I had preconceived notions about what Healing Wings would be once we opened the doors; it was nothing like the reality of what hit. I expected people to slowly drift in and have plenty of time to work with each person and cultivate our programs. I never anticipated the barrage of calls from physicians and psychiatrists all over the county the day we opened trying to place patients. The phones rang off the hook, and we all answered calls trying to work in appointments, but sadly, we still had people on a wait list. It appalled me that this need existed and no one knew. This should've been something our community met with arms wide open, but the people we saw and talked to daily were hurt and scared. They were afraid to tell anyone their secrets, and many had lived with the shame and guilt they felt for years. We offered anonymity; we didn't request social security numbers, and giving us contact information was optional. We issued all patients an identification number for our staff to

We arrived safely home roughly fifteen minutes later. Making our way to the front door, he called over his shoulder, "Cameron, go upstairs, take off your clothes, and wait for me on the bed facing the door.""K," I called back."Try again, kitten." His stern voice startled me just before it dawned on me-he didn't just want me waiting on the bed, he wanted me to submit on the bed. "Yes, Sir," I corrected myself. While Dax and I knew each other intimately, he was very reserved in our playtime. Many of our physical connections were still rather vanilla in nature and had been non-existent since the nightmares returned. He held me all night, but we'd both been so tired there was no hanky-panky. I loved when he gave me the opportunity to serve him this way. Even if he thought I wasn't ready for a full-blown Dom/sub relationship, I wanted him to know I would work to get there as long as he worked with me. I wanted it to happen faster than he did, but it was important that I embraced wh

Dax handled me with care when we finally arrived home. He allowed me to sit in silence, mulling over the events of today and what I faced next week. His patience never ceased to amaze me, and the fact he didn't feel the need to fill the silence only offered me peace. Physically, he was distant, which drove me insane. I wanted the familiarity of his touch, not sexually, but as a reminder of his protection. I went to the family room when we got home while he stayed in the kitchen to start dinner. Sitting on the couch, I grabbed my journal from the coffee table and started scribbling like a mad woman. Anything that came to mind landed on those pages-most of which didn't make sense, but it was now the way I processed. Mr. Whiskers and Sassy hopped up beside me and made themselves comfortable in the fold of my knees. Even the cats anticipated this being a long night.When my hand refused to write anything else, I closed the journal and pushed twenty pounds of fur from my legs. I stoppe

Today was the last day. This was the pinnacle of my hell. I had listened to the testimony of witnesses Josh's attorney had called, but in all honesty, I heard them talk but didn't hear any of the actual words. I was so consumed with my own fear of the stand that I mindlessly stared across the courtroom. I shook from my trance when Douglas called me to testify. My eyes met his, and they were encouraging and strong. I took my seat in the chair, the bailiff swore me in, and then the questioning began. I knew what to expect from my attorney. We'd gone through it multiple times to make sure my answers were consistent, and I avoided information leading to openings for the defense to attack. No matter how many times Douglas had tried to warn me, I wasn't prepared for cross-examination.The defense's attorney went after both my frame of mind that night and my overall character. "Is it possible, Ms. Pierce, you were too intoxicated to remember encouraging the defendant?""No, it's not

Climbing out of the bathtub, I dried myself off. I took the time to put lotion all over my body before I wrapped up in a terry cloth robe. I started to change into one of Dax's shirts and put on a pair of panties. It was faint, but I heard the notes from the piano downstairs through the closed bedroom door. He hadn't played since the night months ago when his story stopped. I was sure he had played at Healing Wings, but I hadn't heard it.I crept to the top of the stairs to steal a seat to his concert. "Kitten..." Damn."Yeah, baby?" I called back trying to pretend I had no interest in the music."Come down here."I eased down the stairs as quietly as possible. I didn't want to disturb the music, but more importantly, I didn't want to miss a single note. As I rounded the corner, there was a sea of color. Every color calla lily imaginable covered every surface of the front room. He didn't make eye contact with me, only continued to play. I wandered in, listening to the famili