Exposed - Chapter 38
Friday
Brooklyn
I knew you were only supposed to experience this feeling once in your life. But this was my third time.
I’d felt like this the first time Matt proposed.
I’d felt this when Miller got down on one knee.
And I felt it now.
The ring I’d once worn was shining back at me from the box.
Tears streamed down my cheeks. I was scared of loving Matt. It almost felt like I loved him too much. That I’d never be whole again if I lost him. And I was so scared of losing him. Because I did lose people I loved. It happened too many times.
I wanted to say yes. But at the same time I wanted to cry for what I’d lost with Miller. I wanted this whole room not to be hushed and staring as I slowly fell apart. As my heart ripped with grief but felt so happy at the same time.
I closed my eyes for just a second and remembered staring up at Miller under the lights he’d strung in the trees.
But I wasn’t picturing him down on one knee.
I pictured him touching the side of my face.
I pictured his smile. I pictured him telling me the words he’d written out loud: “Keep living, kid. Promise me?”
I opened my eyes and stared down at Matt.
Matt’s smile faltered.
And the crowd was no longer hushed. They were whispering. Waiting for me to say anything at all. But I was frozen.
I was surprised Matt didn’t stand up. But he stayed there on one knee and stared up at me.
“Brooklyn, I’m not getting up until you say yes. I’ve waited my whole life to be with you. And I will wait down here on one knee for another lifetime if that’s what it takes. But I’m really hoping you won’t make me do that.”
I laughed through my tears.
“This ring belongs with you. It always has. I’ve loved every part of you, baby. I loved you when you were a Sanders. I loved you when you were a Pruitt. And I love you as a Miller. But it’s about damn time you become a Caldwell, don’t you think? Marry me.” It wasn’t a question now. It was a demand.
I looked down at the ring. He was right. That belonged to me. It belonged on my finger. “Keep living, kid.” I was going to do just that. I kept my promises to the people that kept theirs. And I once promised Matt I’d be a Caldwell one day. It was about time I made good on that promise.
I wiped away my tears. “I always thought Brooklyn Caldwell had a nice ring to it. I certainly doodled it in my notebooks enough at Empire High.”
Matt smiled up at me. “Is that a yes?”
I threw my arms around him, almost knocking him backward on the floor. “Yes,” I whispered in his ear as he held me tight. “Of course I’ll marry you, Matt.”
He stood up and twirled me around as everyone started cheering and clapping. I stared down at him. It felt like I was flying.
“She said yes!” he yelled, even though everyone already seemed to know.
The cheering grew louder.
“One more thing,” he said and set me down on my feet. “I believe I have something that belongs to you.” He grabbed my hand and slid my ring back onto my finger. I looked down at it. I’d forgotten how beautiful it was. I’d forgotten how perfectly it fit. How perfect Matt and I fit.
I smiled up at him. How had I ever doubted the boy I fell in love with 16 years ago? He’d never stopped loving me. I was never going to doubt him again. And I’d never stop loving him either.
I went to hug Matt, but someone lifted me off my feet. I laughed as Matt was lifted up too. And our friends carried us through the crowd and unceremoniously tossed us into the ball pit.
I laughed as I came up to the surface.
They all jumped in around us, cheering. It was a blur of hugs and tears and primary colored balls.
I finally found myself in Matt’s embrace again. We stood in the middle of the ball pit amongst the pandemonium, just staring at each other.
I breathed in his exhales. “Thank you for being patient with me. Thank you for loving me after everything. Thank you for loving my son.”
“Thank you for giving me a second chance.” Matt smiled. “Or maybe it’s more of my third or fourth…”
I laughed.
He silenced me with another kiss. Everyone cheered again as he dipped me back.
I grabbed the lapels of his tuxedo and pulled, making us fall backward beneath all the balls.
He kissed me hidden below the surface just like he’d kissed me above it.
Like he couldn’t keep his hands to himself.
I remembered when we use to share kisses in private.
I remembered the good times. The bad times.
And I was grateful for all of it, because it had led us here.
He groaned. “I’m a few seconds away from taking you right here in the ball pit.”
I laughed. “As fun as that sounds…when I said you might get lucky, I didn’t mean in front of all our friends. And there’s no way I’m leaving before we go down the big slide. Race ya.” I pushed him off of me and tried to fight my way through the balls to the edge of the pit.
