Sculpt-Paige_Michaels-Becca_Jameson (16 page)

“Yes, Master,” she whispered into his mouth.

“I’m going to give you a list of toys to buy. I assume you didn’t bring any from home?”

She shook her head.

“You’re going to need them if we’re going to be playing long distance for the near future.”

She grinned wide. “I did like that plug.”

He swatted her ass and kissed her nose again. “Okay. I’ll make sure it’s on the list.”

»»•««

Her dad had been back home from the hospital for a week, and the days were starting to blend together. She talked to Theo every night when he’d gotten home from work or the dojo. Sweet things or dirty things, but always it didn’t feel like enough. Every day, she wondered if this was the day he’d give up on her. He’d decide that, really, they barely knew each other. It wasn’t real love. Not after such a short time. Her heart ached for him, but maybe it was just the sex? Maybe it was finding someone who made her feel like she wasn’t broken?

Her phone buzzed.

“Theo?”

“Sweetheart. You busy?”

“No. Mama’s at the grocery store and then the salon and Daddy’s sleeping.”

“How’s he been?”

“Well, weaker, to be honest. But he seems more content. He told me his lawyer was taking care of things, whatever that means.”

“Good. Now. Go to your room and get the clamp vibe out.”

She shuddered, frozen to her spot. Could she do it? Play with herself in her father’s house?

At her hesitation, Theo lowered his voice. “Do it, brat. Stop hesitating when I give you an order.”

She padded upstairs and peeked into her father’s room. He was sound asleep. Snoring even. So she continued on to her own room—the same room she’d occupied as a child, although her mother had totally renovated it and turned it into a luxurious guest room about ten minutes after Lucinda had moved away.

She opened the drawer she’d put her lingerie in and rustled around until she found the c-shaped vibrator.

“What are you wearing?”

“A loose dress.”

“Good. Leave it on. Remove your panties only and lie down on the bed.”

She did as he told her, tucking her panties under the pillow and slipping between the sheets. At least that way if her mother came home early or Emma decided on an impromptu visit, they wouldn’t find her with her pussy open for the world to see.

“Put the clamp inside your sweet cunt, Lucy.”

She normally would have grabbed the lube, but she realized she was so wet from his words alone that she wouldn’t need it. She held the phone to her ear with one hand, spread her legs, and slipped the vibrator into place, the inside piece gripping her G-spot with the outside piece nestled tightly against her clit. Even without turning it on, she panted through the need to come. The pressure alone was enough to bring her to the edge.

“Jesus, Lucy. You’re close, aren’t you?”

“Yes.” The one word came out on a breath.

“Excuse me?”

She flinched. “Yes, Master.”

“That’s better. Now, lift your free hand over your head. I want your legs parted and your hands away from yourself. Keep your cunt wide open.”

“Yes, Master.” She shuddered at the use of the word “cunt.” The way he said it made her even hornier.

“How does it feel knowing I’m going to control your orgasm from ten states away?”

“So horny…”

“I know. And you don’t have permission to come until I say so. Understood?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Good.” A few moments passed and then the vibrator came to life, a low pulsing setting that teased her just enough to make her dig her heels into the mattress.

She sucked in a sharp breath and squeezed her eyes shut. She never should have consented to the purchase of this type of vibrator. It teased her even from inside the drawer, knowing Theo could command her to wear it at any point and control her completely with the app on his phone.

“Are you obeying my words, Lucy? Is your cunt spread open, your legs wide?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Good.” The vibrations increased and the short pulses switched to longer waves of intensity.

“Oh God…”

“Don’t come, brat. Just feel.”

She gritted her teeth, unsure she could follow that command. She balled the top of her pillow in her fist above her head and held on tight. Her fingers hurt already from holding the phone in her grip.

“That’s my girl. I can hear the strain in your breathing.”

The intensity increased again, making her lift her hips and cry out.

“No sounds. Control your mouth.”

She pursed her lips and willed herself to remain quiet.

Theo switched the setting to a faster hard pulse that drilled into her clit and her G-spot with so much pressure she gasped.

“Feel the vibrations. Hold that orgasm back.”

Orgasm control had never been something she could manage. But she wanted to please Theo. And God it felt good to hover on the edge.

