Possessing Bella Ch. 23

"I expect you to have nothing to be sorry for again," Kurt said abruptly. He was angry, Binatang was a constant thorn in his side. He had his finger in so many businesses it would be difficult to cut ties with him, but that process would need to start.

Bella remained silent mistakenly thinking that his anger was with her. She went to apologise again but instead took a deep breath and followed him from the lift to her room and followed him inside.

"Here's my take on why you are suddenly so tired all of a sudden and correct me if I am wrong," Kurt said still fuming. "Binatang told you that you would accompany him home tonight and tried to make you leave, but one of our friends intervened, and there was a small scene before he left."

"None of our friends were there," Bella said softly feeling sick about the incident still. "I refused several times then he went to strike me and a big man I didn't know stepped between us and walked him out of the room."

"What did this man look like," Kurt scratched his cheek quite proud of the fact that Bella had refused to go with Binatang not once but several times.

"Tall, black suit and tie, dark hair, not much of a description I know," she sighed, "He wore a blue tooth ear piece if that helps."

"It helps," Kurt said calming down realising one of the security men had intervened, and it shouldn't be hard to track him down.

"I always ruin nights like this. Honestly, I just want to go home, but I gave Lincoln the night off," Bella's voice had begun to quiver again.

There was a small tap on her door and looking at her quizzically Kurt went to answer it. Dianne came in grinning, "I didn't want you to start without me," she announced.

"Nothing will be happening tonight, my love," Kurt said abruptly the affection lost in his tone. "We'll discuss it later."

"What's wrong?" she moved through the doorway and hugged Bella as he sat next to her.

"I am just not feeling the best," Bella said softly, it was a half-truth, but she didn't want to refuse Dianne what she wanted right at this moment.

Kurt could see the anxiety and distress build again in Bella with Dianne's embrace. Maybe going home was for the best he agreed. Better than sleeping alone in a strange room and sharing with them was out of the question now. He considered Dorothea, but she had left early with Charles and Sarah. He pulled his phone out of his pocket with a smile. It was Valentine's Day, and he could play cupid if he wanted to. He stepped out onto the balcony to make a call.

"Dianne," Bella swallowed. "When we were talking earlier I had no idea you meant tonight."

"If you are not up to it tonight, I understand, sweet thing," Diane's voice dropped lower and became husky. "You can't help feeling unwell."

"I can't Dianne," she blurted despite her misgivings about upsetting Dianne. "I don't want to stay with you and Kurt. Kurt and I have such a special relationship I just don't want to change that, just to satisfy a curiosity," her voice was soft.

"But you have served Rob so happily," Dianne seemed confused by Bella's reluctance to serve Kurt in the same way.

"Rob and I have always had a physical relationship. He was Mel's second," Bella explained. "Kurt is a Master, and I willingly obey him, but he is part of my family, my friend and a Master, in that order. Work is so good right now I don't want to complicate it."

"I see," Dianne said her voice heavy with disappointment.

"As usual, Bella has thought beyond the moment to the consequences of her actions unlike other people who try and force their choices on her," Kurt said having listened to the whole exchange and making both women jump. "You can pack your things, Bella. Someone will be here to take you home shortly."

He took Dianne's hand and helped her to her feet embracing her softly before moving to run his hand down her torso to the baby bump. "I would like you to go and rest now in our room," he said quietly. "As I said we will talk about it later." He said all this without rancour, but it was a command, and Dianne knew she had overstepped the line in her excitement.

"Yes, my love," she reached up and stroked his face with a smile. "We'll talk more," she embraced Bella, "I love you," she said demurely and left the room.

"Once you have your things we will go down and check-out, by then Stephen should be here," Kurt held back his smile at the look of happy surprise on Bella's face.

"Thank you, Master," Bella said sincerely. She had barely used the bag during the day, so packing took mere minutes.

They were in the lobby barely five minutes when Stephen pulled up at the valet parking in front of the hotel entrance and waved off the staff indicating he was picking up the woman just inside the doors.

