CHAPTER19
“Don’t be nervous.”
Kim glanced over at her best friend and frowned. “I’m not.” When Ali gave her a skeptical look, she clarified. “Not much, anyway.”
“There’s nothing to be nervous about.” Ali met her on the sidewalk and they began making their way toward Beth’s Café.
“Can’t be worse than my first night at the club, right?” Kim squared her shoulders as the café came into view. She’d never been to Beth’s Café, but she’d heard about it from a few people at work. The muffins were supposed to be phenomenal. Too bad they were closed on Sundays. She’d have to come by during the week and try it out. Especially since she now knew the owner.
Ali scoffed and knocked on the door. “I would certainly hope not.”
A few moments later, the door opened and Drew greeted them, dressed in kakis and a sweater. Kim didn’t think she’d seen him in anything other than jeans and a T-shirt before. “Come on in, ladies.”
“Thanks,” Ali said as she stepped inside and stomped her feet on the welcome mat. It had snowed the night before, leaving almost an inch on the sidewalks. Luckily, nothing much had stuck to the roads.
Kim followed Ali inside and they both removed their coats.
“I’m glad you decided to come,” Drew said to Kim. “Beth told me you might.”
“Ali and Justin thought it would be good for me.”
He nodded and gestured for them to follow him toward the back of the café where the rest of the group waited. “I’d been with Beth for a few months when she suggested it might be good for me to talk to other submissives away from the club and all the protocols there. I thought about trying to join another submissive group that meets locally, but after attending one meeting, I knew it wasn’t a good fit for me. One of the perks of being a member of Serpent’s Kiss is privacy. They were meeting in a popular restaurant at lunchtime.”
“Not exactly private,” Ali said.
“Not at all.” Drew came to a stop in front of a table full of finger sandwiches and muffins. “Help yourselves. There are some benefits to meeting here. Namely, Beth’s food.”
Ali picked up a plate and began loading it up. “You’re a lucky man.”
Drew chuckled. “Yes, I am.” He glanced over his shoulder. “I’m going to get things started. Once you have your food, come join us at the table and we’ll make sure you know everyone.”
Kim grinned and nodded, but the butterflies were back. She recognized everyone that was there from the club and she knew Drew and Jeff and Ali fairly well, but the others she’d only seen in passing. Kate, the submissive whose leash Justin had been holding on Kim’s first night at the club, was there talking to Bridget. While Kim knew who Bridget was because she also watched the coat check like Ali did, she didn’t know anything else about her.
“Relax,” Ali leaned over and whispered in Kim’s ear.
Taking a deep breath in and then slowly releasing it, Kim tried. The problem was that she didn’t know what to expect. Neither Justin nor Beth had really explained what this meeting was exactly. And when she’d asked Ali on the way there, her friend hadn’t provided a whole lot of information either. Kim didn’t like to go into situations blind and that was kind of how she felt. When she had meetings for work, she’d sometimes prepare for weeks. Nothing was left to chance. If someone asked her a question, she’d be ready for it.
This lifestyle, however, seemed to be all about unpredictability. At least for the submissive end of the relationship. Out of everything, the not knowing what was going to happen next was probably the hardest part for her. She could take being tied up, spanked, and a host of other things...as long as she was prepared.
Their plates full of a variety of goodies, Kim and Ali made their way over to the group. Everyone else was already seated and nibbling on the food in front of them.
Drew cleared his throat. “We have someone new with us today. Kim joined Serpent’s Kiss a few months ago, so you all may have seen her around the club.”
A few people around the table smiled. Others nodded. Everyone seemed friendly enough. Kim was glad the submissive she’d seen last night—the one who’d been staring her down as she sat on Justin’s lap—wasn’t present.
“Hi,” Kim said, giving a half wave to everyone at the table.
“Why don’t we all go around and say our names and how long we’ve been in the lifestyle,” Drew said. “I’ll go first. My name is Drew and I’ve been in the lifestyle for almost a year.”
He turned to his right, prompting the next person to go. “I’m Bridget. I’ve been in the lifestyle for about six years.”
Everyone went around introducing themselves. Jeff, Kate, Emma, Madison, Victoria, Haily, and Ali. Nine people in total. Kate had been in the lifestyle the longest...fifteen years. Kim was still trying to wrap her head around that, but given the little she’d seen of Kate’s interaction with her husband at the club, she guessed that made sense.
