by K T Grant
“That’s why we must fight fire with fire. You lived through a war that would destroy a woman’s sanity. A selfish prick like Beau isn’t going to ruin everything you worked so hard for. He needs to be taught a lesson.”
A thrill shot up Lily’s spine at the idea of Beau bawling into his pillow over her. She leaned in closer to Rose until she was only an inch away from her. “And what do you recommend we do?” she asked in breathless anticipation.
An unexpected heat pooled in between her legs when Rose cupped the back of her head. Lily couldn’t look away as Rose’s tongue swiped over her bottom lip and then her top. A sigh almost left her as Rose’s mouth brushed over her cheek.
“Beau wants to ruin your reputation so he looks golden in the eyes of the law. But what he doesn’t realize is until he divorces you, his last name is in conjunction with yours. Every move you make is watched and commented upon. So, whatever actions you do, it will come back on him. What if you do something unbelievably shocking that will make him lose face in the eyes of his peers?”
“And what do you recommend I do?” Lily asked, her eyes flickering as Rose’s breath tickled the side of her face.
Rose snickered. “Nothing as shocking as walking down Main Street naked, but more along the lines of guilt by association. I want you to come live with me here, at Rose’s Delights, and help me run things.”
Lily’s eyes grew wide and she moved away. Rose continued to give her a droopy eyed stare and gently tugged on the edges of her hair. She mulled over Rose’s idea, contemplating both the consequences as well as the rewards.
“If I do that, I’ll become a pariah in truth,” Lily said carefully.
Rose folded her hands on the table. “It could happen, but look at the situation you’re in now. Where are all your friends and neighbors coming to your defense, inviting you to stay with them?”
“No one has,” Lily responded sadly. “Only you.”
“And what’s the worst that could happen? You leave Charleston with a big divorce settlement Beau will end up giving you to help you begin somewhere new.” Rose held up her finger when she began to argue. “And don’t tell me Beau won’t give you some monetary compensation. He owes it to you, and again, he’ll look like a complete ass if he denies you some sort of support. You can fight him on that regardless if he accuses you on the grounds of adultery. Beau can be a prig when it suits him, but he’s not completely heartless.”
“If I do this and live with you here, he may become angrier and find a way to get his revenge.” Lily held back her panic. It was one thing to lose Beau, but another not to have any money to make her own way in the world. She refused to go back to those days right after the war ended where she tried to save her home and not starve. Never again would she go to bed hungry and afraid. Beau had promise, no matter what happened between them, he would make certain she was well cared for. And that meant his bank account.
“Listen to me.” Rose grabbed hold of Lily’s hand and rubbed her thumb across her knuckles. Lily concentrated on the caress to help calm her nerves and rapidly beating heart. “Beau is just a man. He can do only so much and go off at the mouth until people get tired of hearing him speak. You two are the current scandal of the moment. I can promise you in a few days there will be a new one and everyone will turn their attention elsewhere. Do you really care what those snobs think of you?”
“Not one fig,” Lily said strongly and gave Rose’s hand a strong squeeze. Rose did the same and they both smiled at one another, basking in their triumph.
“Now, how about we finish our breakfast and send a message to your servant girl to bring you a change of clothes. Then we’ll go back to your soon to be vacated house and take what you need so you can get settled in here. I can’t wait to show you around and how things are run. My girls are going to adore you as much as I do.”
Lily glanced at Rose from the corner of her eye while Rose hummed a jaunty tune. She adored her? Why did that make her stomach knot and her thighs clench? She had felt much the same when Beau professed his love for her while they made love. Mary had admitted more than a few times the summer before she became engaged to Wyatt how wonderful she found her to be. But then Mary had been the one to end their love affair before it could really take flight.
Rose was just a friend and not a lover. She couldn’t put her heart on the line again, and not with a woman who had seen and done things that would make a weaker woman faint. She did like to hear the compliment from Rose, but she wouldn’t ponder the deeper meaning behind it.
