Author's Note:
Wow - almost 70,000 words later, we've come to the end of this tale! I couldn't have done it without the feedback and encouragement of my readers. I don't have an editor or any friends in the "writing business", so you readers were my lifelines as I pushed myself to meet some pretty aggressive writing deadlines. Thank you a thousand times for your kind words, your constructive criticisms, your generous votes and plentiful emails. I'm more grateful that you can imagine.
This is the final chapter in the fictional story of a D/s relationship between consenting adult women. As always, I welcome and crave your feedback and participation.
p.s. also, I REALLY enjoyed all the creative ideas for what should happen to Chad!
*
There was a knock at the apartment door. Jaycee had arrived, ostensibly to help Ashley get dressed and made up for the collaring ceremony.
She'd visited several times since the MAMM party, usually when her husband John was working the overnight shift at the police station. Ash had spent a couple of afternoons at the Sato residence as well, and the two young women had gone out to dinner and bowling together. It gave Kara real satisfaction to see the close, playful friendship the two of them had developed
"May I be excused to answer the door, Mistress?" Ashley said, and the eagerness in her voice was impossible to conceal.
They were in the living room. Her slave was sitting on a low stool in front of the couch. She wore black bikini briefs and a gauzy charcoal-coloured scarf that was wrapped over her breasts and knotted at her back. Her 'house uniform'.
Kara's feet rested on a soft blanket in Ash's lap as the young woman carefully painted her nails a brilliant red. The left foot was finished, and the right foot half-done. The pedicure had taken the better part of an hour - Ashley had wanted to give Kara the full spa treatment, complete with a soak in the warm, vibrating foot basin that the younger woman had bought with her own money. It was only the third time Ash had tried the pedicure, and already Kara was impressed by her technique. She was skilled with her hands.
Kara nodded and Ashley stood and gently set Kara's feet on the stool, then hurried to the door. Out of sight of the living room, there were squeals of delight as Ash and Jaycee greeted.
"Woo, sexy," Jaycee said, the tease in her voice obvious.
"Jealous?" Ashley shot back.
The first time Jaycee had visited, Ashley had been a little shy about wearing only panties and a semi-transparent top, but time and familiarity had erased any modesty she felt around Jaycee. She'd even shown Jaycee her unsightly tattoos - a sure sign of emerging trust and confidence.
The two submissives entered the living room. Jaycee was slim and graceful in yoga pants and a loose, airy drape shirt worn over a tight, white athletic tank. She carried a leafy fern in a white ceramic pot.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Meadows. Thank you for having me in your home," she said, making a low, formal bow as she spoke.
"Hey, Jaycee. Sorry for not getting up, and for my...informal...dress," Kara said, gesturing at her white bathrobe. She'd had a steamy shower and hadn't bothered to dress before Ash's pedicure. "Thank you for the beautiful fern."
"I know you didn't want gifts, but we had to get you SOMETHING to commemorate the occasion. Are you ready for the big event?" Jaycee asked. Ash took the fern from her and found a spot for it next to a sunny window.
"Just about. I'm really looking forward to the ceremony."
"Master John sends his regrets at not being able to attend. He's working the overnight and won't be off until three in the morning."
"Well, at least his better half will be there," Kara said with a wink. Jaycee responded with a cheerful smile. Kara gestured to a nearby loveseat and their guest sat down.
"I'm sorry for the interruption, Mistress. May I please continue?" Ash asked.
"Please do."
Ashley resumed her seat and continued applying the nail polish to Kara's toes, and for a while there was a comfortable silence.
"It's been ages since I had a pedicure," Jaycee said, with a longing gaze at Kara's feet.
"Would John be interested in learning? Ash could teach him."
Jaycee laughed. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask him, right?"
"So what have you got in store for my pretty slave girl this afternoon?" Kara asked. She noted the faint, pink blush on Ashley's cheeks. The younger woman was still getting used to compliments.
"Well, with your permission, ma'am, I'm thinking a French braid. I'd also like to paint her fingernails and toenails. What else were you thinking? Master John has put me at your disposal for the afternoon."
"I'd like to go light on the makeup," Kara said, leaning forward and stroking Ashley's face with her palm. Her slave paused the pedicure long enough to close her eyes and sigh at the contact. "She's already got lovely skin, and I don't want to draw attention away from those heavenly eyes."
"Thank you, Mistress," Ashley said. Her blush deepened.
"It's not fair, Ash," Jaycee said with an exaggerated pout. "Do you know how hard I have to fish for a compliment at home? And here your Mistress is just giving them out for free!"
"Maybe Mistress Kara could let Mr. Sato know you were complaining about it," Ash said lightly. "I'm sure he'd give you plenty of...attention...after that."
