Her young lover takes over
Max's father was opening a new branch office and wouldn't be back for a couple of months. In the meantime, Max was left in charge of their old office, and was pleased to get the staff on his side. More importantly, he had a beautiful older woman as his lover. He felt like a conquering hero, with everything going his way.
The woman's husband had left her, and wouldn't be back. It was a shock, and she was hurt, feeling emotionally vulnerable. Added to that, her finances were in ruins. He took all the paperwork concerning the money situation, with a genuine intention of doing his best for her. He hadn't expected her to give in to his advances so easily, but she had, and he felt very satisfied with how things were progressing.
He gazed at her while she cooked dinner, and smiled.
'You're wonderful, and I'm a lucky man,' he said.
'What brought that on?' she laughed.
'I was just thinking how lucky I am to have such a beautiful woman looking after me,' he said.
'Wait until after dinner,' she playfully warned him.
'I wasn't thinking of that. I was,' he faltered.
Chloe recognised his contemplative mood, and wondered what he was thinking. Was she a mother substitute? His mother had walked out when he was very young. That might explain the crush he had on her. He admitted he hadn't thought to start an affair, and that it happened spontaneously. If she considered the coincidence of him being there when the letter from her husband arrived, she would have been suspicious. Before she could dwell upon it, the cooking demanded attention.
Together they cleared away, and sat with a cup of coffee, smiling at each other.
'Do you have any more of those nice underwear sets?' he asked.
'Do you think of nothing but sex?' she teased.
'When I look at you, no,' he teased right back.
'You mean the stockings and suspenders, no,' she said.
'You need to buy more,' he suggested.
'I don't have any money,' she reminded him.
'Don't worry about the mortgage, I've fixed that, and I've taken over the bills,' he said.
'What do you mean about the mortgage?' she asked.
'I bought the house. The utility bills are paid out of my account, so that's not a problem. I arranged for the interest on credit cards to be frozen, but they had to be returned to the lenders. You'll have to deal in cash from now on,' he explained.
'You bought the house? How?' she said, looking worried.
'My grandmother left me a lot in her will. It's a good investment,' he explained.
'But how did you? What did I sign the other day?' she asked, becoming more worried.
'You signed a power of attorney form, so I can deal with the debts,' he explained.
'I didn't realise, you didn't tell me, why did you do that?' she asked, sounding cross.
'You needed help, and weren't in a fit state to deal with it,' he shrugged.
'But this is serious, Max. I can't let you do this,' she complained.
'You were right about the bills. Your finances are out of control. The bank was ready to foreclose. The credit cards are maxed out. It's a real mess,' he explained.
'Is it really that bad? Is that why he ran out on me?' she said.
It looked as though she was going to burst into tears.
'Don't worry. I'll take you out shopping tomorrow. Buy you some sexy underwear, to make you feel good,' he cajoled her.
'I need food not underwear,' she tried to joke.
She tried to smile at him, wanting to hide her feelings. This was very worrying. Buying naughty underwear would please him, not her.
'What's the matter?' he asked.
'Nothing,' she said, and got up to wash the coffee cups.
He wrapped his arms around her, tightening the grip to stop her squirming away.
'Tell me,' he forcefully spoke.
'You've taken over my finances. I didn't realise what you were doing,' she stated.
'It's just until you get on your feet. I'll get you a job, and you can re-build your life. It will be alright, you'll see. I told you, I care about you, and I'll look after you,' he reassured her.
'Thank you, Max,' she said.
It would take far more than kind words to allay the uneasiness. He was being nice, even fulfilling a promise to care for her, yet it didn't feel right. He was an eighteen year old, and she felt it was taking advantage. Or maybe he was taking advantage of her, though there wasn't much she could do about it. Nothing at all.
'Come on, cheer up. You're safe with me here,' he said.
She did feel safe in his arms, so relaxed and gave in.
'Come on, let's go to bed,' he encouraged. 'We'll have a nice cuddle.'
She was about to make some excuse, and send him home. Then she realised things had changed between them. It was going to be very different from now on. It was now his bed, his bedroom, and his house. Her husband had run out on her, and Max had taken over responsibility for her. This young man had completely taken her over, without bothering to ask her opinion.
'If you want,' she reluctantly agreed.
She slipped between the sheets and pulled them up under her neck, waiting for him to emerge from the bathroom. She felt shy and vulnerable. He began kissing, and caressing her body.
'You're not very enthusiastic tonight,' he said. 'Is there something wrong?'
'No, it's alright,' she said, and kissed him gently on the lips.