We lay spent on the bed, having made love for over an hour. The last thing I wanted that day was to go to work, but Anita exhorted me to get myself in gear. We showered, dressed, and left the apartment. She wanted to change into something less formal and told me to carry on down to the office to open it up while she did that, promising to follow me down on foot when she was ready.

I travelled the short distance on empty roads, the holiday allowing the sane people to lounge in bed. As I came in sight of the office, I saw Denis' van parked on the wide footpath, which acted as a car park for the small businesses that inhabited the building. Paddy Powers were opening their shutters for the day, and Danny Brown was strolling along the footpath on his way to the job.

I pulled in beside Denis and crawled out of the car.

"Rough night?" he asked with a grin.

"A late one," I said, "nobody here yet?"

"Just us fucking idiots."

"Browner's on his way, I saw him walking past the garage," I said.

"Did you not stop and give him a lift?"

"No, I couldn't face that at this hour of the day," I said.

"I know what you mean," he said, and we laughed.

I threw him the keys.

"Fancy a coffee?" I said, "I'm going down to MacDonald's."

"Yeah, go on. Get me a Sausage McMuffin too."

"I'll get a few," I said, looking up the road. "Here's Scorchy now, I'll get him one too."

"Get him a tea, he doesn't drink coffee."

I hit the bricks down to MacDonald's Drive Thru and picked up some food and drinks. When I came back, Mick was arguing with Browner outside the front door. I pulled in beside them, grabbed the bag of food, and opened the car door.

"Tommo," Mick said, "will you tell this arsehole that the older, more precise trades take precedence to upstart trades like tiling."

"The Romans had tilers, Mick," Browner replied.

"They had plumbers too, but the fucking Pharaohs had painters, Scorchy," he said, "you uneducated prick."

"Ok, children," I said, "just shut the fuck up and get on with it. I'm not in the mood."

"Ooh, somebody was up late last night," Mick said. "I wonder who she was."

Denis looked at me with a smirk and followed me up the stairs. I grabbed a coffee and a McMuffin and sat behind an old desk, indicating the bag for the rest to help themselves. They all settled down somewhat. After the food, I showed everyone what was what, and they went about their work. They worked diligently, and a couple of hours later, the place had been cleaned out, walls stripped bare, and Browner had begun installing the plywood on the floor. It was a pleasure to watch him work, even if he moaned the entire time.

He cleared the entire corridor for men to work uninhibited and was in the process of attending to the entry hall when Anita showed up. She had changed into a pair of jeans and a sweater and was ready to pitch in if needed. I was standing on the bottom step, showing Scorchy what I wanted as she stepped inside the door behind him.

"Sorry, Danny," she said, as she tried to get past him.

He looked up and immediately stopped moaning. He jumped to his feet.

"Ah, Anita, how are you? Happy St. Patrick's Day," he said, charm oozing out of him as he spoke.

"Same to you, Danny," she said breezily, as she stepped past him, kissed me on the lips, and continued on up the stairs.

I followed her as Browner scratched his head.

"What are we doing, love?" Anita said.

"Mark Long is on his way down, Neets," I said. "Will you tell him what we need?"

"I will," she said. "Do you know what the setup will be?"

"I thought I did," I said, "but I keep changing my mind. I think I'm too close to it. I was thinking that I'd hand that off to you."

"Great," she said, "I'll enjoy doing that. I’ll set it out the way I think will work best for us."

"Fantastic," I said, "Longer will probably want to impose his own ideas," I said. "Don't totally dismiss them unless you think they're going to cost an arm and a leg or are irrelevant to what you need."

"Will I clean the place up a bit first?" she asked.

"If you like," I said, "but it's only going to get dirty again an hour later. Whacker is starting back on Monday, he's a clean freak and will just do it unbidden."

"I love Whacker, how is he?"

"He's great, his missus is out of hospital now so he can come back to work," I said.

"What was wrong with her?" she asked.

"She was sick."

She threw a dusty book at me, and we laughed.

"So look, Neets," I said, "this is your kingdom. We need new everything."

"Ok, I'll get on it today and see how we go," she said, "I'll get Mick to finish one of the rooms out completely for Monday morning, and we can store stuff in there safely."

"Tell him you want it for Saturday," I said. "If you say Monday, it won’t be ready until Wednesday. Oh, and, by the way, have a chat with him about painting your house."

She squealed and jumped into my arms.

"Thank you, thank you, Tommy," she said, "you're the absolute best. I think you're going to get very lucky tonight."

“Depending on how lucky I get, I might authorise a complete redecoration for you,” I said.

She snaked her arms around me and drew me into a deep, languid kiss.

"Would that help to firm it up?" she whispered into my mouth.

"Firm what up, Neets?" I replied with a smile.

