Chapter 6

Sunday was slow and uneventful. Marie wasn't quite ready yet. Rather than face her problems, she spent the day learning shibari ties and nautical knots. One of her first Dommes, Vivienne, had given her some rope to try out years ago, but she had never practiced enough to be good at it. She ventured into self-bondage, delighting in the feeling of the harness tight around her like a hug. The ties weren't quite right, but there was certainly no one around to judge her. Well, no one except Minnow.

Monday brought dread. Marie half expected to see Leo waiting for her by the elevator or at her desk. Or try to find her on her lunch hour.

"Someone's tense." Michael came up behind her and massaged her shoulders.

"Is it that obvious?"

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you had a board strapped to your back."

Marie sighed. She needed to talk to Leo. Ghosting wasn't her style and he deserved better. Especially since he was honestly giving her space. In between routing calls, she messaged him.

*Hi.*

*How are you feeling? I was worried about you after how we left things.*

*I'm alright. Processing. Do you want to talk after work?*

*I would love to. Meet you in the lobby?*

The last few hours of work dragged on. When 5 o'clock finally arrived, it was still a bit too soon for Marie. She took some extra time packing up and took the stairs down instead of the elevator.

"Hi there," Leo's voice greeted her.

"Hi. Thanks for meeting me."

"Of course. Did you want to go somewhere to talk?"

They decided upon the coffee shop around the corner. The walk over was quiet and they ordered their drinks separately. It wasn't until they sat down in the corner of the shop that Marie finally spoke.

"Can I get your email address?"

"Sure. Why?"

"I need to send you something."

Leo dutifully typed his email address into Marie's phone and, within seconds, the email appeared with no subject line. Eyeing her curiously, he opened it.

*Master List*

Yes Soft Limits Hard Limits

Bondage Orgasm Denial Piss/Scat

Shibari Sensory Depravation Blood play

Spanking Pet play Humiliation

Hot wax Flogging/paddling Spitting Covert Exhibitionism Choking Branding/Marking

The list was long and quite detailed. There was also a secondary list of things she hadn't yet tried but was interested in.

"Well… this is a lot to drop on someone," Leo said, brows raised.

"I figure you should know where I stand."

He locked his phone. "I told you, we don't need to do this now. I'm glad you have this, but we can learn these things over time."

"That gets messy."

"Alright. So does this mean you're interested in playing? Or sex? Or what?"

Marie looked at the cup in her hands. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't attracted to you."

"That's not what I asked."

"…Yes. I'm interested. In all of it."

"But you're afraid." He leaned forward. "I'm not going to move forward with this if you aren't a hundred percent on board. If you have any hesitations, I can't count that as consent, and going ahead anyway would make me extremely irresponsible. I don't want to hurt you, Marie."

She chuckled. "Isn't that part of the job description?"

Leo nodded his head, smiling. "True. I don't want to hurt you in any way that you don't want me to. And I won't do it at all unless you're ready." Marie nodded in return. "How about this; are you busy tonight?"

"No, but I have to be home for Minnow. And it's a Monday."

"Would you be willing to have me over? We can have a normal date and see where the night leads us. You can even kick me out before you go to bed."

It was all so innocent. He was so earnest - his dark eyes looking at her hopefully. She chewed her lip and swallowed.

"Sounds like a good plan. What do you want to do?"

"Movie night? I can bring pizza and some movie options since you're hosting."

It was hard to say no to that smile. "Sure."

***

Over the messenger, Leo got her pizza and film preferences, as well as her address. When he arrived, he carried two pizzas, drinks, and a bag full of movies.

"I can take those if you don't mind taking off your shoes," Marie said.

"Oh. Of course." He didn't hand her the items, but toed off his shoes carefully. "I like your apartment."

"Thanks." Marie glanced around. She saw a sparsely furnished home with a few too many blankets, but she supposed it wasn't so bad. "You can put those on the coffee table if you want. I thought we might eat and watch at the same time."

