Finding Home

~~Austin, TX; Summer, 2052~~

It was over. Annabelle stared in stunned surprise at the sight of her boyfriend and another woman holding hands, making out at the restaurant she passed on her summer walk through that portion of Austin. She froze for several long moments, long enough for him to look up and see her. She shook her head when he rose, and turned, walking away. After she had returned to her car and driven there, it only took her a few minutes to pack what little she had at his apartment. She placed his key, and her engagement ring on the kitchen table, and then walked out, locking the door behind her.

Across town, in her own apartment, she had the locks changed so he couldn’t get in. She gave him three days, but none of the messages were apologies or explanations, just accusations and blaming her. ‘Overreacting’ and ‘It wasn’t what you thought’ were the themes of the dialogue, it seemed. She called the cellphone company and requested a number change. In that short three days, she had gotten more proof from other sources that this wasn’t the first time.

She collapsed into her bed and wept, ignoring the door when he tried to come in, and then calling the police to have him removed from the premises. She quickly moved, and began rebuilding her life without him in it.

++++++++++++

~~Minneapolis, MN; Three years later~~

Annabelle helped Jasmine lay out the trays of finger foods, quietly assisting as Jasmine prattled on gaily. “I’m so glad you came, it’s going to be so much fun. I’ll introduce you to everyone, and you don’t have to worry, it’s just a munch. Nobody is going to bother you, or force you into this life, but it’s good for you to at least look into it. I mean, talking about it for a year only carries you so far, you know?”

“It’ll be something new,” Annabelle murmured quietly in response. “I’ll take over cooking as the guests arrive, that way you can have time, yeah?”

“You’re so sweet to me,” Jasmine said, throwing her arms around Annabelle in a tight hug. Annabelle quirked a slight half-smile in response.

The guests began trickling in slowly, and Jasmine went out to greet them while Annabelle took over cooking the meal. It wasn’t long before several of the ‘slave’ women joined her in the kitchen to let the ‘Masters’ talk. As they talked, Annabelle just quietly listened, letting their voices wash over her. Occasionally she would make a small query to keep the conversation flowing but her focus was on making sure the meal turned out as good as she could make it.

It was getting closer to eating dinner when the subject changed, and one of the women made a comment that Annabelle didn’t quite understand. Something about taking the collar off if she didn’t agree with his behavior, to show she meant business. Annabelle murmured curiously, “Doesn’t that kind of… defeat the whole purpose? I mean, I could understand wanting to end the relationship if he was abusive, cheating, or mistreating you. But, just to prove a point?”

The girl giggled, “That’s because despite him being Master, I have the real power.”

Annabelle shook her head slightly in confusion, “I’ll… take your word for it,” she finally murmured, not wanting to argue with her or engage in a discussion of that nature when she didn’t have all the facts. The rest of the girls returned to their conversation, chattering away at the bar and ignoring her while Annabelle continued cooking. She started plating up the food on platters and moving it to the table silently.

Once she finished, she sent Jasmine a quick message saying that dinner was ready. She turned and started cleaning up quietly as the men trickled in, ignoring the women that immediately went over to serve their man as if they had actually been helpful. Annabelle looked at Jasmine when she joined her in the kitchen, “I’ve got this, why don’t you go join your man?”

“I’m helping you so you have a chance to eat too,” Jasmine murmured softly, ignoring the half-shrug she got in response. Finally, Jasmine dragged her over and sat Annabelle next to her, fixing her a plate, then herself one. Annabelle ate quietly, trying to ignore the sycophantic attention several of the single slaves were giving the man at the end of the table, including the one she had spoken to earlier.

The man at the end of the table sat, for the most part, eating quietly. Occasionally, he would respond to a question, but as she watched, she noted that when one of the single slaves asked, it was a short answer. Not curt, not rude, but simplistic and without any real substance. When one of the men asked a question, particularly Jasmine’s husband, the conversation was much more elaborate. His face relaxed more, and he seemed to engage better.

Annabelle flicked her gaze up when one of the single masters spoke to her, attempting to engage her in conversation, “How do you like your job?” He asked, giving her a charming smile, “Ready to find a way to be a housewife?” He continued, giving her a leering wink.

“It’s… a job? One that I enjoy and am good at.” She murmured, her voice one of confusion as to why he was asking, before returning to her food calmly, not even willing to dignify the second question with an answer.

James snorted from where he was sitting by Jasmine, “David, don’t ask rude questions. She is here to investigate and learn.”

David sat back, “Well, she’s rude.” He stated firmly, staring at Annabelle’s head challengingly.

“Rude would have been to tell you it was none of your business,” James said, “Now, leave her alone, I won’t have my slave’s best friend thinking that we’re all assholes.”

Annabelle lifted her head, giving James a sweet smile, “Nonsense, Master James, I do not tar everyone with the same feather, you have always been quite kind and polite.” She returned to her food, ignoring David again. Jasmine chortled silently beside her.

“James, I didn’t realize you brought someone that was investigating, how wonderful!” the man at the end of the table murmured. “Have you and Jasmine known…” he trailed off looking at Annabelle with a curious, but warm expression.

James replied, “Annabelle. And yes, we’ve known her for a couple of years now.”

The man smiled and inclined his head toward Annabelle. “Fantastic. Welcome, Annabelle. I’m glad that you could join us. Please, don’t be shy. We’re happy to answer questions. Truth be told,” he looked at David with an unmistakable glare, “We don’t like making people feel awkward, so we try to be as open-book as is reasonable.” When his gaze shifted back to her, the smile was back and he lifted another bite of food to his lips.

She lifted her head slightly, giving him a slight smile, “Thank you, that is very kind of you, Master…” she trailed off, listening to Jasmine murmur in her ear. “Master Michael,” she finished, before returning to her own meal. Michael regarded her curiously for a moment, then seemed to make a decision and returned to eating, still barely tolerating the attempts of the younger, eager slaves to get his attention.

After she finished eating her meal, Annabelle rose and began cleaning up quietly, as the rest of the group began trickling back into the living room. Jasmine joined her, “You know you could leave these for me?” Jasmine asked her, “Most do.”

“That’s rude,” Annabelle murmured softly as she finished loading the dishwasher. “You’re being gracious enough to host, and to provide the food and beverages, it doesn’t take that long to do dishes.” She huffed, “What, are they afraid to ruin their manicure?”

“Most of the time, yes,” Jasmine said, giving a soft laugh. She moved out of Annabelle’s way, as the two worked quickly. “What do you think?”

“Well, as long as there are more people like Master James, and fewer people like David, I could become comfortable,” Annabelle said in response. Jasmine burst out laughing again, resting against the fridge as she did so, Annabelle regarded her for a moment with a small smile, before pulling out the chocolate pies and slicing them with a deft hand. She pulled out the last pie, “I remember you telling me someone having a fondness of peanut butter and chocolate pie, so I made one,” she murmured as she sliced it up, and moved it to one side with a little note card.

Jasmine watched her, “OK, what’s on your mind?”

“Well,…” Annabelle started, then fell silent, “I was… I thought that this type of life was a permanent deal.” Jasmine nodded, encouraging her to continue. “But that one girl… she talked about how even though he’d be the Master, she’s the one with all the power, and…,” she trailed off again, grasping for the words. “It doesn’t make sense. If you want him to be your Master, then why would you play games like that?”

Jasmine leaned back against the fridge, trying to decide how to explain it, “Because for some of them, this is all just a game. They want to play the Master and slave, but only in the bedroom, or only when it suits them to do so.”

Annabelle listened, her brow furrowed in confusion. “That seems like a waste of time and energy,” she finally murmured. “How would you know if someone really wanted to be yours, if you’re always playing games? I don’t think I’d want to get into this lifestyle, and agree to be a slave, only to find out later that it was all a game or a joke.”

“Not everyone is like that, Anna. You’ll just have to be careful. It’s not really any different from what people think of as a ‘normal’ relationship that way,” Jasmine said quietly. “Of course, if you find someone that you’re interested in, you can ask James or I about them and we’ll give you our advice if that’s a good idea or bad idea.”

Annabelle nodded, then patted Jasmine’s shoulder, “Go, spend some time with your Master and guests, I’ll finish up here. I’ll probably slip out the back at some point and take a breather.” Jasmine huffed, then kissed her cheek before leaving the kitchen. Annabelle continued quietly working on the dishes and wiping everything down.

Michael had listened to about as much of the twittering as he could stand for one evening without some sort of reprieve. Looking across the room at James, with a slight nod toward the back door and a slight raise of his glass, he began weaving his way toward the door to the porch. Outside, when the door had closed again, he exhaled a shuddering sigh before walking to the railing of the deck and looking up at the night sky. Raising his glass of iced scotch to his forehead, he muttered to himself, “Fucking hell…,” wincing at the faint throbbing behind his eyes.

Annabelle peeked in the living room, then seeing David obviously hunting for her, she slipped out the back, quietly closing the door behind her. She froze for a moment, when she saw Michael, but seeing the pain on his face, opted not to say anything, instead she pulled a small bottle of painkillers from her jacket pocket and placed them in front of him before curling up in a chair.

He slowly lowered his gaze to the bottle, then looked at her as he set his drink on the railing and opened the bottle, pouring two pills into his hand. “You… are a lifesaver,” he murmured with a wan smile. He popped the pills in his mouth and washed them down with a swallow of the scotch, before handing her the bottle back.

She smiled softly, taking the bottle and sliding it away back into her pocket, “I hope they help,” she murmured. She peeked over her shoulder, then scooted down slightly so she wasn’t seen in the window.

He smiled knowingly. “You too, huh?” he murmured with a wry smile. “Let me guess… David?”

“Yes,” she murmured, “and the vapid twit of blond.” She curled up, drawing one leg to her chest as she looked up at him.

He nodded slowly. “One of the things I’ve noticed about this lifestyle. It’s almost bipolar at times. It tends to attract both people that are actually serious and considered and mature, as well as those who couldn’t spell maturity even with the aid of an AI secretary, much less actually have any dedication.”

She nodded, “I noticed.” She rested her chin on her knee, staring out into the backyard in thought, then murmured, “David reminds me too much of my ex, a big baby that needs a mommy.”

Michael snorted, a grin forming on his face. “Indeed. I keep hoping that being around maturity would rub off, but… I must confess, I’m beginning to despair for that one.” He raised his glass slightly, swirling it around causing the ice to make a tinkling sound, then swallowed some more of the amber liquid.

Annabelle giggled softly, covering her mouth to stifle it, then looked up at the sky again, “At least the scenery is nice.” She murmured, looking up at the stars.

