48

 

Parking on the residential street in Forest Town with his heart pounding, Emmett pulled on the hand break and killed the engine, all without looking up. It wasn’t until the car had fallen silent that he glanced across the street to the house on the corner.

He’d resisted his desire to do this for so long, but spending several days in close proximity to Valerie in that tiny hotel room had finally broken his spirit. He’d hoped to resist and get through this without succumbing to these base desires. He should be able to do this easily, especially given how this could look to certain authorities, but in the end, there was no stopping it.

He couldn’t hold this off any longer. The need for him to be here was too strong.

He chuckled to himself. At least he wasn’t resorting to picking them up off the street again. At least he had that going for him. After all, he had to remember how this would look to people if they found out about it.

It sometimes amazed him that he’d been getting away with this for so long, and that Valerie hadn’t picked up on it. But then, she wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer and was a little too self-obsessed to look too closely at what he was doing, unless it was to nag him and try to control his life.

But despite his confidence, he still harboured doubts about what he was doing. Was this a terrible idea that he needed to rethink? Was it too soon?

Could he really not resist the pull to be over there for a few more days?

Shaking his head, he wondered if he wasn’t the pathetic one. He should really be able to go a few days without treating himself like this, and yet, these indulgences had become more frequent of late, as he found he couldn’t go a few days without doing something to scratch that itch.

Looking at the building again, his mind wandered as he imagined the fun he’d have over there, fun that Valerie had leached from their marriage years ago.

Because, ultimately, that was why he was doing this. It was her fault, really, not his. She was the one to blame. If she hadn’t changed and turned into the vile controlling bitch that she’d become, he wouldn’t be here now. He’d be with her, having fun in their hotel room at the Nottinghamshire Police’s pleasure. But she wasn’t into all that.

Was it so wrong that sometimes, he just wanted his dick sucked?

She didn’t understand and possibly never would, at least not anymore. Thinking back to those early days in their relationship and the fun and games they got up to, he lamented losing that spark.

And yet, he wondered if he wasn’t just looking at things through rose-tinted glasses. Had things really been that good?

He wondered if there might perhaps be a deeper reason behind Valerie's change in personality. Was there something wrong or rotten at the core of their relationship?

Neither of them had wanted children, so they’d not gone down that path, preferring to live for themselves rather than have their comfortable life ruined by a psychotic tiny person or two.

But, was he so sure that she agreed with him when he said he didn’t want kids? Was she agreeing just to please him, or did she honestly not want children?

Well, it was getting a little late for that now, anyway. Neither of them was getting any younger, and it wasn’t as if he wanted to get that close to her anyway. Her touch made his skin crawl. She disgusted him. He doubted he’d be able to perform for her, even if she did get down on her knees and do the business.

Emmett sighed and shook his head, clearing his mind of these troubling thoughts. He needed to get over there and just satiate these desires, get them out of his system before they drove him to distraction.

Who knew what he’d end up doing to Valerie if he was forced to stay with her for much longer without doing what he needed to do.

Emmett climbed out of the car and made his way across to the house. He’d been here a few times and knew it well enough, although there was always a new girl or two for him to choose from whenever he visited. None of them stuck it for very long.

He didn’t blame them, not really. For many of them, he was old enough to be their dad, if not their grandad. It couldn’t be much fun for them, even if he did tip them well for their work. He appreciated their attention.

Emmett crossed the road without issue and without being recognised, which was always his biggest fear, and rang the doorbell. Within moments, a young woman appeared and opened the door, keeping it on the chain. She gave him a quick look and recognised him.

“Oh, hello again.” She closed the door, removed the chain, and opened it again. “Come in.”

“Sorry for showing up unannounced. I don’t know if you have space or…”

“We do. Come in. We have a few new girls since your last visit.” She led him through to a well-heated room where several young women, some of them looking like they were still teenagers, were sitting and talking between themselves. Most of them wore some kind of lingerie, silk robe, or nothing at all, chatting and sipping on drinks. An older woman sat close by, watching. Emmett recognised her as the owner. He’d spotted her at the recent town meeting, which was possibly where the desire to return here had come from.

The owner, Susan, gave him a quick smile and a nod. She’d probably already spoken to the police, and it seemed as though she’d not revealed that he was a regular of hers.

That alone would be incriminating enough because, if he was a regular at her brothel, the police could rightly assume he picked up the occasional prostitute as well. It would be a swift fall from grace from that point on.

His dalliances with street walkers might well be a guess on her part, but it wouldn’t be wrong.

“So,” the girl who let him in said, waving her hand to present the girls to him. “Who would you like to choose today?”

“Girls,” Susan barked from her seat at the table, her voice strong and commanding. “We have a guest.”

Instantly the demeanour and posture of the women in the room changed, from relaxed and slouching, to poised and alluring as they sat up, stopped talking, and smiled at him.

Emmett scanned the room, feeling like he was at an all-you-can-eat buffet serving his favourite food. As his eyes skipped from beaming face to sexy smoulder, he spotted a girl further in who seemed a little less comfortable, but there was something about her nervousness and vulnerability that piqued his interest. He found her coy glances endlessly seductive and instantly, desperately wanted to see more of her. He wanted those dusky eyes fixed on him while she did unspeakable things to him.

But there was something else about her too, something that just danced at the edges of his conscious thoughts. He strove to reach it and figure out what it was, and then suddenly, it came to him.

He recognised her.

“The dark-haired girl in the white lingerie,” he enquired, “what’s her name?”