It’s not gay if it’s on the Mississippi (9/12)
Last time on ~It’s not gay if it’s on the Mississipppi~: Nicky is a controlling jerk, and Silver is waffling about whether he’s hot or hot. Same old so far. But then finally something happens to break this boring status quo, namely Bassinger breaks her out, only to capture him himself. But she manages to get away off-screen, and now we’re with Nicky on the hunt for his kidnapping victim I mean love interest.
If you want to read the whole debacle from the get-go, start here.
Note: I’ve noticed this is a mess in mobile version, but I don’t really know how to fix it, sorry! Crossposted on tumblr.
We start with finding Silver, who really walked the entire way back to the circus ヽ( ﾟヮﾟ)ノ In two weeks off screen, that is, but the circus thankfully is still in the same place, because Monteith is good at busineess. She’s also depressed (sic!), because of Nicholas.
She had her life to live and she must not be beguiled by Nicholas Savron.
Funny, I tell myself the same thing constantly as I read this nonsense.
Silver borrows some clothes from one of the circus performers, and or course they can’t give her anything normal, no, it has to be a skimpy belly dancing outfit, and I guess that sexualising objectificaiton is ok if it is a backhanded compliment:
“I’m afraid Fatima wouldn’t appreciate my appropriating her costume on a permanent basis,” Silver said dryly, glancing down at herself. The filmy scarlet skirt and matching short-sleeve velvet jacket were very comfortable and she was beginning to think Eastern women must be more sensible than she had dreamed if they had eliminated the wearing of undergarments.
Because all oriental women are savages just like her! Or something!
Still, the extremely low square neck of the jacket was far from practical and seemed purposely designed to lift and frame a woman’s breasts for the delectation of the onlooker.
We are still talking about a circus outfit, just so we’re clear. Fatimah probably is the stage name of Elizabeth Rosanna Gilbert’s cousin.
Etaine laughed again and ran across the tent into Silver’s arms, hugging her with all her strength. “You look better in it than she does. You look beautiful. Oh, Silver, I’ve missed you so.”
At least we can now rest assured that Silver is still better than all other girls ever, whew, I was worried that we wouldn’t get that in this chapter! Fatimah is such an ugly broad, what good does she ever even do apart from lending clothes to our heroine?
Etaine informs Silver of the circus’ upcoming departure for Europe, since apparently Americans don’t appreciate the circus enough. P. T. Barnum who
She also mentions her evil dad seems very homicidal towards her in general.
“Then listen carefully to me. I promise you I’ll take you away from him to a place where you’ll be safe and well,” Silver said softly. “I vow it on the grave of Rising Star. Do you believe me?”
“I believe you will try.” Etaine smiled gravely.
Dear God, the child was speaking as if her death were inevitable, Silver realized with a thrill of panic. She forced herself to smile. “It will be better.” She gave Etaine an affectionate hug. “Now run along and let me sleep. I’m very tired. We’ll talk more in the morning.”
Silver: omg that’s so horribly sad, how do you console such a pitiful child whose caretakers hate her and neglect her!
Silver: gtfo I need to sleep
Silver: I’m such a saint and good with kids (◡‿◡✿)
“Yes, Etaine, it’s time you went to bed.” The deep voice was smooth and mellow as dark honey in spite of its clipped British accent.
You know, the one universal British accent of the 1870s. Nothing smooth like some cockney glo’ttal stops, i’nnit.
We learn that Monteith is a pretty boy in his 40s with blond hair and a monochrome style.
“Perhaps I should offer you a position in my circus. I’m sure the gentlemen would flock to see you.” His voice lowered silkily.
He villained snakily while smirking oilily.
“I can afford to be generous. We won’t be here much longer, so your interference with Etaine will cease to be a problem.”
“I help Etaine. Surely no one could call that a problem.”
“No?” His brow rose. “But then, we all have our own viewpoints.” He turned to leave. “And our individual purposes in life.”
You call it ritualistic sacrifice, I call it a fun casual get-together with friends, tomato, tomayto.
