Inspired by Night: - a sexy new age romance

by L E May

Olivia Jones: I don’t see what could be fun in a gym.

  Chris Knight: That’s because you haven’t been to the gym with me!

  Olivia Jones: I imagine being bossed around by someone, making you do ten more reps, would be the complete opposite of fun.

  Chris Knight: Not if he gives you a nice reward afterwards .

  Olivia Jones: Cake?

  Chris Knight: No not cake. So innocent, Miss Jones. Lol.

  My cheeks flushed as the penny dropped. Does he have sex with his clients?

  Olivia Jones: Gross. At the gym?

  Chris Knight: That depends how desperate they are to fuck me I guess. Sometimes in the locker room, the shower, the car park. Sometimes I drive them home.

  Olivia Jones: Is that ethical?

  Chris Knight: Haha! I’m in the business of making women feel good about themselves and their body. If fucking them improves their self-confidence and body image, I see that as an extension of my job.

  Olivia Jones: *Rolls eyes* Of course, you do it for them. How very selfless of you. I bet you don’t fuck the fat ugly ones though?

  Chris Knight: The fat ones don’t come on to me – at least, not until they are thin.

  Olivia Jones: Not that you would notice.

  Chris Knight: Harsh, Miss Jones. I think you have a low opinion of me. I’m really not so bad. I’m a grown up and so are they. They take their newfound body confidence and explore their sexuality. They road test their attractiveness by flirting with me. And I comply. I’m only human after all. I’m training to be a lawyer and I’m working to pay for it. I don’t have time for a girlfriend, but I’m a hot-blooded male with needs. I’m not hurting anyone.

  I snorted. I wondered how many hearts he’d broken. Thankfully, we would never meet so it didn’t matter. I frowned at the thought that crossed my mind wondering if I would ever meet him. I couldn’t explain why I felt a pull towards him. He disgusted me mostly, always talking about sex so openly and yet it excited me. Sex was a natural thing, but it had never come naturally to me.

  Olivia Jones: Well, I hope you’re not expecting the same kind of recompense for helping me.

  Chris Knight: Of course not. Steven would be very upset with me for one thing and for another, you’re at a very safe distance from me and my predatory ways. I take it that’s what you think of me anyway?

  Olivia Jones: Is that not the case?

  Chris Knight: *Sigh* no, Liv, it’s not. They come after me. Anyway back to the point. Have you road tested your new toy yet? ;-)

  Olivia Jones: No I have not!

  Chris Knight: Would you like me to explain how to use it?

  Olivia Jones: Absolutely not. I have no intention of even getting it out of the box.

  Chris Knight: Oh, Liv, you’re missing out. Trust me, you’ll love it. Seriously, what’s the worst that could happen – your orgasm is no better than before? But it’s more likely to be a hundred times better.

  Olivia Jones: My orgasm is none of your business.

  Chris Knight: OK, Liv, I understand you’re not comfortable talking about sex. But you should be. It’s not a bad thing. You’re just a little repressed is all.

  I wanted to argue, but I couldn’t. He was right. I was completely repressed. I grew up with very religious parents who didn’t believe in sex before marriage. The shame I felt whenever I thought about sex stems from that. Every time I had sex in the past, it was tainted by the disappointment my folks would feel if they knew I was fornicating.

  Olivia Jones: Never thought of it like that before, but you’re right. Strict upbringing, I guess. Even though my folks have passed on, I’m still influenced by them.

  Chris Knight: Parents can fuck us up! But we all reach an age, Liv, when we realise that we are capable of our own thoughts and beliefs, and we don’t have to follow those of our parents. In this day and age, we don’t have to do as our parents did. We have access to technology and information. We can make our own choices.

  Olivia Jones: I know. That knowledge and technology is my life blood. But it’s hard to throw off the guilt that stems from disappointing your parents – even if they’re not around to see it .

  Chris Knight: Well, you have to try, otherwise you’ll never be truly happy; you’ll never reach your full potential in life if you hold back for the sake of others. Live your life, not the life they dreamed for you. On that note my dear, I have to go. Enjoy your lonely Friday night in. I look forward to receiving your food diary on Monday. I expect it to be hideously saturated in fat .

