Whitney

I’d gone to bed without waiting for Dagger to come home, although I’d left my door open so I could hear anything that went on in the building. It was late, very late, when I heard the front door close. Then his apartment door closed as well. I was surprised. He didn’t owe me an explanation, but he’d been in the habit of checking in on me when he locked up at night and had more than once spent the night in my bed. To have him not even come upstairs surprised me. I tried not to read anything into it, but it kept me awake for some time.

The next morning I showered and went downstairs in my workout clothes. Kat was at the front desk, but the studio was empty. Dagger hadn’t come out of his apartment yet.

I sauntered to the kitchen, made coffee and dug around until I found a blueberry muffin. I popped it into the microwave for a few seconds and was spreading some cream cheese onto it when Kat came in behind me.

“Something wrong?” she asked.

“Oh, nothing that killing my sister wouldn’t solve.”

“I never had a sister,” she shared. “But I had a big brother who used to push me around to show off in front of his friends.”

I peered up at her from beneath my brow as I chewed the muffin. “That couldn’t have been much fun,” I sympathized.

“I didn’t mind, at least not when his friends were there. They were hot, and one of them usually came to my rescue and kicked his ass. So it was okay.”

I wondered about the dynamics of other families. Ours had been so quiet, so respectful—outside of Tiffany’s antics, at least.

“Well, if you need someone to talk to,” Kat said, throwing the words over her shoulder as she left the room, “you know where to find me.”

I nodded, my mouth still full, and stood to clear away the crumbs. I nearly collided with Dagger as I picked up my coffee to leave the room.

“Good morning,” I said in a cheery voice.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he snapped.

I wasn’t sure whether that called for a response or just a conciliatory look. Maybe he’d gotten drunk the night before and was hung over. I decided to change the subject.

“Dag, I’m wondering if you’d mind showing me a few things? I’ve got students coming in later, and I’m still missing a few moves in the routine.”

“Later. After the studio is closed,” he said bluntly.

I nodded and said no more, choosing instead to go to the women’s workout room and do some stretching. I rinsed out my cup and left the room. Dagger said nothing further.

As I stretched, I played through the events of the previous hours in my mind. It was obvious that Dagger was off his game. I hadn’t known him long enough to know if this was his typical behavior under stress, or under suspicion. I wasn’t sure what to make of it. Had I done something to upset him? I hadn’t had a chance to really discuss the showdown between Tiffany and me. He and I had found far more pleasant things to do. I’d take his way of passing the time any day.

The atmosphere was heavy in the studio. I could feel it. It felt like people who’d been shut in during a long blizzard and were ready to murder one another. But there was no anger involved, no betrayal. Or was there?

I put this out of my head as my students began to arrive. This was a day for getting down to work. No more parties and five-star treatment. Everyone was putting on their clothes in the locker room, preparing for warm-ups, when a last-minute student joined the class. It was my sister, Tiffany.

“Uh, uh, no way, Tiff. This is not for you.” I took her by the shoulder and tried to usher her out of the room without attracting attention.

“What? Why not? I paid my money.”

“How did you even get that kind of money? Never mind. Tiffany, aside from the obvious, that you and I just had a major fight, this isn’t your crowd and I don’t want you here.”

“Huh. Good thing for you I didn’t say that when you showed up at my door with nowhere to stay.”

“That’s different, and you know it. This studio isn’t mine, and the clientele is highly selective. Lots of money,” I whispered.

“Ohhh, well then, sounds like I’m in the right place.”

“It’s not a pick-up joint, Tiff. Couples only.”

“I’m half of a couple.”

“You are? Who is with you?”

“You don’t know him… yet.”

I was exasperated. “Tiff, please leave.”

“Look, Whitney, you don’t order me around. I’m here legit. Deal with it. Cause me any more problems and I’m on the phone with Mom and Dad, telling them what you’re doing with their expensive U of M degree. Got that?”

My old instinct to protect my parents kicked in again—that infernal guilt even though I was doing nothing wrong. The students were beginning to look at me, and I had to begin the class. I really hated my sister in that moment, but there wasn’t anything I could do, short of calling the police. It would cause more of an uproar than it was worth. I let her stay and dreaded the moment when I’d have to explain everything to Dagger.

Class went well, even if it was a little briefer than expected. I wasn’t able to include the moves I’d asked Dagger about earlier, so I had to wing it. No one seemed to have a problem with that. They were, for the most part, out of shape and very sore. They happily ended their class with a stretch-out in the pool and then left. Tiffany was the last one out the door. She kept craning her neck to look around. Was she looking for Dagger? There was no way to miss the kid-in-the-candy-store look she’d given him when he walked in on us. I knew she was after him, but that was one thing that wasn’t going to happen. I would bet my life on that.

Katrina locked the door behind Tiffany and I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Rough, was it?”

