Licorice Whips

by Bridget Midway

  Deana nudged Nikla in her arm. “You can’t stop potential love.”

  Great. Now her best friend pressured her.

  Nikla thought about saying “no,” about disappointing Karen. Her shoulders and chest felt tight. She knew her breathing would be the next thing afflicted. Nikla hated letting anyone down. She didn’t want to be a pushover, either.

  “Why not just cancel your class? You’re allowed.” Nikla hoisted her bag onto her shoulder.

  “You’re right. But you can only do it three times in a four-month window. I’ve already done it three times. If I cancel a fourth class–” Karen swiped her hand across her throat.

  Nikla regarded the petite blonde for a moment. “I’m not saying yes yet. Let me get some lunch in me and think about it.”

  “Thank you!” The woman drew her into a bear hug. “I know you’ll say yes. You never say no.”

  That had been the story of Nikla’s life. She’d become the person who couldn’t say no.

  After her coworker ran out of the room, Nikla released a long breath.

  “You’re a nice person.” Deana wrapped her arm around Nikla’s shoulders.

  Nikla didn’t feel like a nice person. She felt like a doormat. Before relaying those thoughts to her friend, she smiled. “Let’s go. I’m starving.” Nikla headed to the door with Deana trailing behind her.

  Deana followed Nikla to their favorite eatery, one with a well-stocked salad bar and a lot of fresh items on the menu. Nikla worked hard to maintain her body. She wouldn’t be putting anything fattening or sweet in her mouth.

  “So are you still trying to get this workout studio off the ground, Jane Fonda?” Deana snickered as she placed her drink on the table.

  “Cute. Of course.” Nikla took a bite of her salad, then chased it with ice water. “I’m saving as much as I can.”

  “You’ve been saving for forever and a day. You probably have enough now to get a place somewhere.” Deana chopped off a hunk of her steak and chewed it like a wild animal.

  “I don’t want to get a place somewhere. I need to set up in just the right spot. I want to be in the middle of it all.” Nikla smiled as she thought about the possibilities of getting a spot in the middle of downtown Virginia Beach. “I don’t want to settle.”

  “Fine. So you want the best. Why not get your man to help you? You know he has the means.”

  Nikla shook her head. “I’m not using Justin or anyone else. I’m doing this all on my own.”

  Deana pumped her fist in the air. “You go, girl. Once you do open your place, I’ll be so proud of you. I just hope I see that happening within my lifetime.”

  “Very funny.” Nikla hoped for the same thing, too.

  “So when are you and Justin going to double with me?” Deana called the waitress over to get a refill on her sweetened iced tea.

  “When you pin yourself down to one man.”

  “Or woman?” Nikla’s friend winked at her.

  Nikla dropped her fork onto her plate, making a loud, clattering noise that alerted the patrons around them. “Are you switching teams?”

  Deana shook her head. “Just exploring options. I’ve never been with a woman before, but with the way things are now with guys, I’m tempted to try.”

  “If it’s not in your nature, don’t do it. You don’t want to lead anyone on and get their feelings hurt.” Nikla sighed.

  “Jesus, you are so serious. It’s just sex. It doesn’t have to be love.”

  “For me it does. Me? I need to be with a man, capital M kind of man.” Like the guy who tried scaring her away from the front of Decadent Treats.

  Justin approached that category, but his kindness and generosity made up for the fact that his slight frame didn’t qualify him as the type of man Nikla really wanted.

  Damn. Had she just admitted to herself that she had settled?

  No, Justin treated her well. No surprises.

  “When you pick your man or woman, let me know and we’ll arrange for a nice dinner.” Nikla left half of her food on her plate, another habit she developed when she started her weight loss journey.

  “Why does it have to be one or the other? I could come with both.” Deana laughed.

  “What in the world am I going to do with you?” Nikla couldn’t help but join in the laughter.

  “Just love me.” Deana leaned forward. “Now let’s get to some juicy topics. Sex still good with you and your boy?”

