Hard Bargains Read online

  On that weekend in June, the water was clean and cool and brave swimmers could perform belly-flops off the end of the dock. Skinnydippers and wandering tourists were unlikely to meet; the lake was too small to have a name and it was not stocked with trout.

  I made the serious error of leading the way down the 200-yard trail from the cabin to the dock, thus missing out on the prime bum-watching opportunity I could have enjoyed from the back of the line. We carried everything we needed for the next few hours: towels, drinking water, fresh cherries for snacks and lots of sunscreen. I eased up on the rule of complete nudity by encouraging Shawn and Geoff to wear hats as extra safeguards for their fair complexions.

  The lake was too chilly for long swims. A hot day in northern Washington is 80 degrees and, even as the temperature approached that mark, it took a while for us to warm in the sun before we were ready for the next plunge. The boys were dressed in a way that allowed them to dry quickly but my bathing suit absorbed water like a sponge. The unfamiliar sensation of being wet out of the water wore on me and eventually I decided to forgo swimming and stay on the dock.

  Drawing on my resolve to be a good host, I served as the base-camp commander, requiring the boys to apply more sunscreen after swims. Shawn suggested I should help with hard-to-reach areas, such as between the shoulder blades. The arrangement benefited everyone.

  Whenever I had company I tried to turn the conversation to sex but my guests were hesitant. The fantasy I’d had in the morning, of being able to trigger erections with just the power of my gaze, was not coming true and I was disappointed. The cold water worked against me as well, helping to suppress any physical reactions my words might engender.

  Geoff caught a shiver and had to take a break from swimming, even though that meant he wouldn’t have the support of his friends while chatting with me. He sat cross-legged on the dock and pretended that the towel on his lap was something he’d left there haphazardly.

  ‘You need to remove that,’ I said, looking at his crotch to make my meaning clear.

  ‘Why?’

  ‘So I can see your cock.’

  Geoff spoke seriously. ‘Why does that matter to you? We lost the game. You get to humiliate us. I get it. But you’re taking things too far.’

  ‘I’ve done a little bit of teasing,’ I admitted, ‘but not as much as I could have. I don’t accept that I’ve tried to humiliate you or anyone else.’

  ‘This is pretty humiliating.’

  ‘How?’

  Geoff didn’t respond. Perhaps he thought the answer was obvious. I tried a different question.

  ‘Why do you think I agreed to the bet?’

  ‘So you could make fun of us if you won and dazzle us with your body if you lost.’

  ‘Is that why you made the bet, to make fun of me if you won and to dazzle me with your body if you lost?’

  ‘Guys don’t dazzle women with their bodies.’

  ‘I like looking at your body.’ It took Geoff a moment to realise I was not being facetious.

  ‘Here’s what I think,’ I continued. ‘You made the bet because you wanted to see me naked. I made the bet because I wanted to see you and your friends naked.’

  Geoff waved his hand by the side of his body. ‘Why would you …’ He didn’t finish the sentence.

  ‘Guys look beautiful naked. At least, I think they look beautiful naked. I think you look beautiful naked. I think your cock is part of your beauty and that’s the reason why I want you to move the towel.’

  He didn’t shift his covering but he did relax his grip. I took that as a positive sign.

  Some messages are easier to communicate through physical contact than words. ‘Roll over onto your belly,’ I suggested. ‘I’ll put more sunscreen on your back.’

  That’s where I started, below his shoulders, though my hands were soon wandering into places he could easily have reached on his own. My touch was not that of a mother putting sunscreen on her child. After I’d covered him above the waist, I hurried down his body and started on the back of his calves. I continued up along his narrow thighs, careful not to stray too far between them. ‘Tell me if this isn’t OK,’ I said as I got close to round terrain. Geoff didn’t object so I rubbed lotion over his ass, cupping the cheeks in my hands as if I was administering a massage.

  Shawn swam close to us. He nodded his approval when I saw what I was doing.

  I spanked Geoff lightly to signal the end of his treatment. I hoped he would roll over to reveal that my handiwork had triggered a reaction. Instead, the dock shook slightly as Farhan began to climb the ladder. The presence of the other boys meant that my suspicions would go unconfirmed. If Geoff had an erection, he wasn’t going to display it in front of a male audience.

