My Body-His (22 page)

* * * *

The rest of the week went by too quickly. Luke and I
avoided talking about the party until Thursday night just before
bed.

“
So, have you come up with something to trade
me for the privilege of wearing clothes tomorrow night?” Luke said
as we spooned in bed after making love.

“
No,” I said. I knew the conversation had to
happen but it pissed me off anyway. I pulled away from him and
turned around to face him. “How about choosing to be generous? You
must know that I’d never prance about naked in front of those
people. And really, do you want my boss and Pierce to see me that
way?”

“
Before we continue this conversation, let’s
just be clear that it’s not up to you who sees you naked. You chose
to give up that right. AND if I wanted you to prance or fuck or
dance in front of
those
people, the only choice you would
have would be to comply or to leave. Are we clear?”

“
Crystal,” I said. I sat up in the bed and
crossed my arms in front of me.

“
Are you sassing me?” he said, smiling and
pulling me over to him.

I pushed him away and said, “What do you want?”

“
My preference would be to see you ‘prance’
around naked, as it is my favorite way to see you, but I can tell
that might be a bit beyond you at the moment and I do mean
for
now
. So we must come up with a barter. I have a couple of ideas
but thought maybe you had something in mind.”

“
I don’t, so why don’t you just tell me,” I
said. I crossed my legs and prepared myself for the
worst.

“
Here are a couple of choices: One, I could
take you back to the Italian restaurant and let my good friend
Marcello whip you himself. He can be a bit harsh in his application
and he has requested your presence after the little show we put on
for him. Two, I could give you another Pierce assignment that won’t
be as easy to get through as the first one. Of course that would
have to happen tomorrow at work, and that might make it more
awkward to have him over tomorrow night. I’m sure you could handle
it, though, as you’d have your clothes to protect you and of course
me as well. Three, and my personal favorite: You could go to your
boss’s office and masturbate for him. Again, having him over after
that might be a stretch—”

“
Those aren’t really choices. I mean I couldn’t
possibly pick number two or three and I have no interest in letting
a stranger have an opportunity to beat me—”

“
Well, then, I suggest you come up with
something good on your own.”

Desperate and not thinking clearly I blurted out,
“How about you invite your friends over? I could be naked in the
apartment for that get-together.”

“
Brilliant, Jane. I love that idea. It’s not
only a fair trade but one that completely excites me. It’ll take
some planning on my part but yes, we have a deal.”

I regretted it the moment I suggested it. I knew it
would be worse than I could possibly imagine. I got out of bed and
paced up and down our bedroom a couple of times.

“
Can I take that back?” I said. “I’m sure I
could come up with something else you would like.”

“
Absolutely not, Jane,” he said, leaning toward
me and grabbing my arm. “It’s the perfect barter. I should’ve
thought of it myself. Come here, babe. We need to get to sleep.
Tomorrow will be a long day.”

I acquiesced and crawled into bed next to Luke. He
was out in minutes, but I lay there distraught. I couldn’t shut my
mind down as I agonized over tomorrow’s party and what else might
transpire in the near future.

On Friday morning I used my run as pure therapy,
trying to run all the tension away. Fortunately, the busy day at
work went by quickly. I left thirty minutes early, hoping to shower
and do some last minute cleaning up. When I got back to the
apartment I undressed quickly by the door and found that Luke
wasn’t there. An outfit was laid out for me on our bed, a note atop
the neatly folded clothes.

Dearest Jane,

I have a couple of
errands to run but should be back in time to greet our guests. You
may dress at 6:30 p.m. If I am not back right at 7:00, know I am on
my way.

Vito’s Restaurant
called and said they will be delivering at 6:30 p.m.

I hope you are looking
forward to this as much as I am.

Loving you,

Luke

I wasn’t looking forward to it; I only hoped to
survive. To me, it was on a par with going to the dentist or the
gynecologist.

I did a quick check around the place, picking up the
newspaper and dropping it into the magazine holder. I placed my
work clothes in the dry cleaning bag. I set out all the plates,
glasses and utensils and spread the tablecloth I’d purchased for
the party. When everything looked just right, I headed for the
shower.

There was a knock on the door at 6:15 p.m. I had just
finished my shower and my immediate thought was that Luke had set
it up. I wouldn’t have been a bit surprised to find out one of his
errands included dropping an extra tip by the restaurant.

“
One minute please,” I said.

I had a choice to make. Should I answer the door
wrapped in a towel? I wouldn’t be technically dressed but I
wouldn’t be naked, either. I knew what I had to do but stood there
by the door waiting.

The knock came again and a male voice said, “This
stuff is heavy, could you please get the door?”

“
Ugh,” I said out loud. “Fine.” I opened the
door and the man/boy, who couldn’t have been more than eighteen or
twenty, almost dropped the stack of containers.

“
Well, come in,” I said. I held the door and
followed him into the kitchen. “There is fine,” I said, pointing to
the counter to the right of the sink. “Hang on a sec while I grab
my wallet.”

“
Oh, it’s all paid for,” he said, averting his
eyes to just above my right shoulder.

“
Well, a tip then,” I said, heading back toward
the bedroom.

“
That was taken care of as well,” he said. He
didn’t move at all. He just stood there, rooted to the
spot.

I had two simultaneous impulses. One was to say,
“Well then, goodbye and there’s the door,”—not very nice, but I was
pissed after all. The second could have only come from the alter
ego that seemed to want to claim me. I was so angry at Luke I
wanted to kneel in front of the boy/man and suck his cock until he
came. Of course that would enrage Luke—the desired effect—but then
I’d suffer as never before. Although my body had quickly adjusted
to his propensity for causing me pain/pleasure, the wrath that I
would face for that crazy act kept me in check.