After helping her into the car, Stephen had a brief conversation with Kurt at the rear as he put her bag into the boot then he climbed into the driver's seat. Bella relaxed back into the soft leather seat hoping Kurt hadn't told him what a mess she had made of everything again.

"Thank you for coming to get me, I know the club was busy tonight," Bella said softly.

"There are enough men there to handle anything that arises, I am not irreplaceable," Stephen said stopping at a red light and turning to look at her. "It was a tough night for you I hear. Was that the first time you refused a Master?"

"I'm sorry," Bella dropped her head. "I messed up a wonderful evening again."

"The only person who would believe that is Binatang," Stephen chuckled. "I'm proud of you. It was a wise choice to refuse. Have we all not told you often enough that everything you do is your choice? Those choices have consequences it is true, but it is always your choice."

"I'm afraid the consequences of my refusal may outweigh the reasons for my refusal. Binatang is everywhere I seem to go lately, and he is friends with all of my friends. I'm afraid I have upset more than just Binatang," Bella said sadly. She knew she had disappointed Dianne tonight and possibly Kurt though she wasn't sure; she didn't want to tell Stephen that part of her misery. She looked out at the passing scenery and realised they were on the highway.

"Where are we going?" She asked in confusion.

"Home," Stephen said, "Isn't that where you wanted to go?"

"Yes, but I meant to my home. My apartment," she said unsure of herself.

"I guess you should have been more specific then," Stephen said with a smile. "Relax little one, I was driving to your parents' house. That is always what you called home up until this point. I can turn around if you prefer," he offered.

"My parents are in Italy," Bella reminded him.

"I know, still it is home is it not," Stephen pressed.

"I don't have my keys with me," she sighed.

"I have a key. Joe gave it to me in case you ever needed to go home," he said as if it was a natural thing for Joe to have trusted him with the keys to his house. "The next exit is coming up would you like me to turn around?"

"No, going home right now sounds good," she said quietly. "Thank you, Sir Stephen."

"Relax then, Kurt will let Rob know in the morning where you are and what happened," he reassured her. "Close your eyes if you need to, you're safe with me." He reached over and placed his hand on her thigh. "You look beautiful tonight; this dress is lovely." He stroked the soft material covering her thigh. "I feel like I should recognise it from somewhere, but I can't remember seeing you in it before."

"It's new. I had it made for tonight," she smiled. The idea for the design of the dress had come from one of the old black and white movies she loved, but it had altered slightly to suit the occasion. Still it was nice that it seemed familiar to him.

"It's lovely, he repeated and placed both hands back on the steering wheel, rest now," he said soothingly.

*****

Bella woke in her childhood room wearing only lace panties. She vaguely remembered being carried up to her room and her dress being removed while she was half asleep. Stephen had put her to bed and left her to sleep she realised. She was pleased and disappointed at the same time. Still they were here together alone maybe she could talk to him about the distance that had grown between them.

Not finding her overnight bag in the room she opened her closet and rummaged through the old forgotten clothes still hanging there. There was a reason she had left all these clothes behind, and she pulled a face as she finally pulled out a floral dress that her mother had given her as a gift for Christmas years ago. Still it was better than going naked in case the neighbours happened in to look in to see who was here.

She padded down the stairs barefoot finding the house empty. Heading to the kitchen door, she looked out and found the driveway empty. She wondered if Stephen had driven all the way back to the city after putting her to bed last night. She went to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator to find it empty. She smiled at her mother's careful management of her household and felt for her father who would have eaten all of the frozen leftovers before they left. Searching the cupboard she came up with a jar of Tang and made herself a glass reliving childhood memories of the gritty orange taste.

Trusting that Stephen would return for her she went outside and around the house to revisit her tree. Content to sit for a while and watch the world go by, she considered the evening before and the extraordinarily busy week ahead she had planned as she perched on her favourite old branch. It took her by surprise when she heard her name being called. Looking down from her perch high in the tree and seeing nothing she frowned.