  Olivia Jones: Oh it is. I’ve been reassuringly bad with my food this week – making the most of my last suppers.

  Chris Knight: I can’t wait to whip you into shape, Miss Jones.

  Olivia Jones: Pervert.

  Chris Knight: ;-) x

  Chapter Eleven

  To: Chris Knight

  Sent: Monday August 10th 2009

  From: Olivia Jones

  Subject: Food Diary

  Hi Chris,

  Here goes …

  Height: 5ft 9

  Weight: 11st 3lb

  Monday

  Breakfast – two pieces of toast with butter.

  Lunch – ham and cheese panini

  Dinner – pepperoni pizza (takeaway)

  Six cups of tea with semi skinned milk

  Tuesday

  Breakfast – sausage toastie from the café.

  Lunch – chicken, mozzarella, and tomato baguette

  Dinner – chicken and mushroom Pot Noodle. Two custard doughnuts

  Six cups of tea

  Wednesday

  Breakfast – Crunchy Nut cornflakes

  Lunch – Chinese chicken salad roll

  Dinner – fish and chips (chippy)

  Six cups of tea

  Thursday

  Breakfast – Crunchy Nut cornflakes

  Lunch – chips and curry (chippy)

  Dinner – cheese sandwich from the garage

  Six cups of tea

  Three homemade cookies (Steven’s mum)

  Friday

  Breakfast – sausage and fried egg toasted sandwich

  Lunch – tuna melt panini

  Dinner – Chinese takeaway – chicken chow mein, spring rolls, prawn toast, crispy seaweed, spare ribs, prawn crackers

  Four cups of tea

  Three beers

  Saturday

  Brunch – bacon, sausage, mushrooms, two eggs scrambled, tomatoes and two toast

  Dinner – chicken tikka masala (takeaway), garlic naan, poppadum, mango chutney

  Five cups of tea

  Three beers

  Sunday

  Brunch – bacon, sausage, mushrooms, two eggs scrambled, tomatoes, and two toast

  Dinner – microwave roast dinner

  Victoria sponge cake

  Six cups of tea

  I sort of exercised – I moved furniture around the office on Friday. I was a big sweaty mess … I hope that counts for something,

  O X

  Olivia Jones

  Inspired Programming

  I had heard from Chris again that evening. He’d told me that my weight was fine for my height, that my BMI was 23.6 which was in the ideal range although not perfect, whatever that meant, but he expressed surprise that based on my food diary I didn’t weigh a lot more. I guess I had failed to mention the fact that I weighed significantly less not so long ago. He warned me that if I continued to eat with my usual gusto my weight would continue to rise and the journey back would be longer and more difficult. I was convinced. Although I sensed I wasn’t going to like his regime. I was half-relieved that he lived so far away and wouldn’t be around to crack the whip. The thought of Chris cracking a whip sent a thrill coursing through my body that was both pleasant and disturbing at the same time. I was confused enough about Steven without adding feelings towards a virtually anonymous man at the other end of a computer.

  Chris was actually really helpful in between his constant teasing; he gave me a simple set of exercises to complete
daily and sent me links to websites which demonstrated each exercise. He sent me a link to an online calorie tracker which counted the number of calories eaten and worked out how many I had left. He had already calculated the number of calories I had been eating, and what I should be eating to maintain my current weight. I optimistically decided I would eat a bit less to try and lose a little bit of weight but Chris seemed confident that exercise would tone up the bits I wasn’t happy with.

  The best thing was that he said I could eat whatever I wanted as long as I stayed within the limit. Unfortunately I can’t count the calories if I don’t know what they are so I should avoid eating things that don’t display nutritional information; takeaways were out. I was going to have to learn to cook!

