Page 20 of Animal's Reformation
Chapter Five
“Are you sureyou’ll be all right? I know how debilitating your migraines are,” his wife said.
“I’ll be fine, but thank you. You and the kids go out and enjoy yourselves. Tell Roger and Maribel I’ll catch them the next time around.” He helped her with her coat.
Two young boys raced down the stairs, whooping and laughing, until they stopped at the back door. He handed them each a blue and gray scarf.
“It’s freezing out there—you don’t want to catch a cold.”
“You’re not coming, Daddy?” the younger boy asked.
“Your father has one of his bad headaches, so he has to stay home.”
“I wish I felt better.” He ruffled the boy’s blond hair.
His wife stroked his cheek. “I guess we’ll be going now.”
He grasped her hand and brought it to his lips and kissed it. “I’m sorry about spoiling your night.”
“Oh … honey, don’t even worry about that. I’m just sorry you don’t feel well. We won’t be home too late.” She opened the door and the boys dashed out into the garage.
The tall man stood in the doorway and watched the SUV pull out of the garage. He waved to his family, then waited until the car disappeared before closing the door. He ran his hands over his clean-shaven face then walked over to one of the cupboards and reached for a wineglass. After pouring himself a good amount of Chardonnay, he shuffled out of the kitchen and down the hall to his office. As he swung open the door and looked into the darkness, relief spread over him.I’m alone at last.The man walked inside and switched on the small lamp that sat on top of a large mahogany desk. Papers and several books were strewn across it, but his gaze landed on his computer—his most prized possession. It was a gateway to the darkness that lived inside him, the beast that he kept concealed most of the time … until he couldn’t. Then, the dark passenger did terrible things before he was sated.
The office was his haven—his sanctuary from having to pretend all the time, which could be damn exhausting.
The troubled man slipped into the worn leather chair and moved it closer to the desk. On the top left corner, a framed photograph of his lovely wife adorned the space. Frou-Frou—his pet name for her—was the best wife a man could have. She kept a clean and orderly home, was fussy about her appearance, and was a wonderful mother to their two boys. He loved her dearly, but she knew nothing about the depravities buried deep within him. Sometimes when they made love, it would come out to play, but Frou-Frou had freaked out the few times it did, and he had to shut it off and be content with ordinary lovemaking.
Frou-Frou loved being intimate with him, but in the last few years, he’d found himself inventing excuses as to why he wasn’t in the mood more often than he liked. Frou-Frou had brought it up to him, the fear of him having an affair etched on her face. When the man had reassured her there was no other woman, she’d relaxed—even giggled, and after that, he made love to her more often, the dark images always front and center in his head.
In this room he was “Hunter Lewis”—unmarried and hungry. Hunter clicked on the computer, enabled his IP address blocker, and logged in toDiscreet Passion. He’d created several phony profiles across many different dating and hookup sites, but he’d had the best luck on this one.
“Hunter” switched on the messenger program and scrolled through the list of women, his eyes searching for a woman in her twenties, with long dark hair, a nice curvy body, pale skin, and a fresh face—totally the opposite of his wife. Frou-Frou was attractive in a severe, organized way. With short blonde hair, a lean body that was perpetually dark thanks to the tanning salon, and a face that showed a bit too many lines for his taste, he was definitely aging better than his wonderful wife. Frou-Frou wasn’t as sexually attractive to him as she’d been when they’d first met back in college. Of course, he didn’t expect her to look like a twenty-five-year-old again, but he did miss her long hair, the soft curves she used to have before she became obsessed with eating lean and working out all the time, and her smooth, sun-kissed complexion. Too many hours spent sunbathing in the high-altitude sunshine was making its mark on her skin almost weekly, or so it seemed.
A small jingle interrupted his reflections, and he glanced at the screen and smiled. Hunter opened up the message.“Hi. Do you want to talk?”came across the screen. A small circular picture of a white kitten was in the profile photo space. A rush of adrenaline surged through him when he read the words.
With fingers flying, he typed“Hi, I’m Hunter. What’s your name?”
Less than a second passed and the words“Katie. I’m sort of new to this”came back. Hunter leaned back and stared at the message. He liked it when the women were new to the game, it made them more vulnerable and intriguing. After playing the seduction game for the past several years, he was a pro at it. First, there’d be gentlemanly flirtations and compliments, then an exchange of pictures, interest in her day-to-day life and her problems, and finally, the sweet little thing would be putty in his hands. At that point, getting her phone number would be child’s play, and after several long conversations, they’d make a date to meet. Just thinking about the way she’d offer herself to him made his mouth go dry and his hands sweaty.
Another jingle brought him out of his reverie.“Are you still there?”Then there was an attachment. Hunter quickly opened it and the photograph of a luscious young woman sitting on a chair in what looked like a formal living room filled up his screen. Long dark hair—check. Pale skin—check. Very enticing breasts—double check.
He stared at the smiling twenty-something for several seconds, then placed his fingers on the keyboard.“What a treat. You are so beautiful with an air of mystery and sensuality about you. I can’t help but wonder why you’re on this site. You must have a line of men wanting to go out with you.”
Another jingle.“Thank you—you’re too kind. The men I’ve met have all lacked that certain refinement I hope to find here. The way you write makes me think you’re not just the average guy.”
Hunter laughed then typed“You’re right—I’ve never been accused of being average.”
For the next hour, he and Katie “talked” about everything, and with each sentence and word, Hunter knew he was reeling her in. Frou-Frou often told him that he was a charmer and that’s why all her lady friends were smitten with him.
“I give my sweet Katie two weeks or so before she’ll belong to me … body and soul,” he muttered under his breath.
A wicked smile spread across his lips, and evil glints of dark passion flashed in his eyes. Soon the hunger that threatened to devour him would be fed, and life would be calm again until the next time.
