Mike and Sarah Pt. 02: Love Building

Sarah drops her head for a moment. Having given up my deepest secrets I pause for a second before re-engaging her, "Hey I didn't mean to tell you all of that, but once I started I couldn't stop. I am not used to being open with people and I guess I went too far for a first date I'm sorry."

I guess my apology wasn't needed, because when she looks up there's a fire in her eyes, "Shut up you arsehole!" she starts, "You don't get to tell me all that and apologise you prick," grabbing my head and gives me a deep kiss before making sure I can't avoid her eyes before continuing, "Here's what's going to happen we're going to finish our dinner, you're going to take me to the pub, not the wine bar and just act flirty enough to be a point of gossip and leave. Once we leave we're going straight to your place and I'm going to hold you until you stop fighting my affection for you and deal with it." She excuses herself to the bathroom because some 'dickhead' made her cry and she needs to fix her face.

True to her word after dinner she drags me back to the pub, unfortunately for me Mark and Bob are still hanging about significantly more drunk than when I left them. She deposits me with them while she collects our round just as she returns Mark decides to make a toast, "Here's to our captain Smithy good lad that he is, he has found himself a pretty lass that will hold his heart forever and relegate us mere mortals to his afterthoughts. Smithy, my lad hold the lass tight and only nay agree with her when victory is certain."

I can barely understand a word he says and what I do understand is the sincerity with which the toast is given, before I can retort Bob joins in "Aye dear Marko my old mate, Smithy is a lad of good stock and his lass seems to be the sort to hold him together. If only we had lasses of such a sort, we'd be fishing my friend instead of belching at the young lad's fortune." At this moment I both hate and love the old crew. Sarah seems to be amazed by the whole scene though in her defence it's the first time she has properly met the old boys.

After our emotionally charged dinner, it's nice to get caught up in the camaraderie of the pub and the ease with which the old boys take to Sarah gives me a warm feeling of happiness. Sarah seems to enjoy the banter and enjoying the teasing the boys give me. Mark having just caught a smile I've given her interrupts, "My word Bob, I dare say the lad is smitten with the pretty lass. Lassie, what have you done to our stoic captain?"

Sarah blushes before smiling at me brightly and responds, "Mark I simply refuse for him to hide the kind gentle person I know he can be," she gives me a quick wink before continuing, "And I have methods to break his stoicism that I doubt you want to try."

The table bursts out in laughter before Bob interrupts "That's it Smithy, I expect a full report on the young lady's methods at our next selection meeting. It seems unfair you get to keep her charms all to yourself."

Sarah responds, "My charms are for Mike only and if he were to let slip my secrets, he would have to make do with his own charms." The table bursts out into laughter again as Sarah makes a deliberate show of flexing her wrist.

We manage another round before saying our goodbyes. There is a chorus of agreement when Mark declares that I should bring Sarah back as it is unfair I should keep 'such a pretty lass hidden away from them'.

As we slowly walk back to my flat, Sarah asks "Mike, what is a selection meeting?"

I laugh gently, "It's basically a piss-up. Bob is the unofficial chairman and organiser of our cricket team. Pub cricket is a bit different than competitive cricket. We make a point of giving anyone who wants to play a fair chance regardless of their ability. So when we have a game coming up Bob and I get together and go through the names who have signed up, and try and balance out a team based on a mixture of ability and making sure everyone gets a fair chance. Some people won't get chosen because they have played earlier in the season so we can make space for those who haven't got a chance yet. It all depends on how many games Bob has been able to organise. Even though it should only take 20 minutes between me and Bob the other boys join in to make suggestions or complain about being dropped and it turns into an hours-long affair with lots of beer" I tell her.

She laughs a little and then responds "How did you become captain?"

"Honestly I still don't know, when I joined up a couple of years ago I was considered one of the better players but didn't really have a role in the team. One day our then-captain couldn't make it and no one wanted to do it so Bob asked me to do it. I guess Bob liked how I made sure everyone got involved and didn't try and take over the game like the other captain sometimes did to get a win. The season after that, Bob just informed me I would be captain whenever I played that season."

