When the Cat's Away… Ch. 09

"Come on," Steffen called out again.

"Yes, yes, just a sec," I replied. "Did you say we were staying over? Do I need to pack anything?"

"You'll be fine. It's only one night. Now, you on your way?"

I grabbed a matching black wrap, just in case it was chilly outside, and headed downstairs. Steffen was in the kitchen waiting for me.

"Here now," I called out, sensually swaying my hips to show off the dress.

I don't remember the last time he was speechless, but in that moment the cat had definitely got his tongue. Wide eyes and open mouth greeted me, but not a word of affection.

"Do I look okay?" I asked, wondering why he was suddenly so quiet.

"Well, there is one—"

I cut him off in mid-sentence, now worried what was wrong.

"Tell me! It's the dress, isn't it? Maybe it shows off a bit too much. I could always get changed—"

"No, no, it's not the dress."

"Then, what is it?"

"I think... well, maybe... maybe you need a little something more. Turn around, I think I have just the thing."

By now, his inability to simply come out and tell me straight was starting to grate. If there was one thing I didn't want, it was to be teased like this, and the way I stared back at him, with my lips pressed firm together, told Steffen what I was thinking.

"Go on, turn around," he continued. "We're not going anywhere until you do."

Reluctantly, and if only to humour him, I turned around and waited.

"Close your eyes."

Oh yes, he was going too far now, but if only to get out of the house I followed his orders. Then I felt it. First came warm fingers and then something rather soft yet cool. He fumbled at the back and then he was gone. Without waiting to be told, I was already exploring the choker around my neck, soft velvet accentuated at the front with a gold heart charm.

My mind jumped back to that day in the office when Naty had given me her collar. That was a sign of ownership, and I guess this was too. The only difference was in interpreting ownership; owned in love as against owned in servitude. I turned back and gave him a kiss, leaving the merest impression of red lipstick on his cheek. A quick wipe away and I looked up at my darling husband.

"There... you look a million dollars, Mrs Leber. Now, if you don't mind, I promised you a night out and I'd rather get there before... well, you know what happened to Cinderella when the clock struck..."

His voice trailed off mid-sentence. Once more I was giving Steffen the hard stare. This time it was more symbolic than meant, but he got the message.

"Still there?" he continued. "I thought you'd be out the door by now. And have I ever told you how sexy you look when you're angry."

There was a playful slap on my ass as I pushed past and headed through the door. I didn't give him the satisfaction of seeing the smile on my face as I stepped out into the chilly fresh air. A playful slap was only the start of what I intended to be a most enjoyable evening, for both of us.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Half an hour later we were zigzagging through city streets in the back of a taxi.

"Where are we going?" I asked, eager to get there.

"Not far now, you'll see," came a non-committal reply.

I'd lost track of where we had gone. It seemed far from home, yet the buildings were most familiar. Why had we taken a taxi, anyway? I usually took the train and then walked from the station to the office every day. Then it dawned on me. Those times I was in flats and now a pair of killer heels was making my legs look so fabulous. I laughed to myself. Here I was doubting why we were taking a cab when I should have been questioning how far I could walk in these shoes, at least not without doing myself an injury.

Finally, the taxi slowed before pulling off the road onto a curved driveway. I glanced out and up. There was something about the huge glass fronted building which seemed so familiar. And then my heart dropped. It wasn't the building which brought it all back—yes, it was familiar but could have been any of several modern tower blocks in this part of the city—it was the bellman approaching the side of the cab, or more to the point it was the uniform he was wearing. Steffen was still paying the driver when the door opened.

"Evening Ma'am," came a polite welcome.

With one foot already on the floor and the other about to follow, I glanced up at the bellman.

"Good evening," I replied, watching as he quickly averted his gaze and played all nonchalant as if to say he really hadn't seen anything.

The old Claudia might have turned and given him a mouthful, but instead there was excitement. I bet he'd spent all day opening door after door, with maybe an odd hello here and a thank you there. Now though I'd given him a little added extra. Yes, this was a rather short dress and, yes, his eyes were momentarily fixed on my inner thighs. It was only natural that he would have gotten a good view of my skimpy little knickers. From the way they felt, the narrow fabric stretched tight against my snatch, it was likely that it wasn't only my knickers he got a glimpse of. Oh, well, I guess I'd have to be more careful next time. I really wouldn't want to be flashing myself to every stranger, would I?

