I felt nothing for his predicament, though perhaps I should have.
“Quick.” At Christus’ word I ducked behind a curtain, a heavy fall of cloth that appeared to have been placed where it was for no reason. It shielded us from the prying eyes of the rest of the party, however, and I inhaled deeply at the knowledge.
Within moments we both became aware of the purpose of the curtains. Mere feet away from us, invisible to our eyes, came the unmistakable sounds of pleasure . . . the low grunts of a man inside of a woman, the breathy pants of a woman being taken by a man.
In the cocooned space, alone with Christus, the sounds teased wetness from between my legs. My nipples contracted against leather that was still damp, and I bit my lip, looking up to meet his eyes.
“We cannot.” Placing the plate that he still carried on the floor, sliding it away, he nevertheless placed a hand on either side of my waist. His hands were warm against the chill of my skin, and I shivered.
“I know.” No, we certainly could not, not here, where we could be seen by anyone. The other gladiators might have had an inkling by that point, a hint of the relationship between Christus and me, but they did not know for certain.
What they did not know, they could not use against us.
“Christus, what was Hilaria to you?” Though proud of him for standing up to her, I still wanted to know about his past. And though I had never been one to be jealous before, the thought that he had had a relationship of some sort with the woman before set me on edge. I pictured the noble woman’s rosy flush as she watched the gladiators and her peers fucking in the open, remembered the avidness of her stare when she had first seen and recognized Christus. I found that it was suddenly important for me to know.
The muscles of his jaw clenched, and I watched him deliberately soften them as he looked down at me. “I do not wish to speak of her.”
I was stung, and defensively I shrugged, then moved to leave the security of the curtain. I hesitated when I remembered that Gaius and his ever-watchful eyes were on the other side.
“Lilia.” Christus’ voice contained a warning. “Do not leave my side.” Moving from stung to angry, I turned, my eyes narrowed.
I was not prepared for it when he grabbed me by the hips and lifted. In response, I wrapped my legs around his waist, felt the hardness of his cock as it pressed against the heat between my thighs.
“The mere mention of her name causes a need in me.” My mouth fell open, and I pushed at his chest, appalled that he would say such a thing to me while I was in his arms. “A need to burn all traces of her from my mind.” Clasping the back of my head in one large hand, he pulled my face to his and devoured my lips with his own.
As he did, a wave of lust unlike anything I had ever experienced reared up and slapped me in the face, hard. A surge of wetness spilled between my thighs, and I was suddenly consciously aware of the worn leather of my subligaculum rubbing against my clit.
I wanted to fuck. I wanted to fuck the memory of the other woman from his mind, and wanted to erase the taint of Gaius from my own.
More than that, I wanted him to brand me with his body, one last time. When I entered the arena the next morning, I wanted to be sore, the sensation a constant reminder that I was his, he was mine, and we were not alone.
I loosened the grip of my legs from around his waist, sliding down his body. He pressed against me, the jut of his erection now pressing into my belly.
The sounds of the couple behind the curtain encouraged me as I pulled him to the floor with me, as I pulled him down on top of me. The stone was cold against my back, and as I shivered, Christus rolled until I sat astride his hips, straddling him.
Lowering my head, I sank my teeth into his lower lip and heard a muted sound rise from his throat. I bit hard, half afraid I would draw blood and half not caring if I did. All I could think about was getting him hot enough and hard enough that he would take his cock and ram it into my cunt as hard as he could, over and over again.
That he would fuck me until neither of us could remember anything at all.
The noises he made as I continued my assault on his mouth pleased me; deep, growling noises that reminded me of a wild animal. I knew that he would make those same noises when he was touched elsewhere, and I wanted to hear them.
Taking a firm hold on his waistband, my fingers worked at the knot of his subligaculum. I wanted him hard, as hard as he could get, right now. His hands slid up my hips, to my waist, then back down. He held me steady as I tussled with the firm, supple ties that were holding his leathers in place, and my fingers brushed over his cock, which was engorged and huge. I stroked him, feeling the firm length through his own wrap, measuring him with my hands.