“And you want me,” I reminded him. The desire burned inside me mixed with anger, and I needed to prove him wrong just as much as I needed to have him inside of me. I climbed onto his lap, wrapping my legs around his hips and planting my hands on the waistband of his briefs.
“You want to be my first,” I whispered, sliding over his lap and feeling the sharp ridge of his cock rising up under the fabric of his briefs. “Come on, Caleb. I’ve been brave. I’ve put myself out there. Now why don’t you tell me what you’re thinking for a change?”
“You’re a little cock-tease,” he said through gritted teeth. “I think you’re a guppy trying to swim with a shark. I think you’re in over your head.”
“You think I’m afraid of you,” I whispered, pressing my lips into his chest. I didn’t know where this side of me had been hiding all of my life, but now that she had been exorcised, I couldn’t stop myself. I was out of control. I was drunk on the thrill of feeling Caleb’s body pressed against mine.
My panties were slick from my excitement and I needed him to rip them off. I needed him to make me feel those things again. I needed him to work his magic, make my body bend and burn in response to his touch.
“You should be afraid of me.”
“Why?”
“Stop asking stupid questions,” he muttered, pressing his lips into neck as his hands wrapped around my bare ass cheeks. He spread my ass apart, sinking his fingers deeper into my skin until I yelped with pain.
“Then give me one good reason why you can’t fuck me,” I dared him.
“Because,” he warned, squeezing tighter, digging his nails into my flesh. “I can’t just have meaningless sex with you, Daisy.”
I took a deep breath, my head spinning with what he just said. We were past the point of being shy. We were beyond being bashful. I felt his cock throbbing between my thighs and the only thing separating us was wet fabric.
“Don’t make me ask twice,” I whispered.
He released his grip on my ass and I feel his open palm swat my skin. The pain stung my skin, but as it trembled through my slit it turned to pleasure and my entire body ached for him to be inside me.
He stood up suddenly, wrapping my legs around his waist so he could carry me, and then he was pushing us through the door back to the pool. The cool air was a shock, replacing the hot steam that my skin had gotten used to.
He tossed me down onto an empty pool bed and then he was digging through the heap of clothes he left by the side of the pool.
He dropped down to his knees and grabbed my panties, working them down my hips. Then his lips crashed between my legs, finding the same spot that brought me waves of bliss before.
I was instantly on the brink of coming, but he stopped when he tasted the climax building up inside of me.
When I saw him pulling down his briefs, I understood why. He was going to finish the job with his cock.
I sucked in a deep breath when I saw him exposed, thick and throbbing, glistening with desperation to get inside of me. I whimpered, wondering how he was supposed to fit inside of me, and Caleb glanced down at me.
“Tell me what you want.”
“I want you to fuck me.”
“Are you sure?”
“Get inside me.”
That was all the invitation he needed. He thrusted into me, not taking his time, and I felt my walls scream as they open around his thick shaft. I felt my insides rip apart from his size, and the pain was almost too much to stand.
He planted his palm over my chest, pressing me into the bed as he thrust again, and my body shattered. But then my cells started to fuse back together, my muscles mended themselves, my skin adapted, and I felt something other than pain.
I felt my hips buck up, inviting him deeper inside of me. He grunted as he indulged me. And all at once, I felt the explosive orgasm rip through my entire body.
What Caleb did with his mouth was incredible, but feeling him inside me as my body burst around him it was better than anything I ever could have imagined.
It was bliss.
It was like dying and coming back to life again, all in the span of a few seconds.
I couldn’t stop myself from moaning, and my cries mixed with his grunts as he climaxed too.
And in that moment, I realized that I would never be the same again.
14
CALEB
The phone rang on my desk and I picked up the receiver without glancing at the digital caller-ID screen.
“This is Caleb Preston.”
“Caleb!” a familiar voice gushed, and I immediately felt my shoulders clench up. I hadn’t heard that voice in years, but it immediately filled me with the same sense of dread that I felt the last time my sister Calista called.
The circumstances have always varied, sometimes she would be calling from a holding cell at jail, other times she would be on the side of the road, calling because she just crashed her car, but she couldn’t call AAA because she was drunk.
I wasn’t sure what I hated worse, the years and years of those surprise phone calls, begging me to come to the rescue and clean up whatever mess Calista had gotten herself into, or the years of silence that followed.
But now things were different. I had been waiting on this phone call. I had been counting the days, wondering when Calista would finally show some semblance of remorse or regard for her daughter.
“Calista,” I said finally, exhaling and forcing myself to stay calm. There were so many things I want to say to my sister. But I knew there was no point in getting them off of my chest now. I needed to figure out what the plan was. I needed to know where she was, how long she would be there, and what steps she was taking towards building a stable home for Emmy.
“I’m sorry I haven’t called sooner,” Calista said. Her voice sounded soft and shy. A far cry from the drunken slur I had gotten used to in years past.
“Where are you?” I asked, ignoring the apology. That was another thing I’d gotten used to. Empty apologies. My sister was never sorry for the bad decisions that she made, and she was never sorry for the impact that her actions had on the people around her. If anything, she was sorry she got caught, sorry she had to spend a night in the drunk tank instead of downing shots at the club, sorry she had to look after a screaming infant instead of jetting off for a five day bender in the Virgin Islands with her famous friends.
