An adult stories – Eighty One – Pt. 02 by RebeccaSymmons,RebeccaSymmons 3
The highly polished brass plaque contained only one word ‘Oakham’. Large stone pillars flanked the glossy black door of the Georgian building. After a deep breath to compose herself Laura pushed the ivory button situated below the brass nameplate. Seconds later a voice from the small grill asked if she could be of help. Instinctively Laura glanced up at the camera. “It’s Laura Miller, here to see Mr Weston.”
“Of course, please come in.” The friendly voice replied as the lock released with a loud click. Laura pushed open the heavy door to reveal a large reception area decorated to compliment the style of the original building. Rising from her desk the mature, attractive woman stepped forward to greet her.
“Hello, I’m Grace Edwards, Mr Weston’s assistant. He’s expecting you. I’ll show you straight through.”
“Thank you. It’s a lovely building you have here, it feels so welcoming and the décor’s terrific.”
“Isn’t it just. It’s so quiet but well situated for the city, we’re very fortunate. This way please.” Laura followed her into a long wide hallway. If the thick carpeting and wood panelling alluded to an air of opulence the original modern oil paintings confirmed it. The assistant stopped at the first door on the left, after a light knock she pushed it open before inviting Laura to enter.
“Mr Weston, Mrs Miller has arrived.” The formality between the two struck Laura as odd, so unlike her own very informal relationship with Abbie. Graham Weston screwed the cap onto his expensive looking fountain pen and carefully placed it onto the desk before rising from his chair.
“Laura, how nice to see you again so soon.” His memory had not deceived him. Even in her everyday office clothing he thought she looked as enticing as she had in the little black dress. Although not quite as heavy as that evening her perfect make up made her all the more adorable. He wondered if that was the norm or whether she had made a special effort for their meeting.
“Hello Mr Weston, what a lovely building you have here. You must be so proud of it.”
“We all like to be surrounded by objects of beauty and, so far, we’ve been in the fortunate position of being able to select from very rich pickings.” His words were accompanied by the same restrained half smile she had noticed so often during their previous meeting. “But where are my manners. May I offer you some refreshment? Tea, coffee?”
“No thank you, I’m just fine.”
“Splendid. So Andrew informs me that ‘the game is afoot’ as Sherlock would say. I’m so pleased to hear it.”
“How could we refuse?” She said, slightly unsettled, “we have everything to gain and nothing to loose, don’t you think?” Oh, he thought, the irony of her words. Such opportunities rarely presented themselves so completely; the ideal situation and the ideal subject at just the right time. The onus was then on him to benefit from those favourable circumstances. He had to take care of the details, manipulate the circumstances and incite a satisfactory outcome.
“I’m a firm believer in the old adage ‘it’s not the winning but the taking part that matters’. Personally I’d be more than happy if you were to win the shares, as long as you play a good game.”
“I think we can, that’s why I’m here.” Weston certainly hoped so.
He was used to dealing with very attractive, intelligent women but more often than not they had found him or the organization. They were women who wanted secrets turned into experiences, women who provided no opposition. What he hoped for in this situation was a challenge, a battle of the mind, body and soul.
“I understand that you’re happy with the arrangements and are here to ‘sign on the dotted line’, is that correct?” He opened the top draw of the enormous oak desk and took out a vanilla folder. Handing over the first sheet he said, “This is the basic agreement for the game. Andrew plays the game, you have to return any lost pieces and you both must stick to the rules.” He handed the sheet to Laura, unscrewed the cap from his fountain pen and offered it to her. She signed the bottom of the sheet. He hoped she hadn’t noticed the slight tremble in his hand as he took the sheet back. “And this is the agreement to sell your shares to us should you decide to resign.” Her slight hesitation and raised eyebrows conveyed her unease. “Oh don’t worry. I’ve assured Andrew and I can assure you that this is to be held by a third party and will be returned on completion of the game, win or loose.”
“It’s a lot of trust to place in somebody we hardly know.”
Weston leaned across his desk toward her, then in a neutral tone he said, “this is just our safeguard to make sure you’re not wasting our time. My research gave no indication that you two were ‘quitters’ as the Americans so crudely put it–quite the opposite in fact. But, you don’t have to do this you know, it’s up to you.”
