Spare Key Read online

  Rachel shook her head again as the group broke into shrieking laughter. She looked across at Mitch and smiled when she saw him blushing furiously at the crude tale. Talk about a trial by fire, she thought. Although to the man’s credit, despite being clearly uncomfortable, he was trying to make a good show of it; smiling along. Something in his manner told her that this little get together had been sprung on him as well. Fucking manipulative bitches, Rachel thought, but it was without malice.

  He seemed nice enough, although she hadn’t had much of a chance to talk to him yet. He’d had a warm smile when they’d been introduced and although his looks weren’t up to Ana’s hype, he was still very pleasant to the eye. Already he was shaping up to be far better than any of the previous guys her friends had tried to set her up with. The odds were definitely in his favour for a good time that evening.

  ‘So did you do it?’ Sarah asked, the breathy tone she affected ruined by the giggle at its end.

  ‘I certainly did…’ Lena sipped at her drink as a shocked gasp spread across the table. ‘… not. What do you take me for?’

  The group broke into laughter again as Rachel scanned the relative levels of the glasses and decided another round was in order. Was it her shout? She’d already lost track. Might as well get one in, she thought as her eye drifted to the bar. Although the Duke was rarely busy these days – the fact that it remained open was one of the more inexplicable things in the world to Rachel – the bar staff had an amazing ability to absent themselves when it came time to order drinks.

  It was a pretty dodgy pub but that’s why Rachel and her friends preferred it. It rarely got busy, especially since the kitchen was closed down for health reasons, and the few regulars were older guys who, although they certainly didn’t mind a look, had neither the inclination nor urge to hassle them. It made a refreshing change from the more popular places that were, as a rule, packed with alcohol-fuelled would-be Romeos. Last time they’d been at Bridie’s, Rachel had ended up storming out in a huff after the fifth pass was made at her.

  When she spotted the man staring at her from the bar, she automatically scanned over him, assuming it was one of the regulars copping an eyeful. Her eyes found that the staff member was present and waiting and it wasn’t until she’d turned back to the group for orders that her mind processed who was perched on the barstool.

  Her neighbour, Ben.

  Staring at her again.

  Her eyes darted back and locked with his.

  Ever so slowly, a grin crept across his face as he waved. He didn’t even blink.

  Rachel waved back automatically even though alarm bells were ringing.

  What the hell was he doing here? Had he followed her?

  Don’t be ridiculous. Why would he have followed you?

  Was it a coincidence? How long had he been there? How long had he been staring?

  A hand fell on her shoulder and Rachel almost screamed aloud.

  ‘Whoah, easy there tiger.’ Sarah grinned at her. ‘Who’s he?’ She nodded toward Ben at the bar as the group cracked up at the dénouement of Lena’s story. ‘You been keeping secrets from us?’

  Rachel looked back across at Ben. He was still staring at her intently.

  ‘It’s my neighbour,’ she whispered out of the side of her mouth, ‘he just moved in next door.’

  ‘Where the lady was murdered?!’ Sarah rendered Rachel’s whisper redundant with the volume of her reply. It would have been clearly audible from where he was perched at the bar. ‘What happened to Mr. Freaky? I was looking forward to the latest listing of his transgressions.’

  ‘He went away.’ Rachel forced her eyes away from Ben but when she turned to Sarah, she found her friend staring intently at him anyway.

  ‘Intense, isn’t he?’ she laughed, ‘He seems quite taken with you. Can’t take his eyes off of you.’

  No, he can’t, Rachel thought and was relieved when Ana pushed back her chair, bellowing in what she could only interpret as an attempt at a pirate’s voice. ‘Argh, it be my round.’ Suddenly she really didn’t want to go anywhere near the bar.

  ‘He’s pretty cute. You should invite him over.’

  ‘No,’ Rachel hissed but Sarah was already waving at him. ‘What are you doing?’ Rachel tried to grab her arm but Sarah just laughed and batted her away. Rachel felt like she could have just slapped her.