"Excellent idea!" It was somehow not condescending. "I brought a bunch of movies I thought you might like. Obviously, I own them, so I'll be okay with anything you choose."

He handed her the bag, which she gently emptied onto the couch. Sitting on the floor beside it, she picked through the various titles. His taste in movies was as eclectic as his book collection. Comedy, horror, historical drama, even rom-com. But one caught her eye.

"A Dark and Stormy Fright?" Leo said. "I didn't take you for a horror comedy person."

"I haven't seen it since in years. I'm surprised they released it on Blu-Ray."

"Can't keep VHS forever."

Marie turned down the lights, started up the film, and settled on the floor by the couch where Leo was. They had only just gotten to the menu screen when he spoke up.

"Are you planning to stay down there?" he asked.

Marie looked surprised. "Oh. Does it bother you? I squirm around a lot so I sit on the floor so I don't disturb people."

"I see. Well, in that case," He slid off the couch and sidled up next to her. "I suppose I'll have to join you."

Marie hoped it was dark enough to hide her blush. She wordlessly handed him a plate and napkin.

They stayed nearly shoulder-to-shoulder the entire movie, only moving away to grab another slice of pizza or refill their drinks. True to form, Marie shifted frequently, finally deciding to lay down to quell the desire to move. Leo's hand fell to her ankle. He gave her a questioning look, as if to ask if she was alright. She smiled reassuringly and returned her attention to the movie. His hand didn't move. After a fashion, his thumb began to stroke her ankle bone absently. It nearly put Marie to sleep. She started slightly when the ending credits began to roll.

"Do you need to go to bed?" Leo asked teasingly.

"No!" She sat up, half-defiantly. "I just got comfortable. Do you want to watch another?"

They mutually decided on Still Waters, a dramedy that they both knew nearly line-for-line. Marie started to stretch subtly, her muscles feeling tense.

"You okay?"

"Sorry. My neck and shoulders get stiff."

"Here." He reached around her and started to massage.

"You don't have to-"

He shushed her. His hands started at the knots in her shoulders, careful not to press too hard. Then, he worked his way up her neck. A few tiny moans escaped Marie's lips as he gently worked out the tension. It barely registered when he ran his fingers against her scalp until he lightly pulled on her hair.

"What are you doing?" she asked, alarmed.

He held up his hands. "It's a massage technique. Your scalp is tight. Did it hurt?'

"No."

"Would you rather I didn't do that?"

Marie worried her lip between her teeth. Breaking out of her blissful stupor made her aware of the growing moisture between her legs. "No, it's alright. It felt nice."

If she had to put a name to the feeling of his hand returning, she would have called it relief. Just the touch made her feel safe and cared for, even if he was technically pulling her hair.

A few minutes later – too soon, truthfully – the hand disappeared.

"Feel better?"

Marie hummed in agreement. "Thank you."

"My pleasure. Thank you for trusting me."

When she opened her eyes, she realized how close Leo was. She could feel how he was carefully hiding his heavy breaths, watching her closely. She couldn't help herself – she pulled him into a kiss. There was more heat than there had even been in the museum garden. The massage had made her loose and pliable, new blood coursing through the worked muscles and flowing through the rest her.

Leo's lips trailed away from hers, down her throat. She shivered as he passed over the sensitive skin. She could feel herself opening to him – baring her neck and arching submissively over the hand that curled around her back. Her own hands grasped at the fabric of his shirt. She shifted so he could dip her to the floor if he wanted. Instead, he tipped her back up to find her lips again.

*It's so equal,* Marie thought. There was no power play. Just the give and take of kisses and nibbles. His hands wandered over her back, but respectfully no further. Taking the lead, she swung a leg over to straddle his lap, hovering just above him. He pulled her closer, bringing them chest to chest, letting her bury her fingers in his hair. She cursed her need for air.

"I promised myself I wouldn't take this too fast," she said breathlessly.

"We can take this at your pace," Leo replied.

