by Golden Angel
"Good. And we're expecting you to bring the juicy gossip, as the only single one..."
"Oh no," Maria said, groaning as she sank back against the couch. "Please don't tell me you told them about Rick."
Jackie laughed. "Of course I told them about Rick! But don't worry, I didn't mention that he might like to do something freaky to you - you know how Ava is. By the way... now that you bring it up," she said in a sly, coaxing tone of voice. "Did you ever find out exactly what kind of freaky thing he wants to do to you?"
"Um..." Maria's mind went blank as she groped for words. To tell the truth? Not to tell the truth? Jackie was pretty open-minded - obviously since her husband apparently had a bit of a foot fetish - but how open-minded was she really? And if Maria was going to lie, what lie to tell? Of course, now that she'd hesitated, she couldn't just say she didn't know. Dammit.
"Oooo!" Jackie obviously smelled dirt from the excited squeal in her voice. She was probably bouncing up and down with excitement. Not just because she wanted Maria to find a man and join the married state of the sisters, but because girl loved gossip. "You did find out! What is it? Is it awful?"
From the enthusiasm in Jackie's voice, it almost sounded like she hoped it was something awful. Maria had to laugh at her sister's silliness.
"I guess it depends on your point of view..." she said slowly, drawing out the moment as she took a sip of wine. Might as well have some fun being dramatic about it. Better than being super serious about it, which might tip her sister off that there was more going on than Maria was going to tell her. Not that Maria really knew how to explain everything that Rick wanted from a relationship, so she just went for the simple, short explanation. "He's into spanking."
There was a long pause, which made Maria shift nervously. She hadn't realized how much her sister's reaction would mean to her until just this moment. If Jackie was completely against it, would she be able to talk Maria completely out of trying anything with Rick? Even if Maria was starting to think that she really might want to try?
"Giving or receiving?"
Suddenly Maria wished she and Jackie were having this conversation in person, even though she was blushing up a storm, because she really couldn't tell what her sister was thinking. There was nothing in Jackie's voice to even give her a little hint.
"Definitely giving."
Another long pause. Maria swirled her wine in her glass. Stretched out her legs and stared at her toes as she flexed them against her coffee table. The pedicure she'd gotten with Jackie last week was still holding strong.
"Wow..." Jackie said finally, her voice almost a whisper. "So he's like, all fifty shades of grey?"
"I have no idea what that means."
"What?! Maria! How have you not heard of 50 Shades of Grey?"
"I've heard of it. Isn't it a Twilight spin-off?"
Jackie groaned. "You're hopeless. Never mind. Not what I'm interested in. Are you going to do it?"
"I don't know..." Maria hesitated and then decided to give her sister a little bit more of the truth. After all, she really did value Jackie's opinion and she wanted to know if it would change if Jackie knew Maria was considering more than just something casual with someone who wanted to spank her. And more, but she really didn't feel comfortable telling Jackie about the more. "He's not just looking for a good time."
This time the long pause seemed weightier. Maria took another sip of wine and waited.
"So.... you're saying the spanker wants a relationship with you?"
Maria sat up straight. "If you ever meet him, you are not allowed to call him that."
"Of course I wouldn't say it to him."
"Or if he's anywhere nearby," Maria said, going into her 'stern older sister' mode. She could only imagine how Rick and his incredibly intimidating group of dominant buddies would react to that nickname. On the other hand, she was willing to bet that Olivia would be amused. So would the other women, but they probably wouldn't be able to show it. From what she'd seen on Saturday, spanking might be the least of their worries.
"Yeah, yeah okay... soooo... if I'm going to be meeting him, does that mean that you're actually going to date him? A guy that wants a real relationship?"
From the hope in her sister's voice, Maria had the sudden suspicion that Rick could want to do just about anything other than really hurt her and her sister would support him as long as he was looking for a real relationship and not just a casual fling. Great. Not that she thought Jackie was doing it out of pity, like some of her other relatives might, but it meant that Jackie's standards for her were apparently lower than her own. Blegh.
