Chapters (27)
‘I can’t be long, Amber might wake up.’
‘You mean your wife fast asleep in the house next door?’
James laughed. Richard didn’t.
‘Come here,’ James said.
Richard walked around the bed. He was dressed in running gear, no doubt to throw Amber off should she catch him coming home in the early hours. The clothes were tight to his body and showed every muscle. James stood up and ran his hand through Richard’s hair.
He was attractive, which made the sex far easier. In the past James had seduced people who made him feel sick at the thought of them. But along the way, he had learned to disconnect his mind from his body, and did whatever he had to do to get the job done. Even when the memory of them crept into bed with him at night and made him loathe his own body for lying with them, he did it over and over again.
Richard may be the best-looking catch James had ever had, which made the deal all the more risky. Letting him in could destroy everything he had worked for.
James kissed his lips and body as he undressed him until they were both standing naked in the glow of the lamp, breathing heavily as they took the other in. He looked into Richard’s eyes and felt his heart flutter.
No, he told himself.
James pressed himself against the wall. They would do it there, as close to his darling wife as possible.
Richard came up behind him and stood so close that their skin grazed and his breath warmed James’ neck.
‘Bite me,’ James whispered.
Richard bit James’ shoulder until it bled.
That was why James was so good at what he did. He discovered what people wanted, a need that no one else could deliver, and gave it to them. But as all of his victims learned: his generosity came at a price.
TWELVE
Friday 24 November, 10:05
James woke up to an empty bed. The room smelt of sex: sweat and breath. The sun beamed between a gap in the curtains and dust floated in its wake. He threw back the duvet, walked to the nearest window, and drew back the curtains. The sun warmed his naked flesh. He stood before the day with his eyes closed.