Page 21 of The Contract

I’m used to minding my own business, however, so I don’t look at it as I start to walk by, not even when I hear a window roll down.

Then a female voice says, “Tristan.”

I nearly jump out of my skin. “Shit! Kenzie. What the hell?”

“Get in the back.”

I eye the posh car then glance down at my ratty blue t-shirt, gray sweats, and worn-out running shoes. I don’t belong in that car.

“I’m sweaty,” I tell her.

“No shit. You always run that far?”

“Creeper.”

She grins. She is just cool as a fucking cucumber, isn’t she? She has one hand on the wheel. The other is down at her side. Somehow, I wouldn’t be surprised if she has a weapon. She should, really, with that limo in this neighborhood. It won’t be long before the guys shooting hoops head this way.

Kenzie knows it too because her eyes flick past me to check on them. Someone whistles. Her mouth firms. Her eyes lock on me, kind of like Dante’s. Unlike Dante’s, they trigger no visceral reaction in me. That’s more what I’m used to. I don’t know what it is about him.

Even so, when she tells me again to get in, I do it.

Needless to say, I’ve never been in a limo before. There’s only the one seat but lots of leg room. Below the partition separating the back from the driver, there’s a cabinet-like compartment. In a cup holder, a bottle of water is sweating like it’s been waiting awhile.

Kenzie’s voice comes through a speaker. “The water’s for you.”

It’s almost like she knew I wouldn’t drink it if she didn’t specifically tell me that I could. I may steal, but I never assume something’s meant for me. There’s a big difference.

I crack open the water and suck it down. Despite the sweat on it, it’s still cool. I want to ask Kenzie where we’re going. I want to know why she picked me up like this instead of from my apartment.

Something about the partition, however, keeps me quiet. It’s like I’m in a totally separate space. Maybe someone else would like it, feel privileged or something. I just feel weird. Besides, I don’t know if she can hear me or if there’s some button I’d have to push. I don’t like fumbling around and feeling dumb.

Is she taking me to another appointment? I hope she takes me home first so I can change. We’re less than a mile from my apartment.

I yawn.

Shit, I’m sleepy. That’s unusual for me after a run. Besides, on my schedule, it’s still early.

I hit the window button, thinking some fresh air would wake me up. The button doesn’t work. I slide over to the other side. That one doesn’t work either.

Rather, it’s locked. I try to catch Kenzie’s eye in the rearview mirror, but she’s focused on the road. My heart skips, but sluggishly. I feel its slow, heavy thud.

“Kenz …” I trail off as my head falls back. My eyes try to close. My body is heavy. My arms are dead weights at my sides. The empty water bottle tumbles from my slack grip.

That’s the last thing I see.

***

The first thing I register when I wake is that I’m aroused as hell. Before I even open my eyes, a soft moan slips out. The next thing I register is an unfamiliar sense of fullness. Of pressure. In my ass. Then I realize my wrists and ankles are bound, my body spread-eagled. My eyes fly open.

I’m in a softly lit room. A bedroom. I’m on the bed. Its frame is black, like cast iron. It’s basically a four-poster, but the canopy is iron bars, kind of like monkey bars. There are hooks and other attachments on some of them.

I rise up as much as I can. The movement shifts whatever is in my ass.

“Fuck!” I bark as arousal spikes through me.

I’m naked. My cock is hard.

Those facts take so much of my attention that I don’t really look around. I flop back. I pull against the restraints. I strain upward, but that only makes the feeling in my ass more intense. I’ve never felt anything like it.

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