I swallowed hard. What sort of kinky stuff was Justin into? I had to admit, the unknown had my pulse beginning to race. I cleared my throat and affected a blasé attitude. “I’m sure it’s all very tame in the face of my overwhelming experience,” I said with a flick of my wrist. After a beat, we both started laughing. We’d already discovered my experience was the epitome of vanilla. After what he said, it seemed he intended to expand a few more of my horizons.
“You know what I’d like to do, Mimi?” he asked.
“Is this the part where I look for the nearest escape route?”
“There’s no escape from me now, Peaches,” he chuckled. “You’re mine, and the only place you’re going is anywhere I do,” he replied with a wink. “Seriously though, I’m thinking we need to take a long weekend, just the two of us. I’d like to find a nice place where we can hide away and enjoy each other. No alarm clocks, no responsibilities,” he turned and nodded toward the stroller “no cock blocking little kids.”
I laughed. We’d been interrupted more than once by Sammy either crying in the night or waking up far too early. “That’s your son, you’re talking about, you know.”
“Our son, and yeah, I do. Doesn’t mean he’s not a little cock blocker,” Justin grumbled. “I’m going to have to return the favor to him someday when he has a girlfriend.”
“Because that won’t be awkward, at all,” I said.
“Serves him right. When he grows up an only child and wants to know why he doesn’t have any brothers or sisters, I’ll tell him point blank it’s because he barely gave me a chance to fuck his mom.”
My heart thudded at the thought of having Justin’s baby. I’d never given a thought that far ahead in the future. Was Justin contemplating it? I decided to let the remark slide by because I needed time to analyze, dissect, and pretty much drive myself mad wondering about it now.
“We have plenty of sex, Justin! Damn near every night. Sometimes even two or three times in a night!”
“We only did that once or twice. It’s almost as if we’re an old married couple. When it’s every night, then you can say we have plenty of sex,” he declared.
“Well,” I shook my head and laughed, “I won’t be one to argue against it. If you want to make love more often, I’m all in.”
“That’s what I like about you, Peaches,” he grinned and squeezed my hand. “You’re a soldier for the cause.” He turned and looked at me again. “What do you say? Want to do a weekend getaway? We could go this Friday night.”
“Where do you have in mind? We could go back to Catalina Island if you want.”
“No, I think I’d like to find someplace new. I was thinking we could drive down to San Diego. We could stay at the hotel that was in the movie you forced me to watch, the one on Coronado Island.”
“That would be awesome! I’ve always wanted to stay there. Let’s do it.” I said with no little enthusiasm.
Justin smiled. He seemed as happy with the idea as I did. I did have a twinge of guilt over leaving Sammy for so long, but he’d been staying with Justin’s parents so much, I’d grown more comfortable being away from him. Just then, Sammy started making a fuss. He howled and banged his fists on the little tray attached to the stroller.
Justin brought the hand he was holding to his lips and kissed it softly. “I think someone is ready to go home. Let’s turn back. As soon as we get there and get him settled down, I’ll make our reservations.”
“That sounds like an excellent plan,” I replied as I fished in my purse for the snack I’d brought for Sammy. Pulling the bag of Goldfish out, I poured a little mound into my hand then scattered them on his tray. He quieted as he began to pick at them one by one.
Justin took my hand back in his and squeezed it. “You’re a good mom. I couldn’t ask for better for Sammy. We’re both lucky to have you.”
I beamed at him. “I think we’re all lucky to have each other.”
“You can say that again, Peaches,” he said as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and kissed the top of my head.
Not too long after we arrived home, Sammy, Snowflake, and I were playing ball again on the living room floor. Justin walked in from his office and plopped down next to me on the rug with a big smile on his face.
“I just got off the phone with my mom. She’s totally up for watching Sammy this weekend. In fact, she insisted we hang up, so she can go shopping for baking stuff. It seems she intends to send him home wired on cake and cookies.”
“Uh oh. That doesn’t sound good. Especially since I don’t think you plan on getting much sleep this weekend.”
