Unexpected Top (Ball & Chain)

by Carr, Cassandra

  Len’s head blew off, almost literally, when he came in Cissy’s mouth. His brain was certainly nowhere to be found. She hadn’t let him do that in years. He’d venture to say they’d still been dating the last time she’d allowed it. What had come over his Cissy?

  As he withdrew and collapsed on the bed next to her, an image of how she’d cuffed him to the bed the other night came rushing back. He’d gone lightheaded holding his breath, feeling helpless and waiting to see what she’d do next. Len had always been the aggressor in their sexual relationship, but that night Cissy had taken over, and fuck, was it sexy. He couldn’t wait until she pulled out the cuffs again.

  If all he had to do was a few chores to get treatment like the cock sucking tonight and the sex before, he was in. After he’d caught his breath, he had a debate with himself. If he did the vacuuming and sweeping tonight, there was another blowjob to be had, but would it be worth it? Could he even come again? At thirty-five, he wasn’t able to snap his fingers and get a second erection. Of course, if it took a little longer to orgasm this time he’d have the prolonged pleasure of Cissy’s mouth wrapped around his cock.

  Decision made, he climbed out of bed.

  “Where are you going?”

  He grinned at his wife. “To do some more chores.” One sculpted eyebrow rose, but she said nothing and he pulled on his boxers before leaving the room. Soon he returned, though. “Um, where’s the vacuum cleaner?” Len’s face went hot with embarrassment.

  Cissy sighed. “In the hall closet.”

  Len exited again and as he thumped down the stairs, he wondered how long it had resided in that location. He really should’ve known where the vacuum cleaner was, and he was chagrined it had been so long since he’d vacuumed he’d had no idea where the damn thing was.

  After hauling it out, he looked around the bottom floor, trying to decide which room to do first. With a shrug he pushed the vacuum cleaner into the dining room and started there. By the time he’d finished the living and dining rooms, his neck was starting to ache and he felt even worse he hadn’t been helping Cissy do stuff like this. She had a long-standing, chronic neck problem and he couldn’t imagine vacuuming helped her condition. If her aim was making him feel like an asshole for not being more helpful, it was working.

  He finished up with the downstairs and was about to go upstairs when he remembered the stairs were carpeted too. Stopping, he looked over the attachments and had to go ask Cissy which one would work best. By the time he got the proper attachment set up he felt like a complete idiot. Len did the stairs and then got the bedrooms done before tackling the sweeping. He ached all over by the time he was finished with both chores and he hoped Cissy did them in smaller increments.

  After putting away the vacuum and broom, he debated whether or not he should even collect his reward. Len knew Cissy had asked for help with cleaning the floors before and since he knew it was a pain in the ass, or, more accurately, the neck, he usually ignored her request until she did it herself. Looking back now, he saw how selfish and stupid he’d been. He didn’t deserve a reward. If anything, he deserved the opposite, the pain from doing the chores and the shame from knowing he should’ve been doing them before now.

  Len watched some television and had a snack before going upstairs to bed. After completing his evening routine, he climbed in beside Cissy. She turned to him.

  “Aren’t you going to take your boxers off? You have a reward coming.”

  His face heated again and he looked down, unable to meet her eyes. “I’m not going to take a reward for that. Vacuuming and sweeping the entire house is hard, and I should’ve been helping you do it before now.” He chanced a glance up and found Cissy’s mouth hanging open. “I’m sorry, honey. I’ve been a selfish jerk.” With a quick kiss to her lips, he then snuggled down in bed and tried to fall asleep even as the guilt about his behavior threatened to swallow him whole.

  * * * * *

  The next day when he got home from work, there was a steak thawing in the fridge. Cissy wasn’t home yet, and he took it out, turning it in the marinade before going outside to start the grill. Making dinner would get him a hand job, and after the horrible day of dealing with unreasonable suppliers he’d had, he could certainly use the stress relief.

  Cissy got home as he was pulling the steak off the grill. Smiling, she leaned in for a kiss.

  “What did you make for side dishes?”

  “Shit! I totally forgot.”

  “Never mind, I’ll do them. I need to change…” Cissy’s voice trailed off and Len felt like a clueless idiot again. He’d only done what he’d normally do if they were having something grilled for dinner without even a thought there was more to the meal. Cissy always did everything else.

  “I’ll do it. You go change.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Go.” Len took the steak inside and rooted around for some sides that wouldn’t take long to cook. He found the makings for a green salad and decided that would be enough, since the steak was large. Just as he was setting everything out on the table, Cissy came down the stairs. They sat and began to eat, but she soon made a face.

  “Did you wash the stuff for the salad?”

  “I thought you did that when you bought it.”

  “It goes bad quicker if you do. You have to wash it right before you use it. The lettuce tastes funny.” She dumped the entire contents of her salad in the trash and then grabbed his. When he protested, she told him, “You can’t eat it. There are probably still pesticides all over everything, which would account for the chemical taste. I use a special veggie washing formula.”

  “If vegetables are so full of pesticides, why the fuck are we supposed to be eating so many?” Cissy narrowed her eyes at him. “What?”

  “That’s the second time you’ve sworn just since I got home not a half hour ago.”