  Nikla kept smiling while her insides crumbled. Too bad she couldn’t lie to save her life. “It’s been a while since we’ve been together.”

  Deana cocked her head.

  Before her friend could inquire further, Nikla supplied her with more details. “With his busy schedule and mine, it’s hard for us to get together.”

  She would leave out the fact that sex had become humdrum and dull. Always the same: missionary. He would climax before Nikla could reach her orgasm. Being the nice guy, he always handed Nikla her trusty vibrator so that she could finish herself.

  “You need to find time or get adventurous.”

  “Adventurous?” Nikla wrinkled her nose.

  “Yeah, do it at work. Go to a building you two don’t work at and do it in the elevator.” A secret smile rose on Deana’s face. “One time I did it in a post office.”

  Nikla chuckled. “Liar. You didn’t do anything like that in front of a lobby full of people.”

  “No. Not during business hours. After hours when the office is closed and they leave the lobby open for people to go to their post office boxes.”

  Nikla shook her head. “That’s a little reckless. You know they have cameras all around there. You could have been arrested.”

  “Haven’t been yet.”

  Nikla requested their checks. “Thanks for the advice. I think I’m doing okay.”

  “And you’re happy with ‘okay’?”

  Nikla didn’t answer. If she were honest with herself, she would have broken up with Justin when they couldn’t make time for each other. How could she justify leaving a man who hadn’t done anything to deserve it?

  “Between my work, Justin, and my other activities, I don’t have time to plan out-of-the-box sex events.” Nikla placed her debit card in with her check for the waitress.

  “What other activities are you talking about?” Deana stared at her for a moment before she put her hand over her eyes. “Oh, God. Please don’t tell me you’re still doing that whole protesting thing?”

  Nikla handed her check and Deana’s to the waitress walking by their table. “It’s not a thing. I’m really passionate about childhood obesity and the number of people, especially among African Americans, who get diabetes.”

  “Yeah, so does Michelle Obama. But you don’t see her going to Hershey, Pennsylvania and knocking on the factory door to demand they stop making their chocolate bars. I’m sure there are more constructive ways for you to get your point across without attacking one small business.” Deana fluffed up her already big hair then slathered her lips with a deep berry color.

  “I’m not attacking a small business.” Of course the one guy there would have disagreed with her. “I’m passing out literature in front of a candy store.”

  “I’m sure there are other ways to show your stance on this.”

  “You’re probably right. They even turned some guy loose on me today.” She licked her lips and hoped her friend thought Nikla had gone after some leftover sauce.

  “Really? Did he rough you up?”

  The waitress came back and handed each woman back their cards and change.

  Nikla rubbed the back of her neck. “He was a good-looking guy. Big, tall white guy. If he would smile, he could be a true heartbreaker. He gave me a box of chocolates.” When she saw a smile spread across Deana’s face, she hit her with the rest of the story. “He told me I needed a heart.”

  “Ouch.” Her friend shrugged. “He’s right. That’s that man’s job. If you lose business for them, where is he going to work? Are you
going to hook him up at the rec center?”

  “He’s very assertive.” Her clitoris throbbed when she thought about his hands. “I’m sure he’ll be fine if Decadent Treats happened to close.”

  “But you’re not worried about him or the owners or the other employees losing their jobs, right?”

  Nikla shook her head. “They didn’t worry about putting anyone else out of business when they opened, right?”

  Deana put her hand on top of Nikla’s. “You can’t save the world.”

  She regarded Deana for a beat before removing her hand and standing. “I can save myself, though. I’ve also been thinking about going back to school.”

  Deana gave her an obvious eye roll. “Why? You have a Bachelors, right?”

  “Masters, actually.” Nikla smiled. “I just want to expand my mind. I want to start my own business. I think it would be nice to have a business degree.”

  “I just think you’re a nerd who likes learning new things.”

  True. Except Nikla wouldn’t have called herself a nerd. She liked the challenge of picking up on a new concept.

