Puppet Read online

  For months, Justin had been content simply smelling Carin’s jasmine perfume and making mindless love to her through the night, but there came a point when she asked him to stop and smell the flowers too. She encouraged him to enjoy a slower lifestyle in their new, committed relationship and began asking him to cut his work hours and to travel less often.

  One fine spring Saturday, a day speaking of renewal and optimism, with crocuses poking their heads from flowerbeds and swallows twittering in the budding birch trees by the dock, Justin found Carin sitting cross-legged on the back deck looking as fine as the day itself. She wore a strapless, terrycloth shorts jumper and her hair was piled high on her head, leaving her shoulders bare. The neighbor’s cat was on her lap and a restaurant doggy bag was by her side.

  “Don’t tell me you’re feeding Tennyson again!” Justin exclaimed, coming onto the deck through the sliding doors of the kitchen.

  “His name’s Lord Byron, as you know,” Carin replied, looking up momentarily.

  “Tell me you’re not feeding it.”

  “He’s sad. I’m giving him a treat because the change of season has him disoriented.”

  Justin furrowed his brow and scratched his head. He glanced to the tabby sprawled between Carin’s legs, its head lolled as it nibbled a piece of sirloin pinched between Carin’s fingers. It looked as contented as a sheikh being fed grapes by a concubine.

  “He doesn’t look sad to me,” Justin pointed out.

  “He’s feeling better with a little food.”

  “I wanted that steak, Puppet.”

  Carin looked up and frowned.

  “You ask for doggy bags all the time, Justin, and never eat the leftovers. Byron loves them. Daylight savings time has him all confused. The poor thing.”

  Justin couldn’t help but smile as Carin pulled another strip of meat from the bag.

  “Russell’s asked us three times not to feed Tennyson,” he reminded her.

  She looked up again and held Justin’s gaze. A baffled expression covered her face, as if not comprehending how feeding an animal could be considered bad no matter what the circumstance. The expression became playful when Byron hissed and threw a paw in Justin’s direction.

  “See!” Carin said. “He knows how rotten you are.” She capped her free hand on the cat’s head and held it tightly while whispering to it under her breath. Then, in Justin’s direction, she said, “It would serve you well not to make fun of his name. He senses your jealousy.”

  With that, she got up from the deck, the cat hanging from her arm like so much dough. She bent down and with her free hand snatched up the doggy bag and headed toward the kitchen’s sliding doors.

  “I won’t give him all of it,” she said over her shoulder. “And if it makes you happy, I’ll hand feed you later.”

  Justin chuckled as he watched her glorious backside disappear into the kitchen. He found Carin’s gentle ways charming. She couldn’t help feeding a cat no matter how many times she’d been asked not to do so. It was just her way, and the more Justin was around her way, the more he was enamored by it. As much as he was guiding Carin sexually and teaching her new things, he felt she was teaching him valuable lessons too.

  She’d say things to Justin that he wouldn’t have paid attention to from any other woman. Like the day he bought her a dozen red roses and Carin said emphatically that red roses belonged in graveyards only. She then drove with Justin to the cemetery where her parents were buried and placed a rose on each of their headstones and the remaining ten on neighboring stones. Or the time she pronounced that she loved zoos but hated circuses and backed up her declaration with a litany of reasons, all passionately dispensed as Justin sat passively reading his newspaper. Or the morning she saw a fishing pole in Justin’s garage and said she’d love to go fishing with him, as long as he didn’t use worms or catch fish.

  From any other woman, these statements would have annoyed Justin. From Carin, each one slayed him. He came to understand that what Carin was teaching him was how to love again.

  Chapter Ten

  As an unusually big-hearted person, it was only natural that as Carin fell deeper in love, her desire to please would grow only stronger. After all, she was a girl who appreciated the nickname Puppet.

