“Evelyn,” Natalya said sharply, and Evie snapped to attention. She was used to obeying when she heard her name.
Natalya stood right in front of her, and Evie stared at the stylish white shirt she wore under a form-fitting suit jacket, not daring to look anywhere else. She laughed to clear the tension, and it came out shrill.
“I’m fine.” Her voice was trembling. She could mask it as anticipation. She could pretend she was just excited. “I’ve beenwaiting for so long. I was all alone. I was going to think about you and pleasure myself until you—”
“Quiet.” Natalya put her hands on Evie’s face, forcing Evie to look up at her. Her blazing scarlet eyes surged into Evie’s, and she couldn’t remember ever being so scared in her life. Fear filled her completely, dreadful and panic-inducing. She was too frightened to even scream.
Natalya held her firmly, making it impossible for Evie to look away. She caressed her skin. Her hands were warm.
“Breathe.”
Evie drew in a small breath, and as she released it, a wave of calm rolled through her. It was like an ocean had come and washed away the fright that threatened to consume her only a moment ago.
With each exhale, the knot of terror in her chest grew smaller, and her breaths became less shallow.
“Breathe deeper.” As further direction, Natalya took a deep breath, held it, and let it out slowly. Evie followed the rhythm, and the tension in her shoulders loosened. Her body started to relax.
Natalya gave Evie a soft smile that didn’t match her sharp features. Someone that dangerously beautiful should not look soft.
“That’s it. Well done.” Natalya was about to say something more when she lost her balance and stumbled. Her hands left Evie’s face to grab the side of the bed. She only just kept herself standing.
Without Natalya touching her, Evie immediately tensed up again. Fear simmered in her chest, but it wasn’t the overwhelming panic she’d experienced a moment before. It was a muted feeling, not unlike what she always felt when servicing a guest. It was fear she was used to.
Natalya’s hands clutched the side of the bed, her body tense with the effort of keeping herself upright. She was gasping, and she looked exhausted. Evie’s mouth fell open.
Natalya wasbreathing.
The realization made a difference. For so many months, every creature she’d been made to service had been an icy husk of a person. They were too corpse-like, the proximity of a stranger’s body so much worse when they were cold and quiet.
“Are you okay?” Evie asked.
Natalya tried to smile, and it transitioned into a pained grimace. “Forcing emotion is more difficult than enhancing it. It tired me, and I was already spent.”
Forcing emotion? She’d forced Evie to be calm? Why had her being calm mattered?
Not knowing what to do with the information, Evie returned to the routine she’d learned and mastered over the past year. If her charge was tired, she was supposed to help them relax.
She sat up on the bed. Hearing movement, Natalya looked up, and her eyes went straight to Evie’s, making her pause. Evie swallowed, swung her legs off the bed, and put one on either side of Natalya’s hips.
She moved slowly so Natalya could take in her toned legs and abdomen. Guests often ignored her face in favor of her body. It made it easier somehow, which meant Natalya’s insistence on keeping eye contact was even more disconcerting.
“If you’re tired, I can help you,” Evie said, keeping her voice low. “I can make you feel good.”
“I’m sure you can. I’m sure you can do a lot of things. Right now, you need to leave me alone.”
That was new. Guests never asked her to leave them alone, not after they called for her. Some had made her run from them in the gardens, turning it into a chase, and some had told her tobe quiet while they used her. She didn’t know what to do when someone told her to stay away.
Maybe Natalya just wanted to look at Evie some more. Evie went to undo the clasp of her bra.
“Stop.” Natalya’s voice was tight, and Evie froze for a moment. She lowered her hand to the bed, accidentally setting it on Natalya’s.
A powerful surge of emotion rolled through Evie at the touch. It was like in the parlor, where every feeling she’d muted and pushed away was brought to the surface, except much more intense. She screamed, more from shock than pain, and pulled her hand away.
“What was that?” Evie asked, forgetting herself.
“A jolt to your senses,” Natalya said, sighing. “It’s one thing to control my gaze when I’m this spent. I didn’t expect you to touch me.”
She frowned at Evie. “A touch like that should have sent you running in a panic. It should have hurt. Did it?”
