Buying Thyme Page 7

  “Hello gorgeous. Mrs Oktar said you were up early this morning. I thought I wore you out more than that last night? How’s the pool? I was coming down to join you, you know.”

  I wonder where he has been all morning?

  “Up early? Ten o’clock in the morning is not exactly early Joe.” I say as he strides up to me. He reaches out to my cheek with the back of his hand.

  “Looks like you caught the morning sun.” He says, brushing my sun kissed cheek.

  “I didn’t realise you were home.” I look into his coffee eyes, hoping they will give me an idea of what’s going on within his mind.

  “I’ve been home for an hour or so now. You looked like you were enjoying yourself out there and I was having fun just watching that sexy little body of yours, so I left you alone. So what do you want to do for the rest of the day?”

  “I have a few ideas.” I say with my cheekiest smirk.

  “Me too.” Tench says as he bends down and throws me over his shoulder, slapping my rear end in the process.

  He carries me with ease over his broad shoulder, springing down the terrace with me bouncing upside down. He jumps into the pool with me still over him. I squeal at the shock of being hurled in the opposite direction to what I actually had in mind. Under the water Tench finds my face amongst the kaftan material floating around me, and kisses me gently as we breach together for air. Tench has surprised me once again with his display of boyish behaviour. He pushes me up to the inside edge of the pool. I feel his erection pressing up against me as I wrap my legs around him. Why am I always without condoms at the moment? Tench’s tongue rolls around mine, the sensation is amazing. Note to self, when in the company of Tench, always be prepared. Expect the unexpected. With me wrapped around him, Tench glides to the shallow end of the pool. Shifting me onto one of the submerged steps and pulls his linen pants of and slaps them on the edge of the pool. He then bends down and pulls at my bikini bottoms.

  “But Joe… I don’t…”

  “Ssssh… trust me.” He says with a wicked gleam in his eyes.

  Oh no! What! I can’t! I won’t! Tench leans behind me and pulls out a condom packet out of his wet pants and rips open the packet. I instantly feel relieved that he is more prepared than I am. Standing out of the water, thigh high, he pushes the condom over himself and sinks back down into the water. Eyes ablaze, he grabs my hand and pulls me to him. I wrap my legs around him and feel his erection edge slowly into my entrance. I drape my arms around his neck and embrace the warm, passionate kiss from Tench. The buoyant water makes it easy for me to keep my legs around his waist and bob up and down in the water. Tench thrusts in and out of me. The inner pressure builds from deep within as I feel his erection begin to swell inside me. Tench leans back slightly and places his hand around my rear end to guide my movements around him. The water is almost to our shoulders and swells wildly around us as our momentum builds. Tench grips the back of my wet hair and nuzzles his head into my neck, nibbling softly between his teeth. His eyes reach mine, staring intently into the window of my soul. This time I don’t feel the same as the night before. My thoughts of Tench are suddenly catapulted back into reality as his phone conversation plays over and over in my mind, stifling my arousal completely. I tense my pelvic floor muscles and force them the contract and release around the fullness of his pulsing erection inside me, another old trick learnt in the industry. Almost on cue, Tench throws his head back and groans wildly, “Feel me baby. Come with me.” He moans.

  I give the additional wail for effect and like magic, Tench releases himself into me, violently thrashing about in the water as he does so.

  Both panting heavily, we embrace in our position for a few more moments. I casually run my fingers through Tench’s wet hair, wondering who the man inside truly is. He gazes up at me with loving eyes. We stay staring into each other for minutes. Can he see into me and see what I’m really thinking about him? How can a man show me such displays of affection and yet be so dangerous in reality? Why is he so interested in me? Could I live this life with him? I stop my mind wondering further, for fear of entertaining the thoughts of being with him and convincing myself that he’s someone that he’s not.

  “Shower?” I ask to shake the moment.

  Tench looks at me with a look that I can’t quite place.

  “Sure.” He replies as coldly as the old Tench would.

