Page 4 of Lesson In Honesty
She hated she was the cause of their relocation—not that Liam ever blamed it on her. A change of pace, he called it. A break away from the stress and memories of Phoenix where Wyatt’s ghost lingered.
Away from her friends, who kept popping out babies like candy from a machine.
Tears rose to her eyes swiftly, blurring the next stitch. She felt a sob gather in her chest, rising up her throat faster than she could control it. Determined not to let it escape and embarrass Liam in front of his new colleagues, she squeezed her eyes shut and tried to breathe around the constriction.
Hands trembling, she wanted to set the stuffie down before she jabbed the needle into her fingers, but that was a dead giveaway; he’d notice, lean down and ask her if she was okay,what was wrong, and she’d shatter like a dropped glass on a countertop.
Babies—particularly her lack of one—were her weakness.
“—will cover all ages from babies to preteen. Felicity, Ericka, while overall supervision will be part of your duties, we’re happy for you to leave established Daddy-little couples to their own devices. Single and new members should be your priority.”
“Ericka covers the Mommy aspect,” Felicity mused, “and I can switch between Mommy and little. What’s our protocol if we have a request for a Daddy?”
The man who’d introduced himself as Fordham raised his hand. “That’s in my scope. I’ll cover until you find a permanent Daddy.”
Sierra’s heart wilted. She really wanted to ask Liam if she could play in the nursery once they were settled into a routine, but sliding into her Little tendencies just seemed like a pale replica of what she truly needed.
“Try not to look thrilled about it, Ford,” Mistress Violet commented with a throaty laugh, drawing Sierra’s attention away from her miseries.
Deadpan, the Dom leveled her with a stare. “Does this face not appear thrilled?”
There was more laughter, but Sierra dropped her gaze to her hands, peeking surreptitiously toward the Mistress. When the woman caught her eyes and gave her a wink, Sierra flushed hotly and focused all her attention back on the stuffie.
“All right, I think that covers everything for now.” Elias rose, checking his watch. “Take the next couple days to settle in, find your way around, acclimatize yourselves to your areas. Meal itineraries have been emailed to you along with any other pertinent data you might need, but if you have any questions, Van and I are at your beck.”
Liam laid his hand on hers, squeezing gently. “Ready for something to eat, minx?”
Was it lunchtime already? Frowning, she tilted his wrist toward her, turning her head to study his watch awkwardly. Blinking in surprise, she realized the meeting had been going on forhours. “Um… I guess?”
“Bored you senseless, haven’t we?” He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “Is there anything you want to do this afternoon? I’m sure we can try out one of the areas if you want to play? Or we can see if any of these guys feel like getting to know us better.”
Carefully, Sierra finished the stitch. Reaching into the sewing pouch in front of her, she picked out her tiny scissors and snipped the thread. Returning them and the needle to their rightful place, she then carefully rolled up the stuffie into a pouch-sized passenger. “None of them have partners aside from Grit. Maybe you should make friends with them on their terms first.”
“On their terms?” He tipped her chin up, frowning at her. “Minx, theonlyterms I’m going on are mine. We all have to work and live together here; if they don’t want to socialize with me because I’m in love with a beautiful, socially awkward, and incredibly sweet woman, then fuck them. Sideways.”
She managed the faintest smile.
There were times she wondered how she’d ever caught his attention. Others when it baffled her how she not only held it, but earned his love as well. She’d spent sleepless nights thinking about how she could change to make his life easier, to stop the stares and often ignorant comments about her appearance.
The stress of the move was making her psoriasis flare. Big patches of red were popping up all over her body. Soon they’d start to plaque, which embarrassed her no end. It was, of course,worse when her skin split and bled; Liam spent hours bathing, creaming, and bandaging to make her more comfortable.
Add in the beard, that eternal source of ridicule, and comedians could write hours upon hours of script for their show based just on her face.
“I’ve always rather enjoyed getting fucked sideways,” a low voice murmured from behind them, rich with amusement. “Missionary becomes so boring.”
Sierra ducked her head, fiddling with her pouch. It seemed safer than risking another meeting with those soft doe-eyes. Big and brown, she thought, just like a female deer. There was something… hypnotic about them.
“Mistress Violet,” Liam greeted politely.
“Master Liam,” she returned with a laugh. “And this pretty little thing next to you is… Sienna?”
“Sierra.”
“My apologies, I misheard. A few of us are getting together later this evening as an informal gathering. An opportunity to get to know everyone before the chaos of opening strikes us down. It’s only going to be drinks, a few nibbles, and with any luck, some decent conversation. Both of you are most welcome to join us.”
An evening surrounded by strange Dominants?
Sierra concealed her hesitance, knowing Liam would make the decision based on her reaction. She enjoyed her time at Avalon, spending time with the people she loved, those who embraced her despite the physical flaws everyone else used against her.