The List
FRANKIE
“Wow, Frankie, I’m so impressed by this!”
Phoebe’s smile comes through a little pixelated on my laptop, courtesy of EBU’s shitty wifi, but I smile back just the same.
It changed the trajectory of her entire career.
“I was worried it was kind of clunky.”
I only gave her the first ten chapters, which admittedly are the ones I polished up the most. The rest of it’s a goddamn rat’s nest that I’ve yet to begin untangling, but that’s what editors are for, right?
“Not at all, it reads smoothly enough, and it’s fresh.
So look, Frankie, I’ll cut right to it: I have a friend in publishing, she used to write for the New Yorker, and a couple other papers and magazines, but now she’s got her own publishing house.
She’s been looking for work that’s off the beaten path, so to speak, and she likes writers who are doing new and exciting things.
I’m going to pass these chapters along to her, if that’s all right with you. ”
“Yes!” I shout, my heart thumping wildly in my chest. “Yes, that would be incredible. Thank you, Phoebe.”
“Oh, it’s no trouble, dear. Any friend of Daphne’s is a friend of ours.” She sips her tea. “Just don’t freak out if you don’t get a response right away. Janis is in Japan until the end of the month, and she’s not a fan of the whole Zoom thing.”
“Christ, is anyone?” I laugh. “I fumbled my way through it during lockdown trying to teach classes. It was a nightmare.”
“What do you teach?”
“Sociology— stuff like theoretical frameworks, qualitative research methods… but I’m taking some time off to focus on the book.”
“And your upcoming nuptials, of course?”
I know she’s only teasing, but it still takes me off-guard.
“Well, yes, there’s that too.” I pick at my fingernails, one in a string of bad habits I developed after I stopped using. “I wanted to help Daph out. That bar means a lot to her.”
Phoebe offers another warm, but this time slightly sadder smile.
“Joe was a great guy, and a hell of a musician, but I’ve heard even after he retired he was a huge part of the local community.
You’re a good friend helping her keep that part of him alive.
” She glances at her watch. “Oh shoot, I hate to cut this short but I’ve got another call that’s supposed to be starting…
Well, right now. I’ll send Janis your stuff, and I’ll make sure she sits down to read it as soon as she gets back. ”
“Thanks, Phoebe. I really appreciate you sitting down with me.”
I can’t tell what’s better, reconnecting with my childhood crush, or having one of rock’s biggest writers tell you you’ve got talent.
“No trouble at all. We’ll chat soon, bye!”
She ends the call and I slump back in my seat, realizing for the first time today that I’m completely covered in sweat. My heart was racing like I was being hunted for sport the entire time, and I guess this was the result.
I grab a clean shirt out of my work bag, but right in the middle of changing I hear a knock at the door.
“Gimme a minute!”
“Goldilocks, it’s me!”
Great, just when I was getting the nervous sweats under control.
The door swings open and I jump, dragging the shirt down over my head as quickly as I can.
“Damn, if I knew office hours came with a free strip show, maybe I’d have gone back to school instead of chasing fame and fortune.”
I can tell I’m blushing like crazy, but I do my best to play it cool.
“Sorry, sweetheart. That’s extracurricular.”
“Awww…” She shuts the door and leans up against it, a subtle look I can’t quite place playing on her lips. “And here I was, thinking I was getting special treatment.”
“This isn’t where I teach that course.”
This time she doesn’t say anything, because she doesn’t have to; her eyes are like embers, burning into me as they slide up and down my body.
“What brings you to my neck of the woods?” I ask.
“Well, I got up early and went for a run, then I thought ‘wow, wouldn’t this be a great time to pick a date for the wedding,’ and so I did. How does Friday sound?”
“Friday? Might be a problem. See, I’m already getting married on Friday, so…”
“Wow, you’re quite the ladies’ man, huh?”
“Just a little,” I grin.
“Well, if your second bride-to-be backs out, I’ve got us booked in at the courthouse for 6:00pm.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, but did you really come all the way out here just to tell me that?”
She takes a step toward me, glancing around the room.
“Well, I may have had an ulterior motive.”
“Did you now?”
“Right before my run, I wrote out a new draft of my list.” She reaches into her bag and pulls out a tiny black notebook, walking right up in front of me before handing it over. “I was hoping you’d grade it for me, professor.”
I smirk, flipping it open.
“I can, but I think we should discuss something first.”
“Oh!” Her excitement falters. “Sure, yeah, of course.”
“It’s nothing major, but it’s important.”