“You know it. Sisters can be horrible.”

“You look like you could stand a drink.”

I shrugged. “Actually, you know… I could. Would you like to join me?”

“Don’t mind if I do,” she replied, pulling her purse out from beneath the front counter. We locked the door and walked companionably down the street to a small café that served a variety of wines.

We settled into a booth and ordered a Bordeaux with two goblets. We took a few minutes to become comfortable with one another. We’d not become fast friends up to that point. I was leery of her motives concerning Dagger, and she seemed to be sabotaging my efforts to be a good balance between girlfriend and good employee. The wine helped, though, and it wasn’t long before we’d exchanged a few true confessions.

“Did you go to college nearby?” I asked her.

She shook her head. “Never went to college. Well, I started to go to beauty school, but it creeped me out when people came in with dandruff or any kind of skin rash. I didn’t want to touch it. You could call it germ phobia, maybe?”

“So how did you come to be working for Dagger?”

“The same way you did. I answered an ad in the paper.”

“I have to admit I was surprised. I thought there would be a long line of women applying for that job.”

She nodded. “There was. But for that position, Dagger didn’t want just anyone. I guess you could see why.”

“I suppose so. The joke is on me, though. I had no idea what it involved, and I would have never set foot through the door if I’d known. I’ve had what you might call a nun’s love life up to this point.”

“No shit. I could tell that when you walked in the door. Dagger knew it, too. That’s one of the reasons he wanted you.”

“Well, since we’re on the topic, I couldn’t help but notice that you seem to have an eye in Dagger’s direction, too. Did I get in the way of something?”

“You sure the hell did. But I can’t hold it against you. Even if I had made it to first base with Dagger, it wouldn’t have lasted. I’m not sophisticated enough to be his type. I think that’s one of the reasons he hired me, to be the dumb blonde at the front door, you see? The women aren’t challenged by me, because the men that come here aren’t looking for a good time with a fuzz head. And if anyone comes in the front door who we don’t want, I can do the dumb blonde routine and run them off without causing trouble.”

“It sounds to me like you can’t be too much of a… fuzz head, as you put it, or you wouldn’t have that figured out.”

“Thanks, but the fact is Dagger told me that’s why he hired me. I guess he wanted me to understand that there was nothing personal between him and me. Oh, I won’t say that I wasn’t jealous of you at first. Any girl would be. You’ve got a classy way about you, though. That can’t be faked, you have to be born with it. I don’t have that, so I stick to my own kind. By the way, I just thought I’d mention something. Your sister, Tiffany?”

I nodded.

“It’s hard to believe she’s related to you. She doesn’t even look very much like you, and from the neck up, she’s a different animal. Let’s just say I wouldn’t want to meet her in a dark alley when she’s in a bad mood. You know she’s got her panties wet for Dagger, right?”

I nodded again.

“I don’t think you have anything to worry about, at least not from his side. But women like her have a way of finding a crack they can slip through unnoticed, like a rat, and becoming a big pain in the ass. All I’m saying is that if you think there’s something going on there, give him the benefit of the doubt. Dagger is a good guy. Not very many like him out there.”

“I know, and believe me, I’ve counted my blessings. When it comes to my sister, there isn’t much I would believe from her. She always has been a wild one. She broke the rules and flaunted the fact in our faces. She gave my parents sleepless nights, and I had to work all the harder to be the good daughter, to make up for it.”

“I got that from the way she was talking to you. I wouldn’t worry about that. You may not be giving your parents credit, but chances are they know that she’s the screw-up and you’re the one who’s going to win the race. They probably also recognize that you work extra hard to make sure of that. You’re allowed to screw up once in a while, you know?”

“I’m not sure I know how to screw up.” I laughed and lifted my goblet, studying her distorted face through the red liquid. “I’ll admit I was jealous of you when I first came. We all have our strengths, you know. You’re a very pretty girl and I know a lot of women who would die for that body. There’s someone out there for you; someone who has been looking for a girl exactly like you. When you find them, you’ll know it.”

“Is that who Dagger is for you? Is he the right one?”

“Well, he’s the first one, so I can’t say that for sure. But I do know one thing. If they get any better than that, I probably don’t deserve them.”

“Now who’s doing a pity party?”

We laughed, and I glanced down at my phone and noticed the time. “Oh my God. Dagger promised to give me some special lessons this evening after we closed. I don’t know how I could’ve forgotten. He’s going to kill me. Look, Kat, I need to go. It’s been great, and I truly mean it when I say I enjoyed myself. I’ll see you in the morning.”

I settled up with the waitress quickly and left, jogging down the sidewalk back to the studio. I let myself in and went in search of Dagger. I found him in the men’s gym, and I could tell by the twitching muscle in his cheek that he was irritated.