Justin laughed as he pushed a lock of my hair behind my shoulder. “We’ll do our fair share of sleeping. We’ll just happen to use all that energy up before we get home.”
I nodded knowingly. “I knew you had a plan.”
He leaned in and gave a low growl in my ear. “Oh, I do. I have some rather interesting plans for you. Have you ever been tied and blindfolded, baby?”
I swallowed thickly, the image of me sensory-deprived and at his mercy overwhelming my mind. I hadn’t done anything like that, but I’d certainly read about it in one of my many books. He continued to whisper in my ear.
“Well, have you?” he asked again.
I shook my head rapidly, but remained quiet. I didn’t want him to hear how nervous or how excited the thought made me. He chuckled then flicked the rim of my ear with his tongue. “You won’t be able to say the same thing when we get home Sunday night.”
I took a deep breath and quietly whispered back to him. “Throw in a gag, and I won’t be able to say anything at all.” I heard his sharp inhalation, followed by a choking sound. I looked at him and smiled sweetly. His eyes were wide and his mouth agog. I took great delight in the victory of making him speechless for a change. I stood and tossed a wink over my shoulder and put a swivel in my hips as I headed toward the kitchen to get a drink.
After a beat, Justin got up and followed me. As I opened the refrigerator and bent to retrieve the pitcher of iced tea I’d made before our walk, Justin pushed right up behind me and took my hips in his hands. “You have no idea what you did, Mimi. You’ve upped the stakes, dramatically.”
I straightened and laughed. “As if you’d seriously bind, gag and blindfold me, Justin.” I retrieved a glass and began to pour the tea, waiting for a smart and playful retort. When he didn’t say anything, I looked up to see him staring at me intently. “Wait,” I began. “You’re serious?”
Justin nodded slowly, his eyes riveted to mine. “Does that startle you, Peaches?”
“I had no clue your tastes ran that way. In all the years we’ve known each other, you’ve never said a word about it. Not even a hint of it.” I leaned back, taking a sip of my tea and looking at him with new eyes.
“We hardly spent time discussing our sex lives. It’s not like I’m some BDSM lifestyler. I like to leave all inhibitions at the bedroom door. If it’s not something you think you’d be into, that’s fine with me.”
“I’m not put off. I’m more curious than anything. If you want to try that with me, I’m up for it. You have to promise me to free me if I don’t like it.”
“Of course, Peaches. I’d never force anything on you.” Suddenly his eyes danced in the sunlight which filtered through the blinds on the kitchen window. “I do think a special shopping trip is in order before we leave tomorrow. If it were possible, we’d go tonight, but I don’t want to ask my mom to watch Sammy an additional night.”
“Where are we going shopping?” I asked, my interest peaking by the second.
He grinned and stepped over to me to pull me right up against him. He tipped my head to the side and brushed his lips over my cheek. “A place that has anything and everything you can imagine, and then a little more after that. Trust me, you’ll love it.”
After we dropped Sammy and Snowflake off with Audrey the next afternoon, Justin drove us directly to a large, gray warehouse-looking building in the Valley. It
was in a nondescript, industrial part of Van Nuys, the last place you’d suspect any kind of retail establishment to be found, let alone a kink shop. The building itself was unremarkable, but for the large spray-painted sign which hung above the front door.
I turned and looked at Justin with one eyebrow cocked. “Really? ‘The O-Zone’?”
His responding chuckle was deep and low. “What? I didn’t name the place. I just shop here occasionally.”
“You mean you’re not part of the ‘Big O Club’?” I asked as we climbed out of the car. “You know, where you get the valued customer discounts and emails alerting you to the secret sales on the month’s featured gadget?”
Justin looked at me with that deadpan expression he did so well. “I thought you’d never been here before.”
“You’re shitting me. There really is a member’s club?”
“I’m about to get my tenth hole-punch on my card. Next butt plug is free, babe!” he joked.
I punched him in the arm. “If we walk out of here with a butt plug, only one person is going to be wearing it and it ain’t me.”
“Damn. I picked out one on their website with a bunny tail attached to it I thought would make you look so cute.”
I stared at him bug-eyed, my mouth pressed tightly closed.
