Chapter 1

The ring of his cell phone captured Kevin Roger’s attention from the moonlit fields outside his bedroom window. He set it on speaker phone. “Hello.”

“She’s asleep now, master,” Meghan said wearily.

“That’s good. How long did it take her to fall asleep?”

“She fell asleep about thirty-five minutes ago. I gave her two sleeping pills so she should be out the rest of the night. I’m sorry. I wasn’t expecting this.

“I wasn’t expecting this either. I’m sorry it happened too.” Kevin said.

“Are you OK?” Meghan asked.

“I’m fine. My parents saw the bite mark and they’re pissed. We’ll have to deal with them. It’ll be OK. Call me when you’re ready for me to come over tomorrow.”

“Yes, Master.”

“Try getting some rest.”

“I will. Goodnight, Master.”

“Goodnight.”

Kevin ended the call, took a sip of his Mt. Dew and stared at the field from the darkness of his room.

Meghan looked up from the kitchen table as she heard Carly enter the living room. “Good Morning, you might as well put your book bag down. I’ve already called the school. You’re staying home today.” She tapped the table beside her. “Come have a seat. We need to talk.”

As Carly sat Meghan opened a new pack of Marlboro Red’s and lit one. “MOM! What are you doing?”

Meghan blew out a puff of smoke then said “You hurt me last night. It’s not the fact you’re in love with my master. It’s not that you want to be a slave. You royally showed your ass.” She took another draw off the cigarette then pointed at Carly. “The one proper thing I thought I had gotten right after your father died was raising you to have some sense in your damn head.”

“Mom...”

“Be quiet!” Meghan snapped “You attacked a man who has done nothing but good to us. You instantly made me look like White trash. Being poor isn’t a sin. Acting like a fool is! Do you know how lucky you are? ... Answer me.”

“Ma’am?”

“Kevin could have pressed charges on you. You could be in jail right now.”

Carly paled as her eyes widened.

“That’s right. You could have also been in the hospital. If that had been Ed you would be. You hurt someone that genuinely cares about you and made me look like a horrible parent. Why? You can talk now.”

Carly’s chin quivered as tears overflowed in small rivulets from her eyes. “He looks at you the way daddy did.”

Meghan sat back in shock. “What?”

“Kevin looks at you the way daddy did. He loves you. He told me so.” She wiped her eyes with her sleeve then continued “Both of them looked at you the same way because you were their slave. Kevin won’t accept me. I’ll never have a man look at me like that.” Carly lowered her head and whispered, “Nobody wants a cripple.”

“Honey, no...”

Carly looked up at her mom “You know what I look like naked.”

Meghan gently said “That’s not what I mean. Your daddy and I were in love for two years before we started exploring this. I didn’t become his slave until our wedding night.” She held Carly’s hand “You don’t have to be a slave to have love. I’m a slave. It’s what I am. As long as I can serve my master I’m happy. You don’t have to be like me.”

“I want Kevin to love me like he does you.”

Meghan smirked as she stubbed out her cigarette and lit another then said “Trying to kick his ass is not the way to go about it. If you want Kevin then you need to be yourself. You’re going to have plenty of time to think before he comes over today. You need to ask yourself if you want to be Kevin’s slave or his girlfriend and maybe more down the road. You also need to figure out how to kiss his ass enough to get him to forgive you.”

“I understand. I’m sorry I embarrassed you.”

“Thank you.”

“Are we done?”

“Not yet,” Meghan reached under the table and pulled out a thin leather belt. “As my daddy would say, last night you wrote a check that your ass is going to have to cash.”

Carly’s jaw dropped. “You haven’t spanked me since I was eleven.”

“You haven’t done anything to deserve one until now. You injured someone and put yourself in danger. You could have been arrested and got us in a lawsuit then been taken away by social services. Your little stunt last night could have cost us everything we own.” Meghan stood. “Go ahead and get up. Move your chair out of the way. Drop your jeans and panties.”

“What?”

“You heard me. You’re feeling every bit of this one.” Meghan waited as Carly complied. “Thank you. Lean over the table. No, down on your elbows with palms flat on the table.”

“This sucks.”

“Be glad I’m not letting Kevin do it. He was pissed when he left last night.”

Carly squealed as the leather belt bit into the tender flesh of her ass the first time. The second time she tried silencing the squeal with gritted teeth. The pain forced the sound out.