I headed toward the front door and opened it for him.
He pivoted on his spot but didn’t move closer.

“
Do you always answer the door naked?” he
asked, making eye contact for the first time.

Desire surged through me as his blue eyes penetrated
mine. He wanted me. I looked down and saw just how much. I knew I
needed to get him out of my apartment as soon as possible. “Most of
the time, yes,” I said.

“
You have a beautiful body,” he said. He
fondled his erection through his pants.

His tall lanky body hadn’t filled out to manhood.
Messy brown hair framed his angular face.

“
You need to leave. I still have a lot to do to
get ready for the party.”

“
Can I come by some other time?” he
said.

“
The man who paid you ….” I said.

“
Yes.”

“
He’s my boyfriend and isn’t much into
sharing.” That’s what I told him, although I wasn’t sure it was
true anymore.

“
Oh, him? I thought maybe he was your father or
older brother.”

I laughed because Luke was only ten years older.

“
What’s so funny?” he asked.

“
Nothing,” I said, “but I can’t wait to tell
him you thought he was my father. The sass cometh.” I laughed even
harder at myself.

“
Oh … well then I guess I better go,” he
said.

He headed for the door but my rejection didn’t deter
his cock.

“
Later,” he said.

“
Later,” I said back.

I closed the door and ran to the bedroom to dress.
The outfit was a bit more risqué then I’d have chosen but the brown
patterned skirt with beige and blue leaves pinched in my waist and
the bra under my blue blouse pushed up my breasts to give me a
curvier figure. I liked it. I appreciated how much more extreme the
outfit could’ve been. He could’ve made me wear what I wore to the
restaurant. Clearly even he had boundaries. At least I hoped he
did. I still felt extremely wary of what would take place that
night—if the delivery boy was any indication. Convinced Luke had
put him up to it all—including being early—what might follow put my
stomach in knots.

I fluffed my hair in the mirror. Just a few minutes
before seven, I sat down on the couch, noticing how odd it was to
be sitting there fully dressed. I decided that writing might
relieve the butterflies in my stomach. No sooner had I opened the
computer when I heard a knock at the door. I shut the laptop and
took a deep breath.

“
I’m coming,” I said. There stood my mother. I
should have prepared myself for the fact that my mother was timely
if nothing else. I silently cursed Luke for not being here to
“handle” her.

“
Hello, Mother,” I said as I leaned in to kiss
her on the cheek.

She brushed past me and said, “Well, let’s take a
look at the place. I can see I’m the first one here. She walked
straight over to the bathroom and said, “Is this the only
bathroom?”

“
Yes, Mom,” I said.

“
It’s a closet, not a bathroom. Why didn’t you
just move into your place, Jane? You have two bathrooms
there.”

“
This is more convenient for work, and although
the bathroom isn’t ideal, it works for us.”

“
Tsk,” she muttered.

“
Would you like to see the kitchen?”

“
I guess,” she said.

When I’d finished giving her a tour of the place, she
pointed to the second bedroom door. “What’s in there?”

“
Luke’s office.”

“
I want to see it,” she said. She didn’t wait
for me to respond. She made a beeline to the door, grasped the
handle, and found it locked. “Why is the door locked?”

“
He likes it that way,” I said. I couldn’t
think of anything else to say.

“
What does that mean, Jane?” She faced me,
hands on her hips.

A blessed knock saved me from my mother giving me the
third degree. She followed me as I opened the door to find Brian. I
had hoped it would be Parker or Sandy.

“
Hi Brian,” I said as I welcomed him into the
apartment. “Please meet my mother, Jacqueline. Mom, this is my
boss, Brian.”

“
Jackie,” she said, offering him her
hand.

“
A pleasure,” Brian said as he held my mother’s
hand and kissed it.

I saw my opportunity to slip away and said, “Mind if
I leave you two for a few minutes while I check on the food?”

“
No problem,” my mother said. She didn’t even
turn to look at me. All her focus was on Brian. Brian raised an
eyebrow and smiled.

I mouthed,
Thank
you
and walked away to
the kitchen.

Fortunately Allison, Parker, and Sandy all showed up
in the ensuing fifteen minutes and did a wonderful job of
socializing with everyone.

Pierce’s absence was a relief. I hoped he had changed
his mind. As for Luke …. Where was he? My anger intensified as the
minutes ticked past and he failed to materialize. At one point I
was close to tears and excused myself to the bathroom.

At five minutes to eight both Luke and Pierce walked
into the apartment together. That made me even more furious. Had
they been out together? If so, what the hell had they been talking
about?

Luke strode in and scooped me into his arms, hugging
me to him. “Sorry, babe,” he said in my ear. “I’ll make it up to
you.”

“
You better,” I said, whispering
back.

Once Luke was there the energy of the party
completely shifted. In the midst of lively conversation, he kept
everyone’s glass full, including mine. Our guests ate Caesar salad,
spinach lasagna, and chicken penne with broccoli while consuming
several bottles of wine and champagne. I barely picked at my
food.

Luke wielded remarkable power over the group. With
him there I actually enjoyed the party. I looked on in awe and once
in a while we’d lock eyes and he’d smile that all-knowing smile. It
felt warm and endearing.

My mother fell in love with Brian that evening and,
several times over the next couple of months—especially when I was
most unsure of my life with Luke—she’d tell me how I’d missed out
on happiness with Brian. She was convinced that he was the perfect
man for the perfect wedding. More to the point, he was the perfect
man for
her
, if she’d only been younger.

On that evening Luke won them all over, even my
mother. When she told Luke she wanted to see his office, he
thankfully declined. I think the locked office had her a bit
disconcerted, but he made her laugh in a way I’d never seen. My
mother drank her share of champagne and behaved herself for the
most part.