"I haven't decided yet." And wasn't that the truth.
Jackie sighed. "Alright, well I have to go, Daniel just got home... but Maria, I want you to seriously think about this. Cuz I can tell you like this guy, I could tell you liked him even when you were saying you just wanted something casual, and I don't want his um... interests to put you off. Especially if he's smart enough to want more than just a fling with you. Okay? Like... think about it. Give him a chance."
"Yeah, I'll think about it," Maria said, inwardly sighing as they said goodbye. She could hear the masculine rumble of her brother-in-law's voice in the background, filled with obvious delight at seeing his wife at the end of a long day. Must be nice.
But she hadn't told Jackie everything that Rick wanted from a relationship, because she really wasn't sure her sister would understand. And she was a little scared. What if Jackie judged her for wanting to try out the things that Rick wanted? Not just the spanking, but literally giving over her sexual control to a man? Letting him decide when and how she orgasmed? Her sister was open-minded, but there were limits.
Especially if Jackie realized how aroused it made Maria. Not something she really wanted to share with any of her sisters. Although she bet the ladies of Stronghold would understand.
******
Mornings just weren't the same without Maria. Rick had half-heartedly hoped she might show up on Tuesday morning, but she didn't. He wasn't sure whether his hungover performance the day before had helped or hindered him. At least she'd stopped to help him. He'd definitely needed that help, although he'd also used the opportunity to press himself up against all those soft curves… and get her into his apartment, and into his bedroom, and to kiss her. It had been a good excuse, which probably meant he was a bastard, but he didn't care.
She hadn't run screaming. She just didn't seem to have made up her mind yet.
Waiting on tenterhooks was not his style, but he was trying to be good. Trying to wait her out and give her the space and time that she needed was making him temperamental. He wasn't sure if it was the hangover or his nerves from not knowing what Maria was going to decide that made him so snappy, but Justin and Adam avoided him pretty much all day. Which was fine, he was happy to be left alone with his pounding head and his circular thoughts.
Another man might not be so patient. Another man might decide that he wanted a woman who knew she wanted him. But Rick was pretty sure that she did and that she was just a bit scared. Hesitant. It was a big step. So he was trying to wait for her to figure out what she wanted. To learn from Liam, who had tried to use scare tactics on Hilary to get her to stay away, just because he'd been attracted to her but didn't think she'd be able to handle what he wanted. Especially since it hadn’t worked when he’d tried it on Maria anyway.
It was frustrating as fuck.
Tuesday slid by with no word from her. So did Wednesday. Fortunately, he had distractions in the form of working for Adam, helping Andrew deliver a heavy table that he'd custom-made for a client, and, finally, Wednesday evening, by helping out Angel with the women's self-defense class she was teaching at Stronghold. It was the first time any of the guys were going to get even a peek at the classes. Even though Patrick owned the place, Angel had told him that interrupting class - even just to look in - would be disruptive to the sense of security that the women would have by it being an all-female class.
> So when she'd asked for volunteers among Adam's friends to help with the last day and her equivalent of a final exam, Rick, Patrick and Andrew had all jumped at the opportunity. Actually, he'd been rather surprised that the other guys hadn't. Liam had to teach his own classes in the evenings, and he knew that Adam was there working out tonight, but Justin and Chris had actually been asked not to participate by Jessica. She’d told them she’d be more comfortable without them there, which had both of them grumbling but they’d respected her wishes. Rick knew Andrew was looking forward to rubbing it in Chris’ face that he was able to be there.
"Oh good, you're here!" Angel said, grinning as he came in the door. Patrick and Andrew were already there, putting on some bulky padding with dubious expressions on their faces. He couldn't blame them; the padding was at least three inches thick and made them look like Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots. They looked ridiculous. "Come on over and get padded up."
