About two hours later, just as my limo was rolling up in front of 'Anthony Lloyd Enterprises', I got a phone call from Anthony Lloyd.
"Hello, Kitten," Mr Smug said. "I see that you've just arrived."
"How did you know that?"
"It would be a lax security system if we didn't know who was approaching," he told me with a chuckle. "I just told the system to let me know when you hit our perimeter."
I don't suppose I should really have been surprised.
"Should I invite the driver in for a sandwich?" I asked.
"Very good, Kitten!" he said and I felt a little buzz of warmth at his praise. "Collect your security lanyard from reception and you can use that to pay for your lunches. I'll be with you in a couple of minutes."
When Master appeared in the cafeteria, his bandage had been replaced by a simple plaster and he looked as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
"I'm guessing you've sorted out your problems!" I said as he took the seat opposite me.
"Matters have been satisfactorily resolved," he replied. He gave me a smile that told me that he liked my ambiguous my question.
We ate our lunch together then he stepped into one of the meeting rooms to change whilst I persuaded their magic machine to make us a couple of cups of coffee. Espressos, not cappuccinos, because of Zi'Anna's invisible eye over my shoulder! Clutching our coffee cups, we made our way out to the car.
Master didn't even have any phone calls to make so I had him all to myself and the trip out to the coast seemed much shorter. Soon we were rolling into the car park where we had been collected last time. He told the driver to deliver our bags to the hotel and then he and I set off on foot.
It was a bright, sunny afternoon but it was still blustery and, as we made our way down through the fields towards the coast, a wave of relief washed over me and I let out a huge sigh.
"What's up?" Master asked with a smile
"I don't know... I guess I've just been shut up in that apartment for too long. It's nice to get out for a change!"
"I've been so busy, I've not been able to pay you the attention you deserve," he admitted. "I'm sorry about that."
That was unusual. He hardly ever apologised to me because he hardly ever did anything that he thought needed an apology.
"I understand it's impossible now," I said. "but I'd got used to those walks."
We walked on in silence for a bit then he suddenly turned to me. "Would you like me to organise some self defence classes?" he asked. "It would get you out of the flat and could potentially be useful."
I thought about this for a while. It certainly couldn't do any harm and, if I ever found myself back on the streets, it could well come in handy. "Yes, please," I replied.
"I'll ask Caroline to work with you," he said and I could tell he was thinking out loud. "If you are ever attacked, there's a good chance that you'll be working with close protection operatives from 'Enforcement Division' so it makes sense for you to train with them. And besides..." he gave me a little grin... "I'd be much more comfortable with you doing that sort of one-on-one training with a woman... and there aren't many better than Caroline."
By now we were getting close to the cliff and you could already feel the waves crashing onto the rocks below. Mr Lovely noticed my excitement and took my hand as I peeped over the edge. The waves were just huge and, as they smashed against the rocks, they threw up great big clouds of spray that splashed up almost as high as us.
After peering over the edge for a couple of minutes, we set off along the path, heading straight into the wind. "Can you tell me anything about what's been going on, these last few days?" a curious kitten asked.
Mr Bossy pursed his lips and looked at me with his head on one side as he thought about this. Then his eyes dropped down to my poorly side. "Maybe you deserve to know," he said, "but you are not to share this with Theresa. It's up to Mr Andretti to decide how much she is allowed to know."
"I understand, Master," I replied formally.
"OK. It's starting to look suspiciously as if Slimeball's treachery was less of a one-off moment of insanity and more part of a longer term act of treachery. Do you remember that gang that was offering me access to the Singapore market?"
I nodded.
"Well, it appears that it is just a front for one of the Chinese Triads. My working assumption is that that bullet - he nodded towards my side - was not really meant for me but rather for Mr Andretti - but to be delivered in a way that made it appear that I was responsible."
I stopped walking and turned to stare at him.
"Fortunately, his fixation on you caused his scheme to go off half-cock... and I know it sounds fairly callous to describe the fact that you got shot as fortunate but the alternative is that Nonno and I would both be dead, you would be the property of Slimeball, and Theresa would, at best, have been bundled off in some sort of dynastic marriage."
I suppose, when you thought about it like that, one kitten's poorly side was quite a small price to pay.
"Anyway, over this last week, that Asian gang tried to execute their hostile takeover..." We shared a smile... I knew that that wasn't what a hostile takeover really meant... "of some of Mr Andretti's business assets. But, thanks to Slimeball's premature strike, your Nonno was halfway prepared and, with the help of some resources I could bring to bear, we were able to discourage them."
I thought about this for a while then quietly said, "You're really building up your links with Nonno, aren't you?"
