Masterpiece (The Masters of The Order Book 1) (14 page)

10

Dark Secrets

The scent of lemon wood polish and harsh morning light flooded the austere office where Darion sat waiting for Sister Genevieve, the head mistress of this highly exclusive
lycée
for highly privileged ladies. No doubt, its current occupant would be no warmer than the décor.

Sister Genevieve entered and extended her hand. A simple grey frock covered her from head to foot. She wore no adornment other than a wooden cross that hung heavily around her neck. Despite the modest clothing, she exuded an air of authority, her sharp eyes flickering with intelligence and a healthy dose of skepticism.

The Sister may put trust in her God, but clearly not in those created in His image.

“
Bonjour
,
monsieur
. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” She smiled, but the smile was not warm.

One look told Darion direct was the correct path, so he took it. “
Bonjour
, Sister. I have come to discuss
Mademoiselle
Julianne Giroux.”

“I do not discuss alumnae with strangers,
monsieur
.”

Of course she didn’t, but with him, she would. “I suspect that in this case you will. Unless…” he eased back in his chair, crossing his legs, and straightened the pleat of his pants, “…you would prefer me to discuss the connection between
Mademoiselle
Giroux and Xavier Talbot elsewhere.”

Darion had no idea what the connection was, only that there was one. After a little digging, he’d discovered that Genevieve was Julianne’s godmother, having been the lifelong friend of her mother since their days as roommates at this
lycée
. Other than the Colonel, hers was the longest history with Julianne and Darion gambled that part of that history would include some knowledge of Xavier Talbot.

The Sister’s reaction was subtle, but unmistakable, and told him quite clearly, it did.

“Go on,
monsieur
.”

He threw the only bait he had. “Hatred runs deep. Xavier and Gilles are powerful men with powerful passions, are they not, Sister?”

“Lianne Giroux was an extraordinary woman.”

Extraordinary and the answer to his real question. And the nature of Xavier's connection to Julianne's mother?

He took his best guess. “She left Xavier bitter. He remains so to this day.”

“Lianne never wanted that. She loved Xavier.” The Sister’s eyes filled with sadness. “Until the day she died.”

“It is difficult to lose a dear friend of so many years. I am sorry for your loss.”

“Although we chose different paths, we remained close until she died, but Gilles suffers a worse loss than mine. I lost a friend. He lost true love. From your words, I suppose Xavier did too.”

Critical eyes considered him for a long moment when she realized what he’d drawn from her. “You know more than you say,
monsieur
.”

“I do.”

“And your motive here?”

“Is sincere. Julianne is the love of a man very dear to me.”

“Julianne in love,” she mused as if Julianne being in love was unexpected.

Nicolai’s description of the Colonel ran through his mind. No. Julianne being in love wasn’t unexpected. Julianne being
allowed to be in love
was.

Darion leaned back in his chair as if contemplating someone he knew well. “The Colonel is, shall we say, protective,” he said with a noncommittal shrug.

The Sister smiled. “That is to be expected.”

She liked Gilles so Darion nodded as if in approval.

Genevieve turned her eyes away, choosing her next words with care. “You say Julianne is in love and instead of joy, my heart fills with worry. Is he a good man? Will he do right by her?”

“He is a good man. I swear to you, Sister. My sole purpose here is to see that no harm comes to Julianne. Not ever.”

“May I surmise that the Colonel does not know of the affair?”

“You may.”

“And Julianne’s man has some connection to Xavier?”

Darion nodded again.

She leaned forward, letting her body language emphasize the seriousness of what she was about to tell him, and looked him straight in the eye. “Your concern for Julianne is clear,
monsieur
, and in that regard, I tell you this. Julianne is very much like her mother and Lianne Giroux suffered too much. More than I will say because some things are better left in the past.” She paused and the pain on her face revealed her deep suffering at the unspoken thoughts.

When she spoke again, her voice was composed. “Lianne was drawn to a particular type of man and her first lover abused her nature. He was cruel and sadistic. She didn’t have the strength to free herself and he hurt her very badly. It was the Colonel and Xavier who saved her.”

