Sean was a bit blindsided by that particular request as he struggled a moment to find his words through the grin he couldn’t bite back, “that’s a rather strange favor to ask of me… for so many reasons” he couldn’t help adding as he continued wearing that surprised grin.

“But you’ll do it though?” Claire returned with her own somewhat embarrassed smile.

“Have you ever actually had to ask me to do such a thing to you?” Sean teased.

“I don’t mean just making love though. I want it to be as gentle and tender as possible” Claire reiterated.

“Is that your way of telling me I’ve been lacking gentleness in our recent encounters?” he asked warily as he tried to remember the last few times they had made love; which had been understandably scarce since the attack at the tavern and then Nicolas’ arrival.

“No. I’ve never had a problem with your lovemaking. You know that” Claire assured.

“Then why the special instructions?” Sean asked as he looked at her warily, though held his smile. He then quickly added, “and what exactly does our going upstairs and having me make love to you like you were a virgin have to do with…” his voice trailed off as he slowly began developing a theory in his mind.

Claire took a moment to try and explain her request while trying to hold true to her words to Nicolas. She then finally attempted some explanation, “now that he is bound to me, he wants me just the way all of our servants have always wanted us. He caught a glimpse of me bathing tonight and… his body reacted” she settled on, trying to push herself past the slightly amused expression Sean now wore. “The problem is that he thinks that him becoming aroused means that he wants the things de Sade wanted when he became aroused” she finished sadly.

That did do well to darken the amusement on Sean’s face, “I take it you made some attempt to explain to him that that wasn’t the case?”

“I tried to explain that de Sade got aroused by the wrong sorts of things” she sighed, as she knew too well that arousal could mean many different things to different people; her marriage was proof enough of that. “And I tried to tell him that most often when people are aroused sexually it doesn’t mean that they’d ever want the things that man wanted. I tried to explain that it didn’t mean that he wanted those sorts of things either” she added with another sigh, “but that’s all he’s seen, so that’s obviously what he has been led to believe it means. I need to show him the way it’s supposed to be; not the way it was with that horrible man.”

“So basically, you want us to show him what physical intimacy and arousal is supposed to lead to; instead of what he’s always been shown that it led to?” Sean restated as he looked down sadly, becoming more and more aware of exactly how damaged the young man had been.

“Which is why I want it to be just like our very first time; except without the pain of course” she had to add.

“You did say to be gentle, but I take it you still want me to make you come?” Sean couldn’t help asking.

“Of course” Claire looked down with shake of her head to hide her smile, “after all, we have to show him that there are indeed much better ways to achieve sexual fulfillment.”

“And I’m guessing we should also keep our fangs out of the equation tonight?” Sean teased further.

“I don’t think he needs to have that be part of his lesson” Claire smiled again.

“Not yet, anyway. I’m sure you’ll eventually bite him though” Sean smirked.

“Not until I try to get him past at least part of this trauma; if it’s even possible” she added more sadly.

“So he’s going to be our audience tonight then” he replied as more a statement than a question.

“If he decides to actually watch us. He was still a bit wary. But if he does, you can’t let on that you know that he’s watching. When I suggested him coming into the room during our lovemaking he was more than a bit terrified of the idea. So he can’t know that you know if he is there” she stressed.

“Good thing I can perform under pressure” Sean smirked.

“I hope like hell you’re talking about the club” Claire retorted narrowing her eyes at him in a silent scolding.

“What else?” Sean added with a soft chuckle. He then quickly moved on though, “so are we supposed to be starting the show right this minute, or is there some other appointed time?”

“Well, if you can pull yourself away from your other duties for the night; sooner would be better” she told him with a bit of sultriness as she stood and took a moment to run her finger over the arm of the chair.

“I suppose my duties do include keeping our servants physically and mentally healthy” Sean smirked again as he moved to stand. Claire just allowed a slight chuckle as she moved from the room, smiling as she heard his footsteps behind her.

When they did finally arrive at their bedchamber, closing the door behind them, Sean had to remind himself to act as though she was once again his virginal teenage bride, rather than the woman he had spent over two centuries making love to in all sorts of inventive ways and settings. As Claire daintily took a seat on the edge of the bed, Sean braced himself once more, trying not to follow Claire’s glance toward the door of the privy chamber. After all, tonight’s act included his ignorance of their possible audience.

