Tied Between

by Kira Barker

  As I looked her over, she studied me with equal interest, and I started to wonder what Jack had told her about me in the past—or today.

  She broke our staring match shy of letting it become awkward, smiling sweetly at me.

  “Nice to meet you. You look different than I pictured you, if you don’t mind me saying so.”

  I didn’t know what to make of that, so I left it at a cryptic, “Likewise.”

  I was surprised—and just a little taken aback—when she laughed rather than frowned.

  “Depending on who has been telling you about me, I’m sure that’s an understatement.”

  Her eyes practically twinkled as she said that, and I couldn’t help but wonder exactly what kind of mischief the two of them together could have come up with if it hadn’t been all about sex between them. Jack’s reply to that just underlined my guess.

  “Just because you’re pretty much the only woman who has ridden me to the point where I thought my dick would fall off doesn’t mean that you have a reputation.”

  “Oh, but it does,” she quipped back, and her smile got just a little sharp as she looked from Jack to me. It gave me a strange kind of satisfaction to see that she didn’t seem that happy about not being able to give a repeat performance of… that. “I guess congratulations are in order?”

  “What for?” I hated being so dense, but that sounded rather ominous.

  Raven shrugged, her smile getting even less friendly.

  “For taming the untamable? Didn’t think I’d see the day some woman manages to domesticate Jack Richter.”

  I gave him a sidelong glance that he reacted to with a dazzling grin. Fucker.

  “Wasn’t exactly my fault alone,” I deflected, although it was strange that I actually felt defensive about that.

  “Oh?” Raven replied, her surprise clearly exaggerated but real. I shot Jack another look, not quite sure how to reply, but he already had a deflective smile in place.

  “Just because I don’t want to have sex with you doesn’t mean I’m domesticated,” he pointed out.

  Simon took that moment to return, a black—what else?—gym bag slung over his shoulder. He spotted us as soon as he stepped off the stairs and came over, his eyes skipping between Jack and me on one side, and Raven on the other. He kept it at a respectful but curt nod to her before he turned to me.

  “We still have thirty to forty-five minutes of waiting time. Do you want to go back in or wait out here?”

  Jack didn’t even react to the implied news, making me wonder if I’d really been the only one not coming here expecting me to shed my clothes at one point of the evening. He also didn’t grimace or flinch or something, which made me feel just a little less antsy. Raven was watching our exchange avidly, though, pretty much negating that effect.

  “I don’t mind either. I haven’t really had dinner yet, but I don’t think it would be wise for me to stuff myself in the meantime.”

  Simon gave me a “no shit” look while Jack snorted under his breath yet kept it civil. No need to recount that one incident last week when he’d gotten handsy just after I’d polished off the better half of the pizza we’d ordered for dinner. Let’s just say that even if you know each other forever, it’s still embarrassing as hell to let out the monster burp of the century when you’re about to play tonsil hockey.

  “Oh, so you’re here with Simon, really,” Raven stated, her eyes doing another quick to-and-fro between us. “I thought you were banging Jack.”

  From the corner of my eye I could see Simon tense, but Jack continued to smile as if she’d complimented his choice of wardrobe—black T-shirt and jeans, because apparently we only had one color of clothes at home.

  “That’s not really a contradiction, you know?” he replied, sounding more relaxed about it than I could have pulled off.

  Raven’s eyes narrowed, and a shrewd look plastered itself onto her face. “So you, what, draw straws who gets to screw her when? Doesn’t that get terribly exhausting?”

  She said that part to me, but I could tell that it was more for the guys. I couldn’t help but wonder why exactly there was that note of disdain in her voice. Moreover, it made me wonder what bad beef was between her and Simon that they both seemed ready to put on boxing gloves any moment now.

  “Not everything has to be all black or white every time,” Simon replied, just feeding the flames. “Not everyone is as narrow-minded as you are.”

  It was a strange accusation to utter in a place where pink latex tutus didn’t draw anything but appreciative, if any, attention, but Raven didn’t look particularly offended. Instead, the look she gave me pretty much dismissed me, which pissed me off.

  “Ah, I see,” she practically purred, her lips moving into a smirk. “Well, have fun while it lasts. Makes sense, I guess. Isn’t that the usual cliché? Fuck a million women when all you really want to do is suck cock?”

  Neither of the guys said anything, and while I felt hot anger blaze up my spine, I managed to keep my trap shut as I watched her saunter off, disappearing into the main room. At least that took care of my latent anxiety, because suddenly not seeming meek enough sounded damn fine to me.

  “What was that about?” I asked when no one made a move to explain.

  “That was Raven,” Simon said, disdain heavy in his voice. Glancing at Jack, he added, “I’ll never get how you could stick your dick into that.”

  “She doesn’t really talk when you fuck her hard enough,” Jack replied, but didn’t sound too concerned. Somehow, that annoyed me just as much.

  “Anyone want to fill in the blanks for me?” I asked, not caring that I sounded like a bristling cat.

