The Passionate Princess Read online

  He looked at her for a long moment.

  “I love you! I love you, Thea, as I never thought it would be possible for me to love any one.”

  Thea drew in her breath.

  In a very small voice that he could hardly hear she whispered,

  “I-I have – only just – realised that – what I am feeling for you – is love!”

  Chapter Four

  Thea was called in the morning by Valou’s wife.

  She was a large fat woman with what must once have been a very pretty face and an engaging smile.

  She pulled back the curtains, put a cup of hot chocolate down beside the bed and said,

  “It’s a lovely mornin’, fraulein, and it’ll be hot later.”

  She brought in a can of hot water and put it on the wash-stand.

  Later Thea went downstairs a little shyly. She had put on the skirt of her habit, but not the jacket.

  As she expected, breakfast was laid on the balcony and Nikōs was already there waiting for her.

  He looked, she thought, exceedingly handsome as he rose to his feet.

  She then sat down beside him with a little murmur and Géza immediately brought her a steaming cup of coffee.

  To her surprise there was also a dish of eggs, which was what her father always had at The Palace.

  Nikōs must have known from her expression that it was not what she had expected for he said,

  “I ordered something substantial to eat because we are going riding.”

  Thea’s eyes lit up.

  “That is what I would love to do.”

  “And so do I,” he replied. “So hurry, because Mercury and Isten are waiting for us.”

  “Is that the name of your horse?” she asked.

  “Yes, he is called after a very special God, who was worshipped by the Hungarians in the seventh century.”

  “I look forward to meeting him,” Thea smiled.

  “I am waiting to see how you ride,” Nikōs replied with a broad smile.

  She knew at once that he was teasing her, but at the same time she avoided meeting his eyes.

  She thought that she had behaved last night in a very uncontrolled and foolish fashion. And she was sure that he was condemning her for not having more pride.

  Then, as she finished her eggs, he said very quietly,

  “I have not forgotten to tell you that you look very lovely this morning in the sunshine.”

  She looked away from him as he went on,

  “You are very like the water lily buds we saw yesterday in the forest and I long, as I have never longed for anything, to see you in bloom!”

  She thought that he meant when he would make love to her and she blushed.

  Nikōs rose to his feet.

  “Bring your jacket,” he advised, “although I doubt if you will need it. The horses are waiting for us.”

  Thea ran upstairs, but, when she went to take down her jacket from the wardrobe where it was hanging, she had a better idea.

  She thought that the jacket would get creased if it was attached to Mercury’s saddle and it would be too constraining to wear if they were going to ride a long way.

  Instead she opened a drawer to find the shawl that she had wrapped her clothes in when she had left The Palace. It was of a very fine wool and it had been beautifully knitted by one of the women in Gyula, who were noted for their considerable skill.

  With a long fringe it was very graceful and, when she wore it, she felt that she was like the dancers who sometimes performed in the City.

  She put the shawl over her arm and walked down the stairs.

  Outside on the gravel drive at the back of the house the two horses were waiting for then somewhat impatiently

  The moment Thea appeared Mercury gave a loud whinny of delight and nuzzled against her as he always did.

  She patted him saying in a low and coaxing voice,

  “How are you, my dearest? Are you rested? And did they give you plenty to eat?”

  Valou laughed.

  “He ate enough, Gracious Lady, enough for half-a-dozen horses.”

  “Thank you very much for taking such good care of him for me.”

  Then she looked at Nikōs’s horse and gave a gasp of astonishment.

  If Mercury was spectacular, so was Isten. He was a white stallion, over sixteen hands high and bigger than Mercury. There was no doubt that there was Arab blood in him and there was not a single patch of colour on the whole of his body.

  Nikōs laughed at her surprise and he suggested,

  “Let me introduce you to Isten, who is greatly enjoying your admiration.”

  “How can I find words to tell him how magnificent he is?” Thea commented.

  “I am sure he can read your thoughts – as I do,” Nikōs replied.

  As he spoke, he lifted her gently into the saddle.

  She felt a little thrill like sunshine running through her at the touch of his hands. And for a moment his face was very near to hers.

  Having settled her in the saddle, he then arranged her skirt for her over the stirrup.

  When it was completed to his satisfaction, he looked up at her.

  Their eyes met and Thea was conscious of her love moving in her breast towards him.

  Almost abruptly Nikōs turned away and swung himself onto Isten’s back.

  They moved off, riding away from the house and into the woods.

  Because the path was a narrow one, Nikōs led the way and, after they had ridden for a little while between the trees, they began to descend.

  It was down a twisting track into the valley.

  He did not hurry and, when they reached the level ground below them, Thea could see that it was a perfect place for riding.

  It was like the Steppes that she had galloped over yesterday and now she could ride side by side with Nikōs and, as she glanced at him, she realised that it was what he wanted too.

  They urged their mounts forward and then they were galloping at an incredibly fast pace and speeding over the grassland.

