Tell Me I'm Dreamin' (28 page)

Chapter
24

The sound of his bedroom door opening surprised Ulysses. Nadine's entrance into his room astounded him even more. His eyes narrowed as he watched her close the door then turn toward him.

Nadine could feel herself tremble as she looked into Ulysses' face. It was not warm and welcoming as she had imagined it would be; instead it was full of suspicion, distrust. Seeing him look at her that way made Nadine feel disoriented, as if she were in a room with a stranger. More than anything else, Nadine needed Ulysses' support, his understanding, even his friendship, but as she looked at him now, she felt they would never share those things.

She found herself searching for the proper words to say because, at that moment, all of the things she had planned to say seemed obscene and indecent. Nadine had wanted to offer her love to Ulysses, her body, but his cold reception made her intentions seem stupid, ill-conceived.

Suddenly, there was not enough air in the room. Nadine wanted to leave, put as much distance as she could between them, but her feet felt rooted to the floor.

Ulysses' eyes widened as he took in the vision Nadine made standing riveted against the large oak door. With her head held proudly, her hands clinging to the door for support, her small breasts rising and falling rapidly with each breath. He could feel her fear, and he wondered why she had forced herself to come to him. Had Basil's plan to undo him changed direction? Ulysses' mind seemed cluttered with endless possibilities, but his voice was sharp as a freshly sharpened knife when he spoke. “What have we here?”

Nadine tried to swallow the lump in her throat as her eyes grew large from the disarming question. From it, she could see Ulysses was not going to make the situation any easier, and Nadine began to second-guess herself. Maybe she had misjudged his tenderness during their evening together, and now that she had come to him, he thought she was cheap. “I—I thought that . . .” Her voice trailed off uncertainly.

“I can tell what you were thinking, Nadine. A woman who comes to a man's bedroom in a sheer gown, baring all beneath, cannot be thinking but one thing.”

The tips of Nadine's breasts hardened with the chill of his words, making them more obvious beneath the white material. She grew cold inside from his insolent phrases, and small chill bumps began to appear all over her body. “You make it sound so vile,” she said, looking away.

“The act in and of itself is not, but the reasons behind it can be,” Ulysses retorted.

This was not what Nadine had expected at all. She had envisioned that upon seeing her, Ulysses would take her in his arms, and begin to whisper words of love and reassurance in her ears. She had not expected this callous stranger who was saying whatever he could to make her feel unwanted.

A gasp forced its way out of her and Nadine turned to make a hasty retreat, but Ulysses moved swiftly and stopped her from opening the door, trapping her body against it. He leaned his body against hers, then wedged her thighs apart with his knee, rubbing it against the most intimate part of her.

“Is this what you want, Nadine?” he asked, his voice husky, his breath warm against her hair.

“No, no . . . not like this,” she replied.

Ulysses turned her face toward him, and said, “How do you want it then?” His dark eyes looked piercingly into hers. “Like this?”

Sensuously, he lowered his lips, placing an intoxicating, languid kiss upon her quivering mouth. Never once invading the inside, but exquisitely punishing her lips with soft nibbles and bites until they were primed and ready for more. When he withdrew, Nadine knew Ulysses could feel her need, so she replied, “I came here wanting to give you my love. To give you all that I am, and you do this.”

A slow trail of tears began to make their way down her oval face as she squeezed her eyes together tightly, fighting against the desire Ulysses had aroused in her. Nadine would not allow herself to enjoy it. She felt cheap. Common. Ulysses was like a salesman laying out samples to a potential buyer, a prostitute enticing a John.

Watching her reaction, Ulysses' heart constricted with a pang of tenderness. He hated himself for treating her the way he had. He had not given her a chance to explain why she had come, or what was in her heart. He did not know where she really stood. He had allowed his fear for Sovereign's future and his mistrust of Basil to get in the way. Was it possible she had come to him for the reasons she had just given? Ulysses shook Nadine gently. “What do you want from me?” he implored, his eyes tormented. “Do you have some kind of secret alliance with Basil? Are you working with him to bring me down and steal Sovereign from me?”

