Bad Decisions Good Regrets (Social Experiment #2)

by Sherelle Green

  “What?” she asked, her eyes studying mines.

  “Promise me that you’ll never forget that you’re a beautiful black goddess who has never needed validation from any man. Me included. Don’t think about your rules holding you back, but rather, them being a guideline that helped you stay on the path you saw for yourself. Even though I’m helping you with your experiment, the pleasure is all mine. I’m the lucky bastard in this situation. The one who gets a chance to be with the woman who’s always been his day one even if she didn’t know it.”

  Her smile grew even bigger. “Thank you for saying that.”

  “It’s the truth, but you’re welcome.” I placed a quick peck on her lips. “When do we start?”

  Her smile faltered as her nervous giggle kicked in. “I was thinking maybe in a couple days or so. We don’t have to do too much. As long as I can do a video diary to explain at least one sexual experience, I’m sure I can bluff the rest.”

  I was shaking my head before she even finished. “Nah, that’s not the way I roll. You deserve the whole experience, and I want to make the most of our time together. No shortcuts.” I glanced at her iPad that was on the counter. “So, what’s on this list of freaky shit that you mentioned earlier?”

  “Nothing,” she said quickly. I sat there and watched her, waiting for her to fess up, when she finally told me, “Okay, so maybe I only have three things on the list. The first one was the no-strings-attached thing. But the most innocent thing out of my top three was to get a full body massage … naked.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “You’ve never gotten that before?” She shook her head. “Then I guess we should get started.” I got up from the seat and grabbed her hand before leading her down the hallway. “Which bedroom is yours?”

  “The one of the left,” she answered. “But are you sure we should do this tonight?”

  “I don’t want to waste time when we don’t have to,” I explained. “But if at any time you feel uncomfortable about anything we do during this experiment, just say the word and we stop.”

  She nodded her head. “Okay.”

  “Are you sure?” I asked.

  She smiled confidently. “Yes, let’s do this tonight.”

  “Good.” Once we got to her bedroom, I clicked on the lamp and briefly took note of her plush, light grey comforter and soft, white pillows, already figuring out where I wanted her to lay on the bed. I felt her watching me, wondering what was next, and if I knew Ivy, probably second-guessing the fact that she’d given me the green light to have access to her unlike any I’d ever had before.

  I looked back to her and leaned against the desk, getting straight to the point by telling her, “Now strip. I want you in nothing but your panties and that sexy smile you’ve been teasing me with all week.”

  Chapter 8

  “If his hands are as soft as a baby’s ass, you betta run sis! You want the guy whose calluses make you tingle. That means he knows what he is doing.”

  ~ Layla ~

  IVY

  He must be joking, right? I studied his face, concluding that he was for real. Like, for real, for real. Dead. Ass. Serious. His look leaving nothing left for questioning. And he has the nerve to seem unfazed by everything I just told him.

  How dare he lean against my desk in his crisp, white T-shirt and his navy-blue jogging pants looking so calm, cool, and collected when I was a ball of nerves. I didn’t care if his five-o-clock shadow was giving me all kinds of dirty thoughts. Or that his honey-brown eyes were laced in that same dangerous spark that had me fighting back a moan.

  I tended to like the clean-cut type. Or did I? I wasn’t even sure anymore since there was nothing neat and proper about Theseus’s appearance. Forget about the fact that seeing him like this—so masculine, so dominant—made me question if Power would still be my favorite sitcom if I hadn’t just realized how much he resembled Omari Hardwick, except with more hair. Only to me, Theseus was a sexier, badder version.

  I really didn’t give a shit that his lips—those juicy ass lips—were slyly smirking like he hadn’t just asked me to get naked as if it was the most normal request in the world. And I wasn’t even going to think about his damn tattoos. I mean, why the hell did they make him look so delectable. Indestructible. Unbreakable.

