<div align="center"><strong>-= Lex Rake, Capitol City of Persephone, earlier today =-</strong></div><br/>The woman under him, one Sheila Chesterton, bucked and writhed and uttered her weak, breathy protests as Lex brought her to a height of sexual pleasure she had never known before. The air in the room was heavy with the scent of their lovemaking and the exotic incense that Lex had brought with him. Heavily soundproofed against the noises outside, the only sounds in the room were the heavy breathing of both partners and the occasional whimper from Sheila; the silk sheets made no sound at all as they slid smoothly over the intertwined bodies.<br/><br/>This contract was a novelty for Lex. Usually, these past months since he'd left the Core, his clients had wanted him to be a rarefied gentleman come to take them away from the squalor they lived in and sweep them into a life of decadence and luxury such as they imagined was common to the central planets. Not so for Sheila - she already lived a life of decadence and luxury likely unimaginable to those on the Rim. No, she wanted an encounter with a "bad boy" - a smuggler or a thief or even a Reaver. She didn't really know what she was asking for in requesting that last, but Lex had accepted the contract anyway, showing up at the house dressed down and looking thoroughly disreputable. Sheila had acted the part of a victimized woman with little sincerity, her lust clear in every feeble protest. But Lex was a professional, and he gave her what she truly wanted and then some.<br/><br/>When they had finished, Sheila actually giggled a little as Lex rolled off of her and lounged by her side with his head propped up on one hand. "Find something funny in all this, do you?" he asked, his voice gruff.<br/><br/>The woman ran one immaculately manicured hand along Lex's smooth, toned chest and smiled at him, trying to look what she thought of as "coy." To Lex, it was transparent as glass, but he kept up the charade. "Oh no, no. You're quite the rough man, raping me like that." She giggled again, clearly unaccustomed to playing games in the bedroom. She was little more than a spoiled rich man's daughter, looking to dally with rough trade, likely to annoy her father. But it spoke volumes that she hired a Companion rather than seeking out the genuine article.<br/><br/>Lex knew better than to give anything more than a cursory performance himself, lest his client become genuinely afraid. He could certainly play it much rougher than he had, but it wasn't what she truly desired, and all of his training had been geared toward knowing what the client wanted even when the client themselves didn't know for sure.<br/><br/>He grasped one of her pale breasts in his hand, squeezed it lightly and ran his thumb over the nipple. "Best remember that, too. I gotta run if I'm to make my contact for the goods I been smugglin'. If'n I don't make the dropoff, I ain't gettin' paid. Tell anyone about this, and I might just come back and do it again. Just to show you who's boss."<br/><br/>He slipped out of the bed, stood fully naked in front of her, and stretched, giving his client one last look at his long, tight body. His skin was even and unblemished - no real smuggler would ever look like that - his muscles clearly defined beneath the smooth expanse. His work done, his cock was slowly deflating even as he stood there, his hands on his hips.<br/><br/>"Oh, no! Whatever shall I do if you should take it into your head to come back this way?" Sheila faked at swooning, arching her back on the bed, letting the sheet fall away from her full breasts. Lex had to admit that she was quite beautiful, as befit someone who could afford all the best in cosmetic surgery, but he felt nothing but professional detachment for her.<br/><br/>He moved through the room, picking up his discarded clothing and dressed himself slowly. Sheila sensed that their time was up and dropped the act. She gathered the sheet around herself and sat up more fully in the bed.<br/><br/>"I'm really glad you could make it out here on such short notice. I enjoyed our time together." At least she understood that the Companion chose the client and that any improper behavior on her part could result in being blacklisted with the Guild. She was courteous to Lex, and that earned her a recommendation on the Registry, in his opinion. He would log it as soon as he was back on the ship.<br/><br/>He replied in his normal voice, which was far gentler than the one he had been using with her during their appointment. "I enjoyed it myself. You are a charming and beautiful woman, and our time together was delightful." He sat on the side of the bed, his shirt still hanging open, and laid a hand on one of her slik-covered thighs. She reached out and laid one of hers palm flat against his chest. "I don't know when I'll be on Persephone again, but feel free to call on me whenever I do, if you like. I should be happy to entertain you again."<br/><br/>"I'd like that."<br/><br/>He leaned in and kissed her, finalizing their time together with one last small act of intimacy before slipping out the door. He finished buttoning up his shirt as he made his way down the hall and out the front door of the house, where a transport was waiting for him. He slid into it and directed the driver in a crisp, professional tone.<br/><br/>"Eavesdown Docks."<br/><br/>The driver looked from the house to Lex, clearly wondering what someone dressed like him and headed to the docks would be doing in a house like that, but said nothing. Lex was glad of the silence. He was tired and looking forward to spending some down time once he was back aboard<em>The Gamble</em>.<br/><br/>The last few weeks had been, while not unpleasant, certainly not the most enjoyable of his life. Guild Companions needed to have yearly health exams in order to stay on the Registry, and he had nearly missed this one. He would have preferred going to a Core hospital, where the procedures would have been quicker, but he needed to stop off at the first place they could get to on short notice, and that was Persephone. On Ariel, he would have been in and out in two days; here, it had taken eight. He had put himself up in a hotel while he waited for<em>The Gamble</em>'s return, hoping to while away his time with clients. He had found that there was a greater demand for a male Companion here than he would have otherwise thought, and he had been very busy indeed, meeting with sixteen clients in the last twelve days. Fourteen women and two men; and it was the men that really took it out of him. He had needed a full day's rest after the first one. He hadn't wanted to take a commission on his last day before meeting up with<em>The Gamble</em>, but Sheila had been so... insistent.<br/><br/>He rode in the back of the transport, relaxed and anticipating the down time of travelling the black. He could get caught up on his reading, and give his aching body a chance to rest. He looked forward to seeing all of the faces of the crew of<em>The Gamble</em>again, and idly wondered if there would be any changes in the ship's complement this time out. He trusted the captain, though, to keep the ship and crew safe. There was nothing for him to worry about. He settled back in his seat, hands behind his head, and watched the world speed past outside the window of the transport. Nope, nothing to worry about at all.