I drove back to Amy's apartment, knocking softly on the doorframe for fear of disturbing her neighbours at 2:35. The door opened as if by magic. She hid behind it as I stepped hesitantly inside. I looked at her with a curious smile on my face.

"You have a magic door?" I whispered.

She burst out laughing.

"Yes, there's a lot of magic happening here tonight, Billy. Disappearing men, for starters."

"I know," I said, "I apologise profusely, but it was done with the best of intentions."

"I realise that, Billy," she said, "and I appreciate it."

She held a short black robe closed across her as we stood in the hallway. As she stepped towards me she released her grasp on it to reach for me. We kissed softly and she led me back to her bedroom. She had tidied it up somewhat in the time I'd been away.

She slipped her robe off and slid, naked, under the bedcovers, her hand reaching for mine. I quickly undressed and joined her, taking her in my arms and holding her warm body to me.

"I recall you mentioning a Superpower?" she asked with an inscrutable smile.

"I know," I said, "it was just something silly that I said to lighten the mood."

"It must be a nuclear superpower then," she whispered.

"Why?"

"I almost disintegrated with the power of my orgasms, Billy, were you not there beside me?"

"Yes, it was wonderful, Amy," I said, "you're such a sexy lady. You made my heart sing."

"That's never happened before," she said, "to me, in any case."

"Really? I would never have thought that."

"Why not?"

"A blind man can see what a spectacular lady you are, Amy."

"I've had my moments, Billy," she whispered, "but nothing like that."

"You have no idea what that means to me."

"What else can you do?"

"I can show you my other superpowers."

"There's more?"

"Oh, yes, my dear," I said, as I lowered my lips to hers, "but we may have to begin again."

"Promise not to run away again."

"I promise," I whispered into her opened mouth. "No matter what."

There was a hunger to her kiss as our lips met. I touched her breast and she sizzled.

"Taste me," she whispered breathlessly, "I'm so aroused right now."

I touched my lips to her soft pink vulva and allowed my tongue to slip gently inside the lips of her labia. Taking my middle finger, I lightly stroked along the outer perimeter, negotiating the constant motion of her body as she emitted a feminine whine of arousal. I took one of her outer lips between mine as my finger travelled slowly inside the walls of her labia and gently stroked all around the surface before softly touching the entrance to her vagina as my tongue sought her clitoris.

"Oh my God, Billy," she wailed, as my finger slowly penetrated her, and my tongue tasted her clitoris simultaneously. I slipped my finger inside her, seeking out her tender G Spot. She moved her hips to assist my progress and I finally felt the slightly different texture inside her that indicated where it was located. I slowly stroked it tenderly, flattening the pad of my finger, varying the pressure as I did so. She groaned as her desire built, her fingers held the hand that I had placed on her luscious stomach just below her navel and slightly above her Mons Veneris. She squeezed it with surprising strength as she tried to hold on, her tightening stomach muscles betraying the onset of her smouldering climax.

An anguished cry of release, accompanied by a slow, oozing stream of her creamy white fluid, emanated from deep with her as a searing orgasm flooded her with a quivering physical impact. She cried out again as another one rolled through her extremities, and she pleaded for comfort as she struggled to understand what she was experiencing. I held her to me as she seemed to shiver in my arms, her face buried deeply into the crook of my neck, clinging tightly to me. It was a deliciously erotic moment, the depth of her passion on display and something I had never witnessed before.

She lifted her face and kissed me ravenously. I opened my eyes as our lips separated and I saw the tears of deep emotion on her face again. I wiped them away and kissed her, moved to dry them with a soft touch to my lips, my tongue savouring their salinity and joining her in the intensity of her ecstasy. She curled up and wrapped her body around mine. It was the sensual movement of a highly delectable and temporal creature, her skin soft and warm, displaying a slight sheen of post orgasmic exultation.

She lay in my arms and stroked my face, a look of placid repletion luminous in her eyes. She smiled and motioned to speak but her words caught in her throat. I understood her depth of emotion, no words were required nor requested. We were the sole inhabitants of our world.

"You're so very beautiful, Amy, love," I whispered and kissed her lips softly.

"I haven't got the words, Billy," she replied.

"I never thought I'd ever witness you being speechless," I said, with a smile.

"I never thought someone could make me feel like this without spiking my drink," she said. "Wait! You didn't spike my drink, did you?"

"I drank the same drink that you did, Amy," I laughed.

