Page 6 of He Loves Me Not (Cambric Creek #5)

Sumi

ChaoticConcertina: PLEASE take a moment to be awestruck with me

Look at the STATE of this wisteria.

What were they feeding it?!

A steady diet of cocaine and whiskey? Straight steroids?

You could swing from this thing!

We need to reevaluate, Pinky.

All the plants need to start living dangerously if this is the result.

“Active harm in the form of covert threats sent across classrooms, bullying on an indetectable scale, leaving teachers and administrators helpless to intervene.

Diminished academic achievement from even the best of students, and a no-contest tool of distraction for those already facing classroom challenges.”

From the corner of the table, the subtle vibration of her cell phone made Sumi bite her lip, squirming in her seat.

Her eyes darted to the edge of the tablecloth as surreptitiously as she could manage.

It certainly would not be a good look to interrupt her boyfriend’s oration on the detriment of cell phones in the classroom, nor did she want to prove his point about dwindling attention spans by checking the message notification.

Particularly when she was sitting here at the table, squeezing her thighs together at the thought of another man’s arm.

The vine in question had been impressive.

Not nearly as impressive as the arm that gripped it, though.

At least, not in her estimation.

It was the same big, well formed hand, long fingers tightened around the thick, invasive wisteria.

He had wrapped the vine several times around his forearm, almost as if he were giving her peep show to what was undoubtedly the sexiest part of a man’s body. She was able to see popped tendons, the vine almost gray around the warm, nut brown of his skin, the photo cutting off right at the edge of his nicely defined bicep.

She had whimpered when the message came through, caught unawares, emptying take-out containers into serving bowls.

She wasn’t prepared for the sight of that sexy arm, nearly rocked off her feet by the bolt of heat that hit her like lightning, shivering down her back and igniting between her thighs.

What’s he sending you now? The flowers laying over his thigh? Sumi closed her eyes, imagining the cascade of fragrant purple flowers on their shared stem, a thick, curving raceme, fat with blooms.

“A district-wide banishment is the only thing that will halt the spiraling of our current educational crisis, yet our current powers-that-be won’t entertain the suggestion! It’s ludicrous.

I’m begging someone, anyone to make it make sense.”

It took a great deal of restraint to point out to Jordan that he didn’t need to perform here, for there was no audience for his bluster, no enthralled teachers hanging on his every word.

He technically wasn’t wrong.

Phones were an ever-present distraction for students.

Even the most riveting lecture on a 60-year-old book couldn’t hold a candle to the instant gratification of scrolling through an endless array of thirty second videos algorithmically chosen just for them.

That still doesn’t mean I need to hear about it from someone who doesn’t spend their day in the classroom.

Instead, she focused on her plate, composing a message in her head, one she would send the moment she was able to be alone with her phone, provided there wasn’t actually a cascade of wisteria-covered cock waiting for her.

My condo officially goes on the market this week.

Like you said, no time like the present.

I’ve applied to be a franchisee in my dream industry and for a business license in the new neighborhood.

Every time my phone pings, I practically faint. Her agent had called during her drive home, and Sumi had given her the official go-ahead. What are you waiting for? The sooner it sells, the sooner you can close this chapter of your life for good.

If there was a wisteria-covered cock in her messages, her message would be very different.

Interested in a gardening buddy? I’d love to lend a hand pruning that.

That gods damned florist in Cambric Creek had broken something in her brain.

She’d been horny since her ill-fated visit to his shop, a slick, ever-present pulse between her thighs, wondering how, exactly, his cock was concealed.

Academically, she knew it was held in a genital pouch on the inside of his body, but she wanted information beyond the scientific mechanics.

Does he like his slit ticked? If he gets turned on in the middle of the day, does it just pop out? She imagined being there, visiting his shop again in her favorite, low-cut dress, employing her every feminine wile to make his dick hard, to make it slither out.

And then what? Does it just retract on its own? Or does he need to come? She would be willing to offer her support. It would be the neighborly thing to do, after all.

Since then, it was as if every innocuous thing ChaoticConcertina said had a double entendre, inflaming her further.

It was an easy transference of her lust.

After all, she already liked him.

He was kind and funny and he understood her better than anyone in her actual daily life.

