Gasping for breath, Katherine pulled her shorts up, fixed her shirt, and looked around. Katherine sat down on the stairs, her ass sore from the punishments she received from her husband. What had just happened? That had never happened. Ever. They had their fights of course; all married couples did. But nothing like that. That person who just walked out of this stairwell was not her husband. But he sure did make her yearn for that type of fucking again. She couldn’t even call it lovemaking. That was pure fucking.
Rubbing her arm, which was sore from the vice grip it was in, Katherine tried not to cry. She was so rattled, so scared. The tears started before she could stop them. Katherine searched her purse for some tissue but couldn’t find any. “Damn.” She would have to go find some tissue, but not here. She was not going back to Phillip’s office. He wasn’t exactly quiet when he dragged her into the stairwell. Katherine stood up and began walking down the fifteen flights of stairs. As she walked down the stairs, she thought of her Phillip. Her husband whom she married so many years ago. Her Phillip would never have done something like this.
Her Phillip was gentle, he would never use sex as a punishment. Yes, he spanked her during sex, it was a huge turn on for her, but never as a form of punishment. They didn’t even spank their own children. “What has gotten into him?” Katherine thought out loud. Maybe it was her. Maybe she has done something to make him like this. Trying to think about what could possibly make him hate her so much, she could think of nothing. Not one thing.
Looking for a floor number to see how far she had walked; she saw she was on the 9th floor. Rolling her eyes at the number of floors she still had to walk down, she decided the 9th floor was a good enough floor to find a bathroom and the elevator. As her hand reached out to open the door, another door opened to the stairwell below her, and she heard a woman giggling.
“Oh god, yes…” Mystery woman cried. “You know exactly where to touch me. Oh yes, just like that. Lacey…” The woman obviously didn’t know Katherine was in the stairwell too.
“You like that, don’t you?” Another woman’s voice asked.
Katherine shook her head and wondered how many people were fucked regularly in these stairwells. She quickly went to open the door, but curiosity stopped her. She had never seen or heard two women together. She could see them clearly from where she was in the stairwell. The two women were beautiful. One had jet black hair, the other had beautiful strawberry blonde hair. She watched them kiss and was instantly curious about what it would feel like kissing another woman.
“No!” she told herself. You’re married! You’re not a lesbian! Not that she had anything against lesbians, after all, her sister was a lesbian. Alexia has been with her partner for twelve years. They were very strong together, but they were also very respectful when it came to public affection. Oh, sure they would hold hands, hug, and kiss. But that was the extent of their affection in public. As far as Katherine knew. And that was all Katherine wanted to know.
Katherine decided to leave the two lovers to their privacy, at least as much as they could have in a stairwell and opened the door. Once the door shut behind her, Katherine looked around the 9th floor. It looked the same as the 15th floor, so the elevators were right next to the stairwell and the bathrooms were across from the stairwell. Walking into the bathroom, Katherine got some tissue, cleaned herself up, and walked out a new woman. Katherine pressed the down button for the elevator. When the elevator dinged with its arrival, the door opened. She walked into the elevator and pressed the ground button. Her cell phone dinged with a new text message:
Lexi: Whatcha doing?
Katherine: Riding the elevator down to the ground floor.
Lexi: Did you make that appointment you promised you would make?
Katherine: Yes.
Lexi: When?
Katherine: Tomorrow. 10:15.
Lexi: Good girl.
Katherine: 😝
Lexi: So, Courtney and I want to book a flight to come out to see you.
When would be a good time?
Katherine: Um, I don’t know Lexi. This really isn’t a good time.
Lexi: What happened Kat? Did that asshole do something again?
Katherine: I gotta go Lexi. I love you. I promise I’ll talk to you later. K?
Katherine shut off her phone and threw it in her purse. She got off the elevator and walked out of the building. The Hawaiian heat felt good on her skin. Katherine took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It has been a hell of a day so far. She turned onto the sidewalk and headed towards her car. She lied to her sister, was shouted at by her husband and more! She was done. Katherine found her phone turned it on and called the number she had been keeping in her purse. The phone rang twice times before someone picked it up, “Good afternoon! Dr. Garcia’s office. How can I help you?” the soft elderly woman greeted.
“Hi. Good afternoon…My name is Katherine Hamilton. I have an appointment with Dr. Garcia tomorrow morning. I was wondering if she would be able to see me today instead?”
“Ah yes. You are a new patient, correct?”
“Yes, ma’am I am.”
“Let me check with Dr. Garcia. I think she has an opening, but I need to double check with her.”