“I’m in the hospital,” she sniffled in a small voice. “Caleb, I think I really fucked up this time.”
“You say that every time.”.
“God, I know.” Her voice cracked and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.
“Emmy is ok,” I said. That should have been the first thing she asked. How was her daughter? Was Emmy ok? Was she safe? Was she happy? Was she asking any questions? Was she asking why her mother hadn’t come home yet?
“I knew she would be,” Calista said sadly. I wanted to slam down the phone, because I was disgusted with how selfish my sister is.
“No,” I said, “You assumed that she was ok. You assumed I would take care of things for you, just like I always do.”
“Caleb…”
“Calista,” I cut her off sternly. “This isn’t about you and me. If you want to let your life go up in smoke, that’s your prerogative. But you can’t take that sweet little girl down with you.”
“I know, I… I…”
“No,” I stopped her. “I don’t want to hear your excuses. I don’t. There’s nothing you can say that would justify the way you abandoned your daughter.”
“I’m trying to get better,” she sniffled. “I swear, Caleb. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I checked myself into treatment, because I knew I couldn’t do this anymore.”
“Good,” I said, shaking my head. I’d heard this a dozen times before. I have heard the tears, the emotional appeals. I did not believe it anymore. Until my sister came home, sober and ready to behave like a decent human being, I would not believe it. “I hope, for Emmy’s sake, that yo
u can get your life together.”
I was tempted to hang up the phone.
“Calista, just to be clear, I’m not doing this for you, I’m doing this for Emmy.”
Then I slammed down the phone and sunk back into my chair. My head was throbbing and I needed to get out of this office. I reached for my cell phone and I pulled the thread of text messages that I’ve exchanged with Daisy.
“Join Emmy and I for dinner tonight?”
I hit ‘send,’ and then I second-guessed myself. This wasn’t exactly a sexy follow-up to our last date, but before I could think too much about it, her response showed onto the screen:
“As long as it’s our little secret :)”
I smiled, sliding my phone back into my pocket, and despite the phone call from Calista, everything somehow felt brighter.
15
| DAISY
“God, look at you,” Raven rolled her eyes as she watched me grin into the screen of my phone. “You’re so smitten with this guy that literally it’s disgusting.”
“Shut up,” I said, even though her comment made my smile grow wider.
“I know that look,” Raven eyed me up and down knowingly. “You got the D.”
My entire face burned bright red and I slapped her arm, glancing around the schoolyard to make sure nobody overheard.
“You did!” Raven insisted. “Don’t deny it.”
“That’s none of your business,” I snapped. “And besides, I shouldn’t be talking about this at school anyway. Not after what Mr. Richmond said--”
“Ok, Mr. Strict-mond needs to loosen the hell up,” Raven said, rolling her eyes again. “And you, missy, need to give me all the dirty details.”
I sighed, then I flicked my eyes to her. I tried to keep a straight face, but my resolve immediately melted and I busted into a huge smile.
“Ok, ok,” I admitted. “We might have,” I nodded my head, filling in the blanks.
“Oh my God!” Raven squealed, grabbing my shoulders and pulling me in for a hug. This time, a few pairs of curious eyes do looked our way, but Raven ignores them.
“Finally!” she gushed. “Do you know how long I’ve waited for this? Oh my God I feel like I should get you a cupcake or something. Do you want a cupcake? I want a cupcake.”
“Slow down,” I said, glancing around anxiously for any sign of Mr. Richmond. “Let’s not make a huge deal out of this.”
“It is a huge deal!” Raven clapped her hands together. Then, in a whisper, she added, “You’re a woman now!”
I stabbed her in the ribs with my elbow, and she finally forced herself to take a deep breath and contain her enthusiasm.
“I need all the details, obviously.”
“No way,” I said. “That’s private.”
“Please,” Raven rolled her eyes. “It’s Caleb Preston. The man is about as private as a bus stop bench.”
“Eww,” I grimaced.
“It’s true! Homeboy is hot as hell, but he’s got a bad reputation,” she said, and then, assessing the concerned look on my face, she added “But you knew that. You’re being smart about this, because you’re Daisy Wright, and Daisy Wright doesn’t trust anyone.”
I blinked reluctantly and Raven’s eyes went wide.
“Daisy,” she said. “Don’t tell me this is about more than just sex.”
“Of course not,” I sniffed quickly, shaking my head.
“Good,” she said firmly. “Because sex is all Caleb Preston is good for.”
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked. “Aren’t you usually nagging me to trust more? To give guys a chance? To stop being so cynical?”
“Well, yeah,” Raven shrugged. “But that doesn’t mean you should trust just anyone, and it definitely doesn’t mean you should trust someone like Caleb.”
I swallowed heavily, trying not to take her words to heart. I knew she was right. I knew that Caleb probably had a crazy tabloid persona that I wouldn’t understand, just like his sister Calista did. But I also believed that I was seeing a different side of him. That there was no way the man who just texted to invite me to dinner with him and Emmy could be the kind of womanizing monster that the newspaper headlines made him out to be. He may be more experienced than me, and maybe he had a wild past. But that did not have anything to do with who he was now.