  Because of their natural chemistry, hers and Justin’s sex life seemed to expand almost daily. As Carin’s submissive tendencies became ever more defined, so did Justin’s dominant ones. Six months into their relationship, he started bringing up fantasy scenarios he’d had since adolescence. He’d spin erotic tales while they were in bed, inventing stories of exposing Carin in public or having other men watch as Justin made love to her. At first, these fantasies confused Carin but they also led to intense sex sessions. During one session, in which Justin made up a story of Carin going for boudoir photographs for Justin’s birthday present but ending up being seduced by the photographer, Carin’s orgasm was particularly intense. Afterward, as they lay peacefully in bed, Justin suggested that his fantasies must be hers as well. Carin said matter-of-factly that she had no fantasies of her own. She liked playing along but only to keep him happy.

  This was reassuring for Justin to hear but it was also frustrating, as his enjoyment of the fantasies was linked to knowing she liked them as well. It was obvious that she did like them—she was just too shy to admit it.

  One night, something happened to prove to Justin once and for all that Carin liked the fantasies as much as he did. The incident brought on one of the few lingering bickers between them but Justin felt it was worth it.

  As they sat drinking margaritas in a booth at a crowded sports bar, Justin began spinning another of his yarns. He was trying to get Carin worked up, telling her a story about the two of them walking on a secluded beach.

  “I’d tell you to take off your bikini, Puppet, right there, on that deserted beach, and then I’d put you to your knees.”

  “My knees are a good place for me, baby.”

  “There’d be a group of guys sitting on a bluff a ways off, passing around a pair of binoculars to look at boats. One would see us, and they’d take turns with the binoculars, getting a better look at you. I’d tell you to keep going, that I wanted you to give them a show.”

  Shifting in the booth, Carin said, “You’d want them to watch me?”

  “Yeah. And your squirming tells me you might like them watching.”

  “Oh baby…it’s not the fantasy that’s getting me excited. It’s just the sound of your sexy voice.”

  Justin looked at her incredulously. “Really?” he said. “If I was talking about a group of girls watching you, I doubt you’d be nearly as excited.”

  “That’s because I’m not a lesbian.”

  “That’s my point. It’s not my voice getting you going. It’s what’s being said.”

  “It excites me knowing your fantasies,” Carin said calmly, “because I love you. But I’ve never had fantasies of my own…and now my only fantasy is to make you happy.”

  They were at a stalemate and the conversation wasn’t helping the mood, so Justin dropped the subject. He thought her argument didn’t make sense but only an idiot would argue with a woman saying all she wanted to do was make him happy.

  He got back on track. “Puppet, what if I told you that if you went into the ladies room and took off your bra, that would make me happy? Would you do it?”

  He was only half serious, as Carin was wearing a faintly see-through blouse that would leave her exposed. But after blurting it out, he realized she’d taken his words genuinely. She didn’t say yes and she didn’t say no—she just bit her bottom lip and looked at Justin with her big blue eyes. She then surveyed the room, which was filled with young jockey types, and rubbed the little bump on her nose.

  “You’d really want me to do that for you?” she said. “That would make you happy?”

  “I’d get excited knowing I’m the lucky one taking you home, yes.”

  He couldn’t believe he said it and wasn’t sure
he meant it. But the conversation was making him excited and he wondered how far Carin would go to please him. As usual, he couldn’t help pushing her for more.

  Carin lingered in the booth while scanning the room again.

  “You’re my puppet, right?” he goaded.

  “Yes,” she whispered. “I’ll always be your puppet.”

  “Well then…”

  A moment later, she reached for her pocketbook. “I’ll be right back,” she said.

  Justin watched as Carin marched off toward the ladies room. He was left with a growing hard-on and the ambivalence of not knowing whether he wanted her to chicken out or not. There were an awful lot of guys in that sports bar.

  Five minutes later, Carin ventured back from the ladies room. It was obvious that she hadn’t chickened out. Even from across the crowded bar, Justin could see her large, braless breasts bouncing in her blouse. She looked sexy beyond belief and a little apprehensive.