But he grabbed me from behind and tackled me.
I laughed as we wrestled in the balls. Eventually he slipped and I was able to climb out of the ball pit. I only made it a few feet before he grabbed me and threw me over his shoulder.
I laughed and stared at his perfect ass in his tuxedo pants. A week ago, I thought we were strangers. That there was no way we’d ever fit again. But that wasn’t the case at all. Our love brought us back together. He’d fought to make it work. And God, I never wanted to be apart from him ever again.
He put me down at the bottom of the steps up to the slide. And immediately started climbing.
“Cheater!” I yelled as I climbed up after him. By the time I reached the top, he was already halfway down.
I hiked up my skirt and jumped down on the slide. I screamed when I was near the bottom and Matt didn’t move out of my way.
But he caught me in his arms. “Now do I get lucky?”
I laughed and pressed my lips against his.
“Do you think maybe we should go tell Jacob the news?” He was supposed to sleep over at James and Penny’s place.
But I knew he’d be excited. He loved Matt.
And he knew Matt could make me keep smiling.
Matt was piecing our family back together one day at a time. We were going to be okay. All of us.
“I have one more surprise first.” He pulled me a little closer. “There’s a helicopter waiting for us on the roof. But I think that can wait if you want to do a bit of exploring.”
“Exploring?” I smiled up at him. I was really curious about where the helicopter was going to take us.
But I was also excited to explore a bit too.
Because I knew exactly what he was talking about.
That dark hallway. Where the fun at Club Onyx really began.
“I did hear a rumor that more happens at Club Onyx than just dancing.” I looked over at the entrance to the hallway. Mason and Bee were walking through.
Matt laughed. “I guess we’re not the only ones that want to explore.” He turned back to me. “I also heard a rumor that there might be a room that’s exactly what you requested.”
“What I requested?”
His lips traced my ear. “I seem to recall my fiancée wanting to be tied up.”
“Fiancée. I can get used to that.”
“Don’t get too used to it. You’ll be my wife soon enough. But back to the exploring thing…”
I laughed and pulled the key out that Tanner had given me. “That room wouldn’t happen to have a mask on the door, would it?”
Matt smiled. “Let’s go find out.” He lifted me into his arms and jumped off the bottom of the blow up slide.
I laughed as we crossed the threshold into the hallway. It was like he was carrying me into our house after our wedding day. Only…our home looked nothing like this. Although the doors lining the walls looked eerily like the one Nigel had put in our living room.
Matt stopped in front of one of the heavy wooden doors. There was a tablet on the wall next to it with a glowing red outline of an apple.
“Hmm…” he said. “What do you think is behind there? Tanner said that your wildest fantasies come true as soon as you step into the hall.”
“My fantasy involves less food.”
“I don’t know…you looked pretty good covered in paint. I bet you’d look equally amazing covered in chocolate syrup.”
I laughed. “But not apple sauce. Why is it so quiet back here? I thought I’d hear more…moaning.”
“I think the club is closed tonight because of the prom. Which is probably why this room is open for us.” Matt kept carrying me down the hall. He turned a corner. And then another.
How big was this place? I was all turned around. “Which room do you think Mason and Bee went in?”
He laughed. “I really don’t even want to know. All I care about is that this one is all ours.” He’d stopped in front of another door. This tablet had a masquerade mask on it. He slipped my key into the door and it opened.
It was pitch black in the room but when Matt closed the door behind us, the room lit up. Or more specifically…the four poster bed in the middle of the room lit up. And a wall full of what looked like torture devices.
“This is definitely going to be fun,” Matt said. He set me down in the middle of the bed and walked over to the wall. He started unchaining things.
“Are you sure you haven’t been here before?”
“I’m sure.”
I pushed myself up so I could stare at him. “Maybe I should be the one tying you up.”
“I don’t think so, baby.” He walked over to me and tossed some leather shackles onto the sheets. “Were you thinking here or suspended against the wall?”
I wasn’t sure what that entailed exactly. And these sheets were sinfully soft. “Here.”
He nodded as he pulled off his tuxedo jacket.
I watched him as he rolled up the sleeves of his dress shirt.
“Take it off,” he said. “All of it.”