  Flights of butterflies rose in the air at their approach. And clouds of small birds flew out of their way.

  The stallions, straining to keep up with each other, carried them faster and faster.

  They galloped for nearly two miles before the stallions, as satisfied as they were, slowed down their pace.

  Thea turned towards Nikōs.

  Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were shining as if the sun was captured in them.

  “That was wonderful!” she cried. “Faster than I have ever ridden in my whole life.”

  “You ride exactly as I expected you would,” Nikōs remarked.

  “Like a Hungarian?” she laughed.

  “Of course!” he agreed immediately. “I only hope that you will emulate some of their other characteristics!”

  “Which one in particular?” Thea asked him lightly.

  He did not reply, but, when she looked at him, she knew the answer.

  How often, she wondered, had she heard people say,

  “The Hungarians are the most passionate lovers in the world!”

  She could not mistake the expression in Nikōs’s eyes and quickly she looked away from him.

  As they rode on, she was vividly conscious of how handsome he was and he sat on a horse better than any man she had ever seen.

  She had always thought that Georgi was an exceptional rider, but Nikōs had an authority, at the same time an indefinable way of riding that seemed to make him become a part of his horse.

  They rode on and Thea was utterly content to be riding with the man she loved as she had in her dreams.

  There was no need to say even a single word.

  She only knew that everything seemed more beautiful and more alive than it had ever been before.

  The flowers seemed more colourful, the sky more blue, the haze on the horizon more magical and just because she was in love.

  ‘How can I have been so foolish as to try to leave him?’ she sco
lded herself.

  As if she had spoken aloud, Nikōs said,

  “It is something I will never allow you to do! I really cannot lose you, Thea.”

  There was a depth to his voice that made her quiver.

  Because she was afraid of their becoming serious, she said laughingly,

  “If you read my thoughts, there will be no reason for me to talk.”

  “Why should we,” he asked, “when we can feel?”

  She did not reply and he went on,

  “I can feel you so vividly beside me that I know now what I have always missed in the past.”

  Thea drew in her breath.

  “It was you!” he went on. “And now that we have found each other, you fill the whole of my world.”

  It was what she was thinking herself and she knew that love had suddenly changed the world as she knew it.

  Now everything was dazzlingly irresistible and pulsating with life.

  Equally it was so mysterious and magical that it was exactly what she expected from her Fairy stories.

  They rode on and, as the sun rose higher in the sky and grew hotter, Thea began to feel thirsty.

  “Where are ‒ we going?” she asked him after a while.

  She realised as she spoke that it was strange that she had not asked this question before, but it had not seemed to matter.

  “I am taking you to enjoy a very different luncheon from the one you had yesterday,” Nikōs replied.

  She looked at him questioningly and he added,

  “It is a surprise, but I think it is one you will really appreciate.”

  About half an hour later they turned into a thick wood.

  Now there were no fir trees, but huge oaks, maples and ash and their branches were covered with spring leaves, a welcome protection from the rays of the sun.

  The track between the trees was narrow and the low branches rubbed against them as they proceeded and once again Nikōs went ahead of Thea to lead the way.

  There was no sound anywhere save for the song of the birds and the jingle of harnesses.

  Thea thought that they must have reached the centre of the wood when they came to a clearing.

  As she looked ahead, she gave a little exclamation of excitement.

  In a circle under the protection of the trees there were a number of gypsy caravans.

  Painted in brilliant colours, they looked almost like flowers and so did the women who ran eagerly to greet Nikōs. They spoke to him in Romany and he answered them in their own language.

  Thea felt glad that she could understand what they were talking about.

  “We privileged, honourable sir, very honoured you come to visit us again,” they were saying, “but how you know we here?”

  “A little bird told me,” Nikōs replied and they laughed.

  He then introduced Thea to them,

  “This is a beautiful lady who is staying with me,” he told them, “and she loves music!”

  Thea felt her heart leap with anticipation.

  She knew without being told that these were Hungarian gypsies. Although the gypsies came to visit Kostas, they more often came from the South where they would not be pure Hungarians.

  Nikōs dismounted.

  A gypsy boy took his stallion to where there was some lush grass for grazing and Nikōs lifted Thea from her saddle.

  Once again she thrilled at his touch and she thought that he held her a little longer than was necessary before he set her on her feet on the ground.

  She had already knotted the reins on Mercury’s neck and without being led he followed Isten to where he could graze quietly.

  “Now,” Nikōs announced with a twinkle in his eyes, “we are hungry!”

  As he spoke, he was looking at a pot that was suspended over a fire in the centre of the clearing.

  Thea was already aware of a fragrant aroma coming from it and the gypsies brought out chairs for them.

  One was the elaborate ceremonial chair where the Voivode Gypsy Chief would sit and the others were sometimes offered to an important guest.

  The chairs were made mostly of stags’ horns carved and decorated with pieces of gold and silver.

