The madam smiled.
In no position to negotiate, Lucien conceded. “Very well."
"I'll provide you with an escort for the trip to Fulfillment."
"I am presently indisposed. I want information first."
The madam stared at him for a moment longer, then got up and went to her desk. Despite her loud appearance, the plush furniture denoted good taste. Two wall-sized paintings dominated the room. Valuable sculptures and vases adorned the various marbled tables. The madam pulled a drawer behind her and extracted a light brown parchment, an inkbottle, and a quill.
"You may compose your question. I'll have your message delivered."
Lucien picked up the quill, dipped it in the ink and wrote on the parchment.
Lady Aislan Temple. Reason for mark?
Madam Isabel looked at his writing. “If you please sign, milord."
Already doomed, yet Lucien hesitated adding an extra nail on the coffin.
"Our first rule: absolute confidentiality,” Madam Isabel said. “We do not blackmail our patrons."
Lucien kept his expression neutral. He could no more trust her than he would walk blithely into a viper's nest. He did not trust the Fulfillment, a secretive, mercenary organization that recruited men who served as moles exchanging information. They had tried to recruit him last year, but Lucien had no interest in betraying the throne or the Sorcery Circle by relaying information to the organization so they could sell or negotiate it.
Apparently, he made a good recruit source, but he was not one of the invited buyers of information. They wanted an equal exchange in kind. Lucien signed the parchment with the full awareness he had just signed his second death warrant. He had to arm Aislan with enough knowledge to defend herself when the time came. He needed a mole. In return, the Fulfillment expected him to reveal treasonous information. If he double-crossed them, they would kill him. They would have to stand in line. Lucien was more concerned about this coming to light with the king. First charge, Murder. Second, Treason. What he did was tantamount to the traitors he assassinated in the past. Ah, well, he would worry about the consequences when the time came.
The madam looked over the missive before she folded it carefully. “Where shall we deliver?” she asked.
"I'll be at Danier."
She waited, but she should have known better than expecting a specific answer from him.
"I'll find your sister to retrieve the answer,” he offered.
Madam Isabel sighed and pulled from her pocket the Fulfillment coin he had turned over earlier to identify himself. “Very well, you may ask for Madam Mariette."
Lucien took the red coin and stood up to go.
The madam followed him. “Milord, the lady with you."
He stopped and turned.
"She is very beautiful,” the madam continued.
Lucien knew exactly what she wanted, but he toyed with her. “Yes, she is. What about it?"
"Lord Fulfill will like her angelic look. He may be interested in the lovely lady as part of the exchange."
"Not a chance, madam."
"'Twill make a good exchange, mayhap an equal exchange."
The old crone could not be that obtuse, but he had to make it clear in case they decided to abduct Aislan. “The lady is under my protection. I guard her with my life."
"Very well.” She did not pursue the matter.
"One more thing, if you please. We need travel clothes.” He pulled out a thin wad of paper. The Treasury issued larger denomination notes with royal-stamped papers.
Finally, Lucien returned to their chamber to find Aislan in the tub, facing away from him, her head lowered as the maid scrubbed her back. He paused in the doorway to look at her.
It had been an unexpected blow when he realized she had used her body to barter with him, to acquire the training she wanted. He had put his life on the line for her, ready to die like a chivalrous fool to save the damsel in distress. He tended to her sensibility and wooed her like a besotted idiot. All along, she turned out to be a calculated, heartless woman.
He only had himself to blame for placing her on a pedestal while knowing nothing about the real woman. He should not have assumed anything about her. How could he be offended by her motives when she only wanted to survive? She had to do what she had to do.
Lucien walked towards the tub, and both women turned when they heard his footsteps. He stood over both of them and looked down at the divinely naked woman with her wet hair plastered to her shapely head and her skin dewy and pink from the heat of the water. Aislan looked back at him, her indigo eyes cold and disapproving as if he had wronged her somehow. What an impossible wench.
