Lily-Grace had drifted off to sleep and Sophia didn’t answer at first. She was staring at her dad. “I had fun,” she said, “Justin.”
“Well, good,” he said. “I’ll see you at school tomorrow.” Justin opened Destiny’s door and kissed her lips. “Don’t worry about the lying thing,” he said. “I’ll take care of that at school tomorrow, okay?”
“How?”
“She lied to the principal, we can make it a school punishment. Take the heat off you with that,” he said. “I know her world has been shaken up, but don’t let her be rude to you, Desi, she’s a kid. She has to learn respect. If she doesn’t talk to you, let her pout. She’ll come to you when she’s ready. Kids can’t hold out forever.” His kissed her again chastely and then whispered. “I wish I was staying tonight.”
“I do too,” she whispered back. “You could come back; we could talk?”
“I will, after I settle Lils into bed.” He opened Sophia’s door and she jumped out. “Finally,” she said. “I thought you two were going to make out all night.”
“Hey,” Justin said. “We weren’t making out. We were talking about how you’re going to come straight to my office in the morning when you get to school. We need to talk about you lying to the principal.”
“Oh, man,” she said. “Having a father who’s the school principal is going to suck.”
Justin chuckled but picked his daughter up and gave her a big hug. “I think it’s great that you’re my daughter,” he said.
“Thanks,” Sophia said awkwardly.
* * *
“What are you doing Soph, it’s late?” Destiny asked.
Sophia didn’t answer. She climbed down off the foot stool with a bag of microwave popcorn.
“You’re not making popcorn now, Sophia, it’s time for you to go to bed.”
Sophia looked her mother in the eye and bit opened the plastic outer wrapping.
“Did you hear me?” Destiny could have screamed. Justin was coming back and he was going to witness yet another scene where her daughter clearly showed who was in control of the house. Not that she wanted to keep comparing styles but she had to agree that Lily-Grace was easier and dare she say it, nicer than Sophia could be at times. She knew there was a sweet kid in there somewhere but at the moment she was being kept well under wraps. Maybe it was time she took a stand. The fact that they were having an argument so late over a bag of popcorn didn’t seem to hit her until she felt she was at a point of no return. “Sophia, take the popcorn out of the microwave,”
Sophia kept hitting buttons until the machine sprung to life.
That was it, Destiny hit breaking point. She leaned past Sophia and pressed the door opener, grabbed the partially popped bag and tossed it into the trash. “Soph, go to bed,” she said.
Sophia stared at her and then slammed the microwave shut. “I hate you!” she screamed. “And not in an I’m gonna love you again tomorrow kind of way! Like, I will hate you for the rest of my life!” She kicked over the step stool and ran up the stairs to her room.
Destiny felt her heart rip in two. What the hell had she done and what was she supposed to do now? Did she try and fix this, talk to the child? Was this all part of the plan? The stupid thing was, she had been trying to wrestle back control and all she had done was alienate her daughter. And she had never felt more out of control in her whole life.
She picked up the stool and then stood there in the kitchen with tears rolling down her face. What kind of a mess had she created here?
* * *
There was a quiet tapping on the door and she took herself off to answer it. Just what she needed, a knight in shining armor. “Hey,” she said. “You managed to get Lily-Grace into bed?”
“Yeah, she was tired. She got her pjs on and was out like a light within minutes, she didn’t even read tonight.”
“Oh wonderful, she reads before she goes to sleep,” Destiny said, only slightly sarcastically. No trying to block her from watching the Kardashians on cable then.
“It’s a great way to wind down at the end of the day, don't you think for kids?”
“Soph is not much of a reader; she’s more of a television kind of girl.”
“She has a television her room?”
“Well, yes, we are well into the twenty-first century here you know.”
“I know,” he started but stopped before he finished what he was about to say. “Are you okay? Did something happen?”
Destiny burst into tears. She nodded and tried to talk but she was really upset. This wasn’t pretty crying where a gentleman gets out a handkerchief and helps the lady dab at her tears. Although there was no denying that Justin was a gentleman, she was no lady and this was a distressing time. It was an ugly crying time. She actually snorted and it wasn’t pretty at all. The more she tried to explain what was wrong with her, the messier it became. Honestly, if Justin had run from the house and pulled the door shut behind him, she wouldn’t have blamed him. What he did choose to do made her heart swell. He ran to the downstairs bathroom and grabbed a roll of toilet paper. Then he scooped her up and sat on the love seat, cradling her in her arms; rocking and soothing her until she calmed. “She hates me. She fucking hates me,” she finally managed to spit out.
“Aw, honey, she doesn’t hate you, she loves you more than anyone. She’s petrified. Her life has been all comfort and happiness, now here comes a new person, something that she always wanted but it comes at a price. Her life is changing and she feels totally out of control.”
“Why do you think that Lily-Grace reacted so differently? She seemed to just take it all in her stride.”
“Lily-Grace has a routine, she has grown up that way and it’s what she knows. I am the person in charge and she knows that, she’s comfortable with that because her only job is to be a little girl. She makes mistakes and she gets punished and then we move on. Life doesn’t have to always be about life-long blame and retaliation. There is no harmony in anarchy.”
