Zuleika and the Barbarian

Chapter Two

Zuleika awoke after only three hours of sleep, but she felt as refreshed as if she had slumbered the entire night away. She listened to the birds singing out in her garden, a sense of great peace upon her. She had been kissed, but more important she had begun to put into practice all she had been taught about being a woman. She could not wait to share this with Bahira. She had found kneeling before Amir Khan, his wonderfully large manhood at her mercy, quite stimulating. The memory of it sent a flash of raw desire racing through her veins. His hands as he had lightly fondled her breasts had been exciting too. She realized that she could barely wait to have him atop her, his love lance eager to sheathe itself deep within her. She had been so tempted last night, but she had managed to push her own lustful thoughts from her mind for there was other business to conclude. "Rafa," she called to her servant.

"Yes, my princess?" the servant said, instantly appearing by her bedside.

"Fetch me my morning meal, and see what gossip you can gather while you go about your duties," Zuleika instructed the woman.

Rafa smiled a sly smile. "So, whatever you wanted to do you have now accomplished. Will you tell me?"

"Not yet," Zuleika replied, "but I believe I have saved us all. Send a slave girl for Bahira. She is to say the princess desires her companionship today."

Rafa bowed, and then hurried off while Zuleika's mind wandered back to her barbarian lord. He was so very big. When she had laid her head upon his hairless chest, a clean male scent had assailed her nostrils. His skin was so beautiful, taut over his muscular arms and legs, but smooth and soft beneath her lips. Yet so very masculine. He reeked of brute strength, and power. It had frankly thrilled her. She could barely wait to find herself in his arms once again. Her longing was almost palpable, an suddenly restless, she arose from her bed. She shed the flimsy garment she had slept in, and walking through her bedchamber entered her private bathing room. Pouring a thin stream of a creamy liquid soap into a large sea sponge, she stepped into the shell-shaped indentation in the marble floor, and gave herself a quick wash. Her breasts tingled as she touched them, her nipples puckering. She laughed to herself, realizing that she had again been thinking of Amir Khan, and the big warm hand that had so gently cupped her breasts, each in its turn. Zuleika rinsed herself off beneath a stream of water pouring from the mouth of a goldfish spout. Then coming from the shell basin she stepped down into the warm, scented pool. She floated about, relaxed, her long black hair streaming behind her like dark seaweed.

Would he come today? she wondered. He was a barbarian, yet she believed he was intelligent enough to understand everything she had told him. Would he ask for the princess of Dariyabar for his wife, and not accept her as his concubine? She knew her visit to his encampment had surprised him, even as her direct speech had. He had been more than interested by the magic she possessed through the genie, Kansbar. Her upper teeth worried her lower lip. She wanted him to come today!

Zuleika heard Rafa returning from her errand with the meal, and, it was to be hoped, some useful gossip. She came forth from the perfumed pool, twisted the water from her heavy dark hair, and dried herself on a fine heavy drying cloth made of cotton imported from a land to the southwest. Wrapping the cloth about herself, and another about her head, she reentered her bedchamber saying as she came, "What news?"

"It is said that the barbarian comes into the city this afternoon beneath a flag of truce, my princess," Rafa replied, her eyes bright with her curiosity. "Did you have something to do with this?"

Zuleika smiled, but said nothing on the subject. Instead, she sat down and began eating the melon Rafa had placed upon the table. It was pale green in color, and exceedingly sweet. It almost melted in her mouth, caressing her throat as it slid down. She remembered the head of his manhood pressing against the back of her throat before she had relaxed her throat muscles, easing him deeper. She shuddered at the memory, wondering if all men's lances were as fleshy and as long as his had been. That was the difficulty with being both a princess and a virgin. So much more was expected of you than just an ordinary girl. Still Amir Khan would, she suspected, prove an excellent lover. He could not be otherwise. Finishing the melon, she reached for a small flaky crescent of bread that had been fried crisp, dipped in warm butter and honey, and then dusted with cinnamon. Wolfing it down she took another, and sipped from her goblet of pomegranate juice thoughtfully.

