Monique dropped her papers and the pen still in her hand. “What!”
“She said she hands them out for free, and you know I can be a cheap bitch sometimes.”
“Helen!”
She turned back toward June. “She’s fun, isn’t she?”
“The funnest.”
“Anyway, I’ll be out on the balcony waiting for you. Such a lovely day. You should get some sunshine at some point. Both of you.” She kissed her wife’s red cheek once more, nodded to June, and saw herself out. “Have a good one.”
The sound of disbelief emanating from Monique’s throat almost made June laugh. “Some wives…”
“At least she has fun with what you do.”
“Too much fun.”
With Monique cleaning up, June knew it was time to follow Helen’s cue and show herself out. “See you Wednesday?” That was when Monique usually returned to the Manoir. Sometimes Thursday. God knew what would happen when she got closer to giving birth and, well, gave birth. There had been no discussion of that game plan yet.
She happened to run into Holly in the hallway. “Don’t be stupid,” she said, startling the redhead. “If you’re gonna fuck a client without protection, you do not report it to Monique! Don’t even tellmeabout it.” As the girl gaped at her, June snorted in disdain.Dumbass.
When June continued down the main hallway, she realized she had two choices ahead of her. Somehow, the idea of having Sette as her patron slammed into her head. Perhaps it was walking into a sundrenched hallway that reminded her of posing for paintings. After all, the artist had been obsessed with the perfect lighting, not that June could blame her.
Sette as my patron, huh?Originally, June had thought her pretty and witty, but boring. Or at least boring in the ways that counted to June. Good conversation didn’t mean much if she wasn’t going to have sex. It wasn’t a money thing – Sette would be paying a monthly fee to be her patron, and she could do whatever she pleased – or nothing at all. That wasn’t fun for June. In this world, she could have the “perfect” partner. Someone who would make love to her every time she saw her. Maybe hard. Maybe slow. Always entertaining.
Maybe Sette could be that woman. Then again, there were many to choose from. It was only a matter of who would have her as well.
Chapter 11
Sette
“Marvelous,” Sette’s agent said, gazing upon her one finished work and another two sketches already in progress. “You’ve outdone yourself.”
Sette didn’t want to look proud, but she certainly felt it.I know it’s my best work yet.Look at her.She hadn’t mentioned who June was or what she did for a living. Only that she was a live model for a new series of paintings. If Joy the agent had come over the day Sette called her, then she would’ve found Sette beaming in so much pride that she would’ve been sick. Five days later, however, she was in better control of her emotions. Not that it stopped her from thinking about June, no matter how much Zara warned her not to.Who else do I think of in the shower, though?Or in bed by herself. Something about that woman had the power to make Sette touch herself over and over again.
“I’m glad you like them.” Sette offered Joy a cup of tea. She declined. “I’ve worked out a deal with her. I plan on creating a whole series of erotic paintings.”
Guffawing, Joy turned away from the finished product and went back to staring at a rough sketch on another easel. Sunlight streamed through the studio windows, illuminating the golden paint of June’s hair. Sette found herself constantly staring at it, remembering the way June’s hair glowed in her bedroom.Then I fucked her.Oh, well.
“Erotic paintings are a great sell, although it will be difficult to find galleries willing to take them. People are getting conservative again. Such things work in cycles.”
“You’ll find a place, right?”
Joy snapped a picture on her phone. “I’ll show them around. Don’t be surprised if I call to schedule some private viewings.”
That was what Sette wanted to hear. She didn’t need to make a living off her art, but she did appreciate the validation. Everyone knew she had the technical skill to create great paintings, but so far, most were underwhelmed with her subjects. Since meeting June, however…Fuck me. I could paint her all day.Zara’s suggestion that she do a series based on the women of the Manoir was ludicrous. Sette couldn’t stand the thought of sitting down to paint any other woman. Unless she was with June, perhaps.
“I won’t lie to you, Sette,” Joy began, running her fingers through her thick black hair. “This could be good for you. I’ve got contacts in Tokyo who might go for this. They love the erotic stuff there.”
“Not in Hong Kong though, huh?” Joy had many international connections, but Hong Kong was her home playground and the main gate to the rest of Asia.
Joy waved her hand. “Hong Kong isn’t into this right now. It would be a tough sell.”
“Got it. The Japanese, it is.”
“Of course, right here in America is the best place to start. This is a European style, but those Euros have seen plenty of Anglo nipples these past few centuries. Get your name going here and in East Asia, and maybe you could break into Europe.”
That was almost too good to be true. Sette had never courted ideas of being a hit in Europe. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” she pleaded. “I’ll be happy with a show near here.”
