Page 28 of Healing the Heart

She pulled up her schedule. “It does.”

“Perfect,” Val replied, sounding relieved. “I might have some arranging to do before I know where. I’ll leave that for you at the front desk.”

“That’s fine as long as it’s not center stage, thirty feet in the air.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you. Neither would Master Noah. You can trust him, Fi. He’s experienced and respected by the club masters. The only reason he’s not one of them is because he’s often on call for work and travels some, and declined. All the subs have nothing but positive things to say about him. I feel good about the two of you.”

“That makes one of us,” she replied, rather pithily, unsure she wanted a dom thatallthe other subs had.

It didn’t mean they all had sex with him. Many engaged in bondage or impact play without sex being the goal. But they were all adults, and it was often how a scene ended. And variety was often how this lifestyle worked. But that wasn’t her style, and why she wanted a dom of her own.

“What did I tell you about negative self-talk?” Val the clinical social worker countered. “It’s often a self-fulfilling prophesy.”

“You’re right. One of my patients threw a monkey wrench into my entire afternoon, but I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”

“Mine are often in crisis. I’ve been there, hon, and understand completely.”

“I’ll be at the club at eight on Thursday. But this is my one shot, Val.”

“Where have I heard that before?” she muttered.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing. Just a little joke you weren’t in on. But I’m confident this is a good match for you.”

“I hope so. I can’t handle any more failure.”

“Have faith. I can’t wait to hear how it turns out. I’ll let you go.”

“Bye, Val,” she said, seeing Jenny and her mom on the other side of the gym waiting for her.

Her hands trembled slightly as she silenced her phone for the session, having second thoughts already. But she plastered a smile on her face and got to work, something she was good at. Besides, her kids never cared what she looked like or how she dressed or if she carried a few extra pounds. They were happy to have her undivided attention, helping them get better, and that was reward enough.

If she crashed and burned again on Thursday, it would have to be.

Chapter 8

One Last Shot

FIONA EYED THE LINEsnaking out the front door as she emerged from her Uber. The hum of cars on the busy street couldn’t compete with the chattering people—so many of them—impatiently waiting. This was going to take a while.

Sliding her phone from her clutch, she checked the time. She had fifteen minutes until their appointment, but by the time she finished check-in, it would be well past eight. Being prompt was a big deal to some dominants. Master Noah was an unknown entity. The potential consequences for tardiness, whether a deal-breaker or an ass busting, remained to be seen, and left her feeling a little queasy.

As she was standing there, wondering what he would do, four more people joined the line. She hurried over before the couple rounding the corner and heading that way also could.

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