by Rye Hart
“Hello, beautiful.”
“H-Hi,” she stuttered, stumbling over even the most basic greeting.
He chuckled and reached out, strong fingers tracing the line of her jaw. His eyes were the color of honey and his skin was warm. He had to be at least 6’5” and his arms were strong and rippling with muscle. He wasn’t the type of man she would have immediately thought of for herself, but now that he was here, touching her and gazing into her eyes so intensely, she couldn’t help but want him.
“What’s your name?” she finally managed to get out.
“Toby,” he said, licking his full lips.
Man. Going to Mystique really got her imagination running wild. Her voice was hoarse and a bit rough as her eyes started to slip closed with desire. She could feel a heat building in her belly and her lips parted as he ran a hand over her thigh very slowly, strong fingers digging into the sensitive flesh. Her eyes fluttered and she whimpered.
“Oh,” she sighed.
“You are Marie, aren’t you?” he asked, his voice rough as he moved closer, dipping his head down to whisper in her ear. “They told me about you.”
Her eyes fluttered and her back arched, wanting to touch as much of him as possible. She had a moment of clarity where she considered asking him who told him about her, but she was afraid she’d break the spell and wake up alone in her bed. She didn’t have to think about what real life Marie would have done. She just let herself float in the dream, enjoying the way his firm body felt against hers.
“Yes, my name is Marie,” she murmured softly, looking up at him, her lips parted and her eyes hooded.
He smiled and leaned in, exhaling softly against the lobe of her ear. It made her shudder and she whimpered again, reaching out and putting her hands on his shoulders to stabilize herself. He was driving her wild and he hadn’t even really done anything yet. Toby chuckled and ran his lips along her neck, pausing to press a tender kiss there as the hand on her thigh wandered further and further north. She spread her legs to give him access and just as he started to pull back she could feel his fingers teasing her delicate, feminine folds.
“Choose me,” he whispered, his voice sounding far away.
Marie’s eyes snapped open and she found herself lying in her bed, panting hard, a hand between her legs as sun poured in from the nearby window. Her body was covered in a thin sheen of sweat and she was a bit dizzy from the experience.
Had that really just happened? She groaned softly and pushed herself up from the bed, picking up her phone to glance at the time. She had about fifteen minutes before she had to get up for work so she flopped back onto the bed and grunted a little, running her hand through her curls. Everything had seemed so vivid. Was it really a dream? Maybe she was just that desperate to be touched. God, that was sad.
Chapter Twelve
Marie put in her hours at work. She liked her job, but every day that passed was another day that she wasn’t making enough money. It was starting to put her on edge. It was becoming difficult to even afford rent. How was she going to justify paying for Madame Osei’s ‘services’? Actually, now that she was thinking about it, Marie realized that the woman never really told her how much it was going to cost. She made a mental note to ask Rachel that evening.
She wrapped up at work and went straight to Rachel’s. She loved Rachel’s condo, and in some ways she envied her friend’s success. Rachel had never been tied down like Marie and so she’d been free to follow her dreams without hindrance, and Marie often wished she’d been allowed to do that.
Marie knocked on Rachel’s door and when Rachel answered, she already had a glass of wine in hand, ready to offer it to Marie.
“Thanks,” Marie said, taking the glass and sipping from it. God that was good.
She wandered into the condo and set her things down, falling into the couch and sighing happily. Rachel chuckled and sat in an armchair across from Marie, putting her chin in her hand.
“Sooo? How did it go?”
“Oh my God, it was so weird Rachel!” she said, sitting back up.
Rachel chuckled and nodded. “It is a bit strange,” she mused, nodding as she sipped at her wine.
Marie looked at her seriously for a moment. “Can we talk about it? Now that we’ve both been there?” she asked, remembering the contract that had seemed so serious.
“I suppose so. I won’t tell if you won’t,” she hummed, grinning brightly.
Marie laughed and leaned back, closing her eyes for a moment. “I honestly thought I was in the wrong place at first. Either that or I thought you were lying to me,” she admitted, taking a deep drink of her wine. “Then that lady-”
“Madame Osei?”
“Yes! Her! She took me back to that warehouse building,” she said, waving her hand almost dismissively.
“She took you back to where all the magic happens,” Rachel said, waggling her eye brows playfully.”
Marie nodded and smiled. “Everyone in there was so beautiful and it was more than I ever expected. I thought it was just going to be a hotel or something!”
Rachel smiled knowingly. “It is a little bit of a shock when you first walk in.”
“More than a shock.”
“Have you gone through the book yet?”
Marie offered her a confused look and Rachel just chuckled. “The catalogue of all the people who work for her. The escorts.”
“Oh. No. Not yet. I figured the prices would be in there and I’m not sure I can take that hit yet,” she admitted.
Rachel just smiled. “It’s not priced per person. It’s basically a membership fee and I’ve already paid yours for the year.”
She gasped, her eyes widening at the news. She could hardly believe what she was hearing. “You mean, I can go there as much as I want for the next year and I don’t have to pay anything?”
“Not a penny.”
Marie felt a lump in her throat that she forced down, swallowing thickly. “Rachel, you shouldn’t have done that.”