She leaned across me and took our half-full glasses from the bedside table and handed me one. She sat up in the bed and ran her hand through what there was of my hair. She took a deep draught of her drink, emptying it, and took mine from my hand before placing them back on the table.

She bent towards me and kissed me lightly, quickly deepening the connection and taking me down several floors to a place I'd never visited. I was spellbound as her tongue explored my mouth and lips, covering the entire area with a lightness of touch that had me struggling to maintain an understanding of where we were and what I was experiencing. I held her tightly, not wishing this kiss, or whatever it was, to end. I was totally under her spell, a willing victim as I surrendered to the extreme blanket of arousal that was slowly enveloping my entire body, mind, and soul.

I felt a touch to my left nipple, a light brushing or slight breeze and an accompanying unconscious groan that prompted her to surround it with her lips and lick gently whilst accompanying it with a tender brush of her tongue. I felt my erection harden and almost increase in size, as I felt her hand float over my stomach and encompass my penis with a gossamer touch. She paused our kiss and looked into my eyes. She smiled and lightly licked my top lip, knelt on the bed beside me and turned her body to move her head towards my lower body.

"Amy, let me reciprocate. Please," I whispered.

"Later, love, this is my gift to you," she replied, her eyes glistening in the dimness of the room.

I tried to watch what she did, but it was impossible because my head and neck muscles were rendered impotent as she lowered her lips to the tip of my penis, opening them slightly and touching the tip of her tongue to the pool of preliminary fluid gathered there. I sensed, rather than saw, her take me into her mouth in my entirety, she used a very light touch and sent my desire on a breathless meteoric flight as I sensed her warm tongue slowly envelope and taste every available surface.

"Amy!" I breathed, feeling myself beginning my journey to orgasm.

"Yes, love?" she whispered without turning.

"I'm not coming in your mouth," I whispered, agitatedly.

"Why?"

"I need to be inside you."

She smiled at me and acquiesced. She slid her glorious body along mine until we were looking into each other’s eyes.

"You couldn't take MY superpower?" she whispered with a smile.

"I'll surrender to you. For now," I replied with a grin. "One never knows what the morning will bring."

"That, my love, is a date," she whispered, as she rose slightly and eased my penis inside her vagina.

"Oh, fuck that's spectacular," I groaned as she slowly took me into her.

She eased herself further down until I was fully held within a wondrous grotto that held me comfortingly inside. She felt snug and warm and the moisture that escaped from her was like liquid velvet as it coated my entire penis and scrotum. The aroma that pervaded the room was of honey scented musk as she rested her head on my shoulder, laying quietly in my arms, savouring the moment and the emotion of our connection.

"You're a beautiful man, Billy," she whispered breathlessly, signs of arousal evident in her ragged breath.

I held her bum in my hands as we kissed, joined by our lips but adhered to each other by our souls. Unbidden sounds of her rising exhilaration indicating her need and desire. She lifted her hips slowly and I moved within her.

"Ooh!" she almost whimpered as a shiver ran through her.

I moved slowly and slightly inside her, massaging the inner walls of her wondrous vagina with gentle inward and outward movements. I focused purely on her and divorced myself from any feeling in my penis. I wanted to please her, and my need for her to reach orgasm outweighed my own pleasure. I felt it beginning as her fingers dug into my shoulders and her eyes made rapid movements in her head just before she closed them tightly.

I heard it in her garbled moans as she became totally unintelligible. Her hips fought my hands in escape, I held on to her and maintained my tempo. She cried out and the power of her demanding body caused me to lose my grasp. She lifted her left leg to disengage but I managed to hold her in place.

"Stay with me, Amy, please," I almost begged her. "Let it go."

"Oh, Billy," she said, agitatedly. "I'm gonna come. I'm so sorry."

She surrendered to me as the feeling began to overpower her, I felt a warm and moist release around my penis first, shortly followed by an agonised cry as the inevitable eruption shattered her resistance and sent her body into paroxysms of ecstatic movement, forcing her upright before crashing back down on top of me again. She was trembling heavily, and we both felt the strong flow of her ejaculation as it bathed us both in the warmth from within.

We laid together without moving, as my erect penis showed no indication of leaving. Fully recovered, she smiled and kissed me.

"It feels like somebody isn't ready to rest yet," she teased, "I think mummy needs to give him a good talking to. What do you think?"

"I'd never argue with mummy," I laughed, and closed my eyes as she took me in her mouth.

