The Market by Sorcha Mowbray

Chapter 1

Katherine shivered and huddled deeper into her cloak hiding from the damp mist that hung heavy in the night air. The coach bounced, jostling her gently. She would not have noticed the movement except it caused her tightened nipples to rasp lightly against the fine lawn of the chemise. The thin fabric protected her skin from the constricting corset she wore beneath her dress, but not the sensation that rippled across her skin heightening her anticipation.

She was on her way to meet Sir, at his request. It seemed she often found herself at The Market fulfilling her needs, since becoming a widow. The Market consisted of three row houses. The main house in the center contained the common rooms and Madame Marchander’s offices. From the street, the house on the left was for the average customer who came to see one of the girls. The right side catered to those, like her, with less average desires and the income to indulge them. Kinks of all kinds were found on the right side. Voyeurs found something to watch, flogging could be both given and received, domination abounded, and orgies were not uncommon occurrences.

She should know that was how she first met Sir.

She had been reclining on a divan watching the erotic twist of bodies in the middle of a room. A man had entered through a door across from where she lay. Their eyes locked, and for that moment it seemed as though he could see into her soul. See where her deepest desires, her darkest fantasies hid. He could make them a reality. He could fill that empty ache that throbbed between her thighs.

Her instincts had been right on that first meeting. Submission to Sir was unlike any other experience at The Market. When she was with him, there was nothing but his will and the pleasure that came from bending to it. Her legs quivered in anticipation of what was to come.

The coach pulled to a halt and swayed back and forth for a moment. She barely contained her need to escape the confines of the carriage as she waited for the motion to cease. With a nimble leap, she reached the sidewalk from the carriage and floated through the backdoor of The Market. One of the girls awaited her arrival, appointed to show her to a dressing room.

Once enclosed in the small space, the girl helped her shed her many layers of gown, petticoats, and corset. A short chemise and regular pantalets were all she had left on until she laced up the parlor maid’s corset with its lighter boning and side cording to offer support. It was good to settle back into her fantasy life again, to play the games with Sir that stoked their erotic fires hotter with each new twist and turn. Playing the maid was a new role for her, but something about the blatant imbalance of power was already causing her core to dampen with heady desire for what was to come. She pulled the provided dress on and attempted to adjust it to fit her correctly. Labeling it a maid’s uniform was generous, no maid of her experience had ever worn such a low cut bodice. It would not have been practical, as her breasts nearly spilled from the top when she bent over. The display made her feel decadent, naughty, and  beautiful. The last touch to her toilet was her mask.

It covered the top half of her head, lacing in the back for a snug fit and offering a significant amount of anonymity. The Market had a high standard of privacy, which included the masks that protected its clients’ identities. It would be too uncomfortable in society if one looked across the ballroom and saw the man you had flogged the night before as he danced on the arm of a fresh-faced debutant.

Katherine took a last quick look in the mirror and opened the door to her right. She stopped and curtsied as she entered, keeping her eyes down.

“Sir.”

“Kat. Come here.”

He stood next to a fireplace cast in partial shadows. Kat did not need to look up to know his features would be shrouded in a half mask similar to hers. Without a word she moved across the room and stood before his six-foot frame. He was athletic, well put together. It was clear that he had worked more than a day’s manual labor in his life. Yet he came across as refined—not rough.

Kat focused on the golden glow that showed one of his polished black boots resting on the hearth while the other bore most of his weight. She moved toward him, stopping when she could see only his chest without looking up.

She reminded herself to breathe.

His finger traced the edge of her scooped bodice and dipped slightly into her cleavage. Chill bumps broke out across her chest, her body reacting of its own

She waited in supplication for him to decide what would come next. To her relief, his lips pressed down against hers and his tongue swept into her mouth. Invading. Claiming.

Her nipples pebbled, pushing against the fabric of her bodice. He raised his lips from hers and looked down. She followed his gaze and found that he could see the relief of her nipples against the black of her dress. He flicked one, and then the other nipple with his finger.

Her breath caught in her throat. He lifted one imperious eyebrow, but said nothing as he moved toward the lone chair in the room. A comfortable wing back seat, it allowed him to settle before the fire.