Sean thought another moment as he looked over at the expectant look she graced him with. They had been lovers for so long it was actually difficult for him to program himself to discount those two centuries of passion and remember how he had behaved back before he had known her body as well as his own, if not better.

With another moment to get into that mindset, he slowly moved to take a seat next to her on the edge of the mattress. He smiled over at her and warily reached up to gently caress her long black locks. Willing himself not to look toward that other door again, Sean hesitantly moved to press a kiss to her lips. Also having to remember to pace herself rather than giving into the passion his touch always produced in her, Claire slowly and hesitantly began kissing him back with tenderness supplanting passion for once.

Upon hearing their chamber door close, Nicolas glanced toward the still open door between his own room and the privy. He took a deep breath as he remembered Claire’s offer to show him what true pleasure was supposed to mean. Terrified though he was, he also could not help that desire to not only lay his eyes upon Claire again, but also his desperation to discover that she was telling him the truth; and that perhaps his arousal for her did not make him a monster after all. With that thought, he bravely forced himself to his feet from the floor he had still been seated on since Claire’s departure.

He moved as quietly as possible to the other door to the privy which Claire had indeed left the slightest bit ajar for him. He swallowed hard before taking a step closer to the crack in the doorway and letting his pools of brown move to their bed. There he found the two of them kissing one another’s lips with what did indeed appear to be gentleness; at least thus far. Nicolas then swallowed another lump in his throat and quietly moved to a place on his knees inside the door as he watched Sean covering Claire’s lips with his own for several more moments.

That was when Sean moved his lips to her neck instead, kissing her pale skin with the continued gentleness reflected in the caress of his fingers against the laces that held the back of her corset tight around her tiny frame. Reminding himself once more to not sink those fangs into her neck as much as he may have wanted to, he smiled through the kisses to her neck as her fingers warily moved up to tangle in his long free locks.

As Sean continued holding her close, placing those soft kisses over her throat Claire couldn’t help moving her eyes back to the door once more and smiling as she caught sight of Nicolas’ eyes on them. Though she moved her eyes away from his just as quickly, but held her smile as she allowed her fingers to finally move to ever so slowly begin unbuttoning Sean’s shirt.

Smiling against her neck again, Sean moved back only slightly to help her with her task by pulling the shirt from the waist of his trousers, mentally reminding himself again to move slowly, rather than ripping either of their clothes off the way his desire for her often gave him the urge to do.

When Claire had finished unbuttoning his shirt and slowly pulling it down his arms and dropping it to the floor next to the bed, the two easily moved back into once again kissing one another’s lips. Only a moment later, through those continued kisses, Sean began unlacing the back of her corset as slowly as he could manage to. Once that task was completed, they broke off the kiss for another moment, looking into one another’s eyes for reassurance that they were still moving slowly enough. He then began pulling the top portion of the dress away from her arms and chest, exposing those pale breasts once more.

That was when Claire smiled back up at him and slowly began moving backwards to a spot in the middle of the bed, allowing Sean’s hands to pull the dress the rest of the way free from her now nude body as she moved. Pausing another moment just to take in the sight of her laying there naked upon the bed, as he was sure Nicolas was taking in the sight with just as much desire; Sean finally moved to begin undoing his own trousers, his smile never leaving Claire’s as he did.

Behind that door Nicolas’ body was again aching with desire and arousal as his eyes moved over Claire’s now completely exposed body. Trying not to curse himself for his body’s needs once more he forced himself to keep watching, hoping upon hope that the scene before him would remain as tender as it had thus far; and give him some sort of hope that his arousal was not a sign of him wanting to indulge in the kind of horror Donatien had so delighted in.

Once Sean was just as exposed, Nicolas had to will himself not to flee and to stay and watch instead. After all, Sean still seemed to be completely unaware of his presence, and he hoped that would be reason enough not to have to fear any brutalization coming his way.

Sean moved to the bed and chose to take a place on the other side of Claire rather than moving to lie on top of her just yet. Despite the fact that they were already naked and he could feel that Claire had already brought her body to life for him; Sean chose to place a few more long kisses over her lips before allowing himself to move to enter her just yet. Though he did also bring his body to life and harden next to her while they continued those kisses; as he remembered that Nicolas feared that arousal meant pain to follow, and their job that night was to prove that that was not the case.