He thought about this for a moment. "Thanks mostly to you and your sister, he and I share a commodity that is both rare and valuable in our line of work," he explained. "Trust."
He took my hand again and we set off together into the wind. "On the subject of trust, would you like me to do the Titanic thing for you?" Mr Lovely asked.
I nodded nervously and then, when we reached the headland, I let him dangle me over the edge again.
The view was utterly stupendous! Huge ocean waves were rolling in and smashing into the rocks below. Great walls of spray were being thrown up - some were almost reaching the top of the cliff! The power was unimaginable... brain numbing.
At last he pulled me back in and snuggled my back very tightly into his tummy. "I told you that it'd be impressive up here after a storm!" he told me. He pretty much had to shout over the wind but I could hear that he had a huge smile on his face.
Just like me!
He continued to snuggle me like that for a while before easing me back to safety. Then he, too, peeped over the cliff.
"Get back," he barked suddenly as he scrambled away from the edge.
Of course my feet were busy moving before I had the chance to think and so, when an enormous wall of water exploded over the top of the cliff, I'd managed to scurry out of the way.
But Master hadn't.
A wall of water crashed over him and he was completely soaked.
He staggered over to the nearby bench and took off his soaking raincoat.
I tried to control myself. I really did. But it was just so rare that anything like this happened to him. I started laughing so hard that I almost wet myself.
"Kitten!" he said. He was pretending to be Mr Grumpy but I knew he thought it was pretty funny too!
I did try to get a grip but I wasn't all that successful.
"Kitten, that's enough now!"
"I'm sorry," I managed to murmur as I tried a bit harder.
But then I made the mistake of looking at him just as a large drop of water dripped off the end of his nose. Of course I collapsed into hopeless giggles again.
"Kitten, come here."
"Uh oh!"
I knew that voice... and I knew much better than to resist... and much, much better than to ask questions.
"Drop your trousers and underwear and bend over my knee."
It was that tone again. It wasn't angry or even particularly forceful but it had my body obeying before my mind could get involved. I did risk a quick look around to check that there wasn't anybody else about. Mind you... I don't know why I bothered. With that voice, I'm sure I'd have obeyed, even if there'd been a troop of boy scouts marching up the path towards us!
So I closed my eyes and just lay there, waiting for that first slap. Except that my confusing Master didn't slap me and just let me lie there as that wind whistled about my bottom bits. My dangling hands wound themselves nervously into the grass by his feet.
I flinched when I felt his hand but it wasn't giving me the slap I deserved. Instead he was running it tenderly over my bottom. And because I was ready for pain, this did really funny things to my insides. "Do you know that you have an utterly delectable derière?" he asked at last.
I really didn't know what to say. I mean... how do you answer that sort of question... it was another of those 'social situations' that Miss Behaviour never touched upon!
As I thought about this rubbish, his stroking hand drew a strange, high pitched whimper. I suppose it was some sort of pleasure and he was going to have to make do with that as an answer.
But the whimper was twisted into a yelp by a sharp slap.
Then there came more stroking followed by another slap... then more... and more. Each slap seemed to cause my lady parts to squeeze together. I mean, it hurt... but almost in a good way. And certainly it wasn't the pain that was making me gasp.
"I don't normally like it when I have to punish you, Kitten," Master said gently as his hand resumed its tender rubbing, stroking, lightly massaging wonderfulness. A finger ran down the inside of my thigh almost as far as my knee and then ran back up again, this time with a hint of fingernail. I let out another whimpering sigh as he worked his way on up.
"But I have to admit..." he went on as his finger ran back up towards my bits. I found my legs trying to move apart for him but this was a bit tricky because I still had my trousers around my ankles. But he didn't quite touch the bits that my body was putting on display for him. Instead his finger traced a line just around them which sent a shiver of frustration through me.
But this was interrupted by another sharp slap.
"That I am enjoying this,"
And this treatment was doing freaky-weird sex type things to my body. I had no idea what was going on but I couldn't sensibly claim that I wasn't enjoying it too.
A finger ran down my other thigh. Again, when he reached my knee, his fingers began to move back up but this time he was gently pinching my inner thigh. I wanted to clamp my thighs together but Master made a throat clearing noise to tell me to keep them apart. And, In spite of his wonderful, torturing fingers, I managed to do it.
As his pinching fingers worked their way even higher, they fired off an unstoppable wave of pure pleasure that flowed down towards my bits. Then he leaned down towards me and inhaled deeply. "And, judging by the smell, so do you."
For a moment, I thought about dying of embarrassment but, as his pinching fingers crept ever closer, any sort of thoughts like that vanished from my mind and my legs fought against the trousers to spread themselves even further apart.
