- •Independence, intelligence, and unique beauty of modern women. My heroes all have one thing in common:
- •375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, usa
- •I would like to thank Mark Stelljes, the rosarian I consulted as I researched this book. Mark, your information
- •Incredibly erotic dream of my life. I really didn’t give a damn what his face looked like.”
- •Instead of answering her, Mikki twirled an errant strand of thick, copper-colored hair and bought time by
- •It was a solid friendship, founded in trust and mutual respect. And Mikki had no idea why she was so hesitant
- •Intended to turn his face to hers—to open her eyes and to finally, finally see him. Then she had touched them.
- •I was crossing the street, and I heard something weird behind me.”
- •Incredibly articulate like ‘Whoo-hoo! You are one hot mamma, Red.’ That effectively killed the fantasy.”
- •I’m more horny than horrified.” She bit her bottom lip. “Is that awful?”
- •Vibrant, deep blue. If hope had a color, it would be the blue of the old woman’s eyes, and Mikki was struck
- •Very hardy. It makes a great hedge, and it blooms for almost four straight months.”
- •Is your name, my dear?”
- •Its light. Slate blended with mauve and coral in the fading day. Mikki knew the colors would wane quickly,
- •I aothing cd hide within it for long. Mikki opened the knife. The little blade was honed to a razorlike edge,
- •Volunteers at the Rose Gardens noticed it, Mikki would simply smile her way through their admonishments
- •In the psychic? I don’t remember Nelly saying anything about that.”
- •Insightful and well educated. They create worlds filled with strong, passionate women and honorable, heroic
- •It was exhilarating!
- •Intrigued, she searched her memory for details of Medea’s story. She vaguely remembered that the play was
- •I will love my sons and daughters, and adore the gods.”
- •Into her throat, so that when she continued the invocation, her voice strengthened and magnified. Had she
- •It took several minutes for Mikki’s cheeks to cool down. She could easily imagine the blazing red of her
- •Imposingly between the archway she had just walked beneath and the second stone archway, which framed
- •It only took a second for her to work the Band-Aid free from her left palm. The cut was already scabbing
- •It was so silent that Mikki imagined a soundless bubble had been formed around her made of roses and cool
- •It’s just a delusion, she reminded herself firmly. Nothing more than a symptom of my overactive imagination.
- •Inviting suddenly beat against them in a frenzy of scent and sound. They were caught in a vortex of
- •Impossible. Home was a nice little apartment in a great location, not a room fit for a princess. Mikki’s
- •Intermingled with ornate trees, hedges, fountains and statuary. In the heart of the gardens she thought she saw
- •If that were true, then it didn’t matter whether she chose to stay or return. Either way she was screwed
- •It smelled like home.
- •If you understood who we were when Nera and I welcomed you, but surely you know who we are now that
- •I had no idea I was a Priestess of Hecate until the goddess told me so herself. So it’s not just that I don’t
- •Voluptuous. Her body was lush; the blue silk lapped around her like translucent waves. Petite Aeras wore
- •In the center of the circle near the heart of the goddess’s flame.”
- •I think of movement and invisible power. It is a contradiction—a paradox. It cannot be contained, but it can
- •Inspired by the element’s personification, Mikki continued, “Fire is passion and heat. It consumes, but it also
- •In warmth and security, as if her mother’s arms were once again around her. With a catch in her voice, Mikki
- •Impulse or hesitate until she could second guess herself. Mikki danced. Within the circle she twirled and
- •In the midst of the sacred circle.
- •In his arms as the power of the goddess transported them to Hecate’s realm. He closed his eyes and leaned
- •In response to the flexing of his muscles, pain shot through his arms and chest. He welcomed it. The pain
- •Vigilant. He had been tireless in his devotion. And he had been alone, even during the brief moments when he
- •In the casting of a circle. She would not know that she must ground herself and use food and drink to
- •It was only when she stopped dancing that Mikki felt the return of her sick dizziness. So many women . . .
- •Illuminate. Its light danced off a crystal goblet filled with dark red wine. She lifted it, admiring the elaborate
- •In the darkest shadows, washing around her and causing the hair on her body to prickle. “It is a belief to
- •It was totally fucking Loony Tunes.