  Simon was only too happy to enlighten me. “Back when I was still Beth’s sub but starting to think about picking up the whip myself, she invited Raven to give me a taste. She had enough experience but wasn’t too set in her ways or demanding, a good match. When we chatted online, everything seemed perfect. Only that the day when she agreed to meet with me for a face-to-face talk, she was a little early, and Beth wasn’t yet done working me over. In particular, she wasn’t yet done having me suck off that other male sub who was visiting and she’d invited to join us, after expressly asking me if I was okay with that, mind you.” It was pretty clear that this wasn’t the part of the memory that had his shoulders still hunched. “Anyway, she walked in on us and started screaming, then cursed us out and took off. And since then things have been a little strained between us.”

  I couldn’t help but grin at the hilarity of the situation, although I could understand where it might not be something Simon felt like laughing over.

  “Seriously? She bitched out Beth in her own dungeon?”

  Simon shrugged, some of the tension leaving his body.

  “Trust me, Beth looked about as surprised as you about it. I think that’s the only reason why she still allows Raven on the premises. She’s not really big on people questioning her authority, but what she doesn’t tolerate is intolerance. But Raven usually keeps it to small barbs here and there. What I still don’t get is why you…” he glared at Jack “…ever found it okay to have sex with her.”

  A muscle jumped in Jack’s cheek as he gnashed his teeth, but his voice was even as he replied.

  “Correct me if I’m wrong, but until we decided that we wouldn’t screw other people, I was under no obligation to check in with you about who or what I screw on my own time.”

  I had to admit, I was with Simon there, but that was no surprise, considering that bitch had just treated me like a doormat.

  “Guess we should all be glad that’s behind us now?” I quipped.

  Jack shrugged, and I really didn’t like how unconcerned he seemed.

  “It was fun while it lasted, but yeah, it’s fun now, too.”

  “That’s all you have to say?” Simon replied, pretty much using the words burning on my tongue.

  “I don’t know what else you want me to say?” Jack answered, anger now also leaking into his voice
. “After all, you came here, intent on giving them the perfect kinky power couple while I’m just the annoying friend hitching a ride. Now I’m not even allowed my own opinions?”

  And we were right back to where we’d left off last night. Sighing, I racked my brain for something to say to diffuse the situation, but before I could get there, Simon intercepted me.

  “Erin, can you give us a minute?”

  That sounded ominous enough to make me want to say, “No way!”—in particular as they were now glaring at each other like two attack dogs just waiting to be let off the leash—but when Simon sent me a meaningful look that fit a lot better into our playroom—and here, I guessed—than our usual spats, I decided that I really didn’t have to play referee all the time.

  “By all means, have at it. I’ll wait inside,” I said, nodding toward the doors to the other room. Hunting down the restroom sounded too defensive for a viable alternative.

  Simon nodded, and actually waited until I was not just out of earshot but also through the doors before he spoke up—presumably, as I couldn’t exactly check back on them now. Sighing, I looked around, trying to shake off the exasperation deadening my thoughts.

  It occurred to me then that another woman would likely have been pissed if the guy she’d come to such an event with just sent her into the fray alone, but I didn’t really mind. It was just temporary, and as I looked around, I kind of liked the chance to explore a little on my own. It wasn’t like I felt the need to get self-conscious over Simon maybe seeing me a little more fascinated with something that I hadn’t thought I’d be into, but there was a strange kind of safety in anonymity. Besides the guys and Beth, I didn’t know anyone here, but that also meant nobody knew me—or was aware that I had barely gotten my feet wet compared to the experience most other guests likely had. Unless I said or did something incredibly stupid that would identify me as a novice, I was sure that I could just mingle and observe without anyone the wiser—and that was exactly what I did.

  I had no idea how the schedule for this room worked—there seemed to be one, but from what Simon had alluded to it was rather fluid—but the first scene I looked in on hadn’t changed much. The woman was still tied to the bench, although now her partner had put away the flogger and was instead masturbating her, making her beg him to let her come. The scene was hot, no question, but not that different from what I’d watched in porn a million times—and been there, done that, too—so I ventured on to the next crowd of people.

  The lesbian couple from before was gone—a shame, kind of. While I really didn’t want a part of that, they had been very aesthetic to watch. In their place was now a middle-aged couple. He was completely naked while she was swathed in a high-necked leather dress and latex gloves that only left a few inches of her upper arms bare and gave her a very foreboding, schoolmistress kind of strict look. That alone gave me a good hint at their preferred roles, and when she told him to hop up onto the rough approximation of a gyno chair that no woman ever wanted to find in her doctor’s office, she pretty much confirmed my guess. She didn’t restrain him, but he didn’t move a muscle without her direct command, something that still puzzled me.

  Then she sat down on a low stool in front of him and reached for something that she’d apparently previously stored in the compartment below the “seat” of the chair, and that’s when I couldn’t help but cringe. Simon had been adamant about warning me not to say anything should we happen upon a medical play scene, but watching her lube up a foley catheter and then insert it into his urethra in this decidedly non-sterile environment gave me the creeps. But even though the hair on my arms was standing up straight, I couldn’t bring myself to look away or walk on as she finished inserting the tube, then emptied his bladder, and reached for a—hopefully!—sterile syringe without a needle to attach it to the catheter. He groaned low under his breath as she flushed his bladder, and while I could only guess at how uncomfortable that must have been, he looked definitely aroused.