She raised her cup to her lips and watched silently as the woman sitting next to her finished her breakfast. Lily ignored the urge to press her lips against Rose’s to taste the spot of jam left on the side of her mouth. And the fact she didn’t feel any shame by thinking it, confused her even more.
Chapter Four
“Do you think Rose and her overnight guest are having breakfast in bed together and using a pot of jam in creative ways?”
Jo threw one of Alene’s slippers at her head. Alene ducked and giggled as she pulled a brush through her hair. Her younger sister could be so silly sometimes, but Jo loved her to pieces regardless.
Alene swung around on her stool and faced her. Both dimples of her cheeks surfaced as she smiled. Jo continued sewing a loose button on the back of Alene’s dress.
“You gossip too much,” Jo said, and broke off the thread with her teeth. She held the dress up for Alene’s approval.
“What else is there to do here? Why, I bet Rose and Mrs. Odell engage in a scandalous love affair.” Alene lifted her finger in the air and swung her waist long blonde hair over one shoulder. “Mr. Odell will find out, and still in passionate love with his wife, will steal her back. Rose and Mrs. Odell will go into hiding where her nasty husband can’t find them.”
“You’ve been reading too many of those penny novels,” Jo teased.
Alene sat down on the bed next to her and unraveled Jo’s braid to brush her hair. “Monty gives them to me. He knows I can’t get enough of them. Sometimes after we finish fucking, he’ll read me a passage or two before he leaves to go to his club.” A sigh left Alene’s mouth as she spoke of her favorite client, the fifteen year older Mr. Addison, who’d been coming to Rose’s Delights for years. Mr. Addison developed an attachment for Alene since she started working as one of Rose’s girls and chose to spend his nights with her.
“And what about Mrs. Margaret Anne Bourdieu, Rose’s current lover? Mrs. Bourdieu won’t give up Rose without a fight either. One morning while I was helping the woman get dressed to return home, all she could go on about was how skilled Rose was and not even her husband could give her the type of climaxes Rose could.”
“Ew. I just don’t understand how two women could be together like that. They’re missing an important body part that brings forth such pleasure.” Alene tugged on Jo’s hair. “Do you think Rose really enjoys sticking her tongue into a woman’s honey pot?”
“Alene Jonet!” Jo groaned and covered her face. “I don’t want to think about Rose and her tongue anywhere near Bourdieu’s nether regions.”
“A woman likes it when a man suckles her cunny, so why not when a woman does the same? I’ve heard many women in our line of work, who have only preferred men, express delight over a woman’s soft lips and lapping tongue in their puss when with a female client,” a voice Jo knew all too well spoke from the doorway.
“Clinton Lear! Watch your mouth. There are two ladies present.” Alene rolled her eyes and got up from the bed.
Jo peeked through her fingers as Alene gave Clinton’s arm a rap with her brush. He gave Alene a mock pout and then Jo a wink.
He’s so beautiful. Jo put her hair back into a braid as she gave Clinton side glances. While Alene combed her fingers through his curls to bring them to order, Jo licked her lips, wishing she was brave enough like Alene to touch Clinton that way.
“We’re embarrassing your sister,” Clinton said to Alene and kissed the inside of her palm
as he walked past her and sat down on the edge of the bed. Jo held back a moan as his hip brushed hers.
Alene put her fisted hands on her hips. “I should have shut the door. You have a bad habit of entering a room without being invited.”
Clinton inclined back on his elbow as he tapped his fingers on his stomach. Jo watched, entranced by those skillful hands of his. Clinton was friendly with his touches among the other girls, but when it came to her, he kept his hands to himself.
“You should be honored by my presence. Many women would swoon to find me in their boudoir.”
Jo covered a laugh and shook her head. Clinton sat up and when his arms came around her and pressed her back against his chest, she almost swallowed her tongue.
“I’m glad I make you laugh. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you smile,” Clinton said softly into her ear.
Jo stared ahead, afraid to move. Alene crossed her arms and tilted an eyebrow up.
“Don’t,” Jo mouthed at her sister and moved out of Clinton’s embrace.
