TheOneandOnly (8 page)

“Michelle, this is Stella. Stella, please welcome Michelle.”

“Welcome.” Stella replied in a tone that spoke volumes.
Michelle caught Stella’s eyes taking in Sean’s arm around her. Stella gazed for
few moments at Michelle’s collar then gave her a once-over. Michelle noticed
Stella’s eyes pausing at her knees.

“I look forward to working with all of you.” She pulled out
of Sean’s arms and took refuge behind the bar. As she did whenever she was
nervous, she started cleaning. The cleanliness of her apartment was the best
barometer of her stress level. Clean apartment, high stress. Messy apartment,
low stress. Funny how that worked.

Sean took a seat at the far end of the bar. “Come here,
honey.”

Michelle took a deep breath and let it out slowly before she
turned to face him. His arms were laid across the bar with his hands beckoning
her to come to him. She was powerless to ignore him. Right now, with her world
sliding off its axis, his touch was her only steadying force. Flashing him a
smile she really didn’t feel, she dropped her hands in his.

“Remember to breathe, honey. You can do this, and if you
need a break, turn it over to Ethan and relax in the office. I’d prefer you
didn’t go roaming around just yet.”

A real smile lit her face and she gave him an honest chuckle.
“Oh, no worries there. I can’t tell you how grateful I am the bar is close to
the exit.”

As soon as the doors were opened, people began pouring in as
if the club were a shopping mall on the day after Thanksgiving. The next hour
or so flew by. Most of the members were very kind. She just had to remember to
look them in the eye and glance nowhere else.

The only person who worried her was the man sitting at the
opposite end of the bar from Sean. He’d been there since they’d opened. She
hadn’t had the chance to speak much to him, but he wasn’t wearing a wristband
and she wasn’t sure what that meant. There were so many questions she hadn’t
thought to ask. She couldn’t wait until she had a few minutes alone with Sean.

Michelle glanced at him over her shoulder. He’d been
greeting members as they came in, and chatting with a few. He looked relaxed—lucky
him. She doubted she’d ever be comfortable working here. Seven more months until
she graduated—she couldn’t see herself working here that long. She chuckled to
herself, not sure she wanted to work seven more hours in this environment.

Stella made her way to Sean. Michelle stopped what she was
doing and watched as Stella kneeled before him with her hands behind her back.
Michelle’s stomach turned over, remembering their time in the shower. Had she
looked like that? Like just one of many women dropping to serve him? She
couldn’t watch.

She went to the opposite end of the bar and pulled a water
bottle from the fridge below the counter. Trying not to hear their exchange,
she started a conversation with the man without a wristband.

“Hi. I’m Michelle. I’m the new bartender. Can I get you
anything else?” Though she tried with all her might, she couldn’t keep her eyes
from straying to Sean. Tears pooled in her eyes as he patted Stella’s head.

“Don’t mind me, darlin’. I’ll probably sit here most of the
night, nurse a few drinks and watch the action. I’m Master Luke. Me and my
subbie have been members since the place opened.” He cleared his throat before
continuing. “Lisa passed away a few months ago from cancer. The house is too
quiet without her. I come here most nights and shoot the shit with friends. If
I need something I’ll let you know, darlin’.”

She patted his hand and moved away giving him some privacy.
When she glanced back at Sean he was motioning for her to come to him. For the
first time, she was reluctant. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw another
member came up to the bar near the exit and she gladly went to him first. She
chatted with him longer than she normally would have, hoping to stall before
having to face Sean.

Within moments, Sean was standing beside the member and
shaking his hand.

“Master David, I see you’ve met our new bartender,
Michelle.” Sean reached across the counter to her arm and slid his hand down to
hers, linking their fingers.

“Good move, Master Sean. She’s much easier on the eyes and
she knows how to mix a drink. Hey, I’ve been meaning to talk to you. Last week,
I was watching your scene with Stella. That was really hot. What kind of…”

What the fuck?
Hadn’t Sean made a point of telling
her he hadn’t scened with anyone in months. Michelle’s stomach dropped and she
pulled away from Sean. “Excuse me, gentleman.” She practically ran to the other
end of the bar.

Well, now she understood the cold shoulder from Stella.

