Chapter 38

Monday morning dawned bright and clear, the sun warming the covers on the bed. He looked over to see the curtains were stowed in the corner. Glancing around, he saw that Elaina was gone, or least she wasn't where he could see or hear her. He figured she must have opened the curtains as a treat for him. He padded barefoot around the apartment, noting that her cloak was also gone. There were no notes for him to find, so he set about preparing for the day.

While he was picking out his clothing, he took a peek in the drawer that held the pieces of her armor; they were gone too. He figured she must have had other business to attend to that required daylight hours.

While in the shower scrubbing his hair, he reflected on the evening before. Despite the setback with Sharon, Dawn must have decided that he and Elaina could be trusted and had given herself over to their care. In hindsight, it was obvious that she knew Elaina was also offering affection when she didn't shirk at her touch. The kiss good-night offered its own proof.

On further reflection, he realized Elaina was right. Dawn was submitting to them, both of them, and he was determined that they wouldn't abuse that trust. Following that thought, he knew he would have to discuss it at length with Elaina to be sure they were on the same page.

He finished his shower and quickly dried off. His mind drifted again to the night before while he shaved. Images of the creature of feminine lust that Elaina had become filled his thoughts. She had been almost savage with the intensity she displayed while making love. It was while she was sitting on his face that he got proof of where her thoughts lay: she breathed out Dawn's name as she came on his tongue. He had grinned when her channel tried to capture his tongue, pulsing madly in rapture.

He shook off the daydream and finished shaving, hurrying to make up for time lost by woolgathering. He skipped breakfast, choosing to visit the bagel shop near his office instead. Boos and hisses filled the air when he walked in, a go-cup bearing the bakery's logo in his hand. He grinned at their silliness, knowing it was just a playful rivalry between the bakery and a local Starbucks.

When he saw there were still no files at his desk, he hunted down Bob.

"See? Your new job is already paying dividends," Bob answered jovially. "You're nipping the hard cases in the bud and letting the rest get on with their jobs. Look out there," he said pointing to the accountants' group. Rob saw there were now three desks with two people each.

"We've had to hire two more accountants to handle the work load, and we're able to take on more clients." Bob rubbed his hands together gleefully with a wide grin. "I can't wait for you to take over the client interviews. Then I can at last get down to doing my job."

Rob walked away bemused and happy; he was making a difference. He walked around spreading his good cheer, happy to see others responding. He only had to stop once, taking the time to point out another obscure factor, leaving that person diligently following the trail.

He approached the newest members of the group and introduced himself. He asked how they were feeling on their first day on the job and got nervous replies of various types back, usually ending with "sir." Rob stepped back and called the group to gather round.

"We have a tradition here that no manager is unapproachable," he stated, looking them in the eyes by turns. "That, of course, was limited mostly to Bob. Marge, being the kind person she is, never allowed formality. I intend to follow their example.

"So, in keeping with that tradition, my name is Rob." He cast his eyes around again, looking for any dissent: there was none. "Not Mr. Zane, not Sir, not even 'Oh Mighty Master.'" That garnered the expected chuckle, and he saw that the new people were being put at ease. In the background, he heard Jessica call out, "Oh mighty master, when you have the time..."

"Enough from the peanut gallery," he mock-growled in reply. Another voice called out, "If Jessie's a peanut, I'd hate to see your idea of a coconut." Rob threw up his hands in disgust to general laughter.

"I'm sure you all get the point. You need me for anything, sing out. I will gladly answer to Rob."

Not to be outdone, Brenda called out in a singsong voice, "Oh, Ro-ob..." Rob gave her a disgusted look, while she gave him a gamin grin, displaying dimples he didn't know she had. She was also displaying a cleavage he didn't know she had, almost losing his eyes in it. When he looked back up at her face, she had blushed nearly to her newly discovered cleavage, but she held her head up proudly all the same.

And that's when he noticed another new thing: a pale gold choker with a cameo fob hanging from a ring in front. She was currently seated at her desk, and there was another rose sitting in its vase on her desk.

He looked around at the group waiting on him. "All right, let's get back to work and find out where our clients' money has wandered off to," ending the impromptu meeting on a high note. He made one more tour around his group then made a beeline to Brenda's desk. He smiled at the rose, then he looked to find her beaming happily at him.

"Got time for a talk in my office?" he asked with willful indifference.