“Oh, no, no. It’s fine, really.” He smiled as she placed her signature on the bottom of the sheet. His heart beat that little bit faster. Success.
“Well, if you have no other questions that just about concludes our business here.” He took a small card from the folder and slid it across the burgundy leather desktop. “Those are the details of the website who host online chess games. Andrew will need to register as a member, it’s all free, and then we can start.”
“That all sounds straight forward, thank you.” Laura rose from her chair seeing no reason to make the meeting last any longer than necessary.
“Laura, the pleasure is all mine, believe me.”
Whilst showing her out he opened the doors before stepping aside gesturing her through with a sweep of the arm–the perfect gentleman.
4
Andrew and Laura both loved lazy Saturday mornings. A leisurely breakfast in bed, reading the papers and making love. The order varied but not usually the content. After an appropriate measure of each Laura was first to make the effort to get out of bed. “Well,” she said with phony annoyance, “if that paper interests you so much you’ve obviously finished taking advantage of me and using me against my will so I think I’ll go for my run before I have a shower.”
“Oh, I’m sorry about that. I could tell you weren’t too keen when you kept shouting ‘oh fuck, yes, yes…’ right down my ear.” Andrew offered as an equally bogus apology.
“I was putting it on, don’t flatter yourself.” He loved her sense of humour and quick wit, something he found all too rare amongst the women he worked with. When visiting her office he envied the day to day banter he often observed between her and Abbie.
“How are you getting into town?” he called into the bathroom.
“Alice is picking me up and we’re meeting Olivia there.”
“Oh, you’re meeting her Ladyship, I hope you remember your manners.”
“Andrew, don’t be mean,” she scolded. “Olivia’s lovely. Just because she comes from a privileged background and is well spoken doesn’t make her a snob. Besides, she likes slumming it and I think she’d go for a bit of rough. That’s why she likes you.”
“Thanks very much. Just send her round. What time are you off anyway?”
“Alice said she’d be here around twelve.”
“Oh what convenient timing. That’ll just fit in with lunch out, what are the chances of that hey?”
“And what’s Mr Sarcastic planning on doing today?”
“I’ve got a few jobs to do around here first, then this afternoon I might watch the cricket.”
“Ooh, how exciting.” She said in her well practised histrionic manner. “Do you think somebody might win, or will they just play for four or five loooong days before calling it a draw?”
“You can make fun all you like. It’s complicated, that’s why you don’t understand it. You’re a woman and women’s brains aren’t developed enough to handle the intricate complexities of the game.”
“Thank god for that. Come on Jasper let’s leave him to it.” She knelt across the bed to kiss him goodbye, catching his flaccid manhood in the process. “Yuk, you’d better get a shower before you stick to that paper.”
By eleven o’clock Laura had showered and dressed, ready to meet Alice. She loved spending time with her. The two had been friends for years having shared a flat whilst at university. They had a lot in common, she worked for a marketing company in the city and her husband, Edward, worked as a financial consultant.
Laura went into the kitchen where Andrew was sitting on one of the high stools engrossed in something on his laptop. “I’m making coffee, do you want one?” she asked.
“Is it the really nice freshly ground strong sort with heated milk, or the crap sort from the jar?”
“It’s the sort that takes ages and leaves loads to wash up,” then the sarcastic tone returned, “but your worth it darling.”
“I know I am. You might want to take a look at this too.”
“What is it?” Laura asked before moving behind him in order to see the screen.
“The chess game. Graham’s challenge arrived as an email, when I clicked the link it took me here. Look, here’s the board and he’s had his first move. It has the instructions here.” He pointed to a column on the right of the board. “We’re playing black. Maximum 14 days per move.”
“Fourteen days! Bloody hell, with this and cricket you really play your sport in the fast lane don’t you.”
“Up to fourteen days, actually. And besides you may be glad of the time later on.” He continued with scanning the rules. “You can send private messages to opponents during play. If both players are online the game can be played live. Load the mobile app to play on the go, blah, blah, blah. Sounds straight forward.”
“How do you know if he’s online?” Andrew went back to the instructions.
“Here we are, ‘members available for live play are shown with a green dot next to their name’.”
“Is he green?”
“No. We’ll move anyway. There we go Pawn advances, take that sucker.”
“Are you taking this seriously? There’s a lot at stake here.” Laura scolded.
