by Redrae Gunn
David came downstairs, apologized to Caleb, and then started telling him about the past week. David was a successful photographer and had many repeat clients and preferred brand campaigns. He prided himself on being able to work with the most difficult models, but earlier in the week one model had definitely tested his limits.
The talk of work faded and David nibbled on the meat and cheese. Caleb glanced around the room and noticed some of David’s work on the walls. They made more small talk but David’s focus wasn’t on the pictures.
“She’s very special to me,” David finally said.
“It’s just a social gathering that we are attending together.” Caleb nodded his head. “You have every right to be protective though. She’s beautiful, even after three days in the same clothes. Her humor, honesty.”
“There’s not many like her out there,” David said.
“Anything I need to know about?” Caleb asked. His eyebrows creased upward into his forehead as he searched for an honest response. “Something that a date should know about the other date that might catch me off guard if we were at a social gathering, like why she hasn’t showered for three days?”
“Oh, that,” David said offhandedly. “Okay, fine. Look, I don’t want to betray her confidence or trust, so I’ll just give you the seriously short version. A year ago she met who she thought was Mr. Right. Mr. Right was absolutely wrong.
“Tayen was a physician’s assistant in North Dakota, okay?” David continued. “That’s where we met and where we grew up. So Mr. Right woos her, and then they are moving, right after the wedding, to Salem, Oregon, which is where he is from.
“The minute they get there Tayen thinks something is off. Thankfully she didn’t tell him much about her past, which wasn’t hard because he was more into himself than her. A month into the marriage she finds out he’s cheating on her. With people in the office she works in.”
“Prick.” Caleb couldn’t help himself from commenting.
“Yeah.” David waved his hands like he was trying to get slime off of them. “Couples counseling, the prick suggests. Tayen goes for it. She really wants her marriage to work. It does work for maybe a month. Then he’s cheating again, with everyone that she knows.
“She had to quit her job, so she worked from home and filed for a separation. He makes her move out. So she does, into a cheap, horrible, little one bedroom in the ghetto. So she calls me because the asshole is tracking her phone, her e-mails. He has her under surveillance, so she knows the divorce is going to get ugly.”
“He was stalking her?”
“Yup. Well, she can’t afford any attorney.” David lowered his voice. “Not with the money that she was making. See, she has some property still in North Dakota, mineral rights, oil wells, willed to her, and she has me managing those accounts. But, if she buys a great attorney, he’ll try to find the money, so I pay the attorney if he agrees to do some pro bono work. He does of course. Money talks. I gave him one job, and Tayen agreed. Get her out of Salem with her maiden name awarded back to her.”
“She left with nothing?” Caleb asked.
“The clothes on her back,” David replied. “Which is why she has been wearing them for three days.”
“But the ’Cuda and her money,” Caleb said. “There are paper trails.”
“Ah yes, now we come to how fucking lucky Tayen is,” David said, raising his hands in the air. “For some damn reason, be it drugs, alcohol, or a glitch in the system, Tayen’s maiden name was listed as Wolf. Tayen Wolf, it’s on her driver’s license, marriage certificate, everything. Funny thing is, lawyer starts digging around and finds that it’s not her real name. It’s not the name on the birth certificate or on the property and land she owns. If anyone comes looking for a Tayen Wolf, they won’t find her. So, now that the divorce is final, Tayen will be given back her real maiden name…”
“Which is Lone Wolf,” Tayen said coming down the stairs wearing the light, red summer dress David had picked out. She had her hair pulled back into a loose half-bun. “I have a fond memory of my dad call me Lone Wolf. You’ve been busy spilling all my secrets, Mr. Gresham?”
“Just explaining in minimal detail why you showed up with only the clothes on your back and why you had worn them for three days, smelly girl,” David said looking pointedly at the outfit. David gave Tayen the slightest nod and Tayen smiled at the subtle approval.
“Mr. Wilson.” Tayen looked at Caleb. “I completely understand if you’d like to retract your offer of accompanying me to social event this weekend after hearing what David just told you about my past.”
