by Phavy Prieto
"He's not that ugly," she concluded thoughtfully.
"Well, then you are as blind as a bat, my dear. Mathews is ok, at least for some good sex," I stated as I closed the computer, put it under my arm and went to sleep.
"Maria!" Nerea said astonished. Smiling slyly, I sneaked off to my room.
I couldn't sleep. May Damian Devoir be cursed for stealing my planner! I had the feeling that I forgot things that I had to do the next day. At half past one in the morning, unable to live in doubt, I grabbed my phone to send him a text via WhatsApp: a cold and detached message from which my desperation would not show through.
Maria Acosta
"Hey, piece of sh..."
"No, no, better to ask more politely, Maria, or he'll ignore you, and you'll get moldy waiting for an answer."
Maria Acosta
"Mr. Devoir, would you be so kind as to send me photos of my planner, showing the schedule for today and also for tomorrow?"
"Done, enter," I whispered, pressing the button. "He must be fast asleep and he won't read it until..." I stopped talking as I saw that he started writing.
"I don't want you to write, moron, I want you to send me the photos," I thought, trying to stay calm.
Damian Devoir
"Are you still awake, Miss Acosta?"
Maria Acosta
"Are you also interested in my sleep cycle, besides my orgasms?"
If this guy expected me to play the game, he was greatly mistaken. First my planner, then the rest.
Damian Devoir
"I care about you."
"Fuck it!" I exclaimed out loud. I immediately shut my mouth, hoping that Nerea had not heard anything.
Maria Acosta
"Well, as for me, I'm interested in only two things about you."
Damian Devoir
"Only two? And what is the one that does not imply the return of a black planner? "
The guy wasn't completely stupid, despite his beauty.
Maria Acosta
"When you return the planner, l might tell you."
Damian Devoir
"Then I'll see you tomorrow after work at half past five at the Lambar Cafe."
Did he imply that he would return it to me? As I was thinking, I received two photos with the schedule for that night and the next day. I saw that the time scheduled for self-gratification was highlighted in pink (fluorescent!).
"I can't believe it," I whispered, looking at the rest of the notes and realizing that I hadn't packed the gym bag. Damn it! I always went to the gym after work. Well, I had to give it up just to recover my planner and suffer for three months in an attempt to lose the calories accumulated with the Kinder Bueno devoured under stress.
"Oh God! Not even ten would have satisfied me."
My last thought, before falling asleep, was thinking how on earth I would look Devoir in the face, he was aware of all my secrets written in the planner.
"Mental note: apply three kilos of makeup or he will notice when you turn more red than a tomato"
"Maria!" someone suddenly shouted as if they wanted to wake me up in the midst of an impending catastrophe.
"What's up? What happened? Where am I?" I began to stammer in search of a possible fire or some similar misfortune.
"Your pillow has the print of your face, that's what happened, and it's almost eight!" Nerea exclaimed, unleashing my despair.
"What the hell!" I shouted, tossing the sheets aside. "The alarm clock! That damn alarm clock!" I yelled again, grabbing the object responsible for my tardiness and slamming it against the bedside table. "Were you really supposed to stop working today?"
"Maria, you are a moron! You forgot to set it!" I remembered all of a sudden. "Damn Devoir..."
"Are you talking to the alarm clock?" asked Nerea, who was standing by the door.
"No, I'm talking to the wall, you know, at least it doesn’t say nonsense!" I snorted as I took one of the suits from the wardrobe: I didn't have much time to think.
"You're out of your mind," Nerea replied, laughing at me and the chaos that reigned in my life.
"I think I'll go and live in the mountains," I commented as I took my clothes and passed by Nerea to go to the bathroom.
It was definitely the fastest shower of my life. I gathered my hair in an informal bun and decided to take my make-up kit to the office.
"Aren't you taking the gym bag?" Nerea asked, when I was putting the last few things in my bag by the front door.
"That’s right!" I exclaimed. Once I walked back, I remembered that I wasn't supposed to go to the gym that day. "No, I have an appointment."
"An appointment? Are you going there like this?" she said, pointing at the anthracite gray trousers and the black blouse I was wearing.
"I'm only going to get my planner," I cut short without giving any further details.
"But if the guy is irresistible, as you say, at least take some clothes to get changed later."
"I don't nee…" I began to say.
"Maria, take the black dress," Nerea insisted. I realized I didn't want to argue.
"You are such a pain in the ass," I said as I headed for my room.
I knew exactly what dress she was referring to: the one with a dizzying décolletage. In order not to have to listen to her, I took that dress, put the house keys in the bag and took out the car key. I was going to be late despite the flexible work hours.
"Yes, yes, you'll thank me later, when that guy starts hitting on you and takes away all the stress accumulated at work," she said as I called the elevator.
Hitting on me? I immediately imagined that brown-eyed Adonis, way sexier than Keanu Reeves, bringing his perfect lips close to my cleavage. I realized my panties got wet at the thought. I looked down at my cleavage and immediately went back to reality because at that moment my décolletage was non-existent.
