Surrendering to Innocence Page 5

  How humiliating! Mona, I’m gonna kill you. This is beyond embarr—

  “Wait, mistress. Please, please don’t go,” he said, after removing the ball from his mouth.

  “You’re horrible!” I hollered.

  “Yes!” he shouted.

  “Despicable!”

  “More! Yes!”

  Oh, no! I gotta get out of here!

  “Call me naughty, too!” he shouted again.

  I shook my head and grabbed the door handle.

  “Please, mistress. Don’t make me beg. Please! Just one good smack is all I need. Don’t leave me like this.”

  “Dammit!” I marched back over to him, annoyed and embarrassed. I grabbed the thing—whatever it was—and pretended his ass was Mona’s face. The fact that ball-faced-scrotum boy was asking for it only fueled my fire.

  I gave him three hard thwacks on his ass, and as the whip flew back after the last, it grazed my chin. I flinched and took a step backward, disgusted with the fact that I’d just given this pervert what he wanted, or with the fact that the flogger had previously been on his asshole—and likely several others. I winced and marched back toward the door.

  Stomping toward the dressing room, I bumped into Shelly. “I brought your Coke.” Shelly lifted her hand with a small plastic bag, waving it in the air.

  Cocaine?

  “Jesus! What is this place?”

  I heard her laugh as I passed her, and got undressed as quickly as I could. I threw my cardigan and jeggings back on, and grabbed my purse from the lockers. Just as I was opening the door to race out, Shelly stopped me.

  “Christine, there you are. Gary says you haven’t paid yet. A hundred bucks.” She held out her hand, smiling.

  “What? I’m not paying a hundred dollars!” I shoved past her into the hallway.

  “Was the experience not what you’d had in mind?” I heard her say as I began a light jog toward the entrance.

  The air outside was a welcome change from the thick odor of leather, oil, and sex from inside the club. The Black fucking Orchid. Dammit, Mona!

  I turned the corner and saw Mona at the main entrance to the building. Storming my way toward her and pointing my finger, I screamed, “What the hell are you trying to do to me?”

  Her shoulders hunched and her hands flew up. “What are you talking about? I’ve been looking for you everywhere! Don’t you answer your texts, calls?”

  “I’ve been inside that damn place for the past hour,” I yelled again, now just a few feet in front of her.

  “I’ve been in there too. Where were you?”

  “In the ‘back.’ Attending a cozy party for two. With leather and whips! Dammit!”

  “Chris, what happened to your chin? It’s all red and swollen!”

  I bent over on the side of the street, trying to catch my breath from marching and screaming. “Why didn’t you tell me what kind of club this was? I was scared to death!”

  “What do you mean? It’s a dance club, Chris. Where the fuck were you?”

  “In there.” I pointed toward the alley. “When I saw the line, I decided to go in through the back entrance.”

  She shook her head and narrowed her eyes. “There is no back entrance, Chris. Here…” She grabbed my hand and yanked me down the sidewalk. “…show me.”

  When we got to the end of the alley, I pointed toward the bouncer with the gray beard. “Right there.”

  Mona’s eyes went wide. “No, you didn’t.”

  “Oh yes, I did.”

  Her chin began to quiver and she grabbed her stomach. And before I knew it she was bent over, laughing hysterically on the sidewalk. She couldn’t even breathe, let alone speak. I waited patiently until her chuckle fit ended.

  Once again—laughing at the naïve, ignorant, stupid one.

  “That’s The Dark Side, Chris. A to-ta-lly different kind of club. I don’t think much dancing goes on in that place.”

  “Yeah, no shit!”

  “You can not pin this on me,” she retorted, still chuckling.

  I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest. “So humiliating, Moan.”

  “Aw.” She wrapped her arm around my shoulder and tugged me toward the parking garage. “Come on, Indiana Jones. Let’s go get us some food.”

  Chapter 9

  The next evening, I had just finished cleaning up my dinner plate when I turned to the sound of my front door opening and closing. Expecting Jake, I felt my smile slowly fade when Watson walked in. I choked on my words, unable to find my voice. But after I willed my heart rate back to a reasonable speed, I finally muttered, “Where’s Jake?”

  Watson stood staring at me, smirking, with his hands loosely in his jean pockets. He slowly unzipped his jacket and shrugged it off his shoulders, letting it drop to the floor.

  I took a step backward, trying to distance us even farther, but the thick cloud of immeasurable sexual tension consumed the space between us no matter how far back I stood. I backed up against the refrigerator, clutching my stomach while Watson remained at the front door.

  Without a word he stomped quickly toward me, and I jerked my head to the side, still trying to find a way to move farther backward.

  But there was no place left to go.

  He stopped abruptly at the kitchen island and propped his elbows on the laminate countertop.

  I opened one eye to find him ten feet in front of me. Taking a deep breath, I relaxed slightly, knowing that he was keeping his distance.

