Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Three weeks ago, Sonja had feared she would be the third generation in her family to fight breast cancer. Instead, she was floating high in a relationship with a gorgeous man.
She arrived at the Smokehouse for the munch a few minutes before six. Derek had called to say he was running late and would meet her there. She saw Kate talking to Ruby and Molly, so she went over to say hello.
Molly saw her first and broke away from the other two. “Sonja, I’m so glad to see you. I’ve been worried about you. I hope there’re no hard feelings about the other week. I meant well.”
“I know you did, Molly, and everything is great between Derek and me. It’s probably good you interfered. I’m not sure I would have told him at all if it weren’t for you, and it would have put a wall between us. The biopsy was negative, so I could have rationalized keeping Derek in the dark indefinitely.”
“That’s great news! I’m so happy for you! I’m so glad to hear you’re okay on both fronts. Is Derek coming tonight?”
“Yes, but he got held up at work.” While they talked, more people arrived.
“Mitch was right. We’ve got a lot of new people here. I guess mingling is the order of the evening. Shall we?” Sonja said.
“Together or separately?” Molly asked.
“I think I’ll solo for a while. Some of these folks look a little nervous. Double-teaming might scare them off.” Sonja left Molly and said a quick hello to Kate and Ruby before noticing a person standing alone by the appetizer table. Sonja approached and said, “Hi, I’m Sonja. Is this your first munch?”
“Lynn. Yes, it is. I’m not sure I quite fit in, though. Everyone seems older.”
“Maybe most, but not all. By the way, which pronouns do you use?”
“She and her. Thanks for asking. Most people don’t. They just hem and haw.”
Lynn looked to be in her late twenties and was wearing a polo shirt and short skirt over leggings. She still had some scraggly facial hair, so Sonja didn’t try to guess where she was in her transition.
“I can’t guarantee it, but I don’t think you’ll find many people here like that. Can I introduce you around a bit? It should help break the ice.”
“Thanks. I’d appreciate it.” Lynn sounded relieved.
“There’s Sandra. She’s closer to your age. We celebrated her thirtieth birthday at the club a couple of months ago.”
Sandra was headed straight for the food, so she was easy to catch. “Hi, Sonja. Who is this? I’m Sandra.” She put out her hand, and Lynn reached out tentatively to shake it.
“This is Lynn,” Sonja said. “She’s new.”
“Good to meet you, Lynn. Great outfit. Where did you find that cute skirt?”
Lynn’s shoulders relaxed, and she lowered her arms from her chest at Sandra’s welcome. The two of them were quickly discussing fashion. “It’s hard to find things that look good on my body type,” Lynn said. “I don’t have a lot to work with.”
“Nonsense,” Sandra said. “You just have to know where to shop.”
Sonja interjected, “I see I found the perfect person for you to talk to, Lynn. Welcome again. I’m sure we’ll talk more later. Before I go, are you on FetLife? I’m Chefdujour thirty-seven. Send me a friend request, or I’ll send you one.”
“That would be great. I’m Wolfling twenty-six.”
Sonja pulled a pen from her purse and wrote both FetLife handles on napkins, handing one to Lynn, before heading toward the entrance where she saw a familiar face.
“Erin! How great to have you here.” Sonja was always pleased when people she liked in the vanilla world turned out to be kinky.
“Hi, Sonja. You don’t seem surprised to see me.”
“Well, it’s not like I was expecting you, but when you’re in the lifestyle, you get used to running into people you wouldn’t think are kinky. Are you new in general or just to the munch?” Sonja asked.
“I don’t have a lot of experience, but I’ve played before. Right now, I’m looking to meet more people into BDSM. I understand from FetLife, there’s a club that sponsors this munch?” Erin sounded confident.
“Yes,” Sonja said. “Club Indigo. We try to have a fair number of members here each month. The club is by invitation only.”
“What do I have to do to get an invite?” Erin asked.
“You get straight to the point.” Sonja chuckled. “It’s pretty easy. You come here. Talk to people, especially members, and ask. Let me introduce you to Scott. He’s hosting tonight and can tell you more about the club.”
They went over to where Scott was now talking to Lynn. “We’re interested in getting more younger members, but if you feel like you don’t fit, there’s a regular weekly TNG group that has a slosh here on alternate Wednesdays, and they rent out the club for a play party once a month on a Sunday afternoon/evening. Some of them are regular members, too.”
“Do you know if they’re trans-friendly?” Lynn asked.
“As far as I know, yes. Have you tried other groups that aren’t?” Scott asked.
“No. I came here first, though, because Club Indigo’s rep in the trans groups on FetLife is good. I was just a little surprised that I didn’t see more people my age or more trans folks.”
“The younger crowd tends to go to the TNG group, but we have some trans people among the regulars,” Scott said.
Sonja jumped in. “Sorry to interrupt, Scott. Lynn, I can vouch for what Scott’s saying. I think you’ll find support at Club Indigo, whatever your identity, orientation, or kink. People are genuinely open.”
“Thanks for saying that, Sonja,” Lynn replied. “You certainly make me feel comfortable here.”
“Scott, Lynn, this is Erin. She’s new tonight, too, and interested in coming to the club. Can I leave her with you?” Sonja asked.
Sonja got Erin’s FetLife handle before moving away again.
She continued to circulate through the room, stopping to talk to James and Laura briefly. Chris was introducing himself to Erin, and Sonja wondered how that would go. She hadn’t gotten any particular vibe over whether Erin was dominant or submissive. She didn’t even know if she was straight. They would have to work that out for themselves.
Half an hour later, Sonja was talking with another new attendee, Angie, who said she was waiting for her Daddy to arrive at the monthly munch. The beautiful, curvy woman had dark eyes, glossy black hair, and tan skin, hinting at a Mediterranean background.
Sonja felt uneasy around the woman, but she couldn’t pinpoint a reason. Sonja forced herself back to the conversation. It would be good to get more information about the Little mindset. Before she could ask her next question, Angie rose to her feet and exclaimed, “Oh, good, there’s my Daddy!”
Sonja looked up to see Jackson enter the restaurant with Derek and a big man with a crooked nose she didn’t know. Is that her Daddy?
Angie walked right up to the group and joined them. Sonja’s eyes widened as Angie flung her arms around Derek’s waist and beamed up at him. Sonja couldn’t see Derek’s expression, but it didn’t matter. To her, it felt like her entire world had caved in. Doubts and self-loathing assaulted her as she rose from the table with a hand over her mouth to hold back the sobs. Sonja snatched her purse and coat from the back of her seat. She caught a perplexed look from Erin, who was talking with Scott and Molly before she rushed to the back exit.
Derek didn’t know what had happened to him as he looked down into the familiar face of the woman who clung to his waist. She was still beautiful, but the look in her eyes was off for someone supposedly glad to see him. How could he ever have fallen for her?
“There you are, Daddy. I’ve missed you, bigtime,” she said with a voice he had once found endearing, but now it sounded put-on and sickeningly sweet.
If only he could shove her away, but the Daddy Dom in him couldn’t stomach that. He would never treat a Little like that, even this one. He reached behind him to unclasp her arms and moved a step back from her.
“What on earth are you doing here, Angie? And how did you find me?” He couldn’t hide the revulsion in his tone, but she was oblivious to it.
Derek looked around for support but Jackson and Detective Will Tolbert had given him privacy, which would have been considerate with a typical reunion but was unwelcome in this case.
The woman who had driven him to leave St. Louis and abandon the lifestyle for more than a year had found him. He only hoped the KCPD would be more helpful than the St. Louis police had been. Otherwise, he was fucked and not in a good way!