The Empress by Martínez-Belli Laura

Author:Martínez-Belli, Laura [Martínez-Belli, Laura]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, Adult
ISBN: 9781542004800
Goodreads: 48895959
Publisher: AmazonCrossing
Published: 2017-02-16T00:00:00+00:00

41

1864, Mexico

Everyone in court knew the emperor and empress didn’t sleep together, whether in Puebla or in Chapultepec Castle. Constanza knew it firsthand.

It was not difficult to see. Each morning the chambermaids went in to dress the empress, and they could see that she’d spent the night like a vestal. And while descendants were essential in order to guarantee the continuation of the empire, the sovereigns, despite their youth and their seven years of marriage, had no children. The chamber pots were changed every day, and those doing so saw that the empress menstruated on time each month. Constanza, ever on the alert, observed how Juana, the youngest servant, would sneak out of the bedchamber. Taking care not to be seen, after walking around the fireplaces a couple of times, she would approach the laundry room, where a member of the Austrian or, who knows, maybe the French court would be waiting for her. Constanza narrowed her eyes and pricked up her ears, but the conversation was always the same.

“Any news?”

“No, sir. She’s still not expecting.”

“Thank you, Juana. See you next month.”

And after a slight curtsy, the young girl headed back to her work.

Every month it was the same. The empress’s condition was no longer an intimate matter but a matter of state. A great deal was at stake, many economic and political commitments, and Constanza wondered how the miracle would be worked if the emperor never visited Carlota’s room, and she never visited his, for that matter.

Monarchs were taught to put up with infidelities with the elegance with which they lifted a teacup. Everyone knew that the most passionate love affairs never took place in the royal bedchambers, and romantic adventures in one chamber or another—whether a secret room, a side room or a back room—were far from infrequent. Sharing a bed and room was therefore a tremendous inconvenience, as well as an unnecessary chore. It was better if the burden of duty borne with stoicism during the day was lifted at night, allowing the married couple to writhe in peace with whomever they pleased. To some extent, everyone had let their hair down with a member of the court; naked, they were all the same. Carlota hadn’t expected that, no matter what she tried, Maximilian wouldn’t touch her. In her most private desires, she sometimes found herself wanting to learn that her husband had a lover, anyone that had a nest like her own between her legs, a honeypot he wished to drink from. But no: not even under a decree that obliged them to produce an heir within three years did Maximilian make the effort. Why wouldn’t he meet his political obligations and ensure the succession to the throne? Did she repulse him so much?

Carlota couldn’t find an explanation for it. In his letters he called her angel of my heart, star of my life, lady of my desire. She was neither his lady nor did she arouse his desire. It turned Carlota’s stomach. His words weren’t worth the paper they were written on.

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