The flames that she felt then were in her lower cheeks, but her face flushed hot too as her mouth fell open.
She didn't end up wearing either. Bri was actually surprised and very pleased when she left the Wardrobe in knee-high socks, Mary Janes, and a pink and black plaid skirt that did not even try to cover her simple white cotton panties in the back. In fact, it was as if the back was actually shorter than the front. A tutu would have covered more. Her white button-up dress shirt had a similar problem, in reverse. The front covered her breasts and stopped there. Her tummy was bare to the waistband of her plaid tutu, err, skirt. She felt very naughty in the costume, and by no means ready to leave. But they did. When they passed the Rainbow Room on their way to the dungeon, they decided to stroll through and take in the sights.
Little Maids in skimpy black and white dresses pretended to dust or carried drinks. Many spanking sessions were being carried out without prejudice to gender, size, age or even regressed age. A variety of both Dominants and submissives participated in mixed scenes. One naked woman was on her knees sucking a Dom's dick, while another took her from behind.
There were wands of many shapes and sizes. The same could be said of the dildos and even the leather work, which wasn't limited to belts or pants. Bri saw that many people wore harnesses, and they were not restricted to the face and mouth. In fact, the harnesses were not limited to leather if one counted the many submissives wearing rope. Most of the submissives under their scrutiny wore their harnesses like others might wear gowns or dresses. Both Bri and Kian were amazed and overwhelmed, it seemed, at the freedom to simply enjoy and not worry what someone else might think. They were both equally so intrigued by so much of the play that they were content to just watch.
One scene in particular stayed in Bri's head for far longer than the others. There wasn't a lot to see, and yet what was in front of them was so intense neither could look away. A man of rather simple appearance; broad shoulders, sandy brown hair, and average height, pressed a woman against the wall. The motion of his hips indicated he was grinding himself into her groin—if not actually fucking her. Their position didn't reveal whether his pants were undone in the front, between them. It would have been an everyday rough ride and not all that different at all, except for the knife at the woman's neck.
One of his hands held hers together above her head, the other held the knife. Bri could actually see a small trickle of crimson on her fair, ivory-colored skin. Was she being taken beyond her will? No, surely not. But that blade sure as hell looked real, and so did the blood. Even so, there was satisfaction in the woman's eyes and not fear. She moaned as she let loose, climaxing at the same time as her man. The man bathed her face and neck with kisses, stroking her hair and praising her when it appeared he had finished coming himself. That wasn't role play; it had been dangerous… and downright exciting.
The look on Kian's face as he watched was as intense as Brianny had ever seen. His desire was evident in his breathing, and the way he had completely tuned out everything in the room except the couple.
Was this a desire of his? Or was he just that fascinated by the scene? It had been more extreme than any of the others Bri had witnessed. She'd be lying if she didn't admit to being turned on. It wasn't something she was going to beg to do, but if Kian wanted it—she was game.
She gripped his hand harder and leaned into him, trying to remind him of her presence. He swallowed hard, and then he was with her again. Wrapping his arm around her, he rested his hand on her hip as he led her away from the scene.
"Anything you want to do before we head to the dungeon?" he asked.
"Um, no, that's fine with me… unless there is something you want to do?" She couldn't look at him now, for some reason. She followed along as he led her out of the room.
"No, I want to see more. I really want to check out the dungeon. Does that scare you?" They walked side by side now, even though the hall wasn't very wide.
She didn't look at him; she was nervous, but not afraid. It was a whole different world under the stairs. Bri simply shook her head and didn't look up.
Surprisingly, the dungeon had a lot of similarities to the Rainbow Room: vibrators of many sizes, paddles of varying sizes, shapes, and materials, tables, private rooms and—lo and behold—very similar scenes. What was different was the degree of 'more' the dungeon carried.
For example, there was a woman between two men, sucking one off and being fucked by the other. The difference between the scene and the one upstairs was that the submissive wasn't on her knees. She was bound in rope, and suspended from hooks on the ceiling. If there had been a bed under her she would have been on her back. Her head was extended back and tilted so the taller of the two men could fuck her mouth. From the way her jaw was opened and her neck strained, he was as far back into her throat as he could be. The other man was fucking her, and her pussy was clearly bare and exposed, so he must have been using her ass instead.
One of the private rooms they passed had the door open and Bri saw flames flickering inside. A scene drawing a lot of attention, however, was one where a woman was bent over, with her wrists and head locked down in wooden stocks, while a woman in a leather corset, and thigh-high matching boots used a crop—not only on her rounded cheeks, but also the red, swollen and very wet nub between her bare pussy lips.
Bri couldn't help but move closer, slipping between the spectators and around the front to see the woman's face. Her ass was so striped and welted, Brianny couldn't believe the endurance of the woman. She remained so quiet… the sounds in the large stone room came from other scenes, or the music in the overhead speakers, but not the woman in the stocks.
The answer became clear as soon as Bri made it to the front. A gag. Straps ran to her mouth, and held it open in an odd position, but more telling was the drool dripping from her chin. From that point, Brianny could tell the woman would have been anything but quiet without the gag. Her nostrils flared, and she was making gasping noises. She must have really trusted her Domme. A gag was only allowed at the Castle with a special permit. As the bound woman calmed a bit, Bri realized the leather-clad woman was using her hand now, and she wasn't spanking.
When Kian made it back to her side, Bri asked him, "Did you like that? The two women?"
His reply surprised her. "Not as much as the other scene. Why, did you like it? Is that something you desire?"
Bri couldn't think to answer him because her train of thought had derailed at his mention of 'the other scene'. Which scene had he been referring to? The woman suspended from the ceiling with the two men; the one with the knife, or one of the many others?
