frown, annoyed. It isn’t my job to assume a secretary can draw. “Well. You could’ve told me. Shown me.”
“ It’s on my resume. I just never thought I could get into school, so I figured…I thought maybe if I kept it up at Lakeside for long enough, eventually I’d climb the ladder and be able to work for you…or for someone…as a designer.”
“ Does David know you want that?”
“ No. No one knows.”
“ Why not?”
Tapping the steering wheel with her index finger, she thinks for a moment. “No one in my family has ever done anything besides work retail or other blue collar stuff. So I don’t know…I guess having a job like that is more of a dream than a reality. I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I still…I still don’t want to get my hopes up.” She turns to me with a weak smile. “I really like being a secretary, too. I just really hate…”
“ Being bored?” I see it on her face.
She sighs, but neither agrees nor disagrees. I feel a pang for her all of a sudden, like I’m seeing her for the first time or something.
“ Well, now that I know you have a sense for design, I can try to keep that in mind and make a recommendation if a job opens up.”
“ Seriously?” She turns to me, braking a little forcefully at the stoplight.
I smile. I don’t think this is the alcohol talking. “Yeah. Seriously.”
“ Thank you. Thank you so much!” she shrieks, grinning and throwing her arms around me.
A bit taken aback by her sudden show of affection, I hug her back, then point to the road.
“ It’s green.”
We drive in silence for awhile. Her energy is happy, and so is mine. I’m incredibly relieved my ignorance going into that meeting didn’t make us lose Kate and Jacob.
“ How are you gonna get home?” she asks, pulling into the lot. It’s after five—definitely quitting time. “Can you call David?”
Shit. The twenty minute drive back to the office has not magically sobered me up.
And the rules! I’m not supposed to get inebriated if David isn’t around. Though surely there’s an exception for work.
“ Fuck,” I say under my breath.
Aria shoots me a sideways glance. Then she smiles a tiny, knowing smile.
“ You’re in for it, aren’t you?” she asks.
In spite of myself, I smile too. Then, we’re both smiling and laughing at my silly predicament.
“ Yeah,” I say when we calm down. “I guess I am…”
“ I’ll wait with you,” she says.
I call David, and he’s in town anyway and doesn’t sound too upset that I need a ride.
When I hang up, I turn to Aria.
“ It’s actually kind of nice knowing…having you know…”
She nods. “Do you have any friends who get spanked?”
“ Nope. Well, you, I guess.”
“ We aren’t exactly friends, Rachel. Remember the firing? The crappy job I always did for you?”
Ouch. But her tone wasn’t really all that cutting. I catch her smiling.
“ I know,” I reply. “Maybe…maybe with time.”
“ Yeah.” She’s silent for a long moment, staring straight ahead. Finally, she speaks softly. “You know, a friend of mine showed me David’s ad on Craigslist. That’s how I found him.”
“ Really?”
She nods. “She gets spanked by her husband. Says it ‘keeps her centered’. I don’t know…I had a fight with my sister a few years ago. Even though I’d apologized, and been forgiven, I still felt horrible about myself. And so, I went to David.” Aria smiles, presumably remembering her first spanking. She turns to face me. “How’d you end up with David?”
I tell her my story. How I was frustrated with my life, with my relationships. How I was a downright bitch to my friends. Stumbling across his advertisement online…emailing him…meeting him…falling in love with him…
“ That is so sweet,” Aria exclaims, clapping her hands together in delight. “David is such a great guy. I always wondered why he was single.”
“ Yeah. He really is great.”
As if on cue, David pulls up his
“ It’s on my resume. I just never thought I could get into school, so I figured…I thought maybe if I kept it up at Lakeside for long enough, eventually I’d climb the ladder and be able to work for you…or for someone…as a designer.”
“ Does David know you want that?”
“ No. No one knows.”
“ Why not?”
Tapping the steering wheel with her index finger, she thinks for a moment. “No one in my family has ever done anything besides work retail or other blue collar stuff. So I don’t know…I guess having a job like that is more of a dream than a reality. I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I still…I still don’t want to get my hopes up.” She turns to me with a weak smile. “I really like being a secretary, too. I just really hate…”
“ Being bored?” I see it on her face.
She sighs, but neither agrees nor disagrees. I feel a pang for her all of a sudden, like I’m seeing her for the first time or something.
“ Well, now that I know you have a sense for design, I can try to keep that in mind and make a recommendation if a job opens up.”
“ Seriously?” She turns to me, braking a little forcefully at the stoplight.
I smile. I don’t think this is the alcohol talking. “Yeah. Seriously.”
“ Thank you. Thank you so much!” she shrieks, grinning and throwing her arms around me.
A bit taken aback by her sudden show of affection, I hug her back, then point to the road.
“ It’s green.”
We drive in silence for awhile. Her energy is happy, and so is mine. I’m incredibly relieved my ignorance going into that meeting didn’t make us lose Kate and Jacob.
“ How are you gonna get home?” she asks, pulling into the lot. It’s after five—definitely quitting time. “Can you call David?”
Shit. The twenty minute drive back to the office has not magically sobered me up.
And the rules! I’m not supposed to get inebriated if David isn’t around. Though surely there’s an exception for work.
“ Fuck,” I say under my breath.
Aria shoots me a sideways glance. Then she smiles a tiny, knowing smile.
“ You’re in for it, aren’t you?” she asks.
In spite of myself, I smile too. Then, we’re both smiling and laughing at my silly predicament.
“ Yeah,” I say when we calm down. “I guess I am…”
“ I’ll wait with you,” she says.
I call David, and he’s in town anyway and doesn’t sound too upset that I need a ride.
When I hang up, I turn to Aria.
“ It’s actually kind of nice knowing…having you know…”
She nods. “Do you have any friends who get spanked?”
“ Nope. Well, you, I guess.”
“ We aren’t exactly friends, Rachel. Remember the firing? The crappy job I always did for you?”
Ouch. But her tone wasn’t really all that cutting. I catch her smiling.
“ I know,” I reply. “Maybe…maybe with time.”
“ Yeah.” She’s silent for a long moment, staring straight ahead. Finally, she speaks softly. “You know, a friend of mine showed me David’s ad on Craigslist. That’s how I found him.”
“ Really?”
She nods. “She gets spanked by her husband. Says it ‘keeps her centered’. I don’t know…I had a fight with my sister a few years ago. Even though I’d apologized, and been forgiven, I still felt horrible about myself. And so, I went to David.” Aria smiles, presumably remembering her first spanking. She turns to face me. “How’d you end up with David?”
I tell her my story. How I was frustrated with my life, with my relationships. How I was a downright bitch to my friends. Stumbling across his advertisement online…emailing him…meeting him…falling in love with him…
“ That is so sweet,” Aria exclaims, clapping her hands together in delight. “David is such a great guy. I always wondered why he was single.”
“ Yeah. He really is great.”
As if on cue, David pulls up his
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