Maelstrom

"You don't, Max."

I needed more whiskey. I saw that Courtney's glass was almost empty too. I got Maddy's attention and signaled for two more.

"I keep asking what do you mean, but what do you mean Courtney?"

"Max, you love your job. Maddy told me. She said that you work long hours because you want to. Is that right?"

She was right. It was exactly what I told Maddy. I couldn't stick with this job if I didn't love it.

"You are correct," I conceded.

"See Max, I'm no work and all fun. I don't have a job to love."

That sounded good. But I wasn't toting around someone's Platinum card. She was already halfway through her two fingers of Macallan when she smiled and said, "You're attractive Max, but you know that. What's it like working with mostly macho men?"

So I was attractive to her. And the question was a good one. I thought about it for a second.

"Most of them know I'm gay so they leave me alone. But all of them stare at my tits."

"I'm trying not to stare at them," she confessed, while staring at my tits.

"I'm used to it. As I said before, there's no law against looking."

I glanced around the bar. No one was paying attention to us. The noise level was rising.

"Enough about me. What do you do Courtney?"

Courtney's eyes came up to my level.

"Mostly fuck," she said casually, as if it was a popular avocation.

I caught up with her and finished my second drink, wanting another.

"Admirable," I concluded.

"It's a hobby," she countered, as if her first statement was somehow unclear.

Cute woman trying to pick me up. Sex as a hobby. Was I missing something here? I must have had a weird expression on my face.

"I hope I didn't shock you."

Of course she shocked me. I was expecting a quiet evening after a long day. I was going to go home with her on a work night. The next day was going to be hell.

She leaned forward on the bar so her face was closer to mine. It was a pretty face that deserved to be kissed. I gave her a quick peck that surprised us both. We cast that knowing look at each other. The look that says were going to be naked together in the very near future.

Maddy brought our second round of drinks. "You girls doing all right?"

Fuck yes we were.

"Courtney was just telling me what she does."

Maddy stopped to listen, even though there were others clamoring for drinks. "It that so? So what is it?"

"Sport fucking," I answered. I tried not to laugh when I said it.

Courtney nodded her head once to show I wasn't bullshitting my friend.

"That's a new one for me," Maddy said, rolling her eyes. "But I've been told by reliable sources that Max is pretty good at that."

She headed off before I could snap off a witty rejoinder. I wondered who her sources were.

"So what of it Max?"

This conversation was completed.

"I think we need to finish our drinks," I answered.

"And then what?" she asked in a sexy voice.

"And then we do what we do best."

She kissed me, this time longer. I didn't care that Maddy was probably watching us and laughing at me for getting picked up on a work night.

I broke the kiss first. I need more and as soon as possible. "I have a motel room nearby..."

She finished her drink and then picked up mine and finished it as well.

"Let's go," Courtney said, darting her eyes towards the door.

I was questioning my sanity leaving the bar with Courtney. Maddy gave me a wave from behind the bar.

"You drive?" she asked me as we exited the bar. Apparently she didn't.

"Yep."

I had my trusty Civic. I went to the driver's side and unlocked it.

She went to the passenger door and opened the door as soon as it unlocked. She dropped into the passenger seat and pulled a pack of cigarettes out of her clutch purse.

"Uh uh," I said as I was buckling my seatbelt. "No smoking in the car." I started the car and left my streetside parking space, starting down the empty side street. The old fashioned street lamps were on, and we watched the neatly manicured lawns pass by as we made it out of the enclave.

Courtney sighed as she pushed the pack back into her purse. I guess she was used to getting her way. She fidgeted and rolled down her window. Cool air rushed into the cabin. It rippled through her hair. I looked at her out of the corner of my eye. Dark eyeliner. Dark green eyes, burning with intensity, and scanning ahead. What was I getting myself into?

"Got any booze?" she asked. I was probably just below the legal limit so any more drinking would have to be in my room.

"No, but there's an all-night liquor store nearby."

I liked the idea and getting drunk and fucking this girl, who so clearly wanted to be fucked.

"I'm buying," she announced to me as if that wasn't a foregone conclusion. I didn't have any money so there was no choice to be made. I wondered to myself if she'd let me add her credit card number to my account at the liquor store. I vanquished the thought, but conceded to myself that I was blurring the line that I would never cross.