Next morning, I woke to the sound of coffee being perked and the sounds and smell of bacon cooking. It was 8:30. I pulled on my shirt and trousers and wandered into the kitchen. She saw me before I could sneak up on her and she smiled with a little girl smile.

"Good morning, beautiful lady," I said and stole a kiss.

"Good morning, lover," she said, and we laughed.

She held my shirt as she stirred the eggs, a serious look on her face.

"You are an amazing lover, Billy. I'm not joking," she said. "Let's have something to eat and go back to bed."

"Have you no job to go to this morning?" I asked.

"No, I'm on a week’s leave," she said. "I call it my Autumn long weekend."

"It’s a hard life," I said to myself, and sat down.

"I heard that," she said.

"You were meant to, now where’s this food?"

We were both starving, and the food quickly disappeared.

"You enjoyed that," she said, picking up my empty plate.

"It was delicious, you're a culinary magician," I said, "or did I miss the caterers?"

"Very funny," she said. "I'll just give this place a quick once over."

"Can I use your shower?" I asked.

"Yes, of course, there's a few towels in the closet beside the bathroom door."

I found the bathroom door and the closet beside it. Unfortunately, there were four doors on the closet so I took a chance and opened the one nearest the bathroom door. It was a double wardrobe, custom fitted as I had come to expect from Amy. It had polished aluminium rails running horizontally at intervals of about 400 millimetres. There were six in all, and each level held two rails about 300 millimetres apart.

Hanging from each rail were complete sets of lingerie in various styles, fabrics, and colours. There were bras, thongs, panties, teddies, corsets, one-piece open crotch body suits, garter belts and bustiers, all on individual hangers and all tidily stored on the aluminium rails. The tags read La Perla, Honey Birdette, Coco de Mer, Agent Provocateur and Fleur of England, all luxury brands and all very expensive. The wardrobe was full of the stuff. On the floor of the wardrobe were two storage drawers.

I eased one open, to find dozens of pairs of nylon stockings in all styles and fabrics including fishnets and open weave netting. All were brand new and still in their wrappers. I slid it shut and eased the bottom drawer open.

I scratched my head when I saw what it contained. There were several bottles of flavoured lube and several sealed cartons of flavoured condoms. There were also a selection of dildos and vibrators, sleep masks and, quite surprisingly, a black strap on set with a large plastic penis attached. I closed that drawer quickly and took a step back.

"What the fuck?" I thought to myself.

I closed the wardrobe doors over and opened the next one. The last two wardrobes were single units, the one I opened held a selection of seductive nightwear such as babydoll nighties, sheer and lace robes, camisoles, chemises, and negligees. There were only two levels of horizontal bars in this wardrobe spaced about 1,400 millimetres apart. I closed the door on that one and opened the last one, where I found the promised towels sitting clean and smelling fresh on five shelves inside the carcass of the unit. I grabbed one and made my way into the bathroom.

I ran the shower, and it was, appropriately, set for a perfect temperature. I was about to step in when I heard her call,

"Billy, did you find the towels?"

"I did, thanks, love," I said, and jumped into the shower in case she came in to see if I was managing the shower well.

All kinds of thoughts swirled around my brain. I couldn't make sense of it, and I was feeling a little shocked. I came down on the side that Amy was a single woman, had plenty of money, and could afford to have the finer things in life. Who was I to judge her? I would usually rejoice in someone's success, why would I not do similar with Amy? Maybe she used the strap on to hold her dress down while she ironed it. Who knew? Who the fuck cared? I didn't, it was none of my business.

I put it to the back of my head and enjoyed the shower. Once again, luxury branded soaps, body washes and conditioners by Molton Brown were available in the stall and I used these profusely. I felt good as I stepped out of the shower and dried myself off. A small box of razors sat on a glass shelf above the sink along with a small dispenser of Molton Brown shaving foam. My face was the worse for wear, so I used them to have a quick shave, finishing it off with a touch of Molton Brown after shave balm, a new experience for me.

"You smell nice," she said, as she met me outside the bathroom door as she returned from the kitchen.

"I did the best I could with the stuff you had in there, Amy," I said. "You should really shop in places other than Lidl and Aldi."

"You fucker," she said with a laugh. "What do you expect for nothing?"

"It wouldn't kill you to get a small bottle of Santa Maria Novella, Angeli di Firenze in, just in case," I said.

"I'll remember that for next time," she whispered, as she nuzzled against my face.

"Will there be a next time?" I asked, my hopes rising.

