Urban Venus by Sara Downing Read Free Book Online Page B

told. So it looks like no more long frothy coffees for me as I try to integrate myself into the Italian way of life; it’s straight down the hatch with this potent blast of thick, black liquid.
     
    I leave the café an hour later with two of those shots coursing round my veins, feeling very energised, and intent on going back to the Uffizi to have a look at the Raphaels. Those duly visited and notes taken, I find myself again in room twenty-eight. I start with a closer look at Flora and Eleanora, then end up on the bench in front of my Venus. Funny how easily I am drawn here……..
     
    ‘ Maria, wake up. Come quickly,’ the whisper in my ear stirs me from a gentle slumber. ‘He is here, he has come to see you.’ Clara hands me my robe which I quickly pull around my shoulders, and locates my silk slippers tucked under the side of the bed.
    I descend the staircase nervously. It is several weeks since I have seen him; I do not know what his reaction to me will be. Did I give myself to a man who will cast me aside, like the others have done, or have I found in him someone to whom I will be very special, as he is to me, who will look after me and cherish me as I long for so very much? But if so, why does he come to me in the depth of the night, if not for just one purpose?
    ‘ My darling….’ I start as I set eyes on him, but he motions to me to be silent, placing his index finger gently over my lips and steering me quickly into a side room. It is cold in here, the fire long since extinguished. Only the upstairs rooms require heating at night; once the gentlemen have retired for the evening with the girl of their choice, Rosetta dampens the fires downstairs, her job for the night done, all monies collected, doors closed until the morning. She can retire to her own bed – alone.
    It is fortunate that I also find myself alone this evening; tonight for once there is no male company for me. Rosetta is a kind mistress, I believe. She does not force us to work every night, nor will she insist we work if we are tired, or ailing, or suffering our monthly curse. Provided we succeed in earning our keep for the week, a headache or simply a wish for some peace can provide a night of respite. And the gentlemen who visit are only of the finest class; they are kind and generous to us and do not treat us in the manner our profession befits. Yes, I have been lucky here, I know that.
    He places his hands gently on my shoulders and looks me directly in the eye, before lowering his head as if in slow motion and brushing my lips with the most fleeting of kisses. Then he seems to come to, out of his mesmeric state, and remembers the purpose for which he has come. ‘Pack your things quickly, my love. You are coming with me tonight. My carriage awaits us outside. Clara will say nothing to Rosetta, it is agreed.’ Here he gently taps his pocket to show that Clara has been remunerated for her silence. ‘Go now, fetch your clothes and your possessions; I will wait here for you.’
    So I am to be spirited from this place, at last! But now the hour of my departure approaches I find myself fearful. I have been happy here, despite the manner in which I earn my living, and well looked after, and I cannot help but feel a little apprehensive about what the future holds. It is one thing to make promises to one’s love in the depths of night, another to bring them to fruition and to make good those pledges for eternity. Can he really keep me safe, and love me like he tells me he wants to?
    With great speed I dress and pack my affairs, which are few and of little worth. Casting a brief backwards glance at the place which has been my home for all these years, I spy Clara’s earnest face watching nervously from the window as I climb into the waiting carriage.
     

Six
     
    I leave the gallery in something of a daze. What is it about that room that sends me to sleep the moment my bottom hits that bench? I’d brought my books with me to take some notes,