Valerie

Chapter Six

Growth of Love

Valerie stood on the steps, watching the cab pull up to the door. Getting in, she cringed involuntarily as she leaned back on the sore marks and welts on her back and legs. Telling the driver where to take her, she smiled at the memories of how the soreness came about.

"Are you all right, lady?"

"Yes. Just a little sore."

"I take it you had an enjoyable weekend?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. It's just that I've been picking people up from this place for several years. We cabbies, we're an observant lot. While you all are good at your secrets, I've figured that you're into something kinky. That's cool; we all have our kinks, though mine doesn't involve severe pain afterwards. I'm also discreet. Knowing what not to notice brings repeat business. What I'm getting at, badly, you need some discreet transportation somewhere, you can call me. This is my card. Name's Harry, Harry Driscol. The second number is my cell; call it if you need me in particular."

"Thanks, Harry, I think. If you don't mind my asking, what let you in on what goes on here?"

"Actually, it wasn't any one thing, but more a collection of things. A glimpse of a red mark here, a wince there. No one says you all like to hit each other, but put together, they add up."

"Why do you assume it's about sex?"

"Most people don't smile dreamily when they are hurting, as if remembering the pain fondly. So I figure you all are part of that S&M crowd."

"I can speak for the others when I say, thank you for your discretion. I'll keep your card handy. Just in case. I may be calling you regularly. It'll make coming and going less worrisome."

"My pleasure, miss."

"Valerie, call me Valerie."

It took half an hour to reach the apartment building, just enough for the smooth ride and soft traffic sounds of a Sunday night to lull her to sleep. Harry woke her up, collected his fare and she went inside. Up to the tenth floor where she lived in a one bedroom flat, she opened the door and walked in.

"Francine! I'm home." She called out. Entering the living room, she saw her friend, huddled on the couch, still in her bed clothes, face streaked with dry tears.

"Oh my God, Francine! Was it another nightmare?"

Francine could only nod.

Valerie sat down next to her friend, reaching around her to hold her tight, just noticing the flinch when she did. Held by someone she desperately wanted to trust, Francine's tears began again. This time the tears were soothing; not a reinforcement of the fear and horror of the dream world. In her head, she told herself, "Val's my friend. She would never hurt me." She couldn't tell if it was working. She knew she could never admit to Valerie where the dreams had gone.

Valerie held Francine for an hour, watching the tears come and go, saying nothing. In her heart, she knew that Francine had to talk to someone or the nightmares would never go away. She was inhibited, somehow, from talking to Val, but who could she talk to? "What shrink would listen to her story and not have her committed?" she thought to herself.

Cried out, Francine looked into her friend's eyes. "Valerie, I'm so sorry. This should be a happy time. You're a sub! You've had your first long scene. I want to hear all about it, every detail. But first, are there any orders you need to deal with?"

"Just two. I'm to make an appointment with a Dr. Waston for an OB/GYN exam. I can do that tomorrow. Master also wants me to keep my pussy shaved."

"Let's go into the bedroom. I can shave you again while you tell me all the

horrid

details."

They retired to the bedroom, Valerie sitting on the edge of the bed. She noticed that Francine did not cringe much when she put weight on her feet. Happy that her friend was healing, she stripped off her clothes, a little surprised at how easy it was this time. "I've gotten used to being naked in front of others. I am changing, and I think I like it."

While Francine carefully shaved Val's pussy for a second time, she listened intently as Valerie related all the things that made up her weekend. They talked long into the night, something both would pay for in the morning. Francine was most interested in what provoked safe words during the weekend. She was incredulous at one.

"Did it really bother you that bad to punish Sally? I know I'd love to get Sally under the whip."

"I don't know if I can explain it well. When I was inflicting pain on her, I felt like pieces of my soul were being ripped out. By the time I said, 'red light,' I was sobbing like I was the one being whipped, and I would much rather have been in her place. I was dry as a bone down there, my nipples were totally flaccid and it

hurt

inside, like I was watching a loved one die, helpless to save her. I…I'm different, I guess."

"Of course you're different. That's what makes you special. Don't worry about it. That just means more dominant fun for the rest of them."

