Page 27 of A Condo with Two Views

In the middle of the night she awakened, but this time she was well aware of her surroundings.

“What happened, oh fuck…did we get in an accident?” she groggily mumbled.

“It’s okay honey. You are okay. You have a concussion, but no internal injuries, nothing. Everything is okay, Chloe.”

She smiled at me, “I was with Benito. Is he alright?”

“He’s fine. I haven’t seen him, but the nurse told me he’s complaining about the food. He has broken ribs, so can’t walk yet.”

“Holly??” Chloe said, as if she suddenly remembered something, “Jack, pass me my phone.”

“Chloe, forget Holly for now,” I said to her, “we need to talk.”

But Chloe was persistent and frantically checked her phone. From what I could gather, there were several texts from Holly. I don’t know what the texts said, but Chloe was clearly relieved.

“Darling,” I continued, “Listen, I don’t know what you were doing with Benito, and I don’t care. All I know is I love you. Let’s start over. We’ll sell this stupid condo, quit our jobs, and we’ll move to New York, or Boston, or Chicago, or wherever you want.”

“Jack, you don’t know why I was with Benito?”

“I have no clue. I haven’t spoken to him. It doesn’t matter. Let’s move away, and start over.”

“Jack, we were going to rescue Holly.”

Chloe could see by the look on my face that I had no idea what she was talking about.

“Never mind, I’ll explain later. She’s okay too. All you need to know is, I love you, and there’s no need for us to move anywhere.”

Then my baby drifted to sleep again with a smile on her face.

Chloe’s View:

It is so completely bizarre waking up in a hospital bed. You’re thinking to yourself, Where am I? There’s a few minutes when you wonder if you’re in a dream. Then alarmed, you look at your own body. Am I all here? Does everything work? What does my face look like? It’s scary.

Jack was right with me which gave me instant comfort. His warm, concerned, but smiling face looked down at me, as he wiped away tears. He reassured me that I was banged up, but nothing that wouldn’t heal. He then set me at ease regarding Benito. Thank God, he was okay too!

Suddenly, I had a brain flash. We were enroute to get Holly! Worriedly, I checked my phone. There were not one, but four texts from her. I shook my head in disbelief. She had sent me the original message in error, and then her phone died. It was intended for her boyfriend of the minute. Just an innocent mistake that ended up having big implications.

Jack had a serious look on his face and was talking the entire time I was deciphering Holly’s messages. My brain had cobwebs, and it wasn’t easy for me to do the parallel processing necessary to fully comprehend him. Then it dawned on me: he has no idea what the hell I was doing with Benito.

I wanted to hug Jack, but I couldn’t lean up that far. Bless his soul, with no idea whatsoever what I was doing with Benito, he was forgiving me unconditionally. For me, it was an epiphany. Of course, I had done nothing wrong, but that wasn’t the point. Jack had no way of knowing that. He was there for me, no matter what.

I stayed in the hospital for two additional days, but it was mostly a precaution. Of course my parents came to see me, my aunts and uncles, and some of my close friends. The room was filled with flowers in no time, and a smattering of other gifts. Jack never left my side the entire time, and slept on the reclining chair, right in my room.

Holly came to visit the first morning, with news. First, she somehow got her hands on Jack’s gold necklace. She had sold it to a pawn shop, who had sold it to a guy, who was about to melt it down, when she managed to track him down. Secondly, she told us that my accident was a wake-up call for her, especially since her original text was what sent the whole thing off, and of course, she was high as a kite when she sent that text.

“Chloe, I almost fucking killed you, the one person who no matter what I did, never turned her back on me,” Holly said, tears welling up in her eyes.

She then showed us the forms, to prove it was legit. She was registered into the Skyelar Treatment Center. Holly was finally checking herself into re-hab! Jack and I told her we’d support her in any way needed.

The next surprise came when Lexi came to visit. She was dressed very conservatively, and with her body covered, no one would have guessed how festooned she was underneath. We thought it was really sweet of her to come pay a visit. She invited us to her 30th birthday party, which was still a few weeks away. Jack and I agreed to go, and in the subsequent discussion, Jack came up with a fun idea.

