Purrfectly Playful

"He calls you Kitten," Jen said with a derisive laugh.

"And?"

"It's literally a pet name. Kat, I could see. Even Kittie could work, but Kitten is..."

"Cute."

"Sexy," Jen groaned. "Jesus, Kate, it's a sexy pet name. And you're trying to play it off like he's calling you 'sis' or something."

"He doesn't mean it that way. It's just a cute nickname he said once, and it stuck."

"It stuck because you turned ten shades of red and hid behind him for half an hour. It got you closer to him and he's been wielding it strategically ever since."

I crinkled my nose. "You've seen the girls he dates. Pert little blondes without a brain cell between them. Are you saying I'm like them?"

"No, I'm saying he dates them because they're easy. You're too smart to act this dumb. You know what's going on, you just don't want to admit it."

"Admit what?"

"That Tommy wants to grab your hair and bend you over to give you a good, hard dicking."

I laughed at that. "He doesn't."

She pulled out her phone and dialed up a number, which I immediately recognized as Tommy's. "What are you doing?"

"Proving it," she whispered.

After a couple of rings, a sleepy-sounding "Hello?" emerged from the speaker.

"Hey Tom, it's Jen."

"What fucking time is it?" he asked with a groan.

"Like one or something. It's fine."

"We have to work tomorrow."

"Do you want to fuck Kate?" She said it so casually as if she just went around asking everyone that.

He was quiet for a long moment. "Are you fucking kidding me? You woke me up to ask me that? You're a psycho."

"Just answer the question."

"Why?"

"Because how you answer will determine the next thing I wanted to ask."

He groaned. "Kate is someone I'm never going to fuck, Jen."

"Why?"

"Because. Because I'm not. She's too sweet to ever see her like that. It'd be like fucking a nun or something."

I cringed at that.

What the fuck?

Jen laughed. "Is that why you call her kitten?"

"That's what this is about?" He groaned, and I could picture him sitting in his bed, his head shaking as he lifted his hand in a vague gesture. "I call her Kitten because she's like one. All innocent and needy. And because it makes her blush, which only adds to the innocent image."

"So, you've never pictured her, like, say, in a nice little white bra and panty set, with a white lace kitten ear headband, her hair up in pigtails and a little collar with a bell around her neck?"

I smacked her leg and lifted my hands while scowling, the universal gesture of

what the fuck was that about?

Tommy was silent. "Well, now I have, thanks for that. I didn't need sleep anyway. It's not like I have a big meeting tomorrow that might just determine my entire future or anything."

Jen cocked her head as she looked at me. "Do you want to fuck me?"

"Yeah, sure. Swing by in the next twenty minutes and I might still be awake." The note of annoyance in his voice before he hung up made me tip my head.

Jen looked at me, her mouth quirking as she sucked air in through her teeth and arched an eyebrow. "Do you want to fuck him?"

I shook my head while biting my lower lip.

"That's not convincing, Kitten." Her tone was biting, and I shrank back.

"No." I lifted my head and held her gaze. "I've never thought of him like that."

Jen looked at her watch, then back at me. "I'll be back in like an hour."

"I'm gonna head home. I have work tomorrow, too."

"Up to you. Gonna give you details tomorrow anyway."

I nodded and smiled, forced as it was. "Of course you will."

We left at the same time, her taking a left at the main door and me heading right. It was an uncomfortable walk home. A little too cold, too dark, too alone.

It wasn't that she was going to fuck him - that didn't phase me at all. It was what he thought of me. I'm like a kitten? Needy? Innocent? I thought he knew me better than that.

What had I done to give him that impression?

My sleep was fitful. Lots of dreams about collars and kitten play outfits, petting and purring. Enough so that, upon entering the office the following morning, I walked over to Tommy and grabbed his coffee, swallowing two or three quick mouthfuls that burned as they went down.

It wasn't my first time doing that. But he knew it meant I'd had a rough night, overslept, and hadn't had enough time to pick up my own on my way to work.

"I'm gonna have to start getting two of those," he said as he pulled the drink from my hand.

"Less sugar, more milk in the second," I quipped.

He smiled, then covered it by taking a sip.

"What?" I asked, tilting my head.

"A drop of coffee in a saucer of milk?" His legs were spread apart, as they often were when he sat at his desk, and he held one hand up between his thighs, as though a saucer rested in his palms.

I smiled and took the cup back from him. The flash of a thought made me blush. I turned around and returned to my desk with the overly sweet pilfered coffee.