"Fuck. I'll have to wear that dress," I convinced myself. At the same time I noticed that the bra I was wearing was not the right one. "To hell with it! I'll go without a bra," I told myself.
"When did I start improvising so much?" I thought as I walked into the garage with Nerea who started talking about her perfect date with her perfect Mathews.
"Since that Adonis stole your planner, you foolish girl," I replied to myself, trying to avoid hearing Nerea's spiel about that cool British guy she was dating.
I had to recover my planner. No hitting on the guy until it was mine again. "All right, Maria?" I promised myself.
"... so, if you could do me this favour," Nerea pleaded.
"Favour? What favour?" I asked confused, because until that moment my head was in the clouds and I was disconnected from reality.
"To entertain Steven one evening, so that I can be alone with Mathews at his place."
"What did you smoke?" I said without taking my eyes off the road. "No way!"
"Please!" she groaned. "It's only for one night. He will certainly invite you to dine in a luxury restaurant! You just need to talk and... "
"Not even if you pay me," I said vigorously.
"Don't you ever worry that your best friend needs a healthy sex life?" she said sulkily.
"Then go to a hotel like everyone else!" I exclaimed without giving it too much importance.
"Didn't you listen to me? Mathews feels guilty leaving his cousin alone on a Friday night."
"So it would be my turn to play the sacrificial lamb," I snorted. "Never, ever! Someone else will have to think about it. Besides, he would surely start to get strange ideas."
"Look, you're really exaggerating. You don't need to go to bed with him. It's going to be just a dinner and a couple of drinks."
"To bed with him? He's less seductive than Winnie the Pooh in a thong," I snorted.
“Alright, let's do this: if you do me this favour, I'll get you the tickets you wanted for Il Divo concert.
"You know better than me that it’s sold out," I replied, knowing that her emotional blackmail couldn’t work.
"That’s right, b
ut fate exists and... yesterday a colleague of mine mentioned a friend who was selling the tickets because she couldn't attend. Knowing that you wanted to go, I bought them immediately!"
"Nooooo!" I exclaimed looking at her movement, as if it were in slow motion, as she took the tickets out of her bag.
"Are you going to dinner with Steven now?"
"Nerea, you are a blackmailer, as well as a traitor," I thought while evaluating the psychological torture I would have to undergo for at least three hours just to finally be able to see a concert of my favorite band.
"You won," I said. "But I will show up dressed as a cloistered nun."
Chapter IV
It wouldn't have been a bad idea to borrow a dress from the nuns of the Santa Clara convent, which was a few steps away from our home.
"As far as I’m concerned, you can show up in armour with a sword as long as you entertain him," Nerea said mockingly.
"It's not a bad idea," I said appreciating the suggestion and slowing down to let Nerea out at her usual spot. "See you later, pain in the ass!"
"Yes, see you later," she mumbled. "Put on the dress I suggested for the date with the cool guy," she added before leaving.
From the moment I entered the office a day of ordinary madness began. The new boss turned out to be a man embittered by life, probably badly tolerated even by his wife, and he managed to upset the whole department. Therefore, no coffee in peace, no proper makeup, and not even five minutes sitting comfortably at my desk.
"He has now requested the reports for the last five years, Miss Acosta," said one of the three women to whom he constantly sent his requests.
"Now I'll go upstairs and tell him to buzz off if he doesn't let me work in peace," I said in a low voice on the verge of losing my patience. I went to the archives where the reports were kept, grumbling on the way.
I hadn't even finished correcting half a page of my report, which had to be ready by the end of the day, when another secretary came in with a request for some other client's reports for the last seven years.
"Calm down, Maria, calm down," I thought while searching for my planner in my bag out of habit, until I remembered I didn’t have it.
"Kinder Bueno. I need a Kinder Bueno," I whispered, knowing that I couldn't go out and buy it, because some asshole could come down and check on me in case I was late.
What a shitty day! I knew it would be since the moment that damn alarm clock didn't ring.
At five o'clock I didn’t care about receiving further requests for documents, reports or accounts anymore since I had to run out.
When I saw my face in the mirror, I realized that not even eight kilos of concealer could hide my dark circles.
Does that matter, Maria? Today is not my day, regardless of the dark circles.
In the end I put on the makeup the best way I could, put on the black dress with the dizzying décolletage, took off the lace bra and put it inside my bag.
"After this crappy day, that black-haired Adonis had better give my planner back, otherwise I swear I'll rip his jugular off," I thought as I drove straight to the appointment.
When I entered the café, twenty minutes late because I couldn’t find a parking spot, I noticed that it was particularly busy after work and looked like one of those places where I could spend the afternoon until evening. The design was modern, and it was clearly a fancy place where they charged you also for the air you breathed. I looked around until I found him sitting at the bar counter.
Damn it!
My legs were not prepared for the vision of that Adonis wearing a light gray suit that fitted him better than Armani's models. And his posture was as relaxed as that of someone who perfectly knew that he was more palatable than a Kinder Bueno.
