Chapter 24
Isabelle
The rest of the weekend passes in a haze.
We didn’t take things further that night because I make it a rule; I won’t have sex with someone who wants to submit until we’ve gotten to know each other—and our boundaries— much better.
I can’t believe I came so close to breaking my own rule.
The way his body felt against mine was so right, so safe.
Like a home I didn’t even know I had.
I need to know James will honour my limits as much as I’ll honour his. He had asked about meeting up the next day, but I want to give him space to think through the whole situation. I don’t want him thinking only with his cock and diving in headfirst.
He clearly has hang-ups about sex and his ex-wife, and I need to understand where his head’s at. I can’t throw myself into a relationship or dynamic without knowing where we’re both at. I can’t let myself get hurt again.
Yes, Miss
We also need to think carefully about our relationship at work.
The phrase ‘don’t shit on your own doorstep’ springs to mind, and honestly, I start doubting if we’re even doing the right thing.
I’m still so new to teaching, and he was my teacher.
I don’t want anyone to suspect anything untoward—apart from all the filthy thoughts I’ve had about him and what I’d do to him given half a chance.
Instead, I sent him away with a checklist of limits and some reading. Ever the teacher, he now has homework, and I want him to think carefully about what he wants. It isn’t fair to either of us to rush into something and watch it explode spectacularly if it all goes wrong.
Which it could do.
And then we’ll both be hurt. That thought kills me inside. He’s already so damaged by his ex-wife’s nasty opinions; I couldn’t bear it if I was the source of more pain.
Curled up on the armchair, I dial Victoria’s number. It’s Sunday afternoon, and I know she’s only just waking up after a night at the club. She answers on the fourth ring.
“What? This better be worth it,” she mumbles, clearly still half-asleep.
Laughing, knowing full well she’s scowling and itching to smack me, I reply, “Well, hello to you too, my happy camper!”
Alexandra Ravensbrook
“Oh my God, you got laid!” she shrieks, suddenly wide awake and thirsty for gossip.
I hear rustling in the background and a distant grunt of disapproval.
Clearly, she isn’t alone. “Hang on, I’m getting my robe and grabbing coffee.
I need all the details… Oh shit, it was your teacher, wasn’t it?
I knew it. Who could resist that ass and those tits?
” she rattles off. Cupboard doors slam, and cups clatter against the counter as I seize the chance to actually say something.
“Vic, okay, breathe,” I say. “Yes, it was him. No, I didn’t get laid. Well, kind of… but not.”
“You’re making zero sense right now,” she huffs as the kettle boils in the background.
“We talked, and he went down on me. Very well, I might add… He’s a keeper for that alone,” I laugh, trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in my gut that this could all go horribly wrong.
“Okay, so what’s bugging you? I can tell you’re holding back,” she presses.
I explain everything.
“So, remember I told you about meeting him in the club last weekend whilst I was in disguise, and he opened up to me?”
“Please don't tell me he doesn't know it's you…” she groans. “Don’t fucking—”
Yes, Miss
“Of course not! Bloody hell, Vic!” I interrupt, annoyed she’d think I’d do that.
“Continue.” Her voice is clipped and formal.
“Well, we went on the school trip, and things happened…” My voice trails off, thinking back to him holding my ankle, his molten brown eyes fixed on mine as he looked up.
“And?” she snaps, clearly becoming impatient. “You got me out of bed for this, may I remind you.”
“There was a lot of chat, a lot of tension between us, sexual tension, and I couldn’t do it, Vic.
I couldn’t lie to him. When we got back, I told him it had been me in the club, and he was annoyed, angry.
He looked so hurt it broke my heart.” The shame at lying to him floods me all over again from that night, but I honestly didn’t know what to do for the best in the moment.
“So, how did things happen last night then?” She sounds confused but eager for gossip.
“I told him to meet me at the club so we could talk. And, well…” I let out a small moan of pleasure at the memory.
“That good, huh?” She laughs. “Well, Greg’s text makes sense now.”
“What did he say, and why was he there? He didn’t say he was up this way.”