  By the time she got to the booth, Justin was as hard as the marble tabletop, especially seeing why Carin might have been apprehensive. Her areolas showed murkily through her blouse, exposing two ridiculously erect, raspberry-like nipples. He also noticed she’d taken the liberty to roll up her skirt at the waist, making it several inches shorter than it had been earlier. She was visibly excited in face and body.

  Justin told her he liked the new length of her skirt.

  Carin whispered, “I thought you would.” She then slid into the booth and snuggled up next to him.

  They kissed passionately while occasionally taking time to nurse their drinks. Justin was completely turned on, not only because Carin had done what he’d asked but because she’d taken the initiative to roll up her skirt and was now returning his kisses with enthusiasm. She was as worked up as he was, and that was the biggest turn-on of all.

  Justin noticed a group of guys partying at the bar and eyed them as he and Carin drank and cuddled. The guys were laughing, high-fiving one another, getting louder with each shot they downed.

  After Justin and Carin finished their margaritas, Justin suggested they head to the bar for one last drink. Carin protested but gave in when Justin pointed out that the lighting was low at the bar and they’d leave after a quick one.

  When he rose, Carin got up after him and held on to one of his belt loops from behind while tiptoeing toward the bar. She was nervous but also wide-eyed with excitement. Justin wouldn’t have pursued it otherwise.

  They sat on stools next to the group and it wasn’t long before the boys struck up a conversation. Introductions were made and they all started partying together. The boys had recently graduated from college and were out for a night of celebration. Each took an opportunity to look Carin up and down, and Justin couldn’t blame them. The lighting was low but not that low, and Carin looked like every man’s wet dream in the diaphanous top and rolled-up skirt. While Justin talked with one of the guys, Carin talked with another. He was a big, ruddy-faced, jockey type with sandy hair, and Justin caught him staring directly at Carin’s chest. He also overheard the guy commenting to Carin that she looked chilly. Carin glanced to Justin and moved the conversation along as if not understanding the reference.

  * * * * *

  Carin pulled Justin out of the bar a half hour later, saying some of the guys were getting obnoxious. On the way home, Justin mentioned he’d overheard the sandy-haired guy’s comment about her being chilly. She joked that Justin was lucky she’d had a bit too much to drink; otherwise, she’d have dragged him out a lot sooner.

  “But,” she continued reflectively, “I felt safe in there because you were with me. I always feel so safe with you. That’s what made it okay. Because you were with me and wanted me there.”

  “They were hitting on you?”

  “I don’t know if I’d call it that.”

  “A little?”

  “They were excitable boys.”

  “I can see why. You’re a walking fantasy in that outfit. What did they say?”

  “Just things college guys say when drunk.”

  “You can tell me, Puppet. I won’t be mad.”

  Justin reached over and pinched Carin’s nipple through her blouse. It was hard and thick between his fingers.

  “You really want to hear?” she asked.

  “Yes. Greatly.”

  Carin shifted in her seat, the same way she’d shifted in the booth when Justin brought up the sexy beach fantasy. She glanced at Justin and saw the excitement on his face. Justin dropped his hand to her knee.

  “The sandy-haired one, the one you heard…he wasn’t shy,” she said quietly.

  “What’d he say?”

  “I can’t remember all of it.”

  “Tell me one thing.”

  “One thing?”

  “Tell me one thing,” he said.

  She glanced again to Justin. His eyes were wide with anticipation.

  “Well…” Carin giggled. “He wanted to know if I liked oral sex.”

  “This was later?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What’d you say?”

  “I wasn’t sure if he meant giving it or getting it. I’ve only been asked questions like that from you!”

  “So you said nothing?”

  “No. I did…”

  “And?”

  “I think I asked which he meant.”

  “Which did he mean?”

  “You can probably guess.”

  “And you said…?”

  “I don’t know. It was a dumb conversation. He was very drunk.”