Tayen held her breath and waited. David glanced from Caleb to Tayen. Caleb only looked at Tayen. “Ms. Lone Wolf, it will give me great pleasure to have you on my arm at the party this weekend. I can’t wait for us to be the main topic of gossip in front of the aviary at nine on Sunday morning. Now, if you are ready”—Caleb stood extending his hand—“I believe we need to coordinate some colors.”
* * * *
The trio left the condo and headed for the elevator.
Caleb looked at Tayen. She wasn’t smiling, but she wasn’t frowning either. There was no expression on her face. “Tayen?” Caleb asked, his voice rumbling more than he wanted.
“I don’t know anything about you, Caleb,” Tayen said, reacting to his voice. “I feel…really exposed because you now know something about me, and it wasn’t the most pleasant part of my past.”
Caleb brushed Tayen’s chin with one hand, urging her to look at him. “Tayen, I have seven older brothers. None of us share last names. All of us are of different mixed ethnicities, or so I am told, and I have never met one of them that I can recall. I don’t know what my mom looks like,” Caleb said staring into her eyes.
“Thank you,” Tayen said, and she visibly relaxed. “I thought you were going to tell me that your favorite color was yellow, and then I was going to have to kick your ass in this elevator.”
“Yellow is not my favorite color.” Caleb smiled, not believing he had just told her one of his vulnerabilities. Christ, what was she doing to him?
“That did mean a lot to me, thank you,” Tayen said then she grinned. “What’s wrong with yellow?”
“Nothing,” Caleb said, “if you like mornings.”
David had been facing forward, not moving or saying a word during the exchange between his neighbor and best friend. With Caleb’s comment David broke his silence. “Oh God, Caleb, this is not happening. Tayen is the rooster that wakes you up before the sun. Her freakin’ internal clock changes with the seasons, and she is disgustingly cheerful in the morning. Every morning, never fail. It creeps me out.”
“Stop spilling everything,” Tayen scolded as the door dinged and opened into the main lobby. “I’m going to need another thing I don’t know about you.” Tayen looked at Caleb. “And for the record, I love the color yellow.”
“I hate the main lobby because it brings on groupies sometimes,” Caleb whispered as they left the elevator. “So you, Tayen, stay on my arm like the goddess you are, no matter what college wannabes comes at me, if they do.”
Tayen straightened her spine and stuck out her chest. “As you command,” she whispered, smiling.
Caleb’s balls jumped into his stomach, and his penis ached. She had just given over control to him, for a moment. During the walk from the elevator to the main doors all Caleb could think about were the three little words she had whispered with her confident smile. He planned on making her say those three words again, and again, and again.
Chapter 2
When the trio approached Pris, Tayen hesitated. She had been fine to let Chad drive earlier, but now she wasn’t so sure. David said something to Chad as they passed.
“It’s your chariot, Ms. Lone Wolf, and she is a beauty,” Chad Bergan said, handing Tayen the keys. “May I join you?”
Tayen nodded, smiling gratefully at David.
“I call shotgun,” Caleb yelled, and David jabbed him in the shoulder.
“I was just going to say that.” David frowned as he climbed in the back with Chad. Chad shrugged his shoulders, a grin plastered on his face.
“Everyone needs to buckle in,” Tayen said sternly as she pulled the five-point harness over her head. She turned to Caleb and looked at the buckle between his legs. “Mr. Wilson, do you need help with your seat belt?” she asked playfully, batting her eyelashes.
“I do,” Caleb replied, shocking Tayen. She couldn’t back down, and she reached over to force the final clip in the holder between his legs. “Sweet Jesus,” Caleb muttered to himself when Tayen’s hand brushed against his semi-hard cock.
“Where to, Mr. Gresham?” Tayen asked as she expertly eased Pris into the flow of traffic. Caleb watched her work the gears and the pedals and wondered how her hands would feel on his skin and how her legs would feel wrapped around his waist.
“West,” David said. “Head west, young woman. Preferably the road with the most stoplights and the least amount of cops.” He smiled at Tayen in the rearview mirror.