  So, imagine my surprise when I kissed all of my overthinking good-bye, lifted my shirt over my head, and tossed it to the floor, feeling free and loving the way the cool air from my ceiling fan teased my nipples since I wasn’t wearing a bra. And if that weren’t enough to make me remove my shorts next, the way Theseus’s dick was pushing against his jogging pants made me bold enough to do so.

  I stood there in my black panties, fighting the urge to cover my chest since standing in my underwear made me feel even more exposed. Yet, instead of fulfilling that urge, I kept my hands to my side, his eyes drinking me in as he slowly perused my body. Did he peep the stretch marks I had on my thighs? And if he did, did he care?

  “Do you have any baby oil?” he asked, breaking my thoughts. I pointed to my smell goods shelf, trying my best to act like my heart wasn’t beating so fast and loud, I wanted to pass out. I counted backwards from ten to calm myself until finally, the only thing I could hear was the constant thumping in my eardrums that was starting to sound a lot like the beat to “Flawless” by Beyoncé.

  He retrieved the baby oil and pointed to the double-sized bed. “Lay chest down on the edge of the bed.”

  I did as he’d requested, too nervous to say anything snarky. Even though my head was buried into my comforter, I could feel him standing to the left of me, music filling the room from his phone. Took a couple seconds to realize he was playing “Don’t Come Easy” by Raheem DeVaughn.

  “Just relax,” he whispered into my ear. He hadn’t even touched me since I’d removed my clothes, but I was already anticipating that tonight would be an experience I’d never forget.

  Without warning, I felt his calloused hands rub my shoulders, kneading out knots that I didn’t even know existed. I’d never been the type of woman to treat myself to a massage since I didn’t really care for strangers touching me. But this. Him. Us in my temporary bedroom right now, was giving me a whole new respect for the concept.

  He made his way lower, massaging my back in a way that had me moaning into my bed. “Right there,” I said in a muffled tone when his fingers reached my right side.

  “That’s the spot?”

  I nodded as he continued to knead his fingers even deeper. A few minutes later, he moved to my thighs, the motion of his hands making every part of me respond to his touch.

  “I see,” he mentioned, making his way to my feet, “you’re definitely a moaner.”

  I shook my head again, being honest when I told him, “I’m usually a lot quieter. Never really met a man who gave me a reason to moan.”

  If my eyes hadn’t been closed, I’m sure they would have popped out of my head because I hadn’t meant to be that freaking honest. I thought maybe he hadn’t heard me, but then he asked, “Exactly how long has it been since you’ve had sex?”

  I opened my eyes, welcomed by the grey comforter. “Uh.” I didn’t know what to say. Should I lie? Tell the truth? Maybe tell the truth, but lie a little? I needed to phone a friend and call Layla because I hadn’t prepped myself for Theseus’s questions tonight.

  “If you don’t want to say, then tell me this …” he started, his hands making their way to my panties as he began to ease them down my legs. “Has it been longer than a year?”

  Quietly, I said, “Yes.”

  “Longer than two years?” he asked.

  I nodded. “Yeah.” His lips softly kissed my right ass cheek, the touch catching me off guard and causing me to slightly lift my butt into the air. The fact that his lips felt so smooth on an ass that hadn’t been touched in so long was the only excuse I had for blurting out, “It’s been like seven years. Or eight. Probably somewhere in between since I didn’t have sex with my last serious boyfriend.”
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br />   His hands stopped moving. His lips stopped moving. The sudden non-movement caused me to turn around, afraid I’d scared him off to the point where he wasn’t going to do the experiment with me. Yet, the look I saw in his eyes was completely opposite of what I’d expected.

  Instead of his eyes blazing in shock, they were blazing in fire. Instead of his jaw dropping in surprise, it was tight and clenched. Like he was holding back something that I couldn’t quite place. I opened my mouth to ask him what he thought about my confession, when he leaned down and kissed the words right off my lips. Unlike our last kiss, he wasn’t holding nothing back, his mouth taking mine hostage as I clung to him, soaking in all of his delicious taste.

