Chapter 16
Dallas
I’ve decided there is nothing sexier than watching my girl struggle through dinner with the pretty plug in her bottom. I didn’t let her have panties, either. She sits in her seat, trying not to squirm, and every once in a while, I reach back and tap the plug through her dress.
Arianna shoots daggers at me with her eyes, but she loves our dynamic. She’s been aroused and edgy ever since I put the plug in her. She likes the awareness she has of every nerve ending in her rectum. She sits taller and wiggles.
My girl likes to be embarrassed. She knew this would happen. She dared me to do it. I will not back down from a dare. How far does her need for embarrassment go? I’m going to test the waters a bit.
We’re in the dining room. Just the four of us. So, I think it’s safe enough to see how she will react if I say some rather crude things in front of Ryder and Claire. It’s not like Ryder doesn’t say things to embarrass Claire pretty often. Arianna must be wondering when I might do the same thing.
I swallow a bite of broccoli and look at Ryder. “I need to come up with some more uncomfortable methods of punishing Arianna. Her tolerance is too high.”
She gasps and drops her fork so it clangs against the plate. “Dallas…” she hisses.
I glance at her. Her cheeks are pink, and her eyes are wide. She’s nervous but not humiliated. “What? I’m just asking. Ryder and Claire have been together longer than you and I. I bet Ryder has come up with some pretty creative means of getting Claire to behave.”
This time, it’s Claire who admonishes me. “Dallas!”
Ryder laughs.
I roll my eyes dramatically. “Don’t act like you don’t enjoy getting your butt spanked. You do things in front of everyone every day to make sure Ryder swats your behind soundly.”
She glares at me, though she’s struggling not to smile. “But we don’t have to talk about it.”
I shrug. “Talking about it is even more fun.” I turn back to Ryder. “Did you buy a breast pump yet?”
“Yep.” He says the word casually as if I’ve asked if he got the mail today.
Claire gasps and jerks her gaze to him, wide-eyed. “You did?”
“Yep.”
“I’m like five minutes pregnant,” she informs him.
“And I’ll start preparing your breasts before the baby is born. I read about it. It’s safe in the last few weeks.” He lifts a brow.
Her jaw hangs open.
Ryder turns to me. “It’s not recommended to start pumping a pregnant woman too early. It could cause labor. But there’s no reason you couldn’t pump someone who isn’t pregnant.” He winks at Arianna, grinning.
Arianna shakes her head. “Hell, no. Forget it.”
I smile at her. “Are you saying I’ve finally found something you wouldn’t enjoy enough to cause you to behave?” I tease.
She crosses her arms over her breasts and holds them tightly. “You are not coming anywhere near my chest with a breast pump, Dallas.”
“Mmm. I think I’ll go ahead and buy one. It can sit in our room as a deterrent.”
She shakes her head. “If you have your way, I’m going to be pregnant the first time we have sex. Ryder just said it’s not safe.”
“It’s perfectly safe before we have sex, though,” I point out.
She narrows her gaze at me, but her legs are clamped together, and she’s wiggling in her seat. “Can we not talk about our sex life and breast pumping at the dinner table?”
I shrug. “Just testing the waters, baby.”
She groans and lowers her arms to grab her fork. “Well, pumping is a hard no. So, let’s move on.”
Is it, though? I can’t help but continue smirking. I wonder when she’ll agree to marry me.
Arianna sits up taller. “Subject change. Can we go to the public library tomorrow?”
I reach over and rub her neck. “I would ask if there’s something you need to get from your apartment, but you’re only worried about the books, aren’t you?”
“Yes. And stop making fun of me. Books are important to me,” she says with full defiance in her voice.
I lean over and kiss her neck. “They are, baby. We’ll check on things as soon as it’s safe. Several men are working on removing the saturated ceiling. Let’s give them another day.”
“When do you think I could reopen?” she asks anxiously.
“That’s going to take a while, baby. You can’t open the library until there is running water for the bathrooms. The plumber says the pipe damage is extensive. He needs time to get the parts and assess the situation further.”
The sound of a deep male voice I know well suddenly comes from the front of the house. I chuckle as I stand.
“Is that your brother?” Ryder asks.
“Yep.” I turn to look for him, but he finds us first.
“I thought I smelled food,” Brody says as he saunters into the dining room.
I take a few steps to hug him in our brotherly, manly fashion.
Ryder joins me and extends a hand. “Good to see you, man. It’s been a few years.”
“Yeah, well, leave it to our eccentric old grandfather to bring a family together.” He smirks.
“Oh, Lord, not another smirking Wilde cousin,” Claire says, smiling. “I don’t think we can take another one in the house. The mansion is big, but all the smirking is way over the top.”
Brody rounds to Claire. “You must be Claire.” He bends over to kiss her cheek before returning his attention to Ryder. “You dog. I heard you arrived and got hitched five seconds later. And then your brother Tiago, too? Where is he?” Brody glances around.
“Honeymoon in Florida,” Ryder informs him.
Brody turns back to me and then glances at Arianna. “Don’t tell me you’ve caught the bug, too.”
I grin. “Brody, this is Arianna. Arianna, my older brother Brody. He’s Amos Wilde’s oldest grandchild.”
Arianna stands, but she still clenches her thighs together. I’m sure she wants to slap me about now for making her wear that plug to dinner. “Nice to meet you,” she says as she holds out her hand.
Brody isn’t having it, though. He pulls her in for a hug before grabbing her shoulders and holding her at arm’s length. He searches her face. “Damn, you have stars in your eyes.” He glances at me. “Fuck me. So do you. Is there something in the water in Wilde?”
I chuckle. “It would seem so.”
“Well, I’m not drinking it then. I’ve got bottled water in my truck. I can only stay a month. I left my foreman in charge in San Antonio. I’ll help y’all get a handle on your construction issues, and then I gotta get back to Texas.”
“I thought you were bringing another guy with you. Haden, was it?”
Brody nods. “Yep. He’ll be here soon. He’s wrapping some things up for me. He’ll take over the renovations at the house while I deal with whatever you’ve got going on in town.” Brody wanders slowly around the dining room, looking at every corner and the ceiling. “This is quite the place.”
“Have a seat,” I tell him. “We were just eating.”
Gretchen scurries into the room with another plate and place setting. She’s grinning from ear to ear. I swear, the more of us arrive, the happier this woman is. She thrives on filling this monstrosity with life. “What can I get you to drink, Brody?”
He turns toward her. “Oh, uh, a beer would be great if you have it. Thank you, ma’am.”
Gretchen sets her hands on her hips and gives him a narrow-eyed glare. “I’ll get you a beer if you promise not to call me ma’am. Gretchen is fine.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Brody chuckles.
Gretchen rolls her eyes and spins around to head back toward the kitchen.
Brody takes a seat. “Damn, that smells good.”
“Gretchen is an amazing cook,” Ryder tells him.
We all return to our seats, and I point toward Arianna’s plate. “Eat, baby.”
Ryder does the same. “You, too, Claire. Unless you want me to take that pump out of the box later…”
She turns toward him and swats him with both hands.
Ryder laughs as he puts his arms up to protect himself from her wrath.
“Pump?” Brody asks.
Both Arianna and Claire start shouting at us at the same time. I can’t even discern what they’re saying on top of each other, but I get the gist. Something about cutting our balls off and feeding them to wild animals if we elaborate.