Page 30 of Audacity

‘True.’

‘And no, it wasn’t awkward, because we used the dinner to discuss our… expectations, and he is really fucking hot, so I was turned on way before we went upstairs.’ I pause. I’m mean, but she’s so easy to rile. ‘And then he made me strip and pose naked on a stool, holding my pussy open so he could go down on me. Then he fucked me from behind on the bed. So, two orgasms. That’s very respectable for a first time, you know.’

‘Oh myGod.’ She sets her wine glass down on the floor so she can bury her face in her hands as she drums her socked feet on the floor. ‘That’s mortifying! I would literallydie.’

I grab a cushion and swipe her with it. ‘It’s not mortifying! And it’s not even kinky. I’d say that’s a pretty vanilla night. It was hot, we both had a good time. What’s the issue?’

She raises her head, her face stained bright red. She has second hand embarrassment, and it’s adorable and hilarious in equal measure. ‘I just can’t imagine it! Like, standing there and stripping on demand for some guy you don’t know from Adam, and then letting him stick all his… body parts inside you!’

‘That’s generally how sex works, babes,’ I remind her gently. It’s been a while for Marlowe. She, who was the best of all thegood girls at school, got totally fucking seduced by her professor in her first year of uni. Seducedandknocked up. That’ll quash your faith in men just as quickly as it’ll quash your career prospects, and once you find out your newborn daughter has a rare congenital heart defect?

Well, that’s the death knell to any kind of social life more exciting than evenings on the sofa with me or the occasional event I drag her to.

It’s not her fault she’s severely out of practice.

It’s not her fault she’s only slept with two or three guys.

And it’s definitely not her fault that she’s been dealt blow after blow by the universe. If she were a Bible character, Marlowe would be Job—with smaller pores.

‘I know.’ She grimaces again. ‘It just sounds so… confronting.’

I reach down and hand her back her glass. ‘Lucky you’re not a hooker, then.’

‘I’ll drink to that,’ she says, and she does. ‘So, you’re excited about this gig, then?’

‘I am, actually.’ I’m counting down the days until I finish with poor old Steve, in fact.

‘Because it’s a new sector? Or a new dick?’

I nearly spit out my wine. ‘Marlowe! You dirty little slut.’

‘I am not the dirty little slut in this room.’

‘Fair. And it’s both, if you must know. I’ve been reading up on the estate. It’s fascinating. They’re one of the highest value landowners in the UK. And there’s so much shit to clear up. I’m absolutelyitchingto get to work.’

‘And the guy?’ she asks slyly.

‘Well, he told me he was going to spend these few weeks thinking about how to put me to work, and I don’t think he meant pulling reports, so that’s a big fat Happy New Year to me.’

‘Oh my God,’ she whispers. ‘Would you have guessed he used to be a priest?’

I take a sip of my excellent St Emilion as I consider her question. Marlowe and I operate on a silent understanding that I bring the wine when we hang out so she doesn’t have to overextend herself and I don’t have to drink cheap vinegar.

‘Not necessarily. If anything, he was less priest-like than I expected.’Especially in the hotel suite. Especially when he was ordering me to make a mess of the stool’s fabric.‘But there was something… contemplative about him. He’s a lovely guy, but I suspect he overthinks everything.’

‘Did you find out why he left the priesthood? It’s weird, no? Going from being a priest to paying someone like you to shag him at work?’

It absolutely is.‘Only the official line—that his dad was retiring and he basically swapped one sense of duty for another and picked up the baton of the investment vehicle. They were adamant about keeping it in the family, apparently. And he claims he’s hired me as a pragmatic measure, so he can fulfil his needs without burning the candle at both ends.’

For some reason, a visual of him waking up, naked and disoriented, in the bowels of a sex club tugs at my heart a little. Poor fucker. At least there’ll be no need for any of that when I’m around. I’ll take care of all his needs and then some.

‘But you think there’s more to it than meets the eye,’ she insists, her eyes wide with the promise of salacious gossip.

I waggle my eyebrows at her over-dramatically. ‘I’d put money on it. Not that I’ll be able to tell you any of it. NDA, remember? Now, I have something for you while I’ve got you to myself.’ I reach down and pull a large envelope out of my handbag. ‘Just keep an open mind, okay? That’s all I ask.’

Marlowe’s scarcity mindset may be completely understandable, justifiable even, but it’s a vicious circle. Sheneeds to start thinking big if she’s to conquer the next round of challenges that face her and Tabby.

She slides the brochure out of the envelope and stares down at it. ‘No.’

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