I sometimes think that the events overtook me somewhere along the line. What I mean is I got into a conversation with a beautiful neighbour about personal debt and low pay and what to do about it. Veronique, my neighbour, gave me a business card for an agent; this turned out to be her agent too. She reached over and touched my hair and said , 'Anita, you could easily make money out of your beauty.' I blushed but she continued, 'You're stunning and you have all the right assets. I'm surprised you don't already have an agent to promote you.' I blushed even more.
Somewhere in that conversation she mentioned that she regularly made £250 a day. That, to me, was terrific money; especially as I was working part-time in a boutique for £100 a week. I left school at the age of 18 with good exam results but missed out on university. Three years later I got married. Fast forward six years and at the age of 27 I found myself divorced with two children and depending on government financial aid, on top of my paltry pay, to keep us afloat in a small two-bedroom apartment. So £250 a day? Yeah, that was a dream!
When I had put the children to sleep that same night I was surprised to answer a knock on the door and find Veronique there with a bottle of wine in her hands. 'I've come to persuade you,' she smiled.
And let me tell you, Veronique can be very persuasive as I found out. She is a beautiful, petite, 30 year old French woman who lives alone on the same floor in our complex of 24 apartments. I often wondered what her job was as she always seemed so fit and happy and elegant. She had lovely dark brown eyes and shoulder length strawberry-blonde hair. She always appeared tanned and was never without a mini skirt that complemented her legs or a blouse that highlighted her firm bust. But more than that – her personality was captivating. She was so totally feminine; a woman's woman.
While we sat on the sofa we made small talk over two glasses of the Chablis. She told me that she had never married but had a few boyfriends in her day, back in Lyon. She had come to London with a friend and they had tried various jobs. One day they saw an advert for a modelling agent's search for new talent. They got an interview and did an audition but her friend went off the idea and she eventually returned to France. I told her about my marriage and my philandering husband and what it felt like to find out that one of my best friends was sleeping with him. She asked if that had put me off men and I merely shrugged and asked her about the job she was doing for £250 a day.
Veronique smiled, 'It's not exactly a job as such. It's what I would describe as realistic acting and some posing and it is very enjoyable.'
At this point I have to say we were both tipsy with the wine and we were sitting sideways on the sofa with our legs curled up under us. Several times, as if to emphasize a point she was making, she touched my knee and thigh. I felt very relaxed with her and began to notice certain physical attributes: the lines on her pink lips; perfect teeth; the toned shape of her breasts and the outline of a lacy bra; the healthy tan of her thighs. And I had no idea why I was noticing these things.
Again she leaned forward a little and stroked my hair. 'You should definitely consider talking to my agent, Anita. You are such a beautiful woman.'
I broke the moment by refilling our glasses with the remainder of the wine. 'But what exactly do you do?'
'Some lingerie stuff but mostly erotic videos and films,' she said without hesitation.
I almost choked on the wine. 'What? You are joking, aren't you?' She smiled and took a sip of the wine.
'You act in porno movies?' I said.
'Oh, how I hate that term. I don't see it as porno. To me it's erotica, very sensual and very enjoyable.'
'I couldn't do that,' I said. I felt disappointed as I saw the £250 slipping like sand through my fingers.
'Well, you could still do the lingerie modelling. It doesn't pay as much but it's still better than what you're earning at the moment, Anita.'
'Hm,' was all I could muster.
'And do you want to know something?' she continued. 'When the agent first told me what the work entailed I felt the same way as you do now. I actually spoke to her three times before I even looked at a sample of the work.'
We changed the subject and chatted a bit more. Before she left she gave me a quick hug and asked me if I fancied lunch on Friday. I agreed as Friday was the day when my parents took the children for most of the day so I could get some time to myself if necessary.
∞
We met, as pre-arranged, in the shopping centre and headed to a small restaurant on the third floor. Veronique looked stunning and I could see many people eyeing her up. If I am honest I did feel a little jealous. We sat at a small round table in a corner and gave our order to the waitress.
'You look stunning,' I said.
'Oh thank you,' she smiled. 'I was doing a photo shoot this morning and so I still have the makeup. And here, I got this for you.' She handed me a scarlet red carrier bag.
I was puzzled and looked at her. 'Go on, take it,' she laughed.
As I took the bag and looked inside my eyes opened wide. It was obviously underwear and stockings because I could see a jumble of black nylon and blue satin edged with black lace.
'I'm sorry it's all in the same bag like that but that's the way it was given to me,' Veronique said.
'Er, no, it's alright. I mean thank you, Veronique, you, er, shouldn't have. But thank you.'
'It's what I was photographed in this morning,' she smiled when she saw my frown. 'But don't worry, they're clean. I did think they were really lovely and so sexy and I thought they'd be perfect for you, Anita. I hope that's alright.'
I nodded and thanked her again. I did, however, think it odd that she had just given me a lingerie set which she had worn as if it was perfectly normal to do so but I put this down to her being French.
We had a nice lunch of open sandwiches and coffee and we chatted like very close friends. Even in the restaurant Veronique had a habit of touching which again I thought was a French thing. Quite frequently she would touch my fingers or hand or my knee under the table.
After lunch we strolled back to our apartments and I asked her, by way of conversation, if the photographer, in the morning, had been good-looking. Veronique smiled and took my arm. 'She wasn't bad looking I would say.'