The Barter System (37 page)

Ten minutes later, Ricardo
had Malina in his arms, kissing her possessively. 

Riya gave Greg a little
fist-bump.  She told him honestly, “You did a good thing here, Greg.  I’m very
impressed.” 

He leaned closer and Riya
realized his eyes were blue and green, kind of swirly.  “Thank you, and since I
had some ulterior motives, don’t make me out to be too heroic.  Tell me you’re
coming home with me tonight, Riya.  You can still back out, I won’t be an ass
about it.”

“Greg, I find I’m not nearly
as opposed to the idea as I should be.”  She lightly pecked his lips then made
him dance with her. 

Much later, Ricardo and
Malina joined everyone else and he had his arm around her waist.  Riya smiled
at Malina and was surprised when the smaller woman held out her hand.  She
shook it, of course.  Ricardo leaned in to kiss her cheek and she said, “I’m
going to go.  Take care and invite me to the second wedding.”

He stopped her, his hand on
her forearm, “Riya, where are you going?”  Then he noticed Greg waiting for her
and gritted his teeth, pulling her far enough away so no one could overhear
them.  “You are not
doing
this, Riya.  Was that the price for him to
back off?  Oh
hell
no.”

Keeping her voice low and
her expression serene, she said, “Ricardo, listen to me carefully, don’t do
this.  I made a decision to enlist his help, but it isn’t horrifying or
anything.  I don’t find him hideous, and he’s actually very nice.  Look at me,
Ric.  Look at me, baby.  Hey!  Don’t go stereotypical Hispanic male on me now,
Ricardo.  I’m a big girl.  And I miss you already so I’m going to need a body
for a little comfort.  Got it?  You are going to be with your wife…remember? 
Your
wife
?  Who is watching this whole thing right now?  Ricardo, are we
good…?  I don’t want you to hate me, baby.”

He pulled her in a gripping
hug.  “I’m calling you in twenty-four hours and you better be safe and at a
hotel, got it?  I will pick you up and take you to the airport like I
promised.  Put your pretty butt on a plane for Manhattan.  I want to kiss you
goodbye so fucking bad.  Go, quick, this is harder than I thought it would
be.”  And they went back to Greg and Malina who were also talking quietly. 

Malina was looking at Riya
strangely.  Everyone said their odd goodbyes and Riya grabbed her bags from
Ric’s Jeep, before climbing into Greg’s Mustang.  They tore off down the street
and she didn’t give in to her urge to look back.

And that was how Riya had
her first non-orchestrated sex since her project started. 

Greg was actually a lot of
fun.  He took her for a fantastic dinner and they walked the beach to watch the
moon rise.  When they got back to his beach house he fucked her several times –
well – a pleasant surprise that she admitted to him.  It made him laugh. 

The next morning they surfed
behind his house and went for a run.  More playtime in his kitchen then she
showered and he took her to her hotel when she declined his offer to stay with
him while she was in town. 

“Greg, I have enough
insanity in my life right now.  Believe me when I tell you one more man
complicating my life might be the straw that sends me into hysterics requiring
medication.  You don’t understand what I mean so you’re going to have to trust
me on that.  Thank you, for being so much better about everything than I
originally thought you’d be.  By the way, you have the most beautiful eyes. 
They keep distracting me.”  She leaned in and kissed him hard. 

Then she grabbed her stuff
and headed into the hotel.

She worked all day in her
room and ordered food sent up to her room.  There was a three hour conversation
with Tawny who was more concerned after what had happened with Lucas.  Her mind
was put at ease by the time they hung up. 

The email from her next destination
was in her mailbox.  She read it, not knowing if she was more excited or more
nervous than she’d been with any of her other subjects.

Hello, Riya:

Looking forward to finally meeting you
in person.  Please advise where we should send the car.  Don’t be nervous!  By
the way, since there are two of us, do we get you for two weeks?  

Max & Micah

SURVEY ONE

Subject Name(s):  Max & Micah

Subject Age(s):  34 & 34

Subject Career(s):  Stockbroker & Investment
Banker

Marital Status:  Single & Single     

Children (Y/N):  N & N

Annual Income(s):  $1M plus & $1M
plus

Location:  Manhattan  & Manhattan

What was your primary motivation for
applying to this study?

Max:    Insane curiosity.

Micah: Intense attraction.      

What do you hope to gain by your participation?

Max:    Satisfaction of my curiosity.

Micah: Pleasure and fun, for starters. 

What is one thing you wish the
investigator to know about you?

Max:    Our lifestyle isn’t what you
think.      

Micah: We’ll take good care of you,
Riya.

Do you have any negative assumptions
regarding this study?

Max:    Getting attached to you.

Micah: And not having YOU attached to
us. 

What is your most secret sexual fantasy? 

Max:    Finding the perfect woman

Micah: To complete our life.

Have you ever told anyone else about
this fantasy?        

Max:    I doubt it’s truly uncommon.

Micah: I tell everyone!

Have you attempted to realize this
fantasy in your daily life?

Max:    No, never anyone truly worthy.          

Micah: No, still looking but hopeful.

