Kira looked at him, an odd sensation in her
stomach. The urge to reach out her hand to touch him was difficult
to resist.
Suddenly, Marcus turned to her. “I know I haven't
made it easy for you to be here. I've been an idiot. I thought...I
thought I was doing the right thing.”
Kira felt her heart racing, feeling the heat of his
eyes on her face. “Oh...” she whispered softly. “Thank you...thank
you for saying that...I- I just...it's not that I don't appreciate
the place to stay and the clothes...I appreciate it all. It just
hurts.”
A confused look spread across his face and his jaw
tightened. “Why does it hurt?” He said lowly.
Kira felt her face burning in the darkness, his
renewed attention making her want to run away. She couldn't tell
him. Could she? There was nothing to say, only that he'd been the
only safety she'd known since her father died on those docks.
“
I...” Kira looked up with fear in
her eyes. She could see him staring at her, the force of his gaze
tearing into her. Kira's lip quivered. “I think I love
you.”
She turned away, feeling embarrassment and
unbridled emotion welling up in her eyes. She couldn't look at him.
She was such a fool! Standing there, telling an engaged man she'd
fallen for him. Time seemed to stretch in silence and Kira willed
herself to stare out into the gardens.
“
Kira...” His voice broke through
hungrily, his breathing uneven. Slowly, she turned her eyes in his
direction, shocked at the emotion that she saw there.
There was this man, this gorgeous man staring at
her like she held his heart in her hand. Marcus took a forceful
step towards her, pinning her to the stone wall with his large
hands. “Don't move,” he breathed heavily, his eyes roving over her
face.
Slowly, he kissed her temples, his warm breath
sending tingles down her spine. He moved his kisses softly down her
face, over the line of her elegant cheekbone and down to her jaw.
Then, pulling his head back to look her in the eye, Marcus
whispered gruffly, “I love you, too.”
Kira could hear herself sigh wistfully, as he
lowered his mouth onto hers. She clung to him weakly, feeling the
force of his desire in the tension of his grip. Slowly, he caressed
her pink lips, easing her mouth open with his willful, passionate
kiss.
Kira felt complete surrender in her body as her
head rocked backwards. Marcus' kiss became more and more vigorous,
his arms moving around her body and roughly caressing her
waist.
Kira could feel jolts of electricity running up her
spine as he touched her, the gentle firmness of his hands a welcome
shelter. Suddenly, Kira felt his knuckles sliding across the line
of her clavicle and she ducked her head, withdrawing from his
lips.
“
Are you alright?” He breathed.
His hands trailed over her shoulders and down the slender line of
her arms.
“
I...I'm so happy...”
Marcus breathed heavily. “I have to tell
Luciana...”
“
Frankly, I'm not sure there's
much to tell, dear,” came a spiteful voice from the
shadows.
They looked up in shock, only to see Luciana
standing there, anger shooting from her eyes.
“
Well, well, well. That didn't
take you long, did it? It really is a pity you had to bring such
a
whore
into my
house!!” Luciana practically spat the offending word
out.
“
Abusing my affection and good
will towards you...while all along you were playing Romeo under my
nose. Isn't it hilarious what a good little girl Kira pretends to
be, so innocent, so pure? Did she tell you about the man I found in
her bed the other night?”
Marcus's eyes widened, the line of his jaw clenched
tightly. “What is she talking about?”
“
Oh, darling, Marcus...sometimes
you can be so naïve. I heard some unseemly noises coming from
Kira's room. When I swung the door open, I was met with the sight
of a large, roguish man moving on top of your sweet little Kira.
Hard to say if she was enjoying his attentions more than yours, but
I must say I've never heard such disturbing, inappropriate
sounds.”
Marcus' face was flaming with anger, his fists
tightened forcefully at Luciana's words. Kira felt panic grip her
as Luciana continued on her vengeful tirade.
“
So perhaps you can stop espousing
her excellent character traits of strength and virtue.” Luciana
scoffed, “Your little Kira is only an attention-hungry slut who's
more than willing to prostitute her body to any man who looks her
direction. Perhaps you should ask Sir Richard if he's been with
her, too!”
“
Stop it...!” Kira screamed, hot
tears rolling down her face. “What are you doing?” She looked at
Luciana with raw hatred in her eyes, amazed at the woman's capacity
for unfettered avarice.
“
Is this true?” Marcus shouted,
yanking Kira by the arm.
“
What?” Kira shouted, her face red
with anger. “You can't be serious!”
“
Answer me, Kira...” His voice was
deadly now, deep and harsh. “Was there a man in your
room?”
“
Ah...” Kira sobbed forcefully,
trying to ease the aching knot in the pit of her stomach. “Yes,
but-”
“
Oh God
,”
Marcus roared, anger seething out of him with every ragged breath
he took.
“
How could you? How
could
you? You made me
think you were so innocent, made me think I was the only one who'd
ever
touched
you...”
Kira's face flushed hotly, a sinking feeling of
absolute despair overcoming her. “Don't...” Kira choked brokenly.
“Don't do this...”
“
No...
no!
I was a fool! I believed your
innocent looks, I believed the modest stories you told me about
your life.
What was
this
?!” He roared, causing Kira to jump
back in fear. “Some kind of play for my money...for status?! I put
you in Luciana's home, I spoke for you!”
He looked her up and down with
disgust, his eyes filled with a darkness akin to hatred.
“
You're
done! In
the world I live in, there is no place for
whores
!”
Kira winced at his sharp words, the tears flowing
uncontrollably down her face and the front of her gown. “Marcus,
you don't understand. She's lying...”
“
I've known Luciana for years and
I've know you for
what
??” He spat. “A few months. Get out, now! You don't belong
here! And don't you
dare
come back.”
