chapter 12

Josh walked into the bedroom drying his hair with a towel. “I gotta say, I don’t know if it’s from eating more or the sun rising later, but I definitely am feeling groggy this morning.” he finished with a yawn as he walked by.


“I wouldn’t think too much of it, it gets tougher to get out of bed this time of year,” Dani replied, bending into the closet. “Before you know it, we’ll be able to see our breath in the morning, we’ll be throwing on our jackets, we’ll be seeing Halloween decorations up everywhere. Cozy season is coming up!”


“As a wise man once said, ‘Summer’s not as long as it used to be.’” Josh turned to see Dani sitting on the corner of the bed, slipping her feet into black heels. “Woah, heels today? Big day at work coming up?”


“Not particularly,” she sighed, slipping the second shoe over her heel. “Just thought a little extra ‘oomph’ would help me through this Monday.”


“That extra ‘oomph’ makes me want to rip those heels right off and throw you back in bed!” Josh joked.


“Ugh, I wish. But Monday’s gonna Monday. I gotta take off. I’m already later than I wanted to be.” Dani reached up to give Josh a kiss. “Have a great day at work, baby. I love you.”


“Love you too, D. Drive safe.”


Josh looked out the bedroom window towards the driveway. Time slowed as he observed the curve of Dani’s calves cut up the back of her slender legs. He was taken back to just 7 hours prior when those same muscular legs flanked his body as she rode him harder than he could ever remember. As Dani turned to open the driver-side door, she waved towards the bedroom window.


“Ahhh shit,” he chuckled to himself.

---

Dani’s phone buzzed on her desk as she finished an email. ‘Please let me know if you have any questions!’, she finished. “As if you ever need the invite…” she grumbled under her breath.


The text read:
“Hey bb! Just taking a quick lunch break. Feeling super hungry today!”


“Nice! Glad the day is flying by so far.” she responded.


“Maybe for you! I left the office to make a quick trip to McDonald’s.” Dani blushed as she put the phone back down on her desk.


A few minutes later, it buzzed again:
“I’m starting to understand why people eat fast food so often. I got so much and it was so cheap!”


‘Don’t give him what he wants, Dani’. She thought to herself.


“Yeah it definitely is cheap! Nice you were able to get out. I might take my salad outside today if I can find the time to get away from my desk.” She put her phone back on her desk, face down and out of reach.


She heard her phone buzz again a few moments later as she read another email.


‘Let it be,’ she thought, ‘now where was I?’


A few minutes later, her phone buzzed again. She rubbed her eyes before reaching for it. Her shoulders tensed as she viewed the image Josh sent: on his desk sat two Big Macs, french fries, a soda, and a milkshake. All that accompanied the text was a smiling emoji.


Dani saved the image to her camera roll before responding. “Looks good!” she replied.


She took a deep breath, picked up her water bottle, and headed for the water cooler.

---

That evening, Josh pulled his car into their empty driveway, typical during Dani’s busy season. Inside, Josh leaned against the kitchen counter and sighed as he scrolled mindlessly through his Instagram feed. Dogs...babies...sunsets, ...oh? Josh stopped at an ad for ‘Glazed’, an artisanal donut shop a few towns over.


“Things are fucking creepy.” he laughed.


In the fridge, two more donuts remained chilled in their box. Josh opened it, placed it on the counter, and took a picture. He looked at the two white glazed donuts as he went to send the pic to Dani.


“Actually…” he mumbled.


Josh picked up one of the donuts and took a big bite. Placing the donut back in the box, he noticed what a perfectly obvious bite mark he left.


“Now we’re talking.” Josh snapped a pic and sent it along.


He continued scrolling as he finished the donut. Picking up the final donut, he walked over to the couch and turned on the TV. As he sank into the couch, he flinched as his belt pinched his stomach. ‘That’s new,’ he thought as he chewed.

---

It was all but completely dark when Josh heard another car pull into the driveway. He smiled as he heard the clicking of her heels on the concrete walkway out front. The thought of her legs again dominated his mind. He turned to the door as he heard the knob turn.


“Hey bab--woah! Is it pizza night!?” Josh stood up to greet Dani whose heels clicked across the floor.


“Hello.” she said coldly as she dropped a pizza box on the kitchen counter. She shifted her attention to the empty donut box which sat open and stuck her tongue into her cheek. Clearing her throat, she closed the box and turned her head to meet Josh’s smile from across the room.


