Page 4 of Defended
Chapter 2
Freedom!
The warm spring air felt especially good against her skin as Melody took a deep breath, not sure that she'd ever take being outside for granted ever again.
"Oh my gawd, Mel!" Peggy, Melody's best friend and roommate squealed as she threw her arms around Melody. She'd been just coming up the courthouse stairs as Melody exited the building. "I'm so sorry I'm late, but you're here! You're out!"
Red curls bounced and one of them got in Melody's mouth as she hugged Peggy back and spit it out. She'd been looking for that orange-red hair all morning. If she hadn't been so distracted by her hot lawyer, she probably would have been a lot more upset about Peggy not being there... although she wasn't exactly surprised either. 'Reliable' was not one of Peggy's virtues. She was flaky, self-centered, and impatient, but she could also be a really good friend.
Case in point—even though they'd drifted apart after high school, when Peggy had found out that Melody needed a place to live while she was working toward her PhD, she'd immediately insisted that Melody move in with her. Rather than paying half the rent, which Melody wouldn't have been able to afford, Peggy took the bulk of the financial burden while Melody worked off her half by keeping the apartment clean and cooking their meals. It was a win-win since it meant Melody got to live in a nicer apartment in a much better neighborhood than she'd have otherwise been able to afford, and Peggy no longer had to clean or cook, both things she hated to do anyway.
Sure, sometimes Melody wished she could just come home and relax instead of having to pick up after both herself and Peggy, but if she'd lived alone she would have had to do the same thing. And if she was really too tired to cook, which did happen because the long days in the lab could be exhausting, Peggy never minded ordering out. She had a cushy job working at her father's company, which gave her an enviable paycheck.
She'd also been the one to pay Melody's bail, putting Melody even further in her debt.
"So are you done?" Peggy asked, pulling away. Her green eyes scanned Melody up and down, her nose only wrinkling a little as she took in the outfit Melody was wearing. She considered herself a fashionista and she didn't always approve of Melody's clothing choices, but today Melody was going for 'responsible' looking, not stylish. The outfit might be boring, but it had served its purpose. "You're free to go?"
"Free to go!" Melody confirmed, nodding, feeling relief flood through her all over again. Peggy squealed and hugged her tight once more, looking just as relieved as Melody felt.
"Let's go get lunch to celebrate!" Peggy said, grabbing Melody by the hand.
She resisted the tug, digging in her heels slightly to keep Peggy from pulling her off balance. "I can't. I'm already behind on all my work and everything because I had to be here today. And I need to check in with Katherine."
Katherine Standish was her mentor and the only other person she'd dared call about her court appearance today. The rest of the research team knew she wasn’t coming in but they didn’t know why.
As usual, when she said Katherine's name, Peggy made a face. The two of them had met, but had definitely not hit it off. Sometimes Peggy could be jealous of Melody's other friends, and Katherine had definitely become one, as far as a mentorship allowed. Between working on her dissertation and trying to keep up with the social demands Peggy made of her, she didn't really have time for many other friends. Just Katherine, since she was both a friendandmentor.
Well, and the others on her team, but she didn't see really them outside of the lab. She didn’t evenwantto see some of them outside of work.
"Ugh, fine, Miss Responsible," Peggy said, rolling her eyes, but she gave Melody's hand a squeeze to take the sting out of her derision. "We're going out this Saturday night to celebrate though. Elliott's taking me to Black Light again and this time youarecoming."
Just the name of the premier BDSM club made Melody's insides clench tight. Peggy had been talking about nothing else since she'd started dating Elliott a month ago. Before Peggy met Elliot, neither she or Melody had ever done anything but read about BDSM. Now Peggy had real life experience, and raved about it, but Melody still wasn't sure how she felt about making her own fantasies a reality.
She pressed her lips together, thinking about how she was going to answer.
"Uh uh." Peggy pointed her finger at Melody, giving her a look of warning. "You're going. You don't have to do anything, but you need to see how cool this place is. I was right about how awesome Runway is, right?"
Runway was the regular club that operated above Black Light and was also where Peggy had met Elliott. They'd gone last month at Peggy's insistenceto see DJ Elixxr, the hottest new DJ on the scene, and ithadbeen a really great night. Unfortunately, between the drinking and the late hour they'd finally come home, Melody had been dragging for the entire week after. Something that Peggy didn't have to worry about. She'd just called out sick on Monday to finish her recovery, an option that Melody hadn't had.
"You were," Melody conceded. Anxiety warred with excitement. Could she really go to a BDSM club? Part of her really wanted to, but the rest of her wasn't too sure it was a good idea.
"You're going," Peggy said, in the bossy tone that indicated she was putting her foot down. The same tone that had made Melody agree to go to the party where she'd been arrested, to Runway last month, and to a ski weekend two months ago. When Peggy used that tone, Melody knew there was no arguing with her. Granted, only the party had turned outreallybadly.
She groaned, but she couldn't deny that the little bubble of excitement in her stomach was already growing in anticipation. Besides, she should celebrate not having to go to jail, right? YOLO and all that. "Okay, fine. But I'm not going to do anything but watch."
Squealing, Peggy jumped up and down, clapping her hands. "Yay! I knew you'd give in. You go to work; I'm going to go home and pick out your outfit for Saturday. We might have to go shopping."
Now Melody really felt like groaning, but she hid it behind a smile. "Fine, do what you will. Does Elliott know how bossy you are?"
Because she'd definitely gotten the impression that Elliott was a Dom. Not that she was an expert on spotting Doms. But she couldn't see him submitting to someone else; he had too much of an air of unthinking authority. A lot like her lawyer this morning, in fact.
Peggy smirked. "Nope. He thinks I'm sweet and submissive. It's fun."
Oh yeah, fun. Melody hoped Peggy wasn't getting her into anything she couldn't handle.
* * *
Lunchat the Blue Duck Tavern with all three senior partners of his new firm was only slightly intimidating. Alexander had brought Sienna with him, with no objections from anyone, and Kawan had also spent time with Connor Lambert at Black Light his last visit, so Urbanski was the only partner he hadn't spent any social time with.