- •Is not appropriate. What I did for you is out of duty. It is why Hecate called me into her service. Do you
- •Instantly, he halted. “Have care where you step. The glass can cut through the soles of your slippers.” The
- •Impossible that I was aware again. At first I sensed you, but I could not see you. I only knew your presence.”
- •It was so beautiful that it weakened the disbelief and cynicism she had learned from a very young age to carry
- •Intelligent gray eyes looked unnaturally mature and out of place in the goddess’s smooth young face. “I rarely
- •I may be older, but that also means I’ve lived through more experiences, so I suggest they watch their silly
- •Important in either her mother’s or her grandmother’s life. Not that either of them hadn’t been wonderful,
- •Interior? Now she was saying that beauty was everything.
- •Vast forest, a kind of netherworld, which is the crossroads between reality and magick. On one side of the
- •Instincts, Mikado. Allow your spirit and the knowledge held in your blood to guide you, and you will do well .
- •Various other types of mantles.” Taking a wide, soft brush from the vanity dresser, Gii fussed with Mikki’s
- •Voice rumbled intimately between them. If‘Ђfro
- •Inexperienced young girl, had called him back to her without knowing for sure what she wanted to say.
- •It’s your turn to listen and answer.”
- •I can’t do it on my own, so the women are going to have to help me.”
- •Ignored the lingering soreness in her body and the vague nausea she seemed unable to get rid of and looked
- •Ignoring Gii’s sudden surprised intake of breath, Mikki tilted her head in what she liked to think was a
- •I have to finish up here and then take a bath or something because I am definitely a mess and—”
- •It seemed that these roses were greener and healthier than those in the rest of the realm. Beyond the beds of
- •It was true, but she squelched the thought, pulling her mind from the beast to the mystery that surrounded the
- •I’ll definitely need you in the morning. I’m going to have breakfast with the four Elementals. Could you be
- •Instead of being included in one of their groups at lunch . . .
- •In handy in your line of work.”
- •If he was afraid of crushing it.
- •It’s a great resource for me. Now I don’t have to worry about not knowing my way around.” She couldn’t
- •In entering her bed, the very thought of which was abhorrent to her. The sight of me was a constant reminder
- •I should not be here with you.”
- •It was impossible between them because he was making it that way. It was as if there was some kind of
- •If she asked the goddess outright and Hecate commanded her to stay away from him, then what would she
- •In return; she had shivered beneath his lips.
- •If he would be the only one to pay the price, he would gladly do so. He knew it for truth, even though the
- •Imagined that she was preparing to summon the Elementals and begin her day. He, too, must begin his. She
- •Ink, and she’d drawn her own considerably less-attractive lines to quarter the blueprint. “As I said before,
- •In the dirt as she demonstrated exactly how the earth needed to be worked around the roots of the bushes.
- •It had taken Mikado longer to inspect the southern section of the gardens. The roses were more ill there,
- •Its shadows to him and attempt to cloak himself from prying eyes. There he would rest and perhaps drink
- •Intoxicating than wine could ever be. Then he realized what she had said and commanded himself to stop
- •It was the exact green of her eyes. She knew it flattered her, just as she knew Daphne had brought it to her at
- •It was okay for her to touch him. But his only movement was the pounding of his heart and the drawing of his
- •View of the torch-lit gardens. The north side of the hall held door after door, each ornately carved with mystic
- •If they like the wish, they turn it into a dream.”
- •Is a dream you will grant.”
- •In Tulsa when you started coming to me in my dreams—and I didn’t even know the man within you then.
- •It was not enough! The beast within him roared.
- •Into stone. She pulled away, but only by a hand’s width, so she could meet his eyes.
- •Into the marble troughs that stretched from its base outward and all the way to the four corners of the
- •Invoked the spells?” Gii said.
- •Imagine what was going to go on in the women’s wing tonight. I wish the same thing was going on in my
- •Is that Crete?”
- •Into the realm.”
- •In the middle of which sat a huge pallet covered with more pelts. This is where he sleeps. The thought sent a
- •Voluptuous swell of her ass.
- •Imagined knowing the joy of.”
- •It is your love that sustains us.” He closed his eyes and buried his head in her hair, willing himself not to
- •In the mundane world. He would still be without her, but Asterius could live with that. He would miss her for
- •Inhumanly feral grace that the comparison was jarring. She didn’t desire the golden man, but she did feel a
- •In some harmless flirtation. And why not? She felt amazingly pretty and completely loved. But that didn’t
- •It is not. Perhaps he will choose to keep you to himself while we visit the women in the rest of your pathetic
- •Instantly, Asterius checked his attack.