  “Oh, so now I get nothing?” Len wasn’t sure why he was so angry. And it wasn’t even really at her, he just felt as if he couldn’t do anything right.

  “I told you. You swear twice and any reward you’ve earned is null and void.”

  “Fantastic,” he deadpanned.

  “You knew the rules.” Reaching into the freezer, Cissy grabbed a bag of frozen vegetables. “These will take a couple of minutes. Eat your steak.”

  “You’re not my goddamn mother.”

  She turned to him, and a look he’d never seen in her eyes silenced him. “No, I’m not,” she said quietly. “If I was I would’ve spanked you for your language.”

  He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Spanked me?” A strange sensation stole through him.

  “Yes. Sometimes I think you’d be a lot better off if someone disciplined you properly.”

  “Disciplined me properly? What the fuck?” He knew he was in trouble as soon as the words came out of his mouth and he found himself wondering if she would make good on her threat to spank him. Would he let her? Could he?

  Cissy threw the bag of veggies into the microwave and started it. Stalking to the corner of the room and the small stool she kept her purse on, she said, “I’m tired of listening to you swear at me. I’m going out.”

  Len watched, speechless, as Cissy flew out of the room, her steak untouched. A little while later he heard her car start. Had she really just left?

  When the microwave dinged Len got up and grabbed the steamer bag, wincing when the hot plastic burned his fingertips. Grabbing a hot pad, he brought the vegetables over to the table and gingerly cut open the bag before dumping about a third of it onto his plate. A small pool of water leached into the sauce for his steak and he felt his blood pressure rise.

  How fucking incompetent am I that I can’t even make and eat a simple dinner?

  He wolfed down his food and then did the dishes before getting a beer out and slumping in front of a ball game, his mood dark. Len hated being treated like a child, and sometimes that’s how Cissy made him feel, but he could admit sometimes he gave her good reason to. His moth
er had been a traditional stay-at-home type. She’d taken care of him and his brother until they’d gone away to college, and even then she’d done their laundry and cooked for them when they came home on breaks. Len hadn’t learned how to use a washing machine or the stove until he and Cissy had married.

  His wife finally arrived home at nearly ten, and went upstairs without a word to him, which was fine since most likely all they’d do was fight. Len debated sleeping on the couch like he sometimes did when he fell asleep in front of the TV but decided the bed was as much his as it was Cissy’s. If she wanted to be pissy she could do it on her own side.

  * * * * *

  After a few days of stony silence on the part of his wife, Len couldn’t take it anymore. It was Friday night and he wanted to do something. He’d called a few buddies, trying to get a card game going, but everybody was busy. It was about time Cissy talked to him, and he cornered her in the bedroom.

  “Wanna go out tonight?”

  Her face betrayed surprise mixed with annoyance. “Where?”

  “To dinner?” He figured he should start with something easy and work his way up.

  “Why?”

  Len sighed to himself. “Because I want to. Honey, this is ridiculous. We’re married. We live in the same house. We need to talk to each other.”

  “I know,” Cissy replied. She turned away and Len heard her sniffle.

  “Oh baby, come here.”

  Pivoting, she slid her arms around his waist. “I’m just so tired, Len. Tired of fighting, tired of having to tell you—usually more than once—what chores need doing, what appointments you have, what errands should be run. I’m tired of feeling like your maid and your secretary. I’m your wife.”

  He couldn’t help pushing her away. “You haven’t acted like much of one lately. Besides that one reward, you haven’t initiated sex in God knows how long, and when we do have sex you just kind of lie there as if you’re waiting for it to be over.”

  Cissy winced and Len felt like a bastard. What he’d said was true, but he knew he wasn’t always the most tactful person on the planet.

  She shook her head, her mouth pulling down into a frown. “Did it ever occur to you I’d be more interested in sex if you bothered to learn what I like?” She pulled on a t-shirt and said, “I don’t really want to talk about this.”

  “Oh no,” Len answered. “You can’t throw something like that out there and then clam up.”

  She sighed and sank onto the side of the bed. “Do you pay attention when we’re having sex? I know that sounds harsh, but do you? Because if you did, you should’ve noticed I haven’t climaxed from penetration in years.”

  “But you always look like you’re having a good time.”

  Len knew going on the defensive wasn’t a good idea, but his very manhood, his virility was being attacked.

  “Sure, sex feels good, but it’s not enough to make me have an orgasm on its own.”

  “Then what the hell—” He caught himself and started again. “What the heck do you want?” Len felt stupid that he had no idea, but it wasn’t all his fault. Communication, as they said in those stupid corporate rah-rah speeches, was a two-way street.

  “Well, there was a reason I bought those sex toys. I thought they might help both of us have more fun. You ignored them.”

  “So you want to tie me up again?”

  “Not necessarily. But the fact you completely disregarded it when I did make an effort to show you what I wanted made me feel like you didn’t care. It’s hard to feel sexy and aroused when your husband is more interested in his pleasure than making sure you have yours.”

  “Why didn’t you just tell me you wanted to use them?”

  “I suppose maybe I should have, but I felt like if they were sitting there next to us on the bed you should have been able to surmise I want to use them.”

