Gina was flustered at the way Cathy had referred to him as her man, but hell, it felt good all the same.
*
* * *
The closer Wednesday evening got, the more nervous Gina became. She tried to take her mind off things by working hard at the inn and helping Becky get ready for her collaring, but it was always on the back of her mind.
David had called and said he would pick Gina up at six o’clock on Wednesday evening. Gina decided that shopping would be a good calming therapy, and she would buy an outfit for the occasion. So Becky was dragged round four different boutiques in Newmarket before she found a cute skirt and jacket that would go nicely with the shoes she had brought with her from the States.
Hearing Guy’s voice that night had been a help. They had talked for a while, and Guy had demanded to know exactly what her punishment had entailed the night before.
She told him what Andy had done, including the aftercare, and he had seemed satisfied.
“I wish I had been there to take care of it, sweetheart, but it’s over now,” he said in his deep, sexy voice, and at that moment, Gina missed him more than ever.
They had moved on to the subject of the dinner, and Guy had reassured her that it would be okay. “Just be yourself and try to relax. Ronnie is easy enough to get on with. I don’t think she realizes what her daughter actually gets up to, but I think she’ll be welcoming. And David’s a good guy, you know that.”
“Is Ronnie short for Veronica, Sir?”
“Yes, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard her called by her full name, so stick with Ronnie. Okay, go and get some sleep, and I’ll see you at nine tomorrow night. Make sure you don’t overdo it, because you, little sub, are going to need all your energy when I get back.”
Gina went to bed that night all hot and bothered after hearing Guy’s words. When she eventually got to sleep, she tossed and turned, and after waking up for the third time at around three in the morning, she crept downstairs and called Maggie from the phone in Andy’s sitting room. He had told her to help herself if she wanted to call home rather than racking up expenses on her cell, and now seemed as good a time as any.
Unfortunately, Maggie didn’t pick up, and Gina crept back upstairs, wide awake now, and spent the next hour trying to settle back to sleep.
Her body was dragging the next day, but her mind was filled with apprehension about the forthcoming dinner. She kept busy, though, and by Wednesday afternoon, after a lot of caffeine, the ceremony was organized, Becky’s vows written, and the dress almost finished.
Becky had stayed up late, the night before, cutting and sewing, and now Gina stood in the dress in her room where it was being hidden while Becky pinned the hem.
Andy was safely downstairs running the bar and now had Sarah’s help—one of the part-timers who worked Wednesday to Saturday.
Gina felt amazing wearing the dress. It fell to the floor, gathered under the breasts, and looked like an erotic version of a medieval gown.
“Ow!” Gina cried. Becky had poked her with a pin. “What was that for?”
“You were miles away. I just asked you what you were thinking about.”
“Oh, nothing much. I was just wondering if I would ever be as lucky as you and find someone I could settle with, you know, on a permanent basis.”
Becky sat back on her heels. “It took me a while to find him,” she said wistfully. “And then a while longer to see if I could put up with all his shit.”
They both laughed, then Gina looked seriously at Becky. “Are you nervous? I mean this is it, you know—they lived happily ever after. The end.”
“I was nervous, but now it’s so close, I just want to get on with it.” Becky grinned. “He’s the one, there’s no doubt about that. I could never be with anyone else. I found myself a giant of a man, and now I’m stuck with him for good.”
“In some ways, it’s the same, if not more of a commitment than marriage,” Gina stated.
“I think so,” Becky answered, nodding in agreement. “I mean one day we might get married, you know, and have half a dozen kids and all that.”
Her eyes glazed over. “Holy Mother of God—six miniature Andys, running all over the inn. I can’t even think about that right now. Come on, we’re finished here. Let’s pack this away, and then you can call your friend before you go to…” Becky pulled a scary face, “
the dinner.”
“Oh, shit, this was such a bad idea,” Gina groaned as she took the dress off carefully and put it away in her closet. “It’s going to be a total disaster, just wait and see. I’ll be back here within the hour, vowing to never have anything to do with any of them again.”
