"But…"
He held up his hand to stop her. "Stop talking. AS I was saying, take my advice, when you get in this car put your phone in the backpack with all the rest of this stuff and dump it in the trunk where you won't even hear it ringing."
"Yes Officer," Summer said, deciding to cut her losses. She started to scoop her stuff back in her bag."
"We're not finished yet." He started to scrawl out the tickets. "Two fines, one for the speeding and one for the phone. Make sure you take care of these by the date required."
"Yes, sir. I will." She scooped everything into her bag and then went to place it in the trunk.
"Your phone?"
"Oh, yeah, sorry," Summer said, brushing away the tears that were now streaming down her work-grubby face. She did as the officer asked and he passed her back her license and registration.
"Keep you license in the front with you."
"Yes sir."
Summer got back in the car and just sat there waiting for her heart to settle back into its rightful place. She didn't even dare look at the tickets. She couldn't even afford to pay the one she'd already looked at. She placed them on the seat beside her and dropped her head into her hands. Sometimes life just sucked, she thought.
* * *
"Jesus, Summer! Where've you been?" Poppy yelled wrapping her in a hug as she came through the door. "I've been worried sick! First I thought you'd just hung up on me and then when you didn't get here quicker, I was convinced you'd had an accident. I know I made you talk on the phone and that would have been totally my fault. You didn't, did you? Are you ok?"
"No," Summer said bursting into a fresh bout of tears.
"Aw. What's wrong then?" Poppy asked, disturbed to see her friend feeling so bad.
"This day started off so bad and then it got better and then I got a parking ticket and then I got pulled OVER!" She cried harder than ever. "I got two more tickets and I don't even have the money for the first one!"
"Aw Sum, how much are they?"
"I don't know. I couldn't even make myself take a look."
"Do you have them?"
Summer nodded and passed the tickets over to her friend.
"Look, it's not that bad," Poppy said putting her arm around her friend's shoulders.
Summer did some quick sums in her head. "It is Poppy. It might not be a lot for you, but it is for me. I don't have that kind of money."
"I know you don't like to take my money, but this was partly my fault. I kept you talking."
"No. I'll figure it out," Summer said trying to get herself together. "I was just venting, that's all."
"You know what you need? A night out to cheer you up."
"I can't. I told you, I've lost my ID."
"That's not what you told me. You told me your boss cut it up. What's with that anyway? He can't do that. I don't even understand how that could come about. Did he do a bag check or something? How did he even know you had it?"
"It's a long and painful story."
"I have time."
"Just leave it, Pops, please?"
"I would like to, I really would, but you know me, I can't survive with half a story. It'll keep me up at night. I NEED to know."
"Oh, all right. It started yesterday. I couldn't drive because I'd been drinking, missed the bus, and got to work late. A whole lot of other crappy stuff happened and then I ended up in his office explaining why I was catching a bus when I'd signed a contract saying I could drive."
"I smell a whole lot of this story that's been left out here, a whole lot."
"You are like a dog with a bone, you know that?"
"I know, it's a curse; now tell me the rest."
Summer looked at her friend of two years, assessing how much she could trust her with. She'd never let her down before in that regard, but still this was big. "If I tell you then you have to promise me, really promise me that you will never tell another soul."
"I promise. Cross my heart and hope to die." Poppy dramatically crossed her chest.
"Most of what I said was where it started. I got to his office and he'd left a note on his door. I had to do all the crappy jobs for being late. After I'd finished, I found myself alone near the enclosure that I thought was empty."
"It wasn't?" Poppy asked with wide eyes. "What was in there?"
"A four hundred pound gorilla! I thought I was going to die, I swear. I didn't know if he was going to bite me or just crush me and throw me against the wall. I've never been so scared in my life."
"Wow!" For once in her life, Poppy was practically speechless. "Just WOW! So what did he do? He obviously didn't hurt you. They didn't shoot him did they? Gorillas always have such sad eyes."
"I guess he would have been sad if someone shot him, Poppy, but no, that's not what happened. I walked in and looked around, totally in awe of the place and next thing I was off my feet. He carted me around like I was a sack of potatoes and then dumped me down on a log."
"What did he do then?"
"Nothing, really. He just stared at me."
"No way! Maybe he thought he should probably fatten you up first before he ate you."
"He's not the witch from Hansel and Gretel, Pops, and he's mostly a herbivore. That's…"
"I know what a herbivore is. It's like an animal version of a vegan, but what do you mean by 'mostly'? Like he only eats meat on Wednesdays or he eats fish?"
Summer giggled, happy that her friend was lightening the situation a little, even if she didn't know she was doing it. "The only meat he eats is bugs."
"So how did you manage to get free?"
"Ben, my boss, turned up and saved me."
"Oh, how romantic! He risked his life for yours, like a knight in shining coveralls?"
"Not exactly, and you read way too many romance novels. Yes he saved me, but he was as pissed as all get out that I was in there in the first place. He distracted Char with his favorite treat and then locked him inside."
"Still pretty romantic and if he was upset with you, then he must care. What did he say?"
