Page 48 of Dirty Discipline, Vol. 2

"Sean. What are you doing here?"

He closed the last few feet between them and took her in his arms for what he hoped looked like a platonic hug to the rest of the room's occupants. He reluctantly pulled out of their embrace, choosing to keep his hands on her hips to hold her steady.

"Traci, you were magnificent! You should be so proud of yourself. You were worried for nothing. You knocked it out of the park like I knew you would."

He could see the confusion wavering in her eyes. She seemed pleased with his glowing praise, yet she was putting together the underlying meaning of his words.

"You were here? I mean, I didn't see you. Where..."

"Please don't be mad at me. I was just worried about you after last night. I knew you were nervous, and I wanted to be here for moral support."

"But... " Her uncertainty made Sean angry. Not at her, but at himself. He should have known not to surprise her here... not like this. While the opinions of every other person in the room mattered to Traci on a professional level, he was the only person in the room that her presentation might have had personal implications for. To ambush her in public was unfair.

"Hey, I'm sorry. Well wait. I'm not sorry I came. I really did love watching you present on a topic you clearly have great passion for. I'm just sorry if I've made you feel uncomfortable by approaching you here. Let me say goodbye and we can maybe talk about some questions I have later at dinner." When she didn't answer, Sean prodded her. "You're still going to have dinner with me tonight, aren't you?"

"I don't know. Do you even still want to?" The vulnerability in her voice cut him. How could she have gone from confident professional to flustered...

Oh my God, this is her submission showing through. This isn't just a research project for her.

Sean reached for her hand and pulled her along behind him to the secret serving room where he had observed her speech. Luckily all of the servers were out refreshing the room before the next session started which provided them with limited privacy.

Sean pulled her into his arms and held her silently while they each caught their breath. When he pulled out of their hug, he reached to cup her face in his hands to make sure he had her attention.

"Traci, honey. I want to have dinner with you now more than ever. You are an amazing woman and I have so many questions for you. Honestly, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed and need some time to digest everything I heard, but one thing I know for sure is not one thing you said made me want to rethink seeing you tonight. On the contrary, you just try to back out now and I'll track you down. Don't forget, I have a few connections here at the hotel."

He was relieved to see a smile creep back to her lips. Those lips he remembered kissing last night. The lips he couldn't resist now. Sean captured her in a long, passionate lip-lock. Only when his cell phone started to ring did he break the kiss.

"I'd better get back to work. Do you mind having dinner up in my suite tonight rather than going out? We can order anything off the hotel menu and chef will even make special requests. I just think we have a lot to talk about and I'd prefer to do that with a bit of privacy, don't you think?"

The pink flush on her cheeks was adorable. "That sounds perfect. What time?"

"Let's say six again. Just take the elevator to the top floor and go straight ahead. It's the penthouse suite at the end of the hall. Ashley's grandparents are coming to pick her up after school and she's going to stay with them tonight."

Sean thought it odd that Traci looked almost disappointed at the news.

"Okay, I'll see you at six. And Sean... thanks so much for coming today. It means a lot to me."

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world."

Traci stepped into the elevator on the eleventh floor and pressed the button to take her to the twenty-third floor. She felt like a different person than she had been just twenty-four hours ago when she had been standing in this very place, about to go on her first date with Sean and dreading today's presentation. She had to pinch herself to make sure she was awake. She couldn't remember having ever been as happy as she was at this very minute. The presentation had gone better than her wildest imagination and the feedback she'd received the rest of the day from her peers had been overwhelmingly supportive.

The only possible cloud on the horizon is my flight home on Friday afternoon. How am I going to avoid getting hurt by Sean?

As much as she'd hated herself after sleeping with Robert Young last year, she already knew that if Sean asked her to stay tonight, she'd never be able to say no. Broken heart or not, she was drawn to him in a way she felt powerless to resist. She was encouraged that he hadn't wanted to break their date after listening to her speech today. After all, he wouldn't have been the first guy to chicken out after finding out about her specialty. If only he lived in Eagle’s Pass. If only he practiced DD.

"Enough 'if onlys,' Traci. Just enjoy the ride for what it is." She spoke to her reflection in the gratefully empty elevator as the doors slid open.

Taking a deep cleansing breath to fortify her courage, Traci knocked on the door to the penthouse suite. Sean opened the door so quickly she wondered if he'd been waiting by the door. She hadn't thought he could look better than he had the night before. How wrong she’d been.

He wore perfectly tight khakis paired with a casual button-down beach shirt opened at the collar. The ensemble was topped off with a thick leather belt, which had Traci catching her breath. She knew from talking with many of the submissives in Eagle’s Pass that she wasn't the only woman who noticed the quality of a man's belt early in a relationship. Traci couldn't stop from wondering about how that leather would feel kissing her upturned ass.

By the time their eyes met, it was clear Sean was just as happy with his appraisal of her brand-new summer dress that she'd snuck out to buy as a treat that afternoon. It was the perfect combination of casual and daring and she'd paired it with a new pair of coral sling backs.

Sean stepped in for a hug. He brushed his lips intimately against her ear. "You look amazing. I'm so sorry. I suspect Ash had a hand in this, but her grandparents canceled on us. I hope you don't mind sharing dinner tonight with my daughter?"

Traci could see worry lines crinkling around his eyes. She couldn't tell him she was secretly happy. "Sean, that's great. It'll be great to meet Ashley."

He pulled her into the room and closed the door behind them before taking her arm. "You say that now, but she can be unpredictable. I apologize in advance if she's rude. You're the first woman I've dated since her mom died. I'm not sure how seeing me with you is going to sit with her."

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