Her Grace's Stable: A Jane Austen Space Opera, Book 2 Read Free

of Blackmyre occasionally finds herself rescuing poor mistreated creatures, but I’m considered the vile blackheart of the ton .”
    “That’s not what I meant. God, Violet, what was that? In all seriousness, I need to know.”
    Violet let the fake mask of Polite Society slip away to reveal the harder, colder mistress that Cole knew all too well. “There are some of us who like to subdue our partners before we take them to bed. In fact, some of our partners like to be trained and handled like fine horseflesh.”
    “Like your man Cole,” Dottie dared, her eyebrows arching.
    “Yes. He’s been my pony more than once.”
    Dottie’s lip twitched. “Pony?”
    “That’s the general term for people who like to be treated like horseflesh by their master or mistress,” Violet replied stiffly. “I assure you, I’ve never done anything to him that he wasn’t perfectly eager to receive, nothing like that poor man has suffered.”
    “And you know people who do this? Regularly? Both the…master…and the…er…pony?”
    “Yes.” Violet clamped her mouth shut, refusing to offer any entreaties or explanations. She’d tried to deny the darkness inside her way too long, afraid of the condemnation of her friends, the same as her mother. With Cole, she’d finally embraced her truest self. She’d found something that she not only enjoyed, she excelled at, damn it. She was a damned fine mistress and had even competed in the ring. Granted, it was a small community of people and the title meant nothing whatsoever to anyone but them, but it was the first time anyone had ever accepted the truth about her without a single reservation.
    Dottie squeezed her arm harder. “And you didn’t tell me?” She made a noise that Violet hadn’t heard since their schoolgirl days giggling about the first boy they’d caught for a kiss in the barn. “Oh, Vi, I’m positively titillated. I can’t stand that you never told me!”
    Violet blinked and tried to keep the silly grin from spreading on her face, but it was a losing effort. “Oh, Dottie, I never thought you’d care to learn about the pony games. It never even occurred to me.”
    “Whyever not?”
    “Because you’re…so…normal.” And I’m so abnormal. She didn’t say that aloud, but it must be written in the agonized sorrow on her face that had been present since her mother’s death. It’s too late for me to ever win her approval. She’ll never forgive me for having the audacity to be born, let alone taking after my father’s perversion.
    “You’re the bloody Duchess of Blackmyre, easily one of the top five most powerful ladies in the known civilized universe,” Dottie said in a low, fierce voice. “If anyone dare say a derogatory word about you they’ll be meeting me at dawn.”
    Violet patted her friend’s hand soothingly. “No duels, dearest. You know Queen Majel’s opinion about such frivolous acts of honor. Besides, I’m only Duchess at her whim. She refused to hear the Dowager’s plea to disown me since there were no other living heirs to Blackmyre. Whatever cruel acts can be laid at Queen Majel’s feet, I owe her. When dear Mama died, all of Blackmyre could have returned to the Crown instead of coming to me. In all honesty, I’m rather shocked each morning when I’m still alive, let alone Duchess of Blackmyre.”
    “Pish posh, the Queen’s lucky to have you as Duchess. Now about these ponies…”
     
     
    Agonizing bliss racked his entire body. Spasm after spasm shook him and he couldn’t stop. He’d never allowed a man to touch him intimately, but the last thing he wanted was for his new friend to cease the gentle stroking. A simple cleansing had never felt so good. After agonizing need and pain for so long, even another man’s touch felt incredible.
    I’m that desperate.
    That’s how low I’ve fallen.
    He collapsed against the smaller man, unable to stop the shaking sobs that escaped. They didn’t sound human. He hadn’t been human for a