Gabriel's Rapture

Truth sets one free, but love casts out fear

And of that second kingdom will I sing
Wherein the human spirit doth purge itself,
And to ascend to heaven becometh worthy.”

-Dante Alighieri, Purgatorio, Canto I.004-006.

Florence, 1290

The poet dropped the note to the floor with a shaking hand. He sat for several moments, motionless as a statue. Then, with a great clenching of teeth, he stood to his feet and swept agitatedly through the house, ignoring tables and fragile items, disdaining the other inhabitants of his home.

There was only one person whom he wished to see.

He strode quickly through the city streets, almost breaking into a run on his way to the river. He stood at the end of the bridge, their bridge, his moist eyes eagerly scanning the adjacent riverbank for the barest glimpse of his beloved.

She was nowhere to be found.

She would never return.

His beloved Beatrice was gone.

Gabriel stretched out his hand to Julia’s side of the bed, but found only her pillow. It took a moment for him to awake, exhausted as he was with the previous evening and early morning’s activities. They’d made love several times and taken turns worshipping one another’s bodies with mouths and hands.

He smiled. All her fears and anxieties appeared to have vanished. Was it solely because they were married now? Or was it because enough time had passed that she knew beyond doubt that he wouldn’t take advantage of her?

He didn’t know. But he was pleased because she had been pleased. And when she gave herself to him in a way that she’d never been able to before, he treasured that gift, knowing that it was given out of love and absolute trust.

Awaking to an empty bed made him nervous, however. So rather than indulge himself in these silent musings, he quickly went in search of his beloved. It didn’t take long for him to find her.

“Are you all right?” he called, as he walked out onto the balcony.

“I’m wonderful. I’m happy.”

“You’ll catch pneumonia,” he chided, slipping off his robe and wrapping it around her.

She turned to thank him and noticed that he was naked. “So will you.”

He grinned, positioning himself in front of her and opening the robe so it wrapped around both of them. She sighed at the pleasurable feeling of their naked bodies pressed tightly together.

“Was everything to your liking?” Gabriel rubbed her back through the robe.

“You couldn’t tell?”

“We didn’t have a lot of conversation, if you recall. Perhaps I kept you up too late. I know we were making up but…”

“I’m a little out of practice, but deliciously worn out.” She flushed. “Last night was even better than our first time together. And certainly, as you put it, more vigorous.”

He chuckled. “I concur.”

“We’ve been through so much. I feel as if our connection is deeper.” She nuzzled his shoulder with her nose. “And I don’t have to worry about you disappearing.”

“I’m yours,” he whispered. “And I feel the connection too. It’s what I needed. It’s what you deserve. When I touch you, when I look into your eyes, I see our history and our future.” He paused and lifted her face so he could see her better. “It’s breathtaking.”

Julia kissed him delicately and snuggled closer in his arms.

“I spent too long in the shadows.” Gabriel’s voice brimmed with emotion. “I’m looking forward to being in the light. With you.”

She placed a hand on either side of his face, forcing him to see her. “We’re in the light now. And I love you.”

“As I love you, Julianne. I’m yours for this life and the next.”

He kissed her lips once more and led her back into the bedroom.

Fin.

His tongue played with her mouth as their bodies melted into one another, and soon they were one, their collective sighs muffled by teeth and tongues.

Gabriel’s rhythm was slow at first, like the patient lapping of waves upon a beach. He wanted this experience to last forever, for in that moment, as he gazed into the wide and loving eyes of his wife, he realized that their previous experiences, exciting as they were, paled in comparison with the sublimity of their current connection.

She was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. She was his soul mate and his wife, and all he wanted was to bring her joy. He was consumed by his adoration of her.

Julia traced his brows, wrinkled as they were in concentration, his eyes now shut tightly.

“I love that look,” she murmured.

“What look?”

“Your eyes closed, your eyebrows furrowed, your lips pressed together—you only look like that when you—come.”