"I'll show you later. Lover," she said with a grin.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Mick shouted from the door. "None of that carry on, please. People have to eat in here."

"I need to see you, Mick," she said, and dragged him off to bend his ear.

I smiled to myself and nearly felt sorry for him.

I waited until Mark Long arrived and handed him off to Anita. I felt it best to be out of there when Mick and Danny saw him on the site. They both hated electricians, and it usually ended in a moan fest or a near fist fight. Either way, I wasn't going to be around to referee it. I grabbed Denis and asked him to drive me down to Carmela's house so we could take a look under her deck.

"Is that a euphemism?" he asked.

Carmela didn't live all that far away from the office, and we were still laughing as the turnoff to her road appeared on our left. Denis took the turn and drove straight past the house with a grim look on his face.

"What the fuck, D?" I said.

"Look in the wing mirror, Tom," he said.

"What am I looking for?" I asked.

"See that silver Ford Focus opposite Carmela's house?" he said, looking into his driver’s mirror.

"Yes what about it?" I asked.

"That's a police car," he said.

"Fuck off, how do you know?" I asked.

"I was up in the station during the week getting my passport form filled in, and it nearly hit me on the way out," he said.

"Are you sure it was that silver Ford?" I said.

"I'm fucking positive."

"Ok, they'll probably have your registration number now," I said. "Stop beside them on the way out so we can divert them a bit."

Denis crawled alongside the kerb, giving the impression that we were looking for a particular house. He stopped a little before the silver Ford, and I got out of the van and walked to the passenger door of the car. The guy rolled the window down and offered me an ear.

"Sorry for disturbing you, lads," I said, "I'm looking for 177 Whyteleaf Grove but the numbers only go up to 101. Any idea where the rest of them are?"

"This isn't Whyteleaf Grove," he said with a smirk. "This is White Thorn Grove. Whyteleaf is down in Donaghmede."

"Fuck, sorry about that, lads," I said, "thanks for the information. Happy St. Pats."

"Same to you, have a nice day," he said amiably.

"You're a prick," Denis said.

"Yeah, I seem to be," I said. "Carmela can go fuck herself now, I'm staying well away from that little mess."

"Did you fuck her yesterday?" Denis asked.

"Yes, but not for long," I said.

"Were you premature?" he asked.

"No, she was."

"Where do you get the fucking stamina?" he asked.

"I don't know what's going on, D," I said. "I seem to be sporting a permanent semi these days. Long may it continue."

"It's always the same, sometimes," he said.

"What is?" I asked, pointing to three girls walking along the side of the road, dressed in green tee shirts and micro miniskirts up to their arse, that should have had a health warning attached to them.

"How the fuck can they wear stuff like that in the middle of March and not die from pneumonia?" Denis said,

"Ah, leave them alone, D," I said. "They're just doing it for the lads.”

We arrived back at the office just as Mick pulled in beside us. Anita jumped out of his van with a huge smile and skipped over to me. Mick ambled along behind her as she threw her arms around me.

"Here," he said, "I should be the one getting a hug, not you, Tommo."

"A fucking bear wouldn't hug you, Mick," I said.

"I'll have you know that there was a time I was a bit of a babe magnet," he said, feigning insult. "Don't let this downtrodden exterior and dirty overalls fool you."

"Mick, you wouldn't get a ride in a rodeo," Browner said with a smirk as he opened Denis' van to get something he needed.

"Did you two get everything sorted out?" I said to Neets.

"Yes," she said, "Mick is going to redecorate the whole place for me, Tommo," she trilled.

"When is he starting it?" I asked.

"When he's finished here," she said, "is that ok?"

"That's perfect, Neets," I said. "I was thinking that we might need someone to answer phones and stuff like that," I said. "You'll be kept busy with other stuff."

"Probably," she said, "but let's get our feet under us first, though."

"I agree," I said, "but we'll have to partition off an office space for you, Neets. It'd be better to do that now than later."

"Can I have the front window?" she asked.

"Yes," I said, "I'll leave that with you to plan."

"Do you trust me that much, Tommy?" she said.

"Until you give me reason not to, Neets," I said. "Now get up those stairs and crack the whip."

Denis wandered out of the front doorway as a text hit my phone. I opened it to a picture of a Triton T90 electric shower with a bare shoulder and the alluring swell of the top of a lady's breast, cut off just above the nipple. I smiled in admiration when I saw it, causing me to be too late to close the phone before Denis saw it.

"What the fuck is that?" he asked.

"Do you know Naomi at the bank?" I asked.

"The little Cork girl?" he asked.

"Yes, her shower isn't working," I said. "She sent me a picture of it so I can just replace it like for like."

"Is she going to be in it while you’re doing it?" he asked.

"The shower?" I asked.

"Yes."

"Hopefully," I said, "or not long afterwards. Do we have a spare shower hanging around anywhere?"

