The Huntress and the Nightingale Ch. 03

Constancia was not the only prey in the house for the Huntress to toy with, she could not stop herself from accosting Clara either. She would interrupt her practice in the music room with the false pretense of accompanying her on the harpsichord, only to use it to prop up the opera singer while she dived under her dress. When the singer would try to hold in her moans, she would increase her efforts even further until she cried out with an orgasm nearly as robust as her arias.

Besides, there was no one to hear them save for Constancia.

Each time, it left her heart in agony and an aching within her loins. A part of her was angry with Louis for so obviously toying with herself and Clara. She flaunted her authority in such a way that left the soprano in the dark and the housekeeper bound to silence by the contract of etiquette between master and servant. It seemed that suddenly Louis was only interested in having Clara when she knew Constancia was scheduled to appear, forcing her to wait outside the west wing's bedroom chambers, library doors, the entryway to the music room, and the corridor of portraits before the trophy room.

She had become accustomed to this years ago, when Louis brought the occasional tryst home from Paris or Versailles. By then, they had severed their once intimate relationship, her husband was alive and well, and she'd hardened this chamber of her heart to warm another for him. Those trysts became even less frequent after she acquired Clara, the upkeep of a rising soprano was too expensive to afford a mistress.

However, this was different. They acknowledged the lust within each other, and in that she had no choice but to also acknowledge the heat she felt for Clara. She still remembered the feel of the bronze soprano in her palms, around her fingers, the plush softness of her lips and body, so much in contrast to their shared patron. It was easy to see why Louis was so enamored with her. In fact, it was a constant reminder when she would bathe and dress her. They never brought up what happened between them again but that did not mean she had forgotten.

She did not believe Clara had forgotten either.

Again and again during the snowstorm, Constancia felt herself grow wet as she listened to Clara's muffled cries and Louis' harried grunts. She waited patiently for them to finish as she felt herself drip down her inner thighs, a tray of the day's luncheon in her hands. She never wished that she was one woman or the other, only that she could join them. While it was clear to her that Louis was doing this to her on purpose, the intent was not so obvious. Did she know she wanted to join them or did she simply wish to torment her?

It wrung Constancia's heart in knots as the heavy snow continued to blanket the grounds in a powdery white outside their windows.

And when it ended some evenings later, she found herself pressed against a frosty windowsill in the trophy room. The glassy eyes of stuffed, mounted deer watched her squirm and moan in the warm light of the roaring fireplace. Her skirts bunched around her waist, Louis' mouth devoured her from beneath them. Her tongue slipped easily between Constancia's soaking folds while her strong, calloused hands gripped and lifted her by the buttocks, attempting to pour the olive woman into her starving mouth.

They'd stolen a few moments together while Clara was being prepared for bed by the only remaining maid.

She could easily hear her lover and Master slurping away at her juices, the sound arousing her further as she felt the steady rise of an oncoming orgasm. Arching her back, Constancia found herself pawing fruitlessly at the thick, cold, glass behind her and grasping Louis' auburn mane of hair with the other.

Louis seemed to love reminding her of what she'd been missing and when she was in the middle of that reminder the widow was content to let her. It had been so long and to feel her love again was so sweet but the widowed Housekeeper knew the cost was too much. Her master's precious "songbird" and obviously enraptured lover was completely left in the dark. She adored the young soprano too much to allow these delicious but secretive affairs to weigh on her conscience much longer.

Clara had to be informed.

"My love, my love-" Constancia pleads, trying to push Louis away from between her thighs and failing, "mon dieu, my love, you must stop..."

This does catch Louis' attention and she pulls away from beneath her skirts abruptly, her face slick with the evidence of Constancia's arousal. Her hazel eyes shine like precious jewels in the darkness, lit only by the waxing moon peering through the window. The noblewoman's pupils are blown wide and her face is cradled by the widow's stockinged knees. It makes Constancia's heart pound in her stays to see it.

"Stop? Why must we when I have only just begun to have you?" Louis sounds impetuous and impatient, reminding Constancia briefly of when they first joined so many nights ago.

Louis doesn't wait for her to answer, she simply attempts to dive back between Constancia's thighs once more. However, the Housekeeper intercepts her by reaching out to gently cradle Louis' face in her hands, blocking her path. Tilting her auburned head so that she has to look up at her, the olive woman says gravely, "We cannot be together in this kind of secret, my love. You must tell her-"

"Constancia..." Louis growls in annoyance as she attempts to look away but the Housekeeper pulls her back with a firm grip.

"You must before the full staff and her tutor returns, before it will be harder to do this game you have been playing. You cannot have us both. Not like this." Constancia's tone lowers to match her Master's growl and she meets her unblinking stare as if she expects to be heard and obeyed.

Louis' grip tightens around her open thighs but she doesn't dare blink or look away. Her usually plump lips press themselves into a thin line but they are soon released to expel a sigh of defeat. This time Constancia has won.

"When should I tell her then?" Louis asks, her voice remaining low.

"When she returns to your chambers." Constancia replies, her fingers gripping her Master's chin, "Tonight."