Chapter 4
I n the time it takes me to order two lattes, wait for them to be made, and for me to carry them into Vinyl Delights, I decide I’m not going to tell Juniper anything about last night. Not even that Jack and I played After: 8113 together. Jack . I wonder what his real name is.
“Did you have a booty call last night? You’re glowing.” Juniper takes one of the lattes from me.
I bite my lip and look away, willing myself not to blush. “Nope. I used a new face mask.”
“Liar.” She pinches my arm. “You fucked someone last night.”
I sigh. “Okay fine. I didn’t get a new face mask. I got a new vibrator.” Technically, I’m not completely lying to my best friend. Just omitting some crucial details.
Her face falls. “Oh. Boo. I was hoping you finally got a real cock between your legs.”
I roll my eyes at her. “Sorry to disappoint.”
“But what’s the name of that vibrator? You’re like seriously glowing,” she half-teases.
I send her the link to a vibrator that I don’t in fact own. And then add it to my cart as well. Juniper is the kind of friend who will ask to look at it when she comes over next. Just to make sure it’s the size and color she wants. It’s exhausting keeping up with her sometimes.
She snickers when Coast walks by, trying to eavesdrop. “How’s your friend’s dick? I heard he fell on it when he was jerking off.”
A spurt of coffee dribbles out as I try to contain my laughter. “ Juniper . You’re so fucking mean.”
“He has a cold,” he grumbles under his breath.
She bursts out laughing. “What? I bet I’m right.”
I shake my head. “Your mouth is going to get you in trouble one of these days.”
She winks and takes another sip of her latte. “My mouth likes trouble.”
If only she knew what I did last night. She’d probably be proud of me. I took a page straight out of her book. But I’m not the girl who lets strangers on the internet make her cum. Have I been so deprived that I jump at the first opportunity?
“You’re blushing. Are you sure you didn’t hook up with anyone last night?” She eyes me like a hawk, searching my face for any signs of weakness.
“No. I promise you. I didn’t.” Technically, not another lie. I did not hook up with Jack. She doesn’t need to know that I let him get me off with my controller.
Satisfied that I’m telling the truth, she looks back toward Coast. “I’m going to have so much fun fucking with him all day.”
I laugh and pull her in for a side hug. “All right, I’m gonna get out of here. Hanging out at your job on your day off should be a crime.”
“You playing tonight?” she asks.
I bite my lip. If I say no, then she’ll definitely know something’s up. I nod. “Yeah, for sure. I’ll be on later.”
She blows me a kiss and sets her sights back on Coast. Poor guy. It’s a wonder he hasn’t quit yet.
I freeze when I get to my car. The passenger side door is wide open. What the fuck?
I glance around to see if anyone’s lurking. Satisfied that I’m not being watched, I inch forward. A chill snakes up my neck when I peer inside. There’s a flyer from Joystick on my passenger seat. The one Vinyl Delights sent out for the party the other night. That wasn’t there earlier, was it?
My stomach knots. I suddenly feel like I’m being messed with. Did someone else see what happened to me that night? I crumple up the flyer and throw it in the back. I’m shaking by the time I slide into the driver’s seat and lock the doors.
I take deep breaths as a panic attack threatens to surface. Maybe it was my flyer that I just forgot to throw away. And I could have easily left the door open when I grabbed the carry tray with our lattes off the seat.
I’m just being fucking paranoid. I need to stop. And yet I can’t help glancing in the rearview mirror every two minutes the entire drive home.
“Bro, Godzilla would annihilate Dracula. No question.”
“You’re drunk. No fucking way. Dracula would eat Godzilla for fucking breakfast,” Skat snaps at RageMachine.
I laugh as I log into the group chat. “We’ve already established this. Even if Dracula managed to sink his fangs into Godzilla, he’d never be able to drain him fast enough.”
“One hundred percent,” Juniper quips. “Listen to Jilly, boys. She knows her monsters.”
“Oh yeah? So, who’s your favorite monster?” Jack rasps.
His voice jars me. I didn’t notice him log in. I swallow down the nervous lump in my throat. “Frankenstein’s monster, of course.”
“That’s weak, Jilly,” RageMachine says.
