The call came whilst Holly was in the bath. Jumping out, she ran, still naked, dripping water all over the floor, to pick up the phone and see who would be calling so late at night.
"Hello?" she queried her mystery caller.
"Hello there, is that Ms. Thornley?"
"Yes."
"It's Mr. Pointer," the caller revealed.
Mr. Pointer. Her lawyer. Or rather, Simon's lawyer. The man who held one million pounds in a special bank account, hers to take and spend as she wished, but only if she completed a series of five mystery tasks set by Simon -- one with each of her ex-boyfriends.
"Sorry to call so late, but it's been a long day in the office. Are you available tomorrow?"
Tomorrow was Sunday. Holly had been hoping to have a nice relaxing day doing nothing.
"Well... yes," she said, tentatively.
"OK, well, I've arranged your second task. Remember James Black?"
Of course she did. James had been her previous boyfriend before Ryan -- she had cheated on James with Ryan. It had been rather awkward -- James was a chef, and he worked in the kitchens at the canteen for the office where Holly worked. She still worked there and would still see James occasionally. He had ignored her since he found out about the affair.
Mr. Pointer gave her James' address, and asked her to be at his house for 9am sharp in the morning.
Holly bade Mr. Pointer goodbye and then returned to her bath, wondering what she would have to do for James. This, she realised, could make things between James and her even more awkward than before.
***
The next morning she was at James' home, a relatively modest house not far from hers. She knocked on the door, and James answered. His usual scowl upon seeing her was not in evidence today -- instead she received her first smile from him since he had caught her cheating.
He led her into the kitchen, asking her if she wanted a drink. Before she could answer, her eyes caught the pictures that had been stuck all around the kitchen. They were photos of her in various states of undress -- chest thrust forward, legs wide open, showering. She knew that he must have been sent them by Matt, but wondered how.
"But... but... you don't know Matt?!" she stuttered.
"Matt asked your lawyer for my details and forwarded the photos on by E-mail," James explained.
Holly was horrified. She wondered who else had seen the photos. All her other ex-boyfriends, almost certainly. But who else?
"That one is my particular favourite," James said, pointing to one of her mid-orgasm in Matt's hot tub.
Holly wanted to rip down all of the photos, but knew it was pointless. James had already seen them, and quite possibly would be seeing her body for himself very soon.
"So it looks like you enjoyed your last task?" James asked, smiling.
"Well..." Holly said, not wanting to admit it, but knowing that the evidence was set out explicitly in front of her.
The moment was interrupted by the arrival of Mr. Pointer at the door.
He too was shown into the kitchen, and took a good look round at the photos.
"Ah, so I see Matt sent you the photos then?" he asked.
"Yes, thanks for passing my details on to him," James said.
James noticed the envelope that Mr. Pointer was carrying and, curiosity getting the better of him, asked to have a look.
Mr. Pointer passed over the envelope. James opened it, read, then passed the contents over to Mr. Pointer. Mr. Pointer also read, then folded the paper and put it in his pocket.
Holly looked at him. Was she not going to get to know what was in store for her?
"The instructions say that we should not show them to you," explained James. "Simon wants the task to be a surprise."
Holly protested to Mr. Pointer that this was not fair; she had to be told what Simon had said. Mr. Pointer waived away her protests. He had read the instructions, he told her, and he wouldn't allow James to ask her to do anything that was not within them. He was, after all, an impartial observer -- he had been appointed by Simon to carry out exactly this task.
***
The first element of the task, James explained, was that he was to give her a cookery lesson. This was obviously Simon's sense of humour, she thought. Though she thought herself a reasonable cook, Simon had never agreed, and had refused to eat any food she prepared, saying that he would rather not be a victim of food poisoning.
There was to be a slight twist to this cookery lesson, however. Holly was to be naked throughout it. Upon imparting this piece of information, James looked at her expectantly, clearly expecting her to start undressing.