Page 18 of The Pirate and the Pagan
Summer sighed. “I’m particularly partial to the forbidden.”
“Then Helford should suit you to a tee, you little hellcat. Seriously, I’m going to miss you dreadfully. Do let me know how you go along. It may not be as easy as you’re assuming despite the cream roses, Summer. I don’t believe Helford is a man you can lead about by the nose, or any other prominent appendage for that matter.”
Somehow Summer knew she was alluding to his male parts and immediately she said, “Lil, I’m so shamefully ignorant, I’m going to ask you some questions which will probably embarrass you.”
“How novel; I haven’t been embarrassed since I was twelve, darling.”
“What … is a man like … down there? Oh, I’ve seen my brother when he was a little boy of course, but Lord Helford … I mean … he seemed … there was such a big bulge….”
Lil’s trill of amusement stopped and she became suddenly serious. “I wouldn’t dream of sending one of my girls off for a tête-à-tête with a gentleman without thoroughly briefing her step-by-step on everything appertaining to the male, from what he looks like to what he will expect her to let him do to her, but in your case I don’t want to do that. No, no, don’t be offended, darling, let me see if I can explain this to you. Innocence cannot be simulated. It is a rare and precious gift which a woman can give to a man only once in her lifetime. If a man is a connoisseur of women … if he’s sensitive and appreciative, he will savor that gift for a lifetime. It is so much more meaningful for a woman to have the mysteries of sensuality explained to her by a loving man; I wouldn’t deprive you of the experience. And the deep pleasure it will give the man to tell you and show you and instruct you will be like an aphrodisiac. He will remember it always. It will come flooding back to him to almost unman him and it will give you a power over him that is almost mystical.”
Summer licked lips gone dry. Oh, how she would enjoy having a mystical power over Lord Ruark Helford.
Lil continued, “Fortunes are paid for innocence, so it is like having an ace up your sleeve. A man is drawn to it irresistibly, lured by his instinct to hunt, to snare, to dominate, to possess that which no other man has captured. It is even possible to play the card skillfully enough to exchange the innocence for a wedding ring.”
Summer’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Oh, darling, I shouldn’t have said that. Helford is definitely experienced enough to pluck a woman’s innocence without paying the ultimate price, but what I’m trying to impress on you is not to let him have it without paying a fortune.”
King Charles had been in his laboratory most of the afternoon. He had a passion for chemistry and the room was lined with shelves holding jars of powders and pastes and bottles of colored liquids. Alchemy fascinated him to the point where he was an easy mark for any quack’s nostrums. He had a vast collection of books on the subject, all beautifully bound in leather, and some of these volumes touched upon witchcraft and wizardry.
No one ever dared to disturb him when he was working in his chemical laboratory as it was an unwritten law that he wished to be private. No one dared, except of course Barbara. She entered the long room with its open casements which let out the peculiar odors and vapors of Charles’s concoctions.
When Charles heard someone enter the room, he frowned and set down the beaker of oil of prima materia he had just carefully measured out. When he saw that it was Barbara, however, he gave her a lazy smile of welcome.
“Charles, I thought I’d better warn you that the monsieur returned unexpectedly from the country this morning, so plans for tonight will have to be canceled.”
“Not canceled surely, sweetheart? Can’t we move them ahead to this afternoon?” he suggested with a healthy leer.
“What, here?” she asked doubtfully, glancing with unconcealed distaste at all the odd paraphernalia.
His eyes never left her luscious breasts as he reached for a glass container holding a golden liquid. He poured some into a glass and offered it to her.
“Charles, are you trying to poison me?”
“It’s wine, sweetheart.” He sampled some himself to show her it was no mysterious concoction. “We’ll share a loving cup and a pleasant hour.” He gathered her to him in one strong arm and held the golden wine to her exciting lips. Charles’s heavy eyelids drooped at the sensual feel of her body pressed against the hardening length of him.
“Do you have any of that stuff you were telling me about?” she asked in a husky voice.
“Stuff?” he puzzled.
“Amyl something-or-other that one inhales to make the climax harder.”
Charles chuckled. “Yes, I have a vial or two about somewhere. It’s an amber liquid that tastes and smells of pears. You inhale it deeply just before you are ready to come. Would you like to try it, you wanton little wench?”
“Why not?” She slanted him a glance.
“Why not, indeed?” he echoed. “Let’s see, it’s over here on this shelf with the other items which induce lust.”
Barbara’s curiosity was piqued. “Really?” she asked, moving toward the fascinating containers. She lifted a small jar, removed the lid, and sniffed. “Mmm, what are these? They smell like violets.”
Charles looked at the small purple gelatin capsules and grinned at her. “Intimate as we are, love, I blush to tell you what the apothecary said these were invented for.”
“Oh, Charles, tell me,” she urged.
“Well … you insert one up past your sphincter before you make love, then if you pass wind in bed, it smells like violets.”
Barbara fell against him with laughter. “Darling, I must have some. It’s quite an art to be able to do disgusting things delicately.”
