7.So Much for the Afterglow

7. So Much for the Afterglow

"No cooking allowed in my apartment, especially if I’m doing the cooking.”

Liam’s words explain why he’s gently ushering me out of his apartment late in the morning. “A firebrand was never an option for me since I'm only capable of turning things to ash with fire. There's a place that makes great crepes nearby."

Apparently, it’s safer for us to go get breakfast than try making it ourselves.

The rest of our evening last night passed in a much more civilized, even gentle fashion. Liam introduced me to the wonders of aftercare. He put lotion on my wrists where the cuffs rubbed against my skin, cleaned me up, gave me water, and eventually tucked me into bed. I fell asleep with his arms wrapped around me as he murmured soothing praise in my ear.

We arrive at the crepe restaurant, and Liam leads me toward a small table by a window that overlooks the street. The neighborhood is close to the university, so most of the people out at this hour on the weekend are hungover college students who had to drag themselves out of bed for one reason or another.

I stifle a yawn. Waking up, I had a smile on my face, but I still desperately need some sustenance. I order orange juice and a savory crepe while Liam goes for the sweet.

Liam's food arrives first, drizzled with a sugary glaze and pieces of fresh strawberries and toasted hazelnuts peek through the folds of the warm crepe. He takes a bite, and the glazed strawberries leave his lips sticky, drawing my gaze like a magnet.

My own savory crepe arrives next, filled with mushrooms, herbs, and ham, glistening with melted cheese. My mouth waters at the sight, and I eagerly dig in.

Once we’re making some progress on our breakfast, Liam clears his throat. “There’s just one piece of business we need to discuss.”

My eyes flick to the crowded restaurant around us. Surely he won’t really mention…

He sees my concern. “Don’t worry, no specifics, I promise. How do you feel? ”

He’s vague, yet my face flushes anyway. Anyone who overhears won’t know the dirty details, but I know exactly what he means.

How am I feeling after our first night together? After being out of control and thoroughly dominated magically and sexually. After loving every second of it, even the parts I hated at the time as he denied me release. The payoff was more than worth every second of torment. How am I feeling about all that in the light of day?

"Relaxed," I admit finally. “I feel good.”

Kind of weird, actually, how calm I feel. Can’t remember the last time I felt relaxed. It’s been far too long.

“This, uh, it’s good,” I whisper, not talking about the crepes. “I think this has the potential to satisfy both me and my powers.” My magic gets the exercise and usage it needs while I get distracted and so, so… thoroughly satisfied that I don’t worry about my powers or anything else.

Last night, nothing else mattered. Nothing except pleasing Liam and then earning the right to reach my own release.

Liam spears a strawberry on his plate with a fork, dips it in the whipped cream on the side, and offers it to me. I flush again about the intimacy of Liam feeding me in public, but I'd love a little sweetness with my meal. I lean forward and take the bite off the fork. The sweet, slightly tart flavors explode on my tongue. Everything seems so vibrant and flavorful today. Is being with him always like this?

He sets down his fork and wipes away a stray drop of whipped cream from the corner of my lips. "If you want to share what's been bothering you lately, I'm here to listen."

I do think about the offer but ultimately decline. For once, all my worries seem far away. I need that to last a little longer.

"No, I can't talk about it," I say quietly. "Thanks for asking though."

Liam nods in understanding. He doesn't press me any further and we enjoy the rest of our breakfast. We walk towards the door together, his arm draped over my shoulder. The scent of fresh strawberries still lingers on his breath. For a devious dom, he makes a surprisingly nice brunch date.

A lovely day greets us outside, and Liam walks me to my car in a companionable, easy silence. I was prepared for the dirty deviant side of him, not this gentleness. If the dominant side of him doesn’t do me in, sweet and gentle mornings like this just might.

But right now, it feels like exactly what I need.

Unfortunately, the peaceful day comes to an abrupt end when we see what happened to my car.

All the tires on the vehicle are flat. I hardly believe the sight in front of me. I blink, hoping something will change, but the damage is still there when I open my eyes .

No, the tires aren’t just flat. They aren’t just popped.

All four of my tires have been slashed. Viciously ripped apart like they were clawed at by a wild animal… or a supernatural creature.

~

My stomach drops and I can’t stop staring at the slashed tires. I try to put on a brave face with Liam still next to me.

“Wow, I really owe my neighbor so much for this one."

“Well, it happened in my neighborhood,” Liam says. “Let me help—”

“No, I can’t ask you to do that.”

