This is a fairly long story, slowly developed in 19 parts, and far more D/s than BDSM. I would greatly appreciate any comments or feedback, but I would humbly ask that it await the completion of the story.
Part One: The Breakup
It had been a month since Meryn had broken off her relationship with Rick. They had been going together for over a year, and she had begun to think that maybe this was the real thing. Then she had found out that he had had weekend flings with not one, but two different women at different times, weekends that she had spent home alone, accepting his excuse that he had to be away on business. When she had confronted him when she had discovered the truth, he hadn't seemed overly apologetic at all. After all, he had said, they weren't married, or even engaged, and he felt it perfectly okay to see other people, to make sure, he had said, that they were indeed right for each other.
She couldn't believe what she was hearing, and so she said that under the circumstances, she felt it was perfectly okay for her never to want to see him again. And she hadn't since that night, nor talked to him or responded to the two calls he had left on her answering machine. The fact that he had only tried to call her twice only further confirmed to her that she had made the right decision, but that depressed her even more. She had really liked Rick, maybe even loved him, if she really knew what love was. She had certainly hoped it was going in that direction. None of her other relationships with men had ever gone as far. They usually broke it off with her. This was the first time she had done the breaking up, and in a sense that made her feel a little better.
In reality she knew however that this was a cop-out. She really hadn't wanted to break up, but he had left her no choice. What was it about her that made men treat her like dirt? She knew, without being too vain, that most people felt she was very good looking, with a nice body, was intelligent, and as her friends always said, she was fun to be with. She never had any trouble getting boyfriends. She just had trouble keeping them. She was too giving, some of her girlfriends had said, always trying extra hard to make her boyfriends happy, and they always seemed to take advantage of her, and it would fall apart. Maybe her friends were right, but she couldn't help who she was. Why couldn't she meet someone who wanted to give a little back to her, meet her halfway. God, she was depressed..
Part Two: The Mystery
Meryn hadn't spoken to Natasha in over two months. Natasha had been one of her best friends. They worked at the same corporation, although in different departments. Natasha was in systems operations, and Meryn was an investment analyst, but they had worked on several projects together, and had become close, often calling each other several times a week, double dating, or just hanging out together on weekends. They would take turns consoling each other over failed relationships, although Natasha always blamed the men for her failures, always being the one to break it off, while Meryn most often blamed herself, trying to figure what she had done wrong. Natasha always chided her for this, and said that men were basically skunks, and needed to be molded into useful arm candy, and she was going to find one, you better believe it. So far she apparently hadn't been very successful, but that didn't seem to bother her much.
So when Meryn and Rick began going out regularly, she thought Natasha would be happy and supportive of her. But Natasha had quickly taken a dislike for Rick, and rarely failed to let Meryn know it. It didn't help that Rick didn't particularly like Natasha either, so over time Meryn and Natasha drifted apart, the phone calls and getting together becoming less frequent, and finally ending. They would see each other at work occasionally, say hello and exchange a few superficial pleasantries, making a point of avoiding mentioning Rick.
Things had reached the breaking point about two months earlier when she saw Natasha at work looking more that usually happy and vivacious. Curious, Meryn approached her and asked how she was doing. "Certainly better that you." Natasha had replied, and while Meryn didn't understand exactly what that had meant, she did realize that in some way it was a dig at Rick, and it had angered her. She hadn't spoken to Natasha since.
Well, maybe Natasha had known something at the time that Meryn only found out later. It certainly seemed that Natasha had been right about Rick, but that didn't make it any easier. This was without doubt the lowest she had ever felt after a breakup, and she realized she sorely missed having Natasha to talk to about it, to bulk up her spirits, and help her pick up the pieces. So one night, swallowing her pride, she called Natasha on the phone.
"Tash, this is Meri."
"Meri! How great to hear from you. This is fantastic. How are you doing? Oh what a stupid question."
"No, its not really, and I'm glad you didn't hang up on me."
"Hang up on you? Never. I've missed you so much, especially now, but I didn't think you wanted to talk to me. I was so glad when I heard you had broken up with Dickhead. No, that's not right of me. I know you liked him, and I shouldn't be saying things like that right off the bat."
"Oh, that's alright Tash. It isn't as if you weren't right about him"
"More than you know Meri."
Meryn let that one pass. God, had it been even worse than she had known?
"You were too good for him Meri. You've always been too good for any of them, but especially him."
"Yeah, well in this case you're probably right. But what am I supposed to do? It's not like I choose them to be like this."
"Maybe you do. But that's an old argument between us. What you really need to find is a man who knows you're too good for him and acts accordingly."