  He rips himself out of me with an offending jerk, snatching himself away from me as if I were trying to take something from him. I wonder what I’ve done wrong. I hope he didn’t recognise that I didn’t orgasm. No, no one ever does. Even the most sex-crazed men fall for that old chestnut! I grab my bikini bottoms from the ledge of the pool and slide them back on before I exit the water. Tench on the other hand, jumps straight out, in all his nakedness, and unceremoniously strolls over to the pool house for all to see. If the rocking backwards and forwards in the pool wasn’t enough for Mrs Oktar to put two and two together then this certainly will! But then again, she’s most probably used to it with Tench. The very thought causes me to start thinking about how many other women he’s done this for. The others probably weren’t paid for either. They all probably fell for his bad-boy persona, hook, line and sinker! I follow him into the pool house shower, which is an entire wet room with one huge showerhead, the size of a large Frisbee hanging from the ceiling. Stripping down, I come up behind Tench and run my hands around him, grabbing down at his length from behind and cupping his whole package in both hands.

  “So what excitement do you have in store for us tonight Mr Tench?” I query as I breathe into the back of his neck.

  “I was thinking you can chose tonight Miranda.” He replies as he turns around to face me.

  “Well I did bring those handcuffs with me, and a riding crop that I could put to good use on you?”

  “Ha! Miranda. You know I don’t let anyone do that sort of shit to me. I was thinking something a bit more on the normal side.” He holds my face between his hands and kisses my lips, planting gentle kisses from one side to the other.

  “What, you mean like a candlelit dinner under the stars kind of normal?” I suggest playfully as a dig toward his extravagant display the night before.

  “No, I was thinking more like Pizza and a movie… kind of normal.” He says almost shyly.

  What! Oh no! Not the ‘couple’ thing… What does this man want from me? Tench, you were always my one client who never wanted that bullshit from me! Hopefully he just needs a bit of company and then I’m done with him for a few more months again.

  “Anything you say Mr Tench, it’s your booking after all.”

  He rolls his eyes and turns around to rinse his face off in the water before he exits the shower. Why does the wild and unpredictable underworld figure, ‘Joe Tench’ keep avoiding the whole ‘I’m your hooker’ reality of our situation? Why does he look so uncomfortable every time I mention it?

  Back in Tench’s bedroom, I change into the most ‘relaxed’ clothing I have on hand, given that I’m here purely for sexual seduction. I put on a black see-through singlet top that clings around my bare breasts and matching long pants that sit loosely around my legs. I attempt modesty by putting on some black Brazilian underwear under the see-through pants. Tench on the other hand puts on black sweatpants that hang effortlessly, outlining his package in front. He eyes me up and down as he comes out of his walk-in closet, smiling and shaking his head at the same time.

  “I love that you aren’t afraid to flaunt your body Miranda. It’s very sexy. You should be proud of it and I have to say, I never get sick of the sight of it either.”

  If only he knew how the real me felt. I would much prefer to be in sweatpants and a t-shirt, but this is the working me. The consummate professional while in the presence of a client, and always mindful of what they want me to be. Tench has no idea that this isn’t the real me… and I’m not about to let up on his fantasy either. Problem is, I’m not sure if he would like the real me? Maybe he is right,
do I do this to remind myself of the distance that I must keep from the real me? Maybe this is my coping mechanism. Be someone else that I’m not, so that the real me doesn’t get hurt.

  “Come on hot stuff. Let’s go choose a movie for tonight.” He says, hand out stretched waiting to meet mine.

  I accept his hand and he leads me back down the stairs to a room left of the bar area. Tench flicks a light on, and I instantly notice that it’s a cinema room. Of course! Here I was picturing a couch and a TV in the lounge area. Instead, there are two rows of couches. The first row consisting of one big, long red velvet couch scattered with cushions. The second row made up of six wide recliners. Tench walks over to the far end and switches on a light, flooding an entire snack bar in the back corner, complete with a vintage popcorn machine. My eyes are wide with amazement. I’ve never seen anything like it before.