Sarah pauses for a moment before responding, "So you hold yourself back so everyone else can have a good time? That's wonderful." The conversation slows as we reach my front door, just as I get the keys out, she pulls me into a kiss, "Thank you for a wonderful date. Thank you for letting me in and being vulnerable with me, now don't you ever stop," she whispers into my ear before taking the keys from my hands and lets us into the flat.

Entering the flat, we go straight to the bedroom. Just as I'm about to suggest a nightcap, Sarah pulls me into a deep kiss before removing my jacket for me and slowly working her way through the buttons on my shirt. Kissing me again as she works my belt before pulling my trousers down. Stripped down to my boxers, she pushes me back onto the bed. Sarah makes a point of not following me and when I reach for her she takes a step back just out of my reach. Catching my eyes she slowly gives me a strip tease. Holding my gaze she removes her coat, she gives me a twirl before starting to slip off her dress. Exposing her back to me, I notice her bra strap is the same colour as her dress, she wiggles her bum a little to help bring the dress over her hips I see a lacy thong in the same colour, following her dress's journey I gasp has the top of the stockings she's wearing come into view. Once her dress is past her thighs she lets go of it allowing it to pool at her feet. I get my first full view of her as she turns back to face me, and I am truly speechless as I take in her form, blue lace demi bra accentuating her C-cups, down to her matching knickers which are just sheer enough to give a hint of the dark mound beneath. Working my gaze back up her body, I catch her eyes, which are shining brightly with anticipation.

Taking my silence as approval she stalks over to me and straddles my thighs, kissing me deeply. Pulling back she whispers, "Unwrap your present Mike".

Keeping her in my lap, I pull her into me as I unclip her bra while giving her another deep kiss. Breaking our kiss I stand up taking her with me, before turning around and laying her gently back into bed. I remove my boxers before moving to pull her knickers off, I go to peel her stockings off but she asks me to leave them. I move to kiss her mound, but she pulls me up, "No foreplay tonight I just need you in me," she says in a hushed tone.

Our coupling is slow and tender, time seems to stand still as we enjoy each other and the moment. Slowly need overtakes the intimacy and we start working together for release. Matching each other's rhythm and tempo intuitively we manage our first perfectly timed mutual orgasm. Pulling myself off, she follows my movement and cuddles into me, trapped by the intimacy of the moment neither of us dares to speak. Sleep claims us both shortly after.

Waking up the next morning I immediately realise I'm alone in bed. A feeling of sadness falls over me briefly at Sarah's absence after our intimate night together. Lying back in bed I hear music coming from the kitchen, getting up I find a pair of trousers and a T-shirt before going to investigate. I find Sarah dancing and singing along to Taylor Swift wearing my shirt from the night before and while preparing breakfast.

Noticing the coffee pot is full and on the dining table I silently pour myself a cup while watching Sarah's private moment of carefree happiness. After about a minute, she seemed to sense my presence in the room, turning around to face me she smiled brightly before skipping over to give me a morning hug. "Morning handsome, I was just about to come and wake you up, I've made pancakes", she gushes before giving me a good morning kiss and returning to the task of making breakfast.

Falling into rhythm beside her, I found a serving plate for the pancakes before setting the table, finding some butter as well as some syrup I had completely forgotten I had. Having set the table I settled beside her and started making a fruit salad as she cooked the pancakes. Working in silence we instinctively knew how to work together never getting in each other's way except for the occasional hip bump Sarah would give me. It was a beautifully domestic Sunday morning and I enjoyed it.

Breakfast made we carried the food over to the table and chatted easily about the plans for the day.

"So you mentioned taking a walk through the meadow up to The Perch?" she said as if it was something we discussed every week.

"Yeah, we can take the short route through Jericho or the longer walk down to Wolvercote and back up to The Perch, we could have a drink there, if we're hungry we could go on The Medley for a pizza. Maybe talk more on the way?" I responded giving her the choice.

"Sounds great, let's take the long route and earn that pizza."

