“What about your mother? What did I miss?” Kyle demanded.
“Damien spent the night here Friday and my mom dropped in Saturday morning. Just let herself in, which she never does, and walked into the bedroom.”
“Oh my God. I bet she lost her shit.” Kyle’s eyes were open wide.
“She did.”
“Wait, I know she’s conservative, but did she still think you were, ya know, a virgin?” Nikki asked.
Poppy nodded.
“No way.” Nikki clapped her hand over her mouth.
“Yeah, isn’t that crazy shit?” Kyle shook her head and picked her pizza back up.
“It’s not pretty. But she really pissed me off because it wasn’t just me she was yelling at. She started accusing Damien of being a lazy, good-for-nothing person just because he’s black.”
“Well, your mom is kind of crazy.” Kyle shrugged. “I want to hear more about Dom Cop, though. Unless there’s more to the mamma drama?”
“No, I’ve tried calling her and she won’t answer. Neither will my sister.” Poppy shrugged. “It hurts, but it’s not like we’ve been really close since I was a teen.”
“I’m sorry. It’s never easy when you don’t get along with family.” Nikki’s face creased in sadness. Her family had cut her off years before, when she came out of the closet as transgender. It was a pain she knew well.
“How’s the play with him?” Kyle asked, providing a perfect segue.
“Amazing. It’s crazy, but I’ve always been switchy, I’ve never really gotten the submissive urge like other people talk about. But I’m a total sub for him. Or as much of a sub as I’ll ever be.”
Her phone vibrated against her hip and her heart leapt into her throat. It was him. She just knew it. They’d kept up a steady texting conversation all day. All normal stuff, but it felt good to have that line to him.
Kyle nodded. “There are some people you just click with.”
“That makes sense.” Nikki placed her empty plate on the coffee table. “Our dynamics are different with everyone. It sounds like you really like him.”
“I really like him. It kind of scares me how much.” Poppy bit her lip. Could it be love? It was too soon … but it felt right.
“But how do you feel about being submissive to him? Is that something you’d want to do more of?” Kyle asked.
“I don’t know. Like, when I’m in it, it’s all I want, but I don’t want the play to change me.” Poppy chewed her lip. These were things she hadn’t thought through yet.
“He’s not changing you. He’s just bringing this hidden side out of you. It’s like the fine china. You don’t serve just anyone on that stuff.” Nikki picked up her paper plate. “But everyone can have paper plates.”
Nikki smiled at Poppy. “What I’m saying is it’s okay. You aren’t changing. You’re just getting more in touch with that side of you. You’re evolving.”
“I guess so.” Poppy pulled her knees up to her chest. It made sense, and she couldn’t deny what they had was amazing.
“How’s the sex?” Kyle asked.
The heat in Poppy’s cheeks redoubled. “Good,” she croaked.
“What? I have to make sure he’s taking care of all of you.” Kyle grinned and poked Poppy in the ribs.
Kyle picked up her drink, holding it out to the other two. “Here’s to great partners, kinky sex, and pizza.”
“Hear, hear,” Nikki said.
Poppy shook her head and laughed. If it was love, she was in it. There would never be any holding back with Damien. Ever.
“Miss Mercer?”
Poppy glanced up from her desk. Officer Carney ushered a petulant Sidon into the library.
“Yes?” she replied.
“Sidon here has something he’d like to tell you,” Officer Carney prompted.
Sidon rolled his eyes and slid his hands into his pockets. “I’m sorry for causing a disturbance during class. It won’t happen again.”
His posture said the opposite. Her heart fell a little. It seemed as if he’d chosen his path. “Thank you, Sidon. I’m glad to have you back with us.” She wanted to shake the boy and hug him all at once.
He rolled his eyes and said to Carney, “Yeah, whatever. Can I go back to class?”
