Chastity Flame, page 9
Chastity sensed terror spring to life under her skin, but she quelled it with the thought, it's all right. It's just for now. It doesn't mean anything. "Damien, you're the best thing I've ever seen in the National Gallery."
They both laughed and the hot water splashed against their skin as they kissed again and again.
Chapter Nine
"He was a lot better than I thought he would be," Damien said over his beer as they stood in Chandos. There was too much of a crowd to grab a table, so they stood close together as the throng jostled around them.
"She was wonderful, of course," Chastity added, trying not to stare too much at Damien's handsome face. She had very nearly melted when he caressed her leg during the last act, never enough to be obvious, but his touch had already become electric to her. Chastity had been ready to repeat the afternoon's performance right there in the theatre, but she held back. No need to get arrested in the West End and embarrass Monitor, although the thought made her smile.
"Oh, of course she was," Damien agreed. "But I guess I really hadn't expected all that much from him and yet—there was that moment in the bedroom scene where I was completely riveted."
"Yes," Chastity agreed. "People can surprise you." She smiled up at Damien who returned her gaze with a matching smile. A strange prickle rose up her spine. What was this feeling? She didn't want to think silly notions were filling her head, but it was almost as if she could hear bells.
There was vibrating too, which is what made her realize that her phone was going off. Chastity rifled through her bag until she found it and brought it up to her ear. Only a few days and already she wanted to throw it against a wall. "Yes?"
It was the ever efficient receptionist, Valerie. "You're going to Aalborg. Flight from Stansted in the morning. Be packed and ready for your cab at five. Monitor has further instructions, which will arrive with the driver. Alright?"
"Yes," Chastity said, suddenly feeling completely deflated. When she hit the end call button, she looked up to see Damien looking at her with a distinct sense of disappointment.
"Work?"
Chastity sighed. "Yes. I have to leave at five am for a flight at Stansted. Off to the continent again."
"So, what does that mean for tonight?" Damien asked, running his hand down her arm. "Do you have to go home and pack?"
Chastity looked up at his face, those broad chocolate eyes, the black brows now beetled with concern. "You wouldn't let me oversleep, would you?"
Damien grinned. "We'll set all the alarms. I promise." He leaned over and they kissed and Chastity wondered yet again what was going on between them.
When she got home in the dark morning hours, she was still wondering, although her body was pleasantly fatigued enough to make it a muffled bell in the back of her brain as she hastily packed for Denmark. Layers, layers, she reminded herself, barely closing the bag when she heard the taxi toot outside. She made herself stop, close her eyes and run a check of her necessities. No need to neglect details just because Damien was filling so much of her head.
The driver handed her the big envelope without a word and sped down the street. Chastity tipped the contents out into her lap and sifted through it. There were photos of the hacker, likely receipts that may have been charged by him through a series of false IDs, and a note from Monitor hoping that she might be able to work on her previous connection with him. Well, that remained to be seen—he might only see her as the enemy. She would have to try to reassure him. Apparently he had moved to Copenhagen. That ought to make it easier, she sighed. Much bigger town—if he hadn't already skipped to Sweden by now.
Chastity found herself asleep almost immediately in the comfortable first class lounger. Before she knew it, the flight attendant was shaking her awake. She yawned and realized that thoughts of Damien arose without bidding and she frowned. It was one thing to be thinking about him while she was in town. On the road, London should be left behind and that included everything in it. Chastity had always lived independently and she didn't expect that to change.
As her taxi negotiated its way toward the hotel, she considered the difficulty of locating the hacker. Monitor's assumption was that he would find her. Of course, this meant taking up the guise of journalist again. She had an appointment to meet with Sandi and Anders Rimmer, who were supposed to be the most forward-looking internet pioneers in Denmark. There was a sheaf of notes in the envelope with background information on their plethora of ventures, which she would have to take a look through and get up to speed.