We return to our breakfast, happy in our own thoughts feeling no need to feel the fill the silence. As we finish our meal Sarah gets up, "I'm going to have a shower and get ready. You okay to do the dishes?"

"For a price," I respond.

She laughs and sits in my lap to give me a toe-curling kiss, "There you go, paid in full, I'll collect the change later" she laughs before getting up and making her way to the shower.

By the time I was ready to head for my shower, Sarah was already out, drying her hair on the bed while singing softly to herself. Giving her a quick peck on the cheek I slip past her and head into the bathroom. Coming out 10 minutes later wrapped in a towel I found Sarah fully dressed in her yoga leggings and a long-sleeved sports top with her hair pulled into her customary ponytail. Stepping up to me she pulls my face down to her before saying "I believe you owe me some change," promptly pulling me into a kiss. As our kiss deepens I wrap my arms around her waist and lift her off the ground. Squealing she breaks the kiss, "Put me down you brute. Get ready it's a beautiful day out there and we have many miles to cover." Complying with her request I put her down gently and before giving her a gentle pat on the bum.

Looking out the window and confirming it was indeed a beautiful day, I decided to wear some nice shorts before finding a long-sleeve running top similar to the one that Sarah was wearing. Finding a baseball cap for the sun I head into the kitchen to prepare some water bottles and pack my backpack for the walk. I catch Sarah's eye as I turn from the sink to find her studying my look. Without a word, she goes back into the bedroom before coming out 5 minutes later with another of my baseball caps while adjusting her ponytail so the cap will fit her.

Without a word about her new accessory, I just ask if she's ready to go. Nodding back at me she takes my hand and leads me to the door. Beginning the walk our pace is casual as we're in no particular rush as we work our way towards our walking route. As we come off the main road and onto one of the quiet side roads that will lead us to the meadow, Sarah decides to speak, "So you told me a little about your family last night and I can now see why you find it so hard to let people in when you have been betrayed so badly by the ones who were supposed to protect you." She takes a deep breath before continuing "It's my turn to tell you about me."

I reach down to grab her hand and give it a gentle squeeze to reassure her familiar with the nervousness she must be feeling. Trying to release her makes her grip tight and I realise she needs me to hold her hand through this. With another deep breath, she continues "My family story isn't quite as bad as yours growing up I had a pretty normal childhood with both parents at home, my brother and me. Even though he was present my dad wasn't really engaged with us and gave just enough attention to know he loved us but otherwise, he didn't involve himself too much in our lives. When I was 14 my parents announced that they were getting a divorce, I was heartbroken because they had never really argued or shown any indication that their marriage was falling apart. They calmly explained that they just weren't in love anymore and it was better for them to divorce while they were still civil with each other before it turned to resentment. Not long after that, my dad had a new partner Joanne, and it seemed he had less time for us. After the divorce, my mum became clingy and needy with me and my brother. Angry at my dad for abandoning us and feeling suffocated by my mum I started hanging out with the wrong crowds at school.

By 16 I was involved in drugs and was drinking all the time. I didn't get involved sexually with anyone even though I had offers of drugs for favours because I instinctively knew I needed to feel safe before I could be intimate with anyone and none of those guys made me feel safe. Thankfully the girls in the group had a pact to never leave anyone by themselves while we drank and one of their boyfriends wasn't interested in drugs or drinking so he was always there to make sure nothing happened," She pauses for a moment before continuing.

"Mandy pulled me out of it, I had been pushing her away for a couple of years but one day at school she pulled me aside and demanded I talk to her. I kept pushing her away saying it was none of her business and I didn't need her anymore but she refused to leave me alone. Eventually, I broke down, and confessed everything to her, the drinking, the drugs, and feeling pressured by some of the creepy blokes we hung around with to give up my virginity. She held me as I cried and when I eventually came down. She told me it would be okay, and she was there for me. We spent every day together as she worked on getting me back on track with school, every weekend I would stay at hers or she would stay with me and we would have girly weekends. Thanks to her my grades improved to the point I was thinking seriously about University, I chose Manchester because it was far enough away that I could be my own person not held back by what had happened before, but also close enough that I could be available for mum if she needed me.

