by Josie Litton
His body…hers to do with as she would. At that thought, she became aware that the ribbed dildo was moving deeper inside her. The burning sensation gave way to a fullness that was…not pleasant, exactly, it was still much too odd for that. But there was something building inside her…heightened by her swelling clit that Lucius stroked even as he thrust the dildo in and out of her ass slowly.
“How does that feel?” he asked softly.
Like nothing she had ever experienced. She felt at once shamefully full and so empty that she ached. Her body pulsated with need. She wanted suddenly to reverse their positions, a simple maneuver, catch him off guard and she’d have him flat on his back. The thought of freeing his cock, taking him into her mouth…sucking him…and then mounting him… She burned to have him there, deep inside her, thrusting hard, that magnificent cock stretching and filling her, driving them both to ecstasy.
Waves of pleasure coursed through her body. Her nipples were ultrasensitive, the mere brush of the air against them almost unbearable. As for her clit… Even when he had used his sinful mouth on her, she hadn’t felt so utterly consumed. She was rushing toward a climax that shocked her in its intensity but there was no time to think of that. Before she could draw breath it was on her. Her back arched helplessly, her fingers digging into the soft Oriental rug. A strangled scream tore from her throat as consciousness whirled away.
When she was next fully aware, she was in Lucius’ lap on the couch, naked in his arms. His hand was stroking her hair as he murmured soft words of praise.
“You did so well,” he murmured. “So beautiful, so sensuous.” His arms tightened around her.
With her head cradled on his shoulder, held close against him, she felt a sensation of safety and well-being so at odds with the reality of her situation that it pierced her with bittersweet longing.
A day later, the memory still made her tremble. That simply would not do. It was vital that she find the evidence of what had happened to Naomi after her half-sister arrived at the Odalisque. Distractions were the surest route to failure.
Sternly, she turned her attention to the matter at hand. Unable to sit at the desk because of the corset, she remained standing, took a breath and keyed in the password. If she had it wrong… If there was some other security protocol she hadn’t noticed…
Relief flooded her as the system promptly opened. A quick glance at the desktop revealed the usual programs--email, spreadsheets, and the like. She ignored them and went directly to a search of all computer files.
Quickly, she typed in her half-sister’s name, then waited.
Searching…
She had seen enough of Lucius’ business to be certain that it was run efficiently. That being the case, there would be records of every one who set foot in the Odalisque, not merely of members but of suppliers, employees and, she had to hope, anyone who had applied for a position. The club was a global chain; successful job seekers could end up anywhere. If she could just confirm that Naomi had been there and get a lead as to where she might be…
Searching…
Why was it taking so long? The system was undoubtedly state-of-the art. It should have produced a result by now…
Unless Naomi wasn’t in it but that couldn’t be. All the effort Natalia had made, all the risks she had taken couldn’t be for nothing.
Naomi, and with her the only family Natalia still had, would be gone. Surely fate would not be that cruel.
The thought produced a hollow sense of dread that grew as the seconds passed. So absorbed was she in staring at the blank screen that she failed to notice when the office doors opened and Lucius stepped into the room.
Chapter Seventeen
She looked so innocent. That was what kept throwing him. Under the virginal white robe was the body of a goddess, not merely beautiful but deeply, generously passionate. And those eyes, that mouth… Natalia threatened to consume him just when he most needed all his faculties if he was going to have a chance in hell of dealing with her.
There she stood, trapped, blatantly guilty and with no way out. He should have felt vindicated--all his suspicions about her were correct. She had just broken into what she thought was a secure system guarding the secrets of the Odalisque and now she was trying to extract what would be highly sensitive information.
Anger exploded in him. He told himself that the sense of personal betrayal he felt was irrational. So was the ache deep inside what passed for his soul. He hadn’t felt any such emotion since he was a child, orphaned and alone. He damn well was not going to feel it now.
Behind a mask of frigid amusement, he said, “Looking for something?”
She jumped, a small scream escaping her.
“Lucius--?”
“You sound surprised to see me. And yet this is my office. What are you doing here?”
He had to give her credit, she recovered quickly. Shock--and he liked to think fear--were replaced quickly by a look of such guilelessness that he could only marvel at her skill.
“You startled me,” she said as though he was the guilty one, not her.
With mock patience, he replied, “I’m so sorry. Perhaps I should have knocked first?”
She licked her lips, thereby threatening to distract him yet again, and smiled brightly. “Don’t be silly. It is your office after all.”
“Precisely, which brings us back to my question: What are you doing here?”
A becoming flush warmed her cheeks. Damn, she was good!
“It’s a little embarrassing,” Natalia said.
“Being caught here with no reasonable explanation?”
“Oh, no, not that. I have a perfectly good reason.”
He had to hand it to her. If he hadn’t known about the meticulously created legend that hid the truth of who she was, he might actually have fallen for her pose of innocence. As it was, he was even more convinced that she was a highly trained professional.
“I’m all ears,” he said.
