But he remained silent.
“So you like or what?” I repeated, a little nervous he hadn’t answered me.
“Yeah,” he said, his voice deep and gruff. “I like.”
I put my hand up. “High five, big mofo, high five.”
I lost him again. Right. Beasts didn’t know about high five. I took his huge hand in my left hand and lifted it to my right palm. I slapped our palms together. “High five,” I told him.
His fingers intertwined with mine, and he yanked my hand. My body followed, my breasts hitting just above his middle, and when I oomphed from the impact, his hand landed on my ass and he lifted me up. I held on to his shoulders and wrapped my legs around his waist. He grabbed a fistful of my hair and slammed his mouth on mine, his tongue plundering inside.
Oh hell yes, this beast was soooo made for me. I gave as good as I could, taking clues from his expert tongue, swirling mine against his while our moans filled the silent room. I struggled to breathe, but I didn’t care, because this guy kissed me like he owned me, and I couldn’t wait until he owned my body just like this.
“Excuse us,” my dad interrupted.
Vice slowed down.
I didn’t give rats, so I sucked his tongue, didn’t let go.
The other beast roared with laughter, nearly piercing my eardrums. I winced and released Vice’s tongue, then glanced at my parents, who couldn’t help but give me warning looks.
But fuck if I cared that crawling all over a beast guy in front of my parents was frowned upon in our community. The entire place was a big cage if you asked me. And besides, they sold me like they’d sold five of my aunts, so they could watch for all I cared. I bit Vice’s bottom lip and let out a groan when he put me back down.
I swayed on my feet. That was a swoon if ever I recognized one. “Hold on, big man, I gotta get my skater.” I winked at Hanna as I walked back and got Kickster. All set, I returned to Vice’s side and intertwined our fingers. “Bye, ya all!”
I tugged on his hand.
His feet didn’t move.
I looked up to see him lock eyes with the bigger beast. Okay, I could wait a minute. Ten seconds later, I tapped my foot, patience never a virtue of mine. The bigger guy shook his head and said, “She’s a month shy of her nineteenth birthday, and she’s not prepped.”
He spoke to Vice, but I answered with a question anyway. “Is there a problem?”
“Your dad sells pairs of age and prepared. We’ll return when you’re ready,” Vice said.
“Oh hell to the no.” I snapped my fingers. “I’m ready right now.”
He looked back at the big one, who raised an eyebrow in question. My dad cleared his throat. “Dewlyn is eighteen and will take about a month to prepare, just in time for her birthday. We teach our pairs housework, provide examples of tech, and the women in the community speak with the new pairs about sexual intercourse so as to better please you. All my daughters are untouched. Believe me, Dewlyn needs to be prepared. She’s a little on the wild side, but don’t worry, by the time you return for her, she’ll be ready.”
“I’m super ready now. And untouched.” I winked at Vice.
“I’ll teach her how to please me, so don’t worry about that,” Vice said and squeezed my hand. Somehow, I didn’t think it involved a lot of discussion, more like body fluid exchange exercises. A hands-on man. My kind of man. I couldn’t wait.
“You are not ready,” my dad told me. “Our community has an agreement with the beasts. Nineteen years old minimum and one-month preparation. I can’t make exceptions. Think of your younger sisters.” He feared beasts would come after Hanna, who was only seventeen.
Mom hid Hanna in the back, so they couldn’t see her. But I was here. “How hard could it be? I have a hole. He has a rod. He pokes my hole with his rod, and that’s it. Natural, no need to prepare.”
“And housework?” Vice asked with an amused smile. “I could use a nice meal now and then.”
“You don’t want me to cook, man. I promise you. No amount of preparation will make it worth your house. I’ll burn that shit to the ground.”
“Nonsense,” Dad said. “Dewlyn will make a perfect pair. Nice, sweet, and submissive, just like her aunts.”
“I could do that. Is that what you want?” I asked Vice. I would be whatever the hell he wanted if only he’d get me to the City of Angels and out of the community, my cage.
“I want. In the meantime, don’t let me catch you jumping and sliding on the rooftops.”
He tried to move his hand away, but I held firm. “I fly, my man, that’s what I do. And I don’t need another daddy, I need a man. You gonna man up and take me with you, or you gonna let these people tell you what to do? You bought a bride, the bride is willing, so let’s go. Fuck the papers. Fuck the prep. Fuck this shitty-ass community. I’ve seen what’s out there in the world, and I want to live out there.” Most of us humans cooped up in the communities, closed behind our gates, hidden and secluded from the world. Most of us didn’t know anything about anything, and only a few of us ever ventured to Beast City. I ventured and planned to venture some more. With this Vice guy who’d bought me.