“Well if you are, we’ll just go and get totally hammered and slag them all off.”
“What the hell is slag?”
“Oh, for God’s sake, I thought you Americans spoke our language?”
“Apparently, we adapted it so it actually makes sense.”
“Oh, that’s really funny,” Becky said, grabbing a pillow from the bed and hurling it at Gina.
After a couple of minutes of a very violent pillow fight and much hysterical laughter, the door flew open and Andy marched in just as Gina brought her pillow down on Becky’s head.
He studied them both for a second and then slowly shook his head. “It sounds like a herd of elephants are stampeding overhead. It’s a good thing we’re closed. Now, if the two of you wouldn’t mind, maybe you could take a break from all the hard work you’re so obviously doing and come and help clear up the bar?”
The two women dropped their pillows, then walked out of the room, grinning at each other as they passed Andy and went into the hallway.
He caught up with them easily and swatted each of them on the bottom. “You two seem to like getting into trouble. I hope Guy and I haven’t got a pair of bratty subs on our hands.”
*
* * *
An hour later, Gina had settled in front of the fire in the bar and was talking to Maggie. She had called her mom first and told her all the news that was appropriate for a mom to hear and promised to call her again the following week.
Maggie was silent on the other end while Gina confided in her friend, explaining the events of the last few days. Andy and Becky were in the back, watching a movie and relaxing until they had to get ready to open for the evening, so Gina held nothing back, telling her friend all the intimate details and how she had felt at the time.
Maggie was the only person in the world whom she could confide in this way, and just hearing the words out loud made her feel a little more in control.
“Jesus, Mary and Joseph,” Maggie said when Gina had finished. “Oh no, wait a minute, that’s an Irish expression, not English.”
Gina laughed. It was so good to hear Maggie’s voice. It was reassuring to know that there was one other person in the world who totally understood her.
“Well, hon, what can I say? The last time we spoke, you weren’t even sure he was an actual real, live Dominant, but after what you’ve just told me, I guess we’ve covered that question.”
“You could say that,” Gina answered. “Cathy, the woman I told you about, said I should just talk to him and put my cards on the table. I mean, she’s known him forever, and she’s a sensible, down to earth kind of person. What do you think?”
“I think you’re only there for just over another week. What have you got to lose? Let him pick you up from this dinner, have a wild night, and then take a deep breath and tell him how you feel. If it all goes great and he feels the same way, then maybe you can stay on for a while and see where this is going. If it all goes to shit, then pay extra, change your flights and get your ass back home as quickly as possible.
“You’ve sorted out all the legal stuff for the house, right? Anything else you might need to do on that score can be settled from here.”
It all seemed so straight forward when Maggie put it like that. “Yeah, you’re right. It really is that straight forward. I can do this, right?” Gina said nervously.
“I’m always right, and yes, you can do this. Now, call me again when you’ve done the deed, and we’ll figure out what you’re gonna do next.”
“Okay, thanks, Mags.”
“You’re welcome.” There was a pause. “Gina, did you really let him, you know…take you in the…”
“Don’t say it!” Gina shouted over Maggie’s voice, a blush heating her cheeks. “Oh shit, I’m going now, okay?”
Maggie laughed. “Okay, you kinky, sexy little thing, bye now.”
Gina laughed as she put down the phone. There was nothing like having a great friend to put things in perspective for you!
Chapter Twelve
Six o’clock finally arrived, and David showed up right on time. The drive wasn’t long, and David did his best to put her at her ease, but Gina couldn’t help feeling that this whole thing had been a bad idea.
She was one for one as far as her new relatives were concerned. Maybe she should have left it at that and not involved anyone else by trying to get to know her father’s widow.
The car pulled into a long driveway and came to a standstill outside an impressive yellow stone house and another thatched roof. The grounds were extensive, and in the pale moonlight and light fog, the house looked almost ethereal, like something out of
Wuthering Heights
.
