Page 44 of Brat Baby (Sugar Life #1, #3)

Hudson

The silence coming from the passenger seat is a literal demonstration of Emery’s current state of mind—shock. And maybe a little surrealness.

It’s my turn to take pleasure in her state of distress.

We’re still in the parking garage; I haven’t even taken the car out of park yet.

There are a few shopping bags in the back seat, and easily twice as many still in the store, marked to be delivered to her dorm tomorrow afternoon after her class with me is over.

She didn’t even get close to my budget limit. I told her so at the register as the final amount appeared on the screen. That was when the true protests started.

There were a few minor ones after I’d put a ban on checking tags for prices before she made decisions. As adorable as it was to watch her making careful selections, trying to balance price with need, it wasn’t the purpose of this shopping trip.

Nope. If this is the last time I get to spoil my girl, I want to make sure she has everything she could possibly need for at least the next twelve months. Anything she touched, if she displayed even the slightest amount of interest, it went into the yes pile.

The salespeople received a very sizeable commission today.

It is well into the afternoon, and I know I need to get her back to her dorm soon so that she can do whatever it is she does to prepare for her week, but I can’t help but want to drag all of this out a little more.

I can see why Darcy is planning to make her an offer to be his muse outside of our arrangement with her. Her profile is stunning, and the way the last of the afternoon rays of sun touch her cheeks and highlight her freckles is an image I wish I could burn into my memory.

She is absolutely perfect.

Unable to help myself, I reach across the center console and move the hair away from the side of her face so that I can see her. As my fingers touch her cheek, she turns to face me, hazel eyes large and beseeching.

“Hudson, I can’t accept all of that. It was way too much.

Like, seriously. I think, when everything arrives tomorrow, I might go through it all and send some back.

It’s too much. I seriously don’t need all of it.

I’m used to not having everything. I can make do.

” Even though she is telling me what she plans to do, there is a pleading edge to her voice, like she needs me to hear what she is saying.

And I do, but it isn’t the message she wants me to hear. My ribs ache with the enormity of my sympathy, but I’m not letting her send any of it back. And from the way she has played us at every turn this last week, I know that I’m going to have to go low to ensure that she keeps it all.

“I understand that it’s a lot, but if you try to send it back, all you are going to do is cost me more money.

I’ve already left a message with them that if you return any of it, they are to recharge me and resend it to you.

” Lies, all of it, but I’m all for playing dirty to win.

“So, if you don’t want me spending another cent on you, you’re just going to have to keep it all. ”

She hiccups on a laugh, eyes glassy and broken, so very clearly not used to this type of treatment. Emery looks away, and I see the obvious struggle she is having over accepting everything we bought today. “It’s too much.”

“It’s not enough.”

She snaps back around to face me so quickly, a tear does fall. “I do not need one-thousand count sheets or these over-the-top sunglasses.”

Emery opens the case on her lap, pulling out a pair of Dolce & Gabbana sunglasses, the massive dark lenses aimed in my direction.

Then she gestures to the back seat. “Or the Coach handbag or the three pairs of high heels. Where the hell am I going to wear any of this stuff? I can’t. I don’t need this much.”

I shrug, turn back forward, and start the car. “Wherever you like. And I think the definition of need is defined by each person’s circumstances. Just because your past has never required them does not mean that your future doesn’t.”

“Hudson, I’m serious.”

My lips quirk, because, yes, my little kitten is definitely serious, if the furrowing of her brow and thin press of her lips is anything to go by. “So am I.”

We literally worked our way through every single level of Saks Fifth Avenue, only skipping the sections that weren’t relevant to our little spree today. She was pretty on the money with her list of store options earlier when she’d been trying to get our destination out of me.

My college experience wasn’t much different from Emmy’s.

Dorm-room living, on a partial housing scholarship.

While my family was living comfortably back then, we weren’t well-off.

They’d helped me get set up in the dorms, purchasing all those initial things that you need when you first move out, but after that, I either had to manage or get a part-time job.