  She peeked up and breathed a sigh of relief as it looked like Ben hadn’t reacted to Sarah’s summons at all. She looked away, over at Mitch who had Bec rabbiting in his ear. He was nodding occasionally but looking from her to Ben. There was a flicker of something in his face – was it jealousy; oh, get over yourself – and Rachel’s heart fell as she looked back and saw Ben unfold himself from the bar stool. He retrieved his glass from the bar and moved slowly toward them.

  Oh fucking great, Rachel thought a little bitterly as Sarah gave a mock, excited yelp.

  ‘Oooh, here he comes.’

  * * * * *

  Rachel was doing her best not to let his presence at the table spoil her evening but as she listened to Mitch explain about his job at the local TAFE – as it turned out he wasn’t really an old friend of Ana’s but rather a colleague who had only started working there a month ago – inside she was fuming.

  Fucking hell, she’d come out tonight to get away from all this shit and then he had to go and fucking turn up… And then that fucking bitch Sarah.

  Her motives for calling him over had become abundantly clear now. Rachel knew she was probably being rude not talking to him after a brief introduction to the group but she supposed it didn’t really matter anyway. Not when he had Sarah fawning over him, chattering away.

  And every time she glanced at him it was there again. That flicker of movement as though he’d just swivelled his head away at the last second. Rachel just couldn’t relax with him there and she knew she was churning through her drinks too fast; that she would be absolutely shit-faced in the near future if she didn’t slow down, but it was the only thing keeping her irritation at bay.

  At least Mitch was turning out good. Although Rachel was fairly certain he had close to the most boring job on the planet, he was nice: softly spoken, self-effacing, one of those guys who just struck you as inherently good.

  Why don’t you marry him, she thought sarcastically, you barely know him, he could murder people in his spare time for all you know. It was hard not to see him in a pristine light though, when compared to the fucker staring at her from the other side of the table. Rachel had already decided she was going to sleep with the man. Now it was just a matter of letting things take their course.

  But there were still those eyes boring into her. Rachel fought the urge to grind her teeth and instead smiled at Mitch who had apparently wrapped up his usual day at work even if Rachel had missed the end bit.

  ‘So, have you been up to anything exciting today?’ he asked, smiling that self-effacing grin. The one that told Rachel he was well and truly aware of how dull his job was. She couldn’t help liking him for that.

  ‘Well…’ she began, readying her usual stock answers: nothing really exciting, the usual, work and stuff, but stopped as a new thought occurred to her. ‘Well now that you mention it, I don’t know if it’s exciting but, well something definitely different happened today.’

  She looked across at Ben to make certain he was watching. She wanted to see what his reaction would be.

  ‘I had a peeping tom.’ She said it at the just the right volume to cut through the hubbub of conversation from Ana who had embarked on some sort of stream of consciousness rant.

  It worked perfectly. Ana’s jaw clicked shut and the group turned toward her in near perfect unison. Even Sarah momentarily halted the moon eyes she was making at Ben.

  ‘Okay, now that sounds far more interesting,’ Ana crowed, grinning, ‘Do tell.’

  * * * * *

  Rachel sculled the dregs of vodka and coke from her glass and broke into a coughing fit as a bit of ice lodged in her
throat. God she was pissed. She’d lost track of the number of drinks she’d downed after ten. Whatever the number was, it was clearly the magic one. Even Ben’s presence at the table had stopped irritating her.

  His reaction to her story hadn’t been what she’d hoped for. He’d remained completely stone-faced and unreadable throughout and she couldn’t help but wonder, once again, if he was medicated.

  Not that his lack of response was bothering Sarah, she thought as she spluttered. She’d obviously set her sights on him for the evening and Rachel shuddered a little to think what that said about her: that she would be attracted to a man who basically ignored her.

  ‘Ya right? Got bones in it has it?’ Mitch’s face loomed into view.