"What will you wear today?" Rafa demanded to know.

"Royal purple, or course," Zuleika said, "but I will not dress yet. When the barbarian is entering the city."

"The sultan has sent no word that he wishes you to be at this particular interview," Rafa answered her mistress.

"Nevertheless, I will be there. Do you think I want Haroun whispering in my father's ancient ear and ruining all my plans? Oh no! The princess of Dariyabar will be in the audience chamber when the barbarian enters it. My cousin may gnash his teeth, but my father will allow me to remain. He loves me in his own way, for I remind him of my dead mother. If Haroun attempts to thwart me, I need only bring up the memory of Jamila, and my father melts."

"You are a very wicked girl!" Rafa scolded her. "I do not know if your mother would approve of you at all."

"Perhaps she would not," Zuleika responded, "but Jamila is not here, and I am. I must do everything in my power to protect both Dariyabar, and myself."

"And the old sultan," Rafa said softly.

"My father is Dariyabar," Zuleika said. She arose from the table, and at that moment Bahira entered the princess's chamber.

"Good morning, Zuleika! I have come for all the gossip!" She plunked herself down upon a silk-covered sofa, eyes twinkling. "I had the most amazing sleep last night," she remarked innocently.

"Humph," Rafa remarked, and then she muttered, "Probably filled with lustful dreams too, Lady Bahira." She gathered up the dishes from the table, and placing them on a tray went off, saying as she shut the door to her mistress's apartments, "I will see what else I can learn."

"You slept well because Kansbar cast a spell over everyone but Amir Khan and me," Zuleika began. "I went to his encampment, for I had a proposal to offer him. He is coming into the city today beneath a flag of truce, but he will not accept me as his concubine. He will ask for me as his wife, Bahira! And you are to be married to his general, Sabola! If he is as gorgeous as Amir Khan you will never want to leave your bed. I am Amir Khan's key to Dariyabar. Together we will vanquish Haroun, and my father may continue to live out his final years in peace and prosperity. When he is gone, Amir Khan will be sultan here."

Bahira's blue eyes were thoughtful. "It seems a foolproof plan," she said slowly, "but what if Haroun objects? He is greedy and ruthless, and as we know, both cunning and resourceful. He might be willing to let me go to a barbarian as wife, but not you, I think."

"He will have no choice," Zuleika said smugly. "The barbarian lord does my father honor by offering to wed me, and not just accept me into his harem. Sultan Ibrahim is old, and he is forgetful, but his pride is still intact. I shall be in the audience chamber this afternoon, and you must be with me. I shall dress us both in the finest robes that I have, Bahira. We will impress the barbarians, for they have surely never seen our like."

"What is he like? Amir Khan," Bahira asked.

"He is a beautiful man, if indeed such a word can be used to describe a man. His body is magnificent, and when his lust for me became obvious I took his manhood in my mouth, and soothed it. It was much, much better than those dildoes we have practiced on all our lives."

"What were his juices like?" Bahira leaned closer to her friend, her eyes wide with curiosity.

"Hot, creamy and salty," Zuleika replied.

"And he caressed you?" Bahira's breath quickened.

"His hands were all over my breasts," Zuleika responded. "I cannot wait until we lay together, and really make love!"

"Tell me about his body," Bahira begged.

"He is taller than any man I have ever seen. His chest is broad, and hairless. His waist tapers into his hips, which are narrow. When he turned I could see his buttocks were tight, and deliciously rounded. The nipples on his chest are perfect circles with deep rose-colored peaks. His skin is the palest gold in color, and while the flesh is firm, it is soft. His arms and his legs are muscled, and big, yet nicely formed. I thought his feet and hands graceful despite their size. The curls around his shaft are as black as the horsetail of hair that leaps from his shaven skull. I already desire him greatly."

"Is his face a handsome one?" Bahira wondered.

"Yes, but not like Haroun. Haroun is almost pretty, but Amir Khan's face is strong and masculine. His eyes are dark, and his nose very straight, and his mouth big like the rest of him. When he speaks, his voice is both deep and rough. I find him exciting."