  Since my body was only halfway turned, I rolled completely around to lie on my back, the strokes of his tongue growing bolder with better access. After a few minutes of only inhaling him, we broke apart, his eyes leaving mine to trail a path across my naked body.

  “Damn,” he whispered. “You’ve always been sexy as hell with clothes on, but that shit don’t hold a candle to you in nothing at all.” His eyes moved up and down over my body once more before he dropped to his knees, gently pushing my legs open and mumbling something that sounded like “breathtaking,” before his lips hit my clit with exact precision.

  “Oh fuck,” I moaned, torn between wanting to close my legs from how good it felt, or spread them open even wider so he could do whatever he wanted with me.

  His tongue slipped inside my core, before going back to my clit, the back and forth movement causing me to squirm even more than I had been before. Apparently, it was too much squirming for Theseus, because he twisted my body so that my ass was hanging halfway off the bed, took both my legs, and threw them over his shoulders before he dove back in, making sure I couldn’t move. And damned if I wasn’t content to stay right where I was while he feasted in a way that I had never had any man please me before.

  In the past, I’d been with guys who always felt a need to finger me while licking my pussy, and although I was cool with that because it got me there, it was something so fucking sexy about the way Theseus was getting me there with only his lips and tongue.

  I was close. So close. Close enough that he had to grip my thighs even tighter when that first wave washed over me as I climaxed quicker than I’d ever climaxed before, his name leaving my lips in a growl that was so not cute, but I didn’t give a damn. I could be cute next time.

  I expected him to ease up, but he didn’t. Instead, he only increased his movements, sending my ass over another cliff when I hadn’t even climbed back up from the first cliff he’d thrown me off of.

  “That was amazing,” I said breathlessly, when I was able to find my voice. “Like in an other-worldly, out of this world, outer space, another dimension kind of way.”

  He scooted me up and leaned next to me on the bed, a smile on his face when he said, “Pretty sure some of those are the same thing, but I’m flattered.” When he stood, I reached for him, but I was too slow. My arms felt like Jell-O.

  “What’s next?” I mumbled as he lifted me and gently placed me under my sheets.

  I vaguely recalled him whispering, “Nothing tonight, Poison Ivy,” as he kissed my forehead and laid down beside me on top of the comforter. I wanted to ask him why he still had his clothes on, but my eyelids felt so heavy. Everything went dark a few seconds later.

  THESEUS

  I smiled as I watched Ivy fall asleep with this adorably goofy grin on her face. I wasn’t sure how I’d expected the night to go, but I was still in awe that I’d had such an intimate moment with the girl of my dreams. The girl I’d been pressed to get with ever since I was a teenager.

  Ivy Ashwood was the type of woman who could crawl her way into a man’s heart without even trying. Case in point, I wasn’t the type of dude to lay next to a woman and watch her sleep, but that’s exactly what I was doing. Watching the rise and fall of her chest beneath the covers. Making sure she was doing okay before I left since I had a busy day tomorrow.

  As I laid there, playing with the strands of her hair that were spread against the white pillow, I thought about how I’d been given a second chance with her. How I’d managed to miss the opportunity back then, but damn sho’ wasn’t gonna miss my shot now. How I needed to make sure she understood that I wasn’t willing to let whatever we were starting end once the experiment was complete.

  We may live in different cities, and I wasn’t even sure she was looking for a relationship, but I’d stopped dating around years ago, knowing that I would never find my perfect woman. Knowing that I’d never be able to fully give my heart to another woman since I had unfinished business with a woman who’d stolen my heart years ago without even knowing.

  She stirred in her sleep and my name slipped from her lips before she turned around so that her back was now facing me. My hands reached out to trace a few brown freckles that I leaned over and kissed—because, after tonight, I wouldn’t be able to be near her and not kiss her.

  I glanced at the clock on her nightstand, knowing it was time for me to leave, but not wanting her to wake up and find me gone. Getting up from her bed, I found a notepad and pen on her desk, so I jotted her down a quick note and left it on the pillow I’d been laying on.

