We had arrived at the Ascot Racecourse a couple of minutes earlier. Still in the car, Kyle was waiting for me to apply more makeup and put on my fascinator; it was a pale pink part-flower part-feather headwear that I adored and was excited to wear for this occasion.
“This is not too much, is it?” I asked Kyle as I dabbled a bit of red tint on my lips, giving them a bit more lush.
“I believe you look beautiful.” His compliment made me grin, and I kept my makeup in its place. I bet he was relieved I was finally satisfied with how I looked and that we could still make it in time for the race. I looked at Kyle and gestured that we should go.
Kyle was handsome in his slim gray morning suit, waistcoat, tie, and all the elegance one could see in a man.
“Don’t forget your top hat.&r
I had to see Sienna this evening. The thought filled me with joy. Finally, she was back in London. She was back to me. It had been years, and the idea of seeing her again filled me with joy. I could barely keep my cool, but I did hide it well—at least I thought I did. She was even more beautiful than I remembered. Sienna was gorgeous on that Friday night party at Cynthia’s and more so at our dinner, and even more stunning still when she huskily said my name as we made love—if I could call it that. I wanted to believe it was more than just rough mating as a result of too much alcohol. I wanted to believe that it was more than simply that—for her. Because for me, our time together meant so much. I hoped she could give me another chance. We ended our relationship years ago because of distance, and if she chose to stay in Britain, we might probably still be together. I could be the one that made her happy. And since she was back, I could ask her for
Cameron was in disbelief. I saw the shock on his face as I made my way to a quiet space outside of the restaurant. I wasn’t anticipated going back to see his disappointment again. But our meal hadn’t even arrived yet when all this happened.I saw hope in his eyes. The hope that we might get back together. I saw it the moment I walked in the door. I saw it, and I heard it. All those compliments were completely out of character, and that was not the Cameron I knew. He was expecting something, and that something was us being ‘us’ again. I was certain of this. Although our conversation was pleasant enough, I would soon need to ensure that we were on the same page regarding this relationship. I was a bit surprised that Kyle was right after all. How did the man know? Or was I so dumb not to realize what Cameron might feel? It was unimaginative and shortsighted of me to think that he might consider our casual hookup to be just that—just ca
New York, USA. The time was 2 PM, and the woman that I was waiting for was one hour late. She was never on time since the moment I could remember. Unless the events are extremely important, like meeting the President or some senator or other billionaires, Ophelia Stewards was never on time, especially not when meeting her own daughter. I knew this well. She had been consistent, and that was why I brought a laptop to work and waited at this small café near Central Park. I flew to New York once a month for business, and I had to meet her. She insisted on that. Despite always being late, my mother was a good company. Ivy league educated, speaking five languages, impeccable manners, stylist beyond words, and inherited massive wealth from my grandfather, a real-estate tycoon, as his favorite daughter. She was a socialite and a savvy businesswoman, and other than being my mother, she was
Palo Alto, USA After seeing my mother that day, that evening, I called to break up with the woman I had slept with. She didn’t take it well; she was crying and making a fuss. She threatened to tell Sienna, but she was silent once I told her that Sienna already knew. Apparently, the woman had this illusion about me leaving Sienna for her. What a pile of rubbish thought. No one could replace Sienna; not at work, not in bed, not in my life. I loved her, and especially with this ‘arrangement’ we had with our relationship, it was heaven ringing in my ears. I didn’t know why she brought into the idea or why she chose this instead of severely punishing me somehow or putting a break on our relationship altogether. She told me that her best friend, Nora was in an open relationship with her boyfriend, and they were happy. So, that was her inspiration. I knew a few friends tha
It was an early morning, 6 AM to be exact. The sun hadn’t even risen, and the cold was all I felt. I came to Jubilee Park a few times a week to just do some contemplation. I had coffee in a travel mug in hand. I wanted to have some time to think about everything that had been going on. Now I had meetings almost all day, every day, and life was moving so fast that I couldn’t comprehend the changes. Cameron was not as angry. He was not as angry as I assumed he would be. It was my fault in assuming wrongly about him—both about thinking he knew about Sophia and that he didn’t want more from me other than something casual or being friends. He asked me out on a date. When I told him I didn’t have much time to spare, he asked to join me on my evening run at Hyde Park after I told him I started to go back to ex