"Did you see his general, Sabola?" Bahira queried.

"Nay, I did not, but I have yet to see an ugly barbarian," Zuleika noted. "As I walked to and from the city I saw their guards sleeping, and their features were very pleasing to my eye."

Rafa returned with more information regarding the impending visit of Amir Khan. The barbarian would arrive with his general. Here Zuleika and Bahira exchanged a look that Rafa did not miss, but she continued on. They would come with but a dozen of their men. The gates to the city, however, were to remain open while the khan was within its walls.

"And my father agreed?" Zuleika was surprised.

"Prince Haroun convinced the sultan that the khan may be the enemy, but he is, like the sultan, a man of honor," Rafa said.

"And where, I wonder, did he get that idea?" Zuleika remarked. "What hour is he to arrive?"

"Three hours past the noon hour, my princess," Rafa responded.

"Good," Zuleika said. "Then there is time for us to prepare ourselves, for Bahira is coming with me, Rafa. She will wear the emerald green robes, for the color flatters her. I shall have the robes that match my eyes. Royal purple brings out the softness in my skin tones." She unwound the toweling from her hair, and a slave girl hurried up to brush the princess's tresses dry.

"Such foolish vanity!" Rafa snorted, but she began to fetch all that would be required so she might dress her princess and the vizier's lovely daughter. The two gowns were carefully laid out, along with matching slippers, jewelry, and headdresses. The two girls lay down to rest upon a wide sofa, cuddling companionably in each other's arms. When they awoke, slave women brought them fresh apricots, green grapes, and purple plums to eat. When they had finished, silver basins of warm scented water were brought so they might refresh their hands, faces and mouths.

Their hair was dressed by the slave women. Zuleika instructed them to weave her long black hair with tiny strands of pearls. Bahira's auburn tresses were pulled into a single horse's tail with slim braids on either side of her face. Their hair done, the two girls were dressed. Their gowns were simple in design, but extremely elegant. They wore nothing beneath. Each had a low open neckline. Zuleika's was a teardrop, and Bahira's was square. The gowns fit snugly beneath their breasts, and were designed with bejeweled bands set into the rich cloth beneath their bosoms. The broad sleeves had cuffs to match. Bahira sparkled with emeralds, diamonds, and pearls. Zuleika glittered with amethysts, diamonds, and pearls. Their nubile bodies were visible beneath the sheer fine silk of the garments.

A slave girl entered the princess's apartments, and hurrying up to Rafa whispered something in her ear. Rafa nodded, then she turned to Zuleika. "The barbarian is entering the city with his escort," she told her mistress.

Zuleika nodded, and said to Bahira, "We must hurry to the audience chamber so that if Haroun objects there is time to convince my father that our presence is necessary," she said.

Bahira bobbed her head in agreement. "I can't wait to see the look on Haroun's face," she giggled.

Together the two girls hurried through the sultan's palace, finally arriving at the great audience chamber. It was a large room with a domed ceiling decorated in sheets of beaten gold, as were the walls. The marble pillars in the chamber were smooth dark crimson. A floor of the same material was flecked with gold. It was the audience chamber of a powerful man. Ibrahim Sultan was already seated upon his throne, a high-backed bench of pure gold studded with multi-colored jewels and a striped satin cushion beneath him. It was set upon a black marble dais with two steps. Next to it on the right was a three-legged silver stool topped with a white velvet cushion fringed with gold.

The elderly sultan was garbed all in white and gold, an aigrette with a large diamond sprouting forth from his cloth-of-gold turban. To his left stood Prince Haroun, garbed all in black, but for a cloth-of-silver turban decorated with a pigeon's-blood ruby. Zuleika quickly seated herself upon the stool, and a slave set a red silk cushion down for Bahira next to the stool, and slightly behind it.

"You should not be here!" Haroun said sharply.

"Why not?" Zuleika demanded to know. "You would give me to this barbarian as his concubine. Should he not at least see what you offer him before he decides whether to accept, or reject it?"

"Why is Bahira here?" was Haroun's next question, his eyes openly admiring the vizier's daughter.

