| "In Between The Lines" |
| Satine burst out laughing at the sight of Christian�s flight as The Duke entered the room. Shocked, she quickly made sure she was appropriately covered, composed herself and sat upright. Meanwhile Christian, apart from the tangled sheet which caused his fall in the first place, was completely naked and trying to remain as still as possible huddled down behind the bed, out of sight. Calm and collected, as if nothing was out of the ordinary, Satine looked at The Duke. �Yes Dear Duke?� she inquired. �My dear, what on earth were you doing? I�ve been knocking on the door for minutes now. When you didn�t answer I was afraid you were with...ahem, well, I was worried that something had happened to you.� �Oh, so kind of you to care, but you shouldn�t worry. Really, I was just...having a, a strange dream. It must have been something dreadfully amusing because I woke up laughing...but I can�t for the life of me remember what it was. I guess I was just in a deep sleep and that�s why I didn�t hear you,� Satine said trying desperately to make a plausible excuse. Christian was in a state of panic and his heart was racing from the huge rush of endorphins. On the upside, he could see his underwear just a few centimeters away and attempted to silently retrieve them. He got hold of them without effort, but doubted that he would be able to put them back on without drawing attention to himself. He stayed crouched half under the bed sheet and hoped that Satine could sweet talk her way out of this one, because Christian had a feeling The Duke was not somebody he wanted to make angry. Satine looked around anxiously and her eyes widened in panic when she noticed Christian�s trousers hanging off the arms on Vishnu, her Hindu statue in the corner of the room. She prayed The Duke would not turn away from her. In an effort to seal his undivided attention, Satine subtly lowered the bed sheet to reveal a hint of breast. His attention was first drawn to her bare shoulders and then as Satine had anticipated he soon dropped his gaze, south. �Do you often sleep without a nightgown?� he inquired, still in his mesmerized trance. Satine couldn�t very well answer no, so she decided to play along, and perhaps if she made The Duke uncomfortable enough he would hurry up and leave. �Yes, quite often� she said in a direct manner. �Is this not how you imagined me?� Satine laughed inside her head, �that ought to stump him� she thought. The Duke stuttered, still staring at the brief glimpse of flesh, �...well...I, I ...� Satine loved that she could have so much control over a man as powerful as The Duke. However, she was becoming restless, worrying about Christian huddled just meters away. In an effort to move things along she asked, �Dear Duke, what is it you wanted?� �Oh...I, ah, I have just been finishing my dealings with Zidler and we have come to an arrangement, that will in effect allow the Moulin Rouge to be turned into a theatre.� He said, drawing his attention back to her face. �I had hoped before we all meet later this afternoon that you and I could perhaps go on a picnic,� he continued and flashed what he obviously thought was a dashing smile in her direction. Satine however just thought he resembled one of those giant rats she had seen on the streets of Montmartre. �Oh Dear Duke, that sounds fantastic!� She exclaimed in false enthusiasm. She�d think of a way to get herself out of this one yet. Christian felt a twinge of pain in his heart; surely she wouldn�t go off with The Duke now. She couldn�t. �But last night�s show certainly did take a lot out of me, and I really should rest after my fall and prepare for this afternoons events.� She hoped that was enough to stave him off. Christian breathed a sigh relief as he realized Satine�s intentions and berated himself for thinking otherwise. He shifted his weight on the ground and felt a bulky jab in his back. He quietly moved to see what it was. Reluctantly The Duke looked down and dejectedly replied, �Yes, very well then, I understand�uh, perhaps later, we could arrange to meet for supper.� He said in one last effort to secure a meeting with her. �Perhaps.� Satine replied. The Duke nodded in response and then turned to leave. He closed the door behind him and Satine flopped back on to the bed. She was about to roll over and retrieve Christian when the door flew open once more. While these events were taking place, Christian discovered what was causing him so much discomfort; it was a top hat� �IT�S THE DUKES TOP HAT!� he realized. This couldn�t be good. Satine practically leapt back to her sitting position, and The Duke leant back in the doorway. �Uh, my dear, I never did retrieve my hat last night, what with all the Spectacular! Spectacular! nonsense. Would you happen to know where it is?� he asked. Christian froze, �all right,� he thought, �if I can just get Satine�s attention without The Duke seeing.� He decided what he was going to do and just hoped Satine would catch on quickly. �Ahem� barely audibly he cleared his throat to attract her attention. Satine�s eyes went wide at the slight sound. �Did you say something Satine?� The Duke asked. �Ahem, ahem...� she said trying to detract attention from the owner of the previous voice. �Oh no, it�s just I...� she said, glancing sideways to Christian�s location. She could see the top of the hat being wavered just below the side of the bed and thankfully out of The Duke�s sight. �I ah� think I saw your hat over here!� she said. Satine leaned to the side of the bed and subtly shook her head. She grinned at the sight of Christian hunkered to the floor and took the hat from his hand. �Will that be all?� Satine asked bluntly and held the hat out. �Yes. Thank you my dear,� he said retrieving the top hat from her. �Goodbye� he finished as Satine politely nodded and he turned and left once more. She briskly put on the robe next to her bed, stood up and went and locked the door. Christian slowly reappeared from behind the bed and sat kneeling upon it. Satine noticed that he found his underwear and had put them on to cover his �modesty�. Although, as he sat grinning at Satine; they didn�t do much to hide his now growing desire. Satine leaned her back against the door and said, �I can�t believe I didn�t think to lock the door last night!� �Well, I do like to think that I have some distracting effect on you� he said with wide grin plastered on his face. He reached out and wrapped one of his arms around Satine�s waist and pulled her to the bed. Satine let herself fall; she pushed Christian back into the mattress and landed on top, effectively straddling him. The two burst into fits of laughter and playfully tickled, teased and wrestled with each other. Satine had Christian pinned beneath her and he was at her mercy. �All right, I give up!� he said, putting his hands in the air giggling. Satine�s face was positioned just above his and he could feel her warm panting breath on his neck, it sent a pleasant shiver rushing down his spine. The pair locked eyes and breath taken Christian broke the silence. �You take my breath away.� he said, �You�re so beautiful; I could stay like this all day.� Satine sat up and reluctantly replied, �But we can�t.� � �You want to, don�t you?� � He said, playfully mimicking her from their mistaken encounter the previous night. Satine too, felt playful and content, and responded by grinding her hips against his; causing Christian to make that delicious sound and roll his eyes back with ecstasy. �Mmm �Big Boy� was no exaggeration in this case� she thought. Satine smiled at him, �Oh, I want to,� she said, �but rule number one- always leave them wanting more� she finished, unconsciously licking her lips. Christian tilted his head sideways and slightly hurt, said, �Is that a rule you apply to all your customers?� He thought he was more to her than that. Satine noticed his misinterpretation of what she had said and attempted to reassure him. �...Sometimes. But this time it�s different� she said. �And how�s that?� Christian asked plainly. �This time it applies to me,� she responded. Christian�s worried face once again gave way to that brilliant smile and Satine couldn�t help but do the same. Satine gently kissed his lips and lifted herself away from him. She un-straddled her �stallion� and sat on the edge of the bed. �Besides,� she said, �you have to get back before anyone sees you. We�ve had enough close calls for one day!� He sat up and stroked his hand down the length of her back and kissed the side of her head. Christian sighed, �I guess you�re right� he said. Satine gave him a mischievous look, lightly kissed just below his ear and whispered, �Always.� Christian returned the devilish look, then stood and began collecting his clothes from around the room. |
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