by Jamie Knight
There was a long silence before Tammy spoke again. "Oh, really? Which place did you have in mind?" she asked.
There was a weird edge to her voice, suspicious, but I shrugged it off and pulled out my phone to show her pictures of the site. The building was stunning, and I had been in love with it for ages, watching it obsessively to keep track of it and make sure it was still on the market.
Suddenly, Tammy snapped to attention, her eyes widened. She pressed my phone into my hand. "Aw, I'm sorry to hear that,” she said, but there was something icy in her tone that robbed the words of any sincerity.
Just looking at the building had brought on a fresh wave of tears, and I was trying to pull myself together when I realized she was gone. She had simply turned on her heel and disappeared into the crowd.
Had I said something wrong? I felt even sillier now having opened up to her only to have her end the conversation so abruptly. I was left standing there, surprised and confused.
But, instead of standing there and risking another breakdown, I decided to make my way home. I would have to come up with another way to get the rest of the money. I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to do it, but I had come too far not to see it through.
As I lay in bed, letting my thoughts run free, I started thinking about Elliot. Excitement raced through me again as I thought about the fact that I would be going on a date with him the next night. I was excited to see him, but more excited to finish what we had started.
I drifted off to sleep that night with a huge smile on my face and his face plastered on my brain.
Chapter Eight - Elliot
I got dressed, careful to put on my best black suit and tie. I wanted to impress her the way that she had impressed me, and the best way that I knew how to do that was by showing off my impressive wardrobe.
I had accumulated pieces from my travels all over the world, so it was quite the collection that I had. As I put on the gold cufflinks that sported a letter E for my name, I smiled, knowing that that signature piece alone would probably be enough to impress her.
I pulled up at the address that she gave me, parked the car, and walked up to the door. I rang the doorbell. The door swung open and another woman opened the door. I recognized her as Candy’s friend, Amelia, and the girl Reid had been mooning over.
“She’s just finishing up getting dressed,” she said, standing in her doorway, the door halfway closed like she was ready to slam it on me.
She ran a hand through her hair absentmindedly. I wondered if something was going on with her and Reid, she looked frazzled and upset.
I decided not to upset her further. “Tell her I’ll wait for her out here,” I said, heading back to my car.
I turned on the radio and waited. After five minutes when she still hadn’t appeared, I wondered how much longer she would be. Should I go back up to the door? Would that make me seem too eager? Rude? I didn’t quite know what to do so I just sat.
She ended up coming out after about fifteen minutes looking radiant. She wore a little black dress that clung to her curves as tightly as I wanted to. I swallowed hard as I watched her walk to my car, ample hips swaying, her face smiling and eager. I hoped that I was the reason that she was looking so eager.
“Hi,” she said breathlessly, getting into the car and landing a peck on my cheek, “I’m so sorry I took so long.”
“Not a problem, you’re worth the wait,” I replied. She put on her seatbelt and looked around excitedly.
“So, where are we going?” she asked.
“First stop is one of my favorite places, Winkies,” I said, pulling away from the apartment.
Winkies was a bar that I had frequented a lot because they had great food, incredible drinks, and an atmosphere that was always really electric. Maybe not a place befitting my best suit, but I thought it might be better than someplace stuffy and boring.
Tonight was no different than usual. When we pulled into the parking lot, we could hear the music bumping through the walls. When we walked up to the front doors, I was greeted by Steve, a bouncer who I had come to know from my many nights at Winkies.
“Well, look at what the cat drug in,” he said, smiling at me mischievously.
“Yeah, and I come with friends,” I said, nodding toward Candy. “I wanted to show her some of my usual spots, even if I haven’t been to them in quite some time.”
Steve laughed a raucous laughter and then stepped out of the way, letting us inside.
“Well, welcome,” he said, shaking Candy’s hand lightly and clapping me on the back. “You’ll find that Winkie’s is a one-of-a-kind place. You’ll love it, though.”
Candy thanked him and walked inside, looking around curiously. Her wide eyes roamed the room, taking in the scene. There were some girls dancing on the bar and being loud. They were probably drunk already. I found us an empty table and ordered us some drinks. While we waited on the drinks, I tried talking to Candy. But, the music was so loud, we could barely hear each other, so we stopped trying to talk and just settled ourselves to staring back and forth at each other, smiling awkwardly. When the drinks came, we sipped them. I noticed that Candy looked bored or disappointed. I could tell that she wasn’t enjoying herself.
I knew that I had to get her out of there.
I drove across town to another one of my spots, The Palace. It was a little different from the bar crowd, but just as live. On any given night, it wouldn’t have been out of the ordinary to see fireworks outside. It was more of a place of decadence. The women there were always dressed to the nines, their hair, face, and nails always done flawlessly. Candy looked great to me, so I figured that she would fit right in.
I was wrong. She sat on the edge of her seat, her arms crossing her body self-consciously. She looked anxious and uncomfortable, like she was counting down the minutes until she could leave.
I felt like I was failing. Not only was she not impressed, but I was boring the poor girl and making her uncomfortable. I told her that we were leaving again. She looked at me, confused.
