He had so much more he’d like to show her. However, he had better not indulge again. He mustn’t exhaust himself for he had to return to his life. Today. No more excuses. No more delays.
No more shameless self-indulgence.
Jeanne had begun to drift into a half-sleeping state. David caressed her hip and awoke her. “Jeanne, tell me about the first.”
She opened her eyes and struggled to awake. “The first?”
“Your first lover.”
“He was Papa’s doctor.”
“His doctor?”
“Yes.”
“You mean to say he just took advantage of your situation?”
“No, it wasn’t like that. He helped me.”
His lip curled. “You mean he helped himself to you.”
She gave him a steady look. “He helped me.”
“Explain that.”
“He knew I had financial troubles. He found me a position as a maid of all work. But goodness, I had a very difficult time being in service. I get too easily distracted. I start something and then forget it for another task. I would eventually manage to finish everything, but of course they wanted things done more systematically.”
“How old were you?”
“I was seventeen.”
“You simply needed to be trained.”
“One cannot train aptitude into someone who is dreadfully lacking in it.”
“You needed to be trained. Time and patience spent on a young and inexperienced servant is one of the best, most long-paying investments one can ever make in terms of service and loyalty over the course of the years.”
“Well, I did better at the next position but one day, the perfect scene came to me for a story. I had to write some notes down. I was caught and they dismissed me and complained bitterly to the doctor.”
His lips twisted into a cynical smile.
“What are you thinking?”
He paused.
“Tell me.”
It seemed he debated with himself whether to answer. She sensed this was something about the difference in their situations. He must be an employer of servants himself.
She gentled her tone. “Please.”
His expression softened. He smoothed a lock of her hair back then tucked it behind her ear.
“They dismissed you because they found out you were literate. All the world despises a lower servant who is literate.”
“Oh, I don’t think that was the reason.”
“Jeanne, I am telling you it is the very reason. I would wager a year’s rents on it.”
So, he was a property owner. Of course he was. But how large was his estate? It really didn’t matter. After tomorrow she would never see him again.
“What happened next?” His voice rang with impatience.
“At the third position, the master began to pay me too much attention and his wife wasn’t happy. She accused me of being fractious and disobedient. The doctor he told me that he would never recommend me for another position—he had put his reputation at risk three times. He said I was just not the right cut of cloth for service.”
“You were much too young for such a determination to be made.”
“I think he was correct, David. I am a little like Papa in that way. I daydream too much and I become distracted. But the expense of keeping Papa comfortable was mounting and I needed to eat and have a roof over my head. The doctor explained to me that some women are just meant to serve men and to give them pleasure.
“He said if I would be agreeable, he would take me to his bed and show me what to do. In exchange, he would pay Papa’s expenses himself and give me money for rent and food. Later he helped me find other providers from among those he trusted. I never had to suffer the indignity of selling my wares on the street or in some tavern. I never had to be afraid that a man would intentionally hurt me.”
David‘s sharp inhalation made her turn and look at him. His nostrils had flared, ever so slightly. There was a pinched look to his expression. Authority and power suddenly radiated from him. He seemed to be a stranger lying beside her.
She tried to back away but he tightened his hold on her. “Hold for a moment. You mean to tell me that not only did the doctor know you were a virgin and that you had no formal training to make your own living but that he still took advantage of your dire circumstances? And his solution was to train you to be a whore for his friends?”
“He was very kind to me.”
“You were a virgin.”
“He was very considerate about that part, very gentle and patient.”
“Oh, I see—the very soul of consideration, was he?”
“I was very nervous.”
“You were terrified.”
“Terrified is too strong a word. I was apprehensive about the pain. But he saw to it I became quite tipsy on claret and he applied some salve that made everything numb, I felt no pain when he penetrated me.”