“Pour me a glass of scotch and then you may remove my boots.”

Without a word she stepped to the small table that held the decanter and glasses. A fine tremor of excitement shook her hands as she poured two fingers of amber liquid into a glass. She caught him watching her move from the decanter to where he sat. He radiated a brooding intensity, swamping her senses as she stood, holding out the glass waiting for him to take it. He finally transferred the weight of the crystal from her hand to his, while letting his free hand stroke her hip. Without all of the normal petticoats, the warmth of his touch burned through the dress and branded her skin as though he had laid claim to her with his mouth.

Still silent, she turned her back to him, extended his booted foot, and straddled it, raising her dress and exposing her calves. Bent over, she displayed her backside to him with little between them but the insubstantial fabric of her dress. She could feel sweat trickle down between her breasts as the heat of the fire melded with the heat of the man. With a hearty tug, the first boot slid free. She moved to the next boot and repeated the process, except this time he braced his hand across her bottom to help push. The boot slipped off as she stumbled forward, unaccustomed to the task or his assistance.

Kat steadied herself and placed the boot next to its mate by the chair. Without warning, he pulled her into his lap. At first, she struggled, pushed against his chest in surprise.

“Sssshhhh, Kat. You’ll do as I say.” He ordered her as he adjusted her position across his thighs.

“Sir. The housekeeper will dismiss me,” she cried, keeping in line with her role.

“You are in my employ. Only I can dismiss you.”

His hand delved into her bodice. He captured a nipple, rolling it between his thumb and forefinger.

Kat moaned softly as the telltale wetness flooded her body. She could not hide her desire, even as she knew she must play out the scene for Sir─ for herself.

“Sir! I cannot. I am a good girl!” She leapt from his lap. Heavens her thighs were damp.

He inhaled sharply. Kat’s cheeks grew warm at the idea that he might be able to smell her scent, except the fire must be covering the odor of her lust. Mustn’t it?

He pointed imperiously at the bed. “Sit.”

This was when she was to give in. The bed was always the moment when all pretense of struggle was to end and she was to let him have his way. She sucked in a breath and moved to the bed. He stalked toward her, his clothing disappearing one article at a time to reveal a tall, sleek form layered with muscle. She never tired of seeing his body displayed like this. He was a handsome virile man who commanded her full attention.

His jutting cock stood ready before her as she sat primly on the bed trying to ignore it. Its bulbous head came into her view and waited for her to reach out and greet it properly.

Without thought, her tongue slid past her teeth to moisten her dry lips. In reflex, her hand moved upward to grasp it, before she stopped. It wasn’t time yet, she had not observed the proper etiquette.

“May I?” She almost begged, already desperate with the need to have him within her body any way she could – her mouth, her pussy – it did not matter.

“Since you asked so nicely, you may.”

Eager, she slipped her mouth over his head and came close to swallowing him whole. He was neither over long nor terribly thick. In her mind, he was perfect. It was A bit of a stretch to swallow him whole, but it was worth it. He gave encouraging grunts, making her swell with pride.

Pulling back, she allowed her tongue to trace the vein on the underside of his cock before she sank back down on him. Reveling in the long slow glide of him over her tongue, he hit the back of her throat. Overwhelmed with the need to have more, she relaxed her throat and let him slide that extra greedy inch as she gripped his ass and pulled him forward. They both moaned in satisfaction when he instinctively pumped into her warm wet mouth. Once, twice, three times. Then he pulled back until just the head remained for her to suckle, which she did with relish. Running her tongue around the head, she dipped into the slit at the top and lapped at the clear fluid that leaked out. Again, she swallowed him up taking his full length into her mouth until his balls pressed to her chin. They tightened and quivered before he pulled back from her moist heat.

With a groan he wrenched her top and corset down to expose her breasts. The material hooked below plumping and lifting her already generous breasts for his delectation. He dropped to his knees and sucked one nipple into his mouth. Tracing the whorl of her aureole with his tongue he flicked the nipple and bit down. Her body spasmed in instant response. Grunting he moved to the other breast and repeated the action drawing Kat into a sensuous haze.