  “You like?” He says, already knowing the answer by the dumbfounded look upon my face.

  I try and pull myself back together again.

  “You obviously take your movie watching seriously!” I say in an attempt to hide my astonishment.

  “So what would you like to watch tonight? What genre do you prefer?” Tench asks, picking up an iPad from the snack bar.

  He begins to slide his finger across the screen, flicking through the countless titles that whiz by on its display.

  “Ah… I like anything really. I prefer the classics. Anything from the ‘80’s or ‘90’s is definitely amongst my favourites.” I manage to re-enter the conversation.

  “Me too! I love the Psycho-noir era of the ‘90’s. They don’t make movies like that anymore.” Tench says with his boyish grin, excited by the thought of his favourite movies. “Here, take this with you and we will choose a movie while we make ourselves some pizza.”

  I take the iPad from him, wondering why Mrs Oktar isn’t making pizza. Does Tench usually cook for himself? I couldn’t imagine someone like him whipping up a storm in the kitchen. We make our way over to the other side of the mansion to the kitchen. Tench pulls out a stool for me to sit on. “Would you like a glass of wine, or a beer… or maybe something harder?”

  I look up from the iPad upon hearing the word harder and raise an eyebrow at him.

  “Harder?” I ask cheekily.

  “Miranda! You sexy thing. I could just about have you on this bench if you keep that up.”

  “Promise?” I smile.

  Tench smiles back, “Later. First… dinner.” He moves over to the digital control screen on the wall that Mrs Oktar used earlier to control the music. Pressing a button, he leans in. “Toni. Can you grab Miranda and I two… ah…” He looks over in my direction, shrugging his shoulders. I shrug back. “…Coronas with lime thanks Toni.”

  “Sure thing boss.” I hear Toni’s amplified response from the digital control. Tench presses a couple more buttons on the touch screen. Bob Marley’s smooth reggae beats spring to life through the kitchen’s speakers singing Is This Love.

  “I’m going to make you pizza the real way! New York style. The way my mum taught me.” Tench says while shaking his ass around to the music.

  I can’t help but laugh and feel very relaxed around him tonight. I wonder about Tench’s mum, they never mention her in the media. There’s only ever mention of his father.

  Toni comes into the kitchen carrying a stainless steel bucket of six Coronas in ice -and a beaming grin- and places them on the bench.

  “Hey Miranda. Have a nice night.” He says with a hint of a giggle.

  I’m not sure if he’s giggling at my common lack of clothing in this house, or at Tench jigging around the kitchen, cooking me Pizza from scratch. A flurry of flour and other ingredients fly around the bench as Tench works the mixture into a round puff of dough. Placing a tea-towel over the bowl, he turns to me with his brilliant smile, obviously pleased with his effort.

  “So we have two hours before this rises. Now I can think of something to do in that time.” Tench says with a wicked grin.

  He comes over to me and lifts me by the waist onto the kitchen bench. Pulling out another condom from his pocket, he rips my pants off me and pulls his pants down. I’m instantly swept into a frenzy of passion once more. He spreads me across the kitchen bench, much like the dough he just worked with. I hear the clanging of stainless steel, but fail to register what exactly is happening within the room, as Tench begins to pound me like pizza dough.

  A beautiful zephyr bounces off the harbour’s water, and blows magnificently through the kitchen window. It cools my perspired body after almost two hours of feverish fucking in various positions and places around the kitchen, finishing finally on the floor beside the kitchen island. Tench kisses my forehead as he gets up and finds his pants that were removed and strewn across to floor at one point during our wild romp. Pulling them back on, he holds his hand out and helps me off the ground, and hands me a Corona.

  “Here’s to yet another brilliant night with you Miranda.” He says holding out his Corona bottle to mine.

  I smile, but not really knowing if I’ve actually done anything special. It’s all been Tench really. I should be saluting him for showing me such a good time for once.

  “Here’s to the night still being young.” I reply, and he laughs.

  “Well let’s check out how this dough turned out.” He says with an eager smile.

