Page 24 of Resist
I have no idea what that means, but it seems to placate Phoenix, who is now observing me in a way she hasn’t before. She doesn’t say anything to me, but there’s a knowing glint in her eye that tells me I’ll get the “Don’t hurt my friend or I’ll castrate you,” speech at her earliest convenience.
“Want a ride home? You look kind of... wiped.” If she wasn’t already smirking, the tone of Phoenix’s voice would convey her teasing, and her eyes dance with mirth as she takes us both in.
I bet we smell of sex too. It’s really not hard to guess that we’ve been up to something.
“Sure, thanks. I’ll get an Uber to come back tomorrow to pick up my car.”
Phoenix shrugs. “I need to come in anyway. I’ll take you.”
I try not to let the fact that she’s getting a ride with Phoenix after turning my offer down upset me. It’s a silly thing to get butt hurt over. I’m a near stranger to her. It’sabsolutely the right and safest thing to do, not get into a car with someone you just met. But I want to take care of her after our session.
Cecelia gives me her cell number before we say our goodbyes. She doesn’t say that it’s in case I need her for aftercare tomorrow but it’s an understanding that silently passes between us both as Phoenix watches with curiosity stamped across her face.
I can tell Cecelia is awkward, that this isn’t something she’s done in a while, and she’s not sure how to end things. It takes Phoenix to grab her by the elbow and lead her away before she moves.
I know more about her than I did an hour ago, but it’s still not enough. What Idoknow, however, is that I’m going to be here tomorrow when she stops by to get her car from the parking lot. Just in case I get to catch a glimpse of her again.
I also know that this woman is trouble. And yet, I want more. Maybe Mom has been right this whole time, maybe trouble really is my middle name.
CHAPTER 8
Cora
“You can’t avoid talkingabout it forever, Corabelle.” Phoenix’s sing-song voice makes me regret letting her bring me back to the club today to pick up my car.
When she suggested grabbing lunch en route and eating it in the bar since it’s closed to patrons, it should have been a red flag, a warning, an indication she simply wanted to pick my brain about Sterling.
“I can, and I will, Foxy.” I take an oversized bite of my chicken Caesar salad and hope it’s enough of a signal to her to let it go but she’s waiting patiently, giving me her most severe side-eye. “Know what I miss?”
She folds her arms and ‘hurrumphs.’
“I miss Sunday morning crosswords with Dad. I still have the puzzle book Dad bought for us to do it over pancakes at the cafe.” I sigh, because as much as I want to change the subject from my conquests last night, I really do miss my Dad.
“I miss sharing my new books from the school book fair with him, or snuggling up on the couch on Friday nights to read in amicable silence.”
Silence, something I’m not sure Phoenix knows themeaning of, demonstrated by the cluck of her tongue. “Stop playing the grief card to distract me from the D card, Corabelle.” She spits out my name like she’s cranky, and she wags her finger at me. “I get that you miss your Dad, and that’s totally normal. But I also know you well enough to know when I’m being pushed off the scent.”
I shrug. “I do miss him. You know in college he read every single one of my assignments and gave me feedback on them? Even though he was busy as fuck?”
“Yes, yes, he was a great dad, now tell me about the great D.” She rolls her eyes. She’s not being unkind, if I really was having a nostalgic moment about Dad, she’d make space for me, but she knows me too well.
“I’m not going to kiss and tell. Not even with you. I know you work with Sterling here at Protocol, but I feel... I don’t know... Some kind of way about talking about him to you when you know us both.”
Her face turns stone-serious as she nods. She understands the importance of respecting someone’s privacy as much as anyone, it’s one of the rules of kink. “I get that. I do. Don’t get me wrong. But it’s beensooooooooolong since you’ve gotten any, Cora. And last night you had a nice guy by all accounts.”
My heart picks up under her scrutiny, and she must see a trace of something on my face because she points her finger at me. “Youdidhave a nice guy last night, right, Cora?”
My face heats as I hold up two fingers. I’ve got to give her something or she just won’t quit. For as much as she knows me, I know her as well.
Phoenix’s jaw drops. “Delicious.”
“Not penetration.”
She shakes her head. “I don’t need to know right this second. You’ll tell me eventually. But you got an O?” As my best friend, she knows of my struggles with getting off at someone else’s hand.
When I hold up two fingers again, she squeals and swings her legs like she’s giddy. “Yes. Yes!” She fist-pumps the air.
“Afternoon, ladies.” The soothing sound of Sterling’s unexpected voice sends a bolt of lust into my panties, but it’s the unfamiliar tug of something alien in my chest that catches my breath.