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“Mh her hair “Mushroom I like mushroom pizza And bacon”

“Mushrooood?”

Her fingers stopped and her eyes got a faraway look

Was she thinking of us? On the floor?

“Abigail?”

She blushed “Yes?”

Fuck She was thinking of us on the floor

“Picnic on the floor would be great,” she said

In more ways than one, I wanted to say, but knee had already done more than we should “You will take it easy the rest of the day,” I told her

Before the gas were due to be delivered, I went up to et Abby’s collar The locked box I’d put it in on Friday held several pieces of my mother’s jewelry I unlocked it and slipped the collar intothe box away, I took out a few pieces

Nestled together sat a pair of dia to Mohtexchange I closedto re was gross, so I’d turned back to the bike

I put the earrings away and picked up Dad’s wedding band Strong and sturdy—just like him Would he have been proud of the man I turned out to be? Of how I’d built his coer It looked odd, so I took it off and placed it back in the box

Next I lifted Moer So tiny I slipped it on o halfway down Funny I reer thanboy

I took the ring off and was about to place it in the box when so I brought it close and squinted

But I send you a cream white rosebud

I spun the ring around, looking forelse

A cream white rosebud?

I picked Dad’s ring back up Yes, there riting inside it as well

With a flush on its petal tips

I set it down What did that mean?

The doorbell rang

I sighed and left the box on s would have to wait

Abby knew nothing about football, so in between bites of pizza and wings, I did ive her a tutorial

She finally shook her head and sighed “I’m a lost cause I’ll never understand football”

I wanted to tell her that she’d have plenty of tie to ht not wantmyself

Or she ht be like Beth and tell me she didn’t want the collar because she wanted “more”

I broke into a cold sweat

What if Abby wanted more?

Could I give her more?

I watched as the clock ran down on the TV When it hit zero, I got up and turned it off I didn’t even knoas winning

Abby sat on the floor, propped up by a mountain of pillows I stood by her side and took the collar from my pocket

“Elaina gave it to me at the hospital,” I said

She looked me in the eye “Elaina knows But it wasn’t me I didn’t tell her”

I’d been right I wondered how she knew

But Abby was so honest; she couldn’t lie

Unlike you Lying bastard

“I thought ashonest” I hesitated, worked up e “I want to make sure you still want this I wasn’t sure” I looked into her eyes “You know more now Maybe you don’twant it”

“I want it”

She rose to her knees and dropped her head

She wanted it? No questions asked? Nothing?

“Look at ail”

She lifted her head and I dropped toI’d never done to a submissive before

Relief surged through me She wanted the collar She wanted ers through her hair

Da my collar

My ck twitched and I moved toward her

One kiss One little kiss wouldn’t hurt anything

I stopped myself She didn’t want more She wanted e had, and because of that, I couldn’t kiss her I needed to hold myself back

I sighed

Damn it all

I stood back up and turned on the game

Chapter Sixteen

It was Wednesday and therefore a fitting day to drop by and see Abby at work The first time I ever saw Abby had been on a Wednesday Outside of a library to be exact

I told ain that this was just part of h, I’d start to believe it Having sex in public, e deal I needed to ease her into it slowly First step: hang sx in the just-as-public-but-ht-there Rare Books Collection of the New York Public Library

But it wasn’t just step one in my plan I knew that All I had to do was slip a hand inside my coat’s inner pocket to know my Wednesday visit meant more For there, tucked ahere no one could see, was a perfect cream-colored rose Just a hint of pink on its tips

After Abby left led the inscription I found insidebands The lines came from a poem by John Boyle O’Reilly Fascinated, I’d walked down to the library and found a slim volume of the poet’s work