- •It is the goddess you must beseech in the future.” Without another word, the Titan disappeared from the
- •Very much alive. Slowly, she lifted her eyes to meet her lover’s.
- •Victory for them. If they can taint your life, even after they’ve been banished, then they haven’t truly been
- •Idiot! Do you have bandages? Ugh—some of these look like they need stitches. There has to be a doctor in
- •In the barely controlled strength of his thrusts. Mikki didn’t close her eyes. She wanted to see him, to watch
- •Violently. Mikki pulled back to see that his eyes were closed and tears were slowly tracking their way down
- •Violence was left to disturb you.” Gii’s voice shook, and her face was deathly pale. “They’re dying, Empousa.
- •Varieties, with their double blooms and abundant midseason and fall repeat blossoming. But why had these
- •Irrigation for the realm. Is that true?”
- •In the spring they would grow back and be healthier and hardier than before. Roses were survivors—not the
- •Imagine it, and so she refused to think about it. She would do what she had to do when the time came. Until
- •Into the walls of the cave and lighting more torches until the bedroom was alive with warmth and light. He
- •Into the heart of the gardens. Mikki didn’t allow her mind to wander. She hurried up the stairs, barely glancing
- •Into Asterius’s bed . . .
- •I began to hope that perhaps Hecate had allowed me to live for so longt o±ђ† for another reason.” Sevillana’s
- •Is only part of my name. I rarely use my family name—it is too difficult for me to hear it and to know that I
- •Very least, forced me back to face Hecate’s wrath. Instead, he said one small thing and then stepped aside and
- •It all made horrible sense. Asterius’s behavior when they first met and were attracted to each other . . . How
- •Into the meadow, followed by a group of young, beautiful women. Their flowing chitons were draped
- •In the shadows, Hecate smiled and patted one of her great beasts on his dark head.
- •Into eyes that were so big and blue and beautifully dark lashed that she suddenly and moronically forgot her
- •I’m not sure whether to get her another dog, get her some Prozac or take her for a visit to the pet psychic.”
- •Interested in women like me.”
Ink, and she’d drawn her own considerably less-attractive lines to quarter the blueprint. “As I said before,
each of you will take the area that corresponds to the direction of your element. Nera, you’ll be west; Aeras,
east. Gii and Floga will, of course, be north and south. You’ll each have your own group of women. Start by
fertilizing the beds, like I showed you yesterday. I’ll make my way through each area, checking to see if the
roses need any other special attention. Do you have any questions about your areas?” Mikki asked the four
Elementals. As she’d done the night before, she’d pushed the dishes aside and spread Asterius’s map out on
the dining table. The handmaidens were gazing at it raptly.
“This is a lovely map, Empousa,” Gii said, touching the delicate sketch that represented the realm’s central
fountain.
“And accurate, too,” Aeras said. “I think every one of the paths have been duplicated here.”
“Your baths are even drawn in,” Nera said, obviously delighted with the squiggly water lines that represented
her element.
“Who did this for you, Empousa?” Floga asked.
Mikki lifted her eyes from her own contemplation of the map to meet the Fire Elemental’s sharp gaze.
“The Guardian drew it for me,” Mikki said, careful to keep her voice casual, her expression placid.
“The Guardian!” Gii exclaimed. “But how could he have—”
“She commanded it,” Floga interrupted the Earth Elemental. “He would do whatever she commanded.”
Unruffled by her odd tone, Mikki said, “Actually, I didn’t command him. I just asked.” She lifted a shoulder.
“That’s all. Apparently it wasn’t that big of a deal. H>
She only had time to wonder if he minded that she called him by the name his mother had given him, before
the pressure of the air on the balcony changed. It felt heavier and thick against her skin. Then she heard his
hooves pound forcefully on marble as he climbed the balcony stairs. Though his stride was powerful, that
unmistakable mixture of animal and man with which he moved, Mikki thought he looked tired and was almost
as annoyed as she was disappointed when he bowed and spoke formally to her without meeting her eyes.
“You commanded that I come to you, Empousa?”
“Yes. I was hoping you’d had a chance this morning to inspect the rest of the rose wall.”
“I have, Empousa.”
“And?”
