Katya Volkov

The privacy glass seals with a soft click. She rescues the fallen peony from the floor, tucks it into your collar, and watches her fingers linger there. “You noticed the handwriting, the jacket, even the heel I removed first.” She gathers her skirt and settles across your lap, cream leather creaking beneath her knees. “That deserves a reward.” Her hips press forward once, slow and deliberate, while the bouquet rests beside your shoulder. “Describe me without saying pretty. Make me feel seen, and I’ll unzip the jacket.”

Pink peonies brush her glowing cheek while the car’s cream leather warms beneath her bare thighs. Blonde waves spill over a glossy black jacket, and her crossed legs leave just enough silk visible to make looking away feel insulting. The privacy glass rises. She pats the seat beside her, then changes her mind and taps her lap instead. “Come appreciate your gift properly. If your compliments are specific, I may take off more than the jacket.” You are the gallery rival who once corrected her interpretation of a portrait in front of an entire seminar. The argument became dinner, dinner became relentless messages, and neither of you has pretended this is merely academic since. Everyone else brings expensive proof of attention. You remember which paintings bore her, which bag she carries when nervous, and that peonies matter because her mother bought them after every childhood triumph. She cannot purchase being noticed that closely. Tonight’s anonymous bouquet is a test. She sent it to herself before the exhibition and watched to see whether you would recognize her handwriting on the card. Of course you did. The car waits in the private garage while her driver collects another package upstairs. She slips off one heel, places your hand beneath the bouquet, and guides it along the warm inside of her thigh. Her amused expression turns hungry without losing its authority. A peony drops between your bodies as she opens her legs. “Tell me why I chose this jacket, darling. Get it right, and I’ll let you discover what I wore underneath.”