Carney’s face was a mask, completely unreadable, but Poppy understood his frustration. She could feel the invisible battle going on inside of him as he wrestled with his desire to force the kid onto a better path. All they could do was give them the skills and opportunities to do better. It was one of the hardest parts of her job.
“Yeah, go on,” Carney said.
“Finally,” Sidon muttered. He wheeled around and strode out of the library with the same cocky swagger he’d had before.
Poppy sighed and shook her head. “I guess I’ll stock up on more wood cleaner.”
“If you have a problem with him, bring it to me, okay?” Carney leaned against her desk.
“You can’t make his choices for him,” Poppy said quietly.
“I want to. His mom brought him in today. She sent him into class and then cried for an hour. What am I supposed to do with that?” Carney shook his head. Sidon’s story had clearly gotten to him.
“You let him make his mistakes and hope he learns from them.” She sighed and continued shuffling books into piles.
“Would you like to go out sometime?”
Poppy froze for half a second, like a deer caught in headlights. What did she say? “I’m sorry. I’m kind of seeing someone,” she managed to say.
“That’s always how it goes.” He amped up his smile, which was quite charming, but he wasn’t her man. “If you’re only kind of seeing someone, does that mean you could kind of get a drink with me?”
Poppy chuckled and fidgeted with her sweater. “No. Thank you, though. I’m flattered.”
“Can’t blame a guy for trying. If it doesn’t work out, just tell me you want to cash in that drink.”
“Okay.”
Officer Carney bid her good-bye and ambled out of the library, leaving her flushed, with her pulse racing, for all the wrong reasons.
Her phone buzzed in the drawer and she jumped. She rolled her eyes at herself and pulled it out, retreating to the storage closet before answering it.
“Hey.” Butterflies swarmed in her stomach and her heart beat a little faster. Carney didn’t have this impact on her. Only Damien.
“Hey. I can’t talk long,” Damien said.
Her heart fell a little. They hadn’t had a single opportunity to talk the night before, and after a weekend spent almost completely with him, she missed him. Every moment alone in her apartment felt lacking now.
“I was thinking. What if you came to my place tonight?” Damien asked.
“Oh, okay.”
“It would take me an hour or two after work to make it home, pack everything, and drive to you. It’s not that I wouldn’t.”
The invisible hand clenching her heart eased its grip. “No, that makes perfect sense. I’ll have to see how to get there, though.”
“I’ve already looked. You can take the L into downtown, and we can coordinate when you arrive with when I leave. I can pick you up on my way home.”
“I guess we’d have to do a reverse in the morning. I have to be in pretty early, though.” She’d never commuted before, and the idea of being crammed on the L with so many people wasn’t appealing.
“I’ll get up and take you at whatever time you need to go.”
“Are you sure?” It wasn’t ideal, but he was worth it. And she needed to see him.
“Yeah. I want to see you again and this looks like the only night this week I can swing it.”
“I want to see you, too. You’re that busy?”
“I’m in that much trouble.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault. I’ve got to go. See you tonight?”
“Yeah. I’d like that.”
“Good. Me too. And sweetness?”
�
�Hmm?”
“Bring one of your princess outfits.”
Oh, dear. She couldn’t wait for the end of the day now.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Damien pulled up to the curb very slowly. Pedestrians were bounding off the sidewalk, inches from the front of the SUV.
“For shit’s sake, people,” he muttered, slamming on his brakes as a woman tossed him the bird while striding between him and the car parked at the curb just ahead of him.
Someone knocked on his passenger window. He glanced over and did a double take. Chuckling, he hit the unlock button and Poppy climbed in, wearing a suspiciously long brown trench coat.
“Hi.” She grinned at him and shoved her duffel into the backseat, car horns blaring behind him.
“Look at you.” He caught a glimpse of a pinkish-purple, flowing skirt.
She peeled open the jacket, revealing the rest of her outfit. Several layers of silky-soft fabric and gauze created a layered skirt, while the bodice laced up with gold thread, and the sleeves fell off her shoulders, revealing a nice amount of cleavage.