“No. No, I'm not. I never met Basil before coming here to Eros. There is nothing between us,” she lied, not wanting Ulysses to know about Basil's threat to take all of Sovereign. “I want you, Ulysses. I want your love,” she whimpered softly as she willed him to understand how she felt.

“Nadine.” His voice caressed and explored her name as he picked her up and placed her on his king-sized bed. Ulysses stood towering above her, a wild hunger in his eyes. “You say you want my love? That is something I have never given to any woman.” Ulysses looked at her partially open lips and watched her uncertain hazel eyes transform to a soft jade as she regarded him. “Why should I give it to you? How do I know you will not use it against me?” His tortured voice beseeched her, but he knew, in his heart, she already possessed it.

Hearing his pain, Nadine raised her arms in invitation to reassure him. “I would never hurt you, Ulysses. Never.” She shook her head to emphasize her words.

He dropped to his knees and placed his face against the silky material that covered her belly. Hypnotically, Ulysses rubbed his face back and forth, seeking solace from his fear of love which was the cause of his pain.

With quivering fingers, and soothing strokes, Nadine caressed Ms tangled curls, whispering his name over and over again and finally saying, “I love you, Ulysses.”

She heard a raspy noise force its way out of him, as he looked up at her with tormented eyes. “God help you if you lie, Nadine Clayton.” Then he was upon her. Kissing her face, her neck, her hair. It was as if Ulysses was drunk with the need of her, and she moaned with relief and apprehension because of his intensity.

“Oh, Ulysses, whatever you do . . . don't hurt me,” Nadine implored.

He stopped and looked at her, then rose up on his forearms, extending them to their full length.

Nadine tried to explain. “It's just that I've waited so long . . . I'm afraid it might be more difficult than—”

Ulysses bent down and kissed her softly before she could finish what she was saying. She could feel his body tremble as he restrained himself. “I will try not to hurt you, my precious one,” he said as he looked deeply into her eyes. “But if this is to be special, we both must promise to be truthful to ourselves and one another. You know that love is nothing without trust.”

“I know,” she whispered.

Ulysses rolled over and lay beside her. Side by side they faced one another, drinking in the other's features, rubbing their hands through the other's hair. Ulysses turned his face toward Nadine's palm as it descended down his cheek, kissing it tenderly.

He began to kiss her face once again, but this time the kisses were tender and adoring as he held her close, and Nadine in turn snuggled closer to him. Upon reaching her mouth, Ulysses returned to the nibbling, succulent motions that he had demonstrated earlier. But this time Nadine reciprocated, imitating the movements of his mouth with her own, until he wrapped his arms tightly about her, and slowly worked his tongue within the moist cavern.

The smooth meandering of his tongue sent shivers down her spine, and she moaned her pleasure, giving in completely to the wonderful feelings.

Slowly, Ulysses released her. Afterwards he searched her eyes. “I have been told there is a big difference in taking a woman for the sake of taking her, and making love to her. Now, at last, I will know the difference. So truly, sweetness, it will be like a first for both of us.”

Ulysses buried his face between her breasts, then turning to each mound he tasted the cinnamon-sweet skin they offered. Hungry for more, he traced a small line between them with his tongue, finally climbing to the peak of one of her breasts, where he explored it completely. Just that alone was enough to send Nadine's body into mild spasms and she writhed beneath him, caressing his head and his shoulders, murmuring his name.

She had always imagined how it would be for the first time, but nothing had prepared her for the intensity of the feelings she was experiencing. The movement of his tongue caused a melting sensation inside of her that flowed down to the very essence of her femininity. Like a mounting volcano the liquid began to build inside.

Ulysses could sense her pleasure; her body felt hot to his touch and her movements were of a woman who was naturally attuned to unimaginable pleasure. The very thought made him burn with desire, and his mouth became dry. Ulysses knew there was only one place where he could quench the thirst that hounded him, and he gently reached down to touch the place that held that special fountain. He had no idea what Nadine would think of him, and what he planned to do. He knew the letters from Gloria had spoken of her religious background. It had been a strict one, and he did not want to offend her. But his urge to please her and himself was very strong. Trailing his tongue down her belly, Ulysses paused as he placed tiny kisses upon her navel.

