Janice Rheingold was a pampered woman. She had been born into a wealthy family, sent to the best schools and universities, and had travelled the world through her twenties. She was sophisticated as well as educated and spoke four languages. Janice had married Larry and produced the requisite son and daughter. Her city and country homes were both beautifully and comfortably decorated. She had exquisite taste in everything. Her friends thought that she was Martha Stewart without the chilly pretension as no one could have been more down to earth and compassionate. And there was that wicked sense of humour. Life was good. She had everything anyone could imaginably want, and yet she was unfulfilled and bored. There was something missing that she could not quite describe, but she knew what she felt. Maybe it was that everything seemed to be unfolding according to some predetermined blueprint of perfection. She wanted some mess, some chaos, some unpredictability.

Janice had spent the afternoon shopping and even the purchase of several pairs of shoes from David’s, the most upscale shoe store in Toronto, did not give her the usual buzz. She had crossed the street to Holt Renfrew and added to her summer wardrobe with a swath of linen and silk items in creams and soft colours which would be striking with her red hair and green eyes. She favoured understated clothes, Eileen Fisher for summer and designers like Jil Sander for the rest of the year.

Her car was parked nearby and she decided to put her purchases in the trunk before walking over to the Park Hyatt for a drink at the Roof Lounge and then heading home. Her children were at camp for the summer and her husband, Larry, was in London on business. London, Ontario, not London, England or she would have accompanied him. There was a certain freedom in not having to see to their needs tonight. Maybe she would even have dinner out on her own, rather than calling a friend to meet her on short notice. This was not something she did often, but she was not intimidated by dining alone.

The sun was still warm as she strode along Bloor Street to the hotel. She could watch the sky change from pink and periwinkle to deep indigo as she sipped her drink and ponder what would fate bring to her. Janice ordered some mineral water to gulp down and slake her thirst and then a vodka and tonic with lime. There were bar snacks to nibble as she waited for her drinks and scanned the room. It seemed to be the usual mix of visiting business people and locals in for a drink at the end of their day. This bar attracted media types as well and she recognized one of the hosts of a local morning television program. She was not unaware that she herself had caught the attention more than one man. There was one in particular who was in conversation with two others, but who seemed to be unable to stop himself from glancing her way repeatedly.

He was in his mid-forties she thought, and seemed to have an ease that comes from maturity and experience. She admitted to herself that she found him attractive and wondered what would happen if she responded by meeting his glance with hers. She uncrossed her legs and recrossed them the opposite way. Shades of “Basic Instinct” she thought to herself, even if she was wearing panties. Janice smiled to herself and looked up to find his gaze meeting hers. There was a flash of recognition and understanding in that moment that she had not expected. He said something to his friends and got up to come to her table.

“You are almost finished your drink,” he said. “May I buy you another?”

Janice nodded and asked him to sit down. He thanked her and signaled to the waiter to bring them another round. Then there was that awkward moment when strangers meet.

“Hi. I’m Jack. I’m here from New York for the week on business. I’ve not visited here before but so far I like Toronto.”

Now Janice had to respond, and surprising herself she fabricated a persona in that moment. She wanted to invent someone new. “I’m Janice. I’m a designer and live here in the city,” she said.

She decided that she would not add more personal information. No mention of family would be made. They chatted briefly about innocuous things but the subtext of what was going on was completely at odds with the calm surface. He was her type: dark, handsome, smart and funny with the hint of wry cynicism of many New Yorkers. She supposed that she was his type given that he had chosen her. Now their conversation would tell whether they meshed. They talked about travel, their mutual interest in current and classic movies, and their shared resistance to e-readers as they maintained their need to hold actual books as they read. It was fun trading thoughts and insights on everything from Woody Allen to American politics.

“I have to say that I feel conflicted about Woody Allen. I usually like his films but cannot seem to forget the scandal surrounding him and his current wife,” Janice said.

“For someone who has been in therapy for more than thirty years, his saying that the heart wants what the heart wants seemed inadequate, “ said Jack. “I do have to confess that as a New Yorker I think that he captures the essence of the city and all of us who live there in the films set there. His cinematography is a valentine to the city. There is a special kind of neurosis and competition that is very New York, I think and he shows us that with his characters.”

“If I were to live anywhere in the States in would be there, I think. Or perhaps San Francisco. I have been to other cities like Boston and Chicago, but those are the two that I like best,” Janice said. She felt his warm hand brushing hers as they talked.

There was a definite sexual tension that rose exponentially every time one of them touched the other as they spoke. Even brief contact of Jack’s hand on hers sent an electric charge through her and his hand was now casually draped over hers as he talked. He looked directly at her, but seemed to be taking all of her in. She realized that he could see the swell of her breasts and the lace edge of her bra as her loosely fitting linen shirt draped away from her, its first three buttons undone.