“Now I’m lonely. Come back,” Clinton said in that husky voice of his she’d never get tired of hearing.
“What a joke.” Alene snorted and hung the dress that Jo passed over to her in her closet. “You barely have time for yourself with the line of men and women coming in and out of your bedroom.”
Clinton sat back against the headboard and wiggled his booted foot. When he folded his hands behind his head, the collar of his white shirt gaped and Jo caught sight of a purplish bruise near his collarbone. She leaned against the open doorway, watching his throat move. Another love bite from one of his clients. I wonder if he has any others on his body?
Clinton rested his palm over the bruise. Creases developed on his forehead, a notable sign he was unhappy about something . His genial smile vanished with a pensive stare aimed at her.
“It’s been an exhausting few weeks. Maybe I’ll think of retiring soon, if only to catch up on my sleep.” Clinton’s dark blue eyes twinkled back at her as he spoke to Alene, although he watched her the entire time.
“You retire?” Alene sat back down in front of her mirror and rubbed cream on her cheeks. “You’ve been saying that since I first met you. And where would you go? To some boring backwater town where no one would recognize you?”
“I’d buy a small plot of land and raise horses with my savings. It would be nice to have solitude, away from all you harping women.” Clinton bent forward and rested his hands on his knees. “But then I’d have to leave Jo, and I don’t think I can.”
“Wh-what?” Jo’s breath left her as Clinton stood and came over to her. She tilted her head back as she gazed up into his face, which she found angelic.
Clinton rubbed a piece of her hair that loosened from her braid. “If I left, I wouldn’t have anyone to iron my trousers or sew buttons on my shirts.”
Alene giggled. Jo slapped his arm. He didn’t block her move and when she pulled her hand away, he took it in his own and kissed her knuckles. She cleared her throat, his touch making her heart flutter in her chest.
“Stop teasing Jo. She has much more to offer a man than just ironing his shirts.” Alene wagged a finger at Clinton.
Clint squeezed Jo’s hand and released her as she moved to her side and backed against the wall. She couldn’t stand there with Clinton so close, and as she went to take a step forward, her leg cramped and she winced.
“Is your leg hurting you? Do you want me to go down to the kitchen and ask Cook for a warm compress to ease you sore muscles?” Clinton asked, his teasing turning to one of concern.
Jo’s bottom lip trembled with emotion, but she didn’t care, and shook her head no.
“That’s sweet of you, but I’m fine. I have to go down there anyway,” she gave his arm a pat as a thank you.
“Are you two sharing secrets over there? Seeing as you’re both guests in my room, I deserve to know what you’re talking about.” Alene glared at both her visitors through her mirror.
“Clinton asked me about Mrs. Odell and what Rose has planned for her.” Jo stated, and when Clinton’s hand brushed up against her hip, she moved over to Alene to fix her hair. Why Clinton suddenly frowned at her, she couldn’t say.
“Rose is going to take Mrs. Odell as her next lover. Just you watch.” Alene gave Jo a knowing smile as she pulled down her robe to spread cream over the top of her chest.
“Maybe Rose will talk her into working for the house,” Clinton said and put his hands in his trouser pockets.
Jo brushed Alene’s hair, refusing to look at Clinton. She could feel him staring at her and she didn’t like it.
“You two are wrong. Rose wants Mrs. Odell to stay here so she’s not alone in her big house. She needs friends during this tough time and Rose is the only one who hasn’t turned her back on her. I feel bad for the woman.” Jo put Alene’s hair up into an intricate design with only a few pins and a ribbon. Her perfectly coiffed hair wouldn’t last for long, but Mr. Addison would appreciate the effort.
“Bad for her? Her husband left her because she slept with another man.” Alene gave her hair a soft pat and beamed up at her.
“You don’t know that.” Jo gave Alene a hug and admired her work. “And I expect you two not to spread such a thing. Rose doesn’t believe it and that’s good enough for me.”
“We can’t have you angry at us now,” Clinton said and when he came over and hooked his arm around Jo’s waist, she did her best not to stiffen. Why was he touching her so much? It unnerved her.