“Of course I am. Early stages darling, early stages. The game gets more interesting as it develops.” Laura left his side to pour the coffee’s.
“Do you want anything with your coffee?”
“No, I’m fine thanks. Hey! He’s gone green, and the boards updated.” Laura could see the excitement on his face as he studied the screen, he loved games. “Moved his Pawn. Lets see. We’ll move our Pawn as well, like that.” Andrew talked to himself as he clicked ‘submit move’. After only thirty seconds the board updated again. “He’s moved another Pawn, trying to get control of the centre, standard stuff.”
“What are you going to do about it? You’re rushing it aren’t you? Is he any good?” Laura moved behind him to look over his shoulder and see for herself.
“Laura, don’t panic. This is how all games start. The early moves are fairly tried and tested. We get to the more testing tactical stuff later.”
“Let’s bring a knight out shall we. There we are. Submit.” Following a brief pause the board updated showing Weston’s move. Andrew countered with bringing another knight into play.
“He’s taken a pawn.” Andrew said in his casual manner.
“What, how bad is that?”
“It’s normal. You don’t play a game of chess without losses on both sides.” Andrew moved his knight. “And he’s left a message.”
“What does it say?” Laura asked, “I haven’t got my glasses.”
Andrew read it out. “You are now in debt to the tune of one pawn. Remember the rules.” Weston’s green dot disappeared.
“You know what that means now don’t you?” Laura asked. A hint of concern in her voice.
“What?”
“I’ve got to give the pieces back to him, it said so in the rules. I thought you were going to play on a proper board with real pieces. How am I going to give it back when it doesn’t actually exist. I mean it’s out there somewhere, in the cloud… thingy.”
“Hmm. I see what you mean.” His thoughts were disrupted by the sound of a car horn. Laura leaned back to see through the front windows.
“It’s Alice. I have to go. We’ll sort out what to do later.” She gave him a kiss. After stopping briefly to check her make up and hair in the hall mirror she picked up her bag and left by the front door.
Spending time with Alice returned her thoughts to everyday life and the things which filled it. They went to work, they socialised, they went shopping and all of the other things Laura enjoyed.
But during the journey into town that day her mind constantly returned to the chess game. Alice was unable to resist commenting on her unusual quietness.
“Come on, out with it. What are you so deep in thought about?” Laura knew there was no use in trying to brush it off. Alice would continue to give her a hard time until she discovered the truth, so she enlightened her on the situation.
“So you’ve got to return this pawn and you don’t know how? Or where it is? And if you don’t you can’t buy his shares?”
“That’s about it, and any other pieces Andrew looses. Yesterday it all seemed so straight forward; the men would play their game and, if Andrew won, we would buy the shares. Now, in the cold light of day the whole thing seems dubious, everything’s a bit… I don’t know, uncertain I suppose. The mystery of how I’ll be able to return the pawn, Weston’s strangely worded message and knowing how high the stakes are makes me feel nervous.”
“You’re an intelligent woman, and I’ll help you. Don’t worry.”
Laura felt happier after sharing her anxiety with Alice and grateful for her offer of help. Despite her unease, deep down she felt an excitement. She relished a challenge, and decided to regard this as an opportunity to show Weston that she was up for whatever his little game was. Yes, she thought, come on Mr Weston do your worst.
5
The start of each new week in the office followed a regular pattern. Conversation revolved around the weekend’s dating successes and failures, sporting controversies and critique’s of places visited. Laura had no problem with company time being spent in that way because she knew that when a rush job needed completing or an unforeseen problem came their way, the staff would step up to the mark and do their bit. They didn’t ask for overtime but worked a sort of unofficial flexible system.
As they drifted off to their desks, drawing boards and computers the space once again became a creative arena. As Laura made her way out Abbie followed, through her own section of the open plan area and into Laura’s private office beyond.
“Do I have anything urgent this morning Abbie?”
“Nope. Not until three this afternoon.”
“Oh yeah, then it’s Mr Sleazebag again isn’t it?” Laura screwed up her face as she spoke.
“I’m afraid so. Perhaps you’ve misjudged him and he’s a really a nice guy pretending.”
“If he is he’s bloody good at it. He’s got the drooling off to a tee.”
“You should be flattered. He doesn’t slobber over me.” Abbie said, sticking out her bottom lip.