"No, we fucking don't, Tommo," he said, laughing his head off.

I checked my watch; it was lunchtime, and I'd had enough of hanging around watching everyone working. I took a quick tour of the plac,e and there was good progress being made so I left it in Anita's capable hands and went for a drive to clear my head. My phone rang as I drove past the new site in Donnycarney. I didn’t recognise the number.

“Hello,” I said.

“Tommy?” a female voice with a Cork accent said. “It’s Naomi.”

“Ah, Naomi,” I said, “Happy St. Pats.”

“Beannachtaí Lá le Phadraigh,” she said.

“Show off,” I laughed into the phone. “Chonas a tá tú!”

“Impressive,” she said, “I’m well and a little nervous.”

“Why?” I asked.

“Did you not get my text?” she asked.

“Which text?” I asked.

“The one with the picture of my shower.”

“I got a nice picture of a naked shoulder and a breast, but no shower, Naomi,” I said.

She laughed.

“You did not,” she said.

“Unfortunately, that’s true,” I said. "I was most disappointed.”

“So what did you think?”

“From what I could see, I think you have fantastic breasts, Naomi,” I said.

“I mean, what did you think of the shower? You wee fecker.”

“It looks pretty good, Naomi,” I said seriously. “I can replace it for you easily enough or I can get Earthridge out to fix it under warranty.”

“It’s not that old,” she said, “is it worth fixing?”

“Yes, sometimes it’s just an adjustment to the anti-scald device that's required,” I said, “it only takes a few seconds.”

“How long will it take to get them out?” she asked.

“Get what out?”

“Stop Tommy,” she giggled. “You know what I mean.”

“It’ll probably be Monday at this stage, Naomi,“ I said, “or I can try and pick one up today or tomorrow somewhere for you.”

“I’m easy, I’ll let you decide,” she said, “do your best, Tommy. It’s stopped working completely now.”

“Ah shit, Naomi,” I said. “Do you have to take a bath now?”

“There’s no bath in my apartment, Tommy, just the shower,” she said.

“Ok, leave it with me,” I said, “I’ll try to get something organised for you.”

“Thanks,” she said. “Have you any plans tonight?”

“Yes, I’ve to go to a Paddy’s Day thing in Saint Finian’s later.”

“The GAA club in the village?” she asked.

“Yes. It might be a good night.”

“Are you a member?” she asked.

“No, I'm more of a victim than a member,” I said. "What are you up to?"

"A few of the girls at work are meeting up for a few pints," she said, "I might drop in for a while."

"Where?"

"The Raheny Inn."

“Give me an hour with this, love," I said. "I’ll give you a bell when I have news. We can't have you going to the Raheny Inn all sweaty and filthy, can we?”

"I'm not that bad, Tommy Dunne," she said, laughing.

"I noticed that in your picture."

I hung up and drove up to our stores. I was convinced I had a couple of spare showers, and I was proved correct. I was a sucker for a bargain and, sometimes, there were deals or promotions on offer at our suppliers. For example, on one of our first jobs we had to install a Groehe Mixer shower for the architect. Groehe were the Rolls-Royce, price-wise, of showers at the time and architects loved the exclusivity of them. When I was pricing the job, I called the suppliers and was told they were €550 plus tax with a twenty percent trade discount.

We subsequently won the tender and, when it was time to buy it, it had been reduced in price to €320 trade price but, if I bought two of them, I got another one free. This meant that, essentially, I got the second two shower mixers for less than €100 at the original list price. I installed one in my own apartment and used the other one in the next job we did for that same architect. It was the same with the Triton showers only his time we dealt with Screw Fix Direct, and it was at the height of the recession when stuff was almost free. I called Naomi.

"Hey Tommy, that was quick," she said.

"You're in luck, Naomi," I said, "I have your shower."

"Oh, that's brilliant, Tommy," she said, "what do I owe you?"

"Don't worry about it," I said, "I'll take your one away with me and get Earthridge to fix it," I said.

"No way, Tommy," she said. "I have to pay you to put it in for me."

"Do you want to rephrase that, Naomi?" I asked, laughing.

"Oh, stop it, Tommy," she said, "when will you do it?"

"I'll do it as soon as you give me your address," I said.

"I'll text it to you now."

I pulled out my toolbox and blew the dust off it. Everything I needed, and more, was inside. I threw it into the boot along with the new shower and, after checking Naomi's text, headed off to her place, an apartment in Larch Hill about two minutes from my place. I texted her to say I was on my way, and she was waiting at the lobby entrance when I pulled into the car park outside. I felt in my pocket for the urn and noticed it was quite hot. I took it out and glanced at it quickly and saw it was glowing green and surrounded by a pulsing green haze. I hadn't seen this up to now and my eyes were drawn to it as it cast an almost hypnotic spell over me. Naomi's knocking at the window woke me up and I put the urn away again.