It was about a five minute drive. The neighborhood around the store was even seedier than the area around the Royal Palms. The austere one story building was situated on a barren lot void of landscaping with a cracked asphalt parking lot in the front. There were four women in gaudy skin tight hot pants that were smoking and drinking beers out of cans wrapped in brown paper bags. One pointed her finger at us, saying something with the others laughing at her snide remark.

They knew I was a police officer. They didn't give a fuck. They could see I was off duty.

I rolled down the window and gave them the finger as we passed by. They jeered at me, waved their beer cans, and then went back to their conversation.

I pulled into a parking space and put my arm around Courtney and kissed her on the cheek.

I fucking loved Cincinnati.

* * *

The liquor store had a large plate glass window with "LIQUOR" painted in bright red letters for those who were optically challenged or completely clueless. I opened the door for Courtney, who walked in first onto linoleum tiles from the 70's, the originally embossed pattern worn smooth and indistinguishable. All the hard liquor was kept behind a long counter in the back, rows and rows calling to me. There was a smart ass teenager manning that station, as well as the register.

"Whatcha having?" he asked me as we stepped up. I think he asked me because I was clearly the older looking of the two of us. Courtney could get carded. In any event, he wanted to get me out of the way for the main event.

"Vodka."

"Any brand?"

"What's the cheapest you've got?" I asked.

He scanned the back shelf. "Popov. Also doubles as a good paint thinner. It's $3.50 a pint."

I didn't give a shit about the taste. I was drinking for one purpose. "I'll take two." I held up two fingers to make sure he understood.

He reached up and pulled the two bottles down. He dropped them in a plain brown paper bag and handed it to me.

He put his elbows on the counter. Courtney was more his age and sexier than I was. I guess he wasn't a fan of big tits (or older women).

"Now what's the little lady having?" he asked Courtney.

"I'm gay, fucktard, and I'll take a fifth of Jack Daniels."

I laughed under my breath at the brutal takedown.

The clerk went to retrieve the Jack Daniels with his tail between his legs. Courtney wandered over to the cooler to pull a six pack of Coke. She dropped the plastic tethered cans on the counter with a thud. She pulled a Platinum card out of her jacket pocket and flipped it onto the counter.

The clerk saw the card and gave a subtle nod. Not too many people in these parts were flashing premium credit cards. Most of the business done there was in cash.

The clerk ran the charge and bagged her purchases. I tried to hand Courtney a ten. She waved her hand, telling me to keep it and looking insulted. I tucked the bill back in my pocket and picked up her bag as well as we made our way out.

She pushed open the door to the outside and held it open for me. "I'm buying and you buy two pints of $4 vodka?"

"What can I say, I'm a cheap drunk. I don't want to spoil myself," I quipped.

"Suit yourself." She pulled out a cigarette and lit it. She leaned with her butt against the car's trunk and took a big drag. I was facing her so I could see the working girls still clustered by a shiny new black Escalade. She handed me the cigarette. I took a satisfying puff and gave it back to her. It was an interesting contrast see both the working girls and Courtney in the same frame. One group did it for money and she was doing it for fun.

Courtney took a short puff and handed it to me.

"You drink a lot?" she asked me.

"About as much as you fuck," I thoughtfully answered back.

"Uh huh." She nodded but I think she concluded from my answer that I was an alcoholic. She might have been right.

"Come into some money?" I asked, since we were getting all personal like.

She laughed. I'm sure she'd been asked that question a million times. "In a way. I'm Jim Landry's daughter."

The big reveal. Jim Landry was the biggest car dealer in Cincinnati. He had six different dealerships. He was always on television. He was better known than the owner of the Reds and probably as wealthy.

I didn't know Courtney's last name when we left the bar and now I knew why. I imagine it was tough being the daughter of a father as well-known as Jim Landry. And she's with me, a penniless cop.

Then an obvious question occurred to me. "So he's the biggest car dealer around and you didn't drive to the bar?"

Another laugh. "I got dropped off. I kind of lost my license last year."

"Kind of? Let me guess. You were caught doing a hundred on I-75."

"Actually it was 115. I got a Corvette Z06 for my 25th birthday."

Figures. I wondered if she could drive it.