He had sexy hands and now, she could see with painful clarity, a sexy arm attached to it. Who knows? Maybe he’s as handsome as the naga. She didn’t want to change their relationship, at least, not now, but if she were to open her phone one morning to find the long-expected dick pic, she wouldn’t be upset.

“It’s an addiction,” Jordan went on, tapping his index finger against the table as if to emphasize his point.

“We are witnessing the destruction of civilized society in real time! Entire generations are being brought up with screens as their primary caregivers.

Is it any wonder they can’t pass the timed state exams?”

“You know what else isn’t good for civilized society?” she cut in, keeping her voice light as she forced herself back to reality, annoyed to be doing so.

“Bringing your work home with you every single day.

Don’t you talk about this enough all week long?”

Jordan rolled his eyes.

“That’s the problem, we don’t discuss it nearly enough! At least, not with any of the folks who can do something about it.

But none of them are willing to try and—“

He cut off abruptly, raising his hands with a sheepish grin, as if she’d caught him sneaking treats from the cookie jar, his every word and gesture feeling condescending to her.

“But you’re right, enough shop talk.”

They were both quiet then, focused on their food, the subtle vibration from the edge of the table making her hands itch.

When Jordan spoke again, she wished she’d never said anything at all.

“How did your meeting with the agent go?”

Sumi froze.

How does he know?! He has your car bugged.

You accidentally patched him in during a call.

He’s known all along! It took several excruciating seconds for her to realize he meant the face-to-face meeting she’d had with the agent the previous weekend, making her realize how little they’d spoken since then.

You’ve already started moving out right under his nose and now you’ve barely talked in a week. Would he even care if you’re gone?

The meeting with Elspeth had gone exceptionally well.

It was an uphill battle to get through work every day because her mind was already far away, settling into her new life in Cambric Creek, meeting the neighbors, discovering all of the secret charms a small town promised to hold.

Not that she could tell him that.

“It went well,” she said guardedly.

“The other beneficiary isn’t challenging anything.”

“That’s good, no family to squabble with over flipping it then.

She thinks it’ll sell fast?”

Jordan always spoke with the artless self-confidence of someone who’d never been incorrect about a single thing in his life, ever.

Sumi avoided her boyfriend’s eye as he tucked into his food, waiting for her response.

She knew she ought to come clean .

.

. but she was tired. Tired and ready to just disappear.

“Mhm.

She said selling won’t be a problem.”

What her tiefling real estate agent had actually said was selling her condo in the city wouldn’t be a problem, as long as she didn’t hold out on price.

“This is a very nice neighborhood, and the proximity to schools and shopping is always a plus,“ Elspeth had agreed with the bullet-pointed list Sumi rattled off as what she thought of as the condo’s main selling points.

“But the unit itself is small, so there’s probably not going to be a lot of interest from young families.

And the singles who are more the market demographic aren’t going to care about things like proximity to schools.”

Sumi was forced to concede the point.

You can’t afford to carry both places.

Not if she wanted to quit her job, which she did without question.

You’ll wind up spending the entire inheritance on this mortgage and the house’s taxes.

There were two strategies they could work with, the tiefling went on to explain.

“We can either go in high with a bottom price in mind and see what you can get in the middle, or else you figure out what your asking price needs to be and you hold firm on that.

It’s totally up to you, but my suggestion is we go with plan A.

Let’s see how much you can get.

I’m going to have our attorney lean on the court a bit, see where we are with probate and closing the lien .

. . and then you’ll have a bit of a remodeling budget once you move. That’s the goal!”

Sumi chewed her spicy noodles thoughtfully, chopsticks ready with another bite immediately.

Keeping her mouth full was a ready way to slow the conversation, she had discovered over the last three years with her boyfriend, and if he couldn’t control the pace of things, the line of questioning would be abandoned.

The pace, the topic, the mood.

She was desperate to be fucked, but the notion of it coming from the man she’d spent the last three years with left her cold.

“That’s fantastic, babe,” he enthused, not seeming to notice her distinct lack of enthusiasm for the conversation.

“What a great opportunity this is.

I was looking up some of the properties for sale in that town and holy shit.

They are in a real estate boom!”

“It’s because it’s multi-species,” she agreed weakly, thinking of how nice it had been.

