Chapter 33 The Phoenix #2
Flipping on the vanity lights, I took a seat on the closed toilet lid, waiting for her. Even at the hospital, Kendi’s makeup was always on point, as best as it could be with what she was limited to having. She didn’t need it though; her skin was beautiful and flawless.
“Girl, we have got to go shopping sometime and update what you call makeup,” she laughed, looking at what I had to offer.
“It’s a date as long as you teach me how to do it,” I let her get to work, applying foundation and concealer on my skin before she started on my eyes.
Her options were limited with what I had, luckily, with her artistic talent, she was able to create a beautiful smoky eye before applying red lipstick that matched my outfit.
She finished up about ten minutes before Daxton was supposed to arrive and said goodbye, promising to call me tomorrow after she had lunch with her parents.
Other than Michelle, I had never had someone get ready for a date with me; it was a unique feeling, having a female companion, one I wanted to keep around for a long time.
Riley had just entered his crate with his antler as I locked him inside when the doorbell rang.
I smiled to myself. When he said we were going to do a full official date, he must have meant it since he didn’t let himself in right away like he had developed the habit of doing.
Grabbing my black cardigan off the back of the couch, I made my way into my entryway and opened the door.
Daxton was a sight to behold in pressed black slacks and a black button-up shirt, the top buttons undone and exposing the hard muscle beneath.
His eyes widened as he took me in, lust filling his gaze as he handed me a bouquet of purple wild flowers.
Tears threatened to fill my eyes as I realized he got me the exact ones that used to grow in my grandmother's flower beds, the same ones that I had inked on my flesh along my entire left arm.
“Thank you,” I said breathlessly. The thought that someone had put that much effort into such a small gesture squeezed my heart.
Taking them from him, I let him in so I could place them in a vase with some water, quickly finding one from under my sink.
I hadn’t had fresh flowers in my house in so long that I had almost forgotten the vase was there.
“You look so fucking beautiful, Rae,” He said as I placed the flowers in the center of my kitchen island.
Turning around, I found him gazing at me from the doorway, his eyes ranking up and down my body as he took in the fitted romper, hugging the curves of my thighs and the swells of my breasts. Slowly, I walked toward him, placing my hands against his firm stomach and tilting my head up.
Daxton took my chin between his thumb and forefinger and kissed my lips gently.
“I’m half tempted to keep you home so no one else can see you like this.” He muttered, running a hand through my long hair that I left loose.
“You promised me a full date, and a full date is what you’re going to deliver, sir.” I scolded him, knowing he wasn’t being serious about not taking me out. He hadn’t given me a reason to doubt his word yet, and I didn’t think he ever would.
“Let's get going then, before I change my mind,” He offered me his arm as we left the house, opening the door to his Jeep and making sure I was settled before getting in himself.
Dinner was wonderful. Daxton had taken me one town over to a new Italian restaurant just to get away from Elston Hollow for a few hours.
The rustic restaurant was located in the heart of the neighboring city.
Candles were lit on every table while a live violinist played in a corner, setting the ambiance for a romantic evening.
The lighting had been romantically dim, the perfect atmosphere for our first date.
My anxiety was starting to view fewer threats from Daxton as I got used to his reactions instead of Craig’s. Never had I compared the two, but after years of suffering from someone's unpredictable reactions, it’s taken a little bit of time to get used to someone being consistent.
Daxton talked about his family, though there wasn’t much to say.
He grew up in a happy household as an only child.
His parents both tragically died in a car accident when he was away at college.
His office used to be his dad’s hardware store, and his apartment was used for overflow stock and storage.
He had converted it after he had graduated as a way to keep the building in the family and pursue his passion for helping people.
My family had already been discussed a lot in our therapy sessions, so there wasn’t much for me to elaborate on.
I told him a lot about work, the fascinating things that happened, as well as the horrible things.
My job wasn’t about the money. It was rewarding in its own way most days, impossibly hard on others.
He looked forward to meeting more of my friends—an unspoken promise he intended to keep hanging around—which I was finding I was more than okay with.
When we got back to my place, we walked around the back.
I wanted to sit on the porch swing and enjoy the night a little longer before we went inside.
The porch light in my backyard was always left on in case Riley needed to go out at night.
I didn’t like not being able to see outside my house.
Daxton took a seat beside me and gently started pushing us with his long legs.
Crickets chirped in the background, and there wasn’t a breeze to be found.
Seeing the leaves piling up in my yard reminded me I needed to get the rake out soon.
“Is your sister still planning on staying at another friend's house tonight?” He asked.
“That’s the plan,” I didn’t elaborate. Michelle stayed with different people when Daxton stayed over.
She handled her trauma by taking it out on herself in a much different way than I did.
She craved sex, yet didn’t want a relationship.
So her perfect setup was multiple friends with benefits.
I didn’t ask her a lot of questions about it; she would talk about it whenever she felt she was ready.
