~Nadia~
"Really? Three days?!" I asked my sister Lydia.
"Yeah, didn't he tell you?"
I shook my head. Ian was gone on some hunting expedition for the next three days, and everyone seemed to know except for the clueless me.
"Well, that's a surprise. Considering how things went last evening, I thought he was going to take you as his mistress."
"Right, he didn't even look at me by the time we were done."
"Let me guess. You were stupid enough to refuse him again? And he felt that enough is enough and asked you to get out?"
"Not really. He didn't say anything, so I left."
"Well, you can redeem yourself when he comes back. There will be another one of those sex parties when he returns. Don't turn him down then."
"I think it's too late for that already. You all got an invitation, I didn't. I wasn't even aware of his trip."
I was surprised by how emotional I felt today. I had a really good time yesterday where someone made me feel loved and wanted as a person, not a piece of meat. It wasn't the typical royal and courtesan kind of a session for sure. Maybe it was, I guess he did treat me as if I was a piece of meat, but being the hopeless romantic I was, I might have seen it differently.
My feelings for him have been quickly changing ever since he kissed me the first time. I have been trying to read too much between the lines. If he really cared about me or my sentiments, he wouldn't have pushed me further for something that I didn't want to do. And now I sensed being cut off from him and his parties.
I should be happy about how things panned out, but I was feeling miserable. Three long days! They were going to feel like an eternity without seeing him. He often used to leave the palace for different work or fun reasons, and I never bothered to keep track of them. I used to feast my eyes on that hot sculpted body when he was around and think about him when touching myself, and that was about it.
This new onslaught of emotions was something I didn't prepare myself for. I was pining for a fuckboy who got pissed at me and probably forgot about my existence by now.
I spent my day moping around the palace until my cousin gave me some more bad news.
"This is a great week for us! Three such parties in a week, woohoo!" She looked thrilled.
"Second one is tomorrow, and you are invited to this one. Happy Eighteenth birthday again, sweetie! It's a great start for you with so many opportunities pouring in." Julia's mother congratulated me as if I stumbled upon a gold mine.
It was Ian's brother this time. Ian has been patient with me so far and didn't force me into doing anything. I wasn't so sure about his ruthless brother though. I made the mistake of approaching Ian when this happened last time and he ended up remembering me. So this time, I did not approach his brother. I decided to pretend like I was going to attend, and then, after showering and getting ready, I faked extreme sickness and went to bed.
"Food poisoning I guess, no fever," I told my mother when she sat on my bed with a scrutinizing glare.
"I hope you realize your mistake soon," she said.
"I am not faking it! Undercooked steak always does this to me..."
I was going to explain how many times I threw up but my voice trailed off when I saw the look on her face.
"You fool! Do you have any idea how much money you lost already? You had four opportunities to prove your skill, and Lydia tells me you failed all four times?"
I should stop telling Lydia the truth, I decided.
"With a face so forgettable and aspirations so lowly, I will be surprised if anyone will ever want to marry you. You hardly have another two or three years as a courtesan before the Royals label you an old maid and shove you to the side. If you don't take advantage of your looks right now, you will be left a pauper. Don't forget that men who are interested in marrying us are only after our money."
"I have been making a decent income for myself for the past five years, before anyone else my age did."
"Those peanuts you make won't amount to anything. You will not attract good suitors with a job like that."
"It gives me more reason to not be rich then, to be able to find someone who is genuinely interested in me and not my wealth."
"No one is ever genuinely interested in anyone, and even if they are, it doesn't last for more than a few years at best. It's high time that you grow some brain and become practical. And don't forget, every man wants his bride to be a virgin, and you won't be one. So why do you think anyone will marry you? Like it or not, money is everything, and you are going to need a lot of it."
"I will try next time. Can I please get some sleep now? I feel sick."
I did feel nauseous at the thought of attending another orgy. I wanted to please Ian, and I was willing to attend the last one because he was going to be there. Why would I want to go this time? I felt like a lovesick puppy who wanted to see him and cuddle with him.
I don't care if my mother thinks I am not attractive because Ian thinks I am. He couldn't stop kissing me, couldn't take his hands off of me. He looked into my eyes for as long as I looked into his. I should stop thinking about him before things spiral way out of control than they already are. I have to end this fairytale dream and become practical, should forget about that playboy this very minute.
I closed my eyes, trying to make up for last night's sleepless struggle, and the first thing I saw was his sexy smile before he dipped his head down to swirl his tongue around my stiff nipples. Ah! How I wanted him to do that to me again. That look of adoration in his eyes when I traced kisses on his jawline, was I really imagining all these things while he just wanted to have sex with me?
Oh, God! Another thirty-six hours to go before I see him again. Sleep is out of the question until he holds me in his arms again. But will he?
