Submission

Chapter 19

 Jesse wanted to go to Roasters, but Lorelei was afraid that they would run into Molly again. They walked to a breakfast restaurant around the corner of her apartment that Lorelei had never been to. Lorelei wished they went to Roasters when she found out the restaurant would not make her an iced coffee. She drank the bitter warm coffee and tried to not make a face of disgust. Jesse was amused at her expressions.

"What are you doing tonight?" Jesse asked.

"I have to work again," Lorelei said. "Another night shift. Luckily, I am back on days next week."

Jesse nodded as he took another mouthful of eggs. Lorelei took another sip of the disgusting coffee.

"What are you up to tonight?" she asked.

"Jody and Mateo invited me over for a couple of beers," he said.

Lorelei thought back to Mateo having Jody on a leash in the strip club. If they were willing to do that in public, she wondered what they would do in private. There was a pang of jealousy in her chest. She wondered if 'having a couple of beers' was code for a threesome or something else taboo. She didn't want to ask though.

"Sounds like fun," Lorelei said. She was impressed that her voice did not come out as a squeak.

Jesse shrugged. He dropped his gaze to his plate as he continued to eat. They sat in silence for a moment.

"How'd you meet Mateo and Jody?" Lorelei asked.

Jesse cleared his throat before scratching the back of his head.

"I met Jody in Vancouver," he said. "Mateo is currently her photographer."

"Jody mentioned she is a model," she said.

"Yeah." He sucked in his bottom lip, still not looking at Lorelei. "Anyways, long story short, Mateo is her Dom now."

Lorelei was going to ask more questions, but her phone started to ring. She pulled it out of her pocket. Unknown flashed across the screen. She swiped her thumb across the screen and held the phone up to her ear.

"Hello," she said.

"Lorelei, please don't hang up," Matthew's voice said.

Lorelei pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes. She had not heard from her ex in weeks and she assumed that he was done bothering her. She knew deep down that his silence was too good to be true.

"I don't want to talk to you," she said.

Jesse looked up at her. He cocked his head to the side and listened to one half of the conversation.

"Lorelei, please," Matthew said.

"I said no-" she started.

"I saw your profile online," he cut her off. "Seriously? You can't be-"

"Goodbye."

She sighed as she ended the call. Jesse raised a brow. Lorelei chewed on her bottom lip as she could feel herself blush. She knew what question was coming.

"Who was that?" Jesse asked.

"No one," she said.

"Didn't sound like no one," he said.

Lorelei let out a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said.

"Okay," he said. "You can always talk to me though."

Lorelei gave him a soft smile. The last thing she wanted to do was discuss Matthew with Jesse. She was too embarrassed to let him know what happened. She didn't want him to judge her for her messed up family.

"Thank you," Lorelei said. "I promise it's nothing."

"If you say so," he said.

Lorelei pushed her plate away from her. Matthew's call made her lose her appetite. Jesse reached across the table and covered her hand with his.

"I've been thinking," he said.

Lorelei's heart fluttered in her chest. She braced herself for him to hit her with some bad news.

"I've been playing with you really lightly," he said. "Don't get me wrong, I have had a lot of fun. I think you've been handling it really well. I want to start to make things more intense."

Lorelei let go of the breath she was holding onto and nodded.

"I'd like that," she said.

Lorelei did not know exactly what 'more intense' meant, but it intrigued her. She wondered if he was going to start to use the array of toys that she saw in his profile. She just hoped that he wouldn't expect her to be on a leash in public like Jody.

"Tomorrow is your last night shift?" he asked. Lorelei nodded. "Come to my place Friday night. We'll try a little bit of pain with that pleasure."

Jesse winked and Lorelei swallowed past the lump in her throat.

What did I get myself into? she thought.

She was afraid that he was going to push her body to the extreme. She should have assumed that he was some kind of sadist and would want to hurt her. Jesse himself seemed too good to be real. She should have known that he would want to cause her pain.

"Don't look so worried," Jesse said. "Sometimes pain can feel good. Besides, you can use safewords at any moment. If you're not liking it, we can stop it. I think you should at least try it out."

Lorelei let out a shaky breath. She had yet to use a safe word, but she expected she would be using one as soon as Jesse caused her pain. She just hoped that he would not be disappointed.

"Okay," she said. "I will try it."