The Huntress
Vera
Nine p.m.
“So, do I get to meet this new guy?” Saph asked, sitting on the sofa in the apartment we shared. An old episode of The Apprentice aired on the television screen in the background.
“Umm, no. It’s nothing serious.” I tucked my chin in and avoided eye contact, letting the loose hair fall on my face. “He rang me this morning, but it was more of a courtesy call after our date last week.”
“As long as he’s treating you well,” Saph replied, swirling her wine glass.
“Yes, Mom,” I replied sardonically, sipping my glass of red wine. It was a middle-of-the-range Merlot, perfect for a night-in on a Saturday evening. “Why aren’t you and Jules hanging out tonight?”
“He’s, umm, occupied.”
“Oh?”
“Uh, yeah. We decided to try an open relationship, and he’s seeing someone tonight,” Saph replied. I noticed the prickles of pain in her gem-like eyes and wondered how long their relationship would last if my brother continued sleeping with other people.
“Are you keeping your options open since Jules is seeing other people?” I asked her. I suspected he was with his mystery woman, who’d pay him for whatever tricks he performed for her.
“I’m open to all options,” Saph replied. “Vera, I hear your phone ringing from your room. It’s rung several times.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, I think someone wants you badly tonight. Could it be Mister X? Or Mister Y? Or the mysterious Mister Z?” Saph chuckled.
“Alright, hun. I’ll check who’s calling,” I chirped. Removing my butt from the sofa, I kissed Saph’s pretty forehead and strolled into my bedroom. I snatched the phone from my bed and saw three missed calls from Alistair Scott.
Alistair
Eleven p.m.
Vera, Vera. Where are you, sweetheart?
I drank my malt whiskey to pass the time as I lazed on the leather sofa at Paulo’s Bar.
My right foot had a life of its own, tapping to the jazzy music at the upmarket club.
Glancing at my reflection in the window, I saw a nervous man with taut cheeks.
I looked around and noticed two women, absolute dolls, rolling their hips and shoulders as they eyed me from top to toe.
No doubt, their eyes caught the shine of my Cartier Trinity bracelet, a symbol of men’s style and elegance, and, of course, my Rolex watch.
What happened to Vanessa? Well, let’s just say I cut dinner short and told my driver to take her home. Vanessa lied to me about her age. I thought she was twenty-one, but she didn’t have a legitimate ID card when I ordered wine. She had just turned eighteen, barely legal.
Fuck. I needed Vera.
I shook my head and crossed my right leg over my left, feeling anxiety pit against my stomach.
I sipped my whiskey to calm my nerves and indulged in the light-bodied flavor coating my mouth.
I was on the prowl for my lioness, who promised she’d meet me here at ten-thirty p.m. She was thirty minutes late if she planned to come at all.
I started scrolling through my work messages when a cool hand slipped through my unbuttoned shirt and rubbed my chest.
“Did you miss me?” Vera’s luscious voice purred in my ear. The softness of her caramel curls spilled on my shoulder and tickled my cheek. Taller than most women, she was fit as a fiddle with shapely legs which shimmered with a natural tan.
“Mmm, I missed you,” I murmured, feeling the wet stain of her scarlet lipstick on my cheekbone.
“Your breath smells like pussy washed down with whiskey.”
“Oh, fuck…” I started to panic as she sat by my side.
“Don’t worry. I’m not upset you tasted her. I’m disappointed you didn’t share.”
“Share?”
“Mmm,” she murmured, taking my glass and drinking the whiskey. “Delicious and sweet.”
“It’s the finest malt whiskey, sweetheart.”
“I wasn’t talking about the drink. What’s her name?”
“Vanessa,” I admitted, furrowing my eyebrows. “Look, Vera…”
“Alistair, I get it. Don’t worry, love. You’re not the only one who played tonight.” Vera rolled her head back and let out a low laugh.
“Is that why you’re late?” My eyes rounded in surprise.
“Mmm-hmm,” she replied. There it was. Vera’s grin of satisfaction.
Damn it, she was fresh and flushed from a recent orgasm. Her crimson, figure-hugging minidress was slightly damp; it could have been from the rain outside or her hot hookup. Yet, she didn’t carry the scent of another man. She smelled sweet and edible, like flowers in full bloom.
“Who was it?” I ran my fingers along Vera’s smoothly shaven and oiled legs, inching closer to what lay under the hem. I pinched her flesh, claiming her as mine, and she reciprocated by rubbing my inner thigh muscles.
“Her name is Holly, a gorgeous blonde I met at a work-related event recently. I ran into her on the way here and became rather distracted.”
“Well, Artemis, your arrow pierces my heart. It was never Eros who controlled the hearts of men and women, was it?” I rubbed my thumb in circular motions in between her legs, getting closer to her sex.
“Do you think I’m Artemis?” Vera continued massaging my thigh.
“You’re a goddess who likes to hunt. Wasn’t it the Athenians who worshipped her at the Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia?” I continued, erotically rubbing her smooth, moist skin.
“No, it was the Spartans who visited the site. The sanctuary was in Sparta,” Vera corrected me, cupping my jawline with her long fingers.
“The women who honored the cult were supposedly celibate, but they danced in a sexually tantalizing manner. The young men who praised the Greek goddess were whipped at the temple’s altar in Sparta,” she continued, licking her red lips. “Sounds kinky, doesn’t it?”
“I’m impressed.” I grinned, then tilted toward her to taste her lips.
“My brother is an archaeology professor at the state university. That’s how I know. I read some of his work,” the goddess said, breaking my kiss.
“Oh? I guess my private school education did not fully equip me with the privilege of that knowledge.” Lowering my eyes, I took in the sweetness of Vera’s soft lips and slid my tongue between them.
“You were one of those private school brats,” Vera teased, drawing back to trace her index finger around my lips.
“So were you,” I murmured.
“I had a scholarship,” she said, unbuttoning my shirt to reveal more chest than I would normally expose.
I squeezed her upper thigh, smiling smugly. “You’re still a naughty private schoolgirl.”
“Touché.” Vera’s lips parted again. I took the hook, exploring eagerly as I drank from her with drought-stricken thirst.
“Come here, baby.” I pulled Vera close to me, feeling the hotness of her bare vaginal lips. The seductress wore no panties. I was intoxicated, aching to fuck her on my bed. “My place?” I asked, pressing her heated entrance with my rough fingers.
“Oh, Alistair,” Vera moaned, pushing her breasts against my chest. My other hand aroused her nipples, barely covered by a thin piece of stretch fabric.
Damn, she wore no bra. The red dress was the only barrier between Vera’s hot body and my itching hands.
She was fucking gorgeous, with her mocha eyes and red lips.
“Would you like some meat tonight?” I whispered, nipping her earlobe with enticing kisses.
“Yes,” she breathed, rubbing my erection. “Damn, you’ve got quite a boner there, Scotty.”
“It wants you, Vera. Let me have you,” I murmured.
“Hmm, I don’t know.” The temptress winked. “You already had a meal earlier today.”
“Will you sleep with me?” My heart ran a rapid race, and my body ached to be inside her. I swear my balls would burst any second now.
“Another night won’t hurt.” Vera bit her lower lip, then licked it with her pink tongue.
Oh, the things she did with that wicked tongue.
I needed to bury myself inside the woman.