by Ellie Norton
She pulled out of me and slowly raised wide eyes to meet my dreamy stare. I smiled placidly. "Oh my God," she whispered, stepping back from me in shock. I slumped to my knees before her, awaiting her next command in sheer bliss.
She knelt next to me, lifting my chin to look into my eyes. "You were right, my pet."
I smiled, "I know, Mistress."
She hesitated and then asked, "Can you come back now?"
It took a moment for the words to filter through the tranquil haze of my mind, but when they did, I blinked and pushed back the trance. "Yes, Mistress," I answered, grinning.
She relaxed. "God, Rachel you scare me sometimes."
"I'm sorry," I said, even though I really wasn't.
Her eyes narrowed and she let out a small exasperated huff, before she pulled me to my feet. I groaned as my aches and pains reawakened. Her eyes softened, "How sore are you?"
I shifted, "Pretty sore," I admitted.
"Alright, well I'm going to run you a bath to let you soak out some of those aches while I make up some lunch."
"Thanks, Mistress," I said appreciatively.
"You're welcome, Rachel."
While I was in the bath, Emma brought me some painkillers, a glass of water and a cup of coffee. "Thanks," I said smiling at her thoughtfulness.
"You're welcome. Now just relax," she said returning my smile.
"I can do that," I said and she left the room.
The soak in the tub did wonders and the aches subsided enough for me to be able to move easily. When I got out of the tub, I washed away the remnants of my makeup from the previous night and studied the hickey blooming on my collarbone. I smiled, liking the fact that I had pushed Emma into marking me this morning. I shrugged into my bathrobe and headed into the kitchen.
After we ate I called Ava, with Emma's permission.
"Hello?" She said when she answered on the third ring.
"Ava, it's Rachel," I replied.
"Oh, Rachel. How are you?" She asked, concern evident in her voice.
I chuckled, "I'm ok. A little sore, but otherwise I'm good."
She laughed, "Good. I was worried. Is Emma mad at me?" She asked.
I turned to Emma, not bothering to move the phone away from my mouth as I said, "Ava wants to know if you're mad at her." Emma laughed and held out her hand for the phone. I gave it to her.
"This is Emma, I'm not mad at you, Ava," she said into the phone. "No, I was just trying not to laugh…Yeah, I know," she met my eyes and smiled brilliantly. "No Ava, I love, Rachel with everything I am, I'm not going to hurt her…Yes…Of course. I'll make sure you get an invite…Thank you for watching out for her last night…Ok, here's Rachel." She finished handing the phone back over. I gave her a quizzical look, but she just smiled mischievously.
"Hey, I'm back," I said to Ava
"So, Emma Parker loves you. What's that like?"
I laughed. "It's amazing Ava. I love her too, you know," I said smiling at Emma, who returned the smile.
"That's adorable," Ava said dryly.
I huffed, "I'm not adorable." Emma grinned at me and I rolled my eyes. Wanting to change the subject, I asked, "So, what are you getting an invite for?"
"The Campman's party next month. I'm dying to see you guys in action," she said unabashedly.
I groaned, "Well, I guess you earned it after last night."
"Yes, I did," She said cheerily.
"Oh, before I forget. Do you have plans for next Friday?" I asked.
"Not yet, what's up?"
"I'm DJing the grand opening of a new club called Tusk. I'll put you on the guest list."
"Oh, my God! I've heard about it. It's supposed to be the hottest new club in LA. How the Hell did you manage to swing that?"
I chuckled, "I owe it all to Emma."
"Wow, well, I'll totally be there. Fuck Emma for me in thanks," Ava said teasingly.
"Grosse," was all I could say.
Ava laughed. "Alright, well, I'm glad you're ok. I'll let you go. See you Friday."
"See you then, nerd," I said and hung up the phone.
Emma grinned, "That was really nice of you."
I shrugged. "She's a good friend, and after last night, she definitely deserves it."
Emma pulled me into a hug. "I agree," She said before claiming my lips in a soft loving kiss.