With Steffen now by my side, we walked into the lobby. It was all coming back to me; that evening, when the two of us—that's me and my mistress to be—had walked in through the same revolving door and grabbed a bite to eat in the downstairs bar before taking a ride upstairs.

"Welcome back, Miss."

It was a soft but polite voice from the side, so soft that I almost ignored it. It was how he emphasised the last word which had me glance around. There he stood, yet another bellboy with a smile on his face. He was just being friendly, but there was something familiar about him. Surely not—it couldn't be. Was he the same guy who had called out to me from the reception the morning after that first passionate night with my to-be mistress? Was he the one who had handed me the note, the handwritten note suggesting that it wouldn't be a one-night stand? I shook my head and moved off in the direction of the bar I had been to on my first visit. I was being paranoid. After all, they must have had many guests through those doors and greeted them all with the same cheery welcome.

"Where are you off to?" Steffen called out.

This time I stopped in my tracks. To be honest, I hadn't even thought about it. It was instinctive, having been here once I guessed I knew what he had in mind.

"Oh, I just saw people eating and assumed—"

"Well, Mrs Leber, looking as good as you do, you assumed wrong. I booked us a table upstairs. The food's great and the view's not bad either," Steffen continued, winking at me as he stressed the latter.

One more hard stare, the third of the evening, and then I followed him to the lift. Oh, yes, memories came flooding back. That first time it was me and Naty taking a ride upwards. Tonight, I was making the journey once more, only with Steffen. Slowly the doors closed and the politest of female voices told us we were going up. I glanced around the modern interior; marbled panelling and gilt metalwork broken up with mirrored tiles. It was exactly as I remembered it.

I stared ahead into the mirror, eyeing up the hunk of a man at the side of me. It was too good to resist. That night Naty had surprised me with a peck on the lips, a peck which had become a full-on embrace by the time the doors opened. Tonight, it was my turn to take the initiative. Without warning, I had draped my tiny frame sensually around my darling husband; both arms and one leg encircling his manly body, my lips pressed hard against his. Was I being too obvious in what I wanted? Would Steffen push me away just like the previous evening? When he ran his hand up the back of my legs and nudged gently at my ass, I had my answer.

"No knickers, Mrs Leber?" he whispered, feeling only bare flesh.

"Wouldn't you like to know," I teased, grinding my mound against his leg in a most suggestive manner.

The only thing stopping him finding out for himself was the sound of the bell heralding our arrival. As the doors slid open, I quickly pulled away and smoothed out my dress, pulling it down as low as I could, not that it ran very low anyway. It was a near miss, as an elderly couple came into view on the other side of the doors. I smiled at them as we walked out into the restaurant, then stopped. The splendour of the décor was awe inspiring to say the least.

It was like we had walked into another world, somewhere which could have been plucked directly out of old Beijing. Directly in front of us stood a trio of Chinese drums, each larger than the last. It was the start of an exotic feast on the senses. Huge black latticework screens shielded the lifts from the restaurant itself, and then there was the gong; a huge gold, or more likely brass, disc hanging from a wooden frame. Oh, how tempting it was to pick up the single drumstick and give it a whack.

Whilst I was still weighing up the option of making my presence known to the whole restaurant, Steffen was already disappearing into the darkness beyond those latticework screens. Reluctantly, I followed him. 'Maybe on the way out I could play a little tune,' was my passing thought.

I was in awe; first with the place itself and then with the young woman who led us to our table. Was I in awe of the young woman? No, I guess not. It was more the beautiful red dress she wore which grabbed my attention; straight, long, red silk ornately decorated in gold thread appeared to cling to her slender frame. Short sleeves, only just past shoulder-length, and a huge split up one side offered tempting glimpses of pale flesh. I couldn't exactly tell Steffen, but next time I wanted him to get me one of those dresses.

If I was already impressed, I was about to become overwhelmed. This time it wasn't the table which did it, but more the location, nestled up against a floor-to-ceiling window. With the subdued lighting inside, the view was amazing. Every city light twinkled like a jewel in the night sky. I leant across the table and kissed my darling Steffen, before staring back out into the near darkness.