“Good girl. A little more. Feel the grip in your cunt and across your clit.” The vibrations increased.

She couldn’t do it. She shook her head back and forth, willing him to give her permission to come. She knew if she asked, he would turn the vibrator off and leave her hanging.

Finally, the word she longed for. “Come.”

Both her clit and the inside of her pussy reacted to his word. The orgasm took over her body, the intensity of the clamp pushing her so hard that she immediately rose from one orgasm to another. “Oh God,” she murmured. A full vaginal orgasm sent a gush of fluid out of her, coating the sheets between her shaking legs. “Theo… Master…”

“That’s it. I’m so proud of you. I know it was hard to wait that out.”

It had been. He had no idea. Or maybe he did.

Theo jolted awake and stared at his phone lighting up and buzzing beside him. He dragged a hand over his face, trying to ignore the bad feeling in his gut.

“Sweetheart?”

“Theo…” Her voice was a broken whisper, and he knew what the next words from her mouth would be. “He’s back in the hospital. Pneumonia. His body’s shutting down. The doctor said it doesn’t look good.”

“I’m on my way. I need you to hold on until I get there. Can you do that?”

“Yes.”

“Of course you can, my strong girl. I’ll text you my flight plans when I have them. Just hold on a little while longer.”

She choked out another sob, and he felt like he’d had the wind knocked out of him. He should’ve stayed with her after the last time her dad went into the hospital. The man had been back in twice since his first fever. Each time, he’d stayed a little longer and come home a little weaker. It had been just two months. The cancer had taken over so fast they had stopped chemo after only a few weeks. Last week, Lucinda had told Theo her dad wasn’t eating. Theo knew he wouldn’t hang on much longer. He’d done enough research about Stage IV pancreatic cancer to understand the severity.

The one thing Theo was thankful for was that he’d spoken to her father during that first visit. The man had taken his advice, met with his lawyer, and made arrangements. A blessing because within days he slipped farther into the haze that accompanied pain medication. If he’d waited any longer, he wouldn’t have been able to make sound decisions.

The flight to Atlanta seemed to take forever, but finally he was at the hospital with a sobbing Lucinda in his arms.

“Is he gone?” he whispered.

She nodded. “About an hour ago.”

He pulled back and looked at her. “What do you need from me?”

“Nothing,” she whimpered. “I just want to go home.”

He tucked her hair behind her ears. “You need to stay for a few more days. Help your mom. Figure out a service for your dad. I won’t leave. I’m here for you.”

She crumpled into him, and he held her until her tears dried and he was able to drive her back home. Her mom was sitting in the dark living room when they arrived, her face an expressionless mask. She didn’t even say anything when she looked up at Theo.

“Can I get you some iced tea, Mama?” Lucinda asked.

Her mother stared at her as if she didn’t recognize her.

Theo linked fingers with Lucinda and ushered her back out the door and to his rental. “She’ll be okay,” he said. “I know you must be worried about her, but let’s let her be for now.”

Lucinda let out a choked laugh. “Mama? I’m not worried about her at all. She’ll have another husband within a year.”

He cocked an eyebrow up. “Really?”

“Yeah. Of course. That’s what Southern women do.”

“You’re deflecting your pain. You don’t have to with me. Ever.”

She visibly swallowed. “Oh, Theo.”

He squeezed her in a tight hug and then opened the door for her. “Have you eaten anything?”

“No. Not hungry.”

“You need to eat, brat. No discussion.”

Her eyes regained a little of their lost spark, and she gave him a half a grin. “Yes, Master.”

»»•««

The funeral was bittersweet. So many of Daddy’s friends came, it made Lucinda feel like the inflexible, authoritative man she’d grown up with was really just a façade. Particularly after the past few months in Georgia, being with him. More than anything, she got the sense he never really knew how to deal with a daughter like Lucy. And because of that, she was able to forgive so many of the resentments she had of him in the past.

Unfortunately, Mama had snapped out of her melancholy and was in full force Southern widow mode. Everything about the funeral was choreographed precisely. The food at the wake, the music and the Bible passages for the service, even the eulogy Mama had written for Jackson was all geared to let everyone in their community know they were on the way to healing. Moving on. Moving forward.