  The dough has doubled in size and Tench looks more than pleased with himself.

  “Let me show you how to toss out this baby.” He says arm stretched out, summoning me to come over to him.

  I stand in front of him at the kitchen bench. He works with his arms around me, kneading the dough. He grabs my hands and places them on the dough under his hands and forces them into the dough with slow, sexy strokes.

  “That’s it Miranda. Feel the bubbles within the dough free themselves under your hands.”

  I wonder what he’s talking about now. The dough… or something else? Tench starts positioning my hands. The dough takes the shape of a circle under the pushing and pulling motion of our hands.

  “Okay, stand back and watch a pro.” He says with a cocky grin.

  Tench grabs the circle of dough and throws it wildly in the air, spinning as it’s thrown upwards. It lands back down into Tench’s hands. He repeats the process again and the dough has doubled in size. Tench looks so calm and relaxed and… happy… in his kitchen… making me pizza. I never thought I’d see this. He grabs an unlabelled jar from the fridge and spreads the tomato looking sauce over the pizza base.

  “A special sauce recipe of my mothers.” He says with an excited smile.

  He covers the base with cheese and pepperoni then sprinkles it with oregano. Grabbing the uncooked pizza on its tray, Tench places the whole thing in a wide, specially made pizza oven in the far left corner of the kitchen. I sit on my stool, drinking my beer and silently watch Tench glide around his kitchen, unable to say anything at all to add to the moment. I think I’m just enjoying seeing Tench so relaxed.

  “So what movie are we watching tonight?” He suddenly pulls me from my pleasant daydream.

  “Oh…” I look down at the iPad in my hands, and realise I have been completely distracted by Tench and haven’t yet chosen anything. I can feel myself blushing at the sudden realisation that I’ve been captivated by this man once again. I click open the screen of the iPad and choose the first movie that pops up on the screen.

  “I thought we’d go with… American Psycho?” I look up at Tench with a slightly stumped look on my face.

  “Great choice Miranda!” Tench says with a beaming smile.

  Great! Why did I have to choose a movie about an egotistical, misogynistic banker who slaughters a few prostitutes, amongst some other friends and people who generally piss this guy off? Tench laughs as he looks at the cover on the iPad in my hands and looks up at me.

  “You always amaze me Miranda.” Holding his hand out for me again, he carries the bucket of Corona’s in his other, “Let’s go get com
fy in the theatre room. Toni can bring in the pizza once it’s done.”

  “Where’s Mrs Oktar?” I ask.

  “She’s back in her quarters. I let her take the evenings off. It’s easier for me to get work done that way. But she’s always nearby. Toni is more attuned to my… ah… lifestyle. So he’s usually just a few steps away from me.”

  Is that Joe Tench just admitting to me that he is a criminal? Is that what he means by ‘lifestyle’?

  “Oh. Makes sense.” I say trying to sound ignorant to the admission.

  We sit. We eat Tench’s homemade pizza. We watch the movie. We drink Corona’s with lime. We generally enjoy each other’s company. We go to bed and roll around in each other’s arms for hours. If I wasn’t his whore, could I fall in love with Tench and accept his ‘lifestyle’?

  CHAPTER 6

  For the second morning in a row, I wake without Tench lying next to me. I wrap my kimono around my body and head down stairs. It all feels noticeably like ground hog day as I make my way to the kitchen. This time however, I find Tench sitting in the kitchen laughing with Mrs Oktar as she’s pouring him a cup of coffee. Mrs Oktar spots me and smiles, triggering Tench to turn around and smile a sweet, if not amorous smile at me.

  “Morning gorgeous. You’re just in time to help us decide on what to put in our baguettes to take on our adventure today. We were both trying to think what you would like best.”

  “Adventure?” I ask intrigued.

  “Yep. Just you and me and this outstanding day. Tea or coffee gorgeous?”

  “Coffee thanks.”

  “Latte with one again dear?” Mrs Oktar adjoins.

  “Yes thank you.” I sit next to Tench at the kitchen island, staring blankly at him.