Page 61 of See You Sometime

Bob hung back, hands clasped, giving smiles and head nods, but not speaking or shaking hands or hugging anyone.

After the greeting, she waited for Axel to give some indication of where he wanted them to sit. It was actually Tilly who decided that for them, picking the end of the tables, on Loren’s left. Tilly sat next to Loren, putting Axel at the end of the table, and Skye on his left and facing Tilly, with Bob sitting to her left.

Axel did hold her chair for Skye.

While Skye would have preferred to be seated on Axel’s right, she took the win and didn’t say anything about that.

The next hurdle would be ordering. Unless he specifically told her to order for herself—not her preference—she wasn’t sure how to proceed.

Tilly for the save. Before the waitress could reach them to take their drink order, Tilly leaned in and whispered something in Axel’s ear. Skye watched him process it for a second, his expression going blank before changing back. He leaned over toward Skye.

“What do you want to drink, sweetie?”

More relief flowed. “Water and sweet iced tea, please, Sir,” she quietly said.

He nodded, and when the waitress reached them, Axel responded. “I’ll have Coke or Pepsi, whichever, and she’ll have sweet tea and a glass of water.”

“Lemon?”

“Yes,” Axel said without looking toward Skye.

A small thrill shivered through her. From across the table, Tilly’s gaze met hers.

After Tilly ordered for herself and Bob, she winked at Skye.

Skye winked back.

I can do this.Hecan do this.

* * * *

Axel struggled to pay attention to Tilly and Skye. To listen for the obvious instruction from the first, and to watch for cues from the second.

When their salads arrived, Skye sat there quietly, her hands in her lap, waiting.

This time he didn’t need to ask Tilly.

He looked to Skye and nodded.

The brilliant, beaming smile on her face hardened his cock and made him rethink the talk he’d been considering having with her that night once they got back to his place.

He’d started planning how to tell her that she didn’t have to ask for permission to eat, or let him order for her. That he didn’twantto be that controlling. That he didn’tneedthat kind of power or control over her.

But…her smile. The beaming, easy way her laughter flowed from her as they listened to Tilly regale them with stories from work.

Hewantedto make her keep smiling like that.

Wanted to be thereasonshe smiled like that.

If all it took was something as simple as giving her some structure like that when they were together, predictable, easy-to-remember structure…was there really anything wrong with doing that?

He couldn’t roll a set of dice and come up with an easy-to-decipher chart.

This was real life—theirlife.

She was giving him a chance to have her.

He finally grew used to Bob’s silent presence on Skye’s far side, and when Axel wasn’t paying attention to Skye, he realized Bob basically took the same cues from Tilly about when to eat. He didn’t ignore people, but everyone seemed to take it as a matter of fact that all they’d get out of Bob was smiles and head nods.