Ride Home

Julia pulled away from the curb, the school gates receding in the rearview mirror as the Urus merged smoothly into traffic. The afternoon sun slanted through the windshield, warming the leather seats and casting long shadows across the dashboard. Riley sat beside her, legs crossed under her uniform skirt, phone already in hand again, thumb scrolling absently but with a small, private smile tugging at her lips.

Julia’s Apple Watch buzzed softly against her wrist—a single, sharp vibration that made her heart stutter. She glanced down at the screen just long enough to read the notification without taking her eyes off the road for too long.

Master: Good job, you pass this trial slut. Wait for my next instruction.

The words landed like ice water down her spine, followed immediately by a rush of shameful heat between her thighs. She’d done it—handed her own daughter over to him without Riley ever suspecting. The eggplant emoji, the all-day texting, the hook-line-and-sinker fall… Julia had facilitated every second of it. She swallowed hard, forcing her expression neutral as she flexed her fingers on the wheel.

Riley glanced over, noticing the subtle shift. “You okay, Mom? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

Julia **** a light laugh, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’m fine. Just… curious. That number I gave you earlier—the guy. Did you end up texting him?”

Riley’s cheeks flushed the faintest pink, but she played it cool, shrugging one shoulder. “Yeah. His name’s Alex. He’s… hot. Like, really smooth. Doesn’t go to HW, just picked up some paperwork or whatever yesterday. We’ve been texting all day.”

Julia’s stomach twisted—guilt, arousal, terror all knotted together—but she kept her voice steady, trying to lean into the “cool mom” role she’d accidentally unlocked that morning. “Oh? What’s he saying?”

Riley smirked, glancing sideways at her. “Stuff. Flirty stuff. About how good the uniform looks on me, how he couldn’t stop staring yesterday. You probably don’t want to know the details.”

Julia’s pulse thrummed in her ears. She could feel the dampness starting again between her legs, traitorous and insistent. She took a slow breath, then—still trying to sound casual, still trying to prove she could handle this—said, “Hit me with your best shot. I told you I can be cool about it. No judgment.”

Riley turned fully in her seat now, studying her mom’s face like she was trying to decide if this was a trap. Then she took a deep breath, eyes sparkling with a mix of nerves and excitement, clearly deciding to test just how far this new version of Julia would go.

“Okay,” she said, exhaling slowly. “So he started with—”