Simply Shameless (18 page)

What would Helene think of his adventures? He put on his hat. She probably already knew what he'd done. Nothing in the pleasure house escaped her. He took a last longing look at the stairs leading to the rear of the house. Part of him wanted to go back to Helene and take her to bed. His past experiences made him want to think about what he'd done before he got tangled any deeper in Helene's nets.

Perhaps he wouldn't need to say or explain anything to her. If Helene truly believed all men and women were entitled to experiment with sex until they found their particular pleasure, she should be able to accept him just as he was. He realized he was smiling. It would be interesting to see if she lived by her own rules. So many people didn't.

"He asked me to suck his cock."

"Is that all?"

Captain David Gray shrugged and then smiled at her. "It was enough for me. I enjoyed him immensely."

Helene had been roused from her bed by Judd to deal with Philip's not unexpected request in the room of desires. She'd asked one of her favorite clients, Captain Gray, to respond to Philip's needs and had waited anxiously in her sitting room to hear how things had gone. She smiled at the young naval captain.

"I am glad you enjoyed yourself. Did he?"

"He came twice in my mouth, so I assume so." Captain Gray's smile became more hesitant. "I didn't give him my real name, but I did offer to suck his cock any time he wanted."

Helene squeezed his arm. "I'm pleased to hear it. And there is no need to report back to me if he asks for you again. I respect your privacy."

"Thank you, madame. I hope he does come back." He sighed. "But that is in his hands, not mine."

"I wish I could give you an answer, David, but I, too, am unsure of what he truly desires."

She lightly kissed his cheek. "We will both have to wait and see what happens, won't we?"

David bowed and kissed her hand. "Thank you for thinking of me, madame. I promise you my complete discretion in this matter."

He took his leave, and Helene blew out the candles and returned to bed. She would've loved to see Philip with David, knew he wouldn't have been able to cope with her presence at all. She lay back on her pillows and slid her hand between her legs. Was this the extent of his sexual identity? Could he no longer perform with a woman at all? If so, she would be disappointed. Despite her need to be rid of him, she smiled slowly as she imagined Philip fucking her. The next twenty-nine days might prove to be very interesting indeed....

Chapter Fourteen

"So I keep a personal file on every client, their sexual likes and dislikes, the number of times they visit the house, their special requests ... Philip, are you listening to me?"

Helene glanced across at Philip, who sat beside her at her desk.

He stared at her for a long moment. "I beg your pardon?"

She put down her pen. "I asked if you were listening to me. How do you expect to learn about the pleasure house if you can't even give me your attention for five minutes?"

"I heard what you said."

"I doubt it."

"You said you have a file on every member of the club. Do you have one on me?"

"Not yet. Would you like one?"

His smile was dismissive. "I'm sure you've got plenty of information to put in there already."

She sniffed. "You've only been here five days, Philip. You haven't done anything particularly exciting."

He'd also been entitled to five nights in her bed as well, although since their second night together, he'd escorted her to her suite, kissed her hand, and left. To the best of her knowledge, he hadn't availed himself of any of the pleasure house opportunities either.

He raised his eyebrows. "I have disappointed you?"

"I didn't say that." She smiled kindly. "A man of your age probably needs his rest."

A muscle twitched in his jaw as he stared at her. Helene continued to look innocent. She had no wish to share her concerns with him. If he wanted to turn down the delights of her bed, he was a fool and not worth bothering about. Either his experience with Adam had convinced him that he really preferred men, or the immorality of the place had overwhelmed him and he had decided to retreat again.

"You are not taking our bargain seriously."

He frowned. "I spend all day with you. What else do you want?"

"What about the nights?"

He shrugged. "I take you to your room every night and see you safely into your bed.

What more do you want?"

"Nothing at all, my lord. I couldn't be happier."

His smile was slow and full of male satisfaction. "You want me to stay, don't you? You want me to fuck you."

