Chapter 29
Home…
I had no idea what time it was when I woke, only that the soft creak of floorboards was too familiar and it made me smile before he even opened the door.
Jed.
My eyes fluttered open, and there it was, a little box on the nightstand. My pulse stuttered, and my first thought was a threat from Kaito or something horrible. But then I caught the way Jed was practically floating with anticipation.
What the hell is he up to now?
“Morning,” he said, leaning against the doorframe, that smug grin already teasing me awake. His arms were crossed, his chest rising with shallow, deliberate breaths. I scowled and pulled the blanket tighter around myself, trying to make myself invisible.
“Morning,” I muttered, groggy and suspicious.
“I…got you something. Open it?” His grin widened, and I froze.
Something about the way he said it made me nervous, like he was daring me. My hand hovered over the lid, indecision warping every muscle in my body. I didn’t fully trust him. But…curiosity was a constant, uninvited guest, and Jed had proven to be at least the closest thing I had to safe.
Finally, trembling a little, I lifted the lid. My eyes fell on a small, sleek object, black, strange, and utterly mysterious. My brow furrowed. “What…is this?”
I held it gingerly, like it might snap or bite.
He scratched the back of his neck, looking every bit as sheepish as he had when he’d tried to explain anything remotely sexual before, but instead of those other times, he just came out with it. “Vibrating panties. Remote controlled.”
I blinked.
Oh. My. God. My face was on fire.
“Oh…” I whispered, as if it might make the room swallow me whole.
“Now, you have control, Sayuri,” he said, voice soft, teasing, and dangerous.
He…he thought I meant…this?
Oh, for God’s sake.
I wanted to scream.
I wanted to shove the box at him and have him vanish with it. I wanted to hit him upside the head and rant at this unwholly object staring at me. Instead, I just waved my hands at him, shooing him toward the door.
“Jed! Get out! Absolutely ridiculous! You’re insane! I truly don’t know what you were thinking…”
He was laughing at me all the way to the door and out. His echoed giggles traveled back.
This thing was going into the trash.
But…and this part killed me because I hated it, my eyes kept flicking back. There was something about it.
Wrong? yes.
Embarrassing? Obviously.
But…intriguing as well.
It was weirdly a gift that made sense from my priest. I needed to get ready for altar services, or I was going to be late.
“C’mon, Sayuri, I have to get you in before Gloria!” Jed hollered from downstairs.
I quickly showered and came back to the bedroom, slipping off my towel and staring at the box.
No…
Despite my protests, I found myself taking off my chastity belt, leaving it safely inside a drawer, and slipping on the see-through satin.
They were tiny little panties that felt soft against my skin.
I tucked the remote neatly into my bra like a weapon only I controlled, wondering the entire time what the fuck I was thinking.
The shift in control made my pulse jump.
I was the one holding the secret now.
Not Kaito.
Not Jedidiah.
Me.
Jed and I made it to church services, and before the mass started, we were scheduled to go to the Kids’ Center. The children ran, shrieked, and laughed at the center.
I smiled at them, hiding everything under my blouse, and under my calm face, pretending the little secret didn’t make me acutely aware of Jed every time he moved nearby.
Every glance and small step made the tiny hum thrum in my stomach like a pulse.
“What game should we play?” I said to the children. There were mixed answers, but the majority won.
“Hide and seek it is,” Jed confirmed.
“I’ll count! I am soooo much better than Elias…” Maria tutted, and Elias stuck his tongue out at her.
“The adults will hide, the kids can seek,” I said, like I was calm and controlled.
I was anything but. My chest was tight, and my thighs were sore from holding still too long. The thrill of what I wore was coiling like a snake inside me, and if I wasn’t careful, I knew it would bite me.
“I agree. You all go count in the rectory. We will hide near here.”
“Mrs. Gloria will catch us, Father Franklin!”
I couldn’t help but laugh at the genuine concern on Maria’s face.
“You will be safe. I give you immunity, Ms. Cross.”
The kids all ran into the rectory, and a barrage of different counting began while Jed and I scrambled to find a spot.
We ended up in the little plastic playhouse at the edge of the center. It was…less than ideal. I was completely cramped. My knees were pressed together, and my back against the wall, with the window blocking all the light from outside.
Jed’s shoulder brushed mine, and I tried to focus on the game. The children outside were laughing and running around, oblivious. Everything should have been simple in this moment.
It wasn’t.
I shifted—just a little to adjust myself from the discomfort of the small space.
