“I hope that’s all right.”
“You remembered what I like,” she looks surprised.
“Barbacoa bowl with white rice, pinto beans, and lots and lots of cheese,” I laugh, gesturing at the food.
“Thank you,” she reaches into her purse and pulls out her wallet, but before she can hand me cash, I place my hand on her wrist and stop her.
“That’s not necessary.”
“But it’s not exactly cheap, Aaron.”
“Trust me, I can afford it.”
More importantly, I want to.
Mallory looks like she wants to argue, but she’s also uncomfortable at the idea of meeting me here. We’re in a corner and we won’t be disturbed, but the restaurant isn’t exactly quiet or cozy. That’s one of the reasons I chose it.
I want to talk to Mallory, but I don’t want to do it in a place where she’s going to feel cornered or scared. You can’t get much more casual than a place like this, and I have a lot of questions for her: starting with her time at Club Shadows.
“So,” Mallory says, taking a bite of her food. “What brought you back to town?”
“A job.”
“What kind of job?”
“The kind that pays money,” I laugh.
“You know what I mean,” she says. “Or are personal questions not allowed?” She raises an eyebrow. “Well, I can go first, you know, if you want. I’m a teacher. Third grade. I’ve got 28 students and I’m tired all of the time. Now your turn.”
She looks at me expectantly, and I can’t help but smile. She’s so precious. Mallory has always been sweet and cute, but now she’s positively adorable. I can tell that she likes what she does, and I’m glad because so many people hate their own jobs.
“I’m a translator,” I tell her. “I work with companies to translate their documents from Chinese to English or vice versa.”
“And you have a job here.”
“A big one,” I smile. “I freelanced for a long time, but now, well, I guess I’ve found my thing. A software company offered me a full-time position, and it sounded like fun, so I took it. Besides,” I wink at her. “Now I get to live in town again. I can come play at the club, and I can have lunch with beautiful young women.”
She blushes, but she smiles just a little.
“I’m not really young,” she points out.
“You’re 25,” I laugh. “That’s pretty young.”
“You’re 2
7,” she says pointedly.
But somehow, I feel so much older than that.
“What made you decide to start going to Shadows?” I ask.
Instantly, she looks around, wondering who might overhear our conversation, but we’re basically alone. Everyone here is focused on one thing: getting their food into their bellies. No one is paying us any mind. It’s the best way to be alone in a crowd.
“I...Well...”
She blushes, but I don’t know why she doesn’t want to talk about it. Most of the time, both Doms and subs are perfectly content to tell you what led to their interest in BDSM. Whether someone likes to be tied up, whether they like to spank other people, or whether they’re into serious role play, most people are quite happy to let you know exactly what they love and why they love it.
So why is she nervous?