  “I’m not a mind reader.”

  Cissy rubbed her temples. “I know.”

  “Do you,” he motioned toward the bed, “you know, wanna try them now?”

  “Not feeling too in-the-mood at the moment.”

  “Then let’s go out to dinner. We’ll have some fun and then come back here and see if we can’t figure some of this stuff out. I do love you. I hope you know that.”

  “I do.” She didn’t sound awfully certain. Cissy rose and went into the bathroom and Len lowered himself to the spot she’d just vacated. Was she right? Did he not pay attention? Did he not care about her pleasure? He loved Cissy. It was just so damn difficult to know what made her happy. Maybe he should suggest that next time she restrained him, she also told him what she wanted. A thought chilled him to the bone. If he didn’t try harder, if he didn’t figure it out, was he going to lose her?

  Chapter Three

  Cissy gave Len four sexual rewards of different types over the next three days as her husband worked like a demon around the house and watched his mouth. She wondered if he was feeling guilty about their fight last Friday night, but it seemed like this reward system was working. Len was helping out with chores a lot more, and even when she wasn’t giving him a reward he paid better attention to her.

  His lack of a potty mouth was refreshing too. Everybody swore now and then, but Len had gotten to the point where he was replacing words in his speech with curses regularly and it had to stop. If he was like this at work he couldn’t be making a good impression on his bosses and coworkers.

  It was time to implement phase two of her plan. Len had some other annoying and rude habits it was time to end, such as leaving his clothes strewn all over the bedroom, not putting away his clean laundry and dropping his wet towel on the comforter after showering. As a result, their bedroom often looked like a bomb had hit it.

  To the bottom of The List, Cissy added an area for “things that get rewards taken away”. She was sure Len would bitch when he saw the new additions, but she wasn’t about to back down now. Besides, she planned to soften the blow with some time in bed that night. Over the weekend she’d cuffed Len again, even adding the blindfold. Just like the first time she’d restrained him, he came like a man possessed. After that he’d even taken the time to put his mouth on her and she had her first orgasm without the help of her vibrator in quite some time.

  Sure enough, Len got home and came charging into the bedroom while she was changing out of her work clothes. “What the fuck is that on the fridge?” She supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised he’d abandoned his attempts to clean up his language given the recent event, but a surge of annoyance rose up anyway.

  “I assume you’re talking about the additions to the list?”

  “Yeah, more rules? Are you freaking kidding me? Now I have to clean up my room like I’m some naughty kid?”

  “When you behave like a naughty kid I’ll treat you like one.”

  “I’m your husband,” he retorted.

  “Then act like it.” She stalked out of the room before he could say anything else, but he followed her.

  “You can’t do this.”

  “I’m the one who instituted the rewards, I’m the one who can take them away.” Once at the bottom of the stairs, she spun to face him. “Besides, why is it so much to expect you to keep our bedroom clean? Do you see my clothes all over the place? Did I leave my dresser drawers gaping open for so long all the tracks are broken? No. Because I’m an adult and I pick up after myself. Now I expect you to.” On her way to the kitchen, she called back, “I’m starting dinner.”

  Len snorted. “I’d do it, but since I’m not getting my cock sucked anyway, why bother?”

  She ignored him. Cissy had read that many men didn’t take kindly to the control being increased, but with time most of them realized how much more harmonious their marriage was. Len wasn’t a bad man by any means, he’d just been allowed to take her for granted. And like Eleanor Roosevelt had famously said, no one can take advantage of you without your permission, and this wasn’t just Len’s fault. She’d allowed it to perpetuate. Now it was time
to end it.

  When dinner was ready she put it on the table. Len ate quickly, not making conversation, and then went outside. She heard what sounded like the hedge trimmer start and smiled to herself. Trimming the bushes was on the list, and it appeared Len wasn’t so angry he refused to do a chore that would get him a reward. And she didn’t plan to refuse him. She’d made those additional stipulations with the idea it would take him a few days to clean up the bedroom. If he trimmed the bushes, he’d get his reward.

  After he’d finished, he came into the house. “I assume you want to inspect?”

  Cissy put down the dusting cloth and followed him outside. He’d done a good job, both with the trimming and with cleaning up afterward. She leaned in to give him a kiss and he didn’t pull away, which, after their earlier spat, she took as progress. Taking Len in hand was both one of the most difficult but most rewarding things Cissy had ever done. The fact it was improving their marriage only made her more sure this was the route to take.

  “Come inside.”

  Len cocked his head. “Why?”

  “To get your reward.”

  “But I thought—”

  “I’m willing to give you a couple of days to get your clothes and stuff in order. Trimming the bushes was a big job and you deserve a reward for it.”

  His face lit up. “Really?” Cissy nodded, doing her best to hide a smile. “Lemme take a quick shower and I’m all yours.” Several moments later, he exited the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist. Cissy looked up and started at his expression, which could best be described as calculating. “So…”

  “Yes?”

  “If I clean up some of these clothes can I upgrade my reward?”

  Cissy barked out a laugh. “Upgrade?”

  He grinned. “I don’t know what you were planning, but yeah.”

  “Sure.”