"Drive anything that fast before?"

She gave me "the look" that said "really?"

I guess she did.

She took the last drag off the cigarette and flicked it towards the gaggle of prostitutes. The butt went about ten feet before it rolled to a stop.

"Good one," shouted one of the whores.

Courtney slid off the car and grabbed my hand.

"C'mon," she said.

I followed her over to the four prostitutes. Their pimp was in a black Escalade behind heavily tinted window busy talking on the phone. I think he recognized me and decided to ignore me.

"You girls here know Max?" Courtney asked.

"What are you doing?" I asked her. She was playing where she didn't belong.

"I got this," she said back to me, sensing my concern and dismissing it.

"So do any of you know Max here?" She put her arm around me. Nice touch.

One of the women stepped forward. One of the older ones, probably early 30's but who could tell for sure. Up close most of them looked strung out. "I know Max."

"Can I ask how?"

"Yeah... I got beat up by one of my johns. Max got there before he left and administered some immediate justice before putting the cuffs on him. She waved her fist.

You break it Max?" she asked me.

I slugged the guy who had beat her up and I thought I broke my hand.

"No... it just hurt for a while."

"So Max put that guy away and then arranged for an ambulance to take me to the hospital."

Courtney went into her purse and pulled out two Benjamins.

"Thanks. This is for your time," said Courtney, handing the bills to the person I helped.

She turned around to leave and took my arm.

"See... I got that."

Yeah she did.

"So let's get out of here Max." Courtney waved to the whores from the passenger window as we pulled out of our parking space.

The nicotine was giving me a little boost. "You've got it." I wheeled the Civic towards the street. One of the whores pulled up her top to flash us. They were all laughing when she did it. I tapped my horn and smiled at them. Like I said, they had to make a living and squeeze whatever pleasure they could get out of life. This was all in good fun.

Courtney reached over and put her hand on my thigh. I was still in my police issue trousers. Her fingers found the button and zipper. I watched her hand go under the waistband of my panties, and tried to avoid getting into an accident.

"Ohhh..." I let slip out when she found my slick lower lips, playing with them before trying to get inside me.

Courtney leaned over to whisper in my ear while she was fingering me. "You're wet Max. You want me, don't you?"

Fuck yeah I wanted her.

"Courtney, I only wish I could get to the motel faster." I put my hand on top of the one she had in my pants.

"Move a little to the left honey," I told her.

* * *

We got back to the Royal Palms, a 50's style motel with the large neon sign out front in the shape of a palm tree. Some of the colored neon lights were flickering in the script letter "m." We parked next to the fenced-in swimming pool -- my usual parking spot. Protected from the traffic going in and out of the parking lot. I could also see my car from the balcony outside my room. We got out of the car and looked at each other over the car's roof. I tossed my room key across the roof to Courtney. It had a gold-embossed "204" on the round plastic tag attached to the old school key.

"Lead the way," I told her.

She scanned the building's exterior and spotted Room 204. The clunky heels of her boots made a thump that echoed off the concrete steps of the exterior staircase. I followed her up the stairs and watched the sexy sway of her hips and the confidence in her gait.

She inserted the key, twisted the knob, and pushed the door open. She flicked on the light. I could see her eyes make a quick survey of the spartan furnishings in the motel/whorehouse.

"Now I understand the cheap vodka," she said, fingering the paper thin drapes before drawing them shut. The curtain rings made an annoying screech as they travelled across the metal rod.

I was surprised I was a tad nervous, maybe because she was so young. But the way she handled herself I was probably the inexperienced one. I was married to a man for ten years and only called it quits for good a year ago. I probably had six different female partners at that point. Not to say I wasn't an eager learner, but not a full-time sex addict like Courtney.

She casually tossed her leather jacket over the back of one of the plastic guest chairs. She popped one of the cans of Coke and poured it into one of the motel's disposable plastic glasses. She filled it halfway, and then opened the Jack Daniels. I enjoyed Jack Daniels, but I couldn't drink it in volume and I thought it was a sin to mix it with Coke. I opened one of my pints and drank directly out of the bottle. It was like liquid fire when it went down my throat. She filled the remainder of the glass with Tennessee whiskey and mixed the drink with her finger. She let me suck the drink off her finger. Nice touch.

