‘I thought you just wanted to stick your toe in the water, Cathy?’ Mags’s hand tightened on her arm.
Cathy sighed and turned to look at her friend. ‘Look, no one made you come with me. This was your choice, not mine.’ Not that she regretted having a friend to lean on here but Mags didn’t have to know that. Even she had to admit that the club was a bit on the wild side. With chains hanging from the black-painted walls, alcoves with St Andrew’s crosses, whipping posts, spanking benches, and more, the place was more than she’d ever imagined possible.
‘Why don’t we go down town? There’s a new club we could try, free drinks for women until midnight.’ Mags leaned in a little closer. ‘I don’t like how they’re looking at you.’
‘You mean us.’
‘No, you.’ Mags insisted.
Cathy frowned but stopped and took a second look around, this time focusing on the men and women in the club. More than one gaze had turned her way and the intensity in their looks all but stripped what little clothing she was wearing from her body.
‘Perhaps you should have worn something a little different?’ Mags whispered.
Cathy looked down, flushed, and then lifted her chin. ‘I figured this would help me fit in.’ OK, so perhaps the short black miniskirt, stockings, heels, black bustier and a little black velvet choker hadn’t been the wisest set of choices.
‘Come on, please. Let’s get out of here before …’ Mags pleaded and took a step toward the door.
‘Before what?’
‘Before something stupid happens.’
Her jaw set and she turned, slowly removing Mags’s hand from her arm. ‘Like what?’
‘I don’t know, maybe before one of those leather-wearing weirdos comes over here.’
‘Maybe that’s what I want.’ She lifted her head up and cast a long, slow, sensual smile at the men and women who glanced her way. ‘I came here for something and I’m not going to leave before I’m ready to. If you want to go, then fine, I’ll manage on my own. Not like anyone’s going to try and force me. You saw the rules when we walked in. We had to sign off on them, remember?’
‘Like that will protect us if they try something. I’m not buying it and I’m not staying.’ Mags stepped away, shaking her head. ‘You can come with me, or not, but I can’t handle this place.’
‘I’m staying.’
Mags opened her mouth to say something and then shook her head, turned and left, one hand raised in a backward wave.
‘Shit,’ Cathy muttered under her breath. She hadn’t actually expected her friend to go through with her threat. She took a step, and then two, half wanting to follow Mags out through the door, but then stopped. No, she’d come this far and she wasn’t going to back out now. If she did, there’d be no second chances, no coming back to try again.
It was now or never.
‘All alone?’ A deep, rich male voice spoke behind her.
She turned, her breath hitching in the back of her throat. She swallowed hard, trying to put her thoughts in order before she answered. ‘Yes.’
‘A crime.’ He didn’t touch her. He didn’t even take a step toward her, but she could feel the passage of his gaze over her body, taking in every inch of who she was. ‘First time here?’
‘That obvious?’ Her cheeks burned and she shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
‘To me, yes. The gear gives it away. You’re trying too hard.’ He gave her another long, slow look. ‘But it looks good on you.’
‘Thank you.’ She lowered her gaze for a moment, but when it rested on the outline of his semi-erect cock against his pants, she quickly lifted it again.
‘See something you like?’ He grinned, a dark light dancing within his gaze.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to look.’
‘Ah, and you avoided my question. No matter, you’ll tell me eventually.’
‘I’m Cathy.’
‘A pleasure.’ He smiled and took a step toward her. ‘So, why here?’
‘I’m curious, I guess.’ Wasn’t he going to mention his name? ‘OK, who are you?’
‘Drake.’
‘Is that a real name?’ The words escaped before she could stop them. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean it that way. It’s just I’ve never met anyone called Drake before.’
‘It’s a scene name. Most of us use them. You might want to think about choosing one for yourself if you plan on visiting places like this on a regular basis. Unless, of course, you’d like your dominant to choose one for you?’
‘My dominant?’ She shook her head trying to avoid his gaze. There was something about the way he looked at her. Her skin tightened beneath his gaze, nipples pebbling under the black leather bustier. Her heart raced and a deep-seated warmth built between her thighs. ‘I don’t have one.’
