Page 258 of Ashes of Sin and Stardust

I found her in the kitchen, sitting on the edge of the counter. She was staring at the coffee maker while it dripped into the pot, her face a blank, emotionless mask. The relief of seeing her there hit me hard, and I hurried around the corner to where she sat and wrapped my arms around her, pulling her against me.

She set her arms on my shoulders gently, not quite hugging me back.

“You weren’t in bed,” I said. “I thought...”

She hugged me back.

The coffee pot beeped. She pulled away from me, rubbing at her eyes. She had the chastity belt on... she must have put it on herself. She wore a thin t shirt of mine that she’d stolen to sleep in, and I could feel her soft breasts and the piercings in her nipples pressing against my chest through the thin shirt. Her hair was a disaster, and her face was free of makeup, flushed from crying and lightly speckled with those cute little freckles she hid so well.

I pulled back from her enough to look her in the eyes. She stared up at me with intense sorrow. “I was going to make you coffee and bring it to you.”

“That’s very sweet.”

“I’m sorry, I–” she stammered, choking on tears. “I’ve be-been so... mean to you,” she forced the words out of her mouth. “I d-don’t hate you, I p-promise.”

I thumbed her tears away, wondering how in the hell I was going to survive Alice Benson. We had barely hit the two-month mark. Would things get better, or worse?

No matter what, I’ll be damned if she isn’t a better person at the end of this. Although I’m not sure what will be left of me.

“I d-don’t want to d-destroy you.”

“I know you’re scared and struggling right now, Alice.I knowyou are. Remember what I said before? You need to work on the trust.”

She nodded and slid off the counter, her hips pressing against mine for just a moment before she slid out from where I stood. Unfolding her stepstool and climbing up to the counter above the stove, she extracted two mugs, and set to preparing our coffee.

Usually I put the pot on the table, and we each made our own, but she seemed to want to make mine for me today. I let her have her act of service, knowing it was her way of seeking the balm of submission.

I prepared myself my omelet, skipping my workout and deciding to sit with Alice instead. She eyed my eggs, and I offered her a bite. Guiltily, she leaned forward and opened her mouth so I could feed it to her.

She ate a second bite, but rejected a third, sipping her coffee instead and looking dejectedly down at her hands. I knew she was emotional, that she wanted to hear me say “everything is okay, let’s just forget this happened.” But I wasn’t going to do that, because that wasn’t going to help.

I figured I’d give her until the end of breakfast to come to the conclusion I hoped she’d come to on her own. She rose to the occasion.

“Sir... will you punish me for being mean to you?” Her voice was soft and embarrassed as she asked.

“Yes, Alice, I will. I’m proud of you for asking.”

After breakfast, I sent her off to shower. I told her to think about what punishment she thought was appropriate for her behavior while she cleaned up, and then worked some of my own frustration and angst out with the weights. I was still shaken up by the events of last night but encouraged by her behavior this morning.

Alice was dressed and made up when I finally entered my home office, and there was a second cup of coffee sitting by my computer waiting for me. She sat on the armchair beside my desk, still looking guilty.

“Thank you for the coffee.”

“You’re welcome, Sir.”

“Have you come up with any ideas?”

“Well... I couldn’t think of anything, really, besides lines. And if you want me to do them, I will. But I don’t think that’s enough. So I asked my discord group for ideas, and one of the Doms said I should read a book and write a book report. And I know you have lots of books about this stuff. So... maybe that would be good?”

I took a sip of the coffee. She’d added far too many grounds and it was more like sludge, but there was no way in hell I wasn’t going to drink it. Cupping the mug in my hands, I walked to the bookshelf and selected several books.

“I’d like you to first research these and determine which would be the best one for you to read, and why. Get my approval, and then you can write your report. Five thousand words, hitting all the main points. You have until the end of tomorrow.”

She took the stack of books eagerly and set to work.

---