Chapter 15

The next Friday, Dilan joined Angela, whom they all knew as “Maria” at a girls’ night out at the local restaurant. In a private room the happy hookers shared stories of clients and boyfriends and laughter as they recounted their week.

Mary, an ebony skinned girl from the Ivory Coast, gossiped about how she had made a famous local television star cum just by putting her fingers up his ass. Angela/Maria laughed with the rest. She enjoyed the gossip. She still did not hate men, but her exposure to sex had made her friendlier to women and more guarded to men. She did not think she would ever have a serious relationship with a man again, she much preferred the honest company of women, though sexually was still very much straight.

Dilan was the baby of the group and loved Angela as a mother. She always confided in Angela when she had gone too far, such as shoplifting and getting Angela to bail her out, or stealing from clients and Angela would make sure valuable items were returned. In return, Angela made sure Dilan was protected from the sadistic and lecherous impulses of some clients, and had gotten one senior property developer prosecuted for assaulting her with a wine bottle, refusing all offers of bribes, on a principle of standing up for her girls.

Dilan talked about her encounter with Pembroke, and his beautiful old mansion. She then mentioned how he had made her wear red lingerie, something that his old wife or some woman from long ago had worn for him, and he wanted photos of her in it. She laughed at how weird it all was and how awkward he had been, and how he had shaved all his body hair off which made his old body look even weirder.

Angela listened, and her interest was piqued. Red lingerie, worn by someone years ago, shaved male body, English, mid sixties or seventy, rich. The coincidence momentarily occurred to her then she put it out of her head as quickly as it had entered it.

I said I would wear them for a hundred euro, and he just said a hundred and sixty. Man, some men are too easy to take advantage of.”

Angela suddenly remembered the figure of one hundred and sixty. That was the same figure she had received from ‘Alan’ for her red underwear thirteen years ago. No. Surely not?

Angela went quiet as the conversation went on. She tried to think about how likely it was that this was just a coincidence. But it bothered her.

At the end of the meal, she went to Dilan. She knew she was an exhibitionist. “Hi Dilan, not bad going, one hundred and sixty Euros for wearing lingerie for a few minutes.”

“I swear Maria” she used her assumed name “that’s how much he said and he paid me. Honest! You know me...” Angela smiled, Dilan would never guess Angela’s real motive for questioning her on this. “Did he take any pictures of you in them? It’s just I want to add new photos for the site, and always looking for new material.”

“Yeah, he sent me!” Angela marvelled at Dilan’s innocence coupled with her wily manipulation skills. She got her phone, and hummed to herself as she swiped through her gallery. “Look” she showed some photos of Dilan beside a pool, grinning, in nothing but red knickers. Angela was no prude but still always braced herself before showing naked photos of herself to others, and envied Dilan. If she had grown up a decade later, Angela might have had a different life and avoided the issues with her pornographic past.