He jerked his head at the surroundings. ‘And yet this lot hasn’t scared you off the way it did your friend.’
‘No, why would it?’
‘Newbies can be easily scared. But let’s test how interested you really are.’ He moved in closer, settling one arm around her waist, his grip firm but not painful as he walked her away from the bar towards one of the alcoves where a small group of people had gathered.
Cathy tensed but didn’t fight him. The gathering had spiked her curiosity and the small sounds that reached her ears before they found a space where she could see, only added to her interest.
Heat flushed across her cheeks and she didn’t know where to look when Drake stood her in front of him so she’d have a clear view. There, in the middle of the alcove, was a spanking bench with a nearly naked woman tied over it, bottom up, exposed for all the world to see, except for a thin strip of material between her buttocks that had to be a thong.
‘Oh …’
‘See something you like?’ He leaned in close, encircling her waist from behind with one hand.
‘I – I don’t know.’ She swallowed hard. ‘Why are you holding me like that?’
‘Don’t you like it?’ He slid his hand up, cupping the underside of her breast. ‘Or is this better?’
This was going a bit fast. She opened her mouth to protest, to tell him to move his damned hand. But her body had another idea. ‘Better.’
‘Good girl.’
Cathy sucked in her lower lip, chewing on it nervously. The woman on the bench wasn’t alone. A man stood at her side, stroking her back and talking to her in a low-pitched voice.
‘She wants this? I mean, with everyone watching?’
‘She’s fully consented to it.’ He thumbed her nipple through the leather.
Cathy shivered, her nipple hard and aching beneath his touch. Some of what he said made sense, that it was consensual, yet even though he’d given her the choice in being touched there’d been an edge to his voice. Something that made it clear if she’d said no, he’d have turned away and found someone else to spend the evening with.
‘Just watch what happens with the girl and then you can decide if you want to stay or if you’d be best following your friend to a tamer establishment.’
‘OK.’ She turned her attention to the submissive on the spanking bench.
The man had moved so he stood at the side of the bound submissive, a paddle in his hand. He didn’t speak but brought the paddle down hard and fast against the woman’s backside. Her soft cry filled the air and her bottom tinged red before the second blow landed on her upturned ass. A third and fourth followed without granting the bound woman time to recover. By the tenth, the woman was sobbing but her hips rolled and the scent of her arousal was strong.
‘Well?’ He whispered against her ear.
She whimpered, a deep tremble running through her body. Each time the paddle struck the woman’s bottom Cathy’s inner walls clenched. How could she tell him what she was feeling?
His fingers closed on her nipple through the leather bustier. ‘I asked you a question.’
The paddle smacked once more and Cathy’s hips rolled.
‘A verbal answer, girl.’ He pinched sharply.
She hissed between clenched teeth but the pain did something she hadn’t expected. The pain formed a line between her nipple and her clit. Both throbbed. One in pain the other with a burning pleasure. ‘I – I don’t have an answer.’
‘Yes, you do. I don’t tolerate lies, girl. Perhaps I should take you to one of the alcoves and punish you?’
Cathy shook her head. ‘No. Please. I couldn’t take it. All those people watching me, I mean.’
Drake pulled her back through the crowd away from the scene in the alcove. ‘But in private you’re interested, is that it?’
‘Yes, it’s what I came here to explore.’ There, she’d said it. ‘And I know there’s more to it than a simple paddling. If you thought that was going to frighten me off you were wrong. I’ve seen worse on the net.’
‘Watching on the net isn’t the same as real life.’ He laughed, pulling her towards a door. ‘But if you’re serious I can help you explore, girl. I have a private play area here that I pay for every year.’
This was happening too fast. She couldn’t do this. Or could she?
He stopped, away from the crowd, his gaze locked with hers, his voice a deep, seductive whisper. ‘You want this; I can see it in your eyes. The question is will you let your fear get the better of you, or will you submit to your own desires?’
She glanced back at the crowd and then looked at Drake. She licked her lips nervously. ‘How do I know you won’t push beyond my limits?’
‘If I ignore your safe word then you’ll report me and I’ll lose my access to the club. Not something I’d want to go through, especially as the club would then share my “lapse” with every other club they have contact with. That’s how serious the situation would be for me.’