He smiled softly, gesturing at the sky with his glass, “You think this is nice? You should see where I grew up. Middle of nowhere Montana. ‘Looking at the stars’ means something completely different out there, away from the light haze of the city.” His eyes went distant in memory for a brief moment, then he blinked and smiled, before looking back up at the sky. “You have a lovely laugh, by the way. You shouldn’t hide it. Something like that is rare enough…”

Her gaze flicked to him in slight surprise as a faint blush appeared on her cheeks, “Thank you,” she murmured softly. “That sounds like a beautiful place to visit, I wasn’t quite so lucky, I grew up in the middle of Austin, and didn’t really get a chance to see the night sky much.”

He nodded again, “I’ve been there a few times. It’s… a city. When you’ve been to one, you’ve been to them all.” He shrugged. “Minneapolis here isn’t bad, as far as cities go. At least you have the lakes and forests around here that you can get to fairly quickly. Do you get outdoors much?”

“Sometimes. I like going to the lake. Jasmine’s dragged me with her on her fitness kick a few times to go hiking. That wasn’t so bad, as long as I’m not trying to keep up with James.” She wrinkled her nose slightly, “That man’s gotta be part machine.”

Michael threw back his head and barked out a short laugh. “Yeah. Yeah, he is. I have trouble keeping up with him myself.” He paused, then continued probing gently, “What brought you all the way up here? It can’t have been the weather… or the mosquitoes.”

“My job,” she murmured, hugging her knee, “They moved the main servers up here, so I had to follow to make sure things didn’t get screwed up… they did, then I spent three months having to fix it. I’ve got a two year contract with them, with the option of renewal. I set my own hours, which is kind of nice and means most of the time I can work from home.”

“That’s a pretty sweet gig. Does it make you happy?” he asked. “The job, I mean? Do you feel… fulfilled?”

“It’s a job, I’m good at it, as for fulfillment…” she trailed off, then shrugged, “It’s better than nothing? I guess I never really thought about it. I get up, do my job, get paid, and continue the cycle.”

He nodded, “I understand completely. The grind can offer a lot of sec…”

James poked his head out the door, “Michael? I could…,” he looked at Annabelle, “Oh… I’m sorry, Annabelle. I need to steal Michael for a minute.” He turned back to Michael. “David. And the… un-collared girls.”

Michael sighed, looking at Annabelle. “I’m sorry, Annabelle. I hate to cut such a pleasant conversation short, but I need to go help corral. Can we continue this another time? I would sincerely love to.” His voice was both warm and sincere.

Annabelle gave him a sweet smile, “Of course, I’d be delighted to. You go do what you need to do.”

He smiled and inclined his head, before turning and heading toward the door. Before he walked in, he turned his head slightly. “Thank you again… for the pills. They helped.” He walked inside and closed the door behind him.

Annabelle watched him go, her head tilted slightly, then turned back to watching the night sky. She waited a few minutes, then rose to her feet to slip in and use the restroom, avoiding the living room. Jasmine found her a few minutes later in the guest bathroom washing her hands, “So, how’s it going?”

“How’s what going?” Annabelle looked at her in confusion.

Jasmine grinned, “James mentioned you were talking to Michael… And?”

“And? We were just talking. He seems like a good man,” Annabelle responded, her brow furrowed in confusion. “He had a headache, I had painkillers.”

“Michael doesn’t ‘just talk’ with anyone,” Jasmine said with a knowing grin.

“Well… he probably would if they weren’t vapid twits only interested in what’s in his pants.” Annabelle responded tartly. “He was nice, it was nice, there’s really not much else to say,” Annabelle shrugged, “He wanted to talk again in the future.”

Jasmine nodded, folding her arms, “Well do you at least find him attractive?”

“I’m single, Jasmine… not blind, or dead. Of course he’s attractive,” Annabelle responded, as she dried her hands and turned to face Jasmine, “And he’s got a nice laugh, what do you want me to say? Oh yes, baby, let me jump his bones?

Jasmine snorted in laughter, “Sure, why not?”

“Because that’s not me, Jasmine. I’m the quiet overlooked one, I program computers, I don’t get the hot guy that everybody’s drooling over.” Annabelle said quietly, “Come on, let’s go have some pie.”

The pair walked in and people trickled past a table with the pies laid out and some disposable plates and silverware. Standing around chatting some more, it was about fifteen minutes before Michael wandered over and found Jasmine, who was sticking close to Annabelle protectively. An expression of what could have only been pure bliss on his face, he murmured softly, “Jasmine… you wonderful woman, you remembered. But the recipe… or where did you get it? This is the best chocolate and peanut butter pie I’ve ever had…”

Jasmine smiled up at Michael, “Actually, it was Annabelle who arranged it. She remembered that I mentioned someone at the party liking peanut butter chocolate pie, so she made it.”

Michael looked around then leaned in to Jasmine, but spoke loudly enough that Annabelle could hear as well. “Jasmine, darling… I don’t care what we have to do… I’ll stab David myself if I have to. She comes back.” He stood back up and grinned at the ladies.

Jasmine laughed as Annabelle giggled softly, ducking her head, “I’ll see to it, Master Michael.” Jasmine said, giving him a grin.

“Very good. Now I intend to have another piece of this pie despite the fact that my body will probably disown me for it in the morning.” He turned purposefully toward the table and took another small slice of the peanut butter chocolate pie, before squaring his shoulders and walking back into the main room to ride hawk on David some more.

Annabelle watched him go, then walked with Jasmine to get a slice of pie herself, “I wonder if he likes peanut butter chocolate chip cookies,” she mused idly.

Jasmine looked at her, pressing a hand to her chest, “You mean you made cookies? And you haven’t shared them with me? After all this…,” she pouted at Annabelle convincingly.

“They’re in my bag,” Annabelle murmured, then watched as Jasmine darted off, shaking her head. She went to find James and sat near him with a small piece of pie, “I’m sorry Master James, your wife discovered my cookie stash.”

“Cookies?” James’s head snapped up, “I’ll be back,” he snapped in Michael’s direction as he darted off towards the room, Annabelle watching him go.

David, on seeing her enter, veered toward her moving to take the seat James had left. Michael was faster. “So are you enjoying yourself, Annabelle?” he asked calmly, “Not too overwhelming I trust?” He lifted his gaze, a hard stare at David, who grumbled and turned away.

She smiled up at him, her eyes turning slightly confused before relaxing, realizing he was just protecting her. “It’s been good so far, no problems, not too terribly overwhelming. A bit less of the… slave behavior than I expected.” She turned slightly, then murmured, “I apologize, I forgot the addiction James and Jasmine have to my cookies, forgive me?”

“Nothing to forgive. If your cookies are anything like your pie, anything up to and including first degree murder is excusable in the pursuit of obtaining them.”

Annabelle wrinkled her nose slightly, “Let me go see if they’ve left anything and I’ll bring you one.” She smiled at him, then rose to her feet and padded quickly out of the room. Jasmine and James were fighting over what looked like the last cookie in a tin.

Annabelle snorted silently in laughter as she slid another tin out of a different pocket of her suitcase and headed back to the living room. Her seat had been taken by the blond twit who was chattering away at Michael who looked, to Annabelle’s eyes, pained. David stepped towards her, reaching a hand towards the tin, and she pulled it away, her brow furrowing slightly, “No.”

“What do you mean, no?” David asked, his back getting up, “You’re here to be a slave. Don’t you know better than to tell a Master no?”

“If you’re a Master, I’m a ballerina in a tutu. You’re a dick, and these aren’t for you. And if I were here to be a slave, it damn sure wouldn’t be yours,” Annabelle snapped back, her head coming up to glare him down over her glasses.

“Well who else would want someone like you?” David snapped back, “I’m the best you’re ever going to have.”

Annabelle stared at him, her mouth opened in shock, “Please, that’s the best you can do? ‘Love me mommy because nobody else will love you.’ I’ve seen a better manipulative tactic from a five year old.” She stepped around him, “Please, stop speaking, every time you open your mouth I feel the collective IQ of the room lowering.”

David stared at her, “Damn, are you PMSing or something?”

“Seriously,” Annabelle turned, her brow furrowing, “I call you out on being a imbécil maldito and it’s because I’m PMSing. Not because you’ve been a complete culo since you arrived, or the fact that you’ve been rude and inconsiderate to everyone at the party. It’s my fault because I’m PMSing.” She paused, raising a finger as he opened his mouth to retort, “No, don’t speak, I refuse to partake in a battle of wits with one so unarmed.” Annabelle turned back away and quickly strode away from him, humming loudly under her breath to keep from hearing anything else he had to say.

Michael looked up at her as she arrived, completely ignoring the blond sitting next to him who was still chattering. “Hi. There was… a problem with your spot,” he murmured apologetically. He looked to say more when David stormed over.

“Michael, this slave is disturbing our standing get-together. Can you and James…” he said in a rush.

“…have you leave? Absolutely.” Michael stood. “Thank you for coming, please, drive safe, forget where this house is, and don’t come back.”

“But I…,” David started as he was shoved unceremoniously toward the door by Michael.

“… have things to attend to. We know. We understand. Please, don’t let us keep you,” Michael said with a smile as he shut the door firmly on him before breathing a loud sigh. “God damnit…,” he muttered to himself, shaking his head before turning back toward where he had left Annabelle, preparing yet another apology and cursing himself for having to make so many tonight.

“Cookie?” Annabelle asked him, offering the open tin up towards him with a smile, having followed him to avoid the blond.

He chuckled and took one, “I’m getting ready to apologize and she offers me a cookie. What a woman!” he smiled. Taking a bite, he looked as if he were about to have an orgasm, unable to stifle a groan of pleasure, before swallowing and blinking his eyes. Finally, he murmured, “I am sorry about that one. He will not be back.”

The vapid blonde looked up at Michael, and murmured, “Can we, like, continue our conversation now, Master Michael?”

“Conversation?” he asked, not looking at her. “Yes, I think I’d like that. Let’s go continue our conversation, Annabelle.” He turned toward the back door and walked.

“Of course, if that is your wish,” Annabelle followed him, a faint look of confusion on her face, “I’m sorry about the whole thing with David,” she murmured softly, “I think he’s your friend…” she trailed off.

Michael chuckled at that as they stepped out onto the back porch. “Friend? No. David is… was… er… we’ll call it an investigator, much like yourself. He… never could seem to understand what being a Master was all about. Seemed to think it was primarily about sex and bossing people about…” He shook his head. “Remember what I said about spelling? I’m not even certain David knows the alphabet well enough to spell.”

Annabelle started laughing softly, covering her mouth as a soft squeak escaped, “He’s in good company with little blond then, how many times did she say ‘like’ in one sentence?”

Michael shrugged, “I lost track after one. There are… more interesting things that demand my attention. Like that laugh, for instance. That may be the most marvellous thing I’ve heard in… years.”

