London!

by Terri Pray

  “Cum for me, slut. Cum for me now!”

  Her breath burned in her chest, she gulped for air and tried to hold onto that pleasure a moment longer.

  Waves of sheer delight forced their way past her tenuous control.

  “That's it my whore, cum for me.”

  She tried to find a way to grasp the pleasure, but it slipped through her fingers even as she screamed. Pressure, pain, delight, desire and there was nothing she could do to hold on to it, to keep it close that little bit longer. She sobbed unable to even lean into the bedding with the way he held her hair. There was nothing she could do, no place to turn, no way to escape the pleasure or the loss of it.

  She wanted it to go on forever, but she knew it had to end and it did with one last thrust into her body that flattened her against the bedding as he roared his own release into the first light of day.

  * * * *

  “Did you wish the carriage brought around for you today, M'lord?” James set the tray down on an end table in the large parlor.

  “In an hour or so, I will be taking Celeste out for some final fittings.”

  “Indeed, M'lord. Though I would be more than willing to drive there with the young miss myself. Should you wish to rest before the first events of the season.”

  “I'll take her there myself, James.”

  “Yes, M'lord. It was just a thought. Perhaps I will be able to help with some other chores during your stay in town?”

  “Perhaps, if the need arises. But where Celeste is concerned I will over see those chores myself. You might have noticed that the young woman has a very strong will and I prefer to keep a close eye on her.”

  “Strong will, M'lord? I would have thought you'd have broken her of that by now?”

  “I enjoy it and the parties will be very entertaining to see just how others react to her presence. Pour the tea my dear whilst I catch up with James.” He nodded towards the cushion Celeste had settled down on. Each of the main rooms that she had seen so far, except the bedroom, had a large comfortable chair for Davien and a cushion that allowed her to sit down close to his feet.

  “Yes, master.” She eased up onto her knees then rocked to her feet in order to tend to the tea.

  “The lass does appear to attend your every order, M'lord.”

  “I hear an unspoken but in your voice.”

  “She also might do well to learn the order of authority within the house. In case there are times when you are not here and she is.”

  Celeste struggled to keep the mask of calm in place, that center of ice that he had alerted her to now offered a strength she could tap. Despite James she managed to focus on pouring the tea into an elegant china cup, adding the milk and sugar she knew Davien preferred.

  “That part is easily taken care of.”

  Celeste set the tea cup and saucer, with its delicate scalloped edge, down on the elegant mahogany table on the other side of Davien's chair.

  “Celeste, who do you belong to?”

  “You, master.”

  “And as such whom do you obey?”

  “You, master and anyone you set over me, or order me to serve.” She eased down to her knees at his feet without waiting for further orders.

  “And do you understand who rules in this house?”

  “You do master.” She folded her hands into her lap.

  “Very good my pet.” Davien leaned back against the chair. “You will serve me, obey me and remember that no matter what happens you belong to me. You are free to wander about the house as long as you do no harm and you are beholden to no one, nor subservient to any within this house except me. Unless I order otherwise for a short time as discipline, punishment or my whim. Is that clear Celeste?”

  “Very, master.” A quick glance upwards was all she needed in order to see the scowl that flashed across James's face. Good, the man needed to learn his place in the house and it wasn't lording over her.

  “M'lord, normally you set your girls below me, to answer to me when you are not around.”

  “Normally yes. However Celeste is of a different breed and I see no reason to risk damaging her training by allowing my butler to order her around.” Davien nodded towards the kneeling woman. “She has a great deal of spirit and I wouldn't want to see that destroyed by someone who has no idea how to handle her. She might feel this sudden need to defend herself from you or any other who tried to order her around. She did very well in the first hunt she took part in.”

  James scowled for a brief second then took pains to hide his reaction. “I am sure she is a very strong willed woman, M'lord. But I have handled such before. Please don't get me wrong, I'm not doubting your judgment at all. I just hope you understand that I will be more than willing to look after your property should the need arise.”

  “I will keep that in mind, James.”

  “Thank you, M'lord.”

  The more time she spent around James the less she liked the man. Most would have taken the hint the first time around from Davien but this one— even with Davien's instructions she had the feeling she would be facing him down a time or two. She couldn't quite explain it, but between the tingling on the back of her neck and the strange double vision she had when she looked at him...

  It wasn't as though she had been drinking and her vision had become altered that way. But when she looked at James she almost saw two people. The smiling, helpful butler image that he tried so very hard to impress upon Davien, then there was another James. One she could see clearly despite everything. A second image of him as a blurred background against the first. The snarling, scowling man she had known in the bedroom. It wasn't possible to see both at once, she knew that and put the odd double image of him down to nerves, being tired from the trip, anything she could think of, but it didn't stop her from being able to see it.

  “The packages from Lady Jessica's have arrived.”