"Bella, up here," Stephen called again directing her to look up, and she saw him standing at the window of her room. "Would you like to come in for some breakfast?" he asked in a booming voice.

"Yes, thank you, I'll be right down," she called back smiling.

With the ease of familiarity, Bella climbed from the tree and went into the kitchen. She smiled seeing that Stephen had obviously found the small convenience store in the tiny town. She sat down and devoured a warm croissant filled with ham and cheese. It wasn't the best quality, and she realised how spoilt she had become by living above a restaurant that catered to her meals. Still the juice was better than the glass of Tang she had made herself earlier.

"Why don't you tell me what happened last night, before I hear it from the man who intervened on your behalf," Stephen said in a tone that said he would not be happy to just have the incident brushed aside. "It would be better if I heard it from you."

Bella glossed over the fact that Rob had left minutes before and her uneasy conversation with Kurt before going into detail about her search for the event manager and being accosted by Binatang. She rubbed her wrist absentmindedly as she spoke of trying to stand her ground and say no before the intervention of the tall stranger.

"Are you injured?" Stephen took her hand and inspected her wrist. There was mild bruising to back up her story though he was sure there were reliable witnesses to the incident.

"No, I am just so embarrassed to have made a fuss on such a perfect night," Bella flushed pink.

"From what I understand very few people even realised anything had happened, you didn't shout or scream you just stood your ground and a security man noticed what was happening and had come closer to see when he raised his hand to you. No one had any idea you were in distress until then," Stephen shook his head. "Until you returned to the table and asked to go home that is."

"People turned when I raised my voice a little to say no, they were watching," Bella protested not accepting Stephens words. "Even Kurt knew about it when I returned to the table."

"A few people out of hundreds? None of whom recognised you from what I understand, Kurt had heard only that a girl, not you, a girl had been accosted in what appeared to be a lovers tiff." Stephen said. "I would have preferred if you had screamed and shouted and drew a lot more attention when someone is trying to force you to go with them against your will. What he did was tantamount to kidnapping."

Bella stared at him wide-eyed her lip catching between her teeth. She hadn't considered that at all. She frowned at the idea. She had been with several Masters, been handed over, swapped and shared for so long that maybe she had lost track of what was normal even in the lifestyle.

"People have turned a blind eye to much of what Binatang does and how he operates for a long time now, I believe that is about to change. Rest assured he won't bother you anymore," Stephen said seeing her worry expression and the lips disappearing between her teeth. I have spoken with both Rob and Kurt; they know you are here with me this morning." He smiled reassuringly.

"I know about the misunderstanding between you and Dianne as well," he added wanting to clear the air entirely about the night before and any residual feelings she may have that she had upset anyone but herself. "I would like to hear what happened exactly."

Once again Bella recounted the story from the evening before, blushing deeply as she admitted how Josie made her feel when she spoke to her the way she did.

"Josie is an alpha if she were anything else she could never have held her own with the stakeholders for long. Even Mike tolerates her because she is such a strong woman, some might even say ruthless. Dianne was never like that. She always had a softer side, it's what got her in trouble, in the end, business wise. She made decisions with her heart rather than her head, but that is also why she and Kurt make a perfect team," Stephen enlightened her. "Once again I believe you made the right choice not just for you but for Kurt as well." He stood and began to clear away the detritus of the breakfast filling a plastic bag to take with them when they left the house.

"I hope they understand that too," Bella said softly.

"Kurt does, and I imagine he has explained it, Dianne," Stephen said pulling her to her feet and wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. "I am proud of you. You should tell people what is going on in that head of yours more often."

Bella breathed in his scent. This was the first time he had hugged her in what felt like forever. The tall solid, comfortable feel of him was bliss, and she melted into his embrace happily. Tilting her head to look up at him she almost purred under the softness of his smile. He bent his head then to kiss her. It was a gentle, tentative kiss rather than the hungry, needy ones she had so often enjoyed and when he pulled away she was reluctant to let him go.

