Chapter 6

“It was definitely a genius idea. We have checked out the different lines in and out of Edinburgh. On the train once you are away from the station everything goes by in a flash. If you are looking carefully at someone close to the track, making a specific effort, you get the sense of them but there is no way to identify them. We have seen people on horses, old couples stopped at the side of the road, kids playing in fields and parks. You know what you are seeing, I could tell the person was old or young or whatever, but it could have been the woman I work with, me Mum, somebody I went to school with. There would be no way of knowing. So if I was standing, posing beside the track someone looking out would get that glimpse and they would be like ‘hang on, that woman was naked’. So your idea works.”

Maggie stopped and went and found a piece of paper.

“We went on all four lines out of the city; both Glasgow lines, the line north over the Forth Bridge and the East Coast line to Newcastle and London. On that last one, there is an old airfield which has the Museum of Flight there now. But at the east end it is pretty isolated and the London trains go by. We went down to Newcastle and came back and that is the best place. There looked like there were a couple of spots over the border but its starts to become more of an expedition. Both lines to Glasgow have isolated yards, basically platforms by the track. Some of them looked old and deserted. The new station at Curriehill looks like it might work as well. It seems to be a commuter stop as it was deserted the day we went past. But the absolute best place is the closest. The track to the north goes right past the end of the runway at the airport. There is a farm road that leads up to the track, maybe for maintenance or something. But you are right beside the lights to point planes to the runway in the dark. And the train doesn’t go as fast as on the other three lines.”

Tony took over.

“This is the only place we have actually visited and checked out, we figured it could be the first shoot location since it is barely outside the city. As Maggie said there is a road and I think it is airport access rather than farm access. There is a sign saying ‘no unauthorised access’ but we went down to check it out. There is one big clump of bushes which would shield the car and the three of us from the road. It is a bit of a risk being so close to the airport but the trains do go past pretty slowly so the excitement of the shoot should be high. I have marked the other spots on the map so that you can see them. There is one last spot that is different. We even checked out the old steam train at Bo’ness and took a trip to the end of the small line they have. Their line and the platform is right beside the main track to Glasgow. It looks a bit more exposed but the volume of traffic would be pretty high. So that is what we have come up with. What about you?”

That was what the two of them didn’t know yet. Andrew had been thinking about shoot locations and different types of shoots on and off all term. Again it was not a constant thought, but seeing something in the paper or hearing someone talk about something would trigger a thought and if he remembered he would jot it down. As a result Andrew had lots of ideas. Some very impractical but some eminently doable, with a little bit of planning.

“I have more than 20 ideas for shoots. Most of them not in the studio, even though a lot of them are indoors. Some just require an early start and a little bit of luck, others are easy to do, but the luck factor is much higher, and so is the level of daring. One or two I think will be fantastic but I don’t know where to shoot them yet, but I have the idea. For the first shoot though, do you want to do something different, that will take all day, and there is no guarantee that the shoot will work when we get there?”

As a sales job it left a lot to be desired but Andrew knew his audience.

“Tell us.”

“We have all seen Local Hero, yes?”

It was a classic little movie set in Scotland which had been released earlier in the year and been very popular there. They both nodded.

“Yes it was great.”

“Well one of the guys I sat next to at dinner one night during the term was a real life marine biologist. He was a year away from getting his PhD I think. Anyway he was explaining to the table that he had been on the beach where they filmed Local Hero, just like Jenny Seagrove’s character in the movie. It is way up on the west coast near Mallaig. He said it was north of Arisaig but before Morar. I looked it up on a map in the library and I think I have found it. But it is at least a four hour drive, I have no idea what the weather will be like, and whether there will be other people there. But I must admit it piques my interest to photograph Maggie, I mean Monica there.”

Maggie interrupted.

“I still use Monica when working with other people but when it is just the three of us you are photographing me, okay?”

Andrew smiled and nodded.

“Sure. But I would love it if every time I heard the music or watched the film it would make me smile to remember our December day where Maggie frolicked naked on the same beach. And as well, the road goes past the Glenfinnan Monument so we could stop there on the way back, take some photos if we get the chance although that is pretty unlikely, it is too popular. But it is a long way to go and who knows how accurate the forecast could be.”

Both of them looked like they wanted the other to go first. Tony finally started.

“I am game to try if we go on Sunday, what about you?”

He looked at Maggie.

“Oh I am dead keen but I didn’t want you to think you had to drive for eight hours.”