As she started to drink with one hand she fumbled through her carry bag with the other to find a half finished joint and a lighter.

"Mind if I go outside?" She cocked her headway sideways. It was adorable. I was admiring her beauty, looking past the punk veneer. She could see my blank look when I was studying her.

"Want to come with me?"

"Sure," I replied. It wasn't like I had another appointment or something. I made sure to take my bottle with me.

We went out into the walkway connecting all the second floor rooms. We leaned against the railing that kept us from falling into the parking lot below. The railing only had about half of its paint job left. It felt ice cold as I leaned against it with my elbows. She lit her joint and took a long drag, holding it in and then letting out a big cloud of smoke.

"You work in Vice. Kind of funny, us being in this sleazy motel and all that? I like this vibe."

She had an eye for the ironic.

"Yeah, everything in my life seems to be funny in one way or another."

I drank from my bottle while I watched her take another toke.

I reached over to her.

"Pass it here."

What the fuck.

I hit the joint. It felt a lot different than hitting a cigarette. It tasted better actually. I held it in and then coughed as I exhaled.

"So what's it like to see your dad's face on every car ad on TV?" I asked her. I'd seen his face a million times between innings of Reds' games.

"It sucks." She picked up her drink and held the cup while she held the joint between her lips.

"There must be some advantages."

"Yeah, I guess. He gave me one of his Platinum cards so I can charge anything I want."

"That seems like an advantage," I noted helpfully. I would like a Platinum card please. She probably had a $50,000 spending limit.

"Yeah, but it doesn't fully pay for the pain and suffering from being his daughter."

Fuck it did. I could do a lot of damage with somebody else's credit card. My mom and dad paid for four years of college and I'll always be grateful for it. This was something bigger, much bigger.

"I could help you try," I offered again, being the helpful person that I am.

She laughed. "It does let me do what I want to do. You get a free ride Max when you're with me."

"That sounds wonderful. So what do you want to do with your life?"

"Fuck girls mainly."

"I want to be you."

"We will fuck," she said as if it was it was an established fact. She was right by the way. "That is if you're up for it."

I moved closer to her and kissed her. The taste of Jack Daniels on her lips lingered with me.

"Let's go inside," she said.

"Yeah." I followed her in and shut the door and locked the deadbolt.

She pulled her black tee shirt over her head. She was wearing a white bra that was worn for comfort and not for looks. But I could tell she had a nice pair of breasts. She unhooked her bra and tossed it on top of her jacket. Smallish, but pretty. A small upturn in them and thick brown nipples. One of her nipples was pierced with the same small barbell that was in her eyebrow. She still had her jeans and boots on. I wondered why I ever had reservations about this. She was a very sexy woman.

"You're funny Max." She downed the rest of her first drink. Not to be left behind, I resumed drinking my pint and was halfway done. I started to feel that warm fuzzy glow that made the world all good.

"Why's that?" I asked her.

"Well. You're a cop. We're in a motel where you've probably busted some hookers. I'm probably close to jailbait for you, and we're going to fuck our brains out."

"That about sums it up," I told her. The vodka wasn't burning now. It was just warming. "The irony's not lost on me, but I've got to say you've got one sexy body."

She laughed. "So do you."

I took off my top and unhooked the three eyelets in the back of my bra. My tits fell free.

"You've got big tits Max."

"It's all for you."

She laughed again. What a cutie.

She shimmied out of her tight jeans, made to look used but probably brand new and $300 a pair.

She was wearing plain white panties. The front was already stained.

"I see you're ready."

"You're sexy Max."

"Maybe it's time for fucking," I told her. I finished my first pint and tossed a three pointer into the trash can. It clattered but stayed in.

She finished her JD and Coke and threw her cup at the trash can. It hit off the front face of the receptacle. She laughed again. "I guess you're a better shot than me."

"In more ways than one," I quipped.

"I'd like to suck on your tits Max."

I sat on the bed and put my hands under my breasts to hold them up for her.

"Nothing's stopping you."

She took my nipple in her mouth and sucked on it like a gumdrop. She purred as if it was as delicious as the candy. Then she bit it, hard enough to make me wince. Then she started licking it again. She repeated that pain and pleasure cycle until I couldn't take it any longer.