Then Jack did something shocking. He took her hand in his and guided it under the table onto his crotch so she could feel his arousal. “I think we both know what we are doing here,” Jack said softly.

Her first reaction was to ask what he took her for, but he had just told her. He thought that she was a high class escort. She could play that game.

He had taken his hand away but hers remained there. She looked at him with a small smile and felt the length of his cock constrained by his trousers, up and down and then rubbing his cockhead.

“I think that you had best come to my suite before it is impossible for me to leave the table without embarrassing myself, Janice,“ he said, his voice sounding more raspy than it had. “I suppose we should agree on business first,” Jack said. “Will a two thousand cover your spending the whole evening with me? I have the cash.”

This was one of those moments when you make a decision and nothing is the same ever again. Janice’s mind was racing with that realization. It was impulsive and could have lasting consequences, but she wanted to be uninhibited and spontaneous, to break away from the comfortable convention of her life. She was aware that this could be dangerous, but she felt compelled to go along with him, even if it was reckless. It was exciting beyond anything had been for a very long time.

Janice nodded and said, “That will do, yes.” She was trying to seem calm and businesslike, but that was anything but true. Her heart was pounding as she rose and they left the bar. Jack’s companions watched as she left with him.

Jack led her to the elevator and kissed her deeply on their way down. His mouth was warm on hers and she could feel his strength. The kiss lasted as long as they had breath and was followed by another one. There was a beep as the doors opened on his floor and he let go of her, just taking her hand again as they went down the hall to his suite.

Janice followed him as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Her senses were heightened with the adrenaline produced by the hint of danger and the unknown. He opened the door and allowed her to enter first. He double locked it and turned to her while throwing off his suit jacket. He raised her arms above her head and held them on the wall as he pinned her there with his body and kissed her deeply. Then they both began unbuttoning each other’s shirt buttons clumsily with their haste. She could feel the warmth of his skin on hers as he continued kissing her, all around her mouth, her neck, and her shoulders. Her hands were all over his torso, caressing and squeezing. He gasped as she pinched his nipple.

Jack moved back a little so that he could bend to kiss the swell of her breasts.

He cupped them in the flimsy lace and lifted them to his mouth, gently biting her nipples, then reached behind her to unhook her bra. They each undid their trousers and allowed them to fall to the floor, pushing underwear down and stepping out of it. Janice felt the strength of his erection and massaged his balls heavy with sperm to fill her. There was a bead of it on the circumcised head of his penis and she made circles with her thumb there causing him to moan. He led her as they walked in tandem to the bed where he pushed her down.

“I am not going to take my time,” he warned, “I wanted to fuck you senseless from the moment I saw you across the bar. Slow and easy can wait for later.”

“I want to make you happy,” Janice said, playing her part. Inwardly she thought that there would not have to be too much acting. A maelstrom of fear, excitement, desire, and longing overwhelmed her. She wanted this as much as he did.

He pulled her to the edge of the bed positioning her legs on his shoulders. She felt his fingers playing between her labia, arousing her more and ensuring that she was wet for him, then delving into her, moving there as if to tease her until they were replaced by his penis. He lapped at her and tasted how salty she was. It was her turn to moan, “Ohhhh. I am ready for you, Jack.”

That was all he needed to hear. He positioned himself and plunged deep into her in a single thrust. She raised herself to meet him and allow even more penetration. Their hips moved in unison as he hit home time after time, pushing her to orgasm before allowing himself to let go. He felt her contractions and her breath quickening as he edged closer to climax. He filled her as she throbbed around him, pulling him deeper, draining him. She was lost in sensation, but aware of how different this was from the sex of a long term marriage even as it was happening. God help her, she liked it, more than liked it. Neither had uttered a word as there was another more primal communication going on.

Jack carefully released himself from inside her. He lifted Janice from the edge of the bed and placed her in the middle and then climbed in beside her. “You are very good at what you do,” he said. “This feels real.”

Janice was unsure what was appropriate and just said, “I try.” She was surprised at herself and her response to this man. Of course it was exciting because it was new and unknown, but she had not held back in any way with this man who was a stranger to her. Was this what it was like to be a pro? She imagined not. Someone who did this for money would not allow it. A piece would be held back to maintain control. Control was not important to Janice this evening. In fact she realized that it was the very abandon of making love with Jack that was that all she craved.