I called Brian next and we made plans to meet for dinner and drinks. Emma was adorably nervous the entire time I was on the phone with him, but I didn't tease her. When I hung up the phone I wrapped my arms around her and said, "It's ok, love. Brian's really down-to-earth. You'll really like him, I promise. And he's going to love you."
She nodded and smiled. "Alright. I trust you."
Chapter 11
While we got ready over at my apartment, I noticed the tension radiating through Emma. I moved over to wrap my arms around her. "It's going to be ok, Em. Brian's really nice."
She leaned into my embrace and sighed. "It's not that, Rachel. I mean, I am nervous about meeting him, but I'm also worried about Kristen's visit."
"Oh, yeah. With everything else, I forgot about it. When is she coming?" I asked, mentally kicking myself for letting it slip my mind.
Emma shifted to give me a sheepish smile. "She's arriving on Wednesday."
"Seriously?" I asked. When she nodded, I continued. "And you're just now reminding me?"
"I'm sorry. You've just been so busy and I didn't want to add to your stress," she said softly.
Irritated, I moved away to pace. Thoughts were swirling through my mind. It took a minute, but eventually two questions seem the most pressing. So I asked, "How long will she be here? Where is she staying?"
Emma sat heavily on the bed. "She'll be here for a week and I invited her to stay in my guest room."
I froze, staring at her. "What?"
"I'm sorry, Rachel. I told her she could stay with me before you and I got together. I didn't think I'd be in a serious relationship when she said she wanted to visit. I didn't think it would matter," she finished softly, not meeting my gaze.
Part of me wanted to go to her and comfort her, but mostly I was pissed that she hadn't told me before. "What does that mean for us?" I asked.
She flinched under the weight of my anger. "Whatever you want it to. I should have told you sooner."
I sighed, letting the anger fall away. I moved to sit next to her. We sat in silence for several minutes, each lost in our own thoughts. Eventually I asked, "So if I told you I didn't want her to see me in your collar, would I only get to see you either here or out in public with Kristen?"
She sighed, "If that's what you want."
I took her hand and squeezed her fingers. "It's not what I want. I want to be with you. But I don't know if I can be collared around her."
Her shoulders slumped, "I understand."
I hesitated a moment before asking, "Would you let me in your house without the collar, if I can't stand to wear it around her?"
Finally, Emma turned to meet my gaze. "Are you ashamed of what we do?"
"No," I answered immediately. "I'm just scared, Em. You said that you guys fought when she found out that you were a dominatrix. I'm afraid of what she'll say or do if she sees me in your collar."
She studied me for a long time before nodding. "Alright, why don't we go out for dinner on Wednesday after she gets here? I know Kristen and she won't wait long to ask you how you feel about my job. And we'll take it from there. Would that be ok?"
"Yes," I agreed immediately. "Thank you."
"You're welcome, love. I don't want to see you hurt. You do know that right?"
I nodded, "Yeah. I don't want you to get hurt either."
"I know," she said with a smile. "Now come on, I've got to get ready to meet a superstar. I want to look perfect."
I grinned, "You always look perfect, Em."
She rolled her eyes, but couldn't stop the pleased smile from forming. "You're biased, Rachel."
"Maybe, but it doesn't
make it any less true," I said, pulling her in for a kiss before we finished getting ready.
When we walked into the restaurant, the host sneered at us. "Do you have a reservation?"
I smirked, "We're meeting Brian Zane."
The host sniffed, obviously not believing us. "What are your names?"
"Rachel Martel and Emma Parker. Would you like to see our IDs?" I asked sarcastically.
He consulted a list and said, "That won't be necessary. Pleas follow me. Mr. Zane has already arrived."
As Emma and I followed him through the crowded restaurant, I noticed several people watching us with curiosity. I smiled, enjoying the attention. The rude host led us to the back of the restaurant, where a table was separated from the rest of the patrons by a wall, effectively blocking us from the view of prying eyes.
When Brian saw us, he jumped up and wrapped me into a hug. "Rachel, wow, you clean up well," He said pulling back to take in the Navy cocktail dress I'd worn.