Kira felt her whole world crashing in, the
heaviness that tore at her heart threatening to cut off her
breathing entirely. “Marcus...” she sobbed.
“
Go...!!!” He shouted, anger
shooting from his flashing green eyes. He turned his back in the
pathway, waiting for her to disappear.
Luciana watched coyly, viewing the distress of
Kira's heartbreak with a satisfied smirk on her face. Kira looked
at the woman imploringly for a moment, but Luciana only turned her
head, flicking her fingers for Kira to go.
Kira turned back in disbelief for one last glimpse
of Marcus, but his hulking frame was turned from her. The sight of
his back sent the sharpest pain through her gut, ripping at her
insides. She turned slowly, then ran down the veranda, tears
refusing to abate.
Darkness
Kira stumbled into the street blindly, nearly
getting run over by a carriage. She walked aimlessly down the dark
road, past beautiful homes and magnificent buildings. Her mind was
in a daze. She had no idea where she was going, no idea where she
could go. She had no money. It was hopeless.
A sickening despair stole over her frame, making
her dizzy and weak. She kept walking without noticing where she
was, her mind fighting to deny the events of the last hour.
How could this be?
How could she be homeless now, completely lost?
Did he really think so little of her that he'd believe Luciana over
her? The ache of bitter heartbreak threatened to bring her to her
knees.
Soon, Kira found herself at the docks, a familiar
sight from the day they'd arrived. It seemed unimportant to her,
that realization, even though a part of her acknowledged that
danger could be lurking. Nothing seemed to matter. Had she not lost
everything already?
Kira stumbled weakly to the edge
of the wooden dock, noting that no one seemed to be around. For
just a moment, the overwhelming temptation to lay down overcame
her. Everything hurt. As much as she tried to escape, closing her
eyes only brought back visions of Marcus' angry face, calling her
a
whore
.
“
Ahh...” Kira sobbed, wrapping her
arms around her knees and crying into the fabric of her gown.
Momentarily, she noticed the warm weight of a hand on her shoulder
and jumped. “What's a matter, dear? You miss me?”
Kira looked up in horror to see
the dastardly pirate, his dark eyes leering at her with a spark in
them. “No...
no.
..” she said in a panic, unable to resist the strong arms
that pulled her up onto her feet.
“
Please,” Kira sobbed, unable to
imagine the pain worsening. “Please let me
go...please...”
The pirate said nothing, merely dragging her along
forcefully to the ship that was docked nearby. Memories of her last
encounter with the pirate crew sent terror through her body.
Marcus
,
she thought.
Marcus...
She loved him so much and hated him so much in that moment
that it was tearing her apart.
He should
be here,
she thought.
He said he loved me
. The memory of
those words, his gentle kiss, made her began to weep again as the
pirate pulled her on deck.
She noted, fleetingly, that there seemed to be no
one else around. The idea that maybe she could overcome this one
pirate slipped into her head, even as her body lagged weakly
behind.
Soon, she was in the small room she remembered from
before. The tiny bed tucked under the porthole reminding her of the
long, panicked moments she spent curled up there.
The pirate closed and locked the
door, removing his long leather jacket without much fuss. Kira
could see the imposing shape of his muscles now, his frame wide and
threatening.
Oh God
.
He turned to her with a dark, hungry look on his
face. “Now we can play.”
Regret
Marcus felt like his whole world had been ripped
away. The image of Kira with another man was still playing on
repeat in his head, hours later. Only now the seething anger had
been replaced by a dazzling ache. He hated her for tricking him. He
hated her for breaking his heart.
He didn't know what to believe any more. Everything
he'd seen had told him Kira was kind, modest and true. But it
seemed he had been deluding himself.
Marcus had gone through the
motions for the rest of the night, nodding to people and dancing
with Luciana, but his heart wasn't in it.
She'd said she loved him.
Marcus
squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the memory. He'd never
been so blind-sided by anything in his life.
Sir Richard had been confused by Kira's sudden
disappearance and Luciana had dismissed him with a biting story of
Kira's true nature coming to light. The dark-haired man had looked
sad and bewildered when he left the palace alone.
Now, Marcus sat across from Luciana in the
carriage, willing the night to be over. When they pulled up,
Luciana alighted with a spring in her step. Marcus felt her joy at
Kira's complete obliteration, and it saddened him. Even if Kira had
been a conniving, loose woman, he could no longer see himself
marrying Luciana. There was too much malice in her.
Marcus walked Luciana up, taking a brief step
inside the house. “I'll have the servants clear out her
things...nothing in there I'd want anyway,” Luciana said, snapping
her chin upward. She kissed Marcus on the cheek, then slid up the
stairs.
Marcus stood in the foyer, dazed, until he heard a
small voice from the main hall. Maisie stepped forward out of the
shadows with a concerned look. “Where is Miss Kira?”
Marcus looked at her distractedly, feeling unable
to deal with anyone at that moment. “She's gone,” he muttered.
“
Oh
noo
...” Maisie said with feeling.
“Where did she go?”
Marcus smiled as a bitter look etched itself across
his face. “Does it really matter? She tricked everyone into believe
she was a virtuous woman, but really...”
Maisie looked confused and affronted. “She is! Miss
Kira is the kindest soul I've ever met. She's the only friend I've
ever made since I've been here!” Maisie seemed to realize she was
overstepping her place and her face flushed.
A pained look came into Marcus' eyes and he looked
at Maisie directly. “Decent women don't invite men into their beds!
Decent women don't whore themselves out!” Marcus cleared his throat
with disgust and turned to go. “You were deceived like the rest of
us.”
He opened the door painfully, when Maisie's voice
rung out, “You mean the pirate, sir?”