Justin laughed harder as we walked through the entrance. “Relax, Peaches. I’m kidding.”
The interior of the building was one cavernous room, filled with rows and rows of shelves containing all imaginable sex toys, as well as some very startling displays on the walls. One such wall boasted what I imagined was every BDSM torture implement in existence. Whips, crops, and paddles were the only things I could readily identify. There were some stainless-steel looking implements which looked downright scary. Just below the display were several furniture items which had my eyes popping out of my head again. I could imagine the purpose for some of them while others completely mystified me. Once such thing was this rounded, black, half-log sort of looking thing with a bulbous protrusion on top. I nudged Justin and discreetly pointed at it. “What the hell is that thing?” I asked.
Justin glanced over and asked “The Sybian?”
“How should I know? That black thing with the knob on top. I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
“Yeah, that’s the Sybian. You don’t need one of those. I have a better seat for you.”
“It’s a… seat? Does it do what I think it does?” I asked incredulously.
He threw his arm around me and gently steered me away. “Yes, Mimi. It’s a sort of seat that does precisely what you think it does.”
I nearly choked. I’d never given it much thought before, but this place made it clear sex toys were only limited by one’s imagination. If you could think of it, it probably already existed. Justin directed me to an aisle which featured vibrators and dildos. I’d always used the mainstay of every single woman’s nightstand, the rabbit. There were certainly many of those in various sizes with different shapes for the clitoral stim. I scanned the shelves to see if there was anything which might catch my attention. As my eyes rested on a bright purple one, Justin nudged me. I looked at him, and he nodded toward the shelf in front of him. Resting there was gigantic dildo, maybe twelve inches in length. I had no means of judging the circumference, but it looked about as thick as my wrist.
I looked at him and shook my head rapidly. There was no way anyone was getting near me with that thing. He laughed again and pulled me tight to his side, so he could kiss the top of my head. He seemed to be having the time of his life teasing me and watching my reaction to things I’d never seen before. No doubt, he thought I was some kind of sheltered girl he would have the pleasure of corrupting.
I drifted away from him, my eyes scanning the shelves one by one. I was once again shocked to see a replica of a hand and forearm. Seriously, who could take such a thing? And why would someone want one when a real hand would be holding it? My poor vagina gave a silent scream of terror, and I hurried away from the creepy toy.
I stopped in front of a display of more vibrators, these boasting thrusting action. Now that piqued my interest. As I reached for a bright pink one, I felt a hand at my elbow. Slightly embarrassed, I looked up expecting to find Justin smirking down at me. My heart stopped when I came face-to-face with Vince. I hadn’t seen him since that disastrous night at the club with him and his friends. I immediately stumbled backward in fear. I needed to put as much space between me and the would-be rapist as fast as possible. I looked around wildly for Justin, but couldn’t spot him. I was about to take off in a dead run when Vince spoke.
“Mimi!” he exclaimed. “I haven’t seen you in forever. How have you been?” He took a step toward me, and as I hurried to step out of his reach, I connected with a display stand which was behind me. Several boxes crashed to the floor, littering it with at least a dozen little silver bullet vibrators. It would have been funny had my throat not closed up and every hair on my body stood on end. I tried to form the words to tell him to get away from me, but all I could do was stutter.
“Get… go…’way” I stammered as my pulse picked up speed. My fight-or-flight instinct was definitely set to flight.
“Is that how you greet an old friend?” he replied as he sniffed repeatedly. He looked a fright. Where he was once one of the best dressed men I’d ever met, he was now clad in a wrinkled concert t-shirt and jeans which looked like they hadn’t been washed recently. His thick hair was lank and greasy. A skinny, strung-out looking girl with brittle blonde hair and raccoon eyes shuffled up next to him and handed him a DVD case, completely oblivious to me standing there trembling.
“Amber, hey. Meet Mimi. She’s a party buddy from way back.”
Amber turned her hazy eyes to me and gave me a brief nod. She turned back to Vince and mumbled, “Cool. Can she hook us up?”