Darion knew exactly how to read between those lines and let the Sister know it. “A woman like Lianne is a rare and precious gift. She deserved to be cherished and protected.”

“The Colonel and Xavier were good to her. Knew how to take care of her,” the Sister muttered, obviously struggling with her lack of true understanding for a woman like Lianne. “The three of them shared a happy life before Julianne was born.”

There was no judgment in her voice, but the implication of her words was clear: Gilles, Lianne and Xavier had been lovers.

Darion masked his shock. “Love comes in many forms.”

The clock ticking on the wall sounded like a gong marking the passing seconds as silence filled the room. The Sister had said all she was going to say about the unique love affair between Julianne’s parents and Xavier Talbot.

“Why did they separate?” he prompted.

“I never knew. I only know that after Gilles took her away, Lianne was never the same. She loved the Colonel, but leaving Xavier broke her heart.”

There was the rub: Gilles Giroux separated Xavier Talbot from a woman he loved. From a woman he
still
loved.

Men like Xavier Talbot do not forgive.

And they certainly do not forget.

*****

Julianne waited alone. Topless. Hair braided tight. Chest and forehead pressed flush to the wall.

“I am ready,
Père
.”

The sound of approaching footsteps never failed to heighten her senses. She drew a deep breath anticipating the first blow as the terror welled up inside her. Her father would soon be behind her. Wielding leather and words. She would be obedient. She would be disciplined. She would be chaste. He underscored each of his countless lessons with pain, brutally cultivating her submission in a crucible of suffering. But today was not about lessons.

Today, they met in the foyer.

Today was about punishment.

The pain would come harder. Tear into her skin faster. The implement of the abuse, his worst. There was no point to tears. They wouldn’t move him. No point to screams. They would fall on deaf ears. No point to fighting back. His cruelty would only increase.

Her teeth clamped together at the first hideous snap of the whip across her shoulders.

“I feel you slipping away, Julianne.”

It was the truth. The minute Nicolai opened the doors to his studio, it was as if he opened the doors to her mind. He removed the frosted glass through which she viewed her own life and forced her to examine herself with new clarity. That clarity was transforming her.

“I won’t allow it.”

Another blow punctuated the words and a sharp cry escaped.

Be silent
. She pictured Nicolai’s face to garner her strength and tried to swallow the fear.

The strap struck her skin again, the sting growing. She exhaled, preparing herself for the next strike, and the name in her mind escaped on her breath. “Nicolai.”

The whip came down harder.

“Nicolai is dead to you, Julianne.”

No, God. Please no
. She strained to release the words through the pain. “He’s a good man,
Père
. He cares for me.”

“I decide what’s best for you, Julianne. I protected your mother and I will protect you.”

The whip came down again.

Julianne was dizzy, drowning in pain and despair. He couldn’t take Nicolai away from her. She would die without him. As the blows rained down, her knees gave way and she collapsed to the floor. The Colonel didn’t relent. She wasn’t sure of the amount of time that passed, only that he’d never been so brutal. He hit her again and again. His viciousness and ire unmatched.

She felt herself breaking apart.

Then, from somewhere deep within, something foreign sprouted.
Believe in yourself as much as I believe in you and you can achieve anything
. The seeds of confidence Nicolai planted had taken root. For the first time in her life, she found the strength to fight back.

“I am not a child,” she shouted and tried to stand. “
Arrête, Père
! Stop.”

A brutal hand gripped the back of her neck, pushing her back down. “I will not lose you too, Julianne. On your mother’s grave, I swear. You will obey me.”

The Colonel fell silent and let the whip speak for him. When the final blow came, it flayed the skin. Little drops of blood begin to flow over her ribs, but it wasn’t her body he’d broken.

It was her spirit.

“I’m leaving for London later today. That gives you one week to say goodbye to Nicolai Stavros. If he is not gone from your life by the time I return, we will meet here again.” The implement of her destruction landed on the floor beside her bent body. “Next time, I will not be so lenient,” he spat and turned away.