“Leave your hands on the table.” Meghan barked when Carly tried using them to soothe her bottom.

The third bite of the belt made Carly jump. “BITCH!”

Meghan grabbed Carly’s hair and jerked back while landing four hard blows across Carly’s untouched upper thighs. “Call me it again ... Do it!” She snarled.

“N ... o M ... a’am” Carly stammered out through her tears.

Meghan pushed her back down and laid three more across her ass. “We’re done. Pull up your pants.” She grabbed two water bottles from the fridge and handed them to Carly. “Go to the bathroom and do your business. Put some cream on your ass then go to your room until I call you for lunch. Leave your cell phone here and bring me your laptop.”

That afternoon Kevin knocked on Meghan’s open front door. “Hello.”

“Come in, Master,” Meghan said as she came from the kitchen.

Kevin gave Meghan a hug and kiss. “Are you ok?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Why do you smell like cigarettes?”

“I smoke when I’m extremely upset. It’s not a habit or anything.” Meghan said.

“Ok. How’s Carly?”

“We had a talk this morning. I told her you were coming over, and we would have another. I’ve kept her in her room except for lunch.”

Kevin nodded. “Go ahead and have her come out.”

Meghan stepped to the hallway entrance and called out “Carly, Kevin’s here.”

A few moments later, Carly shuffled into the living room. She stood staring at the floor, wringing her hands.

“Let’s have a seat,” Kevin said.

“I’d rather stand, please,” Carly meekly whispered.

“Tell Kevin why,” Meghan said.

Carly looked up and bit her lip a second before speaking “Mom beat my ass this morning because of what I did.” Her composure broke as she whined “I’m sorry,” and ran desperately to him hugging him “I’m sorry. Please don’t hate me. Please.”

Kevin wrapped her in his arms. “I don’t hate you. I’m mad, but we’ll work through it, ok?” Carly nodded. “Go get a pillow to sit on because this may take a bit.”

“Ok.”

Once Carly had found the fluffiest pillow she could and sat on the couch. Kevin looked at her. “Good, you’re wearing your watch. I want to show you something before we start.” He turned to Meghan and said: “Girl, do you trust me?”

Meghan nodded. “Yes, Master.”

“Thank you, hold still. Carly, when I say now. I want you to start time and keep track until I say stop. Ok?”

“Yes, Sir.”

Kevin grabbed a single handful of Meghan’s shirt and lifted her straight up until his elbow locked. “Now.” Meghan giggled and made funny faces at Kevin who smiled up at her. “Stop.” He lowered Meghan and kissed her as her feet hit the floor. “Thank you.”

“You can do that any time you want. It was fun,” Meghan said.

Kevin turned to Carly. “How long?”

“Forty-four seconds.”

“Do you weigh anything close to your mom?”

Carly shook her head “I’m barely 110.”

“What would have happened if I punched you last night? I almost did when you kneed my nads.”

“I would have gotten hurt.”

“That’s right,” Kevin said “The bad part is I would have punched you because of the pain not because I wanted to. Making people my size lose control isn’t safe.”

Carly nodded. “Yes, Sir. Mom and I talked about that this morning.”

Kevin grabbed a seat then said “Good. I don’t like being hit, especially there. That’s not friendship or love.” He caught Carly’s gaze and bored into her eyes “If you ever hit me again I’m done with you. I won’t treat you that way, and I won’t be treated that way. You can be upset and yell sometimes. If there’s a problem, you have to tell me so we can work it out. Don’t expect me to know anything unless you tell me.”

Anger flashed across Carly’s face. “I thought I had. You refused me.”

“Hold on a second, You have never said or done anything to make me think you wanted to be my slave. I knew we were thinking about dating but that was it.”

Meghan said, “Master, that’s one of the things we talked about this morning. I think Carly was mixing the two up.”

Kevin turned to her “Excuse me?”

“Her father and I loved each other, and he was my master. Carly sees how much you care for me and you’re my master. She was thinking the only way you would care about her is if you were her master, too.”

“Oh,” He rubbed his chin a moment.”I can see that. Carly...”

“Master, wait a moment, please. I told her she needed to decide what she really wanted, slave or girlfriend.”

Kevin looked at Carly “Which is it?”

Carly crossed her arms and sat back and crossed her legs. “Does it even matter?”

