Chapter 11
Chapter
Eleven
Aria
Luckily, the place we all decided on for dinner is just up the street.
I stay back while Abigail packs up the last of her things.
Everyone left a few minutes ago to head to dinner, and as predicted, when Elle found out I was invited, she huffed and walked away.
The office is almost empty, so I'm a little surprised when Mr. Castin walks over.
“Ms. Mason, I’m glad I was able to catch you. Can you please make sure to take home anything necessary for you to work from home tomorrow?”
“Work from home?” I ask, genuinely confused.
“Yes. There was a request put in, and it was approved since you have caught up and surpassed some of your colleagues. We don't see a reason not to allow it. “
“I didn't put in any request.” I don't even know how to request time off, let alone remote work.
“Well, it has already been approved. So we aren't expecting you tomorrow. You may as well take the day.” His smile hides something. He walked out with Theo earlier. Did he have something to do with this? Is he really expecting me to not come to work tomorrow?
My mind immediately wanders to what he said to me before he left.
I am going to make you cum using the things you found in my closet. I want to play, and I don't like being kept waiting. The longer I am left to wait, the harder it is going to be to earn my forgiveness.
Heat pools in my stomach thinking about what he has planned, and how he has planned ahead for me to not have to come to work tomorrow. He is expecting this to take a long time, and I am going to need time to recover. This is just another way he is trying to take care of me.
“Ok, I guess I'll pack up a few files, and I will get them done at home tomorrow.” I look at Abigail, who seems to be just as confused as I am. I am taking it that this is not something done often with interns.
“Perfect. Ms. Tagle, I would also like to extend the offer to you. Would you like to work remotely tomorrow?” Abigail's eyes widen.
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. I looked over your proposal and am very impressed with the concepts you decided to pitch. I’ll be setting up a meeting on Friday to discuss the reasoning behind your choices.” Abigail takes the praise and just nods her head.
“Thank you, that would be amazing.”
“Perfect, I will have Ms. Davidson note it in our systems. You both will still be responsible for tomorrow's work, but enjoy doing it from home.”
“Thank you,” we both say in unison before letting out a soft laugh. Mr. Castin leaves before Abigail turns to me.
“He has never let interns work from home. Did you really put in a request?”
“I didn't, but I think I may know what happened.” I laugh and try to brush it off, hoping she won't ask many more questions. “Do you need me to make a copy of the Branson file?”
“No, I already have a copy. Jonathan asked for it, but never came to get it. I guess this is my copy now.” We both laugh.
After packing our things, we make it downstairs where Johnathon is waiting outside.
“Took you ladies long enough.” He sighs.
“We didn't ask you to wait. Mr. Castin stopped by the desks before we left.”
“Really? What did he need?”
“He told us we were allowed to work from home tomorrow, and made sure we were able to pack up everything we would need.” Abigail smiles. I just nod along, appreciative that she didn't make it seem like I was singled out again.
“Fuck, next time I am waiting for you guys upstairs. I would kill to be able to work from my bed.” He grumbles a little but doesn't ask any more questions about it.
We all walk together to the restaurant a block down, and Abigail heads up the stairs to the bar as Johnathon pulls me to the side. “Hey, want to share a cigarette before we head up?”
“I don't smoke,” I reply. Abigail already halfway up the stairs. Jonathan watches as she turns the corner.
“I know.” He looks down at his shoes and takes a breath before looking at me. I just stand there, confused as to why he would ask to smoke if he knew I didn't. “I just wanted to ask you something alone.”
Is he really going to ask me out even after seeing I’m with someone else?
“The guy from earlier, your boyfriend?”
“Yeah…” I answer tentatively.
“You’re not going to get in trouble when you go home tonight, right?” His voice is full of concern.
I just stare at him for a second, unsure of how to answer or why he would even ask.
“He just seemed a little…” he pauses.
“Older?” I offer.
“Yes, but no. He seemed a little controlling? Maybe even a little aggressive. I just want to make sure that he's not going to hurt you when you go home.”
Hurt me? Yes, please. Knowing Theo, if he is planning on delivering pain, it will be coupled with equal amounts of pleasure. He gets off on others trusting him to provide those unconventional desires. While it may hurt, and I hope it does, it is only fun if we both enjoy it.
“No, he won’t, I won’t,” I stammer unconvincingly.
I take a breath. “Thank you for your concern, but I can promise I am safe.” I reach out and touch his arm.
He may be a stereotypical frat boy, but seeing him actually be concerned for my safety is sweet.
I would still never touch him with a ten-foot pole on a regular occasion, but this side of him is nice.
He shakes his head and nods before leading us toward the stairs.
“Aren’t you going to smoke?”
“Nope, I don't smoke either.” I nod, realizing he just needed to find an excuse to hold us back a second. Maybe he isn't such a bad guy. Annoying, sure, but he seems to have a good heart. I hope it stays that way.
We make it up to the table, and everyone is ordering their drinks. By the time the waiter gets to us, I have figured out my order.
“And for you?”
“French 76, please.”
“Do you mean French 75?”
“No, I want vodka instead of gin. Is that possible?”