I learned a lot about Candy that night. She definitely wasn’t the party girl that I thought that she was. I was definitely surprised to find out that none of my normal spots even thrilled her a little bit. I thought of one last place to take her, a club on First Ave.
But, on our way to the club, my car caught a flat tire.
“It’s okay,” I said, trying my best to reassure Candy. “I have a spare. I can change it.”
I opened the door and got ready to get out.
“You’re going to change your tire in the dark?” asked Candy, her eyes wide with fear. “Isn’t that kind of dangerous?”
I thought about what she was saying and decided that she was probably right. But, I didn’t want to be seen as weak, like I couldn’t take care of us.
“Look, there’s a bowling alley over there,” said Candy. “Instead of trying to change your tire in the dark, why don’t we go inside of the bowling alley for a little bit and call for a ride?”
I looked at her. She looked back at me, her eyes almost pleading with me. I sighed, somewhat relieved to have a way out of having to change a tire in my best suit.
“Okay,” I said. “Only for a little while. I don’t even know where we are, really?”
Candy smiled at me and reached over, touching my cheek.
“We’re at a bowling alley, silly,” she said, laughing easily.
I couldn’t help but stare at her. I loved the way that her cheeks dimpled when she smiled. It drove me wild and turned me on. And it made me think back to the night before and how she tasted. She had tasted so good, sweet. Addicting. She’d mentioned that she was a baker, and I wondered anything that came out of her oven could possibly be as sweet and intoxicating as she was.
I turned off the car and locked the doors. We walked into the bowling alley and called for a ride. The only person who answered was Candy’s friend, Amelia. She was at home and said that she was more
than happy to pick us up. Only she had ordered a pizza, so it would have to be after the pizza got there.
She apologized profusely, but I was fine with waiting. I wasn’t really in much of a rush for the night to be over, especially after having bored Candy all night and having it end on such a bad note with a flat tire. I wanted more time with her, more time to turn this night around.
“Want to play a game?” Candy asked, playfully.
I looked at her and smiled. She had an infectious smile. It made me want to agree to whatever she was asking for.
I nodded dumbly.
“Great,” she said. “Because I already got you some shoes and got us a lane.”
It was my turn to laugh.
We started playing. I hadn’t played in years and it showed. She beat me terribly. And she wasn’t really much of a gracious winner. She made sure to rub in the fact that she won with a full victory dance. I laughed hard at her dancing. It was amusing to watch her dance around the bowling lane. I could tell that other people were amused, too, because she got a lot of smiles and laughs from people playing in nearby lanes.
This was the Candy I wanted to see, the curious, fun, vibrant girl I’d seen hiding in the corner at that first auction. Despite her hesitation that night, there was something in her eyes that spoke volumes. There was something wild in her aching to be set free, and I wanted to be the one to uncage her.
But, even while they were making my heart bloom with unexpected feelings for this girl, her dances were also turning me on. The way that she shook her ass, moving her hips in circles made me think about the way that she writhed on the stage beneath my tongue.
More than anything, being there in the bowling alley with her, laughing until my belly hurt, reminded me that I was having more fun than I could remember having in a very long time. She was showing me that things didn’t have to be a crazy party for it to be fun. She looked like she was having more fun dancing around the bowling alley than to any of the wild parties that I could have taken her to.
It made me think that maybe I should consider slowing down a little bit and taking things in more. It would help me to better appreciate the finer things in life rather than speeding through life at such a break-neck speed that it’s hard to appreciate much of anything.
Maybe I would help her embrace her wild side, but this girl was also giving me a brand new perspective on life, making me want to reign in mine to match hers. I had to know more about her.
“Let’s sit out in front and wait on Amelia,” I said.
I used waiting on Amelia as an excuse. I really just wanted to talk to her more. I actually hoped that Amelia would take her sweet time in coming to get us.
“I had a great time here,” she said, clutching her chest as she laughed.
I could hardly believe it. The unplanned part of the date was the part that she was actually impressed with. I made a mental note never to plan another date.
“So did I,” I admitted. “As a matter of fact, I can’t think of the last time that I had so much fun.”
“Me, either,” she said. “I spend so much time working at the bakery that I rarely take time out for anything else for myself.”
I remembered my early days in building my business and remembered how consuming it was.
“But, that kind of comes with building a solid business, I think,” I said.
“You sound like me,” she said, chuckling lightly.
“Well it is,” I said. “I remember building my business and not having time for anything else. But, if I hadn’t have done those things that I needed to do in the beginning, I wouldn’t be in the place I am now.”
I didn’t want to sound like a braggy douchebag, so I didn’t often drop the word that started with “b” and ended with “illionaire.”
“Yes, I know,” she said. “But, when it’s all that you’re doing, you can start to wonder if it’s all worth it. I mean, I did nothing but build my business from the time that I got started until now. I worked really hard to build it up to where it is now. You can ask anyone. It’s my baby. It’s my legacy. I don’t have kids, but it’s the way that I want the world to remember me: as a dedicated and talented baker. I mean, not that I don’t want kids or anything, but-“
“No, I get it,” I laughed, “Right now you’re just throwing everything into your dream, just like I did. And then once I got where I wanted, I kind of went a little…fun crazy, I guess,” I admitted.