  “Goodnight, kryptonite,” I whispered, kissing her forehead before locking the bottom lock of the apartment and letting myself out of the complex.

  Chapter 9

  “If you do something stupid, don’t beat yourself up over it. Pour yourself a shot, put on some lipstick, and throw some glitter on your ego.”

  ~Layla~

  IVY

  “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait,” Layla yelled, waving her hands in the air. “Sis, please tell me you did not fall asleep on one of the sexiest men any of us have ever met after he gave you the best head of your life.”

  I rolled my eyes, wishing Layla would drop it. “Seriously, Layla, you already know this story! I told you this morning what happened, so I don’t think you need to keep bringing it up.”

  “That’s probably our fault, chica,” our friend, Treasure, said. “You know Layla likes to repeat stuff for those of us who haven’t heard the details.”

  Our other friend, Jade, nodded her head. “She’s a real bitch that way, but I can’t lie. I’m lost, so I need the story from the top.”

  “Me too,” Treasure added.

  I sighed, leaning back into the soft couch cushion, knowing that the sooner I told them the details, the quicker we could move on. Our girls, Treasure and Jade, had just gotten into town for a girl’s trip to Chicago since it was rare that all four of us got to hang out anymore. So, when two of us where in the same place, we made sure we got together.

  It was Friday night, and apparently, instead of getting ready to hit the club, Layla had put me on blast. “Okay, guess I should start from the top.” I grabbed my wine glass and took a big gulp, before downing the rest.

  “Oh, shit,” Jade said. “It must be good if you over here downing wine knowing you a lightweight.”

  I swallowed the bitter liquid and said as quickly as I could, “LaylatalkedmeintodoinganexperimentforthatyoutubenetworkandIdecidedtohavesexwithoutrulesanddocumentitfortheworldtosee.”

  Treasure blinked a few times. “Did you just say that Layla talked you into doing a social experiment, for which I’m assuming is The Social Experiment Network on YouTube, and you decided to have sex without your eight-date rule and document it? Meaning, you’re a participant for that next season they are advertising?”

  Jade looked at Treasure. “I never did comprehend how you could understand Ivy when she rambled like that.”

  “Me neither,” Layla spouted, downing the rest of her wine, too. “But yeah, I talked her into doing the experiment, but Ms. Goody Two Shoes decided to tell the network her experiment was to do a no-strings-attached relationship. And apparently, the casting associates are geeked for her video segment because they can’t believe someone who works in the adult film industry has be
en without sex for so long.”

  Jade waved her hand at me. “Yeah, I don’t understand that shit either.”

  “Are you really doing this?” Treasure asked. “I’m sure they would understand if you backed out.”

  I smiled, appreciating the way Treasure always looked out for me. While Layla and Jade were quick to talk me into doing something I didn’t want to do, Treasure would be telling me I didn’t have to do it. We were both cautious and looked out for each other that way.

  Layla answered before I could, telling the girls, “She can’t back out. She’s already found her knight in shining armor to bring her pussy back to life.”

  Treasure squinted. “You found a guy already? Is it someone you work with?”

  I bit my lip, knowing my friends were gonna go nuts when I told them, “I guess we are sort of working together for the moment, but that’s not the point.” I glanced at Layla who was grinning while watching Treasure and Jade, waiting for their reaction. “The guy who’s helping me fulfill the experiment is Theseus.” I said his name super low, more so because saying it was still making me horny as hell and I didn’t need those problems when kickin’ it with my girls.

  For a few seconds, both Jade and Treasure seemed confused. Like the fact that I’d mumbled his name made it harder for them to place him. I noticed the moment recognition hit because Jade jumped from her seat, yelling, “Shut the fuck up! Theseus Hood? As in the Theseus Hood we went to high school with? That nigga?”

  Treasure started squealing. “The same Theseus who should have been practicing football, but would be staring at you during our dance practices and getting yelled at by his coach? And the same one who could walk down a hallway without paying attention to any of the girls, but when he reached you, he was all dark eyes and sultry looks.”