Diane's Fall Ch. 08

This is an ongoing story, and likely won't make much sense without reading the previous chapters for context.

This story contains themes of BDSM and kink. So if such themes make you uncomfortable then you might want to give this chapter a pass.

As always, I urge you to vote, comment, or message me to give me your thoughts. It can only help me in my future efforts.

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Diane sat, staring out into her backyard as the last of the day's mid-winter sun shone into her sunroom window. Her eyes followed two squirrels as they pranced around underneath a hardwood tree, not really seeing them at the same time.

She'd been that way for close to two months now. Going through the day to day routines of life while putting on a face that said all was well.

In truth, though, Diane could feel herself dying inside a little at a time. Some days it was just tiny increments and specks while on others, chunks of her soul seemed to be missing when the mother of two took a personal inventory at days end.

Diane looked down into the bourbon glass she held, the golden liquid beckoning her to indulge herself until she could no longer feel the multitude of things that pained her. It would be easy to give in to the alcohol's warm embrace again and again until her anguish was forgotten, but Diane knew that would be selfish. It was narcissistic behavior of that type that had sunken her into the emotional abyss she now found to be her world, and Diane couldn't afford to think that way any longer.

Diane picked up the divorce papers that had been resting in her lap and read through their contents again, trying to absorb the meanings and implications they held. Her lawyer had warned her they were coming, tipped off by a friend in the Superior Court offices. Yet even though they'd been expected, the emotional weight they carried was almost more than Diane could bear.

The days following her breakup with Kayla had been a whirlwind of crisscrossing phone calls and pleas that she meet with the Native-American beauty and hear her out. Though she hadn't spoken to Kayla since the day she left her house, Diane had been engaged by every person her former Domme could convince to argue on her behalf, including Diane's own sister Dana.

Diane had refused each woman's endeavor to explain Kayla's actions by merely pointing out that the seductress had brazenly lied to her. Something she'd apparently been doing for weeks. The raven-haired beauty had been carrying on a secret relationship with another woman, a woman who wasn't her submissive. While she'd been doing that, she'd hardly had time for Diane yet had the nerve to have the twin's mother working tirelessly to set up her new business.

Of course, Dana had been quick to point out that Diane had been doing the same things to Jerry. Her barb had stung, mainly because Diane knew it was one-hundred percent true.

Kayla, God knows, even know it hurt Diane to think of the raven-haired beauty. She still dreamed of the younger woman every night. They were passionate and erotic dreams of the type that led to her awakening with her panties soaked and her energy reserves feeling only half charged.

Even now, Diane's heart ached at the thought of the stunning young seductress. The love she felt for Kayla was a daily reminder of how close Diane had been to completion as a person for the first time in her life. Yet it was also a warning of how little she could trust her own judgment when it came to such things.

Sensing a presence standing in the doorway to the sunroom, Diane looked up to find Lana staring back at her, a look of concern etched into her countenance.

"Hey, baby girl, is there something I can do for you?"

Diane folded the divorce papers and stuffed them back into the envelope they'd come in, not eager to discuss their significance with Lana. Both girls were aware the couple's marriage was likely over, but Diane saw no sense in bringing up how final that reality had become. She thought she'd let them have a few more days of peace before she broke the news.

Their fathers move into the guest room the week after Diane and Kayla had split was a pretty good indicator for the twins that there were problems. They didn't know the specifics of the issues behind them, though. Diane knew the time was coming when she would have to share those too. She couldn't hide her sexuality from the girls forever.

Lana made her way over to where her mother sat and joined her on the couch, resting her head against Diane's shoulder. Diane slipped her arm around the teen and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"I hate seeing you so sad," Lana said, sounding forlorn and lost.

Diane cringed. She thought she'd done a much better job of hiding her feelings. But then again, Lana had always been particularly attuned to her mother's moods. The girl's capacity for empathy when it came to Diane seemed endless at times.

"I'm okay, Lana. Married people go through hard times like this, it isn't all that uncommon. Not every marriage has a fairytale ending, unfortunately."

