Mr. Smith's Whip by Brynn Paulin Read Free Book Online

away.
    Now, she needed to learn trust. Complete trust. That would come.
    Hopefully, she’d move along smoothly with him as they went forward. He had big plans for her.
    Her lips pressed together as she slid into their table, but she took a deep breath, her eyes closing in subtle enjoyment as the sensation worked through her. Tomorrow at the library, she’d be reminded of this night as she worked. Good. He wanted her to remember.
    “How did you decide to become a librarian?” he asked as he took his place.
    She grinned. “I love books,” she said, her words almost an orgasmic sigh. He wanted to hear her say his name that way one day. “I especially like sharing books with others and helping them learn.”
    “You could have been a teacher,” he countered, wanting to find out exactly what made her tick.
    She shook her head. “Too erratic. For the most part, everything at the library is orderly.
    Even the most rambunctious of children understands the library rules. Every book has a particular place. Everything runs on a fixed schedule.”
    “And you like structure?” he asked, making a note.
    A self-conscious half-smile curved her lips. “Yeah, I guess. My family thinks I’ve turned boring. I was a wild child—I guess that’s what you’d call me. My whole life was chaos. The only time I felt calm was at the library—well, there and church, but I wasn’t becoming a nun.”
    “Thank the saints for that,” he laughed. “Tell me about this structure in your life outside the library.”
    “I’m not OCD or anything. I don’t have to park in the same parking space everyday or have my clothes color coded. I find I like everything picked up. I want to eat at the same time everyday and go to bed about the same time. I do everything in a certain order. I follow a pretty regular routine. But if it gets disrupted, I don’t have a meltdown. I’m pretty good at adjusting.
    Moving eighteen times in twelve years of school will do that for you.”
    “Were you…what’s the American term? An army brat?”
    “Or something,” she replied. “My mother changed jobs a lot. Jobs and her life. Whenever things were going badly, she’d decide to move. Looking back, I wonder why she thought her problems wouldn’t follow us. God!” she exclaimed, putting a hand to her forehead. “I shouldn’t be telling you this. I don’t usually blurt out my life like this.” He squeezed her fingers and bent his head, looking at her intently. “We share something deeply intimate. It’s not unusual that you feel comfortable enough to share this with me. It tells me some things.”
    “Like?”
    “Whatever we do, you should know the rules, and there should be consequences for broken rules. Our scenes should be somewhat scheduled and not random. I should plan and direct whatever happens so you don’t feel out of control. Does that sound right to you?” She nodded, and relief dawned in her eyes as he offered a touchstone for this experience.
    She’d craved something new, something more from sex, but she needed to feel secure in what was happening.
    “Before I completely melt into mortification, though, please tell me something about you.
    Something I don’t already know.”
    “My mother is American so I have duel citizenship with the United States and the UK.”
    “You don’t have a limited visa? I thought you’d have to go back soon.” Worry cropped up inside him. Would that affect them? Had she thought anything they did would be short-term, perhaps only a one-time event. “I don’t have a home here,” he hedged, looking for her response. “Of course, my job is portable.”
    “You have a plan?”
    Of course she’d ask about a plan. He nodded. “Multi-tiered. Do you remember those
    ‘choose your own adventure’ type books?”
    “We have them at the library. We even have a funny Pride and Prejudice version.”
    “It’s like that, I suppose. Depending on circumstances, I’ll choose one direction or the other.” He