Forbidden

When I went into the kitchen she already had the lasagna in the oven and two glasses poured. I pressed her against the marble before she could set the dish down.

The first customer asked for something that wasn’t in my contract. When I got back to the room, Salvador was breathing like he’d been awake for hours.

What started as a stupid afternoon on his sofa ended with me kneeling between his legs, discovering that some favors can’t be returned.

Daniel took the wrong alley at the wrong moment. Weeks later, in front of the mirror, a stranger with his gaze was starting to appeal to him more than she should.

When he opened the bag, he found a burgundy bra and a note: “Get familiar with the sensations. Tomorrow we begin in earnest.” There was no turning back.

I thought the bathroom would be empty. Carolina was standing at the mirror, and her gaze wasn’t surprised: it was the gaze of someone who knew exactly what I had just done.

I thought I’d put her in her place. That afternoon, as I came out of the bathroom, I heard a zipper coming down behind the half-open office door.

I never thought a scene in a game would ignite something between us, or that that same afternoon I’d have his taste in my mouth and his name looping in my head.

Caro was six years older than me, with a life that seemed perfect and a secret she meant to take to the grave. That night, she decided she couldn’t take it anymore.

Marina left the phone book open at the letter C. I only meant to talk about my bedroom blockage, but that first session didn’t end the way anyone would imagine.

Only one name was left on his patient list, and when he called it, he had no idea who would walk through his consulting room door that afternoon.

Every first Tuesday of the month he rang the bell with the water drum on his shoulder. I greeted him each time wearing less and less, hoping he’d stay longer than necessary.

The theater was almost empty. My husband got up for the drinks and, before leaving, had pulled up my skirt and sweater just enough for his friend to be unable to look away.

I got to her place an hour before my girlfriend. My mother-in-law opened the door in a short robe, a poured whiskey, and a smile that was anything but innocent.

When the three knocks sounded at the bathroom door, I assumed it was Carla. But the one who came in was him, without waiting for an answer, barefoot and bare-chested.

When I opened the door to breathe the wet air, someone jumped the wall. He was naked, he wouldn’t give me his name, and my husband was still sleeping inside the house, knowing nothing.

I felt his body trembling against mine on the bench along the seafront. What he confessed that night changed everything, and there was no turning back.