The teen turned her head, looked up into her mother's eyes, and said, "I don't think that's what has you so sad. Heck, Mom, even Lena, and I could see this thing between you and Dad coming from a long way away. I think there's something else though I can't figure out why you want to hide it."

Lana's words surprised Diane. She'd always known that the child was intuitive and intelligent, but she'd always assumed that her children paid little mind to the goings-on surrounding their parents' lives.

Apparently not.

"What makes you say that?" Diane asked. She didn't want to confirm Lana's suspicions if this was just a sly fishing expedition on her daughter's part.

Lana stared back at her, seeming to consider her question before answering. Her eyes probed Diane's as if in search of a missing piece to the answers she sought.

"Because for the longest time, you didn't seem happy. Lena and I used to talk all the time about how bored and sad you appeared to be. We always assumed it was because Dad was never home, and even when he was, he never seemed to pay you any attention," Lana offered in explanation.

Diane wanted to reply and tell her daughter that she couldn't blame her father for the malaise she'd found herself living in. But she didn't; she could see Lana had more to say.

"Then, a few months ago, everything changed, and you suddenly seemed happy and full of life. At the time, we didn't know what had caused it. We knew it wasn't Dad, though, because nothing had changed on the homefront."

Diane felt her body stiffen, suddenly tense at the words her daughter was saying.

"It was Kayla, wasn't it, Mom. Meeting her is what made you so happy, wasn't it?"

Diane felt her eyes well with tears. Had she been so blissfully lost in her love and lust surrounding the young Domme that she had missed out on the fact that her daughters had been aware?

When she didn't reply, Lana said, "I saw you kissing her the day Aunt Dana brought us over to Kayla's for the pool party."

Diane felt a sense of panic flood her body, a weight settling on her chest, making it hard to breathe. It was clear that her daughter was waiting for some type of response to her revelation. But Diane found herself floundering at to what she should say.

"I was in the hall bathroom and saw Aunt Dana come out of a room with double doors. One of the doors was still open, and I heard voices, so I peeked in and saw you two together."

"God," Diane said, flushing with shame, "I'm so sorry, Lana. Please don't hate me, sweetie."

Lana hugged her mother tighter.

"I didn't hate you, but I will admit it freaked me out a little."

"Does your sister know?" was the best she could manage. Since the weekend of Diane's breakup with Kayla and her separation from their girl's father, Lena had been distant at home. She'd also had some discipline issues at school that had resulted in Diane having to meet with her principal.

Lana simply nodded her head.

Diane gritted her teeth and felt instantly ashamed at having had such a negative effect on the older twin's psyche. How could she have been so selfish? The teenage years were already confusing enough for a girl, and she had to add to it.

"Is that why she's been so..." Diane said, struggling to come up with the right words to describe the older of the twin's recent behavior

"Such a bitch and whiny, self-centered little twit?" Lana asked in an attempt to help her mother. Before Diane could chastise her for her choice of words, Lana added, "No, that isn't what's had her acting that way."

"Then what?" Diane asked, a state of confusion reigning in her head.

Lana gave her mother a sad smile and said, "That's where the self-centered little twit part comes in. Lena is my best friend, and God knows I love her, but when something doesn't benefit her, she can be the queen of all pouters."

Diane studied her daughter, trying to make sense of her words.

"Lena didn't care that you were having an affair with Kayla. She was thrilled by it, mainly when she found out you were going into business with her. Everyone knows who Kayla is, and having an in with her gave Lena the kind of push around school she'd been craving."

Diane could see that. Lena had always been an opportunist, always looking for the angle that would most benefit her. Diane suspected she would be highly successful from such actions later on in life. That is provided; things continued to go her way. If not, that's where the bitch part of Lana's statement came into play.

"Whatever happened between you and Kayla that ended things. It also ended you running her new business. Shelby started bragging right after that about how Aunt Dana would now be running things. When that word got around, Lena was embarrassed because she'd already made so many claims about your involvement."

Diane's heart ached for the young teen. She knew how cruel teenagers could be and could only imagine the amount of teasing that Lena had been forced to endure because of her actions.

