Chapter 10

The walk back to Lilja’s flat went from being pleasantly cool after the heat of the club to bloody freezing in about three blocks. Nobody strolls in Helsinki in the winter. Andrew had a buzz going but wasn’t drunk, Lilja seemed a little worse than him, but still in control, whereas her two flatmates were both hammered. As in pass out on the couch together hammered. No sooner were they in the flat and had sat down than they were out cold.

“Normally I would throw a blanket over them and just leave them. Can you carry them through to their rooms for me?”

Neither of them was heavy and it only took a couple of minutes. A drunken ‘I like you’ from Malva was the only sign of consciousness from either of them. Andrew left Lilja to either undress them or cover them up and went through to her room. His ears were still ringing slightly from the band but other than that he was in good shape. Five minutes later they were both naked in Lilja’s bed looking at one another, as if wondering who was going to make the first move.

“Roll onto your tummy.”

Lilja lay face down on the bed looking over at him.

“I like that position. I will show you how much I like it in a minute. But first we have to talk about this brazen Finnish woman I met, who promised to ravish an unsuspecting Scotsman until dawn.”

Lilja’s eyes were wide but her lips were twitching as she fought the urge to smile.

“And then the saucy vixen asks him to fly all the way to Helsinki just so that she could be ravished again.”

Andrew kissed her smiling lips.

“She must be awfully sure of herself, she must be practiced in the arts of seduction. Or is she just going to lie on her stomach and tease and tempt the poor fool with her body.”

Lilja caught on fast and she waggled her bum invitingly.

“Oh that is the game is it. All she has to do is shake her arse and bewitch him. Lead him to his doom.”

Lilja’s response was fantastic. She drew her knees up so that she was now head down, arse up waiting for Andrew to crack.

“You think it is that easy do you.” His hands started to run over her thigh and cheek. “Just provoke me, let my mind marinate in all of those delicious memories of you.”

Lilja nodded and at the same time leaned over, plucked a condom from the bedside table and handed it to him with a raised eyebrow. Andrew put it to her mouth and she daintily bit the edge and he ripped the package open. He rolled the condom down his achingly hard cock and looked at her. She inched over and kissed him again before putting her mouth against his ear.

“I need you to fuck me. Now.”

Andrew bounced up to her squeal of delight and grabbed her hips. Lilja was sopping wet and entry was easy and he was balls deep immediately. That first time was rutting, there is no other word that could dignify what they did. Lilja was gasping and moaning into her pillow and pushing back against him. The power in her body always kept him honest. You had to concentrate on fucking Lilja, she demanded power and stamina. Lilja and Andrew had fucked in the making love position and although it was wonderful she had a body designed for more. However hard you fucked her she always wanted more. It was not that she was insatiable she just needed to be fucked in a powerful way, a sharply powerful fuck. When you are 6’5” and 215 pounds you are aware of your body, especially when with sexual partners. Andrew had experienced that with Renee just the day before. With Lilja there was freedom, an ability to absorb the strength, to feed off it and crave more. Three minutes later Lilja had let her knees slide back down the bed and he was again lying beside her.

“I love the way you fuck me. It is so visceral, such a full body fuck. You hold nothing back.” She shivered. “It is great.”

He smiled at her and they kissed for many minutes. HIs hands roamed over her back and arse, always coming back to her arse, and youthful vigour was regained. Their final fuck of the night was almost identical to that afternoon. Simple missionary, Lilja’s legs wrapped round him and lots of kissing. They fucked for a long time before either of them came, the perfect end to the day.

Andrew took Lilja’s keys with him when he ventured out for a run in the morning. It was really dark, and although his top had reflector strips on it he was careful. There was some kind of park down at the shore and he ran there, safe and away from the traffic. When he got back to the flat he had a shower to warm up and then went through to the living area, where the kitchen was against the back wall. Many cupboards later Andrew had the coffee on the go and sat with his trusty notebook thinking about his project. This was what he always did when he was waiting with nothing to do. He had jotted some things down at Charles de Gaulle airport while waiting to board the plane. With Lilja still asleep and the other two dead to the world he continued his musings, enjoying the peace and quiet. Around 8.30 Lilja padded through, a long tee shirt her only clothes. Andrew kissed her and as she tucked her feet under her on the sofa as he went and brought her a cup of coffee as well as refilling his own.

“You smell clean, there is coffee made. How long have you been awake?”

“A wee while. How are you this morning?”

A flirty smile crossed her face.

“Satisfied.” Pause. “For now.”

They both laughed and Andrew stood up and took her hand as if to pull her up.

“Leave me alone you brute.”

She picked up his notebook and started leafing through the pages. Now that he thought about it, carrying a book, full of pages detailing explosions and blast damage, on a trip on a plane was not the smartest thing he ever did. Lilja’s face was a picture.

“This is what you do at university?”

He spent a long time explaining about his interest in designing buildings to be more blast protected. She understood but seeing his notes had shocked her.

“I can see how you are interested but this is very weird.”

Andrew took the notebook back.

“That is what I work on all week. That, and stuff like it.”

