Do you mind?" he asked, indicating the
cushion next to her.

"Please," Serena said, patting it with her
hand.

Misha sat down, sliding an arm across the
back of the couch, behind her. He turned his face to hers. "I'm
glad we're alone," he said softly. He could smell her intoxicating
scent and hear her quickening breath.

Serena nodded. "Yes," she said. "I am,
too."

Misha saw the expectant expression on her
face and brought his arm around her shoulders. He pulled her very
gently, closer to him, looking into her eyes.

Serena responded immediately, drawing herself
toward him, her eyes never leaving his as their lips met. They
began kissing, slowly at first, then with more urgency, beginning
to devour each other passionately. After that first taste, which
had been so long awaited, their hunger was all the more ravenous,
consuming them with its need.

It seemed like a lifetime of anticipation but
was only moments before they were disrobing each other in the
bedroom of her suite. Quickly, recklessly, intent on feasting upon
each other after the hours of tantalizing yearning, they tossed
their clothing to the floor, where it lay scattered harum-scarum.
Finally naked, they stood drinking in the magnificence of each
other's bodies, but their overwhelming desire made lingering
impossible. They tumbled onto the bed, their hands and lips all
over each other, stroking, patting, prodding, kissing, licking.

Misha entered her quickly but gently, and
Serena gasped with pleasure, pulling him to her. As he plunged
deeper and faster, he heard her moan in ecstasy, and a torrent
began to rise within him. He felt omnipotent and thrust with all
his might. His was the power to give pleasure, to conquer, to
possess this exquisite creature.

Serena began to tremble, then convulsions
seized her, and she began to writhe wildly from side to side.

"Oh, Misha," she cried. "Oh, Misha ...I ...I
...ahhhhhh—!"

He plunged in with a bellow, his seed joining
her sweet nectar, then collapsed atop her, smothering her face with
kisses. He hugged her to him tightly, as if he never wanted to let
her go.

Later, after their breathing had returned to
normal, they lay facing each other in the dim light. Misha's long
fingers roved over her beautiful flesh, stroking, patting, his lips
tenderly planting kisses in her hair, on her face, her neck, her
breasts.

Serena didn't think she'd ever felt so
wanted, so appreciated, and she knew that she had never felt such
desire for anyone as she did for Misha. She ran her hands through
his long black hair, over his handsome features, and down his
powerful shoulders and chest, returning his sweet kisses, inhaling
his masculine scent.

She looked into the dark pools that were his
eyes. "I think that was like a mazurka," she said with a smile.

"Prestissimo?" he replied.

"Something like that. Very fast. Almost over
before it started."

"Disappointed?" he asked quietly, squeezing
her shoulder. He knew with a certain knowledge that she wasn't. She
had been as driven by her own lusty appetites as he had been.

"Oh, no," Serena said. "Anything but that. It
was wonderful, Misha." Her hand moved slowly down his stomach to
the prize of his manhood. "Wonderful," she repeated.

He looked into her hazel eyes. Even in the
dim light, they shone bright with lust. "I think it should be much
slower this time," he said, his fingers lightly thrumming her
nipples, feeling them become erect. "Much, much slower."

His mouth went to one breast, kissing,
licking, and sucking it ever so slowly. Then he looked up at her.
"Adagio, I think." Then his mouth went to the other breast.

Serena moaned with pleasure, and felt his
cock come to life in her hand. "Oh, yes," she whispered. "Oh, yes,
Misha. Yes, yes, yes."

The eternal dance began again, more leisurely
this time, as they explored each other's bodies, becoming more
familiar, relishing their newly found intimacy until the wee hours
of the morning.

When they lay sated at last, their bodies
suffused with a glorious tiredness, Misha held her in his arms, and
they talked and laughed. In this magical afterglow of their
lovemaking, they began to explore on another level, gradually
coming to know more about each other's professional lives, their
families and friends, their likes and dislikes.

Before they finally drifted off into a
peaceful slumber, Serena said: "You've played my body like an
instrument."

"Oh?" Misha said with amusement, kissing her
on the ear. "And what instrument are you?"

"I don't know," she replied huskily, "but
you're a master musician." She rubbed the tip of his nose playfully
with a finger.

"And you, Serena Gibbons, are the finest
instrument ever made," he said, taking her finger and kissing
it.

Serena looked into his eyes. "Just remember,"
she said, "mazurkas are great. Adagio is fabulous. But I don't like
nocturnes. So please, don't play any nocturnes? They make me
sad."

"Nocturnes," Misha promised, and hugged her
tightly. "I promise you, I won't ever play you a nocturne."

Misha's concert at Dvorak Hall was a smash
success. Critics and concertgoers praised him to the skies.
Personally, he felt that he had never before played with such
unabashed passion. Although he'd planned upon returning to New York
before his next performance, he changed his mind and decided to
remain in Prague. And celebrate with Serena.

Through lovers' eyes, the old city took on
even more of a fairy-tale aspect. They strolled its cobbled streets
from Wenceslas Square to Old Town.