"Do you expect me, the princess of Dariyabar, to sit in the royal audience chamber unattended?"

"Would not a slave girl do?" Haroun asked.

"Bahira is my friend, and as curious as I am about these barbarians, and no, a slave girl would not suit me! How dare you even suggest such a thing! I am the princess of Dariyabar, and the vizier's daughter should attend me. Is that not right, father?" Zuleika turned her face up to her father's and smiled.

The sultan's eyes twinkled. He stroked his silvery beard thoughtfully, and then he said, "Yes, my daughter, you are absolutely correct. I permit you and Bahira to remain."

"Thank you, father," Zuleika said in a soft voice, but her eyes mocked her cousin, Haroun.

"Thank you, my lord," Bahira added, her eyes modestly lowered.

Haroun smiled, pleased by Bahira's response. Then he licked his lips, anticipating the pleasure the vizier's daughter would give him when he took the beautiful girl to wife.

The trumpets sounded outside the great doors to the sultan's audience chamber. The portals were flung wide to admit Amir Khan and General Sabola, along with their escort. They marched directly to the foot of the sultan's throne, and then the khan saluted the elderly ruler, his right arm, fist clenched, striking his broad chest in respectful salutation.

"Greetings, Sultan Ibrahim. I am Amir Khan, and he who accompanies me is my general, Sabola. We thank you for your invitation. Perhaps we can now settle this matter between us peacefully."

"There can be no peace between us as long as you continue to besiege our city," Prince Haroun said quickly, rudely usurping both the sultan and his grand vizier, Abd al Hakim, before either might speak. "You will never take Dariyabar, Amir Khan! No one has ever captured this city in a siege. We are at an impasse. But we respect you, Amir Khan, and so that you may withdraw without shame, we offer you our own princess Zuleika as your concubine. She is, as you can see, a beautiful young woman, and she is a virgin, though well trained in the amatory arts as are all the young women of Dariyabar." Haroun's dark eyes swept the barbarian lord. A handsome, if rough-looking fellow he thought. His cousin could certainly not complain.

Zuleika waited eagerly for what was to come. Amir Khan looked impressive in his tight black leather breeches. He wore a wide jeweled belt about his supple waist. The buckle was fashioned of engraved ivory banded in silver. His massive chest was oiled but bare.

"He's magnificent," Bahira murmured so that only Zuleika heard.

"So is his companion," the princess breathed softly, her violet eyes inspecting Sabola as discreetly as she dared. "His polished metal breastplate adds a nice military touch, don't you think?"

"He is built like a bull," Bahira whispered.

"I will accept the sultan's gift, but only on one condition," Amir Khan replied to Prince Haroun.

"A condition? You would dare to make conditions with Dariyabar?" Haroun said indignantly. "Are you a peddler then, to attempt to bargain with us, Amir Khan?"

The khan ignored Haroun's insult, instead saying in a quiet voice that was somehow heard by all in the great hall of audience, "My general, who has mounted and maintained this campaign we have fought against you, must also be compensated lest he be dishonored. Give me the princess's companion, she who wears green silk and sits now by her mistress's side. She is, I believe, Bahira, daughter of the sultan's grand vizier, Abd al Hakim, a worthy prize for General Sabola. We will take these two women back with us to Khanistan."

Haroun was surprised by the request, and felt the briefest moment of regret, but then he said, "It is agreed. My uncle, the sultan, will make it so, Amir Khan." The Gods! He had looked forward to the little blossom, Bahira, in his bed. He would have treated her well. The vizier would have then been in his power. Now he must find another bride, but no matter.

"Are you in agreement, my lord Sultan?" the khan asked gently of the white-bearded old man. He watched cynically as Haroun bent to whisper in his uncle's ear. He could see the sultan was not really pleased with what was transpiring, but finally he nodded.

"It is agreed, Amir Khan. You will have my daughter, Zuleika, as your concubine, and General Sabola shall have Bahira for his."