He opened his eyes, and she saws sparks in their sapphire depths. “Oh, really, Mrs. Emerson?”

“I’ve missed that look. It’s sexy.”

“You flatter me.” Gabriel sounded embarrassed.

“I want to have a painting or a photograph of that face.”

He frowned playfully. “A picture like that might be too much.”

Julia laughed. “This is coming from a man who decorated his bedroom with naked photographs of himself.”

“The only naked photographs in my bedroom will be of you, my exquisite wife.”

His rhythm increased, catching Julia by surprise.

As she panted out her pleasure, Gabriel buried his face in her neck. “You’re so enticing. Your hair, your skin.”

“Your love makes me beautiful.”

“Then let me love you forever.”

She arched her back. “Yes, forever. Please.”

Gabriel moved apace, his lips playing across her neck, sucking and drawing the skin lightly into his mouth.

In response, her hands grasped his hips, pushing and pulling until she was close, very close.

“Open your eyes,” he gasped, moving more quickly.

Julia gazed up into the dark but tender eyes of her husband, so alive with passion and true affection.

“I love you,” she said, eyes widening and closing as the sensations overtook her.

This time, Gabriel didn’t close his eyes as his brows furrowed in concentration.

“I love you,” he breathed with every movement, every glide of skin against naked skin, until they were both sated and still.

With eager fingers she began with his hair and explored his body, paying homage with fingertips and lips. His face, his mouth, his jaw, his shoulders, his sculpted chest and abdominal muscles. His arms and thighs and…

He caught her hand in his before she could wrap it around him, whispering sweet things against her mouth. Words of devotion in Italian that she recognized as coming from Dante’s pen. He picked her up and carried her to the large, canopied bed, where he seated her on the edge. Then he knelt on the floor in front of her.

“Where shall I begin?” he asked, his eyes slightly darkened as his hands traveled across her flat stomach and down her thighs. “Tell me.”

Julia inhaled quickly and shook her head.

“Shall I start here?” He leaned forward to trace her lips with the barest touch of his tongue.

“Or here?” He caressed her breasts before letting his mouth take over, licking and teasing them. She closed her eyes and gasped at the sensation.

“What about here?” His finger slowly encircled her navel before he fluttered his mouth across her abdomen.

She moaned and tugged at his hair. “All I want is you.”

“Then have me.”

She kissed him, and he responded by enjoying her mouth slowly, setting a gentle, languorous pace. When he felt her heartbeat quicken, he took her left foot in his hand and began to remove her shoe.

“Don’t you want me to wear them?” she asked, looking down at him. “I bought them for tonight.”

“Let’s save them for later, when we christen the wall.” Gabriel’s voice was a throaty whisper.

He slowly removed her shoes and spent a few moments massaging her feet, paying special attention to her arches. Then he pushed her to the center of the bed and reclined beside her.

“Do you trust me?”

“Yes.”

He gave her a soft kiss on the lips. “I’ve waited a long time to hear you say that and to know that you mean it.”

“Of course I mean it. The past is behind us.”

“Then let’s make up for lost time.”

Tenderly, he began using his hands to touch and to tease, his movements deliberate but passionate. He added his mouth, nipping and sucking to the tune of her sighs. His heart swelled in gladness at her sounds and the way her body writhed from side to side under his touch.

When her hands moved up and down his back urgently, finally coming to rest on his backside, he spread himself atop her, bringing their bodies into perfect alignment.

Staring down at her, he whispered, “Behold, thou art fair, my love; thine eyes are as doves…Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy mouth is comely.”

Julia reached up to press their lips together before she responded. “Don’t make me wait.”

“Are you inviting me inside?”

Julia nodded as a flash of heat raced across the surface of her skin. “My husband.”

“My brown-eyed angel.”

But Gabriel was not a lesser man.

Painstakingly, he combed his long fingers through her hair until he alighted on a hairpin and then he gently undid it, letting down a single curl. He repeated this procedure until Julia’s hair fell like waves against her pale shoulders and her body was alive with want.