I moved to my knees and pulled off my dress.
“All of it,” he said again.
His tone had completely changed since he’d taken off his jacket. Deeper. Darker. More in control. And I was already soaked.
I unclasped my bra and slid my thong down my legs. I went to unstrap my heels but he caught my ankle.
“Actually, those can stay. Now put on the mask.”
“What?”
He nodded to the pillows behind me. I turned to see a single masquerade mask on the bed. But there were no holes in the eyes for me to see. “Why is there only one?” I picked up the mask.
“I have a feeling this room is usually used for strangers.” He lifted the mask from my fingers. “Strangers who want to have sex with someone whose face they’ve never seen. No consequences. Just passion.”
But I wanted to see him. The way he was staring at me made me feel so desired. “But we’re not strangers. Which means I can look.”
“Trust me, not seeing me will heighten every sensation.” He placed the mask over my eyes and tied the ribbon behind my head. “Now lie back.”
He was right. Even just hearing his voice now made me want him even more.
“Don’t make me repeat myself, baby. Unless you don’t want to be able to stand in the morning.”
I let my back hit the sheets. Even though I really wanted to know what he meant by that.
He trailed his fingers up my stomach and between my breasts as he circled the bed. “Arms up, baby.”
I lifted my hands above my head.
His fingers trailed up the insides of my bicep and up my forearms, sending chills down my spine. He strapped something around one of my wrists. And then the other. His hands fell from my skin and then my arms lifted. I tried to move them, but I couldn’t.
My heart started racing. I think I’d made a mistake. I didn’t like feeling trapped. “Matt…”
“Do you trust me?” His thumb brushed against my left nipple and then I felt his warm breath against my breast. “Do you?”
“Yes.”
He blew on my nipple, pebbling the skin.
I moaned.
“You asked to be at my mercy.” His hand trailed down my stomach. “So I’m going to do everything to you that I’ve been dreaming about.” His hand dipped even lower, stopping right above my pussy.
I lifted my hips but he pushed them back down against the mattress.
“Do you think I’ve just been jerking off to thoughts of you on your knees in the shower?” His hand shifted away from where I wanted and trailed down the inside of my thigh.
Why was he going in the opposite direction? “Matt…”
“No, I pictured you like this too.” He shackled something to my ankle. And then the other. His hands fell from my skin and my legs lifted slightly.
I tried to move but couldn’t at all. It felt like my heart was pounding in my throat. A mix of fear and excitement.
“All grown up,” he said, his voice tight. “And spread for me.” The bed dipped slightly. “I pictured my cock down your throat. You begging me for more.”
Desire flooded through my body.
“Have you ever played with any toys?” he asked.
I pictured Jacob’s toys strewn on the floor. But I knew that wasn’t what he was talking about. I shook my head.
“I love stealing your firsts. And just so we’re clear…all the rest of them are mine.”
I swallowed hard.
“You definitely need to be restrained for what I’m about to do to you.” He tightened the shackles on my wrists even more. “Open your mouth, gorgeous.”
I parted my lips slightly. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I didn’t imagine the cold, hard metal.
“Not that it really needs to be lubricated. You’re fucking soaked, baby.” He pulled it out of my mouth. And before I even realized what was happening, he slipped the cold toy inside my pussy. It started vibrating.
I arched my back. It was the only movement my body could make. I tried to reach out for him. I needed to touch him. I wanted to run my fingers down his six pack. And dig my nails into his back. Oh God.
He chuckled.
“Matt…I…I need…”
“You seem perfectly content. And I like watching you squirm. I’m so hard, baby.”
Fuck. “I need you.”
“What do you need exactly?” The bed dipped again. “My tongue?” His tongue slowly circled one of my hard nipples.
I moaned and tried to move again, the shackles digging in to my wrists. “I want to touch you.”
“That’s not how this works.”
“Let me see you.”
He bit down on my nipple.
I moaned.
“Can’t you picture me staring down at you? My cock in my hand?”
I moaned again. I wanted to see. The shackles bit at my skin as the vibrations became more intense. “How did you do that?”
“There’s a remote control. Do you want more?”
“No, I can’t…”
He made it start going faster.
“Matt,” I moaned. My back arched again.
And he immediately turned off the vibrator.