Excerpt of The Arrangement 2 by Abby Weeks

April felt worried after her talk with Kit. It saddened her
that the women seemed to have so little power within the
arrangement, at least where it counted, but what was worse
was the fact that she felt she had upset Kit by bringing up
the idea of having a career. Maybe it was just that Kit
regretted being forced to give up her own career but April
sensed that there was something else too. She felt that
maybe she had insulted Kit by suggesting that she wanted
more than was on offer within the arrangement.

She tried to make eye contact with Kit but Kit was ignoring
her. There was no doubting it. Kit was mad at her and
judging from the way she looked, she was getting ready to
teach April a lesson. April could see that Kit was friendly
and generous so long as everyone went along with her idea of
how things had to be. As soon as anyone challenged those
ideas, or made Kit feel threatened in some way, she would
reassert her dominance. April worried about what Kit would
do now.

–That was fun, Midge said when the boys left with the
clothes. It would all be wrapped up and sent to The Oaks for
them.

–Now for the real fun, Charmaine said.

–What do you mean? April said.

–Oh, April. You didn’t think we were going to let those
handsome young men get away so lightly, did you?

–There’s a little game we like to play when we come here,
Midge said. It’s called, Guess Who.

–Oh god, April said, looking at Midge. She could already
imagine what that game would be like just from the name.

–There’s a couple of different ways we like to play. How
shall we do it today? Midge said to Kit.

–Why don’t we let April decide? Kit said, and there was a
flash of anger in her eye that April couldn’t help noticing.
April knew she was in trouble.

–Well, April? How do you feel like playing?

–I don’t know. I don’t even know how the game works.

Kit rolled her eyes. –Just use your imagination, darling.

April was sure of it now. She had upset Kit in a bad way and
she was going to pay for it. There was a definite change in
Kit’s attitude toward her since their little talk. This was
a disaster. Everything in April’s life right now depended on
keeping these people happy, not just the men but the women
also. She knew that and she knew all her security in life
depended on it entirely. April knew she wasn’t strong enough
to fight, whether it was against Walter or Kit or anyone
else. The only chance she had was to keep everyone happy,
and the only way she was going to manage that was to be as
sweet and compliant as possible. Angering Kit was absolutely
the very last thing she needed to be doing.

–Who wants to go first? Kit said, holding up a long piece of
ribbon.

April knew she had some work to do to get Kit back on her
side and she decided she would do whatever it took to win
her back.

–I do, she said.

Kit didn’t exactly smile at her but April knew she was
pleased.

–That’s a girl, Kit said.

April let Kit put the blindfold on her and then she sat and
waited. It was an extremely vulnerable feeling to be sitting
there naked and blindfolded. She could hear the four boys
coming back into the room and then she heard Midge’s voice.

–To start off gently, lets begin with a kiss. April, one of
these fine, young men is going to kiss you on the mouth and
you’re going to tell us which one it is, Tyler, Jay, Gabe or
Brad.

–That sounds like fun, April said.

Just then she felt a pair of hands holding her face. The
hands were strong and large but they held her gently. She
felt a breath on her face and knew one of the boys was right
there in front of her. She couldn’t see him but she tilted
her head back slightly and breathed in, anticipating the
kiss.

The lips landed softly on hers. The kiss was exquisite. Not
being able to see only added to the sensuality of it.
Whoever it was pressed his lips firmly against her mouth and
then opened her lips gently with his tongue. Before she knew
it his tongue was in her mouth, moving around as if it were
exploring her, searching for something. She felt a rush of
exhilaration as she thought about the fact that she was
entirely naked and entirely at the mercy of this young man,
and then, all too soon, the kiss ended.

–Who was it? Midge said excitedly.

April didn’t have the slightest notion who it was.

–Gabe? she said.

The blindfold was removed from April’s eyes and she saw
Tyler’s face just a few inches from her own. He leaned in
and kissed her again just as passionately and intimately as
he had the first time.

–That’s what my kiss feels like, he said. Remember it for
next time.

–I’ll never be able to forget it, April said and laughed.

She looked over at Kit. Kit was still not looking at her.
She knew Kit had decided that she needed to learn her place
and she just hoped the lesson wouldn’t be pressed home too
forcefully.