Chapter 18
chapter eighteen
I’d woken up to a dozen text messages—some from people I barely knew—wishing me a happy birthday. I had officially turned the big forty, and it was apparently more special than other milestone birthdays.
Instead of replying to each of them down the line, I’d found myself seeking one of them out and replying to that one first.
Forrest
Happy birthday, my gorgeous, wonderful mess of a slut. May I have your address?
I’d barely opened my eyes, and they were already rolling in the back of my head. Forrest had a way of riling me up that no one else had done before.
Thank you. What for?
Forrest
I want to come see you duh. I have surprises in store
The idea of him coming to my house both terrified and excited me. If I let him come over, then I’d be crossing a line I’d made for myself. A boundary I didn’t want to cross in case I started to catch feelings. I thought about it, chewing on the inside of my cheek.
I’d promised myself, hadn’t I? That I wouldn’t get too attached. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Of course, Tobi’s words from the last time we’d talked came to mind. A little push, he’d said.
Rubbing some of the sleep out of my eyes, I sighed. Fuck it.
607 Crosswood dr.
Forrest
Be ready in about thirty, k?
Ready for what?
Forrest
B-day boy breakfast
He was taking me out for breakfast?
Forrest
I’m bringing everything but milk and butter. You got milk?
Wait. He was cooking me breakfast?
I do.
Forrest
Good. Orb
Owm
Omw ffs
I couldn’t help but laugh at him. I’d barely woken up, and I was already laughing. What a fucking gift he was.
I groaned as I started to get moving, picking out clothes to wear that wouldn’t scream how much of a hermit I usually was. My house wasn’t the messiest, but it wasn’t the cleanest, either. My bedroom was honestly the worst, seeing as I’d given up on folding my clothes at some point.
Did I care? Not exactly. If Forrest wanted to know me, then he’d get to know me, mess and all.
Well, I thought about cleaning everything up but had decided against it as I made my way to the bathroom. I’d just finished shaving when my phone started to ring. I leaned over the screen and answered with one finger, trying not to get my phone wet. “Hey.”
Callum was far too loud for this early in the morning. “Happy birthday! You didn’t answer my text. I thought maybe you were asleep.”
“So you were going to wake me up with a phone call? I got up not too long ago.”
“Dude, I sent you a text first. Unprompted. Aren’t you the least bit proud of me?”
“I’m always proud when you text me.”
“Well, you could act like it.” He scoffed. “What’re you up to today? Tobi and I could swing an early shift to come celebrate with you.”
I tapped the phone screen to look at the time. “Well, Forrest is coming over in a couple minutes. Sounds like he’s got a few things planned.”
“Forrest?”
My eyes flashed up to my reflection as it dawned on me. “Fuck.”
“Is that who you’ve been seeing?”
I groaned, taking a moment before I started to brush my hair. “Pretend I didn’t say anything.”
“It is. I like that name. With a name like that, you can’t be anything less than fun. So, he’s spending your birthday with you? Must be serious.”
“Okay, don’t even start.”
“Oh, I’ve started.”
“Then don’t continue.”
“Whatever.” He was rolling his eyes. I couldn’t see him, but I could hear it in his tone. I knew that bastard. “Please let me know how it goes. Tobi and I will be on standby for any birthday needs. I’ll see if I can get someone to make you a cake here, and I’ll bring it by tomorrow.”
“You don’t need to do that.”
“I’m gonna do it.”
“Okay. Whatever you say. Listen, he should be here soon, so I’m going to let you go.”
“Alright. I hope today is your best birthday yet.”
I smiled, despite how much pestering he was doing. Right as I flicked the light off in the bathroom, I got a text.
Forrest
Open your door b-day boy
That made me smile, too, but for a whole different reason. Little butterflies fluttered their wings in my stomach, along with a muscle-deep warmth that took over. Which was weird. I wasn’t ready to think about why or how yet.
I basically skipped down the stairs and to my front door, taking a deep breath before putting my hand on the doorknob. I was on the other side this time. Usually, I was the one waiting behind the door. Not this time. This time, I was letting Forrest see a brand new part of me.
And there he was, grinning and holding a suspicious number of bags in his hands. “Hi. You look different.”
It took me a second to say anything. He was wearing a tank top and sweatpants, which was my favorite outfit on him. Well, he didn’t have his glasses on, which would’ve made it that much better. “Uh, do I?”
He nodded. “Yup. You look a hell of a lot sexier. Do you think it’s because of your birthday?”