"I think I could learn to moan with that." Valerie said with a smile that quickly morphed into full-fledged laughter. They laughed together for several minutes before continuing.

"Now Valerie, unless you like razor burn, I'd suggest getting a depilatory of some sort. Your biggest problem will be burning from the chemicals on your lips. I have some stuff at home that I get from TV ads when they come on. It doesn't use chemicals, but is a gel that adheres to the hairs and pulls them out gently. When you pull it off, the hairs have already been uprooted, leaving no pain. If we go by my place tomorrow, I can lend you some. The best part is that it extracts from below the skin surface, so stubble takes days to reappear. Apply it Thursday night and you'll be good through the weekend."

"We also need to get you into the doctor, Francine. Your feet are looking better and maybe we can get you back on them for short periods. Maybe even get you back home."

Francine looked a little melancholy. "I've gotten used to having someone else around regularly. Home is going to feel lonely after this week."

"I didn't say you had to. Of course you're welcome to stay for as long as you wish. You're my best friend."

"Val, what do you think about something more permanent?"

"You mean, become roommates?"

"Yeah, or more if you feel comfortable with that later."

"Right now, the more is too much. And, I may be falling in love."

"Charles or Sally?"

"You know me too well. Sally. I would never have believed that I could fall into romantic love with a woman. Change is scary sometimes. As for moving in together, you know I don't rely on my car much. It's too easy to take cabs and busses. The boondocks, where you live would be too far out. My place is too small for something permanent. I don't know if it would work."

"Actually, I was thinking about something new, in town, big enough for our needs, both present and future. You know my house is an inheritance. I don't owe on it and could easily afford half of a nice house, maybe two bedrooms, a basement we could fix up for playing. Eventually neighbors will hear us if we play often enough here."

"Francine…this is big, and unexpected. Don't take this wrong, but I need time to think on it. Is that okay?"

"Of course it's okay. I didn't think you'd have an answer right away you silly sub."

"Good. We'll talk more next week. Deal?"

"Deal. We'd better get to bed. I'm going to hate myself in the morning."

"Can I hate you, too?"

That rated a pillow in the face.

*********

Valerie's alarm went off at the disgustingly early hour of 5:00 am, just as she had set it. "Staying up till 1:00 was a bad idea," she thought to herself. Dragging herself into the shower, she saw in the mirror that long sleeves were once again the order of the day. "I've got to go shopping this week. I may need more long-sleeve items. I wonder how long before the red goes away?"

A cold shower to wake up, a promise to get enough sleep tonight, and she was dressed and ready to go early. Remembering that she was going to get long distance orders, she checked her E-mail before she left. There was an E-mail from someone called Your_Master@gmail.com. "Okay," she thought, "that's easy to spot. Mental note to self, don't check for orders in public." She opened it up.

"Valerie, I hope you checked this before you went to bed. I have two orders. Sleep with your hands bound in your cuffs in front of you. E-mail me your feelings at 8:00 Monday night. On Monday, masturbate to the brink of orgasm sometime during the day while you're not in the house. Be sure to not cum. E-mail me a complete description of it in a separate E-mail at the same time. Master."

"Uh-oh." She said out loud.

"Wha… What is it Val?" Francine asked from the couch.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. I've managed to disobey Char…Master within a day of leaving his house."

"Uh, did you forget to tell me something?"

"No. But I didn't check my E-mail last night."

"And he had something for you to do last night?"

"Yeah. I was supposed to sleep with my hands bound. I wonder what my punishment will be."

"You want some advice? From another dominant?"

"Yeah."

"Find a way to punish yourself before you tell him. It'll impress him. It might not mitigate your punishment, but it'll show contrition."

"Punish myself. I would never have thought of that."

"Yes, you would've. You're too natural a submissive to not have. Now go to work, I have another hour of sleep to get."

"Yes, Mistress."

There went another pillow.

The drive was uneventful, as they normally are. At the office, she greeted June. "Hi, June. Anything on my desk?"

"Yes, Ms. Burbon. The VP wants an update on the cracker affair. Your printer is on the blink…again. And you have a call back on the Hopkins account."