At his nod, the maid took her leave.
Chapter 10
A Dosage of Truth
Removing his baldric, Lucien set his weapons against the tub, his gaze on Aislan's face. He knew he probably unnerved her by staring at her too much, but he enjoyed looking at her. She did not seem to mind before. Right now, she was angry because he had brought her to a brothel rather than an inn, but he felt no inclination to explain anything to her.
He doffed his tunic and saw her shy perusal. Despite his petulancy, he found her to be an incredibly beautiful vixen. Lucien could not help but react to her femininity. Because he could do nothing about how she felt, Lucien did what he always did when he could not change a situation. He adapted. It was his mode for survival.
Making the best of his situation, he allowed himself to be beguiled, to enjoy her womanly wiles and stop sulking over her motives. They would clear this up soon enough. Kneeling on one knee beside the tub, Lucien picked up the sponge. He moved it over her breasts, his fingers trailing across her silky skin. Dropping the sponge altogether, he used his palm instead. She had magnificent breasts, as beautiful as every physical part of her. Holding the weight, he massaged the bountiful flesh, admiring the perfect curves. Her alabaster skin glowed, soft and flawless. He studied the pink lusciousness of her lips.
He had been surprised and inordinately pleased that she was not as fragile as she appeared. She had shown stamina in accommodating his pace, had kept up with him as long as he wanted. Her endurance tempted him to take a step further. Brushing his thumb back and forth across her silky nipple, he watched the pink nub pucker and turn pebble hard. He ached to taste her, but she remained too stiff.
Lucien wanted her cooperation. He enjoyed sex tremendously and considered it a necessity in his life. Sometimes, he hurried sex when he needed quick relief but had pressing tasks to tend to. Most of the time, however, he preferred the experience drawn out and rewarding for his partner or partners, although more than one woman at once had only happened more frequently in his younger days when it was still a novelty.
"Relax, my dear.” He kept his tone calm and soothing. He wanted Aislan to feel good, every time, at the prospect of having sex, to like and enjoy it. Lifting her chin, he kissed her lightly, brushing back and forth across her lips. Her delectable mouth parted, and he accepted the invitation to go exploring and tasting within. Reaching beneath the water, he probed between her slit and inserted two fingers into the folds to the spongy softness within.
She panted hard, her arousal pleasing him. Pulling his fingers out of her pussy, he brushed between the cheeks of her lush derriere, lingering at the tight rosette. He wanted her pretty ass. Experimentally, he pressed one finger into the tight opening. She went rigid even before the first joint made it in, so he settled for a squeeze of her lovely bottom instead.
Placing his hands under her armpits, he stood up, lifting her with him onto her feet. He brushed his mouth across her nose before pulling back to untie his braes. Taking her hands, he pressed a kiss against each of her wet palms before placing both against his chest.
"Touch me,” he told her.
* * * *
He had been gone for only a short time, so Aislan did not believe Lucien had been with another girl. He seemed enamored with her again. Aislan licked her lips. What an impossibly unpred
ictable man, but she supposed she had to get used to his moodiness.
Dragging her gaze from his, she looked at her hands on his bare chest. She touched him slowly, lingering at each nipple, and they hardened under her touch. His arms and shoulders were well sculpted, his chest and ribs beautifully defined. She liked the light sprinkle of dark hair scattering along his lower arms and across his chest, narrowing down between his lean ribs to the board-flat stomach before thickening and disappearing beneath his braes. A splendid looking man in every way, he was youth and virility, from the top of his long, dark hair, his perfectly formed male features, down to his magnificent body, long and lean, all solid muscles, tightly bulging.
Leaning over, she opened her mouth and swept her tongue across his nipple, once, and then again. His arm slid around her waist lightly to hold her. When she turned to brush her cheek across his chest on her way to the other nipple, she could hear his heart racing, each beat thudding loudly against her ear. Aislan smiled and moved to the wiry sprinkle of hair between his ribs and pressed kisses there, rubbing her cheek against the hardness of his board-flat stomach. Her hands lingered at his lean waist, fingers brushing along the band.