Maybe that's why he thought I was innocent. I blush at just a thought. Though, when the thought centers on your best friend holding a saucer of cream between his legs while you kneel, hands on his knees, and lap it up, I think a blush is warranted.

Oh, no, what has Jen done!

Thoughts like that didn't happen about him. James down in accounting, absolutely, but Tommy? No.

"Mr. Miller is hosting a Halloween party at the hotel by the waterfront. You're my date," Jen slid into my office with a whisper.

"Not Tommy?" I asked as I took another drink of his coffee and lifted my eyes to my only other friend.

She looked toward the door then back at me. "That's not gonna work out."

"Oh?"

"Mmm hmm." She offered no further information.

"Because?"

"He wants to fuck you."

I groaned, and she grinned. "You heard him yourself," I said.

"I heard the words he said. 'Kate is someone I'm never going to fuck.' He didn't say he didn't want to fuck you, just that he wasn't going to."

"It's the same thing."

"No it's not. Besides, last night I asked him if he'd call me Kitten 'cause I thought it was hot and he kicked me out."

"So you didn't..."

"Nope. Because he wants to fuck you and you want to fuck him, and I'm gonna convince you both to admit it at the Halloween party."

"What if I don't go?"

She took the coffee cup from me and took a big swig of what had become lukewarm, sugary mud at best. Her nose crinkled, and her lips puckered. "Oh, gross..."

I laughed. She turned it around and noticed 'Tom' written in heavy black across the back. "Yeah, you're going. And you're gonna wear the sexiest, yet cutest kitten outfit I can wrangle up."

Images flashed through my mind at her words, and I swallowed. "What are you going as?"

"Your pimp."

I raised my eyebrows.

"Not like that." She laughed as she waved a hand dismissively. "I'm basically going to force Tommy to admit he likes you by getting a bunch of other guys talking about you. Lusting after you." Her grin was wicked. "As soon as it sounds like one of them is going to make a move to take you home, he's going to swoop in and try to convince you to go with him instead."

"What makes you think I want any of this? Tommy's a friend, nothing more."

Jen smiled and leaned over my desk; her lips brushed my ear, her voice a whisper. "Picture him naked, his fist wrapped tightly with a leash connected to a collar on you and tugging you closer to him. Tell me that doesn't turn you on." I shivered at her words. "The thought of your hands on his hips, fingernails curving into his bare flesh, indenting as he guides you, your mouth open, tongue out. Him pushing his thick cock past your lips." Her breath was warm against my ear. "That won't make you blush, right?"

My cheeks were probably six shades of red when she pulled back and looked me over. I stared straight ahead, my hands curled into tight fists, and held my breath.

Fuck.

I squeezed my thighs together, and Jen slid her slender fingers beneath my chin, lifting my head to make me look at her. "And then, after he's pumped his cum down your innocent and needy throat, he's gonna cup your jaw like this—" she demonstrated with a firm grip, "—then he's going to wipe his thumb across your lip and breathily whisper, 'Good girl.'"

I gasped and forced myself to meet her eyes. There must've been such desperation in my gaze as I barely eked out a soft, "Please stop."

Jen smiled, obnoxiously cheerful as she stood upright. "He said the same thing, but I think he came first because he was shuddering by the time he reached a breaking point."

"You said he kicked you out."

"I lied, Kitten. I didn't fuck him. Didn't even undress him, just straddled him and made him think of that overwhelmed face you get, looking up at him, your hands pawing at him as he slowly and easily pushes his dick down your throat..."

I whimpered and clenched my thighs. "I like being his friend. I don't want to ruin that, Jen..."

"You two are endgame, Kate. It's not going to be a one and done."

"What if you're wrong? What if he doesn't want to? What if he—"

She cut me off, her voice rising. "Trust me just this once. By Halloween, he won't have anything else on his mind. Once he's had you and hears the little delighted cries you let out, no one else will ever be on his mind again."

She waved her hand as she slipped back out my door.

How was I supposed to work after that? By lunchtime, I was feeling nauseous. The thoughts she'd put in my head made it difficult to interact with anyone.

Then Tommy came by my office, a huge grin on his face. "Drinks after work?" he asked.

"Okay, why?"

"Got the promotion. Celebrating. You're paying."

Ah, that's why the grin.

"Hey, wait, if you got the promotion you have money to burn, not me."

He leaned against the door jamb, and his smile was difficult to look at. "The one celebrating doesn't pay for his own drinks."