Kevin nodded.

Carly flung a hand toward her mother “Why? You love her.”

Kevin blushed and pulled on his shirt collar as he cleared his throat, “I’ve never told her that, but I do.”

Meghan twisted in her chair and looked at him open-mouthed.

Kevin ducked his head a second then continued, “I also told you I’ll never walk away from her. Being with me whether as a friend, girlfriend, wife, or slave means accepting the relationship I have with your mother.”

Carly’s eyes started tearing up.

“I’m so trying not to hurt you right now,” Kevin said gently, “You knew when I asked you out that your mother was my slave and we have sex. We’ve never hidden it.”

“Why would you want me? You told me I’m lovable, but you don’t.” She grabbed a couch pillow and hugged it as she started crying.”You don’t want me.”

“I never said that. I told you I wouldn’t use you because I care too much about you to do that. That’s the exact opposite of what you’re saying. Carly, If I didn’t care about you I’d slept with you. Then neither of you would have seen me again because I’d be two for two.”

Meghan said “Princess, he’s not lying. I’ve been used enough to know the difference. Kevin has been considerate of you.”

“It doesn’t feel like it.”

“Carly, a little while ago you asked me for mercy. Now, I’m asking you for some.” Kevin said.

“What?”

“I’ve never had a girlfriend or a romance. I don’t as a habit talk about my feelings. I show how I feel. I didn’t even know how I felt about your mother until Ed touched her.”

“Sir?” Meghan said.

“I was enraged enough to declare Kajira Canjellne.”

Meghan blushed and smiled as she bowed her head. “My Master.”

“What’s that?” Carly asked.

Meghan held her head up with pride. “Kajira Canjellne means slave girl challenge.” She said. “Master was willing to fight Ed to the death to own me. It is one of a Girl’s greatest honors to be fought over.”

“That wasn’t my only reason. I saw how upset you were around him. Carly, all the shit I’ve been doing around here has been just as much for you as for your mom.”

“YOU CHOSE HER!”

Kevin’s snapped at Carly “Submit!”

“FUCK YOU!” she screamed.

Kevin sat back in his chair and said “You know my third day here if I had done that to your mother she would have submitted. She would have hated herself and me, but she would have done it. She’s a slave. I chose to take ownership of the greatest possession a man can own. Yes, I love your mother. She’s not my wife. She’s not my girlfriend. She’s my slave. The bond we share is unique from those. And then there’s you. I know I care enough about you that I want to spend more time with you to see if we might want to build something together.

“What do you mean?” Carly asked.

Kevin’s face hardened “First things first, I’m dead serious about what I said earlier. If you ever hit me again, I’m done with you. I’ll be so cold that you’ll snuggle with an iceberg for warmth.”

Carly nodded.

“Second thing, I’m going to take some of the responsibility for last night. I could have been more open about my feelings. I’ll try harder.”

“Master, there’s no excuse for her behaviour.” Meghan said.

“I agree. It was uncalled for. At the same time, if I had been more open maybe it wouldn’t have gotten that far.” He got up and kneeled beside Carly. “So there’s no more misunderstanding about how I feel about you. Will you be my girlfriend?”

“Yes!”

“Young lady, don’t make any dates this weekend. You’re grounded.” Meghan said.

“Mom!”

“Don’t mom me,” She said as she got up. “I am however going to my bedroom for a few minutes and what I don’t see doesn’t count.”

A few hours later, Kevin and Meghan took a seat in the Roger’s living room with Kevin’s parents Ben and Kathy.

Ben spoke: “Kathy and I do the best we can to allow Kevin to lead his life with minimum interference. We trust his character and the values we’ve instilled in him to steer him in the proper direction.” He paused a moment and examined each of them. “Last night, we saw something that is completely unacceptable. We will not tolerate any form of domestic abuse in either direction. Meghan, we’ve heard from Kevin. Now, we want to hear from you. As I told you the other night, if Kevin is hurting either you or Carly tell me and by god I’ll put a stop to it. This is ending now.”

“Dad...”

Ben snapped his fingers and pointed at Kevin “I want to hear from Meghan. Do I need to ask you to leave the room, so she can speak freely?”

“No, Sir!”

“Then sit quietly until I ask you to speak. Meghan, If you would please?”

