“Mm, when’s it gonna be my turn?” the young woman asked, her voice scratchy from a long orgasm. She looked up at Elaine with liquid eyes, long lashes flashing.
Elaine pushed away, slung her legs over the bed, and slid into the thick hotel robe.
“Where you going? Don’t you want to snuggle?”
Elaine tightened the belt and left the bed.
“Are you coming back?”
She disappeared into the bathroom and locked the door behind her, ears straining to hear if the woman was following her. Quickly, she turned on the water to drown out any other annoying questions from her guest. She leaned on the counter and stared at her mussed hair and smeared lipstick. Her eyeliner had smudged with sweat and exertion. Unable to stand the image, she scrubbed her face with the hotel bar soap. She turned off the water and pressed a towel to her skin. Then she pulled back her hair and turned on the shower. A knock came from the door. She sighed.
“Are you coming back? I miss you. Hello?”
“Yes?” She pulled open the door and breezed into the room. The woman was standing and smiling like they were both in on a secret. The bedding was draped around her nude body.
“Can I shower with you?”
Elaine grabbed her phone and her clothes. “No.”
“Why not?”
Elaine felt herself grimace. This one was particularly clingy. And pouty. Question after question. Call after call. No more.
“I want to be alone.”
“But why? I thought we had a good time. We always have a good time.”
“We’ve been together twice.”
“Right.” She smiled, oblivious to the point. “And we’ve talked, a lot.”
“You call, ask personal questions.” She carried her bundle into the bathroom and set it on the counter. “Questions I’m not going to answer. Questions I told you I’m not going to answer.”
“But I want to know you. Don’t you want to know me?”
Elaine returned to the room to get her shoes.
“Did I ever ask you any questions?”
The woman seemed to think for a moment.
“No. Why didn’t you?”
“Because if I had you would’ve ran with it, thinking I was interested.”
Her face fell. “Oh.”
She retrieved her heels and tossed them in the now steamy bathroom. “I told you, I have nothing to offer you. Nothing. I don’t want a relationship.”
“I said we could take it slow. Slow is okay.”
“I don’t want slow. I want nothing. Why can’t you hear me?”
“But we’ve talked, we’ve—”
“It’s sex. That’s all. And talking on the phone does not constitute a relationship. One that I don’t want. That I’ve been very clear about.”
The woman let the bedding drop. “Fine, I’ll just go. You’ll never hear from me again.”
Elaine watched her dress, knowing her words meant nothing. She would pout and not call for a while. And then in a month or so she’d call and apologize. But the next time, Elaine wasn’t going to bother to bite. No matter how cold her bed was.
The woman turned at the door, knob in her hand. “Good-bye.” She clenched her jaw and steadied herself as if waiting for Elaine to say Wait, don’t go. Elaine didn’t speak, just walked toward her. She removed her hand from the knob and replaced it with her own. She tugged the door open and swept her arm, motioning for her to go.
“Bitch.” The woman glared at her and walked out.
She closed the door, engaged the lock, and leaned against it.
If the shoe fits, I’ll wear it.
She felt drained, and her mind was spent from dealing with someone who refused to hear her. She slowly crossed to the bathroom and let her robe fall outside the shower door. She entered and melted beneath the hot spray. She did her best to wash the woman away, lathering up and rinsing a few times. If she scrubbed, she could dissolve the evening away, watch it slip down the drain, never to return. But she knew it wasn’t as simple as that. Women, no matter how casual she tried to keep things, were complicated. And as for herself, she knew she wasn’t exactly the nice guy.
She killed the water and stood leaning against the wall while allowing the steam to come off her body. She thought about just collapsing into the sheets and spending the night, but the sheets were tainted and she needed to get home. Thankfully, she never met anyone at her home. She couldn’t imagine the trouble that would cause. So she used a pay as you go phone and always kept it at hotels.
She stepped from the shower and pressed herself dry. Then she slid into her clothes and stepped into her heels. She never carried a wallet in with her, only her phone. She pulled it out of her pocket and saw that she had a message. She dialed her voice mail and entered her code.
“Yeah, Elaine, it’s Michael. Sorry to call you on the booty call phone, but I have a client for you. Call me.”
She hung up and dialed her partner’s number. She hadn’t had an intriguing client in months, but right now she’d settle for anyone new. Anyone to change up the game a little. Her numerous male clients were so caught up in power struggles and sexual attraction, it was growing tedious. She could use some good old-fashioned work on a willing client.
“Michael, it’s me.” She sat on the edge of the bed and slipped in her earrings. “Please tell me it’s someone interesting.”
He laughed. “I bet you would pay for an intriguing client at this point.”
“I would. But don’t tell them that. Tell me all about him.”
“Actually, it’s a woman.”
She straightened. “Oh?”
“She’s thirty, single. Looking for creative inspiration. Those are her words.”
“I see.” Her heart sped up a little at the thought of a woman. But she calmed herself, knowing that clients were never what she dreamt them to be. She’d lost that fantasy long ago. Besides, a client was a client, nothing else. No matter how badly they wanted it to be more.
“Did she check out?”
“Yep. No criminal history, no craziness. Just an average woman. And I won’t tell you anymore because I know you don’t like that.”
“No, I don’t.” She preferred to read the client herself.
“Anyway, Julia has set up the appointment for tomorrow afternoon. All right by you?”
“Sure.”
“Okay, then. See you at the office.”
“Hey, Michael? Did she say…why she wanted a woman?”
“I’m not going to tell you.”
She closed her eyes. “Fine. See you tomorrow.”
She ended the call and rose to look out the window. For the first time in a long time, she looked forward to tomorrow.