by Twyla Turner
“What did he do?” Royal leaned forward. Wide awake now.
“Stopped the bleeding with his tie and told me it was okay.” Payton got a faraway look in her eyes and the girls gave her knowing smiles. “Anyway, he cleaned himself up at a convenient store and I got us some aspirin for our headaches. He brought me home and gave me a proper kiss at my door.”
“And…” Mia coaxed. “How was it?”
“It was…” Sigh. “Glorious. More glorious than finally seeing Stars Wars: The Force Awakens.”
“I would hope so.” Mia gave her a look.
“Uh…so…uh…did you know that your heartbeat goes…down there?” Payton pointed to her crotch area.
“Ay Dios mío, you have to be kidding me?!” Mia looked so exasperated she could choke Payton.
“What?”
“Have you not been listening to anything we’ve said over the past twelve years?” Mia asked.
“Well…no.” They all threw up their hands and let them drop back to their laps with resounding smacks. “I didn’t want to hear all of your sex talks. It wasn’t like I was ready or interested. I thought that I was asexual, like a plant, up until last night. We rode the trolley to the pier and he pressed his body against mine to keep weird strangers from touching me and I literally thought my body had been taken over by body snatchers. All my senses were heightened. I swear I thought I’d faint.” Payton fanned herself dramatically.
“That’s what we call, extreme attraction, honey,” Mia informed her. “Welcome to the club. I’m glad you could finally join us.”
“I had no idea,” Payton whispered with a breathy quality to her voice. Her face a picture of awe and happiness.
“So how was his kiss?” Kennedy asked and scooted her phone across the coffee table, closer to her new muse. “I know you wouldn’t really know the difference. But was he any good? Basically, was it swoon-worthy?”
“I definitely got the ‘Jimmy Legs.’” Payton used a reference from one of her favorite shows in syndication, Seinfeld. “Like my knees buckled and everything. He was so much gentler than Brett was. I wish I would’ve known Bradyn back then. Maybe then I wouldn’t be so messed up in the head when it comes to men.”
Royal wrapped her arm around Payton’s shoulders and squeezed comfortingly.
“Seriously, though. Because he had to stop when I freaked out. He got really passionate when I let him tongue kiss me.”
“French kiss.” Kennedy corrected. “Tongue kiss sounds like something a seventh-grade boy would say.”
“Oh, sorry. Anyway, he got really excited, I guess and pressed me against the door and held my hands up above my head, grinding his you-know-what on me. I got freaked out and asked him to stop.”
“Damn!” Mia shook her head sadly. “It sounds like the man knows what he’s doing. Too bad it couldn’t have gone further. But you’re making progress, mi amiga.”
“So when is the next time you’re gonna see him?” Royal asked.
“Uh…tomorrow at the gym?” Payton posed it as a question.
“Well, duh.” Royal shook her head. “But when are you going to hang out again?”
“I’m not certain. We haven’t planned anything, but he did say that he wanted another date.” Payton smiled softly.
They all smiled back at her.
“Progress…” Mia nodded.
They all nodded in unison.
~~~
He dreamt of soft skin the color of freshly brewed coffee without a drop of cream. Plush lips and large innocent eyes. Bradyn came awake with the largest, hardest erection of his life and the burning need to see her again. And he couldn’t wait until tomorrow evening.
With a purpose, he jumped out of bed as if he hadn’t just woken up from a deep sleep. He strode naked into his bathroom, his hard-on bouncing with every step. He leaned into his shower and turned on the spray to warm. He would’ve taken a cold shower to calm his aching body, but he had every intention of ‘rubbing one out’ to ease his desire.
Once in the shower, Bradyn let the water cascade over his head and down his body. He grabbed his bar of soap and worked up a nice lather in his large hands. He soaped his corded arms and sculpted chest and down the ripples of his abs. He headed for the part of his body that was calling her name. His sudsy hands stroked over his thick length and he shuddered, imagining it was Payton touching him instead. His hand slid to the tip of his cock, rounded the head, and glided back down.