Alexandra Ravensbrook
“He just said that you looked like you were settling in just fine!” she chuckles, and I roll my eyes at the sound. “Dominic sent him to check the place out. You know he thinks of you like a daughter. He wanted to be sure that it was a good place.”
My heart swells with love at the man who people think of as formidable and grumpy until they actually get to know him and realise he’s the biggest, funniest softie.
“But, Vic, what if it all goes wrong? He used to be my teacher; he’s my boss now. I don’t want people to think anything happened in the past. It could kill his career.”
I sink into the cushions and close my eyes, desperately wishing this could be easy and straightforward.
“Isabelle Matthews,” she snaps, her strict Domme voice instantly putting me on edge. “Answer me this. Are you a grown woman and his colleague?”
Her tone jars me. I may be a Domme myself, but Vic is fierce and a bit scary, even to me.
“Yes, but—”
“No. No buts. Are you starting this as equals? I get your concerns, but years have passed, and nothing ever happened back then… Right?” Her tone softens, probing.
“Fuck, no! He would never have done that,” I fire back. Memories flood back; teenage me, nerves tangled with a
Yes, Miss
hopeless crush, sitting through piano lessons. Even when I showed up crying after a run-in with my dickhead ex, he never crossed a line. Not even when I desperately needed a comforting touch.
He just stayed calm, his voice soothing, keeping me focused on my exams. I’d sit there, breathing in his cologne—sweet orange and something musky, undeniably masculine—watching his fingers glide over the keys, his wedding ring glinting in the sunlight.
I used to wonder about his wife. From what I gather now?
She was a bitch. But I’m cautious with that thought; there are always two sides to every story.
“Then what the hell are you whining about?” Victoria cackles. “Go for it, enjoy the head, and make him your bitch!”
God, I’ve missed her. A man’s groggy, sleepy voice mumbles behind her, and I let her get back to her morning.
“As always, Vic, talking to you is a pleasure,” I sigh, blowing her a kiss before hanging up.
The next morning, I walk into the staff room, Daniel hot on my heels, droning on about his amazing weekend. I sit at the table, waiting for Rebecca’s updates, tuning him out with polite nods.
Alexandra Ravensbrook
“Isabelle,” he leans in, voice dropping low. “This town must’ve changed since you left. Maybe you need a guided tour. I’d love to take you out this weekend, show you a good time.” His gaze lingers on my barely visible cleavage, his sleazy tone making my skin crawl.
My stomach twists. Him? The last person I’d ever go with. “Thanks, Daniel, but it hasn’t changed that much in three years. I’m good. And clubs aren’t really my thing.” I stand, desperate for an escape, and turn straight into a wall of muscle.
James stands there, two coffees in hand, glaring at the back of Daniel’s head. I nod toward the far side of the table, silently urging him to move away.
“Is he bothering you?” James asks, voice dark, and Daniel spins round, craning his head up to see James staring back down at him. “Want me to say something?”
“No. I’m fine. Don’t make a scene,” I hiss, pulling at his arm to the other side of the table and sliding into a vacant seat.
“Can’t stand that creep. He’s a leech,” James grits out. “I don’t like him near you.”
Irritation flares inside me that James thinks he has a say in who I talk to or sit with. I won’t be a possession again like I was with Matt. Never again.
Yes, Miss
His arm drapes over the back of my chair, possessive and guarding, and I snap.
I jerk my seat closer to the table, knocking his arm off.
We might’ve had a moment over the weekend, but we’re not a thing.
Not yet. I don’t belong to him. After Matt, I swore I’d never be anyone’s plaything again.
And I refuse to be a pawn between James and Daniel.
James yanks his arm back, crossing them over his chest, hurt flashing in his eyes. Silence hangs between us as Rebecca starts the meeting.
The air between James and I turns frosty. I knew this was a bad idea. We need to learn each other’s hard limits, and possessiveness is an absolute hard limit of mine. If he can’t accept that, then we will be over before we even begin.
The thought of us not working leaves sadness washing over me, the feeling that something great could have been but never materialised, the lost potential, and adding to that, now work will be awkward.
Nice work, dumbass.