Jack would be the bartender at her 30th, and I would be the hostess. Since we didn’t know any of Lexi’s other friends, it would give us a purpose, and parties are always easier when there’s someone dedicated to making drinks. Lexi loved the idea as it made the birthday bash seem more special.

The final surprise was Benito himself. His entire ribcage was wrapped, but he was okay. He actually apologized to me for his carelessness, and I thanked him profusely for his readiness to help that day. No one was hurt, including those in the other car, so we chalked it up to good fortune. He then told us he was leaving San Francisco for awhile to start on a project in San Diego. I realized Benito was actually a man with a good heart, and I squeezed his hand from my bedside.

“I wanted to give you this,” he said, handing a thick 8” x 12” envelope to Jack.

Jack opened it, looking rather confused. It was a deed and legal paperwork. Benito had transferred the title and ownership of the one-bedroom condo next to ours to Jack and me for the price of $1.00. We looked at each other with furrowed brows, still in disbelief.

“Let’s pretend you won the bet that night,” he said.

Jack tried to refuse the gift as graciously as he could, but Benito was having none of that. Eventually, we could do nothing other than express our genuine gratitude. We now owned not one, but two condos. We wished Benito well, knowing it would be several months before we saw him again.

When we got home that night, it felt so nice to crawl back into our bed. I’m home. I kept thinking about Jack and our marriage, and especially how he was ready to forgive me, before knowing why I was in the car with Benito.

As I was falling asleep I whispered, “I wish I could be your submissive again.”

Chapter 19. The Birthday Bash

Jack’s View:

We won the pitch! The decision was announced on my first day back in the office after the week in the hospital with Chloe. Our whole office erupted in celebration. It was a great day. Meanwhile, Chloe returned to work as well, and they surprised her in the boardroom with a welcome-back gathering, a testament to how well-liked she was at her office.

The post-Benito tension was definitely long behind us, but I resisted taking immediate ownership of Chloe as my submissive. In some ways, it was perhaps better for the security of our marriage to refrain from sexual complications involving anyone other than the two of us. Now, did we miss the really kinky stuff involving outsiders? The truth was we did. The little episode with the cabbie in Puerto Vallarta proved how much both of us missed it.

Perhaps for the first time in my life, I was gun shy as a Dom. All I had to do was close my eyes and remember how defeated I felt when Chloe threw her eternity ring back at me. I remembered her exact words, ‘Here’s your bullshit collar back. You don’t own me anymore.’ Her words still haunted me. I needed Chloe to fully trust me, and I couldn’t do that until I fully trusted my own judgment.

I had to make certain we were both ready, but Chloe had other plans.

“I want you to collar me again,” she said, “or I’m g

oing to be a slutty little tramp at Lexi’s birthday party. Then you’ll have no choice but to take full control of me, to stop my whorish nature.”

She was kidding of course, but I could also tell she was in a playful mood and having fun with what could be her last days of freedom. I think I knew deep down that I’d become her Master again, but for the time being, I was happy to let this wacky scenario play itself out. It could be interesting!

A couple of weeks passed, and Lexi’s party was upon us. Chloe had volunteered our services at the party. Apparently, I was to be the bartender, and my wife would be the party cocktail waitress.

I had gone to her condo earlier in the day to make sure we had everything that would be needed all set up. Together, Lexi and I had set up a bar-area in the kitchen, with all the essentials including spirits, liqueurs, wine, beer, ice, mix and added touches like olives and limes. Lexi had arranged for a variety of glassware to be delivered along with some catered hors d’oeuvres. Chloe, being a decent cook herself, had prepared a few additional appetizers. Last, but not least, I was in charge of the music.

I dressed a little more smartly than usual for a casual party, but only because I was the designated bartender. Chloe looked stunning in a red, tight-fitting dress. The first guests to arrive were Lexi’s family: her mom, aunt, and her older sister and younger brother. They brought two big birthday cakes, one vanilla, one black forest. Next to arrive were a whole bunch of Lexi’s college friends, some with significant others, and some were single. Before we knew it, the party was in full swing with a room full of people.

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