  “Do I scare you?” he asked.

  I nodded quickly. “A little.”

  “That’s okay. You scare me too—”

  “Hey, Ma! I’m home,” Jake called from the front door.

  Watson smiled, never taking his eyes off mine. “Do you mind if I spend the night?” he asked, allowing the corner of his mouth to perk up while he scraped the countertop with his fingernail.

  “Yeah, is that cool?” Jake asked. “Watson’s Jeep is in the shop,” he added, throwing his jacket on the railing. “I know it’s a school night, but since we live really close, it would be easier for me to drive us tomorrow from here—”

  Oh, hell no! “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, honey,” I interrupted him.

  Watson’s head flicked upward and Jake continued. “Ma, come on. There’s only a week left of school, and Jake needs help planning his valedictorian speech, anyway.”

  “Valedictorian?” I shot my eyebrows upward, questioning Watson’s impressive title.

  “Yes. Just announced today.” Watson nodded. “I need to come up with a ten-minute speech for graduation day. I was hoping that Jake could help me with it.”

  “Please, Ma? His mom said it was fine.”

  I sighed, defeated once again, and nodded my approval.

  “Fine. Help yourself to leftovers in the fridge. They’re probably still warm.” I turned to Watson, a smug smile on his face. “Make yourself at home.”

  This should be interesting.

  #

  I avoided the boys all evening. Shutting myself in my room, I locked the door and cozied in under my comforter, watching Lifetime movies. Once I heard the soft murmurs from across the hall fade to silence, I went downstairs to grab some water.

  The ice machine made a loud rumbling sound as I filled my glass. And as I turned back toward the stairs, I collided with Watson, splashing water over both of us.

  “Dammit!”

  “I’m sorry. I just came down for some water,” he chuckled.

  I grabbed the towel from the oven handle and dabbed at the frigid water on my shirt. “No, that’s okay. No harm . . .” My voice abruptly halted when I looked up. He’d removed his shirt and was standing two feet in front of me.

  I took a sharp inhale and held it, unable to refrain from letting my eyes wander over his chest.

  Absolutely beautiful. A slight V-shape was cut off by his baggy jeans, and a small patch of sandy blond hair trailed down from his navel. Above that was the definition of his abdominal m
uscles and a small mole under his right nipple. His chest was bare—not a single strand of hair on it—and the water on his chest glistened from the overhead light above the oven.

  “May I?” He smirked, holding his hand out to me.

  “No you may not!” I snapped.

  He snorted a laugh. “No, Ms. Cole. I meant: May I use the towel?”

  I shook my head, smiling embarrassedly. “Sorry, I assumed you were… I mean, I thought you… never mind.” I laughed again, handing him the towel.

  After he dried himself, I took his shirt from the counter and threw it in the dryer. “You can grab another shirt from Jake’s closet. This one will be dry in twenty minutes.” I smiled and retrieved my new glass of water from the counter.

  As I turned toward the stairwell again, I stopped and swung around. I intended to say goodnight, but a question came out instead.

  “So, valedictorian, eh? Your mother must be very proud.”

  He shrugged. “I didn’t do it for her. But I’m sure she’ll take the credit,” he said with a wink. He sat on the stool at the island, gesturing to the stool beside him. “Would you care to sit with me while I wait?”

  I didn’t know if it was the thought of sitting with him or the cold water pressing against my torso, but I shivered. “Would it be rude of me if I said no?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t think so. But I’d take offense anyway.” He smiled. “Come, sit down.”

  I hesitated briefly, but eventually walked back toward him and sat down, scooting my stool a little farther away from him.

  “You look more relaxed tonight. The last time I saw you at the coffee shop, you looked a little…out of your element.”

  I cringed, thinking about my outfit. Then I cringed again, thinking about how he made me feel and the words he whispered into my ear before he left. Shaking my head, I’d hoped he’d interpret my flushed cheeks as my embarrassment and change the subject.

  “You know, they say women who wear a lot of makeup are trying to disguise who they really are, and that they’re ashamed of who they are underneath it all.”

  “Is that what you think?” I asked, dumbfounded.

  “I assume nothing, that’s why I’m asking,” he shot back. “But I’m happy to hear you care what I think.”

  “No! I mean, I’m just… I didn’t know how to… I’ve been going through a…”

  “I get it.” He put his hands up, acknowledging my discomfort with the subject. “You look better tonight. Much more natural. All the girls at my school are the same. Commercial. Artificial. There are a few that stand out as different, but for the most part their immaturity baffles me.” He rubbed his hand over his jaw and met my eyes. “And then there are women like you. It doesn’t matter what you do, you’ll always stand out as being unique.”

  “You don’t even know me.”

  “Oh yes I do. I’ve been watching you for three years, Ms. Cole.”