"Stay here," he murmured darkly and walked away from her into the living room. Bella took a deep breath reliving the familiar tingles she got from those initial days of falling in love with Stephen. Her mind was brought back to the present as Stephen walked back in carrying a large box.

"Happy Valentine's Day, little one," Stephen said with a smile laying the box on the now empty counter.

"Thank you!" she smiled relief flooding through her. "I have something for you too back at my apartment," She admitted.

"There was no need to do that," Stephen seemed startled by her response.

"There was every need," Bella smiled pulling at the ribbon on the box. Opening it and pulling back the tissue paper she found the most exquisite corset and matching skirt. The cream coloured brocade was embroidered with pale coloured blossoms and leaves of the apple tree and interspersed with these were rich, golden apples. It was breathtakingly beautiful and would be perfect for the opening night of her store. "It's perfect," she gushed and fingered the embroidery of a golden apple. "May I try it on?"

"I would be disappointed if you didn't," Stephen chuckled and watched as she pulled the shapeless sundress off and began wriggling into the loosely laced skirt. He stepped behind her to begin tightening the laces that ran the length of the garment. She would only be able to take small steps, and stairs would be an issue for her in the tight skirt, but it was a small price to pay he thought, and his hands danced over her ass as he continued to tighten the laces to a skin tight fit. She had pulled the corset over her head as she felt him tying the laces of the skirt and he helped her pull the long corset down over her hips before beginning to tighten lacing again.

"You will need help dressing if you wear this on the night," he murmured into her ear as he stood behind her tying the laces of the bodice.

"If," she asked breathlessly, astonishment clear in her voice. "of course, I will wear it, it is exquisite!"

"Your Masters may feel differently," Stephen stepped away from her at the mention of the men she now served and allowed her room to spin and twirl.

"I am allowed a great deal of freedom when it comes to my business," she said not taking notice of the tone of his voice or the increased distance he had put between them. "I'm going to go up and get my shoes from last night and look in a mirror. Bella gave him a wide smile.

"The shoes are there," he indicated the box. Bella frowned and went back to the box feeling along the base of it until she discovered a cut out a corner and lifted it to reveal not only shoes but cream and gold lace panties and stockings. She almost squealed with delight and picking up the shoes began to walk in small steps towards the staircase.

Stephen followed her, amused when she realised that the stairs would be almost impossible with the tightness of the skirt. He gave her a minute to sigh and turn towards him before swooping in and picking her up. He carried her up to the landing enjoying the feel of her small body in his arms and her arms around his neck.

"Thank you," Bella said softly and nuzzled his neck hearing his responsive soft groan before he put her down on the landing.

She went quickly into her room standing before the full-length mirror and twisting trying to see the rear of her dress. The high-heeled shoes gave her the lift needed to make her legs looks longer and more shapely, and she reached up piling her head on top of her head to see how it looked. The gold chain with the black and white pendant she wore glittered in the sun, and she found Stephen staring at it with a frown.

"I love them," she said quietly letting her hair fall back and touching the pendant at her throat. "They have taught me so much in the last few weeks but more than that they have given me the confidence to stand my ground with people like Master Binatang, I don't think I couldn't have done that three weeks ago." She moved towards Stephen surprising herself with what she was saying. "They are like my family, and I know that seems strange and almost incestuous, but it's true none the less. I love them both so much, but I am not in love with either of them," she admitted for the first time.

Stephen said nothing but his jaw worked as he battled his emotions and love for the girl who stood in front of him.

"I wasn't ready to make any real choices when I came back from the ranch, they could see that and when I asked you to allow me more time they saw what needed to be done because they love me too," She sighed knowing what she was saying was coming out all wrong. "I had to learn more, do more, understand more. I had to grow up and take some responsibility for my life before I could offer it to anyone else." She tried to sit on the bed but found it difficult in the tightness of the skirt.

"Let me help you," Stephen said and moved behind her again looking over her shoulder into the mirror. He began unlacing the bodice slowly, thinking about what she was saying.