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 Widow17Please respect copyright.PENANAJSgIozHrOz
Mrs. Arriola, 56.17Please respect copyright.PENANAihBL9IXHaw
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.17Please respect copyright.PENANAoU6pPGZAWo
Not because she needed to believe it—17Please respect copyright.PENANALjWHGdV1i0
but because, in that moment, she was.
Client #2: The Trophy Wife17Please respect copyright.PENANAyWU0m59gmv
Celeste, 39.17Please respect copyright.PENANABcLs3bryht
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.17Please respect copyright.PENANAdAwTtZ4HS4
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.17Please respect copyright.PENANAmbqrOADS1u
He played to release.17Please respect copyright.PENANAwjMd5GsTZR
And when she finally cried, it wasn’t from pain.
Client #3: The Actress17Please respect copyright.PENANA8vDWah893f
Laia Cruz, 47.17Please respect copyright.PENANAatfwRauLtB
A face the nation loved. A voice trained in charm.
She booked under a fake name. Paid in cash.17Please respect copyright.PENANAStBFVZfP1r
Always smiled—until the door shut. Then dropped the act.
“I’m tired of pretending,” she would whisper.17Please respect copyright.PENANAnzsTKIKNz9
“Can you just... let me fall apart, for once?”
And he did.17Please respect copyright.PENANAAkfxaroPsN
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.17Please respect copyright.PENANAtSBy19nslZ
Boundaries respected. Needs met.17Please respect copyright.PENANAXjcezuzuRP
Matteo gave them what they came for.
And then forgot them.
But Ms. De Luna was different.
She didn’t want a fantasy.17Please respect copyright.PENANAbqBLPduvEy
She didn’t play roles.17Please respect copyright.PENANA5SjT6ylaCk
She didn’t moan on cue.
She sat in his mind like a puzzle that didn’t fit.
Her voice.17Please respect copyright.PENANAh7BozsT8yr
Her restraint.17Please respect copyright.PENANAr3eVpw10ly
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…17Please respect copyright.PENANArVebXQDOuf
he could still taste her silence on his lips.
And that terrified him more than any confession ever had.
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