AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Charlene was the fierce, scandalous one; Thea was the passionate, artistic one; and Alice... well, she had been the sensible, pragmatic one, until she’d decided to throw caution to the wind and marry Lord Hatherly.
“You want to wed him? But... but you’ve been repelling suitors for years now. Why Hatherly?” asked Charlene.
“His kiss couldn’t have been that monumental,” agreed Thea.
“I’m marrying him for two very sensible reasons,” Alice explained. “The first is that he doesn’t care anything about me and will encourage me to travel. He said he doesn’t want a wife in England. He’d rather have one in India.”
Charlene snorted. “Sounds like Hatherly.”
“Well, I suppose that is convenient,” said Thea. “If you won’t be able to go with Fred, you’ll be free to travel as a married woman.”
“And I’ll present the translations as Fred’s and say he couldn’t come himself because of his new marriage. It may work to my advantage, as Fred won’t be there to display his utter lack of knowledge of all things Sanskrit.”
“Why should Fred garner all the credit?” Thea asked.
“I don’t mind. I want my scholarship to be treated seriously. This is the only way.”
Thea’s eyes narrowed. “That’s not fair.”
“What’s the other reason?” Charlene asked. “You said there were two.”
“Remember how I told you one of the texts I’m translating is rather... naughty?”
Thea smirked. “Ah... I see where this is going. You’ve been reading naughty books and now you’re curious about lovemaking. And Hatherly is rather undeniably attractive. So it was the kiss.”
“Thea,” Charlene remonstrated. “Alice can’t marry Hatherly simply because she’s curious. He’s handsome, and well he knows it. The man mows through paramours like a reaper at harvest time. I don’t want you to get cut, Alice.”
“I’m more than merely curious, Charlene. I have a scholarly and semantic interest in becoming well-versed in the particulars of physical gratification so that my translation is more nuanced and my technical knowledge more complete. I’m finding that it’s no use me attempting to translate experiences I know absolutely nothing about.”
Charlene’s eyebrows arched. “The particulars of physical gratification?”
“Just how naughty is this book of yours?” Thea asked.
If they only knew.The few chapters of the Kama Sutra that she possessed were extremely explicit about the principles and postures of lovemaking.
Alice’s cheeks heated. “I don’t see why I shouldn’t think of lovemaking as a foreign language. One which I’ll be quite fluent in with the proper teacher, if I set my mind to my studies.”
The ability for pleasure must already be living inside her, waiting to be awakened, in the same way the ability to learn new languages flourished so easily. Of course, she would have to discard her maidenly modesty and misgivings.
Alice closed her eyes and touched the center of her palm, recalling the stimulating sensation of Lord Hatherly’s caress. She rather thought with Hatherly as her teacher, she could swiftly overcome her trepidation and enter fully into the spirit of libidinous pursuits.
If his fingers brushing her palm set her body tingling in such an interesting manner, one could only begin to imagine what might happen if those same rough-padded fingers were to brush... other areas.
“Sweetheart.” Charlene’s voice intruded into Alice’s wayward reverie.
Her eyelids lifted, only to find her two best friends staring at her with concern.
Charlene gripped both of Alice’s hands. “Listen to me. I know you are thinking of this as an intellectual exercise, but believe me, the act of love can’t be controlled so easily. It’s the most intimate conversation two people can have and it sometimes awakens uncontrollable emotions. I’m afraid for your heart, Alice. It’s not like you to be so impulsive.”
Alice drew her hands away. “I’m not stupid. I know what I’m doing. This is my choice.”
“Of course you’re not stupid,” exclaimed Thea. “You’re more intelligent than Charlene and me combined. You are fluent in six languages, for heaven’s sakes.”
“This manuscript fragment I possess could be very significant if united with the rest of the work housed at Fort Williams College in Calcutta. It’s a treatise on pleasure in all its many forms. If published, it could be quite educational for the young ladies of the world.”
“Well, you know how I feel about education for females,” said Charlene. She and her husband ran a shelter and school in Surrey for vulnerable young girls who had fallen on hard times. “Keeping girls ignorant of the workings of their bodies only leads to bad situations. Ignorance is a weapon men use to maintain their societal superiority.”
“This manuscript teaches that females should seek pleasure as well,” Alice said. “And it enumerates sixty-four methods for obtaining that pleasure. Not only physical release, but the pleasures experienced through our five senses... and our emotions.”