The startled blue eyes of the vizier's daughter met the furious violet eyes of the princess of Dariyabar, but Zuleika knew better than to voice her outrage at this betrayal in her father's presence. What had made the khan deceive and mislead her? Was he really so stupid that he had not understood her proposal? She swallowed hard, as her anger threatened to burst forth and overwhelm her.

"We will return to our encampment with our prizes now, with the sultan's permission, of course," Amir Khan said, bowing.

Again the sultan nodded.

Now Zuleika spoke up. "What of my servants, and my possessions?" she asked boldly.

"I am not prepared to host a gaggle of females," the khan replied sternly. "You may share a servant between you. She will come tomorrow, and bring all your possessions with her. Is that agreeable, my lord?" He looked directly at Haroun.

"Indeed," Haroun nodded, smiling broadly. "I shall send Rafa to you, cousin, and you, vizier, will see that your daughter's things are packed up for Rafa to carry as well."

"Then it is settled," Amir Khan said in his deep, rough voice. He looked directly at Zuleika. "Come, woman!" he commanded her.

"Where is my litter?" Zuleika demanded. "Surely you do not expect me to walk like some slave woman!" Come, woman? He dared to address her as if she were nothing? Ohhh, he would pay for his words, and for his deceit! She glared angrily at him from her silver stool.

So she had a temper, the khan considered, amused. He struggled to maintain himself in the face of her outrage. The plan she had presented to him last night was well thought out, but not quite perfect. He hoped she would not kill him before he could explain the strategy he had devised to compliment her cleverness. His features retained their sternness. Without another word he stepped forward, and pulling her up from the dainty stool, he threw her over his broad shoulder and began to stride from the sultan's audience chamber.

He had taken her by surprise. She had never thought that any man would act in so barbaric a fashion. But he is a barbarian! her inner voice shouted at her in her outrage. Her dignity was in tatters now anyway. She pounded on his back with her balled-up fists as she was taken from the audience chamber. Free of the great hall he began to chuckle, and Zuleika, outraged ever further, swore at him in rather colorful language that he had not suspected a princess of Dariyabar would know.

Sabola looked to Bahira, and held out a hand. His handsome features were serious, with no hint of humor. Bahira reached out and took the hand, startled at the jolt that almost stunned her when their fingers touched. The sudden surprise in his brown eyes told her that he had felt it too. The Gods! Bahira thought with amazement. This man is my true mate. How very odd that such a thing should be, and yet I know it is so. With a reassuring smile at her father, and the sultan, Bahira walked from the hall with the khan's general. When they reached the courtyard where the khan was now mounted upon his stallion, Zuleika seated before him, they found the khan's guards awaiting them as well.

"You are a monster!" they heard Zuleika say furiously.

"Shut your mouth, woman!" the khan replied, and then he bent and whispered in her ear. "I will explain when we are free of the city."

"There is nothing you can say to me that I will believe," she hissed back at him. "You have betrayed me! You have betrayed Dariyabar!"

His big hand reached up and locked itself into her hair, thus preventing her from moving. His mouth took hers in an almost brutal kiss that left her breathless. "Be silent, Zuleika," he murmured low against her lips, "or I shall be forced to beat you. I may anyway, just for the pure pleasure of it." His dark eyes held hers.

She could not turn away from him. "You would not dare," she gasped, but she wasn't really certain.

"I am Amir Khan, my princess, and after last night there is nothing I would not dare to retain you in my possession," he told her, and then kicking his stallion lightly he finally looked away from her as they began to move off, through the palace gates and out into the city.

Sabola had mounted his own big stallion, and reaching down he pulled Bahira up with him. She nestled like a small bird in the curve of his thick, muscled arm. "You are very beautiful," he told her as they rode. "I like your blue eyes, and the red lights in your soft hair. Are you afraid?"

"Of course not," Bahira said, smiling up at him. "The moment we touched, my lord, I knew you were he for whom I have waited since my birth. I am yours, and will not question the gods in this." She gave him a sweet smile.

Sabola, the fiercest of the khan's warriors next to Amir Khan himself, felt his heart contract at her words. He had known many women in his time, but he had never loved. He had never even been certain what love was until this moment. "I will always care for you, Bahira," he told her tenderly.