“Nah, I am like Andrew. If the film came on the TV then it would be a great memory to think about the day. And sure it is a risk, but why not.”

“What I figured I would do is write out all my ideas and we can discuss them all, figure out which ones Maggie is keen to do and which will take some more planning. That should pass the time on the journey up.”

“What time are we going to leave?”

“It doesn’t get light until 9.00 and it lasts until 4.00. If we are on the road at 6.00 we should be there not long after 10.00. If it is deserted then we can jump right to it. If there are people there then we go back to the Monument and just look around. Any shots there will be a complete bonus. And then go back up to the beach say at 2.30 and hope that everyone has gone. Let’s face it we are going to an isolated west highland beach in the middle of December. How busy will it be?”

Maggie turned to Tony.

“Can you ask Stacey to cover from 10.00 until 2.00 on Saturday? We could nip out to Turnhouse and see if it will work?”

Someone was very keen to show off to the world. Tony smiled and nodded. It was all set.

“We can talk about the locations and types of shoots on the journey up but maybe we can talk about you shooting another model on the journey back. We can also go through all the questions we talked about earlier with Maggie.”

Andrew agreed, happy to postpone the discussion. The three of them had acted perfectly naturally and had been caught up in talking about the locations and the shoots. But Andrew was spending the whole weekend with his friends photographing Maggie naked beside the main railway line to the north of Scotland and on the location of the most popular film of the year in Scotland. Surreal didn’t even begin to describe the evening.

Andrew knew his life was very set, he was a slave to a routine. And he was not a typical teenager either. He had a stubborn pride in not fitting in, not being bothered about popular culture. While at Cambridge he had the hospital, the OTC and hockey outside his life on the course. Any free time was spent with his friends. But he was not someone who had crazy nights drinking himself into oblivion and doing a Nigel on the way home. And life in Edinburgh was equally restrained, and that was before all the hassles with his family. His photography had started with family shots, holiday snaps and pictures of landscapes. But now it was almost exclusively of Maggie, as her glamour photographer. It was a weirdly random thing to have as a hobby. Yet he had spent the last six hours sitting with Tony and then both of them discussing and planning more shoots. They were likely to be away on Sunday for at least 10 hours, probably longer.

He sat contemplating all this waiting for Suzanne to return home. He smiled idly at the thought of Suzanne being his model. She had been spectacular in Italy and the idea of her naked in a little hidden cove at the beach widened his smile. Andrew was just starting to contemplate what he was going to do with her when the lady in question turned up, happily pissed. She was funny and very flirty but Andrew knew that as soon as Suzanne’s head hit the pillow she was going to be out like a light. He got a pint of water into her and two aspirin and sure enough in no time she was gently snoring away beside him.

Suzanne was less happy, but still grumpily adorable, when Andrew roused her to go swimming. There was much grumbling but she made it to the pool. It was a shorter session for her and she left to shower at the flat long before Andrew. When he got back the coffee was made and they sat and she filled him in on her night out.

“We all started with good intentions but it was good to see so many people from school. Diana, Bobby and Mary were all there. We all just chatted away about university and reminisced. One vodka become two became five.”

She shook her head.

“And it was no one’s fault, we were all guilty. It was good to see everyone. They all say hi, Mary most of all.”

She laughed at his expression.

“Too easy. What are your plans for today?”

“Call Pete and see if he wants to go out on Friday night. And I invited Leslie, Julian and her parents over for dinner. She called not long after you left yesterday to invite us to their place but I switched it to here, it lets me show Mary and Brian the place. I am going to the folks for dinner tomorrow. Do you want to come out with Pete and I on Friday?”

“No, I don’t think so. I am up early on Saturday so maybe we could have dinner and you could drop me off before you head out with Pete. You always go out late, don’t you?”

Andrew got hold of Pete and the Friday night was arranged. After a lazy morning and an early lunch Andrew led Suzanne back through to the bedroom. Suzanne had not been overly flirty or anything like that she had done nothing other than be herself. It was a simple thing like her tee-shirt being tucked into her jeans highlighting her hips and the way they rounded wonderfully into her full arse. The first two times they fucked Andrew was at the end of the bed with Suzanne splayed doggy style in front of him. When buying his bed he had remembered that the height of Suzanne’s bed frame made doggy really easy and had got one of a similar height. And it was perfect. Suzanne was fully supported and Andrew didn’t have to contort his back or bend his knees. And holding Suzanne’s hips, his hands just resting perfectly on them pulling her back onto him. It was bloody fantastic. It wasn’t a frantic rutting but he fucked Suzanne with purpose. She, for her part, had her head and shoulders pressed against the bed pushing her arse even higher and more prominent. Suzanne had the perfect body for doggy sex.