Leaning back in my chair, I smiled at him. Happy that he seemed normal.

I couldn't help but wonder if Jen had lied about teasing him like she'd been teasing me. It wouldn't be the first time she worked me up for it to basically amount to nothing.

"Fine, but when I get a promotion I expect dinner with the celebratory drinks."

"Deal, Kitten."

He said it so easily, but his eyes widened after, and his cheeks flushed. That wasn't normal. Not for him, anyway.

"Black Rose?" I asked, not drawing attention to his unexpected reaction.

"Yes! Dinner too, or is that pushing it?"

"Dinner, too. I'd say we can catch a show after, but then I'll miss the train home."

"So stay at my place tonight." He looked down to the floor after saying it, but he quickly adjusted his posture to stand straighter and directed his gaze at me again. Definitely not normal.

I'd stayed overnight with him before, but now it seemed weird.

Goddammit, Jen

.

"We can catch a show on Friday? See what concerts are going on, there's always something."

"Yeah," he said, looking out the door and down the hall. "But drinks and dinner tonight still?"

"Mmm hmm."

Lunch was rough. Nothing appealed, so I grabbed an ice cream cone from down the street and rushed back to the office. It maybe wasn't the most professional of lunches, but it tasted good and refreshing. Besides, a simple vanilla cone always settled my stomach.

I tossed the wrapper in the trash on my way back to my desk. And waved to Tommy and his little cohort of guys as they seemed to be having a pre-celebration at his desk.

He came over and sat on my desk, right next to me. "I have it on good authority that you've once again had a lunch that consisted of absolutely nothing nutritious."

"And?"

"If you don't feel well we can postpone the celebration."

I smiled. "I'm fine. Just couldn't figure out what I wanted and ran out of time."

He reached over to me and swiped his thumb below my lower lip. "You're such a messy eater."

I blushed and grabbed a tissue to wipe my mouth. "Jesus, you could've led with 'Hey, Kate, you have a big glob of ice cream on your face'."

"I could've. It's fine, I got it. But next time bring me one, too. Make up for all of the coffee you steal from me."

"Stolen food tastes better."

"I wouldn't know, my food is the one always being stolen."

"'Cause you're nice. If you were one of those big burly alpha-types, you'd never allow me to just walk up and take your coffee like that."

His brow lifted, "If I was one of them, I'd..." Whatever he was about to say trailed off unfinished. He gave a little shrug. "Anyway, back to work."

~

The Black Rose was a mid to high-scale pub on the waterfront. I had dinner there at least every other week, usually with either Jen or Tommy.

I grabbed a seat near the back, away from the stage, and ordered a bottle of Benziger Chardonnay. It was a cheap white wine with an expensive price tag in the pub, but we both liked it. Besides, with me buying dinner, I knew exactly what he was ordering.

He arrived shortly after me, and I poured him a glass as he approached the table.

"Okay," he said, his hands raised in an excited gesture. "So, I got the promotion, right?"

"That's what you said..." I looked at him curiously.

"I just found out I get to hire whoever I want as my assistant project lead..."

I tilted my head and sipped the wine.

"And we'll each get a twenty percent pay bonus if we can get the project up and running in two days."

"Two days? Didn't you say it would take at least a week just to get up to speed on where Dale fucked it up?"

"Normally, yeah. It would take a lot of back and forth with different departments that have bullshit turnaround times, but now that I have the project in my hand, I realized I only have to get you and Jen up to speed."

"Okay, so what's with the big, excited grin on your face?"

"I want you to lead the project with me. Your department is the most involved with the minutiae, and you're already in the know on most of the project goals."

I set the wine glass down. "Twenty percent of what, exactly?"

"Twenty percent of the eighty-five k base salary for being an assistant project lead."

I arched my eyebrow. "Eighty-five? That's..."

"Already a boost of fifteen for you."

"Why me? Jen's just as in the know on this project as me."

"Because, as much as I like Jen, she's a fucking bitch and if I had to work with her every day, I'd strangle her."

"She might be into that."

He laughed and slid into the bench beside me. "Come on, Kitten. Say you'll accept a really good raise and prestigious new title. We'll have offices right next to each other. You lead meetings, I get the work done, easy peasy for both of us. It'll even be easier to steal my coffee..."

"Fine."

He took my wine from my hand and downed it. "Hey," I snapped, reaching for the glass.

Tommy handed it back, his shit-eating grin even bigger than before. "You're right, stolen drinks are better."

