TEASER  #1 

 

     He sets his fork on the table and asks, “Do you like to give oral sex to men?”

     “As opposed to what? Women?” I giggle.

     “Since you asked, have you ever been with a woman?” he asks me, before picking up his sandwich and biting into it.

     I shake my head and furrow my brow. “This seems very clinical, like I’m having lunch with a therapist.”

     “I’m sorry. I’m trying to get to know you better.”

     “Oh, I thought maybe your previous career was psychology.” I try to sound as if I’m joking, but it doesn’t come across that way.

     “I will try not to seem so clinical, as you suggested. How should we get to know one another if nobody asks questions?”

     “We could just talk like friends do.”

     “Do friends not ask one another questions?”

     “Yes, but not one after the other.”

     “Am I doing that?”

     “Yes, you are.”

     “You could ask me a question.”

     I pause as my brain whips through the hundreds of questions I had lined up to ask him, but I get flustered. Not a particular one stands out. I shrug. “No, I have never … been with a woman.”

     He follows up with, “Would you like to be?”

     “Why are you asking me all these personal questions?”

     “Because you’re letting me,” he tells me. “Okay, let’s turn the spotlight on me, if you’d prefer. I’m sure you have plenty of questions for me.”

     I scoff, sarcastically. “No, not even one!” He smiles as if waiting for me to tell him what day of the week it is. “I have too many to get through during one luncheon.”

     “Then begin with some of the most burdening ones.”

     I set my fork down and swallow my mouthful of chewed lettuce. He’s forward, so I will be too. “My husband tells me you are a cruel man in the bedroom. Is that true?”

     His smile is tight as if forcing himself to hold back a belly-shaking laugh. “I am only as vicious as women want me to be. Cruel? Nobody I’ve been with has ever referred to me as cruel. I haven’t hurt anyone in a way they didn’t approve of. Often, when I assert pain, it awakens their senses. There’s a physical and mental reaction to different stimuli. It’s not always about pain. Sometimes a scent, sound, taste, or soft touch will have an equal effect. When I can get someone out of their own mind, they’ll get to a place where only the physical exists. Most people keep their walls up during intimate moments, even if they think they aren’t. A hit to the senses – pain, for example – helps to break them down. It’s then that I can take them to another level of pleasure, a place some had no idea even existed. They simply have to let it happen.”

     “And the women enjoy this?” I have my doubts.

     “Very much so.”

     “Have you ever hurt anyone?”

     “Of course. Are you asking if I’ve ever injured anyone? I have never severely injured anyone. There have been some bruises that lingered longer than I’d have preferred them to. Skin sometimes pinches from ropes. A person bled once, but no broken bones or any residual marks that weren’t coverable with clothing.” Jake stares at me while my teeth grind away at the mutilated bite of sandwich being shoved around in my mouth. I cover my mouth with my hand when his eyes leave my own, lowering to ogle my jaw while I gnash my way through my food like a ravenous dog with a raw steak.

     “Why did you cover your mouth?”

     I swallow before I’m ready. The food sticks in my throat. I swallow twice more to force it down. I gulp the rest of my coffee before meeting his eyes. “Because you were staring at me while I was chewing.”

     “Were you going to say something, but your mouth was too full?” I shake my head. “Did I make you feel self-conscious?”

     “Yes. You’re rather intimidating.” Dammit! I said it.

     “So, intimidate me. You have the power to do so if you choose to. You can stare into my eyes and force yourself not to look away. One of us will break. It doesn’t have to be you. You don’t realize the level of power you hold over men. You could rule any situation if you learned how to. I can teach you.”

     “You want to teach me how to intimidate people?” I laugh and shake my head. “I’m not one of those confident people who can take control of a room by walking into it the way you can.”

     “And that is where you would be wrong.” I shake my head. He continues, “Come home with me, and I’ll show you how to harness your power.”

     I take a deep breath and hold it, fearing what I’ll say when I let it out. Should I take a risk that could be an amazing, life-altering experience that will bring Henry and I closer together, or will it ruin us? Do I turn him down and walk out of this café, too afraid to try something new? I should, but I don’t really want to do the right thing right now. I want to be bad, to sin, to be the slutty wife who fucks her husband’s co-worker. This experience could help me write a great novel about my adventures with this young, confident stud.

     Sensing my inner dilemma, he presses his hand against his chest and vows, “I won’t do anything you don’t want me to do. You can leave any time, no questions asked. Take a chance, Beth.”

     I hear myself say, “Yes.” What? Did I say that out loud? Okay, well, here goes nothing! Jake smiles, pleased by my simple response that could change both of our lives for the better, or the worst. The way he forces his lips tightly together makes him look like he’s trying to maintain his level of maturity. It’s obvious that all he wants to do is jump up and down with excitement because he has a new toy.

     He sips his coffee while looking at my eyes with intent. “Should we go now?”

     “If we don’t, I might change my mind,” I confess.

     He tilts his head and whispers, “You can change your mind at any point in time.”

     “You don’t have to be back at work?”

     He shakes his head. “No, I cleared my schedule and took the afternoon off.”

     I joke, “That was a little presumptuous, wasn’t it?”

     “Just hopeful.” Jake grins, then tosses a small wad of bills on the table before standing up. He puts his hand out in a gentlemanly fashion. I take it and slide out from the booth. When I stand, he pulls me in so close that his body is almost touching mine. We are face to face. I can feel his breath on my cheek.

      I stutter, “Are… are you going to… to kiss me right here in… in the café?”

     “Would you like me to?” The way he whispered, asking permission, in such a calm and seductive manner has me wanting to lean in and sample the delicious pair of lips I’ve been yearning to taste for almost an hour.

