“And Santa knows where to find us,” Henry would say, not believing his older sister no matter how many times she told her brother Santa would know where they were, regardless.
But the kids were far from our minds at the time. We’d video chatted earlier in the morning because we knew time would be tough tonight with Abby at the spa and our dinner plans. They were both having lots of fun with Linda and their cousins. Linda told us she didn’t have any difficulties getting them to bed because they were so exhausted by bedtime, it was all she could do to get them through baths and teeth brushing before they fell asleep. Linda joked that she went to bed herself shortly thereafter.
We spent some time after dinner walking through the village, window shopping and simply taking in the holiday decorations. I made it a point to ensure our plans for when we made it back to the chalet weren’t far from her mind. The way her breath would catch as I brushed my fingers along her nape or how her body subtly shifted toward mine when I placed my hand lower than what was socially acceptable at the small of her back, told me they weren’t.
I remained silent on the drive back home, knowing that doing so would send Abby further and further into her submissive mind frame. My intuition proved correct when she went to her knees seconds after we stepped inside. I locked the door.
The sight of her offering herself to me in such a way never failed to move me. “Very nice, Abigail,” I said, slipping back into the stranger at the bar persona. “But surely you know it’ll take more than that.”
She remained quiet, head bowed.
“I’ll be in the bedroom in ten minutes,” I said, and walked away.
7
Abby
My heart pounded in my ears. The thump, thump, thump sent my blood racing, heating my body. He’d spoke less than ten words and had turned me on more than I had been in a long time. I breathed in the heady mix of anticipation and arousal. His. Mine.
The sound of his footsteps from the kitchen reminded me I only had a short amount of time to get into place. Without waiting a second longer, I stood to my feet and hurried up the stairs. My first stop was the bathroom. I undressed quickly, hanging my dress on an empty hook, but leaving my shoes and underthings in a pile on the floor.
Once I finished washing off the best I could with a washcloth, I brushed my teeth. Nathaniel had never requested that I clean my teeth prior to a scene, but I couldn’t help but think minty fresh breath was the best way to go if you had the choice. Everything on my list completed, I looked over myself in the bathroom mirror. I’d, thankfully, been able to book an appointment with my preferred waxer days before we left. That being one thing Nathaniel insisted on.
A quick check of the time told me I had less than three minutes remaining to get into position. I took a deep breath, smiling in anticipation, and kneeled on the soft bedroom carpet to clear my mind, prepare myself mentally for the time to come.
There were very few gray areas in Nathaniel’s mostly black and white world. When he told me he’d be in the bedroom in ten minutes, I knew he’d either step into the room at ten minutes exactly, or else he’d intentionally make me wait. I hoped tonight wasn’t a time he decided to delay entering.
Fortunately, it was only a few minutes later I heard his footsteps coming up the stairs. I hid my smile. Apparently, Nathaniel wasn’t in the mood for delayed gratification, either. His footsteps grew closer until they stopped right where I envisioned the bedroom door to be.
Normally, he’d walk into the room and speak to me. I had no reason to think tonight would be any different. Which was why my heart jumped to my throat when the lights went out. Had the power gone out? I didn’t lift my head to look, but it seemed darker than normal. There didn’t appear to be any light coming from the windows.
It was also eerily quiet. We had black-out curtains in the bedroom, but we didn’t put those down until bedtime. Was it possible Nathaniel had put them in place early?
I couldn’t think of anything else to explain the absolute darkness.
Nathaniel chuckled from a position much closer than I’d imagined him.
“I can’t even see you all that well,” he said in the darkness. “And I can tell your mind is spinning. Are you wondering about the darkness? I thought, why should we do things the same way we always have?”
He took his time walking around me while he continued to speak. “I realized a few weeks ago that I’ve been rather boring lately and decided I needed to change things up.”
There were so many ways he could change things up, I didn’t even attempt to determine his intentions. The darkness was new. Like a blindfold because it was so absolute, and I wasn’t able to see anything, but yet, still different.
He placed his hand on my shoulder. In years past, the move might have caused me to jump at the unexpectedness, but not now. Not usually.
“When I touch you, it’s almost as if can feel your body hum with all the thoughts running through your mind.” His voice was low and soothing. A bit at odds with the darkness, but if I looked at it another way, I could see how the lack of light was calming.
“What’s it going to take to settle your mind, Abigail?” he asked, giving my shoulder a light squeeze.
At that moment, I realized what I needed. I needed him to settle my mind. For him to take me completely, to take control so I had no choices to make. Until all that existed was me and him, and I could rest in his power, allow my mind the freedom to not think, to not decide, to simply be.
“You,” I replied in a whisper, stunned by my epiphany. “I need you to do it, Sir.”
Only silence replied. The air in the room stilled. I no longer felt Nathaniel’s presence, but he had to be nearby. There had been no sound to indicate he'd left the room. I resisted the urge to turn around to look. For one, it was too dark to see anything. Most important, however, was that doing so would disappoint Nathaniel.
“I’ve taken your sight away,” he said from behind me, but further away than before. “And that didn’t help.”
Silence returned, but this time it didn’t feel odd like before. Knowing Nathaniel stood nearby in the same quiet darkness made the room welcoming. I inhaled and then exhaled, picturing myself letting go of all the worry and stress, all the unhelpful and detrimental thoughts that tended to build up in my head. I took another lungful of air in, this time breathing in peace, stillness, and surrender.
“Yes, my lovely,” Nathaniel whispered. “That’s what you need to do.”
I repeated the exercise a few more times until I felt refreshed, almost empty, but more than anything, craving the renewal I knew would only come from my Dominant. For the first time in what felt like forever, I surrendered myself to him, closing my eyes, and waiting.
The air moved around me, and he was at my side. The warmth and strength of his body was the beacon I needed. He ran his fingers through my hair and even though it wasn’t a new revelation, it always moved me that I was his beacon as well.
“Your trust never fails to humble me,” he said, his voice heavy with emotion. His fingers brushed my cheek, and I felt more than heard him move away. I kept my head still, even as I heard what sounded like him sitting down on the bed.
Before I could come up with any reason he’d walk away from me at the beginning of a scene, he spoke again, “I want you to stand up and walk to me. Follow the sound of my voice. I vow to you, Abigail, there is nothing to impede you. Nothing in the way to trip you.”