Once the introductions were done, Drew asked if anyone had something they’d like to share. Jeff spoke up first. “Nicole has been researching the violet wand. I have to admit I’m a bit nervous about it. Have any of you had any experience with it?”
“I have,” Kate said. “Master likes to play with it from time to time. It looks scarier than it is.”
Jeff nodded. “Everything I’ve found said it feels getting shocked by touching a doorknob.”
“Yes and no.” Kate picked up a mini muffin from her plate. “Getting shocked by touching a doorknob is one sharp sensation. While the violet wand feels similar, it’s not one big shock and it’s gone.” She paused. “It also depends on how high it’s turned up as well.”
He shuddered. “That doesn’t sound all that pleasant.”
Kate laughed. “Depends on your level of pain tolerance.”
The conversation went on for a while and Kim wondered why someone would want to do something like that. She understood there were people who got off on pain. Hell, when she was teetering on the edge of orgasm this morning, all it had taken was a shot of pain from Justin biting her nipple and she’d gone flying. She understood that type of pain, but lying still while someone ran something along your skin, shocking you...she didn’t see the appeal. And from the sound of it, neither did Jeff. But it appeared he was still going to do it.
Kim turned to Ali. “If he doesn’t want to do it, then why not tell his partner that?”
Ali grinned, then turned to the group. “Kim has a question.” Her friend looked at her and tilted her head toward the group, waiting.
Nothing like throwing Kim under the bus. “If you don’t want to do something, then why not just say no?”
Kate was the one who answered. “Because what we get out of pleasing our Dom is greater than having to take a little pain.”
She must have made a face because Drew jumped in to add his perspective. “Beth enjoys knife play. When she first told me, I wasn’t all that thrilled about trying it, but I did because I trusted her and knew she was in control of the scene and would take care of everything.”
Kim hadn’t heard of knife play before outside of the checklist, and since both she and Justin had marked it as a hard limit, they had skipped over it. “So she likes to cut you?”
He smiled. “No. Although, some Dominants are into cutting. Beth is more into the mind play involved.”
“I don’t understand,” Kim said. “Mind play?”
Bridget leaned forward, resting her forearms on the table. “She likes to mess with his head.”
Kim was really confused now.
“I’m always blindfolded, so I can’t see what she doing, and she makes sure before we start the scene that I’ve gotten a good look at what she’s planning to use on me.” Drew paused and one side of his mouth lifted, clearly remembering. “A lot of times she uses the knives to cut clothing from my body, or sometimes she’ll even put a butter knife in some ice and use it to write on my skin. The cold makes it feel sharper than it is.”
She knew she had to look like a deer caught in the headlines. “Why would she do that? Mess with your head, I mean?”
“Because it heightens your senses,” Emma said, chiming in for the first time since the introductions.
Bridget nodded. “You’d be amazed how stuff like that can increase pleasure in other areas.”
Kim was still reeling from the conversation when it shifted to anal play and butt plugs. She was only half listening, though. Her brain was still trying to process what Drew had shared.
He wasn’t a small man. In fact, he was taller than his Domme by at least six inches. And he was fit. Even through the sweater he was wearing, she could see the outline of his muscles.
Yet, by his own admission, he allowed himself to be tied up and knives ran along his skin while he was blindfolded. Kim couldn’t imagine the level of trust it would take to do that.
She remained quiet for the remainder of the meeting, thinking about all she’d learned and was still learning. Could she trust Justin like Drew trusted Beth or Kate trusted her husband?
Kim didn’t know.
And then the question was...what if she couldn’t? What happened then?
Even though Justin had encouraged Kim to go to the submissive meeting, he spent the entire afternoon worrying. He was hoping talking to other submissives, not only Ali, would help her. She needed a support system. A place to ask questions and get opinions from others who’d been where she was.
That didn’t make sitting on the sidelines any easier. He wanted their relationship to work. Waking up beside her that morning had been a dream come true and he wasn’t even talking about the blow job she’d given him.
There was something about Kim that drew him in. They clicked in a way he hadn’t experienced with any other woman. Having her in his arms felt right. Kissing her felt as if he were coming home and being lit on fire all at the same time. He’d suffer whatever consequences there were with Mark to have that with her for the rest of their lives. But they had to make it through their one-month trial first.
Justin spent the afternoon trying to keep himself busy. He drove to the shop to get some administrative stuff done. There was always paperwork to do for the business, especially with tax season right around the corner. But sorting through receipts and looking over payroll didn’t keep his mind from wandering.