It just wasn’t my business to tell Daxton.
“Good. Selfishly, I like spending more time with you.”
“Be careful, you keep hanging around me too much, you're going to get sick of me.” It was meant as a joke, only maybe there was a real concern beneath my words.
“That will never happen, Rae,” he said adamantly.
I nodded, conceding by not arguing with him because I wanted to believe in what he was saying. Not everyone was going to leave me.
“Have you given any more thought to what I suggested?” He asked, still rocking us back and forth on the swing, the chains creaking quietly as we moved.
“The security cameras?”
“And a security system,” he added, waiting for an answer. He had brought up the suggestion after I was almost run over by a car, but I hadn’t given him an answer yet.
“I have, and I don’t think I’m ready to go through with that yet.”
He stiffened beside me, obviously not liking my answer.
“And why is that?” He asked, his tone dark.
“I don’t think a security system is going to do much good. Everything that he’s done has been outside of my house. And I have Riley, he’s not going to let the psycho anywhere near me.”
“As good a guard dog Riley is, he's not invincible, Rae. You need to have security, especially since you insist you and your sister can take care of each other.”
“Because we can,” I defended, “We’ve been taking care of each other for a long time; this is no different.”
“So you’ve had a psychotic stalker before?” My teeth clicked shut in response, refusing to answer. “That’s what I thought,” he continued. “This isn’t a matter to be taken lightly. Your ex is dangerous.”
“You think I don’t know that!” My voice raised slightly as I stood up from the swing, dropping my sweater into my abandoned seat.
“I have lived with him in my head for years, Dax, fucking years.” I don’t know why I was starting to get worked up; his suggestion was nothing short of reasonable, given what had been going on.
“You might want to watch it before I follow through with the punishment I told you that you would face the other day for not listening to me.” He stood as well, his eyes dark.
I knew in my heart he only had my best interest in mind.
He just didn’t understand how badly I didn’t want cameras in my house.
I didn’t feel like they would do any good.
“Punishment, huh? How are you going to do that? Spank me and send me to bed with no dessert?” I mocked.
“Get on your fucking knees,” he growled, obviously not as pleased with my attitude as I was.
“Excuse me?” I balked, crossing my arms over my chest in defiance.
“If you’re going to run that mouth when it comes to your own well being then it’s going to be taught a lesson. So get on your knees, Rae, and you will learn better things to do with that mouth other than argue.”
I turned away from him, muttering, “Punishment my ass,” even though I had been the one to taunt him with it on the phone.
His hand snatched out, grabbing a mess of my hair at the base of my skull and spinning me around to face him just as I thought I saw a shadow move behind my shed. Daxton pulled me firmly against his body as he towered over me, using his height to get his demand across.
“Get on your knees, now,” he gripped my hair so tightly that I felt the pain I craved so much and pushed me down.
My knees hit the concrete of my patio, and the thought of the movement behind my shed was wiped from my memory as his hand stayed on the back of my head.
“You want to change your mind about the little attitude you’re having?” He asked as he pinched my chin firmly, turning my head up to look at him. I rolled my eyes in response.
He hummed in response, undoing his zipper with his free hand, his rock-hard cock almost hitting me in the face as it sprang forward.
I didn’t get a chance to say a word as he pulled back on my hair to the point I opened my mouth with a wince, giving him the opportunity to shove himself into my mouth.
Daxton kept a tight grip on my hair, not going easy on me as he fucked my face.
I felt him hitting the back of my throat as my mouth made him slick.
He slid in and out with near brutal force.
My eyes managed to find his dark lust-filled ones from my place on the ground with his cock deep in my throat, trying my best to hold his gaze as he slid in and out of my mouth.
“That’s my good girl,” he groaned as I gagged on his massive length. “I want that lipstick smeared all over my dick, do you hear me, Raelynn?”
I couldn’t answer, I could barely breathe as he thrust into my mouth, his girth filling my throat.
Tears filled my eyes, my mascara running down my face as he continued.
I had a safe word—or, rather, a safe action—that I could use if it got to be too much.
We had put that in place the other day when he repeated how he wanted to punish me.
I liked how rough he was. I liked not having a say in what he did.
Wetness pooled between my thighs as I let him force himself farther down my throat, being used at his discretion, making me crave the force he used on me.
I moaned around him, looking up at him with watery eyes.
Watching him come undone was my favorite thing when his cock was down my throat.
The face he made as he spilled himself into me, knowing I was the one causing him such pleasure, made me want to do nothing more than continue to please him.
I swallowed him down as he pulled my hair harder, his hips jerking as he released himself down my throat.
He slowly withdrew himself from my mouth after I swallowed every drop of his cum, red smeared all over his length as it mixed with my saliva. Releasing my hair, he bent over and took in my appearance. I knew before he said anything that I had lost the argument.
“Such a good girl.” he praised, not just over how well I took him fucking my mouth, but that I was no longer arguing about the increased security.