Suddenly You(29)

Although Gemma had started as a streetwalker, and doubtless had excelled at it, she had quickly come to the conclusion that the threat of disease, violence, and premature aging so common to prostitutes was not for her. She found a protector with enough money to finance the purchase of a small house, and from there she had established the most successful brothel in London.

Gemma’s house was run with intelligence and high standards. She had chosen and trained her girls carefully. She had made certain that her girls were treated as luxury items, high quality offered at astronomical prices, and there was no shortage of London gentlemen willing to pay for their services.

Although Jack appreciated the beauty of the girls who worked at the handsome brick house with its six white columns in front and ten balconies in back, and luxurious salons and bedrooms within, he had not accepted Gemma’s standing offer of a free night with one of her girls. He had little interest in spending the night with a woman who could be had for a price. He liked to win a woman’s favor, he enjoyed the arts of flirtation and seduction, and most of all, he couldn’t resist a challenge.

Nearly two years had passed since Jack had approached Mrs. Bradshaw with the offer to write a book about the escapades that had taken place inside her infamous brothel, and about her own intriguing past. Gemma had liked the idea, sensing that such a publication would increase her business and enhance her reputation as the most successful madam in London. Moreover, she was justifiably proud of her achievements and was not averse to boasting.

So with the help of one of Jack’s writers, she had filled her memoirs with good humor and naughty revelations. The book had succeeded beyond both of their most ambitious hopes, bringing a flood of money and publicity that had quickly boosted Gemma’s establishment to a level of international repute.

Jack and Gemma Bradshaw had become friends, each relishing the opportunity to talk with brutal honesty. In Gemma’s company, Jack was able to discard all the social niceties that usually prevented people from speaking plainly to each other. The amusing thought occurred to Jack that the only other woman he could talk to with such freedom was Miss Amanda Briars. It was odd, but the spinster and the madam shared the same refreshing quality of directness.

Although Gemma’s schedule was always heavily laden with appointments, and Jack had called unexpectedly, he was shown to her private receiving room without delay. As he had suspected, Gemma had anticipated his visit. He was torn between amusement and irritation as he saw her lounging gracefully in the sumptuous parlor.

Like the rest of her home, the parlor had been designed specifically to flatter her coloring. The walls were covered in green brocade, the gilded furniture upholstered in soft shades of gold and emerald velvet, against which her piled-up red hair gleamed like a flame.

Gemma was a tall, elegantly voluptuous woman with an angular face and a large nose, but she possessed such remarkable style and self-confidence that she was often called a beauty. Her most attractive quality was her sincere appreciation of men.

Although most women claimed to like and respect men, there were only a few who actually did. Gemma was definitely one of them. She had a way of making a man feel comfortable, of making his faults out to be amusing rather than annoying…of assuring him that she had absolutely no wish to change anything about him.

“My darling, I’ve been waiting for you,” she purred, coming forward with outstretched arms. Jack took her hands and stared into her upturned face with a sardonic smile. As always, her hands were so heavily bejeweled that he could barely feel her fingers through the clattering rings and stones.

“I’m sure you have,” he muttered. “We have a few things to discuss, Gemma.”

She laughed in pleasure, clearly delighted by her own clever prank. “Now, Jack, you aren’t put out with me, are you? Truly, I felt that I was giving you a gift. How often would you have a chance to play stud to such a delightful creature?”

“You found Miss Briars delightful?” Jack asked skeptically.

“Naturally I did,” Gemma replied, with no hint of sarcasm. Her dark eyes crinkled with amusement. “Miss Briars came to me as boldly as you please, requesting a man for her birthday the way one would order a cut of beef from the butcher. I thought it wonderfully brave of her. And she spoke to me in such a pleasant manner, just as I’ve always imagined respectable women talk with each other. I liked her exceedingly.”

She sat gracefully on the chaise longue and motioned for him to take a nearby chair. In a habit that was second nature to her, she arranged her long legs so that their elegant shape was outlined by the skirts of her wine velvet gown. “Tolly,” she commanded, and a maid seemed to appear from nowhere. “Tolly, bring Mr. Devlin a glass of brandy.”

“I’d like coffee,” Jack said.

“Coffee, then, with sugar and a pot of cream.” Gemma’s red lips—their lush color skillfully enhanced by rouge—curved in a sweetly appealing smile. She waited until the maid had left before speaking.

“I suppose you want an explanation of how the whole thing came about. Well, it was strictly by chance that you came to see me just a few hours after Miss Briars’s visit. You happened to mention the book that you had acquired, and your desire to meet Miss Briars, and then the most delicious idea occurred to me. Miss Briars wanted a man, and I had none who would suit her. I could have sent Ned or Jude, but neither of those pretty-faced, empty-headed boys would do for her.”