“How do you do it? Get control like that? I tried and I ended up with an even angrier little girl who shouted that she’d always hate me and ran away. What do I do with that? I can’t control her feelings. If she hates me, she does. Maybe I deserve that.”
“Don’t talk like that, I mean it.”
“You don’t want to move in here with us do you? I’ll even let you be the one in charge, I don’t think I can change or change the way Soph and I live, not by myself.”
“That’s a dilemma, honey,” Justin said. “I could easily and happily do that, but I don't think it will solve the problem with you and Soph. You need to get that dynamic working first, which I will help you with, of course. Then there’s my job; I’m the school principal, I can’t really be living in sin in a small community like this, it’s also not the message I would like to give the girls. When the time is right, I’d rather do this properly.”
“Are you asking me to marry you?” She was half joking.
“Not yet, I am telling you though that I am committed to getting this family into some kind of working order.”
“I guess I can take that.” She had to admit she was a little disappointed. It would be a lot easier in some ways for him to move in and take over, she was feeling envious of Lily-Grace at this point.
“And, I really like us being us again, if that’s what you want too?”
That took her by surprise a bit, although she was sitting in his lap and his hand was pretty much down her pants where he was squeezing her butt cheek. “I like being us again too.” She kissed him softly. “God, I hope we can make all this work out.”
“We will, I’m confident of that, honey.”
“Are you staying for a while?” she asked hopefully.
“Not a good idea, I don’t think,” he said. “I have school tomorrow.” He retrieved his hand.
She looked confused.
“We have a spectator on the stairs,” he whispered. “I might just go say goodnight to her and then I’ll go. So lunch t
omorrow?”
“I’ll be waiting,” she smiled. “Eat your lunch before you get here,”
“Good idea,” he said with a chuckle before giving her a peck goodbye.
“Come down and give me a hug before I go, Soph, and then you better go to bed,” Destiny heard him say.
* * *
All seemed to be quiet when Destiny got out of the shower. She donned her favorite pajamas and climbed into bed. She lay there for a while, trying to stop her mind from running away from her and when she couldn’t, she switched the television on. When she looked up through the dim light in the room, Sophia was standing in the doorway staring at her.
“Hi, Soph,” she said.
“Hi, can we talk?” she asked.
Destiny immediately flipped back her covers. “Anytime, you know that.”
Sophia ran across the room and jumped into the bed, although she didn’t immediately fall into her mother’s arms. She lay there on the opposite pillow just staring at the ceiling.
“Do you have something on your mind?” Destiny prompted gently.
“I’m sorry that I said I hated you, Mommy, I didn’t mean to make you cry.” Sophia said. “I don’t hate you, but I am mad at you.”
“Yeah, I guess you have reason to be mad.”
“What the hell happened that you would keep me a secret from my dad?”
“Look, just so you know, this is not really stuff for kids so I’m going to give you the abridged version; though it is the truth. The whole thing was a misunderstanding. I thought I saw something that I didn’t really see and that’s all.”
“Okay, I guess. Will you tell me the unabridged version when I’m older?” Sophia asked.
“I don’t know, let’s just get through what we have to get through now, okay? It’s not such a bad thing spending some time with Justin and with Lily-Grace is it?”
“Told you she’s a goody two-shoes.”
“Name calling isn’t nice now is it? She’s your sister and she seems really nice to me.”
“I guess, she okay.”
“What about Justin, what do you think about him?”
“I think that if he asks you to marry him you just better say yes that’s all.”
“Good to know.”
“Can I sleep in here with you tonight, Mom?”
“You sure can.”
* * *
“Send her in please, Katie,” Justin said.
“Hi,” Sophia said.
“Here’s what I think we’re going to do with the school situation,” Justin said. “The same way I handle things with Lily-Grace. School is school and home is home. So what happens at school is handled at school and what happens at home is handled at home, that is the good stuff and the bad stuff, sound okay to you?”
“I guess,” Sophia said.
“Good, that will make life easier for both of us I think. So yesterday when we were on the way to the classroom, you fed me a story that was designed to make your mother look bad, agreed?”
“Kind of,” Sophia said.
“That was wrong and I won’t accept that kind of behavior. I am the principal, Sophia, what you told me could have gotten your mother in a lot of trouble. From now on I only want you to tell the truth. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Justin, I get it.”
“That’s the other thing, while we’re at school, I want you to call me sir, not Justin, okay? At home you can call me Justin but at school it wouldn’t be right.”
“Okay,”
“Now, there’s the matter of your punishment.”
Sophia rolled her eyes.
“Did you just roll your eyes at me, miss?” he asked.
“I don’t know, not on purpose, maybe it was an accident,” Sophia said. “It’s just that you said things would be different and you would help me be happier. How can I be happier if you're punishing me?”
“That is an interesting question, Sophia. Punishing you will show you how to be happier. If you don’t do the right thing, you get punished and if you do the right thing, good things happen. It isn’t all about punishment, the rewards can be worth getting too.”
“What good things?”
