Page 62 of Slave

“Then . . . ?” he prompted.

“I wasn’t . . .” I gasped. Just remembering was making the panic rise again, and it was then that I knew he was right. I’d had a panic attack.

Through my rising heartbeat and my labored breathing, I heard him tell me to focus, to remember the numbers, to remember I was safe with him in his home. It helped. The fear gripping me slowly ebbed, and I was able to take in my surroundings again.

We sat there in his chair for the next two hours talking about the day, about everything that had happened. He made me tell him about Ian breaking my arm. “Which arm,” he asked. When I’d shown him, his response was to pick up said arm and place a soft kiss directly in the middle. It was an unbelievably sweet thing, but one I had started to expect from him.

When we got to the kiss in my bed, he asked me to tell him how I felt about it. I tried, but my words were weak and feeble. I’d stuttered and stopped several times around words like nice, scared, happy, and confused. Finally, he took hold of my face and said, “I told you the truth today, Brianna.”

His eyes left me no doubt that he was talking about his declaration that he wanted me but would not take me until I asked. I wondered again why that was important to him. He said he wanted all of me, but he had all of me. I was his slave after all. He owned me. Right?

I sat in his arms pondering what he’d said. He would not have sex with me until I asked. The question that came to my mind however was, would I ever ask?

Stephan

The talk with Brianna had been difficult for both of us. I’d almost lost her twice to panic attacks as she told me about her time with Ian, those experiences were still so real for her.

Dinner was solemn. I could only imagine what was going through her mind as we ate. Mine was focused on what Lily had whispered to me just before she left. Brianna had asked her how long she and I had known each other. I wasn’t sure of the significance of this, but Lily seemed to think it was an important piece of information for me to have.

After dinner we settled back into my chair and just watched some television. I’d never spent so much time with a woman before, and I found myself devoting most of it to watching her more than what was on the screen.

At the end of the night, we followed our normal ritual. With what had happened earlier I wanted to give her control of our kiss tonight. She pressed her lips to mine with more pressure than her usual kisses but nothing compared to this afternoon. I moved my mouth with hers, enjoying the only closeness from her that I was able. My hands itched to find purchase in her hair, but this was her kiss, she had the control.

Slowly she pulled away and raised her eyes to meet mine shyly. But before I could say anything, she rose from my lap. She waited for me to get up and walked just behind me until we reached the section of wall separating our two rooms. “Goodnight, Brianna.”

“Goodnight, Master.”

I waited until she disappeared into her room before walking into mine for my nightly shower.

Monday morning started out fairly normal, for which I was eternally grateful. There had been no Karl and no Lily waiting for me when I arrived. Jamie brought a bottle of water in for me just before ten, and I gave her instructions to hold my calls from twelve to one.

It had been over two weeks since I’d done more than a speedy workout in the small executive gym down the hall. I’d had one of the old offices that had previously been used for storage converted into a gym almost immediately upon taking my full time position. Fitness had not been a high priority for my father, but it was for me. Given my lifestyle choice, I needed to be in excellent shape.

All of the executives were invited to use the space, although not many of them did besides Lily. Of course, her reasons for staying in shape were the same as my own.

At twelve o’clock I locked down my computer and changed into my workout clothes before heading down to the gym. Jamie smiled and waved to me as I walked past. It was good to feel some normalcy again.

After some basic stretches, I got on the treadmill and began walking. A mile registered on the machine, and I began picking up the pace. Soon I was running and it felt wonderful.

When the timer went off, I was drenched and feeling good. Moving over to the free weights, I began my regular routine of curls and presses. My muscles were feeling the burn when I heard the door open and Jamie’s frantic voice. “He doesn’t wish to be disturbed.”

When I turned, I saw my uncle standing just inside the door, trailed by a rarely flustered Jamie.

“I’m so sorry, Mr. Coleman.”

“It’s okay, Jamie.”

She hesitated for a moment, giving my uncle one last look, and then left.

Figuring my workout was pretty much over at this point, I replaced the weights and started stretching. I didn’t address my uncle’s presence. He’d been clear on his position regarding Brianna, and I had no desire to hear more from him.

When he realized I was just going to ignore him, he asked, “Aren’t you curious why I drove across town to see you in the middle of the day?”

“Not really, no, but I’m assuming you’re going to tell me.”

I heard something land on one of the benches. Whatever it was wasn’t heavy. “I brought the results of Brianna’s lab work. Everything came back clean.”

For just a moment my heart softened toward my uncle. He’d driven through traffic on his lunch hour to hand deliver the results.

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