The Devil's Match (13 page)

“I assure you I intended no such thing!” Even as
she spoke it, Diana wondered at the truth of her own protest.

“It is a dangerous game you wish to
play,
Khunam
, for
Efendi
is not without secrets of his
own.”

“But you will help me?”

Salime nodded.

Diana didn’t fully understand why Salime wished
to teach her, but she was avowed not to refuse knowledge she could
come by in no other way. While she had foolishly wagered and lost,
she now had a plan to ensure she would not be the true loser in the
end. Four years ago, she had been innocent in the ways of passion.
DeVere had beguiled and seduced her with his dark charm and erotic
arts, but now Diana sought the secrets to seduce him in kind.

“I suggest we begin at once,” Salime said. “My
mornings are my own. Thus you must return tomorrow at nine o’clock.
I will speak to Madam Hayes. When she understands for whom this
service, your tutelage, is performed, she shall not oppose it, but
my services for your tuition in these ways of love shall be
procured at no small expense.”

The footman rapped upon the door to indicate her
time was finished.

“How much?” Diana asked, taking stock of her
empty purse.

“I do not speak of gold,
Khanum
, but of something far more
valuable that you are sure to lose in this bargain”

“And what, pray, is that?” Diana demanded.

Salime gave her a knowing smile. “Your
heart,
Khanum.”

Chapter Thirteen

Diana had left Salime the day before feeling
empowered by her plan, but in returning to the brothel, she
approached a crisis of confidence. Should she really go through
with this? Did she truly have the fortitude for it? The questions
filled her with a mixture of trepidation and excitement—for the
exotic and the erotic together held such a powerful allure.

While the same wooden-faced footman tended the
door, this time, Mrs. Hayes greeted her with cloying sweetness. “My
dear,” she said, “you do not know how very fortunate you are! I
have begged, pleaded, and cajoled my most-prized gem, Salime, to
share her secrets with her sisters in pleasure, but she has been
unmoving in her refusal...until you.”

“I am honored by her condescension,” Diana
replied.

“You must play close heed, for should you master
the arts of the East, you could command such a pretty price.” The
bawd’s eyes gleamed.

“You think I wish to profit from it?”

“What woman would not? There would always be a
place for you here, my dear. You should consider it.”

“I fear you misunderstand. I am here for a sole
purpose, a personal one.”

“But, my dear, every man’s interest
eventually
wanes. You would do well
to remember that.”

“I shall,” Diana said tightly. “And while I
appreciate your generous offer, I have no interest.”

“The offer will stand,” Mrs. Hayes answered with
a smugness that Diana chose to ignore.

“I pray you will excuse me now, madam, for I
would hate to keep Salime waiting.”

***

Diana entered Salime’s apartments to find
her without the hookah.
“Efendi
enjoys many traditions of the East,
Khanum,
” she explained without prelude. “The
hookah, as you know, is one of these; the Oriental dance and the
hammam are two others.”

“Hammam?” Diana regarded her blankly.

“The Turkish bath.”

“And why are his hygiene habits relevant?”

Salime made an exasperated noise. “Have you no
understanding? The hammam is a ritual, a purification of body and
spirit.”

“Why is this important?”

“Because you will attend him there. You will
cleanse and massage his body and give him pleasure.”

“In the bath? Is that not a job for a
manservant? I told you I have no wish to be his slave.”

“How can you be so ignorant of the ways of
the flesh? The massage I would teach you, it is not only to relax
the body, but to arouse. If done correctly, you have the power to
bring
Enfendi
to the very
pinnacle of rapture, a release like no other.”

“You have done this before?
To him
?”

Salime smiled. “I often attend him in the
hammam.”

Diana wished she hadn’t asked. The image of this
woman so intimately touching him, pleasuring him, burned into her
brain and made her seethe with an irrational jealousy that was hard
to shake off.

“You will disrobe,” Salime commanded.

Diana stared at her in incomprehension.

“Disrobe,” she repeated. “How else can I teach
you anything? Or do you wish me to call in a servant of this house
to demonstrate? Of course we must come to that soon, but it will
not be without cost. Madam will expect payment.”

“You wish to demonstrate on
me
? Is there no other way?” she
asked. While Diana was accustomed to being dressed and bathed by a
maid, she was loath to expose herself to this worldly
woman.

“No,
Khanum.
How can you understand that which you do
not know? You must see and feel it to fully comprehend the power
over both the mind and the body that lies in skilled
hands.”

“I will require assistance,” Diana said, choking
down her qualms. “I cannot manage my laces and stays.”

Salime made an impatient sound and spun Diana
around, making swift work of both garments. While Diana shrugged
out of her gown and stays, Salime retrieved a glass bottle and a
large cloth. “It is almond oil,” she answered Diana’s questioning
look. “Most soothing to the body, but it must be heated in a bucket
of warm water. Your shift,” she commanded, “remove it.” She
indicated the divan. “Lie there. On your stomach.”

Diana proceeded to do as she was bid,
feeling strangely unnerved. Salime, however, moved efficiently and
impersonally, positioning her body with her head resting on a
pillow and her arms down by her side. “You will close your eyes and
breathe deeply,” she directed. “You must concentrate only on the
feel of my hands, what they do when they touch your body. You will
memorize this,
Khanum,
for I
do this for you only
once.
”

Diana felt the first strokes of warmed, oiled
hands on her lower legs, ankles, and feet. The feel of a closed
fist on her soles sent a ripple all the way to her belly. The
kneading of her lower muscles seemed to work inwardly to penetrate
her insides and fill her lower body with a wonderful languor. The
sensation moved upward, and her body continued to relax and grow
heavy, giving itself up fully to the magical ministrations of
Salime’s expert hands.

