I eventually crawled under the covers and fell asleep. At some point she must have done the same because when I woke the next morning she was spooned into my back. For a few minutes I lay in the warm comfort of her embrace then I reached behind me and tugged the duvet off her. She woke at once with a startled grunt. I lifted her arm away from my waist and pushed her to the edge of the bed.
"Can't sleep all day, girl, time to make some coffee," I told her, "get a move on while I take a shower. I'll be down soon."
She stumbled out of the bed looking slightly disappointed but left the room, padding nakedly through the door without a word. I stretched out under the covers luxuriating in the warmth and re-living scenes from last night. Reluctantly I got up and took a shower and then chose my clothes for the day. I wasn't expecting any clients, but one never knows. I chose a pale khaki suit with a skirt that had a business-like length. A freshly and crisply ironed white shirt made me feel in command once more. I couldn't be bothered tidying up as Mrs.M would be in later and was used to finding discarded underwear thrown around the room. She could even be trusted to thoroughly clean my strappie before putting it back in the toy drawer. I looked through Yvonne's underwear drawer and selected the black set. I laid it out on the bed along with a black skirt, an almost transparent white blouse and an unopened pack of black hold-ups. Satisfied with my choice I went down to the kitchen drawn by the aroma of freshly made coffee.
Yvonne was standing by the sink, cradling a mug of coffee in her hand. She really should learn to wait for me before starting I thought but I decided to let her off this once. She immediately sprang into action as I came in and poured a cup for me. She obviously saw me as above such a mundane thing as a mug and served mine in an elegant antique cup and saucer. I sat at the table and looked at her. She was still unkempt from last night. Her make-up had smudged somehow, and she had her own dried juices caked along her thighs. I was tempted to leave her like that but thought I should at least put on a respectable front for the office.
"You're a mess, girl," I told her, "better get and shower. I've laid out your clothes on the bed. You have five minutes."
She opened her mouth to protest but then thought better of it and quickly put her cup down and rushed from the room. I grinned to myself as I watched her run off. I sat and savoured my coffee while I waited.
Her idea of five minutes was obviously different from mine as it was a full ten minutes before she came running down the stairs. I was already standing next to the open front door. To be fair the extra time had been worth it as she looked very neat and tidy. She'd put on the minimum of make-up and given herself a lovely natural look. She hastily pulled on her shoes, which she had carried down the stairs, and then stopped in front of me awaiting my approval.
I slowly looked her up and down. The contrast between the black lingerie and the almost diaphanous blouse was very striking although, as it was a warm and sunny day, I thought we could be a little bolder.
"I think we'll start with 'cute and sexy'," I told her.
She looked down at herself and quickly undid another button and rearranged the neckline of her blouse. I smiled in approval and pointed at the open door. She walked past me and stood next to the car. She seemed less fazed with being out in the open than she had been before. She had come to realise that my front driveway and garden were quite secluded. I locked the door behind me and got into the car. When I opened her door, she didn't scramble in as she had done before but eased herself in more gracefully. It was a pleasant drive to the office which we did mostly in silence, both enjoying the sunshine. I stopped before we got there and parked outside the local baker's shop. I took some money out of my bag and handed it to Yvonne.
"Go get us both something for later, there's a dear," I said to her, "they do a little apple pie which I love and whatever takes your fancy." I decided to be 'nice' boss today, so I added, "and you can go to 'flirty' while you're in there."
She quickly buttoned herself up and left the car. In truth it made little difference as her blouse was so thin but it made her feel better. A short while later she reappeared carrying a small bag but looking a little flustered. She got in quickly and hunkered down in the seat.
"What's up?" I asked.
"Oh, Miss, that lady from yesterday was in there. She kept pawing at me."
"Ms.Evans? Pay her no mind. Although you must be nice to her, she's worth a lot of money for the business."
"I tried to be polite, Miss."
"Good girl, now back to 'sexy' mode."
She dutifully released one button and I drove off. By the time we reached the office she had calmed down and was smiling again. We worked steadily until mid-morning when we stopped for coffee. For some reason I couldn't get an image of Rose out of my head.
"Rose is quite pretty, don't you think?" I asked Yvonne as I ate my apple pie and she fellated her choice of chocolate Γ©clair.
"Yes, Miss," she replied with her mouth full.
"I have decided that she needs a shopping trip. I know how much you enjoyed it and I'm sure she would feel the same. Let's ring her mother right now and arrange it."
I picked up the phone and dialled my own home. I knew that this was Mrs.M's morning to come in and do the ironing. She also had instructions to answer the phone and take messages. So much nicer I always thought than that dreadful robotic message. She answered almost at once and I switched the phone to loudspeaker.
"Hello. Ms.P's home, may I ..."
I quickly interrupted her, "Mrs.M its me," I announced, "I've decided that my offer to take Rose shopping was such a good one. Is she free this afternoon?"
"Oh... errr... I think so Miss but it's really not necessary."
"Nonsense. She'll enjoy it I'm sure. Tell her to come to the office at two o'clock."
"Of course, Ms.P and thank you so much."
I pressed the button that cut off the call and looked at Yvonne with a grin. I was surprised to see a frown of concern on her face.
"Don't be silly, Yvonne, you're coming too. In fact, there's one or two things I want to get you. You won't be forgotten."
The look of relief that came over her was a joy to behold. I changed the mood by returning to the costings I had been doing and she once more attacked her keyboard. I was just easing off and thinking about lunch when there was a flurry of activity on the stairs and Mo burst in.
"Hi, darling," she called out, "I've come to take you to lunch." She stopped suddenly to take in the transformation of the office. Her gaze swept the room and lighted on Yvonne who had looked up from her work when the whirlwind came in. "And the lovely Yvonne as well of course. You're both coming. My treat." I could do nothing but give in to the force of nature that was Mo and I bowed to the inevitable. We all trotted down the stairs to the car. Poor Yvonne had to squeeze in the back as Mo grabbed the front seat. She still looked in a state of shock. I knew the feeling, but I'd known Mo long enough to be used to it by now.