“I am so sorry, Dagger. It was a rough day with some unpleasant surprises. I went up front and visited with Kat for a while and we ended up going for a glass of wine down the street. I was actually enjoying myself, and one glass turned into several. I lost track of the time. I apologize.”

“I was worried about you. It’s not like you to be gone with your car still parked behind the building and no note. I had no idea where you were.”

My mouth fell open, and then my heart softened. “I really am sorry. You have to remember, this relationship stuff is new to me. I can’t remember the last time I let anyone know where I was going.”

“Well, maybe it’s about time you got used to it,” he said, and I dreaded what was yet to come. “So, what was so stressful?”

“You’re not going to be happy when I tell you.”

“Well, I’m not particularly happy right now, so maybe you should get it in quick while you can roll it all into one mess.”

This was a side of Dagger I had yet to see. I wasn’t sure what to make of it. I felt he was overreacting under the circumstances, particularly since he’d been out half the night and I’d never questioned it. I had a feeling there was more to it than it appeared. “Okay, here goes. We had a new student sign up for the class today. I didn’t want her there, but she made some fairly compelling arguments and I really had no choice.”

“Who was it? Why didn’t you just tell Kat to kick her out?”

“It was my sister.”

“Oh, hell, no! Not her. Not in my studio.”

I was a little surprised at his reaction. I knew he’d heard the fight she and I had had upstairs, but that was hardly a reason to be so hateful.

“She’s my sister, Dagger. We fight like all sisters fight.”

“Not her. There is nothing sisterly about her in the least. I don’t want her here, Whitney. If you won’t tell her to leave, I will.”

Tears welled up in my eyes. “You don’t understand. She’s always been the screw-up, the one that my parents were embarrassed to acknowledge. It was my job to make sure that they had at least one daughter to be proud of. Tiffany is threatening to tell my parents about my working here at the studio.”

“But we’ve modified that. You’ve got your clothes on the entire time.”

“Yes, I know, but Tiffany will tell them that I don’t. She will also tell them that the clients in the studio will be together in the nude. That we can’t deny, and that will upset them. A lot. It cost them a lot to put me through school, and they’re going to see my using my degree to work with people doing nude yoga as being a failure. I just can’t do that to them.”

“Whitney, you’re the one who doesn’t understand, but I don’t think it’s your fault. The fact is that last night I had to take care of some personal business. Your sister, the gorgeous Ms. Tiffany, followed me. I didn’t know who it was, so I hung back after I turned a corner. It was my intention to confront whoever was following me, and she came very close to getting hurt. As it turned out, I put her in a cab and told her to get lost. But instead of going home, she had the cab follow me, and suffice it to say that where I was going, and the business I had to attend to, she had no business watching.”

“My God, what were you doing?”

“You’ll have to trust me when I say that it’s related to my days as a SEAL. I’m really not anxious to talk about it, although you do know a part of it as it has to do with Tim. The point being, it involved some bad people and Tiffany getting in the way. That may get her, or possibly me, killed. I don’t want her around you. Do you understand? I don’t want the trail to lead back to you.”

“Tiffany may be a little wild, but I don’t think she’d ever do anything to endanger me or herself. I’ll have a talk with her and tell her not to follow you, but I really think you’re alarmed for no reason.”

“Oh, really? How about this?” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, tapping until he found what he wanted. He handed it to me and I saw a dim, night-time picture of my sister pulling down her shirt to reveal her cleavage. Her other hand was down her pants.

“What the hell is this?” I could feel a sort of fury begin to cloud my head.

“That, my dear Whitney, was the proof I snapped to show you that your sister threw herself at me. She’s gotten it into her head that she wants your job. I think she wants me, too. At least, she made a few very promiscuous offers to get my attention. I knew she would turn around and tell you that I had propositioned her, which is why I shot the picture. So, in short, what you’re seeing is your sister throwing herself at me. You still think she has your best interests at heart? Not in my book she doesn’t. Maybe your parents need to acknowledge that instead of you trying to make up for her shortcomings. I will tell you one thing. She’s not going to hurt you as long as I’m around, and that’s the last word on that subject.”

“Dagger, I had no idea. She’s always been on the loose side, but she never went after anyone I cared about.”

As we stood there, we suddenly heard our own words. He had just staked his claim as my protector, and I had admitted that I cared about him. The words of love are often the most dangerous. They reveal the depths to which people will go to protect what’s between them. Dagger towered over me, his face at the same time angry with Tiffany and protective of me. I’d never experienced that before, and the thrill it incited was exhilarating. I no longer fought him off. I no longer argued. For the first time in my life, I acknowledged that being cared for was better than fighting for yourself.

While the glow of all that still hung between us, I moved toward him and put my arms against his chest, my hands pulling his head downward so I could kiss him. Dagger kept the control by lifting me against himself, my feet off the floor and his big hand cradling the back of my head as he kissed the length of my neck.

