“Hello,” he said.
He had shiny, well-shaped lips.
My boss spoke to me at the same moment the boy did, Leonard Cohen suddenly replaced by Ali’s tense voice.
“What is it?”
The boy’s eyes were on me, his ears pricked to catch everything I said. I was nearly at a loss for words.
“I think we have a serious problem,” I managed, simultaneously producing a little smile for the boy. Old Leonard was right, of course, but I wondered if the boy realized that anger can also produce a smile. I didn’t want him to get the wrong idea.
“A problem? What do you mean? We got the job done, didn’t we? They’ve even deposited our money.”
It was just like Ali to use “we” and “our” even though it was “me” who had done all the work and who would face the consequences.
I could smell the fresh sweat of the boy an arm’s length away. He’d hung his head in a show of bashfulness, but the eyes peeping out at me from below his eyebrows were bold and proud. And the half smile was as cocky as could be.
Covering the receiver with a hand, “It’s confidential,” I told him. “I won’t be long,” I added, as though he was in line waiting for the phone.
“Hello? I can’t hear you. What’s wrong? Like I told you, they’ve even paid up. Let’s not spoil things now.”
“Didn’t I tell you to find out who the client was? I’m coming to the office. We’ll talk there. Yes, the job went off without a hitch. But that’s just the problem.”
I could tell the boy wasn’t listening to what I was saying, only looking me up and down hungrily. It wasn’t what I was saying, it’s what I was that intrigued him. His right hand was fumbling around in the pocket of his charcoal trousers. When he noticed my eyes had shifted, involuntarily drawn to the action, he increased his toying.
Muttering a few more words, I hung up the phone. Ali still had no idea what I was talking about, but he soon would.
“I’m sorry to keep you waiting, dear,” I said.
The “dear” had slipped out of my mouth somehow.
“It’s not important. No problem…”
He grinned.
He was standing right in front of me. I was pinned in the corner, and forced to take a step toward him as I tried to get out. He didn’t budge.
“Can we talk?”
If I refused him on the spot, there would be a scene, and I’d end up harassed by the whole lot of them.
“Not right now, I’m afraid,” I said. “You heard me on the phone. I’ve got to go to work.”
“We like you. We think you’re really something.”
Why the “we”? Was he going to propose a group?
“That’s very kind, but I’m afraid I haven’t got the time for…”
“We’re all crazy about you. Couldn’t you help us out?”
Yes, it was an orgy he had in mind.
“Well, I never!” I bridled, not sounding entirely convincing or at all outraged.
He felt secure enough to take another step toward me. Inches apart, I could now smell his mint chewing gum. Having undressed me, his eyes, feverish and full of urgency, moved on to doing unspeakable things to my person.
“It won’t take long.”
His open desire was seductive, his bravado repulsive; I was wedged between the two. But his fresh masculinity, youthful brazenness, and fumbling hand were getting the better of me. He emanated a raw animal lust rarely seen in older men, who normally play by the rules and care for conventions.
“A friend of mine lives nearby. His place is free. It’s safe. We could go right now.”
He was taller than me. I was impressed by the way he stood, the way he carried himself. He had a narrow face but broad shoulders. I had no doubt that his stomach was flat and his bottom tight and well-rounded. Even standing there in a shapeless school uniform his wiry body promised so much. He swallowed, his well- developed Adam’s apple rising and falling. His fingers were long and tapered. How could I resist?
“I’m not interested in the others,” I said. “Just you.”
He relaxed, relieved that I’d caved in so soon. He was now more confident than ever.
“But it’d be rude to my friends,” he said.
I have no tolerance for being treated like the neighborhood whore. But the boy was a dish, and he’d gotten my blood flowing. Fortune had smiled on me, and I didn’t want to spend the rest of the day horny and full of regret. I decided to flatter him.
“What do you mean ‘rude’? You’re the only one I like. And you’re the only one I want to be with.”
