Page 115

“Yes,” she admitted, grateful that he couldn’t see her face. “I want to believe the proprietress’s words that the harlots here enjoy engaging in intimate relations with different people, but…” She trailed off, unable to voice her doubts.

He paused, his hands stilling against her back. She could feel his hesitation, as if he were debating whether to share something with her. “You can see for yourself if you want,” he finally said.

She turned her head sharply, trying to catch his expression. “What do you mean? Are you saying I should engage a harlot to see if they enjoy it?”

A low chuckle rumbled from his chest, the sound vibrating against her back. “No,” he said. “Absolutely not. But you can watch. I think it would be obvious if they are enthusiastic about it or not.”

“Watch?” Her voice came out as a squeak.

“There are observing chambers. Holes in the walls allow people to watch couples in intimate embrace from their dark little rooms.” His hands resumed their work on her laces, pulling them snug. “But the men and women who are observed choose that room. They know they are being watched, and supposedly they enjoy the exhibition.”

The concept was so foreign to her that she struggled to understand it. “Have you used one of those rooms?”

“No,” he said quietly. “But I’ve witnessed it in passing.”

When he finished with her laces, they made their way into the enclosed corridor, but instead of heading directly to Grace’s office, Gideon led her in the opposite direction. He paused before a small door and pushed it open.

They found themselves in a space not much larger than the secret passage they’d used to get there—barely big enough for two people to stand comfortably. It was dark and cramped, furnished only with a small table, a single chair, and a jug of water.

Almost immediately, Leila could hear sounds from the adjoining room—soft moaning, the creak of bedsprings, whispered words she couldn’t quite make out. Her eyes widened in shock and embarrassment.

“We can leave right away if you want,” Gideon said softly, apparently reading her distress. “But these are the observing chambers. You can see for yourself whether the participants seem willing or not.”

Leila couldn’t suppress her curiosity. The sounds from the next room grew more intense, and she found herself drawn forward until she encountered several small holes in the wall, each about the size of a gold coin.

Her heart pounding, she pressed her eye to one of the openings.

What she saw made her gasp involuntarily. A woman with auburn hair was astride a man, moving with enthusiastic abandon. Her head was thrown back in apparent ecstasy, her full breasts bouncing as she rode him with obvious pleasure. The man beneath her had his hands on her hips, guiding her movements, but it was clear that she was in control, taking her pleasure as much as giving it.

Leila shuddered involuntarily, though she couldn’t determine whether it was from shock, disgust, or something else entirely. Despite her discomfort, she couldn’t deny her body’s response to the explicit scene before her. Her skin heated, and she felt an unwelcome dampness between her thighs. Mortified by her reaction, she grabbed Gideon by the arm, her fingers squeezing his sleeve as if anchoring herself.

He looked down at her grip and smiled. “She seems enthusiastic to me. What about you?”

“I—I don’t know,” Leila stammered, completely flustered by both what she’d witnessed and her own physical response. The woman had certainly appeared to be enjoying herself, but the entire situation still felt wrong somehow. “Perhaps. But I wouldn’t want to be watched doing… that.” She swallowed hard. “I don’t understand how women feel safe enough in other men’s arms to relax and make it enjoyable for others to watch.”

“Some men enjoy watching women be uncomfortable. They find pleasure in others’ distress.”

I know, she thought but didn’t voice it. Instead, she shared her next thought. “That’s reprehensible.”

“Well, unfortunately, many men are quite reprehensible.” His voice carried a bitter note. “However, if Grace is to be believed, only the women and men who enjoy being watched are placed in these rooms.”

“If she can be believed,” Leila replied skeptically. She still couldn’t convince herself that every activity in this place was absolutely consensual, though she had to admit that the particular woman she’d observed seemed to be enjoying herself immensely. “But I have to concede that even if what she says is only partly true… it’s still better than what my life has been.”

He was quiet for a long moment, and when he spoke, his voice was careful and measured. “If you could choose to leave the Cardinal and work at a place like this, would you?”

The question caught her off guard, and she found herself contemplating it seriously. The sounds from the next room continued, a steady moaning that almost blurred into the background. If she were just a harlot, at least she wouldn’t have to kill, she thought. “Only as a stepping stone to eventually escaping,” she said finally. “I really hope these women truly find pleasure in this intimate act with a number of men, because I…” She trailed off, suddenly shy. Taking a deep breath, she finished her thought, “I can’t imagine enjoying it with just anyone.”

“You enjoyed it with me,” he said softly.

The simple statement sent heat flooding through her body. He was right, of course. With him, lovemaking had been something entirely different—not just physical pleasure, but connection, trust, and tenderness.

“You’re not just anyone.”

The silence stretched on, filled only by the increasingly passionate sounds from the next room. When Gideon spoke again, his voice was huskier than usual.

“If you could escape the Cardinal and stay with me… under the condition that you could only make love to me for the rest of your life… would you do that?”

She turned to look at him in the darkness, shock and confusion warring on her face. What is he saying? What is he offering?