“Let’s never fight,” I begged.

“That wasn’t fighting. It was me claiming what is mine,” he rasped, and my silence was my submission.

His arm moved to cradle me against him as he carried me up the stairs to my apartment. That seemed to be the place. We were best when together. Perhaps that was because it was out of bounds for clients, as well as Kat. Dagger had given her strict orders never to come upstairs unless invited. In doing so, he had set me above all others.

He set me down so I was standing before him. Taking two steps back, he continued the primal energy between us by crossing his arms over his chest and ordering me, “Take off your clothes.”

I knew what he meant. This wasn’t to be a quick jerk of my shirt overhead and then scrambling between the covers to wait for him. He wanted to enjoy the spectacle me disrobing for him.

I was barefoot, having discarded my shoes when I entered the gym area. I’d always adored the sensual feel of textures beneath my soles, so barefoot was my preference and state of mind. I wore leggings, a soft blue in color. My agility had improved over my weeks of training, so I planted one foot and raised the other slowly until I could touch my ankle by reaching upward, much like a ballet dancer. I pivoted so that my crotch was facing his direction as I inserted my index fingers beneath the fabric at my ankle and slowly began tugging the pant leg upward and over my foot.

I wore a pale blue thong, and with my leg thusly extended, there was little he could not see. With a slow, seductive grace, I switched to the other foot and managed to maintain my balance as I pulled off the other pant leg and waistband. I paused at this point as Dagger held up his finger as a signal to stop. He bent before me, placing his hands on my hips to rotate me in place. With one index finger, he gently pulled aside the fabric of my thong and bent to kiss the skin it revealed. His tongue parted my labia lips, flicking from side to side, a touch that nearly buckled my knees. He was promising what was yet to come, and I mean that in more than one sense.

He resumed standing and took a step back, motioning to me to continue. I was wearing a sleeveless silk blouse that had a six-inch zipper on the back of the neck. It was a deep azure blue and lay over my body with a sensual fluidity. Reaching behind, I unsnapped my bra and slid the straps out of the sleeves, dropping it to the floor with my pants. I now stood before him in thong and silk blouse, the erotic fabric caressing my nipples and making them jut out visibly.

Dagger held up a finger again and moved toward me, lifting my blouse and fastening his mouth on each of the burgeoning nipples in turn. My body responded instantly with currents of excitement shooting to my pussy. That’s when I understood what he was doing.

By undressing myself, I was participating in elevating my level of excitement. As each layer came off, he rewarded me with his mouth and his fingers. I was submissive to his control, and yet able to direct his manipulative touches to where I wanted them most. I supposed, in a sense, I could have called it remote control masturbation. He was brilliant, and the more I learned, the more I wanted from him. I believed he knew that, and yet he was making no effort to direct me. Why not? He’d expressed feeling a possessiveness for me. But Dagger was a protective man, one who’d often put himself in the path of danger to protect others. Was he sensing some danger for me? Or perhaps that he would lose me? It was an interesting topic to contemplate, but at that exact moment, all I could think of was wanting his body on and in mine. I wanted relief from the torture I was creating for myself.

He could read it in my face and the way my lips couldn’t seem to close. I needed, no, I craved, to breathe the air between us. It was charged with his testosterone and drawing me toward him like a bee to a scarlet flower.

I crossed my arms and pulled my blouse over my head, shaking my hair and allowing the silk fabric to slowly seep down my body until it lay upon my feet. I kicked it away with pointed toes. At that point, Dagger got caught up in the illusion. His arms now hung at his sides and his stance had widened. He had unknowingly assumed the posture of a male animal about to approach his desired female.

All that remained was my thong. The hairless skin of my pussy made it more presentable. I knew that. His eyes were trained there. With a slow, graceful movement, I spread my legs and bent backward until my arms touched the foot of the bed and my hair fell away from my face. I was offering myself to him, yet presenting the faintest of obstacles to his total possession.

There was a flurry of movement as he stripped his clothing onto the floor and came with fascinated lips to my thong. He pushed me onto my back and lowered his head, seizing the fragile cloth with his teeth. A sudden and powerful jerk of his head rent the fabric and then I was bare.

Dagger’s hips thrust forward and his engorged penis entered me smoothly, without hesitation or tenderness. It was not a moment designed for anything but the raw emotion of copulation. He was the male animal and I the object of his desire. He sank himself clear to the back of me, jerking quickly to assure himself that no inch of my moist inner skin remained untouched. I closed my eyes and let my mind float. I let the sensations of being ravaged drive my blood low into my female grotto, making me swell and the sensitivity soar. Every stab he drove into me stroked me higher in desire, and then came that mindless place where I no longer thought. It was where sensation and the fire within took over thought and logic. I became purely his female animal. I heard the cry from his throat. He felt the primal response, and it pleased him. It pleased us.