Diane was still contemplating the myriad of things that had gone wrong to force her into her current position. That's when Lana's inquisitive nature kicked in, bringing out her next question.

"You're in love with Kayla. Aren't you, Mom?"

Diane's natural inclination was to deny her daughter's assertion. But she knew that even if she was to put up a believable front, insisting there was no authenticity to Lana's claim, she would eventually learn the truth. Diane's denials would only serve to force a wedge between her and Lana. And she wouldn't have that.

Meeting her daughter's eyes, Diane said, "Yes, even after everything, I'm still madly in love with her. I miss her every second of every day."

"Have you told her that, Mom?" Lana asked, her eyes clearly hopeful that her mother hadn't yet thrown in the towel and could still find it in her heart to forgive Kayla.

"You don't know what happened, Lana. Not everything is so cut and dried. Kayla broke my trust, and it's hard to be in a relationship with someone who does that."

"Shelby says you caught her with another woman," Lana said. "Is that what happened, Mom?"

More burning pierced Diane's gut. What didn't these girls know, and why couldn't Dana keep her damn mouth shut around her daughter?

"Shelby says her Mom is having sex with that Elise girl's mother, Celeste. Is Aunt Dana a lesbian too?" Lana asked with a tone women save for only the juiciest of gossip

Finally finding her voice, Diane said, "Even if I knew something like that was going on, it wouldn't be my place to share it with anybody. If your Aunt Dana is gay, then it's up to her when she wants to let people know."

And then looking at her youngest daughter very seriously, Diane added, "And under no circumstances are you to be discussing the possibility with anyone else, the same goes for your sister. People have every right to their privacy until they choose to make it public. No one else has the right to choose to do that for them. Do we understand each other?"

"Yes, Mom. I promise."

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"I'm not sure how much of the particulars the girls know, but they know about Kayla and me, and they're aware of Dana and Celeste too."

"Oh, shit!" Beth said, a bit of panic in her voice as she sat forward in her chair. "Do they know about me?"

"No, and I picked Lana's brain pretty good. There was no mention of you. But I was thinking about that. We might need to stop hanging out together so much."

"What? Why?" Beth asked with concern in her voice.

Her sister-in-law had been the only one of Diane's group that the twin's mother had allowed remaining loyal until now. Dana had desperately needed the job that Kayla had promised her, and Diane could never deny her younger sister and niece the better pay and more stable life that the position offered.

It had been painfully apparent on the day that she'd seduced Celeste that there was something between the blue-eyed beauty and her sister. Some force that drew the two towards one another other than just raw attraction. So when the pair had started spending nearly every moment they could together, it hadn't come as a great surprise.

When Diane had reluctantly ordered her sister to return to Kayla as her loyal submissive, she'd regretfully sent Celeste along with her. As lovely as it would have been to keep the younger mother around for stress relief, she couldn't do that to Dana. If they wanted to be together, then Diane had no right to stand in their way.

"Well, the girls know that I'm a lesbian and was having a relationship with Kayla. They know that their Aunt Dana is in a secret lesbian relationship with Elise's mom. How much longer before they start doing the math and begin to wonder about their Aunt Beth? Despite having told your brother that I'm no longer in love with him and kicking him out of our bedroom, you and I still remain close. That in and of itself will make people start to wonder, particularly if I get exposed."

"Arghhh," Beth groaned, clearly not pleased with Diane's logic.

Diane knew the risk was too significant that Beth's parents might start asking questions, so as painful as it was to lose her last sexual outlet, Diane felt she had no choice.

"And what about you?" Beth asked with concern in her voice.

Diane shrugged her shoulders. "The new job is keeping me plenty busy during the day. I have no intention of having to depend on your brother for support, so going back to work full time was the right call, and changing agencies was too. Had I stayed at my old job, then Frannie would have been reporting to Kayla about everything I did."

"What about here at home, though? It's been routine for me to stop by mornings after the girls have left for school so that I could take care of that sweet pussy of yours. What are you going to do now?"

Diane smiled. She certainly would miss that routine. One of Diane's submissives had gotten her off each morning for the last couple of months with very few exceptions. The only exception had been during the times she was on her period.