She shrugged delicately. “I wanted to get some idea of what to expect tomorrow…at the auction, I mean.”
“The process was spelled out for you in detail during your first days at the abbey, remember?”
Natalia waved that aside. “Well, yes, of course. What I meant to say was that I was curious about the financial aspect.”
“You do recall sitting down with the attorney, going over the contract in detail, including the fact that you are guaranteed a minimum of a hundred thousand pounds sterling?”
“Certainly but I wondered if it’s possible to do better than that. I assumed that you’d have records.”
“So you decided to look for them?”
“I know that I shouldn’t have and that it makes me sound terribly greedy. But in a way it’s your fault.”
“Mine?” It took him a moment to absorb that.
When he had, he said, “My foster father, Zhao Feng, who is a gifted linguist in addition to being the head of China’s most powerful triad, would call that ‘chutzpah’. He would approve of it. In all honesty, I do not.”
She frowned, ignoring his disapproval to focus on what interested her far more. “A Chinese crime lord is your foster father?”
“I just said as much, didn’t I?” Before she could reply, he went on, determined to give her a bit more rope if only to see what she would do with it.
“It’s my fault that you broke into my office and accessed my computer?”
She shot him a chiding look. “Yesterday, during the brief respite you granted, you logged on. I just happened to notice the password. Your carelessness proved to be an irresistible temptation.”
Helpfully, she added, “If you want to avoid such incursions in future, you should be more careful.”
He raised an eyebrow. “You happened to notice--and remember--a twelve digit alphanumeric code that you saw go by in seconds? That’s impressive.”
“What I can say? It’s a little quirk I have.”
More likely a skill honed by intensive trainin
g. Just as she had been trained to use a throat strike to disable a troublesome male. He had to remember that and take appropriate precautions. If she got any hint of his intentions--
“You don’t need to worry,” he said. “I’m confident that you’ll do well. But if you want to be certain of that, you’ll return to the main floor now and rejoin your associates.”
A flash of surprise darted behind her eyes. His apparent willingness to forgive her transgression must surely seem puzzling. However, she wasn’t about to look the proverbial gift horse in the mouth.
Even so, she hesitated. He had given her just enough time to begin her search of his system but no opportunity to remove the evidence of her presence there. He saw the quick glance she cast at the keyboard. A few strokes and she could conceal what she had done…or so she would think.
Deliberately, he turned his back, walked to the doors and opened them for her.
By the time he turned again, she was crossing the room to him.
“Do try to be good the rest of the night,” he said pleasantly. For good measure, he applied a firm pat to her ass.
She started again and looked about to reprimand him only to think better of it. Instead, she made a hasty exit.
Lucius waited until she disappeared down the stairs before going to his desk. Moments later, he was into the shell system he had set up to assure that Natalia would never get near anything of genuine importance. Not that he hadn’t left plenty of bait in the form of files with such tempting names as “Member Confidential Information”, “Bank Accounts”, and the like.
Yet oddly she hadn’t gone for any of them. Instead, the keystroke recorder he’d put in place showed that she had simply searched for one name.
Sitting back in his chair, he frowned at the screen: Who the hell was Naomi Havers?
~~~~~~~~~~
Heedless of the discomfort of the corset, Natalia hurried back down the steps. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. Not merely that Lucius had discovered her in the very act of breaking into his computer but that incredibly he had let her go.
Foresee every possible eventuality, her father had taught her, and have a plan to deal with it. Undone by the days of tormenting “practice”, she had failed to adhere to that simplest and most vital of rules.
Had he really believed her lame excuse offered up on the spur of the moment? Granted, greed was always a good explanation for human behavior but it stung to think he could believe her to be so shallow.
What a foolish thought. She should be down on her knees thanking any deity who cared to listen that she’d gotten away with it. Instead, other thoughts tormented her.
There had to be an explanation for why there was no trace of her half-sister in Lucius’ records. The most obvious was that Naomi could have been using a different name. That was certainly possible given the precautions that David Bollinger, to use his favorite alias, had taken to safeguard both his daughters.
If only she’d had a little more time, she could have searched the system by date and discovered who was applying for employment at the Odalisque during the time Naomi had been in London. As it was, she would be lucky to get away to try again another day. Although how she would manage to make another attempt was utterly beyond her. The virgin auction had been her one, best hope. With it about to take place, she was out of ideas and more desperate than ever.
Stepping out onto the floor of the club, she saw Arabella Hamilton standing nearby. Hastily, Natalia moved behind a writhing threesome, then made her way back toward the tables where the virgins were clustering. Kathleen was playing cards with several gentlemen, all of them laughing. Nearby, Daphne was chatting with a young man who looked quite smitten. All eight of the women she had come to think of fondly appeared confident and at ease. And why not? In a matter of days, they would be on their way to achieving dreams that were no less real and important for being founded on practical realities.
