Emma Longmore is an experienced seductress of young men, but sophisticated Daniel Forbes presents a very different challenge. He takes her to an underground club in Florence . . .

Tumultuous applause followed, during which Emma was conscious of Daniel's eyes upon her. Although she had not come herself, she knew that her cheeks must be flushed and it was hard to look him in the eye. Eventually he leaned across the table and said, casually, 'Did you enjoy that, Emma?'

She didn't want to admit that she had, yet she had no idea what else to say. 'It was very... peculiar,' she managed at last.

'I suppose so, if you have seen nothing like that before. Those of us who are well acquainted with these hidden byways sometimes forget that to other eyes such displays are shockingly strange. Forgive me if I have exposed you to unpleasantness, Emma. I had hoped you would regard the activities in this club as little more than a freak show, but if you are offended...'

'Offended? Oh no!' Emma realised she did not want to be thought a prude, least of all by Daniel. Neither did she wish to be regarded as naively inexperienced in such matters. 'As a matter of fact I visited a similar establishment in Paris, where many of the men were dressed as women and vice-versa.'

'Really? Not the Hermaphrodite Club, by any chance?'

'Yes, I believe that is what it was called.'

'Then it is mere chance that we did not attend on the same evening, for I am a member there too.'

His dark eyes were glistening at her, observing every small nuance of her expression, and Emma felt dangerously exposed. On the one hand she did not want him to regard her as a debauched woman but, on the other, she wanted to appear reasonably sophisticated in these matters.

'You seem to frequent such places often. Are you a student of the Underworld?' she asked him, with a quizzical smile.

'You could say that.'

She wanted to tell him that she also had a fascination for such things, initiated by reading Henry's books. She debated with herself for a few seconds: it would probably be unwise to reveal too much to a man she knew little about. Yet tomorrow she would be leaving Florence and it was unlikely they would ever meet again. For some reason she felt impelled to confide in Daniel, to reveal the secrets of her past to a man who would not be shocked to hear them. It would be a kind of relief to talk openly of such matters and perhaps to learn from him.

Emma was about to take the conversation further when her attention was diverted. Another fanfare sounded and all eyes swung towards the stage. Mimi came forth, dressed in the same lewd costume as before and wielding a long whip. She held up her hand for silence and then addressed them in a strong, commanding voice.

'Signore e Signori, Mesdames et Messieurs, Ladies and Gentlemen! Tonight we present an exciting spectacle for your eyes only! Single-handed, and armed only with this...' she gave a loud crack of her whip, 'I shall attempt to break in a wild young stallion who has never before worn a saddle or bridle.'

A cheer arose, and Daniel threw Emma a wide smile. She felt the warm urge rise once more between her loins, and hoped he did not suspect her of profligacy. Yet a part of her also wanted him to know that she was a sensual woman, wanted him to share in her secret excitement. Why was it that he always filled her with such contradictory feelings?

A naked man with long, wild hair and staring eyes leapt onto the stage and crouched at the front, surveying the audience and pretending to neigh, his long penis dangling between his thighs. Emma felt her excitement grow as Mimi cracked the whip and advanced upon him with confident strides. The man saw her out of the corner of his eye and leapt up with a whinny, galloping around the stage while she followed on, letting the tip of the lash fall upon his buttocks from time to time.

Mimi's other hand held a coiled rope and eventually she managed to throw the lasso over the man's head and bring him to the ground. He kicked and struggled, but she forced a bit between his teeth and lashed him until he stayed still at her command, with just one hand pawing at the ground.

Applause rang out, but she held up her hand. 'Please, not yet! We have cowed our magnificent stallion, but we have not mastered him.'

Mimi got him onto all fours and tried to put a saddle on his back but he bucked and twisted until it fell off. By now Emma could see that the man's prick was erect and a fine thick one it was, with two fat bollocks swinging below. Emma gave an involuntary sigh. The sight of his naked lust was evoking an echoing response in her pussy, and she rearranged her skirts so that her naked pudendum could rub against the plush once more undetected.

'A fine specimen!' Daniel murmured, with a smile in her direction. 'Does he meet with your approval, Emma?'

'As a stallion he is certainly well hung,' she replied, scarcely believing that she could speak so boldly in public.

'Then would you like to ride him?'

'Perhaps.'

Emma retreated from a conversation that was getting rather too close to the mark with a demure smile. She was far too hot between the legs to continue talking in a detached fashion, and with a man whom she sensed would not hesitate to take advantage of her if the occasion arose. Perhaps she had already gone too far, but provided she kept her head she should be able to return to her hotel without mishap. For one thing she was sure of: she did not want to be seduced by Daniel Forbes. He was a fine man to flirt with, but that was as far as it would go.

Even so she was uncomfortably aware of his strongly masculine presence while she watched the licentious goings-on between Mimi and her wayward steed, and felt herself growing more and more inflamed down below.

Now the intrepid horsewoman had her stallion saddled and bridled and was attempting to mount him. Three times he threw her, amidst raucous laughter and sporadic applause, but at last she succeeded in keeping her seat and made him trot docilely round and round while she tapped his flank with her crop. The great rod between his thighs bobbed and his balls swung as she made him break into a trot. Emma thought every woman in the place must be half faint with desire for him - she certainly was.

Mimi brought him to the front and made him stand still while she found him some sugar lumps. 'I will reward my wonderful horse with two sugar lumps,' she told the audience with a smile. 'But I shall hide them, and he will have to find them. Where shall I hide them, Signore e Signori?'

Various improper suggestions were called out and then, to Emma's surprise, Mimi thrust the two small cubes right into her pussy. She lay down beside the man with her knees apart, so everyone could see the hairy folds of her vulva, and invited him to search for the sugar. When he began mouthing her, putting his tongue right inside her sugary quim, Emma could hardly contain her lust. She pressed her thighs together, worked her secret muscles rapidly and wriggled surreptitiously on her chair until she felt herself beginning to come.

Just as she was at the point of no return Daniel leaned towards her and said, 'From now on, when my friend Mimi invites me to tea and enquires "one lump or two" I shall scarcely know where to put my face!'

Emma exploded into laughter, a laugh which just happened to coincide with the onset of her climax. The relief of being able to hide her paroxysms of pleasure with those of mirth was intense, and the result was a long and satisfying orgasm that was all the more memorable for being the first she had ever experienced in a room full of people. When it finally faded, and her heart-rate had almost returned to normal, she realised that Mimi and her steed were in the throes of similar convulsions, accompanied by rapturous applause.

'More champagne, Emma?'

Daniel's face was close to her own and smiling wryly, suggesting he knew exactly what had been going on beneath her voluminous skirts. She was still trembling and her voice shook a little as she replied, 'Just half a glass, thank you. Then I think I should be returning to the hotel. I have a long journey ahead tomorrow, and must rise early.'