"I know you will," she answered, and then she put her head upon his chest, hearing the steady rhythm of his heart beneath her ear. He was very big. She wondered if he was big all over. She suspected she would soon know.

They reached the khan's encampment, and wending their way through the tents they finally stopped before the khan's pavilion. Dismounting, the two men lifted the girls down from their horses. Zuleika attempted to strike Amir Khan, but he ducked the blow, and then yanking her over his knee smacked her bottom several blows, causing his men to burst into guffaws of laughter. He dragged her kicking and swearing into his quarters, Sabola and Bahira following behind.

When they had reached the relative privacy of the interior, Amir Khan said, "Are you going to allow me to explain without shrieking at me, or must I gag you and tie you to a tent pole?"

"There is nothing you can say to me that would explain your betrayal, you devil! I offered you Dariyabar upon a silver-nay, a golden-platter, and you have scorned it! I cannot believe you are that stupid. Are all barbarians such blockheads, my lord?"

"If I had insisted upon marrying you rather than having you as a concubine, Zuleika, it is likely I should have never left your father's audience hall alive. And if I had, my days, and yours, would have been numbered. Prince Haroun is a sly fellow, but he would have understood the threat I posed as your husband."

"So you decided that you would rather fuck me, and return to Khanistan with your tail between your legs!" she accused.

"No, I decided I should fuck you to both our pleasures, and then take Dariyabar, kill your cousin to prevent his threatening us, and lastly, marry you in your father's house with the old man by our side," he told her.

"But by dragging me in such barbaric fashion from the palace you have forced me to leave Kansbar behind, you great fool!" she cried.

"Will not your Rafa number it among the possessions she brings you?" he asked. "I assume your servant knows the secret of the bowl?"

Zuleika nodded.

"And your cousin does not know about the bowl?" he continued.

"No. I do not think so, though what my father will say to him now that I am no longer there, I do not know! Ibrahim's greatest passion, even greater than his love for my mother, is Dariyabar. Kansbar is Dariyabar's guardian. He may now tell Haroun of the genie. If my cousin gets his wicked hands on the bowl, you have no hope of gaining the city," she told him.

"Your father is old. His memory is not good. It is not likely he spoke with your cousin the moment you departed. He will mourn your going, for now all of his children are gone from him. Rafa will be here tomorrow. I will send a company of my own men to bring her safely to us. Tonight is for pleasures you and Bahira have never tasted." He smiled at her.

"I do not trust you now," she insisted. "How can I? You might have told me last night of what you planned."

"I did not know last night. I did not even know this morning, for Sabola will confirm that I told him we were to marry this day. We even bathed for the occasion, Zuleika. It was just before we were to leave for the city that it came to me that if your cousin believed everything he has planned and schemed for is coming to fruition, it will be easier to overcome him. The genie can gain the city for us, but we must together defeat Prince Haroun, my princess."

"You are, I am learning," Zuleika said, "a far cleverer enemy than I anticipated, Amir Khan. How can I be certain that if I allow Kansbar to aid you, you will not deceive and delude me once again?"

"You cannot," he said, "unless you trust me."

"What guarantees can you give me, what proof of your honor, if indeed barbarians understand honor?" she demanded.

She was a worthy opponent. She would make him a commendable wife. The children from their loins would be strong, and have integrity. Daughters as well as sons. "I have not lied to you, Zuleika," he said.

"But you did not tell me everything," she countered.

"It is a mistake I will not make again," he promised her. "It is not in my nature to lie. I am simply not used to a woman as an equal."

"I am superior to you, barbarian," she snapped, but she found she was somewhat mollified, especially when she focused on his tight leather pants. He was the most breathtaking man.

"Do you wish me to spank your round little rump again, you wildcat?" he asked pleasantly, but there was a look in his eyes that she did not like.

"I am hungry," she told him. "Do you mean to starve me, my lord? And what of my poor Bahira?"

"I am hungry, but content otherwise," Bahira said mischievously.