  “Yes, M'lord and have been laid out in the study for you.” James gave a quick half bow as he spoke. “There are also some small missives waiting for you. Invitations and such like. It would appear the word has spread quickly that you have returned to London for a time.”

  “As it tends to. However I doubt many of those who have sent such invitations will be expecting me to attend. Some will be quite shocked when I arrive with Celeste on my arm.”

  Parties? In London? She'd been expecting, after some of his comments, to attend a few but to know he would be going out of his way to attend others caught her off guard. What did he have planned?

  Knowing Davien it could be anything at all. Still she would watch the events unfolding closely and try to be ready for him. She'd already come to know that he had a devious and often twisted mind but in certain things he appeared to prefer the simple method. Lay down the trap, bait it and watch everything fall into place.

  “Any seals you recognize?” Davien reached for the cup of tea.

  “Lord Charles, and there are several from the up and coming young women of the season. Or rather their mothers in most cases. One, however, appears to be direct from the woman herself.”

  “Interesting. And who might that be?”

  “The Lady Simone Winter.”

  “Victoria Winter's daughter? A marriage plot no doubt however it might be amusing to attend.”

  Celeste clenched her hands tight on her lap. A marriage plot? Why would anyone want to try and trick Davien into marrying them? He was less than the ideal husband and most women would run a mile if they knew the type of things he expected of a female in his household.

  “No doubt her mother put her up to it for your money, M'lord.”

  “Perhaps, but I doubt it. Victoria Winter and I have been through this dance before. Though not with her daughter. Strange, I didn't think she'd risk her one and only child on me, but women can not always be trusted to take the safest path. And there will always be women who will not protect their children, she knows the danger and yet offers her daughter forth regardless. Interesting. The woman has some serious
issues.”

  Celeste took a long slow breath and forced her hands to uncurl. Small semi circles of pain lingered in her palms from where she had dug her nails into the flesh but those would pass in time.

  “Do you wish me to bring the missives in M'lord?”

  “Yes James.”

  She watched as the man hurried out of the room, the door closing behind him. Even with him gone she still couldn't shake of the concerns the he brought to life.

  “You don't like him, do you?”

  “Master?”

  “James, the butler.”

  “No, master.”

  “Why?”

  Would it be wise to tell him what had happened in the bedroom? She didn't have a lot of time before the man returned. “He leaves me uneasy, master. And has already tried to persuade me to be subservient to him.”

  “I see, that is something you and I will discuss at a— ah James, thank you.” Davien glanced towards the door as it opened and held out his hand for the ivory colored envelopes. “I'll take those now.”

  She watched James through lowered lashes. His shoulders were tense, his jaw clenched. Had he overheard her comment to Davien?

  “Yes, M'lord. Will there be anything else this morning?”

  “Have the carriage ready within the hour.”

  “Yes, M'lord.”

  “That will be all James.”

  No it wasn't, not by a long shot if she judged the man correctly.

  CHAPTER VIII

  The carriage jolted her into Davien as it hit not one but three pot holes in quick succession. Without a word of protest Davien grabbed her about the waist, holding her close to him.

  “Forgive me master.” Celeste clutched his arm. “The potholes are worse than I thought they might be.”

  “They are becoming somewhat lax in keeping up the roads in certain parts of the city.” Davien settled her back on the leather covered bench. “With the money collected I hoped for better attention paid to the roads, however nothing surprises me any more.”

  Taxes, politics, these were things she paid little attention to. Why would she? As a woman she had little or no say in how the world worked, or how things changed around them. Men ruled the world, she'd grown up knowing that, accepting it without protest, but now she couldn't help but wonder why something as simple as keeping up the repairs on the road was beyond the men in charge.

  “Where are we going master?” She glanced out of the window. Men and women hurried by, full skirts swept along the street, kept out of the puddles by the delicate grasp of glove covered hands. Men touched their hats in greeting on the rare occasions they acknowledged someone on the street and hiding in the shadows, the alley ways, were others, not as well dressed, who watched the gentry walk past.

  Watching for targets?

  People they could steal from? Or just envying those who had a better life?

  “To oversee your final fittings on the dress you'll wear tonight. I want to make sure that the dresses you will be wearing will make you stand out in the crowd of women who will be at the parties and suppers. You're my property, Celeste and as such you will be decked out in a manner befitting your assumed status by those around you.”

  “Because there will be those who assume I am your wife until you tell them otherwise, then those who decide I must be your intended.”

  “Indeed, however once they are told that you are neither then they will either assume you are a well paid whore, or a woman who is independently wealthy who has attached herself to my family.” Davien replied without looking at her.

  “And they'll attempt to gain favor with me?”

  “Or simply seduce you, only time will tell.”

  “Will any of them be like James?”

  “Ah yes, James. Perhaps it's time you explained to me just what happened. He has served me well in the past and there have been no problems with him before this day. Yet it would appear that he has an unhealthy interest in you.”