  The following morning I scrutinised the packaging on the Crunchy Nut cornflakes. It informed me there were 131 calories in a 30-gram serving. That was OK. One hundred and thirty one down, one thousand, six hundred and eighty six to go. I started pouring the cereal when I remembered Chris had said I would need to measure and weigh things. I had no idea what thirty grams of cereal looked like. I rooted around the kitchen cupboard until I found some scales, dusting off the layer of dust and setting the weight of the bowl to zero. Thirty grams was reached in no time. Really, I thought. That’s all? I reasoned that I could afford to double it and measured out 60 grams. I grabbed the milk and noticed the nutritional sticker. One hundred millilitres equalled fifty calories. I found a measuring jug, and measured out 100 millilitres and poured it over my cereal. I frowned and poured another measure. Better. I could live with that. I usually had the milk right up the top of the bowl so I could drink the leftovers at the end, the milk tasting of honey and nuts from the cereal. One meal down, 362 calories spent, 1455 remaining. Plenty of calories left.

  I made a mental note to ask Steph if she knew how many calories her sandwiches contained and which had the lowest amount.

  Chapter Twelve

  I arrived at work early; I wanted to be in my office and working when Steven arrived. Last week had been physically busy and active and had been a welcome distraction. Steven had so far been true to his word and not mentioned anything about ‘us’ since he had pounced on me. I wondered when he would ask me out on a date and occasionally found myself practicing my responses, ranging from rolling my eyes and shaking my head, sighing, and saying ‘too soon’, to screaming at him in exasperation.

  I knew it was what I wanted and that I should be relieved he’d finally listened to me, but a part of me couldn’t shake the feeling of disappointment that he had stopped relentlessly pursuing me.

  I heard the door open and the sound of his chair rolling away from his desk.

  ‘Hello?’ He called. I opened my office door and popped my head around the edge. I faltered as I saw him. His hair had that ‘just got out of bed look’ that other men spend hours perfecting and he was wearing black jeans that hung off his hips and fell to the floor, his Converse peeping out under the frayed edges. He was wearing a patterned shirt, open at the neck, his sleeves rolled up revealing slightly tanned arms. He probably spent his weekend outdoors and caught some sun. The colour suited him.

  ‘Oh hey,’ he grinned, ‘I forgot about your executive office space. Are you all settled in now then?’

  ‘I am. It’s swanky. I like it.’ I laughed. Swanky was hardly the word for it but it was nice enough. It was my space again, a miniature replica of the main office that had been my sanctuary. I had a large heavy desk in front of the window and I’d treated myself to an executive chair, more expensive than necessary but comfortable. I’d have to be careful I didn’t find myself snoozing in the afternoon.

  I’d acquired a black and white chequered rug for the floor and I’d painted the walls a warm cream colour to make the pictures stand out. I’d had canvas prints made of all the various apps I’d programmed over the last three years. A leather sofa matching the chair filled the wall next to the main door with a small coffee table for meetings. I never had understood why meetings should be formal, uncomfortable affairs sat around a table. Why couldn’t we relax on a sofa and chat over a brew?

  Steven popped his head around the door and whistled through his teeth.

  ‘It’s nice. Of course it’s not as big as my office,’ he laughed sweeping his arm indicating the main room, ‘does that make me more important that you?’

  ‘Of course,’ I smirked, ‘you’re the one who does all the work!’

  He laughed and shrugged.

  ‘Better make a start then, but first, can I get you a cup of tea, madam?’ He asked theatrically.

  I grinned and nodded.

  Steph sounded strange on the phone when I spoke to her and I remembered about Friday night. I wondered if anything had happened and was displeased by the stab of jealousy that shot through me as I considered it a possibility. She laughed when I asked her if she knew the number of calories in her sandwiches.

  ‘Olly, I work with food every day, it’s my life, of course I know how many calories are in my sandwiches. If you ever bothered to come in and look at a menu, you’d know too.’

  ‘Awesome, can you bring me a menu at lunch time? Today I’ll just have my usual.’ I had thought checking calories would be difficult but it was turning out to be really easy. All the food packages had them printed on and Steph included it on her menu. Perhaps she recognised there was a whole market of calorie counters and that’s why she’s always so busy.

  ‘What’s the boy having?’ she asked; her tone was almost too disinterested to be genuine. Something must have happened on Friday. I was slightly relieved that whatever had happened wasn’t something Steph was excited about. My jealous head crawled back to its crypt. I had no right to be jealous anyway.

