CHAPTER ONE — DAVID
I watch her flirt with my coworker John, and my blood slowly starts to boil.
It was one thing when she was here with Philip, a random dorky kid her own age.
And honestly, I don't think I would mind if she was flirting with anyone…
anyone but John. It's not even the fact that he's my arch-nemesis; it's the fact that she knows that.
I know she's doing this deliberately to get under my skin, and unfortunately, it's working.
I watch them: her tossing her hair, her beautiful breasts jiggling as she touches his chest. The way his chest puffs up, and he laughs louder.
I bet he feels great right now, snagging the most beautiful woman on the block.
I'm kicking myself. That could've been me.
But if I'm being honest with myself, I've been kind of blowing Stephanie off recently.
So I have no one to blame but myself. Still, what choice do I have?
I have to blow her off. No matter how I feel about her, she's still my tenant, and she's much too young for me.
I know I've crossed the line already. I know I've already done things with her I shouldn't have, but that doesn't mean I should keep going. At the very least, I need to avoid getting emotionally involved with her. Because if I do, and she falls for me, that's when I'll really be in trouble.
So I've been forcing myself to stay late at the office, forcing myself to go on dates with age-appropriate women, but I haven't been able to get her off my mind.
Her quick wit, her sharp mind, the way she pushes back on me, her sassiness…
It's irresistible. And I'll admit it, her youth is a bonus too.
I love teaching her about things. I love the way she looks at me with respect and real admiration.
Plus, ever since I spanked her—no, disciplined her—I've noticed a difference in her behavior.
She's been coming home earlier. I've seen her jogging around the block.
She's making positive changes. I feel proud of her, which seems weird to say because I know it's not really something I should be taking credit for. But it makes me happy.
What I'm certainly not happy about, though, is her talking to John. If anything's going to set her back, it'll be him. He's a weasel. He doesn't care about throwing other people under the bus to get ahead at work. He's a terrible person.
I can't let this stand. I have to do something. So I walk up to them.
"Stephanie, a word, please," I say.
"Just a second," she says to John, smiling. "What?"
I don't give her a chance to say anything.
I just grab her elbow and steer her away.
I keep walking until we're away from everybody.
I pull her behind my car, which is parked on the street.
There are some people in the distance, but I don't think they can see us.
I turn to face her so that her back is against the car, and I'm blocking her body, so nobody can see us.
"What the fuck are you doing?" I whisper into her ear.
I grab her hair and pull.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," she whispers.
"You're flirting with John to make me jealous, aren't you?"
"Is it working?"
She looks at me with those beautiful eyes, and I melt a little.
"It doesn't matter," I say. "What matters is that John's an asshole, and you should stay away from him."
"It does matter," she says. "Tell me you're jealous."
"Why do you care?" I ask.
"Because I want you to want me," she says.
I stare at her.
"I want you, Stephanie. Obviously."
"Then why have you been ignoring me?"
She grabs the collar of my shirt and pulls me towards her. I breathe in her smell. She smells like juniper berries and sugar. Fuck. One of my hands goes to her neck and then slowly down her collarbone, resting right above her breasts. She's so fucking delicious.
"Because this isn't right," I say.
"What do you mean?" she asks. "Don't we have a deal?"
"Yes, but—"
She grabs my hand and pulls it down until it's right on her breast.
"Stephanie," I whisper, "somebody could see."
"So?" she says. "Maybe I want them to. We have a deal.
And you can punish me whenever and however you want.
Don't you want to punish me for flirting with John in front of you?
Think about how disrespectful that was, me flirting with your sworn enemy right in front of you, right in front of all your friends... "
She keeps pulling my hand down until it's right near her belly button. She's wearing a dress. She pulls it up.
"Teach me a lesson, Daddy," she says. "I've been a bad girl."
"Jesus Christ, Stephanie," I say.
She's not wearing any panties. I feel like I'm going to lose my goddamn mind.
"You can't be doing shit like this in public."
"Maybe you need to teach me not to."
I feel my cock stiffen. I know we shouldn't. We're right out in public. Anyone could see. But a man can only be so strong. I don't know what to say. But before I can say anything, I hear a male voice.
"Well, well. What's going on here?"