Didi: The Tale of a Would-Be Courtesan

By Chantaboute Hallshire

The Princess of Parody, Chantaboute Hallshire, takes on La Belle Époque in this scrumptious tale of a 19th century Parisian girl whose mission is to find a wealthy wife for a man so that the girl, herself, can then become his properly kept mistress.

Didi has been trained to follow in the family tradition of being a wealthy married man’s “kept woman.” As her mother explains, it’s all the benefits of being romanced without the drudgery of keeping house.

Unfortunately, Fulbert is the man she truly loves, and he’s neither rich nor married. Her solution: get him married to a well-to-do woman so he’ll have the means to keep Didi as his mistress. Thus begin the comic adventures of matchmaking in the City of Love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Scarlet Maiden
• Release date: Jun 11, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370702756

Chantaboute Hallshire

Chantaboute Hallshire spent her childhood in her native Australia but then moved about Europe when she reached her later teens. Eventually, she settled down in California where, when she’s not sunning on a beach, she has taken up writing. She adores romance stories but finds herself drawn toward the humorous elements, intentional or otherwise, within them. Hence, our Princess of Parody firmly implants tongue in cheek when she composes her whimsical tales.

Book preview

Didi

*The Tale of a Would-Be Courtesan*

by

Chantaboute Hallshire

Copyright © 2017 Chantaboute Hallshire. All rights reserved.

Published by Scarlet Maiden, a trademark.

Distributed by Smashwords.

This is a copyrighted work. The scanning, uploading, copying, and/or distribution of this story without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property and a violation of copyright law. No part of this story may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the express written permission of the publisher. This prohibition does not extend to a reviewer who may quote brief passages as part of a review.

This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, places, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

DIDI

by

Chantaboute Hallshire

The 16-year-old girl gazed from the second story window with unwavering admiration at the gorgeous man on the sidewalk below. At least, she thought he was gorgeous. She’d been secretly lusting after him for years. He was tall and slim, with dramatically coifed wavy dark hair neatly parted on the left side. His sharp nose and gray eyes gave him a sophisticated look that made the girl tingle. She’d daydream about him whenever she wasn’t otherwise occupied. At night, he was what she thought of when she’d touch her privates in the darkness of her bedroom, squirming under the covers just before drifting off to sleep.

His name was Fulbert Lémieux. He was a reporter for one of the Paris newspapers and a friend of the girl’s family for as long as she could remember. In age, he had at least a decade on her. By the time she had any real cognizant understanding of her surroundings, he was a teenager and, to her, seemed so mature. She wanted him even then. Although what she wanted didn’t become clear to her until she reached puberty.

Dominique, called out a mature female voice from the next room. When there was no response, she repeated it.

Gazing at the man below her, the girl remained oblivious to the calls.

"Didi!"

The tone awakened the girl from her reverie.

Yes, Mamma.

Are you doing your homework?

Yes, the girl fibbed. She was neither reviewing the homework nor interested in it.

Homework, as Mamma meant it, had nothing to do with the school the girl attended during the weekdays. This was a Sunday, and Sunday afternoons were when the girl received her training in the family business—that business being the art of coquetry. For the women of the Dupuis family, it was a tradition that went back generations. Mamma had been a