Page 54 of Her Majesty's Necromancer
He shook his head. "Like you, I'd seen what it could do to a man. One of my tutors showed me the addicts like you describe."
"That's an odd thing for a tutor to do. What was the subject he taught?"
"It didn't have an official name. I called it Slums and Scums Studies, but not to my tutor's face."
I laughed. "How many tutors did you have?"
"Twenty-two, but not all at one time. Over the course of several years, I might have three or four different tutors for the same subject."
"Your lessons were private?"
He nodded.
"No other children joined you?"
"No. Why?"
"I'm merely curious." It confirmed my theory that he must have had a lonely childhood. "Were they stuffy old men?"
He paused before answering. "Not all."
I frowned, wondering why he'd paused. And then it dawned on me. "Do you mean to say you had women tutors too?"
Another pause. "Only one."
"What subject did she teach?"
"Women."
I almost choked on my tongue as I tried not to laugh. "Women?"
"I had little to do with females at that point, so the general decided I needed to learn more about them. Since there was only a crusty old housekeeper living at the house, he employed a woman to tutor me in all things feminine. How they behaved and thought, their weaknesses and strengths. I learned a lot from her."
"So it's thanks to her that you're the charming man you are today?"
His eyes narrowed. "She did her best. It's not her fault I was already sixteen and set in my ways by the time she took on the task."
"She must have done something right," I said, finishing off the cleaning.
"Is that so?"
"Lady Harcourt certainly finds you appealing."
"Does she?" he said idly.
I wondered what else his female tutor had taught him. How to please a woman intimately? Or had that task fallen to Lady Harcourt, or perhaps an earlier mistress? How many had this handsome, intriguing man taken to bed?
I wiped my greasy hands on a clean cloth and screwed on the wax tub lid. I tried not to think about his lovers. Being aware of Lady Harcourt was quite enough.
"Are those the only questions you had for me?" he asked.
"No. They weren't even the questions I intended to ask. Thank you for answering them. I appreciate your candor." I bit my lip, acutely aware that he was watching me and that as his maid I had no right to ask him anything about his private life.
"I want you to feel comfortable here," he said, placing his hands behind his back.
"I already do."
He indicated I should sit on the sofa so I sat, being careful not to touch the brocade fabric with my hands. He sat on an armchair opposite. "Go on."
