Perfect Alignment by KB Alan Page A

person, she knew that. She had what she considered a relatively appealing nature, and had never had too much trouble finding dates. But it had still been uncomfortable being in front of the mirror with Drew that afternoon, being more than bare to him. At least that’s how it had felt. And again, it wasn’t as if it was anything new. She’d been naked in front of complete strangers at the club. Somehow that was easier. The guys she hooked up with at the club were looking, but they weren’t looking at
her
. They were looking at the sub they’d selected for the night, trying to decide how they wanted to use her.
    She wasn’t sure, exactly, how it had been different with Drew. Just like usual, he’d picked her because he’d known what she was, known what he could do with her, what she wanted from him. The fact that he’d picked her from a selection of one, rather than a room full of available subs should make her feel less chosen, not more.
Right?
    “Ugh!” Yanking the robe on, she turned from the mirror and left the bathroom. She was going to drive herself bonkers. The bed bounced as she flopped onto it, trying to decide what to do next. Her original plan had been to hit the club, but there was no way she was going tonight. For one thing, she felt plenty satiated. Plus, it just didn’t feel right. She sent a quick text to her friend Stephanie. Steph had been a member for ages and went on her own all the time, she wouldn’t feel abandoned that Emma was canceling.
    Of course, Stephanie immediately responded back, thinking Emma needed encouragement or a pep-talk. Emma told her she had a hot date with a guy and would explain later. They made plans to meet at the nail salon the next day. And she was back to deciding what to do for now.
    She could pull out her vibrator. She’d brought one along to get her revved up for her planned evening out, but that sure hadn’t turned out the way she’d expected. It was nearly ten, but she’d had a fairly exhausting day, all things considered. She left the vibrator in her bag, shucked the robe and climbed under the covers. Flipping through the channels netted her a romantic comedy about to start, and she settled in. Maybe watching someone else go through the paces would help keep her mind off her own situation.
    ****
    She dreamt of him and woke up wet and aching. Without thinking about it too much, she grabbed her vibrator and brought herself to completion. It was satisfying, but not very. Not when she had the memory of his hands on her so fresh in her mind. It left her own attempts feeling sort of feeble. She came with a soft sigh and turned the toy off. She dozed some more until her cell phone rang. She checked the clock and saw that it wasn’t even eight. Nobody who knew her well would expect her to be up and about on a non-work day. The screen showed her that it was Drew. Someone who barely knew her, and yet knew her better than most.
    “Hey.” She sounded soft and sleepy and cleared her throat, pulling herself up and stuffing pillows behind her back.
    “Hey. Did I wake you up?” he asked, not sounding particularly sorry.
    “Yes, but that was a little while ago.”
    It took him a minute to figure out she meant her dreams, but then he chuckled. “Well, turnabout is fair play. I had a hell of a time getting to sleep last night.”
    She smiled, but tried to keep it out of her voice. “Shouldn’t you be at work?”
    “I am. Got clocked in and now I’m parked at a speed trap, enjoying my coffee and a donut.”
    She laughed. “Mmm, does it have chocolate?”
    “Nah, I prefer my coffee black.”
    “That’s just boring. Didn’t I tell you I work at a coffee shop? I’ll whip you up something fantastic one of these days, and you’ll never go back to plain old black coffee.”
    He waited a beat. “I’m sorry, I got stuck on whip and started visualizing you naked and in need of punishment. What did you say after that?”
    She shivered. She wasn’t much into pain but