Tara Me - The Training

Yawning, I turned off the light and slipped under the covers. Apollo jumped up to rest beside me. Perhaps it was the lack of sleep the night before, but I drifted off within minutes.

Saturday, 8:30 a.m.

I turned the envelope around in my hand, anxious to see what it held. Would it be another writing assignment? I slipped my finger under the flap and opened it.

It’s 8:30 on Saturday morning and I’m still in flight. I hope you had a restful night’s sleep and that Apollo kept you company. I gave him a stern talking-to before I left.

I smiled at his words. He’d made a lot of progress in the last few months, and I loved seeing the funny, playful side of him.

I rubbed Apollo’s head and continued reading.

We’ve been in the playroom countless times in the last few months, but we haven’t come close to exploring all the different ways we can play. This morning, I want you to go into the playroom and look around. Find a toy, item, or piece of equipment we haven’t used but that you would like to experiment with next time we play. Write it down in your journal so we can discuss later.

I might decide to use it.

P.S. You have only an hour. Felicia will be by at nine thirty to take you shopping and out to lunch.

I took a quick glance at the next envelope.

Saturday, 3:30 p.m.

Plenty of time to enjoy a few hours with Felicia.

I read the eight thirty letter again. I’d never spent much time exploring the playroom by myself. Nathaniel and I had gone through it together before he’d collared me, months ago, and cleanup was now my responsibility, but I still felt it was his domain.

Since I’d already showered and had breakfast, I went upstairs into the playroom. Once inside, I skipped over the whipping bench, padded table, and cross, making my way to the far wall. Handmade cabinets held a multitude of floggers. A few he had used—the rabbit fur and suede. He had others, of course, leather and some braided leather ones; they looked heavier and I wondered how they would feel.

Mmm. Maybe.

The cabinets stood above a large table, made of the same rich wood and filled with multiple drawers. I opened one and saw his collection of plugs and vibrators. Fun toys, but I didn’t see anything that stood out in particular.

Attached to one wall was his collection of canes, and I ran a finger across one. I’d talked to Christine about them a few times since our visit, but I still wasn’t ready to try them.

I tried to imagine Nathaniel’s expression if I told him I wanted him to use a cane on me.

Would he be shocked? Would he agree?

But again, I didn’t feel ready yet, so I kept walking.

I rifled through a collection of masks and gags. We’d never played with any of them. I still wondered what it would be like to be gagged.

I picked up a ball gag and tried to imagine him using it combined with a new flogger. That could be fun. His note, though, said to pick one. One. How was that even possible?

Taking my journal and pen, I sat in the middle of the playroom and thought. I ran through different scenarios in my head using several of the items I found in drawers and cabinets. They all seemed fun, but I couldn’t decide on one thing.

I tapped my pen against the spine of the journal and glanced down at my watch. Nine thirteen.

I gazed around the room one last time, smiled, and bent my head to write. I wrote about the toy I picked and, just for fun, added a few details about the scene.

Felicia and I were almost to our first stop, a lingerie store, when my phone rang.

Nathaniel!

“Hello,” I said.

His voice sounded tired. “Abby.”

My heart warmed just hearing his voice. “How was the flight?”

“Long,” he said. “We just landed.”

My mind tried to calculate the time difference. “What time is it?”

“A little after eleven at night,” he said. “It’s like I skipped an entire day.”

“That’s okay,” I teased. I imagined him running his fingers through his hair the way he did when he was tired or frustrated. “Saturday’s a drag. You didn’t miss much.”

“I take issue with that,” Felicia said from the driver’s seat. “You’re shopping with me, and our first stop is a lingerie store. Saturday is not a drag.”

He gave a soft laugh. “I’ll be talking with you in a few hours. I just wanted to hear your voice and let you know I’d landed safely.”

“What are you going to do now?” I asked, not ready to hang up.

“Check into the hotel and get a few hours’ sleep before I start working again.”

“On Sunday?”

