One In Body And Soul

By Jennie

I sat there in the dust for a long time, cradling Diego in my arms, rocking to and fro. I could not believe that I had found out so much about myself, that I had met and loved my real father, and that I had already lost him.

I was stunned by all that had happened that day…the anguish at having thought I might not save all those people in time, the fear that had shot through me as Don Diego had gone to kill don Rafael…the man I had believed to be my father for all those years. The horror at discovering what an evil man he really was…and oh God, he was dead too.

Still stroking Diego's hair, I slowly lifted my eyes to Alejandro, and saw in his face the same pain that was flowing through my soul.

Tears were glistening in his deep, beautiful eyes; his lips were quivering.

"Elena…"

The catch in his voice broke something in me, it was just too much.

Hot tears rolled down my cheeks, my chest heaved, as I began to release the intense emotions I had stored up during the day.

"Elena, no no no no no, Elena…"

He gently took Diego's body out of my arms and laid him on the ground, flinching slightly as his head touched the dust, then he gathered me into his warm embrace and held me close, stroking my hair and whispering soft words of comfort into my ears in our native Spanish, until I had literally cried it all out.

When my sobbing had subsided and I was breathing regularly, he took my hand and helped me to my feet.

"Come," he said gently, "we will give him a funeral worthy of the man he was"

We did.

All the people we had saved from the mine were there, plus many others who had traveled from afar to commemorate the hero who, years before, had fought for them or saved their lives. You would have thought we were mourning Santa Ana himself, there were so many people.

There were flowers everywhere (Rumania - I had insisted), giving out a heavenly perfume…everything was perfect, and it was somehow very healing.

We knew the people would not have appreciated a commemoration of Montero, but I had loved him, so we held a quiet ceremony, just the two of us.

As I held Alejandro's hand, deep in thought, he told me of his brother, who had been slain by Captain Love, and had received no such ceremony, so together we mourned for Joaquin, too.

It was the saddest day I had ever experienced, but also one of the sweetest, and Alejandro and I fell deeper and deeper in love with every minute that passed.

That night we rode to Montero's place.

My impulse was to say, "welcome to your new home, my love", but the words died in my throat.

How was I to know whether he would want to stay with me or not? Sure, we were in love, and Diego had given us his blessing, but this man was, after all, El Zorro.

I changed the phrase to, "Welcome to my home. We can sleep here, at least for tonight".

I made us up single beds, but I could not bear to sleep alone after all that had happened, nor could I bear to be so far away from Alejandro, so I crept over to his bed, and crawled in by his side.

At first a little surprised, he seemed very pleased to feel me beside him, and he encircled me with his arms to pull me closer.

He was dressed, but his shirt was unbuttoned, and I found myself two inches away from thick, black chest hair, curling before my eyes and silently inviting my fingers to entwine in it. It took my breath away.

We looked into each other's eyes, both unable to speak, as we soaked up the feelings we were arousing in each other, both of spiritual happiness at being so close, and of physical excitement at…well, at the same thing.

"Ah, mi amor, what a day we have passed, si?"

His voice sounded strange, as though he were finding it difficult to talk steadily, with a controlled tone.

Slowly his lips covered what little space there was between us, and found mine.

After a while of sweet, childlike, closed lip kissing, his tongue opened my mouth, and slid into it.

It performed a few tentative moves, as though asking permission, and then it started twisting and swirling in my mouth, caressing my own tongue, sliding over my teeth.

Oh God, I thought, closing my eyes and twisting my body in pleasure to the rhythm his tongue was dictating.

I had felt him do this a few times before, but I still wasn't used to the fire it sent gushing round my body.

I delighted in every movement of his hot tongue in my mouth, savoured its strength, its flavour, its moisture.

I remembered myself however, when I felt his erect manhood press longingly against my thigh.

I stopped moving and pushed him gently away from me, feeling for all the world as though I were tearing out my heart.

"What?"

"Alejandro, mi amor, I am sorry…I want this more than you can imagine, but …"

"But what?"

"But I cannot be one with you in body until we are one in soul…until we are married."

He sighed deeply, and sank back into the pillow.

He was neither angry nor confused, to my surprise; if anything he looked a little sad.

"I know, mi corazon…it is written en la Biblia, si?"

"Oh you know that? You thought the fourth commandment was 'though wilt not kill'!!" I teased, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

He slapped my cheek playfully.

"Very funny…I still love and respect nuestros Dios, querida…as I do you. The losses today have been too great for us to indulge in such joys tonight, anyhow. Just lie in my arms, and we will comfort each other while we dream, si?"

"Si"

I snuggled into the warmth of his strong chest.

His words had touched me to the depths of my soul, and I felt myself melt into him.

This man was not only fascinating, fun, "vigorous" as I had told Montero, and extremely handsome…he was also caring, respectful, and compassionate.

