‑‑ Madame Lin from The White Tigress Manual
Could this beautiful woman truly be his teacher? Tenzin stared at her back as he followed her through the quiet streets. Judging from the alluring silk dress that hugged her curves and the paint on her face emphasizing her delicate features, it seemed impossible that she was the one who could teach him to control his desires.
Yet, it was more than possible. Since the vampire in the cave had sired him, Tenzin had spent the first hours of every single day hunched over his sa ghazong, the sand-filled board on which he made his astrological calculations. No matter where he was in his travels, he’d made the painstaking calculations that had finally brought him here, to Shanghai, where the Heavens had deemed it auspicious for him finally to balance his energies.
The route they walked was very familiar to him, a thoroughfare of public houses and restaurants lit up in spite of the late hour. He’d walked up and down this street in search of the precise spot of his calculations. That location had turned out to be the gaming parlor. At the time, he’d stared in disbelief at the shabby façade of the structure, several disabused market stalls behind which was the hidden entrance. By late evening he’d presented himself to the silk-caftaned Manchurian who’d answered his ring at the door. Centuries of suffering and desperation had overridden his disbelief and had readied him to be won in a game of chance, readied him to be owned by the one whom the sa ghazong had deemed would be his teacher.
A breeze cut the warm night and brought a whiff of the woman’s scent to his nostrils. Heady and sweet, like opium and plums. He’d smelled it even while he stood on the platform surrounded by the odors of tobacco, alcohol, and blood. She was an immortal, no doubt, though not a vampire. Perhaps that boded well, for he felt as if he needed eternity to master the cravings that had tormented him for centuries.
In the light of the dim gas lamps that punctuated their way, he stared at the alluring swells of her hips and buttocks under the tight dress. They moved with an undulating rhythm, and her pale, smooth legs peeked out from the slits of her dress with each step. The sight roused his desire to caress her skin, to taste it, and to bury his face in the hidden apex of her thighs. She looked so much like the woman in the erotic visions he had when he’d first been made a vampire. Just looking at the ripeness of her cherry lips, it had taken all his self-control not to get hard in front of all those people.
Her pace was even, unhindered by her feet, which, he noticed, remained unbound. Since coming to China, he’d noticed so many women hobbled along on feet as tiny as those of a deer. He found himself desiring to see this woman’s feet. His very hands itched to take a foot in his grasp and caress it, to trace the contours of each toe with his fingertips.
She stopped in her tracks and turned to him. The gas light glowed off her smooth skin and in her dark eyes. The expression in them conveyed that she’d sensed his silent perusal of her body. She turned fully to him.
“Walk beside me,” she said. “You’re not a slave, and slavery is not my purpose for having won you.”
He bowed his head. “I’m sorry.”
Her expression softened slightly. She turned and resumed walking, and he took his place beside her. After several more moments, she turned off the main street and into an alleyway. Warm lights glowed from the doorways of the buildings on this street too, and the air rang with women’s laughter, the familiar sounds of brothels.
Tenzin glanced to either side of him and saw women, many of them dressed like his hostess, standing in the doorways. Again, his mind reeled. He’d already frequented places like these in his travels, more than he wished to remember. This was what he’d wanted to avoid. Where was this woman leading him, and what could the sa ghazong possibly have meant by this?
He followed her around a corner. The street was more solitary here, lit only by gas lamps flanking a large carved doorway. She approached the door, retrieved a key from the small sack she carried, and turned open the giant lock.
She turned to him, her delicate face barely visible under the summer moon. Tenzin could see the outline of her full lips, smooth, narrow nose, high forehead, and thick eyelashes. Her hair, obviously thick and long, was pulled up into a bun at the nape of her neck, but the moonlight showed the gleaming curve of her throat.
“Do you speak Shanghainese?” the woman asked.