  Nikla walked with Deana to their cars. Desperate to talk about anything else but her personal life, she quickly started a new topic. “So when are you going to sign up for one of my classes?”

  “What? Do the yoga thing?” Deana shook her head. “I’ll do it when my ass starts slipping down my legs.”

  Nikla peered at her friend’s backside. “So you’ll be in my class Friday?”

  Deana poked her friend’s side with her elbow. “Bitch.”

  “Love you, too.” Nikla’s cell phone rang in time before Deana could zing her with another insult. “Talk to you later.” She glanced at the screen and saw Justin’s name. She put on a smile so that she would sound cheery. “Hi, honey.”

  At first Nikla didn’t hear anything on the other line. She pulled the phone from her ear to see if the call had dropped. When she saw it hadn’t and she put the phone back to her ear, she finally heard Justin’s voice.

  “Baby,” Justin said in a muffled tone.

  “Hey.” Nikla never heard her boyfriend use a pet name for her before. Maybe this was him trying something new. “Justin? Hello? Are you there?”

  It sounded like he had pocket dialed her, but from the moans, it sounded like he might be hurt.

  “Can’t take it.” Justin’s squeaky voice couldn’t be mistaken.

  “Justin!” Nikla screamed.

  All sorts of scenarios raced through her head. Had he been kidnapped and being tortured? Hell, was he having a heart attack?

  “Feels so good.” Then Justin growled.

  Feels good? Since when did torture feel good? That statement froze Nikla. Her man growled? He didn’t even do that when they had sex.

  Nikla stopped next to her vehicle and listened to Justin’s mumblings. With each moan, grunt, and growl, her blood boiled. After staying by this man’s side, admonishing herself for wanting to leave him, he had betrayed her trust and had the nerve to accidentally call her to witness it.

  “Nikla has never done it like this.” Justin punctuated the statement with a chuckle.

  When she heard him say her name, Nikla’s spine stiffened. Before the top of her head could fly off, she unlocked her car and sat inside as she listened to the rest of this horrible mistake.

  The call seemed to last for hours but truly had only been a couple of minutes more before she heard him do his standard squeal and groan before coming.

  “Oh, God. Can’t believe you just did that. Nikla would never swallow.”

  This time Nikla growled. “You arrogant, self-centered, cheating, lying son-of-a-bitch!” She screamed in the phone, hoping he could hear her. “I gave you everything! I put up with your shit! And for what? If I needed sex, all I had to do was reach into my nightstand! You’re worthless! I hate you!”

  Nikla hated herself more for not following her initial instincts. Her instincts had never failed her before. She should have never questioned herself now.

  She heard a rustling on the other line before she heard an “Oh, shit,” then a sheepish, “Uh, hello?”

  Nikla disconnected the call and threw her phone in her open purse that sat on the passenger side seat. The conversation she needed to have with Justin had to be done in person, not over the phone. He needed to see her rage. Once she got that off her chest, she would do what she’d planned: move on with her life and get on with her goals.

  Hell, she should have been mad at herself. She’d wanted Justin to surprise her. This did it.

  As she drove to her home, Nikla noticed how her hands shook. Anger coursed through her body until she thought the blinding rage would cause her to crash into another vehicle. She needed to stop for a bit to calm herself down.

  At her first opportunity, Nikla pulled over into an empty parking lot except for one light blue eyesore. As old as the truck looked, despite it being so clean, she assumed someone must have left the vehicle for the city to acquire. No matter. She just needed to time to wind down.

  Nikla hopped out of her car, a head full of steam. With arms folded, she stomped up and down the empty sidewalk. She’d lost so much time being with Justin.

  Not one for wasting time, it truly pissed her off that dealing with this Justin drama derailed her from her plans for that day. Just like with her meals, planning her day gave her a sense of structure and control.

  Nikla tried taking a couple of deep breaths to ease her jangled nerves. As a yoga instructor, she knew that technique should have helped. Ordinarily it would have. The lies and the betrayal hit her hard.

