“I felt so bad after Race called me out for eating his food, and rightfully so, that I wanted to make it up to him now that I’m working. Starting in a small way, I brought us all coffee. Here’s yours, Race.” I handed him the cup, and he accepted with a smile.
“Beautiful. Thank you. Nothing like a little afternoon pick-me-up, and I hadn’t gotten around to making my own. This back issue is sidelining me from moving around too much.”
“Not a problem. Cort, here’s yours.” Careful to give him the one not brimming with vodka, I smiled at him as I raised my cup. “Cheers.”
The man sensed something was up; I could tell by his unsmiling face. “Thanks. Appreciate it. Here’s the paper you were reading. Do you still want it?”
I took a big gulp of the vodka-laced coffee. It was horrible but served its purpose.Vodka made everything better. “No, I’ve read enough.”
He gave me a strange look but folded up the newspaper and set it down. “Race asked if I would help him here during the day until he figures out what’s wrong with his back, and I said I would.” He took a sip of his coffee. “Would you want to help out too? It’s still only minimum wage, but two jobs are better than one, I figure.”
“Can you afford two people?” I directed my question to Race. “I don’t see enough sales that would cover both of our salaries,”
“I’m hoping it will only be a few days. Jody, who usually does stock, has been out with the flu for two weeks now, so it’s only been myself. And you might not believe it, but the readings bring in quite a bit of sales. Plus”—his eyes twinkled at me—“I own the building and get rent from the tenants who live above the store. I do okay.”
“Oh.” That information surprised me. The building had to be worth a few million, meaning Race wasn’t who I’d thought he was—a little nobody struggling worker. Once again, appearances had deceived me.
“So? What do you say? You want to work here with Cort? He’d do the register, and you can handle the stock.”
“Sure. Sounds good.” My head spun, and I sipped my coffee, feeling a bit sleepy. “I think I’m going to head back now and take a nap. Is that okay?” I needed to get off my feet and lie down. I drank down more of the coffee-vodka combination, already feeling its effects.
Cort handed me the keys. “Yeah. I’m gonna do some things here and be home in a few to take care of something.”
I took the keys from him and gave them both a little wave. Careful not to give in to all the alcohol running through my blood, I kept myself together until I got down the block to Cort’s apartment, where I promptly passed out on the sofa.
I cracked openan eye. My head ached, and my mouth tasted foul. Knowing that if I moved too quickly, I’d probably throw up, I rested a few moments before pulling myself to an upright position, then waited for the room to stop spinning. I had to get it together before going into work. I glanced at my wrist, then remembered I no longer had my Rolex. Old habits proved hard to break.
I heard Cort talking in his bedroom and gingerly turned my head. He’d left the door open, so it wasn’t as if I was eavesdropping. He must’ve thought I’d sleep through his conversation. Right now I needed to use the bathroom and brush my teeth.
After taking care of those two things, I stopped by Cort’s open door and peered inside to see Cort in his bed, stark naked except for a cowboy hat on his head. He wasn’t on the telephone; rather, he was talking to a camera set up on a tripod. I must’ve missed that the other night in the dark. Fascinated, I listened to him speak while he jerked off.
“How’re y’all doin’? Been thinking about what I’d do for you today. What’s your fantasy? I’d love you to drop me a line and tell me. I’ll pick some and do them for you, here in my bed. But right now? I’ve got the camera set on a close-up of my cock. Look how hard I am. How ready. Y’all do that. I wish you were here in bed with me. Sucking me. Licking me.”
I couldn’t listen anymore. It was too personal, too intense. Aside from that, I was getting so fucking horny listening, I knew I’d be whipping my dick out again and jerking off, and I couldn’t do that. Taking deep breaths, I backed away from his door, walked into the kitchen, turned on the faucet, and got a glass of water. I drank that one down and took another, then popped the three aspirin I’d taken from the medicine cabinet in the bathroom.
Feeling slightly more human, I returned to the sofa and saw the newspaper on the coffee table, turned to the article about Toby’s wedding. Somehow, Cort must’ve deduced that the article had something to do with my earlier freak-out. I couldn’t concentrate on the newspaper, not with the sounds coming from Cort’s bedroom. The bedsprings creaked; his moans grew more frequent, his language filthier.
God, I was so turned-on. I should have been ashamed of myself for listening in, but I couldn’t help it. I’d always had an active sex life, and now it’d been a year since I’d gotten laid. Jerking off didn’t do anything except give me physical release. Hearing Cort get himself off, knowing he was being watched…add that to another first for me. I’d heard of webcam sex workers, but would have never guessed the sweet-faced cowboy would be one of them.
His orgasm hit, as he gave a drawn-out moan of completion, and then silence. I closed my eyes, rubbed my aching hard-on, and wondered if I’d ever have the nerve to give in to my dreams. Cort had no idea how lucky he was to be able to be so free, living life on his own terms. No fear. No retribution. No shame. I rubbed my hard-on again.
“You heard me.”
I blinked and stared up at Cort, then realized how I must look with my hand on my dick. I quickly sat up, excuses filling my brain, but then decided,What the hell am I worried about? The man puts himself out there naked for who knows how many people to see.
“Yeah. I didn’t spy on you. I, uh, got up and needed to use the bathroom. Your door was wide open. Sorry.”
“Don’t matter to me none. I got nothing to be ashamed of.”
“I didn’t say you did.”
“Yeah,” Cort said, sitting in the chair across from me. “But you can’t look me in the eye, and you’re all red in the face. Are you embarrassed?”
Was I?
“I don’t know. Sex was never a topic discussed in my house. When I went away to boarding school, we’d jerk off to women in magazines and, eventually, we got old enough to go to town, where we’d throw enough money around that it was always easy to find someone to fuck. Even when I was working, it was always about keeping score, how many girls you could bang in a weekend. It never meant anything.” I didn’t bother telling him everything.
“That’s sad.”