Alone in that horrible moment of shattered silence, Julianne realized her dreams meant nothing. Each of the Colonel’s lectures replayed in her mind as vividly as the memory of his leather strap on her skin. Disobeying destroyed his hopes and expectations for her. Succumbing to her desires meant forfeiting the future he designed for her. Each lesson, each punishment, all the pain, swept away her dreams like snowflakes in a blizzard gale. A single kiss could not undue years spent with the Colonel and she sobbed as the ice of his discipline overtook Nicolai’s heat with its blistering cold.

The horror of her epiphany placed her somewhere beyond grief, beyond pain. She went numb. Her wild emotion for Nicolai was forbidden and she was powerless to change that. She would remain forever locked in her father’s private hell, controlled and punished until she obeyed.

I have no choice. I have to say goodbye.

11

Chocolate Cake and the Truth

“Your guest has arrived,
monsieur
. Shall I bring her to you?”

“Please.” Nicolai grinned in anticipation of Julianne.

The question was the reason he chose to meet her here. This conversation required complete privacy and he could be certain they wouldn’t be interrupted. Not only did this club offer private dining rooms, but the staff was highly discreet.

The waiter filled Julianne’s wine glass before leaving with a bow.

Although it was a men’s supper club, the décor was designed to please women. Small candlelit rooms opened to private terraces bathed in filtered light. Old vines, thick and green, graced trellises and flowers scented the air. The tinkling of a fountain in the lower courtyard chimed into each room where fine cuisine was presented on lace-topped tables surrounded by curvy chairs with pastel brocades. The setting was romance-novel perfect.

The taste of his wine had Nicolai thinking about Julianne’s lips. The small things always seemed to capture his imagination and those perfect lips had tempted him for months. He wouldn’t necessarily say that he enjoyed waiting so long to taste them, but the wait certainly heightened the seduction. Her taste, like the wine, was luxuriant and meant to be savored. If the afternoon went as expected, another taste of those sweet lips was one conversation away.

Julianne appeared in the doorway, lovely as always, dressed in pale pink silk.

“
Bonjour
, Juli…” The words trailed off as concern chilled the greeting. Nicolai jerked out of the chair, scanning her for some sign of harm as he approached. “Julianne, has someone hurt you?” he asked, his hands following his eyes up and down the length of her.

Julianne shook her head, obviously too upset to speak.

He drew her into a firm embrace, a bit too roughly, then softened the gesture with a kiss to her hair. “You’ve been crying. Why?”

Whispered words escaped into his chest. “I came here to say goodbye.”

That was the last thing he expected to hear. He grabbed her hands and tugged, pulling her down onto his lap. “Come. Sit with me. There will be no goodbyes until we talk.”

When she tried to pull away, he tightened his grip. His goodbye girl wasn’t going anywhere. He knew better than to expect Julianne to start babbling. She wasn’t talkative in her most unguarded moments, so it fell to him.

“I'll begin. You and I belong together. We’ve denied ourselves for too long and the time for honesty has come. No more games, Julianne. No more hiding.”

The unreadable expression on her face shook him. His future hinged on what lay behind those mysterious eyes. Eyes that hid more than they revealed.

But how much more?
“I expect that you understand what I am, just as I understand what you are.”

She nodded, but didn’t speak.

He waded in deeper. “I embrace my nature as a sexual Dominant and belong to a group called the Order.”

Julianne’s eyes went wide. “You belong to the Order?”

Another shock. His innocent Beauty knew about the Order? How odd. He expected that she understood his nature, just as he understood hers. But the Order? That was something else entirely.

“Yes,” he replied cautiously. “Being a Dom and belonging to the Order, these are fundamental parts of who I am. So fundamental that if you cannot accept these things about me, we truly must say goodbye.”

Nicolai paused, searching for any glimmer of how his words were affecting Julianne. She offered none, so he said it. “I want you, Beauty. As my lover. As my submissive. As my muse.”

Julianne yanked her hands away and rushed onto the terrace without a word.