“At least let me get you an Uber,” he suggests instead.

“That’s what I should have done,” I mutter. “I thought this wouldn’t happen again.”

Having transportation nearby was a precaution in case I panicked or had second thoughts and decided everything Liam offered wasn’t for me after all. I’d be able leave immediately if I needed to. Given how enthusiastically I responded to him last night, the precaution was totally in vain. I should have been more worried about something like this instead.

“Again? This has happened before?” He watches me with concern that doesn’t feel deserved .

I try to downplay the harassment. “Some people like to bother me occasionally. I try to go unnoticed, but I look too much like my brother.”

My fists clench as I keep staring at the tires. I don’t realize I’m trembling until Liam steps in front of me, blocking the car from my view.

“There’s an auto repair place at the other end of the street. Walking will be faster than waiting for them and it’ll give us a chance to clear our heads.”

I don’t have a better idea, so I gesture for him to lead the way. Liam seeing how messy my life has become is unsettling… yet I don’t want him to leave me to deal with this on my own.

Both of us fall quiet. As we pass one intersection and put some distance between us and the vehicular destruction, some of the tension drains away. Liam and I start holding hands at some point and our steps slow. Guess we do need a minute to clear our heads. His hand in mine feels steady and grounding.

"Wow, small world," a voice calls out.

We turn to see Toby jogging over to us from across the street.

"Small world?” Liam echoes. “Not really. We live within three blocks of each other."

"Sometimes I forget," Toby mutters.

What does he mean by that? Given how close they seem, they must run into each other and meet up all the time .

Toby takes one glance at our joined hands, and I feel the blush already rising to my face as he looks so knowing. My fingers clutch onto Liam’s tightly.

“Let me guess. My uncle took you to that pretentious crepe place he loves?” Toby groans, rolling his eyes. "It's so overrated."

“Ignore him, Oliver,” Liam responds. “The taste of anyone who reeks of Pbr is clearly questionable.”

“Clearly, it says I know how to party and have fun. And I know Eggs Up is the best breakfast place. They’re awesome at omelets and waffles,” he boasts. “That’s two specialties instead of one.”

“Bold claim, kiddo.” Liam smirks. “Now back it up by doing 20 jumping jacks.”

Toby makes such an outrageously offended noise that I have to hide a laugh in Liam’s shoulder. I relax at their affectionate teasing and stop holding onto Liam’s hand for dear life and lean into him casually instead.

“Whatever, I’m hungover, you got me. Who cares? It’s not like I’m about to ask Oliver to, I don’t know, sit on a really hard chair just to express his opinion about breakfast food.”

Oh my god. Perhaps I relaxed too soon. Toby’s loud implication that I was on the receiving end of anal sex last night has me blushing bright red and trying to change the subject.

“The crepes were actually really good, but I haven’t tried the other place. And I can’t lie, waffles are objectively better than crepes. ”

“See,” they both say, each pointing a finger at me like I backed them up.

Just when the morning is almost back to being normal and comfortable, Toby clears his throat and glances past us. "I, uh, I should get going," he mumbles, all traces of his previous enthusiasm gone in an instant.

"Is everything okay?" I ask, my eyes darting between them. Liam looks in the same direction as his nephew and his relaxed posture stiffens. He gives me a quick shake of his head.

"There you are!" a woman's voice calls out from behind us. A middle-aged couple approaches and gestures for Toby to come along. They must be his parents.

"Ready to go?" the man asks, placing a protective hand on Toby's shoulder. He barely glances at us.

Toby nods, his gaze flickering between his parents and Liam before he attempts an introduction. “Uh, look who I ran into. Mom, Dad, this is Oliv—“

"Come on, we don't want to be late," his mother says, herding her family away from us.

She looks at me just long enough that I feel her contempt. Liam and I are no longer holding hands but that doesn’t stop her from noticing how close we’re standing, and she sneers like the sight offends her.

“Don’t you have any shame?” the man mutters as he hurries away .

Oh no, are Liam’s family homophobic? Toby gives us one last apologetic look before disappearing around the corner with his parents in tow.

As they vanish from sight, I turn to Liam with confusion. "What just happened?"

He sighs. "You know what? Toby and I were both wrong. The best breakfast place is actually the one with the deal on bottomless mimosas. Come on, I’ll show you."

I consider protesting but end up following without question. The car will wait. It’s not like it can go anywhere with all the tires shredded. After the unexpected turns our morning has taken, bottomless mimosas sound like exactly what we both need.