He glanced back over his shoulder, his dark blue eyes glittering coldly.
Cold like the Cossak tundra, no doubt - oh wait, he’s not the Russian bishounen. My mistake. Cold like a Midlands winter, then!
While Silver is busy lamenting the fact that Monteith is too cold to be hot, she also worries because…. her period is late! Σ(ﾟДﾟ ) Which of course can’t be due to the two week journey on foot and all the stress and trauma, but must mean potential pregnancy!! Σ(ﾟДﾟ ) Σ(ﾟДﾟ )
“Don’t move!” A hand clamped down over Silver’s mouth, smothering her outcry as she was jarred out of a sound sleep into half waking. “And if you sink your teeth into me, by God, I’ll gag you. I’m not at all pleased with you, Silver.
Physical violence? Check!
Invasion of privacy? Check!
Emotional abuse? Check!
This must be our romantic hero, Nicholas! (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑
Even in the darkness she could never fail to recognize him. That musky scent, the deep vibrance of his voice … Joy cascaded through her in a blinding tide.
Silver, yours and mine perception seem incompatible, no matter how you look at it.
He was astride her, she could feel the iron-hard strength of his thighs through the layers of clothes that separated them. That was wrong, she thought hazily. There should be nothing separating them. Not time, nor distance, not even the flimsy barriers of fabrics.
Not time, nor distance,
not even the flimsiest
barriers of cloth.
A haiku by Silver Dove Delaney. That’s some bloody poetry, mate.
“Are you all right? Dammit, Monteith said you were only tired. I should have-”
“Monteith?” She was abruptly wide awake and began to struggle beneath Nicholas’s weight.
“That’s better,” Nicholas said dryly. “It’s not like you to be so meek. For a minute I was afraid you were ill. I was sure-Ouch!”
“You will. I told Monteith I wanted no one sharing your tent because these people are your friends and I didn’t want to chance harming them.” His voice hardened. “But I have no intention of leaving without you, Silver. If you fight me, someone will no doubt hear and try to help you. Do you want to risk their being hurt?”
She stopped struggling. Nicholas’s tone was unrelenting, and she knew he meant every word he said.
OUR LOVE INTEREST!! ISN’T HE JUST A PEACH, THREATENING OUR HEROINES FRIENDS :D :D
Excuse me while I throw up for a second.
Silver learns that Nicky arrived a week earlier in St. Louis and paid Monteith to sell her put should she arrive.
His grip suddenly tightened with bruising force on her hand. “God, I could have strangled you for making me sit there and wonder what had happened to you. You could have been raped and thrown into the river and no one would have ever known.”
“I know you’d prefer to do any raping yourself.”
“I’ve never raped you,” Nicholas said tersely. “And we both know it. You wanted-my God, what are you wearing?”
Nicholas’s gaze was on the silken flesh overflowing the low square neckline. “You don’t have much more on than you did when you wore that damn bed curtain. For God’s sake, what do I have to do to keep you decently covered?” He strode toward the carriage, dragging her along behind him. “This blasted heathen shamelessness has got to-”
THESE ORIENTALS HEATHENS WITH THEIR BAD TASTE IN SEXY OUTFITS!!! I SHAN’T STAND FOR THIS!!
“Hello, Silver.” Mikhail smiled down at her from the coachman’s seat of the carriage. “That is a pretty costume. We have been very worried about you. I told Nicholas you would not let anything happen to yourself, but he would not listen.”
Silver felt a sudden glowing warmth spread through her as she gazed up at his rough-hewn face. She had not realized until this moment how much she had missed the gentle Cossack.
Hard same, ilu Mikhail, you’re better than any of this deserves :(
He climbed into the coach, slammed the door closed, and dropped into the seat opposite her. “You’re evidently glad to see Mikhail, at least.”
“I like him,” Silver said calmly. “And I don’t like you.”
Mikhail is the superior man, so fuck off, Nicky.
He flinched. “No, liking has nothing to do with what we feel for each other. I have no use for so tame an emotion anyway.”