The front door opened, and a slim auburn-haired woman stood there, looking almost as nervous as Gina.
David walked up behind and smiled. “Mom, this is Gina. Gina, this is my mother, Ronnie.”
Gina shook hands with her. “It’s good to meet you, Ronnie. You have a beautiful home.”
Ronnie seemed almost relieved, as if she had been expecting someone rude or aggressive. Just for a second, Gina wondered if Laura had told her mother about the run-in at the pub but then pushed it out of her mind. Even if she had told her some bullshit version of what had happened, there was no point in worrying about it now.
Laura was waiting in the spacious living room, sitting curled up on a huge sofa, nursing what looked like an alcoholic drink. Gina hoped that her little sister would keep it to a minimum tonight so that everybody could get through this as painlessly as possible.
Once around the dinner table, however, everyone seemed to visibly relax, and the four of them tucked into a wonderful meal of roast chicken, stuffing, and all the trimmings.
Ronnie and Gina made polite conversation about Ronnie’s love of horses and dogs and how she had competed on the show jumping circuit as a child and young adult.
Gina told the other three about her event planning business that she was working hard to establish, and even Laura added to the discussion when prompted by her mother, explaining how she wanted a career in fashion.
Gina’s father was not mentioned at all, but over all, she thought that was probably a good thing. It was better to take this one step at a time, and if they could get through dinner, then that would be a good start.
After the main course was finished, Ronnie asked Laura to clear the plates and bring in the dessert that was in the fridge. Gina offered to help too, and she followed Laura out to the large, old-fashioned kitchen, carrying some of the plates from the table.
When the two of them were safely out of earshot, Laura turned. “You know, you can cut the crap any time you want. All the big smiles and fake friendliness doesn’t fool me for a second. I told you before, you won’t be getting anything else out of my family. David may have fallen for all your bullshit about just wanting to get to know us, but I never will.”
Laura banged the plates down on the countertop. “What the fuck are you doing here? This is
my
home, and David is
my
brother. Why can’t you just get the fuck out of our lives?”
Gina’s heart sank at the malice and hatred, but she took a deep breath and spoke calmly and rationally. “I’m here because David invited me, Laura. I’m sorry you think I’m after something else, but that really isn’t the case. I’ll be leaving in a week or so. All I wanted was to meet the other part of my family, nothing more.”
“Yeah, well, you did that, so can I get your coat?”
The question was dripping in sarcasm, and Gina decided that enough was enough. “You know what? Maybe you should stay off the booze until you can handle it a little better. You’re making a real ass of yourself.”
“Don’t you patronize me, you fucking, arrogant bitch.”
“What’s the matter, Laura, can’t you take a little advice from an older and wiser big sister?”
“Go to hell!” Laura screamed, shoving Gina out of the way as she flew past, running straight into David and her mother, who were hurrying toward the kitchen after hearing the commotion.
Laura sped up the stairs in the hallway, and Gina was left to face her brother and Ronnie. Gina’s pulse was throbbing in her veins, and her heart was racing. She had never done well with confrontations. Still, at least this one had not ended physically.
Unfortunately, that fact did not stop the tears that were threatening to fall. With shaking hands, Gina put the plates she was still holding down on the nearest flat surface, wanting, at that moment, to be anywhere else in the world apart from here.
The three of them just stood there staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity, then David pulled himself together.
“What the hell happened?” he asked. “You’re shaking.”
“Your sister seems to think that I’m after her inheritance or something ridiculous like that. I tried to explain to her that all I really wanted was to get to know this part of my family, but like the last time we met, she’s been drinking. I guess she’s a little young to handle it.”
Gina knew that if she didn’t leave immediately, then she would end up crying in front of these virtual strangers, and she couldn’t bear that. She was angry at herself for not controlling her feelings, but the hurt she felt at her sister’s rejection and the loss of a father she had never had the chance to know were overwhelming her.
“Excuse me,” Gina mumbled and pushed her way past the two of them, back into the sitting room where she grabbed her coat and bag.