Annabelle smiled up at him, blushing again as she ducked her head slightly, “Thank you,” she murmured softly. “So, we were discussing the ‘grind’ and security. Do you enjoy your work?” She asked him curiously as she claimed one of the chairs, drawing her leg up to look up at him.

He smiled, “Most days? Yeah, I do. I get to make interesting things, educate people, and hopefully, help them feel better about themselves.” He paused for a moment, then added, “It’s not really what my folks would have wanted me to do. I think Dad had his heart set on me taking over the ranch, but I just… don’t like cows. I mean, steaks and hamburgers and such are all right, but…,” he shuddered. “Ranching just wasn’t for me.”

She giggled, “Was it the cows, or the cow feces?”

“If I said it was the latter would you still respect me in the morning?” he asked with a grin.

“Absolutely,” she smiled up at him. “Bevo wasn’t the most fun to clean up after, I was so glad when I built the machine that could do it for me.”

“So… yeah. I left the farm for Billings. Went to university for a degree in engineering, and then… wound up here.”

Annabelle smiled, “There are worse places to end up,” she murmured softly. “How long have you known James and Jasmine?”

He thought about it for a moment, then murmured, “Eight… maybe nine years now? I was there for their wedding if that helps. James looks pretty dapper in a tux… just saying…,” he chuckled softly.

She smiled, “I’m sorry I missed it. I met Jasmine about a year after I moved up here. That was three years ago. We started hanging out, and then became besties.” Annabelle smiled, her eyes turning sad, “I think she liked the fact that I didn’t judge or really care about what went on between her and James in the bedroom. Consenting adults, none of my business.”

Michael nodded, taking another bite of the cookie as he pondered what to say. “Realistically, the problem is one of perception. People perceive that a slave has been somehow nefariously coerced into whatever the couple agrees to do. Therefore it’s edgy, or reprehensible. In reality, there’s lots of reasons that slaves choose to take up their roles, and lots of reasons Masters do too. The only real trick is finding that right fit between the two such that it feels natural.” He paused, then added, “Most of the time, from the outside looking in, in the absence of any kind of visual tell, you’d never even know.”

Annabelle nodded her understanding, “That’s part of why I was hesitant about coming tonight, I expected…” she trailed off with a slight shrug. “I’ve heard a lot of stories about what goes on at one of the things, but I trust Jasmine. There’s not nearly as much test-driving as I thought there would be.”

Michael barked out another laugh. “Test-driving. I like that. No, this group in particular is what I tend to call ‘low-protocol’. For the most part, we just try to be… people. Jasmine is a slave. James is her master. She obeys him. I am a Master as well, but she doesn’t obey me because I’m not HER master. She treats me with perhaps a little more respect than the average bloke, however, because my own actions merit it, because we’ve known each other so long, and because James has asked her to.” He paused, then continued, “But most of what you see when you look around that room is not really any different from the house parties in America of a hundred years ago. Women ensure that everything goes off without a hitch and that their man is taken care of because he provides security and protection for her.”

Annabelle nodded, “That makes sense, but that’s… that’s how it’s supposed to work isn’t it?” She asked curiously, “If the man is providing the house, it’s the woman’s job to make it a home.”

He chuckled again, “Don’t say that around the feminists. You may find yourself on the business end of a pitchfork and kindling fire.” He paused, then added again, “Once you see behind the curtain, it really is a rather tame concept, isn’t it?”

She laughed softly, “Been there before,” then paused, resting her chin on her knee, “May I ask you something?”

He smiled, “Sure. Anything.”

She took a breath, her eyes turning slightly worried, “When the other girls were in the kitchen earlier, one kept talking about taking off her collar to show her man that she means business if things don’t go her way…” she paused and he nodded, “Is that normal? That the collar just goes on and comes off like it doesn’t mean anything?”

Michael thought about how to explain that for a long moment, before speaking softly, “It’s no different than a marriage really. How many people do you know that are willing to use their wedding vows as bargaining chips when things get difficult or don’t go their way? While a collar may have a little more specific meaning than a wedding ring, the principle isn’t any different. Some people decide that a commitment like that means something lasting. Most do not.” The last was said with a vast amount of sadness, as if he knew from personal experience the kind of woman she was referring to.

Annabelle sighed softly, then murmured, “Yeah, I guess… I guess I just kinda hoped for it to have more meaning.” Her eyes unfocused as she looked up at the sky, “I caught my boyfriend cheating on me, that’s part of why I left. The other part was, he wanted to make it my fault that he cheated.” She looked at him, giving him a sad smile, “I’m glad I came though, because now I’ve met Jasmine, James and you.”

He smiled sadly, nodding. “I’m sorry that happened to you, Annabelle. I have a hard time with men who don’t take responsibility for their own actions. As far as the collar having meaning, it has exactly as much meaning as the people involved give. For some, that isn’t very much. For others of us, it’s damn near everything.” He stared at her for a long moment, “I’m really glad to have met you, Annabelle. I do hope you’re not a stranger. I, for one, would relish the opportunity to see you again if we haven’t scared you off.”

Annabelle looked up at him, giving him a sweet smile, “Nope, not scared. I would enjoy seeing you again as well.” She paused, “But I think the blond is getting jealous of your attention on me,” she murmured, “You might lose that one.”

“It is no loss when you turn your focus to something of even greater value, Annabelle,” he murmured softly. “And the kinds of things that each of us value are different. If one is not willing to take the time and discover those things in another person, is moving on truly a loss? Or is it perhaps the avoidance of an inevitable catastrophe?”

Annabelle blushed, dropping her gaze slightly, “You’re smooth, very smooth, Master Michael.”

Michael smiled down at her. “I believe the words you’re looking for are ‘unfailingly honest’,” he paused, then with a shrug added, “Probably to a fault.”

She swallowed, still blushing, and looked up at him, “So why isn’t there more head petting?” She asked curiously. “I know that Jasmine usually has her head in James’s lap getting petted. Of course sometimes she sits on the couch and he lays his head down so she can rub his temples…” she trailed off, blushing slightly, “I guess, I kinda expected more of that.”

He inclined his head, “Two reasons. First, we have several uncollared slaves here tonight, and while I am not personally inclined toward any of them, I, and James, do not particularly want any of them to feel distressed at being left out while they are still looking for their Masters.”

“That makes sense,” she murmured, her eyes turning soft and inward slightly, “I know that I’d be kind of sad if everyone was getting petted and I wasn’t.” She paused, then looked up at him, “What’s the second reason?”

He turned, facing her fully, and murmured as he stared into her eyes, “As you are not a slave, I thought it would be rather rude to simply begin petting your head. One can never be sure of intentions without appropriate levels of conversation and all…”

Her brow furrowed in confusion for several moments, then her mouth fell open slightly in surprise, “But… you’re…” she trailed off, biting her lower lip not sure how to finish that statement.

“Repulsive, I know. It’s a failing. I don’t know why James and Jasmine put up with me…,” he trailed off, his voice teasing, but the seriousness in his eyes unchanging.

Annabelle sniffed, “I thought we were being ‘unfailingly honest’, Master Michael. Not loading a massive pile of cow manure on James’s back porch.” She wrinkled her nose, “You’re handsome, charming, kind and sweet. Not repulsive. Repulsive is David, because while he was cute, he was a dick and his personality overtook his looks by a wide margin.”

Michael laughed. “Very well. I will be ‘unfailingly honest’. I enjoy trying to make you laugh. I find myself completely entranced by it, and I want to hear it as often as possible. In order to do so, I am perfectly willing to make bad puns, tell self-effacing jokes, and even resort to the very, very occasional ridiculous stunt.” He paused, then cocked an eyebrow, “Is that honest enough or do I need to dig deeper?”

She giggled softly, “I suppose I shouldn’t let it be known that I am quite ticklish then, otherwise I may find myself under your fingers much sooner.”

He looked at her intently for a long moment. “And how does that thought make you feel, Annabelle?” he asked softly, his voice intensely curious.

She opened her mouth to respond, “W…,” when James joined them. “There you two are, the other ladies are leaving, and is that another tin of cookies?” He started eyeing the cookies Annabelle was holding hungrily.

Michael looked at him deadpan, “James, you’re going to get fat, and Jasmine is going to run away with me.”

James snorted, “Not likely. She always liked that thing I do with my tongue better than anything you might bring to the table.”

“And on that note, I’ll just excuse myself to let you two to continue your discussion,” Annabelle murmured brightly, slipping past James into the house.

Michael watched her go, his face falling. On seeing it, James closed the door. “You like her, don’t you?”

“Boy, you sure don’t beat around the bush, do you?” Michael snorted.

“That’s why you hired me to sell for you, you ass. Answer the damn question,” he retorted.

“Yes, OK? She’s adorable, interesting, and that laugh… God, that laugh…,” Michael said with a helpless chuckle.

“So what are you going to do about it?”

“I have absolutely no idea. Something though… Gotta do something…” Michael trailed off.

“You still good to meet with that electronics manufacturer from California on Monday with me?” James asked.

“Yeah. You gave them the Gerbers for the new circuit board, right?”

“Last week. They’re supposed to be bringing a quote.”

Michael nodded. “Think we’ll still be able to launch before the AVN show in Vegas?” he asked.

“With any luck. We’ll see what kind of timeline they open with and go from there.”

“OK. Let’s get back inside. It’s getting a bit chilly out here.”

The two went back inside and Michael sighed in pleasure at the quiet that greeted them. With everyone gone except the four of them, the stress started bleeding out of his muscles. “You know, James… as much as I think it’s important to put these things on… the whole social butterfly thing is your bag, not mine.”

Annabelle ran past the two of them, Jasmine several feet behind her screaming, “COOKIE! I WANT IT!”

Michael looked at Jasmine disapprovingly. “What are we, four?” he asked plaintively.

Jasmine skidded to a stop, pouting almost, then looked at him and held up one hand with five fingers, “I five years old.” She turned and sprinted after Annabelle again. A few seconds later there was a thump, then laughter and giggling.

Michael turned to James, who blinked at him, murmuring, “That’s your slave. Your wife.”

James nodded, “Yep. And she’s about to eat my damn cookies,” he muttered before racing after her.

Michael shook his head and sighed, “… gotta be kidding me with this…” He followed them and called, “I’ve called in search and rescue, Annabelle, but you might be stuck with just me. I don’t know what the response time to downtown Minneapolis is…”

Annabelle had tossed a cookie on the bed, and James and Jasmine were fighting over it again. She backed into him, and squeaked, “Hi, Cookie?” She held the tin up to him in offering. At some point in the struggle, her shirt had been pulled off and she was in just a tank top and tiny booty shorts.

Michael took a cookie and took a bite as he watched James and Jasmine fight over the cookie on the bed. “Should we…?” he trailed off, glancing out of the bedroom, then back at the couple.