Jack chuckles. “Tell me why.”
There he goes again. It’s the demanding tone in his voice that no one seems to catch but me.
I clear my throat. “Because he’s not really a monster at all. He didn’t choose to exist. The townspeople vilified him for being different. But he never meant to scare anyone.”
“So you like misunderstood villains? You think you can save them with that sweet spot between your legs?” Jack asks.
“Whoa! Welcome to the party, Jack,” Juniper shrieks.
The heat in my chest rises. He’s antagonizing me. Pushing my buttons. “You can’t save anyone who doesn’t want to be. And I certainly would never confuse sex with compassion.”
“So you’re saying you don’t want to fuck Frankenstein?” Skat chimes in. “I thought you girls like monster cock.”
Juniper cackles. “I’d fuck Frankenstein.”
I white-knuckle my controller. “Frankenstein is the doctor, not the monster. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. Godzilla would destroy Dracula. And you’re all dumb as hell.”
Laughter erupts.
I’m seething. Even Juniper is pissing me off tonight. I usually don’t get riled up by their teasing. It’s Jack who’s winding me up.
“Hey, Jilly, I’m just fucking with you. Relax for me,” Jack coos.
I shudder. His commands are subtle to everyone else, but for me… they’re a trigger. The memory of the controller vibrating between my thighs sends a wave of tingles through my core.
“I know. It’s all good.” I force myself to say it in a lighter tone.
I go through the motions, following them around the swampland while they continue to roast each other. The more I listen to his voice, the more feral I get. My body and mind are in opposition to each other. I’ve never let anyone degrade me like this before.
“All right, guys. I’m heading to bed. I’m working early in the morning,” I say on a fake yawn.
Juniper snorts. “You work at ten tomorrow.”
My cheeks burn. I fire a shot at her avatar. “Oops, sorry.” She must be drunker than usual if she’s not catching my hints.
“Stay and play for another hour, Jilly girl,” Jack says. It’s not a plea but another demand.
“Nope. I have to go. Goodnight, everyone.” I log off and power down my headset before anyone can respond.
Juniper sends me a text message. You okay?
I blow out a deep breath. I guess I’m not. The incident with ComeFindJack11 has me more on edge than I thought. It’s making me question my own morals. I wanted him to keep going. I came so fucking hard I squirted . And then I licked it off my coffee table. The shame threatens to choke me unconscious.
I fire off a quick text. One that I know will shut her up real quick. Yeah, sorry. I just started my period.
Another lie to my best friend. Ugh. Fuck.
She responds back at lightspeed. Enough said. Wash down a couple of pills with some whiskey and curl up with the heating pad. I’ll stop by the store tomorrow and check on you.
My gaming console pings with a flurry of messages. Fuck. I open the message center to see they’re all from Jack.
I hope I didn’t upset you tonight, pretty girl.
Why is it so hot when he calls me that?
The next message is a link to an article titled: Frankenstein’s Monster—the most misunderstood creature in Victorian Literature.
That makes me chuckle. “Asshole,” I mutter through a smirk.
I flip to the third message, and my grin widens.
I’ll let you off the hook tonight. But tomorrow, we’re back on. Just you and me.
But it’s the fourth and final message that shatters me…
Fetch yourself a pair of nipple clamps tomorrow. Make sure you have them on when you log back in.
Holy fuck. I’m playing a dangerous game with this man. One with far greater consequences than the one our avatars run around in. But I can’t help but get excited about what he’s going to tell me to do next. It’s like discovering a new drug for the first time. A new addiction with the highest highs and lowest of lows.
My ex wouldn’t dream of talking to me this way. We fucked in the missionary position on most nights, with the occasional doggy style when he was black-out drunk. He cringed at the sight of my vibrator and didn’t understand the beauty of self-pleasure. Which was a shame because it was the only way I could cum most of the time.
And then along comes Jack with his sexy voice and his carnal demands. I’m quickly succumbing to his every fucked-up whim. Maybe this is the best thing for me. We don’t know each other’s real names or faces. There’s no way to get attached. It’s the perfect situation. And when either of us gets tired of it, we’ll walk away. We’ll just log off.
I send a quick reply back before going to bed. I already own nipple clamps.