Michelle ran her hand along the collar Sean had given her.
She didn’t remember seeing one on Stella. She shook her head, furious at
herself. What the hell did that matter? She wasn’t competing for any man and
she did not share.

The lights suddenly flashed, then returned to normal.
Spotlights lit the stage area and Steven stood front and center. It was hard to
hear him from the bar, but she caught enough words to understand he was about
to give a demonstration. When a naked girl, bound by leather cuffs, walked onto
the stage, Michelle turned away. Was there no place she could get a reprieve?

Sean came up behind her from inside the serving area. He had
his arm around her waist as he led her to the far wall. The counter blocked her
in on one side and his arm on the other. She couldn’t steady her breathing.
Part of her wanted to lean against him and be held and another wanted to duck
under his arm and get away.

“Why are you avoiding me?” He sounded stern, angry even.

“I have a job to do and you’re keeping me from it.” She couldn’t
look him in the eye. Tears were too close to the surface. Damn it, why did she
turn into a blubbering water fountain when she was tired?

“I don’t give a fuck who wants a drink. I want to know
what’s wrong.”

He was whispering in her ear, for which she was eternally
grateful. No one needed to be privy to their discussion. She put her hand over
her stomach and tried to settle it down. The last thing she needed was to be
sick. “Now is not the time to go into this. Let me get through this evening,
please.” She hated hearing the whine in her voice.

Sean held her chin between the knuckle of his index finger
and his thumb. He did that often when he wanted her to meet his gaze. She
allowed him to tilt her face upward, but refused to look at him. She kept her
eyes focused on his shirt.

Michelle was tempted to pull away from him, but what would
be the point? It would only push his buttons and she wasn’t sure what the
outcome would be. Though she’d never seen him angry and while she doubted he’d
get violent, he might very well cause a scene.

There was that word again, “scene”. What did it even mean?
Why make a point of telling her he hadn’t “scened” with anyone in months if he
had? Wouldn’t it be easier to say nothing? It seemed doubtful he’d have
forgotten scening with Stella just last week. What was the truth? She couldn’t
figure out why either of them would lie, but after seeing Stella with Sean, it
stood to reason Sean was not being as forthcoming as he pretended.

“What’s wrong with your stomach? You’re holding it.”

Michelle dropped her hand and put them behind her back.
After remembering Stella’d done that when she’d kneeled for him, she brought
them back around to her sides and smoothed imaginary wrinkles in her skirt.
“I’m fine.”

“Hmm, ‘I’m fine’ and ‘fuck you’ sound a lot alike when you
say it that way.” Sean looked at his watch. “I’ll be back in a few minutes and
you’d better be right here when I get back.”

She thought he’d pull away, but he continued to stand there
blocking her path.

“Promise me, Michelle. Promise me you’ll be here when I get
back.”

His voice was a seduction, lighting fires all the way down
to her toes. She wanted to be angry, and somewhere deep inside she still was.
At the very least she was seriously confused. Yet, with his chest so close to
hers and his scent invading her body with every breath she took, he was short-circuiting
her brain. She gave him a curt nod, hoping he’d give her a moment to get her
thoughts together.

“Out loud, Michelle. Say it out loud for me to hear.” He
didn’t give her a single inch of wiggle room.

“I’ll be here,” she whispered, surprised she was capable of
actually speaking.

“Thank you.” He kissed her forehead, then left the serving
area and disappeared toward his office.

“If you’re done, I have some drink orders that have been
waiting forever.” Stella’s sharp voice was the last thing she wanted to hear.

“Sorry. When the boss says he wants a moment, it’s best not
to keep him waiting.” Michelle tried to be nice.

“Don’t get too comfortable here. You’re just the flavor of
the week. By the end of the month, he’ll have moved on to thinner and cuter
pastures.”

Okay, so we’re going to play it that way.
“No
worries. I wasn’t looking for a job when I was given this one.” Michelle
started filling Stella’s orders in hopes of getting her away from the bar as
quickly as possible.

“From the look of your knees, I’d say you were giving head
to get this job. Just keep practicing. You’ll need that skill to get your next
one.”