"It's not stolen if I bought it for us to share."

We ate and laughed for over an hour. Then drank a bit more Jameson than either of us could actually handle. By the time we stumbled out onto Proctor Street, my arms were wrapped tightly around one of his. Maintaining an upright position wasn't so much a struggle as it was a personal challenge.

"Walk down the pier?" he asked as he pulled me closer.

"Yeah."

Maybe it'll sober me up.

The air was crisp, not really freezing yet, but cold enough to make me shiver, particularly as we silently strolled along for nearly an hour.

"We're going to have a lot of long workdays over the next few weeks, huh?" I asked.

"Tomorrow and Friday for certain, at least if we want to hit the ground running come Monday." Tommy pulled his suit jacket off and draped it over my shoulders.

I smiled and pulled it a little tighter around me. It smelled like him. I don't think I'd ever noticed his scent before. Rum, coffee, almonds, and chocolate wafted off the fabric.

His cologne, perhaps?

"We should head home if we want to be of any use at work tomorrow." I wanted to keep walking with him. It was comfortable without Jen there to ruin it with her stupid little quips and suggestions.

"Yeah, I'll call us a ride."

Fifteen minutes later, I was at home, draped across my bed with one high heel still on and the other on the floor. Work in the morning was going to be rough.

~

"G'morning, Kate!" Jen was loud, obnoxiously so. And with that, I knew Tommy had shown up looking as rundown as I felt.

"Mornin'," I grumbled.

"So, I saw Tommy this morning and—"

I held my hand up, quieting her for the first time in our years long friendship. "Nothing happened. We celebrated his promotion with a bottle of wine and too much whiskey after dinner, then we each went back to our own apartment to sleep it off."

Her shoulders slumped with disappointment. "Did you at least masturbate to the idea?"

"I was kinda focused on keeping dinner down, Jen."

"Alright, drinks Friday. If you won't hookup with Tommy, then you're gonna at least—"

"No. Have plans Friday."

"Funny, Tommy said the same thing. Is it a date, I wonder?"

"Not a date. Just friends hanging out. Please knock it off. Stop trying to make me feel insecure and second guessing this friendship."

"It should be so much more than just a friendship, Kate."

"Yeah, I wasn't talking about my friendship with Tommy. You're fucking with my head, and I don't know why. Why is it of any interest to you what Tommy and I do or don't do? What do you gain from us fucking? Or lose by us not fucking?"

She shrank back as I stood a little taller, a little surer of myself. "Tell me, Jen, what do you get out of this?"

"Nothing. I just... you two always seemed like you should be more to each other."

"We're friends. That's all we'll ever be, so get this notion out of your head and get back to work."

She pulled her hands back and dropped them to her sides.

Great. Now I've hurt her feelings.

"Alright. Tom said you need the error logs from the Raven project. I'll go get them."

"Thank you."

"You'll still come to the Halloween party with me, right?"

I nodded. "Maybe not as a cat, though."

Her smile was tight and appeared forced. "Okay."

With Jen off my back, I went to talk to Tom to get the actual rundown of office changing and, hopefully, to steal a coffee.

He didn't look as rundown as I felt, and I was a bit miffed at that. He looked perfectly normal and well-rested.

"What the fuck, Tom? Do you have some sort of hangover miracle cure or something?"

"We had the same amount of drinks last night, but I'm bigger and stronger than you and your tiny little... constitution."

I laughed, and he held up a cup of coffee. I might've reached for it a little too excitedly because he pulled it back at the last second. "Nada Surf is playing Friday. We're going, right?"

I nodded. "As long as I get that coffee in me, I'll do whatever you want, Tommy."

"Wow, you're fiending, huh?"

"I have a massive headache."

"Oh, so, that means I hold your key to success and a massive bonus here in my hand, huh?"

"Key to your bonus, too," I pointed out.

He put the cup to his lips and tipped it back.

Ugh. My coffee!

"Give!" I whined and moved closer.

He made an exaggerated "Ahhh," and took another sip.

"Tommy, come on!*

"What? This is my coffee, Kitten."

"Please?" I pouted.

He sat up straighter and tilted his head. "Whatever I want, huh?"

My cheeks flushed a little as he straightened his tie.

I nodded, clasping my hands behind my back and biting my lower lip. "Mmm hmm."

"That's putting a lot of trust in me..."

"Well, I do trust you."

He motioned me closer, and I took a few steps toward him. "Meow," he said with a big grin.