  He was a little rosy-cheeked and there was a slight slur to his voice that in her intoxicated state, Rachel viewed as decidedly cute. He had a fair few drinks under his belt now and once he’d settled into the evening and the alcohol had started to ease his awkwardness, he’d revealed himself as quite the silver-tongued charmer.

  Rachel searched for a witty reply but the drink had made her brain an alarming blank. Mitch’s hand, that had started out patting her back, was now rubbing circles across it which Rachel was finding immensely enjoyable.

  Better get out of here soon before I pass out, she thought as she spluttered one last time before straightening in her chair. It was enough to send hazy swirls shooting across her vision.

  Definitely time.

  She attempted her best come-hither smile for Mitch as she eased her hand onto his thigh. She had a clear image of what she was going for in her mind and only hoped her face was obeying her. Mitch stared at her evenly for a second, just long enough for the doubts to start up – oh God, what if he says no, says I’m not his type – then he leaned in close and began whispering. His line was abrupt and to the point and Rachel was very thankful for that. It led to a very simple and easy to think through reply.

  ‘Do you want to get out of here?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Business done.

  The catcalls from the group started the instant they stood up, as though it hadn’t only been Ben who’d been staring at her all night. They continued as they headed to the door and Rachel turned just before opening it to shoot them the finger. It only doubled the calls and despite herself, Rachel found herself blushing.

  The only one not cheering was Ben and for a second the old doubts and irritation began to creep back in as she watched the smile spread across his face. But then Mitch grabbed her arm and dragged her out the door, spinning her into an awkward hug and as her lips met his, she decided there were far better things to occupy her thoughts.

  DAY 4

  Rachel peered down at Mitch’s head wedged between her splayed thighs and forced a moan of pleasure. Although he clearly knew what he was doing and his tongue felt nice as it plunged into her vagina, something just wasn’t right. His tongue worked away and the usual worries were at the back of her mind – does it smell? God, she should have showered, probably all hot and sweaty down there – but they weren’t the problem. She just couldn’t stop shooting glances at the window, certain she’d see him hunched over, his face pressed to the glass.

  Even though only darkness met her eyes each time, Rachel still lamented that her blind had been perpetually wedged half-open since she’d moved in. She never got around to fixing it and cursed that fact now. Although it was flimsy and the Venetians were all bent out of shape, at least it would have offered some mild protection.

  Come on, forget about it, focus on the job at hand, she told herself as she forced another moan while Mitch went to work on her clit, tonguing circles around it and sucking it into his mouth. Her forced moan turned to one of real pleasure as the sensation exploded through her but it wasn’t enough. She already knew she wasn’t going to cum; she was too distracted for that and before she knew it her eyes were drifting over to the window again.

  And the seething anger that was building inside her didn’t help at all. She tried her best to hold it back but it just kept bubbling up, slowly gaining momentum.

  Fuck it! It was meant to be her night of blowing off steam. A fun, relaxing evening with friends. A night she had desperately needed. And now it was all fucked. And she knew who was to blame. Fucking Ben. She knew she was being childish about it but even if he wasn’t responsible for the sprog and the missing underwear, she currently hated him just for the tatters he’d made of her evening.

  Fuck, if he was present she could just happily stab him.

  ‘Everything alright?’

  Rachel realised she’d stopped writhing and Mitch was looking up at her with concern on his face. She could see her juices glistening around his mouth and although it was arousing, she was tempted to just say, yeah, I’m afraid so, just not really in the mood at the moment.

  But it wasn’t his fault and just because Ben had ruined her night didn’t mean she had to ruin Mitch’s. Without a word, she pushed his face back into her crotch and began to grind at it as he moaned in obvious pleasure. At least someone’s enjoying themselves, she seethed inside at Ben. She’d been so fucking horny on the cab ride back. Mitch’s hands had been all over her and she’d been so looking forward to it. Her pelvis had been almost aching in anticipation.