Was it enough? She’d read the rules, even signed them, but would they follow through with them? Yes, they had to.
‘All right.’
‘You consent?’
‘Yes.’ There was no going back now.
‘Good.’ He took hold of her left arm and courteously led her to a set of double doors. The doors were locked with access granted by a keypad and Drake quickly punched in a set of numbers. The light on the pad turned from red to green and the click that marked the doors unlocking was audible even with the background noise of the club.
Once they were past the doors, and they had closed behind them, the noise faded into the background. A single flight of stairs took them to the next floor and three doors down Drake used a keycard to gain access to a room. He leaned in and flicked on the light before opening the door fully to allow her to enter the room.
She almost changed her mind when she saw what the room contained.
A large bedlike platform dominated the centre of the room, although there was a St Andrew’s cross on the wall, and several floggers, canes, and crops hung from hooks close by. Cuffs connected by chains were attached to both the platform and the cross but she didn’t see the rest until she stepped into the room. On the wall nearest the door hung hoods, blindfolds, and gags, and she couldn’t help but wonder what lay within the chest of drawers on the left wall.
The door closed behind her with a solid thunk.
‘If you need to leave and I, for whatever reason, won’t let you, then you hit the panic button there.’ He gestured to a large red button close to the bed platform. ‘All the private rooms have them in case of medical or other emergencies.’ He moved toward the centre of the room. ‘Your safe word is Red. Understand?’
‘Safe word? Oh, erm, the word I say to stop everything, right?’
‘Yes.’ He took a step toward her. ‘Now, strip.’
‘What?’ She paled instantly.
‘Unless you want me to cut off your clothing when I have you restrained. We are alone, girl. No one else is going to see you.’ He didn’t move, but stood there watching her. ‘Are you going to obey me, girl?’
Cathy reached for the ties on her bustier and began to work them free. She was doing this. She was actually going to let someone dom her! What was he going to do? Spank her? Use a cane or flogger on her? Was she ready for all of that?
She folded up the bustier and set it on top of the dresser. The skirt followed it, leaving her standing there in stockings, heels and panties. Her left hand drifted upward, covering her breasts, though he’d already had an eyeful.
‘And the rest.’
‘I thought … well the girl still wore panties for her spanking.’
‘And this is private. No one else will be able to see you except me. You either strip or leave.’ His gaze narrowed cold and dark as he looked at her. ‘Well, girl, what’s your decision?’
She glanced at the door and then back at him. ‘But why do you …?’
‘This isn’t open for discussion.’ His voice was ice cold.
Her breathing hitched in the back of her throat. ‘OK, I’ll do it. I just need a minute to …’
‘Now.’
Her hands moved before she realized what she was doing. She hooked her thumbs into the sides of her panties and skimmed them down her thighs. The thin strip of hair over the curve of her mound brought a flush to her face.
‘Better. You can leave the stockings and heels on. I’ve relented a little. You won’t be completely naked.’
Somehow that didn’t make her feel any better.
‘The cross or the bed? The cross, I think.’ He gestured toward the St Andrew’s cross against the wall.
The cross held less fear for her than the bed but walking to it took more strength than she’d ever believed possible. Her palms were damp but her heart raced and her nipples were hard and aching for his touch. A liquid heat coated her nether lips and her clit throbbed. What was she doing? There was enough time to change her mind – there had to be. And he’d given her a safe word that would end things if she didn’t like what he was doing.
‘Reach your hands up, girl.’
She looked up and to each side before she lifted her hands up to the edges of the frame where manacles waited for her wrists. Would it hurt, being bound like this?
Drake locked her wrists in place. ‘Now your legs. Ease your left out toward the manacle.’ He knelt down by her left leg and soon both of her legs were locked in place. ‘Good, now we can begin.’
‘What are you going to do?’
‘Sir …’
‘I don’t understand.’ She frowned and twisted to look back at him over her shoulder.
‘Face the wall.’ He touched the back of her head. ‘And you will address me as sir during our little exploration. Is that clear?’
‘Y–yes, sir.’ She looked at the wall and shuddered.
