50 Shades of Drake 1 and 2

Chapter Fifty-Seven

    Destiny shifted in her sleep. Her elbow hit something metal and solid. She jerked her head up and squinted, checking her surroundings. She was in the living room. In the cage, she realized with a start. She sat up, as much as she could in a four-foot tall cage, and rubbed her eyes. The condo was quiet. I have to hand it to him...this is definitely a punishment.

    She didn't have her cell phone. She couldn't turn on the television. She couldn't do anything. She could think deep thoughts, sing or hum to herself, or daydream. There was nothing at her disposal that would provide entertainment. So she waited.

    Sunlight pushed at the blinds hung over the living room windows, but the light wasn't allowed in. The living room remained relatively dark.

    Approximately an hour after she cracked her eyes open, she heard a toilet flushing. She perked up and grabbed the wires of the cage, looking towards the hall. At some point while she was waiting for him to enter the room, she had to wonder...who willingly put themselves through something like this? Sleeping in a cage like a dog or some other animal. Sure, there was a pillow cushion lining the bottom of it, but it was still very much a cage and still felt very much like a prison. Granted, someone had to commit an act that would warrant such a punishment, but still. It seemed borderline inhumane.

    Aubrey padded down the hall wearing a pair of crisp, white linen pajama pants and nothing else. He came to a stop at the hall entrance, drying off his hands with a small towel. "Good morning," he greeted, bypassing the living room and entering the kitchen. She saw light flood the kitchen. Some of the light overflowed into the living room.

    "Good morning," she returned. She heard the water faucet running.

    A moment later, he returned with a glass of water. He set the glass of water on a coffee table coaster and knelt down to the floor. He twisted the combination to the lock and removed the lock. He opened the door to the cage and assisted her out.

    She was surprised that she wasn't sore and said as much.

    "I wouldn't allow you to sleep in there if it was going to hurt you," he explained as he closed the cage door. "I'm supposed to care for your well-being."

    "At the restaurant, you hinted that the cage could be used for...good things, and not just bad. I can't imagine how," she said, rubbing her elbow and frowning down at the cage.

    He gently grabbed her arm and inspected it. Small impression marks from the cage's wires were pressed into her skin. He sucked his teeth and gently rubbed his hand over the marks, smoothing them out. "Maybe I should check to see if there is a more comfortable cage."

    She laughed. "A more comfortable cage?" she repeated.

    He laughed along with her. "It does sound crazy, I know."

    The doorbell rang, a pleasant tinkling sound.

    He frowned. "I'm not expecting anyone. Umm..." He looked down at her, noting her nudity and the collar that was still buckled around her neck. He chastely kissed her on the cheek. "Wait for me in the bedroom." He backed away from her and jogged to go answer the door.

    She scurried out of the living room and into the bedroom. She looked for the closest piece of clothing and wound up grabbing one of Aubrey's dress shirts from the closet. She buttoned it as quickly as she could, missing several buttons. Then, she tiptoed over to the bedroom door and poked her head through the crack. She could hear two male voices.

    "No problem at all. I just wasn't expecting the delivery today. You can come in."

    She saw Aubrey lead a uniformed man of average height into the living room. She pushed the door open a little further, praying that the hinges didn't squeak. They didn't. Leave it to Aubrey to make sure the hinges on all of his doors were properly maintained. She eased herself through the crack in the door and pressed her back flat against the wall, feeling like a character in a James Bond film.

    "I just need you to sign here, here, and here," the uniformed man said.

    She tiptoed down the hall and stopped approximately a foot from the hall entrance. She leaned away from the wall a bit, and caught a glimpse of the uniformed man, who was facing her general direction. He was staring down at a digital device he was using to capture Aubrey's signature. Aubrey's back was to her as he signed the digital document.

    "Is that it?" Aubrey asked when he was finished, taking a look at the large package that had been set on the couch.

    "Unless you had any questions," the uniformed man said, lifting his gaze. At this point, he saw Destiny.

    Her eyes widened and she pressed herself back against the wall.

    "No, no questions," Aubrey said. "Thank you, I appreciate your service. And thank you for carrying the package in. You didn't have to do that. I'm more than capable."

    Destiny leaned away from the wall again, slowly.

    "It's all a part of the business," the uniformed deliveryman said, checking out Aubrey's condo. "This is some sick pad you have here."

    "Thank you," Aubrey said appreciatively.

    The deliveryman's eyes landed on the cage sitting near the couch. He instantly got excited. "You have a dog?" he asked, walking over to the cage.

     Aubrey scratched his head. "Umm..."

    "Can I see it?" the deliveryman asked. "I'm a huge dog person. Where is he?"  

    Destiny released a small giggle without meaning to. She clamped her hands over her mouth to help keep herself quiet.

    The deliveryman stared down at the couch. "This is a big ass cage!" he exclaimed. "What the hell is it, a Doberman? Your dog must be big as hell!"

    "I don't...have a dog," Aubrey said.

    The deliveryman gasped. "Oh." He frowned down at the cage. "Then..."

    "Yet."

    "Huh?" the deliveryman asked, looking up at Aubrey.

    "I don't have a dog yet," Aubrey told him. "I ordered the cage first."

    The deliveryman nodded. "That makes sense. Usually when someone has a dog, you can smell it. And I don't smell dog in here."

    Aubrey gave him a strange look. "That's a relief. Let me walk you out." He walked the uniformed man out of the condo and Destiny heard his sigh of relief right before he appeared at the entrance to the hallway. When he looked down at her, she was sitting on the hallway floor, trying in vain to cover up her laughter. He shook his head. "That guy was a nut job," he muttered.

    Destiny uncovered her mouth. "Says the guy who has a cage in his living room but no dog," she said through her laughter.

    He laughed with her and bent down to help her up. "Funny," he said. "You're a funny girl."

    She tried her best to quiet her laughter. "I'm sorry, I had to say it."

    He wiped the tears that had formed at the corners of her eyes, tears from laughing. "You know that technically I could punish you for not waiting in the bedroom for me like I asked, right?"

    That sentence served to quiet her laughter completely.

    He smiled. "You slept in a cage last night when a punishment wasn't even warranted, so no. I'm not going to punish you. I'm just letting you know that I could."

    "Technically," she said, using the same word he had.

    His smile stretched wider. "Yes. Technically." He draped an arm across her shoulders and steered her in the direction of the bedroom.

    "So, what breed of dog were you thinking of getting?" she asked him, collapsing into a fit of laughter all over again.