Images of Payton the night before flashed before his closed eyes. Bradyn slapped a hand against the tiled wall of the shower, the other hand continued to work him over. His breath became labored and his chest rose and fell harshly. He felt his scrotum tighten and the bottom of his spine tingle. Saving the best memory of last night for last, Bradyn pictured and felt the moment Payton opened up and let his tongue plunge into her depths. The feel of the V between her legs as he rolled his hips into her was his undoing. Bradyn threw his head back and stroked quickly as shot after shot of hot liquid poured from his body.
“Aah fuck, lass!” He exclaimed as he rested his head against the shower wall and let the water rush over his back as he caught his breath.
Bradyn had never in his life wanted anyone as badly as he wanted the skittish computer geek. But he knew it was going to take time and patience. She was worth the wait.
So with that, he finished up the rest of his shower, tied a towel around his hips, threw a little hair wax on his hair and beard and combed them into submission. He glided his deodorant under his arms and sprayed a few shots of cologne on his neck and chest. Then he left the bathroom to head to his closet. It was time to pay her a visit. The seeds of an idea planted in his mind.
I said I’d be patient. I never said I wouldna be persistent.
About forty-five minutes and a trip to the grocery store later, Bradyn was outside of Payton’s condo. He got out of his Expedition, pulled out his cell and leaned against the car as he typed out a text to her.
Look outside.
Bradyn had purposely parked on the street where he figured some of the windows of her apartment faced. He watched for movement in the windows he assumed were hers. It took a few moments, but he wasn’t disappointed. He saw the blinds split as if someone was peeking out. Then they were quickly pulled up and he saw four shocked faces in the window.
Ah, the lassies came to see how our date went. Bradyn chuckled to himself.
His phone started to ring and he saw it was Payton.
“Mornin’, Payton,” he said after tapping accept.
“Morning. Uh…what are you doing here?” She asked hesitantly.
By the canned sound of her voice through the phone, he could tell that she had him on speaker. Her friends obviously needed to hear both sides of their conversation. So Bradyn dug deep and channeled The Red Scot.
“Get dressed. I’m taking ye to brunch,” he commanded and ended the call before she could respond.
He knew many women found it sexy to have a man take charge. But his hands still shook for being so demanding as he waited for her to call him back and tell him to ‘fuck off.’ Their reaction before one of them wisely shut the blinds, eased his mind, though. For a split second, he was certain he’d witnessed them jumping up and down in excitement. He smiled slightly and released a relieved breath.
After what he saw as a kid, he never wanted to force a woman to do anything she didn’t want to do. But he didn’t want to be a pussy either. It was a precarious balancing act that he was unused to. He usually let the women he slept with take charge since he was normally a man of few words. But Payton’s reserved and introverted nature forced him to pull out his dominant side. If he wanted the relationship to move forward, that is. If it were up to her, she’d still be ignoring him five days a week at the gym.
It took about fifteen minutes for Payton and her small entourage to emerge from her building. Bradyn couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face or his eyes from taking her in from head to toe behind his aviator
sunglasses.
Her hair was still up in a bun, but this time it was artfully messy. Sexy tendrils were purposefully left out to draw attention to her long neck. She wore a long, black and white diagonal striped skirt that floated around her ankles, with an off-the-shoulder yellow t-shirt. The one bare shoulder begged to be kissed. Bradyn was finding that he really loved the color yellow against Payton’s mahogany skin. If he could, he’d lay her down naked on a bed of yellow flower petals and then worship at her alter. Payton, patron saint of flawless ebony.
Bradyn pushed off of his car and walked towards her and her friends. She awkwardly pushed her sexy, schoolteacher glasses up on her nose. She kept her eyes down on the ground, refusing to look up at him. So, Bradyn addressed her friends first to give her a chance to gather herself.
“Lassies. Long time no see,” he teased, having just seen them the night before.