  As she sat down, Thea thought that her chair was worthy of a Queen.

  Then she thrust the thought from her mind. If she sat on a throne, it would be King Otho’s.

  She knew that, now she was in love, she would rather die than marry an old man.

  If he tried to kiss her, as Nikōs had done, it would be an utter degradation that she could not contemplate.

  Nikōs’s hand was on hers.

  “I will not let you look unhappy,” he said in a low voice. “The gypsy music is full of love and that is exactly what I want you to feel.”

  She felt the sunshine invading her, because he was touching her hand and, when she looked into his eyes, she knew that he wanted to kiss her.

  With an effort she forced herself to attend to the gypsy women.

  They looked very attractive in their colourful gowns while coins that hung from the veils over their hair sparkled in the sunlight.

  They brought Thea and Nikōs plates piled high with the stew that they had cooked over the fire.

  As soon as Thea tasted it, she realised just how delicious it was.

  She was certain that it was a mixture of roe deer, hare and partridge all in one stew and they had cooked it with herbs that grew naturally on the plain and in the woods.

  While they were eating, the gypsies sat down on the ground at their feet.

  They were then joined by the men who, with their high cheekbones, black eyes and jet-black hair, looked just as if they had come from the East.

  That was true Thea remembered. The gypsies had originally come from India and had travelled West to Egypt and then on to Hungary and North to Russia.

  When everyone had been served with the stew, the Voivode rose to his feet.

  As he lifted his violin to his chin, there was silence.

  At first he played alone and there was a passionate yet mystical note in his music.

  Then gradually the other gypsies joined him.

  A cymbal, a flageolet, bass, viola, cello and half-a-dozen violins blended harmoniously together.

  To Thea it was sheer magic, as were the gypsies themselves. They had small, regular delicate features and sensitive mouths in their dark faces.

  Their hands were long and slim and their limbs graceful, lithe and muscular.

  The music changed from soft romantic tones to become the Csdrdds.

  Thea had heard the music before, but never in such perfect surroundings or as well played as now.

  It was a traditional Hungarian folklore dance and comprised all a gypsy’s ambitions and fears and his passion for life that could become an intolerable sadness.

  The bows of the gypsies were flashing over the strings of their violins and the music tumbled and fell before the pace accelerated again even stronger.

  Thea felt as if she could not breathe and, as if Nikōs felt the same, he bent over to take her hand in his.

  She knew then that the music was saying to her what was in his heart and it was telling her of his passion for her.

  His love for her was wild, passionate and compelling and the sounds seemed to throb through her.

  As the music rose up into the sky, she felt that it engulfed her and her feelings rose with it.

  Her breath was now coming quickly from between her parted lips.

  She felt her heart beating frantically in her breast and Nikōs’s fingers tightened on hers.

  He wanted to crush her against him and he wanted to kiss her so that she surrendered herself to him completely.

  She knew by instinct that was what she wanted him to do.

  The music came not only from the gypsies but from herself and it was linked with the music from Nikōs. It told her again and again that they were one indivisible person.

  “I love you! You are mine!”

  She did not know whether she h
eard Nikōs saying it in his deep voice or whether she listened to it with her heart.

  She only knew her whole body as well as her mind was crying out to him.

  “I – love you! I love – you!”

  The music came to a sudden climax.

  And then the wild movements slipped into a slow soft rhythm.

  It gave Thea a chance to breathe again, but she knew that she had experienced something overwhelmingly emotional and passionate.

  It was what Nikōs had wanted her to feel.

  Then the gypsies were playing again and now several of the girls and young men began to dance.

  It was very graceful and very beautiful dancing.

  At the same time it was not the music of passion that had excited Thea in a way that she had never been excited before.

  It made her shy to think of what she had felt.

  She was now aware that Nikōs was watching her and she knew that he had brought her here because he had wanted her to feel as wild as the wind.

  It was the sensation he had given her last night when he had kissed her neck and when he had held her completely captive with his lips.

  She took her hand from his and clasped her fingers together.

  She knew now that this was what she would feel if he made love to her as he had wanted to do last night.

  ‘How – can I resist – him?’ she asked herself.

  Then she was ashamed of herself that she should think of anything so wrong and what her mother would say was a sin.

  The gypsies’ dance came to a sudden end and the dancers flung themselves down in an abandoned manner at Nikōs’s feet.

  “You are pleased, gracious sir?”

  “Very pleased!” Nikōs replied with a wide smile on his face.

  He brought his purse from his pocket and gave a coin to all those who had performed.

  Thea thought that the coins were gold and she wondered if he was rich enough to afford it.

  The gypsy girls kissed his hand, the men bowed and then thanked him.

  “Now we must leave,” Nikōs said firmly. “It is a long way home and the heat of the sun is over.”

  He looked up at the sky as he spoke and Thea realised that they had taken several hours eating, listening to the incredible music and watching the dancing.

  It must now be getting on for four o’clock in the afternoon.