Chapter 4 - Diving in deep

The soup was very good. It had to be pre-made, since Alex had so little time to cook, but it was nonetheless pretty tasty. Having eaten some of it, I really did feel better, just as she had promised me.

«So, what do you do for a living?» I asked, trying to find out something about her.

«I'm in a law firm. Usually I deal with civilian trials, but sometimes I get a theft case, or something regarding some minor crime. I'm not high profile, and I want it to stay like that. You can bear the pressure that comes with that kind of jobs only for so long before you snap or, if you're lucky, you change your job. I'd rather not even try.»

«I agree. I don't think it's worth it.»

«Well, some people love money, and that gives them the strenght they need, at least for a time. But you know you're the only one in my heart, animate or inanimate, material or intangible.»

I tried to hide my embarrassment behind the spoon.

«Even then, it doesn't look like you're short of money. This house is huge, and very beautiful.»

She looked at me as if she were laughing to herself. «Well, not quite. Sure I make good money, but you're the breadwinner.»

«What?»

«Those paintings are yours.» she said, pointing to the pictures hanging on the walls.

«What?»

«You're a painter, honey. And a pretty good one at that. You've got quite a reputation around here.»

I was speechless.

«I'll show you your studio later.»

«You're not joking.»

«Why should I? It's plenty of fun telling you the truth, and it won't come back to bite me later.»

«Did I ever have anything to do with computers?»

«You had a coding mania a couple years ago, or so you told me. But nothing much as of late. Why?»

«Nothing.»

I had no intention to try and explain her my story. I didn't know how to tell her of my world, and I was sure she would have never believed me. It was hard for me to believe this world was real, even if I was living in it. I wondered how could I ever replace this "Amyntha" stranger in whose weird body I was living right now.

While I tried to make some sense of my thoughts, Alex put on the table some bread, cheese and raw vegetables and put some of it in my plate.

«So, is there something else you want to know?» she asked me.

Even if just a little while ago she had been terrified at the idea of losing me - of losing Amyntha, right now she looked like she was having fun.

«How do you manage to stay so happy?» I asked her, hoping she would help me cope with my predicament.

«I don't know. I'm scared, of course. But even if you don't remember anything, you're here in front of me, as beautiful as ever, as meditative and shy and doting as ever, teasing me by strutting around in that dress. I can't help feeling life is wonderful as it has ever been.»

Her words made me feel proud and embarrassed at the same time, and I straightened up, trying to sit in a more modest position while wearing such a revealing outfit.

«I didn't know where to find other clothes.»

She just smiled at me. «Are you still hungry?»

«No, I'm fine, thank you.»

«Ok, so just let me put those away and I'll show you your turf.»

She took the plates and put them in the sink with the kitchenware, gestured me to get up and follow her. She got to the hallway that led to the bathroom.

«It's quite simple. First room to your left, your "public" studio. It's where you keep your paintings that only need the finishing touches, and where you receive gallery delegates and job-related people. It's quite tidy, and built to show the glamorous side of painting. Second room to the left is your true studio, where you hole up when you've got to draw sketches, or when you're thinking about poses and composition, or when you're on a deadline. I'm one of the few people you've ever let inside here, but not even I am allowed to disturb you when you shut yourself in. I've always wondered how you look when you really focus on your work.»

Her smile softened up as she took my arm and leaned on to me.

«Here to the right is my home office. It's almost empty and I almost never use it, I just needed a place to store files and whatever I may want to look through at home. Don't worry, I hate working at home just as much as you hate me doing it.»

«Do I hate it?»

«Of course you do! If I'm working, I have no time to pamper you.»

As she spoke, she wrapped her arm around my back and casually groped my butt through the dress before putting her hand on my hip.

«Oh, by the way, if you ever need to, you can use it. I don't really need the room, just the shelves. Last, but not least, on the far right, is our bedroom.»

I hadn't thought about it, but it made sense we slept in the same bed. We were engaged, after all.

«Our clothes are in there, if you want to change, but you should know it would be a shame.» she moved her hand back on my butt. «You look good enough to eat.

I blushed, but didn't move away. Her hand on my bottom made me feel naughty and used and inferior, but I found that so arousing I got a boner right away.

«I don't feel like changing clothes. Show me my studio instead.»

«Which one?»

«Let's start from the real studio. I don't think I'll understand more about me by looking at a cover-up to be seen by prospective clients.»

«That's true. So, here we go.»

She pushed me forward, still groping me, and opened the door in front of me. I saw a pretty wide room completely cluttered by canvas, colours, brushes, photos, magazines and piles of things I couldn't really see below the creative disorder.

«Yeah, you're kind of a mess.» Alex said. «Let's see what you were working on...»

She took a few, careful, steps into the room, dodging the debris that littered the room and moving closer to a big easel with a huge painting on it. I couldn't see what it was because it faced the other way, but she seemed very impressed by it.

