Hold My Hand by Paloma Beck Read Free Book Online Page A

follow. I braced myself.
    “Relax, Aubrey. Don’t hold
your breath. You were doing well with the deep breathing. Keep
breathing deeply. I will count for you. Deep breath in, two, three,
four, deep breath out, two three, four…” Shea comforted me.
    It was somewhere in that
seventh breath when the burning, pinching, mother of all pain
struck. Shea quickly ripped the wax from my skin and with it, tore
my hair out. Just a few hairs, I told myself, but it was more pain
than I had even imagined. Tears ran from my eyes as I lay thinking
about how much more there was to be done. I wanted to crawl from
the table. I whimpered, unable to locate my center again.
    “Aubrey, you’re doing this
for William. I know you want to please him. Keep your thoughts on
him and continue breathing.” Bending my other leg, she spread more
wax, “let’s breathe together again.”
    This time, the tearing pain
came with the fifth breath. It hurt just as badly but focusing on
William, on my reward to follow was enough to carry me through.
Once Shea completed the top of my mound, she began spreading the
wax lower onto the labia region. I was spread out like a frog, both
knees bent out and up. Still doing my deep breathing, I prepared
myself for worse pain. After all, this area would be even more
sensitive; but God was with me in that moment because the wax was
miraculously removed with much less pain. A few more pulls, Shea
patted my legs, stretched them back out for me, massaged the tensed
muscles and told me my front was done.
    My first thought was
great. Wait , was the thought that
immediately followed. “So we’re done?” I asked hopeful.
    “Just the back left,” she
announced as if she’s saying it’s time for tea.
    “ The b-back,” I
stuttered. Certainly not. I could not be thinking the right thing.
I was sure this wasn’t what she intended.
    "Yes. It’s time to do the
back. You don’t want stray hairs in that region," she explained
before instructing me to turn over onto my stomach.
    I did as I was told because
that’s just who I am. Aubrey followed the rules. I can do this, I
reaffirmed repeatedly in my head.
    "I’ll need your help for
this part. Place your hands on your cheeks and spread them," Shea
commanded. I’m mortified. Certainly, my cheeks are enflamed with
embarrassment. No one has ever been this intimate with me before
nor am I certain I would want a person to be.
    I felt the heat of the wax
as all this was racing through my head. I wanted to run, or at
least hide my face. I couldn’t think of William without feeling
more embarrassed. Then Shea tore off the wax and the pain ran its
course, not near as sharp as the front. A few more pulls and Shea
instructed me to lie still while she got the topical cream.
    Shea talked to me about
aftercare, how often I’d need to return even though I didn’t want
to think about doing this again just yet, and assured me the heat I
was feeling would subside within the hour. She handed me the cream
to apply myself and left me to get dressed in the clothes William
had delivered before my arrival.

Chapter Four
    I escaped into the
forbidden.

    Dinner was another
restaurant I would never have chosen. I wondered for a moment if
there was anything William and I had in common. As we exited the
car, William told Baylor to wait for us. Baylor gave me a smile,
nodded his head at William and returned to the car.
    “It’s a Friday evening. Does
Baylor not get any time off?”
    “He does. Tonight I planned
to take you back to my house and since we have only this one car in
the city, we need to return together.”
    “ Together? Where’s
Baylor’s home?” As the door to the restaurant was opened for me, I
imagined life with a driver, a housekeeper and simply couldn’t
grasp it. It was a life so different from mine.
    William spoke to the maître
de quickly before he turned back to me and smiled, shaking his head
slowly.
    “Such an inquisitive elf you
are, Aubrey.” His hand stroked my