  That was not quite how she would have described it. “You sent me upstairs with him, master.”

  “Yes, last night. He should have just escorted you upstairs, instructed the maids and then went about his business. I take it something else occurred?”

  “He ordered me to strip.” Color touched her cheeks instantly. “I wasn't sure if I was to obey him or not but I erred on what I believed was the side of caution and told him I wasn't under his control.” She hadn't quite worded it that way but it was close enough. “He didn't take the news well, master.”

  “No, I doubt he did. Still you did the right thing. He might well have been testing the boundaries. I'll keep an eye on the situation but I doubt he will try anything else with you. Being dismissed from my service would be the last thing he would want.”

  Celeste turned to look at him. “How long has James been with you?”

  “Curious today, aren't you?”

  “My apologies, master. I didn't mean to... ”

  He reached over and pressed his fingers to her lips and her breath caught in the back of her throat. How much trouble was she now in? “However you are living in my house and it might serve you better if you understood some of the history of my household.”

  Celeste nodded and tried to ease some of her fears. “Thank you master.”

  “James has served me for the best part of the last seven years.”

  Seven years? That long?

  “He doesn't strike me as the sort of man who would normally enter service.” In all honesty he looked more like the type that would be better off running a gang of thieves or bullies at a dock.

  “He isn't. He did, however prove to be handy in other matters and I moved him into the house four years ago. He has a knack for keeping others in line. The household runs smoothly now, better than it has done in years. You aren't the first to complain about him though, he has no problems with using harsher methods in order to keep the staff under control.”

  That she had no doubt of. One look at his face when he hadn't been given his own way had warned her just what he might be capable of. “Such as punishment and subjugation?”

  “That's partly it. He and I crossed paths at the docks when I was returning from a trip to Europe. Unfortunately I was set upon by a group of men that outnumbered me twelve to one. Perhaps if I had not been so tired from the trip I would have been more aware of the situation, not that it matters now. James and two of his companions helped me even the odds and for that I owed all three of them work.”

  “Why not just pay them off?”

  He frowned slightly. “I suppose most would have done so, but they also prevented my cargo from being stolen and that was worth far more than a mere handful of coins.”

  Cargo, what cargo? She almost asked but the look in his eyes told her not to. However, he'd mentioned three and she'd only seen the one man. Where had the others gone?

  “Master, you said three?”

  “James is the only one still in my service. The others moved on. It seems that the way I run my household was not for them. The structure and discipline involved encouraged them to find other things to do with their lives. Very few have the stomach for the way I live my life.”

  Understandable, she'd seen just how hard he worked his people on the manor. They were well paid for the work and taken care of but they also had to witness things that might turn the stomachs of a weaker soul. She shivered at even the slightest hint of the memory of her turn in the kitchen. They had eagerly taken to using her. Even the Cook had...

  No, she didn't want to recall that time, or the hunt and the death she had witnessed.

  The carriage stopped, cutting off any further conversation as the driver stepped down from the front and opened the door. Davien slipped out first then waited, offering his hand to Celeste to help her out of the carriage. Heat touched her cheeks as she accepted his aid. She wasn't used to him doing things like this, but in London out in the gaze of others it would be something she had to become used to.

  “My de
ar Davien, it's been far too long since you entered my shop.” A woman dressed in pink silk with far too many ruffles stepped into sight before the door had even closed behind them. “And who is this sweet young thing with you?”

  “Diana, you look charming as ever.” He took the other woman's hand and brushed a light kiss to the back. “This is Celeste, the woman I told you would be accompanying me this season.”

  “Ah the young woman who I will be dressing? I believe you had a couple of gowns made for her before you left your home?”

  “A few, and two corsets along with one traveling dress and a sleeping gown. However I will require more prepared for her. And you should also have one dress ready for fitting?”

  “It's ready for a fitting yes, though the final work on it will take a few days. I prefer to make sure that any clothing that leaves my establishment does so only when it is perfect for the client.” Diana smiled and took a step back from them. “Now I need to take a better look at your young lady.”

  “Indeed, Celeste go with Diana and see to it that she is able to finish the work on the first of your dresses.”

  “As you wish, Lord Davien.” Celeste offered a quick curtsey that had an instant effect on Diana.

  “Hm well then come with me, Celeste and we can see to your fitting.” Diana turned and beckoned for Celeste to follow which she did quietly. Had the woman guessed at the type of relationship they had?

  The curtain closed on the dressing and fitting area, blocking Davien from view as the older woman turned to face her.

  “Well you're a little different to the women that he has brought here before. Those feared him, but there's something about you that says fear is the last thing that controls you. Oh don't worry my dear, I might not know exactly what he does, but Davien has a tendency to go through women rapidly. He seldom orders more than one or two dresses when he brings them here, yet with you he's placed an order for ten.”

  “I have no control over his choices.”

  “I never said you did. However I do need you to slip off that dress so I can test the measurements.”