"He said plenty about me being irresponsible and how I could have been killed, amongst other things." Summer got up and went to walk towards the bathroom. She really needed a shower, but she was also getting to the hairy end of the story and common sense was telling her to keep the rest to herself.
"Come on! You can't stop there, it's just getting good," Poppy said sensing Summer's reluctance.
"He called me..." Summer hesitated again, still not sure if she should divulge everything that happened, but there was so much stuff crammed into her brain that she just had to get it out and tell someone. "He said I was a brat and that I needed a spanking."
"Oh, my god, he didn't! Then what?" Poppy bounced up and down in her seat excitedly and a warm color started to creep up her neck.
Summer sighed. "If you want me to tell you the rest you have to not talk until I've finished ok? It's hard."
Poppy was all ears and drew an invisible line across her lips like she was zipping it shut.
"Ok, so he threw me over his shoulder and he either yelled at me or smacked me, as he carried me all the way back to his top office. Not the everyday one, but the one in the main building. It felt like miles for everyone was staring. He made me choose. The big bully said if I wanted to keep my job I had to take a spanking."
"So, you still must have a job because that's where you were today…"
Summer nodded, her own face now aflame.
"You let him spank you?"
"Shush Poppy, you promised."
"Sorry Sum, really, please go on. I'm shushing right now." While Summer relayed the rest of what happened, Poppy said nothing. She clapped both hands over her mouth to make sure she stayed quiet, but her face got redder and redder until she looked like she might explode. When the embarrassed teen got to the part where her boss cut up the card, Poppy leapt to her feet, unable to contain herself anymore. "Summer! I think your life just dropped right into the middle of one of my roman
ce stories! This Ben sounds amazing!"
"You're not shocked?" Summer was shocked; shocked and astounded that her roommate wasn't more taken aback. Well, she was taken aback, but happily, excited even.
"I'm shocked that this happened to you more than twenty-four hours ago and this is the first time you've mentioned it."
"When could I have mentioned it? I came home, showered off all the dreadful smell from my adventure and then fell into bed and died."
"You didn't even eat dinner? No wonder you're so skinny."
"I'm not skinny and I did eat. We got a burger on the way home."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Did I not just say that I needed details? You had dinner with the man?"
"I wouldn't call it dinner. He bought me a burger and insisted I eat it."
"Oh, my." Once again lost for words, Poppy picked up the TV guide and fanned her face. "I don't guess you'd be willing to tell me what it felt like, would you? You know an actual spanking?"
"It HURT!"
"You didn't find it a turn on?"
"Not at the time," Summer said coyly.
"Does that mean that you did after?"
"It means that this conversation is over." Summer got up this time with conviction. "I'm having a shower."
"You sure you don't want to come out tonight?" Poppy yelled through the door.
"I can't! I already told you!"
"Don't worry about the ID; we can sneak you in somehow."
"No, really Pops, I'm just going to have a quiet night. It's been a long couple of days and I have to be up early."
"If you say so. I'll tell Joel that you couldn't make it."
"Who's Joel?"
"The guy from the club, remember?"
"Oh, yeah, sure, whatever you like."
* * *
Summer showered away all the grime from the day and then drew a bath, adding a lavish amount of lavender bubbles. She needed some time to relax and she didn't think she could cope with anymore of Pops' questions. She just wanted to lie there.
She could hear Poppy making the final preparations before going out; the party girl had already been half dressed when she came home. She was sure by the time she'd sunk into the fragrant hot water that her friend would be wearing her eyelashes and be putting on her lip-gloss. The click clack of heels on the hall floor told her she would soon be alone. Choosing the most suitable pair out of her large selection of shoes was always Poppy's last preparation before leaving. Summer waited for the telltale click of the door, but instead there was a knock on the bathroom door.
"Sum? You going to be all right, hon? I feel bad leaving you."
"You go Pops, I'll be fine, honestly. Just need sleep. Tomorrow's a new day, right?"
"Yeah, right. I'll talk to someone about getting you a new ID, okay?"
"Okay, thanks." The last thing Summer really needed was to replace the old one, but sometimes it was just easier to go with the flow.
"Okay, well then I'll probably see you after work."
"Yeah, see ya then. Have fun."
"I'll try."
Then there it was, the door closing. Summer was alone with her thoughts for the first time since, well since the whole mess started.
The water felt divine as she sunk back and allowed her body to float. She tried to clear her mind but she couldn't. So much debt. A lot of stupid decisions she'd made lately. Then, out of nowhere, Ben was there in her mind, lecturing her like some ghost of her spanking future.
"I warned you. I told you what would happen if you didn't get your act together. What did I tell you, young lady?"
"That I was on notice."
"That's right, and?"
"And that you were going to spank me every time I messed up."
"Do you think it's 'messing up' to get three fines in the one day, Summer?"
"Yes, sir."
She called him 'sir'? Where had that come from? It was only a fantasy, but still, odd. It had never occurred to her to call a man 'sir' before, but then she'd only really dated boys. Ben wasn't a boy; he was a man and he wasn't dating her, not in real life anyway. There was no denying, though, the tingles that were spreading through her body at the thought of both the dating and spanking he would no doubt give her if he found out about the fines.