"If you can make me reach orgasm before you leave, I'll give you your own key," she whispered, her eyes serious, her breath minty and breathing unspoken promises.

"Tell me what you'd like," I whispered, taking her in my arms.

"I'd like to feel you coming inside my vagina, Billy and then in my mouth," she said, taking my lips prisoner and slipping her robe off, leaving her naked in my arms.

"How about your vagina now and your mouth this evening?" I whispered into her lips. “I’m just a man after all.”

"Do you have to haggle over everything?"

"I like to stay in practice."

"I accept your alternative proposal."

We made beautiful love, and she reached orgasm twice before we finally shared an extremely volatile climax which caused us to rest easily in each other’s arms.

“I need to change these sheets, Billy,” she said.

“Now?”

“No, there’s no point in doing it now.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m still coming,” she said as a slight shiver ran through her.

“Come here to me,” I said, as I held her close.

She kissed my chest.

“I feel safe in your arms,” she said quietly.

“Good,” I said just as my phone rang in my pocket.

“Answer it,” she said.

“No, it’s probably one of the lads moaning about the weather.”

“Answer it and I’ll make some tea.”

“It’s 11:00,” I said, getting out of bed to grab my phone, “I’ll get rid of whoever it is.”

It was a strange number, but I answered it in any case.

“Billy Byrne,” I said, distractedly as I watched Amy get out of bed and stretch out.

She was spectacular and so sensually perfect as she brushed imaginary dust from her smoothly shaved Mons while reaching for her robe simultaneously. She sat on the edge of the bed and reached for me. I sat beside her, and she began to stroke my skin. I felt a stirring down below and she smiled and kissed my cheek. I held up the phone so she could hear.

“Howaya, Billy, Pat O’Connell from Retroactive Developments,” he said in a broad country accent.

I looked at Amy to see if she recognised the name and shook her head slightly.

“Hi, Pat,” I said, “how can I help you?”

“I’m following up on an email I sent you yesterday, you never replied to it.”

“You sent me an email?”

“Yes, did you not get it?”

“Let me check my phone, there was a lot of traffic yesterday, it’s easy to miss one,” I said.

I muted the call and then switched him off.

“Ever heard of this guy?” I asked Amy.

“No. Can I see the email?” she asked.

I opened the email and she read it quickly. She stood up, and ran out of the room, returning in a flash with a pad and pencil. She scribbled down a few things and said, “stall him for a day.”

I rang him back.

“Sorry Pat,” I said, “I lost you there.”

“Did you find it?”

“I did, it was in the Spam Folder,” I said.

“What do you think?”

“I found it, but I didn’t read it, Pat,” I said, looking at Amy who was paying rapt attention.

“Well, it says,” he began when I stopped him.

“Pat, I’m otherwise engaged in a personal capacity today, can you give me a call tomorrow please? I’ll have read it by then and will be on surer footing.”

“Are you sure you haven’t read it, Billy?”

“Pat, you’re being a prick,” I said, as Amy nearly choked, “what part of the term, personal capacity, do you not understand?”

“Oh, right. I’m terribly sorry,” he said, “Tim Woods said I should contact you.”

“Great,” I said, “but not now.”

“I’ll ring you in the morning.”

“Leave it until after lunch. I’m booked solid tomorrow morning.”

“Ok, how does 2:00 sound?”

I looked at Amy and she gave me a thumbs up.

“That should work, thanks, Pat.”

It rang again, it was Debbie. Amy stood and mimicked making tea before leaving the room.

“Hi Billy,” she said, “I just got in.”

“You didn’t have to ring to tell me that, Debs,” I said.

“Are you gone for the day?”

“More than likely.”

“Ok, I’ll get the lads' payments set up for tomorrow and get some invoicing done. I’ll see you in the morning then.”

“Thanks, Deb,” I said, “I’d be lost without you. Pay yourself too.”

“I’ve only got two days this week, I’ll carry it over to next week,” she said.

“No, you won’t, Debbie,” I said. “Pay yourself the full week.”

“I can’t do that.”

“I’ll do it then, Deb. You brought your kids to work yesterday and did those contracts for me, that alone is worth its weight in gold to us.”

“Thanks, Billy,” she said, “you’re the best.”

I hung up and joined Amy in the kitchen. The kettle was starting to boil, and she was engrossed in a call on her phone. I stood at the long glass wall overlooking the dock below and took in the views. It was phenomenal.