Daphne blushes, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
“Well, don’t keep me in suspense.”
I take a breath. It’s an awkward conversation to have, but an important one.
“Are you on birth control?”
“I have an IUD.”
“Have you been tested?”
“After Cole. It was negative.”
“Good. I got tested two months ago. Negative. I’ve been with four women since then, but we used protection every single time.”
Daphne nods, and I clear my throat, glancing back down at her list.
Strangely, the first thing I notice is her handwriting. It’s gorgeous, sharp and a little slanted to the right as it spikes and loops across the page, but it’s what she’s written that really gets my attention.
1. Orgasm denial.
I glance up at her.
“Starting with quite the bang.”
“Almost the opposite,” she giggles. “Keep reading.”
2. Exhibitionism.
3. Collars and leashes.
4. Chased and tied up.
I’m sweating through this damn shirt again. She’s put a lot more thought into this than I expected.
5. Wax play.
6. Spanking.
7. Choking.
8. Let me…
9.
“You erased the last two?”
Her eyes drop, and suddenly there isn’t a trace of that confidence from earlier.
“They’re kind of a work in progress.”
Just when I think I’m almost done getting to know her all over again, she throws me several curve balls. I love a woman who keeps me on my toes.
“Is there anything on the list that’s too much?” She asks, lightly brushing her fingers across my chest.
The momentary flicker was just that: momentary. She’s already back to dominating the room. My eyes dance over the list again. I don’t have a lot of hard limits. In fact, there’s almost nothing I won’t try.
“No, this is fine.”
“Great.” She licks her lips. “So?”
“What?”
“What grade do I get, Doctor?” She places the palm of her hand on my chest, right over my pounding heart. “Or do you prefer to be called sir?”
I blink, finally taking a moment to get a good look at her for the first time since she walked in the door.
She looks absolutely delectable, dressed casually in a pair of black leggings and a skin-tight tank top, her long hair pulled back into a messy ponytail.
There’s nothing out of the ordinary here, and yet…
“That might be the hottest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
“Might be?” She laughs. “Damn, I guess I’ll have to try harder.”
“Well, I’d have to think about it for a couple of minutes, you may very well be number one, so don’t give up yet.”
“Right, right… because there have been so many women.”
“Are you jealous?”
“Only that we didn’t reconnect sooner.” She pulls back, batting those thick dark lashes at me. “Now, how about you let me please you, sir.”
I glance over past my open blinds, and the clear unobstructed view across to the opposite office. Well, she said she liked exhibitionism, right? But still, time for the old faithful mantra: no feelings, no feelings, no feelings…
Except for being horny. I think that’s encouraged, given the circumstances.
She starts to lower herself to her knees, but I stop her, grasping her chin tightly.
“Hold that thought, Firecracker.”
I know I shouldn’t be doing this, it’s totally against University policy. I should know, I wrote that shit. Still, if we’re going to do it, it’ll be my way.
“Pull down your leggings and bend over my desk.”
Her cheeks burn bright red, and she licks her lips.
“But I said I want to please you.”
“Having a girl that does what she’s told is what pleases me the most,” I purr, sliding my hand between her thighs. “Now…”
She steps away from me, strutting around behind my desk before slipping her leggings past her hips as slowly as she can manage.
“Like this?”
I cock my head, savoring the moment as I slowly walk around to the back of the desk.
“That’s exactly what I want.”
What a fucking view, and the way she wiggles her perky little ass?
I drag my chair up behind her, taking my front-row seat.
“Can people see us?” She asks, glancing up at the window.
“You know that’s a great point. I think someone has a pretty good view of my desk from that office across the courtyard. Sometimes I even give them a little wave.” I grin to myself as she shivers. “But don’t worry about that right now. You’ve got more pressing things to focus on.”
Daphne gasps as I spread her cheeks, arching her back as I dive right in with my tongue.
“I’ve never done this before. I feel so fucking dirty.”
Her words come out in a soft rasp, but I keep going, relishing every gasp and moan that fills my office before pulling back just to make her squirm a little.
“You like it?”
“Yes.”
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, sir, Doctor Hughes.”
Her voice is like a glass of smooth bourbon that goes straight to my head, and I can’t help myself, giving her ass a rough slap.
“You make me fucking crazy.”
Carefully, I slide two fingers into her pussy while I continue to swirl my tongue, devouring her like she’s a five course meal.
“How often do you fuck women over your desk?”
Her words are breathy, and starting to get a little staggered.
“Never. It’s an HR violation.”
“Oh, so you’re being a bad boy today.”