Summer looked down at her floating body. She was covered from head to toe in not only bubbles but also goosebumps, even though the water was still hot. Her hardened nipples were also on hyper alert and they peaked out proudly from the white foam. Her hands swept across them, knocking away the soap and squeezing each small peak. As the delicious buzz shot down her body, she closed her eyes to see what else the Ben that had now taken up residence in her mind, had in store.
"Do you remember what I told you I'd do if you made silly decisions that could affect your job?" His eyes were boring into her, demanding an answer.
Summer nodded silently.
"What was that, Missy?"
"You said you would spank me hard."
Summer's fingers had a mind of their own. They slid down her slippery wet tummy and over her shaved mound, spreading her lips to find their target. The swollen nub thumped beneath her fingers as visions of Ben, naked, flashed through her disjointed thought process. Why he was naked made no sense, but he was placing her firmly across his hard warm thighs. She could almost feel the short tight curls of hair bristling against her sex as she rubbed herself against him.
His hand was landing hard and fast, the warmth spreading from her bottom to other more delicate places. Her nipples were painfully hard and she could feel his muscles tensing beneath her softer body, She quivered with excitement...
She jumped; sending water splashing over the edge of the bath, like a waterfall, when the phone rang. She rushed out to the living room naked and dripping and snatched up the phone. "Hello?" she said with a voice that didn't even sound like her own.
"Hi," Ben said on the other end of the phone. "Is that you, Summer?"
"Um, Ben? Yeah, it's me."
"Are you okay? You sound like you have a cold."
"Um, no, I was just having a bath. I guess I must've dosed off. How did you get my number?"
"It was in your file. Sorry, I won't keep you, but I'm not sorry I woke you; the bath is not the safest place to nap."
"I didn't nap on purpose." Or at all, she thought.
"Well you're up now. I just wanted to remind you to set your alarm and to tell you for doing your job so well today, I have a little surprise for you."
"What kind of surprise?" Summer was wide awake now. She couldn't believe Ben had actually planned something nice, gone to the trouble of looking for her number and phoning to tell her about it.
"It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you, now would it? I'm going to need you to come into work about a half an hour early, ok?"
"Sure. Thanks Ben," she said almost shyly. "I'll be there on time, I promise."
"I'll see you then."
She stood there, still naked, holding the phone like if she didn't hang up, he'd still be there breathing on the other end. Regrettably, it was only silent for a second before the rhythmic buzzing took over.
That moment was gone and so was her bubble bath fantasy. She found herself a large shirt and some pj pants before seeing what there was to have for dinner. Her first priority, though, was to charge her phone and check the alarm, turning the volume to the highest possible level. There was no way she wanted to be running late for whatever Ben had planned.
As she drifted off to sleep, she felt a charge of excitement for the next day. Would someone like Ben actually like her? Like, like her, like her?
Chapter 4
The next morning Summer was up bright and early, much earlier than she had been in ages. For once, she actually had enough time to make herself look decent. She didn't go as far as wearing makeup or anything, no point when you worked with animals. She'd be looking like she belonged with the pandas by lunchtime.
Summer really didn't know what she was going to do about the t
ickets, but for the time being she had to forget about it. They gave you a few weeks to pay, didn't they? She should have looked at that. She would at some point. For the moment she just wanted to get to work and find out what her surprise was.
* * *
"Hi," Summer said, popping her head in the door with a big smile.
"Hi! Glad you made it early," Ben said. "I think you'll like what I have planned."
"Oh? Something special?"
"I hope you think so. Zula is going to the vet for a check up and a couple of vaccinations."
"That's my surprise?"
"No, come with me and I'll show you your surprise."
Summer tried to hide her disappointment, but it wasn't easy at first. She really didn't know what she expected, but it wasn't anything to do with the gorillas.
"You'll like this I'm sure," he said smiling to reassure her. "Close your eyes."
"Okay I believe you," Summer giggled, finding his enthusiasm catching.
He led her down a hallway and then turned. After another short walk he lead her into a room and helped her to sit. "Don't open them," he said. "Not yet."
"Come on Ben, you're killing me here." Summer was tempted to open her eyes a crack, but part of her didn't want to ruin her own surprise.
"Just a second. Not long to go I promise."
Summer could hear shuffling and then she could feel the warmth of Ben beside her again but when he spoke, his voice was right in front of her face.
"Open."
Summer gasped when she opened her eyes. "Oh, my God!" Her arms automatically opened for the bundle that was being passed to her. "Oh, Midge, you're so beautiful." Her eyes filled with tears as the small hairy bundle looked into her eyes with her own big brown saucers. She cuddled the young gorilla into her body like she had with her nieces when they were babies.
Midge's fingers wrapped around Summer's own hand and her feet flailed around looking for something to grip.
"I think she wants to stand up," Ben said smoothing the infant's small head with his hand.
Saving Summer Page 4