Chastity checked into the hotel under the same name that she had used in Brussels. The handsome young desk clerk smiled a lot and offered unsolicited advice about which clubs in the area were best. Chastity filed away his interest for later consideration and flashed him an inspiring grin that hinted of possibilities. In her room, she dumped the envelope's contents onto the table and sorted them according to immediate usefulness.
There was a knock at the door. Chastity scooped all the papers into a pile and pulled the envelope over them, then crossed to open the door. It was the desk clerk. "Mademoiselle! I forgot to give you this package." He handed her a small, thick packet. A quick glance at the address assured her it was another one of Kevin's missives.
"Tak så meget," Chastity said, taking the package from his hand. "Was there something else?" she asked, as he did not seem to want to move from the doorway.
"I was wondering whether you needed a native guide to København," the young man said, letting his eyes rove discreetly around Chastity's neck and shoulders. "There are many breathtaking sights, though none quite as remarkable as the one I'm seeing right now."
He was a nice looking young man, tall and blonde, wiry and athletic. "What's your name?" she asked him.
"Lars."
"Well, Lars, I have an appointment this afternoon which I must prepare for, so I am not free at present."
"Perhaps later?" he asked, one eyebrow cocked. "There is a rather stunning program on tonight at the Opera House. If you have not been there, you must go. It is absolutely magnificent. You will not be disappointed."
"Will I not?" Chastity said, stepping closer. "I'd like some assurance of that." She pulled him down into a kiss, which quickly turned into a kind of grope, as he ran his eager hands up and down her torso, testing to see how much he might be licensed to enjoy. The kiss was good: enthusiastic and thorough, if a tad too toothy. When at last Chastity broke it off, Lars was ready to proceed immediately, eyes glazed with lust and the good start of a swell in his trousers. "Work first. No guarantees—I don't know how long my interview will go this afternoon, but perhaps tonight I will see you."
Lars took out a pen and hastily wrote on the package. "Here is my mobile. Call me anytime. Please." He grinned awkwardly, pushing a straw-colored lock of hair out of his eyes which were fixed on hers.
Chastity made noncommittal assurances to him and turned back to her work. Opening the package she found an iPhone and a note from Kevin, explaining that she was to use it for messaging on something called Twitter. Turning on the phone, she looked for the little bluebird icon and pressed it. After a moment, a list of icons and messages appeared, a few with a rather impressionistic picture of her and tagged "paulinenet"—Kevin had already given her a head start.
Following his suggestion, she sent a message saying she was in Copenhagen and interviewing the Rimmers. Within moments, a message popped up from "tankboy", asking where she was going to be and whether they could "get2gether". Chastity wrinkled her nose at Kevin's nonsensical name tag and responded with the name of the restaurant and a "CU there!" Chastity sighed. At least until she managed to track down the hacker, she was going to have to keep this electronic umbilical cord in place.
By the time she was in a taxi to the restaurant, Chastity felt she knew a good deal about the Rimmers. Their particular genius seemed to be not so much in technological innovation as in user friendliness. Kevin could learn a thing or two from them, she decided. She looked forward to playing the role of journo if only to learn as much as possible about how technology might actually prove useful.
The taxi dropped her off at the end of the Strøget and she ambled through the car-free zone to find the restaurant selected for the interview. It was an uncharacteristically warm evening, so she found the Rimmers sitting outside in their jackets, sipping apéritifs and laughing. It was easy to recognize them from the photos. They had that easy-going casualness that the Danes seemed to have perfected. She introduced herself and joined them at the table. The waiter brought another glass of the dark bitter drink and Chastity downed it with a cheerful toast.
"Just to keep away the cold," Anders said as he set down his glass.
"We don't normally drink it, but sometimes, the weather demands it," Sandi concurred. "We will change to beer now. Do you like beer?"
Chastity nodded, adding, "I am rather partial to Belgian beer."
Anders waved the comment away as if it were a bothersome fly. "Too light, too fruity. Danish beer has heart."
"Now, Anders, don't insult her before we get to the interview," Sandi said, looking at Chastity. "We want to have a good reception in America."
