Marc Antony’s Woman: Out of Time

Marc Antony’s Woman
By Misha

Disclaimer- Not mine.
Author’s Notes- Antony and Portia refused to co-operate and insisted on adding a little bit to this chapter, mainly a sexy scene, and who am I to deny them? So this is mostly faithful to the book with some added smut.
Pairing- Marc Antony/MC
Rating- NSFW
Summary- The day of Caesar’s return has arrived and Antony and Portia steal one more moment to themselves.

Chapter Seven: Out of Time

The next weeks passed quickly. Antony was my only patron, claiming as much of my time as possible, neither of us wanting to be apart because while we rarely talked about it, we knew that time was running out and soon Caesar would return.

One afternoon, Antony entered the scholae and as soon as I saw him, I knew our time had run out.

“Caesar’s ship was spotted downriver,” Antony announced, “he will make landfall before the sun sets.”

I bit my lip. I had known this day was coming and yet… “Today?”

“Yes.” He confirmed, his expression sad. He drew me to him, pressing me tightly against him before kissing me hard. I kissed him back eagerly, wishing I could freeze this moment.

When the kiss finally ended, Antony held me close, dropping his mouth to my ear and whispering, “I have awaited and dreaded this day in equal measure.”

“I only go to him at your request, Antony,” I reminded him, my voice equally quiet, “you are the only one I care for.”

It was more truth than lie. I had agreed to this for Antony, but also for myself, because I would never have better access to Caesar, but it was Antony I cared about. No matter who’s bed I was in, it would always be Antony in my heart.

“Remember that,” Antony instructed, placing another kiss on my mouth as Artemis ran over to us, butting her head against his hand.

He let go of me to pet her, a smile on his face. “You never did like Caesar, did you?”

Artemis barked in agreement and I smiled, apparently, my dog had superior taste. But I already knew that from her instant hatred of Xanthe.

After a moment, Antony stepped back and raised his voice, almost as if he was performing.

“With Caesar arriving in Rome, I must, of course, have a kingly gift ready for him to show my tribute.

He met my eyes meaningfully. We had talked about this. Caesar would now be the First Man in Rome and what better gift, than the most popular courtesan? Making it appear that my attentions were nothing more than a benefit of the office. Which was fine, as long as Antony and I both knew otherwise.

I bowed my head, hiding a ghost of a smile, ready to play along. “Indeed.”

Antony snapped his fingers and a servant appeared, carrying in a brightly colored bundle.

“The rumors I hear are that the Egyptian queen is the most beautiful woman in the world, and she has Ceasar eating out of her hand,” Antony told me, “They say she has already born him a son, which is more than any of his wives have managed.”

I raised an eyebrow, “I hope you’re not expecting me to compete with her on that front.”

Not only were pregnant courtesans frowned upon, one of the many reasons I took contraceptive tea, I wasn’t willing to bring a child into my plot for revenge. Even if I were to have a child with a Roman, Caesar wouldn’t be my choice of father, but that was a dangerous thought to have.

“Jupiter forbid!” Antony exclaimed, shock and horror showing on his face. He shrugged, “But she can hardly hold the same allure for him now.”

His words sent a chill through me, leading to more dangerous thoughts. He had sworn his loyalty to me, but how long would it take for his attention to fade? Not that I planned on having his child, but…

“Besides,” Antony continued with a grin, having no idea of the direction my thoughts had taken, “I happen to know the most beautiful woman in the world is right here…”

He unfurled the parcel, revealing a dress, made in the Egyptian style, made of fine linen and belted with jewels.

“But just in case, let’s make sure you… play to his proclivities,” Antony suggested, passing over the dress.

“My mother was Egyptian, you know,” I commented, though I wasn’t sure he did, we had never really talked about my parents. It wasn’t exactly an easy conversation.

Antony’s grin widened, “even better then. In this, you will look like a princess to rival any queen.”

“I’ll need help getting into it,” I told him, “Lena is out.”

Both of us ignored the servant standing right there as Antony grinned and followed me into my chambers.

Once we were there, I peeled off my gown, leaving myself nearly bare in front of him. Antony’s eyes darkened with hunger as he swept my body.

“I am a fool to send you to another man,” he muttered, pulling me hard against him, his hands traveling my body as his lips devoured mine.

“Maybe you need something to tide you over,” I suggested, pulling at his armor. I knew it was foolish with the servant right outside, but I didn’t care. If I was going to have to serve Caesar, I needed this first.

Antony seemed to agree, because he quickly shed his armor and then I was back in his arms, our hands traveling over each other’s bodies, our mouths eagerly meeting as he pushed me up against the wall.

“You are mine,” Antony declared as he slid a finger inside of me, and then another, his lips trailing over my neck.

“Yes!” I moaned, arching my hips into his touch. He pumped his fingers in and out of me at a practiced pace, knowing exactly what I liked and I had to bite my lip to stop the cry of pleasure that wanted to spill out as he pushed me over the edge.

Antony immediately withdrew his hand and replaced it with his cock, slamming into me, his pace hard and frantic, claiming me as his. We moved together, both of us desperate with need and the realization that we didn’t know when we would be like this again, and the knowledge that I would be in another’s bed soon, possibly even that very night.

It wasn’t long before, I came apart again and after a few more thrusts, Antony came too, his body pinning me to the wall, his mouth finding mine in a lazy kiss.

“We need to get your dressed,” he said regretfully.

“Yes,” I agreed, letting him help me to my feet. I reached for the new gown and Antony helped me into it, his hands lingering on my flesh. I hid a smirk at the way the dress showed off my cleavage, it was obvious that it wasn’t only Caesar’s taste that had been taken into consideration when the dress was chosen.

Once the dress was in place, Antony led me back into the main chamber, after stealing one more kiss.

Aqui came over to us, making an annoyed sound as he hopped onto Antony’s shoulder.

Antony grinned, “I know Aqui! It’s hard to look at her like this, then send her off to someone else.”

Aqui made a noise of agreement.

“You two make quite a pair,” I said with a laugh, “You are both incorrigible.”

“It is why you like us,” Antony replied, earning another laugh. After a moment, he sighed and put Aqui on the ground. “Come. We should be at the docks to greet him when he arrives.”

I nodded and followed Antony out the door, wishing that I could freeze time, and yet… Hadn’t I waited years for this moment? After today, I’d be one major step closer to my goal, that was what I needed to be focused on, not the fact that the happiness Antony and I had found these last weeks was quickly slipping away from us…