There, in the very heart of the city, they
stopped to watch the Town Hall's famous fifteenth-century
astronomical clock strike the hour. From its two windows Christ and
the Apostles emerged one by one, then disappeared as the skeleton
of death inverted an hourglass. Finally, a cock flapped its wings
and crowed.

Serena looked at Misha and made a face.
"Creepy, isn't it?"

Misha laughed. "Not a happy reminder, that's
for sure."

Calories be damned. They stopped at one of
the famous coffee shops and indulged in a taste-fest of delicious
pastries.

"I've got to walk this off," Serena said,
guilty after happily stuffing herself.

"A very good idea," Misha agreed, taking her
hand in his.

They crossed the Charles Bridge with its many
statues and walked up to Prague Castle, where they feasted their
eyes on the splendor of St. Vitus's Cathedral, myriad chapels,
royal apartments, courtyards, and picture galleries.

"It's all like a giant movie set, isn't it?"
Serena said.

"And you look like the star of the movie,"
Misha replied sincerely.

Serena smiled self-consciously but was
immensely pleased. She believed the compliment was heartfelt coming
from him, unlike so many men she'd known in the past.

Finally exhausted from the walking and the
constant visual stimulation, she turned to Misha. "What would you
say to going back to the hotel for a drink and maybe a shower
before dinner?"

"I thought you'd never ask," he said, and
kissed her on the forehead.

At the hotel Misha called room service and
ordered champagne. They took their first sips in the sitting room,
then took the bottle and their glasses to the bedroom. Quickly
undressing, they lay naked in bed, entwined in each other's arms,
the champagne losing its sparkle as they feasted instead on each
other for the remainder of the afternoon.

That evening, they went to U Maliru
Restaurant, one of Prague's best, where they dined on venison pate
with lingonberries, smoked trout, rack of lamb, and a rich strudel
with ice cream.

"I shouldn't be eating like this," Serena
said, sighing with contentment. "But it's absolutely
wonderful."

"We can both go on diets tomorrow," Misha
answered, smiling.

Serena suddenly frowned. Tomorrow. She didn't
want to think about tomorrow, because the next morning they had to
part company. Misha had to get back to New York before the next leg
of his tour, and she had to leave for another fashion shoot, this
one in Paris.

He saw the expression on her face and reached
over and took her hand. "What's wrong, Serena?" he asked.

She sighed. "Oh, Misha, I ... I just hate to
think about leaving," she said, studying their hands, joined there
on the table as they were.

"We have the rest of the night together,"
Misha said, giving her hand a squeeze. Her disappointment touched
him deeply.

"I know," she said, "and believe me, I'm
glad. But I can't help but think about ...about ...afterward." Her
gaze shifted from their hands up to his face. "You know. After
we've both gone back to work."

The look on her face was almost imploring,
Misha thought. He could see that she was truly distraught about
being separated from him, and while he certainly didn't want to see
her unhappy, he couldn't help the thrilling sensation that passed
through him. She feels the same way I do. He put an arm around her
shoulder and pulled her to him.

"We'll be able to see each other," he said
with confidence, looking into her eyes. "We'll make the time,
Serena. Somehow. Whether it's in New York when we're between trips,
or meeting up on the road."

"We'll be like ships passing in the night,"
she said. "We're both on the go so much."

"Look," Misha said, "we can work it out. I
know we can, Serena. Don't you see? If you're in London and I'm in
Paris, one of us can make a quick hop over to see the other."

"I hope so," she said.

"I know so," he said, chucking her under the
chin. "So put a smile back on that gorgeous face of yours."

She did smile, and dazzlingly, her eyes
brightening with possibilities. His reassurances made her feel with
more certainty that she wasn't simply a passing fancy that he would
soon forget.

"Just think," he said softly. "You and I,
Serena. We can make love all over the world."

The wake-up call was a shrill, unwelcome end
to the short sleep they had managed after a night of lusty
acrobatics. Their lovemaking had been all the more frenzied,
knowing that they would have to part come morning. They knew the
early call was coming, of course, but they couldn't control the
overwhelming sexual pull they had on each other. It was almost as
if they had become enslaved to their desires.

"Do you want to take a quick shower?" Misha
asked, half-awake, his arms wrapped around her.

"No," Serena said, shaking her head. Then she
whispered into his ear: "I want to smell you on me all the way to
Paris."

He grinned conspiratorially. "Then I won't
either."

After they had dressed, Misha insisted on
taking her to Ruzyne Airport to catch her flight to Paris.

"You don't have to do that, Misha," she
protested.

"I won't have it any other way," he asserted.
"I want to spend every minute with you possible."

She hugged him fiercely. "You're almost too
good to be true," she said.

"So are you, Serena," he replied
solemnly.

They made it to the airport, and her flight
was announced almost immediately.

"I'd better board," she said, reluctant to
let go of his hand.

"Good-bye, Serena," he said. "I'll see you
very soon."

Serena laughed mirthlessly. "It'd better
be."

He leaned over and kissed her chastely on the
lips. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you, too," she said breathlessly.
Then she turned and disappeared into the tunnel of the jetway
quickly, so he couldn't see the tears that were beginning to form
in her eyes.