Of course all these visuals had Andrew’s balls boiling much sooner than he wanted but rather than fight it he embraced it figuring that round two would last longer. Within minutes they were lying stretched out as usual, Suzanne looking like she was about to start purring.

“Not that I am complaining but what prompted that?”

“You, just looking fantastic. A lazy afternoon with nothing else to do on a cold December day. But mainly you and your body.”

Suzanne smiled.

“I remember when you went out in 4^th year with Tanvi and I always worried that you preferred skinny women. Katie wasn’t much bigger.”

“We have talked about it many times; my only type is intelligent women. I remember Tanvi once commented to me the exact same thing. You and I hung out all the time and she called herself a pencil, I think that was it. Anyway she was worried for the exactly opposite reason to you.”

“We always want what we can’t have.”

“Would you really want to be skinny like her? Tiny tits and boyish hips?”

Suzanne contemplated that for a moment.

“Sometimes when men are just staring at the girls the whole time then yes. I suppose the ultimate fantasy would be to try it and see what it is like. My mother complains of back pain every now and again so I wonder what it would be like not to have to cart these around all day. When you stop and think about it, I am probably walking the way I am because of my figure. I can’t run because of them. What does it matter, it isn’t going to change. I love this bed, it is like mine at home. I feel solid and anchored at the end of the bed and can feel your power, you know how I love that. There is such an intoxicating effortlessness to the way you hold me in place. I mean it is not like I am trying to get away but there would be no way I could.”

Suzanne shivered.

“It gets me every time.”

Andrew smiled and as he pushed Suzanne off him she was already sliding down to the end of the bed. Andrew could tell that she was squirming a little bit more, making the effort to try and move which meant of course that he held her tighter and Suzanne’s groans get even louder. The two of them were completely in tune with one and other. That afternoon it was Suzanne who was the talker, loud and demanding in her exhortations for him to ‘fuck me harder’. It was gloriously, deliciously, uncomplicated fucking, two friends catching up with each other in the most perfect of ways. Suzanne dozed on Andrew for 20 minutes after they had cleaned up for a second time. Andrew just held her, relaxing mentally as if he was swimming, just enjoyed the closeness, even enjoying her weight pressing down on him. She woke with a start and looked guilty.

“Sorry, I am still tired from last night.”

“Don’t worry about it. It was lovely and relaxing listening to your breathing. Don’t worry you’ll pay your penance.”

Rather than look concerned Suzanne just smiled widely. Andrew pushed her off him before pinning her face down on the bed. He leaned in and whispered in her ear.

“Did you bring your garter?”

He could hear the gulp and saw her nod her head.

“So naughty, wanting me to beastly to you. You do want me to be beastly, don’t you?”

The nod was immediate and pronounced. Andrew leaned and whispered in her ear.

“Only six hours to think about it, to savour the feeling, to dread the moment, to anticipate everything that I am going to do to you.”

Andrew circled the tip of his index finger against her temple.

“Way too smart, way too imaginative and way too much time.”

He kissed Suzanne on the temple and pushed himself off the bed. It took a moment for her to gather herself before she went for a shower while he stripped the bed. Once he had remade the bed he took what was a very tepid and therefore quick shower and came through to get dressed. Suzanne was standing naked in the bedroom wearing only the garter.

“All evening Andrew I will feel this against my leg, wondering what you have planned for me. I want you to think about it too, know what awaits you when Mary and Brian leave tonight.”

She turned and dressed in an above the knee wool dress, the perfect dress for her, all tight and clinging in all the right places, moulded to her arse and bust like a second skin. Andrew held her in his arms.

“You are a beautiful woman Suzanne. This dress is so flattering, so utterly dirty while being so modest. Just like you.”

Andrew held her in his arms for ages, nothing else needed to be said. 20 minutes of clean up later and they were able to sit and have a cup of coffee. As part of the plans for that night Andrew went out for half an hour but was still back in plenty time. They were waiting for Leslie and Julian, and Brian and Mary. As if on cue there was a knock at the door and they stood to go and answer, but before they got there Andrew stopped Suzanne and stood behind her. The tips of his fingers traced her bum and the outline of the garter on her leg. Before he even got to the door Suzanne had grabbed him and pulled him down for a ferocious kiss.