Okay… breathe deeply, count to three and walk straight. He's just a man, too cool to be true, but still just a man.
As I was approaching, that god on earth looked up and his brown eyes met mine. A perfect smile was drawn on his face that conveyed an unprecedented confidence: it was then that my panties got completely wet.
"I think I'll have to spend more time at your branch if the employees dress up like that," he said as soon as he saw me.
"What a cheeky person you are!" I ventured placing the bag on the counter and sitting on the stool next to him.
His laugh bewitched me, immediately arousing the desire to bite my lower lip.
Don't think about how extraordinarily handsome he is because your mind gets clouded and you will just talk nonsense.
"It is likely that I am," he admitted, taking a sip of what I imagine was either whiskey or cognac on ice. "Would you like something to drink?"
"I want you to give me back what's mine, and I might even get a gin and tonic later."
He ignored my first response and ordered my drink.
“Tell me, what do you do?"
What do I do? Is he playing dumb or what?
"Well, I basically breathe," I replied, looking away. "To say the truth, it's not very profitable, but it's enough to live on."
I couldn't help watching him when he laughed. He was probably attracting the attention of half of the bar, even if only the female part, but with that body and that face, it was impossible not to notice him.
"Maybe I deserved this answer. After all, you work in one of our branches."
"Bearing in mind that you wasted no time leafing through my planner, I could have even answered you in a worse manner," I said, considering the amount of data on my work that surely he had already looked through.
"I skipped the less interesting points," he confessed. I was sure at that moment my face turned red like a pomegranate.
"Less interesting?" I asked.
If you laugh in my face now, I swear I'll throw the drink on that perfect face you have.
"I'm curious to know why you write down everything in that black planner," his voice was deep, sensual and direct.
"And why are you interested?" I asked, looking him in the eye.
"As I already told you in one of my messages, I care about you," he replied with his shining eyes.
Goodbye, panties, goodbye!
"Look, Mr. Devoir," I began to say, looking away because I was unable to keep looking at that face created for the most absolute perversion, "if you want to laugh at me..."
"Believe me, Miss Acosta," he warned, interrupting me with that deeply sensual voice, "the last thing I intend to do is laugh at you."
"So what’s all this about? Why did you make this appointment?" I asked directly.
"Because I think you are the right person for what I need," he said bluntly.
"What do you need me for?" I asked.
"What the heck will he need from me?" my degenerated mind wondered through a thousand scenarios, each of which obviously included that half-naked Greek statue in bed.
Stop the earth, I want to get off. Maria, do not rush too much, otherwise you are going to crash against a wall.
"An escort," he added with a smile. "I need someone to accompany me to an event."
"And you need me?" I said in amazement.
Maybe this man is short of blonde suitors with long legs who line up at the entrance to his house... or at the foot of his bed, to be more realistic?
"I want you to be with me."
"If I refuse... will you still give me back my planner?" I asked, guessing the answer.
"No," he denied without further ado, bringing his glass to his mouth.
"This is called coercion," I said, squinting my eyes.
"Report me, if you want, but that doesn't change the fact that I'll keep your planner."
Damn this hot asshole!
"Should I just accompany you?" I asked knowing that, in any case, I would have accepted.
"Yes, you'll just have to accompany me."
"Alright," I said, taking my glass.
What is wrong, after all, in accompanying this monumental Greek statue to a snobbish event full of equally snobbish people?
"Le
t's toast to our agreement," he replied, bringing his glass close to mine. We took a sip.
"When will this event take place?" I asked, taking an olive and bringing it to my mouth.
"Next week," he replied without giving too much importance. "In Scotland."
I spat out the olive that ended up who knows where and stayed with my mouth wide open.
Did he say "Scotland" or was it the alcohol that began to give me hallucinations?
"You have already accepted. Therefore I will not accept your refusal now," he replied. I began to stare at him.
"Scotland?" I asked. "What do you want in Scotland?" I asked without thinking too much about how to ask the question, making him smile again.
"I thought the same too until I saw that it was a wedding invitation," he clarified. He finished his drink completely and left the empty glass on the counter.
"So is that the event we are talking about? A wedding?" I asked, taking my glass and drinking the whole content.
What on earth would I do at a wedding with Devoir?
"Don't you worry, it's just a wedding of old friends that I haven't seen for a long time, but I need to go accompanied."
"Of course, bringing a stranger is the most logical thing in this case," I pointed out ironically.
"Thanks to your planner, I would say that you are not really a stranger to me."
You're lucky that my glass is empty. Otherwise its contents would be dripping from your perfect face at this very moment, Mr. Devoir.
"Didn't they teach you the meaning of the term "privacy" when you were a child?"
"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Of course, they did. But in some cases I allow myself to ignore it."
"And my planner is one of those cases?" I asked directly.
"Miss Acosta, it is you who perfectly represents one of those cases."
For the first time in my life I didn't know what to say. I stood there contemplating those brown eyes that made me get a feeling of a tornado in my stomach while I was melting completely.