Read Online Odalisque by Annabel Joseph - Free Book Online

ability to hurt her or arouse her. He had wanted her, truly wanted her. She’d seen it in his amber brown eyes that seemed to hide nothing. If
he
was what she had to endure to make the money she needed, it was a pretty good trade in her view.
    But Constance was still nervous. It was obvious from the way he’d interacted with her that Bastien hadn’t told him yet she was deaf. She’d always considered the quietness of her communication would lend itself perfectly to this lifestyle, but the two men who’d been taken with her so far had withdrawn their interest when they learned she couldn’t hear. She was thankful for that now. She hadn’t felt anything with either of them like the connection she’d felt with Kai Chandler.
    So maybe it was all meant to be. Bastien often spoke of seeking that special chemistry, being attuned to finding your other “sexual half.” He prided himself on pairing his clients with the most compatible odalisques, and Constance had come to realize he truly had a knack for it. In the last year, Bastien proudly pointed out, only one odalisque had been returned to the Maison for “issues.” Constance knew Bastien had brought her and Kai together because he sensed promise there. What if...
What if...
    What would it be like to be his odalisque? To live in service to him, to his needs and his powerful sensuality? She could make money and yet receive even more. His dominance and sexual skill.
    Constance sensed Bastien in her room then, although she wasn’t facing the door. The vibration of movement, an infinitesimal inkling of sound. As soon as she turned to him, the nerves downgraded to disappointment. His face said it all.
    “Constance, love. Just rest tonight. There’s no need for you to come to dinner with Mr. Chandler.”
    She watched his lips form the words, disbelieving. Devastated. Translation: He doesn’t want you. He changed his mind. Bastien came to sit beside her, already dressed for dinner. She wanted him to go. She wanted to cry in private, but he handed her the notebook they used to communicate.
    She wrote,
You told him.
    “Yes. It was time to let him know.”
    He wanted me, didn’t he? Before you told him.
    Bastien looked down at her words, his face reflecting his own disappointment. “I think so.”
    But not enough
, she wrote bitterly. She put down the pen to wipe away a tear. She hated that she was crying. She hadn’t cried the other times. To be honest, she’d felt anger the first time, relief the second. But this time she felt rejected. It hurt. Bastien tilted her face up so she could see what he was saying.
    “There now. I told him you wouldn’t get upset. You know this is all part of the process. You need to find the right man. Not just the man you want the most.”
    She frowned and flipped the pen around in her fingers. Then she wrote,
Why would a man like him need an odalisque anyway? He’s so hot. He can’t find it without paying for it?
    Bastien laughed and she laughed too, spewing tears and snot. He handed her a tissue and held her while she cried for a while. She was careful not to get any tears on his dinner jacket. Not only because it was undoubtedly an expensive jacket, but because she didn’t want Kai to know she’d cried over him. It was pointless in the end. Maybe all of this was pointless. She took up her pen again, bit the end of it, then wrote,
Do you only keep me here out of kindness? Because if there’s no place in the world for a deaf odalisque, I’ll go.
    Bastien shook his head, his face darkening. “Of course you’re free to go at any time, but no, I don’t keep you here out of kindness. I keep you here because I believe you’ll make a spectacular odalisque for some fortunate gentleman. But let me turn the questioning back on you. Are you here because you think you’re not capable of doing anything else with your life?”
    Constance thought a moment before she scrawled her reply.
No. I’m here because scribbling poetry and