Rolling my eyes, I finally stepped to the side, letting him in. “The kitchen is around the corner. You can set everything down on the counter in there.”
“You have a nice house. I’m kind of excited to explore it. Maybe even a little jealous.”
“Pfft. It’s nothing compared to your fancy apartment.” I followed him into the kitchen, leaning against the wall. “What all did you bring? Your entire everything?”
I watched as he took out all sorts of stuff. Eggs, bread, some strawberries, a mixing bowl, a pan… “Just enough to make you something nice.”
“You know I own bowls and pans, right?”
“Oh, better safe than sorry.”
I opened the fridge, pulling out the milk and butter he’d requested. “What are you making?”
“French toast.”
“What’s that other bag for?” I pointed to the lone paper bag off to the side.
He glanced at it, but only for a moment. He started mixing things together in the bowl, and I was very content to ogle him while he did so. I secretly liked watching how his tattoos moved with his muscles. “A gift for later.”
“When’s later?”
“Later. We have a whole day ahead of us.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, stepping closer. “We do?”
“Mhmh.” He turned, leaning his back against the counter.
“We are going to chill and watch TV. Then, we’ll go out for lunch.
Then, we’ll come back here, chill some more, and I’ll give you, my pretty, pretty slut, your present.
” The way he was looking at me made my knees feel weak.
Fuck. He reached out, cupping the side of my face with his palm. “Does that sound good to you, Jackson?”
No fucking fair. He knew how that made me feel. He knew, and he was using it to his advantage. I pulled my lower lip between my teeth, getting lost in the depth of the world in his eyes. I wanted to live in them. I wanted to thrive in them. I wanted to suffocate in them. “Yes. That sounds perfect.”
He smiled, patting my cheek. “Great! Now, be a good birthday boy and go sit on the couch. Pull up something to watch. I’ll let you know when breakfast is ready.”
I should’ve let Callum know it was already the best birthday ever, and it was barely nine in the morning.
I’d pestered him for long enough. Forrest had finally agreed to let me see my birthday present. The sun was about to set, we’d spent all day together, and what a fucking day it’d been. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d laughed this much in a twelve-hour period.
He’d taken me out to eat, made them bring out dessert since it was my birthday, then rented a few movies for us to watch and brought cards we could play games with together.
After our third round of Go Fish, I’d finally convinced him.
He’d done well, considering my inability to let him drive me around, so nothing was truly a surprise. But he still had tricks up his sleeves.
Like this one.
I gripped the sheets beneath me, anxiously waiting as he walked back into the bedroom. He was holding something in his hands. Something black. “I noticed something on your list, Jackson.”
“Like what?”
“You don’t like bondage, but you seem to like sensory restriction. Is that right?”
I looked back at what he was holding. It was a blindfold. I swallowed, tilting my head. “Yeah. I don’t want my hands or body bound. But I like not being able to see sometimes. It feels like it heightens everything.”
“Because it does. It makes everything ten times better. I want you to stand and undress for me. I’m going to blind you, and then I’m going to dress you in your gift. Does that sound okay?”
Dress me in my gift? This was why he needed my sizes. “Yes. Yes, that sounds fine.” I stood up, taking everything off one by one. He was watching me. Waiting. Staring at me like he couldn’t get enough of me.
Once I had everything off, he stepped closer, stopping right in front of me. “I’m going to take your sight, Jackson. I’m going to control your body, and you’re going to love it. But you remember your safe word, right?”
“Yes. Red.”
“Good boy.”
Slowly, he placed the blindfold over my eyes, making sure it sat flush against the back of my head. He adjusted it a couple of times until I was shrouded in nothing but darkness and the vague idea of light around me.
I tried to listen to his movements. Every rustle of his sweatpants or tank top as he moved around me. I couldn’t see him. I couldn’t feel him. But I knew he was there. He had me.
“Stay still, sweetie.” I heard him get closer before he touched my leg. “Up.” I moved my foot up, letting him slide something on me. I did the same for the other foot.
It felt like…lace. Lace and straps. Oh, my god.
I gasped as he ran his fingers under the straps that sat along my ass cheeks. “Holy fuck. Lingerie?”
“Lingerie, baby,” he whispered. He was a lot closer to me now. Right by my ear.
Something went over my neck. Some sort of fabric with something dangling.
I wasn’t sure what it was, and I was about to ask when Forrest tugged on it, pulling me toward him.
I whimpered into the air as I realized it was a collar and leash of some sort.
Only enough pressure on my throat to remind me who controlled me, yet not enough to constrict me in any real way.