The secretary put Katherine on hold and as she was listening to the soft relaxing music, Katherine opened her car door and got in. As she started her car, the Bluetooth transferred her call to the car system. Buckling her seatbelt, Katherine waited. If she was going to be seen today, she didn’t want to leave the area just yet. Dr. Garcia’s office was only ten blocks away.
“Mrs. Hamilton?” The woman came back on the line.
“Yes?”
“Dr. Garcia can see you in 45 minutes. Would that be ok?”
“That’s perfect. Thank you.” Hanging up with Dr. Garcia’s office, Katherine put the appointment into her calendar with an alert to remind her.
Katherine decided to drive to her favorite place for lunch before the appointment. It was a small café that the overlooked the ocean. And it was only 10 minutes from her appointment. She had been going there for lunch a lot lately and she deserved a treat for the punishment she got from her husband. Although she wasn’t quite sure why she got that punishment in the first place, not that she was complaining. The orgasm she had from Phillip’s mouth was one of the most intense orgasms she had ever had.
Pulling into the parking lot of A Seat by the Bay, Katherine noticed it was very full. Turning her car off she hoped her favorite spot was available. She walked into the café and was greeted by the hostess. “Mrs. Hamilton! What a pleasant surprise! Would you like to be seated inside or outside?”
“I was actually hoping my favorite spot was available.” Katherine said looking out onto the deck.
“Let me check. If you wouldn’t mind waiting here.”
“Not at all.”
The hostess walked through the café onto the deck. She looked around and turned to signaled for Katherine to follow her. Happy that her spot was not occupied, Katherine walked to the back of the café. Her favorite spot was a small table with rot iron chairs. It was in the corner of the deck. No one could sit on either side of the table. The chairs were positioned to look out over the water. It was a spectacular view. It calmed Katherine. Helped her think. And she needed to think right now.
“Welcome back, Mrs. Hamilton!” she heard from a familiar sounding voice.
“Anthony! I was hoping you were working today,” Katherine said smiling. “It’s been a while. What can I get you?” her waiter, Anthony, greeted her. She really liked Anthony. He was very attentive to his guests, and you never left the café unhappy. “I don’t have time for anything big, so a small salad with vinaigrette on the side and a lemon iced tea please.” Anthony wrote her order down and turned to walk away.
“Anthony!” Katherine called.
“Yes, Mrs. Hamilton?”
“Never mind…”
“Mrs. Hamilton, is something wrong?”
“No. Nothing.” Katherine fiddled with her napkin and fork. “Thank you, Anthony.”
Anthony left, leaving Katherine to her thoughts. She got her phone out wanting to call Lexi, but what would she tell her? That Phillip fucked her in a stairwell and then licked her to a mind-blowing orgasm? Katherine was very ready for her husband in the stairwell. It had been so long since he showed her any type of attention. She liked it rough sometimes, but in her mind, what happened in the stairwell was over the line. Right?
Anthony returned with her salad and tea. He lingered for a second and looked like he wanted to ask her something else but smiled and walked away from her table. Checking the time, Katherine noticed she only had twenty minutes to eat. She wanted to get to her appointment early.
Closing her eyes and relishing the taste of the salad, Katherine continued thinking about what happened in the stairwell. Katherine began squirming in her chair, she could tell she was getting wet. Remembering the feel of Phillip’s hands on her, his mouth on her breast, his fingers inside her. Without realizing it Katherine moaned out loud. She opened her eyes embarrassed and looked around to see if anyone heard her. They had. The people at the table next to her looked at her. She noticed Anthony was staring at her too. He seemed to be smiling while staring at her, almost like he knew what she was remembering. Trying to compose herself and looking away from Anthony, Katherine explained to the people around her, “It’s a really good salad! I haven’t been able to eat in a while because I was sick,” Katherine lied. Going back to her salad and trying to compose herself, Katherine thought of ways to make Phillip angry. If that was the only way he would touch her, then that’s what she’ll do. It really didn’t take much. Smiling, Katherine loved her new plan.
After she was finished eating, she ordered another tea. It was so refreshing on a hot day in Hawaii. The sound of the waves crashing against the deck of the café were so smoothing. Who wouldn’t want to stay here and enjoy this relaxing time forever?
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Her alarm went off reminding her of the appointment she had. Katherine waved Anthony over, so she could pay for her meal. “All done Mrs. Hamilton? Are you sure you don’t want dessert?” Anthony asked with a crooked smile and a glare in his eyes. The way he said the word “dessert” sent shivers up her spine. And not the type of shivers she got from her husband an hour ago. The type that made her look up at him and want to get the hell away from him. “No, Anthony. But thank you. I have an appointment and I don’t want to be late.”
