"This has got to stop," I said firmly to my sexy reflection. "I willstop." That had a note of pleading in it, which made the cute blond lookeven hot...er. "Oh god, how can I stop?"------------------------------------------------A year previously..."Fuck you James!" Annie slammed the door behind her, and with that my twoyear relationship was over. It wasn't the worst thing in the world, it'dbeen apparent for a couple months now that we weren't going to work out,and we'd only made each other. Such is the price for a reputation, Esfalan groused. He was nearly fifty-one years of age, and had had his reputation for close on twenty-five of those years. It seemed like a long time to have a reputation to Esfalan, but when his family pointed that out to him, he shrugged and wondered aloud how long before a reputation became a legend?He dropped the flowers in the spot vacated by a bolt of pretty cloth - the trade did not go unnoticed by the clothier, and Esfalan ignored the cry behind him.. But this wasn’t even about her hand. “I really enjoy it when people worship me. My body, I mean. You know? Lick my feet? Kiss my ass when I go to bed, until I fall asleep?” Mary forgot all about the pain then. “You want me to kiss your body?” “I’ll let you kiss my body. That would be fun, right?” “Yes!” Mary cried. She surprised herself. Her heart was pounding, and further down she was on fire. “Oh good.” Sandy took a step away, allowing Mary to pull her hand back and nurse it against her. ‘What are you doing here?” he asks.“I work here,” I say, pushing my reading glasses down my nose so I can see him. “Do you have the water consumption figures from last week?”“You took this week off, N. Reynolds.” He frowns down at me. “The form says you needed a mental health break.”I lean back in my chair, somehow unsurprised, but I’m not about to show it. D. Webster hates vacation requests, and a mental health reprieve would be the only acceptable reason to take time off. I dredge up a weak.