Page 7 of Flirt

I grabbed a bottle of water from my fridge and sat down at the island in my kitchen. I closed my eyes and reached for the control I needed as much as the air I breathed. When it started to settle through me and I felt it snap firmly in place, I opened my eyes, rose from my seat, and tossed the plastic bottle into the trash before I walked back out the door.

Not once in my entire life had I let a woman have influence over my emotions or how I lived my life. A few hours with Gabriella would not change that. At least it was what I repeated to myself as I pulled out onto the main road and steered my truck in the direction of Whispering Nights. Confident the evening would be like any other at the club.

Chapter Two

Gabriella

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“Mom! Can I take theFrozen DVD to Mrs. Grissom’s? She hasn’t seen the movie.”

I placed the last plate in the dishwasher and closed it before I answered Sawyer, “Are you sure she wants to watch it?”

“Yes. She told me the next time I stayed to bring it, and we would make popcorn and watch it. So...can I?” Sawyer asked this time from the doorway that separated the family room from the kitchen. DVD in hand.

“Sure, set it with your backpack, so we don’t forget it.” I dried my hands with the dishtowel, then folded it and laid it beside the sink.

“Can I take the bag of M&Ms and the Clue game, too?”

I thought of what happened the last time she took a whole mega bag of M&Ms to Eleanor’s house. “How about just the game? We don’t want a repeat of what happened the last time, do we?”

“Nope, ‘cause it was gross. But if I promise not to eat the whole bag after Mrs. Grissom falls asleep, can I take the bag? I promise not to text even if I barf again.”

My daughter was an excellent negotiator for her age. Or maybe just relentless when she wanted her way.

“Game, no candy.”

“Are you saying no ‘cause you had to leave your date last time?”

Her question brought a reminder of where I was planning to spend the evening, along with the butterflies in my stomach that always made an appearance when I thought of Max. He liked having his first name used where I had noticed most of the men in the club used either Mister with their surname or Master with or without the first name attached. Though, I already knew when we got down to business, so to speak, I was to answer with ‘Yes, Sir or No, Sir.’ No exceptions.

Joining Whispering Nights might have been viewed by others as a rash decision made from reading too many romance books. In actuality, I had found I had a lot in common with the submissives between the pages of the books I read. Enough so that I researched everything I could find on D/s relationships. The more I uncovered, the more my interest piqued. To be able to hand over sexual control to another individual whose knowledge would bring you pleasure and, in turn, enhance their pleasure was definitely worth the effort. And though I had only spent a limited time around Max, I had felt comfortable and safe with him. Two things I hadn’t felt around any man since Justin, and even with him, it had taken time being around him for the feelings to surface.

“Mom! Mom!”

“Huh?” I absently asked and looked down at Sawyer, whose eyebrows were scrunched together.

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