“Towns like this are on the rise, but this one is old and affluent.

They already know what they’re doing.” What are you doing?! Why are you adding to it? Just let him change the conversation before you have to tell him everything right now!

Jordan’s brow furrowed as he chewed thoughtfully.

“I suppose .

.

.

but do you really think those sorts of whole towns are necessary? Enough to justify the cost of living? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled you’re going to make a profit flipping this place. It just makes you wonder who it’s serving and what the benefit really is.”

Despite her desire to change the subject, his words brought her up short.

Sumi turned, her mouth hanging open, not even remembering that she was meant to be filling it, her chopsticks hanging in space above her plate as she gaped in disbelief.

“I mean, don’t you think it’s better to just integrate everywhere?” he went on bullishly, seeing her expression.

Why did you say anything at all? “We learned years ago that it doesn’t serve children on IEPs to be removed from their home classroom; that’s why we have integrated learning with classroom assistants.”

Deep breaths.

Of course he would use something from the schools as his example, too used to being called noble for doing so.

Just change the subject and eat your dinner.

Let him keep talking about cell phones if it makes him happy.

Unfortunately, at that moment, there seemed to be a misfire in the communication from her brain to her mouth, as she drew breath for her rebuttal. Fucking typical.

“Jordan, that is not the same thing at all.

The point is integration.

It’s not ‘human by default but you’re allowed to live here,’ the way literally everywhere is, including our school district.

Be so for real.

The entire teaching staff in my building is human, and more than half of them are white. I only ever have one or two non-human kids in my class every year. You know who their friends are? The other one or two non-human kids. It doesn’t matter if they’re even the same species. And I went through the same thing! When I was little, all the Asian kids stuck together. It doesn’t matter if there’s a difference in language or culture, especially in early education. They stick with whoever feels safe, and ‘safe’ is usually not the majority.”

She was breathing hard when she cut off.

Othering those who were different was something at which humans excelled.

Growing up as sometimes the only Asian student in the classroom meant a childhood of duality, a daily game of “one of these things is not like the others,” different facets of her personality she had learned to employ at different places and at different times.

That was her experience, and she presented as the majority species.

She had lived in the city for more than a decade, shopped in the same neighborhood as her students’ families.

She knew how sparse the species-specific products were, had seen with her own two eyes how more often than not they were placed in the back of the store or else on a low, hard-to-reach shelf.

Sumi had no doubt that if multiple grades were given access to the cafeteria for one joint lunch period, she would find all of those nonhuman students sitting together, regardless of age.

She knew the impetus behind those goblin and troll and mothfolk children banding together, for the same reason she had often found herself seeking out other Asian schoolmates — they were small fish in a pond of plentiful bigger fish, and there was safety and comfort in numbers.

“The benefit is accessibility,” she went on in a quieter voice.

“The houses, the roads, the buildings — they’re all built to accommodate more than the majority.

The schools are a mix of different species living together, not humans and one or two non-human kids.

If you don’t think that sort of representation matters, consider that you’re a white human man and the whole world is built for you.

I don’t know, maybe you ought to get into the classroom for a while, try subbing. It’s one of the many reasons why I’m not—“

She broke off again, her voice having risen without her notice.

There you go.

May as well say it.

Let that cat out for good.

“That’s why I’m considering not going back next year.

Anyway, that’s the reason for the housing prices.

It’s a very competitive market with no sign of cooling.”

She backed out at the last moment, softening the sentiment, but at least she’d introduced the idea, Sumi told herself.

There.

Let him be offended.

By the way, I hate teaching.

I’ve hated it for as long as you’ve known me, and if you ever noticed anything you’d know that. I’m going to quit my job and open a flower shop. But thanks for dinner.

Jordan was quiet for a long moment.

“Well, good, that’s what you need,” he said at last.

Sumi blinked.

That’s it? Just like that?

“Just make sure she lists highs so that you don’t wind up short changed.

As far as the school .

.

.

I don’t think you should be making hasty decisions right now. You’ve got so much on your plate with everything . . . but maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s time for something new.” He gave her what she knew was meant to be a supportive smile. “The high school always has openings. If you want to make the move, maybe now is the right time.”

Fucking unreal.

Negative rizz.