“Hey, Bradyn! We just thought we’d come by and make sure we didn’t have any reason to come and cut your dick off.” Mia teased back. Though her joke made Bradyn swallow thickly.
“Be nice!” The pale redhead hissed under her breath and elbowed the Latina before smiling sweetly at him. “Ignore her. We’re happy that you both had a great time last night.”
Mia retaliated with a shove. “It’s the truth! No point in sugarcoating it.”
“Come on you two.” Royal placed a hand on either of their shoulders and began to guide them towards the car they all came in. “Let’s let them go have fun.”
“You don’t always have to be a bitch, you know.” Bradyn heard Kennedy grumble at Mia as they walked towards a red Fiat.
“If it saves her from a Brett repeat, I’ll be as fucking bitchy as it takes.” Mia defended herself opening the passenger door.
“She’s got a point, Kennedy,” Royal commented as she got in the back seat.
And then they were gone, leaving Bradyn and Payton in the awkward silence brought on by their telling conversation.
“So…are ye ready?” Bradyn asked, deciding to ignore what was said but storing the info for a later date.
“S-Sure. Where are we going?” She took a deep breath and looked away from the retreating car to brave a look at him. Bradyn smiled brightly and removed his sunglasses to reassure her.
“It’s a surprise.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“I thought we were going to brunch,” Payton asked looking at the Palace of Fine Arts in front of her.
“We are.” Bradyn gave her a small secretive smile as he parked his SUV.
He shut off the engine and gave her a look when she reached for the door handle. Payton bit the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling but stayed put as he made his way around to open the car door for her. Once he helped her down, he opened the back door and reached inside. A tremor of fear ran down Payton’s spine, praying that he wasn’t going to ask her to get into the backseat. Things didn’t go well for her in the backseats of cars.
Bradyn stepped back and shut the door. In his hands were a huge picnic basket and plaid blanket in red, blue and black. Payton found herself blinking rapidly. Tears suddenly clouding her vision. Oh, my Gosh! I can’t believe this!
“What’s wrong? What did I do?!” Bradyn asked in concern at Payton’s weepy expression.
She shook her head quickly. “It’s nothing. I-I’ve just never been on a p-picnic before. It’s very sweet.”
The biggest smile she had ever seen, spread across his face like warm butter on toast.
“I wanted to do something nice fer ye. But no’ something as common as the movies,” he explained.
“I love it,” she said shyly.
“Good,” he let out a relieved breath. Payton realized that he was just as nervous as she was. “Come, let’s find a good spot.”
Luckily, the historical area was relatively quiet. They quickly found a spot under an old tree, in the shade, across from the historical palace with its Grecian columns and old world charm. A large pond separated them from the palace where swan couples swam together, entwining necks lovingly. It was the perfect backdrop for their own romantic moment.
Bradyn laid the plaid blanket out on the soft grass and helped her sit before placing the basket on the blanket and opening it up. He pulled out cut fruit, potato salad, a veggie salad, two types of sub-sandwiches and some chicken wings. Then he produced plastic plates and utensils and two plastic cups. The last items he pulled out of his magical basket of goodies was a bottle of champagne and orange juice.
“Ye canna have brunch without mimosas.” He winked flirtatiously.
“That’s some spread, you got there.”
“Only the best fer my lass.”
Payton’s whole body yearned at that phrase. He just called me his lady! Well, the Scottish version, anyway. Is this really happening…finally?
“W-When did you think of all of this?” Payton asked, gesturing around the whole setup.
“In the shower this morning,” Bradyn responded as he filled their cups. He gave himself only a little champagne since he was driving.
Payton’s train of thought stopped at the image of him in the shower. Naked. She had never been one to think about a naked man, but suddenly now, her brain was filled with tantalizing pictures. She swallowed hard and accepted the plastic cup filled with his mimosa concoction.