“Yeah, clothes are about to start flying here in a minute,” she murmured, then slipped out, closing the door behind them as they walked towards the living room.

“Don’t get me wrong. I like James. But there’s just some images that I don’t need stuck in my head. That’s all I’m saying…,” Michael murmured, gesturing behind them and then taking another bite of the cookie. “You know… they should probably be making you register these with the state,” he held up the half-eaten cookie. “Controlled substance or something… Stuff is addictive.”

She giggled, then handed him the rest of the tin that had about four cookies left in it, “Ahh, you have caught on to my nefarious scheme to get you addicted to my cooking.” She giggled softly, as they sat on the couch, she relaxed back, stretching as she pointed her toes, “Ahh, peace at last.”

Michael sat down on the couch with her, not right next to her, but close enough that they were sitting together. “Nefarious my eye. You wouldn’t know nefarious if it bit your cute little ass.”

She giggled, “Aww you think I’ve got a little ass,” she laughed softly, and bumped her shoulder into his, “Careful Master, I might lay my head on your lap next, then where would we be?”

“Well…,” he murmured, looking into her eyes. “You’d probably be getting some of those head pets that you were talking about earlier, for one.”

She bit her lip, her smile still in place but turning slightly softer, “And would that be something you would like?”

“You could always try and find out…,” he said, his voice lowering slightly.

Her eyes widened, then she reached up to pull the ponytail out, letting her hair fall. She slowly, hesitantly shifted to lay her head on his lap as he moved the cookie tin out of the way and set it next to him. Annabelle bit her lip as she relaxed into him, curling up on the couch, “OK, Master…” she trailed off with a soft whisper.

His hand softly began petting her hair, every single trace of stress leaving his body as he did so. He melted into the couch as the only things that existed were his lap, her head, and his hand. “Good girl,” he murmured in a voice barely above a breath.

She sighed softly, a faint whimper of pleasure as she relaxed, choosing to trust him. Her eyes closed as she scooted back slightly, letting him pet her as long as he needed to. Her eyes flickered open as Jasmine and James came out and sat on the other couch. Jasmine was quick to get into the same position as Annabelle and get her own pets, a look of bliss on her face.

Jasmine smiled at Annabelle, “Best feeling ever isn’t it?” She murmured softly.

“Yes,” Annabelle responded with a soft smile.

“How long are you staying for again?” Jasmine asked curiously.

Annabelle shrugged, “Until you tell me to go home? It’s not like I can’t work from here as well as I can from anywhere else. Internet, my computer and my headset and I’m golden, plus I’m on vacation for this coming week.”

James looked at Annabelle, then murmured, “So what I’m hearing is… there will be time for more batches of cookies…”

A voice above Annabelle murmured, “…gonna get fat…”

“Yes I can make more cookies,” Annabelle murmured softly. “Did you still want me to make pulled pork sandwiches tomorrow?”

Michael stopped petting her hair for a brief moment in amazement before starting again, “Were you having a friend over on vacation or a live-in chef? God, James… are you extorting the poor girl?”

Jasmine raised a hand, “My fault Master Michael. She does all the cooking when she’s here. Including the dinner you had tonight.”

Annabelle giggled softly, “I like to cook for people that appreciate it, it gets lonely cooking for yourself, so when I’m down I cook for all of us.” She shifted slightly to look up at him, “Are you hoping to get a plate too, Master Michael?”

He chuckled, “If it’s anything like dinner tonight, only a fool wouldn’t.”

She smiled up at him, then looked at James, who nodded, “Please join us for dinner, Michael.”

Michael nodded at James, then looked down at Annabelle, “I would love to, Annabelle. Thank you.”

Annabelle smiled at him, her eyes soft and warm, then turned back to look at Jasmine, who was making a face at her. “No, I’m not making it,” Annabelle murmured before Jasmine started pouting, turning on the big watery eyes, and the pouty lower lip causing Annabelle to start giggling softly.

Michael raised an eyebrow, “Making… what?”

“Fettuccine Carbonara,” she murmured.

Michael bit back his excitement, before murmuring, “I understand completely. It is a lot of work. The sauce takes forever…”

Annabelle looked up at him, “And making the noodles fresh, because box noodles just aren’t the same.”

Michael inclined his head. “You are absolutely correct, Annabelle.” He glanced up at Jasmine briefly, “That’s a lot of work to be asking you to do…”

Annabelle studied his face in silence, “Let me guess… it’s your favorite dish?” She mused softly, “Because I know that James’s favorite dish is Prime Rib Au Jus, and Jasmine’s favorite dish is Beef Bulgogi.”

Michael opened his mouth, then closed it and blushed slightly, before murmuring, “Regardless, it’s still a lot of work.”

“You’re worth it,” Annabelle murmured, “I’ll make it Monday.” She stated, ignoring the excited ‘yes’ from Jasmine. “I’d make it Sunday but I already promised to help Jasmine make pot roast.”

He began petting her hair again. “You’re a good friend, Annabelle,” he said approvingly, before lowering his voice to where his lips were not moving and it was barely a breath, “And a good girl.”

She sighed softly in pleasure, melting into his touch and closing her eyes again to savor it. She knew he’d go home soon so decided to just enjoy it while she could. The next couple of hours passed quietly with muted conversation and the four just talking. Finally, Michael sighed, as he looked down at Annabelle, “I’m going to need to get home so I can get some sleep if I’m going to be coherent enough to be back here tomorrow.”

She nodded, and pouted as she slowly sat up, reaching up to pull her hair back into a messy ponytail. “OK, Master, would you like me to walk you to the door?”

He looked at her for a long moment, then murmured softly, “I think I’d rather spend extra moments with you than do just about anything else. I would love for you to walk me to the door.” He stood and stretched his hand out to her.

She took his hand, rising to her feet with him, and walked with him towards the door, “I… I really enjoyed tonight, Master.” She murmured looking up at him with soft warm eyes.

“As did I, Annabelle. More than you can possibly imagine,” he murmured, returning her gaze.

She smiled at him as they stood in the doorway, her eyes turning slightly impish, “You asked me a question earlier, and I didn’t get a chance to answer it.” She tilted her head slightly, “Should I answer it now or save it for another time?”

He smiled at her in return, “I will always be ready to listen to anything you have to tell me, Annabelle.”

Annabelle nodded, then stepped forward before lifting up, turning her lips so that only he could hear, “Warm and wet, Master.” She relaxed back, to smile into his eyes again.

“Then I will not apologize for monopolizing your time in the latter half of this evening. I do believe that that is the way I would prefer you to feel,” he said in a warm, intense voice.

She beamed up at him, “I chose to give you my time, Master.” She stepped back slightly, “I’ll let you go, and look forward to seeing you tomorrow.”

He inclined his head, “Tomorrow then… Annabelle,” he murmured, biting back a single word.

She watched him leave, getting into his car and driving away as a slight pout formed on her lips. Jasmine’s arms came around her and she rested her chin on Annabelle’s shoulder. “You like him.”

“Yes, I feel safe with him,” Annabelle murmured, “And I have no idea what to do about it. I’m no good at this… people stuff.” She sighed, patting Jasmine’s arms, “Let’s get to bed, you go snuggle your James, just try to keep the noise level down to a dull roar, my noise cancelling headphones work only so well.”

Jasmine squeezed her slightly, then bounded off with a laugh, “No promises.”

James patted Annabelle on the shoulder, “It’ll be fine. He likes you too,” He said softly, then turned and followed Jasmine to the room.

+++++++++++++

The weekend passed almost too quickly for Annabelle, and dinner Monday was a rousing success. She tried to hide her sadness when Michael didn’t come over on Tuesday. James found Michael in his office on Wednesday morning just after their normal nine a.m. meeting, “You need to come to my house for dinner tonight.”

Michael chuckled, “James, I’m trying not to wear out my welcome with you two…”

“Annabelle set a plate out for you last night, then was sad because you weren’t there.” James said, folding his arms as he looked at his friend and boss. “Besides, you’re not wearing out your welcome.”

He looked up at James, pain in his eyes. “God damnit…,” he sighed. “I didn’t mean to…” He rubbed his hands through his hair. “OK. What can I bring?”

James raised a brow, “You, maybe a bottle of that wine you keep stashed in your house.” He paused, “She’s not upset with you for not coming, she just missed you. She likes your company.”

“I missed her too…,” Michael trailed off, before chuckling ruefully. “James, you know me. I don’t get this nervous about screwing up major business deals, but with her? I’m scared to death I’m going to fuck it up. I’ve never met anyone like her…”

“Just keep being honest with her,” James said, “That was the major issue with her boyfriend, he was never honest with her.” He paused for a moment, “Besides, I’ve heard enough about how much she likes you touching her to last me a lifetime. Plus, maybe you can help Jasmine convince her to move into the city when her lease is up.” He smirked at him impishly.

“Oh really…?” he asked, curious. “When is her lease up? If I’m not mistaken, that house down the street from me is opening up here soon. Kid finally finished his PhD at MSU and got a job out in Pennsylvania or something. Some pharma company…”

“End of next month I think,” James said, stroking his chin, “Jasmine’s trying to convince her to just move into our guest room if she doesn’t find something. Doesn’t like her living out in the ‘dumps’ alone.” He paused, “They’re not dumps, they’re perfectly nice furnished apartments, just too far away for Jasmine’s taste… and desire for Annabelle’s cooking.”

Michael chuckled, shaking his head, “Working that poor woman to death, I tell you. Dinners, cookies… Her fingers are going to start falling off soon, just you wait. Then we’re going to have to have words, you and me.”

“That reminds me,” James pulled a tupperware from his backpack and set it on the desk, “Your lunch, Michael.”

He looked at it, then up at James. “She didn’t…,” he trailed off.

“She did,” James said, grinning at him. “She gave me strict instructions to give this to you.”

Michael looked at the tupperware for long moments, completely overcome. James had never seen him so close to tears over something so simple. They had had employees lose relatives, one even lost a wife, and wept with them. But it was a tupperware of food.

James smiled softly, reaching over to pat his shoulder, “So, see you tonight at dinner?”

Michael nodded. “I’ll… uh…,” he glanced down at his tablet that had his calendar open on it. “I’ll take off at four and swing by the house to pick up some wine. I should be there by five fifteen or five thirty and we can put it on ice for a six o’clock?” His voice was still thick and his gaze kept flicking back to the tupperware.

“Sounds great, I’ll let the ladies know,” he turned to head for his own office, “I think there might be a note, but I’m not sure.” He gave Michael a smile, then walked out, closing the door quietly behind him.