“Dad, I apologize to you and mom for my daughter’s behaviour. I busted her ass and grounded her for it. She and I have both apologized to Kevin. If you like I’ll bring her over to apologize to you as well. Meghan’s voice trembled. “I’m so ashamed. I thought I had raised her better.”

Ben said gently.” It’s OK Meghan. We forgive you. Things happen sometimes. Out of curiosity, did Kevin prompt you to offer to bring Carly over to apologize?”

Meghan shook her head, “No sir, I was raised right. My parents and grandparents would have expected me to ask.”

“Do you know why?”

“When Carly attacked Kevin. It was an insult to your family. She needs to apologize to clean the slate and learn that what she does effects both families.”

Ben nodded “That’s exactly right, in most cases. I do want her to come to apologize as she needs the lesson. There was one place where you were off, though.”

“Sir?”

Ben gave a quick nod toward his wife. “Your first time here, momma hugged both of you and told you you’re family.” He then pointed at the dining room table. “A few minutes later, I sat at that table and thanked the Lord for allowing us to spend time with our newest family members. Remember?”

Meghan nodded.

“Those weren’t hollow words. To us you are family. This isn’t about an insult to family honor. This is about love and faithfulness to the family. Family should never hit family. There’s a problem here, and we’re fixing it. Now, please tell me what happened and why you think it happened.”

“Ok, Kevin and I were in my room and umm...”

“Meg, we’re all adults. There’s no need to be graphic, but you can speak plainly. His father will tease him later either way.” Kathy said.

“Um ... We were being intimate in my bedroom. The door was closed, and we have a do not disturb sign we use when we want privacy put out. Carly burst through the door. She was screaming.”I hate you.” at Kevin and was beating him with her fists. Kevin yelled at me for help. Before I could get her off she had bitten him. Kevin stumbled off the bed to get away from her. She was still screaming at him. Kevin saw he was bleeding and got more pissed then he already was. He yelled at her wanting to know what her problem was.”

“She screamed that he didn’t want her, and she’d never find a good master. She quit yelling and broke down in my arms saying over and over again she’d never be happy. Kevin and I just kinda looked at each other. After a few minutes, I asked Kevin to go home because I was afraid that in her state of mind she might flip out again. After he had left, I gave her some sedatives and had her sleep with me.”

“The next morning she and I had a talk. The simple answer is she is jealous of me and thought the only way a man would love her is if she was a slave like me. We got the slave part straightened out. I wore her ass out with a belt for what she did to Kevin. She embarrassed the living shit out of me. That leaves the jealousy we’re dealing with.”

“How are you working on that?” Kathy asked.

Meghan had both hands up “Uhnt uh. I’m not taking this bullet.” She looked at Kevin “Master, there’s a call from your mother on line two.”

Kathy’s voice was frosty as she asked “Well?”

Kevin pointed at his father then zipped his lips, threw his hands up and shrugged.

Ben gestured toward Kevin “Please, go ahead. I want to hear this.”

Kevin sighed and his shoulders drooped. He spoke in a quiet voice that was almost a whisper. “I asked Carly to be my girlfriend.”

Kathy’s face went blank as her eyes narrowed and glittered with malice. Her voice was cool, and her tone was formal when she spoke. “Pardon me, I thought you said you asked Carly to be your girlfriend?”

Kevin sat up and squared his shoulders, “Yes, ma’am I did.”

Ben rubbed his forehead “Oh lord.”

Kathy held up an index finger and said, “Correct me if I’m mistaken. This would mean you are sleeping with the mother and dating the daughter which sooner or later will probably mean sleeping with her as well.”

Kevin’s voice trembled as he said: “Th ... at’s correct.”

Kathy shot to her feet and screamed “HAVE YOU LOST YOUR EVER LOVING MIND? Did the stupid fairy shit into the crevasses of your brain, boy?” Kathy drew in a ragged breath and through gritted teeth said:”Excuse me a moment. I need to attend something in the kitchen.” She turned and went through the dining room into the kitchen. A moment later there was a bellow of rage and the sound of glass shattering.

After a few moments, Ben said “Oh ... This sounds like a five grand one.” When the sounds became metallic, he said, “Shit, she’s moved up to the copperware. That’s from France.” A piece of shattered baking ware bounced off the kitchen doorway and slid across the tiles of the dining room floor. “Damn it, that Dutch Oven cost four hundred dollars.”

Meghan looked at Kevin “Should we go?”