I was now completely and unalterably his.

We lay there just talking for a long time.

He told me of his brother; of how good he had always been to him and how he had always watched out for him, ever since they had been little niños; of his friend Jack and how much he had loved him, although he had never admitted it.

Of happy times with Diego.

I told him of my childhood in Spain, of life with Montero.

Of how as a child I would ride my horse into the moonlight and wave to the heavens, hoping that somehow my mother, whom I had barely ever known except for by the spirit she had passed down to me, would see me.

We bared our souls to each other, and slowly I sensed Alejandro's breathing grow slower and deeper, his head rested with more abandon on the pillow.

He had fallen asleep in my arms.

I watched him for a while as he slept by my side…he looked like a little child, like an angel even.

How much I longed to feel him inside me, to be one with him!

I agreed with the Lord's commandments, I only ever wanted to give myself to one man in my life, but I could think of no one I wanted that man to be if not Alejandro.

I would have to wait and see if he felt the same way about me.

***

The next day I awoke late, and Alejandro was no longer in my arms.

I had dreamed of him all night long, and it was horrible opening my eyes and finding myself staring at the blank wall in front of me, and not into those deep pools of liquid caramel that were his eyes.

I got up, got dressed, thinking of him all the time, and trying to make myself as pretty as possible for him, then set to looking for him.

My father's house was large and luxurious, he could have been anywhere, and I spent a long time going from one room to another, running up and down stairs and peering out of windows.

He was nowhere to be seen. His horse had gone too, and his few possessions. There was not even so much as a note telling me where he had gone.

Realisation (or what I thought was realisation) swept over me, knocking me emotionally off balance like a wave of the ocean stronger than my soul could take.

I shrank down to the floor in a corner of the room I was in, my back to the wall, and tears began again to stream down my cheeks and onto my neck.

What a fool I had been to think that El Zorro himself would want to stay with me, spend the rest of his life with little Elena. How stupid I had been to have hoped that my greatest dreams were about to come true.

Without Alejandro I was alone in the world. The people would have loved me in memory of Diego, but I had been Montero's daughter too, it would not have lasted long.

The grief and exhaustion that Alejandro had so sweetly drawn out of me returned, heavier than ever, like a sack of hot coals lying on my shoulders, and I shook as I cried.

He must have heard my sobs, for he burst into the room, ran to my side and knelt down before me.

Slowly I lifted my bloodshot eyes to meet his.

"Alejandro?"

"Elena, mi amor, what is the matter? You cry for your father again?"

His face was so full of love and concern that it broke my heart to think I had ever doubted him.

"No, I…I thought you didn't want to stay with me, I thought you had left me, I …"

Fresh tears made it impossible to speak any further.

"Oh God Elena! Are you crazy? Mi amor loco!! You silly girl. Oh God"

He was angry with himself for having involuntarily hurt me like that, not at me.

He sat on the floor and took me onto his lap. He held me close in his arms as though I were the most precious thing on earth, and whispered to me.

"Mi alma…how can you ever have thought for one single moment that I would ever leave you? I love you like I have never loved anyone before, and I want to spend my lifetime loving you. Please …"

He produced a flower from nowhere just as he had done at the party, and my heart leapt to see a tiny ring glistening between the petals.

"Alejandro, how did you…"

"Shh my love. The jeweler knows who I am and trusts me to pay him in time. Please …"

I felt so giddy I was beginning to feel sick, and I was pleased to have the support of his wonderfully strong arms around me.

"Elena…I was a petty thief. I have killed men. I have no one in my life but you, and I am Zorro. I will often have to leave your side to fight for the people. But I will always come home. I will always be yours. I will never, ever stop loving you, you will be my sunshine in the darkness, my rainbow in the storm…and I will be your fortress during danger, your comfort during pain, your…"

I lay my fingertips on his soft, warm, velvety lips. He had spoken with such emphasis his cheeks were burning.

"Enough, Alejandro".

"Elena, will you be my wife? Will you marry me?"

Tears spilled down my cheeks again, but this time they were tears of pure joy.

I couldn't speak, so I just nodded, and let my head fall onto his chest.

Alejandro knew that this was a "yes" stronger and more meaningful than if I had screamed it at the top of my voice, and as he gently put one finger under my chin and lifted my face to kiss me, I saw that he was about ready to burst with happiness.

***

We were married as soon as the appropriate period for mourning had passed, in the chapel, by Diego's faithful old time friend.

We had tried to keep everything modest and low key, but *somehow* the whole city had found out, and was there, spilling out of the church onto the beach, to see us into our new life together.

I signed the papers "Elena de la Vega". I had loved Montero, but I was not his daughter. My father had been don Diego.

I will never forget the look in Alejandro's eyes when I said yes … I always make an effort to store happy memories in my mind, but this time I didn't need to try.