“Absolutely.” He nods, then looks to Jonathan, who just orders a rum and Coke.
Abigail saved us seats at the end of the table next to Tucker and Peter.
“Did Castin really say you could work from home tomorrow, or is Abigail pulling one over on us?” Peter leans over the table so I can hear him.
“No, apparently a request got put in and he approved it. Then extended the offer to Abigail when I told him I didn't make a request.” The boys looked shocked. “And we decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth and accepted, packed up our stuff, and left.”
“He said it was because he was impressed with my proposal, and we all know he loved Aria’s. Has anyone else finished theirs and turned it in for review?” The boys look around the table before looking back at us and shaking their heads.
“No one else?”
“We have until Friday. Why would we turn it in early?”
“To impress the guy we want to hire us at the end of the year?” Abigail sasses back.
She is definitely more open outside of work.
I can admire that skill. Women already have to work harder than men in almost any career; why give them anything else to critique or use against her?
At work, it's all business, but at the bar with us, she's definitely letting those curls down.
The bar is filled with conversations and laughter.
The table is full of friendly debates and rivalry.
I sit back and watch as a group of people, all competing for the same job, put that aside and still have a good time together.
Maybe it's because they are men that they don't have the same rivalry, but this thing with Elle—I don't see how it can have a happy ending.
Even if we both get hired on together, there will always be a rivalry and jealousy. It is not going to end well.
I take a sip from my glass as my phone vibrates. I look down to see a message from Theo.
I am still waiting.
The message is simple, but has huge implications. I smile down at it, picturing Theo in the guest room pulling out his toys and deciding what he is going to use on me tonight. A moment later, my phone buzzes again.
Did you want to add anything to your homework?
Homework? What homework?
***
Your hard limits. That worksheet you filled out.
No.
You can change your mind.
I know, I don't want to. I don’t know what is going to be too much. I want to find those limits with you.
Come home.
I will.
Now.
When I'm done.
Should I be pushing buttons when I am already pushing a boundary, making him wait? Probably not, but I really want to know what he has planned for me tonight.
Abigail asks for my opinion to settle a debate, and I am pulled into the wild conversation at the table.
Even while watching Peter and Tucker have a heated debate about which design came first, Stark Tower or Castin Tower, there is a little voice in the back of my head saying Go home to Theo.
I swallow the last of my drink and take out my phone.
Can you send a car, please?
Stan has been outside since you got off work.
You made him sit out there this entire time?
It's his job.
I’ll be home soon.
I’ll be waiting.
Closing the phone, I flag down the waiter.
“I am going to be heading home. I will see you all on Thursday.” The boys give me a hard time about working from home tomorrow, but Johnathon just watches without comment. When we make eye contact, I mouth the words I am safe, promise. He just nods before downing the rest of his drink.
I grab my bag and head downstairs, and like Theo had said, Stan is standing out front holding my door open.
“Sorry for making you wait.”
“It's quite all right, Ms. Mason.”
He closes the door, and for a brief moment, the air around me is still and silent. I take a deep breath, finally admitting to myself what I may have caused myself to walk into at home. Well, at Theo’s home.
When he FaceTimed me that first night, he said so many things.
He told me all about how he would use certain toys, how he wanted to leave marks across my body.
The conversation was so hot. But a lot of things can be hot when it's just words.
He is about to actually do those things to me.
A knot forms in my stomach and battles the heat rising from my core as I start to remember all the things he had said he wanted to do.
The logical part of my brain keeps telling me it's dangerous, that I should be scared. But on the other hand, it's telling me that I want it. All of it. That the fear is fun, like a haunted house. We pay to go be scared. We pay to have our nervous system attacked and us put into fight or flight.
Theo would never intentionally hurt me—I don't think.
At least he wouldn't hurt me if I didn't want it.
He has been very intentional about making sure I understand this is an agreement between both of us.
That there are hard limits, and even when we were together before, if he introduced anything that could make me uncomfortable, he made sure I knew I could say no and how to say no.
I trace my fingers over the spot on my wrist where Theo had bound me to the bed.
My attention is pulled back to reality when Stan opens the door. I hadn't even realized we had started the drive home. It's now or never. I step out of the car. Stan tries to hand me my bag.
“Can you leave that with Enzo? Have him send it up in the morning?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I take the elevator up and enter the foyer to the penthouse. Once inside the door, all the lights are off. Except one in Theo’s room.
I slowly make my way to the open door, counting my steps. My heart pounds in my ears as my core tightens. The mix of want and fear battles as I inch closer step by step. Once in the doorway, I can see Theo sitting on the couch at the foot of his bed.
“Daddy?” I ask softly.
“Explain the stop lights.”
“Red means stop, Yellow means approaching red, check in, or slow down. Green means good to go.”
“And you will use them.”
“If I need to.” I smile as I see his hand flex over his knee.
He looks at me, his eyes dark. He has been waiting all night for this, for me.
“Come here.”
“Yes, Daddy.” I slowly walk to him, taking in every moment his eyes shift over my body.
I stand in front of him. He places his hands on my hips before standing, towering over me.
“Strip.”