Consent (The Loan Shark Duet 2)

“Come, beautiful.” I release her nipples and grab her breasts in my palms, kneading the flesh as my own climax starts to build at the base of my spine. “Goddamn. Fuck.”

My load explodes like hot jets of lava. I bite back another curse and fall over her, trapping her body between my arms.

“Goddammit, Valentina.” I rest our foreheads together while I catch my breath.

By the time I feel more or less steady, she’s still lying back against the mirror, her muscles like mush.

“Don’t move.”

I turn on the shower and rinse us both, taking care to wash her gently. When she’s dry, I coat her genitals with a vaginal balm to alleviate any lingering burn and just to be sure her asshole, too.

Wiping my fingers on her inner thigh, I search her eyes. “How are you doing?”

Her smile is soft and sleepy. “Mm.”

I wish I could take her back to bed, but our first appointment will be here in thirty minutes. We don’t have time for more than a chaste kiss. “Get dressed and come down for breakfast. You need to eat. After breakfast, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

“Who?”

“Just do as I say.”

“I’ll go check on Charlie, first. It was his first night in his new room.”

“Let him sleep. He was up late with Rhett, watching movies.”

“This is new to him.”

“He’ll be fine.”

“I just––”

My palm lands on her naked backside. Smack. “Are you deliberately provoking me to spank your ass?”

For a crazy moment a new bout of lust flares in her eyes. It looks as if she may consider that forbidden spanking, but then she turns to brush her hair.

My phone buzzes on the nightstand with a message from Magda. Our appointment arrived early. Thank God Valentina doesn’t ask more questions. I have no idea how she’ll react to the man waiting for us downstairs.

7

Gabriel

By the time I get downstairs, Christopher van Wyk and Magda are conversing in the lounge. Magda introduces us. He’s a close friend, and this was her idea.

“I’m early,” he says, shaking my hand, “but I didn’t know how traffic would be from Pretoria.”

“Why don’t you join us in the dining room?” I offer. “We can talk over breakfast.”

Magda is in the middle of pouring coffee when Valentina comes down the stairs. Like a fool, I stop what I’m saying to stare at her through the open door. She’s crazily, inhumanely, angelically beautiful. Her hair has more volume, and her face has a pregnancy glow. Maybe some of it is the post-orgasm endorphins coursing through her blood, but the pearly quality of her smooth skin is something I’ve only seen with expecting mothers. The blue dress is fitted, showing off the roundness of her full breasts and stomach. There’s a spark in her eyes as she looks straight at me, a telltale sign of secrets, of moments in bathrooms only we share.

“You were saying?” Christopher urges.

“I–uh…”

Valentina saves me by stopping in the door.

I get to my feet. “Let me introduce you to my wife. This is Valentina. Valentina, meet Christopher van Wyk. He’s a hypnosis psychologist.”

Christopher comes around the table to shake her hand. “Please to meet you, Mrs. Louw.”

Magda tenses when Christopher attributes Valentina with our surname, but she plasters a smile on her face. “Christopher is a friend. I wanted you to meet him, Valentina.”

“Me?” Valentina takes the chair I hold for her.

“Since Charlie is now part of the family,” Magda says, “I want to look into all possible treatments.”

Valentina looks at me quickly, a question in her eyes.

“I didn’t have time to tell you.” The truth is I didn’t want to give her the opportunity to refuse.

“We’ve already tried everything,” she says politely.

“Not hypnoses, I’m sure,” Magda says.

“No, not hypnoses, but I’ve met with all the specialists in Johannesburg. Nothing can reverse the brain damage.”

“We’re not talking about repairing damage,” Christopher says, taking his seat again. “We’re talking about making sure he’s comfortable and happy.”

“I assure you, Charlie is as balanced and happy as he can be.”

“Hypnoses can help him be more autonomous.” Magda brings her cup to her lips. “He needs more stimulation and friends. There are wonderful institutions in Johannesburg that can provide that.”

Alarm flashes across her pretty features. “Gabriel, you said he could live here.”

“He can.” I cup her hand. “I only want you to consider all possibilities now that money is not an issue.”

“He needs me.” She glances at the people around the table like a trapped rabbit. “I’m his only family.”

“Shh.” I pull her chair closer to mine and put an arm around her shoulders. “I don’t want you to get upset. The decision remains in your hands.”

“You’ll let me decide?”

“Of course.”

Her tense shoulders relax a fraction. “What does the treatment entail?”

“A few sessions of hypnoses,” Christopher says, “during which Charlie will go into a state of deep relaxation. He’ll come out of the sessions feeling centered and at peace. I’ve used my technique in similar cases to help with insomnia, loss of appetite, speech problems, ticks, repetitive actions, involuntary cussing, anti-social behavior, and incoherent thoughts.”