“Why? Because I’m the only one who will press your breeches for free?” Jo responded more harshly than she intended and Clinton gave her a wounded look.
“You know that’s not completely true,” Clinton responded smoothly and bestowed her another one of his winks. Jo moved away from his hold and hid her limp the best she could as she folded some of Alene’s wrinkled dresses thrown carelessly over a chair.
“Children, I need to get ready for tonight and your bickering is not helping.” Alene sprayed some sort of flowery perfume around her face and lightly sneezed. “I must prepare for our party tonight.”
“Prepare? What do you have to prepare for? All you have to do is lie down and spread your legs,” Clinton taunted and Alene let out a yell.
“Get out!” Alene pointed to the door and Clinton blew her a kiss as he took hold of Jo’s arm and left the room.
“Wait, I haven’t finished with Alene,” Jo said through her chuckles as Clinton led her away.
When they reached the end of the hall, Clinton stopped and placed his hands on the top of her shoulders. “You do too much for your sister. Let her dress herself for once.”
“Why Mr. Lear, I would say you’re jealous,” Jo dropped her voice to a flirty tone, much like Alene did when she spoke to a gentlemen client. When Clinton didn’t respond as she expected, she bit back a frustrated sigh.
“She takes up most of your time and you have more important responsibilities to take care of. Now you’ll probably have one more thing to do with this Odell woman staying here.”
“I didn’t know you cared so much.” Jo tugged on the cuffs of her dress, giving her hands something to do other than cupping Clinton’s cheeks and kissing him.
“You’re one of the few I do care about, Josephine.”
Jo went still when Clinton’s finger drifted along the side of her face. When he took a step closer and she backed against the wall, his lips quirked in amusement.
“Don’t be frightened. I only want to ki—”
“Jo! Thank god. I need your help.”
Clinton cursed softly as he backed away. Jo didn’t catch what he said but she could tell he wasn’t happy by the irritated look on his face.
“Yes?” Jo said to Tessie, one of the maids in charge of the second floor.
“Laverne is in a snit over her missing mask. She’s going on how Charity stole it and is threatening to tear apart the dress she plans to wear for the party tonight.”
Jo groan
ed and rapped the back of her head against the wall. “Why did Madam have to hold a masquerade tonight? It’s giving me a headache.”
Humor filled Clinton’s eyes as he swiped a thumb across his mouth.
Tessie tugged on Jo’s sleeve. “Please, please help me. You’re the only one Laverne will listen to.”
“Never a dull moment,” Jo muttered under her breath. “I’ll be there in a minute.”
Tessie clapped and rushed away.
“Duty calls,” Jo said and gave her leg a shake. She really needed to sit down soon before she crumpled to the ground.
“I can carry you if it would help.” Clinton held out his hands and Jo batted them away.
“Don’t you dare. You have to get ready too. The…guests will be here soon and we can’t have you not looking your very best.” She gave him a brittle smile. He would be in high demand tonight. Once the festivities started, he would be enclosed in one of the many rooms available for the clients, pleasuring both men and women for the right price.
“You’re right as always, Miss Jonet.” Clinton’s glib drawl rushed over her. She could only just imagine what he sounded like in bed as he whispered tender words in his lover’s ear as he gave them multiple orgasms.
“Indeed, Mr. Lear.” She gave him a small curtsey. “Away with you.”
“Please make certain you sit down and take a break, unless you really want me to carry you off to your bed to rest.”
Jo squeezed the back of her neck. “You’re an incorrigible flirt, Clinton.”
“It’s part of my charm.” Clinton gave her a boyish smile and with a tug on her unraveling braid, he walked down the hall and to the stairs where he disappeared.
Jo inhaled deeply and wiped her damp forehead. Whenever she was around Clinton she could barely keep two thoughts together. After five years under the same roof, she should have been immune to his charms. But like most of the women, and in some cases, the men who visited Rose’s Delights to purchase Clinton for a few hours, she was enamored with the seductive whore.