ankle-deep in the pile. The lighting was indirect. There were candles on every table. In her imagination they would be scented and give off the faint fragrance of gardenia. She adored the smell of gardenia candles. Large windows offered a night cityscape. Dipping her spoon into her ice cream, she slid it into her mouth, enjoying the taste of the caramel praline on her tongue.
She heard the sound of a door opening and closing. A man came into her view. Nora gaped, the spoon halfway to her mouth again. The man, bronzed, and clad only in a white towel, was gorgeous. Absolutely, perfectly gorgeous! He appeared to be looking in her direction, and he smiled. The dazzling white teeth flashed against his tanned skin. All abs and pecs, and heaven only knew what else- she couldn't pull her eyes away from him.
His chest was broad and smooth. His waist and hips were narrow. He was tall with long, long legs. The full head of hair was raven black, cut short, but beautifully styled. Nora couldn't tell the color of his eyes beneath the bushy eyebrows, but hell! Did it really matter? Yeah, this was porn, but oh, baby! She couldn't wait to see the woman who would partner Mr. Gorgeous.
The man was looking directly at her, or at least it seemed he was looking directly at her. It was just the slightest bit eerie, Nora thought. Then he spoke, and of course the voice belonged with the buff body. It was deep with just the roughest edge to it. 'Hello, Nora.' He smiled again. It was a slightly crooked smile. 'Hey, Red Rover, want to come over and play with me?' he crooned.
Nora smiled. When she was a kid they used to play a game called Red Rover. When she had first learned it she thought the boys were referring to her hair when they called to her, 'Red Rover, come over.' She stretched back in her recliner, waiting to see the hot babe who was undoubtedly about to appear. Why didn't Carla just say The Channel was a porn channel and let it go at that instead of making such a mystery of it? Probably thought I'd be shocked, Nora considered.
The man held out his hand. 'Nora,' he said quietly, 'aren't you coming? You did order The Channel, and it has created that little fantasy you've kept hidden all these years. Do you just want to stare at me, or do you want to have some fun with me?'
A sudden chill of surprise swept down her spine. He was talking to her! No! He couldn't be talking to her.
'Are you afraid, Nora? You don't have to be afraid, you know,' he assured her with another crooked smile. 'This is your fantasy, after all. We aren't going to do anything that you don't want to do, I promise you, but I assure you I know just what you want, darling. But you don't trust men right now, do you? Well, I can't blame you, considering what Jeff has done to you all these years.' He held out his hand once again. 'Come on, Nora. Come and be with me for a while. You'll enjoy it, I guarantee you.'
For the longest moment Nora couldn't move. She was absolutely frozen in her chair. Her heart was hammering in her ears. He really was talking to her. He was! She swallowed visibly. Her throat felt tight, but she managed to speak. 'Who are you?'
'My name is Kyle,' he told her, and he smiled a third time. 'You like the name Kyle, don't you?'
'Yes.' It was in fact one of her favorite names. Nora wasn't certain that she shouldn't be very afraid, but she realized that she wasn't. Startled, yes. Surprised? You betcha! But she was not afraid. 'How do you know me?' she questioned him.
'Well, I suppose you could say I was a part of you, Nora, because this is, after all, your fantasy. You've kept it hidden away deep in your subconscious for a very long time because fantasies are illusionary and not really meant to be lived out. And many fantasies wouldn't be considered respectable.' He grinned. 'By requesting The Channel, however, you allowed your fantasies to be released. It allows you to interact with your fantasies. This is the apartment that you always dreamed of, isn't it? You've furnished it in your mind a thousand times over, haven't you?'
'Yes,' she said slowly. 'But how can this be possible? How can I be seeing it on my television, and talking to you?'
He shook his dark head. 'I have absolutely no idea,' he answered honestly. 'My reality seems to be your fantasy.'
'Omigod!' she half whispered. 'I'm asleep, then. Right?'