“All weekend,” she started, “I told you, this is all new to me. I just want you to be comfortable with this. I don’t want you to dive into this just for me.”


“Dani, seriousl--”


“Listen.” she cut in. Walking over to Josh, she dug her index finger into his chest, gently guiding him backward as she walked forward. “I told you I would love to take this slow, to figure things out. To do more research, to continue to talk things through. But you couldn’t help yourself. You wanted to tease me. You gave us labels and set a goal of 30 pounds. 30 pounds, Josh? Just like that?”


The floor clicked with each slow step.


“And so,” she raised her voice as Josh felt his back against the wall, her eyes locked with his, “you stuffed yourself with fattening foods all weekend.” Dani’s lip snarled as Josh felt her fingers unbuttoning his shirt from the bottom.


“Beer, donuts, pasta,” she dragged, “I just couldn’t give you enough.” she mocked as she ripped his button-down open.


“And today? You tease me at work. Pictures of your feast?” she softly smacked Josh’s firm stomach which protruded slightly between them. Josh’s words jammed deep in his throat as he stood, unable to respond.


“I said we should take this slow, Josh. Remember that.” she continued, cupping his hips in her hands. She looked down at the soft V-Cut which sloped down from her palms. Pulling him away from the wall, she started walking him towards the couch.


“All I can say is how embarrassed I am, and how I just want you to be comfortable. You? You tell me you can eat more. You ask me how *fat* I want you to be.” she shoved him onto the couch, and Josh grunted on impact. Dani stopped for a moment to observe her man, shirt open. Sitting, his belly appeared smooth and taught, but his abs could not be seen.


“Take your shirt off.” she demanded.


Josh slid the shirt over his shoulders as he watched Dani remove her heels. Her red toes glittered in the light of the flickering TV. On her face, her eyes were glazed over as they fixated on his stomach. Dani threw her shoes to the side and fell to her knees in front of him. Throwing his knees open, her hands and face crashed into his stomach.


Moaning, she kissed and scratched at his stomach. Josh pulled her hair from her face, and Dani looked up and grinned.


Inching upward, she spoke: “Tell me, baby. Do you have any idea how many calories you had for lunch today.”


“Tell me.” He responded


“Two Big Macs,” she spoke between kisses on the taut skin of his belly, “fries, a soda, and a fucking milkshake, Josh?”


“I told you I was hung--”


“Twenty-two hundred. Enough for a full day for most men. You had that in about 30 minutes, didn’t you?”


Josh was again speechless as Dani growled, rubbing her face on his stomach. Her hands slid to his sides.


“And those little after-work treats? Two-hundred, each. Thanks for the pic message, real cute.” Her fingernails dug into his hips.


“And that pizza on the counter? Four-thousand. You won’t be able to eat it all tonight. You might not even get to half. But some day soon,” she again slowed, “I’m going to sit you down, and you *will* eat an entire large pizza for me. And not so long after, you’ll be able to eat two.”


“Dani, you are an absolut--”


“Baby,” she ripped her head from his stomach and stared into his eyes. Her hands slid slowly to the tops of thighs. “Do you like these pants?”


“Ha, I me--”


“Enjoy them while you can. These thighs will double in size. Your hips will sink into thick rolls of dough. That tight little ass of yours? It will spill over the sides of our chairs. And this stomach? Oh, baby, your abs?” Josh felt Dani shiver. “It looks like they’re already disappearing. And we haven’t even gotten serious about this yet.”


Josh felt Dani’s warm tongue just below his belly button.


“At first, you’ll get a cute little pooch. No big deal, nothing anyone besides me will notice. But I want much more. You’ll get a soft little beer belly. Adorable, how cute? Maybe some of your office friends will notice, maybe even some of the women. But it’s Fall, maybe it’s just his sweater? But I need much more. You’ll get a nice round pot belly--no mistaking that. It will spill over your waistband when you sit in meetings. But hey, that happens over the holidays. But while everyone makes resolutions to lose weight, you will gain. Your belly will get bigger, and bigger, because every night,” she growled, “I will be feeding you until you can’t move. I will be massaging your gut so you can fit more than the day before. This belly button will grow dark and deep with each pound. You will become obsessed with food as I bury you in pounds and pounds of fresh fat.” she trembled.


Picking herself off the floor she leaned in near Josh’s ear and smacked his belly.


“I’m gonna make you so. fucking. *Fat!*”