Page 12 of Positively Inked
Once everyone is done cooing over her, JJ smiles and takes her to the sofa near my booth and sits her down, unpacking some of her toys and a blanket and tucking her in on the sofa. He strokes her hair and kisses her forehead before he stands up and looks at me.
If looks could kill.
He walks towards me and I brace myself, but he stops next to me and says quietly, “We need to talk.”
He walks to the back and I swallow, turning on the spot and following him in. He shuts the door and turns on me, glaring at me.
“How fucking dare you threaten me!” he seethes. “You don’t fucking know me, don’t you come with your bullshit.”
“I thought…” I say quietly.
“You thought what?” he demands, “That I’m a child? That I can’t handle my alcohol?”
“That you didn’t want to see me after last night.” I can’t seem to say it louder than a whisper and I blush.
He shakes his head slowly in disbelief before he sighs, “We had sex, Lyra; that is all. Nothing that is going to make the Earth stop turning and certainly not something that is going to stop me from coming to work. I don’t lie. I don’t hide.”
“I thought you might be awkward or think you get special treatment now.”
He walks right up to me, our faces are inches apart as he says, “Do I look like I feel awkward?”
I do, but I don’t want to tell him that. I swallow as quietly as I can and shake my head, not trusting myself to speak. It feels so tense between us that I’m not sure what to do or how I feel. I can smell his aftershave and he smells good, like old spice, and he’s staring at me with those eyes. I lean up slightly, almost daring myself to kiss him right here.
“Daddy!” a small voice calls out and he turns away from me; he pauses at the door.
“Don’t ever threaten me again, Lyra, or I won’t need you to fire me. I’ll leave.”
“Yes JJ, sorry…” I say, looking away.
He leaves and I need to take a moment to compose myself, feeling hot under my collar, and I just know my face is red. I can feel a tingling in my crotch and I try to shake off the feeling, remembering what his fingers felt like inside of me.
No.
No.
No.
No.
I cannot do this now. Not at work. This is not good. He clearly has no interest in taking this any further than last night, and I don’t have any intention of speaking to him about it after the altercation we just had. I’ve done enough damage.
Goddammit.
“Lyra?” Sheldon’s voice calls from the other side of the door, “Your appointment is here.”
“Thanks, Sheldon, I’ll be out now.” I fan my face and take a few deep breaths. Fixing my hair I walk as confidently as I can out of the back room and smile at Richard.
He smiles back at me and embraces me in a tight hug, “Lyra! It’s been far too long!”
“Well, come see me more often,” I comment and giggle, leading him to my booth. I take the design and hand it over to him, and the look on his face is worth.
“Wow! This is absolutely perfect! Lyra, this is beyond anything you have ever designed before!” Richard gushes and I smile brightly.
“I put a lot of love into this one, Richard and I’m going to enjoy putting it on your chest.”
“I’m sure you will, you sadist,” he chuckles and I offer him a seat and motion for Sheldon to come over.
“Wipe down the bench and the station and set me up. This is going to be a long piece.” Sheldon does as I ask and I go to trace the design, “Did you wax or shave?”