I met my first boyfriend Simon about 2 months after moving. He was sweet and loving and I found myself falling for him quickly. Eventually, I slept with him, and he was so gentle and caring with me that I wanted to give him more of me. The more caring he was, the more of me I wanted to give him. Eventually, I became demanding of his time and affection and started taking him for granted. I was dependent on him at this point and I would act out if he didn't give me the care I was expecting. Eventually, he dumped me saying I had become too clingy and needy, and he wanted a partner, not a princess needing to be pleased 24/7."

She takes a deep breath before continuing, "I know it's possibly not something you want to talk about - exes, but I need you to know this as well it's part of who I am." I nod at her to continue.

"After Simon, I was lost for a while, one night one of my housemates Kerry heard me crying and came into my room, to check on me. I told her about Simon, how I had felt about him, everything we had done and why we broke up. She held me through my tears, and when I calmed down, she looked at me seriously and told me she thought I might be a submissive. She explained to me that the more I felt loved the more of myself I wanted to give. Simon didn't recognise it or could not keep me centred when I got needy which is why I started taking him for granted or would act out. After she left I pulled out my laptop and started researching being a submissive. I learnt everything I could about the different kinds of Dom/Sub relationships trying to work out where I fit and if I really was a sub. The common thread I found in reading about submissive experiences, was that in a good relationship, the Dom's real duty was to care for their sub and make them feel safe and protected. And there was a freeing feeling in being able to give yourself to someone completely trusting them to care for you, letting them test your boundaries knowing that they aren't going to push you in a direction you don't want to go. There were also hundreds of cautionary tales about men who pretend to be Doms to live out their own selfish fantasies."

I interrupt her briefly, "Is that what happened with your last boyfriend?"

She nods quickly before continuing, "The real problem is that I didn't know how to seek out a real Dom/Sub relationship so I kept to myself not trusting anyone. At the start of my final year, I met Stephen, I was cautious with him, but I found him intriguing and handsome. It took about 3 months before I agreed to a date, I was impressed by the fact he was patient with me and didn't try to push me and yet didn't walk away when I refused to go out with him at first.

We went out for a month before he brought up the potential of moving our relationship to the next level. I told him I needed a little more time but I wouldn't string him along if I didn't feel like we could take that step. Finally taking into account the fact he had been so patient and respectful with me I felt he was worth a chance. On our next date, I explained to him that if we were going to progress in our relationship, he needed to understand I was looking for something a little bit different. I explained to him that I thought I might be submissive and wanted to explore a sub-dynamic.

He said he didn't quite know what that meant but he was willing to find out with me. To begin with, we took it slow as we would discuss scenes we wanted to play out. I quickly realised that I had no interest in master/slave dynamics though as occasional role play it could be fun. I despise any form of pain play, I could accept that other people enjoy it but it's not for me. I didn't mind spankings if I was being a brat or in the heat of the moment, but that's about as much pain play as I can handle.

We had a great time experimenting and after graduating we both managed to get jobs in Manchester so he suggested we move in together. The first year was wonderful as we could play and explore our dynamic without the limitations of housemates, things didn't have to be planned anymore we could be spontaneous. He was always attentive in his aftercare and I was convinced we'd be together forever. About halfway through our second year living together Stephen started changing, he seemed to get more demanding in the bedroom and less interested in my needs. At first, I played it off convincing myself I was imagining it. But if anything he got worse over the next couple of months and eventually I couldn't take it anymore. I explained to him that I no longer felt like his girlfriend and partner but more like his live-in sex doll. He got mad and I told me that if I was truly a submissive all I would care about is pleasing him and all the other shit didn't matter."

Sarah lets out a sob at this so I stop our walk and pull her into a hug, "Babe, you don't have to continue," I pause to take note of our surroundings, "We're still about 90 minutes away from the Perch, let's just enjoy the rest of the walk and the day."