by Marlee Wray
* * *
Master D was handsome, articulate, and rather distinguished. If asked to guess, Kate would’ve put him in his mid-forties. He could easily have been a buff version of one of her professors.
He asked questions in a low voice that had her leaning forward. He wanted to know about her background and former BDSM experiences, but his interest didn’t put her on edge. She found herself talking about things she’d never told anyone. When she got a little tearful, he was sympathetic without causing her to break down further.
“I thought maybe I’d just go back to fantasizing, reading books and blogs and things. But… after a while it just didn’t feel like enough. And I guess, too, I got over what happened. Mostly I have, I think.”
“You’re quite brave, Kate.”
“Oh, I don’t know.”
“I do,” he said firmly. He smiled at her then. “Let me tell you a little about us and then if you’d like, a tour.”
“Master Randall said that I’d only have a tour if we decided I’d become a member?”
“I’m anticipating that we’ll both think that a tour’s appropriate.”
Her lips were dry. She smiled and licked them. “I hope so. And thank you.”
He nodded. He explained that the club’s membership fees were percentage-based with more affluent members paying more than those who hadn’t accumulated as much wealth.
She flushed. “I hope to be successful enough one day to be among the group that pays higher dues, but at the moment—” She flushed.
“That’s fine. A girl in school may pay just a few dollars a year as a token.” He looked at her intently. “I don’t want you to get the wrong impression though. It happens that more of the dues come from the club’s dominants, but we do have a few submissives who pay a great deal as well. This is a not a situation in which anyone is paying anyone else to participate in anything. We strongly discourage the club’s dominants from buying gifts for the club’s submissives and prohibit monetary gifts. Money, when one doesn’t have enough of it, can be coercive. Do you understand?”
“You don’t want someone like me, who’s on financial aid at an Ivy League school, to feel like this is a way to finance college?”
“Exactly. I never want you to feel like you’re prostituting yourself, but it goes beyond that. I want you to extend your limits when and if you decide you’re ready to do that. I don’t want you to feel that whether you can afford your rent is dependent on changing a hard limit to please a club’s dominant. That’s a dangerous and slippery slope. This is a club for like-minded people to satisfy their needs and cravings. And that’s all it is. No one is ever going to pay your rent or your tuition. And no one is going to pressure you into changing your hard limits.”
She smiled. “I think it’s a good policy. A smart one.” She tucked her hair behind her ears.
“That being said, the club has a good relationship with a couple of exclusive boutiques that provide some specialty clothing. The club has a dress code, so we have an account that covers part of the cost of that clothing. And that’s a discount that’s used by all members who choose to shop within those establishments. It’s also not uncommon for members to donate to what we call the Clubwear Fund. So things can be very affordable.”
She nodded. “I didn’t know what to wear tonight. Master Randall said I should just wear a dress that suits me.”
“And you did. Well done.”
The tap on the door made her glance over her shoulder.
“Come,” Master D said.
The door opened, and he was there. The guy who looked like he belonged in a Fast & Furious movie.
“Rory, this is Kate. She’s thinking about joining us. Kate, this is Master Rory.”
“Welcome,” he said.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
He had the most amazing hazel eyes. She realized that she’d been staring at him for a little too long and dropped her gaze, biting her lip.
“D, Talia wanted to know if you need to cancel your scene with her?” Master Rory asked.
“No,” D said, glancing at his watch. “Kate and I are almost done talking. J’s going to explain more when he takes her on a tour, assuming she’s inclined.”
“Yes, very,” Kate said to D, her cheeks still warm.
“J’s all the way over on Dungeon Row,” Master Rory said.
“He won’t be long. Rory, you’ll look after Kate while she waits?”
“I’m not here for the Canada Dry,” Rory said with a glance at the mini-fridge in the corner.
“Good,” Master D said, taking Kate’s hand. “I’ll see you in a little while.”
“Thank you, Master D.”
“Of course. We’re happy you’re here.” To Rory, D only inclined his head before he left.
Master Rory, who was shirtless, was so sculpted he could’ve been in an illustration in an artist’s anatomy book. He had a black sun tattoo on his shoulder and barbed wire circling his enormous bicep. He took her breath away.
“Want something to drink? D goes for the ginger ale, but he’s got other things in there.”
“I am thirsty,” she said, moistening her lips.
His gaze lingered on her mouth. “How about hungry? There’s food in the lounge.”
She shook her head.
“Shame. Seeing those lips wrapped around anything would be a show worth watching.”
She swallowed, unable to meet his gaze. She felt like her entire body flushed.
“Name your poison. Strictly nonalcoholic while there are still decisions to be made.”
“Um,” she said. She was having trouble focusing. She’d lowered her gaze and now she couldn’t tear it away from his six-pack.
“Why don’t I choose for you? Since you’re busy,” he said mildly.
“Sorry,” she said, dragging her eyes up. “You’re just—”
“What?” he asked, moving to the front of the desk and leaning against it.