I heard the kettle switch off and made the tea for us. Amy came over and took a plate of small croissants out of a hidden oven, they were lovely and warm. She returned to her seat at the table to continue her call, writing rapidly on her pad as she listened to the other side.

“Well, that was interesting,” she said as she joined me in the kitchen.

“What was?”

“Waxy O’Connell, a little upstart from Ardee.”

“Do you know him?”

“No, but I know his type.”

"And what type is that?" I said.

"A fucking little chancer," she said.

"Ooh, the real Amy shows herself at last."

"I'm going to butt fuck this little upstart," she said, taking a croissant and mangling it between her seductive teeth.

A mental image of the strap on in her wardrobe popped into my mind. Poor Paddy. I stood beside her.

"Come here to me, you beautiful, sexy, desirable woman," I said and pulled her to me.

"Are you leaving?"

"Do you want me to stay?"

"I do, can you?"

"I need a change of clothes, Amy, do you want to come along for the drive? I'll buy you lunch."

"I've never seen your place, have I?" she said.

"I don't think so."

"Let me take a shower and clean myself up first. We have plenty of time yet."

"Ok, I'll make a few calls, Ritchie D is looking for me."

"Did he call?"

"No, email."

"Ok, you do you and I'll do me," she said and left me with a kiss.

I called Ritchie.

"Bilbo, where would you be?"

"Out and about on the south side. You summoned me," I said.

"Yes, I just wanted to pick your brain," he said.

"Are you in trouble?"

"No, I got a call from the Local Area Manager in Bally Go Fun."

"Ok, what's wrong with him?"

"He has this contractor doing some void work," he said. "There's a house out near IKEA, built new in about 2016 / 2017 and the cunt wants to insulate it."

"Is that Laketown Estate?"

"The very place. Number eighteen."

"Ah tell him to fuck off. I remember those houses, they're all A2 rated."

"How do you know that?"

"Am I right?"

"Yes, you are."

"I was asked to do number fifteen in about 2018 or so but it wasn't ready for me. I checked the identifier on the windows, and it said 2016, so I assumed there was already a cert on it so I left it alone," I said. "When I checked it against the register, it turned out that none of the houses in that Estate had been surveyed for Energy Rating."

"They all have certs on them now, Billy."

"I know that. I ran into a guy who was walking around the place with a clipboard in his hand," I said, "I asked him if he was working for the contractor who built the houses, and he said yes. I asked him why they hadn't been certified and told him to get his arse in gear and get them done, and I hounded him until he complied."

"So, they don't need insulation?"

"No, they even have the solar panels installed to meet compliance. I'd tell that contractor to fuck off."

"I'll do that so," he said, "thanks."

"No problem, Ritchie, I'll talk to you later."

"Oh, by the way, how did your coordinating go last night?"

"I owe you fifty quid, you prick. Don't spread that around."

"I won't, I swear," he said with a chuckle.

"And I swear I'll pull your fucking head off if I hear it back."

We hung up as Amy sidled up beside me.

"Whose head is getting pulled off?"

"Fucking Ritchie."

"About time," she said. "I must say, you have some pretty straightforward discussions with people, Billy. It's, actually, a bit of a turn on."

"Are you turned on now?"

"I've been turned on since I heard you say you adore me."

"Let me jump in the shower and get some clean clothes before we have to turn you back off."

"It's a bit of a pain, though, isn't it?" she said.

"Why?"

"We have to drive all the way to yours, get your stuff, and drive all the way back," she said. "I don't know if I can take that amount of time."

"There's a nice soft bed at my house," I said.

"Of course, there is, why didn't you think of that?"

In the car, on the journey to my house, Amy's phone rang, and she immediately took the call.

"That's fine, love," she said, "I'll see you then."

She closed her phone and held it in her hands as she looked out through the side window. I was about to ask her who it had been when her phone sounded a text alert. She read it, texted back, and resumed her pose. This happened several more times in the space of 30 minutes.

"For someone who is on a day off, you're getting a lot of texts," I said.

"You never really get days off in my job, Billy," she said.

The phone rang again, and she listened more than spoke. It was a long phone call for her. She said very little until the very end.

"I see," she said, "well that can't happen, can it?"

There was an unintelligible reply from the other side of the call, and she closed the phone down again.

"That sounded a bit contentious," I said.

"It was about your friend, Waxy O'Connell."

"He's no friend of mine," I said. "What's going down?"

"I'll tell you when I calm down, Billy," she said, placing her hand on my penis and lightly stroking it. "That's your job."

