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I held his gaze, savoring it, reveling in the warmth in his eyes and the way his lips were parted, just a little, as if he would stop breathing if he closed his mouth I had to kiss hi together with slow, hard rhythallop of his blud; it was big And it onderful

Iup and down,to take everything he had Hehis hands up and down every inch of ue found my throat, his hands slipped like feathers over my bare shoulders and down to the tender insides of ers with ht on the trapeze, I could only conclude that like any good thief, he knew rowls and twitches His hands ran up s to the place where we joined underthe saently, perfectly, pinching and pressing in time with his thrusts Mostly dressed, totally alone, still I felt the hot thrum of the crowd outside, the beat of the orchestra’s drums in my bones, and the wickedly distinct possibility that at any ht lift the flap of red velvet and see exactly how cheaply the star of Paradis sold herself

That only made it hotter

I’d ridden his horse, and now I rode hi undone downso close, could hear the littleme with each breath

"Viens, bébé Viens"

As if I’d been waiting for his permission to fall to pieces, I tensed and cried out as everything inside h as a violin’s string drawn out and vibrating, echoing and dancing with the stars in ti a primordial rhyth my muscles around hi his throat until I felt his hand onwith the powerful grace of an acrobat, pulling hi into htly around ainst rowl that I felt deep in my belly with his last forceful thrusts

His eyes fluttered open and met mine, and I was instantly shy, despite the fact that he was still inside et your turn, bébé"

In response, I tightened ain His eyes rolled back in his head, and he sluet me killed Hurry, now Get dressed Before we are found"

He gently liftedthe untied skirt around s, a cold dribble down h As he buttoned his pants and tried to dab off the stains with a silk handkerchief, I blushed all the harder He offered a tasseled velvet pillow toup theit, stain down, back onto the bench Hitching up the et the skirt back on and smoothed down as if it had never been touched In thatto be discovered, I felt a strange sort of shame And then the Bludman in my heart rose up and said fuck the shame I turned to face Vale, the cloud of skirts in one hand

"One day, we’re going to do that, and then you’re going to hold me in the crook of your ar and uncurling on his thighs as if he ached to hold loves back on, and his hands looked alien, too white for having touchedI want "

"It did, bébé"

"We’re going to find Cherie"

"We are"

"But first, I have to go out there and find the prince, because that’s my job"

His eyes went dark and flat "But you’re mine"

I bared my teeth at that word "Not to control Not to own"

"That’s not what I meant, bébé When will you see that it’s a different sort of possession?"