Lucinda wanted to leave after the service, but Daddy’s lawyer wanted to meet with the family to go over things about the business.

“You okay to do this alone?” Theo asked, as he offered her a hand and tugged her from the passenger seat.

“Yeah. It wouldn’t be right having you there. It’s family only. And even though…” She shook her head. It was too much to say. Especially now when she desperately wanted so many things from him, but she wasn’t sure if it was because she was emotionally overwhelmed or because she couldn’t imagine not spending the rest of her life with him.

“Yeah. Even though,” he answered with a nod, and a rush of relief poured into her. “I’ll be here. Gonna just plug in across the street. Make a few calls. Deal with some stuff.”

Guilt welled up in her stomach. “I’m…”

He placed a finger over her mouth. “No, brat. No apologies. Text me when you’re done.”

He dropped the gentlest kiss on her mouth, and the raw sweetness of it overwhelmed her again. She bit into his bottom lip, and he growled and drew back. “Play later, brat. Go do your stuff now.”

Daddy’s lawyer took up the ground floor of a storefront. But it wasn’t some shoddy ambulance-chasing firm. Lucinda saw that the minute she walked in and glanced at the posh furnishings and the streamlined space. Computers, tablets, a flat screen on one wall. Mr. Beauchamp might have been Daddy’s lawyer forever, but someone in the office had kept up with the latest in tech.

A handsome man walked out to greet her. “You must be Lucinda? I’m Ivy Beauchamp.”

Her brows raised. “Ivy? Kind of an unusual name?”

His cheeks pinkened. “I got the name in school. William Beauchamp the fourth. Four. I-V. You know? Like the Roman numerals.”

She grinned. “Yeah. I got it as soon as you said your name. Clever.”

He shrugged and now even his ears had gone pink. Cute. Her age. Great skin. Black hair and bright blue eyes. And he filled out his suit nicely. Not like her Theo, but still. At a different time in a different place, she would have flirted and ended up blowing him in the men’s room.

“The rest of your family has already arrived. It’s just this way.” He took her elbow with the gentlest of touches, and Lucinda was almost disappointed. Theo had spoiled her for anyone else. She was so fucked.

When she walked into the room, William Beauchamp III greeted her with a big hug and a wide smile. “Good to see you again. Sorry it’s under such circumstances.”

“Thanks, Mr. Beauchamp,” she said and then took the seat he pointed to.

“So,” Mr. Beauchamp started. “As you know, Thomas was aware of his prognosis for the past several months. He wanted to ensure his family and his business were looked after, even if he weren’t around.” The man didn’t waste any time. He dove right in.

Lucinda couldn’t imagine he would say anything unexpected—unexpected to her anyway. She’d been with Theo and her father for the initial discussion about what her father’s arrangements should be. She gripped the arms of the chair, however, wondering how the rest of her family would react.

Emma preened beside Jackson. Lucinda wanted to hate her, but she couldn’t find the energy for it. Her mama nodded at Mr. Beauchamp and waited for him to continue. The untouchable matriarch. Part of Lucinda wondered if she would end up like her mom in the long run. If one day she’d be sitting with her chin up and her shoulders back, ready to move on from Theo. The thought made her want to die a little. She didn’t think she’d ever be able to move on from Theo, and that was very troubling.

“Thomas decided several weeks ago to sell his business to Walter Layton, his long-time partner. The proceeds from that sale will be divided equally between you three. Barbara, the house as well as all of Thomas’s annuities will be yours. Lucinda and Jackson will also each be given one hundred thousand dollars. Jackson, you will no longer have a position in your father’s company.”

Emma shot from her chair. “Jack isn’t running the company? He’s not even working there anymore?”

“I’m afraid not.” Mr. Beauchamp shook his head. “Those were your father’s instructions.”

Emma squeaked. “That’s ludicrous.”

Mr. Beauchamp nodded. “I’m sorry.”

Emma glared at Jackson. “Aren’t you going to say anything?”

Jackson shrugged. “Walter’s a good man. He’ll do right by the business. Daddy made a good decision. I’ll get another job. I was never really interested in furniture anyway.”

The sound that escaped Emma’s mouth had ratcheted up from squeak to snarl. “I have never met such a worthless and lazy…”