We hit a traffic snarl up and decided to turn back to her apartment. She was quiet on the journey, and I could almost hear the wheels turning in her head.

"What dastardly deed are you planning in your febrile little brain, Amy?" I asked.

"I'm planning on detonating a ton of Semtex under Waxy fucking O'Connell, Billy," she said.

We reached her apartment, and she asked me to cook something while she sent a few emails. I found the makings of a deconstructed beef wellington and began the process of turning into something edible. I found some scallops in her fridge and let them rest on the kitchen counter while I attended to the beef and a red wine jus. I was taking two circles of puff pastry out of the oven when she came back in. She laughed when she saw what I had done.

"I meant a fucking sandwich, Billy," she said, "not a Gordon Ramsay buffet."

"It's actually Gary Rhodes, Amy."

"What have you done?"

"We're having a deconstructed beef wellington with a starter of scallops in a white champagne and shallot sauce," I said and sniffed loudly.

"What's for dessert?"

"You are, my dear," I said, "and I'm going off my diet for the next few hours."

"Hours?"

"Yes," I said, "now sort out some wine for us and take a seat. It'll be ready in a few minutes."

When we were both seated and tucking in she mentioned Waxy on several occasions. He seemed to have gotten under her skin. I allowed her to rant and just made encouraging noises, but she was in full flow. When the meal was over we sat back and looked out on the world through her wall of glass. Her text alert sounded. She picked it up and read it with a smirk. She stood and walked into a small room off the dining room. It was her study, I later found out, and she returned with two pages of paper. She placed them upside down on the glass table.

"So, tell me about your arrangements with Ritchie D," she said.

"In what way?"

"Ritchie is very hand to mouth in the way he operates," she said. "Has he offered you any form of comfort?"

"No, but I heard about this Waxy bloke, and I sorted that out."

"In what way?" she asked.

I told her about the agreements that we now had in place. She nodded her head slowly and pursed her lips as she sipped her wine.

"Do you know what Waxy O'Connell is up to?" she asked.

"Something to do with Energy Credits and trying to bury us with free surveys for the Council," I said.

"Yes, that's exactly what he's doing," she said. "He wants to take control of every energy survey result and the attendant credits that are to be had from all of this upgrade work. He'll try and sell them on to one of the petroleum or gas suppliers and clean up in the process."

“I know, Tim Woods told me.”

"We can't allow that to happen, Billy," she said.

"I know," I said, "he'll fuck us if we do."

"What's the name of your surveying company?"

"BB Surveys," I said.

"Ok, on this piece of paper I've registered a company called ABC Ireland Limited," she said, turning it over. "You'll see that it has two directors, you and me."

"Ok," I said, curious, but secretly loving the way she does things.

"Tomorrow morning a team of three people, working for us, will meet with DCO, and two of the other Dublin Councils, to discuss the harvesting of Energy Credits for a fee."

"I see," I said, suddenly interested.

"Councils, or any Government entity for that matter, cannot sell these credits on. The fee we'll be offering is a harvesting, disposal, and collation fee," she said, "and it will be so low that it will cost them money to implement it."

"But Waxy is doing their surveys for free, Amy," I said.

"Not unless he buys you out of those contracts that Ritchie has in his possession."

"That's why I talked Ritchie into it," I said. "So, what's this ABC Ireland thing?"

"Amy and Billy Credits," she said.

"What's the purpose of it?"

"We take the credits and sell them on to the highest bidder. It’s all money, Billy," she said. "Plus, the company value increases exponentially once we have everything nailed down. Waxy O'Connell is still at the exploration stage. We are rolling from tomorrow morning, and I expect to have at least two offers for the credits by first thing in the morning. If Waxy wants to do this, he'll need the three Dublin Councils and, to get those, he has to talk to us."

"Do we sell or tell him to fuck off?"

"Whatever we feel like doing," she said. "But the primary function is to preserve the current survey prices."

"Will Ritchie be involved in this somehow?"

"He's already been dragged into it today," she said, "when a move needs to be made, Billy, it needs to be made quickly and efficiently. Waxy won't get anywhere near Ritchie unless we tell him to."

"Ok," I said, "you're good, I'll give you that. So, what happens next?"

"Sign those two pages and I'll scan them over to the CRO. It's official once it's scanned, the fees have already been paid."

I signed them and she went to do her thing while I cleared the table. When she came back in, she kissed me and said, "Hello there, partner."

"Hello gorgeous. I think we should retreat to the boardroom and get our inaugural board meeting in session," I said.