  “I wonder, is it just your medical knowledge that makes you cringe, or a little too much fantasy-driven empathy?” Beth asked from directly behind me, making me jump a mile high. Thankfully, no one noticed, but I still set my jaw as I half turned around to look at her.

  “Do you get a kick out of scaring the crap out of people? Who haven’t given their consent beforehand, I mean?”

  My barb missed its mark by a mile, judging from her amused smile.

  “Being the hostess comes with the perk of making sure that all the sheep I should shepherd are my responsibility, so, yes, sometimes I do,” she confided, and pursed her lips. “So which is it?”

  I shrugged, still mostly uncomfortable with the ongoings, but the distraction of her presence helped me distance myself.

  “Not exactly empathy here. I really don’t want to judge, but I think that’s one thing I don’t quite see the appeal in.”

  Beth made a dismissive gesture.

  “Same as the rest. There’s the thrill of the taboo, the endorphin rush of it actually happening, a little bit of discomfort, maybe pain, you name it. And just consider the additional loss of control. She doesn’t even leave him power over his most basic bodily functions. Is it so hard to understand?”

  Perceived like that, not really, but before I could reply, Simon joined us, and of course he had something to say to that also, because I wasn’t already feeling like I was losing my footing on thin ice.

  “Plus it actually feels kind of pleasurable, even if you end up wincing for a day or two whenever you take a leak. But that could have been entirely because someone thought it was a good idea to not just use a catheter, but half of her smaller set of sounds?”

  Beth just smiled at him brightly.

  “Oh, you were asking for it. Begging, even, if I recall correctly,” she replied, using the same kind of voice my stepmom did when talking about cookie dough.

  I looked from Beth to Simon and back, then shook my head.

  “Please, don’t stop reminiscing on my account. I can keep on cringing from over there, too, if you need some privacy.”

  Beth kept on smiling, but Simon reached for me and pulled me against his side, keeping his hand splayed over the outside of my hip.

  “Actually, I’d rather continue to make you squirm. If you promise to be a good girl, I’ll even do it in a way that you’ll enjoy.”

  “Ha, ha, very funny,” I retorted, but couldn’t help wriggle against his body.

  Beth’s smile turned indulgent, but her sharp gaze fixed on Simon’s face. “Need any help setting things up?”

  He shook his head. “No, I’ve got everything covered, thanks. But of course you are invited to stay and watch, if you like.”

  “Just watch?” she asked, now clearly to me.

  Simon’s hand on me tightened a little, but it didn’t feel possessive… more like protective? Was he actually afraid that Beth’s—admittedly not quite innocent, but still neutral—question would send me into a new spiral of self-doubt?

  “Well,” I started, then looked up at Simon. “Guess that depends on how you feel about anyone else touching me while you’re in full-on ego-trip mode?”

  My quip made him frown with irritation, and I loved painting that look on his face. Teasing him just never got old.

  Only that sometimes it backfired. “I’m not going to balk at including other people in reasonable limits,” he told me succinctly, the smile coming to his lips not quite nice.

  Oh, we were so on.

  “No? Since when?”

  He shrugged.

  “I’m not going to let anyone fuck you. But touch you, or use some kind or other of impact toy on you? Sure, why not? I just thought that being completely naked and helpless in front of so many people would be pushing you enough.”

  There was that. His words made my stomach sink but also explode with the sensation of a million butterflies taking off excitedly, and it was the latter that made me shrug as if I didn’t care at all.

  “I’m already here
, right? Might as well go that extra mile.”

  “As you wish. But remember, it was your decision. I didn’t even suggest it.”

  Beth followed our exchange with the rapt attention of someone watching a tennis match.

  “Don’t you just love it when two people come together who so easily get lost in one-upping each other that you just can’t wait for them to crash and burn?”

  I gave her a bland smile for that, while Simon snorted.

  “Thank you for having so much confidence in my ability to judge what my sub can easily take, and where I’m barely pushing her out of her comfort zone.”

  Beth brushed his criticism off like a mental speck of lint.

  “Never mind me. You have to know what you’re doing.” She craned her neck toward the other side of the room, her heels giving her that extra few inches necessary to look out over the crowd. “Looks like Terrance is wrapping things up quicker than expected. If you still want some more time…” She raised her brows suggestively.

  “No, I think we’re all set,” Simon replied, his hand giving me a good squeeze.

  “Very well, the stage is yours,” she replied with a wink, then glided off to disappear in the mass of people around. Suddenly, there seemed to be ten times as many of them as a moment ago, and I felt dread rise in the back of my throat.

  “You should probably use the restroom beforehand,” Simon whispered into my ear, making those utterly non-sexy words suddenly intimate as hell, with his body pressed against me.

  Exhaling slowly, I nodded. A moment alone to have a small pre-scene freak-out sounded good.

  “Anything I should pay extra attention to?” I asked, then grinned at him when he rolled his eyes at my overly careful phrasing.

  “While it is likely prudent to take a shit if you have to, there’s no need to clean your ass out until it’s squeaky clean,” he replied, gifting me a similar grin.