“Well, I hear that Mr. Jenkins and one of the other teachers are going to be having a game of softball after lunch. If you had behaved, you would be playing too. However, you made a poor choice, so while the children are playing, you’re going to be doing an important task for me.”
“That’s not fair,” she whined.
“Well, if you want to play next time, all you have to do is play by the rules and make better choices,” he said. “Now, you may go to class. After lunch, I want you to go to Mrs. Grady’s first grade class, where you are going to be helping the younger children with their reading.”
“What do I have to do?” she asked.
“Whatever Mrs. Grady asks you to do, with a smile. If I get a good report from Mrs. Grady, then that will be then end of your punishment and you’ll be free to play next time, so long as you stay out of trouble.” He watched carefully for her reaction.
“Is this what you would do to Lily-Grace if she did what I did?”
“Of course,” he answered.
“Okay then I guess, I’ll try.”
“Good girl, now you better go to class.”
* * *
Destiny opened the door, full of questions. “Does anyone know yet? Is Soph okay? What did Lily-Grace say about all this, this morning?”
“Okay, okay, one question at a time. Firstly, Soph is fine, Lily-Grace loves you both and as far as I know, no-one knows anything.”
“Did you tell Lily-Grace not to say anything?” Destiny asked.
“No, of course not, you? Did you ask Soph not to say anything?”
“No, she actually came and slept with me last night. She apologized. I didn’t want to upset the apple cart and I didn’t want to make her think that any of this was something to be ashamed of. I kind of hoped she might keep it to herself for a bit.”
“Desi?”
“Yes, Justin?”
“No more questions.” He scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder, heading for the stairs.
“What are you doing?” She giggled, slapping him on the back as he ran up the stairs.
“Time management is part of my job.” He spanked her rear end playfully.
“Well, I did my part,” she said with a giggle. “I’m only wearing my robe.” When he plonked her on the bed, she undid her belt and let it her robe fall to the sides. “See?”
“I do see. I see you’ve been busy this morning,” he said with a grin.
“You like?” she said touching her newly shaved mound. “It’s so soft.”
“Oh yes, it’s very pretty.” He dropped to his knees and pulled her towards him. “I don’t have much time here but I just have to at least taste you.”
Destiny gasped as his devoured her, his fingers parting her and his tongue dancing around her swollen nub. His mouth gripped her mons and he sucked it so hard that she thought she was going to explode, “Justin!” she squealed.
He chuckled into her thigh. “Oh, I wish we had more time.”
“Oh, I wish we had more time too, for you to keep doing that, all day.” She wriggled back on the bed and he climbed on top of her, sucking each nipple as he slid inside her, the relief made her whimper as his own pelvis ground against the place his mouth had just been. “Oh, God,” she could have cried, it felt so good.
“That’s okay, you can call me Justin,” he chuckled.
Destiny wrapped her legs around him, kicking his ass; urging him to go faster, deeper. She hadn't realized how much she missed this until she felt him inside her. Their eyes locked and there were no more jokes. He kissed her, long and sweet; their tongues dancing in their exploration. “So good,” she said.
“Good is not a descriptive enough word.”
“Man, you are so a teacher now aren't you?”
“I don’t have time for your cheek.” He tappe
d her thigh. “Open wider.”
She did as he asked and he surged into her, immediately starting the tingles at the tips of her toes, his thrusts were desperate and she clung on for dear life, as swirls of her own pleasure burst through her. A rumble from deep in her chest surged up and escaped as a strangled squeal; a high pitched harmony to Justin’s low growl.
“Sorry,” he said, as he collapsed on top of her. “More finesse next time, I promise.”
“Don’t apologize,” Destiny said. She was still coming down from one of the most intense experiences she had ever had. Her legs were trembling beneath him. “You could though, shift to the side a little, need to breathe,” she panted
He chuckled. “So sorry, I need to get back anyway.”
Destiny pouted. “I wish you could stay a little longer.”
“I do too. How about I bring Lily-Grace over tonight and we order pizza?” he asked.
“Sounds great.”
“Oh, Desi? Why don’t we each get the kids to do their homework early, then they can relax and so can we?”
“Okay,” she said although, she wasn’t sure how well that would go down with Sophia.
* * *
Destiny waited anxiously for Sophia; picking her up was always a game of chance, she never knew what she was going to get. “Hey there,” she said as the little girl hopped in the car.
“Hi, Mom,” Sophia answered.
“How was your day?” Destiny asked, watching in the rear view mirror for the look on Sophia’s face as she answered.
“It was okay. Justin stopped me from playing a game with the class after lunch because I told that story yesterday,” she said. “And he made me go to the first grade. I had to help them do reading and color between the lines.”
“Oh, well I guess there are worse punishments right?”
“Yeah I guess,”
“Justin and Lily-Grace are coming to dinner tonight, we’re getting pizza!” Destiny hoped it would be welcome news and it seemed to be.
“Nice,” Sophia said. “Can we get dessert for after the pizza?”
“Sure, what’d you think would be a good idea?”
“Can we get cheesecake?”
“I think we could manage that.” Destiny drove to a local store that made the best ever vanilla bean cheesecake with raspberries.
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