“I don’t race, anyone, ever,” Tayen said sternly. “Pris really doesn’t need to prove herself. She just needs to be on the road and she’s already better than everything else around her.”
At the first stoplight, a brand-new Mustang revved up next to Tayen. She could tell by the rattle under the hood it was only a six cylinder. Tayen looked at the college kid in the car and shook her head. The kid rolled down his window. “Scared?” he asked.
“Hardly,” Tayen yelled over Pris’s own thunderous rumble. “That’s a six banger kid, next time you wanna spend sixteen grand get a fixer-upper.”
When the light changed green, the kid smoked his tires and sped ahead to the next light. Tayen took her time, easing Pris out of first, and worked through the gears, abiding the speed limit. The same thing happened, over and over, with newer cars, older cars. Some had loud pipes. Some had those ridiculous, low-riding springs. Tayen never raced any of them.
“Excellent driving,” Mr. Bergan said as Tayen pulled into the parking lot.
“Thanks,” Tayen said. “We women need that compliment every now and again. Pris races legally, at a track. She needs real competition.”
Tayen turned her attention to Caleb. “I have a formal dress to buy now for an elite social gathering at which I am hoping not to be bored to death. Thankfully I have a date that I don’t know very well, so it should be a memorable event.”
Caleb leaned over to Tayen and said, “It’ll be more than memorable, my dear. It will be a night you will never regret or forget.”
“If I don’t regret it, I won’t forget it,” Tayen replied, looking into his green eyes.
“What do you regret, Tayen?” Caleb asked.
“Honestly, Caleb, I don’t remember,” Tayen said. Her smile made Caleb forget that he had even asked a question.
* * * *
The trio entered the dress gallery. Chad refused to come in, saying he preferred to stay behind. He told Tayen that he didn’t want anyone parking too close or getting too curious about Pris. Tayen was relieved by his concern and remembered that David had told her to meet the staff first and then decide. Well, she definitely liked Mr. Bergan.
Tayen waited behind David as he handled the saleslady. No, they didn’t have an appointment, but yes, they would need someone to assist them with the dresses. David had requested someone with more than a year’s worth of experience and someone who wouldn’t talk too much to Tayen since he and Caleb were the ones picking out the dress.
Caleb glanced at Tayen when David requested someone who wouldn’t offer their opinion on the dress, and Tayen looked like it was the most natural thing in the world. Tayen caught Caleb’s look, and she shrugged her shoulders.
“Hi, I’m Tayen, and I will be playing the role of Barbie until you pick out my dress,” she said, smiling at Caleb.
Tayen followed the saleslady down the aisle. The lady quickly realized that she was helping Caleb and David, not Tayen. So Tayen wandered down another aisle, and David motioned for Caleb to stay with the saleslady. The lady held up a couple of dresses, and Caleb didn’t like either of them. Finally one that was strapless and red caught his eye.
“At least shoulder straps,” David told Caleb, “and please pay attention to Tayen. She needs to know that you are in sight and interested.”
Caleb looked at David. “She’s nervous?”
“Not necessarily, a little, your approval means a lot,” David finally broached the subject. “She wants her date to be pleased with her.”
“She’s submissive?” Caleb was incredulous. “No way, have you seen her attitude?”
“That’s her personality, shining through.” When Caleb shook his head like he didn’t believe what David had said, David continued, “Fine, if you don’t want to believe me, I will show you.”
Caleb shrugged his shoulders. He would play along, but he was sure that David was completely wrong. There wasn’t a submissive thought or need in Tayen at all. Then he thought about it. Tayen had stood politely behind David in the store, waiting for him to make arrangements. She had driven, of course, but David had called for Mr. Bergan. David had also nodded to Tayen in front of the building when she hesitated. Tayen had gone upstairs to shower on her own, but not without looking at David, who had gone upstairs shortly after her. Then there were her words in the elevator, “As you command.”