“And who are you supposed to be?” he asked.
Poppy rolled her eyes. “Rapunzel, from the movie.”
“I don’t think the movie version looks as good.” He leaned across the console and grabbed her braid, pulling her close for a kiss. “I missed that.”
Another horn blared and he reluctantly pulled away from the curb, directing his full attention to navigating the evening downtown traffic.
“How was your day?” he asked as he turned and headed out toward the suburbs.
“Pretty good. Sidon came back today.”
“Sidon?”
“The kid you arrested at my school?”
“Yeah?”
“No change.” She sighed. “I’d hoped juvie would scare him straight.”
Damien reached across and took her hand in his. “It works for some. Not all.”
He didn’t want to tell her he’d arrested a hundred carbon copies of Sidon. Some people chose that path, and from what he’d seen, this kid wasn’t changing his course. It was easy for him to see it, because the kid wasn’t anyone to him. But Poppy interacted with Sidon, knew his family, and even lived in the same neighborhood.
“Let’s talk about something else,” Poppy said.
“How about what I have in store for you tonight?” he said.
“Oh?” Her voice wavered.
He stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. She’d said that for him, she was submissive. How far did that go? He wanted to find out.
“I was thinking—oh, for fuck’s sake.” Damien slammed on his brakes to avoid hitting the car in front of him. “I thought we would miss this.”
A construction worker wearing a neon-orange vest and a hard hat held up a stop sign several cars ahead of them, stopping traffic while an eighteen wheeler pulled across both lanes.
“It’ll just take a second, won’t it?” Poppy said.
Damien gritted his teeth as the truck pulled forward, only to reverse, lights flashing—and roll to a stop. An army of construction workers began unloading the truck, doing half the work by hand while forklifts did the rest.
“We aren’t going anywhere for a while.” He sighed and put the SUV into park.
Poppy leaned forward, her gaze narrowed. The braid draped over her shoulder, teasing him with ideas.
“Tonight.” He tugged the tail of the braid, drawing her attention toward him. “What would you like to eat? It’ll probably have to be takeout.”
“Why does that not surprise me?” She leaned on the console, her breasts plumped between her arms. “Bachelor living.”
“Guilty.” He ran his finger along the crease between her breasts and dipped it below the ruffled neckline.
She lifted her chest, allowing him freedom to explore further. He slid his other fingers beneath the fabric until he found her nipple. The firm peak hardened under his touch, testifying to her arousal.
If they weren’t in the car, in a very public place—the things he would do to her. It took restraint to limit his indulgence to touch alone. Her pupils dilated and her cheeks grew rosy.
He swooped in and took her mouth in a savage kiss, while his fingers plucked her nipple. She moaned against his lips and her hand pressed his hand closer, urging him to fondle her more.
“You have no idea how much I want to fuck you right now,” he growled.
Poppy shivered and licked her lips. She reached across and palmed his cock through his trousers. He leaned back in his seat and allowed his eyes to drift close. Having her hands on him, but not his naked flesh, was a type of sweet torture.
She tugged his zipper down.
“Poppy, not a good—”
“We’re stopped in traffic. No one can get hurt if the car’s in park.” Her hot little hand wrapped around his cock, pumping it ever so slowly.
He groaned and shifted in his seat. Would it be so bad? The construction workers were still unloading the truck ahead of them, and the van in front of him had no rear windows. Though someone could walk by. Just because there wasn’t any pedestrian traffic right now didn’t mean there wouldn’t be any.
Poppy didn’t wait for his permission. She wiggled out of her seatbelt, pushed the center console up out of her way, and leaned across the space between their seats. He loosened his belt and she did the rest, pushing his underwear down and spreading his pants open.
“You don’t get to tease me.” He wrapped her braid around his hand and pulled her head back so he could look her in the eye. “You’re going to suck me off right here in this car, where anyone can walk by and see us. Got it?”