“I thought you didn’t mind that I pick you up at the office,” Cameron complained as soon as I met him at one of the Hyde Park entrances. “I had a second thought. Your office is close to Hyde Park, and it didn’t take me long to travel via tube, so I see that it was faster and more efficient for us to meet here.” I lied. In truth, my second thought was I didn’t want to be too dependent on him. I didn’t want to be that kind of girl that he picked up from work and pampered like a little princess. It felt weird. “It doesn’t take that much time. I finished work earlier than you. I could have picked you up.” He still insisted. “Maybe next time.” It was a small matter, so I cut him off. Cameron was uncharacteristicall
When I got there, Steven was more than a little tipsy. I met him at his favorite club in Soho. I met him at a bar where he was sipping a martini. I could see under the dim light that his face was visibly red. “How many glasses did he have?” I asked the bartender, and he showed me three fingers and went back to work. Oh, Steven, and I knew for a fact that he couldn’t drink that much. He was out after two the last time we hung out. “One Espresso Martini for me, please.” I had a need to be alert enough and intoxicated enough for tonight. Steven recognized that I had arrived and hugged me. He tried to speak over the music to my ears. “He kept asking me for favors and blaming me for not helping him in the meeting today. So, I have enough!” We cheered our glasses for that and drank some more.
I didn’t remember much that night. But I knew for a fact that the cab ride was quick because Xavier said we should go to his place instead of mine, which was probably over half an hour away. He lived closer to Soho, and I enjoyed him speaking something dirty into my ears while we were in the car. He knew his words that made me wet. We ignored the cab driver’s judgmental gaze. It was not like we would meet him again. Life was too short to refrain and be proper on a night like this, a night when everything seemed to exist only in the moments. And I always take that one of Oscar Wild’s quotes seriously, the one he wrote that life is a moment, and one should make it always burn with the hardest flame. I have foregone my sensibility a long time ago with that thought. I barely knew him, and I understood that tonight could end in endless possibilities, but I sen
Yvonne described her relationship with Joseph as an addiction, and I didn’t know if I could use the same word with my feeling about Xavier. As I lay here on his bed and let him pound into me, I didn’t know if I could call it an addiction. I screamed his name over and over. I scratched his back as he was more rough and forceful, and I welcomed every stroke with my legs spread wider. He was different. And sex with him made me forget wanting to have sex with anyone else. Cameron stopped texting for days anyway, and I didn’t even care to text back. My mind kept thinking about Xavier, and it was his bed I had slept on these past nights. We were all over each other, and I couldn’t get enough of him. I found him so desirable with his college hoodie and jeans. And so, every day after work, I came here to his room, stripped nak
I didn’t expect to talk about Joseph to Sienna. He was my past, my presence, and hopefully, my future. It was too difficult to open up talking about this to anyone. People were judgmental, and I didn’t like anyone to step in to talk about my business. But this was Sienna. And she talked about her trouble first. I didn’t expect her to talk about her life to this depth, either. But again, we switched from tea to Chardonnay for quite a while already, and that definitely influenced her speech.First, she talked about her difficulty with her long-distance relationship, then she revealed her girlfriend’s infidelity, then this idea of an open relationship. I understood the concept well and simply nodded through this whole affair. Well, if it worked for her and her relationship, then I guessed it worked. What made me raise my eyebrows was her renewed relationship with Cameron. And what made me drink a whole glass of wine in one gulp without a pro
I followed the address Yvonne sent and stood in front of another wealthy area of London, the beautiful area no other than Mayfair. I chose the afternoon slot and knowing full well I only got four hours with her. That was quite generous, actually. We didn’t hang out that much since college. And I wasn’t sure when I emailed her that she wanted to hang out with me anymore. But maybe she realized something like I did at this age that real friends that you can trust are difficult to find. I pressed the bell and waited. It didn’t take long for the white wooden door to open. Yvonne greeted me with a bright smile. Her signature long red hair was vibrant under the rare afternoon sunlight. “Hello! Long time no see, Sienna! I’ve missed you!” She rushed to hug me, and I smiled at her warmth. Yvonne was alw