"Sure," she replied, just as nonchalantly. However, unable to contain her inner excitement, and she nearly skipped to his office. When Rob caught up with her, she jumped him with a squeal and squeezed his neck.

"Oh, Rob," she breathed in his ear, "I have met the most wonderful man..."

He squeezed her back, sharing her happiness. "Tell me all about it."

They sat at his desk, and Brenda joyfully filled him in. She had met him at small get-together at a friend's house. She said that he walked into the room, and he immediately had the room's attention. He had such a commanding presence, and she felt she just had to meet him, so she marched right up to him and introduced herself. It was at that point, she said, that she lost her nerve.

What he did next was to take her hand and have her introduce him around. She took him first to the host of the party, who laughingly told her that she already knew Zack: she had invited him after all. As the evening progressed, Zack refused to relinquish her hand; she began to get the feeling that he intended to keep her.

"It all happened so fast," Brenda cooed. "It started with him making 'suggestions.' About the way I dressed, what I ate for meals, that sort of thing. As we dated more, he started giving me rosebuds, telling me to take them to work for my desk. Then he told me to start dressing sexier, displaying myself more." She stopped speaking for moment, her eyes sparkling brightly, and she sighed.

"That's when I knew he was claiming me, and, although he didn't know it at the time, I submitted willingly." She sighed dreamily again.

"So what's with the jewelry?" Rob prompted. He thought he had an idea from something he'd read, but he didn't want to make any assumptions.

"Last weekend, he called me and told me he had something serious he needed to talk to me about. I was a nervous wreck, waiting for him to come over. When he arrived, he was carrying a small bag from a jeweler's I'd never heard of.

"He sat me down and told me of a subculture of dominance and submission that I had only heard rumors of. He described the tradition of masters and slaves, stressing that the slave aspect wasn't as onerous as the word suggested. He talked of willing submission, and of a master's acceptance of that submission, and what it all meant.

"Then he stood up and showed me what was in the bag. He pulled out a long slim box, and this was inside it." She touched her choker, stroking it lovingly. "He told me it was commonly known as a 'slave collar, ' and it was designed so that once it was placed on the neck, it would have to be cut off should the wearer wish it removed. He told me I was the only one who could put it on: it had no meaning without that acknowledgement of the wearer's intent.

"He set it aside and opened the smaller square box that looked like it might have a ring in it. Instead, this tag..." she caressed that ivory cameo hanging from the choker, " ... was in it. He told me he was keeping it until I made a decision. He said that decision would be mine alone to make, and that I should present myself to him when I had made up my mind.

"He told me the decision I had to make would be for me to come to him so that he might claim me. I was to show that decision by wearing the collar and displaying it to him only."

Knowing full well what her decision must have been, he asked the question anyway when her thoughts turned inward, her eyes glazing in fond memory.

"What did you decide?"

Returning to the present, she focused on Rob's face with gleeful intent.

"You can see what I decided for yourself, Rob," she gently chided him.

"Yes, I can," he stated firmly, "But you need to say it," he finished in a stern voice.

She shuddered at his command and wondered briefly how things might have been if he'd found himself sooner.

"As you wish," she whispered, shuddering again as she acknowledged his command.

"He left after that, telling me he would be home all day Sunday. He said I wasn't to come over before Sunday, that I needed to use the time to make an informed, considered decision. I thought long and hard that day, pondering the significance of my submission.

"And suddenly, I knew. Even if I didn't submit specifically to him, one day I would submit to a man I considered worthy of me." She laughed. "It took me over an hour to figure out how to put the damned thing on. I finally found instructions on the internet, and it was only a moment's work to fasten it. It was really quite simple, just not obvious. It felt cold at first, but it warmed quickly on my skin.

"After sleeping on it, I knew in my heart that I would submit to Zack. I dressed in my prettiest dress and wrapped a silk scarf around my neck, you know, to hide the collar from strangers eyes, just as he had said I should. It was a nervous ride to his place. When he let me in, I pulled the scarf off and stood before him. He smiled like the sun had finally come out after a storm, and he'd found the pot of gold at rainbow's end.

"He pulled his hand from his pocket with the cameo in it. He showed it to me, letting me see it was a silhouette of me. He made his claim, and I submitted. He hung the tag from my collar and told me he accepted me as his own." A tear ran down her cheek. "He told me that if I ever wished to be free of him, I need only give him back his token. I don't know what the future may bring, but for now, I fully intend to keep it."