I jumped out of the car, and she hugged me in thanks. I handed her the shower to carry and opened the boot to get my tools. Naomi lived on the first floor in a north-facing apartment that had views across the playing fields on Oscar Traynor Road, with Northside Shopping Centre visible in the near distance. I followed her up the stairs, slowing to allow her to get a couple of steps ahead so I could try and see up the hem of the short satin robe she wore. She brought me inside her apartment and asked if I'd like a coffee or a beer.

"No, I'm fine, thanks, Naomi," I said, "if I drink too much coffee, I find it hard to sleep in the afternoon."

She laughed and led me to the bathroom, which was just outside her bedroom door. I took a couple of steps inside and had a quick perusal of the job in hand. I put my toolbox down in the hallway outside and took my jacket off.

"Here, give me that and I'll put it on the bed for you," she said, taking it from me and putting it on the bed in her bedroom.

I retrieved a small screwdriver, a pipe grips, and a pliers and stepped into the shower stall. I took the cover of the unit off and saw that it had a penny valve attached to the water pipe where it entered the shower and connected to the unit itself. I turned it a quarter turn to close it off and then switched the power off before disconnecting it from the water and the mains electricity. It was held to the wall with four fixing screws, and these came away quickly, leaving me with the unit resting in my left hand.

I stepped out of the shower and reattached the cover, making sure to secure all of the screws for future use. I then opened the box of the new one and quickly screwed it into position using the screws and fixing holes of the one I had removed. Ten minutes later, I had the new one connected and completed. I put the cover on, screwed it up tight, stepped out of the stall and switched it on. It worked the first time, and I adjusted the temperature as the hot water began to flow. Naomi squealed with delight and thanked me profusely.

I was placing the old shower into the box of the new one when she came into the bathroom carrying a mug of coffee.

"Happier now?" I asked.

"I'm absolutely thrilled, Tommy," she said, "I'll never be able to thank you enough."

"I'll take a cup of tea, if there's one going," I said, and walked into her bedroom to retrieve my jacket.

"You're very welcome, Tommy," she said, and headed for the kitchen to fill the kettle.

I picked up my jacket and had a quick look around the room. It was sparsely furnished but had a very feminine look to the décor. She was obviously into Laura Ashley as the drapes, bedding, and lampshades were all matching in Laura Ashley fabrics. As I pulled my jacket on I noticed a white thong curled up like a snake underneath where it had previously lain. I felt an immediate semi beginning as I reached down to touch it. It slowly became fully erect as I felt the softness of the material and pictured her wearing it. I heard her footsteps outside and dropped it immediately, my face burning in fear that I had been caught in the act.

Smiling broadly, she handed me my tea.

"Having fun with my knickers?" she said, mockingly.

"I'm sorry, Naomi," I said, "I couldn't help it."

She looked down at the bulge straining the front of my trousers. I tried to inhibit her view of it by turning sideways but that only made it worse.

"It's ok, Tommy," she said, moving closer to me, a smile on her face and her eyes dancing. "I think someone put something in my tea. I feel strange."

"You might have a sugar ..." I began before she took my lips with hers.

She was ravenous as she kissed me, our lips moving with heat and desperation, her tongue filling my mouth with wondrous desire and sensitivity. She wrapped herself around me, her arms pulling me in tightly, her hips meeting mine, purring as she pressed her groin against my erection. Taken by surprise, it took me a minute to react, and I returned her kiss, holding my hand to her face, feeling the movement as her jaw worked slowly and generating more heat in the kiss.

Our tongues remained together as she opened her lips and sighed, her eyes closed, and her warm breath soft and fragrant. I took her in my arms fully, my hands enjoying the smoothness of her black satin robe. The thin supports of her bra enlivened my desire as our kiss reignited the fire inside at my touch. I kissed the side of her neck, touching my tongue to her soft white skin, allowing my hands to drift to her waist and over her hips, searching for whatever may be under the robe, I found nothing.

My erection hardened and I felt it almost grow further as I pulled the drawstring at the front of her robe, sliding it off to leave her wearing just a white lace bra, the match of the white thong that she had caught me playing with earlier. I clipped it open, and she dropped her shoulders to allow it to fall away before pushing my jacket off me and lifting my sweater over my head. Her hands searched my skin as she looked into my eyes. Finding my nipples, she squeezed them softly as I took in the breathtakingly beautiful view of her fabulous breasts, pink nipples fully erect, as I felt her hands unzip my trousers. Aided by me opening my belt, she slid them down my legs and allowed me to slide my shorts off.