Going out and seeking other options to avail herself of wasn't really an option. Diane's lawyer had warned her that Jerry was content right now to agree that the girls needed to be with her. But the lawyer had added that her investigator had picked up chatter from several sources where the twin's father had indicated that if he could ever prove she was unfit, he would take them from her in a heartbeat.

That had surprised Diane. She knew that Jerry was bitter about the entire ordeal. He'd made that abundantly clear before moving out and renting a small two-bedroom apartment of his own.

Still, Diane had hopes that when all was said and done, the two would maintain a friendly co-parenting relationship. And that wouldn't happen if he tried to take her girls. Diane knew that she couldn't be seen on the prowl for new women in her life as enticing as it might sound. It was just too significant a risk.

Besides, she wasn't ready for anything new. She was hardly close to being over Kayla. It was painful to even think of the raven-haired beauty and what she might be doing with her time. Diane knew from the original timeline of the business plan she'd drawn up that Kayla's new venture was scheduled to open up at the end of the month. On the occasions she spoke to Dana, Diane allowed her sister to speak in only the most general terms about the things going on in her life. Dana knew that Kayla was an off-limits topic, though it didn't seem to stop her sister from attempting to talk her into speaking with Diane's former Domme.

During her afternoons, Diane had mysteriously run into Carrie and Aayhlia on different occasions. She'd gotten a distinct impression that these encounters hadn't been accidental. Both young women had tried to make it seem that way, but the entire meeting came across as contrived. There was nothing happenstance about them. Carrie and Aayhlia had both launched into impassioned diatribes about how Diane was wrong to break up with Kayla and how she owed it to herself to find out the details of what had happened. Diane had listened politely and then excused herself and went on about her day.

With Ah, things were different. For one, the tiny Chinese acrobat showed up about mid-morning one Friday, begging to talk to Diane for just a moment. Had it been one of her other two cohorts, Diane knew she would have insisted that the conversation take place on her front porch. She didn't fully trust either, knowing that although they might like her, they really only held Kayla's interests at heart.

Ah was a different creature, though. Diane had formed a much more intimate bond with the young Asian beauty than she'd ever managed to develop with the other two. There was a level of trust with Ah that Diane knew would likely never be present with Carrie or Aayhlia.

So Diane had invited Ah into her house without a second thought on the matter. Once they'd sat together in Diane's sunroom, the young submissive's approach had been much different than her two peers.

She'd danced around the subject without actually touching on it. Her nerves were apparent. Diane had begun to feel uncomfortable for the beautiful young Asian girl.

"It's okay, Ah. Just say whatever it is your Mistress sent you here to say. I'm not going to get angry with you about it."

Her eyes tearing up, the Chinese beauty said, "It's my fault, you know."

Her eyes squinting as she looked at Ah with confusion on her face, Diane said, "What do you mean, Ah? How could you be to blame for what happened?"

"She did it for me... the woman I mean." the diminutive beauty added, tears flowing freely down her cheeks now.

Diane immediately felt torn between wanting to wrap Ah in her arms and telling her it would all be okay, or grabbing her shoulders and shaking her into silence. The mother of two had steadfastly refused to discuss what happened with anyone who'd brought up the subject. Diane knew that any woman trapped under Kayla's dominant spell would be apt to parrot whatever story the Domme had told them without considering its veracity.

Ah's emotional state struck a nerve threatening to put a hole in the wall that Diane had erected to protect herself from the subject. It was the first time since rushing from Kayla's home that Diane had considered discussing the topic.

"I'm sure that's not true, sweetie," Diane replied as she stroked the Asian beauty's short blonde hair.

A brief sob hitching forth from Ah's chest, she said, "Oh, but it is. If I hadn't been so eager to get Jeremy back, then maybe Kayla wouldn't have felt it necessary to push for Ms. Archer to be seduced."

Diane felt her head cloud with confusion as she tried to figure out what the two subjects had to do with one another. It had been left up to her and Dana to seduce Renee Archer, not that they'd made much headway. What could Kayla beginning an affair with some Irish beauty have possibly had in connection to the English teacher?