Inwardly he grimaced at his need to sink his incisors into that perfect skin and drink her blood. Had he been a soulless creature like his sire, that’s what he would have done. He nodded, having taught himself the Chinese dialect in the weeks he searched for the spot of his calculations. “I do.”
She let out a breath. “You must never tell anyone of this place or bring anyone here,” she whispered. “Do you understand?”
He bowed his head, aware of the urgency underlying her hissed statement. “You have my word.” When he raised his gaze to her, he caught her staring, her full lips slightly parted.
She looked intently at him a moment longer, as if to assess his sincerity. Her look softened once again, and she nodded. “My name is Lily.”
He bowed his head again. “Yes, Lily.” Saying her name sent a pleasant ripple through his loins. Had the sa ghazong not been so precise and reliable for centuries, he would have turned right then and put as much distance as he could between himself and this alluring woman.
He watched her hand come out, pale in the moonlight, her nails long, painted red, he knew, from seeing them holding her cards in the parlor. Several silver bracelets circled her slender wrist. “Follow me.” The rings tinkled together softly as she pushed open the door and went through.
Averting his gaze from her lush bottom, he followed Lily into the front hall.
“Mistress Lily!” A young woman materialized in a doorway. She shuffled forward on bound feet in a rustle of loose clothing, a long-sleeved linen shirt and dark baggy pants, and bowed to Lily. Waist-length ebony hair, pulled back off her face, revealed smooth, delicate features. Her radiant beauty was similar to that of Lily’s. Tenzin’s first thought was he’d been led to a brothel.
“Fei Liu.” Lily returned the gesture of respect and indicated Tenzin. “Please welcome our guest.”
The young woman darted a glance at him and smiled shyly. Truthfully, her expression seemed far too innocent for a woman of the night. She bowed her head to him, then turned back to Lily. “Should I serve you tea?”
“Yes. We’ll be in my chambers.”
The girl bowed again and shuffled back out through the doorway through which she had come.
Lily looked up at him, her expression unreadable. “This way.”
Tenzin followed her through a corridor and out into a courtyard. The new surroundings contrasted with the alleyway that hid this place. Several flowering trees flanked the corners of the stone floor, the scent of jasmine perfuming the still night air. A koi pond off to one side reflected the moonlight, the surface of the dark water dotted with lotus flowers. Soft lights shone through the latticed walls, emanating from the rooms that lined the courtyard, and a hushed energy, a strange mixture of stillness and sexual hunger, permeated the entire area, strengthening as they neared one of the entrances.
The pleasant surroundings could not hold Tenzin’s attention for long. He found his gaze once more drawn to Lily’s swaying figure. His breathing deepened as he watched her climb the stone steps in her form-fitting gown. He had to hurry to follow her through a red-painted doorway into one of the softly lit rooms. His attention riveted on Lily’s form, he barely noticed the room. When he did, he found the surroundings a perfect reflection of his hostess. Comfortable chairs, low tables, and, farther in, a bed and a small seating area of cushioned chairs and a low table on one side. His hostess was, apparently, a woman of wealth.
Lily indicated one of the cushioned chairs. “Please, have a seat. I’ll be back in a few moments.” She disappeared into an adjoining room, separated from the one he sat in by a beaded curtain.
In the next moment, the woman c
alled Fei Liu appeared. She carried a tray, hobbling toward him. Smiling warmly, she set down a teapot and two small cups, bowed to him and disappeared the way she’d come in.
Steam curled from the spout of the teapot. He watched the wisps of steam, wondering how he would refuse a cup of tea, when he detected the scent of honey infused with the herbal mixture. He breathed a small sigh of relief. Like the other vampires of his strain, honey was the one substance aside from blood he could digest.
The tinkling of beads grabbed his attention away from the tea. He turned and caught his breath.
Lily had changed her tight dress for a sheer robe of pink silk. As she drew closer, he could discern the outline of her breasts through the gauze material. He swallowed at the sight of the dark circles of her nipples. She’d pulled the pins from her hair, which now hung to her waist, the ebony fall shimmering in the soft lighting.
