All characters in this story are over the age of 18.
*****
The day I met Mr. Anders, I was sunbathing by the pool in Daddy's backyard. The sun was scorching hot through the thick layer of coconut oil on my slender body. My bikini was small, just three tiny black triangles. The top just barely covered my hard nipples, and the thong bottom showed off the hot curves of my ass. At 19 years old, I was increasingly frustrated by the fact that I was still a virgin.
I looked over the rim of my sunglasses and saw him staring at me: Daddy's neighbor. Daddy had mentioned that a guy named Michael Anders bought the house next door last fall. I'd noticed him a couple of times already since coming home for the summer after my freshman year at college, but always from a distance. Now, he was only a few feet away, hovering at the edge of Daddy's pool patio.
Mr. Anders was buff and tan, but clean cut. He wore a polo shirt and khakis, and I could see his large biceps under his short sleeves. He was pruning some kind of shrub by the hedge, but had stopped to stare at me.
How rude
, I thought, but my body reacted strangely. I sweltered under his gaze. Sweat beaded on my skin. Clearing my throat, I sat up and threw on my cover-up, a little black lace baby-doll number.
"Hello," I said pointedly.
Mr. Anders put the pruners down slowly.
"Hi." His voice was strong and deep. "Sorry to disturb you, I was just startled to see you there. You're not Mr. Petersen."
"I'm his daughter."
He must have taken that as an invitation, because he strode through the gap in the hedge separating Daddy's yard from his. He put his hand out and said, "I'm Michael Anders. Just moved in here last winter. I didn't know Petersen had such a beautiful daughter. How old are you?"
"I turned 19 this spring," I said, caught off guard by the question.
His hand was big and strong, his grip firm. His gaze caught me and held me frozen. "That's a nice age."
Unnerved, I stammered, "What are you pruning? I mean, don't you have a gardener to take care of that?" No one did their own yardwork in our neighborhood.
He smiled, and something inside of me melted. Even standing in the shade now, I was burning up. He was so hot and just looking at him was making me moist between my legs.
"Oh, that." He turned and gestured toward the sprawling shrub. "Yes, the gardener takes care of the yard, but I have a few prized possessions that I tend to myself. Do you want to see it?"
I couldn't help myself, my gaze dropped to the bulge in his khakis.
Oh, yes I do
, I thought, then scolded myself.
His grin when I looked back up told me he noticed where my gaze had travelled. I felt like he could read my every thought.
Oh God
. Maybe he would mistake my blush for sunburn.
I followed him over to the shrub he'd been pruning. Not pruning, I realized. Cutting flowers. A bunch of long-stem roses from this plain looking little bush sat nearby in a bucket of cold water.
"They're beautiful," I whispered. The petals were like deep red velvet, the silvery sheen enticing. I brushed my fingers against them and inhaled the sweet, spicy scent. I looked up and saw him watching me intently.
"I collect beautiful things," he murmured. His gaze was penetrating.
"I have to go home now, Daddy will be back soon," I said, suddenly afraid. He was gorgeous and stirred a frightening desire deep inside me. I couldn't allow myself to think those thoughts. I was saving myself for Daddy. I had to get away before I lost control completely.
"What's your name?" he asked as I turned and walked away.
"Lacey," I answered over my shoulder.
"Lacey, catch!"
I turned and he threw me a rose. He'd stripped the thorns away. The color was unbelievably deep, passionate red. I realized suddenly what he had left unsaid before. He wanted to add me to his collection of beautiful things.
"Thanks," I stammered, and ran the rest of the way to the house.
When Daddy came home, he noticed the rose right away and asked me about it.
"It's from Mr. Anders. I met him by the pool today, Daddy."
"Really." Daddy looked a little concerned, so I tried to smooth things over. I was afraid of how I felt about Mr. Anders, but I didn't want to be forbidden to see him.
"He was very nice," I offered. "A perfect gentleman."
"Uhuh. Listen, Princess, I have some bad news. Remember how I told you this was going to be our special summer together?"
"Yes, Daddy! Just the two of us, alone all summer."
I shivered with anticipation at the promise of this summer. When I turned 18 and graduated high school, I joined the Princess Club, a local organization for father and daughter bonding. The Princess Club was a secret tradition in our community, very exclusive, and membership was highly sought after. To join, I had to abstain all through high school, staying chaste for Daddy. Last summer, once I was 18 years old, I was initiated into TPC and taught how to please my Daddy by the older girls. I'd already started to serve him and tease him by the end of last summer, but this summer he would finally pop my cherry. We'd been building up to it for a few days now; making out, caressing, me giving him blow-jobs, and I was ready to take the final step of initiation.
"I have some bad news," Daddy said. "I got called into a crisis. I'm leaving for Milan in a few days, and I'll probably be there all summer."
"Oh, Daddy!" I pouted, on the verge of tears. "What am I going to do all summer?"
"I don't know, Baby. Come here." He folded me in his arms, his stubbled chin resting on my head, his hands exploring my curves through the thin lace cover-up. "I'm worried about you. You're so hot and ready, I can't ask you to wait another year. But I don't want to take your innocence and then just leave you alone."
"I know, Daddy." I sobbed a little. "This was going to be our summer."
"Don't worry, Baby. I'll think of something."
His words reassured me. He dried my tears with kisses, then tickled me until I started giggling. We had fun the rest of the evening, cuddling and kissing, but a shadow hung over everything now.
A few days later, the night before he was to fly out, Daddy came home and said, "I need to talk to you, Princess."