“Not yet” Claire whispered against his lips as she felt his hardness pressing into her thigh.

“I know” he smiled back through another kiss. To explain his intentions, he kissed her for another long moment before again beginning to move those kisses down over her neck and shoulder.

Nicolas had another moment of fear as he saw Sean becoming just as aroused as he felt right then, but again forced himself to stay there in his current spot. To his relief, he saw that Sean was simply continuing to place soft kisses over Claire’s skin rather than any more sinister action.

Moving as deliberately as he could, Sean’s lips slowly made their way down over the swell of her breasts and then began placing the same soft kisses upon those breasts as well. He then moved to allow his lips to graze a nipple that was already hardening in the night air. As she felt Sean gently flick his tongue over her nipple, Claire couldn’t help letting the softest moan pass her lips. Back in their mortal days, she and Sean had indulged in plenty of foreplay, though that did seem to fall by the wayside after their embraces, as they no longer had to stimulate each other and could simply just make their bodies ready for intercourse. Due to that strange factor of their current existence, she had almost let herself forget exactly how skilled Sean had been at arousing her for those last twelve years of their mortal lives together.

She smiled at the thought as he continued kissing and licking at her nipples while his hand moved to begin trailing its way up her thigh at the same time. It was only another moment before his hand found its destination while his lips and tongue continued their attentions to her breasts. He let his fingers gently rub her for several long moments as he reveled in the feel of that wetness she had called upon at the start of their encounter. After being sure her body was quite adequately close to the beginning of those tremors at just the feel of his fingers rubbing against her, he then slid them inside her, causing another moan to pass her lips as her back arched into his touch.

Nicolas tensed further as he saw Sean slide his fingers inside her, but when he saw the way Claire reacted to that slight penetration, he couldn’t help watching to see if it was truly pleasure that his touch was causing. He swallowed another lump in his throat as Sean’s fingers began moving inside her body while his thumb continued to caress the outside of her. As Claire’s moans grew louder and her body began shaking ever so slightly, she pressed herself even more intensely into Sean’s touch as though she truly were feeling nothing but pleasure at the feel of his fingers inside her.

When those tremors were almost intense enough to push her to that final climax, Sean surprised her further by beginning to move his kisses from her breasts and down over her stomach and abdomen instead. Just as Claire recovered enough from the touch of his hand on her and inside her to realize his new plan, his mouth had taken the place of his hand as he began kissing and caressing her with his mouth instead. Allowing another loud moan, Claire arched her back again as he continued to caress her with his hands as he slid his tongue inside her instead, reveling in the taste of her blood rushing forth to his lips to even further evidence the pleasure he was giving her.

Nicolas looked even further shocked by the reaction Claire had to Sean’s touch and his mouth against her, his tongue inside her. When Claire’s moans and shaking became so intense that it was beyond obvious that she couldn’t help but give into that climax; that was when Sean finally moved to a spot atop her tiny frame before then slowly and gently sliding his hardness into that overwhelming wetness he had already caused, joining their bodies at last. Claire’s immediate response to the feel of him sliding inside of her finally was nearly another climax at just the feel of him entering her after already having stimulated her so thoroughly.

That was when he then began moving in and out of her as slowly as he could possibly will himself to continue putting off his own pleasure. Of course, that was made that much harder when Claire was already beginning to tremble and he could feel her tighten her muscles around him as her next orgasm began overtaking her even more intensely with each gentle motion of his hips. Not able to resist the intensity of his continued touch all through that night, Claire did almost immediately give into that next climax only moments after he had begun entering her. This in turn caused his will to give way as well, as he also surrendered to that orgasm inside of her, then collapsing above her and pulling her tight against him as they both made any attempt at all to recover from the encounter.

Once Sean collapsed above her, Nicolas also collapsed back against the cabinet inside the privy chamber. His breath was ragged and he was almost painfully aroused as he tried to process all that he had just witnessed. Or more precisely, as he tried to process exactly how different the pleasure Claire and Sean had given each other was from what he had always thought arousal had to lead to. The scene that had just played out before him had been so very, very different from any of the sexual encounters he had experienced at the hands of that man that he couldn’t help breaking down into another sob as he realized exactly how badly that man had twisted and scarred not only his body, but his very psyche as well.