His cock tented against the material, poking insistently between her breasts. The prospect of seeing him up close to her face made her feel inordinately shy. Up until now, he had been the aggressor. She tried to gather her nerve to take the initiative.
He settled the matter for her by taking her hands and wedging them under his braes, helping her push them down over his lean hips. Pulling back, she watched his cock pop out. Without restraint, it stood straight, long and hard like a steel rod, pointing at her face. She stared at the massive girth. The huge, bulbous head turned red with his arousal, veins bulging along the thick shaft. Aislan licked her lips, remembering all too well how it had stretched her and filled her, evoking glorious sensations inside her. She remembered how deep he had pushed it into her, how well it had acquainted itself inside her body.
She had never seen a naked man in such full glory before. She had never looked at Hayton in such a thorough manner. Hayton was nearly three score in years, whose overindulgent body had held no appeal for her, and she had been indifferent to him. He had not been generously endowed, either, considering he had been a huge man, as tall as Lucien. Hayton had brought out none of the instinctive desire or lust she felt for this man.
Lucien smiled at her thorough appraisal and seemed fully at ease, as if he spent most of his time buck-naked with a woman kneeling in front of him. She felt herself flushing and imagined she must look like a naked trollop kneeling in front of him eyeing his cock with rapt fascination.
"All in due time, my sweet.” He caressed the top of her hair briefly before stepping into the tub. Aislan moved aside to make room for him. Sitting down, he pulled her between his legs, and then ducked his head underwater for a brief moment. Surfacing, he brushed the overlong dark hair back and away from his face, and then set about washing his hair while she watched. When she smiled, he winked one beautiful silver eye at her. “Your turn next."
"My hair is already washed."
"I'll soap you then."
"My bath was cared for already, thank you, sir."
"Denying my fun, would you?” He splashed a handful of water on her face.
"You jester!” Laughing, she splashed back. He indulged her for a short moment before he handed her a cup.
"Rinse me, lovely lady."
Preferring his more playful side, she got on her knees so she could pour cups of water over his head. While he blatantly admired her breasts, she took her time and combed her fingers through his long hair to wash out the lather. His black hair was slightly wavy and thick but very soft. She had never touched a man's hair before. She smoothed the strands back behind his ears. He shifted his attention from her breasts to her mouth, so she parted her lips slightly and waited.
However, he only gave her a peck on the mouth before he lifted her by the waist and turned her around until she settled between his legs with her back to him. One of his hands rested on her thigh. Sweeping her hair aside, he brushed his lips against her neck, sending gooseflesh up her arms and blood rushing through her veins. She tilted her head to one side so he could press kisses along her neck. Everything about him felt so good, so, so good. Cupping her breast, he kneaded one, then the other, palming and massaging. She leaned back and turned her face to press it against his throat.
For a long time, she remained in his arms and enjoyed his kisses while his hands massaged her body. He knew just how to kiss her and how to touch her to drive her wild with want. In his arms, she became oblivious to everything but how delicious it felt. Cupping her face, he tilted her so his hungry mouth could cover her lips, his tongue tasting possessively. His cock pressed against her back, and she longed for it inside her. Then he lifted her and turned her around again.
"Aislan, listen to me.” He looked steadily into her eyes.
Her heart rose to her throat in alarm, wondering why he looked so serious while she straddled his erection. “What is wrong?” she asked tentatively, squirming.
"You have to know the rules,” he said slowly. “If we have sex, ‘tis because you desire it and not because you have expectations from me to repay your favors later on. Do you understand this?"
She stiffened. She did not do it because she wanted him to owe her. He had already done more than she had expected, putting his life on the line to protect her. She came to him because she wanted to.