"I'm not quite dressed for it, Billy," she said as she leaned in and nuzzled my face.

"I see. Well, Item One on the agenda demands that there be very little clothing worn at the inaugural gathering."

"I think we should attend to that immediately," she said, "don't you?"

"I'll follow your lead, Madame co-chair."

"I'll meet you in the boardroom," she said, and she took my lips with hers, her tongue slowly tasting my lips, "naked."

She disappeared and I walked into the bedroom, removing clothing as quickly as I could. I had slid into the bed when she appeared beside me, her skin showing a soft sheen in the midday light. She sat on the edge of the bed and her hand disappeared under the covers, landing softly on my erect penis.

"Here's to a successful first meeting of the board," she said, as she took me firmly in her hand and lowered her lips to take me in her mouth.

I adjusted my hips, moving more to the centre of the bed, she followed me, my penis still completely ensconced in her mouth and enveloped in her soft tongue.

"Mmmm," she moaned as I brought my head between her legs, softly kissing her inner thigh as I did so. My tongue tasted her skin as she lowered her hips to give me access to her vulva. She adjusted her position to lay on top of me, her legs straightened somewhat, her hips raised just enough for the perfect angle of connection. She kissed along the underside of my penis and down to my scrotum, taking one of my testicles in her mouth and sucking on it slowly as her hand massaged my erection.

My tongue found the entrance to her vagina and willingly slipped inside as she groaned agonisingly at the sensation. I held on to her bum as I fell in love with the softness of her perfect behind. She moved her hips to encourage my tongue inside the tender lips of her labia, traveling slowly in the direction of her clitoris. She hissed as my tongue found it and took it between my lips, slowly teasing it, licking it, and softly sucking it.

"Oh fuck, Billy," she almost screamed, "I'm fucking coming. Keep it there."

I increased my speed and held her quivering hips to me as she cried out, releasing a stream of heavy, viscous fluid that tasted like musk, laced with honey, and had the consistency of lightly whipped cream. I was lost in the tastes and the smells of her, and hardly noticed the movement of her mouth on my penis until it was too late, as the tingling sensation of a full-blown orgasm tore through me, causing me to ejaculate into her mouth. She increased her speed until she had collected every available drop from me, and we both spent several gloriously sensuous minutes tenderly cleaning each other up with our tongues and lips.

She slid from on top of me and clung to me as we lay there, replete and laid bare. I could almost feel the warmth of her soul.

"How the fuck do you do that, Bill," she breathed.

"I think that half the battle is that I simply love oral sex. I think I'd die if I couldn't have that in my life, Amy," I said, stroking her cheek and watching her eyes sparkle.

"You like having a woman screaming on the end of your tongue," she said, amused at her little aside.

"It's the intimacy I love, Amy," I said, "and that's enhanced when the lady is as fucking beautiful as you."

"Oh, Billy," she said, "that's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me."

"Well," I said, "I'm always hoping for more later."

She laughed and slapped my shoulder.

"Unfortunately, I'll have to take a rain check on that," she said, "I've a thing in town later this evening, but we need to tie this Waxy thing down securely before you leave."

"How so?"

"He's going to call you tomorrow," she said, "what are you going to say to him?"

"That depends on what I can tell him, Amy," I said.

"There's my text alert," she said and got out of bed.

She left the room and was back in an instant as she sat quickly in beside me. She opened a text and smiled.

"Amy,

IPC, Irish Gas and GazPro on board. Contracts signed electronically, originals by mail tomorrow. Rate 10% less than of offer. Put Billy down and reply quickly. I need to get this over the line today.

They'll take as many as we can give them, suggest a meet with Local Govt.

Clem."

"What do you think?" she asked.

"I think I need a bigger BMW," I said.

"About Waxy," she said. "He's not going to like it."

"Well, that's the thing about Waxy, Amy," I said. "He can fuck off."

"How many surveys have you completed and invoiced?" she asked.

"Offhand, I'd say a little over a thousand, why?"

"We can calculate the energy credits from the difference in the energy and carbon values between the before and after survey results," she said.

"Yes, I think Debbie has that in hand, Amy."

"Really? Are you sure?"

"I think so, I remember asking her what she was doing with a spreadsheet on one of the mornings that we weren’t all that busy."

"Can you ask her?"

"Yes, I'll get my phone and give her a call," I said. "But why the mad rush?"

"We can work out a package price and auction it between the three providers," she said.

"According to your text, it's a set price, no?" I said.