He bowed his head, surreptitiously curling one fist on his lap under the table.
“Is something the matter?”
He didn’t look up, but knew she drew closer only because her intoxicating scent perfumed the still air immediately around him. His heart pumped, and his cock, which had already been half hard their entire walk to this house, now filled and pushed against his trousers. He clenched his jaw. “Yes.” It was against the tenets of his religion to lie.
He sensed her pause. Several moments passed before she spoke again. “Do you wish to tell me what it is?”
He hitched another tight breath and pushed his hands between his knees, squeezing them together. “I am supposed to learn to control my desires.” His throat dried suddenly, and he cleared it before continuing. “I don’t see how I can do so this way. I’m sorry.”
She didn’t answer, and he refused to look up. He heard soft movement followed by the clink of porcelain and the tinkle of liquid being poured into a cup. More soft movement, her scent intensified, and a cup of steaming, fragrant tea was placed on the table close by. Then she moved away, and he heard her lower herself into a seat.
“What is your name?” she asked. To his relief, she did not bid him to look at her.
“Tenzin. Tenzin Gayatsu.” He half expected her to reject him, not being Chinese, but she said nothing, and he heard her pour a second cup of tea. He refused the temptation to look up and see her full red lips as she sipped her tea, or the delicate muscles of her throat work as she swallowed.
“Tenzin.” She spoke the name softly with a tone of interest. “You’re Tibetan?”
He nodded.
“May I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“Are you a monk?”
The gentle way she asked the question eased a bit of his tension. He exhaled. “I was a monk…once. I…did not fit in there.” That was true enough after he’d been bitten. “However, I still wish to…overcome my carnal desires.”
“Why?”
He almost looked at her but didn’t, afraid to enflame his already straining likpa to the point of pain. “Because they are illusions and therefore obstacles to enlightenment.”
He heard her take another sip of tea and sensed her considering his words. “You’re correct, Tenzin. However, if you fight your desires in the attempt to overcome them, then you treat them as if they are ultimately real. Such a struggle can have no end and only produce more suffering.”
He whipped his head up, heart pounding suddenly. It was an answer no one had given him in all these years. He’d never expected to hear such words, especially from a woman who appeared so earthly and sensuous, so given to pleasure, but something in him knew she was right. Already her answer was like a soothing balm to the ache in his soul that had driven him across the world.
Lily smiled, and her dark eyes shone from the gentle lantern light flickering in the room. The glow cast a blue shine on her hair, and he was overcome by the desire to lunge forward and kiss her lips.
“Tenzin, is that why you were on that platform tonight?”
How would she react to the truth? “Yes.” He bowed his head once again. “I came here seeking a teacher. I was told my teacher would find me in that place.”
When she didn’t answer, he dared to look up.
Her violet eyes were wide, and her lips parted as if she would speak, but she remained silent for what felt like a long time.
Outside, he could hear crickets chirping as he waited for her to answer.
“Do you believe I am that teacher?” Her voice was soft, nearly a whisper.
He nodded. “Yes. I…wasn’t certain until this moment. When you said what you did about desire.”
Again she remained quiet. He sensed her doubt, her fear, some roiling of emotions inside her he didn’t understand because he didn’t know her. Sudden fear ripped through him, fear that she’d send him away.
He shot up from his chair and fell to his knees at her feet. “Lily, if you can teach me to overcome desire,” he murmured, “I surrender myself to you, body and soul.”
Lily stared at Tenzin Gayatsu. He didn’t know her at all…seemed to know nothing of her Tigress religion…and yet here he knelt in front of her, bowing to her as she had once bowed to her teachers.
She swallowed hard, resisted the urge to reach out and touch his short-cropped hair. “I will be honest with you. I, too, seek enlightenment, and have for a very long time. I chose to play for you because I need someone who will let me…harvest his yang force. It’s the path of my religion. When the forces of energy are balanced and at rest, the soul can reach higher planes of consciousness. Do you understand?”