  But now she found herself shuddering to a faked orgasm that released no tension; that afforded her no pleasure, only added to her anger and frustration. And as Mitch clambered up her body, pressing kisses across her stomach to her breasts, and she felt his erect cock nudging at her slick entrance – at least she was well lubricated; hard to fake arousal when you were as dry as the Gobi desert – she couldn’t help it. She began to fantasise. And even though the voice spoke up, suggesting it probably wasn’t the best idea, she ignored it. It was the only way she’d salvage at least a modicum of enjoyment from the evening.

  As he plunged into her, she pictured Ben gagged and bound to a chair; his flesh parting like her vulva as she eased the knife in ever so slowly.

  The orgasm rocketed out of nowhere.

  * * * * *

  Ben was lost in reverie, his cock like a heated iron bar in his hand as he pressed his ear to the wall. He could only hear vague noises but he knew what they were doing in there and when he thought of it, Rachel turned into her and his mind was summoning up images of the past. The part of it that had always seemed to leave him so conflicted.

  It would have been easier for him if she had just been violent. If it had just been hatred she’d shown him. But that hadn’t been the case and as he tried to focus his attention on the woman next door, the images kept intruding until they merged into one and Ben’s horniness only increased as he was transported back to those afternoons after school…

  When the butterflies were heavy in his stomach as he sat on the couch. A giddy feeling mixed with fear and desire and the horrible knowledge that it was wrong. Oh so wrong. But even though he’d be scared, his cock was always hard in his pants. Even though he was always punished for it.

  Even though he knew that later she’d be enraged.

  He always hated himself for the way he eagerly listened. Both wanting to and not wanting to hear her call: Benny, mummy needs you…

  His ear pressed to the wall, Ben held the key up before his eyes with his free hand. The urge to use it was nearly overwhelming. He had the power now. He didn’t have to wait for her summons. He could just stroll right in if he wanted. Maybe with one hand hidden behind his back?

  But that wasn’t right was it? It was the key for next door he held, not the one for her bedroom. But it was hard for him to tell the difference as her summons sounded in his mind.

  Benny, mummy needs you…

  And suddenly Ben felt sick with excitement as he stroked away. He knew he shouldn’t, that he’d be punished, but he also knew he had no choice. Even if he hid she always found him and the longer he made her wait, the worse the punishment would be.

  And her voice called again.

  Mummy needs you�
�

  And in his mind Ben pushed through the door and she was splayed out on the bed in front of him. Her legs spread so it yawned like a cavern before his eyes, the noises from next door just perfect and apt. His neighbour’s cries growing in volume, matching beat for beat her groans of pleasure.

  Ben couldn’t take his eyes away as the buzzing surrounded him like a swarm of bees. As he watched her slide the vibrator in and out. Watched how it glinted beneath the lights. His dick rock hard in his pants as he wondered if he’d only be watching today.

  Or would she let him touch her? Would she touch him?

  Ben longed to take it out and stroke it but didn’t dare. Not with her looking at him like that. A look that made all the old scars itch. And even though he felt sick to the stomach with the thought of the pain that would be coming, Ben couldn’t stop himself from moving toward her.

  There would be pain anyway because his whole life was pain.

  And she called to him again as the flesh of her pussy slurped…

  Benny, mummy needs you…

  And Ben couldn’t hold back. He ejaculated in thick, ropy jets across his chest, his body spasming with pleasure, as in his mind he clambered onto the bed.

  But suddenly everything was wrong. It had all changed and the bed was gone and he was sobbing in the corner as she stood over him, her eyes blazing and he knew what was hidden in the hand behind her back. And as she shrieked at him, flecks of spittle dotting the corners of her mouth, he just couldn’t stop cowering.

  How dare you! How dare you do that to mummy! I should cut it off! That’s what I’ll do! Cut it off..!

  The vision took Ben by surprise, burrowing into his post-ejaculatory bliss and briefly his face cracked as a sob ripped from his lips. The sounds from next door seemed to have disappeared and Ben couldn’t help wondering if maybe he’d imagined them in the first place. He sobbed again and felt wetness on his cheeks but he didn’t want to cry. He didn’t want to give her the satisfaction and anyway, it was always worse if he cried.