"God damn! Don't bother calling service on the printer. Just get me a new one. You know what it needs to be capable of. I'll call Hopkins before lunch and tell the VP I'm on my way up. While I'm gone, call personnel and have them do a background check on Brad, as if they were getting ready to hire him again. Complete. And ask them what we have in entry-level positions. Finally, prepare a letter of recommendation, a strongly worded one, for a Lilly Amberhurst. Keep it on file in case I need to send it down."

"Yes, Ms. Burbon. Do I know this Lilly Amberhurst?"

"I don't think so. She'll make a wonderful employee. I met her at her former job a couple of weeks ago. Hard worker, discreet, loyal to a fault."

Up at the VP's office, she told him about the conclusions Sally had come to, though she left Sally out, he wouldn't take discussing something this touchy outside of the company well, about Brad being the most likely culprit, and that personnel was doing a new background check on him. The VP agreed with the possibility and was happy that

he

could report progress of a sort. He said to keep him informed and let her go back to work.

In her office, she had the list of positions that were open. There were several that would be perfect for Lilly. She set it aside so she could find it when Lilly called and made her call back to the Hopkins agency. The man she had worked with wanted to get together for lunch to touch bases about a possible follow up ad to the one that had been finalized. He said his bosses were enthusiastic, and from past experience, might want to whip the horse to death. She suggested Montoni's at 11:30 and he agreed. She buzzed June and asked her to make the reservation.

The rest of her morning passed quickly as the minutia of working in an ad agency took up most of her time. Her lunch meeting went well and the two brainstormed some ideas that they could pitch to his bosses that would build on the successful campaign, yet not seem old and dated by the time they made the airwaves. As she was walking back to the office, she realized that this was the perfect time to follow Master's orders.

Just thinking about him and her obedience was getting her hot. She ducked into a diner and went to the lady's room, seeing three stalls inside. "Perfect," she thought, "private, yet potential public exposure." She entered the stall against the wall, shut and locked the door. Dropping her pants and panties, she sat down and drew a finger across her pussy lips. Beads of moisture transferred from lip to finger and she brought them up to taste. She shivered at the flavor and aroma that brought back memories of the weekend, of Sally rubbing her pussy while she was strapped into the cross.

She could feel the fear, dread, and arousal of being taken by a woman against her will, so to speak, as her body responded. As she rubbed her hand across her cunt more, she pictured Charles, gripping her from behind, his hand delving into her pussy, probing deeply, whispering how much of a slut she was. She moaned slightly as she teased herself by imagining her cunt being filled, but not filling it for real. Her breath came faster and faster, her arousal building fast, her pussy screaming for penetration, her clit begging for touch.

She began to writhe of the toilet, acting like a bitch in heat, pleading with herself for more. Unable to stand it anymore, she plunged her fingers into herself and pumped like a mad woman. Higher and higher she went, her need to cum building fast. She added her thumb onto her clit and went wild, jerking so hard that the seat she was sitting on squeaked back and forth. Closer and closer she approached that wondrous climax, right up to the edge, when she stopped with a cry. Her body went rigid and she bit her lower lip, holding the pleasure back by force of will. She hovered on the razor's edge, fearful she had gone too far for 30 seconds, before she slowly descended, her orgasm retreating, unrealized.

Opening her eyes, she saw that her feet were braced against the door frame and her back pressed painfully against the pipes behind her. Her hands were covered with her juices, more of which had dripped onto the seat. The air was strong with the aroma of sex. If anyone came in, they would know what happened here. She licked her hand clean of herself and used some tissue to dry her cunt and ass. Pulling her pants back up, she wiped the seat off, dumped the tissues and flushed. After washing in the sink, she exited, wondering what she looked like to the patrons.

Back at the office, June had the letter ready for Valerie's approval. It also seemed that Lilly had called twice while she was gone, once at 12:05 and once at 12:20. It seems she had a literal interpretation of afternoon. Looking over the letter, she saw that June had once again left her with nothing to do in editing it. "I swear, she could do my job for me and no one would notice," she said to herself.

"Ms. Burbon? Ms. Amberhurst is on line one."

"Thank you, June, I have it," she said, picking up the phone.