“Nadine?”

“Yes?”

“You trust me, don't you?”

Her mind tried to follow his line of questioning, but the fire he had started inside her seemed to burn so fiercely it was hard for her to think.

“Yes, I trust you, Ulysses.”

Slowly, he nuzzled his way to the top of the tightly curled patch of hair, kissing it softly, then, moaning, “I want you, Nadine,” he slipped his tongue gently into the highest folds of her crevice.

Nadine rose up slightly and cried, “Ulysses! No. Wait. I don't know about this.”

He spoke with his mouth near the soft triangle. “You said you wanted me to love you; you must let me do it my way, sweetness. I promise not to hurt you.”

Still unsure of the course their lovemaking was taking, Nadine began to protest further, but at that moment, he found the seed inside her moist garden and she cried out with pleasure instead. Nadine's head arched back with the electricity of sensations that coursed through her. Ulysses had found what he'd sought, and he assuaged his hunger at the source.

Nadine was in no way prepared for the intensity of passion that Ulysses' assault upon her womanhood provoked. She was snared in overwhelming sensations, and she moved wantonly, unknowingly edging Ulysses on. Her response brought his deepest sexual instincts to the fore. Never before had he received such pleasure in giving it.

Feeling out of control and the most vulnerable he had ever been, Ulysses questioned her between his succulent kisses. “Nadine, what made you come to me tonight?” he demanded, tortured by his own desire. “Why? Why?” He found the essence of her again.

“Ulysses, please, please, don't. Not now. Just love me.”

But he stopped and brought his face parallel with hers, his eyes blazing. “You must tell me, Nadine. Tell me now or I will go crazy not knowing why.”

“I wanted you to be my first, Ulysses. Only you,” Nadine replied.

Ulysses closed his eyes and kissed her deeply before he stood up to undress. He was satisfied with her answer. Ulysses assumed Nadine was thinking of the future. The book sale was today. She would be leaving Eros after that, and it was possible they might never see each other again.

“You need not worry, my sweet, I will be the first,” he whispered in her ear as he repositioned himself to take her.

“There is another first, sweetness.” He looked in her eyes while he rubbed himself against her. “I have never taken a virgin before. But now I take you in honor of my ancestors, that you will be mine for now and forever, no matter where our paths may lead.”

He entered her smoothly but with force, piercing the veil that held her treasures. Nadine's cry of pain was silenced by Ulysses' kiss, and he lay still within her. Controlling his passion, his movements were slow, almost imperceptible. He was determined to wait until Nadine began to respond to his considerate ministrations. Because this was new to her, Nadine's response was slow, but Ulysses was patient as he murmured words of love and passion in her eager ears. Finally, as her passion grew beneath him, Ulysses' ardor gained momentum as well.

Nadine had willed herself to forget the pain because she dreaded tomorrow, and it was not long before she was deeply immersed in a new world of pleasure.

Ulysses knew when they were nearing the crest. The gratification was familiar, but so much more intense because of his feelings for the woman beneath him. Nadine was engulfed in a series of sensations she had never experienced before. They were wonderfully powerful, but at the same time frightening because of it. She felt as if all of her life's experiences were coming together as she reached for the uncharted peak.

All at once they were there, plunging together into an ocean of bliss. Ulysses gave a loud moan of surrender, and it was joined by ecstatic words unknown to Nadine's conscious mind. In her moment of sheer pleasure her full lips formed the ancient words
“Mu Kam-ma xi!”

Ulysses nearly drowned out Nadine's strange words. At that moment neither one of them knew or cared what the unusual phrase meant. All they knew was that nothing and no one could take from them what they had just shared.

Before the sun was able to begin its ascent into the eastern sky, Nadine and Ulysses made love again. A strange combination of tenderness and fierce passion. Nadine's uncertainties about love-making became minuscule with Ulysses' adept actions. It was as if they both intuitively knew the day's events would throw their already turmoil-filled lives into further chaos.