Nicolai stared into the empty space in front of him. Twisted his head left, then right, trying to relieve the sudden tension in his neck. He could have anticipated several reactions to that statement, but not this one. She turned her back? No woman ever turned her back to him.

He stood to follow, but found himself unable to move. Surprise, anger and something he hadn’t felt since he was a teenager held him in place. He felt vulnerable and he hated it. Hated that this innocent confounded him at every turn. Hated that despite her disrespect, he had no choice but to chase after her. A thousand questions raced through his mind at once.

And a thousand doubts.

Secrets. This woman had so many secrets. He wished he understood her, but had to admit that he didn’t. This turn of events was absolute proof of that fact. But there was no avoiding this moment of truth. Whatever the next few minutes held, he had to go forward. With a long, slow exhale, he willed himself through the French doors.

Julianne’s back faced him as he stepped outside. The scent of roses filled the air, but her posture did not match the romance surrounding her. White knuckles clutched the railing and tension wracked her elegant frame. He waited in agonizing silence for her to react, but she didn’t.

“I apologize if I made you unhappy.” The lack of authority in his voice made him cringe.

Julianne spun around and shoved him with both hands. “It’s too late, Nicolai. I dreamed of you, but my dreams are dead. It’s too late.” She was shouting and slapping wildly at his chest.

He didn’t stop her. Her fury needed expression. He studied his angry muse, fascinated once again by the depth of her buried passions. The intoxicating lure of drawing those passions to the surface peaked his desperation to have her. In time, he would understand her secrets, but for now, there was only the violent need to possess her.

He pulled her tight against his chest and pinned her arms. She struggled against him, her breath ragged. Feeling the fight of her fragile body only intensified his need to dominate her. She was genuinely upset, but anger and months of frustration had stolen his mercy. He grabbed her chin and forced her to look into his eyes.

“No, damn it, it’s not too late. What are you hiding? What’s holding you back?”

Julianne looked horrified so he continued in a falsely calm voice, his expression conveying none of his thoughts. “Forget everything else and give me one honest answer. Do you want to be mine? Do you want me as your Master? If the answer is yes, Julianne, nothing and no one will keep us apart.”

A delicate hand pressed against his chest and he allowed her to push away. The urge to grab her again was monstrous, but he held back.

Waiting.

Watching those violet eyes.

*****

Master. Lover. Submissive. Muse.

Julianne was dazed. Those words rendered her momentarily deaf. If she hadn’t been seated, they would have felled her. How do you react when you realize the world you thought you knew isn’t quite as it seems? The sudden shift in her reality sent her mind hurtling back to the other times in her life when her world shifted sideways and for a moment, the painful memories overwhelmed her. Hearing her father’s voice crack when he told his little girl that
Mère
went to live with God. Feeling the first stroke of fire across her back at the Colonel’s hand. Staring at the blood on the foyer floor as her dreams died. She had experienced the unsettling slap of facing a new reality too many times before.

But this new reality was different.

Unhappy
. How could Nicolai think he made her unhappy? The elaborate dream of being his woman was her only happiness. All the rest was loss and pain and sacrifice. Her reserve snapped with the weight of her frustration. Years of pent up anger erupted. She wanted to hurt someone the way she had been hurt, so she hit Nicolai. He took her pain. Each strike fueled the next until the anchor of his arms allowed the anger to ebb away and her mind acclimate to the present.

Nothing and no one will keep us apart
. The future had just been rewritten. Everything she thought would happen today had been wrong. In the safety of Nicolai's embrace, the obstacle that had been insurmountable only moments before disappeared.

Hope bubbled up inside her. She leaned back to focus on Nicolai’s face. The look in his eyes ignited a new ache in her heart that cut into her soul and slaughtered every bit of joy that his revelation wrought. She was made for this dominant and deeply sensual man, but he didn’t know it. He didn’t know the painful journey she had taken to reach him. He didn’t know the masked woman waiting for her lover to set her free.

She had so much to express, but as always, the words would not come. Still, she knew how to answer his question. She went to her knees and pressed her lips against his hand.

Just like that, her Master crystallized above her.