"Right. But that's much easier said than done."
"No, believe me, it's actually easier done than said."
"What's that supposed to mean, Tash?"
"It's just that there are more situations like that around than you would ever believe."
"Yeah, like you've been so successful finding the right one."
Natasha didn't answer right away and Meri worried that she had offended her, but they had always been able to jibe each other playfully. Then another thought came to her.
"You're not saying that you've got something going, are you Tash?"
Again Natasha did not answer right away, but then she went on.
"Well, I... Oh what the hell. I've been dying to tell someone, and who better than you Meri. Especially now."
"Tell me what?"
"You know I've never been satisfied or happy with the types of relationships I've had in the past, and so I started looking for something different."
"Yes?"
"Meri, I've got to tell you I've found something that's changed my life, and it's absolutely fabulous. I've never been happier."
"What? Tell me what you're talking about?"
"No, it's better that I show you Meri. Yes, definitely. And Meri, I think it's something that would be perfect for you too. Really. If you just keep an open mind."
"Tash, stop being so mysterious will you, and tell me."
"No Meri. It's better this way, believe me. Can you come to my place for dinner Friday night? You've got to come, and you'll see everything. I won"t take no for an answer."
"Okay, okay, I'll come. But this better be as good as the build up."
"Even better. Great. 7 o'clock. I can't wait to see you and show you what's happened for me. And I really do think it could be great for you too Meri. Just keep an open mind. Friday then."
"Sure Friday. I'll be there Tash."
Part Three: Prologue
Meryn had to admit that Natasha still had a talent for getting her out of her doldrums. The phone conversation had really piqued her interest, and it was all she could think about for the next several days. At times as she thought about it, it had almost sounded like Natasha had had some kind of religious experience, or had become involved with some kind of cult. Or worse. But she knew Natasha better than that. She was too fiercely independent and individualistic to get involved with anything like that. It didn't seem though that it could only be that Natasha had a new boyfriend, maybe one that was lasting a little longer than usual for her, maybe a little more serious than she had ever had before. That didn't seem to Meryn to be something that Natasha would be keeping such a secret, that she wouldn't even hint about it over the phone. And she had said that it was something that she had to show Meryn, not just tell her. Something that had changed her life. And it was something that she thought Meryn would like as well. She just had to keep an open mind. What the heck was that supposed to mean? All Meryn could finally conclude was that Friday couldn't come fast enough.
After an interminable several days, Meryn finally found herself excitedly ringing Natasha's apartment doorbell a little after seven on Friday evening. Natasha answered the door, swept her into her hallway foyer and immediately hugged her tightly.
"Oh Meri, I'm so happy to see you." she said ending the embrace, "I was so nervous that you might not come."
"Of course I came. I said I would. And I'm just as happy to see you." After a moment, "Why did you think I might not come Tash?"
"Well I know things haven't been good between us the last couple of months, but that's water under the bridge. Come in, come in. I have so much to tell and show you.
With that Natasha took Meryn's hand and led her into her apparently newly well appointed livingroom. She guided her over to the exquisite sofa and matching love seat that were set at a ninety degree angle to each other. She sat Meryn down in the middle of the love seat, and then sat down herself at the near end of the sofa. On the corner table between the furniture, were two poured goblets of white wine, and a tray of assorted cheeses. Natasha was wearing a dark violet silk kimono that came down to just below her knees. It was tied at the waist to perfectly accentuate her wonderful figure. The V-shaped opening in front hinted in just the right way to her well proportioned cleavage. She was wearing a matching pair of open toed slipper pumps, and her perfectly pedicured toenails were painted in the same color. It was an outfit to be noticed. It made Meryn, in her plain beige cotton blouse, mid length wool skirt, and her brown flats feel decidedly underdressed. Natasha had always been the more stylish of the two, but Meryn found it hard to believe that Natasha had gotten dressed like this just to have dinner with her.
As they sipped their wine and talked about old times, seemingly to Meryn just to break the ice, she couldn't help but notice how nice and neat and clean the apartment was. Natasha had never been a particularly tidy person. She hated housework, as she often said, and in the many times in the past that Meryn had been over, the apartment had always been in a state of general disarray .
"Tash, your apartment looks absolutely fabulous. I can't believe you put it all together like this just for me tonight."
"Oh it's kept in much better condition than I know it used to be Meri, but I made very sure it was in perfect order for tonight. This is a very special night. I hope for both of us."
This was the opening they both apparently were waiting for, and Meryn decided as the guest in the dark, she would make the first move.
"So Tash, you know I'm dying to find out. What's the big mystery? What are you going to show me that has changed your life?" She asked with a smile.