“What would you like to do today?”

Finnair had an inflight magazine and he had leafed through it while taxiing at the airport looking for anything interesting, getting some ideas for things to do.

“Could we visit Suomenlinna?”

How Lilja pronounced it and how Andrew phonetically pronounced it were not remotely similar but they were both talking about the same place, a fortress that ran over a series of islands in the bay, just off the coast. Lilja did not take long to get ready and they ended up on a ferry out to the place, it was part of the public transport system. The ferry was just another bus. And so that was his first full day in Helsinki, listening to Lilja as she proudly gave him a Finnish history lesson. The Russian influence on Finland was marked, both historically but up to and including the current day. Leningrad, the old capital of the Tsars although now called St. Petersburg, was less than 200 miles away and Tallinn, the capital of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, also part of the USSR, was only 50 miles away across the sea. Andrew was a long way East.

The time spent on the islands went quickly, although they retreated indoors on several occasions for food and just generally to warm up. But spending time with Lilja was no hardship. All the joking about only coming to Helsinki for one thing might have a basis in truth but Andrew enjoyed her company. Lilja was an intelligent woman, always the key trait with him. Andrew listened to Lilja talk about some of her hopes and dreams. He could tell she was keeping some things back but knew nothing about what she was talking about and so could let her talk herself out. When they were back on the mainland they started to head back over to her flat. 20 minutes or so, maybe less.

“What would you like to do this evening?”

“I want to take you out to dinner, my treat.”

“I presume you don’t know anywhere and are okay with me making some suggestions?”

He nodded.

“Did you bring any smart clothes?”

At the start of the trip Andrew would have said no but Hermès had given him one of the suits he had worn modelling, just as a thank you. So he was actually able to say yes, although he was not sure how creased it was.

“I have a suit with me.”

“Excellent. The place I would like to take you is a little pricey, will that be okay?”

“Not a problem.”

Lilja looked excited.

“There is a great place and you will see when I take you there.”

Andrew was surprised at her easy acceptance but was happy he didn’t have to convince her. The hungover twins were sitting on the couch looking sad and loudly feeling sorry for themselves when they returned. Now that didn’t stop them asking where they were all going out to that night. They looked simultaneously happy for Lilja and miffed at Andrew when he told them it was a romantic night out. Lilja took the first turn in the bathroom and Andrew stayed and chatted to Saara and Malva. Just the act of having another human to talk to seemed to perk them both up. But they were no different from students the world over on a Friday and Saturday. Drink to excess, lie around all day, repeat. He told them that the four of them plus the still to return Venla would go out for dinner the next day.

Andrew left the two of them on the couch and checked on the suit. There was one big crease on the left sleeve but other than that it had survived the trip okay. Lilja came through all wrapped in a towel but she shooed him away to the bathroom with a smile and a shake of the head. An hour later they were ready to go. Other than the left sleeve everything was fine. That was Andrew. HIs date looked stunning. It was a trouser suit with a thin cashmere polo neck underneath it paired with boots. It combined functionality in the climate but yet was still lovely and feminine.

Lilja took Andrew to a city centre hotel and showed him the surprise first. There was a rooftop bar right at the very top of the hotel. They took the elevator as high as it would go and then climbed a spiral staircase up to the bar. It was called the Ateljee Bar and it was very surprising to discover. Helsinki was like the centre of Edinburgh, there were no high buildings. This hotel tower was the highest spot in downtown Helsinki. So they had amazing views in all directions. Notionally. It was December 15^th and it had been dark since 3.30 in the afternoon so Andrew was viewing the lights of Helsinki rather than the views but it was cool to be above everything else. Lilja was excited to show it to him so they did a tour on the terrace outside, admittedly a quick once round, before returning to the warmth of the bar. It was small and cramped but they were just having a drink before heading downstairs for dinner. The evening was about thanking Lilja and she seemed pleased and enjoying herself. Mission accomplished.

Andrew left the ordering to his host and she pushed his conservative palate. Raw pickled herring was the starter and surprisingly tasty, the lamb for the main course was delicious but he was not a fan of cabbage which was the main vegetable. And for dessert it was a little lingonberry tart, a fruit he had not heard of before, never mind tried. Other than the excess of cabbage with the main course the whole meal was delicious. Their conversation over dinner was relaxed and wide-ranging. He tried to keep as much of the focus on Lilja as possible but she wanted him to talk about things as well.

“When does the Academy term end?”

“Not until Friday. I will head home then. Dad’s school finishes the same day.”

Andrew knew Lilja’s mother was dead but she had never mentioned her father.

“He is a teacher?”

“He used to be, he is the headmaster now.”

Lilja was just like Moira with Jim. Just her and her dad. He could tell she was close to him, stupid to even think it would be otherwise.

“Do you have classes on Monday and Tuesday?”

“Not on Monday but I will need to leave you at 9.30 on Tuesday morning. When is your flight?”

“1.20 something like that. So I will need to leave not that long after you, between walking to the station and then the train to the airport.”

Lilja going to class would not be a big deal at all.

“If I invite you to Edinburgh next year will you visit me?”