Both of us naked, we embraced and kissed deeply, standing beside the bed. I lowered my head to her breasts and brought my hand to the softness of her stomach, hearing her sigh of anticipation as it travelled to the border of soft downy hair atop her mound, before retreating over her stomach to the soft swell of the underside of her breast, holding it gently as my lips and tongue savoured her nipple. She closed her body to me as my hand slid down her back and over her backside, pulling her hips into me and revelling in the feel of her soft lower abdomen as it compressed against my erection, gently thrusting against it.

She kissed and licked her way down my body, slowly elevating the arousal that caused almost manic fluctuations in my reactions as my penis flexed uncontrollably under her lust filled touch.

As she reached a seated position on the edge of the bed, my hands rested on her shoulders. She reached for my penis and took it gently in her hand. As I watched her explore it with her hands and eyes, I blinked as it appeared to look bigger than I was aware of, maybe it was the reflected pink daylight in the room caused by the closed drapes on the bedroom window.

She flicked her tongue out and tested the head. Her eyes drifted to mine.

“It’s so big, Tommy,” she whispered.

“Everything looks bigger when you’re looking up at it, Naomi,” I said.

“I’ve never seen one this big,” she said, swallowing something as she spoke.

“How many have you seen?”

“Just one,” she said, “and it wasn’t half this size.”

“We don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to, Naomi,” I said.

Her grip on my shaft eased as I spoke, she appeared to relax a little. She stroked my shaft sending a shock through me and eliciting a bead of pre-ejaculate from the eye of my penis. She reached out her tongue to taste it. She swallowed it and, apparently happy with the taste, enveloped the head with her lips and tongue. She released me from her lips.

“I want to, Tommy,” she whispered, her eyes almost dancing as she pulled me down to lie beside her on the bed.

She knelt beside me and bent to take me fully in her mouth. I watched as she slid her lips over the head and then down the shaft. She managed to accommodate a lot of the length as I felt it reach a stop when it touched the back of her mouth, causing her to cough slightly. I lifted her right leg over my face and opened her vulva to my tongue. Her inner thighs were soaked as I tasted the fluid that oozed slowly from inside her.

It was a feast to the senses as she tasted of sweet rose hips, and her scent was of patchouli and tea tree extract. She reacted with a sensuous shiver as my tongue touched her shining, wet labia. She forced herself to take my length further into her mouth and slightly down her throat when my tongue teased the opening of her vagina.

She hissed as I penetrated her, and my hands held her hips in place, gently beginning to touch and feel the softness of her delicious bum. She ground her vagina against my lips and released her grip on my penis, emitting an anguished sigh while still keeping it inside her mouth. Her other hand caressed my scrotum, weighing it softly while softly stroking the base of the underside of my penis with her thumb as she took me deeper into her mouth.

I moved my tongue slowly along and inside her soft and sensual vulva, pausing as it reached her clitoral hood and searching for access to her clitoris. A deep, sensuous groan indicated my progress, and I worked my tongue around it assiduously until I felt her begin to react.

Her mouth moved faster around my penis as she paused and raised her head to try and stifle a cry of pleasure. She buried her face between my legs and rocked her hips as her orgasmic feelings began to cause her body to tremble slightly.

“Oh, fuck, Tommy,” she wailed, her hips manically trying to escape my hands as they held her in place.

I slipped one finger inside her vagina and teased her G-Spot, increasing the tempo and depth of pressure incrementally as her arousal rose and her climax beckoned.

“I’m coming, Tommy,” she screamed breathlessly, “don’t stop, please don’t stop.”

A final flick of my tongue to her clitoris sent her over the top and she moved her face between my thighs and hung on as she pulled herself into them, clinging on as she tried to muffle her cries as quite a heavy tremor surged through her, completely covering my face in her delicious ejaculatory essence.

She remained in that position, quietly composing herself as intermittent sporadic aftershocks continued to flow delicately through her limbs. She took a final deep reflective breath, and I touched her lower back, encouraging her to me.

She smiled lazily as she roused herself and came into my arms, pausing to kiss me deeply and slowly. I held her head on my chest, stroking her soft blonde hair gently, as we reflected on what we had just experienced. She lifted her head slightly and touched my lips with her finger.

"You're unusually quiet, Mr. Dunne," she said softly.

"You blew my mind, Naomi," I said. "That was fucking intense. Do you need anything else fixed around here?"

She collapsed in convulsions of laughter.

"I thought I was going to explode," she said, after she quietened down.

"I was heading that way too, Naomi," I said, "it was all I could do to restrain myself."

She slid her hand down to my still erect penis and held it gently, stroking it slowly as she leaned up and kissed me.

"It's your turn now," she said, sucking my bottom lip between hers and caressing my scrotum again.

I pushed her down and kissed her deeply, taking her tongue between my lips and sucking it into my mouth as she breathed deeply. I slid my hand down her body, over her skin, squeezing a nipple and scratching the soft hair of her Mons before easing my fingers down to her vulva, lingering between the lips of her wet labia.

