This is my fourth Faunus Fantasies, LLC story. Although there is no need to read the other stories first, some parts of this story might be more fun and make more sense if you have.
Thanks so much for reading and commenting! I really appreciate it.
*******
Claire and I were at Mel's kitchen table having breakfast in companionable silence. Phone in hand, she flipped through pictures her friends had posted online, smiling occasionally between bites of toast and sips of coffee. I struggled to see info about my next Faunus assignment on my laptop. I needed to find out who the client was, what they wanted in bed, and how they wanted me to look and act on the gig. Faunus Fantasies, LLC had recently switched from a paper-based gig assignment system to an online service and it was driving me crazy. The way it worked didn't make sense.
Mel strolled into the kitchen. Ever the early riser even on weekends, she'd been up for hours while Claire and I were just then having our first cups of coffee for the day.
"Bye," she said, kissing us both. "I'm off to the gym. Should be back in an hour, hour and a half tops."
Looking up, I dropped my spoon, splashing granola milk on the table.
"Damn, Mel," I said, looking her up and down. "You look
fine
. This is what you usually wear to the gym?"
"Yeah, why?" she asked, perplexed.
A dark blue sports bra with a faint light blue vertical pattern covered her nice, round breasts. The pattern on the matching leggings started at her knees and ran to her ankles, emphasizing her curvy hips. Sure, she was mostly covered in cloth but damn, that outfit left nothing to the imagination. Bright pink sneakers and a gym bag over her shoulder completed the look. Her dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail. My cock twitched and grew as I admired her. I couldn't wait for her to turn around so I could get a look at that fine ass.
Claire glanced up from her phone for a second.
"When you mentioned going to the gym, I always imagined you in a baggy, gray sweatshirt and sweatpants," she said. "This is not what I expected."
Claire had a point. While Mel had an amazingly attractive body, her usual clothing tended to downplay or even hide her shape. Not this. Very not this.
Mel smiled.
"Actually, you're not far off," she said. "I used to wear that kind of stuff to work out but I always got overheated. This material wicks away sweat, so it's much more comfortable."
"I'm all for comfort and practicality," I said, wiping up the table. "But you need to know that you look seriously hot in that."
"Mike's right," Claire said with a sly smile, taking a sip of coffee. "If I were fully awake, I'd want to rip that right off you and drag you to bed. Or maybe leave some of it on you and drag you to bed."
"That goes double for me," I said.
Mel blushed.
"I never thought of it that way," she said, looking down at herself. "To me, exercise clothes are like the opposite of sexy. I sure don't
feel
like I look hot in this."
"You just keep thinking that while the rest of us enjoy the view," I said with a smile.
"Okay. So," Mel said, taking a deep breath. "I'm outta here. See you in a bit."
As she left, Claire and I both craned our necks to get a peek at Mel's butt in those tights.
When the door closed, I finally was able to access my next assignment. When I saw the client's photo, I groaned and covered my face with my hands for a few seconds.
"Oh, hell no," I said.
Concern on her face, Claire set her phone down.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"Amanda Fletcher is what's going on," I said, gritting my teeth as I glared at the screen. "My ex-wife."
"Your ex is your next assignment?"
"What the fuck was Eddie thinking?" I said.
"He probably doesn't know," she said, taking my hand. "Tell him. He'll get somebody else."
"Okay, good point," I said, closing the laptop. "I'll call him and explain. Back in a few. I don't want to ruin your breakfast with this conversation."
I picked up the laptop.
"Mike, are you okay?" Claire asked as I reached the hallway.
I paused and thought for a minute.
"I honestly don't know," I said.
* * *
I went upstairs to Mel's office and closed the door, then called Eddie's personal cell to explain the situation.
"Mike, really? You shitting me?" Eddie asked. In the background, I heard a small gasoline engine running at a steady drone.
"Would I kid about something like this?" I said. "You assigned me to do a gig with my fucking ex-wife, Eddie. The last person in the world I'd want to be in the same room with right now."
