Educating Marri Ch. 13

After that amazing morning with Lori and Della, I decided to finally take that bath. The hot water felt so good against the bruised, aching skin of my pussy and ass. I soaked under those bubbles for nearly an hour until the water turned stone cold.

I ate a quick snack in my kitchen. I'd worked up an appetite, but I didn't want to ruin my lunch. I giggled to myself because I felt like a little kid promising not to eat too many cookies.

I got dressed in my favorite clothes. The jeans were form fitting but not trashy, and the white peasant blouse was light and airy. I added some jewelry, something I usually skipped. According to Beverly, most clients didn't want to "work around ornaments" like necklaces or earrings, and rings were frowned upon because they could be seen as a sign of commitment.

I slipped on my gold bracelet and matching necklace and earrings and even put on my gold sapphire ring. I painted my nails dark, shiny red to compliment the shirt and dabbed on just the right amount of makeup, sticking to light, earthy colors.

I did my hair last, brushing it and pulling one side away from my face, holding it up with a simple clip. I sprayed on my best perfume and I was officially ready.

I looked at the clock and sighed. It wasn't even one o'clock. It only took ten minutes to get to the restaurant. I pulled a book off the shelf and settled down in the chair to wait.

After a half hour of pretending to read and not actually catching a word, not to mention looking at the clock about every two minutes, I was ready to admit defeat. There was no point in sitting in my apartment another minute. I was driving myself crazy.

I went downstairs, ignoring everything and everyone around me, and practically flew to my car. I was going to be ridiculously early, but I didn't care. I figured I could always drive around for a while to kill some time.

Who was I kidding, anyway? All I wanted to do was see Andrew, to talk to him and have him close to me, maybe hold his hand or get a kiss.

It was actually ridiculous since he'd hired me as a hooker and we'd already seen each other naked, not to mention had sex, but I wanted a romance. I'd never gotten into that stuff, not even back in high school. It was probably from his whole prom fantasy.

Whatever it was, I had a feeling it was there to stay.

I drove around aimlessly for a while before finally heading to the restaurant. I pulled into the lot and took a final look at myself in the rear view mirror. I got out, making sure I had my purse. I'd offered to pay for lunch, and I meant it.

I walked up to the door, still very early, and saw Andrew standing there waiting for me. He was wearing jeans and a blue polo-style shirt with black work boots. It was a total contrast to the tuxedo, but he still looked great.

"Hi," he said, smiling. "You're early."

"So are you."

"Yeah well, you know, I got out of work and there wasn't really much sense in going home for an hour."

I gestured at his damp hair. "You showered at work?"

He blushed and I smiled. "Well you know, I might have stopped along the way."

"Hungry?" I asked, changing the subject for him.

"Starving."

"Let's go."

We walked in together and I was amazed how comfortable I felt around him. I didn't know anything about him, other than he seemed to like having his nipples sucked, but there was no uncomfortable sexual tension between us. The lust, however, was heavy and obvious.

We were seated at a quiet booth and given menus. We both ordered soda and a glass of wine and the waitress promised to come back once we had a chance to look at the specials.

"So," he asked, "what looks good to you?"

"I usually order the sweet and sour chicken, but I'm open to suggestions."

We bantered about the choices for a few minutes before ordering a pupu platter to share. The waitress went off to get it for us, and we settled back to sip at the wine.

"Did you have a good day at work?" I asked.

"Oh lovely," he said. "Six hours of stocking shelves and helping lazy people find things on racks two feet away."

"Not a fan of retail, I take it?"

"About as bad as high school."

"Yeah, I wanted to ask you about that. Why did you miss your prom, anyway?"

His eyes darkened for a moment. "I wasn't popular."

"Neither was I," I said, still confused. I was never a member of the high school elite, but I got to the prom.

"I was fat, I had thick glasses, and I hated sports and clubs."

I was trying to picture this attractive, sexy man looking like the teenager he described. He grinned and I realized he knew what I was thinking.

"I got contacts, went on a diet, and joined the Army. Believe me, they'll get you in shape in a hurry."

"I'm sure."

"Besides," he said, reaching across the table and taking my hand, "if I'd gone to my prom, I would've never met you."

Now it was my turn to blush. He gave my hand a little squeeze and the waitress came back with our food. We let go and started eating, talking all through the meal. We talked about school, army life, and even about our childhoods and plans for the future.

By the time we were finished, he knew more about me than most people I'd met years ago. We had dessert and I realized I had to get going soon. I hated to mention anything about Torch, but I really didn't have a choice.

He looked at his watch before I could say a word and sighed. "I guess you have to leave, huh?"

"Yeah," I admitted. "I have to get ready."

"So are we still on for Wednesday?"

"Yeah."

"Great."

When the waitress came back with the bill, I reached for my purse, but he held up his hand in protest. "When I take a woman out, I don't expect her to pay."

"But I asked you to lunch."

"So?" He pulled out a credit card and handed it to the waitress. "I picked the food. What's your point?"

We went out to the parking lot once the bill was settled, and he walked me to my car. I unlocked the door and stood there with my hand on the latch, not wanting to leave. I felt suddenly dirty. I was leaving a man I was head over heels for to meet a man I could barely stand for paid sex.

Andrew smiled at me, running his hand over my cheek. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Wednesday is just so far away," I said, hoping he'd understand what I really meant. He was a decent man, that much was obvious. He was a veteran with not one but two respectable jobs. Granted, he'd paid a prostitute for sex, but a lot of guys did that, a lot more than people ever wanted to admit.

And where did that leave me? I was that prostitute.

"You know, Marri," he said, tipping up my face with his finger under my chin, "I don't care about your job. You can have sex with as many people as you want."

"I can?" I don't know what I expected him to say, but it wasn't that.

"Yeah. As long as you only make love to me."

He kissed me tenderly.

And from that moment on, Andrew was officially mine.