Chapter Nine
Aftermath and Reformation
Nobody was quick to stir that next morning. The living room was littered with nude bodies liberally strewn about it. The room looked like the scene of a grisly mass-murder, the type that would make the national news, but the only mass-casualties of the previous night were brain cells. Taryn was closest to the main door, and she was lying on her stomach with her head pointing in the direction of the couch. Veronica was sprawled out across the couch, face down with an arm and a leg draping off of it. Rosina was asleep underneath the coffee table, lying on her side, in the fetal position. Owen was on his back, not far from the couch, somewhere between the couch and the dining room, but he was not alone. Karen was cuddled up to him and was sleeping with half her body draped over him. She had a peaceful and satisfied look on her face as she slept. The first to stir was Taryn, who groaned as she began to move her sore body, from her position on the carpet-covered concrete floor.
"Ooooooh, Fuck am I sore," Taryn groaned in a gravely voice as she sat up and looked around at everyone around her. "Fuck, we're late," Taryn cursed in her still gravely voice after glancing at the clock on the wall.
By the clock on the wall, the Spa should have been open half an hour ago, on the busiest day of the week. Taryn got up and began to shake each person awake, asking if they were alright. Karen's only response was to smile a satisfied smile at Taryn and snuggle up closer to Owen. Veronica noticed this and glared her disapproval at Karen who was oblivious to the harsh look. Everyone seemed to be alright . . . relatively, they were okay until they started to try to stand up.
"We have to open the spa," Taryn said as she pulled her dress over her head.
"I agree," Karen said as she started to stand up but then fell back down onto her rump, while grabbing her head and wincing in pain.
"Yeah, but not by you," Taryn said with a laugh, but quickly that laugh died quickly due to the pain in her head.
"I'll do it," Rosina said as she started to stand up but fell over sideways, crashing into the couch. "No I won't" she groaned as she looked up bleary-eyed from where she landed.
"I'm up! I'll go!" Veronica said as she remained sitting upright but motionless on the couch. "Really, I'm getting up," she said just before she fell over sideways and crashed on the couch, asleep once more.
"I guess, it's you and me, Red," Owen said as he stood up, wobbling only a little bit as he did so.
"Sounds like fun, Master. I'll show you how to run the front. I can handle the back end by myself," Taryn said as she handed Owen his clothes.
"No, it's my shop! I'll go!" Karen said as she tried once more to stand up.
"No, you won't. You're in no shape to do anything. Stay here, rest, and take care of the other two," Owen said as he put his hand on Karen's shoulder and gently pushed her back down.
"Yes, Sir," Karen replied, almost out of instinct, and this response elicited a raised-eyebrow look from everyone in the room, yet Owen only smiled in reply.
Taryn and Owen did leave the apartment and went upstairs to run the Spa while the others rested downstairs. Taryn didn't get a chance to show Owen what to do before they opened up the doors, as she had hoped. As soon as they arrived upstairs they saw that there were a few customers milling about outside the doors of the Spa, waiting for it to open. Owen watched carefully what Taryn did and quickly picked up on what to do as she rang the first customers through. Once the first few were rung though, Owen took over running the front of the spa while Taryn concentrated on running the back end. Owen found that he liked dealing with people and that it a good change from the intense studying that he had been doing the past few weeks.
While upstairs was a hive of activity, with a steady stream of customers, downstairs was as silent as a tomb as the three other survivors from the previous night lay resting and recuperating in the living room. Karen was the first to stir and forced herself to get up and get the day started. She brewed coffee, and made breakfast for the five of them and Rosina took coffee and breakfast up to Taryn and Owen as soon as it was ready.
Back downstairs breakfast was a quiet affair because Karen, Rosina and Veronica were still feeling rough from the previous night's drinking. Also, Veronica was angry with Karen for having sex with Owen and telling him that she needed a man. Veronica scowled at Karen throughout breakfast, not hiding her displeasure one bit. For the most part Karen ignored Veronica's harsh glares and continued to eat breakfast but eventually, she had enough of Veronica's attitude and decided to challenge her on it.
"Alright, young lady, what is your problem?" Karen snapped angrily at Veronica as she threw her fork down on her plate.
"As if you don't know! And address me properly, I am your Mistress!" Veronica retorted angrily as she sat up straight and glared at Karen in a superior attitude.