Bzzzz…
I jolted when the vibration hummed. Heat exploded across my skin, and my cheeks flamed instantly.
Oh no.
Oh no no no.
Jed froze next to me, and I could feel his gaze. I could feel the tension in his shoulder, even when I refused to look at him. I didn’t need to stare at him to know he was barely restraining his reaction.
He knew.
He must be processing or maybe realizing exactly what I’d done. My hands clutched the plastic walls as the buzzing continued.
“Ahh, no no,” I harshly whispered, my knuckles whitening.
Jed’s stare bore into the side of my head, and I growled, one that turned into a whimper.
“Jed! Stop looking at me!” I hissed, my voice shaking, loud enough for only him to hear. “Stop it!”
I dug my hand inside my shirt and yanked the remote from my bra, holding it like a grenade away from my body, my face burning hotter than ever. Yet still…a tiny, dangerous thrill tickled my spine. The heat, the embarrassment, and the ridiculousness of this situation…it was intoxicating.
He was trying not to laugh when I finally caved and looked over at him. I saw it in his eyes, that flicker of knowing I was a sinful wench. Amusement twisted his features, admiration, pride, and…God, desire.
“Naughty girl. I thought you didn’t like my gift.”
I shoved him lightly with my shoulder, feigning outrage, but inside, I was trembling in a way I didn’t want him to notice.
Part of me, deep down, wanted him to see me like this. Wanted him to know what this toy did and that it was him on my mind right now. I needed him to know it made me feel warm because I was with him. I couldn’t help but continue secretly enjoying while he shifted in his own discomfort.
My pulse hammered.
The cramped space, the closeness of his body, the hum vibrating against me, I couldn’t turn off…every nerve was alive.
I wanted to explode, and yet I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe right with him looking at me like I was on fire. I just…endured it. No, I tried to survive it.
And secretly…I wanted him to shatter like this in front of me.
Jed whispered something under his breath, but I didn’t catch the words. I shivered at the sound of his rumbling voice. The proximity of him, his restrained grin, the way he was pretending he wasn’t hard as steel inside his own robes. It made me feel even more daring, more dangerous.
I needed to make him feel this.
The kids were still counting, almost to five now, and they kept restarting.
I thought I could survive this…I really did.
The little playhouse was far too small for us, but somehow we’d managed to hide sufficiently while the counting continued.
My knees pressed against his legs, my back practically glued to his chest now, every little movement made my thighs brush against him, and that buzzing hum beneath me… oh God, it was becoming too much.
“Turn this off. I don’t know what I am doing,” I whined.
He grabbed the remote and, instead of shutting it off, pressed a button to increase the buzzing to a higher frequency.
I yelped, fumbling to snatch the remote from him, trying to mute it. My hands gripped the plastic walls, like I could disappear into them.
“You, ass!” I accused.
He snickered. “Oops. Must be the wrong button.”
Jed didn’t move away despite my glare. Not even an inch. He pressed closer instead, almost as if…enjoying it. My stomach clenched tighter, and a heat pooled low, as it did only with him.
My pulse was hammering, and he was enjoying every minute.
“Sayuri…” His voice was low, calm, and so teasing. “Just relax. Breathe into it.”
I wanted to shove him, curse him, smack him—anything to rid this tingling.
Let me hide under the floor, God.
My body betrayed me, shaking, burning, and fucking desperate.
“You’re impossible,” I hissed, making the buzzing worse the more I tried to turn it off. My cheeks were blazing, smacking at the remote like it could fix everything.
“You could always take them off,” he whispered, right behind me, his chest warm against my back, his shoulder brushing mine.
I froze.
No, no, no.
“Jed!” I tried to push him slightly, but I barely moved him.
My knees were pressed tight against his, and the vibration buzzed again, sharper with a rhythm. The sound, or maybe just the sensation, made heat pool deeper between my thighs, and I bit my lip, trying to fight it.
He chuckled softly in my ear, the sound deep and low. I could feel it vibrating through me almost as much as the toy did.
He leaned closer, one hand steadying himself against the wall, the other brushing near mine, teasing my wrist with soft strokes. “You’re doing so good, baby,” he murmured. “Relax. Let yourself feel it. I love watching you unravel in my arms.”
I almost screamed. Heat rushed to my ears, my chest. Hell, my entire body was on fire.
Watching me?
He could see how flustered I was. How fragile, embarrassed, and desperate I was to be anywhere but here…and yet, I couldn’t hide it.
I needed him.