‘Better, much better.’ He traced one hand slowly down the length of her spine then reached between her thighs and cupped her naked nether lips. ‘You’re already wet, girl.’
‘Yes, sir.’ She blushed at his words but there was no denying the truth. Her body hungered for something she couldn’t express. She was wet for a man she didn’t know, a stranger who hadn’t even told her his real name.
‘Good.’ He moved his hand from between her thighs and cupped her left ass cheek. It lifted away from her flesh briefly, only to be brought down against her bare backside in a stinging slap.
She cried out, arching onto her toes, her thighs already stretched by the manacles. It hurt but the sensation between her thighs was intense. Her inner walls clenched, her body arching, lifting and offering her bottom to him again.
‘Good, very good,’ he growled in pleasure. He brought his hand down twice more before shifting to her other ass cheek.
She sobbed for breath, her hips rolling with each blow. Her thighs clenched, muscles taut as she tried to lean into his touch. This was happening too fast but her body welcomed it and needed what he was doing to her. ‘More please, sir. More!’
‘Greedy slut.’ He laughed and stepped away, returning a moment later. ‘But more you shall have. I like to see a girl enjoying herself.’ He rubbed something over her backside. ‘This is a paddle. Let’s see if you like this the way you do my hand.’
Paddle? She tensed, remembering the paddle she’d seen in the other man’s hand. How could he think she’d be ready for this?
The paddle smacked against her ass, harder, deeper than a blow from a hand. She cried out, shaking her head, wanting to deny him but it was too late. A second blow landed, harder than the first. She struggled against the manacles, her body pressed tight against the frame. The third one tore a wild scream from her lips.
‘You can stop this with a single word.’ He smoothed the wooden paddle over her stinging backside. ‘You know that.’
She gulped, the pain easing to a deep warmth. Her pussy clenched, released and clenched again, seeking something, anything that would fill her. Her hips rolled now that he’d stopped using the paddle on her.
‘You’re horny. I can smell it. The scent of your pussy is everywhere.’ He eased the edge of the paddle between her thighs. ‘But this is only the beginning. There’s so much more to introduce you to, slut. Are you ready for more?’
‘Yes, sir.’ She sobbed the words out. ‘Please. I want more, sir.’ It was more than a want. A need. One that threatened to burn out of control.
‘Then more you shall have.’ He moved the paddle between her thighs until the edge touched her swollen nether lips. ‘As much as you can handle.’
And how much would that be?
The paddle moved swiftly, the edge slapping her pussy lips once, twice, three times, pulling soft hisses of pain from her. Then it was moved, down between her thighs, where Drake moved it, slapping the paddle from one inner thigh to the other and back again in rapid, sticking slaps.
She sobbed, twisting, moving with the blows. Blows that should have made her scream at him to stop, but she didn’t. She only screamed.
‘Do you want this to stop, girl?’ He tapped lightly between her thighs with the paddle.
‘No, sir. No I don’t. Please, don’t stop!’ Had she actually said that?
The paddle picked up the pace, slapping harder and faster between her thighs. The pain radiated up into her pussy, vibrating in time to the slaps of the paddle.
‘Are you sure?’ He leaned in close, nipping the back of her neck, the paddle never ceasing its tapping torment. ‘You screamed, little one. Screamed as if you were really in pain and afraid. Tell me to stop and I will.’
She whimpered, turning to look over her shoulder. ‘Please, don’t stop. I need more. I need …’ Oh God, what did she need? This was all happening too fast! Her hips rolled, dancing with the tap of the paddle. She needed him, needed something, something she didn’t dare name.
‘You need to be fucked, don’t you, slut?’
‘Yes, oh God, yes.’ She should have told him no. He didn’t need to know what was going through her mind and yet she’d answered without hesitation.
‘By me?’ He reached up, tangling his free hand in her hair.
‘Yes!’ Why hadn’t he gagged her? That way she wouldn’t be saying such things.
‘Then beg me to fuck you.’
‘Please, sir, fuck me!’ Why was she saying that?
He tossed the paddle aside. ‘Is that what you really want, girl? To be fucked by a man, a dominant you don’t know?’
‘Yes, sir. I want … no, I need you to fuck me.’ She squirmed as his hand cupped her heated mound.