“Tell you what, later on I’ll hint that you fancy him then send him through. Right if there’s nothing pressing I’m going to work on these proposals.”
“Okay. Shall I reply to Anderson’s and tell them you’re going ahead with them?”
“Oh God. Yes, thanks. I’d forgotten about that.”
“There you are you see. I keep telling you I’m worth the pittance you pay me.”
Abbie left, closing the door behind her. Laura hung up her jacket in the small wash-room leading off her office. She had always considered it quite a luxury having a private shower and toilet available to her at work.
As usual Laura lost track of time as she worked on developing her ideas. Designing was the part of the job she loved; the meetings and business aspects she viewed as a necessary evil. An hour and a half had passed before she thought of taking a break. Suddenly the pencil slipped from her grasp as the door flew open, startling her. A tall, well dressed man with greying hair entered, closely followed by a flustered Abbie.
“I’m sorry, he just rushed past me as I went to call you. Shall I get some help?”
“You can if you like,” the well spoken man answered in a deep voice, “but I’m sure that would be seen as a very uncooperative gesture. Alistair Mason’s the name by the way, just here to see whether your employer’s implementing the terms of the agreement, correct any fundamental flaws and report back to Mr Weston. I don’t think we’ll need you for now… er, Abbie isn’t it? but thank you for the offer.” He turned back to face Laura, a devious smile spreading across his face as he waited for the realisation to sink in.
As soon as he dropped Weston’s name into the exchange things started to make sense to Laura. Abbie continued with her anxious look, waiting for guidance. Laura slowly nodded “It’s OK Abbie, thank you.”
The man watched her intently as she gave Laura one further questioning look before leaving the room and closing the door behind her. Unsure of how to handle the situation Laura decided to play a waiting game and remained quiet as the man began to speak.
“He didn’t mention that you were such a looker and you obviously keep yourself fit, that’s good.” He slowly walked around her as he spoke. She knew he was trying to intimidate her. The small trickle of sweat she felt run from under her arm indicated that he was succeeding. She remained still, facing ahead.
“I take a pride in looking after myself, yes.”
“I much prefer dealing with your type,” he said.
“Oh yes, and what type is that?”
“Stylish, your own woman, confident.” Whether it was his compliments or that she was relaxing just a little she didn’t know but as he once again passed in front of her, she noticed for the first time his ruggedly handsome features. The outdoor type she’d guess. Her thoughts were broken by his voice from behind her, so close to her ear and almost a whisper. “I love this part, the anticipation and potential.” He moved round to face her. “So lets see how you’ve been doing with the rules.”
“I don’t have any rules.”
“We all have rules Laura, that’s how the world works. And things tick along beautifully until the rules are broken. So if you’d like to lift your skirt we’ll be able to discover whether that’s the case here.”
“What! How dare you. I think you’d better leave–now.”
“I can do that of course but do you really want me to? It would mean you’d chosen to quit the game.”
“Chess is the game, which my husband is playing,” Laura spat. “We didn’t agree to anything like this.” Realising that her fortitude had no effect on him and losing more of her resolve with every passing minute she decided to ditch her pride and appeal for his sympathy. “Look can’t you just leave? I’m sure there’s been a mistake. You can go now and we won’t say any more about this.” She hoped her plea sounded more confident than she felt.
“Oh Laura, you know that’s not possible. You signed the agreement. You see things through to the end or loose your shares, simple. And, I’ll repeat, the agreement was that you follow the rules. So lift the skirt.” He watched her absorb his words, her confidence rapidly ebbing away. To her it was an unfamiliar situation, she was used to being the one in control. Blushing furiously Laura slowly raised her skirt. He moved away and perched on the edge of her desk.
“Oh dear, what rule have you disobeyed?” he said, slowly shaking his head.
“How would I know. I wasn’t told anything about your stupid rules.”
“Women like you are used to getting your own way, aren’t you? You ask for things and they’re done. If you’re told ‘no’ you find another approach until you get your own way. Well in this game you’re going to find out what it means to earn what you want, not have it given to you. You’re going to do things by the rules or quit. Now, remove them.” She couldn’t believe what he was telling her and expecting her to do, in her own office. She remained still, unsure of her next move. The hesitancy proved too much. He rose from the desk at speed, reached out and grabbed for her hair. His fingers twisted round taking a firm hold. Laura stood on tiptoes to try and ease the sharp pain in her scalp.