I rolled my eyes at him, "Thanks Brian, you too." And he did look nice in a black button down shirt, gray blazer and jeans. I motioned to Emma, "And this is my girlfriend, Emma."
Emma smiled at him and extended her hand. "It's really nice to meet you."
Brian ignored the hand, moving around me to pull Emma into a hug. Emma's eyes were wide as saucers as she stiffly returned the hug. I bit my lip against the laughter that wanted to bubble out. Brian released her and said, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Emma. Rachel's told me so much about you."
As he moved back to take his seat, Emma lifted an eyebrow at me, wryly asking, "All good I hope."
Brian chuckled, "Of course."
I smiled over at her. "What can I say, Em. You're an amazing woman."
She smiled at me. "Thank you."
Brian grinned at us, obviously loving the genuine affection we shared. I blushed, looking down at my menu. Brian turned to Emma and asked, "So, what do you do?"
I stiffened, not even considering the possibility of him asking her that. Emma didn't even miss a beat. "I'm an efficiency consultant," she said confidently.
"What exactly does that mean?" Brian asked.
"People hire me to come in and whip their employees into shape," She said with a grin. I choked, coughing and reached for the water on the table.
"You ok, Rach?" Brian asked after I had taken a sip.
I glanced over at Emma and saw her smirking at me. I turned back to Brian, "Yeah, I'm fine, just inhaled weird, you know?"
"Sure," he said, relaxing back in his seat. After we had ordered, Brian asked, "So how did you guys meet?"
I smiled, "We actually met in college."
"Really?"
Emma shot me a grin, and I groaned knowing what she was going to say. "Yeah, actually we really got to know each other after Rachel pledged the sorority I was the president of."
Brian's eyes widened in surprise. "That's cool," he said and I realized that he meant it.
"So have you guys been together since then?"
"No, we lost touch after I graduated, and we only just got together recently," Emma explained.
"What brought you back together?" Brian asked genuinely curious.
I rushed to answer, worried about what explanation Emma would give. "Em convinced Darrin to hire me for a private party."
"You know Darrin?" Brian asked Emma.
"Yes. We met through my job and became friends. I asked him to hire her for his party, in an attempt to see if she was interested in me," she answered with a sly grin.
"I guess it worked," Brian replied.
I grinned, reaching over to take Emma's hand. "Yeah, it did."
Brian smiled. "Is that how Darrin found you, Rachel?"
"Yeah."
Brian turned to Emma, "Then I have to thank you. Rachel probably saved my career."
Emma blushed, "I don't know about that."
"No seriously, the new album will finally let me play the kind of music I had always wanted to play. She's a genius and I couldn't have done it without her."
"Thanks, Brian. You did most of the work though." I said smiling at him.
"That's not true. You worked your ass off on the album. It's brilliant thanks to you." Brian insisted.
"Rachel's been really secretive about the album. Can you tell me about it?" Emma asked.
"Sure," Brian said and the conversation turned to his music and the new club opening.
When the bill came, Brian insisted on paying. "Seriously, Rachel. I have more money than I know what to do with," he insisted.
"Fine. Thank you," I agreed begrudgingly. Emma just looked on amused.
After the waiter returned with Brian's credit card, we stood and he hugged us both again. "Emma it was a pleasure meeting you."
"You, too, Brian. Thank you for dinner."
"Anytime," he said. "I suppose I will see you guys on Friday."
I grinned, "See you then, Brian."
As we stepped out of the restaurant, we were surrounded by paparazzi. Shouted questions came from all sides as the cameras' flashes blinded us. Brian ignored everyone and pushed through the crowd. Emma and I followed his lead, grateful to the waiter for having the valets bring our cars around before we left. One reporter called out, "Brian are you dating both of these girls?" It almost made me stop, but Emma grabbed my hand and pulled me to her car. Flashes continued to go off as she drove away from the restaurant.
"Can you see well enough to drive?" I asked, worried because I could only make out black spots.
"Yeah, I think so. I kept my eyes down, so I'm not completely blinded.
"That's good," I said relieved. After a minute I said, "That was insane right?"
She chuckled, "Rachel, you better get used to it. You're gonna be thrust in the spotlight at Tusk's opening on Friday."