Michael looked, and sure enough, there was a note stuck to the bottom of the tupperware. Opening it up, he read, “Missed you last night. I hope work is going OK. I realized we never exchanged comm numbers, so I’m going to take a leap and give you mine. Feel free to text me when you need or want. Love, Annabelle”

Michael chuckled and sniffed at the same time, rubbing the tears that were about to form from his eyes. “What a woman… You better not fuck this up, Mike,” he muttered to himself. He picked up his own comm and sent off a text, ‘To the most amazing and thoughtful woman I have ever met, Thank you for thinking of lunch. It means more than you can know. I look forward to seeing you tonight again. I can honestly say that there is nothing I would rather do. Yours, Michael.’

Annabelle looked at her commlink, a smile appearing on her lips, she quickly saved the text number under ‘Master’ before replying. “I can’t wait. I hope you enjoy your lunch, Master. Yours, Annabelle.”

Even though it had only been a few days, Michael was starting to get the notion that the reason she had taken to simply calling him Master, instead of Master Michael was not because she didn’t understand the implications. The thought caused him to smile, and even swell a little with pride, that such a woman would potentially wish to submit to him. He set his commlink down, put the food in his cooler, and turned to start his work again.

Annabelle started the crockpot for the dinner tonight, then piled into Jasmine’s car as they went cruising to look at houses and apartments. “I’m thinking a three or four bedroom,” Annabelle murmured. “I need space for my office, and maybe a guest room.”

“Well, what’s your price limit?”

“Three, I could probably go to three and a half, but it’d tighten my moving expenses and limit the amount of furniture I could start with.” Annabelle responded, “I’d prefer to keep it down to two, two and a half.”

They pulled up to a driveway to a modest house, it was a two story, with a finished basement four bedroom. Annabelle got out and got the flyer, looking at it for a minute before climbing back into the car. “Why aren’t you using a realtor to find you a house?”

“Honestly… I don’t know. I guess I just want to look at the houses before I actually get pushed towards buying.” Annabelle murmured softly, “If I’m buying, I don’t want to make a snap judgement. I want it to be the right house, for the right price.”

“Well this one is only twenty minutes from my house,” Jasmine said with a sing-song giggle.

“Yes, yes it is.” The two continued driving, Annabelle noticed that Jasmine stayed within a short range of where their house was, and Annabelle rolled her eyes, “You’re adorable.”

By the time they got back, it was late afternoon and Annabelle went to take a quick shower and change into one of the few dresses she had brought with her as Jasmine did the same. She took a minute to call about the house and made arrangements to see it Friday.

Annabelle started setting the table, and checked on the dinner as the time clicked down, at five she went to her room so that Jasmine could greet James when he came in, not wanting to interrupt their evening greetings with her presence. At five fifteen she stepped out of the room, and returned to the living room, the giddy smiles on Jasmine and James’ face told her all she needed to know.

Jasmine beamed up at her, “Thank you, Annabelle.”

“Happy to help,” Annabelle murmured before sitting down, sweeping the dress under her legs, “How was your day James? Did you get a lot of work done?”

“It was good, I had several meetings with my boss, but it was productive.” James said, giving her a smile as he petted Jasmine. “Michael will be here shortly.

Annabelle wrinkled her nose, “I’m completely obvious aren’t I?”

“Yes, yes you are, but it’s adorable.” Jasmine interjected.

A few seconds later the doorbell rang and Annabelle rose to her feet to answer it, “I’ve got it,” she smiled up at Michael as she opened the door, “Welcome, Master.”

He smiled at her warmly, eyes soft with a faint undertone of something else that looked almost like possession. “Thank you, Annabelle. How are you today?”

“I am well,” she smiled, stepping back slightly and tilting her head, “How was your work today, Master?” She asked as she gracefully took his coat and hung it on the coat hook.

“This amazing woman I know went to all the trouble to send me lunch despite the fact that I didn’t show up for dinner last night,” he said softly. “I was… overwhelmed.”

She tilted her head, giving him a sweet smile, “Then maybe you should give the woman a hug, Master.”

He smiled, murmuring, “That’s a marvellous idea.” Slowly he turned and slid his arms around her waist pulling her close. His face turned into her neck and he rumbled softly, “You smell fantastic, Annabelle.”

She melted into the hug, resting her head on his shoulder exposing her neck to him trustingly, “I did get out of the shower recently,” she whimpered. Her body shivered at the feel of his warm breath on her neck. “You smell wonderful, Master.”

He chuckled, “I smell like factory. There wasn’t enough time to shower before coming here, but thank you.” Reluctantly, he slowly relaxed and stood.

She sighed softly, with a slight whimper, squeezing him one last time before releasing him, looking up at him softly, “That’s going to be as addictive as your fingers in my hair.” She turned and walked him into the living room, relieving him of the bottle of wine and carrying it into the kitchen to put it on ice.

Michael sat down on the couch that was not occupied and looked at James and Jasmine, “So, how is the evening looking?”

James rubbed his hand absently through Jasmine’s hair, “You know… it’s shaping up to be a pretty good evening. Family’s all here. Food’s going to be good. You just can’t really ask for more than that most of the time.”

Michael nodded, “Amen, brother. Amen.” He turned his head and watched Annabelle come back into the room, smiling at her, “How has your week been so far?”

Her eyes softened as she happily returned his smile, “So far so good, Master.” She sat down next to him, then looked up at him hopefully. He nodded with a smile, she beamed, then curled up next to him, putting her head in his lap again as he began to stroke her hair gently.

“That’s good. And these two… are they treating you OK?” he glowered a bit at Jasmine and James, the latter grinning at him.

“Yes, Jasmine and I went looking at houses today, I found a couple of cute ones in my price range.” Annabelle paused, “Of course Jasmine refuses to look any further away than twenty minutes, so that limits the number of houses available,” she looked up at him, then said in an almost whisper, “I think she’s addicted to my food, Master.”

“What did I say?” he asked. At her look of confusion, he murmured with a smile, “Controlled substance…”

She giggled softly, her eyes warm and soft as she looked up at him, “So I guess they’d need a prescription, Master. One cookie per diem?”

Jasmine huffed, “You wouldn’t… that’s evil.”

Michael shook his head, then looking down at Annabelle, he nodded, “One cookie per day. Between them. Let them fight over it.” Looking back up at Jasmine, he smirked, “THAT’S evil.”

Annabelle laughed, a soft squeak escaping before she covered her mouth to stifle the giggles at the matching affronted looks he was getting from James and Jasmine. “Excellent idea, Master.”

Michael melted into the couch again as he stroked her hair once more, “You’re hiding my laughs again, Annabelle…,” he murmured softly.

She lowered her hands slowly, “I’m sorry, Master. I’ll work on that.” She gave him a sweet smile, then tucked into him, completely relaxing.

“Good girl…,” he murmured softly, continuing to pet her hair.

She closed her eyes, enjoying the soothing motions as she softly murmured, just loud enough for him to hear, “Yours, Master.” She cleared her throat, “So tonight’s dinner is going to be fairly simple, curried chicken and rice. Does that sound good, Master?”

Michael blinked, but recovering quickly, he nodded, “That sounds wonderful. About how long do we have?”

“Twenty five minutes, give or take,” she murmured softly, “Just waiting on the rice cooker. We planned for dinner at six.”

“Back porch?” he asked softly.

She lifted her head noting his warm smile, “Of course, if that is your wish, Master.” She rose to her feet, her brow furrowed in confusion.

Michael led them to the back porch and, when the door had closed, slid his arm around her waist and pulled her around to where they could not be seen easily. His face was close, close enough that she could feel the heat of his breath. “Annabelle… I’m trying not to push faster than you are comfortable, but… the way you keep calling me Master instead of Master Michael like the others, the way you feel when I pet you, when I hold you, is making it difficult. Is that something you are meaning to do? Or is it simply an honorific? Because…,” he trailed off. “I can’t get you out of my mind, and I don’t really want to try anymore.” He looked at her intently, that look of desire and possession was back.

Annabelle’s mouth went dry, and she blushed slightly, “Jasmine told me that’s what I’m supposed to do when I felt I was ready for more… Am I doing it wrong?” She bit her lower lip, pushing her fingers together as she dropped her gaze, her brow furrowed. “I’m trying to understand, and learn the life so…” she trailed off.

He reached up with one hand and cupped her chin, lifting her gaze again. Looking into her eyes with unabashed need, he murmured thickly, “God no, Annabelle. You’re doing it exactly right. I just wanted to make sure… I didn’t want to pressure, or make you uncomfortable…,” he trailed off. Swallowing, he murmured, “What more would you like? What is it that you want, Annabelle? What are you ready for that I can give to you?”

She swallowed, biting her lip, the blush not leaving her cheeks as she murmured, “I… feel safe with you.” She paused for a moment, “but I don’t know the answer to those questions… I… more?” She trailed off, closing her eyes for a moment then looking up at him, biting her lower lip, “Maybe… umm… traffic lights?” She asked, her tone confused and hopeful, “Like, we use the traffic light system… green I’m good, yellow I need to slow down, red I’m not ready… yet.”

He nodded. “I can do that,” he murmured softly. “Now… I’m going to kiss you, because I’m going to spontaneously combust right here on the spot if I don’t.”

“Yes, Master,” she lifted her face slightly towards his in anticipation, joy and desire in her eyes.

He lowered his lips and claimed hers, a loud groan of barely checked desire sounding immediately in her ears. Holding her body tightly to his, he pressed his lips into hers for long moments, licking gently to taste them after a while. Finally he released her and looked back into her eyes. “I… Annabelle, that was…,” he trailed off, completely at a loss for words.

She smiled up at him, licking her lips, “You can feel free to do that anytime you want, Master.” She leaned back against the wall and tugged him towards her, a low soft moan of pleasure at feeling him pressed against her, “Super green,” she informed him.

He looked at her curiously. “Is this something you would like me to ensure we are alone for… my Annabelle?”

She tilted her head, her eyes turning confused, “No… why? Do you only want this when we’re alone, Master?”

“Absolutely not. I am trying to feel out your comfort level. Asking questions is the generally accepted method for doing so,” he murmured firmly, before his hand shifted and he started feeling around at her ribs with the fingertips, prodding gently.

“Yes, Master,” she shifted, and squirmed, then wriggled before bursting into laughter when he hit a particular spot, a squeak escaping shortly after. “Master, please…” She squirmed and laughed again, arching to escape the tickling of his fingers while rubbing her body against his.

“There it is…,” he murmured as he slowed and stopped. “God, I love that sound…” He paused, then continued, “I never want you to be uncomfortable with what we do, Annabelle, who we are. And I’m not one who does this sort of thing normally, but I would shout from the rooftops that you are mine if I wasn’t worried about scaring you off…” He looked into her eyes, “I will never be embarrassed of you… or who you wish to be to me as you figure that out, Annabelle. Never.”