Her smile had an air of sadness.

“I would like to Andrew, but I doubt I will have much money and it is an expensive ticket. The Academy also doesn’t have these really long holidays like Cambridge. I will get two weeks, maybe two and a half. And I don’t think I could not spend it with Dad.”

Different circumstances, different countries, there were a lot of differences. She took his hand.

“Like I said I was shocked that you accepted my offer. And it is not that I don’t want to visit Edinburgh but Dad scrimped and saved to support me all these years when I was playing volleyball. I just don’t think it is going to happen. Well not until I become a big star.”

She smiled but some of her earlier concerns started to fall into place. It wasn’t a tense conversation, it was the kind of conversation you can only have face to face, not on the phone or in a letter. But it was done, it was all in the past. The hotel was used to international visitors and he paid with an American Express traveller’s cheque and got the change in Markka. It was a nice expensive dinner without being crazy. They didn’t linger on the streets and hurried back to the flat. They returned home to an empty flat, although it took them a moment to ascertain that the flat was empty as most of the lights and the television were on and at first it seemed that one of the other flatmates was still there. Andrew went to switch the TV off and noticed that Finnish television was showing some kind of drama but that both the actors were naked. Not coyly like he was in the commercials, bum to the camera, but full frontal nudity. It was always jarring to see that compared to the very puritanical and circumscribed shows broadcast in Britain.

“Is there a lot of nudity on Finnish television?”

Andrew turned and asked Lilja. She come over to join him and looked at the set.

“Some, wherever people are naked in real life they are shown that way on TV or in the movies. Why?”

“Nothing like this could be shown in Britain. I just wondered.”

He turned the set off and looked at her.

“When you graduate and start working will you be doing scenes like that?”

“Yes, if it is in the script. Look at what we just watched. It was no different than you and I in bed last night.”

She giggled.

“Well the beginning at least. Finns are not hung up on their bodies. It is not sex.”

A few minutes later Andrew was leaning against her headboard fucking Lilja gently in the ‘making love’ position. They were gently coupling while kissing. It was an after dinner drink kind of fuck. Slow and gentle, to be savoured not rushed. Lilja broke the kiss and leaned against him, her head on his shoulder looking away.

“I am glad you came to visit Andrew. It makes the summer seem more real somehow. After the Championship I was done with the team, that was my last tournament. It was back here, back to class and to focus on the future. This lets me revisit, rewind that holiday, the fun and camaraderie with Aino and Kerttu, and the most daring thing that Aino or I have ever done.”

Apparently Kerttu really was as bad as Andrew.

“But it also all feels so flimsy, so fleeting. I don’t know if I will see you again.”

There was nothing he could say to that but he didn’t need to as Lilja shook off her low mood and smiled a wicked smile at him.

“Her I am getting all soppy and romantic when I have a nice hard cock in me and a fit young man ready and willing to ravish me.”

Her eyes flashed the invitation and she grinned when he responded. Andrew swung his legs round onto the floor and stood up carefully. Lilja was the largest and heaviest woman he had ever tried this with but as he stood up her legs went round his hips and her arms round his neck supporting some of her weight. When Andrew got to the door he deliberately pushed her against it. He didn’t slam her but also didn’t place her gently. She was pressed between the door and him and she groaned with need.

“Fuck me. Come on Andrew, fuck me.”

Fucking Lilja was sport, a competition. She demanded a performance out of him. Yes, they could lie on the bed gently coupling but their best sex was hard and passionate, full throttle. Or at least it was that weekend. When Lilja came she tried to rip his lip off his face and the spasms drove Andrew over the edge a few moments later. They slumped down into an undignified heap at the foot of the door, laughing before untangling and getting cleaned up. He spooned in behind her and they both fell asleep quickly. The run the next morning was shorter as the weather was just awful. Distances were irrelevant and he scuttled back to the flat escaping the snow and wind. His morning routine was a repeat of the day before. Saara was through before Lilja, she had a class to get to, and he handed her a mug of coffee.

“Hmm, thank you.”

She retreated to get ready. Her banging around woke Lilja but she just called Andrew through to her room. His closing her bedroom door coincided with the front door banging closed behind Saara. They were not alone, Malva was asleep in her room, but they were the only ones awake. Lilja lay on her stomach again, guess which way they were going to start the day? And looked at Andrew expectantly. Story time.

“When we fucked on the balcony in Cyprus you were incredibly turned on. But when we both came you stood there, with me behind you, for at least another minute. Did you want someone to catch us?”

Her eyes widened but she looked to be considering the question.

“I don’t know. I loved the chance that we could get caught, but I don’t know that I wanted someone to catch us.”

“Is that why you are an actress? You want people to watch you?”

The silence was much longer.

“Part of it. I have always been an attention seeker. I was a big kid, a tall kid. But from the first school plays I have wanted to be on stage. I enjoy the challenge of learning lines or moves, when I was younger I loved the costumes, it was dress-up. I like to be in the spotlight, have people’s attention but I also like to be part of a team, either as part of a cast or as part of the volleyball team.”