Of course Master reacted to this with another slap and my body responded with an almost unbearable tidal wave of liquid warmth.
But, as suddenly as he had started, His Esteemed Mastership stopped. "I think," he said, raising my jacket and t-shirt and kissing my back, "that's probably enough for now."
"I don't mind," I heard myself saying.
"I do not consider that you are in a fit state to be making any sort of decision at the moment," he replied. He kissed my back again then helped me to my feet. "Anyway..." he pulled my knickers up for me, "you're satisfactorily sodden now." He deliberately squidged my underwear up into my soggy bits which felt quite strange and really rather unpleasant.
Then he pulled my trousers up for me before patting me on the bottom.
"If I'm going to be uncomfortably... damp... on the way to the hotel, at least you can be the same!"
Oh yeah! In all the excitement, I'd managed to forget that the whole thing had been caused by me laughing at him getting splashed. I won't be doing that again.
Or maybe I will!
It's hard to tell with me, sometimes!
So, hand in hand, the two of us squidged off along the path.
If the hotel found the way we arrived strange - one of us soaked to the skin, the other one trying to walk without moving her legs - they did a perfect job of hiding the fact. The severe gentleman at the door - who now recognised me as well as Master - effortlessly guided him into a small room just off the reception area and suggested he might wish to change into a dressing gown that appeared as if by magic.
And everybody chose not to notice the way I was walking.
We were shown to our suite where we shed our clothing and collapsed into the shower together, giggling like five year olds. For a long time we just cuddled together, luxuriating in the warm water, and then I carefully washed Master.
All of Master!
At last he couldn't keep his hands off me and he did a very thorough job of washing me too!
And when he had finished, he picked me up and carried me back out to the bedroom where he lay me down with my bottom on the edge of the bed. "Don't move!" he told me as he stepped away.
He returned a few seconds later with my collar which he clipped around my neck. "That's better," he said and planted a gentle kiss on my lips and we giggled together again.
More butterfly kisses followed - on my cheeks, forehead and even on my nose before he set to work on my neck, tracing a little line of kisses along the line of my collar that sent a tiny shiver of pleasure and anticipation through me.
He gradually worked his way on down and, when he reached my breasts, that caused a much bigger shiver.
From here he worked his way down my tummy and, by the time he reached my belly button, most of my giggles had stopped and had been replaced by a contented little humming noise.
Of course he paid particular attention to my scar - he always did. Then suddenly he was kneeling on the floor between my legs and doing his butterfly kiss thing down there. As my inner thighs and my tuft of hair got their attention, I could hear my humming noises becoming more high pitched and squeaky.
But then I found myself holding my breath as he eased my thighs apart and planted a string of the little kisses along the length of my slit. Then I released that breath with a gentle sigh of pleasure and contentment as he reached my sweet spot.
It all felt lovely, of course, but it sort of left my body wanting more and, this time, he didn't choose to do his frustrating thing with me. Instead, he slowly... slowly ran his tongue along the length of my slit and the mood that, up until then, had been sort of fun and silly, suddenly became much more serious. I let out a deep sigh as my hands reached down to play through his damp hair and, for once, he let them stay there as his tongue continued to run gently back and forth along my length.
"That feels very nice!" I murmured as I closed my eyes and sank deeper into the sensation. In response he reached up and started rubbing my sides with his thumbs. Any other time, that would have just been stupidly tickly but now it had me arching my back in pleasure.
Nobody could be expected to resist that sort of attention for long and, as I started to melt down below, his tongue wormed its way inside me and I lay back, helpless in the grip of that magic tongue. He took my hands and interlocked my fingers with his own, holding them down by my side.
As the pressure of his tongue increased, I still tried to keep my brain working, knowing that he was bound to start playing one of his frustration games soon but, as he worked his way deeper inside me, I knew I couldn't resist and just lay there. My hips wanted to squirm but he moved his wrists down to trap me, leaving me helpless under his attention.
I didn't really notice as his mouth moved away to be replaced by a couple of fingers. This time, my body didn't try to fight him and it was much less uncomfortable. I found myself moving in time with him as he started to slide them in and out... in and out... in and out.
But as my excitement began to build, he eased the pressure back slightly and I whimpered in frustration. "It'll just be a moment, Kitten," he promised me gently. "There's something I want to try first. I think you might rather enjoy it!"
He eased his fingers around and started to massage me from inside. It was quite a nice feeling...
Right up until he found one special spot.
When he hit that, I felt a sudden wild explosion that sort of shuddered through my whole body. I think I might have screamed and, as his mouth descended on my sweet spot, my entire body was totally overwhelmed by wild spasms of ecstasy.