Jack caressed and fondled her again. His kisses began with her eyes and moved slowly down her body, his lips touching every part of her down to her ankles and toes. She reached out to him as he worked his way back up again and pulled him to her mouth. His cock was in her hand and she pulled its length as she inserted a finger into him from behind. He reacted immediately and she felt him grow and stiffen further in her hand. He busied himself playing with her, teasing her clitoris and watching her writhe under him as he stimulated her more and more.

They were both ready again. Janice quickly pushed him down and took him into her mouth, licking and sucking up and down, her tongue making circles around his cockhead. He groaned with pleasure. Then she straddled him. She watched his face as she rubbed this cockhead between her labia, lubricating it with her juices. She raised herself and taunted him with her heat, allowing him to barely touch her, and finally when he was obviously being driven crazy with frustration she lowered herself and took him all in. She rode him but kept him on the brink of orgasm.

“Not yet,” she told him. “Get behind me now.” She was on her hands and knees, her round behind displayed invitingly. He did as instructed and held onto her as he entered her. Each stroke buried his cock farther inside and she began to tremble signalling her release. He was awash with hot, viscous liquid from the core of her and felt her pulsating around him. They came together in one last earthshaking spasm as he emptied himself, spurt after spurt of semen until he was spent. They collapsed on the bed beside each other, breathless and hearts pounding.

“I think I will call room service for some champagne. We both need to be hydrated and we haven’t had any dinner. Since I’m paying for the evening, I’d like us to eat together. It’s not just about sex for me. We can have room service or go to any restaurant you like. I really like talking to you. This is not the usual experience. Is that okay with you, Janice?”

Janice had caught her breath enough to speak and gathered her thoughts. She had already had sex with Jack, so why not eat with him too? As long as it was somewhere that she was unlikely to meet anyone she knew. ‘I think I’d like to shower and go out after we have some champagne,” she replied. “I’ll shower first as it will take me longer to get ready with redoing my makeup.”

She went to the bathroom and had a shower, washing away the vestiges of sex and replacing them with lemon verbena from the scented soap. Janice was confused. She expected to feel guilty or upset or at least conflicted. Instead she had somehow filed this experience away in a compartment separate from her life. She realized that she was still high on adrenaline not just from sexual release, but also from the risktaking. Her commitment had been for the evening and if he wanted to take her to dinner, she would go. She wrapped herself in one of the terry robes hanging behind the bathroom door and went back to the bedroom to dress and make herself presentable.

The champagne had arrived while she was in the shower and Jack was pouring it. He held a flute out for her and said, “I will be coming here often and to quote one of our favourite classic movies, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship. I would like to toast to that.”

Janice clinked her glass to his and sipped the cold, dry champagne. It was the perfect thing to drink now. All she could manage as a toast was “Cheers.” She dressed while he was in the shower, reapplied her makeup and brushed her hair into some semblance of style that did not signal bedhead. She poured herself another glass of champagne as she waited for Jack and looked out the window at the velvety night sky punctuated with bright stars. When she turned around she noticed the money on the desk, but did not touch it.

Jack came back and put clean clothes on. “Ready?” he asked. “What kind of food do you want? Italian, French, Thai, Japanese, or something else?”

Before she could answer, he noticed the money was untouched. He had expected her to take it while he was in the shower. “I think you’ve forgotten something. You don’t have to wait until later to take it.”

“I think I’d like to have some red meat. I feel like I need protein after what we did. And there is something I want to tell you before we go out to eat.“

“What is it? Have I done something wrong?”

“Nothing at all. But you have misunderstood something, something important. I wanted to be with you. I don’t do this professionally. I am just an ordinary woman. I did not mean to mislead you, but what happened between us was very quick because you had misconstrued the situation, and I found it very exciting. It was a kind of escape, a role play for me. I have never, ever done anything like this. Except I could not maintain what I imagine is a professional detachment. I really enjoyed myself with you.”

Janice waited for Jack to say something, hoping he would not be angry. Instead he burst out laughing.

“Now I understand why this was so different. We connected and talked to each other. You were present in bed, not just going through the motions and faking the appropriate responses. I felt that you were really with me. I occasionally avail myself of call girls when I am away on business, but I have never met anyone like you. I should have known. I am really sorry.”

“No, I am the one who should apologize,” Janice said. “I’m relieved that you find this funny. Just to be clear, I still want you to take me to dinner.“

“Of course I will. Happily. And now we can order a very expensive bottle of wine or two. You can tell me who you are over dinner, or not. Whatever you prefer. I want you to know that I will tell you who I am and give you my business card in the hope that you will let me see you again, even if it is not a professional relationship.”

“We’ll see,” said Janice, “We’ll see if the stars align for us again. Let’s go. I’m hungry.” She was ravenous, but her appetite for something different had been sated. This evening had been anything but boring.