Master thanked Mrs. Jernigan in a cordial tone, then yanked the silver chain between Molly's breasts.
"Were you daydreaming, Molly?" he asked.
He was not truly angry, only slightly annoyed, to her relief. She nodded and answered, "Yes, Master. I'm so sorry and I beg your forgiveness."
"What were you daydreaming about?"
She paused but a second. "Club Mephisto, Master." Well, that was true. She was contemplating the club, in addition to the club's owner. But the words felt dry in her mouth. She knew them for a lie, a dissemblance. She concentrated on the dull, throbbing pain in her nipples. You deserve this. You deserve worse.
Master sipped his coffee in silence a few minutes, flicking the chain every so often to draw a gasp of pain from her. She focused all her attention on him, trying to make up for her earlier gaffe. At last he pushed back in his chair, but did not stand.
"I have news for you, girl. I have been called away for next week. Business. A last minute thing. I was a bit at ends trying to think what to do with you. It's fine to leave you with Mrs. Jernigan of course, but I think you get restless."
Molly felt devastated, cold-cocked. Going away for a week? That was so long to be without him. And it was true. She hated being alone with no interaction or affection, just trapped in Master's home with cold, reserved Mrs. Jernigan. She gazed up at him, letting her sadness show in her eyes. The pain of the clamps, which had given her a place of focus just moments ago, was now overshot by a much more encompassing pain in her heart.
"Now, girl. It's only a week," her Master chided. "You look as if I just killed your puppy. I actually made some calls from the office and hit on a viable arrangement, which is why I came home early."
"An...an arrangement, Master?"
"Yes, I've arranged for someone else, another Master I trust, to watch over you and put you through your paces while I'm gone. That way I know you're occupied and behaving yourself, and you needn't sit around here doing nothing with Mrs. Jernigan. Furthermore, now she can take a short vacation, which is long overdue."
"Oh, Master. You're so smart to think of that." She wanted to ask "who, who, who?" but that would have been a terrible breach of decorum, so she waited patiently for him to tell her whom he'd chosen. She knew he would only choose someone very trustworthy and capable, and so she wasn't worried at the idea of being given into someone else's hands, only curious as to who it might be. It was certainly someone they knew from the club, since they were going there later. The idea of him making the effort to actually arrange such plans for her in his absence touched her deeply.
She gazed up at him. "I love you so much, Master. I appreciate it so much." Her trembling fingers reached out to graze his calf, the wonder of a mortal touching a God. "Master, I can't explain how much your care and concern mean to me." Her voice wobbled on the last word.
"Now there, girl. You know how I feel about you getting overemotional."
"Yes, Master," she whispered, reining in her tears. He reached out to toy with her hair, a light lazy touch that quieted her.
"At any rate, you may not be so grateful later. Mephisto is an exacting Master. Much more so than I. I coddle you shamelessly."
Mephisto? He was giving her to Mephisto? The warm fuzzy feelings of the moment before disappeared as her heart began to race. Her pulse pounded loud in her ears. Mephisto? For all her fascination with him, he frightened her. She shivered a little, trying to contain herself. Her Master watched for signs of reaction, and drew her closer when he saw what must have been her obvious signs of distress. He tugged her forward with the chain until she was hunched against him, her cheek resting on his thigh.
"Are you so afraid, pet?" he murmured. "I believe this could be a good experience for you. Something outside your quiet domestic existence with your old, settled Master."
Molly looked up in protest. "Oh, Master! You are not old. Please don't say such a thing! You are terribly handsome and sexy and youthful—"
He chuckled and placed a finger over her lips. "I am twenty years older than you, which you very well know. Forty-eight is not so old, but old enough."
She held onto his leg, awash in a jumble of complex feelings. Fear, confusion. Nervousness. Shame that the idea of serving Mephisto excited her, and sadness that her Master would be gone.
"It's only a week," he said again. "I think he could give you a lot of good experiences that will help you grow and deepen in your submission."
"You are my Master," she whispered against his knee. "I could never reject any treatment or training you chose for me. If you wish me to go with Mephisto—"
"I do wish it," he said lightly, with an ironic smile. "And you needn't torment yourself with guilt. I know there is attraction between you. I know that you desire Mephisto."
"Master..." She shifted in dismay. "I... I..."
"I am not angry with you. I am only stating facts. I have seen you steal looks at Mephisto at the club, and I've seen you two interacting. You are only human, as am I. You are a vibrant, sexually alluring woman. I am not so deluded as to believe I am the only man on earth who interests you. In fact, if I were, I would be quite alarmed."
She shook her head, unbalanced by the sudden turn in the conversation. Her Master was always blunt with her, but in this case, his words deeply shocked her. Had he truly known her feelings toward Mephisto?
"Master," she said with gravity. "I am yours. I love you so deeply. With Mephisto—"
She stopped and peered up at him, seeking permission to speak openly. He gave a small nod.
"With Mephisto, it is a...a curiosity only. He is a mystery. That's all it is, the interest I feel. But I could never... I would never..."
"I certainly do not fear you will leave me for Master Mephisto. If anything, I hope your girlish imaginations and daydreams are not disappointed in the reality of life under his hand."
"He could never live up to you," she said, her eyes wide and emphatic. "My life with you is perfect."
"We do get on, don't we?" he said with tenderness. "I'll miss you while I'm away."
"I'll miss you terribly, Master. Truly, I will."
"It's my hope that Mephisto will keep you too occupied to miss me," he said in a dire tone that awakened a tiny frisson of dread amid all the excitement and confusion she felt. He must have noticed her small shiver.
"Don't fear, girl. I've informed Mephisto of your—and my—limits regarding your person. You will not be harmed beyond the boundaries you're already accustomed to. But I believe Mephisto to be a more...intense type than myself. In more ways than one."
"Oh." She wasn't sure what he meant by that, but she knew without a doubt he would never put her in an unsafe or damaging situation. It was one of the reasons she adored him so much.
Her Master settled her back away from him with a sigh. "At any rate, it will be an adventure for you. While I will miss you, I actually enjoy expanding your horizons and indulging your fantasies, to a point. I hope to receive you back much refreshed and hopefully improved by the experience."