He laughed, the sound cold and cruel, yet that only added to her need. She arched her back, pressing her bottom out to him. If he took her like this she couldn’t stop him. She’d be helpless and taken at his mercy. It didn’t matter that the reality was nothing like the fantasy her mind now offered her – that she could stop him with a single word if she desired.
In this moment she was helpless, about to be taken by a man she didn’t know.
He moved his hand from between her thighs and stepped away. A ripping sound caught her attention and then a soft tap of something hitting the floor. She frowned, uncertain what she’d heard.
Something pressed between her thighs as he placed one hand on her hip, pulling her bottom out, away from the frame. The head of his cock pressed between her swollen nether lips, filling her pussy in one hard, full stroke.
Cathy sobbed in delight, her slick inner walls clenching around his cock. Her hips rolled, pushing back as far as she could when he pulled out, only to slam back into her. His balls slapped against her tender lips, his hand tight on her hip, controlling her body as he filled her again and again.
She groaned, welcoming each deep thrust even as his free hand reached around to touch her clit, his fingers searching, finding and circling the small throbbing nub. With each new thrust her body soared a little higher. There was something else, a sensation she hadn’t counted on.
Clothing?
He was still fully dressed!
She wanted to be angry, to tell him to stop, but it felt right. This wasn’t a lover’s tryst, but a hard, fast fuck to satisfy an itch they both shared.
She wanted to move, to turn and see him, but she couldn’t. The way she was bound on the frame meant she was being taken, not made love to. That should have turned her off, but it didn’t. Instead she burned hotter, higher than she’d ever experienced before.
Each new touch to her clit was timed with a thrust. Her walls clenched, released and clenched again. A pressure built in the pit of her being and threatened to consume her. She cried out, sobbing, pleading wordlessly as her core wept, wanting him to take her harder, faster and deeper than before.
‘You’re going to come for me, but not yet.’ He buried himself deep within her core and slowly licked the back of her neck. ‘You’re going to wait until I give you permission to come. Do you understand me, girl?’
‘Yes, sir, I understand.’ She shuddered, her body struggling to regain control of itself. Once he’d said the words her body had wanted to disobey him. She tried not to move or to think of the feel of his cock as it slid slowly in and out of her but it was impossible.
He tapped one finger against her clit. ‘You want to come, don’t you?’
‘Yes,’ she groaned.
‘But you won’t, not until I let you.’ His finger moved rapidly on her clit.
‘No, sir.’ Her hips circled, her inner walls tight around his cock. She didn’t know how long she could hold out. If he kept this up much longer her body would betray her, and then what?
‘You know I’d punish you if you came without permission, don’t you?’
‘Yes, sir,’ she whimpered, struggling to still her body. Her thighs tightened and her inner walls rippled along the length of his cock.
He pulled slowly out of her body until only the tip of his cock remained within her. The slow, deliberate movement tormented her inner walls as his finger did the same with her clit. His breath was hot and heavy against the back of her neck as he played with her body, forcing her to feel every small touch, each breath, scrape of skin against skin, even the feel of his clothing brushing her body.
She couldn’t hold on any longer. ‘Sir, please!’
He growled, thrusting into her hard, fast and deep. So hard that the St Andrew’s cross groaned and the chains attached to the manacles rattled, but still he didn’t give her permission to come.
Pressure built beyond control, her body aching, threatening to spin her into the void and yet still he forced her to endure more.
‘Sir!’ she pleaded.
His finger and thumb closed on her clit, pinching it. ‘Come for me now!’
Pain and pleasure mixed in a wave that consumed her. She arched, her muscles clenching, hips writhing as she pressed back against him. He growled, thrusting, filling her, his teeth scraping against the back of her neck as he pushed her to the edge of sanity. Her ability to think fled. All she knew were the waves of pleasure that hit her one after the other until she no longer knew where one ended and the next began.
And then it was over.
With a low, sated groan he pulled free of her body, leaving her hanging in the manacles.
She’d done it, stuck her toe in the water, but in doing so she knew there was no going back to the life and the world she had known before tonight.
A stranger, this Drake, had shown her that this was where she belonged.