Her eyes were soft and warm, “Yes, Master.” She paused for a moment, looking up at him, “I’m not scared. I feel safe with you, like… I’m home.” She licked her lips, “May I have another kiss, Master.”

“Gladly,” he murmured, before pressing her into the wall and bending his head once more to kiss her passionately. Long moments passed, and when he released her lips again, he murmured softly, “My good girl…”

A soft sighing whimper of pleasure, as she languidly gazed up at him, “Yours, Master.” She slid her hands up his body, then gently cupped the back of his head, urging him towards her again, “More please.” The next several minutes were spent in slow, long kisses unhurried in their pleasure and discovery. When the timer went off she pouted up at him, “I can have more later?”

“I will happily give them any time I am able,” he murmured, then leaned into her ear, “They’re more addicting than your cookies.”

She whimpered and shivered against him, tilting her head slightly to press towards him in offering, “And only for you, Master.” She pressed against him, nuzzling into his neck with a soft kiss before turning to lead him back into the house so she could feed them. She hummed happily to herself as she made the plates, putting his in front of him first, before fixing one for James and Jasmine then herself. This time she sat beside Michael, her foot slipping up and down his calf under the table as they ate.

Suddenly a commlink chirped, then made a musical noise. Annabelle frowned, then pulled her commlink out to check it, “I’ve got to take this, I’m sorry.” She rose to her feet, stroking her fingers up Michael’s arm gently before kissing his temple, “I’m sorry, I’ll try to make it quick.” She walked away, as she answered the phone, her soft, sweet tone shifting to cold and distant, “Goodwin, I’m on vacation Smith.” She paused for several minutes, listening as she walked down the hallway to her room, “You lost… the data…” She paused, “How the hell did you lose the data Smith, you had two backups.” Her bedroom door closed, cutting off the last of the castigation she was giving the poor soul named Smith.

Jasmine huffed and pouted, then got up and took Annabelle’s plate to put it in the microwave to keep it warm before returning to her seat. “Poor Annabelle. Smith is an idiot.”

“They actually call her when they know she’s on vacation?” Michael asked, almost incredulously.

James nodded, “She is salaried, and the team lead.” He paused, his brow furrowed, then cleared, “Ohh, you two never did the whole, ‘My job is…’, stuff. She’s the team lead for a red-team of white hats.”

Michael blinked. “Wow. That’s impressive…,” he said, the admiration evident in his voice. “That’s not an easy job.”

“So they call her sometimes. Not as much as they used to, she put protocols in place to prevent it as much as possible.” Jasmine offered quietly. “That’s part of the reason she’s looking at moving into the city, it’ll be easier if she has to actually go down to the office.”

They continued talking for several minutes until Annabelle came back out, hanging up the commlink. Instead of getting her plate, or sitting back down she walked up behind Michael and draped herself against his back and hugged him tightly from behind. Tucking her face into his neck to breathe him in.

Michael softly stroked her arms, “What can I do? How can I make it better?”

“You’re doing it,” she murmured into his neck followed by a soft kiss. “I can’t tell if Smith is extremely stupid, or highly intelligent. Either way, he’s two phone calls from getting transferred to a different team.” She tightened her grip on him with a soft sigh, kissing his neck again before straightening to heat up her dinner so she could eat. “I’m sorry about the interruption, Master.”

He tightened his grip on her arm. “I’m not here to take your life away. I want to be part of it,” he murmured.

She smiled into his eyes, “You already are, Master.” She paused, “Jasmine and I are looking at a house on Friday, I don’t know if you’re going to be busy, but if you’re free about lunch time you’re welcome to join us. James is invited but he’ll need to ask his boss for time off.” She sat down beside Michael again, returning to her food as she stroked his leg with her foot again, almost incessantly seeking to touch him.

He looked at James, then chuckled. “Of course you can have the time off. We’ll make it a double date.”

Annabelle looked between the two of them in confusion for a moment, then her face cleared as she smiled at Michael, “That sounds like fun, Master.” She murmured, her fingers reaching to touch him gently. Dinner was finished quickly with quiet talking, then the four of them retired to the living room again. Annabelle bit her lower lip for a moment, then instead of laying her head on his lap as was habit, she snuggled fully into his lap and curled up against his chest.

“Could get used to this so easily…,” he murmured.

“Nefarious scheme,” she murmured into his neck with a soft giggle.

“…Cute little ass…,” he chuckled softly, so that only she could hear.

“Yours to touch, Master.” She murmured in response as she tucked into his neck, giving it a soft kiss. “Along with anything else that might take your fancy, Master” she ended, giving him another kiss on the neck.

“Yeah?” he asked softly, his expression turning warm.

She nodded, tucking her head slightly bashfully, “I trust you, feel safe with you, Master.”

He nodded slowly, “The feeling is very mutual. As is the offer.”

She flicked her gaze up to meet his eyes, her eyes warm and gentle, she lifted up slightly and brushed her lips across his softly, “Yes, Master.” She slid her hand around him, then slipped it under his shirt to touch his skin gently with warm fingers. “I am looking forward to having my own place again,” she murmured softly into his ear, “Then I can run around naked again.”

He smiled, turning so that he was murmuring in her ear. As he did so, the shit-eating grin that James was wearing on his face as he looked at the two of them did not escape his notice. “Now that is something I think I would like to see for myself.”

She blushed, smiling up at him, “I look forward to it, Master. Just have to find the right house. Then I can invite you over, just the two of us,” her eyes were warm and inviting as she looked into his. Her fingers stroked up and down his back and side with warm touches, delicately exploring and touching.

Jasmine giggled softly, then rose to her feet, tugging James behind her, they left the living room to give Annabelle and Michael some privacy, Annabelle lifted her head to look as they did so, then looked up at Michael with a warm gaze. Michael watched them go, and when they had turned the corner, he shifted Annabelle in his lap, crushing his mouth to hers with a groan of need, his hand sliding lower to cup her ass as had been offered, squeezing firmly.

A low moan of pleasure poured into his mouth as she melted into the kiss, her hand pressing into the small of his back as her other hand slid up to cup and massage his head. She shifted, pressing her ass more firmly into his hand in clear offering. Her lips parted to suck on his lower lip, then darted her tongue out to taste him.

Michael chased his tongue back into her mouth after hers, plundering and claiming that part of her in clear, unmistakable ownership. His fingers slid into her hair and entangled themselves in it. He smiled slightly into her lips, before he tugged firmly, baring her neck, then bent and kissed the side of it eagerly, finally opening his mouth to graze his teeth over the skin and licking where they had been.

She whimpered softly, her fingers clenching into him desperately as the kiss set her nerves on fire. A low wanton whine poured from her lips at the feel of his lips, teeth and tongue on her neck, “Oh… God… please, Master.” She moaned brokenly, “Yours.”

He finally lifted his lips off of her neck to look at her eyes again, and murmured huskily, “Someday… you’re going to ask me to put a collar on that neck. One that doesn’t come off. And I’m going to do it, Annabelle. Not until you’re ready, but I’ll be damned if you ever belong to someone else…”

She shivered at the sound of possession in his voice, “Yes, Master.” She blinked slowly, trying to get control of her hormones again as she did so. A faint blush on her cheeks at the wanton way she was acting, but trying not to be embarrassed because it was for him and him alone. “What else would you like to do before you leave, Master?” She asked softly, looking into his eyes trustingly.

“I just… I just want to hold you. You feel so comfortable. You said it earlier… home. You feel like home, and I wish I didn’t have to leave,” he said softly, pulling her to his chest and gently stroking her body. “Tell me about your dreams. What do you want in life?”

“Someday, you won’t have to.” She murmured softly as she melted into him again, more than happy to give him whatever he wanted and needed, “Honestly, my dreams have changed lately… I’m moderately successful with my job, but now more of my dreams involve you and making you happy.” She paused, “I want a family and a home.” She looked up at him, “That’s part of why I was hoping you could go with us on Friday… I know it’s soon but… I want your input on the house I buy, because I want it to be a house we’ll both like.”

He looked at her, his gaze filled with wonder. “How did I have to wait so long to find you, Annabelle?” he asked, brushing the backs of his fingertips along her cheek. “I would be honored. I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to hear you say that.”

She smiled, turning her face slightly to kiss his fingers gently, “What about you, Master? What are your dreams?” She tilted her head, “What’s important to know for the care and keeping of Master Michael?”

He thought about that for a moment. “I’m also doing quite well with my job. At least, James seems to have no complaints. But I go home to an empty house. I want to go home to someone who wants me there for me. Not because I’m well off, not because of what I can do for them, but simply because they want to be around me. I want to share my life with someone like that. And yes, I have a need to control that relationship, but ultimately to take care of that person and help them grow and become whatever they want to be.” He paused, then finished. “I want to be someone’s world and I want someone who can be my world.”

She nodded her understanding, her fingers slowly stroking over his chest in a gentle massage. “You’re well on your way to becoming my world, Master.” She bit her lip, “I spent most of the day wondering what to do to make you happy, keep you happy, make you feel cherished and loved.”

He chuckled, “And the only thing I could think about after your call was how stressed you sounded and wondered what I could do to take it away.”

“Your kisses help,” she murmured, “And your holding me and touching me comforts me.” She looked up at him through her lashes, “You can kiss me in front of other people… if you want to, Master. I’ll never deny you.”

“I would like that very much. I very much want other people to know you’re taken and not get any ideas,” he said firmly. “Not that I worry about James…,” he smiled wryly. “I know where he works, and I’ll just kick his ass in the parking lot.”

She giggled softly, her eyes sparkling, “Yours, Master.” She brushed her lips across his again before snuggling into him once more. “This is very addictive and if I wasn’t in James’s house I’d ask if we could try the bed for snuggling.”

“Someday soon,” he murmured. “When you tell me you’re ready, we’ll find a way.” He rested for a moment, then added, “Until then, anytime you want, this, right here, is your home. You are always welcome in your home.”

“Yes, Master.” She murmured, “What about after?” She tilted her head, “Will I still get to have all the cuddles I want?”

Michael smiled, nodding, “Absolutely.”

“What about you, Master? Are you going to want lots of cuddles, and kisses, and naked Annabelle?” She looked up at him wide eyed but with a clear impish smile on her lips.

“And many, many other things, but yes, those too. And often,” he murmured seriously. “I’m going to want all of you, in all the ways, inside the bedroom and out of it. Mind, heart, body, soul. Nothing held back, because I’ll give you that much of me too.”

Her eyes relaxed, and a slow sweet smile replaced the impish one as she gazed into him, “It will be yours, Master. Because when I put a collar on, accept a ring, marry and take a last name, it’s going to be permanent.” She leaned in and brushed her lips across his, “There should probably be some discussions beforehand, yeah?”