If you stay in this relationship for another week, you’re going to spend the summer having a nice menty b.

“Look, I know you’re in a hurry to be finished with everything and probate is taking forever, but it’s not worth cutting off your nose to spite your face, Sumi.”

She kept her eyes on her noodles, murmuring her agreement.

There was no point in doing anything else.

And, it was true.

Cambric Creek seemed to be suspended in an ever-increasing real estate bubble, and her listing agent did not think there was any danger of it popping.

“It’s not the kind of community that’s going to see a downturn anytime soon.

You know, think of the big tech cities out on the West Coast.

This is like a microcosm of that, only instead of developing software, they’re building a self-sustaining ecosystem.

This was just another suburb two decades ago.

Housing prices weren’t any higher than they were in the neighboring communities. Well, a little higher, because there have always been deeper pockets here, but this has all been in the last twenty years or so, ever since redeveloping the downtown became a focus. Excellent schools, very family oriented. You’re just outside of the city, so there’s never a want for anything that you can’t get. I think you will be very happy with this investment.”

A gift from your mom.

No time like the present, Pinky.

Sumi couldn’t agree more.

“Once this sale is through, I think you should definitely look into some investments,” Jordan went on, oblivious to her inner turmoil.

“Did you talk to that financial planner I sent you?”

“I wound up setting up an appointment with the guy my dad suggested.

He’s from that firm that does all the big ads during the Ketterling finals.” The look Jordan gave her was one of a disappointed parent.

Her eyes narrowed, and Sumi forced herself to pick up another mouthful of noodles, jabbing her chopsticks at the plate.

“I called the number you gave me, but it wasn’t a financial firm.

Why would I talk to some tech company for this? To invest it in some fake online money I wind up losing in three months?”

Across the table, the offense was instant.

“Crypto is the future! Sumi, be serious.

Do you think we’re going to be reliant on something as outdated as the Federal Reserve forever?”

“I don’t want to lose my real, spendable money on game tokens!”

Jordan rolled his eyes, shaking his head as if she had brought home a report card with low marks.

“You would be foolish not to invest at least a chunk of this inheritance in a future currency.

You should call my guy before the rates go up.”

“Oh, so now it’s an act fast offer? I thought I wasn’t supposed to rush into anything and cut off my nose to spite my face, dad.”

Reaching for the peppered beef, Jordan went on, ignoring her dig entirely.

“Did you see my video? 60,000 views already.

Kelley from the board was sharing it over to the union’s CrowdJounal page to give it an extra boost.

Did you see it? I call out the governor, and I do not hold back.

Recess.

Is. Over.”

And just like that, we’re done talking about me.

Not rolling her own eyes at that moment was an exercise in self-control.

Recess is over had been the unofficial-official slogan of Jordan’s campaign for the state board of education.

Hearing him use the phrase on its own in conversation was, as her students would say, high-key cringe.

Kelley from the board. She’s probably the blonde. Perfect, your replacement is all lined up. She huffed at her internal monologue as the phone was pushed before her.

“I, for one, don’t like the Orwellian future our children are facing.

It’s high time we take time out to be present.

It’s time we take the phones out of our kids’ hands and give them back books.

It’s time we took our message to the steps of the capitol.

And if they don’t want to hear it, the Governor’s mansion is right around the corner. Recess is over!”

Sumi squinted at the phone screen, internally cringing again.

She wondered if Jordan had ever been asked who the our in question was, whenever he talked about our kids, seeing as he was unmarried with no children of his own and had barely ever been more than a substitute classroom teacher for a single semester before running for the school board.

Stop it, now you’re just being mean.

It’s not his fault you’ve got a foot out the door.

You’ve been here for three years, don’t pretend that you didn’t fall for his schtick at the beginning.

It was a relief when he received a phone call a short while later from one of the interns in his office.

Sumi watched as he frowned, casting his eyes about as if his laptop might appear in her small, eat-in kitchen, fully knowing he’d not carried it in.

“You should go home if you still have work to do,” she told him as earnestly as she could.

“I have a pounding headache.

I’m taking a shower and going to bed.

If you have to talk things over with the team, I don’t want you to have to whisper because of me.” It was a terrible excuse, but her words were pointed enough, and he nodded, taking his leave just a few minutes later.