  Shit. Three years? Where have I been? Is that how long he and Jake have been friends? I cleared my throat. “I know what you’re trying to do, Watson.” Clever boy. “And it’s not going to work. So just go and bag your college girl so that you can leave me alone. I’m too old for you—”

  He laughed. “College girl?”

  “Yeah.” I waved my hand in the air and stood to walk back upstairs. “Jake told me, you’re after some college girl. That’s perfect for you—”

  “I don’t know any college girls.” He shook his head, laughing to himself. “But if Jake was referring to the conversation I think he was, what I’d said was that I was going after an older woman.”

  Oh, god.

  “See, Ms. Cole?” he began, standing and taking a step closer to me. “Your body responds to me. I can see it.” My nipples hardened against my cold, wet shirt, but I couldn’t rip my gaze from his bedroom eyes.

  My will is slipping.

  “I know what I want, and I go after it,” he whispered. His finger grazed over my nipple, making the space between my thighs burn like a goddamned forest fire. It halted me where I stood, and I couldn’t make a move in any direction.

  “And all I want right now is you,” he added, letting his lips brush against mine. He leaned in toward my shoulder and I moved my neck, giving him access. “You smell delicious,” he whispered.

  “You certainly don’t act eighteen,” I said, feeling his lips on my neck. His tongue slipped out, and the steamy warmth from his breath tingled downward from my shoulder, burning its way to my hips.

  “I had to grow up faster than the other kids around me,” he said, his tongue invading the small divot between my collarbones. His fingers were now teasing at my nipple and I was getting swept away in the moment. Although he didn’t act innocent, I knew he was. There was a part of him he was dying to give me, and I was becoming eager to take it.

  I’d wanted to ask him what he meant by that statement, but my mind was clouded with a billion things swarming around in my head, and the only thing that decided to exit was more small talk. “What’s the matter with your Jeep?” I asked, my hands finding their way to him.

  “Nothing,” he said, his lips leaving my shoulder. His teeth now lightly scraped their way to my earlobe. “It was a cheap excuse to come see you tonight.”

  My fingers trailed the hair under his navel, and I allowed my hand to dip below the waist of his jeans.

  He gasped as I rubbed the bulge over his boxers. “Jesus,” he choked out, pulling me backward. We hit the slender table in my entry as he found the flat surface of the wall, crushing his chest against mine.

  And it felt damn good.

  He threw my arms over my head and yanked my shirt upward. Within a second, his mouth was on my nipple and his fingers were making a path to my panties. I kept my arms over my head, enjoying this man’s need for me.

  “Virgin, my ass,” I whispered.

  He smiled against my nipple and then continued sucking. His hand dipped underneath my panties and he buried one finger deep inside me. I gasped and let a hushed groan escape.

  He brought his face to mine, staring at my lips. “Just because I’m a virgin doesn’t mean I haven’t tasted a woman before.” He brought the finger into his mouth, sucking and savoring my flavor.

  I almost came apart right there.

  “And you’re by far the sweetest—”

  “Mom? You down there?” I heard Jake yell from the steps, interrupting Watson’s whisper.

  “Shit!” I rasped when I heard Jake’s voice.

  Oh, shit! What am I doing? This is so wrong!

  “Yeah,” I called out, my voice cracking. I pulled down my shirt, and Watson stared at me intently. He was bent over, resting his hands on his knees to catch his breath. My hands swept over my mouth as I closed my eyes, ashamed. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered. “I, we… This shouldn’t have happened.”

  “You’re right,” he whispered and took a sharp inhale. After standing up straight, and a deep swallow, he added, “Next time we’ll make sure Jake isn’t home.”

  I shook my head, “No!” I shouted.

  “Mom?” Jake called again.

  My heart began to race again, and I knew I had to keep Jake upstairs or he would be suspicious. I raced to the stairwell and jogged up a few steps before running into my son.

  “Hey, honey. Sorry!” I laughed. “Silly me, I dropped a glass of water. I was just cleaning it up. I’m going to go to bed now.” I smiled nervously as I pushed past him and walked up the steps.

  “Was Watson down there? I fell asleep when he was rehearsing his speech. But, he’s not in my room.”

  “Yes, he was…helping me.”

  “Hey,” Watson said, turning the corner of the steps. He was wearing his shirt again, carrying a glass of water. I avoided eye contact with both of them and walked to my room. “’Night, boys!” I called just before slamming my door.

  Sliding down to the floor, I covered my face.

  Stupid, stupid, stupid!

  Chapter 10

&nbs
p; It had been a week since I’d seen Watson. I’d decided to steer clear of men for a while until I got my shit together. I hadn’t been to the club, and I hadn’t spoken to Mona, either. I stayed cooped up in my house, concentrating on work and doing whatever I needed in order to keep my mind far from Watson.

  “Hey, Darcy,” I said, answering my phone.

  “Hello, Chris. I was just calling to finalize some plans for the graduation ceremony on Saturday.”