She watched his every move and when he looked up at her, he smiled that predatory smile that made promises she knew his body would keep. He tipped her back across the bed with a gentle push of his hand before her skirts were rucked up to her waist. Confronted by the pantalets, he unerringly found the slit and wrenched it open with a tearing noise that made Kat’s heart leap with desire.

His fingers slipped through her curls to part her wet folds and then his tongue dove in. He ran the warm edge of his tongue up the length of her heated sex to flick her clitoris ruthlessly. Writhing with need, she caused him to pin her hips down with his hands and force her legs wider to accommodate his shoulders. Again, his tongue ran along her slit, stroking her need to new heights. Then he lifted his head from between her thighs.

“Touch your nipples. I want to watch you while I feast.”

Kat reached up and took each nipple between her fingers. She rolled and pinched them until he seemed satisfied that she was following instructions. When he returned his focus to his previous efforts, she gasped as he also inserted a finger into her tight channel. Her body undulated around his digit, greedy for more. His tongue flicked her clit again and he inserted a second digit. She cried out in ecstasy when his fingers curved upward slightly catching that spot that seemed to always make her crazed with lust. His insistent tongue and fingers continued working her until she thought she might not be able to stand it any longer. Balanced on that knife’s edge of pleasure and pain, her body splintered. Pleasure rushed in to wrack her in spasms.

“Sir! Oooohhhh! Yes! Sir!”

Her body calmed as he continued lapping at her honey. Once she settled again, he rose from the juncture of her thighs.

“Slide back.” He loomed over her, his cock even harder than it had been before. Kat quickly inched her body backwards until he commanded her to stop with a simple touch. Kneeling on the bed between her legs, he took her wrists in one hand and pinned them to the bed over her head. He held his rod in the other hand and rubbed it in the wet crease of her body. The engorged tip mercilessly massaged her sensitive clit and teased her opening until she thought she would cry out.

Finally she broke. “Please.” It was more a whimper than anything.

“Please what, Kat?”

“Please, take me. Fill me as only you can Sir.”

He plunged into her body and seated himself to his balls. She could feel them pressed to her backside as he ground his pelvis against her. He was a perfect fit when he came into her body. How could a man she was destined to never truly know be so right for her? Then he withdrew until just the tip sat inside her body. More. She wanted more of him, all of him, but it was too much to ask from an anonymous coupling at a brothel. He did not even know if she was one of the girls from the house or another patron.

He drove into her again, but pulled back immediately. He continued the pattern stopping every so often to grind against her. Her body fluttered around his cock, always trying to pull him in closer. They both neared their peak as he continued to thrust into her body, holding her wrists and not letting her go. The restraint of her arms pushed her over the edge. She cried out, her hips rising to meet his as her world came apart again. Her body screamed its release as pleasure swamped her senses causing everything but feeling to be lost. Shortly, she returned to find him pumping into her body one last time. He withdrew and came on her breasts as he milked his body, running his hand up and down his cock.

He used the skirt of her maid’s uniform to clean off her chest and then he lay down next to her across the bed. Mentally and physically exhausted, she could not imagine moving despite wanting to remove the soiled dress. After a few minutes, Sir sat her up and, as though he had read her mind, divested her of all her clothing. Once naked, he picked her up, settled her carefully under the covers of the massive bed, and then climbed in behind her. It had been a long time since she had lain next to a man to sleep. Usually Sir left her immediately after they finished, but tonight something was different both of them. He doused the lamp next to the bed, leaving the low glow of the fire to light the room. Kat sighed, exhausted and content.

*   *   *

Kat woke when he gently nudged her arm.

“It is getting late. The sun will be up soon, if you wish to leave before daylight.”

“I should go. Thank you.” Her voice sounded husky even to her.

She rose and seeing her clothes were a terrible mess simply walked nude across the room. With the snick of the door closing behind her, her chest began to ache a little. She wished she had someone to wake up to in the morning, in her bed. It was always a little bothersome to slip away in the night as though she were taking something not freely given.