"Jesus," she sighed as my fingers massaged her clitoris, "you're gonna make me come again, Tommy."

"Go for it," I whispered, "I love watching you come."

She whimpered as her back arched in yearning, reaching for further release, her hips undulating slowly as she beckoned her orgasm.

"Fuck!" she breathed, as she leaked more ejaculate before thrusting herself wildly into my willing fingers.

She clung to me as her climax broke and ground herself into my hip, simultaneously lifting her left leg over my hips and sliding on top of me, bringing herself higher as she ground her vagina into my penis.

I adjusted my body, and she took me in her hand and led me inside her, leaning her head back as she lowered herself slowly onto my erection. She was warm, soft, and very tight, and her breath caught as she took a little too much in too soon.

"Ok, Naomi?" I asked as her eyes rolled back in her head.

"Yes, it's good, Tommy," she whispered through lips held in her teeth. "I'm just not used to your size."

I withdrew slightly, allowing her dampness to lubricate me a little more, before penetrating her further.

"Oh, fuck. Yes, Tommy," she cried as her vagina stretched slightly to accommodate me.

"You're perfect, Naomi," I whispered as we felt the adjustment between us.

"This is heaven, Tommy," she sighed as I reached bottom.

We paused then, allowing the sensations to accumulate, kissing each other softly, clinging on to each other, our hands in constant motion across each other's skin. I felt the sensation build through my groin and into the base of my penis as I began to thrust gently inside her. She lifted her body and looked down at my penis as I penetrated her further. She began to move against me, exhorting me onward. I felt her muscles tense and a slight pulsing of her vagina around my penis. She released a further warm stream of ejaculate as she groaned in pleasure.

I increased the tempo and length of my strokes within her; she met them with her own motion, and we climbed to orgasm together. She hit her peak first and screamed as she met my thrusts with a tortured look on her face.

"Come for me, Tommy, please come inside me," she cried as I finally broke through and released a powerful stream of semen inside her, the strength of it wracking her body once again as her breath became ragged and her limbs lost all coordination.

It took us a long time to catch our breath as we lay together in her bed. Her eyes opened, and she smiled again.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"Nothing," she said, "this is nothing like how I imagined it to be."

"How long have you been imagining this?" I asked, a smile on my face.

"Oh, I don't know, Tommy," she whispered. "A girl has to have her secrets."

"Would you do it again?" I asked.

"You have my number, don't you?" she said as she kissed me.

"I do," I said, turning on my side to kiss her open mouth.

"You'd better use it then," she whispered into my mouth.

We dozed for a while, and I felt her get up and leave the room. She came back a few minutes later with a couple of sealed bottles of water. She was naked, and she was quite extraordinarily beautiful. I sat up in the bed as she sat down beside me on the bedside, handing me a bottle of water as she opened her own.

"What's the time?" I asked.

"Why?"

"I have to check on the lads," I said.

"What lads? Your lads? Are you working today?" she asked.

"Yes, we're getting the office back into operation."

She looked at her watch.

"It's nearly 4:00," she said, "will they still be there?"

"I hope so," I said, "I have the keys to lock the place up."

"Are you going to Finian’s tonight?" she asked.

"Yes, and I'm not looking forward to it," I said.

"Why not?"

"They're looking for a donation," I said. "Why? What are you doing later?"

"The Raheny Inn," she said. "I told you earlier. A bunch of us from work are going down for a few drinks."

"From the branch?"

"Yes, and from five of the other local branches too," she said.

"Sounds like a wild night," I said, "will you go dancing afterwards?"

"Hardly, we're all in work in the morning and most of them are married in any case."

"Yeah, I get that," I said, "I've a heavy day tomorrow too. Can I take you out tomorrow night, Naomi?"

"I’d like that, Tommy," she said.

"Great, I'll text you tomorrow," I said and got out of bed. I leaned in and kissed her.

"You're amazing," I whispered to her.

She left me at the door, kissed me goodbye and I floated down the stairs and out to the car. I drove down to the office and pulled up just as Denis was beginning to pack up for the day.

"How'd it go?" I asked.

"Come up and see," he said, and walked ahead of me to the door.

"Ah, the wanderer returns," Anita said from her seat at the desk in what would become her office. "Where did you get to?"

"I needed a break, Neets," I said, "Happy?"

"Yes, we did well," she said. "I've made a list of office supplies that we need. I've also made a list of computer equipment and other stuff like that."

"Excellent," I said. "Where do we get that?"

"Will you take me out to PC World tomorrow or Saturday? We can get the technical stuff there. I've opened an account online with 123 ie for office supplies," she said. "They'll deliver."

"No problem, Neets," I said, walking out for a look around at the progress. "Did the plumber drop by, Denis?"