“Mm-hm.” A smile curled her lips.
He twisted her braid until she winced. “Got it?”
“Yes, sir.”
A thrill of satisfaction coursed through him. She hadn’t protested calling him sir. It just wasn’t her habit.
He eased his hold and she bent over his lap, her hands stroking him. She drew his balls out from the confines of his clothes, rolling them in her palm and tracing the seam of flesh between his testicles. She hadn’t even used her mouth, and already his toes curled, and he had to resist the urge to thrust up into her grasp.
“I said no teasing.” He tugged on her braid with one hand and grasped the handhold above the door with his other.
“I’m not teasing. I’m learning you,” she replied in a husky voice.
If he touched her now, would she be wet?
She kissed the head of his cock and swirled her tongue over the slit. Heat traveled through his pelvis and he applied the slightest pressure to her shoulders.
More.
She obliged him, opening to take more of his hard length into her hot mouth. He groaned as she slid up and down, her tongue flicking the underside of the mushroom head. He moved with her, but only a little, thrusting slightly, but giving her the freedom to treat him as she wished.
Poppy perched her elbows on his thigh and wrapped one hand around his cock, using the other to hold his balls. She stroked him as she sucked, leaving no place untouched.
A horn blasted behind him.
Damien shook his head and glanced up. The truck and van were gone.
“Shit. Poppy, sit up.” He pushed her into her seat and shifted into drive. His wheels screeched as he accelerated.
The area was mostly older brick buildings lining a fairly busy street. He passed three bustling convenience stores and a grocery complex before pulling into a quiet strip mall. He slammed into park and turned toward Poppy, taking her face in both hands and kissing her savagely, nipping her lips with his teeth and showing her no mercy.
“I told you not to tease me,” he growled.
“I’m sorry, sir.” She gasped, putty in his hands.
“You’re going to finish it.”
Poppy licked her lips as her body shuddered. He stuck his hand past the neckline of her dress and groped her breast.
“I’m going to fuck your breasts, y
our pussy, and your mouth. There won’t be a part of you I don’t own. Do you understand me?”
“Perfectly, sir.” She wrapped her hand around his still-hard cock. “May I?”
“Oh, you’d better.” He leaned back in his seat and watched her gaze drop to his penis.
She bent once more, hands on his flesh, and took him in her mouth, but with more intent this time. There were no darting licks or exploratory caresses. She used a firm grip and her mouth, and it was a little bit of heaven. She sucked him just right, rubbing her tongue against the vein along the underside.
He grasped the handhold again and thrust in time with her, undulating as she worked him over without hesitation. She might look like a princess, but she fucked like a dream.
Damien tossed his head back and sucked in deep breaths. One moment he was stroking her hair, the next he clenched her braid in his hand and groaned, release surging through him. He didn’t have a moment to think about grabbing a tissue or pushing her away, but Poppy stayed with him, her lips wrapped around his cock.
He slumped against the seat and she slowly sat up.
“Tissues,” he muttered. The console slid back down with a squeak of protest. He produced a small package of tissues and offered them to Poppy first.
She turned away from him and wiped her face and hands clean.
“I should have said so, but you don’t have to swallow.” His tongue felt thick in his mouth and his body didn’t want to move.
“That’s kind of you.” Poppy peeked over her shoulder at him, a sheepish smile on her face.
“I’m full of kindness.” He wrapped his hand around her arm and tugged. “Come here.”
She turned toward him and he met her halfway, kissing her swollen lips with care.
“Don’t think that gets you off the hook tonight,” he said against her lips.
“I’d be disappointed if it did,” she replied.
He grinned and put his clothing back to rights. The parking lot was still as empty as when they arrived.
The remainder of the drive was much less eventful. They debated radio stations and hashed out the evening’s takeout options before he pulled into the new development where he’d bought a house some years ago, when he decided he needed a private area to call his own.
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