"Yes, yes," Anders continued. "Apologies, apologies! I was surprised to find you are British, Pauline. I thought you would be an American."
"Country boundaries mean so little anymore," Chastity said as she glanced through the menu. "It's an international market, an international world."
"Too right," Sandi said. "I have been trying to get him to realize the sense of that. He is happy enough to go around the world on a computer, but getting him outside the office, oh!" They both laughed and Chastity enjoyed their good humor. Sandi was small and birdlike, her short dark hair neatly trimmed, while Anders looked rough and ready, more like a farmer than the other half of a computer whiz-kid team. His hair was widely speckled with grey, which contrasted sharply with his youthful face. They both had a kind of cherubic, scrubbed healthiness that made Chastity feel quite dissolute.
In no time they were laughing together like old friends. The two introduced Chastity to some new delicacies, insisting that she try various titbits from their plates as well as from her own. She got an amazingly precise picture of how their business worked, integrating communities from disparate regions, linking together economic schemes across the globe in an open forum. It was rather fascinating.
And Chastity did notice their being under observation, too. It was subtle enough but she had been anticipating the possibility. She made sure to take out her iPhone and send another tweet saying what a great time she was having with the Rimmers. It wasn't entirely clear that the dark figure in the hoodie had been observing them, but she suspected it was likely the hacker. If not him, then one of his friends—although friends seemed to be in short supply, according to Monitor.
When the Rimmers suggested moving to a pub closer to her hotel, Chastity quickly agreed, cheerfully tweeting her whereabouts. She was enjoying the novelty of keeping tabs this way. The Rimmers were doing the same, or it would be more accurate to say that Sandi was. Anders told Chastity, "I'm terrible! You might as well plug the signal straight into my veins as long as I'm in the office, but once I leave—phht! I don't even want to check the scores. If it's not business, I leave the Blackberry off."
"Only because he knows I'll be checking," Sandi chortled. "Ah, here. This is a wonderful place and so full of history." As Sandi reeled off the medieval history of the location, Chastity used her peripheral vision to notice that they had indeed been followed to their new spot. It had to be the hacker, she was sure of it now. Should she cut things off with the Rimmers? Or would that be too obvious? Yes, too risky. Relax and enjoy, be perfectly natural. It was easy enough with these two.
When enough time seemed to have passed to make it natural, Chastity began to make her goodbyes. The Rimmers were reluctant to let her go. "Oh, but we could move along to a late night jazz club," Anders tutted. "There is so much to do all night in København!"
When Chastity demurred, Sandi said, "Well, are you still in town tomorrow night? If so, we must have you come to a very special party we're having. Just a few close friends, but I think you would fit in perfectly. It's a very easy-going lot."
Anders concurred. "Yes, you would be very welcome. You are a stunning beauty, I'm sure you know." He grinned and patted Chastity's hand.
Sandi nodded. "Yes, we have any number of friends who would be very pleased to get to know you. Very pleased." She put her hand on top of Lars' and Chastity realised what kind of party they meant. She felt a warm tingle start in her core. The invitation sounded even better.
"Do say yes," Anders agreed. "Message us once you know what your plans are."
Chastity assured them that she would as soon as she knew, and reluctantly said goodbye. She walked the short distance to her hotel, now that she had a better sense of where it lay, expecting all along the way to encounter the shadowy figure that had stalked her progress all night. However, she entered the hotel lobby without any approach. Perhaps she had been mistaken, but her senses counseled otherwise. Perhaps he was waiting for the right opportunity.
No point in wasting the evening. Chastity had just pressed the elevator button when Lars seemed to materialize out of nowhere. He grinned at her, a slight blush of pink across his cheeks. "I don't suppose I can persuade you to go out now?" he said.
Chastity smiled. "I think I'm ready to stay in. Would you care to join me?"
"I was hoping you would consider the possibility," Lars said.