She wished fervently that it had remained dark. She did not want to see how the rays shimmered and frosted Nicholas’s golden hair to silver and played upon the supple muscles of his body. How they brought a soft luminence to his white linen shirt and outlined the brawny muscles of his thighs in dark tight-fitted trousers.
i also wish I didn’t have to see this, but I had and now so do you.
She desperately pulled her glance away from him and looked out at the moonlit darkness beyond the window. “How is Valentin?”
Drinking and enjoying life, presumably! (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞ ☜(ﾟヮﾟ☜)
Nicky reminds us that Valentin is less of a violent and creepy bastard towards Silver, because it’s a great idea to do that in order to show who the real romantic interest is supposed to be:
“And [Valentin is] much more inclined to be charitable. Do you know what I wanted to do with you after I found you?”
“You’ve already told me. You wanted to strangle me.”
“That was the last item on my list. The others were far more lewd in nature. I lay in that bed on the Rose and remembered what I’d done with you, and thought about what I still wanted to do.”
(ﾉ⊙ヮ⊙)ﾉ～『✧~*ROMANCE*~✧』
Nicky accuses Silver of cursing his dick because he no longer wants to bang prostitutes, just strangle and rape her, and that’s unacceptable tbh. He also says he’ll never be ruled over by a woman ever again, which we of course know refers to his mother, that bitch, but Silver doesn’t know and gets a case of the jealous™.
“Perhaps you weren’t so selective,” he finally said silkily. “It was an impossibly hard trip for a woman. I’m sure there were men eager to help you for a … for compensation.
First off, I love that his speech is described exactly like the villains, down to the exact adverb, but with him it’s hot and not sleazy or something.
Also, he’s still on about the whole “I know you’re a whore” thing even though when he had sex with her, her inexperience was obvious. Our hero <3
For a moment she was tempted to lie to him, to tell him he was not the only man who could please her. It would anger him, it would cause that tension she felt in him to explode. The thought excited her.
Being strangled sounds great.
She gathers her last brain cell and clarifies that no, she didn’t prostitute herself. Or had any consensual encounters during her travels which isn’t worth mentioning because it’s inherently inconceivable considering she has such a great catch already, don’t you think?
“That was very wise. I would have been quite incensed with you if you’d given your favors to any other man. So incensed I would probably have put you over my knee and spanked your bottom until you couldn’t sit down for a month.” He paused. “Afterward.”
He’s the proto Christian Grey. Abusive, unresolved mommy issues, the charm of a single crumpled wet paper towel in a dingy smelly main station bathroom. I feel so sorry for Mikhail :( You deserve a better boyfriend :(
All the implied violence ignored, his presence gets her hot under the petticoat because God Is dead.
“I’m not such a fool that I don’t realize what’s of first importance to both of us.” His voice was thick. “Just as you do. Do you think I don’t know what you’re trying to do to me? You wanted me angry enough to take you without your consent so that you could have your pleasure and still nurture your resentment.”
What girl wouldn’t want to be agent provocateur in a violent rape! Just to be able to say that guy is a meanie!
God, I hate him so much.
He declares that he knows she wants it just as much and starts stripping her, because they have 40 minutes of very bumpy coach ride still to go. I’m so sorry, Mikhail :(
Then, as she made a motion to close the jacket, he said sharply, “No, I’m not touching you, I’m only looking at you. We both know how much you like me to look at you.
He again tells her he’ll take her to St. Petersburg as his kept woman.
“I’m not going to St. Petersburg.”
“Scarlet is a wonderful color for you,” he said, ignoring her reply.
Truly relationship goals going on here! Communication is key! (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑
The slight jouncing of the carriage on the cobblestones sent a quiver through every muscle of her body and pulled at her heavy, sensitive breasts like a toying hand.
Mikhail must truly be the world’s best coach driver for that to be the extent of jostling and jiggling on unpaved roads anno 1874.
He cleans her feet for her with his handkerchief, which would have been a prime opportunity for her to kick him in the groin, but instead, he unlocks her erogenous zone and she gets even more hot and bothered.
