Page 36 of The Cruelty of Thorns

“I don’t know. She keeps a room for him here. I assume that’s where he went when he arrived.”

“Has she sent for me this evening?”

“Yes. She said to come to her as soon as you finish your toiletry.” She reached for me, grabbing my hand. “Julianus, don’t go.”

I offered her a sad smile. “As much as I’d like to stay here with you, we both know I have to go. You said it yourself, I can’t disappoint her.”

I thought about the captive who was sent to the cellar a few weeks ago. I hadn’t asked about him since then, but I’m sure the man was dead by now. I’d wondered if she replaced him, despite the fact that she sent for me every night I was capable. I was sure the Contessa’s appetite could handle more than one lover a night, though I hadn’t seen anyone new around the house.

“It’ll be all right,” I assured her.

“You don’t know that.”

“No, but I’ll do whatever I can to make sure he doesn’t bother you.”

“I know you mean well, but what can you do against them?”

Since I didn’t know how to answer that, I simply wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close to me. I knew in my heart if this man Christopher harmed her in any way he would have to kill me to prevent me from hurting him.

“I can’t stand to see you unhappy,” I murmured to her.

She looked up at me. “I hate that you were captured, but I’m glad you’re here for my sake.”

“So am I,” I agreed, kissing the top of her head. “Now you’d better go before you’re missed, and I should get to the Contessa’s room before she gets suspicious.”

♦ ♦ ♦

Ordinarily the Contessa would answer my knock at her door herself, but on this evening she simply called out for me to enter. When I got inside the room, I discovered why. She was reclined in the middle of her bed with a man’s head buried between her legs. He was nude and slight of build, his long hair hiding his face, but I recognized him.

Tomasso.

My fists clenched at my side while an irrational flare of jealousy surged through me. She would entertain another man while sending for me? And Tomasso at that? He was little more than a child, I raged inwardly, though if I was being honest, he was probably close to my own age.

The Contessa flicked her gaze to me and I realized with satisfaction the emotion I saw on her face was more akin to boredom than ecstasy. That thought was confirmed when she uttered a long-suffering sigh and pushed his head away from her.

“That will be all, Tomasso. You may leave.”

He sat up and glanced sideways at me, his brows dipping in a frown. “Are you sure?”

“Would I have said it if I weren’t?” she snapped. “Go. Now.”

He scrambled up from the bed and stopped to gather his clothes, his eyes glaring daggers at me as he brushed past and let himself out of the room.

When he was gone, the Contessa focused her attention on me. “How did that make you feel, Julianus?”

I knew she was trying to bait me, and I wondered if the whole encounter had been meant for that exact purpose, but before I could answer her another voice interrupted.

“Darling, he’s positively murderous.”

The voice was deep yet lyrical, with an accent I’d never heard before. The man behind it rose from a chair on the opposite side of the bed, his lithe frame clothed only in a pair of black tights. He moved with a languorous grace as he rounded the bed and approached me. Blond curls fell to his shoulders, framing a pair of ice blue eyes and a wide, full mouth.

This, I suspected, was the feared Christopher.

His lips curled up in a cruel smile and I was reminded of a feral cat I had once encountered in an alley. He reached out and trailed a single finger across my arm and down my chest, evoking an involuntary shiver in me.

“Lovely,” he leaned in and breathed against my ear. “Is this your new playmate, Anastacia?” He moved behind me, his arm curling around my shoulder. When I tried to inch away from him, his grip tightened, pulling me closer to him so that our heads rested against each other. “I like him. He’s pretty. And got some fire in him.” He turned his head, meeting my eyes, his lips a breath away from mine. “You wanted to kill him just now, didn’t you?”

I couldn’t deny it, though I was loathe to say it out loud for fear of what the Contessa might do since he was her favorite. And while part of me was equally terrified of this man, I pushed aside my fear and narrowed my eyes at him when I muttered, “He deserved no less.”

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