"As you can see, it's not." Genesis squirmed under his perusal, but held her head high as her gaze met his.
"No indeed, for it holds a treasure beyond compare."
She looked at him in surprise.
"I'll pay a king's ransom for a night with you," he said. "How can it be I've discovered a goddess residing in a brothel?"
He closed the door behind him and then walked over to the bed. He stared at her face for a long moment before sitting down next to her.
"Hello, beautiful lady." His smile revealed strong white teeth and adorable dimples. Her nipples tightened in response to his tall, strong body in such close proximity to hers.
"I think you've made a mistake," she stammered. "I'm not one of the girls for sale."
At least not yet.
"For sale? Surely Madame Colette didn't teach you to speak with such indelicacy? From what I've heard, the girls in Le Petit Palais are well-educated, only working here until they can marry into the aristocracy. Have you not learned how to turn a phrase to please a gentleman's sensibilities?"
"As you've chosen to visit this establishment, you surely must be no gentleman." Genesis found herself curious about this devastatingly attractive man. With his handsome face, he surely didn't have to pay a woman for sex. In fact, she guessed he had to beat them off with a stick of some sort.
"I confess this is my first time to visit."
"And why are you here?" she asked.
"Why does any man with money come here?"
"To have sex, I suppose."
He burst out laughing. "You are certainly blunt with your opinions. I was told flirtation is an art form every courtesan excelled at, but I have yet to see that demonstrated from you. Tell me, are you new here?"
"Yes I am, my handsome Apollo." She batted her thick eyelashes at him and he blinked in surprise. Why shouldn't she flirt with this golden Adonis? If things got out of hand, she could simply ring the bell and one of the eunuchs would remove him.
He raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps I was incorrect about your lack of flirtation skills."
She leaned back against the pillow and smiled at him. "And perhaps it only takes the right man to sharpen my skills."
His gaze held hers. "I can see why a man would fall in love with one of you ladies. How many love letters should I write to you, my beautiful enchantress?"
"Why, an even dozen of course. You don't want to be different from my other suitors."
"Oh, but I do want to be different." He frowned. "I'm not sure I wish to be just another client to you."
"But that's what you are, aren't you?"
"Am I? I haven't paid you any money, so technically I'm just a—"
"Potential client?" She studied him through lowered lashes. Who was this gorgeous man who had slipped into her room by mistake?
"For the moment, we are simply a man and woman engaged in conversation. Shall we leave it at that?"
She nodded. "As you wish."
"Then let me introduce myself. I'm Alex Lansing."
"How do you do?"
"I'm very well now. And may I ask your name?"
"It's Genesis."
He lifted his mouth in a seductive grin. "I like that. I suppose it's one you made up."
"I'm afraid not because it's my own."
And it was. Her father had given her the unusual name in a fit of whimsical self-indulgence.
"It suits you."
Under his appreciative gaze, her nipples tightened until they were pebble-sized nubs which pressed against the material of her gown.
Her gown! When he'd entered the room, she had been trying on the sheer gowns Madame Colette had provided for her. She raised her hands to cover nipples which were clearly visible through the sheer fabric. Then she lowered her hands to cover the triangle of dark curls which could also be seen through the transparent material.
"It's a little late for that, isn't it?" His gaze lingered, not on her body, but on her full lips.
"I—" She reached for the throw which lay across the bed and covered herself with it.
"Are you sure you belong here?" The laughter in his voice caused her skin to flame with embarrassment. "You behave as if you've never been alone with a man in your life."
At that moment, Genesis cursed her father and every male member of the species. She remembered the events which had brought her to this place.
After years of begging for information about her absent mother, her father had finally given it to her. When she attended his funeral, she had occasion to read the sealed letter he left for her along with his last will and testament.
"As you can see, you're now a wealthy woman," the solicitor informed her. "I know you've just graduated from university. Do you have any immediate plans?"
Several possibilities crossed her mind. She could follow in her father's footsteps and become an archaeologist. There were some females in the profession, although they were few and far between. Perhaps she could secure a position as a teacher or a governess, for she was qualified for either profession. If she chose, she could even be a lady of leisure because her fortune was such she never had to work a day in her life. But this wasn't her way. She would use her money to help the street orphans she'd seen in the back streets of London and Paris. She would set up an orphanage for them, helping them escape lives of sadness and poverty.
But first, Genesis knew she had to find out everything she could about the mother who had abandoned her on her father's doorstep. The mother who had been a French prostitute in this very brothel when she had fallen in love with a handsome English archaeologist, and then gotten pregnant with his child.
As she glanced around Madame Colette's luxurious, richly appointed office in the heart of the exclusive, expensive brothel, Genesis wondered if she was making a mistake in attempting to discover more about her mother.
"You wish to service customers?" Madame Colette eyed Genesis with a speculative glance. "You're an exquisite beauty just as your mother was. You could make a fortune working here, perhaps marry into the upper classes. Even the British royal family visits us on occasion."
Genesis interrupted her. "I already have a considerable fortune which my father left me on his death."
"Ah yes, the famous archaeologist. I remember what a dashing young man he was. He never visited another courtesan when he came here. From the moment he saw your mother, he always requested her."
"She bore his child and then ran away. That child was me." Genesis bit her lip in frustration as feelings of abandonment overwhelmed her. "Why didn't she marry my father? Didn't he want her?"
"That's something I can't answer." Colette shook her head. "She was never one for confiding much in myself or the other girls. However, I know she found your father to be incredibly attractive because she told me so herself. She couldn't understand why he never requested any of the other ladies. I believe she was in love with him."
"And I believe he loved her as well because he never married anyone else. He raised me on his own without a woman to help him."
