Page 20 of Daddy's Lesson
I was certain that I was in over my head. And I didn’t even care. My day had gone completely sideways from what I expected when I’d agreed to meet a potential new Daddy at the cafe this morning. Walking into the coffee shop seemed like ages ago. So much had happened since then. And so much more was about to happen. Arousal hummed through my body like an electric current vibrating just beneath my skin and I waited with bated breath to see what would happen next.
It was very anticlimactic. A timer went off on Lennon’s phone, and his face fell. “Oh, crap. Where did the afternoon go? I have to go into the office.”
“The office,” I repeated dumbly, confused. It was the middle of the day on a Monday, and this was the first time work had come up. I guess I’d assumed that Lennon lived off his lottery winnings, and maybe occasionally sold some artwork for shits and giggles.
“I do have a regular job,” he said with a wink. “Running all this…” He waved his hands around his body and I understood it to mean the skyscrapers and rentals encompassed in them. “Well, as much as we would like it to, it doesn’t run itself.”
I tried hard to hide my disappointment. Today felt like a lot of build-up with no climax. Literally. “Okay, no worries. I can take an uber back to my car.”
Lennon nodded. “Don’t forget your shopping bags. And before you go… what are you going to do tonight?”
“Ummm… probably grade papers?” I couldn’t help but be a little cheeky. I knew what he wanted, but I wasn’t ready to give it to him.
“Besides grading papers.”
“Oh, I don’t know. Eat a TV dinner, watch Golden Girls reruns, and fall asleep on the couch?”
His eyes narrowed. “That sounds miserable. It’s also not the correct answer, as I suspect you well know.”
“Hmmm… I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about.”
“Well, let me remind you. Before you go to bed tonight, you will take a nice long bath with your new bubbles or bath salts after you have a nice cup of herbal tea and a chocolate truffle or two. Once you’re out of the tub, you’ll put on your new pajamas, and I want you to text me a picture of them so I know you’ve obeyed.”
“Do I need to send a picture of me in the tub, too?” I asked before I could stop myself. Shit, why had I said that? Knowing Lennon, he would say yes.
But he didn’t say yes. Instead, he just smirked. “Not unless you want to.”
That was worse than a yes. I could feel a flush rising up my chest into my cheeks. Now, there was no way I wouldn't be thinking of him while I was in the tub, and that was my own fault. “Well, I guess I should get going so you can get to work.” I began to gather up the many shopping bags.
“I’ll call you an uber.” He leaned forward and dropped a kiss across my cheek, before turning my head and capturing my lips in a kiss so sexy, so demanding, so…possessive it took my breath away. “I’ll call you tonight or tomorrow morning. Be a good girl for Daddy. Oh, and Zoe? Whatever you do tonight… don’t touch yourself.”
LENNON
The truth was, I didn’t really need to go to work. I hadn’t lied when I said I had a full-time job per se… but it was more like I had a full-time office. As the company media guy and art manager, my presence wasn’t required on a daily basis, and while my friends tended to keep regular 9-5 work hours as often as possible, I rarely showed up before noon.
Today, I strolled through the doors at 4:06 pm to shocked stares.
“Hey, bro,” Archer greeted me. He must have stopped by between court cases and legal meetings. “How was your meeting with Zoe?”
“Fantastic.”
“So you’re her Daddy now?” He looked at me like he didn’t believe that she would have agreed to it, and I wasn’t surprised.
We all had our roles, and mine was the charismatic, alcohol-loving, free-spirited goofball. I played it to a tee, and sometimes doing that was more fun than showing them who I really was. And a lot easier. So yeah, I drank. I smoked pot on occasion, too, and sometimes I got caught up in all-day movie marathons. I also ran three miles every morning, had a very impressive stock portfolio with probably more money than Bain and Theo combined, and in my free time I was a patron of the arts, gave generously to the arts programs at local schools, ate insanely healthy six days out of the week, and kept myself on a strict self-care schedule, making sure each and every day to make time for myself and my passions.
I’d come a long way since college, but my friends didn’t know that. And as far as I was concerned, they didn’t need to. Their idea of who I was was much more fun, and I enjoyed using it as an excuse to let loose every so often. I dated some, and played at the club on occasion, but nothing serious. It made sense that Archer didn’t see me as a Daddy to anyone, much less a smart, sophisticated, beautiful woman like Zoe—a woman nearly fifteen years my senior.
But he’d see. They all would. I would be the best damn Daddy I could, and if they were lucky, I might even let them catch a glimpse of the real Lennon Ames. It might be about time. To Archer, though, I just tossed a lewd smile and waggled my eyebrows. It was on the tip of my tongue to say something my college self would have, but I had too much respect for Zoe to say something I didn't mean that might get back to her.
“I’m her Daddy now,” I confirmed.
“Once a week on Thursdays?” Archer asked, quoting the specifics of the arrangement he’d had with her.
I shook my head. “Probably every day, or just about.”
“What’s every day?” I hadn’t even noticed Bas and Nyla come up behind us.
“Oh, Lennon is just filling me in on his meeting with Zoe. Apparently it went quite well.”