“Listen, Marie, don’t start pulling that shit. You’re my best friend and you deserve this. I don’t have kids; I’m not married so I like spoiling you. You’re going to have to deal with that if we’re going to keep this up,” she said, motioning between the two of them.
Marie laughed and shook her head standing to throw her arms around her friend. She held the woman tight and kissed her cheeks. “Thank you, Rachel. You’re more than I deserve.”
“Ahhh I know I’m great but you’re pretty amazing too, lady. I couldn’t have patience with that boy you call your son.”
Marie sighed and rubbed her temple. “Sometimes I wonder how I even handle him,” she murmured.
“Well, don’t worry about it too much anymore. At least now you have a place to get away from it for at least a little while.”
Marie nodded and sighed, staring at her wine. Luckily, Rachel had learned to read her friend like a book and changed the subject quickly. “Do you think you’ll go home and take a look at the book now?” she asked with a little grin.
“Maybe. I’m not sure. Who’s your favorite?” Marie asked, cocking her head to the side.
Rachel smirked behind her wine lass just a little, her tongue darting out to lick her lips clean of the red wine.
“Stella.”
“Stella,” Marie repeated, blinking a little. “That sounds like a girl’s name.”
“It is.”
“RACHEL!”
Rachel laughed, covering her mouth. “What? Mystique is all about exploring your sexuality! Stella and Zeus are my personal favorites.”
Marie shook her head, a smile on her lips. “You’re crazy.”
“I know. Keeps things interesting,” Rachel added with a wink.
She laughed, suddenly feeling extremely relaxed. Marie was happy that she didn’t have to worry about paying for Madame Osei’s services, but at the same time she almost felt like it was too much. Could she really accept this gift from Rachel? At the end of the day, Marie d
ecided to take it graciously and thank her lucky stars that she had people like Rachel in her life. People who would take care of her and love her. People had been taking advantage of Marie for so long that she’d gotten used to it.
But that was about to change and it was going to start today.
Chapter Thirteen
Marie ended up staying the night at Rachel’s since she was a bit too tipsy to drive. Not to mention, it wasn’t like she had anything to go home to. Richard was gone off God only knew where and even if he did come back, Marie wasn’t in a mood to fight. She crashed on Marie’s couch, sleeping well into the morning. She had the next three days off and she was planning on using them to her full advantage.
As she got ready to leave, Rachel hugged her tightly and told her to go back to Mystique soon. They would give her the medicine she so desperately needed. Marie knew it too. She knew that she needed affection and physical love. She wasn’t planning on getting married again any time soon, but she missed being held so badly. She missed having the weight of another person’s body over her and she missed the way the goosebumps rose on her skin when someone kissed her.
As Marie left, she sighed and looked over at the pamphlet in the car that listed the skills and expertise of the escorts at Mystique. She sat in her car a long moment, chewing on her lip. She wanted to choose her first date on instinct. It was hard, but she picked the pamphlet up and shoved it in the glove compartment of her car, managing to ignore it completely.
She made her way home, her stomach fluttering with excitement. She was going to go home, treat herself to a nice long bath, get pretty and head over to Mystique for her first real visit. When she pulled into the driveway she sighed softly, her heart dropping into her stomach at the sight of her son’s car. She wasn’t entirely sure if she had it in her to deal with him today.
Marie locked her car up and made it up her front porch stairs, unlocking the door and wandering in the house. She was shocked to find the furniture overturned and figurines broken. He son had clearly been going through her house looking for something and she already knew what; he was jonesing and needed money for drugs.
She walked through the house until she came to her bedroom where Richard was pulling things out of drawers and throwing them to the floor, his eyes wide and his hands shaking erratically. He was high out of his mind and the sight of it brought tears to her eyes. For a long moment she just stood there, watching him with a hand over her mouth.
Her son, the boy that she’d raised so tenderly and so lovingly was trying to steal from her. He was trying to steal money he knew she didn’t even have. She wanted to be angry and she wanted to scream, but his name fell from her lips weakly. She just sounded heartbroken.
“Richard.”
His head snapped up and he stared at her. “I was just looking for food money,” he murmured, his teeth chattering from the drugs.
She pressed her lips in a thin line and swallowed thickly, shaking her head. “No you weren’t. Don’t lie to me, Richard.”
“I just need some cash, mom. I’m coming down hard. It hurts, you know?” he whimpered, putting on those puppy-dog eyes that always won her over.
It wasn’t going to work this time.
“Get out.”
“What?” Richard asked, looking at her in disbelief.
“Give me your key and get out,” she whispered, her lips trembling with emotion. “I can’t handle this anymore. I can’t handle you!” she snapped.
“You’re going to kick me out?” he whispered, sounding like he barely believed it, and almost like he might laugh.
“Yes! I’m kicking you out like I kicked your dad out! Now give me the damn key! You’re not welcome in this house until you get your act together!” she snapped.
“You can’t. You can’t do that. I’m your son!”
“You may have been my son once but I didn’t raise you to be like this! Whoever you are now is not my son!” she screamed.
