Rahab Bk. 05 Ch. 01: The Task

That night, long as it was, saved my life.

I realised what I had been doing, and while I could not stop it entirely, I could moderate it; the rest was bearable with the love and support of Ana.

For complex reasons, I had felt that my existence depended on being useful, and of course, that had drawn me out of the depths of slavery to the heights of the Viceroyalty, so it could hardly have been written off as a failure. But it had its limitations, not least for me personally. Self-sacrifice was all very well, but Ana had helped me realise that it was not helping me in my private life. That may not have mattered as, thus far circumstances had rendered my relationships too transient for roots to grow. But what Ana had made me see was that sometimes my lover wanted to please me as much as I wanted to please her.

Perhaps only to one constituted as I am was that a revelation; but it was all the same. Ana validated the fact that it was alright for me to receive pleasure as well as to give it. It seemed, on my return to Beirut, as though a weight had been lifted from me.

The Amirs noticed the change in me, though no one said anything. My first act was to replace my secretary, who was from the Bashir clan, and whom I trusted as far as I could throw him, with a Maronite Christian woman, Mellisa, whose name in Greek meant 'honey bee.' She came recommended by Princess Damila to whom I had confided my worries.

'Darling,' I told her at our monthly audience, 'this attempt to sit above all the factions will, I fear, simply result in all of them distrusting me. I need someone working closely with me who thinks as you and I think and who will understand about Ana and myself. Above all, I think I need to have a female adjunct. Master Kunt makes a good commander of my guard, but he is stiff and formal, which is fine by me, but offers me nothing other than a purely formal relationship. I also need more help from you, my love. Ana will be here on Friday night, and I want you to stay if you will; we have things to plan.'

Damila smiled.

'I did wonder when you would come to your senses darling. You have been so good in trying to keep all factions in play, but as we move to action that will not be possible, and the politics of this region require choices. You know the Al-Amadins and their allies are with you. The Bashirs will always divide, and the smaller fry will, as ever, follow the wolf in the hope of prey; you have to be the wolf darling.'

We both laughed at the idea of my being a 'wolf.' But we both knew she was correct. After seven months in Beirut I needed to ensure that my own position was secure. As in love, I realised that being self-sacrificing could be self-defeating. Others played the game for themselves, and as they would never understand that I was not, that would lead them to question just what I was up to; it was better to offer at least the simulacrum of an explanation of my policies. The aggrandisement of my erstwhile lover, Princess Damila, would be understood much more than some valiant selfless attempt to keep the Empire afloat.

'If you are after an efficient head of your Chancery, I've a very clever young Greek girl, Mellisa. She is quiet but efficient. Indeed, I can see only one fly in the ointment.'

'And that would be?' I asked.

'She is very apt to form attachments to her female superior.'

I looked at the Princess.

'And this would be a problem why?'

She smiled back.

'I was simply making an observation.'

And with that she made a great play of eating her ripe fig, looking at me all the time while she was gorging herself. We both giggled. It felt good to have laughter back in my life. The burden of office and my sense of self-sacrifice had, I now realised, all but crushed the joy from my life.

Mellisa added to the laughter and the joy.

Unlike her sour-faced predecessor, she had an infectious sense of fun.

She took to the job like a swan to water. She swiftly put things into order, and was able to point out several places where her predecessor had been skimming off money from the accounts. A good flogging and the confiscation of some of his assets put that one to rights, as well as giving notice that I would not tolerate being robbed by my underlings. As Mel pointed out, the next month's receipts went up quite dramatically as several governors discovered that they had 'mistakenly' been underpaying their contributions. As I was not creaming off money for myself, we were able to keep their payments the same for the next year, which went down well.

With Mel's eye for business, and knowing she had my back, I felt secure as Viceroy.

It was of the nature of Chancery business that we tended to see each other frequently. She seemed to have, as Damila had said, the sweetest and kindest nature. I watched her with the children of the servants, who all adored her in short order. She would spend time with them, playing and telling them stories. It was fun to watch them surround her at the end of the working day when it became her habit to tell them stories, followed by the distribution of sweets. They looked at her with rapt attention. It felt almost as though we were becoming a family unit.

I watched, too, as the serving women and the wives of the officials would come to Mel with their concerns, and noted the tactful way she would alert me to any problems, and come up with solutions. She organised a rota of women to take care of the children and set up a little school for them in the old dairy in the lower courtyard.

Suddenly the place was filled with love and laughter. The staff seemed and indeed were, happier, and that contributed to the smooth conduct of business.

