Chapter 14

The daysI spent with Zoe were fucking amazing and I enjoyed every second of them, whether lying in bed watching old sitcoms, or making her come in any way I could think of. She seemed to be enjoying herself, too.

Except when I did something she didn't expect and threw her completely off- kilter. Those might have been my favorite moments. That, and when she was so satiated that she was a submissive pile of goo. It was a toss-up as to which I preferred more.

After two days of ‘Daddy Lessons' and lazing around her place, I figured it was time to change things up a bit. I woke her slowly with my mouth on her sweet pussy, bringing her gently to the precipice and then letting her fall.

"Good morning, little Picasso."

"Morning Daddy." She stretched. "What did I do to deserve that wonderful wake- up call?"

"Nothing. I just wanted the taste of you on my tongue."

She blushed and threw her arm over her eyes. "I don't think I'll ever get used to your naughty talk."

"That's okay. I love to see your cheeks all pink and flushed. Both sets." I leaned over and bit her thigh, hard.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Lesson Six: Daddy doesn't need a reason for the things he does. Now let's get showered. We have a big day ahead of us."

"We do?"

"Yep. We need to get breakfast eaten, then you will do your hour of painting, and we'll spend the rest of the day out and about."

"We could skip the hour. I'm pretty much done with that project, anyway."

"Nope. No skipping. If you finish that one, you can move on to something new."

"Yes, Daddy." She sighed.

I could tell she was getting frustrated and bored with the paint-by-number and was anxious to get it over with, but at the same time I think she knew when she finished it she was going to need to make a choice about what to do next. I hoped that she would choose to try her own piece, but there was a second paint-by-number available if she chose to go that route. I would not push her either way. I wanted it to be her decision. It had to be in order for it to be as beneficial as I intended.

After a quick shower and a light breakfast, I got her settled in at the dining room table while I hopped onto my laptop to check out a couple of things, then I joined her at my spot on the wall. I didn't have a laid-out plan for what I was doing, but I was enjoying myself, and really liked how it was turning out. Even if Zoe had originally been a little taken aback by the idea of having an erotic scene on her wall, she seemed to be coming around. I would even caution to say she was beginning to like it. And it was more sensual than erotic to anyone who didn't know us on a more intimate level.

"Done," Zoe announced.

Raising my eyebrows, I turned to examine her work. The paint-by-number of the Mona Lisa had taken her several days to finish and rivaled the original. At least in my opinion.

"I love it. What are you working on next?"

"Can't we just call it a win for the day? I don't know what I want to do next."

"Zoe, I am not budging on this. One hour. No excuses."

"Fine," she grumbled as she dug the second paint-by-number out of the bag. "This is such a ridiculous waste of time," she protested.

"Is it? Is it really? Because I have seen a huge change in you in just a couple of days. You're more relaxed. You smile more. You're beginning to really live again."

"And you think all of that is due to one hour a day of painting?" She raised her brows in disbelief.

"No, not all of it. I'm aware there have been other… activities that have put a smile on your face. But I think it is part of it, and before you get any ideas, the rule is not up for negotiation. I'm trying to help you get your life back."

Thankfully, her mood seemed to even out after my declaration. Not that I would have had a problem paddling her ass if it didn't, but I wanted to get her out of the house. We'd been working on expanding her horizons sexually and breaking down the block she had for her art, but she was still surrounded by an environment that was not conducive to my mission, and today that was all going to change.

We both painted for the remainder of the time. One thing I really loved about Zoe was that she didn't have a need to fill quiet time with a bunch of unnecessary chatter. We spent hours a day together where we didn't have to say a word, and it was easy and natural. Being with Zoe was just… right.

The timer went off and she sighed heavily. "I think this one is going to go faster than the last one."

"That's okay."

"I'm not ready to paint on my own."

"Then you can keep doing paint-by-numbers until you are."

"I don't have any more after this one."

"Then we'll get more. It"s not the end of the world, and we're not going to find excuses. You will paint for an hour a day while you are off work, and on the days you do work you will paint for thirty minutes. There is zero wiggle room on this."

"What if I'm sick?"

"Then you'll let me know and we will discuss it."

"You're impossibly stubborn, you know that?"

"I've been told that a time or two, yes, and I just realized we need to do one more thing before we leave." I helped her out of her paint smock and took her hand.