“As many as you need about whatever you want. I’ve seen enough to know that going anywhere would be the biggest mistake of my life. I’m right here, unless you tell me to go.”

Annabelle murmured, “The only time I’ll ever tell you to go is when I’m begging you to go deeper, go harder, go faster.” She smirked into his eyes, “I’ve done a lot of research, Master. There are a few things I’m not interested in, but I doubt they are something you’re interested in either.” She paused, “I’m not a pony or furniture, I’m not going to parade around nude in front of other people because my body is for my Master’s viewing pleasure only. No humiliation or blood play.” She tilted her head, “However, I do like the idea of bondage, and being tied up and spanked. And very much like the idea of worshiping you, Master.”

He smiled, “I like all of those things, my Annabelle. And I would do further research with you if you want. The thing about this lifestyle… for those of us for whom it actually IS a lifestyle… It’s a journey. One best walked together. We explore together, we learn together, we grow together. I do not have all the answers, but I want to lead us to finding them together.” He paused, then brushed his lips across hers before asking, “Does that make sense?”

“Yes, Master,” she murmured softly, “And I very much like this idea.” She cuddled into his chest again, sneaking her hand lower to rub across his stomach before moving upward, “Do you like massages?”

“They… involve your hands on me, right?” he asked with a smile, the desire in his eyes back.

“Yes, Master,” she murmured. “While you’re naked is better.” She snuggled into him, wanting to keep things light between them, even though part of her ached for more. “I am a patient, good girl.” She murmured to herself under her breath, as she breathed deeply with her eyes closed.

“Anything that involves your hands on me in a not-homicidal way has my approval… my good girl,” he murmured.

Her eyes opened to look up at him slowly, the sheer hungry need evident in them before she forced herself to focus, “Your good girl, Master. I want to take care of you outside the bedroom as well. I want to cook, and clean, and pamper you so you never have stress at home.” She paused, “What about you, Master? What are your fantasies? What do you desire?”

“All that…,” he smiled, before adding, “and so many decadent pleasures inside the bedroom as well. I want to treat you, experience new things with you. Travel and the like. I want long, calm conversations about shallow and deep things. I want to enjoy life with someone who matters. I think that’s you, Annabelle.”

Annabelle smiled, and leaned in, giving him another soft, sweet kiss before sucking on his lower lip to dart her tongue in to taste him with a soft sigh of pleasure, “And I think it’s you, Master.” She murmured into his mouth before kissing him again, her lips soft and warm, offering to him all that she was. They spent several long minutes just pleasurably kissing and touching each other, murmuring softly until Jasmine and James rejoined them, then the four spent the next couple of hours just talking and spending time together. Annabelle walked him to the door afterwards, and looked up at him, “I miss you already.”

“You have my comm,” he murmured before bending to kiss her passionately. “You get to use it anytime. Anytime.”

“Soon,” she murmured, “Will you be here for dinner tomorrow?” She looked up at him hopefully, “I’ll cook anything you’d like.”

He chuckled, “James already chastised me. I will be here. Surprise me. Somehow, I find myself doubting that anything you make is going to taste bad.”

“Yes, Master.” She lifted up to kiss him again, then daringly touched her fingers to his thigh, pressing close to his groin but not quite touching it, “Anything you desire, Master. I will happily give it to you, Master.”

As he sadly gathered his will and pulled away, he murmured softly, “Whenever you are ready, my Annabelle.” He walked to his car and began the drive home, both exhilarated and sad at the same time.

Annabelle watched him go, a slight pout on her face, then closed the door and sighed. Jasmine wrapped her arms around her from behind, “What’s wrong you’ll see him again tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow isn’t going to come fast enough.” Annabelle murmured softly, “I don’t like letting him go… I’ve never felt like this with anyone. Not even…” she trailed off, “And he sets me on fire with just a kiss. It’s not fair, I haven’t had anything that wasn’t run on batteries in years.” James promptly put his fingers in his ears to walk away, not wanting to hear anymore of the conversation, but making note to tease Michael about it tomorrow.

++++++++++++++

Friday, eleven a.m. Annabelle checked her finances once more, doing the mental calculations, then nodded, the asking price on the house was well within her self imposed budget. She walked out of the bedroom to join Jasmine as they waited for the men to arrive, the meeting was set for twelve thirty so they had time. Jasmine looked at Annabelle, “What are you thinking?”

“That this is a big step, and I’ve never bought a house before.” Annabelle murmured. “I’m worried that I’ll like it but Michael doesn’t…”

“I think it’s going to be fine, you and Michael will find the perfect house.” Jasmine said easily, “And besides, you’re welcome to stay here with James and I after your lease expires while you’re looking.”

James pulled into the garage and came into the house, Jasmine promptly bounded over and wrapped herself around him in a big wet kiss. Annabelle looked and when she didn’t see Michael she looked at James in confusion. “He’s running a few minutes behind me,” James said after he had finished kissing Jasmine.

“Oh… OK,” Annabelle murmured softly. “How many vehicles are we taking?”

“I would say just the one, but I figured we’d take two, give you and Michael some alone time,” James said, wiggling his brows teasingly at her.

As she was about to retort a car door closed loudly outside and moments later, there was a knock at the door. “Hey! Is there a pretty lady named Annabelle that I can take on a double date?”

Annabelle’s face shifted and she beamed, turning to open the door, she flung her arms around Michael in a tight hug, “Missed you, Master.” She murmured softly, tucking her head into his neck to smell him.

“Best feeling in the world. Someone who actually misses me,” he murmured holding her to him.

She melted into his warm strength, “Master James said we would take separate cars, Master?” She looked up at him through her lashes curiously.

“You know… private conversations and all that,” he murmured with a smile.

“Anything you desire, Master.” She glanced at her watch, “Do you want something to drink? We’ve got a few minutes before we need to leave, Master.”

He smiled, “Just water, my Annabelle. Thank you.”

She smiled, and quickly went to the kitchen to get him a glass of water, happy to serve him. She came back a few moments later with a chilled glass, offering it to him. “Yours, Master.”

“Such a good girl,” he murmured. “You bless my life.” He reached up to pet her hair once, softly.

She sighed in pleasure, letting him take a drink before returning the glass to the kitchen so they could leave. She wrapped her hand around his, entwining her fingers as they walked towards his car, “How was your day, Master?” She asked him, looking up at him.

“Financial spreadsheets, trade show booth updates, interspersed by daydreams about an amazing woman I know and was coming to a lunch date with,” he murmured, smiling as he squeezed her hand.

She giggled softly, “You’re so good to me, Master.” She slid into the car and sat back, buckling up as he got in on the other side. She put in the directions for the house, then turned slightly to face him, the smile playing around her lips was more than a little naughty, “I’ve a confession though, Master.”

“Oh?” he asked, raising a brow as he pulled out of the drive and waited for James to pull out to follow him.

“I’m not wearing any panties,” she stated with a wicked grin, “And I shaved… everywhere, Master.”

Michael swallowed, his eyes lidding slightly and a low growl escaping his chest. “And you are telling me because… you wish me to verify?” he asked, his voice thick.

“Yes, Master,” Annabelle murmured, shifting and spreading her legs slightly in clear invitation. “I think Master should inspect his property.”

“Oh… my Annabelle…,” he murmured as his fingers found their way to her leg and slowly moved up it, sliding the dress back. “So smooth. Such a good girl…,” he said before reaching the apex of her legs. “Such a precious gift…,” he murmured as he grazed his fingertips over her sex.

A soft whimpering whine escaped as she spread her legs wider, opening for him, “Yours, Master.” She bit her lip, looking at him with intent, dark eyes, “Does it please you, Master?”

“Like you have no idea…,” he rumbled as he pressed harder and began rubbing his fingers over her clit.

A broken sound of wanton need slipped out, “Oh… Master, please, your good girl, please, Master.” Her hips rocked towards his fingers eagerly, “Please, Master.”

“God, you sound so good. That need is mine. I want it… Give it to me…,” he muttered, focusing on keeping control of the car as he sped up with his fingers, aching to hear her release.

She arched and shuddered then a scream of pleasure was ripped from her chest as she climaxed, “MASTER!” She clenched her fingers but kept her legs spread for her Master’s pleasure, “Oh… God, Master.”

He smiled, then withdrew his hand and lifted it to his lips, taking a deep sniff, before licking at them. “Mmmmmm…,” he murmured. “You taste divine, my Annabelle.”

She whimpered softly, relaxing back into the seat, “Yours, Master. That’s only for you to have and taste.” She adjusted her skirt slightly, smiling up at him with a soft, slightly bashful look, “Was it a good surprise, Master?”

“The best. You are such a good girl, Annabelle. You make me proud to be your Master,” he murmured with deep meaning in his voice.

She smiled happily, then took his hand, entwining her fingers with his as they finished the short drive. They pulled into the driveway behind another person’s car and slipped out, Annabelle walked forward with a smile, “Miss Davenport?” The woman turned, and returned the smile, “I’m Miss Goodwin, we spoke on the phone.”

“I’m happy to finally meet you. Who is this fine man?” Davenport responded, “The house is currently empty, and I’m more than happy to take you on a walk through.”

“My boyfriend. My best friend and her husband will be here shortly as well. We wanted to make it a group outing before we went to dinner.” Annabelle smiled at her.

“Wonderful, wonderful.” They waited a few minutes, then made the introductions with Jasmine and James arrived. They were led through the house, it was a fairly decent sized four bedroom home, with two bedrooms upstairs, and two bedrooms on the main floor, with one being the Master. The basement was fully finished, but the whole thing was empty with no furniture. They walked through taking their time to look. Finally, Annabelle looked at Michael and tilted her head in question.

Michael nodded, “Nice house. Good for… a family.”

Annabelle smiled happily, then turned back to Davenport, “Excellent, so let’s discuss when we’ll have the inspectors come out and take a look.” It took only a few minutes for arrangements to be made. The four watched as Davenport left, an inspector and an appraiser would be by on Monday to look at the house. Annabelle wrinkled her nose at Jasmine, “Guess I’m camping in your guest room a little longer, mischief.”

“I offered to let you move in until you could find a place, “Jasmine intervened.

“Yes, but one can only hear monkey noises from your room so many nights.” Annabelle teased, before darting over to stand by Michael, looking up at him, “So, what would you like to do the rest of the afternoon, Master?”

“Do you need to start thinking about furniture?” he asked. “I know a couple of good places.”

“Probably,” she murmured, “I was thinking I’d start with the bedroom and living room, then work my way through the rest of the house.” She paused, “I’ll have to find the perfect bed. Initially I thought about tossing down an air mattress, but if I did that, Jasmine would get upset with me.”

“An air mattress is for people that still think things might change… or want them to,” he murmured softly. “A bed is for people who want to get comfortable where they are and hunker down.” He looked at her for a moment, then asked softly, “Which do you want? It’s not Jasmine’s choice.”