Sienna had not text me back all afternoon. I didn’t mind as much. Well, I thought I didn’t mind, but the thought of what she was doing kept occupying my mind. She hadn’t told me when she was free this week to go for a run, so we hadn’t made anymore arrangement. Maybe, I could remind her of that.I knew way too well that this was a rare second chance to get back with her again. It wasn’t an ideal situation that I would have wanted for us, but still, a slim chance is better than no chance at all. I met Ernie for a walk along the River Thames earlier, and that bothered me more. My little brother called to ask for more money again, so I asked him to meet me in person and explain what was really happening. He must be desperate because this time, he dragged himself out of bed in the early morning to walk and talk with me arou
Xavier did invite me to dinner. And we were meant to go to dinner at a small cozy restaurant near his place. We were supposed to do that. But I stopped by his place for a casual talk, and suddenly that dinner was completely forgotten. “Ahh…oh gosh…yes…yes. Just like that…hmm…” I gasped for air and more air when his tongue played with my sensitive part. I couldn’t think of anything else. All I could feel was him. His hand on my breast and his lips stimulated my senses. I was so wet for this man. As soon as I entered the door, we were all over each other. He kissed me as a greeting at first, but those eyes communicated something more, and it was me who grabbed his face and kissed him again. That time was longer and more passionate. I missed the taste of him. Like patrol on fire, our passion erupt
I was messed up. Really, I was truly messed up. I was on the phone with Sophia the morning before I had to go out on a date with Xavier. I still texted Cameron from time to time. And I couldn’t put my foot down on which direction I should dictate my personal life to be—it felt all over the place. Last night with Kyle, we ended up sitting down over a few drinks and discussed precisely this topic of contention—should there be limits to sexual liberation in an open relationship? I never joined any debate club, but I did sit through Cambridge Union debates multiple times. I even watched their old debates to make sense of things. I remembered that one debate with the infamous porn star Anabel Chong coming to the Union and defending the freedom of sex after she filmed this one project with 251 men within 10 hours, effectively breaking the record that year that that adult movie came out. I was half horrified and fascinated. To be honest, I couldn’t fat
“So, you got yourself a new booty call boy,” Kyle said with a clear sign of boredom in his voice. It was a mixture of disdain for my expected shenanigan and brotherly concern. He was once again dressed in a perfect three-piece suit. I always thought that he wore grey well. Kyle had always had impeccable taste. I still remember visiting his dorm room and finding an additional closet full of suits—arranged by colors. We didn’t interfere much with our love life or sex life for that matter. He respected my privacy and vice versa. And anything I told him was kept in secrecy. I trusted him more than I trusted the bank. I told him everything. And he was brutally honest in everything he told me. And this time should be no different…“Well, it was just a one-night stand…” I trailed off.“For now… I bet you have plans to meet again. With that description, you just told me. I believe an
I looked out into the gloomy gray London sky. It rained a little, as always. I thought back to that night with Xavier, a stranger. He gave me his number, but I hadn’t called him back. My phone just lay there on the table, and I considered texting him, but what should I say? How can I text a man after a night like that? Let’s have breakfast together again? Oh, breakfast. That man made an amazing breakfast the other morning. He was a complete gentleman from the start until I closed his apartment door and went back to my place to get changed for work. Every muscle in my lower body was still sore. It was something to be expected after that sort of heavy exercise. Should I text him now or wait for a few more days?I didn’t want to be that needy girl, and it had been only a couple of days after that night. And he mentioned that he w
I finished my morning exercise at around 7 AM. Running around Hyde Park was a piece of work. But it was the exercise I direly needed as my schedule was occupied all day wrong. Cynthia will wake up soon. She woke up around 8 AM, and it was my job to buy my princess her morning black coffee. In this one-hour gap, I would take this time to reflect and think about the plan for the day ahead. The weather was too cold for my comfort, but the recent exercise warmed me up. Soon the sun would rise, the night was getting longer this time of the year when we were reaching the end of Autumn, and the morning exercise was getting more difficult as I fought with myself inside my head every morning before getting out of bed. Looking at the schedule on my phone, I had to see Cynthia the whole morning, then a lunch meeting with other investors to decide how we should approach the new startup pitching this a