How have you utilized the Internet in your
sexual life? 

Max:    Reality is so much more…tactile.

Micah: The Internet can’t compare.  Not
even close.

Whoa.
  Riya couldn’t think…again.  Her mind
went blank as it always did when she communicated with these two subjects.  So
many questions and hardly any of them were scientific.  Most could be chalked
up to pure sexual curiosity. 

Sending the confirmation of her
arrival before she could chicken out, Riya sat back and stared into space. 
Could she truly wrap her mind around this situation? 

Were they gay?  She loved
gay men, especially beautiful ones.  She and Tawny ran with an entire posse to
local gay clubs in South Florida.  There was nothing like gay men for a woman’s
self-esteem.  If Max and Micah were gay, she’d have no problem with that but
what did they need her for? 

Then her mind went the next
logical place.  It was a familiar path she’d tread since reading their essay
and application and it never failed to make her body come alive with interest
and anticipation. 

What if they weren’t
gay? 

She’d only recently
experienced having more than one person in a sexual situation at one time with
Joshua and Jessica.  How to reconcile two obviously powerful men sharing one
woman?  Was that even possible outside of porn? 

She may have bitten off more
than she could handle with these subjects but this was the battle she’d fought
against herself since the day she’d decided to expand her number of subjects to
specifically include them. 

Riya’s need to know as well
as a deep attraction to both men was like a slow fire under her skin.  They
were incredibly attractive and she’d never lied to herself about her curiosity
or how curious she was. 

Having blocked them out of
her mind throughout the project just like the others, never allowing herself to
think of the next subject, the sensations about Micah and Max rushed back on
her with a vengeance.

She was such an utter mess
both sexually and emotionally at this point.  She’d likely never be normal
again after all the insanity of her project.  There was a strong chance she’d
suffer from nymphomania now. 

Then she laughed at herself;
talk about melodramatic. 

She gave Tawny another call
and they discussed possibilities.  She told Riya to not bother getting cold
feet now.  They talked for another hour and in the end, she decided to go with her
instincts.  They had served her well so far. 

The next morning she checked
out of the hotel and stepped into a beautiful day to see Ricardo waiting for
her.  He looked gorgeous leaning against the Jeep while he waited.  She
approached and gave him a shy kiss before climbing in to head to the airport. 
“Where’s Malina?” she asked him cautiously after he settled in his seat.

“She went to pack up her
stuff at Greg’s.”  As he pulled into traffic, he cleared his throat, “So.  How
were things?”

“Oh, Ricardo, you aren’t
concerned about your rep?  Baby, your rep is firmly in place.  Why are you
worried about this when you had Malina right where you wanted her after all
this time?  Angry face…okay, let me give you enough to calm you down, though I
never talk about my sexual partners.  Lord!”

He was giving her a tense
glare, “Greg was a kind and considerate lover.  I came each time, but I wasn’t
coming hard every fifteen minutes for like two hours like I did with you.  He
went down on me but not as well as you.  I went down on him and could take more
of him than I could you…yeah, I see you get what I’m saying.  He has a great
body, but not a stunning body.  Strong but not fierce.  Okay?  That enough for
me to get a smile?”  His grin was all teeth and she laughed.  “So male.  Damn,
Ricardo.  I wouldn’t ask
you
for details.”

Ric responded immediately, “Malina
is a kind and considerate lover.  I came each time we were together, but it
didn’t blow my fucking head off like it did with you.  She went down on me but
not as well as you.  I went down on her but she wasn’t as responsive as you
were…yeah, you get what I’m saying.  She has a great body, but not a stunning
body.  A good woman but not fierce.” 

He pulled into a parking
space at the airport.  They turned to look at one another and came together
hard, devouring one another’s mouths.  Riya shelved the guilt for just a little
while and enjoyed the taste of him one more time.

He touched his forehead to
hers and whispered, “All I ask is that God never let me say your name when I’m
with her, Riya.  I’ve wanted her for so long.  I pray I’ll want her like that
again…and soon.  I’m settling.  I know I’m settling because now I know there is
something better.  Someone more matched to my every need roaming around in the
world.  I don’t want to be unsatisfied.”

Riya hugged him.  He pulled
her over his lap and they just held one another for a long time.  Then she
leaned back to look at him, “Ric, you are a good man and you’re right, you’ve
wanted her for so long.  You never wanted to lose her in the first place.  Once
I’m gone, time and distance will fade what we shared so briefly and life for
you will go back to normal.” 

She kissed him one last time
and hugged him hard.  “Time to see me off, lover.”  He ran his hands over her
and nodded. 

After they checked her bag,
got her tickets printed, and he hugged and kissed her again and again, he
watched as she disappeared to her gate, blowing a last kiss to him as she
turned a corner and was gone.

Chapter
Seventeen – The Business Tycoons

First week of October…

Manhattan was one of Riya’s
favorite places in the world.  Both her mom and Maggie were from New York City
and they’d spent a lot of time here over the years.  When the plane landed, she
couldn’t wait to grab her bag and go.  She headed to baggage claim and
introduced herself to the driver sent to pick her up.