He started to back toward the door, his eyebrows furrowed in anger. “I should have known this was coming. You’ve always been an uptight bitch,” he snapped, grabbing his keys and throwing them at her.
The keys it her in the chest and then fell to the floor. It didn’t faze her. She just stared at him, keeping her stance strong and steady. She could break once he was gone.
“This is your fault,” he whispered. “You never stood up to that dick until he hit you! You let him abuse us for years! I’m fucked up, and it’s your fault!” he snapped, turning toward the door.
He slammed it behind him and Marie heard the squeal of his tires as he sped off down the street. Her legs quivered and finally gave out as she sunk into her bed, whimpering softly as she brought here shaking hands to cover her face. Why did it have to be like this? Why couldn’t she just have a normal marriage and a normal family?
She drew in a deep breath and sat up, eyes focused straight ahead. There was no point in wondering why things happened the way they did. If she wasn’t happy with it then she needed to change it. She collected herself and stood up, going to the bathroom to take a long hot shower. She didn’t even bother picking the keys her son had thrown at her off the floor. They could stay there.
She took her time in the shower, allowing herself to come down from the fight. She didn’t want to be a mess when she went back to Mystique. She wanted to come off as strong and confident as the women she’d seen running around in sheer clothing.
After she got herself dolled up in a short black dress and bright lips, she took a breath and walked out her front door, making as silent promise to herself that her life from here on out would be about her. She wasn’t going to be unhappy for anyone else anymore.
This was her time to be happy and she wasn’t going to compromise it for anyone.
Chapter Fourteen
The drive to Mystique was longer than Marie would have liked it to be. Her hands shook and she fought back tears most of the way. Despite the fact that she’d made a promise to herself regarding her own happiness, she was struggling to actually enact that attitude. It was a lot easier said than done.
When she finally arrived, she was comforted by the sight of Marco, working on a batch of something she didn’t quite recognize, though she knew would be delicious. Marco seemed incapable of making anything that wasn’t delicious.
She stepped out of the car and glanced at the path that led around the bakery and to the massive warehouse. Marie decided against going straight back to the main building and instead, opted to walk inside the bakery, smiling at Marco.
Marie tucked some of her hair behind her ear and smiled at the tan man. He offered a smile in return and walked over to where she stood, putting his strong hands on the counter.
“How can I help you today?”
She smiled and chewed on her bottom lip, clearing her throat. “I’m having a bit of a rough day. What would you suggest?”
“A rough day, huh? Looking for some comfort food?” he asked with a smile as he ducked behind the counter.
Marie watched him to see when he was retrieving. When he stood back up he was holding a thick, heavy butter cake. Her mouth started watering just at the sight of it. It looked dense and sweet. It was everything she wanted right now. In fact, it looked like the cakes she used to make with her grandmother.
She reached out and took the cake, starting to fish some money from her wallet, but he just shook his head. “No. You enjoy it,” he said with a firm nod. “If you don’t tell, I won’t,” he said with a grin, echoing Rachel’s words.
She blushed, nodded, and took the piece of cake and the fork her offered. As she settled into the chair at one of the small, round tables, she dug in and sighed softly. It was so damn good. A soft groan left her lips and Marco came around and set a cup of coffee down beside her.
“Is it good?” he asked with a smile.
“So good. I can’t even begin to describe it,” she murmured, taking another bite of the cake.
It was heavy on her tongue and
fell apart almost immediately. It was absolutely perfect. She glanced over her shoulder as Marco returned to the counter. She set her fork down a moment and cleared her throat. “I’m curious,” she murmured.
“About what?” he asked casually, leaning over the counter again.
“Do you make this stuff yourself?”
He nodded and ran his fingers through his thick, black hair. “Yes. Some of the recipes are Madame’s, but I do all the cooking.”
“How are you so good at this?”
He chuckled and popped a candy into his mouth before speaking. “I’m Italian. Italian families are ruled by food. I always cooked with my mother and so I picked up a few things.”
“But your specialty is baking?”
“I don’t really have a specialty. I help prepare most of the food that is served in the main house as well.”
“That’s a lot to do.”
“We manage well enough. We have our ways.” As he said those words his eyes flashed and when he spread his lips in a full grin she swore she saw a set of razor sharp teeth.
Marie blinked a few times until Marco’s gaze and smile returned to normal. This wasn’t the first time she’d seen something like this, but it still made her clear her throat and look away. The sight should have scared her, though it didn’t. She should have been far more shocked, but she just let it go. This was the only decent thing she had going on in her life right now. She wanted to enjoy it.
She finished the cake and brought the plate back up to Marco. “Thank you again. It was absolutely wonderful,” she said with a smile, brushing a stray curl out of her face.
Marco took the plate and set it aside, offering her another one of those breathtakingly charming smiles. “It’s was my pleasure, bella.”
“Bella?”
“It means beauty in Italian,” he said with a chuckle.
Her cheeks flushed a deep red and Marco just smiled, reaching out to take her hand and kissing the back of it tenderly. “I look forward to seeing you again, so don’t keep me waiting long.”
“Of course not,” she whispered breathlessly, her heart beating out of her chest.