Yet, she was still so strong, confident. The realization hit Caleb’s guts like a ton of bricks. The reason Tayen was so confident and self-assured was because she was submitting to David and David loved her spunky personality. She was pleasing David right now. David was giving her something in return. Tayen didn’t have to worry about one thing. Nothing.
As long as David was in control, then it was his fault if something went wrong and not her fault. She was free and getting what she needed. David was having the time of his life, playing with “Barbie,” because he was controlling it, just like he needed.
“Tay, girlfriend,” David called, “get over here.”
Tayen did as David asked. “I didn’t really see anything I like,” she admitted. “Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea. I could always go in jeans and a T-shirt.”
“Caleb, will you please escort Tayen to one of the sitting areas in front of an empty dressing room while I attempt to find a decent dress?” David said to Caleb. When Tayen walked down the aisle first, David grabbed Caleb’s arm. “Please, don’t let her out of your sight.”
“I’ve had half a hard-on since she ran into me.” Caleb patted David’s shoulder. “Tayen won’t get out of my sight, David.” David nodded his head.
“Girl,” David drawled, clapping his hands together as he turned to the saleslady, “I’m looking for glamour, not gaudy. These absolutely won’t do. I want my Barbie in sparkles, in white and blue. I am paying cash, and these price tags don’t impress me much.”
David came back to the dressing area with several dresses.
“Strip, Barbie,” David said. Tayen hesitated. “In the dressing room, of course, with the help of Ms. Shaw.”
David and Caleb could hear Tayen complaining about the first dress. “Are you guys in a D/s relationship?” Caleb asked. He knew his neighbor was gay, but then what was Tayen?
“It’s complicated,” David admitted. “Yes, I fulfill a need for Tayen just as she fills a need in me, but it doesn’t extend into the sexual side for obvious reasons, and my partner can’t do the full-time thing.”
David paused as Tayen came out of the dressing room in the strapless, red gown that Caleb had picked out. David twirled his finger, and Tayen gingerly turned, barely breathing.
“Objections, Tayen?” David asked.
“I’m going to do a Hulk maneuver if I lift anything heavier than a tissue, or if I breathe instead of pant,” she whispered, taking short, shallow breaths.
“Hulk maneuver?” Caleb asked.
“You won’t like me when I’m angry,” Tayen said and lifted her arms an
d was about to flex and stopped. “I didn’t flex, I swear, and I heard it start to rip. Jesus, all I did was lift my arms.”
“No good,” David said and waved her back into the dressing room. Then he turned to Caleb. “Tayen works out, a lot. It helps her get rid of stress. I’m not talking about the treadmill either. If she wants cardio, she’ll probably take the eight flights of stairs to the penthouse. She loves free weights and punching bags. So, strapless dresses that need to fit tight to stay up aren’t so good if she reaches for something and flexes too many muscles. It’s her patented Hulk maneuver, and it has happened before.”
Caleb laughed a deep, rumbling laugh. Inside the dressing room Tayen smiled at Caleb’s laughter. His deep voice gave her chest a funny, tingly feeling.
“You know what I love most about a submissive?” David asked. “I mean, some people will do anything you want, but that’s not true submission. True submission is doing something that you may not want to do just because it will please the Dominant, and ultimately pleasing the Dominant fulfills a need in the submissive.”
David gave Caleb a moment to process what he had said. Caleb nodded as he remembered the moments of good in the relationship that haunted him.
Tayen came out in the second dress. Sheer, white silk clung to her body. It had two shoulder straps on it, but Tayen didn’t seem pleased with it. She spun when David twirled his fingers. Then she looked at him and raised her eyebrows.
“Objections?” David asked.
“It’d be good for maybe a benefit dinner or something, but it doesn’t scream Statue of Liberty,” Tayen admitted.
David waved her back into the dressing room.
“All right, Caleb,” David said softly. “Is this fun for you?”
Caleb nodded slowly. “She’s beautiful, David, but I think I’d have more fun if I got to make her twirl around.” Caleb swallowed hard. Oh, would he love to make her twirl and ask if she had objections. He wanted to command her and hear her say, “As you command.” He brushed his hair back out of his face and exhaled.