Helene slammed the book shut and put her pen away in the top drawer. "I want you to fulfill all parts of our bargain and escort me to the opening of a new room on the public floor tonight. I would like a man's opinion."

"If that's what you really want—which I doubt—of course I will." He got up and walked over to the window, one hand rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll take an early dinner in the kitchen with Madame Dubois and be ready whenever you want me."

Helene glared at his unprotected head. She held her temper, but only just. She wasn't used to her male lovers speaking to her like that. She'd grown used to being adored. A smile quivered on her lips. He really was proving to be an infuriating man.

"I want to be there for the first viewing, so about eight, then?"

He turned to stare at her. "Eight it is."

True to his word, Philip was waiting for her outside the new room. He'd changed into his evening clothes and looked rather severe, the black coat and white pantaloons a perfect match for the austere lines of his face. Helene had put on one of her more daring gowns, a cream and lace confection that barely contained her breasts and clung to the outline of her legs.

His gaze flicked over her and settled on the shadow between her breasts. cTf you sneeze, won't that bodice fall down?"

"Of course not. It will catch on my nipples." Helene ran her finger along the dips and curves of the lace to illustrate the point. "I'm unlikely to sneeze in here anyway."

"Let's hope not." He pointed at the door. "The writing on the plaque isn't filled in."

Helene opened the door and stepped inside. "It will be if the room is considered a success tonight. Let's find our seats."

She chose to sit at the back just to the right of the door, and Philip joined her. To her delight, the space was already full. The center stage was filled by a large bed covered in red satin sheets.

Philip nudged her. "Aren't the sheets a little too gaudy? Surely you don't want to create the image of a brothel."

She gazed at him in surprise. "Skin shows up better against the red. But if we really don't like the effect, it can be changed."

A blond-haired man appeared dressed only in his shirt and breeches. He placed a candle at the side of the bed and started to remove his shirt. A woman followed him, clad only in a thin nightgown. She carefully placed her candle on the other side of the bed and came to stand by the man. He started to kiss her, his hands roaming over her buttocks and waist as she strained against him.

A dark-haired man appeared and joined the others, kissing the woman as well, drawing her nightgown over her head to expose her small breasts and the dark hair between her thighs. Helene smiled as the two men focused on the woman, their mouths on her breasts, her lips, and her pussy. This was exactly what she'd asked for, something elegant and sensual, something that built toward a climactic moment.

The woman helped the men remove their clothes, and soon all three of them lay entwined on the bed. Helene glanced at Philip. He seemed engrossed, his attention fixed on the erotic display in front of him. He certainly didn't look like a man who wanted to leave.

The woman lay stretched out on her back, legs spread wide. The blond man on her right lapped at her sex, and the dark-haired man suckled her breasts. Helene felt her own body respond to the luscious scene; her nipples tightened, and cream flooded her sex. She jumped when Philip covered her hand with his and squeezed hard.

On the bed, the second man slid down to the woman's pussy, his tongue tangling with the other man's, their fingers interlocking as they plunged them repeatedly into the woman's sex. Even through her excitement, Helene noted with a connoisseur's eye that both men were angling their bodies to allow the audience the best view of the woman.

The spectators murmured in appreciation as the woman grasped both the men's cocks and started rubbing them. One of the men groaned, and the other kissed him full on the mouth before returning his attention to the woman's clit.

"A true menage a trois, then." Philip's whisper barely stirred the air beside her ear.

"Out. A lot of the women here are fascinated by the thought of two men together. This scenario allows them to watch and then decide if they wish to take part."

"How far will they go?"

"As far as each involved party wants to. Limits are usually agreed to before they start, although sometimes not adhered to. Some might choose to stop now; other women might want to have sex with both of the men. Some might even prefer to watch the men have sex and not participate at all."

"An interesting room with many varied options, then."

"As you can see."

She smiled into the darkness as the blond man knelt between the woman's thighs and penetrated her with his thick shaft. The dark-haired man moved up the bed and positioned his cock over the woman's mouth.