As for herself… She could only hope that the tumultuous feelings Lucius provoked would pass quickly once she was away from the sensual atmosphere of the abbey and his own presence. If they did not, she couldn’t begin to imagine how she would cope with the torment of denied desires and longing for something ineffable that she had never felt before.
An hour later, when the abbess shepherded her charges back to their quarters, Natalia was no closer to coming up with an alternative plan for finding her half-sister. All she would think of was that time was almost up. In twenty-four hours, the virgin auction would have concluded. At any time before then, Lucius might think over his encounter with her and decide that he didn’t believe her explanation after all. What would he do then?
The sensible thing would be not to find out. She had to get away while she still could. Afterward, she could figure out everything else. But when she peered out the window of the dormitory, her thoughts of escape came to a skittering halt. By the light from the streetlamps, she could make out several large men on the opposite side of the street, clearly keeping watch. She was quite certain that they had not been there on previous nights.
In the hope that she might dispel the fear that sprang instantly into her mind, Natalia slipped into the hall and peered out the back window. It was more difficult to see in that direction but she was certain that several more men were patrolling just beyond the abbey’s garden.
Fighting a wave of panic, she told herself that the men could simply be security for one of the club’s member who was in attendance that night. If that were the case, they would be gone by morning. Escaping in daylight would be harder but she could manage it.
After freeing herself from the cruelly binding corset and bidding the excited virgins goodnight, Natalia crawled into bed with the forlorn hope that she might get at least a few hours sleep. But after a seeming eternity of tossing and turning, the new day brought with it the discovery that the watchers, or at least a fresh team of them, were still in place. The abbey and club alike were surrounded. There was no way out.
She was trapped.
Chapter Eighteen
“Eee-ouch!” Clara screamed. The American with an interest in catering bolted half upright on the padded lounger as a paste of honey and finely ground apricot kernels was applied to her pussy with a small fleece buffer.
Her outburst earned a swift rebuke from the abbess. “Calm yourself! Anyone would think you were being waxed for the first time. This is merely a final polish.”
“It’s torture,” Kathleen groaned nearby. She was undergoing the same treatment, as were all the virgins.
Since early morning, they had been bathed, oiled, plucked and buffed over every inch of their bodies. Nothing was overlooked to bestow upon them a level of physical perfection that could not be surpassed. No stray hair or bit of roughened skin was allowed to remain. By the time the aestheticians completed their work even Arabella was satisfied. From the tips of their polished toes to their scented hair, they glowed.
“Very nice,” she said as she surveyed them. “We will take a break now. I strongly suggest that you make use of the time to nap. You will be glad of that later.”
“When we’re up all night fucking,” Kathleen whispered as they climbed the stairs to the dormitory.
“Oh, lord, I hope so,” Daphne exclaimed. “I was horny enough before I came here but after all the lessons, not to mention the practice sessions--” She broke off, giggling.
Natalia lay down on her bed but she didn’t even try to close her eyes. The turmoil of her thoughts would not allow for rest. She ricocheted back and forth between damning Lucius for playing with her so cruelly and trying desperately to come up with some means to escape him.
So preoccupied was she that the whispered conversation had been going on around her for some time before she became aware of it.
“A three-day round the world trip by private supersonic jet, non-stop fucking in the air and the most magnificent shopping and dining at every stop,” Lei Su was saying. “That’s the best one I’ve heard of. It happened three
years ago and it still hasn’t been surpassed.”
“That is a good one,” Clara agreed. “But how about this: Two years ago, a tropical paradise in the South Pacific with every imaginable luxury including, let’s just say, a staff skilled in catering to absolutely every desire?”
“I could go for either one,” Daphne chimed in. “Mostly I just want a patron who is (a) loaded and (b) really hung.”
Kathleen and the others all laughed. Only Natalia was left in the dark.
“What are you talking about?” she asked softly.
Clara turned on her side and smiled. “Where we’ll be going tonight. There are stories about the incredible places virgins from here have been taken by their patrons. Each location has to be vetted and pre-approved before a gentleman is allowed to participate in the auction so you can just imagine how amazing they are.”
Of course! Why hadn’t she thought of that? She would be leaving the Odalisque that night no matter what Lucius suspected about her. All she had to do was go through with the auction, depart with her ‘patron’, and then promptly slip away. She couldn’t feel even the slightest bit guilty about disappointing the addled fool, whoever he was. On the contrary, she would be saving him from an utterly absurd expenditure of money that could be used far better elsewhere.
With her mood significantly improved, Natalia thought she might be able to get a bit of rest after all. But even as the other girls drifted off, her unruly mind returned to thoughts of Lucius.
Enticing, maddening, enigmatic Lucius.
He had a Chinese foster father who was a crime lord? How had that happened? And how had he gone from that life to the Odalisque? Why had been able and willing to bestow so much of his time on her in recent days? Was there no woman in his life who would, reasonably enough, have objected?
Why on earth was she wondering about that? He could have a harem at his beck and call and it would mean nothing to her. Absolutely nothing.