"Mmm. Maybe he would," Jaycee agreed with a mischievous wink.
A few minutes later, the pedicure was complete and Ashley packed up her supplies and stored them in the bathroom cabinet, then returned to the living room.
"Mistress, may I please be excused so I can show Jaycee my dress and start getting ready for the ceremony?" she asked.
"Please bring me a coffee first. After that, the rest of the afternoon is yours."
"Thank you, Mistress."
*
"What are you doing?" Ashley shrieked. Her gleeful voice was loud even through the closed bathroom door.
"Don't be such a prude. I'm just scrubbing your back. It's traditional, back home," Jaycee said.
"Hey! That's NOT my back!" Ash yelled in mock outrage.
"Sorry...my hand slipped." Jaycee laughed.
"Yeah, I'm sure," Ash said, breaking into a fit of giggles, soon followed by another squeal.
"Do you want to be clean for your collaring, or not?"
"That tickles!"
"You're such a big baby..."
Sitting on the couch in the living room, Kara couldn't suppress a chuckle of her own. Ashley was almost twenty-two and Jaycee twenty-nine, but when the two of them started goofing around they became a couple of ten year-olds.
The sound of Ash's silly, uninhibited laughter always brought a smile. Kara had never evoked that kind of laugh from her young slave, and she was thrilled that Jaycee was the kind of friend that could draw those delighted sounds out of her.
The shrieking and giddy noises continued for ten more minutes before Kara decided to put a stop to it - she didn't want complaints from the neighbors, after all. Plus, they had to be at Bev's for the collaring in a few hours and at the rate things were going, Ash wouldn't be ready in time.
She stepped into the steamy bathroom. Through the frosted glass door of the shower stall she saw two blurry, naked bodies. Both Ash and Jaycee were slim and had long, black hair. Ash's skin was lighter and Jaycee was an inch taller, but they could easily have passed for twin sisters through the shower door.
"Ash, I want to see you standing in your bedroom in ten minutes, ready for an Inspection," Kara said in her best Domme voice. "And Jaycee, let's have you out of the shower now. Leave the poor girl alone."
"Yes, Mistress."
"Yes, Mrs. Meadows."
Kara briefly considered staying to watch Jaycee emerge and dry off, but she decided to give her some privacy. She'd seen the young submissive undressed a few times already during MAMM events; Jaycee usually ended up bare-bottomed and bent over Master John's knee at least once per party. Kara got the sense that Jaycee enjoyed playing the brat, and enjoyed suffering the consequences even more!
Kara brought her empty coffee cup to the kitchen and gave it a quick rinse. Jaycee met her there a few minutes later, fully dressed and running a towel over her beautiful, black hair.
"Sorry about that, ma'am. We get a bit carried away, I guess."
"Don't apologize. It's wonderful to hear the two of you getting along so well," Kara said.
Jaycee was quiet for a moment. "You know, I have a ton of friends. Some I've known for years, some I even grew up with. But...I only have one friend like Ash. I don't giggle like that with my other friends. I don't frolic in the shower with them, either."
"She's special, that's for sure."
"I hope I'm not out of line when I say this, but she practically worships you. When she's over at our house, you're all she talks about."
"I adore her," Kara said, then gave a mischievous smile. "And I enjoy frolicking in the shower with her, too!"
Jaycee laughed, and there was another pause that didn't feel uncomfortable.
"So what's it like, ma'am? A former submissive, crossing over to the other side?"
"It's...different. I used to think it would be easy to be the one in charge, but it's harder than it looks. It's fun and rewarding, though. Especially with a partner like Ashley."
Jaycee smiled at that. "You know, when I would see you at the MAMM parties with Master Peter, I always felt a little jealous of you. Not in a bad way - not resentful or anything. It's just...you're beautiful, and have a lovely figure, and you were so graceful, and so loving with him. I was envious of how natural your submission looked, and how you and Master Peter seemed to 'flow' together effortlessly. You were a role model for me, to be honest."
Kara nodded, feeling both flattered and suddenly nostalgic for those sweet moments with her husband and Master. She lingered for a while in the memories of those happy times.
Jaycee met Kara's eyes and held them warmly. "And now, when I hear Ash rave about the amazing Mistress Kara, I find myself getting a little jealous again...of Ashley!"
"That's a lovely thing to say, Jaycee. Thank you," Kara said, reaching out and squeezing the younger woman's hand. "I didn't know you were so sentimental!"
"It's a sentimental day for you. I thought it would be a good time to say it."
"Mistress, I'm ready for Inspection," Ashley called from her bedroom.
"Inspection?" Jaycee asked, her lips already turning up into a delighted grin.