'Nope,' he told her. 'You're very much awake, Nora, my darling. Come and join me now.' This time the smile he gave her was seductive and slow. It promised to fulfill her deepest desires.
'How?'
He placed his palm against the television's screen from the opposite side so that it faced her. 'Match your hand to mine,' he said, 'and we'll be together.'
'I'll be with you? In that apartment?' Nora sounded dubious. 'And just how do I get back here to my own house, then?'
'Every woman visiting The Channel is returned at the end of the evening,' he replied. 'It just happens. Carla wouldn't steer you wrong, Nora, darling. You know she wouldn't. Come on over, Red Rover, and play with me. I play nice, and you know you really want to be with me.'
'I don't think so,' Nora answered him.
'Why not? Afraid?' he half taunted her. 'You never used to be afraid of anything when you were a kid, darling.'
'Maybe you haven't noticed,' Nora remarked dryly, 'but I'm not a kid any longer. I'm closer to fifty than forty. I've got about thirty pounds on me I didn't have way back when. My hair is showing signs of graying, and you, Mr. Gorgeous, should have someone equally gorgeous.' She reached for the remote. It was past time to turn this thing off. She had to be dreaming, but if she shut The Channel down and woke herself up, maybe, just maybe, she could catch
'Don't send me away, Nora, darling,' he pleaded, divining her intent. 'This is your fantasy, and you actually have the chance to live it. Here you can be whatever you want to be, and do whatever you want to do. If younger and sexy is what you desire, then you shall be young and sexy. The Channel allows you this unique opportunity.'
Nora hesitated, fascinated by his words, surprised that she was actually beginning to consider them seriously. 'You mean if I want to be thirty again, one hundred and twenty pounds, and have perky boobs again, I can?' This was crazy. Why was she even listening to him? Then she smiled to herself. She was listening because he was charming, and very tempting. It had been forever since a man had spoken to her as if she was a sensual and intelligent woman. Not someone's wife, or mother, or servant.
'You can be whoever you want to be when you're with me,' he repeated. 'Tell me what you would wear,' he enticed her softly.
'Something sexy. I don't know,' she said.
'I'd like to see you in a teddy. Black lace against your white skin, and red hair,' Kyle murmured low.
'But no bikini bottom,' she answered him, blushing at the vocal thought. 'No, no teddy. I think one of those little short robes. Black silk. Just grazing the tops of my thighs.'
'Yes, I'd like that. Just long enough to cover your pretty little pussy,' he said.
Her cheeks were burning with his words. 'Why do you prefer the robe?' she asked him.
'Because it would make it a whole lot easier to fuck you,' he admitted frankly. Then he laughed. 'You're blushing again. I can see it even with just the light from the television on your face. How long has it been since you were well and truly fucked, Nora, my darling?'
'Years,' she sighed gustily. 'Hell, you know the answer, Kyle. You don't have to ask me, do you?'
'The first time we do it,' he told her, 'we'll do it quickly because you need it badly. Then after that, we'll do it slowly. I'll make you scream with your orgasm. Jeff never made you scream, but I can.'
'No,' she said, 'Jeff never made me scream. All he wanted to do was to satisfy himself. Still it was better than nothing, which is what I've been getting for the last few years,' she finished tightly.
'Pity the other woman, Nora darling,' he said. 'Once the novelty wears off he'll start treating her the way he's treated you. She's going to be stuck. In ten years Jeff will be ready for Social Security, but you'll have me, and anyone else you want, for as long as you want,' Kyle told her. 'Would you like to have a threesome with another guy? Of course you would, Nora. And you can whenever you want to, Red Rover.'
'Would you be jealous if another man screwed me?' she asked him.
'If all I could do was just sit and watch, yeah, damned straight, I would be!' Kyle said. 'But it's your fantasy, Nora. You can do whatever you want to do with me. You might say I'm your slave.' The quick smile flashed again.
