She said, “ I want to try the D&S lifestyle with you. Do you know what that is?” I admitted that I did not know what she meant. Shelly continued,...”You could say that it is a game we play it 24 hours a day. I will teach you the rules as time goes on. For right now, learn this: you will call me Mistress from now on. To my friends, you refer to me as Mistress Shelly. You will address all my friends as ma’am and sir. From now on you are called Tommy instead of Tom. Are you willing to do as I. Maybe one day, all four of us would be comfortable together again, but that day was a long way down the road.That evening, I guess my mind was on Cassie, and Bill, and Tandra and me, because it sure wasn’t on the food my sister had taken the time and trouble to prepare. I could tell hers was somewhere else, too, because she spent most of the time just twirling her fork in her food, looking up at me every now and then with dark, sad eyes. She asked what was on my mind, and I told her.“I’ve been. He picked it up and read it. He surprised to see his wifewas leaving him for another man. She was tired of supporting him and hadtaken a position with her company out of state.Eventually the divorce papers were signed and Aaron was allowed to stayin the house and would be paid alimony by his ex-wife since she was theone with the income. She had packed only a portion of her things when shemoved and told him he could sell the rest or donate it. While she nolonger wanted to be with him, he still. Her body tried to curl up, so she could protect herself.Nikia raised the paddle again.I caught her wrist. “That was five,” I said.She looked up at me, smiled, and moved back from Ruby.I made sure to take the paddle from Nikia. The last thing I wanted was for her to try to get in more swats while Ruby recovered. I may not have liked Ruby, but I wasn’t going to stand by and let someone else torture her if I could help it.I knelt next to Ruby, laying the paddle on the ground, and rubbed her back..