Page 17 of Once a Month

“After you,” I say, motioning for her to leave the room first. “I’m sorry. I really didn’t know,” I tell the woman waiting for the room.

“It’s okay. Just don’t let it happen again.” She walks past me and closes the door, leaving us in the hallway.

I look down at the floor, suddenly nervous.

“Tonight was…”

“Yeah,” I say when she fades out.

“Are you allowed to… I mean… can you get a drink with me downstairs, or is that not allowed?”

“No, I can do that,” I say.

We head downstairs. There are people around, talking. Some are dancing to soft music. Others are still engaged in the activities that drew them here in the first place. We walk to the bar and order drinks. When we turn around in unison, it’s awkward now. There’s a woman getting fucked by a man next to the pool table, and it’s not something I really want to see. By the look in my partner’s eyes, she’s not interested in this, either. Maybe she is gay or, at least, interested in women beyond one night a month.

“Come on,” I say, taking her hand and leaving my half-finished drink on the bar.

She carries hers with her as I walk her to the other room, hoping to find what I end up finding – that woman with her favorite escort.

“Oh,” my partner says to me.

“I know you want to go,” I say to her. “But you can watch this first, if you want.”

“I don’t think I’m ready to do anything in front of an entire room of people,” she says.

“I’m here for you, remember?” I say, walking around behind her and wrapping my arms around her. “We can always do whatever you want.”

We watch them for a few minutes while she finishes her drink, and I breathe her in but make no move to touch her. It’s nice, just holding her like this… My eyes go wide. As the two women finish in front of us, I pull back. I’m not this woman’s girlfriend; I’m her fucking hooker. I shouldn’t want to hold her like that; I’m here to make money.

“Is something wrong?” she asks, turning around to face me.

“No,” I say, shaking my head.

“Oh, okay.” She looks toward the door. “I think I’m going to go home early.”

“I’ll walk you to the door,” I say.

And I do. I walk this woman that I can’t get enough of to the man who brings her the coat and purse she gave him earlier, and I watch her leave. It’s after two, so I find my friends and sit on the loveseat. We talk for a bit, and I fill them in on what happened. Later, they decide to start back up for one final round before the night is up, but I’m not interested in watching, so I find a spot downstairs in the kitchen where I can hide until four in the morning.

When I get home, I’m exhausted. I know I should shower, but I’m not ready to wash her scent off me, so I fall naked into bed and close my eyes. The next day, I wake up and check the website – I’ve been invited back next month. I also have three five-star reviews this time, and only two are from my friends.

MONTH 3. PART 1. – Missed Opportunity

(POV Member)

“Can you book it for me for this weekend?” I ask.

“I thought you wanted next weekend,” my assistant says.

“I did, initially, but I have plans next weekend now, so this weekend would be great.”

“Sure. Full treatment, like last time?”

“Yes,” I say, nodding.

“I’ll take care of it and email you the info,” she says.

When she leaves my office, I pull out my personal laptop because the website I’m about to pull up, I would never go to on my work computer. I even connect to my phone’s hotspot so I’m not using my office’s Wi-Fi network, as an extra precaution. I log in to the site and confirm what I already know. Yes, I have made my reservation, and I am confirmed for the event next weekend. No, they haven’t responded to my request from this morning for a private room with my own personal dark-haired beauty. I’ve waited three weeks to submit the request because I went back and forth on whether or not I even should. Last time, the woman who interrupted us said I needed to be a member for a minimum of three months to be eligible for private bookings at events. Technically, this would be my third month. I just put the request in this morning, and I’m not sure how fast they reply normally, but I’m eager to know if they’ll allow me to book a room just for the two of us for the entire night.

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