by Golden Angel
When she stepped into the kitchen, Ryan hooted and started to applaud. The other servers in there immediately followed suit, as did the chefs. Obviously restaurant gossip had already made quick work of spreading the word on how she’d dealt with the bitchy woman. One of the reasons people loved working at Murphy’s was because they knew the management wouldn’t force them to cater to people who were rudely unreasonable.
"Thank you, thank you," she said, taking a laughing bow before giving them a mock-stern look. "Now back to work!"
They all chuckled, not that they needed to be told that they were in the middle of a rush. But they appreciated the joke.
By the end of the shift, Maria was exhausted. She finally got home around eight o'clock, starving and feeling a bit burnt out. Lunch had gone smoothly enough, but the dinner shift had seemed cursed. Not only had there been a major pile-up on one of the major roads nearby, causing half the servers and bussers to be late, but they'd had some trouble with the hood over the firewood oven in the kitchen and that had started pouring out smoke...
Fortunately it happened before they had any guests in the restaurant, but the entire kitchen had filled with smoke and she and the evening manager, Blake, had talked with the Executive Chef and realized that they couldn't open for dinner that evening. She'd called James and Jeanne to let them know. Then she and Blake had called every single person on their reservation list, the staff that hadn't made it in yet, and then had to call around and find a repair person who could come in early tomorrow morning. It had been a major pain in the butt all around.
The good news was that tomorrow morning was not her shift.
The better news was that she had leftover casserole in the fridge and wouldn't need to make dinner.
Settling herself on the couch with her meal and a very generous glass of wine, Maria let her mind drift to the Rick and spanking issue, which she'd managed to forget about for most of the day. Shocking, considering that last night she'd barely been able to sleep while her mind had turned over the possibilities.
She still didn't think she liked the idea of being spanked. On the other hand, for some reason, part of her did like the idea of a man that took charge in the bedroom. When was the last time she'd been with a guy that really knew exactly what he wanted and went for it? When Rick had been looming and intimidating, she'd been creaming her panties in a way that she’d never done before with any other guy. Well, maybe Johnny Depp. But definitely no man in her real life had ever made her feel that weak-kneed or flushed and squirmy, and Rick had done it twice now.
Maybe she could put up with spanking. Especially since he said he wasn't just a good-time guy, and she believed him. If he was seriously looking for a relationship, and he was attracted to her then she'd be crazy to pass up at least getting to know him better. After all, when was the last time she'd met a guy that she was this attracted to? That's if he still wanted to get to know her after yesterday.
She was sure he thought she was a flirt. A tease. A good-time girl just like she'd assumed he was. That's how she'd acted around him.
So maybe she needed to do something a little different.
******
Rick figured his morning workout was just about over, he was debating between doing another two laps or just finishing his work-out now, when he saw the pair of legs hanging down in front of the wall he was approaching. Steering himself slightly to the side so that he could grip the wall, he came up for air, pulling off his goggles at the same time so that he could actually see. Maria smiled blindingly bright at him as he blinked at her. She was back in the red bikini, water droplets on her stomach and thighs from his splashing as he'd approached, and her hair was piled in that heavy bun on top of her head again.
Being so close to her made his fingers itch to reach out and touch her. His shoulder was within an inch of her calf, so close that he could swear he could feel the heat of her skin. Her very nearness set him on edge, wondering what she wanted from him now. Wondering why his threat to spank her hadn’t kept her far, far away from him.
"Hi. I hope I'm not interrupting. You're usually done with your workout about this time," she said cheerfully. As if their confrontation at his front door hadn't happened two days ago.
"I was just finishing up," he said, carefully keeping his voice non-committal. He wasn't sure what she was up to now. After all, he'd only warned her to stay away from his apartment, not from him entirely. That might have been a mistake, although he hadn't thought she'd pop back up again. Definitely not so quickly. He cursed the pleasure that rose up in him at her presence, the hope that she might be interested in what he was offering.
"Don't you get bored? Swimming laps? I can't stand it. It's even worse than running because you can't listen to music or watch television while you're doing it."
"I think that's why I like it," he said, leaning back against the rope that kept the lap lane separate from the rest of the pool. If it was later in the day he'd feel the need to get out of the lane so that someone else could use it, but right now there wasn't anyone at the pool that would want to. Just some kids, a couple of teenage girls who were eyeballing the college frat boys that had shown up, and a few parents who obviously just wanted to laze about in the sun. "It's almost like meditating. Since I teach high school, I like the quiet."
"What do you teach?"
"High school English. I’ll be starting at Franklin High School this fall."
"Bet you're going to cause a stir among the girls," she said, kicking her legs a bit, not quit enough to break the water, as she grinned at him in a conspiratorial way, inviting him to share the joke.
Rick studied her, more than a bit confused. Everything about her body language said she was relaxed and being friendly, but that last remark was definitely flirtatious. For a minute he'd thought that perhaps she'd decided to just be friendly and ignore the attraction between them, maybe as a way to prove to herself that he hadn’t scared her. Now he wasn't sure what she was doing.
"Do you go running often?" he asked.