At four-thirty, he locked up the shop and headed toward O’Brien’s, a sports bar downtown, a few blocks from Serpent’s Kiss. He and Mark tried to meet there at least once a month for dinner and drinks. Their lives had taken very different directions. They didn’t hang out with the same people anymore or go to the same functions. If they wanted to get together, they had to make an effort and so far, both of them felt it was worth it.
As Justin pulled into a parking spot and turned off the engine, he hoped his relationship with Kim didn’t change things with his best friend. It would be his one regret, but he was hoping they could get Mark to understand and accept them being together. That is, if things between them went the way he wanted.
Climbing out of his car, he was reaching for the door handle when someone yelled his name. He turned to see Mark jogging toward him. “Perfect timing.”
Mark smiled and ducked inside when Justin opened the door. “I wasn’t sure how the roads were gonna be, so I left a little early.”
It was almost completely dark, and the air temperature had plummeted. He wouldn’t be surprised if tonight was even colder than last night had been. They were in a cold spell, and he was already over it. If he’d wanted cold weather, he would have moved to Minnesota.
A hostess greeted them and showed them to a table. She handed them menus and let them know their server would be by shortly.
Neither of them needed to look over the menu. They’d been there so many times, they knew exactly what they were going to order. “First time you’ve been out today?” Justin asked.
“Yeah. I had a shit ton of emails to go through for work.”
“You do realize it’s Sunday, right? Don’t you get a day off?” Of course, he was one to talk. Justin had spent his Sunday afternoon working, too.
“I took yesterday off. Spent most of the day with a woman I’ve been seeing from the accounting department.”
Their server stopped by to take their orders. Mark ordered a steak. Justin a burger. And they both ordered beers.
Once they were alone again, Justin picked up the conversation where they’d left off. “Dating someone from the office? Is that wise? You don’t exactly have the best track record with women.”
Mark waved away his concern. “She’s an intern and only here for a few months.”
That made sense. Mark wasn’t exactly known for his long-term relationships. “How long have you been seeing her?”
The server returned with their beers, placing them on the table and then leaving them alone once more.
A sly grin appeared on Mark’s face before he took a sip of his beer. “About a week.”
More time than he’d officially been with Kim. “That new, huh?”
“Gotta keep things fresh. Getting tied down isn’t my style. Too many fish in the sea and all that.”
That was the difference between him and Mark. At least on the surface. Mark had no interest in a long-term relationship. Justin, on the other hand, wanted to settle down. He was all for marriage and kids. He just needed the right woman and for years the woman he wanted was off-limits.
“One of these days you’re going to meet someone who’ll change your mind about that,” Justin said, lifting his beer bottle to his lips.”
“You haven’t found anyone yet, so there’s little hope for me.” Mark chuckled.
Justin let the comment go. He didn’t want to talk about Kim. Not tonight.
To shift the subject away from women, Justin commented on the basketball game currently playing on one of the big screen televisions not far from their table. They spent the next hour commenting on the game, the players, and how St. Louis really needed to get a pro team again.
“Some guys from work are getting together next weekend to watch the game. You interested?” Mark asked as they put their coats on and got ready to leave.
“What time?”
Both Justin and Mark left a nice tip and the table, and they made their way toward the front. “Four o’clock next Sunday at my place.”
The first thing that came to Justin’s mind was Kim. He didn’t know what her plans were, but he also didn’t want to assume. They’d be together Friday and Saturday night at the club. After two days of playing, she’d probably need a break. “Sure. Want me to bring anything?”
“Bring that dip you make. It will go nicely with the wings I’m grilling.”
They said goodbye at the door and Justin flipped up the collar of his coat as he walked to his vehicle. The wind had picked up again. He was already ready for spring, and it was only January.
When he arrived home, the first thing he did was check his messages to make sure he hadn’t missed a call from Kim. Not that he was expecting her to call, but he’d kind of been hoping she would. His curiosity about her meeting earlier was eating at him.
Satisfied but a little disappointed that she hadn’t called, he stripped out of his clothes and ambled into the bathroom to take a shower. His dinner with Mark had gone better than he’d expected. He hadn’t spent the entire night dodging talk of who he was dating, but he knew that had a lot to do with the distraction the game had provided.
Mark loved sports, so if anything was going to get him off the topic of women, it was that. With playoffs right around the corner, his best friend had been invested in the outcome of the game.
If nothing else, it had given Justin some hope for the future. He and Mark could hang out without bringing Justin’s relationship with Kim into it. All they had to do was get over a few rough hurdles first.