What Eric didn't realize, was that Andie had also carried on the activities that she had shared with Eric.

It wasn't until her first relationship, her senior year of highschool, about two years after Eric had left, did her heart feel healed enough to open up to another.

She liked him well enough. His name was Andrew, and he was a little on the scrawny side, with dark curly hair, black glasses, and a handsome face that Andie truly enjoyed looking at. He was the only boy that persued her who she felt had potential to be something similar to Eric. She figured it out one day in the cafeteria of school, when she was teasingly trying to steal his phone from him, all in an attempt to get the specific rise she was looking for. It was playful at first until he felt she had interrupted his conversation with his friends too many times. In her fifth attempt to snatch his phone from him, he grabbed her wrist in a vice-like grip, and leveled her with a gaze that made her belly flutter.

It was childish, she supposed, the way she went about it, but at the end of the day, she was feeling secure for the first time in two years.

Andrew started out decently enough. She put the idea of disciplining her into his head, and he carried it out quicker than she anticipated. But, Andrew didn't have the understanding required for the kind of boyfriend she had in mind. He didn't understand that the discipline was meant to be delivered within very specific boundaries. And once he was comfortable in his knew role, his command over her became toxic. He would strike her across the face, roughly grab her in front of his friends, and he was always looking for excuses to carry out punishments.

Andie left the relationship in pieces, covered in bruises, and feeling ignorant.

Her next relationship started her second year of college with a guy named Luke. Andie didn't take any chances this time, and sought him out at a very specific gathering designed for people like her. It was on campus grounds, and some random individual anonymously advertised the event.

It was one of the most terrifying decisions Andie had ever made when she decided to attend. But how could she miss the opportunity to meet like-minded people like her?

That night, in a dim and smoky dorm room, was the first time Andie learned about BDSM and where she fell in the lifestyle. It's where Luke, an ameateur just like her, introduced her to what he knew—which wasn't much—and attempted to blow her away with his skills—which he didn't.

The relationship lasted a couple of months, when Andie came to the conclusion that she may never find anyone like Eric.

And then, just one year later, he reached out. And even as she told herself that their past was behind them, and they would likely never be an item, she put away all hopes of meeting anyone better.

"Do you drink?" Eric asked her from over the top of his menu, startling Andie from her reverie.

Andie nodded. "A little. Wine, usually."

"Would you like some?" he asked nicely—hopefully—and she imagined he would like to see her nerves settle some. So, she offered a grateful smile and a nod in reply.

"That would be nice, thank you."

Andie ordered the fried shrimp basket with a side of collard greens and a glass of their house white. Eric ordered the fried clam basket, with a side of hush puppies, and a beer.

When their drinks were delivered to the table, Andie felt a little funny as she sipped on her chilled white wine. The last time she had been with Eric, she had been sixteen, and far under the drinking age. When she ordered the glass of wine, she thought she might feel more adult, and that perhaps Eric would see her as a woman, instead of the young girl he had taken in hand six years prior.

But, as his eyes remained fixed on hers, she couldn't help but feel that he didn't see much change at all.

"So," he spoke, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest. "What have you been doing since you arrived?" The smile remained on his face, but his posture intimidated Andie. Hiding her fiddling fingers in her lap, her eyes lifted to the ceiling as she thought about all the day drinking she had been doing at the tiki bar on the beach. Aside from that, there wasn't much to her first two days in Florida.

"Well... I've been unpacking, I suppose."

"Did you bring much with you?"

"Not much. The place I'm subletting came fully furnished. This way all my things are still in Chicago if..."

"If you need to go back," Eric finished for her. "Are you anticipating disliking it here?"

"No! No, of course not! I just... I didn't know what to expect," Andie sighed and averted her gaze. "It's been awhile since I've seen you, you know? I didn't know what it was going to be like."

He just doesn't understand how much of an impression he left on her, Andie thought to herself. It wasn't easy being here with him. There was so much baggage between them.

"I understand, Andie." Eric startled his companion by leaning forward and reaching across the table to take her hand in his. "I feel the same. But I really want you to like it here. I hope over the next few months I can persuade you into staying here permanently."

"P-permanently? Here? Florida?"

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Yes."

"But, isn't the job temporary?"

"Your position is seasonal, yes. But there are many positions to fill, all of which you are qualified for."