Vince turned back to me. “Yeah, Mimi? Where have you been getting your shit these days? You dropped me out ages ago. Changed your number and everything. Who’s taken my place?”
I opened and closed my mouth several times in an effort to speak but the words would not come. My initial terror was falling away from my disbelief Vince did not remember our last encounter. It was either that or he thought nothing of him and his friends mauling me on the dance floor like they had.
“You don’t remember the last time I saw you?” I fumed.
He ran a hand over his stubbly chin. “You know now you ask, I can’t. I’m sure we had a great time, no matter what we did,” he added with a leer.
“No, we didn’t. In fact, I…” Before I could finish my sentences where I intended to tell him exactly what sort of sex-offending losers he and his friends were, a long, well-muscled and familiar tattooed arm sailed past me and shoved Vince further away from me. Justin pushed me behind his back as he gripped Vince’s shirt tightly in his fist. When he spoke, his voice was lower and more dangerous than I’d ever heard before.
“Touch her one more time, and I’ll break you. As soon as I let you go, you’ll take one step back and then walk right out of here without another glance in her direction. If you don’t, I’ll escort you outside and crush every bone in your pathetic body. Do I make myself clear?”
Vince looked like he was going to piss himself, his face was so white. He tried futilely to push and slap Justin’s hand away, but it only caused Justin to tighten his fist and pull him even closer. “I asked if I made myself clear.”
“Yeah man, sure. Just let me go, and Amber and I’ll walk right out of here. I’ll forget I ever knew the bitch’s name. Just let me go, so we can split.”
With a harsh shove which sent Vince flying back, his arms cartwheeling to maintain his balance, Justin released him. Amber tried to steady him, but once he had a decent footing, he roughly shrugged her off. He stalked off toward the door, muttering to himself. Amber tossed the DVD case onto a shelf, and after a tiny smile toward Justin, shuffled out after Vince.
Justin pulled me into his arms and squeeze
d me tightly. “You okay, Peaches? Did he hurt you? Upset you? Anything that will cause me to follow his scrawny ass to the parking lot and deconstruct his existence?”
“I’m okay, Justin.” I leaned my head on his shoulder. “I was shocked and scared when I first saw him, but after a few minutes, it was obvious he’s no physical threat to me. Then, when I realized he doesn’t even remember what he and his friends did, I started to get pissed off. I was about to lay into him myself when you did your sneak attack.”
Justin frowned at me. “It wasn’t a sneak attack. I approached him head on, and I didn’t hurt him. Only shook him up a little. He deserved much worse.”
“Well he’s gone and it’s over now.” I shuddered, feeling my skin crawl when I thought about him touching me. The idea I’d ever let myself become involved with someone like that in any way made me want to vomit. I was ashamed of every single thing I’d done with him. I shook myself to clear my head.
“You sure you’re okay?” Justin looked at me with grim eyes.
I smiled weakly. “Yeah, I’m good. I need to put some time between me and what happened. It was an ugly reminder of the direction I let my life take. Let’s forget about all this and get on with our road-trip.”
Justin nodded, then grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the exit. I guessed my foray into kinkdom was going to have to wait because we left The O-Zone empty handed.
We checked into the hotel that evening, both of us a little weary after the incident with Vince and a couple hours in the car. My back didn’t act up too much these days unless it was cold, but sitting for long periods of time in one position left me feeling stiff and achy. I was also hungry. I couldn’t decide which I wanted to do more, eat to capacity, and crawl into bed or go to sleep for the rest of the night. In the end, I opted for a short nap, hoping it would help me shake the feelings of guilt and unworthiness the encounter with Vince left me. It did the trick. After an hour, I woke, feeling relaxed and refreshed.
Justin had laid down with me, but when I woke he was already up and watching the TV at a low volume. He was still next to me, but reclined back against the headboard with the remote in his hand. It called to mind the image of Vance in the very same position the first night we stayed in a hotel together. At one time it would have made me feel guilty considering Justin was his friend, but now it made me smile. Men were the same all over the world. I was willing to bet that across the globe, there were at least a thousand other women waking up to the very same sight.
Just Perfection (The Perfection Series Book 4) Page 19