  The lack of hard cocks was a disappointment, but watching the boys’ bums roll as they turned somersaults in the water kept me entertained.

  A little past mid-afternoon, when everyone was back on the dock, Shawn caught me adjusting the seat of my bathing suit. ‘If you took it off, you probably would be more comfortable.’

  It wasn’t the first time I’d heard that suggestion over the last three hours, but I’d always responded with just a smile.

  ‘I think you’re right. I would be more comfortable.’ I pulled at one of the straps where it joined the top of the cup, exposing more of my breast momentarily before allowing the fabric to snap back into place. ‘It’s hard to find a bathing suit that fits properly when you’re short and busty like me.’

  I paused to add suspense before I announced my decision. Farhan and Geoff had hopeful eyes.

  ‘I’ll keep it on so we don’t lose the sexy vibe.’

  ‘That doesn’t make any sense,’ Farhan said. ‘A naked woman makes everything sexier.’

  ‘If I took off my suit, I’m sure we’d all feel a bit of a rush at first, but the thrill wouldn’t last. When you go to a nude beach, Farhan, how many guys do you see with erect penises?’

  It was a teasing question I knew he couldn’t answer. I went ahead and finished my thought.

  ‘What’s erotic depends a lot on context. If a bunch of people decide to go swimming together without suits, perhaps they’re just being practical. It’s a different dynamic if only some of the people are naked. That means there’s a story. In our case, three naked boys are showing off their bodies for a woman’s pleasure. That registers pretty high on the sexy meter.’

  ‘You’re objectifying us.’ Geoff looked pleased because he knew he’d said something smart. I guessed our talk had made an impression.

  ‘Yes – and I’m baffled why none of you are getting hard. Think of all the begging and harassment that goes on from guys who are desperate to find a woman who will glance at their dick pics. You three hit the jackpot and you can’t stop complaining.’

  ‘I know why Geoff isn’t getting hard.’ Shawn had mischief in his voice. ‘He took precautions this morning to take away the edge.’

  I immediately intervened to prevent the exchange of denials and insults that was sure to follow. Putting on my pouty lips, I looked directly into Geoff’s eyes.

  ‘You did that when I was out on my walk? I wouldn’t have gone if I had known. I’d love to watch you masturbate.’

  Before he turned red all over, Geoff got help from Farhan, who said over my head to Shawn, ‘Dude, that’s quite the girlfriend you found.’

  ‘Is there anyone here who wouldn’t want to watch me masturbate?’

  That threw them for a loop.

  ‘Well, why would it be different for me to want to watch you guys?’

  Farhan’s expression hinted at unease. Geoff’s faraway eyes suggested he was imagining me naked with three fingers in my pussy.

  ‘Here’s the truth: I’d be thrilled to discover how any of you give yourselves pleasure. I’d get so aroused watching you that my nipples would probably poke holes through my bathing suit.’

  ‘She does like to watch a guy jerk off,’ Shawn said. His cock had started to swell and he wasn�
��t bothering to hide it. Maybe he was replaying some happy memories in the back of his mind, but I suspected it was the shift in the conversation that had got his blood flowing. His friends hadn’t noticed his semi-erection because they were staring at me, and it seemed like a good idea to maintain the distraction.

  ‘Geoff, would it make you horny if I showed you how I rub my clit when I want to come really hard?’ I thought the question might paralyse him but he managed to whisper something that seemed like a positive response.

  ‘Farhan, would you get turned on if you saw me thrusting a dildo in and out of my pussy?’ There was no point waiting for an answer.

  ‘Of course you would. I’d respond the same way if you showed me how you play with your cocks.’

  This conversation throbbed with potential – finally! Very sweetly I said, ‘I’d be willing to put my bathing suit on the line.’

  ‘Wait a second.’ Farhan needed to do some more mansplaining. ‘What you’re saying is: if we agree to jerk off in front of you, you’ll take off your bathing suit.’

  ‘That’s not exactly what I said.’

  ‘She wants to make another bet.’ Shawn had somehow managed to get his penis problem under control. ‘She strips naked if we win, but if we lose she wants to see us ride the mayonnaise surf.’