The khan clapped his hands, and immediately two elderly male servants appeared bearing trays of food. There was roasted lamb, and to Zuleika's surprise, fresh fish from the sea. There was a bowl of saffroned rice with plump raisins and almonds. There was yogurt, and a platter of peaches, melons, grapes, pomegranates, plums and oranges. There were small honey cakes. The khan motioned them to the pillows that were set about a low and square ebony table banded in polished brass. They sat, and their cups were filled with a sweet heady wine. They ate, and when they had finished the servants brought bowls of scented water in which to wash their hands and faces, handing them linen cloths to dry with.

"You are more civilized than I had anticipated," Zuleika said.

"Do you call all people not of Dariyabar barbarians?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered him simply, and he laughed.

"Why do you want a window on the sea?" she wondered.

"For trading purposes," he told her. "It is trade that brings a people their wealth. There is much in the interior lands, especially furs and gems, that are desired by those beyond your shores. And then, too, a seaport offers us the chance to easily go forth and conquer other lands that can be of value to us. I intend to build a navy."

She nodded. "You are an intelligent man, Amir Khan."

"Are you still angry with me?" he asked her.

"No, but that does not mean I trust you either," she told him candidly. Her gaze turned to Bahira, and she smiled. "It would appear that Bahira is content to give herself to your general. Sabola is a most impressive man."

"You find him attractive?" the khan said.

"Of course I do. He is. I have been taught to admire all beauty in all of its forms. So has Bahira. We have been companions and friends our entire lives."

"How old are you?" he asked.

"We are sixteen," she answered him. "We were born but two days apart. Bahira is the elder," Zuleika explained.

"And she is a virgin too?" he inquired.

"Of course," Zuleika told him.

"Good. I would have Sabola gain the same pleasures this night as I will gain from you," the khan replied. "I would have you both remove your robes for us now."

The girls' eyes met, surprised, but then they both arose, and divested themselves of their silken robes. Where Zuleika was tall, and slender but for her plump breasts, Bahira was pleasingly rounded with full breasts, full hips and thighs. They kicked their slippers off almost in unison.

"Undo your hair," the khan ordered them.

The two girls complied, laying the jewels from their tresses upon the table and fluffing out their long hair so that it showed to its best advantage. Each had hair that fell to just below their hips.

"Now you must both disrobe for us," Zuleika told the two men.

They complied without question, and Bahira could not help but admire both men quite openly.

Amir Khan said softly to his friend, "She is eager. She must be first with us, eh?"

Sabola agreed, nodding. "Your princess is so in control of herself that she will need more priming."

"We shall see that she has it," the khan said with a grin. Then he turned to the two girls. "It is known that girls who are close to one another, sisters or friends, it does not matter, toy with each other as their curiosity grows. I think it is so with you two despite your excellent education in the amatory arts. Certainly you were not satisfied with a simple tutorial in passion. Surely you have played with each other's breasts, and other succulent parts."

Neither Zuleika or Bahira said a word, but their cheeks were warm with their blushes.

"You did not learn to kiss so well, my princess, by merely pressing your lovely lips to a sheet of beaten gold. Sabola and I would be entertained now by the sight of you both kissing, and touching each other as you have undoubtedly done many times in the past."

Bahira did not hesitate. She slipped an arm about Zuleika, and kissed her mouth even as the princess began to fondle her friend's lovely full breasts. For several minutes they kissed and caressed one another, and then they fell upon the pillows embracing. Bahira was the aggressor of the pair. She laid her length atop Zuleika's, and pressed her mons hard against her friend's. Together the girls moved in rhythm, their little pants of desire quite audible, their lush bodies entwined as the two men watched and became quickly aroused by the sensuous sight of the virgin duet at play. They seemed to know exactly when to stop the girls, Sabola leaning over from where he was seated to push Bahira off the princess. The khan then pulled the princess up. His finger pushed between her nether lips, and he smiled. Then, to Zuleika's shock, he tied her to a tent pole with soft silk bonds.

"Wh… what are you doing?" she gasped.

