Yaru politely coughed before stepping forward.“I know you're very good at what you do, and I hate to rush an expert, but Auralia has other engagements to get to as soon as possible. Perhaps we should move on to somewhere where you can begin?”Rick didn't reply, merely looking at Yaru as if he was a fly on his dessert.“I don't think we should rush, Yaru,” I replied. “I'm sure the colonel won't take longer than necessary.”I tried to give him a small smile, to show I was going to defer to his judgement. Anything that might get him to relax. The corners of his mouth twitched up, but he still didn't move.“My dojo is this way. You may come with me and try to learn something. Yaru, I must insist you wait here.”“But—” Yaru moved forward again, but Rick quickly raised an arm, cutting my mentor off.“Edward will accompany her if you must have someone as her chaperone, but otherwise I will have no one else in my dojo while I train the courtesan.”Yaru bowed his assent to the demands, but I c
I tried not to lose the delicious dinner I'd eaten as Yaru handed me the small neon collar and the chains that attached it to two cuffs.“My contact informs me Keaton is there currently. If you stand any chance of winning him back, we'll need to seize the moment.” Yaru hadn't said anything new or unreasonable. It was true, I needed to pick my moments carefully. But I still didn't like the idea of putting on the bondage wear.Pushing my fear aside, I lifted the collar into place. Yaru clipped it shut before I could change my mind. It could feel it all the way around my neck, but James had picked a good size and it wasn't too tight. Not long later I was wearing the cuffs as well, the tinkling of chains evident every time I moved. Yaru gave me the key to unlock them, which I tucked inside my clutch bag, zipping it up safely.You've just got to get his attention. Show him you're submissive, but confident. He liked that before. The pep talk helped calm my nerves and reduce the shaking as I
I reluctantly got out of bed to face another day. The ups and downs of the last week or so were finally getting to me, along with the worry that I wouldn't have enough people at my unveiling. So far I had four who'd said they'd come. Tomichii, James, Keaton and Aiden. Of course, I still had to officially invite them, but it was only four. Yaru had made it clear I needed six.And I wasn't the only one who was showing signs of tiredness. Mhairi was slower than before, yawning more than once while we got ready together. We spoke little, barely dressed by the time Yaru and Edward came to fetch me.“Where are we going today?” I asked. Yaru held up several plain white envelopes.“It's time to begin giving these out.” He handed them to Mhairi, who tucked them in a case and clutched it to herself. I raised my eyebrows.“A courtesan doesn't do the inviting herself, but has a second. It's considered an honour to be a veiled's second. She represents the courtesan's desires and is meant to help gu
My next destination was the club, but I sat in Yaru's car on the way as he presented me with a box.“Put this on,” he said. “And hurry. You've not got long.”I opened it up to discover a new outfit, a dress that hugged the figure and covered up a significant portion of my painted body. At first I wondered if it would look wrong with the design I was wearing, the blossom not my usual attire for the club, but the dress was almost pure white, almost accentuating the paint that could still be seen. I didn't doubt that the lights of the club would show it up all the more on me. It was designed for me to stand out. I also wondered if the colour was symbolic in another way. After all, I was inviting people to my unveiling. I was meant to be considered pure.Mhairi helped me into it, something not easy while the car moved and whizzed along with all the other traffic. I had barely recovered and sat back down when we arrived. It was time to find Keaton.I strode out ever so slightly ahead of my
Keaton bowed in my direction before reaching into the inside pocket of his suit jacket. He pulled out a smaller, bright-red envelope and held it out to Mhairi.“My acceptance,” he said to murmurings from our onlookers. Her eyes wide, she took it. I tried not to mirror her look, aware this was unconventional at best.A slight smirk played across Keaton's face. I should have expected it. This was just like him, flouting the rules just enough to make a stir, but not too much that people would be angry at him for it.I found myself smiling as Mhairi handed me the envelope.“I look forward to seeing you there,” I replied, meeting his gaze. His grin widened.“Don't be a stranger in the meantime. I don't think this city will cope if you hide away between now and then. They're loving talking about you and you've already given us quite a few things to discuss in such a short space of time.”I let out a laugh, not completely sure I was amused. He was referring to my brush with scandal. His actio
I paced across the bedroom floor for the fifth time.“Don't bite your nails,” Mhairi said, lying back on a small sofa, a book in her hands. “It won't help. Or make any of them respond any quicker.”Nodding, I tried to force my hands to hang back by my sides, but it took all my restraint to keep them there. I needed to know who was coming to my unveiling. Keaton had given me his acceptance right away, but the others were taking their time and I couldn't focus on anything else.“Did you feel nervous too?” I asked. Mhairi put the book down, keeping one finger on the page she'd got to. For a moment she looked thoughtful, not answering.“Yes, I suppose so. There was less pressure on me. And I adored several of my companions, but my sponsor wasn't... laid back.”I didn't reply, not wanting to interrupt if Mhairi was about to open up and tell me about her life before. Instead, I settled on the edge of the bed.“I think I felt most nervous the first night I went out after my unveiling. By then
“No, not like that,” Yaru said, his exasperation evident. I almost growled as I lowered my arms. Before me was a tea service. I was meant to be able to pour it in a very specific way, but no matter how many times Mhairi showed me how to do it, I always seemed to get it wrong.“Perhaps a break would be a good idea,” Edward said, lounging on a nearby sofa, his crystal in his hands. Internally I thanked him. I'd had enough and so had Yaru. There were just one too many things to learn for this ceremony and not enough time to learn them all.Yaru nodded, got up, and walked out of the room without another glance. Immediately Edward put his tablet down, patted the seat beside him and held out an arm to wave me closer. The invitation was more than welcome, and within seconds I was half-sat beside him and half-cuddled in his arms. I exhaled, feeling some of the stress of the day disappear instantly. For four days we'd been working on getting me ready for my ceremony. It would take place tomorro
Before I could be dismissed or Yaru could move on to another part of the ceremony, Kevin appeared. With him was a man I didn't recognise. Everyone turned, surprised.“Keaton sends his regards and a small gift in honour of tomorrow,” the man said, coming forward unintroduced. As he did, I noticed the case he was carrying. It was familiar, very familiar. Both sets of body paint I already owned had come inside similar, although slightly smaller cases.The rest of the room was almost deathly silent, Yaru's mouth hanging open as the visitor confirmed my educated guess and opened up the case. Inside were refills of the main colours, every single one.“A small gift?” I asked, reaching out for the envelope I noticed nestled among them. “This isn't a small gift.”The man chuckled, closing the box.“No. It's not, but we're friends. I also included my newest applicator and a spray that should make it chip a little less.”“Thank you, Harry,” Yaru said, entirely back to his smooth-talking self. “Yo