A Maid's Tail Ch. 09: Wed

"Y- you would be too. . ."

Sylvia chuffed a short laugh. The first time Kim had ever heard from her. "From the top."

She didn't know it at the time, but as the day wound on and they repeated the steps of 'shimmy' Kim became more and more attuned with every movement involved and- to her and Sylvia's surprise, she managed to pick up a few of the other smaller steps that Sylvia had demonstrated.

With every turn, every step she could feel Sylvia's appraisal-- appreciation?-- grow just a little more keen. It was a little thing, a subtle glance, a gentle touch encouraging her to turn a certain way. Never a word of praise or acknowledgment, but those words didn't need to be said and would've broken the air if they were.

At the end, Sylvia had her run through everything she'd learned-- how to shimmy, how to roll, how to twist. Then, like Kim had passed some secret test, the younger woman opened the door and flicked her head to it. "You'd mentioned dinner."

Kim stood there slightly uneasy, feeling squarely 'on the spot' under the woman's gaze and wondering if she'd done the correct thing or not. At a second- demanding- glance, Kim straightened herself and offered a tiny curtsy before scampering off to do what she was actually paid for.

#

Kim was quick with dinner, a hearty meal which Elliot and Sylvia devoured quickly enough that told her they both enjoyed it. Another minor victory. When Elliot asked how Sylvia's day went, she looked to Kim and actually paused to consider her reply.

Elliot's gaze followed briefly as she stood nearby with the desert tray.

Then, like it was some sacred writ, Sylvia said in a husky voice. "You were right about her."

Kim's cheeks had never felt hotter, her entire soul never more tingly than those faint words of praise. It was a phrase that'd keep repeating in her mind as she drove home that night.