"Lilly, how are you doing."

"Lady Valerie! He fired me. It's so wonderful. He said I should never stay somewhere that makes me that uncomfortable. He gave me a check, too, severance, he called it."

"Lilly, dear, that

is

wonderful. I think you're the happiest fired person I've ever met. You still interested in getting a job here? By the way, in the working world, it should be Ms. Burbon, not Lady Valerie."

"Oh yes, I am interested, even excited, Lady…Ms. Burbon."

"Good. There are four openings that will fit you well. They're looking for two new members of the secretarial pool. Those will be the hardest, but have the best chances for advancement, if you work your ass off. Accounting is looking for a data entry person. Tedious, but perfect for someone planning to quit for something else in the near future, like going to styling school. The last is only for one year while the regular lady takes maternity leave. Main receptionist at the front office. Needs a good people person, able to stay bright and happy under all circumstances and able to memorize where everything in the building is in very short order. Any of those sound good?"

"Wow. They all do. Can I apply for them all?"

"Yes, you can. In fact, most people apply for any available position. That would have you applying for janitor positions as well. Come to think of it, your job at Mr. Vanquil's house would be taken as job experience for custodial work."

"They all sound great. How do I apply?"

"Come to the building. The lady at the front desk can tell you where and how to apply. Be sure to bring your letter from Mr. Vanquil. Also, come up to my office first, and I'll have your letter ready as well."

"Thank you soooooooo much, Ms. Burbon. I'll come right down. Uh, where is it?"

Valerie laughed lightly. "It's on the block of 37

th

avenue between Grover and Hilmes streets. Do you know where that is?"

"No, but the bus driver will."

"Good. Oh, and Lilly, wear something conservative and if you can, take your visible piercings out. They won't keep you from getting hired per se, but could be the deciding point if all other factors are equal."

"Yes, ma'am. Goodbye, ma'am."

Hanging up, she buzzed June. "June, add a section to the letter that indicates I have had opportunities to observe her housecleaning work personally and that her skills in that regard are top notch."

"Yes, ma'am."

Valerie spent the next hour making notes on the potential Hopkins redux. She called a couple of people to let them know that there may be more work, but nothing assured yet. The letter was done and she signed it, setting it aside in an envelope to give to the young lady.

Timing seemed to be perfect today, as June buzzed her and announced, "Ms. Burbon, Ms. Amberhurst is here to see you."

"Send her in, June."

The young lady who walked in was definitely not dressed conservatively. Lilly looked nervous, almost scared as she stood in front of the desk. Valerie, mindful of how sensitive she was, pointed to a chair. "Lilly, have a seat. How can I help you?"

"Lad…Ms. Burbon, I don't…I don't…" The girl seemed almost frightened to say what she wanted to say.

"Lilly, I'm not your boss. I'd like to think that I'm your friend. There's nothing you can say that will make me dislike you. I assume that you know that you're not wearing something conservative, right?"

"Yes. This…This is the most straight laced thing I own. I have no idea what I should wear to get a job at a place like this. Master Charles seemed to treat my clothing choices as a good thing."

"Well, that doesn't surprise me. There's only one thing to do then. We need to go shopping. I need to get some new clothes myself and I can show you what kind of things to wear when trying to get a job in the professional world."

"I didn't want to impose…"

"Nonsense. It's an excuse for me to get out of the office. I assume that your severance pay was enough to afford new clothes?"

"Yes, ma'am, it was quite generous."

"Let's go."

As they left, Valerie gave June some instructions for contacting her if needed. Leaving Val's car in the garage, the two took a bus up to 57

th

and Valerie introduced Lilly to her favorite clothing store, Marie's. As she had hoped, Heather was working. Heather was a genius at finding the perfect clothes for her customers. In her hands, even the totally fashion inept woman would look fabulous and professional.

Heather looked up from the woman she was with and gave a little wave and held up five fingers. Val nodded and headed over to the section of the floor where the pants suits were kept and browsed the long sleeve entries. While Valerie was a little nervous about Heather seeing the results of the weekend, an unavoidable occurrence, Lilly was simply confused at the incredible variety of clothing.