He was close enough to touch. She tucked her fingers under her legs as a precaution.
He leaned forward and caught her chin in a firm grip and then tipped her face up. “I asked you a question. Answer me.” His voice was so forceful it took her breath away.
“Like a fantasy come to life.”
“Which fantasy?” he asked.
“All of them,” she whispered, staring up into his eyes.
“Hope she invited you to put hands on her,” a voice said from the doorway.
“She did. An unspoken invitation,” Rory said, brushing his thumb along her jaw before he released her face. “Unless I misread things. Did I, Kate?”
She swallowed and shook her head, her jaw still tingling from where he’d held it.
Rory stood, bringing his body close enough to lick. Then he moved away, and she finally turned her attention to the man in the doorway.
“Um, hi,” she said, standing up. “I’m Kate.” She extended a shaky hand.
The man in the doorway was handsome, too. In the same way that D was. Tan, fit, nice features. He was probably in his early forties, though it was hard to tell. He was very tall, probably six-four or six-five.
“Kate’s thirsty,” Master Rory said, pulling her attention back to him. “You got here too soon. I never heard what she likes to drink.”
“Water’s fine,” she said softly.
Master Rory got a bottle, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to her.
“Thank you.”
He nodded. “I’ll see you later.”
Chapter Two
Rory rapped his knuckles on D’s open door.
D looked up and said, “Second thoughts about that ginger ale?”
Rory grinned. “The only things I put ginger in are sushi and girls,” he said, dropping into the chair across from D’s desk. “And come to think of it, I don’t really put it in the sushi most of the time.”
“To each his own,” D said. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m sure you know what I want to know.”
/> “Yes, Kate accepted our invitation to join the club.”
Rory’s brows drew together. “That was never in question. I want to know who you’re going to assign to train her.”
“Just because you could tell she was a submissive, didn’t mean an invitation was a forgone conclusion.”
“I know that.”
“So why are you sure she’s a good fit for the Marquis Club?”
“Nikki. She drove in with her, for about forty minutes. Nikki thought Kate was perfect for us. Figured Nikki would know.”
D nodded. “Nikki is a good judge of character. There was a prospective dominant who Nikki talked to for ten minutes at the desk. Afterward, she slipped me a message, warning me to watch out for him. I had the private investigators dig deeper. He’d used an alias at a couple of his former clubs.”
“He was bad news?”
“Very.”
“Maybe Nikki should be on the selection committee.”
“Maybe.”
“So about Kate. Let me.”
“Let you what? Train her?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not eligible yet. It’s in our bylaws that a dominant has to be a member of the club for a year before being considered to train subs. After a year, a dom is recommended for the role and then the board votes on it.”
“I’ve been here six months, but I’m not new. In the life for almost a decade. I was a DM and taught subs the ropes for four years at clubs in New York and Jersey. I’m sure you’ve got a file. Bet you heard I was good at it.”
“You’ll acknowledge that we’re different from other clubs?”
Rory nodded.
“If you want to request a change to the bylaws, you’re welcome to.”
“The board doesn’t meet again until next month, does it?”
“Correct.”
“So Kate’s training wouldn’t start until the question gets settled? Which would hold up her coming to the club?”
“Yes.”
“You could push up the meeting.”
“The board only meets in person, Rory.”
“But you could call a meeting sooner if you wanted to.”
“Three board members live out of state. You expect them to come from California and Wyoming to discuss a change in the bylaws to affect the training of one sub?”
Rory shrugged. “Is there anything in the rules that would allow you to just make a choice at your discretion?”
“No. I invoke executive power only in cases of emergency.”
Rory folded his arms across his chest. “So who? Shay?”
“No. Shay declined. As he usually does. J’s probably the better choice anyway. There are some things in her background…”
“What things?” Rory demanded.
D raised his brows. “Conversations in this office that are confidential stay that way.”
“I might need to know.”
“Why?”
“For when I’m doing scenes with her. If there’s something I should watch out for or places I shouldn’t try to take her.”
“You’ll know her hard limits. She’ll have her safeword. They’ll protect her, just like any other sub.”
Rory wasn’t satisfied. He wanted to know everything about her. He wanted her, period.
“Will you tell J since he’s the one training her?”
“No, but I’m sure she’ll tell him what he needs to know. He’s good at getting subs to confide in him.”
“As good as you?”
“Probably not,” D said with a smile.
“Kate would be safe with me. I’m not much of a talker before or after a scene, but I know where a sub is. I know some of them are too intimidated to do a scene with me, but if you ask the ones I’ve been with… hell, ask Nikki. I knew in thirty seconds that she doesn’t like to be touched outside of a scene. So out of the scene rooms, I never do. Even for aftercare, I put an arm on the back of the couch and let her lean into me. She comes and goes when she wants to.”
“Rory, you don’t have to convince me of anything. I’ve watched you, just like I’ve watched every member of the club. I think your self-assessment is completely correct. You’re very intuitive. I’d trust you with anyone for any type of scene.”