Andie didn't know what to say, so she said nothing. With a sigh, Eric pressed on.

"The thing is..." He reached with his other hand until he had both of her delicate palms cradled in his. "Six years is too long. Don't you think? I realize we aren't family anymore. Perhaps we never were... But, we meant something to each other, and I see no reason why that shouldn't continue. More than anything, Andie," Eric continued, his grip tightening around her fingers. "I would love to start where we left off."

Where they left off?

Andie's heart thundered heavily in her chest. Did Eric wish to take her in hand as he had before? Did he wish to discipline her for her infractions?

No... No, surely not. Eric was direct. If that's what he wished, he would have stated it clearly.

Andie felt a pang of disappointment. But she nodded, regained control over her emotions, and said: "I would like that too."

Eric's smile broadened. He released her hands and folded his hands just under his chin. "So, where are you staying?"

"Um... 778 Coral Street. It's a little blue house—maybe, more like a shack—but it's just a few blocks from the beach, and it's so charming."

"A shack?" Eric's eyebrows drew together. "I'm familiar with Coral Street. It's not overly safe there, is it?"

"I-I think it's fine." Andie shrugged, pretending that the change in Eric's tone had zero effect on her. "I mean, I'm coming from Chicago. I don't think you can get more crime-ridden than that."

"But why did you settle for that side of town? There are beautiful condos, brand new, just down the road from here. It's near the water if that's what drew you to your current place."

"Well, it was affordable, and—"

"Affordable? Andie," Eric's voice lowered and Andie froze in her seat. "You told me prior to coming out here that finances weren't an issue."

"They're not," she squeaked, attempting another shrug even as her eyes lowered as if she had something to feel nervous about. "They're just a little...modest. I don't live that lavishly."

"Andie," he sighed, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. He saw right through her lie. "You should have told me. I would have helped."

"You've already helped. You sold your our parent's house so that I could pay off my student loans. I just had a little more than I anticipated, and it leaves me a little tight. But I'm fine," Andie added quickly. "I really don't need much."

"It had nothing to do with what you need, Andie. I insisted that you come out here and work for me. At the very least, as your employer, I should have paid for your relocation. You should have been honest with me so that I could have offered the proper packages that I offer all of my out-of-state employees."

"I-I'm sorry, Eric." Andie couldn't believe how upset he was. But then again, couldn't she? It was Eric. He hated dishonesty. If she tried to pull something like this six years ago, she would have found herself bent over his knee.

Sighing again, as if he were actively trying to settle his rising temper, Eric's eyes landed on hers and lingered for a steady moment before speaking. "I want to see your place. I want to make sure that you're not living in a slum."

"Eric," Andie sighed, about ready to roll her eyes and tell him how ridiculous he was being. "I'm not so helpless that I can't choose my own home. You need to trust me. I'm perfectly safe where I am."

"Please just allow me this one favor. Otherwise, I won't sleep a wink. I'll conjure visions of people breaking into your home to steal you."

"To steal me?" Andie couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yes," Eric replied with a humorous smile of his own. "You're about pocket-sized. I imagine it woudn't be overly difficult for somebody to slip through your window and make off with you in the middle of the night."

"I'm not that small!"

"You haven't grown an inch, Andie."

"That is not true!"

They were grinning at each other. The tension of the meeting was melting, and they were beginning to feel like they knew each other. It was a relief, and Andie's anxieties started to settle.

She was still smiling at him when his face sombered. "Please, Andie." His eyes were kind. "I'll worry otherwise."

Andie couldn't imagine herself saying no. Not because he was right, or because she didn't want to be so stuffy that she turn him down. But because she just couldn't say no to him. That hadn't changed. Anything he wanted of her, Andie would likely provide. She just couldn't help it.

"With a huff, she rolled her eyes at his ridiculous paranoia. "Alright, fine. If it means you'll sleep better tonight, and be less of a grouch tomorrow, then I will allow it."

"Thank you." He grinned. "I'd hate to be a bear in the morning. Espcially since I'm taking you into work first thing."

"Work? Already?"

"Might as well get your paperwork out of the way, right? I won't make you start right away, I promise."

Andie couldn't believe that she was here. In Florida. About to start a job with the person who had left her feeling empty ever since he abandoned her.

More than anything, she couldn't believe she was about to bring him home.