She had once asked ChaoticConcertina if he thought she could simply ghost her life.

She had asked the question in jest, clarifying that that wasn’t actually her plan.

But as the days went by and Sumi found that she still couldn’t bring herself to have the conversations she knew needed to be had, ghosting seemed like a better and better idea.

She didn’t want to be told that she was being impulsive, didn’t want to hear that she was being irresponsible.

She didn’t want to be told by people who didn’t understand how she felt that she was going to regret it.

She’d been making the hour-long commute to the house a few times a week, not coming home to her condo until it was dark.

By the time she would need to hire actual movers, Sumi was determined that there would be nothing left but the furniture.

And he hasn’t noticed a single thing.

She was judicious in her purging.

If it did not bring her joy, if it was not useful in her daily life, if it was not enormously sentimental — it was not coming.

This is a fresh start, right? You don’t need to bring every bad decision with you.

If it didn’t spark joy, she was leaving it behind, and that included this relationship.

Fax, no printer.

Sumi tiptoed to the door once she heard his car start in the short driveway, creeping up to the sidelight as if he might still be lurking on the porch, waiting to catch her.

It wasn’t until his headlights turned out of her driveway that she relaxed, opening the door just enough to peek her head out, watching his taillights disappear around the corner.

Alone at last.

To her slight disappointment, the messages she had received during dinner were not from ChaoticConcertina.

The first was from Elspeth.

You must be the luckiest teacher in the world.

I think we might already have a buyer! I had dinner with some colleagues from my office and the one has a niece relocating to your city.

She’s not interested in anything big, doesn’t want to have to worry about upkeep or yard, but she’s not keen on renting.

I think your condo would be perfect for her. Do you want to see if she’s interested in making an offer?

Sumi closed her eyes.

She was ready to walk away from all of it.

If it would sweeten the pot, I’m willing to leave all major appliances behind, they’re all new within the last five years.

Furniture if she wants it.

Let’s go for it.

There was no sense in beating around the bush, no point to dragging her feet any longer.

She had a new life waiting for her in Cambric Creek.

The second notification was an email.

We are thrilled to welcome you to the Bloomerang family, pending approval of your business license.

Tears filled her eyes.

She was going to be a business owner, was going to have her dream job.

You’re going to make new friends.

You’re going to learn about Sylvan culture.

You are going to find the pieces of yourself that have been missing all these years.

And maybe she would meet someone new.

After all, she’d visited one single establishment and had practically proposed to a stranger.

A rude, handsome jerk.

Maybe there would be someone there in Cambric Creek who caught her eye, who would be attracted to her curves, her long dark hair, her love of pop culture and flowers and aptitude with Gen Alpha slang.

Or maybe you and ChaoticConcertina can finally meet up. The thought made her shiver. She thought about that hand, that perfect, long fingered hand. The strength in it was evident. And that arm!

Sumi bit her lip, rolling quickly to retrieve the toy from her bedside table.

The lowest setting on the dual armed vibrator was a deep, rumbly buzz against her clit.

Those fingers would work magic on her body, she knew it.

And after all, he knew her so well.

He knew her better than anyone, at this point. He shared her interests and supported her dreams. It went without saying that he would finger her like a pro. He would pay attention to what you like and know just how to touch you.

A tilt of the wand, increased pressure against the side of her swollen pearl, just the way he would know how to rub those long fingers.

She envisioned that lithe arm, sinuous and strong, sliding the shaft of the vibrator into her slickness, her eyes instantly rolling back at the way it rumbled and thumped against her inner walls.

His was the kind of arm that had the stamina to go to the finish line.

He would be able to finger fuck her until she was screaming, rubbing her clit to completion, never even slowing down until she came on his hand, clenching around his fingers.

She clenched around the vibrator instead, wishing it were thicker, girthier, more like a real cock, more like whatever ChaoticConcertina was packing.

The little vibrating mouth continued to work against her clit as she rode the orgasm, her back arching off the mattress as she shook.

Tomorrow, Sumi thought, once she was under the covers her eyes heavy and her body sated.

She was going to ask him about his girlfriend tomorrow.

Maybe they’re not even serious.

Maybe, she thought with her last vestige of consciousness, it was time to ask him for a dick pic.