Chapter Six

 "Catherine." Vincent’s voice called her out of a deep, dreamless sleep, and she awoke to find his face close to hers. She first looked around, a little disoriented by the unfamiliar surroundings, until the recent events rushed back to her memory, clearing out the last mists of slumber. She was fleetingly dismayed to find herself alone in the warmth of the cloak while Vincent was fully dressed, but the sweet, tingling heaviness between her legs reassured her. She hadn’t dreamed it, it had really happened!

A warm, loving wave reached her through the bond, and Vincent’s eyes twinkled. "Yes, Catherine, it most definitely happened!"

She locked her arms around his neck to pull him close. "I’m so glad it did!"

Their lips met in a long, sweet kiss, their bond shimmering with a deep joy. At last they had reached the shore, at last they were safe, together, and they savored that miracle for a while, exchanging whispered words of love and tender touches, enjoying their newfound intimacy and the closeness they had denied themselves for so long. When their embrace became more possessive, their bodies responding to each other's touch with growing eagerness, Vincent very reluctantly pulled away, with a last, lingering caress on Catherine’s uncovered breast.

"I’m sorry to have woken you, I know you needed your sleep...and there's nothing I could want more than to stay here for a while, but would you mind if we left now? It will soon be dawn." Catherine briefly wondered how he could know that, so deep underground. "I’m supposed to join Kanin’s crew to do some repair work this morning," Vincent explained, "and if I’m not there, they will worry, and maybe start searches."

She nodded "Do you think we can be there in time? It seemed to take hours to get down here!"

Vincent smiled. "It does. But there are pipes much closer, in the way station. If I send a message to say I’ve been delayed, then we can take our time going back. There’s food there, too, emergency rations that we might find useful."

At the mere mention of food, Catherine put her hand on her suddenly grumbling stomach. "Useful indeed!" she giggled. "I’m sorry, Vincent, I ate your chocolate on the way down."

He chuckled. "A gift from Geoffrey, he knows my secret weaknesses...and now you know them, too, my love."

"Mmmm, yes! All of them! And I just love them!"

That got her another kiss that left her breathless and tingling all over. She felt Vincent's barely leashed hunger as he slowly pulled away from her and rose.

"We should hurry, Catherine. It would be best if we could reach the pipes before my absence is noticed."

She grinned. "And then you said we could...take our time."

Vincent looked down at her. Her pale skin, colored a delicate pink by her arousal, contrasted in an erotic way with the dark folds of the cloak. Her warm scent rose to tease his nostrils, mixed with the heavy fragrance of their previous loving. She was beautiful, and she was his! It took all his strength of will not to join her, take her there and then, and to hell with pipes!

"We will," he promised, to himself as much as to her. With a last wistful sigh, he handed her her clothes. "I’m afraid they aren’t completely dry yet, and I couldn’t find your shoes. They must have been lost in the river. I will carry you."

She didn’t protest, knowing there was no other solution, and obediently put on her skirt and jacket, shivering under the damp contact.

"There may be some old clothes at the way station, at least there will be blankets to wrap yourself in the rest of the way. Then Mary will find you something suitable to wear before I take you back to your apartment."

Catherine’s head jerked up. "My apartment? You want to take me back there?"

Vincent's lips curved in a little smile. "No. If truth be told, I don’t," he quietly admitted. "I only thought you might want a hot bath, a change of clothes and a meal. You need to take some rest, too."

She grinned back. "Mmm! Sounds heavenly. But I can have all that Below, can’t I? As you said, Mary can find me something to wear. William’s cooking will certainly be tastier than whatever I may have left in my fridge, and... I’ve always dreamed of sharing one of those hot bathing pools with you!"

She came against him, feeling the heat of his body through his own damp clothes, and looked up into his shining, love-filled gaze. "Besides, I can only think of one bed where I want to sleep...and it’s not Above!"

He hugged her tight, fervently kissing the top of her head. "Oh, Catherine, I could wish for nothing more! But won’t you be missed Above? Don’t you have to call your office?"

"Today is Saturday. I don’t have to go back until tomorrow night." The idea made her shiver and she snuggled closer to Vincent’s warmth. Though she didn’t want to go back, she knew she would have to, if only to start making changes there. Vincent, and their life together, were all that mattered, now, and she would make all the necessary adjustments in her life to be with him. They would find a way! Suddenly remembering that her life Above was not the only obstacle in their way, she pulled away slightly to look up at Vincent.

"What about Father? What are we going to tell him?"

A faintly feral smile uncovered shining white fangs.

"We’ll tell him the truth. He will understand."

The quiet determination underlying Vincent’s self-assured, almost casual statement made Catherine giggle. She suspected Father had better "understand" right away, or Vincent would see to it that he did! The tunnel Patriarch might be in for a few surprises...

"Catherine!" Vincent gently reproached, unsuccessfully trying to repress a chuckle. He put his cloak on. "Shall we leave, now? We have a long way to go."

"I’m ready."

He looked at her and his eyes glistened as a joyous, lusty current filled their connection."You should try and sleep a little on the way, Catherine, for once we get there, if, you still insist on sharing my bed, you might not get much rest!"

She cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And why would that be, if I may ask?"

With a chuckling growl, he swept her up in his arms. "Because, my beautiful Catherine… now it's my turn!"

Echoes of happy laughter reverberated in the deserted cavern to finally drift away down the nameless river, while Vincent carried his cherished prize home.