«Come here!» she said.

I moved through the rubble as if I hadn't being doing anything but for the last days. Probably my body still rememberd the exact position of every single object in the room. I tried to see what the painting was, but Alex stood in front of it.

«Sit down.» she said, pointing to the stool that was in front of it.

I did as I was told, and almost tumbled over as she threw herself at me, sitting on my lap and kissing me with zeal. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders, closed my eyes and let her go to town. She played with my tongue and bit my lips as she groped my butt hard, and as she parted from me, she even gave a light rub to my tits, making me shiver.

«I probably shouldn't have seen this yet, but thank you anyway. It's great, and I love it.»

Still shaken by the kiss, I struggled to understand. Just after a few seconds I remembered the painting. I looked at it over her shoulder and saw an amazing portrait of Alex. It was a half-lenght portrait, showing her beautiful face and naked breasts against the background of a flowering garden. She looked as if she had been photographed by surprise as she was turning around, except that every detail had been caught perfectly on the canvas. It wasn't complete yet: the colors were kind of weird and looked just a preliminary phase, but it still had a great visual impact.

«I did this?» I asked.

«Oh, yes you did. Probably for my birthday, in a couple months. Or maybe just 'cause you felt like it. Well, I don't care.»

She took my head between her hands, looking straight at me. «I love you.»

«I love you too.» I answered, and really meant it. I could see my love for her in that painting, and it was weird how familiar it looked. How every choice I would make, if I were capable of painting, was reflected on the canvas.

Alex hugged me again, and kissed me on the side of my neck. I was already aroused beyond my limits, but still I felt comfortable with her. I felt like even if she knew -- and she might even have known already -- she would have just felt flattered by it.

She straightened back up again. «It's wonderful. Thank you.»

«You're welcome. But I guess I should thank you too. I think your beauty is what made this portrait great.»

«Oh, you won't get anywhere by flattering me.» she said, laughing. «You'll get in my bed, of course, but you're already there, aren't you?»

«Maybe I am, but right now it looks too good to be true to me. So maybe I'mtrying to earn such an honour.»

«I like how you think. Maybe I should make you always earn it like this. But I guess refusing you would be as much as a punishment for me.»

I gave her a peck on the lips, without even thinking. It was the first time I took the initiative, and I almost feared she would run away, but she looked just happy.

«So you do like me, at least one bit.»

«I told you.» I said.

«Yeah, but you still had to show me.»

«I wasn't sure I was allowed to.»

«Well, then, next time I'll make sure to let you know.»

Smiling, I looked around the room. I could see many portraits of Alex, some incomplete, some fully formed, and some just sketches.

«How long have we known each other?» I asked.

«Two years, give or take. We met through an art gallery. There had been a theft while you were having an exhibit. None of your paintings got stolen, but we met there. I was mad about you the instant I saw you. You looked so proud, so strong, and yet as I spoketo you you came across like a shy little thing. You were so cute I wanted to hold you in my arms all night. I couldn't ask you out right away, though, because that would have been very unprofessional of me, on my very first visit to boot. However, as soon as I got back, I asked my office for a list of all artists currently hosted there. And that was when trouble began.»

«What kind of trouble?»

«You were nineteen. A promising, very, very young artist. I was twenty-eight. Almost twice your age. Even if I didn't care about what people would say about me -- which I actually don't, but that's unimportant -- every single brain cell of mine screamed not to get involved with you. You were too young, you had to be inexperienced and fickle. Not to mention that you probably would have ignored an old lady like me.»

«So? What happened?»

«I threw all my cautions to the wind and called you. I told I had to speak to you, thinking maybe you would have thought it was about the case and agree. I made sure not to clearly say it was about the case, but to do everything I could to make you think it was. When you agreed to see me for lunch, I was so happy, I didn't sleep the whole night. The day of our date, you wore this same dress. Since then, every time I see you wearing it, I feel like fainting, right before I feel like fucking your brains out.»

I gasped, startled at her sudden chenge in tone.

«Anyway, it turned out I was half right, and half wrong in my predictions. You were of course young, and you were inexperienced, but that made you so much cuter I fell in love with you all over again. And it looks like you were a strange enough teenager to look for a partner instead of a good fuck, so here we are.»

As she finished her story, she kissed me again, softly and slowly. «Yeah,» she said, «here I am, horny as all hell, sitting in the lap of a hot, young piece of ass. What do you say, hot young, piece of ass. You wanna turn in for the night?»

I knew she had no intention to sleep. I was horny as all hell all right, but my brain was screaming not to do it. I was afraid, I was scared of my body, I was scared of this world. I was scared of everything, except Alex. She didn't scare me: she made me feel like a teenager in love. She made me feel like hugging her and kissing her the whole night, she made me feel like laying down and letting her teach me what my body felt like. She made me feel like making love to her as long as I could.

«All right.» I said.