Chapter 135: A problem she can solve

The idea required some acting so Tom took a moment then cleared his throat loudly, dramatic enough to sound like he was brooding.

On the other end of the line, Josie heard it; "What was that?"

Tom let his voice drop into a lower and sullen tone, exactly as the System’s suggestion required.

"Uhm... Nothing."

"That didn’t sound like nothing." Josie maintained firmly.

"Right." Tom mumbled then not wanting to prolong and risk making her no longer feel curious, he gave a short breath, rough enough to sound unwilling, like he had been reluctant to divulge;

"Well... I’ve actually been in a bad mood since I got home too."

Josie was quiet for a second. "Oh, that makes two of us. Why?" she asked.

Tom sighed deeply and let the silence hang before answering. "It’s a personal issue."

"Something personal that you can’t share or just won’t share because i refused to share mine?" she asked. Q

"Well... well..." He dragged the hesitation out, as if the shame of saying it was fighting him. "I could share. I just don’t know how it would sound if I said it out loud."

Josie’s voice softened, not warmly, but with reciprocal fairness. "If sharing would help you feel a bit better, then share it. Consider it reciprocity for keeping me company when you didn’t have to."

Tom sighed again, slower this time, and shifted on the edge of the bed. "I’ve been having a hard time. Hard.." He paused, then forced the rest out more bluntly. "Like... I’ve been hard."

Josie stayed quiet for a split second before asking, sounding confused. "What?"

"I’ve been hard," Tom repeated, the words landing heavy with reluctant admission. "Ever since dinner. That mischievous friend sent me a silly video while we were eating, and my body still hasn’t settled from it."

As he said it, his body betrayed the performance. His cock twitched against his trousers, thickening for real now that the image had been called back up between them. On the line, he heard Josie gulp.

He continued before she could recover too quickly, his voice sharper and louder, as if annoyed with himself. "I know it’s reacting this badly because it’s been long since..." He trailed off on purpose and left the rest unsaid.

"Since I last dealt with anything like that properly." he added as an afterthought.

Josie went quiet.

The quiet was not empty. It had weight. Tom could almost feel her deciding whether to shut the subject down or endure it.

He waited a beat, then asked more gently, "Did I make you uncomfortable?"

"Forgive me if I-"

"No," she said quickly. Too quickly. "Of course not." A thin chuckle followed, sounding controlled and self-protective. "It’s a biological problem. Nobody can be blamed for that." Another short pause. "I should leave you to deal with it then."

Tom heaved an exasperated sigh and rubbed his free hand over his face. "That’s the problem. There’s no way for me to deal with it. Not with... circumstances. Personal circumstances."

"Oh. Okay." Josie’s reply came softer, lower.

Neither of them spoke for a moment after that. The line stayed open, awkward and charged at the same time. When Josie cleared her throat, it sounded like she was forcing herself back into safer posture.

"Thank you for keeping me company. I feel better now." she said.

Tom leaned back slightly on the bed, his eyes on the ceiling. "I’m pleased to know that."

"Good night."

"Good night."

The call ended with that.

Almost immediately, the System dinged with open approval.

[Well done, Host. You’ve improved. You’re getting better at this.]

Tom’s mouth curved into a satisfied smile. "Coming from you, that is a big deal."

Another panel opened, bringing a notification;

```

[SIDE MISSION COMPLETE]

Keep Josie’s company and make her feel settled.

Status: Completed

[REWARD RECEIVED]

• $100,000

```

The credit landed in his phone. Then immediately, Josie’s interface updated in front of him.

```

[RELATIONSHIP INTERFACE]

[TARGET: JOSIE HALE]

Curiosity: 30% (+5)

Attraction: 12% (+3)

Love: 0%

Obsession: 0%

```

Tom was pleased at the increment in the numbers for a second. He could see the call had done more than fill silence. It had moved her.

Then a knock sounded against his door.

He stood up to go answer it and it was then he fully realized the state of his body. The acting had become real. He was hard enough that the line of it showed if he was careless. He muttered under his breath, adjusted his trousers as best he could, and walked to the door.

He opened it to find Aria standing there.

She was still in her house staff clothes, but she had undone the first button at her collar, enough to show the soft upper cleavage of her breasts. Her breathing was not as steady as a normal evening message required. The moment the door opened, her eyes moved over his face, then lower, then back up again with open interest.

She blinked at him seductively and said gently, "I’ve been at the door for a while."

Tom held the edge of the door, looking at her in surprise at what she was openly doing; "And?"

"I heard you saying you had a problem." Her voice remained soft, but there was no mistaking the offer underneath it. As she spoke, her fingers brushed lightly along the doorframe, and her chest rose with a deeper breath that pushed her breasts more noticeably against the fabric of her top.

"That is a problem I can take care of."

Tom furrowed his brows, deliberately acting as if he did not understand her.

"What are you talking about?"

Aria’s gaze dropped.

Even with the adjustment he had made, the hardness was still obvious enough for a woman looking for it. Her eyes lingered there openly this time. Her tongue moved once across her lower lip before she looked back up at his face, her cheeks faintly warmer than before.

Tom shook his head once. "I don’t have any problem you can solve."

He moved to close the door.

Aria stopped him by stepping forward into the narrow space, close enough that her breasts brushed hard against his chest through the clothes between them. The contact was aimed for. She did not pretend otherwise. Her body stayed there, soft and pressing, while she tilted her face up to his.

"Sir, don’t underestimate me," she said. Her voice had gone lower. "I can satisfy you in any way. Every way." Her hand came to rest lightly against the door beside his, and her breasts shifted again with her next breath as she held herself against him. "And I’m very clean."

Tom narrowed his eyes on her and a scoff escaped his lips.

After a short pause, he looked into her eyes and then took her hand.