  ‘Not sure, I’ll put you through to him.’ I pressed the transfer button and dialled his number. It had taken me ages to work out how to programme these phones over the weekend and I hadn’t had a chance to tell him about it yet. I doubted he had even noticed the new phone on his desk. I could see him through the open door and noticed his amusement when he saw the phone. He glanced up at me puzzled as he answered the phone.

  ‘Inspired, Steven speaking,’

  ‘It’s me. Got Steph on the phone for you.’ I pressed the transfer button again and replaced the handset. He was still watching me through the door, his bemused expression making him look adorable. I shook my head and looked away.

  I was working on the new business plan when he appeared in my doorway, his eyes smiling in amusement.

  ‘Everything’s changed,’ he said, ‘new swanky office, new phones. What’s next?’

  ‘We’re getting a server put in next month, shared drives, all that stuff, it’ll make it easier for multiple staff to work on the same project. I figured my haphazard ways were fine when it was just me but if I’m going to attract a good team, I need to have better systems in place.’

  ‘I hope it won’t get too streamlined though, I kinda like your haphazard approach.’ He seemed almost sad and I wondered if I was in danger of losing the identity I’d built up. I dismissed that notion, after all the systems were about control, the staff increase was about expanding production, and I would need to be able to monitor the progress of everyone. I held his gaze for a while and smiled.

  ‘I sort of feel like you’ve been here a lot longer than two weeks,’ I frowned. ‘I should’ve done all this before you started, then you wouldn’t have known any different.’

  ‘I guess you didn’t know if you could cope with staff before I started, though. I’m quite flattered actually.’ He cocked his head to one side and smiled at me, his eyes twinkling. I could see thoughts passing through his mind, things he wanted to say, but he stopped himself each time. I returned his smile and put him out of his misery.

  ‘You’ll still be my favourite, I’m sure.’

  His grin widened across his face, he stood looking relaxed against the doorframe, but his clenched fists betrayed his struggle to restrain himself from crossing the room
and demonstrating his feelings.

  ‘I was going to request that you only hire women but I realised it might make me sound a bit like a pervert, when I actually just want to eliminate any competition.’

  ‘Competition is healthy though, I know I have my fair share of it.’ I raised one eyebrow wondering if he might shed some light on Friday night. I didn’t want to bring it up but I was curious about Steph’s mood. Instead he shrugged and backing away from the door he challenged me.

  ‘Maybe you should hurry up and grab me before someone else does then?’

  I shook my head, smiling, and returned my concentration to the business plan. I hated business planning. It was so dull. I never quite understood why I had to spend so much time writing down my intentions when I could just be getting on with the work. I let my thoughts wander and realised I was feeling content since my little exchange with Steven. Nothing had changed. He still wanted me.

  I heard the door burst open as Steph’s trolley clumsily forced its way through into the main office. I stood up and leant in the doorway of my room and watched her as she followed it through.

  ‘I hear you’re expanding?’ She smiled with interest at me, ignoring Steven as she handed him his sandwich. He had removed his headphones and was frowning at the obvious snub. I smiled to myself as I watched his face fall with disappointment when he opened his sandwich, expecting the generous helping he’d received before and saw the standard portion the rest of us were used to. His eyes met mine and we both shrugged slightly.

  I took my sandwich off her and nodded towards the office to show her.

  ‘Wow, it’s fancy. Look at you Miss Olivia Jones, executive manager boss lady.’

  I laughed at her description.

  ‘We acquired the next room too, same size as this one.’ I indicated the main room and continued, ‘I’ll have lots more lovely new customers for your lunch rounds soon!’

  ‘Ah now that is what I like to hear!’ She agreed. Finally she glanced over at Steven who was watching our exchange with an expression of mild confusion. ‘How’s your girlfriend?’ She asked him coldly. He frowned and shook his head, the corners of his mouth moving down into an upside down smile and he shrugged for good measure. I felt a prickling sensation on the back of my neck as she continued, ‘Melissa? Is that her name? The girl in the pub on Friday.’ Steven closed his eyes and breathed out slowly.