“Stand up.” Nicolai’s voice was empowered, full of command now. “Remove your panties and give them to me.”

His authority flowed through her body, rousing her to action despite her naïveté. She bent and slid the small piece of silk down her legs. As she rose, he grabbed her wrists and thrust them behind her back, trapping them in one unyielding hand. Her body bowed as he forced her against the railing with his hips. He brought his other hand under her dress and swept it up her thigh. She jerked a little at his intimate touch. But only a little.

His palm covered her sex. “This is mine,” he growled as he staked his claim.

The press of his hand sent a pulsating wave of arousal surging through her.

“There should never be anything between me and what is mine.”

His palm rocked back and forth over her mound, creating a decadent friction that forced another pounding wave to crash through her. Her head tilted back when he sought her neck and teeth pressed against the exposed skin. A gentle bite. She arched into the nip.

Offering more.

Seeking more.

“You didn’t answer me. Say it,” Nicolai ground out as hot lips devoured her nape.

When she didn’t immediately give what he wanted, her ferocious lover bit her again. Hard.

The pleasurable sting plunged her deeper into the passionate swell and the words rushed from her mouth. “Yes, Nicolai. I am yours. Your lover, your submissive and your muse.”

Nicolai jerked her body, forcing her head up, and pierced her with a raw, possessive stare. “Yes, you are, my Beauty,” he whispered with utter confidence. His expression blazed with satisfaction as he commanded her. “And you will keep your eyes on me while I take you.”

He parted her hidden lips and skimmed his fingers into her softness, drawing the wetness out. Her body tensed with voracious need when he found the perfect spot and dragged her cream over it. Each touch was deliberate, unequivocal, masterful. Cerulean eyes absorbed every response as she tasted this intimacy for the first time. She struggled to hold Nicolai's stare until the intensity of his gaze forced her lids to close.

“No. You will never hide from me again,” he roared and shook her once more.

Her eyes shot open.
Yes. Set me free, Nicolai. I don’t want to hide anymore.

He spread her legs wider with his knees and began to touch her more aggressively, finding a rhythm with his stroking. As his fingers massaged her, round and round and round, his mouth closed over hers. He kissed her with a passion that bordered on violent, his tongue thrusting into her, taking, controlling, mimicking the power of those talented hands. His fervor left no doubt; she belonged to him.

Nicolai tore his lips away to capture her eyes again. “You torture me when you hide,” he rasped and tightened the steel hold on her wrists. “Tell me,” he urged. “Tell me you want this.”

She thrashed against the railing, torn between pain and pleasure. Pain as the grip on her wrists forced her hands higher against her back. Pleasure as expert fingers danced over her slick flesh and toyed with her opening. The decadent combination was fabulous and frightening at the same time.

“Tell me.”

Eyes wide, voice halting, she told him exactly what she wanted with an honesty she’d never given to anyone before. “I want the fire of your touch on my skin,” she said, remembering the feeling of rebirth when he lashed her palms. “I want you to burn me, reduce me to ash and create me again. Only stronger, more beautiful, more sexual.”

She felt her words consume him. Saw the awe on his face as they touched his soul. His beautiful artist’s soul.

Her mind swirled, faster and faster. Her breath rushed in and out through parted lips. She felt dizzy. Tried to focus, but,
Mon Dieu
, what Nicolai was doing to her body. The way he controlled her. The astonished eyes. The talented hands. She was on overload. The sensations were extreme, so unlike the self-induced pleasure she knew.

But this is no fantasy. It's the real thing.

She wanted to be a woman for him, but fear suddenly threatened to eclipse her ecstasy. “I’m afraid,” she cried out and tried to escape him.

Nicolai held tight. “Trust me, Beauty. Let me create the woman.” Unwavering command echoed in his voice as he continued working between her legs.

Harder.

Faster.

Demanding that she concede to his mastery, guiding all of her attention to his fingers and how they seemed to know the perfect way to pleasure a woman. Her body shook in quick trembles against his. He whispered soft commands to hold back her fear until his unrelenting focus lured her back to him.