"What do we need to do?"

"I need to fill your bottom with a plug so that you're in the right headspace while we're out, because if I don't you're going to try to fight me on some things, and I don't want to have to correct you in public."

She blinked a few times, not saying anything.

"Bend over the bed, please." I made a circle motion with my finger to get her to turn around.

"What are we doing that you think I'm going to fight you on?"

"Do as you're told."

"Da—"

I didn't let her get the protest out before I took the choice from her. Turning her around, I gently pushed her face down onto the bed and began spanking her.

"What was lesson three, Zoe?" I asked as I lit her up over her leggings.

"Ow! I don't know, they all kind of blend together." She squirmed under my punishing palm.

"Then you better start telling me all of them because I'm not going to stop spanking until you come up with the one I want to hear." I tugged her leggings down so I could have access to her bare flesh and started spanking again.

Drumming her feet, she kept right on complaining. "Ah! I can't think when you're spanking me! It's not fair!"

I didn't answer, just kept right on swatting her pale flesh. She hadn"t given me many reasons to actually punish her in the past couple of days, but she was obviously in the mood to challenge me. That was fine. I had the stamina of the Energizer Bunny and the willpower of a steel door. I could spank her ass all day long.

"Ow! Okay, okay! Lesson number three is Daddy knows best! Okay? There! I said it. Now will you stop?" She held out the last word in a whine as I spanked harder in order to get my point across.

"So you knew the whole time and just wanted to test me, is that it?" I moved lower to spank her upper thighs to ensure she felt the warmth while she sat in the car.

"No! I mean, maybe? I don't know. Daddy, please stop."

"I don't know. I'm not convinced you're ready to be a good girl."

"I am! I swear I am."

"Then say it."

"I'm going to be Daddy's good girl!" she shrieked.

"And you're going to remember that Daddy knows best, so there will be no arguments today?" I paused, waiting for her answer.

"I… I'll do my best?"

"Why is that a question?"

"Because I might mess up and I don't want to set myself up for failure."

I thought for a second before deciding that answer was good enough for me. "I'll accept that. You will have a hot bottom and a plug to remind you of what happens to naughty girls who forget their lessons."

"Yes, Daddy." She sighed and rested her head on the bed.

We went through the ritual of me making her participate in having her ass plugged, which, from the way it made her pussy weep, she loved. Or at least she loved to hate it. My woman was seriously the most fucking amazing specimen on the planet. She could not have been more perfect if she tried.

After her plug was situated and I had her in the submissive headspace I wanted her in, we got ready for our day out. First, we enjoyed lunch at a bistro in downtown Philly that I swore was the city's best kept secret. Their fresh ingredients were unparalleled by anything I'd ever found in the city, and they made their bread daily. Zoe seemed impressed and almost surprised at my choice of eateries.

"I guess I just saw you more as a… burgers-and-fries kind of guy."

"Don't get me wrong, I love a good greasy burger, but I could never keep this physique if I ate that shit all the time."

I tried not to be offended and think about my friends giving me shit the Friday before. I was still avoiding all of them, really tired of the picture everyone had painted of me, but I didn't want to take that out on Zoe. She was still struggling with our age gap and seeing me as one of her students. My focus needed to be on proving her wrong.

"That's true."

"I like to work out, but not more than I have to. I have other important things to do with my time, like wine and dine a pretty lady." I winked at her and she squirmed in her seat.

"Is that what you're doing?"

"Is… have I not made that obvious?"

"I'm your client," she reminded me.

I was really starting to get tired of that wall she kept putting in my way.

"Zoe, do you think I would move in with just anyone?"

"I don't know. We don't talk about your other clients. And the subject of cohabitation is covered in the packet."

"Okay, that"s fair." And it was. As much time as Zoe and I were spending together, we hadn't really talked much about things that didn't pertain to art, life with her ex, and random day-to-day stuff. We hadn't talked about me much at all. Was that why she was still trying to hold me at arm's length every chance she got? I sighed and set her straight. "The answer is no, honey. In fact, not only would I not have moved in with another client, I couldn't have, because you are my first one. And hopefully, my last. Zoe, the second Nyla gave me your file, everything changed."

"You can't mean that."

"Why can't I?"