"I'm sorry, ma petite. But now you're wealthy and can do as you please." Her voice turned businesslike. "I take forty percent of the earnings and you keep sixty. If you're interested in my proposition, please let me know. Until then, I'll rent the room to you for as long as you wish to live here."
"I've never been with a man." Genesis considered her options as her mind wandered. "I want to know everything about my mother. If that means adopting the lifestyle she chose, then I'll do it. I want to discover everything about the sexual act, but I don't wish to fall in love because it seems to lead to misery."
What was she saying? Was she actually thinking of becoming a high-class courtesan as her mother had been? How better to know the woman who bore her?
And why shouldn't she? There was no one to judge her if she chose this path. She cared nothing for any of the wealthy suitors who pursued her. She had her own fortune and needed no man to take care of her. A pinpoint of anger crystallized in her heart. Love didn't last. She had seen enough of the world to know she would never become a vacuous socialite, married to a man who frequented brothels while she sat home raising his children alone.
"For the time being, I only wish to rent a room so I can absorb the atmosphere of this place," she said. "But soon I might entertain gentlemen as my mother did."
"I knew your mother better than anyone." Colette's face softened with remembrance. "But after she gave birth to you, she left the brothel and I never heard from her again. Eventually, word reached me she had died of consumption."
A tear slid down Genesis's cheek. "How I wish I could've known her."
"Before she met your father, she had a group of gentlemen callers who asked for her by name.
I wish to visit with Miss Eugenie
, they would say to me. She was one of my most popular girls."
"It's hard for me to accept my mother was a whore."
"Not a whore, you must never call her that." Colette's dark gaze narrowed with anger. "She was a courtesan and entertained the likes of the Duke of Windsor and the Prince of Wales. A courtesan is proud of her skill; she's no gutter slut or tavern wench. I hire only the best, and these women go on to marry the leaders of industry or become the mistresses of royalty. If they're careful with their money, they retire and enjoy wealth and privilege."
Genesis shook her head. The woman made it sound like an honorable profession. What was honorable about offering your body to one stranger after another? It wasn't love; it was simply fucking. And yet it was honest, wasn't it? No pretense, no false promises. At the moment, it was what she craved.
"I have some books which might help you understand your mother's personality." Colette smiled at her. "She was a woman who truly enjoyed men, all types of men. Until she fell for your father, she enjoyed tasting the delights the stronger sex had to offer. There are women who were born for lovemaking, and she was one of them. This is nothing to be ashamed of, despite the way Queen Victoria wishes to shroud sex in secrecy. Is it true the English even cover the legs of tables with tablecloths so they won't appear improper?"
"I'm afraid that's true."
Colette laughed as she moved to a large bookcase in the corner. "At least you're half French, so perhaps there's hope for you if you decide to pursue this line of work."
"I'm not sure yet. Please give me time to decide."
"With your outstanding looks, you could become the belle of Le Petit Palais."
Genesis scanned the rows of books. If the bookcase was any indication, then the owner of this brothel was a well-read woman. There were copies of Dickens' novels and Shakespeare's plays sitting side by side with books on erotica. Colette pulled out a volume with a plain black cover and handed it to Genesis.
"Read this," she said. "Afterwards, you might be in a frame of mind for your first gentleman caller."
"Thank you." Genesis took the book and then walked to the door.
"Just a moment," said Colette. "I have one more thing to say. If any of the clients bother you, simply ring for the eunuchs. They're always on duty to protect the ladies. I had them brought from a harem in Constantinople, and they no longer have any interest in women. However, they're loyal to me because I don't mistreat or disrespect them. That's one thing you must understand about my little kingdom." She spread her hands to include the lovely sitting room filled with antiques and expensive paintings. "I allow no one to be mistreated in my kingdom."
When she returned to her room, Genesis sat down on the bed and opened the book. Instantly, she flipped it shut. There had been a drawing of a naked woman on one of the pages! Who wrote this filth?
However, her curiosity eventually overcame her outrage. As if expecting a poisonous snake to jump out at her, she lifted the cover and took a peek. The title caught her attention.
The Erotic Adventures of a Chambermaid complete with pictures.
She lay back on the bed and began to read. The novel was interspersed with pictures of the chambermaid as she did her erotic adventuring. All told, the lusty maid had relations with her employer, her employer's gentlemen friends, another chambermaid, and the employer's wife.
The more she read, the warmer the room grew. She reached for the small fan on her bedside table and fanned herself vigorously. Heat radiated from her body and she removed her clothing to get more comfortable. As she read the part about the chambermaid and the employer's wife, she put a hand to her breast. She squeezed her nipple and gently pulled on it. The distended peak grew harder under her exploration and she moved her hand down to the silky triangle between her legs. She began to stroke the soft skin.
"Excuse me, am I boring you?" asked Alex.
Genesis was brought back to the present by the man's rich, warm voice. He watched her with an intensity which caused the blood to rush to her cheeks.
"Forgive me. I-I was distracted." Her mind was full of thoughts she dare not name. What if she was a chambermaid and this tall, handsome man was her employer? She could be as seductive and wanton as the woman in the novel.
He raised an eyebrow, and she realized he waited patiently for her to answer some question he must have asked.
She cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"
"I said, how is it that you're so beautiful?"
"I'm sure you say that to every woman you find attractive."
"No." He shook his head. "I usually just fuck the women I find attractive. I have no interest in talking to them."
"Then why are you talking to me?
His green-eyed gaze narrowed. "I'm asking myself the same question. Believe me, I'd like nothing better than to ravish you at this very moment, but for some reason I want more."
"More of what?"
He laughed. "More of what indeed? I don't have the answer." He picked up the book she'd left lying on the bed. She grabbed for the obscene novel, but he held it out of reach.
"What do we have here?" He flipped through the pages, stopping to study the pictures.