“They’re good guys. And one of them’s hung like you wouldn’t believe. Like in those dirty movies. Come on, it won’t take long. They’re dying to be with you. They’re only kids! Don’t leave them high and dry… Please, do what you can…”
“Stop insisting. It’s not going to happen!”
“What’s the big deal? If there’s someone you don’t like you don’t have to do anything. No one’s going to push you. Just suck on it, or let them rub against you. Some of them have no experience. They just about lost it when they saw you.”
“Oh, and I suppose you are experienced?”
He smiled wickedly.
“You don’t know me yet,” he said. “I’ve been together lots of times.”
“Where and how?”
“At the cinema… at the hamam… with some friends from the beer house. I also met a couple of people on the Internet…”
I believed him. He clearly knew what he was doing. In fact, he was even a bit jaded.
“Which cinemas and
He told me. He knew all the ones in Beyoglu and Aksaray. Considering where he apparently spent much of his free time, it was no wonder he was still in high school.
He interpreted my silence as a refusal. He had no intention of letting me get away so easily.
“We could go to the
I wasn’t afraid of anything. At any sign of the slightest misbehavior, the theft of my wallet, request for money, or discourtesy… I’d beat them all up. I’d leave the five of them in a bruised heap and simply proceed with my business.
It was funny, but I couldn’t even remember the other boys; I suppose I’d been too busy looking at the dark one. As a public service, in the name of furthering the education of callow youth, helping them to gain experience and become better acquainted with their own bodies, I wasn’t particularly averse to “getting men off,” as the girls put it. And depending on the degree of pleasure this selfless service gave me, I would most likely invite the dark one to visit me one day.
“Go on, introduce us,” I said.
A warm glow induced by the pride of seeing a potentially tricky mission accomplished with flying colors spread across the boy’s face. The day was growing cooler, positively bracing. When the other boys saw us approaching they stopped talking and shifted positions in a valiant effort to appear taller. All eyes were on me. I took my time as I walked over to meet them, looking into their eyes, those eyes widening with desire, as I approached their table, savoring the attention and carrying myself as regally as Queen Elizabeth herself.
We were formally introduced.
I politely refused their offers of cola, tea, coffee, and toast.
The house was, in fact, nearby. And I ended up staying there far longer than I’d anticipated.
Chapter 20
Unexpected developments were forever forcing me to alter my best-laid plans. By the time I got back to Ali, that is, to his office, it was getting dark. I felt completely smoothed out, from the tips of my toes to the roots of my hair. Yes, I was a bit spent, but that sensation of sweet limpness was just what I needed. Tension gone, I had a completely new take on myself, on life, and even on the dark night pressing in on the inhabitants of blessed Istanbul.
My mind was blissfully clear as I flew into the office on winged feet. Soulless Figen was getting ready to leave. Unused to seeing me at this hour, she didn’t know what to say. In any case, she was off to meet with her fiance and in a big hurry. Her makeup had been freshened, with predictably dire results. It would be well worth my while to take the poor girl aside one day and give her some tips.
After requesting that, before she left for the day, Figen bring in some coffee for me and Ali, I burst into his office like a bat out of hell.
“Where on earth have you been? First you get me all wound up on the phone, then you disappear until evening!”
“Well, I’m here now,” I said. “I think we need to have a serious talk. Why not have a seat and wait for our coffee. Then we’ll get started.”
“You’re making me even more curious. I hope you’re not getting me worked up for nothing,
I was, of course, the “big brother” to whom he referred. And he was older than me. Deciding to take him to task later, I let it pass for the moment.
“Just wait till you hear.”
“Come on then!” he said. “Tell me!”
Eager to run off to lover boy, Figen was unusually swift in serving the coffee.
“I’ll be leaving now if there’s nothing else you need.”
“That’ll be all, dear,” I said, with meaningful emphasis on the word “dear.”
As Figen rushed out the door, Ali had already taken his first swallow of coffee.
“Oh, and I really have to tell you. I don’t know what it is, but whatever you’ve done, you look great. Just bursting with life. Ever since you walked through the door,