~Nadia~It was the harvest season, and I finally got a chance to get out of the palace. My grandfather worked in the orchards and was involved in moving the harvest to the cellars or for processing.I accompanied him along with my nephew, Ethan, who was six years old and loved plants just like I did. Ethan always helped me around the garden as well, and we had a great time moving cart fulls of peaches and apples today.I watched the sunset on my way back, feeling happy that it was the third and last day without Ian. Another night to go and he would be here tomorrow morning.I returned to the palace in high spirits, only for my excitement to be immediately cut short."There she is!" My mother was delighted to see me which was a horrible thing in itself. I hoped that she didn't sell me off to some foreign merchant while I was away.Lydia patted my back as if I returned victorious from a war or something."What's going on?" I asked, not
"Will you have sex with me?" I asked Noah, who was now standing outside my bedroom. "W-what?" He said with a dazed face. "You heard me. I feel a little fucked up right now, and I think a good fuck will help me." "Nadia... The risk is too high, you know that right?" "I won't tell anyone. I had a boyfriend for a year and even my sister didn't know about him, not even his name." I reached out for his hand, but he moved away. "I'm sorry, I can't." When I was sixteen, Julia was caught with a man who wasn't a Royal. They both were sentenced to death but my cousin lied that he had forced himself upon her. She was spared because of her good acting skills. This was one of the reasons why I could never find a man. Even my boyfriend back then was too scared to do much and then he drifted away. I have to be deemed unfit to be a courtesan first, and that isn't going to happen until I cross twenty-one or twenty-two, depending
He didn't flinch when I slapped him. Instead, his soft lips crushed harder against mine, forcing a moan out of me. The deep hunger in his eyes left goosebumps all over me.Get a grip on yourself, you fool! He doesn't feel anything for you. I reminded myself about last night and my temper began to rise again. But the more I fought him, the more he kissed me. I would be lying if I said that his kisses didn't calm me down. It was black magic for sure.I wanted to close my eyes and relish the warmth of his lips. The stinging sensation when his fingers dug into my skin felt like it was his way of saying that he missed me. That's where the problem lied; he never said anything about missing me. It was all in my head because I only saw what I wanted to see. The one thing he ever said was that he wanted to fuck me, and that shouldn't even be remotely flattering to me.I needed to get his hands off of me before I lost my mind. I pressed my body against him, causing him to
"Nadia, wait!" The head chef stopped me at the entrance to the main hall.I asked her early in the morning about taking a day off today to avoid seeing Ian. Instead of approving my leave, she gave me an earful about taking yesterday off. So I just disappeared without waiting for her permission."Where the hell were you all day? Did you resign from your job without telling me?""I am sorry, something came up, and I couldn't come back any sooner.""What came up? You look like you played with the pigs in th---" She stopped when she saw Ian return from the stables, looking muddier than me."Oh my! Your Highness. I will let Nancy have someone run the bath for you."He nodded and walked away. She grabbed me by the arm before I could escape for a shower."Why do you both look like this?" She asked in a low whisper."The Prince picked me up when I was on my way back, and we fell off his horse.""Oh really!" I was startled when I
"Did you just get thrown out of his room?""I guess..."Lydia was passing by the corridor and found me sitting on the floor trying to understand what he said about rubbing something in my face."Pull me up." I reached out for her hand."What happened in there?" She asked, grabbing the tray with coffee spilled all over."I forgot to put sugar in the coffee.""He got so mad about just that?""And I might have put buttermilk in it instead of milk by accident," I chuckled inwardly as I said that."No shit! I am surprised that he didn't throw you down the stairs.""Pfft..."I brushed my messed up hair with my fingers, and Lydia found his fountain pen's cap entangled in it. She burst out laughing."Now tell me the truth. What did he do? Did he bend you over his desk?"The door to Ian's bedroom flung open, and he appeared with an empty breakfast plate, which he set into the tray that Lydia was holding
I wasn't very sure that Noah would want to talk to me after all my rudeness and weirdness the other night. If my mom's words about my forgettable face are true, he would probably not even recognize me as it has been several days since our first meeting."Hello hello! What a pleasant surprise Nadia.""Hi, good to see you as well.""How have you been? And what brings you here?""Doing well, I guess. I have to deliver this message to someone.""Ah, running errands for the Royals.""How do you know this is from the Royals?""It's rolled vellum. We common people can't afford parchment and vellum; we use paper instead.""I see, that's something new I learned, thanks! Is Mason around?""Which Mason? We got three of them.""I am not very sure which one. Field officer?""Mason, the field officer. There's only one of his kind. He is not here at the moment, but I can pass it on to him when he's back.""Er... Ho
"Ian, listen to me. I am just the messenger---""I don't care. I don't want you delivering this kind of message. You have one fucking job, and that is to let me fuck you. You have the nerve to say no. But then you go around running such bullshit errands. Are you really so low on money?"He was seething with anger. His grip tightened around my neck, and the weight of his body pushed me against the wall. He pressed my cheek to the cold, smooth surface while my back burned up with anticipation.I was too restrained to move. I wanted to turn around and kiss him slowly. His kisses had such a calming effect on me when I was mad. I was sure he would forget his anger too, if only he allowed me to touch him.Wrapping his other hand around my waist, he pulled me into his hard length and whispered in my ear, "Guess I have been too gentle with you, a bit too accommodating."The menace in his voice should scare me, but it made my pussy pulsate with evident crav
I returned to the courtesan quarters in a daze. Was Ian really going to punish me as he said? He knows it was not my fault. He looked furious, not just at Mason but also at me.I quickly changed into plain clothes before my mother or aunt got suspicious. Everyone who was around my age was in the common room in the quarters, listening to every single word that Julia's grandmother had to say. She was a superb storyteller and the oldest member of our community."Which battle is she talking about?" I asked Lydia."The Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna.""Ugh! I will go take a nap."The old lady's voice boomed through the hallway as I walked away."...the King and his father had returned victorious. The Battle of Waterloo ended Napoleon's rule as the emperor of the French. And that was the War of the Seventh Coalition in 1815. The Allies exiled Napoleon to a remote island called Saint Helena, where he died six years later.""Didn'