“You see,
Khanum
?” Salime kneaded and molded Diana’s back
and shoulders. “The massage brings mind and body to a state of
unity and peace.”

Diana almost moaned her agreement. “I do see.
One could so easily put another to sleep in this way.”

“Most effectively...if
that
is the goal.”

“And if arousal is the object?” Diana asked over
her shoulder.

“Then the massage must quickly focus on
the areas to be aroused,” Salime answered, moving to Diana’s
buttocks. “This is a most sensitive place to begin such attentions,
especially in the man,
Khanum
. There are hidden areas of heightened
sensation to be explored—”

Diana abruptly sat up. “It is too much. I am
uncomfortable with this.”

“As you wish.” Salime stepped away with a shrug.
“You may go now.”

“Go?”

“Yes. There is no purpose in remaining when you
refuse what I teach. I waste no more time.” She retrieved Diana’s
discarded shift and threw it at her.

Diana pulled it hastily over her head. “It’s not
that... it’s just that...we are two women.”

“So?” Salime said.

“I am unaccustomed to such intimate touch,” Dian
explained. “I think I should prefer to watch.”

“While that may be arranged,
Khanum
, it is not enough just to
watch. As with any art, it must be practiced to develop skill, but
any gentleman here will likely wish you to participate.”

The notion filled Diana with distaste. After a
moment, she asked, “You said you frequently attend Lord DeVere in
the hammam. Could it be arranged for me to attend him with you?
Perhaps incognito? You know I do not wish to touch another man, so
this is the way you must teach me.”

Salime answered with a slow nod. “It could
be done if that is your wish,
Khanum.
” Salime proceeded across the room to an
ornately carved ebony box, retrieving from within an object wrapped
in blue velvet. She opened the cloth to reveal what appeared to be
an artificial phallus, large, slightly curved, and intricately
carved of ivory. “But you must practice with this.” She presented
the object to Diana. “Do you wish me to demonstrate?”

Diana nodded, too shocked to speak.

“Sit then.” Salime lowered herself to a
cushion on the floor and indicated Diana should do the same. “This
is the
kamış
, a most
magnificent organ of pleasure. It is perfectly made for worship
with your hands, your mouth, and your
kılıf.
”

“Kilif?
”

“Your woman’s sheath. The control of which is
another skill you must master.”

“What do you mean?”

“You must learn to relax the body and
squeeze only the muscles inside the
kilif
. If you learn this command of your inner
muscles, you will command both his pleasure...and your own. Use
your fingers or use the phallus to practice this skill. The most
expert of women can bring a man to completion simply by milking
his
kamış
with her
kilif
alone. Master this, and he
will belong to you and no other.”

“You have done this?” Diana asked.
With him?

“Never with
Efendi
,” Salime answered the unvoiced
question.

The notion that DeVere exercised at least
some discretion with his various consorts gave Diana some small
satisfaction. She
had
known
the wonder of his
kamış
in
her
kilif,
and she found the
thought of doing so again uncontrollably arousing. While initially
disgruntled about losing the wager, Diana now reasoned that there
was no harm in enjoying the penalty—as long as
she
remained in control. Thus, she listened and
watched raptly, resolved to master all of what Salime
shared.

“When we go to the hammam, he will lie on the
hot marble, and you will begin the massage with hands prepared with
warm oil. You will knead, soothe, and rub, working slowly and
deliberately from feet to neck and then back to the buttocks where
you will linger with increasing intimacy.

“When he is thoroughly relaxed, he will
turn over onto his back, and you will repeat the motions, rubbing
the warm oil into his skin, advancing slowly toward the inner
thighs and lower belly. Do this well and without touching the
pleasure organ, and you will have him in a state of full arousal,
heightened to an increased intensity as he anticipates your touch
upon his
kamış.

“You will firmly massage the bone above
the
kamış
and then attend to
his
testis,
kneading gently,
for some men are very sensitive while others enjoy firmer handling.
Behind his
testis,
use smooth
downward strokes toward the ‘sacred spot.’ Circle and probe gently
with your fingers, for mastering this technique affords him
pleasure and can also be used to forestall emission. Do you
comprehend,
Khanum
?”

“Yes, I follow you,” Diana replied.

“To massage the
kamış,
place one hand just so.” Salime wrapped
her fingers firmly around the base of the phallus. “Gently squeeze
and pull upward, sliding completely off. Repeat with the other
hand, squeezing and pulling. Slowly. Sliding completely off.
Continue on, and after a time, change directions, sliding your hand
downward. When his breathing quickens, change the technique again,
taking the
kamış
between both
hands and rubbing it briskly back and forth, as if to start a
fire.” She handed the object to Diana. “You do it.”

The artificial phallus was hard and smooth yet
warm in her hands from Salime’s touch. Diana closed her eyes and
imagined it was DeVere, an image that heated her insides, exciting
a place that had been dormant far too long.

“When his excitation increases again, you
must massage the head with the palm of your hand,” Salime
instructed, demonstrating with a rotation of her wrist. Diana
repeated the motion as if she were juicing a lemon. “The variation
of these techniques will bring him closer and closer to
boşalma,
but if you feel the
hardening of the
testis,
you
must forestall this event by either moving to the sacred spot or by
squeezing and holding the tip of the
kamış
.