She wrinkled her nose, “I… want to pick out a bed with you, because someday I want us to be able to share it.”

Michael smiled at her softly. “That’s my good girl…,” he murmured, brushing his lips across her forehead.

“Unless of course, you already have a bed you really really like,” she murmured as she melted into him with a soft sigh, “Your good girl.”

He shook his head. “We find a new one. New beginnings need new beds, I think.”

“Yes, Master,” she smiled up at him.

James spoke up, “Isn’t your house near here, Michael?”

“Yes, it’s the last one on the block,” Michael said, lifting his head.

Annabelle smiled up at him, “Well, if this house is the one I get, it’ll be nice to have you close,” she murmured softly.

Michael nodded, smiling at her in pleasure that she thought so. “So do you want to start shopping or… wait until things go further along with the house or…?”

Annabelle started to reply when Jasmine piped up, “Why don’t we go to your house for a bit? So Annabelle can see it,” she gave him an innocent smile, Annabelle’s eyes looked hopeful.

“If Annabelle would like, I would be happy to show her my house,” Michael murmured, brushing his thumb over the knuckles of her hand as he held it.

Annabelle bit her lip, giving him a small sweet smile, “I’d like that, Master” she murmured softly.

“OK. Let’s do that, then.” They got in their cars and drove the short distance to Michael’s house. It was nice, good-sized, but functional for a single man. A large one-bedroom home with lots of amenities, high-end appliances, and a modern feel. Leading her inside, he murmured, “So… this is… where I sleep.”

Annabelle looked around, then snuggled into his side, wrapping her arms around him, “It’s very lovely.”

He chuckled. “If you say so,”

James looked at Michael, his arm around Jasmine, “You made reservations at Antonio’s, right?”

Michael nodded, “Six thirty. Why?”

James grinned at him. “We’ll meet you there. I have…,” he looked at Jasmine, “things to attend to. Later, boss.” And they turned and shut the door, quickly walking out to the car and driving off.

Michael squeezed Annabelle a little tighter. “That little sneak…,” he murmured, in a mockingly offended tone.

Annabelle’s mouth fell open, then she looked up at Michael, “I think those two planned that,” she stated, her tone somewhat bemused, “So we’re all alone for,” she glanced at her watch, “about four hours. Whatever should we do?”

Michael moved until he was facing her squarely, “Well… I know someone who was talking about wanting to try snuggles in a bed.” He paused, “It just so happens that I have one. And it’s currently unoccupied…”

She smiled up at him, biting her lower lip, “I’d like that, Master.”

Michael led her into the bedroom and scooped her up, twirling her around once, before laying her on the bed. Walking around to the other side, he got on beside her and reached out to pull her into his chest. Sighing in pleasure at the way her body molded to his, he murmured, “This. This is the stuff, right here…”

She giggled, then snuggled tightly into him, a soft sigh of happiness, “Yes, Master. This is wonderful,” she nuzzled into his neck with soft, gentle kisses. Her hand wrapped around him to stroke up and down his back slowly, just touching him. “Better than I dreamed.”

“Me too, my Annabelle. Me too,” he murmured softly. “I never thought I could feel this comfortable… find someone like you.”

She shifted, then turned to lay on her back, tugging him down until his head was pillowed on her chest. She started rubbing her fingers through his hair and gently massaging his temple and scalp before down to the back of his neck, focusing on giving him pleasure through her touch. “Master…” she started, before trailing off, then seeming to gather her courage, “I’m… I’ve found myself falling in love with you. And…” she trailed off again, not sure what else to say.

He lifted his head to look at her. “OK. So… I’m guessing it’s going to go over fairly well if I tell you that I started falling in love with you that very first night…” He paused, then added, “Because I did.”

She smiled at him, her eyes soft and warm, “I’m glad, because it was me too,” she paused, then her nose wrinkled, “Of course I was scared to talk to you at first, you seemed so… irritated.”

“In my defense, you did meet David and the vapid blonde. I had some compelling reasons to be irritated…,” he trailed off logically.

“I was worried I would make it worse,” she confessed quietly, her fingers still stroking slowly through his hair, “Because I didn’t know much of anything.”

He shook his head slowly. “I try very hard to separate my emotions from my feelings about people. If I’m irritated, I never want someone who is not the cause to think it’s about them.” He paused, “Besides, at this point, you’re one of the only things that makes it better.”

“Yeah?” She murmured hopefully, “I want to make things better for you,” she stroked her fingers down his neck, gently massaging and touching, “Want to help you be happy, Master.”

“My life is a thousand percent better since a week ago. You want to make things better? Don’t leave. Ever,” he murmured, wrapping his arm around her possessively and throwing a leg over one of hers for good measure.

“Yes, Master,” Annabelle murmured, kissing the top of his head, “I promise I will only leave long enough to pack my apartment up for the move. And I will never, ever leave you permanently.”

Michael nodded into her chest and held her there like that for a long time. Finally, his hand left her side and started rubbing gently over her abdomen, before pressing into her thigh, in a firm massage. “You feel so good in my bed, Annabelle…,” he murmured softly.

She smiled softly, spreading her legs and opening herself to his touch with a quiet groan of pleasure, “You feel good in my arms, Master. Feels like home,” she murmured, kissing the top of his head again.

His hand slowly grazed up the inside of her thigh again. “Want to hear you again, Annabelle,” he murmured softly as his hand reached her sex. “Want to hear your pleasure. Hear you scream…” He slowly started moving his fingers back and forth across her clit.

Her eyes widened in surprised pleasure, a low moan released from her lips. She spread her legs wider, once again giving him access to her body, “Yours, Master. Only for you,” she groaned as she rocked her hips towards his hand, “Only for you, please, Master. Yours, please.”

He stretched up, kissing at her neck, then licking as he rumbled in a low voice, “Mine… My Annabelle…” His fingers stopped rubbing her clit for a moment, dipping lower to slide sensuously over her lips and entrance, picking up moisture, before returning and teasing it once more.

She stuttered a broken whimper as she arched towards his fingers. Her head tilted and pressed her neck up to his mouth in offering, massaging the back of his head in encouragement, “Yours, Master, please, oh please, Master. Your good girl, please, your good girl, Master. Yours, anything, everything yours, please, Master.”

He rumbled in her ear once more between kisses and licks, “Come for me, my Annabelle. Come for Master.”

Annabelle’s body arched, and a loud scream was ripped from her chest at his order, “MASTER!” Her body shuddered as it slumped back, her legs staying spread open for his pleasure even as she clutched at him, “Oh… God… Master, feels so good, love the way you touch me.”

Michael looked at her with a glazed expression on his face, “How you are meant to be… Splayed out on my bed for me to have however I choose. But I am patient… You’re worth it. Want you to be comfortable. Happy. Give you whatever you need. Such a good girl…,” he murmured softly.

Annabelle whimpered under him softly, staring up at him, “Your good girl, Master.” She bit her lower lip, “What can I do for you, Master? What would you like?”

“Hold you…,” he trailed off, scooting up and pulling her into him tightly. Clutching at her as he struggled mightily to get control of himself again. “Patient…,” he murmured, as much a reminder to himself as a chastisement. She had not asked for more. He would respect that.

She bit her lip, closing her eyes, “Yes, Master.” She murmured softly, stroking her hand down his back, “Did… Have I done something wrong? Is there something I’m… doing wrong, or not doing…” she trailed off her voice soft and sad, “I’m sorry.”

He looked at her worried. “No… Annabelle no. I…” He sighed, clutching her tighter, “I’m trying not to push too hard, too fast. Overwhelm you… Just want you so bad… Trying to be patient. Wait for you to tell me you’re ready for more…”

She looked at him, quietly, then dropped her gaze, shaking her head slightly, “But… I did… and asked what you would like… and then… you just want to hold me… I’m sorry, Master, I don’t know what words to use to communicate better.”

Michael looked at her for a long moment, then gathered his courage and put it out there. “I want you, Annabelle. In all the ways. I want to start right now, and spend the rest of our lives discovering new ways to get you to scream like you just did. I want you naked in this bed and around me as I fill you, and I don’t ever want to have to worry about you not wanting that from me.” He looked into her eyes, vulnerable, “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about all the things I want to do to this body for a solid week. And I’m just hoping that you don’t think I’m crazy because it’s only been that long…”

Annabelle smiled into his eyes, reaching up to cup his cheek softly, “I want all those things too, Master.” She bit her lip, “I just… I thought you wanted to wait until after I had a collar.” She blushed, biting her lower lip, “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about being under you, filled by you either. How desperately I want to be pinned and fucked by you.”

“I do want to put a collar on you. I want that so much, but…,” he trailed off. “Are you worried that… because there’s no… symbol… of commitment? A collar? A ring? That if we do, I’m going to be done with you? Because I’m not. I will never…,” he trailed off. “I just wanted to make sure you knew… that I was in this for the long haul and not just a quick fling…” He paused, then added, “I don’t want you to ever think that.”

She looked at him, her eyes warm, but confused, “I thought that’s what you were waiting on so you’d know I wasn’t looking for a quick fling, that I wanted forever. Because I do want forever.”

He huffed softly, “God, we’re like a couple of teenagers in high school…” He paused, then lifted her lips to his. “I’m going to take my property now, Annabelle, unless you tell me it’s not mine to take for being a dunce.”

“Well, considering I graduated high school at twelve,” she stated, then gazed up at him, her eyes warm and trusting, “Yours, Master. Your property to have. Anything, Everything is yours, Master.”

“Show me my property, Annabelle. I want to see…,” he murmured softly, drinking in her eyes. His hands reached up to graze his fingertips across her cheek and down her neck.

“Yes, Master.” She squirmed slightly, then shifted to where she could get up, she pulled the dress up and off her body, the bra getting tossed with it leaving her standing there completely nude before him. “Your property, Master. Does it please you?” She bit her lip, looking at him hopefully.

“Oh, Annabelle… You have no idea how much,” he murmured softly. He reached out his arms toward her, “Come to your Master, my Annabelle. Let me show you…”

She crawled back into the bed and into his arms eagerly, “Yes, Master.” She laid back down, smiling up into his eyes, reaching up to touch his face gently with her fingers. “I love you, Michael. I choose you to be my Master.”

He smiled, his eyes moist. “I am your Master, Annabelle. You are my slave. We will start looking for a collar for you in the morning. Now, however, I intend to have you as I have wanted for nearly a week.” He looked down at her body, before his lips found her neck, groaning loudly with a barely checked need.

She whimpered softly in pleasure, tilting her head to press her neck to his mouth. “Yes, Master, have your property, yours to claim and have.” Her hands pressed to his head and then down his back in eager need, her touch warm and firm, encouraging him.