The elevator door opened and the two of them stepped inside. "Have you been waiting here all night?" Chastity asked.
Lars flushed with embarrassment. "I worked late, and then," he shrugged, "I was in the bar on the off-chance that you might show up."
Chastity was flattered. "Must have been a long night."
Lars reached out to caress her arm tentatively. "An evening full of pleasant anticipation is never wasted."
Chastity stepped close to him and brushed her lips very lightly against his. "It's an even better evening when the anticipation is fulfilled." The elevator dinged to indicate her floor and Chastity led the way to her door. It seemed unwise to bring him to her room, but he already knew where it was, so she would have to risk it. She could always change hotels.
Once they were through the door, his eager hands went straight for her ass, bringing the two of them into tight contact. Chastity wrapped her arms around his lithe form and their mouths met in a hungry kiss. She felt the familiar tickle between her thighs and undulated against him. His hands circled her lower cheeks with gathering speed while she pulled his shirt tails from his trousers. Her hands found their way up under his shirt, feeling the play of his muscles as he leaned against her.
She pulled away from the kiss to begin unbuttoning his shirt and he returned the favor, grinning while they both worked. "Too many buttons," he said, laughing, before drawing in a breath of admiration at her freed breasts, then burying his face between them, a hand on either side. Chastity breathed in, feeling the pleasure of the moment, but flashing to Damien in the same position, which made her smile, then frown. He was intruding on her thoughts again and it made her feel oddly uncomfortable. Living in the moment was what her life was all about. It seemed dangerous to be so distracted.
To focus her mind, she reached around to unhook her brassiere and then loosened her jeans while Lars sucked earnestly at her nipples. Chastity reached down to undo his trousers as well and watched as they fell to the floor. His briefs tented out with an admirable erection, which he immediately ground into her groin, moving his mouth back to hers.
"Have you got protection?" she asked, coming up for air. He grunted a yes and reached down to retrieve his trousers, pulling out a strip of condoms with alacrity. Chastity laughed and he threw them on the bed. They both turned to divesting themselves of the rest of the clothes, then fell together on the bed in a tangle.
Feeling fierce, Chastity bit into his neck and shoulders, working her way down toward his nipple. He seemed to take it all in stride. Even when she pinched his tender skin between her teeth, he only whimpered a little and writhed under her violent caress. Too eager to wait, Chastity reached for the strip of condoms and liberated one, tearing at the package with her teeth even as she could hear her mother's words in the back of her mind, "Your teeth are not a tool."
But she put that out of her mind too, wondering for the barest moment why her concentration was wandering again before she rolled the rubber over Lars' swollen prick, taking her time and using both hands to squeeze it down. Chastity weighed his balls in one hand as she continued to slide the other up and down, making sure he was as rigid as could be. She wasn't in the mood to wait tonight.
"Give it to me, Lars," she cooed, laying on her back and beckoning him.
Lars rolled over and did just that, grabbing her thighs to lift her legs over his shoulders and slipping inside her slowly at first, testing the waters. Far too gentlemanly, Chastity thought and urged him on. "Come on, Lars, fuck me hard." He gave her a lopsided grin and began to pick up steam, swiveling his hips to hit her at different angles, searching for her elusive wonder spot. Chastity knew that Damien could hit it like a homing pigeon and cursed herself again for letting thoughts of him intrude.
She was just feeling the first wave of an orgasm build when her phone went off. At first she ignored it as Lars panted above her, flinging drops of sweat across her chest, but then she realized that it might be something she needed to get. "I'm sorry, but I really have to get that," Chastity said, pressing her palm against Lars' chest.
"Shit! Not now!" he said, his voice strangled as he tried to slow the momentum. He pulled out suddenly, his prick waving with glee although the expression on his face was agonizingly disappointed as he continued to pant.
"Won't be a mo," Chastity said, rolling across the big mattress toward her bag where she rummaged for the phone and caught it at last, thinking even as she brought it up to her ear, this never happens in movies. "Hello?"
