Sinful Angel

Chapter 12: Luke

I paced in the office connected to my usual room at Stripes, checking the clock every few seconds until when I knew Mads was going to be here. I was nervous, excited, and already turned on by the idea of doing a scene with her. I'd carefully gone over her list of limits over and over, wanting to be extra sure I didn't cross any unnecessary lines. I'd just gotten her to agree to do this with me, I wasn't about to scare her off.

I was just doing another turn on the carpet when my phone started to ring from my desk. I almost ignored it, but something told me I needed to check. When I saw "Angel" flashing across the screen, I picked the phone up immediately, worried that something had happened.

"Madison, is everything okay?" My words came out in a strangled panic, and her soft breath of laughter calmed me immediately.

"Yeah Luke, everything is fine. But, Celeste called me a few minutes ago and asked me if I could babysit Abigail since their original sitter cancelled on them last minute."

"And I'm guessing you said yes, then."

"I did. I'm sorry, but can we reschedule for tonight?"

"Of course, Angel. I wouldn't hold you helping your best friend against you." A thought popped into my head, and before I thought better of it, the words were spilling form my lips. "Would you like some help?"

She went quiet, and I bit my tongue to stop myself from taking back the words. I wanted to see her, even if it wasn't in the sense that we'd originally planned.

"I don't think that's a good idea. Plus, it's just one baby. I think I can handle it."

"I wouldn't mind..." I started and trailed off when she interrupted me.

"I really think we should just stick to our arrangement, Luke. But thank you. Let me know when you want to reschedule our session for."

A second later, the dial tone sounded in my ear. I sighed, pulling my desk chair under me to plop down in defeat. Madison had always been one to stick to her guns and I knew that if I let her control all of this, these stolen moments at Stripes were going to be all I got.

"Fuck that," I growled into the empty room. I put my shirt and socks and shoes back on, determined to not let Madison shut me out. She might be pissed at me for showing up after she told me not to, but I was willing to risk it for the sake of my end goal- us.

That determination fueled me all the way to Celeste and Liam's place, to the front door, and even kept me confident under the withering glare Madison gave me when she opened the door and saw me.

"I thought I told you not to come," she whispered furiously, baby Abigail resting in her arms. The baby's big aqua eyes, exact replicas of her mother's, stared up at me curiously. Little tufts of hair that were as dark as Liam's were in wild disarray, making her look even cuter than she already was. Seeing the two of them like that, I could feel my heart nearly burst from me at the depth of feelings. I cleared my throat, trying to push those feelings down and focus on getting Madison to let me in the house.

"You don't have to whisper, Angel. The baby is too young to internalize anything right now. What is she, four or five months still?"

"Yeah, but still... Babies are intuitive. They can sense when someone is angry."

"And are you really angry at me, Madison?" I let the question hang there as I leaned against the door frame, waiting for her answer. I played it cool, but my heart was beating a million miles an hour in my chest. I was praying she wouldn't turn me away, but I just wasn't sure either way.

Madison let out a big sigh, opening the door a little wider. "No, I suppose not. I just can't believe you came here anyway."

I followed her inside as she walked away, my grin of triumph only showing for the moment I turned away form her to shut and lock the door. By the time I was facing her again, my features were schooled into something more like nonchalance.