I swallowed hard, "I didn't think of that."
She glanced over at me, smirking. "Have you thought at all about what the guest list will look like for Friday? All the celebrities? The big names in music? The press coverage?"
"No," I answered, shaken as I hadn't actually thought about it. Nerves danced down my spine as the reality of it settled over me.
Emma reached over to grip my hand, "You'll be amazing, Rachel."
"Are you sure?" I asked, suddenly feeling like I wasn't ready for what would be the biggest gig of my life.
"Positive. Besides, you'll have me, Ava, Harold and Kristen there to cheer you on. Plus Brian, who may be your new biggest fan."
My lips twitched into a half smile. "Yeah, you're right. I can do this, right?"
"Yes, Rachel you can." The unwavering confidence in Emma's voice soothed my nerves.
"Oh, shit, I've got to call Darrin." I said, realization dawning.
"What? Why?" Emma asked sharply.
"I need to ask him to put you guys on the guest list." I said sheepishly.
She laughed. "Go ahead and call him."
"Thanks, Em," I said, digging my phone out of my purse. When he picked up I said, "Hi, Darrin, this is Rachel Martel."
"Rachel, what a delightful surprise. I'm sorry about last night. I hope I didn't step out of line." He said without any preamble.
It took me a minute to remember what he was talking about. "Oh, no, Darrin. It's cool."
"Good," he said and I could hear the relief in his voice. "What can I do for you?"
I smiled. "I was wondering if you could put a few names on the guest list for Friday."
"Of course, how many people?" He agreed immediately.
I wondered if he was only agreeing out of guilt or if he was just that willing to appease me. I hesitated then said, "Four people."
"Sure, give me a sec to grab a pen," I heard him rustling around then he said, "Go ahead." I gave him the names. "Done, though Ms. Parker was already on the list."
I grinned, "Thanks, Darrin. I thought she might be, but I wanted to make sure."
"Of course. Is there anything else you need tonight?" He said calmly.
&
nbsp; I hesitated for a second before saying, "Just so you know some paparazzi just got pictures of me, Emma and Brian leaving a swanky restaurant together. I don't think it'll be a problem, but I wanted to give you a heads up."
"Thank you, Rachel. That's wonderful. It's actually really great news. It'll start the buzz about you. Have you told your manager yet?"
"Um no, I should probably do that."
"Yes, you should. Anything else?"
"Nope, that's it. Thanks again, Darrin."
"You're welcome, Rachel. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. We'll talk again later this week."
"Ok, talk to you later," I said hanging up the phone before turning to Emma. "It's all set up. And you were already on the guest list. I'm sorry I didn't think of it sooner."
"It's ok, Rachel. It's been a busy couple of days," she said smiling at me.
"Thanks, Em. Um, I've also got to call my manager. Is that ok?"
She nodded and I dialed, Katie picked up almost immediately. "How's my favorite client today?" She asked and I laughed.
"I'm great, Katie. How are you?"
"I'm wonderful, Rachel. What can I do for you?" She asked and I could hear the genuine affection in her voice.
"I should have called you yesterday, but I wanted to tell you that Darrin asked me to DJ Tusk's grand opening on Friday."
"Yes, I know. His admin called me yesterday with the details and she faxed over a new contract. Apparently you've impressed everyone at the label."
"Oh, wow. That's great. Um, there's something else you should know. Tonight, Emma, me and Brian Zane went out to dinner to celebrate and we were ambushed by the paparazzi when we left," I said.
She hesitated for a moment, before saying, "While that is great for your career, I have to ask. How serious are things with you and Emma?"
"Very serious," I answered without any hesitation.
"Ok, good for you, honey. Next question, do you want to be publicly out of the closet?"
"Yes, I won't hide who I am and I'm not ashamed of the woman I love," I said immediately. I noticed Emma glance over to smile at me. I smiled back at her and reached over to rest my hand on her thigh.
"Great. I'm really happy for you, Rachel. Last question, is Emma willing to make your relationship public? Especially, knowing that I plan to make you a household name?"