“What type of appointment?” Anthony asked.
“I’m not sure that’s not any of your business, Anthony. I would like my bill please, so I can go.”
“I’m sorry Mrs. Hamilton, I didn’t mean to make you upset. I’ll bring you your bill.”
After she paid her bill, Katherine walked out of the restaurant. She started for her car, but then decided to walk to her appointment. It was such a beautiful day. It would be a shame to waste it.
Her phone dinged with a text. It was from Phillip.
Phillip: I’m sorry about earlier today.
Katherine: Ok.
Phillip: Ok? That’s all??
Katherine: I have an appointment and I’m turning off my phone. Goodbye, Phillip.
Turning her phone off, Katherine looked around and realized she was already at her destination. Walking inside the lobby she walked up to the security desk, “Dr. Lacey Garcia’s office please?” she asked the person at the desk.
“Yes, ma’am. It’s on the 8th floor.”
“Thank you.”
Katherine walked to the elevator and pressed the up button. While waiting for the elevator she remembered she needed to text Annika to get a ride home from her friend today, since she would not be able to pick her up after school. And to pick up her sister too. Turning her phone on again, Katherine texted her daughter quickly, so she wouldn’t have to worry about Phillip calling or texting her.
The elevator arrived on the ground floor with a ding announcing its arrival. As Katherine walked into the elevator, another woman entered the elevator with her. She was on her phone and was having a very heated conversation with the person on the other end. “Brianna, I told you I’m not going to!” woman in the elevator exclaimed forcefully. “No! I will not!” Sounded like someone else was having a bad day too. Katherine rolled her eyes and laughed softly. “Brianna. I will not discuss this with you any further. I’m hanging up now.” The woman in the elevator slammed her flip-phone closed. Katherine raised her eyebrows in disbelief. She couldn’t believe in the world of smartphones; someone still had a flip-phone. The woman in the elevator looked in Katherine’s direction. Shrugging she said, “My partner. She wants to change the status of our relationship. I’m not ready.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Have you been with her long?” Katherine asked embarrassed.
“About three years.”
“Oh.”
Wishing the elevator would hurry up and get to the 8th floor, Katherine realized the other woman never chose a floor to be on. “I’m sorry, do you want me to push a floor for you?”
“No, I’m on the 8th floor too.”
“Oh.”
The two women rode the elevator the rest of the way in silence. Once the elevator arrived at the 8th floor, both women exited. Katherine turned to the left and the other woman turned to the right.
Katherine found Dr. Garcia’s office and entered. It was a small waiting room. Ivory walls, soft blue sofas and chairs outlined the perimeter of the waiting room. There were tables in front of the sofas with magazines on them. A water feature was on the left side of the wall between two of the chairs. At the far end, there was a desk were an elderly woman sat typing busily. Katherine walked up to the woman and signed in.
“Mrs. Hamilton, right?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“I’m Molly, Dr. Garcia’s receptionist. Dr. Garcia will be here shortly. She’s running a bit late. Go ahead and have a seat.”
“Thank you,” Katherine said quietly.
Katherine sat on one of the sofas and took a magazine from the table. Katherine flipped through the magazine and looked at the pictures of celebrities and the people they were with. She knew what money could do to a relationship. What fame could do. No wonder celebrities never lasted in their marriages or relationships. It was only the strong ones that lasted. The ones who were confident in themselves. Closing the magazine, Katherine closed her eyes and put her head back against the wall.
Katherine must have fallen asleep because a woman’s voice was talking to her, and a soft hand was shaking her awake. Opening her eyes, Katherine gasped. She was looking into two of the most crystal blue clear eyes she had ever seen. The woman’s face was beyond gorgeous, she was extravagantly beautiful. Katherine let her eyes wander over the woman standing in front of her. The red dress she wore was short, a little too short for Katherine’s taste. But the color was perfect for her. It went nicely with her long, tan, perfectly shaped legs. The front of the dress was low. Katherine could see the woman’s breasts outlined in the dress. Katherine looked back up to the woman’s face. She was smiling sweetly and held out her hand.
“Mrs. Hamilton? I’m Dr. Garcia. But you can call me Lacey”
“Hi. Um…Hi.” Staring at the woman in front of her, Katherine couldn’t move.
“Why don’t you come into my office?”