  She balled her hands into fists. The devil on her shoulder whispered in her ear to get something sweet to ease her pain. When she was younger, eating had been her go-to to cope when aspects of her life became too tough to handle.

  Nikla had to stop and push those thoughts aside. Once she halted her march, something caught her notice. A large “For Lease” sign in the window of a corner unit in the shopping center snagged her attention.

  She scanned the area where she parked and realized she had stopped in the heart of downtown Virginia Beach. Nikla brought her gaze back to the empty storefront. That spot would have been perfect for “Transitions by Nikla.”

  With that in mind, Nikla started to calm down. She strolled up to the glass and pressed her face against it to get a sneak peek into her future. In the empty space, she could see her complete studio. She would keep the hardwood floors. She knew exactly where she would put each reformer. She would cover the back wall with mirrors just like in the studio in the recreation center. On the front glass, it would have the name of her business.

  She thought she would have shared that moment with Justin. Just thinking of his name enraged her again.

  Nikla released a long, loud, blood-curdling scream that she hoped with traffic and the general noise of the area wouldn’t be noticed.

  “Justin, you bastard!” Nikla wrapped her arms around her body to try to still the shaking.

  She wanted to face the asshole. Knowing him, he would be waiting at her place with his sorry, hang-dog expression. Nikla wouldn’t fall for it. Clean slate. With no man in her life, she would have time to truly concentrate on herself.

  Nikla took a step back to return to her vehicle and finish whatever she had had with Justin when she bumped into a tall, solid mass. She yelped before righting herself and turning around to see a towering man with shaggy brown hair and the most hypnotic green eyes she’d ever seen. Damn it. The man from Decadent Treats.

  For a split moment, she imagined what it would be like to fuck him. This stranger would be a perfect rebound sex subject with his large hands, muscular thighs, and those kissable lips. She could use a sex-only type of relationship. Deana would be proud of her for that decision. Too bad this guy hated her guts.

  “You again.” He shook his head. “I heard a scream. Can I help you?”

  If he only knew.

  Chapter Three

  Sweet hadn’t ex
pected two things when he heard a scream that he didn’t help produce: he didn’t expect to see the lone protester standing alone doing the shouting, and he didn’t expect to be hit with that familiar tingling feeling in his fingers that itched to grab his whip and use it on her.

  In his vision of disciplining her, he would be doing it out of pleasure, not to cause her pain like she wanted to inflict on him and his brother with all of her protesting.

  As much as Sweet hated to admit it, for as many times as he had gone to The Dollhouse, like Masaun had said, he hadn’t played with anyone since Melinda. Until he could get back to his normal self, he couldn’t think about anyone in that way right now.

  “I’m fine.” She ran her hand back over her hair in front of her ponytail. “No, I’m not actually.” She looked at him like she wanted to unload her life story. Then she clamped her mouth shut.

  Sweet scanned her body. Her tightly-wrapped sweater, her clingy black pants, and flip flops showed off her fit body. She hadn’t changed from the outfit he saw her wearing a few hours ago.

  Out of curiosity, he glanced over at the vehicle next to his truck to see if a small dog existed inside. Although he didn’t see or hear a dog in her car, he still held onto the idea that she spent her life doing the bidding of some rich man.

  He didn’t mind the catering part. The idea of her being attached to someone sent a strange tickle over the back of his neck.

  What the hell was he doing? He didn’t know this woman to feel jealousy or any kind of attachment. Being the object of her hatred didn’t garner her any sort of connection.

  The more he stared at her, the more he realized his quick assessment didn’t hold water. Although pretty—hell, gorgeous—Sweet noticed she didn’t have a stitch of makeup covering her flawless caramel-colored face.

  A trophy wife, girlfriend, or mistress wouldn’t leave the house without her face firmly in place for the world to admire. How brave of this woman to not only wear body-conscious clothing but to let her natural beauty shine. The sight had him giving her kudos in his head.

  “People who scream like that normally don’t do it without reason.” He stepped into her pacing path to stop her movements.