I think my husband almost cried himself as he bent to kiss the tears away from my cheeks, and whispered "no more of these, please".

He carried me out of the Church in his arms, amidst the happy cries of the people and the cascading white flower petals.

He sat me on his horse in front of him, and rode away into the distance with me. We both were very aware of the fact that we would finally be able to join our bodies into one, neither of us could wait for night to fall, and we wanted to be far, far away from everyone, in our own personal heaven.

As we rode the motion of the horse walking caused his manhood to rock against my leg, and we were both intensely aroused long before we had reached our destination.

We arrived at last in a meadow that Alejandro had previously sought out … it was perfect. There was a truly magical atmosphere to it, and it was beautiful.

I felt the strong arms of my love lift me down from the horse, one round my shoulders and one under my legs, and lay me gently in a bed of soft green moss and flowers.

He lowered himself slowly until he was lying on top of me, resting on his arms so as not to lean his weight on me.

As he gazed at me, I saw that his eyes, filed with the same gentleness they always held, were also engulfed with desire.

I knew the feeling. My eyes opened and closed again and again, I nibbled my lips in sweet but hungry anticipation. If his kisses drove me wild, what was this going to do to me? I wanted to please him too.

Between the desire and the overwhelming love and tenderness he was awaking in me, I began to feel intensely dizzy.

His head came down to kiss me, more hungrily than he ever had before. I guess he knew that I would now give my whole self to him, and he could not wait. As he kissed me his body pressed into mine, and I moaned, I could not bear for all that material to still be separating us.

"Ale-jandro please…t-ake these things o-ff"

Slowly he undressed me, and allowed me to undress him. Tantalisingly slowly.

I don't think anything I have ever seen can compare to the beauty my eyes beheld as my love finally lay naked before me, not even the sunrise at dawn, or the smile of a tiny baby. His skin was taught, every muscle perfectly moulded, and he shone with virility.

I buried my fingers in his chest hair as I had longed to do for so long, and saw how it narrowed on his perfect abdomen, and led to that covering his manhood. It was already fully erect, but my love took things slowly, thinking of my pleasure before his.

He lay down on me, carefully making sure that the weight was not too great for me, and as I felt his warm naked skin, soft as the velvet cloths that were sold at the market, touch mine, I felt hot red flames travel rapidly through my body, overwhelming me.

"Oh, my love"

Every inch of my body ached for him, and I moaned softly, clinging to him, trying to fuse our bodies into one.

I felt as though I never, ever wanted my skin to part from his.

When the aching became too strong for me to bear, I called out his name, and he understood.

His soft warm tongue, that I had so often enjoyed in my mouth, covered every single inch of my skin, soothing me, giving me a softer, more manageable pleasure.

He was tasting the sweetest thing he would ever taste, he had been wanting to taste it for ages, and he didn't want to miss a square inch of it. His sweet tongue found it's way to places no one had ever been to before.

I threw my head back and entangled my fingers in his soft, wavy, chestnut hair.

Then I suddenly wanted to please him more than I wanted him to please me, and I moved my body around until he lay under me. I loved him as well as I could, never having done it before, and when I saw his face contorted in pleasure that I had given him my heart almost broke with happiness.

"My l-ove…"

He was finding it hard to speak, but I could understand him.

The sound of his voice sent a shock wave of love and tenderness through me that was far stronger and more overwhelming than any physical pleasure he had given me. A smile spread across my face, but tears threatened to spill from my eyes, as I contemplated that I was married to this man, that we would always be together, and that I was making him happy.

"My love, are you ready for me?"

I had been thinking only of his pleasure for a while, and I had almost forgotten mine, but at these words it returned immediately, and swept over me.

"Si, mi amor"

He turned us around again, and gently entered where only he was allowed to.

"What was it you said, mi corazon?"

His voice sounded frantic, it came between rapid breathing, but it was dark more with love than with physical pleasure.

"One in soul and body?"

"Si"

"Oh Elena! Elena, amor de la mi vida, we are! And we will be for the rest of our lives, and forever!"

I knew he spoke the truth, and my soul almost broke with joy, as together we soared over the tops of the mountains.

***

Smiling, I look down at the tiny baby suckling at my breast.

His large, beautiful eyes and his full, pouting lips remind me that what lived in me and now lies in my arms is a part of Alejandro...a part of the man I love with every atom of my being.

What is one in soul and body has created a third life, yes two that are one have made three, and…

Mathematic calculations fly out of my head as my soul's idol walks into the room, smiling at us with so much tenderness on his face that I want to cry (again!).

He walks up to the low chair where I am sitting and kisses the top of our tiny son's head with unbelievable gentleness.

"Ahhh, mi niño", he breathes.

Then he looks up to me, gazes deep into my eyes.

"Y mi alma"

I must be the happiest woman alive.