The little amused look she gave him said she hadn't missed his evasion away from being flirty. Even that made his cock stir. Good thing he was still in the pool. Because right now all he could think about was ways to wipe that little amused smile from her face.
"Not really, why?"
"You shouldn't listen to music while you do it. My friend Angel teaches a women's self-defense class and that's one of the things she stresses, always being aware of your situation, and that means being able to hear what’s around you."
"Or someone might jump out and put you over their knee?" she asked, teasingly, but he could see the curiosity in her eyes.
Telling his dick not to get too excited, Rick looked back at her, considering his response. He couldn’t help it, the way she was looking at him, the fact that she continued searching him out. It had to mean something, didn’t it? "Is that something you'd actually be interested in?"
To his surprise, she looked away, not meeting his gaze for the first time. Not meeting the challenge. It was almost... submissive.
Wait for her to actually answer before you jump all over her, Romeo.
"I don't know," she said, softly, turning back to look at him. But as soon as her gaze met his, her eyes lowered again and he had to stifle the urge to pull her down into the pool with him so that he could get a little bit closer. See what other reactions he might be able to surprise from her. She peeked at him from underneath her eyelashes. "I thought maybe we could just start with flirting."
Rick wanted to make a comment about how two days ago she'd wanted to start with sex, but he stamped down on the urge. Not only would it be rude, but it would be entirely counterproductive. He'd been very clear about what he wanted, and if she was still truly interested in getting to know him, and she hadn't been completely scared off by the threat of a spanking, then he shouldn't push her away immediately.
While he would have preferred to meet someone at Stronghold, someone who was already familiar wit
h the lifestyle, he also realized that so far that hadn't exactly been working. Neither had his resolve to stay away from his gorgeous neighbor. At the very least, maybe as they got to know each other, the initial attraction would fade. As long as she wasn't throwing herself at him, just looking for a hot night, then he could keep his own impulses under control.
He glanced over at the clock on the lifeguard's station wall.
"Unfortunately, I have to go," he said, letting his reluctance show. "I've got some stuff to do today."
"Okay." This time her bright smile didn't completely hide her disappointment or the little flash of hurt.
Damn. He didn’t mean for that to be a rejection.
"I really do have some stuff to do," he said, apologetically. "I'll be back here tomorrow." He gave her his own best flirtatious smile. “If you want to come by and chat… or flirt.”
Her smile changed, subtly, becoming more natural. "Okay. I'll see you then."
"Good."
Since he didn't dare touch her, Rick pushed himself over to the other side of the lane and pulled himself up the ladder. Just being so close to all that gorgeous bare skin and those lush curves had his dick half hard; if he actually touched her, he was pretty sure he'd be sporting wood for everyone to see. Maria was already moving her legs out of the swimming lane and into the regular part of the pool.
He watched as she slipped down into the water, sighing with pleasure as the cool liquid enveloped her skin. Thank god for a clammy cold bathing suit or that might have done him in.
Looking up at him with those gorgeous dark brown eyes, she smiled. The red suit was clinging to her curves and he could clearly see the outline of her nipples from getting into the cold water. "Have a good day."
He cleared his throat. "You too. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Looking forward to it."
The sultry way she said it made the simple words incredibly flirtatious. Rick just nodded his head and turned to go get his towel. Otherwise he was never going to be able to make himself leave the pool.
Unfortunately, he'd promised Justin some help in the office today. Adam hadn't found someone to hire as Justin's assistant yet, because there wasn't quite enough work for a full-time position, and so Rick had said he'd come in and do what he could to help.
But he could let them know that he'd be a little bit late tomorrow.
After a quick shower and change into office clothes, Rick couldn't help glancing out the window at the pool. Maria was still down there, he was sure it was her, in the pool splashing and horsing around with what looked like those two college frat-boys. Gritting his teeth, Rick made himself turn away and get his ass out the door, telling himself that he wasn't jealous.
He wasn't.
******
“Earth to Rick… hello Rick…”
Blinking, Rick gave himself a little shake and focused on Justin’s amused dark eyes. “Yeah? Sorry, what did you say?”
“Are you feeling okay, man?” Adam asked. “That’s the third time in the past half hour you’ve completely zoned out.”
They were all in Justin’s office eating lunch together, which was what usually happened whenever Rick came in to work. Adam had the neatest desk, but it still had a lot of paperwork on it, and Rick’s desk tended towards the messy side since he wasn’t in every day. Although, to be honest, his workspace always seemed to be organized chaos. He managed to be neat at home, but it just doesn’t translate over to work for some reason.
"I'm fine."
"Are you thinking about a woman?" Justin asked.
"Why is that the first thing your mind goes to?" Which wasn’t really an answer. Rick knew he was being a bit evasive, but he just didn’t really know what to say to his friends. There wasn’t exactly anything concrete between him and Maria, he was spinning fantasies. About all he could tell them was that he was hung up on a woman and he couldn’t stop thinking about all the dirty things that he’d like to do with her, and on top of that, he kept thinking about how he could adjust things in his life to make a relationship with someone like her work. That he was thinking about things like making her dinner when she was home from work late, which he’d noticed that she did, thinking about how to reduce her stress and get her to relax… the things a boyfriend would do for his woman. Or a Dom would do for his sub.