He cupped her cheeks and looked deeply into her eyes. “Tell me what you desire. The night is yours. I’m yours to command.”

“No commandments.” Julia tasted his lips twice. “Just show me that you love me.”

“Julianne, I love you with all four loves. But tonight is a celebration of eros.”

Gabriel plied her bare shoulders with urgent, heated kisses before standing behind her and stroking the exposed skin of her back. “Thank you for your gift.”

“My gift?”

“Your body, alluringly wrapped up just for me.” He paused as his eyes swept down to her feet. “And your shoes. Surely after such a long day, they must be uncomfortable.”

“I hadn’t noticed.”

He began to toy with the diamonds in her ears. “And why is that?”

“Because all I could think about was making love with you.”

“I’ve thought of almost nothing else for days. For months.” Gabriel inhaled sharply and began running his hands up and down her bare arms. “I’m the only man to see you naked in all your glory and to know the sounds you make when you’re pleasured. Your body recognizes me, Julianne. It knows my touch.”

Beginning at her lower back, he undid the bow, sliding the satin laces painstakingly through his fingers.

“Are you nervous?” Gabriel reached over to lift her chin to the side so he could see her profile.

“It’s been a while.”

“I’m going to take my time. The—ah—more vigorous activities will come later, after we’re sufficiently reacquainted.” He pointed his nose in the direction of a blank wall, and Julia felt her skin heat in anticipation.

He slowly pulled the laces open until her back was completely exposed. Then he placed the palms of his hands flat against her skin and began to skim them up and down.

“I burn for you. All these months I’ve waited, waited to take you to bed.”

He turned her so she was facing him and without ceremony pushed the straps of her nightgown down her arms. His eyes followed the sighing silk as it slid down her form before dropping to the floor.

She stood before him naked, her hands at her sides.

“Magnificent,” he breathed, his hungry eyes appraising every inch of her with painstaking slowness.

Not content to be the center of attention, she began to unbutton his shirt. She pushed it off his shoulders and pressed her mouth to his tattoo, nipping and kissing across his pectorals before making short work of his trousers.

Soon he was naked also, and she saw evidence of his arousal. He moved to kiss her, but she stopped him.

Without breaking the kiss, he picked her up and carried her back inside the house and up the stairs to the master bedroom. He twirled her around, admiring the way the full skirt of her purple dress flared out as she spun.

“I believe I owe you something.”

“And what’s that?” Julia laughed as Gabriel pressed himself up against her back.

He reached over her shoulder to whisper to her. “Make-up sex.”

The tone of his voice goose pimpled her skin.

He rubbed his hands up and down her bare arms. “Are you cold?”

“No. Excited.”

“Excellent.” He brushed her hair aside so his lips could find her neck, and he began plying her with kisses. “And just so you know, I have a lot to make up for. In fact, I think it will take me all night.”

“All night?” asked Julia, coughing slightly.

“All night and into the morning.”

She had already begun to melt into his embrace by the time he retreated, pressing his mouth and tongue eagerly to the curve of her shoulder before letting go.

“While you’re getting ready for bed I want you to think about all the ways I’m going to please you.”

He traced a single finger across her neckline in promise before releasing her with a provocative wink.

Julia gathered her lingerie from her luggage and disappeared into the bathroom. When she went shopping for something to wear on their wedding night, she had been intimidated. She was unsure what to choose that he hadn’t seen before.

In a tiny shop on Newbury Street, she had found exactly what she was looking for—a long Merlot colored silk gown with a low neckline. But its crowning glory was the crisscrossing laces in the back, which plunged to an almost indecent level. She chose the gown knowing that he would delight in undoing her. In more ways than one.

She left her hair up and she swiped at her lips with a hint of sheer gloss before stepping into the black stilettos she’d purchased for their honeymoon. Then she opened the bathroom door.

Gabriel was waiting.