Michelle laughed. “Aren’t you sweet to care about my future?
Don’t worry, Stella. I’ve been guaranteed this job for as long as I want it.”

“We’ll see about that.” Stella took the tray with her drink
orders and stormed away from the bar.

“Well done, darlin’.” Luke praised her. “That one’s a
spiteful hellcat. Just keep smiling and ignore her. That’s the worst thing you
can do to a subbie like that—ignore her.”

Michelle gave him a wink. “Easier said than done sometimes.”

It was over an hour later when Sean came back into the
arboretum bearing pizza boxes. Lots of pizza boxes. She couldn’t help smiling
at him as he put all but one on tables between the bar and the stage. The one
remaining box he brought to the bar.

“Maybe this will help settle your stomach.” Sean opened a
box with a pizza—one half-pineapple and ham, the other pepperoni.

Michelle pulled out two paper plates for Sean. Before he
laid hers on the plate, he held it out for her to take a bite. “Thank you…” She
just couldn’t bring herself to say Master Sean. So far she’d gotten by without
using anyone’s name. “It’s delicious.” As Sean took a bite, she turned to Luke.
“Would you like a slice?”

“No, darlin’. I’m fine, and girl, you ain’t got nothing to
worry about.” Luke chuckled and turned around, putting his back to the bar to
start watching the action on the floor.

“I missed you.” Sean took her hands in his. “Are you doing
all right?”

She nodded. “Yeah. I’m fine. A little tired.”

“You’ve been awake over twenty-four hours. You’ve gotta be
beat.”

“My point was I get emotional when I’m tired. It’s nothing
to worry about. Once I get some sleep, I’ll sort through what’s real and what’s
me overreacting. I’m finding I have a jealous streak and I’m not proud of that.
It’s a worthless, destructive emotion and I don’t like it.”

Sean was looking at her like she mattered to him. Dana’s
analogy of a big teddy bear popped into her mind.

“Okay, that helps me understand a bit better. We’ll talk
about it after you get some sleep.” Sean tipped his head toward the door.
“Brian and Dana just came in. They’re heading this way.”

Michelle turned to see Dana waving. It was nice to see a
friendly face. Michelle and Sean went to the end of the bar to greet them.

Dana pulled Michelle a few feet away. “How are you doing,
sweetie?”

“Great! It’s so good to see you. I’m glad you guys could
make it.”

“Look at you.” Dana ran a finger over the heart locket on
Michelle’s collar. “So beautiful. Tell me…what have I missed? As soon as I saw
Stella was here tonight, I knew the shit was going to hit the fan. Pardon my
French.”

“Nothing too bad. Some dirty looks and a hateful comment
here and there. No big deal.”

“Come on.” She motioned with her hand. “I live for this
shit. What’d she say?”

Michelle laughed. “She says I’m the flavor of the week and I’d
better start looking for a new job.” She couldn’t bring herself to add more. It
hit a little too close to home.

“Flavor of the century is more like it. Seriously girl, I’ve
never seen him like this before and we’ve been coming here a long time.”

“Thanks, Dana, that’s nice to hear.”

“What about all the other crazy shit that happens in this
place? Are you ready to run for the hills yet?”

Michelle laughed again. “I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t
considered it. Tonight I’m just focusing on the bar and trying to block out
everything else.”

“Good for you, sweetie. Master bought a new flogger and I’m
anxious to try it out. We’ll swing back by a little later.”

Michelle nodded and watched Dana kneel beside Master Brian
with her head bowed and her hands behind her back. Oh God, would she ever get
used to seeing that? Luckily, a few more members came to the bar and distracted
her. When she was finished, she looked up and saw Sean back at “his spot”. She
immediately went to him.

“Have another bite. You need to eat.” He held her pizza up
to her mouth.

Fire.
Liquid fire was the only thing Michelle could
think of to describe the pain shooting through her mouth and throat. She spun
around where no one would see her and spit the food into a napkin. The fire was
spreading. She started fanning her mouth and coughing. Out of the corner of her
eye, she saw legs coming at her and she shrank back against the wall.

Sean had vaulted over the bar counter. “What is it? What’s
the matter? Do you need your EpiPen?” Sean was there, pulling her into his
arms. He picked her up and ran toward his office.