Kevin shook his head “No. That would make it worse. On the bright side, you know you’re family now. She’d never do this in front of company.”

The kitchen went silent.

A minute later, Kathy walked into the living room and sat down. “I’m back.” She said sweetly.

“Is everything attended to, momma?” Ben asked.

“Yes, it is, honey. Thank you for asking. Now Kevin, would you explain to me why this solution is the best possible one?

“There are several reasons. The first of which is I’m an idiot when it comes to relationships.”

“Yes, you are.” His mother agreed.

Meghan jerked upright with her eyes blazing “NO, he is not! Don’t speak about him that way.”

Kathy’s face flushed and her lips curled as she spoke: “Excuse me?”

“After Carly’s father died, not one man ever showed her the least bit of kindness. Do you know how many men I had to let between my legs to keep them away from her? I had to listen to her cry at night asking God why nobody liked her. Then Kevin came into our lives. At first, I thought he was like everyone else and angling for a piece of ass. I called him on it. He shut me down right there and put me in my place.” She held up her thumb and forefinger with a tiny space between them.”For the first time since my husband died, I felt a little bit safe.”

“All of a sudden, Carly had someone who didn’t make fun of her or her clothes. Who accepted her, scars and all. Someone who would laugh with her and cuddle her. She told me she felt safe in his arms. On top of that, he gave her over $12,000 to go to school when she didn’t have a dime. She’d be an idiot not to love him. All she wants is to be loved.”

Meghan tugged at her collar. “I’m a slave. I’m not brain dead. In the ten years since my husband died, I’ve been with many men and none of them is half the man your eighteen-year-old son is. He may not know much about dating, but he is kind and compassionate. He’s strong and wiser than men twice his age. I KNOW! Don’t ever call him an idiot in front of me again.”

Ben mouthed to Kevin from behind his hand: “I told you she was strong.”

Kathy stared at Meghan a moment then said: “Meghan, that is the first time anyone has ever had the gall to speak to me like that in this home. I can’t say I enjoyed it, but I concede your point.” She looked at her son.”Kevin, I’m sorry.”

“It’s ok, Mom.”

“Now, may I have your reasons?”

“Mom, Carly and I were a couple in everything except name. We cuddled, we made out and went places together. It never entered my mind that she was my girlfriend. I think in terms of contracts and agreements. We didn’t have one, So we weren’t a couple. I was wrong. Carly was hurt because I wouldn’t give her a commitment so she lashed out.”

“Why wouldn’t you give her a commitment?” Ben asked.

“I didn’t want to hurt her. I didn’t know if I wanted to marry her but didn’t want to sleep with her and walk away. That’s wrong.”

“I can see that.” His mother said, “So you gave her a commitment, and she’s happy?”

“A lot better than she was. What she did wasn’t right. I told her if it happens again we’re done. At the same time, if I had been wiser then this may have not occurred.”

Kathy looked at Kevin and Meghan and said: “We’ll trust there will be no more violence. Dishes can be replaced, trust can’t. Meghan, why do you think it is ok for you and your daughter to share a man?”

“Mom, If it makes my daughter happy then I’m for it. There’s not a man that I trust more than Kevin.” Kathy started speaking. “Just a second, there’s more. I don’t know if I can explain this. It may take a minute to find the words.”

“Take your time,” Kathy said.

After a few moments, Meghan spoke: “I look at relationships differently than most people. I am my best when I am the property of a kind strong man who values my submission to him. I don’t need a husband or boyfriend. I need an owner who cherishes me and gives me attention. I don’t care if he’s married or to who he’s married. I am in the same category as a registered thoroughbred. It’s none of my business who Kevin sees as long as he takes care of me.”

“When I saw how well Carly was getting along with him, I encouraged them. I didn’t have any designs on Kevin. I liked the attention and the little orders he gave me. It let me feed my need without endangering us. Kevin never tried taking advantage of either of us. I had to ask for my first kiss and he wouldn’t give it until he was sure I wouldn’t be misled. You should be proud of him.”

“We are,” Kathy said.

Meghan took Kevin’s hand. “I know everyone would say I’m a slut to see an eighteen-year-old boy AND let my daughter date him.” She lifted her head regally and said: “I’m proud to be your son’s slut. If he can give Carly a tenth of the happiness he gives me I’ll help them every way I can.”