"It is all right, my princess," he told her, and his big hand caressed her face tenderly. "You must not be afraid, but Bahira needs our attentions first. We will get to you soon enough. You will watch us as we play together, and then you will play with us." He kissed her lips softly, and then turned back to Sabola and Bahira.

It was disturbing, but it was also exciting, Zuleika thought. She was not at all afraid of losing her virginity, but she had never considered that she would lose it in such a manner. She focused upon Bahira and her lover, fascinated by the erotic tableau that they presented sprawled upon a coral-colored silk mattress upon a raised dais across the tent. Bahira lay between Amir Khan's long legs while he played with her full breasts and murmured in her ear, leaving little kisses upon her face now and again. Sabola slowly licked Bahira's widespread legs, murmuring with pleasure at the delicious taste of her.

Zuleika felt her heart beat faster as the man moved slowly, slowly, until his fingers pulled Bahira's lips apart, and the fleshy tongue began to lick at Bahira's most private place. Bahira's little cries of delight sent her friend's pulses pounding even harder. Zuleika's lips felt dry. She licked them several times, and then she felt the khan's eyes upon her. She met his gaze, and Amir Khan smiled knowingly. Then he bent to kiss Bahira's parted lips.

"She is marvelous," Sabola's rough voice ground out. "You must taste her before I have her, Amir. Virgin juices are always wonderful."

The two men switched places, and Bahira's cries grew greater in intensity. "Ohh, do it!" she begged. "Please do it!"

Sabola chuckled. "Such an eager little maiden," he murmured, and he nibbled on her ear. "Let the khan have the pleasure of your juices, Bahira. You will soon enough be impaled upon my lance."

"I want it!" Bahira gasped. "The Gods, I want it!"

Zuleika could barely breathe now. The sight of the two men making love to her best friend was proving incredibly arousing. Then the khan was arising from the mattress, and Sabola's great body was covering Bahira, who moments later cried out as if in pain. Then her cries turned in an opposite direction. Amir Khan now stood behind the pole where Zuleika was tied. His hands fondled her plump breasts, and he whispered in her ear.

"Soon, my princess, you will suffer your friend's fate. Are you as eager for it as she is?" He gently but firmly pinched one of her nipples, and a thrill of excitement raced down her spine.

"Yes!" she managed to say, straining against her bonds.

He laughed. "We shall both have her, Zuleika, and we shall both have you as well." The tip of his tongue teased at her ear.

"But if one of us should have a child?" she asked him. "How can either of you be certain as to the babe's paternity, or don't you care, my lord?" The Gods! His hands were now on her belly, and she had begun to ache with her need for him.

"The wine Sabola and I were served had an herb in it that has destroyed the life in our seed this evening. It will revive tomorrow," he explained. "We barbarians like to share our women now and again. It is a hospitable thing to do. But we would have our sons be ours." His lips brushed the side of her neck. "You and Bahira are just too beautiful and too delicious not to share this night."

"Will you share me after we are married?" she asked him.

"Only if you desire it," he promised her.

Bahira now shrieked a cry of such intense pleasure, while Sabola roared like a lion, and the khan laughed as his best friend collapsed atop his lover.

"The Gods," Sabola said as he came to himself again. "The wench is insatiable, Amir. Come and enjoy yourself. She is ready, I have not a doubt, for more cock, eh, my beauty?"

"More!" Bahira demanded.

The barbarian general lay sprawled by Bahira's side as the khan mounted her, and used her fiercely until she begged him to cease. When he withdrew from her she noted that he was still hard, and she raised a questioning brow.

Amir Khan laughed again. "I would save my passion for my princess, but you, my darling, are quite wonderful." He gave her a kiss upon her ripe, bruised lips.

The trio bathed themselves in basins of water that had been left out for them earlier. The khan arose from the silk mattress. His dark brown eyes met those of Zuleika's.

"Now, my princess, it is your turn to be fucked. Bahira is a most proficient lover. You must be even better." He went to the pole and untied her. Then he led her to the dais where both Sabola and Bahira awaited her, smiling.