Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge

erotic-as-power

• The successful royal mistress made herself irreplaceable, catering to each of the king's five senses — all of this must be done cheerfully.

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• I'm terrified of not pleasing the King anymore and of losing him. Men attach a great deal of importance to certain things.

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ambition-and-status

• Lady Castlemaine was furious that the king was making her look like a whore. 'God damn me, but you shall own it!'

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• Catherine wept, telling her lady-in-waiting that Henri had never used her so well — watching him with Diane through a drilled floor.

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desire

• We clenched each other like hungry cats both in the morning and in the afternoon, sweet to the verge of madness.

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• Except for the happiness of being loved by the one you love, which is the best of all conditions, a solitary life is much preferred.

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