Angel was adorable in yoga pants and a tank top that show-cased her curves, her curls pulled back into a high ponytail that bounced along behind her. When he was a kid, Rick would have wanted to tug on that ponytail. Just for fun. Now he couldn't help but think of Maria's curls and how much longer and thicker they'd be in a similar hairstyle. Easy to wind around his hand.
"I feel like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man," Patrick said, complaining. Even though the pads were a dark red color, Rick could see what he meant. Patrick was a big guy anyway, with that much padding on he looked like twice his usual size. The helmet part hung loosely from his fingers; obviously he wasn't going to put that on until he absolutely had to.
"Yeah, but just think, we could probably get hit by a car right now and not even feel it," said Andrew cheerfully. He launched himself at Patrick, chest out and arms back, and bounced off with enough force that he couldn't regain his footing and ended up rolling onto the ground. Angel and Rick burst out laughing as Patrick loomed over him, trying to cross his arms and failing miserably because of all the padding. Andrew rocked himself, waving his arms and legs in the air. "Help! I'm a turtle and I can't get up!"
"Thank god Chris couldn't be here," Patrick muttered as he reached down and grabbed Andrew's wrist. "All I need is two of you acting like five year olds."
"Here," said Angel, still giggling as she helped Rick slide the arm pads up over his bicep. Another one covered his elbow, and then his forearm. He could move, but it wasn't exactly an easy movement. He grinned as Angel helped him with the rest of the pads while he watched Andrew continuing to try and bounce off of Patrick. The larger man just took it with a grim but painfully patient look on his face. Andrew and Chris were good friends because they had a similar sense of humor, but it wasn't often that Andrew was playful like this. At least, not in years. Which meant that Patrick was going to let him get away with it where he definitely wouldn't put up with it from anyone else.
Well, maybe Jared. But if Jared did what Andrew was doing, it would probably be Patrick hitting the ground. He wasn’t ever playful like that anyway, thankfully for the sake of all their health.
"Alright children," Angel said, clapping her hands together once she was finished with Rick. She sounded like a school teacher, getting the attention of her students. A nursery school teacher. "Time to stop playing around."
The malevolent look Patrick gave her would have sent some subs - like Jessica or Hilary and probably even Lexie - straight to their knees, but Angel just smiled up at him, ignoring it. Rick wondered how Adam managed her at home. Even though Adam had never wanted a 24/7 total power exchange, he tended to try and dominate and control every aspect of his life. Whereas Angel wasn't exactly easily controlled. Rick had seen her go all soft and subby at the club, but when they weren't in a scene, she sometimes acted like a Domme. Like right now.
She explained, in more detail, what she wanted of them. They'd already known this was going to be the 'final exam' of the class, and that they were going to be playing the role of an attacker so that the women could practice what they'd learned over the past weeks. But Angel wanted some very specific things. One woman at a time was going to come in, the others were going to wait out in the lobby, and Angel wanted them to stand in the center of a padded ring she'd set up. The guys were going to circle around the woman, talking in character so that she could hear them, but she wasn't to open her eyes or try to get away until one of them grabbed her.
The goal was to get away. Angel had left three 'openings' in the circle she'd made of the pads (which looked kind of like 2x4 blocks of wood) for the women to 'escape' through. Tthe guys weren't supposed to hinder their escape too much. Obviously the women couldn't actually hurt them with all the padding they had on, so they had to mime their injuries.
It sounded like fun, except for the part where they were supposed to say creepy shit to the subs. Rick wasn't sure how comfortable he was with that. Andrew grinned at the prospect, but then he was a sadist as well as a Dom. Being able to combine scaring some subbies while helping them had to be his idea of a good night. To Rick's surprise, Patrick looked a bit like he anticipated it too.
Then again, Lexie was in the class.
They could hear feminine laughter and chattering coming from the lobby area, and Angel gave them a final grin as she went to get their first victim.
Andrew grinned, stretching out his arms as much as he could even though he was hindered by the padding. "Good thing we've got all these pads on... otherwise we'd have to worry about the Dommes going for our balls."
"I thought Olivia had decided not to take the class," Rick said, looking up in surprise.