He carried on stroking me as the spasms continued to shudder through me and, when I was completely finished, he slipped me higher up the bed and wrapped himself around me in the cocoonlike embrace I loved.
I must have fallen asleep - I'd missed my regular afternoon nap, after all - and, when I woke up, a bottle of champagne and a small tray of hors d'œuvres had magically appeared. I smiled a huge smile and, as I stretched, Master stroked a hand lovingly over my tummy. Then he helped me to sit up in bed and started feeding me. There were olives - the juicy green ones not the slightly bitter black ones - and various fruity, veggie and meaty things including some bacon wrapped mango things which might sound really odd but went way beyond delicious and out the other side. Of course he let me eat all of those but he did demand a long, slow, passionate kiss in payment for each one!
"I could definitely get used to this sort of treatment!" I told him.
"And it is my intention that you do so," he told me, rubbing a hand along the inside of my thigh. "But, for now, we need to give some thought to dressing for dinner."
"I need another shower," I replied. "Somebody... has got me all sticky again!"
"Kitten!" he said in a pretend Mr Grumpy voice that didn't fool anybody. But then he scooped me up and carried me into the shower and quickly washed my sticky bits. He even managed to do it in a way that, even though it was quite fun, didn't get me all sticky again.
"No underwear!" he told me when we'd finished and I was heading towards the dressing room.
I stopped and looked at him, distinctly shocked. The beautiful, golden, off the shoulder dress I'd packed for the evening was a bit short for that.
"I might require access at any time," he explained as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
Maybe it was for him!
"Yes, Master." I was his kitten; he was my Master; I had to obey without question.
And, anyway, I didn't know anybody here.
So, stark naked except for my collar which, I'd already decided, I could get away with wearing as a choker necklace tonight, I stepped over to the dressing table and unpacked my make up things. "You don't mind, do you?" I asked Master when he gave me a funny look.
"Of course not, Kitten," he smiled, "as long as it's just a light touch to enhance your natural beauty rather than slapping it on like... well..." he gave a smile to apologise in advance for his language, "an old trollop."
"It's OK," I replied. "It's Zi'Anna who taught me how to do this and nobody could ever accuse her of that!"
"True, true!" he laughed. "She's one of those ladies who's blessed with a natural, unforced sense of style and I'm delighted to see you learning from her." He hopped onto the bed and started looking at something on his phone. I guess he was telling me that I didn't need to hurry but I had to giggle when I saw him.
"What is it now, Kitten?" he asked, again using his pretend Mr Grumpy voice.
"It's just that you look a bit funny, lying there in nothing but your boxers!"
"Oh, I see!" He reached down and smoothly removed his underwear. "Is that better?" he asked.
"No!" I squeaked. "Put them back on! I can't possibly concentrate when you're like that!"
"I do wish you'd make up your mind!" he said as he pulled them back on again. Then he gave me a little smile and returned his attention to his phone.
When I was done, I popped on the lovely, golden dress and slid on a pair of matching golden heels that had appeared in my wardrobe at some stage without me noticing... in fact, thinking about what Master had said earlier, they, along with another couple of stylish bits and pieces, had appeared at about the same time as Zi'Anna's visit!
When I was done, I stepped over to the foot of the bed so Master could inspect me. He sat up and put his phone down and was quiet for what felt like a very long time as he devoured me with his eyes.
And I was quite ridiculously desperate for his approval.
"You look exquisite, Kitten," he told me at last. Then he rolled to his feet, raised my two hands to his mouth and kissed them.
Though, at times, his 'telling the truth' thing could be a bit uncomfy, it meant that, when he did say nice things about me, I knew he really meant them. I let out my breath in a long deep sigh - and I hadn't even realised that I'd been holding it!
Then I basked in his appreciation for the short time that it took him to dress. He tied his own bow tie - in a stunning midnight blue but he did need some help from me. I guess whoever invented cufflinks was so posh that they never thought anyone might have to dress themselves.
Then he slipped his dinner jacket and I noticed that the lining was exactly the same blue as his bow tie. I thought that was fun until he buttoned his jacket up. Of course curious kitten just couldn't help asking, "Why have you matched the colour of the bow tie so carefully to the suit lining when nobody but us can see it?"
He paused for a moment with his head slightly on one side. "An excellent question, Kitten!" he said. "I don't really know... but I do know that it's the right thing to do. Maybe I don't care what anyone else thinks about the way I look or maybe..." he gave a quick smile... "dressing as a gentleman transcends the superficiality of what others can see! Are you set?"
"Yes, thank you, Master."
He offered me his arm and, still trying to make sense of his 'transcends the superficiality' bit, I let him lead me from our suite.