After a long pause. Eddie sighed.
"Okay, Mike, I fucked up. I'm sorry. It did think it was weird that the picture she gave us of how she wanted her guy to look reminded me of you. Never occurred to me that it might actually be you for real. That's why I thought you'd be perfect. I mean, are you looking at the assignment now?"
"Hang on," I said. "Give me a sec."
I opened the lid and logged in again. Skimming through the assignment, I found the picture of me he was talking about. It was from twelve years ago. Our honeymoon. I was on the back deck of our rented condo on the coast, the ocean glinting in the distance. I smiled as I lifted a glass of champagne and looked past the camera to admire my beloved bride.
Shit. What was she thinking?
"Yeah, that's me," I said with a sigh. "More than ten years back. Honest mistake. I do look a little different now."
"Here's the problem, Mike. I'm out on the lake with my grandkids. Middle of the fucking lake. I won't be able to fix this until tonight and by then it'll be too late. You're gonna have to take one for the team, pal."
"Eddie, for real? Can't Claire make that change and get someone else assigned?"
"Naw, she don't have access yet." he said. "This new software is a bitch to set up. I've got a ticket open with them. Hope to get it fixed Monday."
"And the assignment's Tuesday. Not enough time to prep anyone else. Shit."
"Yeah, like I said, I'm sorry," he said. This is all kinds of fucked up but I'm just gonna have to ask you to run with this one. You're a professional. You can play nice for a day and a night, right?"
I paused, my mind racing, heart beating fast.
"Mike? You still there?" Eddie said.
"Yeah," I said. "Okay, Eddie, I'll handle it. But you owe me bigtime. I mean, would you want to do a gig with one of your exes?"
"Fuck no. I get your point."
"But listen, Eddie, we need to go back to discussing assignments in person beforehand. Just dealing them out like playing cards in this system without face-to-face discussion is going to bite us in the ass again."
"Not a bad idea. I'll think about it. Anyway, good luck with this one. And thanks, Mike. Knew I could count on you."
I studied the specifics of my next gig. Much to my surprise, the further I got into Amanda's file and the details of her situation, I became less and less angry with her. The medical section was especially eye-opening. Faunus has to have access to clients' medical records so we can avoid injuring or killing them accidentally, If they have peanut allergies, a history of heart attacks, or other medical problems, we need that information to protect them. The more we know about this stuff, the safer our customers are and the less legal risk we face.
* * *
I was startled awake by a knock at the door.
"Mike?" Mel said in a worried tone. "You in there?"
I had fallen asleep, head on Mel's desk, the laptop closed.
"Yeah, just a second," I said. Opening the door, I found Mel and Claire, both looking concerned. Mel's hair was still damp from showering after the gym. She'd changed into jeans and a loose blue top. Clare wore a dark green sleeveless dress that stopped about three inches above the knee.
"Are you okay?" Claire said. "You've been up here for hours."
"Yeah," I said. "I'm fine. Everything is fine. What time is it?"
"It's like a little past six," Mel said.
"You two are just hungry," I said with a smile. "I'll have dinner ready in a bit."
"No, seriously," Mel said, hugging my arm as we descended the stairs.. "We were worried about you. Claire told me about the assignment. Your ex. You got taken off that one, right?"
"Nope. Still on it."
"Fuck. Are you kidding me?" Claire said.
"I wish I was. Eddie said it was too late to change and I'd just have to make the best of it."
"Well, that sucks," she said. "And not in a good way."
In the kitchen, I set out the ingredients for our meal. My head began to clear from the fog of my accidental nap. As Mel poured Cabernet for the two of them, Claire got a bottle of stout from the fridge, popped the cap, and handed it to me.
"I think you need this," she said, still looking worried. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Thanks," I said, taking a sip. "Yeah. Maybe a little. Let me get the meal going first."
* * *
"Earth to Mike," Mel said, waving a hand in my face.
"Oh, sorry," I said, chewing a flavorless bite of teriyaki chicken. "What were you saying?"