Tuesday 2 September 2008

Chess

He had wooed her for months. Surreptitiously and never obviously. Always the perfect gentleman. Sometimes she had even wondered if she imagined his interest. And then he would say something that would leave her in no doubt, before withdrawing once more into his cool detachment.

He wanted her to come to him in spite of herself. To cast aside the security of her lover and admit that her lust for him was stronger. He needed for her to subjugate her will. Leave the strong woman behind and become his plaything. With no possibility of a future, just one single night of passion.

And she was scared. Afraid of his reputation as a ladies' man. A charming Lothario whose silver tongue had provided him with an inbox full of compliant admiration and a many-notched bedpost. She had no wish to become just another conquest and she suspected that she was not the only focus of his attention. But she had not bargained for the way his words and his actions could run rings around her composure and self-control.

So they played a game. Part courtship, part dance, part mental battle of wills, where points were scored in a virtual maelstrom of emotional denial. A Knight and the opposing Queen, darting fleeting sorties into each other's territory with the swiftest of escapes before anything got too deep, too involved. A war of attrition between combatants sporting velvet gloves over their steely resolve.

Where each conversation would leave one of them victorious, and the loser in a wretched state of lustful torment.

She knew that she had the power to arouse him and she revelled in it, flitting in and out of his consciousness; toying with him; deliberately leading him on and taking him to the brink before hauling him back from fruition.

But his weapon was an extraordinary ability to get under her skin and into her psyche so that she couldn't trust her instincts. He would send her things to pique her interest, challenge her long-held perceptions and stimulate her desires. Teasing until her body's uncontrollable reaction to his cyber presence left her wondering if it was the words he typed that caused her excitement or merely the fact that it was he that had written them.

Mimicing the indirect attacks of his chesspiece, he had refined his guerilla tactic of the sudden disappearance mid-way through an interaction, leaving her disturbed and uneasy for several days. Allowing her time and space to regain her equilibrium before returning to unsettle her all over again.

They were playing with fire and it only remained to be seen which one of them would be more badly burned.

17 comments:

Gorilla Bananas said...

I hope this is autobiographical, Mrs Cake! The former Mayor of London reputedly had a chess game with a woman. Eventually he lost patience and said: "Are you going to fuck me or what?"

BenefitScroungingScum said...

Very sexy as usual, BG x

ez cheese said...

The comparison to this particular game to chess is one I think about constantly. I love this, definetly needs to be added to the finest hour section.

Anonymous said...

My Dear Cake,
My emotions run all over the place, with your post.
At first, I understand the thrill Wooing someone, but I Abhor the thought of breaking someone’s will to boost their own ego.
If this is an actuality, form what I have learned from you, You are MUCH stronger, than he. For you approach your relationships from a position to nurture Love & Life, and not from destructive selfishness.
Your Friend,

Joanna Cake said...

Mr Bananas - It's in italics so that tends to mean it's a fantasy... although so many are based on a skeleton of fact :)

BG - Thank you x

Cheezey - It didn't occur to me until I had written quite a lot of the piece but then it seemed so obvious. 'My Finest Hours' has to get a fair number of comments or a mention elsewhere. We'll have to see how this one goes :)

Polar - Never fear, there is more to this than meets the eye at first glance and there will be at least one sequel x

Riff Dog said...

Hmmm . . . I don't like the knight's odds against a queen in a chess game. But in this chess game . . .

Shelagh said...

I love it! :)

Walker said...

All's fair in love or war.
I guess the trick is to surrender so that you could win.

Jackie Adshead said...

But that's the fun of chess - to pit your mind against someone elses, to make the moves and see what the consequences bring - to win or lose, it's the playing with someone that raises the blood pressure - solitaire just isn't the same!!!!

Daren said...

What would life be without games?

Dxxx

Morpheus said...

King takes Queen, mate in three?

Your move.

Trixie said...

I don't wanna play these games anymore! *throws toys out of the pram*

ez cheese said...

Ask and ye shall recieve. I couldn't resist, this is my all time favorite comparison

Joanna Cake said...

Riff - The Knight is one of my favourite pieces. I love his indirect attacks :)

Shelaghg - Thank you

Walker - Im sure there's probably a special name for that gambit :)

Dazza - Exactly x

Morpheus - Mate in three? I think Id counter with a rugby tackle and a thwack to the knackers at such presumption :P

Trixie - Oh yes you do :)

Cheezey - You tinker :)

Kyra said...

I have nothing to say except I loved it. Just doing my part for the stats!

Anonymous said...

You should be careful about letting somebody like that get under your skin. He could cause all sorts of things to unravel - not least of all your clothes.

The only thing is, would such a wordsmith be as dextrous with his fingers, mouth and, well, you know. He might be all talk, and a huge disappointment in the flesh.

Or alternatively he might be everything his words suggest, and one night, a couple of hours, might not be enough....

Anonymous said...

Ah yes, the sexy games... sometimes they make it all worthwhile... and sometimes, you just want to get past them to the good stuff. ;)