My Upper West Side condo overlooked the Manhattan skyline. It was dark out now, and the city lights illuminated the evening sky. The more I sipped, the brighter the lights seemed, and the more my inhibitions slipped away. Somewhere out in the vast city, Soraya was feeling satisfied with her little act, unaware that she’d wrecked me in the process.
Staring at the image of the feather tattoo on her foot again, it occurred to me that she didn’t show her face because she was probably ugly as hell. At that thought, my own laughter echoed throughout the stone cold, empty living space. I wished I knew what she looked like. I wished I had opened that office door so that I could have shut her up to her face.
My finger lingered over her name, You’re Welcome Asshole. I wanted to make her feel as crappy as she’d made me. I was not beyond going there. So, I did. I answered her text.
My mother is dead, actually. But yes, I suppose she would be ashamed.
Maybe five minutes went by before my phone chimed.
Soraya: I’m sorry.
Graham: You should be.
I should’ve let it be. She would have felt like shit, and that would’ve been the end of it. But I was buzzed. Not to mention fucking horny. Staring at her tits, legs and ass all day had gotten me all worked up.
Graham: What are you wearing, Soraya?
Soraya: Are you serious right now?
Graham: You ruined my day. You owe me.
Soraya: I don’t owe you anything, you fucking perv.
Graham: This from the woman who sent me a shot of her cleavage. Nice tits, by the way. They’re so big, at first, I thought it was a picture of an ass.
Soraya: You’re the ass.
Graham: Show me your face.
Soraya: Why?
Graham: Because I want to see if it matches your personality.
Soraya: Which would mean what?
Graham: Well, that wouldn’t bode well for you.
Soraya: You won’t ever see my face.
Graham: Probably better off. So, give me a hint about what you’re wearing.
Soraya: It’s red.
Graham: So you haven’t changed out of that dress?
Soraya: No, I’m naked with dye dripping down my body and my tongue is throbbing thanks to you.
That was an odd thing to say.
Graham: That’s an interesting visual.
Soraya: You are seriously crazy, dude.
Graham: I AM a little crazy, actually. I probably need my head checked because I’ve been fantasizing about a headless person all day.
Soraya: Well, the naked pic ain’t gonna happen.
Graham: How about I go first?
She must have been shell-shocked because she never responded again after that. Deciding to stop messing with her, I threw my phone across the couch and lifted Blackie onto my bare chest where he stayed until I fell asleep.
***
I’D MANAGED TO GET SORAYA out of my head somewhat the following day, but two mornings later, the obsession came back in full force.
The morning train was particularly crowded, and I didn’t get a seat. Hanging onto a metal pole for balance, I looked around me. I almost never actually paid attention to the people on the train, and now, I was reminded of why.
Fucking freaks.
At one point, my eyes wandered to the ground, to a woman’s foot diagonally across the aisle. My heart pounded furiously as my eyes landed on the same feather tattoo as Soraya’s. The toes of this foot were also painted the same shade of red.
Holy fuck.
It was her.
She took the same train! That must have been how she found my phone.
I couldn’t look up. I didn’t want to be disappointed. It would be much better to just keep the fantasy going without actually having to face reality.
But God, I had to. I had to know what she really looked like.
Counting to ten slowly, I let my eyes slowly travel up the length of her legs that were crossed. Black leather skirt, leopard-print purse at her side, bright purple low-cut shirt showcasing in the flesh the rack I’d been fantasizing about. Then, my eyes landed above the neck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
She was looking straight ahead. Silky, straight black hair, dyed blood red at the bottom, tied back into a ponytail, displaying a long, delicate neck. Bright red lips in the shape of a perfect bow. Pinned-up nose. Big brown eyes like saucers. What do you know, the devil had the face of an angel. In fact, Soraya Venedetta was a bombshell. My dick twitched in excitement. If I was trying to forget her before, it was going to be impossible now.
When she turned and noticed me looking at her, our eyes locked. Unsure of whether she knew who I was, my heartbeat accelerated. Then, she simply looked away unaffected toward the train window.
Did she not know what I looked like?
I wracked my brain. There were only a couple of pictures of me in the phone, ones where I was dressed casually while visiting my grandmother. Maybe she hadn’t gone through the photos. No, Soraya Venedetta would have definitely opened her big mouth if she recognized me.
She didn’t know.
Letting out a sigh of relief, I continued to stare at her beautiful face in awe that this was the same person who had turned my life upside down the other day. A vacant seat caught my eye, so I sat down, took out my phone, and scrolled down to her name.
This was going to be fun.