  “C’mon. It’s okay. Whad’ya say?”

  “I can’t remember my exact words.”

  “I’m not asking for exact words, Puppet.”

  Carin wasn’t sure how much Justin wanted to hear. She didn’t want to make a big thing of it or make him mad at her. But when she looked over again, she noticed a lump in his pants that hadn’t been there a minute earlier.

  She looked up to him and said, “I think I said, ‘Who doesn’t like oral sex?’”

  Justin blinked several times. “You said that?” he asked, sliding his hand from her knee to mid-thigh.

  Carin reached over and squeezed him once or twice through his trousers.

  “It would have been rude not to answer, don’t you think?” she teased.

  Justin started breathing heavily. “Yeah. What else did he say?”

  “You said one thing.”

  “Two then. What else?”

  “You really want to hear this?”

  “I brought you there, remember?”

  “Yeah, you did. You put me there. I wouldn’t have been there otherwise.”

  “So tell me.”

  “Okay. One more thing, baby.” She giggled and again tweaked Justin’s penis through his pants.

  “When you were paying for those last shots…he kept going back to that same subject. He was fascinated by it. He asked if I swallow.”

  “You’re not teasing now?”

  “No.”

  “You swallow for me all the time, Puppet,” Justin said quietly.

  “I know. You taught me. So then he asked if I know how to deep throat.”

  Justin looked over to Carin. She giggled nervously again and bit her lip.

  “You told him you swallow?”

  “You love me doing that,” she answered, pinching him again.

  “You told him?”

  “I told him you love when I do it for you. Is that okay? You do, right?”

  The car was silent, as Justin seemed to reflect on her question. After a moment, he said, “Yes, I love it. What else?”

  Carin shrugged. She began squeezing his cock in earnest through his pants, loving how excited he was.

  “You are so hard, baby.” She giggled.

  “He was too, no doubt. I bet he wanted to come in your cute little mouth after all that!”

  “He kidded about it.”

  “About what?”

  “He said he wanted me to go to his car and prov
e it.”

  “That you swallow?”

  “And can go deep.”

  “And what did you say when he asked you to his car?”

  “What do you think I said? I told him I couldn’t!”

  It was quiet in the car for another long moment. Justin’s head swirled as he thought of the precise verbiage Carin used to fight off the sandy-haired guy.

  “But if it’s what I wanted?” he said teasingly. “What if I told you it would make me happy? Could you go to the car then?”

  He knew he was pushing it. He was only being playful but the conversation had an element of reality to it. They were in uncharted waters and he didn’t want to confuse Carin or upset her, but he was too excited to hold back. He looked over as she sat thinking in her seat. His hand was higher on her thigh, crisscrossed under hers. He could hear the tires humming on the pavement as he watched her fidget. He could hardly believe she was considering his question so thoughtfully.

  “So what’s the answer, Puppet? If it’s what I wanted. Could you then?”

  Carin looked out her side window and rubbed the tiny bump on her nose. Finally she turned back while pumping his cock.

  “I guess the bottom line is, I want to please you. That’s really it for me. If I was convinced it’s what you wanted and knew you’d love me forever—and I mean forever—then maybe I’d do some little thing for you one time. But I know you’re just kidding now and wouldn’t want it for real.”

  Justin slid his hand under Carin’s shortened skirt and inside her thong. She was as wet as a bucket of water.

  “Oh my gosh, baby,” she stammered. “I need you so badly!”

  Justin’s fingers slid over her lips and she shivered. She nibbled on her pinky and her legs widened as Justin put two fingers all the way inside her. He moved his fingers in and out while massaging her bulbous clit with his palm. She looked out her window, obviously lost in thought, holding her pinky to her lips, occasionally dipping it into her mouth. He played with her all the way home, periodically pulling out of her when sensing she was close to orgasm. As they turned into the driveway, Carin ducked her head toward his lap, but by the time they got to the house, Justin wanted her inside.