“Just look out for yourself,” Raven shrugged. “That’s all I’m saying. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
Then the worry on her face twisted back into a smile.
“And I definitely want to hear a full report on what went down in the bedroom!”
I blushed and rolled my eyes, but inside the curiosity was eating me alive. I had avoided the tabloids and gossip sites, knowing that I wouldn’t find anything good if I did look. But now I suddenly couldn’t resist. I needed to know.
“Shit,” I said, patting my pockets. “I forgot my keys in my room. I’ll be right back.”
“Sure,” Raven nodded.
It was a lie, but it bought me some time to slink down to my room and pull up the web browser on my phone. With shaking hands I typed in Caleb’s name. The screen flashed white as the browser sluggishly struggled to load up, the cell service was hit or miss in my room, and I tapped my fingers on the desk, waiting.
I tried to prepare myself for the worst. What if he has a girlfriend? What if he’s seeing someone else? What if he’s been secretly married this entire time?
As I waited, anxiously tapping my feet on the tile floor, I tried to convince myself that I could handle anything I might uncover. After all, wasn’t this just about sex? Wasn’t I in control? Didn’t I already accept, implicitly, that whatever happened between Caleb and me was just physical?
So if I was so certain that I don’t care, then why was my heart pounding so frantically in my chest? Why was my stomach twisting with dread as I imagined all the possibilities that might be revealed when the search engine finished loading?
16
CALEB
“Operation ‘Transfer Sleeping Child’ was a success,” I said, raising my arms victoriously as I strode into the kitchen.
I did feel victorious. I just managed to transplant my sleeping niece from the living room couch, where she had drifted off watching a movie about princesses and talking candlesticks, all the way down the hall and to her bed without waking her up. That was no small feat, especially considering the obstacle course of discarded toys scattered over her bedroom floor.
“Well done, Mr. Mom,” Daisy said, glancing up at me as she dropped a stack of dirty plates into the overflowing kitchen sink, topping off the tower of stainless steel pots and pans that were already stacked precariously in a bath of apple dish soap-scented bubbles.
“You’re really good with her, you know. You’re a natural.”
She smiled but she looked conflicted. Like she was still trying to figure me out. Like she was struggling to reconcile how the bad boy could turn into a hero. How the billionaire hotel heir could turn into a doting father figure for his niece. And as much as it pained me, I knew she has a right to wonder.
Daisy turned on the tap and reaches for the dishrag but I stopped her, wrapping my hands around her waist from behind and pressing my body against hers.
“Don’t you dare,” I whispered into her hair, taking in a deep breath of Daisy. She smelled like pastel petals and springtime and the kitchen smelled like homemade spaghetti sauce mixed with the burning lavender soy candle that Daisy lit next to the sink, and altogether it smelled like home.
If someone had told me a month ago that my pristine apartment would be littered with dolls and dirty dishes and Disney movies, I would have balked. Or that the highlight of my week would have been cooking homemade pasta with my niece and her preschool teacher. But now I couldn’t imagine it any other way, now that I had seen so much life fill the walls of my apartment, I couldn’t imagine going back to the cold, silent sterility.
“These dishes aren’t going to wash themselves.”
“Fuck
the dishes,” I said, turning off the tap and sliding my hand back around her waist.
She doesn’t melt into my arms. She doesn’t press her body closer to mine. She resisted, she kept her back firm and rigid.
“What are you thinking?” I asked, loosening my grip on her waist.
“Nothing,” she said dismissively, planting her hands on the edge of the countertop.
“Tell me,” I insisted.
“I’ve just got a lot on my mind,” she bluffed. “Work stuff. I really shouldn’t be here, and I don’t want the headmaster to find out.”
“Don’t lie to me, Daisy.”
She twisted around in my grasp, angling her body so that she was facing me with her chest pressed against mine and her hands were gripping onto my arms, pulling them tighter around her. She was grinding her jaw and I could tell she wanted to say something, but she was holding back.
I felt the hesitation lull in her throat, and could see the conflicted look flash across her eyes. I had a pretty good idea of exactly what was on her mind. She had been flirting with the edge all night; keeping her distance, then allowing herself to get a bit closer, only to pull away again.
“Why did you tell me that I should be afraid of you?” she asked me. Her voice was tiny, but her eyes are intense as they dig deep into mine, looking for an answer.
“I told you that’s a stupid question,” I said softly, reminding her of the answer I gave the last time she asked me.
“You want me to be brave and ask for what I want,” she said, wrinkling her brow into a frown. “Well, I want you to answer that question, whether you think it’s stupid or not. Why should I be afraid of you?”
Her eyes were digging holes into mine and our faces were so close that I could taste the wine on her breath. She was holding my arms around her, locking us together and holding her body close to mine, but somehow she was still resisting, still holding back.
“Why do you think, Daisy?” I asked, my voice a low whisper. I swallowed heavily, because I did not want to ruin this moment with the truth; I did not want to shatter what we have by talking about things we both already knew.
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