“Good. Then make an exception, and let me train Kate.”
D sighed. “I know you connected with her. All the more reason to let J teach her the rules, so she can concentrate.”
“What do you mean? She’d pay as much attention to me as she would to J.”
“I know she’d pay attention to you, Rory. She was so interested in paying attention to you that when I was having her sign forms, she looked up every time someone passed the doorway to see who it was. Who do you suppose she was looking for?”
Rory couldn’t help but smile. “At least I made the recruitment process easier.”
“Let’s think about what’s best for Kate as a submissive in the club. Let J do the training. She’ll be available to the membership for scenes soon enough, and I have no doubt she’ll come straight to you when she’s free to.”
“When?”
“J’ll be the judge, but I’m sure it’ll be sooner than if you request a change in the bylaws.”
“All right,” Rory said, getting up.
“You’re the only one, by the way,” D said.
“Only one what?”
“Who figured out, without a discreet word from me, that Nikki doesn’t like being touched outside a scene.”
“Not even J, the sub whisperer?”
D laughed. “Not even J.”
“Doesn’t matter. He’s still top dog today.”
“That’s one of way of looking at it.”
“Later, D.”
Rory texted Shay, hoping he hadn’t left. Where u at?
Shay: Leavin now. U?
Rory: Time for a drink?
Shay: Sure.
Lounge, Rory typed, then pressed send.
In the lounge, Rory went into the cupboard for the Lagavulin he kept there.
There were strict restrictions on how much doms drank while play was in session. Rory knew he could handle his liquor and that it didn’t impair him until he was pretty far gone, but as a DM, he’d seen scenes go sideways when a dom was drunk. He’d had to bounce men from clubs, too, so he didn’t mind the rules. There were plenty of hours left to drink if he felt like it, like when the club was going dark.
Shay came in and dropped onto the leather couch in front of the empty glass.
“This?” Rory asked, holding up the bottle.
“Yeah.”
Rory poured Scotch in Shay’s glass. “Tell me about J.”
Shay’s brows rose. “Why? Problem?”
“No.”
Shay took a swallow of the Scotch and waited. Rory did, too. He and Shay had become friends over the past couple of months, but they still didn’t know each other well.
“He’s from somewhere out west. I think out there he’s a real estate developer. In here, he watches the floor like a hawk, but doesn’t interfere unless there’s real trouble. Cool in a crisis. I think he helped D set up the club.”
“Trains a lot of subs?”
“More than anyone else.”
“How long does it usually take him?”
“Depends on the girl.”
Rory finished off his glass and poured himself two fingers more then closed the bottle and slid it onto Shay’s half of the table.
“I guess he took on the new girl, Kate?”
Rory nodded.
“Well, it’ll be a while till she’s on the floor without him. He doesn’t turn the young ones loose quickly.”
Rory frowned. “Why did you say no?”
“There’s a lot to this place. A lot of rules and a lot of members. Teaching subs the ropes in different areas, sometimes helping them understand what their hard limits should be, it’s time-consuming. Early scenes with a sub can be great, or they can need a ton of reassurance. Then when they’re
ready to do scenes with other members, you have to think about who to give her to for a scene and sometimes brief them on what she can handle and how far to go. It’s never just a night’s orientation with someone brand new to clubs. Also, all that time spent talking and doing scenes makes them feel close to me. Too many of them get attached and want me to collar them when the training’s over. It’s the intensity of doing scenes together and of really listening to them. A girl who’s new to the life isn’t used to being able to disclose all that and to live out those fantasies. The lines between what’s love and what’s just me being a good dom and teacher get blurred.”
Rory clenched his jaw. He did not want the new girl getting that close to J. Or anyone.
“Sometimes they’re conflicted about what they want,” Shay said, shaking his head. “We don’t get many tourists or really damaged girls here because we’re good at checking people out before we invite them in, but I know you’ve seen it at other clubs.”
Rory nodded.
“You taught subs the ropes at other places?”
“Yeah, doms, too,” Rory said. “Do this. Watch out for that. He or she’s your responsibility when they’re helpless, so you better fucking take care of them. And for Christ’s sake, don’t lose the key to your handcuffs, because you’ll look like a douchebag having to call the cops to un-cuff her.”
Shay laughed. “Well, in a few months you’ll be eligible to start training some. Always good to have a few doms who are capable and willing.”
“Does J have a sub or girlfriend outside the club?”
“Don’t know. Doubt it. He’s here on his own a lot. Most of the guys with subs either met them here or request membership for them so they can bring them in. If they don’t do that, they usually stop coming as much.”
“No one’s house is as tricked out as the club though.”
“No. I’ve seen some elaborate home setups, but you wouldn’t do anything on the scale of the club in a private home. Why would you need to unless you were selling tickets?”
Rory rubbed a hand over his head. “Yeah. And why the hell would you want to do that? Role-playing scenes with an audience are bad enough.”
“You mind people watching a scene?”
“Not a regular one. That energy from the people watching can be good for the scene.”
