CHAPTER FOUR: They All Come Here for Different Reasons
Wednesdays were always full.
By noon, Dr. Matteo Reyes had already seen three women—each one different, each one predictable.
Client #1: The Widow25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVYks7XPlkT
Mrs. Arriola, 56.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRTXIfOin6R
She wore pearls with her grief, always requested jazz music in the background, and never wanted to be looked at while being touched.
“Talk to me while you do it,” she always whispered, eyes closed. “Lie to me. Tell me I’m still beautiful.”
Matteo did.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzhWWLez7q
Not because she needed to believe it—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAQQFez7UVw
but because, in that moment, she was.
Client #2: The Trophy Wife25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡly7MGkwwOq
Celeste, 39.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXv0E9AA6jb
Impeccable red lips. Designer perfume. Bruises she pretended were from falling asleep on her husband’s watch.
She didn’t want slow. She wanted punishment.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3RuxhkihqF
Quick, cruel fingers. Bites that didn't bleed, but burned.
“Make me feel like a whore,” she’d said once, eyes daring him.
But Matteo never played to shame.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzxROjR9jc
He played to release.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeWwluDM6E6
And when she finally cried, it wasn’t from pain.
Client #3: The Actress25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxgPR1Vj6fK
Laia Cruz, 47.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0RHoB9An3K
A face the nation loved. A voice trained in charm.
She booked under a fake name. Paid in cash.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhiVP9hBLKY
Always smiled—until the door shut. Then dropped the act.
“I’m tired of pretending,” she would whisper.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCADYXnee78
“Can you just... let me fall apart, for once?”
And he did.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnK38fwqIM7
He let her shatter on his table, holding her hand like she was someone worth saving.
Each session followed a rhythm.
Warm oil. Whispered truths.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUH22ZdeiZ1
Boundaries respected. Needs met.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPf2RhjqlrC
Matteo gave them what they came for.
And then forgot them.
But Ms. De Luna was different.
She didn’t want a fantasy.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjoXskWU8ND
She didn’t play roles.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlAE0xwH6x1
She didn’t moan on cue.
She sat in his mind like a puzzle that didn’t fit.
Her voice.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpl00jv1EHB
Her restraint.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnsFJqKURbV
The way she kissed him and trembled after like she’d done something sinful.
And how Matteo wanted her to do it again.
He washed his hands between sessions, like always.
But even as the lavender soap clung to his skin…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnL3vv8UgeE
he could still taste her silence on his lips.
And that terrified him more than any confession ever had.
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