Nicole Edwards - Perception

Xander shook off the thought and then turned his attention to the explanation Alex was giving. Dylan Thomas was doing better. Not great, but better, Alex said.

The depression he’d been living under since his wife passed away from cancer nine years ago had taken a drastic turn after his son graduated from high school last year.

From what Xander understood, Dylan felt as though he wasn’t needed anymore now that his children were practically grown, despite the fact that everyone, including his children, tried to convince him otherwise.

Xander knew that people handled grief in many different ways. Such as Elijah continuing to celebrate his anniversary every year and still wearing what appeared to be his wedding band on his left hand. Or Dylan, who had never managed to find himself after spending so many years taking care of others.

“She died from cancer,” Alex was saying.

“My Beth did as well. Brain cancer. She battled for two very long years before the good Lord decided it was time.”

“Dylan hasn’t been able to move forward. We all understand that he’ll never let her go. We don’t expect him to,” Alex told Elijah. “But we want him to accept that he has to keep on living. His sister Ashleigh, my fiancé, tries to get him to talk, but he doesn’t open up much.”

“It’s difficult to move forward. I understand where he’s coming from. But, in the same regard, we each have to find something that will keep us content in the meantime,” Elijah agreed.

Xander felt all eyes on him. Apparently the conversation had taken a turn they weren’t all comfortable with, so they were probably looking to him to save them all.

“So, Logan,” Xander began, realizing it was time to liven things up, “do you know anyone seeking a CEO position?”

And just like that, the conversation moved to business.

~~**~~**~~

“Oh. My. God. Do people really buy this stuff?” Ashleigh exclaimed as they perused the aisle of the sex shop that Mercedes considered the “less than desirables”. The particular item Ashleigh was referring to was known as an anal toss ring. And it was exactly what you would expect it to be. An anal plug with a stem that would… yeah. Needless to say, if you want to stand across the room and toss rings, you now have a target to hit.

“That’s funny,” McKenna said with a laugh.

Mercedes had had the pleasure of talking to McKenna in depth at the bar they’d met at an hour before. They had only been talking for five minutes when they hit it off.

“But I happen to like this one,” McKenna told them, picking up a large box. “It’s an Area 51 blow up doll.”

“A what?” Ashleigh asked incredulously.

“It’s an alien blow up doll,” Samantha informed Ashleigh.

Mercedes laughed at the outrageous expression on the pregnant woman’s face. She kind of found it difficult to believe that the woman wrote erotic romance and had absolutely no idea about stuff like this.

These were tame compared to some of the things Mercedes had seen, but she didn’t say as much. For the time being, she was just enjoying their enthusiasm.

When she had arrived at the bar, Mercedes hadn’t been sure what to expect. She’d met Sam, and she’d had a brief introduction to Sierra at the opening of Devotion, but tonight was the first time she had been introduced to McKenna and Ashleigh. Her stomach had been in a knot when she first arrived, but it hadn’t taken long before they loosened her up with the banter between them. It was clear that this group of women were close to one another.

They’d practically absorbed Mercedes right into the fold without question.

“It has three boobs,” Ashleigh told them.

“And don’t forget the three love holes,” McKenna added with a snicker.

“Look at this,” Samantha called from a few feet away. “It’s called a happy hopper.”

“Oh, God. That’s hilarious,” Sierra said as she broke out into giggles and moved past them.

“What do you do with it?” Ashleigh asked.

“You sit on it. And… hop.”

McKenna laughed outrageously as Ashleigh stared in disbelief at the giant blow up ball that was equipped with three different size dildos attached to the top.

“Hey, you’ve got to see this stuff,” Sierra called from the next aisle over.

Mercedes followed the rest of them as they maneuvered through the store, picking up and giggling at several more of the items on the shelf before making their way over to Sierra.

Ahh, yes. The BDSM aisle.

Sam glanced over at Mercedes, their eyes connecting briefly before Sam looked away, trying to hide a smile.

“This is some serious stuff,” Sierra said as she picked up a box. “It’s called The Humiliator.”

“Do people really use this stuff?” Ashleigh asked again.

“They do,” Mercedes assured them. Granted, she didn’t know anyone who used a ball gag with a toilet brush attached to the end, but to each his own. “As for that, I’m sure someone has had endless hours of pleasure.”

They all laughed, just as she expected they would.

“Have you used any of these things?” Sam asked, her tone more serious than before.

“All the time. I’m frequently encouraging my subs to think outside of the box.”

“Your subs?” Sam asked, her eyes wide. “But I thought –”

“That’s what Xander wanted you to think,” Mercedes said before Sam finished.

“So you’re not a submissive?”

“No, not by a long shot.”

Sam didn’t seem convinced, but the woman was kind enough to keep her comment to herself. It was clear by the expression on her face that she didn’t belief her.

Along the wall, there were different forms of kinky toys, including blindfolds, muzzles, spreader bars, as well as wrist and ankle restraints. In another section to their left, there were hoods and dungeon irons, not to mention a myriad of suspension equipment and even a section for pony and puppy play.

Mercedes noticed Ashleigh had turned white as a sheet as she continued to take stock of the various toys people used to entertain themselves.

“Do you have a favorite?” McKenna asked her now.

“I like cock and ball shackles,” Mercedes told them honestly. “Cock rings and ball weights are always a good time as well.”

“You’re a Domme?” Sierra asked, apparently trying to sound unsurprised.

“I am,” she assured them.

“Well, I’ll be damned. That’s fucking cool.” Leave it to McKenna to be impressed. “We definitely have to have lunch sometime soon. I’d be honored if you’d let me pick your brain. I’ve considered doing a BDSM series for my online magazine, and you’d be perfect.”

Mercedes smiled, but she wasn’t about to make a commitment.

“So how do two Doms hook up?” Sierra questioned her.

“They don’t usually.”

“So you and Xander are… what? Experimenting?” Sam asked, her expression unreadable.

“You could say that.”

The girls must’ve been happy with her response because they moved on, continuing to pick up and discuss the assorted selection of toys and sexual apparatus that they came across.

Mercedes was enjoying their reactions, hanging back a little bit when Sam came up to her side. “Whatever it is between you and Xander, I don’t think it matters what the norm is.”

Mercedes turned to face Sam more directly. “Is that advice?”

“No, just observance. I’m the last person who could give advice. I can’t even figure out what I want these days, much less help someone else. But I’ve seen the way the two of you look at each other.”

Mercedes was quiet, still waiting for Sam to finish her thought.

“Let’s just say, you don’t see that every day.”

And with that, Sam went to join the others, leaving Mercedes to dwell on her comment.