Suddenly, Philip stood up and pulled her with him, his hand hard on her elbow. No one in the enrapt audience seemed to notice their departure as the woman opened her mouth to admit the man's dripping cock. In the hall, Philip kissed He-lene, one hand wrapped around the back of her neck to keep her close. She kissed him back, her body already well on the path of passion, his seductive scent as familiar now as her own.

When he finally released her mouth, it was only to tug on her hand and drag her along the hallway and down the stairs to her suite. He moved so fast that she was panting by the time he closed the door behind him. She backed away until she was standing by her bed.

He took off his coat and waistcoat and threw them on the floor. His eyes were glittering, his mouth harsh. What had happened to change his relaxed attitude? What particular thing had disturbed him? Desperately, Helene tried to think back over the performance they had just witnessed.

"Did you hate that room too?"

He glared at her as his hands moved to his throat. "My wedding night was a disaster. I tried to be gentle; I tried not to frighten her, but Anne was inconsolable. In truth, she was so distraught, I didn't even try to fulfill my marital obligations. I just lay beside her and listened to her weep all damned night."

Helene struggled to understand his abrupt change of subject as he tugged at his cravat without unfastening the pin, ripped it away from his throat and tossed it to the floor.

"For three months I tolerated her weeping and fainting and her refusal to allow me to remove any of her clothing or mine. In desperation, I even agreed to take her back to my parents' country seat, where she promised me she would be more willing to accept me in her bed."

He took two strides forward and sat down heavily on one of Helene's delicate French chairs. The chair creaked and groaned as he pulled off his boots and stockings.

"When the appointed night eventually arrived, it was, of course, a complete disaster." His smile held no warmth. "I've never seen so much blood come from a woman. She screamed and fought me with her nails, but this time I would not stop. I was determined to have her. And even then, I tried my hardest not to hurt her, tried to ease into her, kept my thrusts shallow and controlled, kept my weight off her, but still she screamed and swooned."

Helene stared at him as he got up from the chair and moved even closer to where she stood. Would he direct his anger at her, or was it simply tied to his words and memories?

She was the one who had wanted him to lose his inhibitions. Perhaps she should've been more careful. He unbuttoned his breeches, shoved his hand down them, and dragged out his shirttails.

"Of course, I kept away from her after she ran screaming to my mother. I hadn't lived with my family for almost five years. They were quite willing to take her word over mine. God, the whole house treated me as if I were an uncivilized monster. What else could I do?"

He touched Helene's shoulder. "Turn around." He unlaced her with quick rough hands and spun her back to face him. His fingers moved in her hair, and it fell around her shoulders; the jeweled pins dropped to the floor. "Take off the rest."

Helene didn't argue as he stripped off his shirt and stepped out of his breeches. He was magnificently erect, his cock already gleaming with precum.

"Three months later, Anne told me she was breeding and that as I had accomplished my hateful task, I didn't need to share her bed again until after the baby was born." He shrugged. "Not that we were sharing a bed anyway."

He reached out and cupped Helene's breasts; his thumbs scraped over her nipples, making them instantly hard.

"I couldn't fuck anyone in my parents' house, and somehow, whenever I found a willing lass in the neighborhood, my wife always found out and started a scene worthy of a Drury Lane farce. So I grew well acquainted with my hand and my imagination." His mouth twisted up at one corner. "The images were all of you, even though I'd sworn never to think of you again."

She had to turn her head away as his teeth scraped her neck. His actions were exciting.

Did he know she craved such directness, such caresses that gave her no choice but to submit? She shuddered as he nipped her ear and guided her back toward the bed, his gaze still distant and distinctly unfriendly.

"Two years later, I had my wife once more, and she produced our daughter. After that, she refused me completely." He lifted her onto the bed and leaned over her, his hot wet cock pressed against her belly. "Do you realize I had more sex with you during that one wild weekend than I had with my wife in seventeen years?"