"What do you fancy?" asked Steffen.

"You, of course," I retorted, breaking my gaze away from the wonderful view and pursing my lips at him in a most seductive blown kiss.

"I meant, to eat."

"Oh, you choose," I responded. "You know what I like."

I wasn't really paying attention to what he ordered. Instead, I was still taking in the whole place, both the exotic opulence of the restaurant itself and then the beauty of that view outside. There was something about the way the lights twinkled as dusk turned towards night.

"Your friend suggested well," I commented, returning my focus to my darling husband. "It really is a beautiful place, and the view is stunning."

"I couldn't agree more," he replied, his eyes fixed on me and that little black dress.

"You know I love you, don't you Steffen."

"I love you too, Claudia."

"And what happened when you were away. It wasn't anything more than a little girlie fun."

"I know."

"We'd just had a bit too much to drink and one thing... well, one thing led to another."

"I know."

"And before we knew it—" I paused for a minute. "What do you mean you know?"

"I didn't mean anything by it."

"And you're not just a little angry? I did go behind your back."

"How can I be? As beautiful as you are, it is only natural that there'd be temptations along the way."

"Yes, it was only a temptation," I replied. Temptation was a great word for it. Naty had tempted me with her womanly desires and I had fallen for them. He didn't need to know the rest. "But you do know that I love you, don't you Steffen?"

"I do, and tonight you look absolutely adorable my darling."

Leaning across the table, I kissed him once more.

"Love you too Steffen. One day you must introduce me to this colleague of yours, so that I can thank her for such a wonderful suggestion. I'm sure I'd like her. She sounds like my kinda girl and really has great taste."

Conversation was cut short as the waitress returned carrying a tray covered in little dishes. Some say that the way to a woman's heart is through her stomach. Well, if the taste was halfway as good as the presentation, then my heart was about to melt away. Laid out in front of me, atop one of those spinning carousels, was the most wonderful array of food.

I sat there, as I imagined Alice would have done in her wonderland. In front of me dish after dish screamed out 'Eat Me' as I ran my eyes across delicious looking titbits. To say they were tempting was an understatement, but still I had little clue what Steffen had ordered.

"So, I guess those are spring rolls, but what's the rest of it?" I asked, trying to comprehend the array of dishes in front of me.

"Well, let's see. That one's black fungus with wasabi..." Steffen was in his element as he progressed to point out dish after dish. "... pork and shrimp dumplings... steamed meatball... crispy squid... fried tofu with chili... turnip cake... shrimp toast... barbeque beef buns... oh, and they're tofu skin rolls, but you knew that."

"Wasabi? That's Japanese, isn't it."

"It's a sort of fusion I guess, but mainly Chinese."

"Well, it looks fantastic. Now, just one thing."

Steffen sat and watched as I searched across the table.

"Isn't there a fork?" I whispered, almost embarrassed by the lack of any cutlery I was confident in using.

"Chopsticks," came Steffen's reply as he confidently picked up a shrimp dumpling and tucked in. "Mmmm, so tasty."

Not that I had tried that often, but I'd never understood how somebody could eat their dinner with only two sticks. Every time I had tried, I had failed, once with most disastrous results as I dropped my sushi into a bowl of soy sauce and ended up splashed with little black spots. Okay, so my black dress would hide a multitude of sins, but I so didn't want to get it messy.

"Like this," he encouraged, showing great dexterity to pivot the two chopsticks between his fingers and thumb.

"Hate you. You make it look so easy," I replied, struggling even to make the chopsticks come together, let alone have enough grip to pick up a mere morsel of food.

There was a sort of smugness on his face as Steffen nibbled away whilst I simply tried and failed. It was like one of those arcade games; you know the one where you lower a claw to grab a soft toy and then, halfway towards winning, it drops out of your grip. Well, that was me all right. This was going to be one long evening or a very light dinner. It had taken me a full five minutes to manage my first and only dumpling.

"I can't, Steffen," I admitted, rather despondent in my lack of ability. "Let me get a fork."

"No," he replied, "I have a better idea."