“You make it sound like you went totally off the rails.”
It felt like I had. I’d had more than my fair share of girls and booze. I’d woken up far too many times in unfamiliar places with no recollection of how I’d gotten there. I’d trashed hotel rooms, swung from chandeliers…
But at the same time, there were lines I didn’t cross. Other than a joint here or there, I’d never played with drugs, and even weed hadn’t been fun for me, just made me hungry and sleepy. I’d kept things…tame-ish.
We talked for a while longer until Amelia got there. It was refreshing to have such a nice conversation with her. Not only was I impressed by her and her worth ethic, I was inspired myself. I remembered how passionate I used to be when I first started building my business. Those were the days when I still had to wait for the next paycheck before I could do anything. I didn’t have a bunch of money sitting around in the bank. It was before the days when I could afford to be lazy and wild. I was hungry. That hunger is what I saw in her. It still burned inside of her. Part of me even envied that fire.
And beyond that, she was a good listener. Anything I told her, she drank in completely, listening with interest and without judgement.
When Amelia pulled up, I noticed how late it was.
“Would you like to go home?” I asked, assuming that she would want to go home with her friend.
“Actually, could we go to your place instead?” she asked timidly.
I was both surprised and delighted to hear her ask that, and couldn’t keep the smile from my face.
“Absolutely.”
Chapter Nine - Candy
“Did you guys have a good time?” asked Amelia as she winded down the road towards Elliot’s house.
“Yeah,” I said, turning to Elliot and offering him a shy smile, “We actually ended up going bowling and having the time of our lives.”
Amelia perked up and smiled.
“Well, that sounds nice,” she said. “I can’t think of the last time that I went bowling.”
We chatted for the few minutes that it took for us to get to Elliot’s, my nerves climbing with every passing mile. When we got there, Amelia bid Elliot good night. He hesitated, looking over at me.
“Hey, Amelia, I’m, uh, going to stay over here for a while,” I said, climbing out of the car.
Amelia looked at me blankly and I stared right back at her, raising my eyebrows pointedly.
“Okay,” she said, looking at me with concern. “Just let me know when you want me to come back for you.”
“No, that’s okay,” I said. “I’ll probably just end up calling an Uber or something. Thank you for coming out for us, though.”
I don’t know why I hadn’t thought about that before. That way I wouldn’t have had to bother my friend to come out for us.
She shrugged, told me that it wouldn’t be a problem for her to come back for me, and giving me a long look that clearly indicated she’d be here at the drop of a hat if I needed her. I tried to send her silent gratitude with my smile. She seemed to get the message and slowly returned the expression. “Have fun,” she whispered mischievously, and took off.
It was then that my nervousness started to set in.
I was at his house.
I had never done anything like this before, so I was worried that I would be bad somehow. I wasn’t even sure how I was supposed to get things started. Was I supposed to kiss him? Rip his clothes off and jump on him? I wasn’t sure and the thought of it was starting to make me
sick to my stomach.
Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about it for very long. As soon as he opened the front door, he pushed me inside and kissed me hard on the lips. It was like he just lost his composure and couldn’t wait anymore. And him taking control not only took the pressure off of me, but it sent a fire racing through me. I melted into his arms, enjoying the feel of his soft lips pressed against mine.
He kissed me and grabbed my hips as he pushed me down the hallway to what I assumed was his bedroom. I kissed him back, clinging to him and feeling every hard inch of him pressed against me. I felt breathless, and weightless as he picked me up and carried me the rest of the way to the bedroom.
He laid me gently on the bed and stared down at me as he unbuckled his pants. My heart started racing. I was so nervous. It was about to happen. I was going to lose my virginity right here and now.
Even though I was super nervous, a large part of me felt thrilled to be in his bed and about to do this. It was crazy, but it felt right. I had run into him at that first auction for a reason. And that magnetic force that had propelled me to go to the auction and sell myself? It was him. We were the two poles of that magnet, drawn together and meant to collide.
He unzipped my dress and helped me shimmy out of it, the snug fabric clinging to every curve.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice as soft as butter.
“Yeah,” I said, nodding dumbly.
I was amazed at how gently he had taken over. He started kissing me again, his hot mouth dancing with mine. I closed my eyes and leaned into him. He kissed down the side of my neck, sucking a little as he made his way down to my breasts. He pulled up my bra, freeing them from their prison. They bounced out, standing at full attention for him. He stared at them for a moment before taking a nipple into his mouth. He licked and sucked on my nipple.
His hand slipped between my thighs and through the thin cotton barrier between my skin and his, he stroked the sensitive flesh. I moaned and ground down against his hand. He slipped his hand into my panties, wiggling his fingers down until he found my moist center. He slipped a finger into my tight hole, making me gasp and moan. With his other hand, he pulled down my panties and leaned down to finish the job from the day before.