  ‘No way. Those things are not equal.’ I noted that Farhan wasn’t necessarily ruling out a wager. He wanted to negotiate.

  ‘If we win, she has to take off her bathing suit and masturbate in front of us.’ He was speaking to Shawn, trying to make a deal about my body. Rage momentarily crushed my libido.

  ‘I’ll tell you how this is going to work, Farhan: one thing for one thing. No freebies. I didn’t lose last night.’

  I was talking too loudly and tried to soften my voice. ‘If you want extra from me, put something else on the table.’

  ‘I’m not sure there’s anything else to put on the table.’ Geoff spoke with melancholy in his voice. He might have accepted the first offer. He really wanted to see me naked and was apparently willing to risk major consequences for the opportunity.

  His disappointment was actually a kind of compliment. It offset some of my displeasure with Farhan.

  ‘Clever boys,’ I said. It was time to raise the stakes. ‘Think about what you would want in my position, if you were surrounded by three naked women.’

  Shawn knew the answer to my riddle immediately. Farhan and Geoff still didn’t get it, so I had to help.

  ‘You would want to see some same-sex oral action.’

  Now I was treated to that display of blushing skin Geoff had avoided earlier. Farhan shook his head and looked down at the water.

  ‘Let me just make the point that you’d think it was perfectly fair to ask for pussy-eating but you won’t even consider sucking a cock.’

  I wanted my disappointment to feel heavy on their shoulders. I’m sure every lecture they’d ever heard about the double standard weighed on them too.

  ‘I can’t put a dick in my mouth,’ Geoff said sadly.

  ‘I don’t think it would be so bad.’ Shawn had more mischief in his voice. ‘There is some precedent.’

  ‘We never sucked each other’s cocks.’ Farhan was adamant about that.

  ‘Poker isn’t your game, Farhan. You should have stuck with Truth or Dare.’ I was still a little bit mad at him and the teasing came off snippier than I intended.

  ‘I can’t believe you told her,’ Geoff complained to Shawn.

  ‘She has these stories about practising kissing at slumber parties. Sometimes they went as far as second base.’

  ‘It’s not the same.’ But most of the conviction had disappeared from Farhan’s voice. He knew it was exactly the same.

  ‘We were teenagers. It was no big deal,’ my boyfriend said.

  ‘I got really wet when Shawn described you guys jerking off while staring at each other’s cocks.’ Some people are bad drunks. I get mean when I’m excessively horny.

  ‘Well, I’m willing to put blowjobs on the line.’ My sweetheart was about to make a sales pitch. ‘I love her but my life’s mission is to prove that there’s a limit to Sofia’s game.’

  He spoke to them softly, as if he was confiding a secret and I couldn’t hear. ‘She will masturbate in front of us if she loses. She’s not a cheater. She’ll strip naked and show you guys everything, and if we win it will have been worth the risk. Even though she’ll act like it’s no big deal, I think she’ll be as nervous as fuck. She may even feel a bit ashamed. To see that, after the way she’s treated us this weekend, I’d blow fifty cocks.’

  I knew what Shawn was up to but I couldn’t let him get away with a statement like that without protesting.

  ‘Actually, the idea of masturbating in front of your best friends turns me on so much I might lose on purpose.’ I pretended to adjust my bathing suit again, pulling down the fabric almost as far as my left nipple. ‘Tell them I like to play with my asshole. That’ll clinch the deal.’

  Before I started college, I vowed I would never allow myself to feel shame about my body or anything to do with sex. If there was a line I wouldn’t cross, it was so far away from where I sat on the dock I couldn’t even see it.

  ‘I’ll agree to the bet but only if I don’t have to give a blowjob,’ Geoff was gaping at my semi-exposed breast, his eyes not blinking. ‘I’ll receive but that’s it.’

  If I allowed Farhan the same terms, we might have a deal.

  ‘Shawn sucks Geoff’s cock then he sucks Farhan’s cock. He has to do it for more than just a few seconds. Two real blowjobs. I want to find out if my boyfriend spits or swallows.’

  ‘Three minutes each and they finish with their hands.’ I think Shawn only said that because he still wasn’t sure his friends would agree to the stakes. If it had been just up to him, he probably would have wanted to find out if he was a spitter or a swallower too.