“Champagne glasses would’ve been nicer, but I figured they’d keep tippin’ over. So I went with regular plastic cups.” Bradyn explained the cheap cups as if she wasn’t totally charmed by the whole thing.
“I-I love all of it, Bradyn. N-No one has ever done anything like this for me before.” Payton admitted, hating how the whole truth always slipped out. She’d never learned how to hold back some of her thoughts. They always came pouring out like truth serum.
“That’s a damn shame.” Bradyn shook his head. “Ye should be worshiped like a queen.”
They stared at each other for several tense beats. Then Bradyn looked away and passed her a plate. They filled their plates and ate in silence for a while. Payton was stunned into silence by his last statement. She’d never thought of herself as a queen. Court jester? Maybe.
She felt the truth gurgling to the surface, choking her. “It was all me!”
Bradyn frowned in confusion. “What was?”
“N-No one has ever done anything like this for me before, b-because I refused to let anyone in. I shut myself off.” Payton admitted.
She pushed around the potato salad on her plate with her fork, unable to make eye contact with Bradyn as he absorbed what she’d just said. She saw him put his plate down and she looked up at him, finally making eye contact as he slid closer to her on the blanket. He took her plate and sat it to the side as well, and then reached out and cupped her face with one hand. The rough pad of his thumb stroked her soft cheek.
“No, lass.” Bradyn began as his ice blue eyes bore a hole through her soul. “Maybe ye succeeded in hiding from those who were already blind. Or maybe they were lazy an’ dinna want to put forth the effort to fight for ye. I am neither blind nor lazy. But I am a fighter. An’ I had every intention of fightin’ for ye the moment I laid eyes on ye.”
Under the spell of the words steeped in his rich, deep brogue, Payton went willingly when his hand that was cupping her face moved to the back of her neck and pulled her towards him. Their lips met and the same fire that had raged through her the night before began to blaze anew.
Bradyn pulled away a few inches and gazed at Payton. Their breath met harshly in the space between their kiss-swollen lips, as they tried to calm their racing pulses. When he finally spoke his words hitched Payton’s breath and made her heart race even faster.
“I-I wanted to bring ye here to ask ye something. T-This might sound silly and old-fashioned, but since I believe it will be a first fer both of us, I w-want to say… That is, I-I wanted to ask if ye wouldna mind terribly to uh…go steady with me? Ye know. Be my girl? B-Be mine, exclusively. And I, yours.” Bradyn finished and expelled a huge
shaky breath.
One word came to Payton’s mind. Her brain started chanting it. She was scared shitless. She’d never been in a relationship before. She had no idea how it was supposed to work. Or what to do. She was super smart about all kinds of things. But she was hopelessly clueless in regards to men. All those things still didn’t stop that word from swirling around and around in her head. So she looked up at Bradyn. His eyes were incredibly sincere in their pale blue depths. He also looked like he was going to have a panic attack at any minute, so she let the word bubble the surface.
“Yes.” Payton finally whispered the word, putting him out of his misery.
“Aye? Really?!” Bradyn asked, clutching her face.
Payton nodded her head between his massive hands. “Yes.” She said louder and with more confidence.
Bradyn pulled her to him and captured her lips with his in a toe-curling kiss. His hands still held her face, holding her captive as he worshiped her mouth. He alternated between soft kisses, deep strokes of his tongue against hers, and then drawing her lips into his mouth before releasing them with a gentle scrape of his teeth.
Payton had never been kissed so thoroughly in her life. Constant shivers ran up and down her body as if she was freezing cold, yet she was on fire. Payton was seconds away from pouncing on him. Something she never thought she’d even want to do. Before she could, though, Bradyn guided her down to the blanket. He brushed a tendril from her cheek and stroked a thumb across her smooth skin as he gazed down at her.
“I willna lie to ye, Payton. I want to make love to ye more than anything in the world right now. But I know yer not ready. So I just want to explore ye for a little while. I promise I willna take it too far. Is that okay? Do ye trust me?”