She shook her head. "You just can't."

"Are you going to sit there and tell me that you feel the same way about our relationship as you did when Archer was your Daddy?"

She rolled her eyes. "You know I don't."

"If it can mean more for you, then why can't it mean more for me?"

"I guess it can." Her cheeks were red and she kept looking around, like someone was going to overhear our conversation.

I reached across the table and took her hand in mine. "We don't have to talk about this any more right now. I just need you to understand that this means something to me. You, Zoe Kramer, mean something to me. Okay?"

"Okay." She nodded. "I'm sorry."

"There's no reason to apologize. Just stop trying to shove me into a box."

"I will."

I wasn't really convinced, but there wasn't much I could do about it right then. All I could do was keep proving to her that this was more than a Rent-A-Daddy business arrangement. I wanted Zoe to be mine. For as long as she'd have me, I wanted her to be mine. Now, more than ever, I was determined to prove that to her.

We finished our meal in a heavier silence than I was used to with her, and I hated it. I couldn't wait to get on with our day. First stop was the obnoxiously huge homewares store that everyone swore by. I knew they would have everything Zoe could ever want or need to put some more personal touches on her home.

Surprisingly, we had a lot of fun picking things out, and aside from her initial protest when she realized my plan, she didn't fight me much. We ended up with an eclectic mix, but every single piece screamed ‘Zoe', and she seemed to really be enjoying herself. When we went to check out and I handed the checker my credit card, Zoe opened her mouth to argue. She looked like a fish out of water given how many times she made the silent protest, but she managed to keep the words inside, and for that I was proud of her.

"Good girl," I growled in her ear as we made our way to the car with our treasures.

Next was an electronics store, and after a short-lived argument where I explained that the obnoxiously huge television was more for me than for her, she reluctantly gave up. I set up delivery since my car was not big enough to hold the monstrosity, and we headed back home.

When her place began to feel more like "home" I wasn't sure. It probably wasn't the space itself as much as it was Zoe. We unloaded the car and I watched with a smile on my face as Zoe found homes for all of her new stuff.

"It looks great in here!" She clapped her hands in excitement.

"It really does," I agreed.

The space was slowly transforming and becoming something entirely new, just like the people who inhabited said space.

Zoe talked me into letting her cook dinner while I worked on my mural for a bit. She played music while she cooked, and I even caught her dancing when she didn't think I was watching. Her movements inspired me; everything about her did. Moving to a different section of the wall, I started a new element and hoped she didn't get too mad at me for the sensual, erotic elements I was adding. With one eye on her, watching her as she moved about the kitchen with a grace that exuded sex appeal, I couldn't help but paint our forms locked in an intimate embrace. If I wasn't already in love with her, seeing her shimmy in her kitchen as she cooked in nothing but a white apron would have sealed the deal.

Laying down my paintbrush, I cleaned off my hands and snuck up behind her. I pressed my body up against hers and swayed to the beat of the music with her ass nestled against my groin. She welcomed the touch and rested her head against my shoulder.

"This has been one of the best days." She turned her head and smiled happily up at me.

"I'm so glad. You deserve all the best days, baby." I leaned down to kiss her neck, but her scoff stopped me in my tracks. "What was that noise for?"

"I don't deserve anything special, L—Daddy."

"Good catch, but…" I turned her around to face me. "You don't get to argue with Daddy. You deserve good things. All of them. And you deserve great days and everything that comes with them. Got it?" I delivered my message with a little more force than I'd planned to, but it was important.

Zoe's eyes went wide and she nodded.

I kept my gaze locked on hers for a beat before coming to a decision.

"You're getting another lesson after dinner," I proclaimed.

Her shoulders fell. "But I get it. I didn't mean anything negative, really, just that I'm not special. I'm just an old art teacher."

Shaking my head I put my finger to her lips. "You're digging a deep hole you are not going to want to bury yourself in. I promise you that. Stop while you're ahead."

Clamping her mouth, she nodded.

"Good girl." I turned her around and commenced with the neck kiss that had so rudely been interrupted by her declaration.

She sighed happily, and tilting her head to the side, gave me better access to that special little place on her neck I knew would make her moan and melt against me. She didn't disappoint, and I formulated a plan in my head for how I was going to teach my girl just how special she was.