Lace & Leather [a Damian Priest story]

1 First

When I was told that the boss wanted to see me, I immediately had a bad feeling in my stomach. I would not be aware that I had done anything wrong, but my intuition told me that it could not mean anything good.

With heavy, hesitant steps, I approached the door to Mr. McMahon's makeshift office. I took a deep breath and then knocked on the door. When I heard him ask me to come in, I would have liked to run away.

"Ah! Miss Fay, good to see you. Have a seat, please." he began.

"All right then. I have a new idea for you. We're going to add you to a new group. I think that will give a whole new angle to your character." he explained.

"What, but I thought I was doing well. Why do we want to change that all of a sudden?" I asked.

The heart in my chest was beating faster than normal and it was hard to breathe. There was only one new faction at the moment. Judgment Day... That would mean I would have to work closely with men. Something that scared the hell out of me. I had never had good experiences with men. It was too much for me. I was just too shy and too reserved for that. Whenever I tried to talk to someone, my throat would tighten almost painfully. I began to sweat and stutter. All in all, I went from being confident and happy to shy and scared.

"You do! And that's exactly why I decided to do it," he replied when he suddenly knocked on the door.

"Edge, Damian! Very good, very good. Sit down. I've already started talking to Miss Fay about our plans." said Mr McMahon as the two big men entered the small room and sat down.

Damian sat so close to me that I could feel his warmth in the air. Nervously, I slid back and forth in my chair. I was sure that my face was deep red by now. Repeatedly I tried to swallow, but it was no use. My throat was as dry as the desert.

"Here's the plan we have. Miss Fay and Mr Priest will be involved with each other on and off over the next few weeks. The attraction will slowly increase until Damian finally seduces you to join him on the dark side. With a kiss, of course. I don't think I need to explain that we have a romantic story line planned," said Mr. McMahon.

When I heard that, all the blood suddenly drained from my face. A coldness followed by panic flowed through me.

"Sir, I'm sorry, but.... but I... can't. It's... too much." I stuttered, got up and ran out of the room as fast as I could.

Damian POV

I stared after Katja, totally stunned. I had in no way expected this. On the contrary, actually. I had been really looking forward to working with her. I was fascinated by her. Somehow she was the complete opposite of me. Katja was soft, delicate lace, while I was more like rough, firm leather. I wanted to get to know her better, since she was always very reserved.

Although I didn't know why, I had the feeling that she didn't feel very comfortable in the company of many men. She was still quite young, only 25 or 26 years old, if I was not mistaken. Maybe she had experienced something bad. Whatever it was, it made her anxious.

"Well... that was unexpected. That's very unfortunate. Perhaps I should reconsider Miss Fay's position in this company." said Mr. McMahon and I immediately realized what he meant. But there was no way I was going to let that happen.

"Sir, I will talk to her. I'm sure I can change Katja's mind." I said quickly before he could make up his mind.

"Very well. It can't hurt to try. Otherwise I'll have to look for a replacement." he replied almost growling.

I looked at Edge, who had been silent all this time. A crease of worry formed between his brows. He was probably wondering what the problem was.

After we were able to leave, I immediately went in search of Katja. Fortunately, it didn't take long to find her. She was sitting on a crate with her face buried in her hands.

"Can we talk about this, Katja?" I asked her quietly and sat down next to her.

"No." she said simply, then jumped to her feet, away from me.

"Come on, sweetie. Talk to me. I don't want you to get in trouble." I replied gently.

"I can't. It's way too embarrassing. Just forget it." said Katja as her face turned all shades of red.

Before I could say anything, she ran away again. What could she be so embarrassed about?

But if she thought I was giving up so quickly, she had a lot to learn about me. When we were taken to the hotel in the evening, I saw my chance. I saw Katja enter the elevator alone. I quickly followed her in before the doors closed. With wide eyes, she looked up at me.

"What are you doing?" she asked in surprise.

Shortly after the elevator started moving, I pressed the stop button. With a jerk, the elevator came to a stop.

"What the hell, Damian!" yelled Katja, upset, trying to push past me.

"We're not leaving this elevator until you tell me what your problem is, Katja." I replied.

"It's none of your business. It's personal." she muttered, backing away from me.

"Listen... Is it because you don't like me? If it is, then I can promise you we'll work this out. I don't want you to pass up such a big deal and maybe get fired because you despise me," I explained to her.

"I don't despise you." she said softly, still avoiding my eyes.

"Then what is it?" I pressed.

"I can't... work with men. I'm weird. I can't handle it. All my life I never had much to do with men. I was too focused on my career. And now... it's so embarrassing. I don't know how to do this. It's embarrassing as it is, and I don't need the whole world watching me do it." she suddenly burst out.

"Oh.... okay, listen. First of all, you would only be working with me and Edge. More with me actually. And secondly... it's never too late for new experiences. Don't let anyone tell you that you're weird. You're a great person." I replied.

"You don't understand." she whispered and I saw a tear run down her cheek.

"Then explain it to me," I said softly.

Katja looked at me for a long time and thought. I saw her close her eyes and take a deep breath. Probably she was trying to decide whether to tell me or not.

"The thing is... I've never been... with a man before.... I've never been... kissed." she whispered, then coyly turned away from me.

Now, of course, it made a lot of sense why she was so freaked out. Why she was so reserved with men around. It made her nervous and insecure.

"That's nothing to be ashamed of. And just because it hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it never will. Any man would be honored to be your first. In every way," I replied as I walked up to her and slowly grabbed her shoulder and turned her to face me. To my amazement, she let it happen.

"Would you be?" she whispered.

"You bet I would." I murmured as my gaze wandered to her lips.

Without thinking, I put a hand to her cheek and wiped the tears from her cheek. Slowly, I leaned forward.

"Tell me if I'm going too far." I murmured.

"You aren't." Katja breathed as her gaze also hung on my lips.

Carefully and slowly I leaned down to her. I still expected her to stop me, but nothing happened. Soft as a feather, our lips touched for a brief moment. I pulled back to be able to look at her. She brushed her finger slowly across her lips.

"Good or bad?" I asked.

"I... am not sure." she replied softly as a breeze.

Again, I pressed my mouth to hers. More intensely this time. Quickly our breathing turned to gasps as our breaths mixed.

"Good or bad?" I asked again. My voice low and rough.

"Good... worth it."  Katja replied, bringing her small hand to my neck.

"I thought so." I smiled and pulled her to me again.