“I see no area that appears particularly weak except that which surrounds the gate.”
“So you agree that we can focus on the roses within the garden?”
Finally, he met her eyes. “Yes, I am in agreement with you.”
“Good,” she said briskly, ignoring the fluttering he caused deep in her stomach. She turned to the
handmaidens. “So each of you collect your group of women and set up your own line of fertilizer baskets.
Prepare the beds just like we did the area around the roots of the multiflora roses. I’ll visit each area, and
we’ll go from there.”
“Yes, Empousa,” the Elementals chorused. They curtseyed and began to leave the balcony, along with the
Guardian.
“Floga, Guardian—I need to see the two of you,” Mikki said.
Mikki thought that though the Fire Elemental had carefully arranged her face into a blank expression, her
eyes gave away her uneasiness at being singled out. She doesn’t trust me.
“Floga, your area of the garden is the section that is most southerly. This happens to include the rose gate. I
know it would be quicker for your women to go to the forest and use the loam for fertilizer as we did
yesterday, but I’m concerned about having the gate open again today.”
Floga looked surprised, and Mikki couldn’t really blame her. Just yesterday she’d insisted, in front of
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everybody, that Asterius keep the gate open, danger be damned. Mikki looked at him. “What do you advise?”
“I believe you are wise to be concerned about reopening the gate so soon,” he said.
width="1em">“So we are agreed that maybe in a day or two Floga can allow the women to collect more
loam, but right now it’s not a good idea?”
“Yes, Empousa. We are in agreement.”
“Good.” She knew the smile she gave him was obvious in its warmth, and she could feel the handmaiden’s
eyes watching her every expression, but she didn’t care. Let them all know she valued the Guardian’s
judgment. She would not treat him like an animal when he was not one, and neither would they. Not while she
was Empousa. There was a new boss in the realm, and they’d better get used to it. Still smiling, she turned to
Floga. “Do you understand what I need you to do?”
“Yes, Empousa.”
“Good. Then you’re free to get started. The Guardian and I will be along shortly.”
Floga’s eyes widened, but she said nothing as she curtseyed and then hurried from the balcony, leaving the
priestess and the beast alone.
“Good morning, Asterius,” Mikki said softly.
And that was it. The sound of his true name on her lips undid him. He could not fight his desire for her and his
need to be in her presence. Despite the spell Hecate had placed upon him and the pain it would cause him,
come spring or come the very gates of the Underworld, for as long as they had together he had to hear the
sweet sound of her voice and, if fate granted it, feel the touch of her hand again.
“Forgive me, Mikado.”
“For what?”
“For the way the night ended. I have no practice in . . .” He paused, struggling for words he’d never before
spoken.
“There’s nothing to forgive,” she said. “It’s hard to know the right thing to say or do, especially when you’re
faced with a completely new situation. Sometimes it’s easier to run away.”
“That makes me sound like a coward.”
She smiled. “No, it makes you sound human.”
He looked shocked, and then, slowly, his lips turned up into a smile that eventually reached his eyes. “You
are an extraordinary woman, Mikado.”
“Well, let’s see if you still think so at the end of the day.”
He raised a questioning brow.
“I’m going to put all those muscles of yours to work. Tonight you’ll be too tired not to sleep.”
His dark eyes caught hers. “You knew I didn’t sleep last night?”
“Don’t be too impressed by my powers of observation. It doesn’t take a goddess to figure it out. You look
pretty rough this morning.”
“And I am usually so handsome,” he said dryly.
She gasped. “Do thбЂiv not tell me that you just made a joke!” Mikki’s laughter floated musically on the
breeze as the two of them made their way from the balcony. Neither noticed the women who peered
wide-eyed from the palace windows, watching them go.
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CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
MIKADO hadn’t been exaggerating when she’d said she was going to put his muscles to work. Asterius had
never lifted so many baskets or dug so many holes in all the long centuries of his immortal life.
And he’d never been so happy.
He’d been working beside Mikado all day. She actively supervised, which meant she did not shy from even
the dirtiest of jobs. He could tell that the women of the realm were not pleased with the messy, tiring tasks she
had given them, but they were visibly pleased that their Empousa was right in the middle of the mess with
them. She worked twice as hard as they did; she seemed to be everywhere at once. And perhaps most
surprisingly, she was cheerful about the work. The High Priestess appeared to actually enjoy getting her hands