"I may call you Mistress during Playtime, but this is not Playtime, and I will certainly not call you Mistress when you're acting like a spoiled little brat!" Karen spat back as she stared at her daughter in disbelief. "Now what the fuck is your problem?" Karen finished with a frustrated tone of voice as she continued to look at Veronica with an expectant look.
"SPOILED BRAT!" Veronica shouted indignantly. "I am an outraged MISTRESS whose SLAVE has disrespected her by giving herself to another!"
"What?" Karen scoffed in angry shock as she shook her head.
"You threw yourself at Owen last night like a cheap slut!" Veronica spat with anger and hurt in her eyes and voice.
"So what? We were all drunk and everyone ended up having sex with someone! You ended up having sex with Rosina last night, or did you forget? It has been a very long time since I had been with a man and I couldn't resist!" Karen replied in a mildly outraged tone of voice.
"I AM YOUR MISTRESS! I OWN YOU! How dare you disgrace me by having sex with someone else, right in front of me even!" Veronica shouted as she stood up and pointed her finger at Karen as she thumped the table while speaking.
"Sit down, Ronnie," Karen said in a forced calm, motherly tone of voice as she glared at Veronica.
"No!" Veronica said defiantly as she glared at her mother.
"NOW!" Karen shouted angrily with eyes of fire and glared at Veronica unwaveringly.
"Fine," Veronica said as she sat down, but she didn't look pleased about it.
"You seem to have forgotten something basic about our relationship. We play at being 'Mistress' and 'Slave', but only during 'Playtime.' You have taken this too far! You believe that you are my Mistress all the time and that is not the case. You have no right to tell me who I can and can't have sex with," Karen said in a calm, yet firm tone of voice as she looked at Veronica with softness in her eyes.
"But I love you so much! I've wanted to have you for so long, it is the way that we were meant to be, you'll see soon enough! You're just having a hard time with the fact that I'm your daughter. Trust me, trust your Mistress, I know what is best for you," Veronica responded in a loving and soothing tone of voice as she tried to be persuasive.
"There you go again, trying to push me into a relationship that I am not ready for, and don't know if I ever will be ready for," Karen said as she shook her head.
"In time you will be comfortable with us having sex, even though I'm your daughter," Veronica said as she held Karen's hand and started to stroke it in an understanding manner.
"That's not it! I don't mind anymore that you are my daughter. In this house, loving and having sex with a family member seems 'normal.' That doesn't bother me, what does bother me is your insistence to make 'Playtime' a permanent and twenty-four-seven thing," Karen replied in a firm yet calm tone of voice.
"But that's our destiny! You know that, you have to know that!" Veronica replied fervently, as she looked into Karen's eyes with a pleading look.
"Look, we have fun and I enjoy our times together, I really do. I just don't think I could give myself completely to another woman. If last night has taught me anything, it has taught me that I'd miss men. I need to have a man in my life, I love men too much to turn my back on them completely," Karen said with a sad tone of voice as she looked at Veronica with a look of compassion.
"That's okay; there are toys and devices we can get. You won't have to give up a thing, we can make this work!" Veronica said in a pleading tone of voice with an urging look in her eyes as she moved her chair closer to Karen.
"Are you kidding? Do you really think a plastic cock is all it takes to replace a man? Do you seriously think that the only thing I miss about men is their cocks? I miss feeling the strong arms of a man encircling me. I miss the warmth, weight and sent of him as he hovers over me while he ravages me senseless! I miss their strength of will and being taken care of. Can your dildo do all that?" Karen asked with a queer look in her eye.
"No, but I can!" Veronica asserted as she leaned in closer to Karen.
"You could, but it isn't the same!" Karen replied in a frustrated tone of voice as she shook her head and looked away.
For a moment her eyes fell on Rosina who had until now been quiet. With a wordless look, Karen silently asked Rosina to help explain things to Veronica. Karen wanted Veronica to understand why she needed a real man, not a lesbian with a strap-on dildo.
"Ronnie, you and I have had sex, and I can say with certainty that you know very well how to please a woman," Rosina said calmly to Veronica and smiled a naughty smile and wink.
"SEE! Even she says that I'm the best! You don't need men!" Veronica said eagerly to Karen.
"Listen to her! Let her finish!" Karen said firmly.