"She's not, but Lisa and Erin did," Patrick said, rumbling. He was shifting, almost uncomfortably, as if trying to find one of his usual stances and was unable to because of the bulky pads. Hard to project an aura of dominance when you felt like a marshmallow ready for roasting. Or maybe already roasted, considering the color of the pads.
"Well this might be even more fun than I expected," Andrew said, grinning. Obviously he was looking forward to tweaking the Dommes’ tails. It wasn't something that anyone would risk on a regular day, but hell, they had permission for it now. Chris was going to be super bummed he'd missed this.
Angel brought in the first woman, a thirty-something sweet little subbie named Laura. She was dressed in workout clothes and had pads on her knees, elbows and wrists, which meant that she would still be able to move. Laura looked nervous, but as she got closer and realized who it was underneath all that padding, she giggled. Her high energy didn't dissipate at all, she was practically bouncing on her toes, but she didn't look as scared anymore.
Of course, Angel noticed too. "Now, forget who they are. Remember, you're going to stand in the center, don't move until one of them grabs you, and then do what you need to in order to get away. Okay?"
"Okay," Laura said, looking a bit nervous again after Angel said the grabbing part. Still, she gamely went into the center of the circle and closed her eyes.
There was an awkward pause for a moment as he, Patrick and Andrew all looked at each other. Angel rolled her eyes and made an urging motion with her hands, and Andrew stepped forward, growling under his breath.
"Hey pretty girl..."
Patrick and Rick both started to circle around her, Patrick breathing heavily on purpose so that she could hear him. Probably couldn't think of anything to say.
"Where you going?"
"Whatcha doing?'
Going back and forth, taking turns talking, Rick and Andrew tossed out questions and compliments, making their voices as low and rough as possible. It wasn't really about what they were saying, but about how it sounded, Rick realized. Laura's head was swiveling back and forth, her hands clenching into little fists and then stretching out again. The waiting was getting to her. Angel looked at Rick and stroked her finger gently down her own arm.
Taking the hint, Rick reached out and trailed his finger across Laura's shoulder. She flinched but didn't move from place.
Then Andrew grabbed her arm from the
other side. Laura shrieked as her eyes flew open and she whipped her arm out of his grip, faster than Rick would have thought she'd be able to.
"NO!" she yelled, as she followed up the spin-out with a punch right to Andrew's chest. He grunted as she took a step back away from him, obviously surprised by both her quickness and her aggressiveness. Not the sweet little subbie they'd seen in the club, not at all. Patrick and Rick both loomed closer, not wanting to overwhelm her completely, but still playing their own roles. She spun around and kicked Patrick in the shin, shouting "NO!" again as she did so, and he actually staggered a bit too.
Rick found out why when he got a kick to the gut. Apparently the padding made Laura feel like she didn't need to hold back, she was giving 100% to her blows. It didn't hurt, but it did knock him back, especially because the bulky padding already had him a little bit off balance. Laura sprinted for the opening in the circle of pads, jumping up and down as soon as she was outside to celebrate her escape.
"Great!" Angel said, high-fiving her.
Flushed with pride, Laura reached out and grabbed Angel for a hug, who hugged her back just as fiercely. It wasn't until she looked back at the Doms that she'd just hit and kicked that Laura lost a little bit of her exuberance.
"Good job," Patrick said, echoing Angel's sentiments, giving Laura an encouraging smile. Andrew and Rick immediately followed his lead and saw the sparkle come back into Laura's eyes and he realized that she'd been a bit worried about how the Doms might react. As soon as she got her reassurance, from the owner of Stronghold no less, she was flying higher than ever.
Rick realized that by asking the Doms to be her test dummies, Angel had set up the final exam so that the subs would be taking on men that they usually craved approval from, so that when they got it, their self-confidence would go even higher. Laura was practically glowing as she went out the back where Angel had set up drinks and food for a small post-class party on the patio out there, while Angel went to get Victim #2.