While Quentin Tarantino no doubt could get off on this, I can’t, so let’s skip through more foot massage. She tells him to stop, and he does, but don’t rejoice too soon, friends, because for him “stop doing this” just means “go ahead and do that instead”, meaning go down on her, which in general in a heteronormative story, cool, but without consent, not cool.
He blew gently. She inhaled sharply as she felt his warm breath exploding against her pulsating heart
Donate now for the cause of raising awareness for the rare medical condition of women whose heart is located in their vulva. The unusual location majorly impacts blood circulation, particular to the brain, which leads to extemeley dumb decisions.
It’s either that, or his tongue somehow reached her ribcage. Have fun with that mental imagery ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
He fumbled quickly at the front of his trousers and his manhood burst free of restriction. He laid his head on her stomach, his breath coming in harsh rasps.
He rubbed his hard cheek against her flesh, luxuriating in the softness of her.
Which head. Which cheek. /gets hit
Honestly, “luxuriating in the softness” sounds like a line from an add for fabric softener.
“Let go.” Nicholas’s voice was a silkening crooning in her ear. “This is where you belong. This is what you want. Say it, Silver.”
“No!” Her fingers went up to tangle in his hair. “No.”
“Say it!”
Well, there’s consent, and there’s this. I do not like this. Hashtag Reisi against non-con
She had expected to see lust, perhaps triumph, but there was something else in his glittering eyes that bewildered her. Sadness. “I know,” he said softly.
“But that’s all you’ll give me.” His lips brushed her own with exquisite tenderness. “Firebird.” He closed his eyes and for a moment she thought she saw a flicker of pain on his face.
That’s so sad, Aleksandra play иди на хуй
They bang and then the book finally remembers there’s something like plot, too, and Nicky asks about Silver’s uncle again.
“Why do you think I would tell you anything now when I wouldn’t before?”
“Because they aren’t the same questions. Valentin thinks I’ve made a mistake, but I have to know, dammit.
MVP VALYA CAME THROUGH 👏👏👏👏👏 GOD BLESS
“You were there with Dominic Delaney and Elspeth MacGregor. You-”
The carriage came to a halt as Mikhail reined in the team. He called, “We are here.”
“Damn,” Nicholas muttered, and opened the door of the carriage.
Maybe, just maybe, you should have asked the very important questions first and fucked her later, but what do I know, it’s just about the revenge you’re putting your life on, no pressure.
Mikhail tells Nicky to carry Silver on board so she doesn’t cut her feet on the stones, because he’s a mother fucking gentleman.mp3
“I’ll see that her delicate toes never come in contact with these coarse stones. Trust me.”
“I trust you,” Mikhail said gravely. “But I know you and she does not. You have not been kind to her. It is no wonder she ran away from you.
NOTHING LIKE THE MAIN CHARACTER’S LIFE-DEBT SERVANT-CUM-BEST FRIEND-CUM-BOYFRIEND STATING THAT HE HAS A BETTER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LOVE INTEREST THAN THAT GUY HAS WITH THE GIRL BECAUSE HE KEEPS ABUSING HER
LOVE IT
QUALITY LIT
He didn’t wait for an answer but started down the slanting levee, his boot heels clicking loudly on the cobblestones.
I wish you were the protagonist :(
Nicholas gazed after him, then turned and crossed the few paces back to the door of the carriage. He opened the door and stood looking at her.
Sensual Scheherazade. Fierce warrior. Lonely waif. Silver.
I thought erotica was supposed to appeal to straight women audiences, not middle-aged white auteurs with manic pixie dream girl fixations.
But oh noes, suddenly a wild Bassinger appears and knocks Nicky out!
“Nicholas!” Silver frantically slid across the seat. He was falling to the ground!
Good, I hope he stays there. Preferably six feet under.
He leaned down and pressed the barrel of the pistol to Nicholas’s temple. “Give me your hands or I’llow a neat little hole in his highness’s handsome head.”
And on that rivetting cliffhanger, we end chapter 9! See you again next time!