"Yeah, but he doesn't talk to me," he said. "he said he was going to call you."

"Ok, maybe it's time we got a new plumber," I said, "he's been giving me the horn for the past few months now."

"Who do we get?" Denis asked.

"Anyone who's a plumber, D," I said.

"Are you going anywhere tonight, Tommy?" Neets asked.

"Finian’s," I said, "why?"

"Can I come?" she asked.

"Yes, of course you can, but I'm not staying long, though," I said. "Brendan Traynor wants to talk to me, I assume he wants new gear for one of the teams."

"That's grand," she said.

"Why don't we book a table somewhere and I'll buy you dinner when we leave?" I said.

"Ooh, that'd be nice," she said, "What about The Noble House? I'm in the humour for Chinese."

"Great, me too. Will you make the booking, Neets?"

"For what time?"

"9:30?"

"I'll do it when they open," she said. "Can you give me a lift home?"

"Of course," I said and locked the place up for the night.

I dropped her home and had a walk around her house as she showed me what Mick was going to do. She kissed me before I left for home.

"I need a shower and a change of clothes, babe," I said. "I'll pick you up at 7:30, is that ok?"

She nuzzled my face with her nose.

"It's perfect,” she said, “are you staying over?”

“Can I?” I asked.

“Yes, please,” she said, and we kissed.

I drove home and lay on my couch, thinking through the day and looking forward anxiously to the following one. I placed the urn on my coffee table and watched it in a quest for inspiration, but it remained quiet, all knowing and inscrutable. I don't remember drifting off to sleep, but I woke in a sweat at a little after 6:00, Grainne Dunbar to the forefront of my mind. I shook myself awake and imagined that the Urn had moved closer to the edge of the table while I slept. I reached out and touched it. It was a little hotter than warm.

I didn't know how I knew, but Grainne's funeral was taking place the next morning, and I needed to pay my respects. I made a cup of tea and a sandwich with some cheese and a couple of slices of sourdough bread that had been in the house for over two days. I was so hungry that I demolished the food in almost a single inhalation. At 6:45, I stepped into the shower, thinking of Naomi, and smiling. She was such a sexy woman that I felt myself becoming hard as the hot water needled into my skin.

My thoughts turned to what she said about the size of my penis. I was never one to harbour ambitions beyond things I could never have any hope to control, and penis size was certainly something that I never worried about. I always felt adequate and enjoyed the fact that most women seemed happy with its performance or were kind enough not to mention it if they weren't. However, in the past couple of days, I thought of the reactions of Carmela, Anita, and Naomi and how they had reacted during lovemaking. All three appeared to be extremely happy with my performance.

As the water cascaded off my body and droplets landed on my foreskin, I took a closer look at it, trying to gauge what, if any, difference there was in its size and shape. It felt a little thicker in girth and it certainly looked about 25mm longer, but I couldn't be sure. Even holding it in my hand didn't confirm anything for me, so I dismissed it and decided to just roll with what I knew instead of what I only surmised. I held my hand to the underside of it, placing my fingertips at the base, allowing the organ to rest along the palm of my hand. It reached the middle of the knuckle of bone that protruded out at the side of my wrist. About seven and a half inches or so. I didn't have a previous reference for it, so I discarded the silly notion and finished my shower with a semi instead of a raging hard-on.

I knocked on Anita’s door at 7:30 on the dot, looking sharp in a navy suit, white shirt, and red tie. She opened the door and tried to whistle at me attire.

“A suit and a tie,” she enthused, “what’s the occasion?”

“You are, Neets,” I said. “We’re celebrating your first day at work. Don’t mind the red tie, though, that’s for Traynor’s benefit.”

“Why?” she asked.

“Finian’s club colours are black and green.”

She went to collect her coat from an antique coatrack inside the entrance vestibule and I watched as she walked happily along in a pale green, knee-length dress that was set off by her luscious, light red hair as it hung deliciously down her back. She wore Hornpipe brogues for the day that was in it and a green bow in her hair to make me want her more. She donned her dark green coat and joined me outside the door, where I waited as she locked up. I left the car outside and we walked to the club, holding hands, and stealing the odd kiss as we walked.

The place was uncomfortably full when we walked in, but Brendan Traynor must have had me on radar, as he appeared beside us the very second we entered the function room.

“What’s with the red tie, you little bollox?” he said.

“A white shirt and a navy suit,” I said. “Are you fucking blind?”

“Come in, I’ll get a pint on for you,” he said, “what’ll Anita have?”

“Ask her,” I said, hoping she’d ask for a triple brandy with a triple champagne chaser.

“I’ll have a pint too, Brendan, please,” she said sweetly.

Brendan went off to get the drinks, and we walked over to his permanently reserved Bistro table, where he held court all day, every day. Neeta looked at me and smiled.

“What are you up to here, Tommy?” she asked.