This woman was Dr. Garcia?! She looked nothing like her picture online. Katherine stood up and followed Dr. Garcia—er, Lacey—to her office. Molly held the door open for them and Katherine walked past her. Lacey’s office was larger than the waiting room. Built-in bookshelves filled with psychology and self-help books were wrapped around her office. She noticed Lacey’s desk was huge, filled with papers, books, pens, and kick-knacks. There was a picture of Lacey with her arm around another woman. The woman looked familiar, but Katherine couldn’t place where she had seen her before. There was a small sofa the same color as the ones in the waiting room and a larger one near her desk. There was a private bathroom by the windows. Katherine stopped at the windows on the far side of the office and fiddled with her hands, unsure with what to do or where to sit.
Sensing Katherine’s uncomfortableness and unsureness, Lacey gestured to the two sofas. “You can sit wherever you want. Wherever makes you the most comfortable.” Lacey said. Katherine walked to the small sofa, not knowing if she should be lying down or not. “You don’t have to lie down. You can be however you want. Sitting, standing, lying down, kneeling on the floor…It’s about your comfort so you can…open up to me.”
Katherine stared at Lacey. Interesting words from a therapist. But Lacey didn’t mean them in a sexual way. She was a professional. She was there to help Katherine figure out what was wrong with her. Help her figure out why her husband no longer wanted to be with her. Nothing else. Katherine was sure of it…
Lacey brought her chair out from behind the desk and sat down. The tight red dress riding up her legs even more. Lacey crossed her legs at the knees, and Katherine could see more than she felt comfortable with. “So. You called to reschedule your appointment from tomorrow to today. Molly said you sounded very frantic on the phone. Would you like to tell me why? Not that I mind, but something must have happened that couldn’t wait until tomorrow.”
“Um. I don’t know how to explain it to you. It’s embarrassing and it’s very private. But it left me rattled.”
“Ok. Well Katherine, do you mind if I call you Katherine?” Katherine shook her head. “Alright, Katherine, in order for this to work, you are going to have to tell me stuff you think is embarrassing, private, horrible, not-so horrible, boring, and everyday things you might think are not worth telling me. But I promise you this—” Looking into Katherine’s eyes, Lacey leaned forward, “Everything that happens or that is said in this office is completely confidential.”
Katherine swallowed and nodded. “Now. Why don’t we start out with something easy? Yes? Let’s talk about your family. Do you have any children? Are you married?”
Katherine looked at Lacey and tried to figure out if she could trust her or not. She figured talking about her family was a great way to start learning how to relax and maybe start to trust Lacey. “I have two children. Annika and Jasmine. Annika is 16 and Jasmine is 12. I’ve been married to my college sweetheart, Phillip, for nineteen years. We moved here from New York City two years ago. It was hard at first, but the girls are starting to slowly adjust. Phillip and I were very excited about this move. We’ve always wanted to move away from New York. Not because we didn’t love it, it was just too cold for us.”
“Go on. Tell me about your girls.”
“Annika is the star of the track team at her high school. We are starting to help her fill out college applications.” Katherine felt something wet on her face. She put her hand to face and noticed her eyes were wet too. Crap. She started crying. “I’m so sorry. Do you have a tissue?” Handing her a tissue Lacey smiled sympathetically.
“There is no need to be sorry Katherine. There will be plenty of tears here. Some good. Some not so good. But all necessary.” Standing up, Lacey walked over to Katherine and sat down next to her. “Now tell me about Jasmine.”
“Jasmine is my sweet, shy girl. She’s had a rough time here, but I think it’s getting better. She’s discovered she loves art.” Laughing, Katherine continued talking about Jasmine. “She comes home covered in paint, clay, or whatever she was working with in art class.” Katherine felt a hand on her back, rubbing up and down. Katherine stopped talking and looked at Lacey. Not really knowing what to do. She just met her, and she was rubbing her back like a mother would to her child who was upset.
“I’m sorry. I’m a hands-on type of therapist. If it makes you uncomfortable, I can stop.”
“I’m ok. But I just met you and I am very nervous about this. So yeah, I don’t think a back rub is what I need right now.” Katherine looked at her watch and decided it was time to go. Even though she was there for only 25 minutes. “I need to go. I want to thank you for your time. I’m—”
“Katherine, please don’t go. You don’t need to go. I’ll sit over in the chair if it makes you feel better.”
Katherine stopped and looked at Lacey, “I have never talked to a therapist before. I’m not even sure why I’m here.”
“You’re here to talk to someone. Someone who can help you work through your troubles. Or just talk to someone who can listen with a non-prejudice ear. Please, Katherine. Sit down and let’s start over.”
Looking around her and wondering if she should really be here, Katherine sat down. “I want to talk about my children. Nothing else.”
“Ok. Let’s start there.”