"If you cannot get to the food, then let the food come to you. Now, open wide."

Oh yes, I thought, one could get used to this. Steffen, the master of the magical chopsticks, had taken to feeding both of us. It was like one of those scenes from ancient times where the queen lays back on her chaise lounge whilst her favourite slave satisfies her every need.

Steffen though was no slave. He was a tease, and he knew it. Temptingly he would hold my next mouthful in front of my lips and then, as I went to take it, he would move it out of reach, or even worse would take it himself. How was an attractive young woman to get a meal around here?

Well, I knew one way of getting Steffen's attention. Almost immediately it had the desired effect. Invisible to him, I had slipped off my heels. If he could tease me, then for sure I could tease him back. He almost let his chopsticks slip, not far from dropping crispy squid in his lap, when I ran one foot up his outer calf.

Then I stopped. If he wanted more, then he had to work out how to get it. This was one game of footsie where each move had to be earned. How long would it take Steffen to learn the price?

Inside I selfishly hoped he was a quick learner, not only so that I got some dinner before it ended up cold, but also because I found it rather exciting to be playing with him under the table.

I wasn't disappointed and, from his ineffective attempts to hide a smile, neither was my darling husband. As each tender titbit passed my lips, so my foot slid up his leg, starting on the outside before switching to more sensitive inner leg. I was really having fun, my foot now around knee level, toes wiggling as I slid along his trouser-clad leg. Even as I downed the last crumbs of the fantastic dinner, I continued to tease. He had earned a reward, but I would have more fun first.

Thankfully there was a full tablecloth or the whole restaurant might have been watching us. Steffen had already slouched down in his chair, legs apart slightly in an open invitation. Me, well I guess I was now rubbing my bare foot exactly where he wanted it and, yes, I could feel the effect it was having on him. In fact, the bulge in his trousers would tell everyone exactly what was on his mind. Still though, I worked my tiny foot—having such dainty feet had advantages, especially for sensual, seductive massages—over his erection.

Then a wicked thought hit my mind; how long would it take before he could resist no more? There were two options. Either he would get his own private creamy dessert, or...

"Can I have the bill?" Steffen called out to the passing waitress.

"Of course, sir. Was everything to your liking?"

"Yes, it was great," he replied, his sentence finishing at a higher pitch to where it started as I pressed my foot down over his manhood.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Memories came flooding back as we exited the lift once more—it had only been two floors down, so we should have taken the stairs, but not in these heels—and walked down the dimly lit corridor. We passed door after door until Steffen stopped and pulled out a key. Strange, I thought, I didn't remember him picking up any key when we reached the hotel. The waitress must have brought it with the bill, I guessed. If I had paid attention to the door numbers then something equally strange, or maybe unnervingly coincidental, might also have hit me.

"After you, Mrs Leber," Steffen suggested, holding the door open for me.

I took a couple of steps and came to a standstill. Was it the feel of a huge manly hand, running up the back of my thigh and caressing my bare ass cheek which put the brakes on? No, it was a sense of déjà vu which stopped me in my tracks. Here I was, standing in a room which was strikingly similar to the one Naty had taken me to. It was so alike it could have been the same one.

That night it was a woman's kiss which led me to all kinds of excitement. Tonight, it was a very different proposition; just me and my darling husband. I took a moment, then composed myself and set off inside. Yes, everything was like the last time. I jumped on the bed, feeling how I sank into the soft duvet.

"Be right back," Steffen called, disappearing off towards what I assumed was the bathroom.

"Don't be all night," I responded in a more than playful tone.

It was then that I noticed them once more, jewels twinkling in the night sky. That night with Naty the curtains had been closed, but tonight they were wide open. I was drawn over to that window. I cupped my hands against the cold glass to cut down the glare of the lights from inside and stared out into the distance.

It was so captivating, watching the lights in the now pitch blackness. It wasn't just the golden glow of streetlights, nor the array of red and white car lights, which grabbed my attention. This time I was drawn towards the buildings themselves, looking out across the skyline at the varied windows; some brightly lit, others pitch black and yet more with the subtle glow of subdued or maybe reflected illumination. My mind was wandering, contemplating what might be going on within each as the city slowed down for the night.