Lair of the Lion

Isabella turned her head. "What did you do to me? I can't move."

    "I can't move either," he said, satisfaction purring in his voice. "Even if the beast wanted to leap out, it couldn't." He stirred enough to press a kiss against the nape of her neck. "I guess you'll have to spend your nights and days making love with me."
    "We'll die."
    "It's a better way to go," he pointed out. His hand stroked her bare buttocks, sending a fresh lightning whip sizzling through her body.
    Isabella's answering laughter was muffled against the rug. She closed her eyes and rested, listening to the steady rhythm of his heart. She hadn't felt so at peace, such a sense of belonging, since she'd been in her own home. It was so right with Nicolai.
    "What are you thinking?" he asked gruffly.
    "That I belong here with you. That this is right, meant to be. I'm happy with you." She sighed softly. "I do miss Lucca and my holding, but I want to be here with you. My home was a happy place most of the time—if I could stay out of mio padre's way." She spoke unguardedly. "I loved him, but he was distant and disapproving of me. I never seemed an asset to him."
    The sadness in her voice twisted in Nicolai's gut like a knife. He rolled over, taking her with him so he could sit against the wall, cradling her in his lap, his arms protective. "I believe you were more of an asset than he could possibly have ever known. You had the courage to come to me when most men refuse to brave this valley." He kissed the top of her head. "You saved your brother's life, Isabella."
    "I hope I have. I hope that he comes here and recovers completely." Her eyes held shadows. "But then he will have to face what we don't want to face. That there is a lion who at every turn seeks to defeat us."
    "Not a lion," he protested. "The curse. A lion is simply an intelligent beast, not necessarily vicious but acting instinctively."
    His words told Isabella that he saw himself as part beast. The hope that had been blossoming in her died a quiet death. A shiver went through her. "Just as your instincts will tell you to kill me."
    He held her in his arms, cradled her close to him protectively, brushing stray tendrils of hair from her face. "We'll find a way, Isabella. Don't give up on me. We'll find a way. I promise you. The beast was close this time, but it didn't win."
    She thought he was wrong, but she said nothing. The beast had already won. Nicolai accepted it in his life, as part of who and what he was. He had always accepted his legacy, had always known he would take a wife who would provide him with an heir. Provide him with another guardian for the lions and the valley. And something would trigger the lion to kill her. He did not believe their combined strength and love could overcome the beast, the curse.
    She closed her eyes for a moment and leaned against his warmth. Against his strength. It was the first time she felt so close to defeat. It was the first time she believed her husband might actually murder her.
    All at once she wanted to get away from him, away from the palazzo where all things led back to him. She needed her brother. She needed normalcy. She couldn't allow despair to entrap her. "You have duties, Nicolai, and I need fresh air. I haven't seen my mare, and I think I'll take her for a short ride."
    He stirred, a powerful man with too much knowledge in his amber eyes. "Riding her before she is trained to the scent of the lions would be dangerous, cara, and you will need an escort when you wish to travel these mountains and valleys. I'm certain your horse would welcome a visit in the stables, however. They are within the outer walls of the castello, and you should be perfectly safe."
    Perfectly safe. She would never be safe again. But she was too tired to argue, too tired to do anything but get wearily to her feet and try to straighten her clothing. She couldn't look at him as she stood by the fire repairing the damage to her hair. She heard him dressing, taming his own hair into a semblance of order. When she felt she could be seen by others without inviting speculation or comment, she turned to leave.
    Nicolai caught her at the door, all at once afraid of allowing her to leave his side, afraid he had lost her. He framed her face in his hands and kissed her soundly, kissed her until she kissed him back and sagged in defeat against him. When she was gone, he leaned against the door for a long time, his heart pounding in fear and his breath strangling in his