Obscene Passion (Sample)

Chapter Eleven

"Interesting! Imagine such precious jewelry befitting of a queen!" The chubby woman, Lady Marla, exclaimed and as Lady Kristine smiled warmly, she leaned closer and said in a rather low haughty tone. "But I believe I can buy three boxes of it, the problem is..." She whispered her next words. "I hate sapphires!"

"How much do they cost?" The slimmer one, Lady Joyce who had dark hair asked, still astonished by the sapphire necklace, Lady Kristine was flaunting to them, despite Lady Marla's imprudence.

Lady Kristine smiled proudly and stretched to pat the hand of the brunette. "Oh, Joyce! Trust me, the amount paid for this jewelry might only make you pass into shock." She said with a tight smile. "And we don't want that now, do we?"

The brunette pursed her lips, knowing Lady Kristine had indirectly insulted her. She knew they were all friends but Lady Marla was the daughter of a renowned Duke and the most influential of them all, infamous for picking on others while Lady Kristine was not really different from doing the same to those, lower than she was. She cleared her throat and tried to sound firm. "I assure you my husband would be able to purchase one for me and I plan on donning it on the Countess' ball which comes up in a fortnight or so."

Lady Kristine snorted. "I should do well to remind you that not all sapphires are of the same quality. The fake ones could be quite deceiving. If one isn't experienced in things such as these, one won't be able to tell the difference. "

The brunette looked away without another word and Lady Marla, still beaming, broke the short silence. "The castle seems almost desolate without the Marquess being present..." She glanced around with interest. "If I may ask, he wasn't at the door to welcome us, Kristine! Is he unaware of our visit?"

Lady Kristine's smile reduced into a sarcastic one as she regarded her chubby friend with masked disgust. "Oh! Pardon him, Marla. He went out to conduct a business or two! He should be back before dinner."

"A very busy man he must be, but I can't wait till such a time." Marla continued with a hint of disappointment in her voice. "He has a high sense of humour that I admire. He's sarcastically evil." She giggled. "I mostly call because of my admiration for him, but visits here are really not worth my time without his presence. Such a shame, I must say."

"Apparently!" Lady Kristine replied through clenched teeth. She hated Lady Marla with passion and the they were only friends because the Lansburys conducted business with her influential husband and also her father who was a Duke and who also helped out with other influential associates. Lady Kristine only had to tolerate the insolent slob because she had no choice but she was really getting to her breaking point with the irritating pork. "Perhaps, we should look for other ways to entertain ourselves!" She gently placed the sapphire necklace in its case which was on her lap, closed it, set it aside then crossed a knee over the other.

This suggestion caught Joyce's interest. "Yes! How about a little gossip?" She eagerly fanned her face with her fan, her cheeks, tinged. "It will be exciting to catch up on the latest news."

"Talking about gossip..." Marla began with a sly smile then directed a sly gaze at Lady Kristine. "There's the still contained rumour that you are screwing the pirate."

Lady Kristine who had been sipping a cup of tea, almost choked on it due to shock. "What pirate!" She asked, wide eyed.

Joyce gleefully clapped her hands, obviously interested in that particular gossip. "My God! Do tell more! Is that true, Kristine?" She cooed.

"Dominic! The duke gone wild on the seas?" Marla teased.

Lady Kristine meanly eyed her, Joyce, then turned to Marla. "Who said such nonsense?!"