Heidi and the Kaiser Read Free

feeling cold. Using soap on her hands to wash the rest of the wet henna away, leaving a ghostly pattern, she then started on the pants.
    "You know a great deal about fashion." He stood and hung the bag over the hook on the door.
    "Fashion design major." She scrubbed the stain, feeling that flush creeping up her cheeks. "Syracuse. I graduated last year."
    "And you came to work for Kaiser?" He slipped off his suit jacket. "Probably thinking you could get your foot in the door?"
    She nodded, blinking back tears, and rinsed the spot, noticing it had barely faded. What was that henna stuff made of? "Something like that."
    "And now you're basically the go-to girl?" He shook out his suit coat carefully, leaving on his shirt and tie, while Heidi watched him in the mirror.
    "Basically." She turned off the water, drying her hands on a paper towel. They were trembling, too. "Sir, I…I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to get this clean."
    He nodded. "I was afraid of that."
    "I'm glad you had this suit in your car." Heidi turned toward the dry-cleaning bag and unzipped it. "It's—oh my god. Is that a Liana Lee?"
    He smiled, that sardonic twist of his mouth. "I thought you might appreciate that."
    "She's my idol!" Heidi breathed, running her fingers over the lapel.
    "You want to design men's suits?" He reached around her and slipped the jacket off the hanger and handed her his other suit jacket. "Hang this one up."
    "Among other things." She obediently hung his other suit jacket up.
    He straightened his collar, his tie, glancing at her in the mirror. "So, Miss Heidi...
    what are we going to do about these pants?"
    She bit her lip, meeting his eyes in the mirror. His face was serious, his eyes hard. What could she do, what could she possibly say?
    "I don’t know..." She swallowed hard. "With what I make, it would take me forever to pay you back five thousand dollars."
    "I understand that." His gaze moved over her, taking in her tousled blonde hair, her t-shirt and shorts, the body beneath them lush and fully feminine—much moreso, to Heidi’s lament, than the tall, slender models she worked around all day. "Still, something like this... there is the matter of personal responsibility."
    "It was an accident..." she pleaded, turning to face him. He raised an eyebrow at her and she sighed, relenting, hanging her head. "What do you want from me? I’ll do it.
    Whatever you want. I’ll do it.”
    “I believe you would.” His voice softened and she felt a shiver run through her when he touched her, lifting her chin and making her look at him. She blinked back more tears, trying to retain some semblance of dignity, trying hard not to just melt into a puddle of shame and embarrassment on the floor. Kaiser’s gaze never wavered, but he seemed to be thinking, deciding something. Finally, he gave a slow nod and took a step back, folding his arms over his chest. "Perhaps…just a simple punishment is in order."
    Heidi blinked, frowning. "What do you mean?"
    "Turn around."
    She had said the words— whatever you want —and meant them. Now she did as he asked, heart hammering, facing the sink and the mirror once again.
    "Bend over."
    Her eyes widened, meeting his as he moved behind her, standing a full head taller.
    When she spoke, she couldn't keep the tremble from her voice. "Mr. Kaiser?"
    He nodded. "Yes. Bend over."
    "I'm sorry." She shook her head, her stomach clenching, her breath catching. "I don't... what..." She could feel his presence, the shadow of his body behind her like a weight, even though no part of them was touching.
    "Bend over for your punishment, Heidi." Just the hard, insistent sound of his voice made her do it. It wasn't a request, it wasn't even quite a demand, it was more of a direction, a simple instruction she was meant to follow—and so she did. Bent over the counter of the sink, she met her own wide eyes in the full wall mirror and then looked to him. He was leaning back, his head tilted, his gaze falling somewhere