Page 34 of Tyton: The Spider and the Dragonfly
“Sparx has a big mouth.”Talia half rolled her eyes.
“I can agree with that.”
Talia held up two fingers and two more shots appeared.“Gonna need these if we’re going to talk about Sesi.”
“That bad?”Adorable frown lines appeared on her forehead and Talia’s expression softened.Sesi had made her feel things she hadn’t expected, but Callie suddenly felt like she needed to protect Talia.From what, she didn’t know, nor was she sure how long she could deal with the emotional back-and-forth.Callie wanted to pick a good guy and a bad guy.But things, it seemed, would never be that simple.
Talia shook her head, staring at her shot.“Nothing like that.”She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.“If I’m being honest, it could have been forever, except we were both too… similar.”
“Oh.”Callie wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but it wasn’t that.Talia was showy.Flamboyant.Impulsive even.Sesi was more reserved and cooler.Sure, both of them wore an aura of confidence, but she didn’t see them as similar.
“Did you…love her?”Callie bit at her fingernail.
Talia inhaled sharply and held it.“I guess that’s what I get for telling you to ask me anything.”She chuckled with the last of her breath.
“Sorry?”Callie scrunched her face meekly.
“It’s okay.I did.”I still do,she thought.“We were pretty compatible, except for that one thing.You deserve to know.”
Callie stared at her shot, swirling it around the tiny glass.The honesty surprised her.Talia wasn’t bashing her ex.Would she have to worry about them getting back together?Though if Talia thought Callie would get jealous, she would have lied, wouldn’t she?And despite the whole Adlets issue, Callie felt like she was standing at the beginning of a runway and there were only green flags.Like she couldn’t find a reason to hold back.Either that, or she was colourblind.Or stupid.
When she looked back up, Talia stared at her like she was ready to pounce.“Any other questions?”
Callie had so many.“You were at Binge.What’syourkink?”Callie lifted her second shot up.
Talia nodded with a knowing grin, but didn’t say anything.
“Or do you prefer vanilla and just like to be on top?”Callie narrowed her eyes.She preferred a true Domme, but she could settle for a top for now.
“I asked you out, so I intend to be into whatever you want.”She paused to admire the effect her words had on Callie’s face.“At least for tonight.”
Callie quickly controlled herself.She turned to face Mike, but kept her eyes on Talia.“You’re telling me you can handle everything?”Even looking at Talia like this felt like a challenge.One she wouldn’t win.
Talia lifted an eyebrow.“You’re into bratting?”It was obvious that Callie wasn’t, given that she couldn’t look her in the face.Talia drew her fingernail lightly along Callie’s bicep.“Well now you have to let me guess what you’re into.Aside from rope,” she added.
A delightful frisson travelled the length of her arm, and even though Callie suspected she had caught on to Talia’s game, she was intrigued enough to let it continue.She bit her lip and raised her head defiantly.“Go ahead then.”
Talia’s mahogany brown eyes peered into Callie.“You like…” Her eyes shifted to Callie’s lips, a soft, muted pink.Then to her wrists, larger than Talia’s, but small enough.She circled her slender fingers around them and lifted her arm up playfully.Callie offered no resistance.She flashed her lopsided smile.“I can work with that.”
Callie blushed.Hotly.It wasn’t fair that she was so easy to read.A bit of bondage was exactly what she had been hoping for after Talia had taken her away from Binge.And then she went and made her wait for it.Her remarkable ability to pay attention and make herfeelthings – obscene things – felt like cheating.
“Bye Mike,” Talia waved dismissively and clapped her mask back on.“See you Tuesday.”Talia turned to leave.Mike lowered his head and brushed his knuckles against his chin, but kept his mouth shut.Callie slid from her stool and rushed to follow Talia, who wasn’t looking back.
Callie caught up, somewhat flushed from exertion.Talia took her hand, lacing their fingers together possessively.She strode along the street with an enviably perfect posture.The drape of her blazer snapping in time with her footsteps.It hung from her frame like a cape from a comic book and a complete mismatch with her hair and her worn and faded slip-ons.But Callie kept staring like she was a high-end fashion model.If Callie gave any thought to astrology, Talia would be the textbook definition of a Leo.
The same oversized man, this time sporting incongruous sunglasses leaned against the filthy Hexaline wall.Talia jutted her chin towards him, and he jutted back, banging twice.The door opened.
Her Opti pinged.
Callie ignored it.Sparx was the last thing she wanted to think about right now.She muted her Opti, blinking a few times in quick succession.If Talia had noticed her awkwardness, she paid it no mind.
The interior had changed.The quiet, classy lounge had turned into something a bit more raucous.Callie wondered how much it cost to keep up with the décor changes.
Talia gestured some scrip toward the cashier.Callie didn’t catch exactly how much it was, but based on the hand signs, it looked like an embarrassing amount.The cashier, a slight woman wearing a bandolier of vials and nothing else, raised her eyebrows at Callie.“Have fun, sugar,” she winked.
Callie’s cheeks pinked at being calledsugar.She turned her eyes toward her date, who didn’t seem to notice.Talia’s peacocking made her feel like a teen about to throw panties at a boyband.
It was as though Talia simply existed to be seen and adored.She removed her mask and basked in the certainty that Callie was staring at her through her eyelashes, even though Talia never turned around to confirm it.After a few beats, she opened her mouth, about to speak.Instead, the tip of her tongue ran over her molars, as if she were considering her next words carefully.