“I don’t have anything else to do,” he said in a teasing tone. “Someone refused to come with me.”

“You know why,” I said softly.

“I know and I understand.”

“You should go out and explore,” I said. “It’s not like you’re in China every day.”

“Thank goodness. I’ll explore some. Though I doubt the Great Wall has changed much since the last time I saw it.”

“You’re going to see the Great Wall?”

“No,” he said. “It’s too far away. Next time I’m here, maybe you’ll be able to come and we can go together.”

“I miss you already.”

“I miss you, too.”

“We’re here,” Felicia said.

I’d been so engaged in talking with Nathaniel I hadn’t even noticed Felicia parking the car.

“I’ll let you go,” he said. “You two have fun. Don’t get into too much trouble.”

“Mmm,” I teased. “Trouble sounds good.”

“Later,” he said with a hint of smile in his voice, but then he grew quieter. “I love you.”

“Love you.”

I returned home hours later with bags of new clothes and lingerie, several different garters, and a light heart after having plenty of girl talk with my best friend. Married life agreed with Felicia, and I’d never seen her more content and happy.

I hummed as I put away my purchases. Maybe later in the week I’d put on some new lingerie and take a picture to send to Nathaniel.

At three thirty, I opened the next envelope.

I hope you enjoyed your time with Felicia. You and my new cousin-in-law are so very different, and yet I know your friendship means a lot to you both. I never want you to feel as though you have given anything up by your choice to wear my collar.

Having said that, I know we’ve discussed before how being a submissive does not make you weak, naive, or gullible. In fact, quite the opposite is true.

For your next assignment, I want you to write a thousand words on the following topic:

My Submission: What It Means to Me

When you have finished, take a walk, eat some dinner, and then write a thousand words on your next topic:

My Submission: What It Means to My Master

I look forward to discussing both assignments with you and giving you my thoughts on each.

Whew.

He wasn’t lying when he told me he would have me use the journal. The night before had been eye-opening, though, in terms of what I discovered as I wrote. While I’d been apprehensive about a party when he first brought it up, I was now looking forward to it more. Especially since he’d forced me to think about and write a way to overcome my fear.

I couldn’t wait to discover what the new writing assignment taught me.

Saturday, 10:30 p.m.

Tonight you will discover how it’s possible to serve me long-distance. You have fifteen minutes to undress and get your cell phone.

You will call me from our bed at 10:45 p.m.

My heart pounded as I read his short letter.

Serve him long-distance?

I couldn’t wait to find out what he meant by that. Even more exciting was simply the opportunity to hear his voice. I mentally calculated the time difference. It would be morning in Hong Kong.

An early lunch break for him, perhaps?

Fifteen minutes later I waited on the bed. At 10:45 exactly, I hit the send button to call him.

The phone clicked as he picked up.

“Abigail,” he said, and I was no longer talking to the weary, worn traveler I’d spoken with hours earlier. The low, commanding voice sending shivers up my spine belonged to only one person.

“Master.”

—NATHANIEL—

She spoke that one word, Master, and I heard the nervous excitement in her voice.

“Have you followed my instructions?” I asked.

“Yes, Master.”

“I want you to turn on the speaker, put the phone on the bed, and get into your inspection position,” I said. “Tell me when you’re finished.”

From the other side of the phone came a slight rustling, and I pictured her doing as I asked.

“I’m ready, Master,” she said.

“Thank you, my lovely. Now, tell me what I’d see if I were there.”

I listened as she described her body, as she detailed her position and posture.

“Very nice,” I said when she had finished. “I can see you in my mind, and that’s certainly part of what I wanted to accomplish. However, you just spent a lot of time writing on two very specific assignments. With that in mind, tell me what I see.”

Silence filled the other end of the line as she thought about my words, and then I heard her soft “Oh” and smiled.

“What do I see?” I asked again. “Start with your head.”

“You not only see my head tipped back, but also the meaning behind it,” she said, all excited.