Free Eventide (Her Father, My Master) by Mallorie Griffin Page A

me up like this, secretly, and I had to interact with my parents in this state. It was very difficult to keep myself from groaning.
    Thankfully, I didn't have anything at all planned for today. I spent the afternoon locked in my room
    with Flicker. He didn't care if I was totally bound up, all he wanted was attention.
    I found myself drifting towards a popular BDSM forum that I frequently lurked on. It was good to
    know that I wasn't the only person in the world with this fetish, and this arrangement. There were
    hundreds of couples in the same situation as myself and my master, if not thousands. Though I didn't know
    of any with the amount of age disparity that we had.
    I flinched and instinctively ducked my head, when I thought of that. It was true. He was old, much
    older than me, and I was so young. I sometimes wondered whether he was taking advantage of my youth,
    my inexperience, my willingness to please. He had said in the past that he wanted to help me, but did he
    really? Or was he just taking advantage of me?
    I shook my head violently, chasing those negative thoughts away. No. He wanted me. He was
    handsome, built, and confident. He could have any woman he wanted, even in a slave capacity. I already
    knew that there were plenty of women like me to go around.
    But he chose me. He didn't need me. He chose to be with me.
    I sighed softly, thumbing through the forums. As I took another breath, the ropes strained against my
    skin, and I was yet again reminded of my bond to him. This was a good thing. This was something I
    wanted to be a part of.
    *****
    That evening, I removed the ropes. My skin underneath was red, rubbed more than a little rough by the
    scratchy fibers, and it tingled in the most pleasurable way. Even with the ropes gone, I still had a
    reminder of my master, right there on my skin.
    I carefully coiled the rope up and placed it in a bag. I would have to remember to take it with me, the
    next time I visited.
    The next time I visited... I wondered when that would be. I hadn't heard from him all day, though that
    wasn't unusual. I still missed him all the same. His touch, his scent, the way he spoke to me, commanded
    me. I needed to hear that again. I'd grown so used to it.
    But, for now, I had other things to worry about. Like work tomorrow.
    I didn't need to turn in early, at least, as I wasn't opening at that ungodly early hour. And I also would
    have to work with Maddie for most of my shift. And Derrick would be there. I didn't know why, but I felt
    happy about seeing him again. He was such a good person.
    And I would see him again tomorrow.
    *****
    The next morning, my skin was still a little sensitive as I rolled out of bed. But it was a good kind of
    sensitive, the kind that made my skin tingle and vibrate with pleasure. Partly because it had been my
    master who'd done this to me.
    But I couldn't dwell on that subtle pleasure as much as I wanted to, because I had to get ready for
    work. Not that it took much to get ready, but I had to leave soon.
    Before long, I was dressed and ready. Flicker protested at my leaving, as he always did, but I soothed
    him as well as I could.
    “It's all right buddy. I'll be back before you know it.”
    The little black cat grumbled and slid under the bed, clearly not believing me. No matter. It was the
    truth.
    I made it to work in one piece, where I found both Derrick and Kat, not to mention more than a few
    customers. I was immediately drawn into the line as soon as I clocked in, and we tackled everyone with
    expertise. I may not have liked Kat very much at the moment, but she was still a professional with the
    espresso machine, as was Derrick. We worked well as a team, and without Maddie to trip us up with her
    inexperienced clumsiness, we worked fast.
    Before long, the lines died down, and Kat bowed out for her lunch break, leaving Derrick and I alone.
    “So how have things been?” I asked conversationally. The coffee shop thrummed quietly with the
    sound of