"No, whoever wants them, will pay for them, Billy," she said, "No matter the price."

"Ok, and what's the point of being first out of the blocks?"

"It shows them who the professionals are," she said. "We get a block of credits to them before Waxy even gets his engine started."

"I see," I said. "It'll take him a few weeks to get set up, Amy. He doesn't have any contact made with any of the councils and he has nobody to do his surveys yet. He's fucked."

"I know, Billy, but there's a bigger picture here," she said.

"Care to colour it in?"

"I think that Waxy would buy us out if the price was right for us," she said.

"And that price is?"

"What would you say?" she asked.

"It has to be in the millions," I said. "How much is a block of credits?"

"We've agreed €1,500 for ten," she said.

"Fuck off!"

"That's cheap, Billy," she said.

"What's a credit?" I asked, "In energy terms, I mean?"

"A boiler upgrade is worth two credits alone," she said, "add in some insulation and windows and that could be ten credits per unit."

"Add in a Heat Pump," I said.

"It depends on the uptick in the energy improvement, but I'd reasonably estimate €2,000 per dwelling," she said.

"How do you know all this?"

"Because we've been working on it for months, Billy," she said, turning angry. "I wanted to move on it the night of the dress dance but fucking Maurice prevaricated and lost interest in it. When I heard you talking about it I familiarised myself with it again and simply put the original plan into action. This Waxy O'Connell business smelled of Maurice to me. I wouldn't be surprised if he was involved somewhere along the line too."

"I think you're right there, Amy," I said.

"Why?"

I picked up my phone and showed her a text that came in while we were otherwise engaged.

"Maurice wants a meet."

"Yes, I suspected that," she said. "He's been very nice about you lately."

"You mean that he doesn't love me?" I asked.

"You and he despise each other, Billy."

"I know," I said. "He's gonna really fucking despise me now though."

"Fuck him," she said.

"Please don't."

"Even if he was the last man in the world, Billy darling," she said, kissing me deeply.

She settled back in the bed, and I called Brenda at home.

"Billy?" she said. "Is there anything wrong?"

"Far from it, Debs," I said.

"Oh good," she said, "what do you need?"

"It's just a question, Debs," I said.

"O. K," she said, slowly.

"Remember that spreadsheet you were working on the other day when we were quiet?" I said.

"Yes, the energy pre and post thing."

"Yes," I said, "what was that?"

"Oh, nothing really," she said. " I like putting simple spreadsheets together, so I took all of your pres and posts and entered each one to the spreadsheet with two columns on the end showing the difference between the pre and the post."

"How many surveys?"

"Nearly 1,600."

"Fuck off!"

She laughed. "I'm serious," she said, "it doesn't take long, Billy. I teach this stuff."

"I could kiss you," I said. "I don't suppose you'd know, offhand, what the nett totals are?"

"I brought it home to work on while the kids are in bed," she said. "I can WhatsApp it to you if you like."

"I'd like to see it," I said.

"Ok, give me a minute," she said. "I'll need to hang up though."

"That's fine, Deb," I said, "I really appreciate this."

"You're welcome, Billy," she said. "Will you be in the office tomorrow?"

"Yes, I will."

"Great," she said, "I'll see you then."

"Thanks, Deb."

I handed my phone to Amy. She looked at me with a smile on her face.

"I have a phone, thanks," she said.

"Open that file, Amy," I said, "I can't fucking do it."

"Here," she said, "I'll show you."

"I don't need to know, Amy."

She got the file open and emailed it to herself. She turned my phone around and opened the calculator. Her fingers moved swiftly across the keypad, and she held it up to me.

"What's that?"

"That, Billy, is the first tranche of credits."

"€3.2 million?"

"Yes."

"Fuck," I said. "So how much will Waxy need to give us if he wants to buy us out?"

"I would estimate that it could be worth five times that," she said. "I can have a financial guy look at it later this evening. He'll know within minutes, but I think we could ask Waxy for €20 million with a straight face."

"Ok, but that would be today's price, Amy," I said, "it could be twice that this time next week."

"Oh, I can pretty much guarantee that, Billy."

"Well, maybe we should wait until then to talk with Mr. O'Connell," I said.

"I love the way you think, Billy," she said. "It turns me on."

"Speaking of being turned on," I said.

"Ooh," she said, pushing me back on the bed, "tell me more."

We made love slowly and it took an age for me to reach orgasm. Amy, however, was like a leaking tap and had several more than I.

TBC