He lifted his gaze to hers. His dark eyes simmered with that same intensity she’d seen when he stood on the platform in his loincloth. Up close, the effect of his eyes was startling…intoxicating. He nodded and bowed his head again. “I’m not certain, Lily.” His voice sounded strained, hoarse.
Softly she cleared her throat. “There are certain…exercises…you and I would perform together that are meant to balance our life force, our qi. A woman cannot do them alone, nor can a man. Both partners are needed. Yin and yang together.” Without thinking, she put her index finger under his chin and tilted his face up to hers. The rasp of his clean-shaven skin was pleasant against the pad of her fingertip. To her surprise, a single tear rolled from his eye and slid down the smooth plane of his cheek. The droplet reached the edge of his jaw and fell onto her hand.
“Tenzin, have you ever been with a woman?” Certainly his response would affect how she proceeded. A completely inexperienced man would need much more time and training before he could be a steady partner in the Tigress-Dragon exercises.
He nodded and then cast his gaze downward. “For a period of time, I indulged in pleasures of the flesh. It’s been several years since. I’ve worked so hard to abstain, yet I have not been able to find the middle ground.”
Lily smiled in a way meant to ease his discomfort. There would be time later to ask him the nature of his experiences. “You can make desire your ally, Tenzin,” she said softly. She felt some of her apprehension drain as it always did when she spoke about the path of the White Tigress.
Remembering her role as instructor and spiritual aspirant balanced her once again. “Use your desire to overcome it. You neither indulge desire wildly nor deny it. Use it properly and like a splinter you can use it to remove another splinter.” She stared into his eyes a moment longer, careful to glance away when the intensity of his gaze seemed as if it would trap her in its depths. “I would never force you to stay here and perform these exercises with me, Tenzin. Only a willing partner can help another. Are you willing to help me as I’m willing to help you?”
“Yes, I am,” he said. “Please…teach me.” Tenzin stared up at her. More tears slipped from his eyes and rolled freely down his cheeks.
She resisted the urge to brush his tears away with her thumb. Her heart quickened and a ripple of energy moved through her sex. For several moments, she watched his face, searched for some trace of dissemblance in it. She desperately ne
eded to know that his willingness was not an act. Unfortunately, she had heard similar professions in the past. Some men were seeking something higher, but when it came down to the commitment of heart and soul, they ran, unwilling to make a woman their equal partner.
Tenzin didn’t seem insincere, but she couldn’t take any chances. She would begin by draining off his excess yang and then proceed from there. In his present condition, he was desperate and such a state did not indicate true commitment. There was just as good a chance he would respond like many of the other men she’d worked with in the past who, once they had attained a certain level of comfort, could no longer stand having a woman in the position of teacher.
Finally she nodded. Her body heated with nervous energy; her hands trembled slightly. She rose from her chair. “Come then,” she said, “We’ll begin now.”
Chapter Three
The yin absorbs the yang, the yang absorbs the yin ‑‑ this secret is so simple it goes unnoticed and undetected.
‑‑ Madame Lin from The White Tigress Manual
Lily led Tenzin to her bath chamber where Fei Liu had filled the tub with steaming, scented water. Fei Liu stood, her head bowed, an empty bucket hanging from her hands. From the corner of her eye, Lily saw her favorite Tigress cub steal a glance at Tenzin.
A sliver of guilt stabbed Lily that she was keeping Tenzin to herself. Normally, she gave Fei Liu a chance to practice the exercises with a man of whom she had approved. Lily told herself that Tenzin was too green, too in need of preparation, and must remain with the experienced teacher.
“Do you need anything else, Mistress Lily?” Fei Liu’s voice was soft and conveyed her admiration of the man before her.
“No, thank you, Fei Liu.” Lily made certain her tone dismissed the woman, gently but firmly.
Ace in the Hole Page 3