“You’ll do as you’re told or suffer the consequences,” he said, as he roughly pulled up the skirt, hooked his fingers into the waistband of her tights and pulled down sharply. The nylon easily gave way as he continued to rip them apart.
“Now remove the panties.” Her mind focused on the pain in her hair, her hands desperately grabbing for his. He did the job himself. Pulling hard, he ripped the panties from her. Before the thin fabric gave way it pulled hard into the soft flesh between her legs causing her to cry out.
“That’s more like it. And if you’d done that to start with we wouldn’t have this unpleasantness. Now, what do disobedient girls get?”
“I was not disobedient.” Laura shouted, “you didn’t make the rules clear.”
He smirked. “Still shouting and trying to control. Never mind, we can help you with that.”
She cried out as he dragged her through the office and into the conference room beyond, firmly closing the door behind him. He reached a chair where he sat and pulled her across his lap. His intentions quickly became clear. His free hand raised her skirt exposing her now naked buttocks.
“Take your fucking hands off me!” she shouted, desperately trying to stand. He hooked his leg over the back of her knees, let go of her hair and held both wrists in a strong grip. Pushing them high up her back he had her trapped in position.
“And we don’t expect to hear such foul language either so the quota will be doubled.”
With those words the first of the blows fell. The initial smacks stung and burned but not enough to force a reaction from her. Determined to deny him the satisfaction of hearing her plead she gritted her teeth and screwed up her eyes. He accepted the challenge. An increase in force and varying the target area soon took it’s toll. The sound of the slaps and her cries filled the room. As the punishment proceeded the ferocity of the blows increased until her tears flowed freely.
She lost track of time as the spanking continued, her cries soon reduced to a continual pitiful sobbing. The assault gradually lessened until the final smacks were as light as the first.
When it stopped altogether she felt his hand caress the area he had abused. It was almost gentle: comforting in a way.
“It’s a pity we had to go through that,” he said, “but you have to follow the rules, then perhaps you won’t need me to come back again.”
To Laura the situation felt so surreal. To have a stranger almost tenderly stroking her naked rear after defiling her in her own workspace was fanciful but to admit that she felt almost serene would be unbelievable.
“You’re in debt and people in debt have to conform. That means no panties and no tights. If you don’t want bare legs then stockings will be more than acceptable. I know it’s a bit of a cliché but some things become clichés because they work. It’s purpose is to be a constant reminder of your debt. Very effective too from what they tell me. Oh and get rid of the hair. That’s not from Graham, it’s a personal preference of mine. When you return the lost pieces you’ll be off the hook.”
“And how can I return them when they don’t exist?”
“Of course they do. People have them. You just have to find the right people.”
“Where?” she said, exasperated. “They could be anywhere.”
“You’d better get started then. You’re a clever woman, use you’re imagination.” The man lifted his leg from hers before helping her to stand. “You’d better get yourself cleaned up or there’ll be all sorts of gossip around here.”
After leaving the conference room he made his way through her office. He paused just before opening the outside door and turned back. “You know, I’d be pleased if you chose to break some of the other rules, I quite enjoyed that. Thank you.” His smile appeared to be genuine.
Laura had to think quickly. She knew Abbie would be in there as soon as she saw the stranger leave. Pulling her skirt down and retrieving what was left of her underware she made a dash for the wash-room. It was a close call. No sooner had she closed the door than she heard Abbie calling.
“Laura, Laura is everything Okay?” She tapped on the door. “Are you in there? Laura?”
Trying to sound as casual as possible she managed a reply. “I’m fine Abbie, thanks. I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Okay then I’ll wait outside.” Grateful of the breathing space Laura tried to sort out the mess he’d left. After kicking off her shoes she removed what remained of her tights, dropping the debris into the waste bin. A glance in the mirror told her that a temporary repair with make up was the best she could hope for; her red and swollen eyes would take a while to return to normal. After patching up as best she could Laura decided it was time to face the inevitable interrogation. As soon as she sat behind her desk Abbie appeared.
“What the hell happened there Laura, are you all right?” Abbie soon spotted the eyes. “Have you been crying?”
“I’m fine, really.” She gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile.
“Well that’s good because I’ve just called my sister.”
“What’s you’re sister got to do with this?”