Ana noticed when she returned to me at the end of the month, following her reconnaissance to old Armenia.

'That Mel girl is a treasure, you know Rahab. She is also very pretty. Would you mind my taking an interest in her too?'

'Too?' I queried.

'She takes an interest in you, my darling, and that endears her to me. You treat her almost as a beloved step-daughter.'

I blushed.

I had noticed that Mel stirred up two sets of feelings in me. I could not help admiring her comely form. Her firm, young breasts were quite delicious, while the tunic she wore when off duty, set off her legs and backside perfectly. I had found myself looking at her with something akin to arousal. But at the same time I wanted to protect her, nurture her and yes, as I now admitted to Ana, to mother her.

Ana smiled at me.

'My Rahab, as you grow up you never cease to please me. Our love is secure my precious one, and it could accommodate Mellisa, you do know that?'

I looked at Ana, If I never ceased to please her, she never ceased to amaze me. I was not the jealous sort, and I now realised that was something else we had in common. Our love was special, and it grew. I realised that Mel had something special about her, and that if circumstances allowed, she could become a third in our love.

It happened unexpectedly.

It was a fortnight after my conversation with Ana. She had brought back interesting news from old Armenia, and we had agreed that on her next visit we would pull our advisers together and plan for the spring. She arrived, as usual, on the Friday evening as the Muslims were at prayer. It helped.

We kissed.

I loved her like this, hot and sweaty, and almost before she had put her saddlebags down, I was in her arms.

She carried me to our chamber, literally. She was more than half a foot taller, and I loved being carried, my legs around her waist, and my arms round her neck as we kissed.

Our mouths met, tongues entwining. She carried me to the bed, pushing me backwards onto it. My legs opened automatically, and she lay between them, shedding her tunic as she got on top of me, sliding her leg between mine so that our cunts could connect. She pulled me to her, rubbing hard into me. She was soaked, I was too. I could hear the noise as we squelched together, and shivered with the pleasure as our clits touched.

'Want you,' she whispered hoarsely.

I wanted her too.

She pulled my tunic over my head, and pressed her breasts into my much smaller ones. As our nipples touched, little shocks of joy shot through me. I had meant to wait, but my new resolution, to allow myself to receive as well as to give pleasure meant that I had abandoned my usual self-control. Besides, it was late on Friday, and the staff would have left.

'Erm, oh, sorry!'

I looked over. It was Mel!

Ana looked too.

'Join us?'

Mel looked startled, as well she might, but she nodded. As she came closer, Ana pulled her in, kissing her on her full lips. She looked at me:

'Kiss her too, Mel.'

Mel kissed me, tentatively at first, but then more passionately.

Ana pulled her back and kissed her, slipping her tunic from her shoulders to reveal her full, firm breasts. Ana licked and sucked one breast, while I did so to its twin. As we both sucked, Mel moaned.

'Sorry to disturb ...'

Whatever she had been about to say dwindled into a moan as Ana's teeth bit her left nipple and mine teased her right one, with Ana pushing her wetness against mine. With a series of deft movements, Ana so positioned us all that I was riding one of her thighs and Mel was riding the other, suddenly it was her breasts which were the focus of attention, as I sucked and Mel followed suit. Ana had us both riding her strong, firm thighs, and loving the way Mel's breasts jiggled, I cupped one and, leaning forward, kissed it. She moaned, and it got louder as Ana's fingers connected with her bud.

Used to Ana's loving ministrations, which were attuned instinctively to my needs, I was wetter, but riding, rubbing, and building up to the inevitable climax; loving the embodiment of our love. Mel, who, as she later confessed, had longed to know what Sapphic love was like, was converted to it by the enormous orgasm which overcame her. Her head flung back, she screamed as she came.

As Ana did that, my fingers had strayed to her sex, and two of them curled into her. Distracted as she was, and caught by surprise, the citadel of her wetness fell to me, and as my thumb strummed her bud, her own orgasm ambushed her, and my hand was soaked. She and Mel collapsed together on the couch, and I fell with them.

'Rahab,' Ana moaned. I smiled and kissed her, and she kissed me back, before kissing Mel.

And that was how it began. Mel said it was an accident and that she did not want to come between us. Kissing her softly, Ana said there was only one way she would do that, and it was worth trying for the erotic thrill. Mel looked over to me as though to ask whether she was intruding and whether that was my wish too.

'We are one,' I told her.

And from that day forth we were.

Thus it was that Mellisa entered our love as well as our lives. In view of what was to come, that was as well.