Yeah, he was so not spilling his guts over lunchtime like that.
"Because Jessica told me that Olivia told her that you're having girl problems."
"What the fuck," Rick said, not exactly angry, but more than a bit confused at how that had happened. "How did Olivia know?" Stupid question. Even as he asked it, the answer popped into his head. Damn Jared anyway. He'd probably thrown Rick under the bus to get Olivia off his case about Marisa. Not that Rick entirely blamed him. Olivia was like a rabid dog about Marisa. And this was another good reason why he didn’t want to just blab about himself to his friends; the gossip grapevine was out of control.
Justin just shrugged, obviously not particularly interested in where the news came from as he was in confirming it. "So is it a woman?"
"A neighbor," Rick said shortly. "There is no problem. We're just friends." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he knew that it wasn’t true. They weren't really friends. Hell, up until this morning, he'd been trying to chase her away from him, and he still wasn’t sure that he should change that tactic.
Normally he would have probably been a little more willing to share with his friends, which is probably why they had noticed that he wasn’t really keeping up with the conversation. While he tended to keep things close to his chest, he’d always been pretty open about his desire to find a girlfriend and submissive. But he found himself reluctant to talk about Maria. Not just because he wasn’t sure where things were going with her yet, but also because he didn’t really want to share her yet. The only reason he’d done so with Jared was because he’d been so frustrated and pissed off with himself. Now he was starting to think that maybe he and Maria could be more than friends, but he didn’t want to talk about it. Talking about it, before anything had actually happened, felt almost like jinxing it. Superstitious nonsense, but Rick still couldn’t quite shake the feeling.
Besides, if things didn’t work out between him and Maria, he didn’t need the teasing.
With the raise of one eyebrow, Adam said everything he needed to without even opening his mouth. Justin just smirked. Bastards.
"So how are things going with Angel?" Rick asked, changing topics to something he knew Adam would find uncomfortable. "Is she moving in yet?"
Predictably, Adam scowled. Which meant that he was still working on getting his girlfriend to do what he wanted. Adam tended to be dominant outside the bedroom as well as in, although he wouldn’t admit that. He just liked to think of himself as a bit of a control-freak. Angel was definitely submissive, but not so much in her day to day life. So far she was still insisting that she wouldn’t be moving in till she and Adam had been together for at least a year. "Most of her stuff is at my place."
"But she's still paying rent for her room at her house, right?" Rick asked, teasing. Nothing like bringing up Angel's living arrangements to get Adam's nose out of other people's business. It made him all sorts of cranky. Especially because her current room was at a house with three guys.
Rick had met all of her housemates and they were all nice guys, Angel treated them all like brothers, but it had definitely been hard for Adam to get his own possessive tendencies under control when it came to Angel’s friends. Most of which were male. All things considered, Rick thought Adam actually dealt with it pretty well. He got along with Angel’s friends, the fact that she lived with a bunch of guys wasn’t why he wanted her to move out – he just wanted her to live with him, and for the most part he didn’t get super caveman on her.
The big blonde grumbled something about semantics under his breath while Rick and Justin grinned at each other.
"Speaking of living arrangements, did you know that Liam's bought
a ring?" Justin asked.
"What? Already?" Rick tried to remember when Liam and Hilary had met... it was getting close to a year. Wow. He felt an immediate rush of excitement and happiness for them, and at the same time, the usual wistful envy that he got whenever he thought about his friends’ relationships. That was the emotion that had helped spur his move north; seeing how happy his friends were in their relationships.
Liam and Hilary’s relationship was especially encouraging for him right now, because Hilary had been a complete newbie to the scene when she and Liam had first met. Actually, if he remembered correctly, Liam had actually tried to scare her off at first. But, as Jessica’s best friend, he hadn’t been able to entirely avoid her and she’d kept showing up at the club. When she’d shown up for an Introduction Scene, Patrick had paired them together purposefully. So they’d had a happy ending.
Unfortunately, Maria didn’t know any of his friends, so it wasn’t like she was just going to show up at Stronghold out of the blue. That would be way too serendipitous. Hilary had had Jessica to support her and urge her out of her shell; if Maria was going to come to Stronghold, the person getting her there would be Rick. Now that was an idea.
"I don't think he's going to ask her right away, but he has the ring now."
Adam grinned, obviously nothing but happy for their friends. Of course, he wouldn’t be feeling envious right now; he had a girlfriend and could look towards doing something similar in the future. They all knew Angel was going to move in with him eventually, the only question was whether or not Adam would be able to get her in on his timetable or if she’d stick to hers. "Think he'll do it at the club?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Cuz he's romantic."
"What's not romantic about that?"
"And you wonder why Angel won't move in with you," Justin taunted. Adam scowled again.
"I can be romantic."
"Maybe you should ask Olivia for some advice," Rick said, laughing at the big blonde's affronted look. Adam was glaring at Justin who looked remarkably like Chris as he snickered. Those two had definitely rubbed off on each other now that they were in a relationship with the same woman; Justin had relaxed and Chris had become more dominant. It was kind of interesting to watch. "She's gotten pretty close to all the girls."