promise.”
True to my word, I pull into El Trompo’s parking lot. I know Eric’s not going to be there, and there’s no reason Hunter should be there either—after all, he doesn’t work for Leforte—but I still scan the lot for their cars and feel silly about it.
The frantic workload of the last few months is easing off, and people can sense that the end is in sight. Everyone’s in a good mood today. I stay later than intended, nursing my drink, enjoying the company and the conversation.
It’s almost eight when I get up to leave. I detour to the bar to leave a tip for the staff and then head out.
I’m almost at my car when I notice Hunter’s Datsun parked next to mine.
My pulse speeds up. I approach the driver’s side, and Hunter rolls down the window. “We were hoping to run into you,” he says. “Get in, Dixie.”
Eric’s in the passenger seat. I slide into the back, anticipation dancing through my bloodstream. Hunter was right—there’s not much room here. “Are we going somewhere?”
“No,” Eric replies. He swivels around to look at me. “We have an assignment for you.”
“I get homework now?” I intend the words to be a grumble, but my voice is breathy, and I sound exactly as I feel. Eager. Excited. Ready.
“Mm-hmm. Tonight, when you get home, go online, and pick out three sex toys you want us to use on you tomorrow.”
A thrill runs through me. “Umm, what?”
Eric’s eyes gleam with amusement. “Do you need me to explain the concept of online shopping, Dixie?”
Mrs. Grace’s voice in my ear reminds me I can’t give him the finger. “I didn’t realize sex toy stores had overnight shipping,” I say sweetly.
“You don’t have to buy them,” Hunter replies. “Just pick them out and let us know what they are. We’ll take care of the rest.” He quirks an eyebrow. “Unless you want to go into a physical store instead?”
I could never. Everyone would be looking at me. I would die of embarrassment. “Online is fine,” I say hastily.
Eric grins. “We’ll call you at ten tonight,” Hunter says, his voice low and tight. “That’s how long you have to choose.”
That gives me less than two hours. “And if I don’t?”
Eric tilts his head slightly. “If you don’t, Dixie,” he murmurs. “There will be consequences.”
A full-body shiver runs through me. “Okay,” I whisper.
All week, I’ve wondered if I should call this thing off, but that’s Old Dixie talking.
New Dixie isn’t going to apologize for her desires.
Sex toys, here I come.
23
Dixie
I get home, change out of my work clothes and into a long t-shirt, and then climb into bed with my laptop and a glass of wine.
I’ve never shopped for sex toys. This feels all kinds of naughty. Navigating to a browser window, I find an online store and click on it.
Oh wow. The page is… eye-opening. Their best-selling products are front and center. The first thing I see is a picture of a naked man spread-eagled on a bed, his ankles and wrists tied in place, a naked woman straddling him.
It’s a bedroom restraint kit.
The bondage theme continues—the next item is something called a thigh-cuff system. I click on it, and my throat goes dry. It appears to be bands of velcro cuffing the model’s wrists to her thighs. Inspired by the product photos, my imagination goes into overdrive. I’m picturing myself in the place of the model. Lying back, my legs spread open, my wrists locked to my thighs. Hunter looming over me, a vibrator in his hand. Eric reaching for my nipples, holding a wicked-looking clamp…
I gulp down half my wine in one sip.
The next item on the best-sellers list is an anal lubricant. My nipples harden to aching points. My imagination helpfully supplies a fantasy. They turn me over, and my clamped nubs press into the soft mattress. It hurts, but it’s the best kind of hurt, the kind that makes my insides heavy and needy.
Cold liquid trickles between my cheeks, then fingers follow, tracing slow circles around my tight hole, slicking the lube into my clenched sphincter. My body jerks in response. A finger pushes into me, past the tight ring, stretching me open.
I can’t move my hands—they’re locked into place. I try to wriggle away, and Eric spanks my ass. “Bad girls get punished, Dixie.”
I’m so wound up. I wriggle out of my panties and slide a hand between my legs. I’m wet. Soaked. Hunter would have made me show him. He would have