“That… person, who just left, mentioned a Mr Weston, and that rang a bell. My sister knows Grace Edwards.”
“And who’s…” The penny dropped. “Graham Weston’s secretary right?”
“P.A. actually, but yes. So I called to do a bit of digging. She was a bit reluctant to say anything to start with but as you know I can be stubborn at times.”
“Oh, I’ve never noticed that.”
“Ha ha. And you’ll want to hear what I found out. But first you’ll have to wait until I’ve made two coffee’s and fetched the biscuits.”
After her fourth attempt to call Andrew failed, Laura gave up trying and decided to phone Weston herself. He answered the call in person.
“Hello Laura, how nice to hear from you so soon.”
“Don’t give me that friendly crap, you know why I’m calling. I’ve just been visited by that ageing thug you sent: something or other Mason.” She heard his laughter. “It’s not funny. I should be pressing charges.”
“It’s your description that amuses me. I can’t wait to tell him that, ‘ageing thug’, priceless. It’s Alistair Mason, Colonel actually. Ex Army and very good with discipline issues. Anyway I hope there was no problem. He wasn’t rude to you was he?”
“Rude!” She couldn’t believe his casual attitude. “He bloody sp…” She searched for a more dignified word. “He hit me. He’s some sort of deviant.”
“Oh, I don’t think so. Activity between consenting adults can’t be seen as deviant. It only becomes deviant when it’s forced on those who didn’t consent to it.”
“I didn’t bloody consent.” Laura felt her anger rising.
“Of course you did Laura. I have a signed copy of it tucked away in my safe. And I thought he told you about your bad language as well. That poor memory of yours is going to get you into all sorts of trouble.” So Weston had spoken to the man since he’d left her. “I take it that you were unaware of the rules and what playing the game would entail?”
“Well of course I was. It’s supposed to be a game of chess.”
“It is. We’ve just added a few inducements to make it more interesting.”
“Yes, and after this mornings episode and some probing of my own I think I know what they might be.”
“Marvellous. I knew you had it in you. And what have you discovered?”
“I know about Oakham and what they do… to women.”
“Consenting women,” he added categorically.
“That’s as may be, but I know what you’ll do now. You’ll just beat the crap out…” She stopped, aware of her blunder. She didn’t see Weston’s smile of victory but she sensed it. “You’ll just keep beating me until I give in and resign.”
“Laura, Laura. You underestimate us. We’re not the sort of people who dish out meaningless beatings to gain an unfair advantage. You’re too strong a person for such crude methods. And besides, where would the fun be in that?”
“Fun? Are you kidding me. This isn’t fun.”
“No? Then Alistair must have misinformed me.”
“He was probably looking at it from a different angle from me.” Laura answered, without hiding her sarcastic tone.
“Quite. Anyway Laura, this game will test your resolve, willpower, courage and most importantly, your intelligence. Of course there may be occasions when you need reminding to play by the rules. Those reminders may be painful but effective. Look how your memory has improved already.”
“All right, tell me then, how can I possibly get the lost pieces if I’ve no idea who’s got them?
“That is a bit of a problem isn’t it. But I’m sure you’ll sort it out, or loose.”
With that he ended the call leaving Laura staring at her blank screen.
After waiting for Laura to finish her call Abbie returned to the office and sat in the chair on the opposite side of the desk.
“You called him then?”
“Yes, for what it was worth.”
“So, are you going to tell me what’s going on or shall I mind my own business?”
Laura relayed the whole story. The chess game, her role, protecting the business from takeover and saving all their jobs.
“Bloody hell, how exciting.” Abbie showed more than a keen interest.
“Exciting?”
“Yeah, it’s like an adventure film isn’t it. You know, like Indiana Jones seeking the Holy Grail. Now it’s Laura Miller and the lost chess pieces.”
“That’s one way of looking at it I suppose but the big difference here is that Indy didn’t get his arse slapped.” Abbie couldn’t help but snigger which set Laura off too.
“The other big difference is that Indy only had that little kid to help him, you’ve got…” Then she put on her deepest announcers voice and said, “Abbie Ward P.A.” and she held out her arm in Superman style. “We’ll show that Weston prick he can’t mess with us.”
“Abbie, I’m always asking myself why I keep on such a crappy P.A. as you, and now I know.”
“I love you too.” Abbie replied.