The master bedroom was bathed in candlelight, scented with sandalwood, and Julia could hear soft music playing. It was a different playlist than they’d enjoyed before, but she liked it nonetheless.

He approached her in his white shirt and dress pants, his shirt untucked and unbuttoned almost to his waist, his feet bare. He held his hand out, and she joined him, winding her arms around his back.

“You’re exquisite,” he whispered, his hands almost trembling as they traced the bareness of skin that peeked through her laces. “I’d almost forgotten how lovely you are by candlelight. Almost, but not quite.”

She smiled against his chest.

“May I?” He fingered her pinned up hair, and she nodded.

“I’m glad you like it. But there’s one more small thing.”

He walked over to the mantelpiece of the fireplace in order to retrieve a familiar looking golden apple.

“How did that get here?” Julia smiled.

“Open it, Mrs. Emerson.”

She lifted the lid and found a large, old-fashioned key inside. She met Gabriel’s eyes quizzically. “A magic key? To a secret garden? Or to a wardrobe that leads to Narnia?”

“Very funny. Come with me.” He caught her wrist and brought it to his lips, hesitating against her skin.

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

He led her out the front door, closing it behind them. They stood on the porch, surrounded by darkness that was illuminated only by the lights that hung on the stone walls.

“Try the key.”

“What? Here?”

“Just try it.” Gabriel rocked back on his heels, trying to hide his sudden anxiety.

Julia put the key in the lock and twisted. She heard the lock click and with a flick of her wrist, it unlocked and the door swung open.

“Thank you for becoming my wife,” he whispered. “Welcome home.”

She looked over at him incredulously.

“We were happy here,” he said softly. “I wanted us to have a place that we could escape to, somewhere with fond memories.”

He reached out to lightly touch her arm. “We can spend our holidays here when we aren’t in Selinsgrove. You could write your dissertation here, if you want. Although I couldn’t bear to be separated from you for more than a day.”

Julia kissed him, thanking him over and over again for his lavish gift. They stood there for several minutes, reveling in one another’s touch, their heartbeats quickening.

“I’m looking forward to growing old with you,” said Gabriel. “And you are certainly kind.”

“I’m looking forward to growing old with you too.”

Husband and wife exchanged a look then finished their food in relaxed quietness. Afterward, Gabriel stood and stretched out his hand. “I haven’t given you your wedding gifts, yet.”

She took his hand and her fingers touched his wedding band. “I thought our gifts were our rings and the inscriptions inside them: I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved is mine.”

“There’s more.” He led her to the fireplace and paused.

When they entered the house, Julia hadn’t noticed that the artwork that hung over the fireplace previously had been removed. In its place was a large and impressive oil painting of a man and a woman in a passionate embrace.

She took a step closer to the painting, transfixed by the stirring image.

The male and female figures were wrapped around each other, the male naked to the waist and slightly underneath the female as if he were kneeling at her feet, his head resting on her lap. The female figure was bent forward, naked and wrapped carelessly in what appeared to be a bed sheet, clutching the male’s back and sides and resting her head between his shoulder blades. In truth, it was difficult to tell where his body began and her body ended, so entwined they were, almost like a circle. Need and desperation leapt off the canvas, as if the couple had just made up after a fight or found each other after an extended absence.

“It’s us,” breathed Julia as she blinked in shock.

The male’s face was partially hidden by the woman’s lap, his mouth pressed against her naked thigh. But it was Gabriel’s face, of that there could be no doubt. The female’s face was Julia’s, eyes closed in bliss, a small smile playing at the edge of her full lips as she faced the viewer. She looked happy.

“But how?”

Gabriel stood behind her and placed his arms around her shoulders. “I posed for the artist and provided photographs of you.”

“Photographs?”

He leaned forward to kiss the side of her neck. “Don’t you recognize your posture? It’s a study of some of the pictures I took of you in Belize. Do you remember the morning after you wore your corset for the first time? You were lying in bed…”

Julia’s eyes widened in remembrance.