Page 8 of Magnum, Volume 2

I’d brought a large suitcase and a big duffel, hoping I’d be here for a week or two. I set both up in her bedroom but didn’t open them, and then headed out to explore her property. I’d smelled water when I got out of the car, and I followed my nose to the large creek I’d seen on the map, when I’d looked up her home.

I’d seen enough of the inside to get a handle on her style, which isn’t that far from mine. Comfortable seating, surfaces with books but very few tchotchkes. Good, quality furniture with some weight to it, the overall feel warm and not cold, and nothing was cluttered.

But I really needed to get the lay of the land, scent the animals on her property, make sure there were no human scents that didn’t belong, and my turtle needed to see the creek.

Not that I intended to change while here, but the turtle was beyond pleased she lived on the water, and I could let him look out of my eyes.

I hadn’t known what kind of reception I’d get, just showing up on her doorstep. I was prepared to be sent away, for her to tell me she didn’t need me anymore, and it’d been great while it lasted, but it was over.

And I was so fucking relieved that hadn’t been the case, because my time away from her had been damned hard. I’d known it would be, but shit, I hadn’t known what to do with myself without her. My house was too big, too empty, too quiet, too fucking cold.

The news she hadn’t been able to masturbate was both troublesome and possibly good, but I needed to be careful with that. Not the first time I’ve been accused of spoiling a woman for all other men, and it could backfire, if I didn’t handle it right.

I scented a ton of chipmunks, and saw a few. There were also squirrels, deer, raccoons, possums, and rabbits, though I didn’t see any of them.

Closer to the water, I scented beavers, and everything else one would expect — turtles, frogs, and herons. I looked up and breathed in, and was pretty sure there were some owls across the creek. Also, some nearby turkeys, though the trail was faint.

I picked up the scent of a fox near the very back of her property, and smiled at a red-tailed hawk who lit on a tree fifteen yards away and stared at the human who smelled like a turtle.

Did she know how rich her land was with wildlife? I figured she probably had a decent idea.

It felt odd, being in her space. It was so much more personal, getting to know her land and the wild animals she shares oxygen with.

Back inside, I started a pot of chili, and then sat down to log into her Wi-Fi and explore her network. Her router was locked down nicely, but I still found everything connected to it — televisions, lights, hot water heater, refrigerator, and cameras I couldn’t easily access even from inside the network, and that was damned impressive.

When she eventually came out of her office, we talked about her schedule while we ate.

“I’ll leave at four in the morning and drive into Jersey. I’ve hired a driver for the day, to take me everywhere I need to go in Manhattan, so I don’t have to deal with driving and parking in the city. I’ve used him before, and he’s good. I’m scheduled at five different news organizations, and I plan to get some footage at a few places while I’m there, plus I’m going to do a live somewhere during the day. Whatever landmark I’m close to when I have time. My first appearance is at seven twenty in the morning, the last one is at eight tomorrow night. Start in a navy suit with a simple white shirt. Second appearance I’ll add a pale-yellow silk shirt and lose the jacket. Third appearance, a lavender jacket that buttons up all the way so you don’t see a shirt under it. Fourth appearance, indigo shirt-jacket. Fifth appearance, navy shell under the same navy jacket I wore for the first appearance, and my hair goes up and into a bun. I’ll make subtle changes to my hair throughout the day before that, but the evening one is a big panel thing, and I want to look more professional.”

“Let me be your support system, not just your security. You’ll tell me what you need, and you’ll let me help in the background.”

She lifted a brow. “Still bossy, I see.”

I grinned. “Always, but I’m never going to interfere with your work. Tomorrow will be about helping you get where you need to be, looking the way you need to look. I can drive the rental car to wherever you’re meeting the driver, and then I can carry your things.”

“I change in the car between times, so there’s nothing to carry in. The white undershirt will stay on the entire time. Never comes off.”

“Okay. I’d planned for a big night tonight, an official reunion once you were finished working for the day, but we’ll be waking at, what, three in the morning? So I’m thinking we hold off on that.”

She glanced at the clock, shook her head, and told me, “I’m packed, and if you drive, I can do my makeup in the car. I should be finished for the evening by seven, and I’d like to be asleep somewhere around nine thirty, give or take. That enough time for whatever you need?”

I smiled. “It is.”

She tried to help clean the kitchen when we finished eating, but I sent her back to her office with, “The sooner you get back to work, the sooner you finish. Go. I’ve got this.”

I heard her taking a shower upstairs, and I approved. Better now than just before we got started. She was thinking ahead.

And talk about surprises, she had two dishwashers. One had a magnet that said CLEAN, the other one that said DIRTY. Had the house come with two dishwashers, or had she added one? It would save time, never having to unload the dishwasher, but only for someone who lived alone. Once multiple people were involved, you’d never know where to look for a particular spatula, or your favorite pan.

Plus, it would bug me, not having everything in its place.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that her storage bowls were glass and not plastic when I searched them out to put the leftover chili into. I wasn’t thrilled with her brand of glass cleaner, but I used it to give everything a nice polish.

When I finished in the kitchen, I went in search of where I was going to set up for the nightly routine. I’d brought a chin-up bar that easily fits at the top of a doorframe, and I installed it at the door leading into her en suite bathroom. Not ideal, since I’d only have access to her from the back, but it would work. I looked around and decided she’d just have to lean over her bed to receive the plug. I put the waist cincher and locking heels in the top of my suitcase and closed it, so she wouldn’t see them when she walked in.

There’s something really satisfying about dominating someone in their personal space. Would she feel it from her end the way I’d feel it on mine? I didn’t know, but I’d eventually ask her about it over a meal while she had to answer.

I looked over the butt plugs I’d brought, and made a decision to use a mid-sized one. She needed her sleep tonight, so going with huge right off the bat wasn’t an option. If I did my job right, she’d have a series of orgasms, crash, and sleep like the dead — in part because of the mid-sized plug reminding her she was safe by my side.