Now I’m the one helping them out, so they can enjoy an early retirement, and ensuring my siblings don’t ever need for anything. I love spoiling my niblings—nieces and nephews—and knowing that their futures won’t be limited by financial constraints.

And from the little I know about Emery’s background and the state of her belongings that first weekend, today’s spoiling of her was a requirement.

While we also did more clothing shopping, I made sure we concentrated on other things that she might not necessarily ask for. Essentials. Things she needs to make her life comfortable, rather than just…how did she say it? Rather than just being used to not having everything.

Bedding. Towels. Skin care. Decorations for her dorm room. Shoes, for all seasons. Outerwear. I’d noticed she was drinking out of a water bottle she’d clearly been reusing for days, if not longer, so that had gone on the list too.

Nothing was off the table today.

With Emery staring back out the window, I put the car into reverse and pull out of the parking space and exit the garage, pausing to allow the cameras to scan my license plate.

I have definitely exceeded the free parking allotment of time, so I expect to see a charge on my account with the parking company at the end of the day.

We drive in silence for a while, and I decide to take the longer way back to campus and head toward the highway. If these are the last few minutes of alone time that I can get with Emery, I’m going to stretch them out as much as possible.

We make it all the way out of the city and onto the highway before I feel the vibe in the car shift. I look in her direction, and a sliver of unease slinks around in my stomach at the way she is looking at me while playing with the strap of her dress.

I turn back to watch the road and have to clear my throat before I can talk. “Everything okay?”

“It will be,” she assures me in a voice that screams she is up to something and I’m probably not going to like it.

She wiggles around on her seat, stretching her seat belt all the way out until she has her knees bent and feet tucked under her butt, in a kneeling position.

My stomach swoops in anticipation because I have a very good idea of what she is planning, and as much as I have to say no, I really fucking want whatever is going on in her devious little mind.

“Emery,” I warn, my stomach clenching as heat starts to gather in my gut and frantic nerves burn through my chest. “No. Sit back down in your seat, right now.”

“But I need to thank you. You were so generous today, all this is definitely worth more than the last of the rewards I was owed from the weekend. Let me earn them. Please?”

I can hear the goddamn pout. But I have to hold strong. I have to say no to this. I’m her fucking teacher. I literally have her future in my hands. I absolutely cannot allow her to do this. Fuck, she could be expelled. I could be fired.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Why did I think taking her shopping one-on-one was a good idea? Because I’m a selfish fucking bastard who wanted to spend one day with her on my own, without the others to divert her attention.

This was such a bad fucking idea.

But do I open my mouth and say any of that to her? Of course, I fucking don’t. It’s like the damn thing is sealed shut.

My silence is apparently a green light. Delicate fingers reach over and fiddle with my belt as I grip the steering wheel until my knuckles ache. “Emery, I’m driving.”

She has my belt undone and is working on the button of my pants, the waist suddenly going loose.

“Wait. We… you don’t need to thank me. I wanted to buy you all those things. You keeping them is thanks enough,” I grit out, trying to say all the right words, but it’s fucking hard when she smooths a hand over my lower stomach, her warmth making my muscles jump beneath her palm.

Her fingers dip into my briefs, finding the base of my cock, which has already started to thicken uncomfortably in my pants.

Her other hand goes between my legs, and she uses it to support herself as she leans over the center of the car, slowly using her other hand to free my cock so that I’m completely exposed.

Warm air ghosts over my cock, and my balls constrict with the knowledge that her mouth is inches away.

We absolutely should not be doing this. Nope. It has to stop. “Kitten, fuck. I’m driving. You have to stop.”

Immediately, she pauses, and I don’t know whether to groan or beg her to keep going. I glance down between my arms at the gorgeous girl with long brown hair, expressive hazel eyes, and perfect lips.

“If you really want me to stop, I will. But I want to do this. I need to do this. All you have to do is nod and then drive. I want you in my mouth until we park or until you come, whichever happens first. Use me while you drive. No one has to know. Think of all the people in the cars that you pass. They won’t have any idea that your dick is in my mouth while you drive. ”