     I clear my throat and hope my voice doesn’t crack. “No, someone we know might see us.” I turn on shaking legs and begin making my way toward the door.

     “As you wish,” he places his hand on the small of my back, allowing me to lead the way out of the café.

 

 

TEASER EXCERPT #2 

 

     My dear friend, Amy, has pulled her husband, Lou, away from his boring conversation with William. I’ve stood patiently by Henry’s side many times while William told yet another tedious golf story that neither I nor Henry cared anything about. Neither of us has ever held a club. Even though I couldn’t hear the conversation, I know it was about golf. It’s always about golf.

     William has never married and doesn’t seem at all interested in finding someone special to share the rest of his life. I’ve known him for fifteen years and have yet to see a woman or man on his arm. Perhaps he enjoys having the bed to himself and full control of the television. I can see the benefits of being single, but on the flip side of that coin, I can also imagine how lonely life would be. Still, some people are happiest flying through life solo.

     Amy smiles at me before rolling her eyes. We pretend to kiss each other’s cheeks as we pucker our lips but never touch. Women are careful not to smear our lipstick. She whispers, “That conversation was one-sided and lasted forever. How long were we standing there? I could sense my hair turning grey.”

     I laugh. “So, anything new and exciting with you? I haven’t talked to you in a while.”

     She shrugs. “Other than the overdramatic crisis of Richie losing his first tooth? No, nothing new. You?”

     I smile, picturing her holding him down, yanking out his loose tooth while he throws an Oscar-worthy tantrum. I love him, and he’s an adorable kid, but for a seven-year-old, he’s way too whiny. The boy cries too often and over the most non-crucial things. If he considers life to be too hard while he’s a kid, he’s in for a rude awakening when he gets older.

     Amy is a stay-at-home mom who works twenty-four hours a day, every day with no vacation time or sick days. I’d rather go to work than stay home raising whiny, sticky, miniature devils who would rely on me for every single thing in their hyperactive young lives.

     They can be so sweet and loving, but I can’t let that draw me in. They’re a petri dish for every contractible disease known to humans. I always assumed the life of a housewife and mother would be mundane. It’s anything but. Amy is always busy tending to others, doing nothing for herself. Everything she does is to benefit the house and family. No, thank you! It’s not for me. I own a cat, and that’s enough mothering to quiet my ticking biological clock.

     “Nothing too exciting. I’m still working on the book. I can’t seem to find the right ending. My editor is getting annoyed with me. She’s pushing me to get it done. The more she pesters me, the harder it is for me to focus.”

     Amy interrupts, “The book about the mystery man in the cloak? That will be a bestseller. I know it.”

     “Yeah, that’s the one. I hope you’re right.” The guys are not listening to us. I’m not sure what they’re talking about, but whatever it is, both of them have furrowed brows and unusually serious expressions. They must be talking business.

     I lower my voice to ensure nobody can hear me. “Something struck me as odd. There’s a guy here who asked me to meet him at a café on Monday. Can you believe that? Henry introduced me to him and suddenly left us to go talk to someone else. He’s very brazen.”

      “Really? Is he hot? Who is it? Point him out; I need something to fantasize about later.” Her eyes scan the crowd as if she knows who she’s searching for.

      “I can’t see him.”

     “Well, what’s his name? I might know him.”

     “I only caught his first name, Jake.”

     “No shit? Yeah, I met him. He’s dreamy! There’s just something in his demeanour that screams hot, dirty, disgustingly delicious sex. I’d bet my house he’s a wild man in the sack.”

     I laugh. “Uh, huh! So, you have met him.”

     “Yeah, I have.”

     “You wouldn’t, would you?”

     She shrugs her shoulders and exhales a long sigh. “I would like to have the opportunity. If someone like that asked me to meet him at a café, I’d go in a heartbeat. I wouldn’t go to his place for sex, of course. Lou is enough for me. Besides, I don’t have the time or stamina to keep up with that young sexual prodigy… not that I haven’t masturbated to the notion of his sweaty body on mine.”

I take a moment to picture her scenario but with me under his body, not her. A cold, nervous twinge in my belly snaps me back to reality.

     “I’m married and truly happy, so it’s not like I’d take it outside of that cafe. Starting something with Jake would only cause problems in Henry’s career, and our marriage, if we were ever caught. Do you think I should go?”

     “Do I think you should go?” she pauses, pondering the idea as she sips her nearly empty glass of champagne. “Hell yeah, I do! Go have lunch with the guy. Hear him out. See what he wants. Think of it as taking a break from your writing. Maybe the time away will help you find your ending. Don’t have sex with him… or do! Years ago, I remember you telling me that Henry suggested you two bring a third person into the bedroom. He didn’t specify whether that person had to be a male or a female, right?” I nod, so she continues. “Maybe hot-guy-Jake can be that third. Give me every dirty detail if you do; just don’t fall in love with him.” 

      “I couldn’t anyway. Henry is the love of my life.”

     William interrupts us by clearing his throat over the loudspeaker. He’s ready to start his speech. As a waiter passes by, Amy and I both swap our empty champagne glasses for full ones. When I thank him, my eyes shift past him to a face looking at me through the crowd of bodies.

      Jake’s eyes don’t leave mine as he lifts his glass to toast me. He nods, only once. My tummy flutters. What is it about that man that has me contemplating a secret meeting? I turn my gaze toward William, trying not to appear taken in by Jake’s seductive leer. Why is my body heating, as if his eyes are touching me where I would prefer his big fingers or his hot tongue? Stop it, Beth!