Critical Response

Eve stormed in, flopping down noisily in a chair.

"Can't please all the people all the time," I began, trying to head her off.

"Fuck that," she snapped. "I gave my all in that one. I mean, I got in a hot tub with actual trained killers. Do you think me being in a one-piece, reclining gracefully in the corner while she plays with his cock cage is an easy thing to pull off? The fucking waxing alone took over an hour."

"You were great."

"Obviously not, fucked over by anonymous one-bombers."

"There's the five-star crowd. They tend to even it out, people that get what you were trying to do."

"Yeah, cool. That still averages out to a three, after all the prep that went into it."

Eve's passion ebbed and she leaned back in the chair. I could see she wasn't happy: she'd put a lot in. Getting up from my desk, I dropped into the chair next to her.

"I actually really liked the story," she confided, "Their jobs driving them, putting stress on their relationship with long periods of separation. I liked the idea of the trust breaking down, but not because someone was screwing around, just because of the time spent apart. It made me want to dive in and help."

"What did you think of the cage business, though, honestly?"

Eve shrugged. "You're the boss. I guess you know where you're heading. Colette could have had any number of fetishes, like spanking, but I know there are areas you don't like to go to."

"So, it's down to a personal preference of mine?"

"I'm not saying that. I just know it had to be some deep secret that Colette could only ever trust her husband with. You'd still have had an issue either way, whether it was her that needed to be spanked or she needed to give it. Nature of the beast I guess: everyone brings their own backstory to your story."

Eve got up and meandered over to the window, stretching herself out.

"I guess it's hard to please most of the people most of the time," she said, watching me, her face serious now.

"You guys don't help either," I replied.

"Really? How? Don't we all just dance to your tune?"

I shot her a look and then laughed.

"Like when you started schooling them on tease and denial games in the hot tub?"

"In my defence, they clearly didn't have a clue what they were doing."

"So, you admit, you took the story and ran with it. I had no idea that's where we were going. I was as surprised as Kent when you came out with that."

"Omnipotence isn't all it's cracked up to be, hey?"

"Huh. Maybe there's an element of free will inside the stories. Maybe that's what makes them worth writing."

Eve rested her bottom on the windowsill, watching me. I knew I needed to be careful around her, not like some of them.

"You also gave Adam some shit to deal with in that other story. An enquiring mind would need to know why."

"What are you asking me, Eve?"

"What's coming up is what I'm curious about. That stuff about the girl getting killed in the siege at the start of the story, that wasn't in the first draft. That came later."

"You're quite suspicious."

"Yeah. Keeping a step ahead is a survival attribute."

She folded her arms, staring me down, like I'm some kind of perp. I changed the subject.

"Did you like the way your story ended?"

Eve softens, ever so slightly.

"Yes. I think they fixed it."

"With your help."

Eve shakes her head.

"Nah, before I got there. Kent's a combat veteran. He's used a screwdriver more ways than you've had hot dinners. The cage wouldn't have been a problem for him. Or he could have just taken the key, it's obvious Colette wasn't gonna stop him."

"Which means what?"

"He put it on because he saw it made his wife hot. He was playing along with her, he'd already figured the game out. That's why he stood there naked in the tub, letting me see. Her kink was the cage, but his kink was getting her turned on by it."

"So, you like your job, after all?"

"Yeah, I do."

Eve hesitated.

"Just tell me something. You're not gonna kill me off, are you?"

"You want to know the future? Really?"

Eve shrugged, then looked away.

"No. I don't."