  He could still get a mouthful by accident. My pussy was pumping out pheromones and Shawn was no longer the only one on the dock with an erection issue.

  My lover would look so sexy with come all over his face. ‘Be a hero, Farhan,’ I said. Please, please be a hero.

  ‘Fingers in your ass and you can only use spit for lube.’ The big guy evidently had a soft spot for a particular genre of porn.

  ‘We play one hand,’ I said, acting as if Farhan had guessed my daily routine and fingers in my ass were de rigueur. ‘Same rules as last night and if you guys chicken out I’m going to set up a blog dedicated to your Truth or Dare exploits.’

  Shawn stood up to get the cards. His cock was hard and it jutted straight out from his body. I wasn’t the only one staring at it but Farhan and Geoff looked away as soon as I noticed their interest.

  I watched the other side of my boyfriend as he walked off the dock and up the path to the cabin. His bum wasn’t as round as Farhan’s but it was charming in other ways. I resisted the temptation to ask the two remaining boys for their opinions.

  They were quiet while we waited for Shawn to return. Deflation indicated that they might be focusing on worst-case scenarios. ‘This is really cool,’ I said. I meant it. We were on an adventure together. What happens next is something you’ll never forget, I promised them in a silent thought.

  Shawn came back with his cock every bit as hard as when he’d left. Pfizer ought to buy his blood to make Viagra.

  ‘How are we going to do this?’ Shawn sat back down on the dock. He held the cards in his right hand.

  ‘I know Farhan doesn’t trust me,’ I replied. ‘You should deal.’

  ‘Make sure you shuffle well. She could have stacked the deck in the kitchen before we woke up this morning.’

  ‘Farhan, the only things here that are stacked are my tits.’ I stuck out my chest. ‘Look at them. They’re huge.’

  Shawn finished shuffling the cards and dealt the hands. As usual, I asked for three replacements.

  The guys were all on the same page. ‘We only need one,’ Shawn said.
<
br />   Luck, suck, fuck. The words rhyme so easily. Maybe they have some sort of etymological connection. With a little luck, I’ll get to see Shawn suck, and later tonight we’ll fuck, fuck, fuck.

  I put three cards on the dock and turned them over for everyone to see. ‘Three jacks. Very appropriate if you ask me.’

  Geoff actually started jumping up and down. Flop, flop, flop. His penis bounced against his belly. ‘Flush,’ he yelled over the lake and into the woods. ‘We have a flush!’

  Shawn displayed the hand. It contained five hearts, 2, 6, 7, 9 and an ace.

  Farhan grinned with the charm of a super-villain about to blow up the world.

  They were really such unlucky boys. Hadn’t they figured out by now that I was a heartbreaker?

  ‘I also have two queens, one for each of the tits you’re not going to see.’ I put the pair down on the dock to complete the full house.

  Imagine an automobile crashing without making any noise. Geoff’s penis fell disappointedly against his scrotum. Farhan looked away, disgusted. Shawn was still as hard as a rock.

  For the record, if I had lost, I would have spread my cunt lips open and invited Farhan to spank my hole. I would have fucked my ass with one of the sticks floating in the lake. I would have folded my body over in a circle and rained a golden shower down on my face. I would have put on such an obscene show that any porn the boys saw in the future would have made them yawn.

  ‘I don’t think I’m going to be able to get hard,’ Geoff fretted.

  No. They were going to have sex in front of me. I wouldn’t let them tame my wild expectations.

  ‘How old are you? Twenty-one? Thinking about a bus driving through a tunnel would make you hard. Also, I’m sure Shawn was wrong about you jerking off this morning. You’re not that pessimistic.’

  Farhan was an athlete and respected the principle of playing by the rules. I had confidence he wouldn’t try to find an excuse not to keep his end of the bargain.

  Geoff, however, needed an incentive.

  ‘I’m willing to help a little bit,’ I offered. ‘Shawn’s the only one who handles your cock and if you want me to get involved I’m going to stay on the outskirts. I can’t take off my bathing suit because we made a deal but you can try to undress me with your eyes. I’d like that.’