“Me? Nothing.”

“You’re up to something,” she said, “I know that look in your eyes.”

I saw him coming over with the drinks, and I leaned in so I could whisper in her ear.

“Just nod when I nod and smile when I smile,” I said.

“I fucking knew you were up to something,” she said, and started laughing.

Brendan dropped the drinks off and sat on his stool.

“What’s up, Brendan?” I asked.

“I wanted to talk to you about a bit of sponsorship, Tommy,” he said conspiratorially.

“I’m tapped out for sponsorship, Brendan,” I said, “besides, the word on the street has it that you guys are in a financial pickle. How do I know the funds will be used for the stated purpose?”

“Did Noel Carr tell you that?” he asked.

“No,” I said, “and I wouldn’t tell you if he did. Be upfront with me.”

“Ok, but this doesn’t go anywhere else,” he said, his head and eyes on a swivel.

“Go on,” I said.

“We're in a bit of trouble with the GAA Central Council,” he said, “We owe them a few bob.”

“How much?” I asked.

“About half a mil.”

“Fuck off!” I said. “You only got 20 mil eight years ago.”

“I know,” he said, “but we put it all into building this place.”

“If someone charged you 20 mil to build this, Brendan, they saw you coming,” I said.

“We’ve had all the post-mortems already, Tommy,” he said. “Don’t bang on about it anymore, I’ve heard it all before. We’re looking for solutions now.”

“So what’s the solution?” I asked.

“We’re approaching friends of the club like yourself for sponsorship,” he said.

“Loans, more like,” I said.

“Well, yes, I suppose so,” he said, “loans that don’t have to be repaid.”

“Well you can fuck off with that idea, Brendan,” I said. “If I’m such a valued ‘friend of the club’, why couldn’t I get All Ireland final tickets last year?”

“That was an extreme circumstance, Tommy,” he said, “that’ll never happen again.”

“Either way, Brendan,” I said, “you can fuck off if you think I’m going to give you a big donation out of the goodness of my heart. How much are we talking here?”

“50K, 75K or 100K,” he said, looking at Anita who tried not to scowl.

“No. You’re being a prick to even ask that of anyone,” I said, “has anybody stepped forward yet?”

“No, nobody,” he said.

“How much do you really owe the GAA?” I asked.

“70K,” he said.

“I’ll tell you what I’ll do,” I said, “and I’m only offering this because of the kids who play in the club.”

“Yes, ok,” he said.

“I’ll give you the 70K,” I said to a look of shock from Anita and a look of disbelief from Traynor. “It’s not a loan, or a donation, it’s for the purchase of that little piece of orphan land just outside the main gate.”

“That piece of land has Planning Permission for a Medical Centre on it,” he said, “it’s easy worth 300k.”

“It’s been offered around for 150K, and the planning expires in six months’ time, Brendan,” I said, lifting my pint and sculling it back in one go. “I’ll give you 70K for it and not a penny more. If you wait a week, it’ll be 60K.”

“So when do you want to know?” he asked.

“Now,” I said, slamming my glass down on the table and looking at my watch.

“I need to make a call,” he said.

“Hurry up because we have a reservation soon,” I said. ”You have five minutes.”

He picked up his phone and hit a number as he walked away out the door and onto the viewing balcony beside the main pitch. I watched him as he spoke animatedly into his phone before closing it and returning to the table.

“75K,” he said.

“I’ll see you around,” I said, standing up to walk away.

Neets looked bemused and a look of concern flitted across her eyes, but she didn’t flinch and stood beside me.

“Ok, you have me by the balls, Tommy,” he said. “€70k it is.”

“Done,” I said and shook his hand.

“When can we have the money?”

“When the legals are done,” I said, putting my hand in my pocket and pulling out a cheque and a sealed envelope and placing it into his hand. “Here’s five grand as a deposit, along with a legal bill of sale and promissory note. I need you to sign it before I hand over anything.”

He opened the envelope and read it quickly. He looked at me as I handed him a pen. He took it and signed the note, handing it back to me immediately.

“Let’s go down to your office and make a copy of this for your records,” I said.

We did the deal and got all of the paperwork in order quite quickly.

“Have your solicitor contact Noel Carr in the morning, Brendan,” I said. “Take note of the penalty clause in that note you signed and don’t fuck this up.”

Neeta took my hand as we strolled out through the glass doors of the entrance. She squeezed it as we reached about halfway down the long driveway.

“That was fucking impressive, Tommy,” she said, “what are you going to do with that piece of ground? It’s not very big.”

“It helps when you know some things that others don’t,” I said. “I’ll tell you over dinner.”

“I just want a main course,” she said.

“No dessert?” I asked.

“Oh, there’ll be dessert alright, Tommy,” she said, “but not the kind you’re thinking of.”

TBC