Marie laid her head on his shoulder, her lips brushing his neck as she spoke. "That's the problem; I don't want to stop."

"Your pace," he repeated. "However fast or slow that is."

Nuzzling his neck, she sat fully on his lap. What she felt betrayed how steady his voice was, as did the slight hiss at the sudden weight. She bit her lip at the rush of power. As if possessed, her hips began to rock against his. His grip on her waist tightened, followed by a low groan. She pulled back to look at his face. His eyes were closed behind his fingerprinted glasses, brow slightly furrowed and mouth open a fraction. One more firm grind and those eyes flew open. Their gazes met. One hand went to her hip, the other to her nape as he lifted his hips to meet hers.

Marie's clumsy fingers went to the buttons on his shirt, starved for the feel of his skin. He pulled her in close again to kiss her neck as they sought their pleasure. She managed to yank his shirttails from his pants, hesitant to part far enough to get to his fly. Meanwhile, he pulled her dress off her shoulder, lips to her breast. She moaned when he found her nipple, desperately trying to pull up her skirt.

He finally did lay her down, mindful of her head, still suckling. He opened his pants as she squirmed to remove her panties.

"Are you sure?" Leo panted in her ear.

"God, yes. Please."

A swift motion to apply a condom and he was inside her. She arched. She might have screamed if she weren't out of breath. It didn't take long before they were moving in unison, their breath hot and mingled.

Her orgasm hit hard, entirely unexpected. She bucked uncontrollably, some distant part of her mind hoping that she wasn't ruining the experience for Leo. It left her thighs shaking as he fell apart as well. When he had recovered, he lifted himself up and stroked Marie's face tenderly.

"Are you okay?" His voice was slightly hoarse.

"'Okay' would be an understatement."

He chuckled, the sound warm and slightly tired. He kissed her cheek and sat up fully, pulling the used condom off gingerly. He tied it off and placed it back in its wrapper before laying back down beside her. He didn't speak for a long moment, choosing instead to smile at her, his arm draped lazily around her waist. Marie was still trembling, unable to wipe the delirious smile from her face.

Laughing, she looked to the screen. "We missed half the movie."

"I guess we'll just have to watch it again sometime."

Marie turned to face him, burying herself in his still-bare chest. He smelled like damp cedar, fresh and spicy and subtly citrus. He held her close, stroking her hair.

Was this how a vanilla relationship was? she wondered. She never considered herself to be a little, but she had to admit the being cared for was a wonderful feeling. She barely missed the D/s dynamic at all.

Her pondering was interrupted by an insistent Minnow, who rubbed his head along her foot. She giggled at his soft fur.

"Look who finally decided to appear! Viens ici, mon chou."

Tucking her breasts back into her dress, Marie sat up and gathered the little gray cat in her arms. He immediately started to purr.

"I never asked – why is he named Minnow?" Leo asked.

"Well, I found him as a kitten, splashing around in a puddle. He was so tiny then and didn't grow much. So a little fish. N'est pas, mon petit poisson gris?"

Leo smiled, enjoying her baby-talking in French. He cautiously reached out a hand for Minnow to sniff. The little cat obliged, fixing his blue eyes on Leo before stretching out his neck to bump his head to the offered hand.

"He likes you," Marie said, awed. "He doesn't usually take to men."

"Then I'm honored."

They sat there for a long time, petting Minnow in companionable quiet as the movie finished. In Marie's bedroom, a clock chimed the hour.

"It's late," Leo said, his voice tinged with sadness.

"You could stay the night if you wanted."

He shook his head. "Sadly, not on a work night. And I'm afraid midnight is when I turn into a pumpkin."

"I see." She stood and started to pack up the things he brought. "Will I see you tomorrow?"

"If you want to. I wouldn't give up a chance to see you."

Marie flushed slightly as she handed him his pizza box. "I guess I'll see you at lunch then."

"It's a date," he said, giving her a quick peck on the lips.

Several long kisses later, Marie managed to get Leo to the door and say good night.