He sighed. “I am sorry,” he said and sounded as if he meant it. “Aislan, you are an incredibly beautiful woman, sweet in your own way, and very unique. You are somewhat strange, but endearingly so.” He touched her cheek gently. “I look at you, and all I can think about is how much I desire you. I want you very much, but I'll not touch you if you feel obligated to have sex—for whatever reason you feel you must. Have sex because you enjoy it and not because you expect anything from me. I'll no longer play your insipid suitor who will dance gingerly around you and worship the ground you walk on. Tell me you understand this.” He watched her too carefully.
Aislan could not believe the extent of his insensitivity. So, he had a change of heart and only wanted sex for its own sake without having to declare his devotion. Aislan had not wanted his love anyway. She, too, wanted no complications involving feelings. It would keep everything straightforward between them.
She nodded.
"Tell me what you understood,” he said.
Though deeply hurt, Aislan hid her feelings. He had been quite smitten with her, and the experience had been rewarding for her. How would he go about it now? Would he just mount her, then afterwards, roll off her and go somewhere else? Aislan had had four years of miserable sex without feeling anything, at least not on her part. How could she have sex now, without Lucien harboring some affection for her?
Do people discuss having impersonal sex like this? She had to clarify it. “If we do it, ‘tis because we want to physically, and not because we have expectations from each other afterwards,” she stated tentatively.
"Good.” He nodded.
Aislan felt herself withering up. Even though she had not wanted emotional attachment, she refused to have sex with this unfeeling blackguard. She braced herself to get out of the tub, but he pulled her to him and held her.
"Relax, my dear,” he said softly as he brushed a kiss against her cheek. “I promise I'll not be a bastard about this. I'll give you as much as I can, but not because you expect it in return for your favors. I'll protect you and take care of you, and I'll see to your comfort, but I can promise you nothing more than I am capable of giving."
He did not want love, but he offered almost everything else. Closing her eyes, Aislan nestled against him and slid her arms about his broad shoulders. Lucien held her a little longer, then pushed her gently from him and gave her a sponge and a bar of soap.
"Wash me, please?” He smiled at her, his gaze moving over her body admiringly.
; Aislan had softened considerably once she realized he would not go about this callously. She had to have at least a little affection from him, and he had declared more than she could ask for. Straddling him, she lathered the soap onto the sponge. His erection had hardened beneath her, flexing. Aislan put the sponge on his chest and started scrubbing. She watched the movement of the sponge across the pectoral muscles, and she licked her lips and swallowed. When she looked at him again, his pale eyes glowed with intensity.
He scooted her slightly onto his thighs, then took her hand and wrapped her fingers about his cock. “Play with me, my sweet."
Needing no coaxing, she held the thick length of his shaft and moved her hand up and down as he directed. After he removed his hand, she continued to caress him, enjoying the smooth steel in her hand. She wondered how it would feel in her mouth. She had never put her mouth near a penis before, had refused Hayton whenever he tried, claiming loudly no church would force such an act. It had been more an act of spiteful denial than any belief that oral sex was dirty. Hayton was an insensitive lout who did not know how to handle a rebellious child bride of almost sixteen. He had not bothered to court her first, had not given her time to adjust, had not taken the time to understand her, and had no real patience with her. Because he took without consent, she had made him pay for it every single time.
Aislan swept all thoughts of Hayton from her mind, no longer wanting anything to do with the past. She would move forward, and the future would be what she wanted.
"'Tis quite disconcerting, madam, to have you hold my cock while you think about your husband,” Lucien noted.
Startled, Aislan met his stare. This man, who barely knew her, seemed in tune to her needs and her thoughts. She pressed a kiss on the slit crown of the mushroom-shaped head, altogether a beautiful sight, and she wanted to put him deep in her mouth and taste him.
"'Tis only I—I have never ... done—it—before..."
"Done it? It what? You have never looked at a penis before?” He raised a dark brow in disbelief. “Ah, I see. You have never sucked a cock before."
Vision of Light [The Renegades 1] Page 10