Perhaps the one with the ropes? Was it the way she'd gagged around the man's cock? Kian had done much the same to her the night before… minus the second man.
"Do you want to spend some time with a woman, Br—Blossom?" he asked again, when she still hadn't responded.
"Oh, no. I was just thinking. What scene was it you liked better?" She studied his face, but he gave no tell.
"I liked a lot of them." He smiled in a hard, almost mechanical way, and Brianny thought about his response for much of the remaining time they spent in the dungeon. Why had he seemed so serious, almost upset?
She only forgot about it when he suggested they use a spanking bench in the one corner. Much like a weight bench, it had a black padded table area that was only as long as her torso. There were padded lower bolsters for her knees and elbows.
The only problem Bri had with the set up was that the back didn't face the corner, but was pointed instead toward the public viewing area. Her ass—and her secret garden—would be exposed to all. She stalled for only a moment before taking Kian's hand and letting him help her get into position. The magnitude of her situation didn't set in until he hooked the attached cuffs to her wrists and ankles.
***
"I don't know who's sitting more gingerly, you or me," Sara said with a chuckle, when Bri winced as she settled on the sofa next to her sister. "I have
an ice pack if you need it."
"Shut up and give me that baby." Brianny ignored the heat that infused her cheeks and took the little bundle from Sara. It was amazing to see the perfect, miniature features, tiny ears, nose and those adorable fingers. "This is a very nice place. You don't really expect to find a condo or town house like this on the same property as the Castle." Bri gestured to the modern furnishings surrounding them. It felt a lot like a time warp, coming from the fifteenth century straight to the twenty-first.
"Yes, when I first found out I was pregnant, it was the whole BDSM and Castle problem that worried me the most. Well, I worried about Jackson being upset about the baby too, but it was all resolved when the decision was made to give staff a 'home' away from the business of it all. I don't know what we would have done if Master Marshall hadn't suggested the townhouses."
Brianny and Kian spent most of the day visiting with the new parents; even staying to eat the supper the tough-as-nails chef, Cook Connie, had sent over. Bri had not met the woman, but Sara regaled them with stories about the chef and her 'kitchen bitches'.
Sadness was settling in. Even though they had decided to stay through Monday, weighing heavily on her was the idea that she wouldn't be near enough to be a part of her niece's life—and her sister's life. Brianny had never been good at goodbyes, and this was even worse. Not only did she have so much more to leave, she also had to leave behind a whole new way of life. Even though Kian seemed to be all for it, there was no way it could continue as it had here. She tried to brush aside the heavy thoughts.
"Sara, I know you don't talk about it, but I was just wondering. You know, it wasn't Jackson, I mean, Jackson wasn't there at the accident, was he?" If Bri hadn't looked up when she did, she might have missed the quick but silent reply when Sara simply shook her head from side to side. Brianny kept her eyes on her sister as she continued. "Last night, the show at the Master's Table… it was fire play. These two guys, twins, drew on a woman with something and then lit it."
"Alcohol. They write with an alcohol mixture and light it." Sara's voice had grown quiet, but she'd answered.
"You watched it here? Or was that what caused your burns?" Bri was making Sara very uncomfortable, but she had to know.
Her sister cleared her throat and then answered. "I've watched it, and I've done it here, with Jackson. But yes, that is what caused my burns." She took a deep breath and went on. "A spill… he'd spilled the cup of alcohol, so when he lit it, the flames spread fast. I was restrained, and they couldn't get me off the table fast enough."
"Oh my God, Sara. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up." Brianny scooted closer and hugged her sister, who was rubbing her arm as though she could still feel the heat.
"It's okay. It's good to talk about it. It's not good to hold it all in. I have Jackson to thank for helping me get past everything. Since we've been together, he has helped me more than years of therapy." As if a weight had been lifted from her back, she sat up straighter. "Now, unlike at Shadowbrook, we use fast-release restraints, or none at all. And they go through so many steps to make sure it is safe. It can be very erotic… well, I guess you probably saw that."
"Yes, the girl wore a cap to cover her hair, and the one man was literally standing guard with big wet towel."
"Travis and Trevor. That's great; they don't get to play with fire often, even though they love it. It's an edgier kink, and it takes a lot of time to build up trust to that degree. Most submissives aren't here long enough to connect like that." The subject was closed again quickly when Sara started talking to Regan, cooing and smiling, excited because the baby's eyes were finally open.
"Here, let me get you some more tea." Bri busied herself. Time was running out; and the men would come back soon. She still hadn't had the guts to bring up the subject she'd wanted to.
"Oh, thank you. No more tea, though. Water would be great. Oh, never mind… I still have a full glass here that Jackson got for me." Sara pointed to the glass on her end table. Bri sat back down. If she didn't broach the subject now she may not get another chance. When she started to chew her fingernails, her sister called her out. "What is it you want to ask me? You're driving me crazy, so just spit it out."
"I don't know how to say it. It's so embarrassing." Bri never could keep a secret from her sister.
"I've lived in the Castle for almost a year. Nothing is too embarrassing." Sara shifted on the sofa so she was looking right at her.
Bri had her attention. She took her sixteenth steadying breath to get up her courage, and this time finally said what was on her mind. "Last night, Kian did something that shocked me. I mean, he's done many new things over the last few days, but I don't know about this." She paused to collect her thoughts before going on. "I'm not, like, against it, as odd as it is. I'm just wondering about safety."
"Well, stop beating around the bush and tell me already." Sara pinned Bri with her sharp blue eyes, and her best 'I'm the oldest, do what I say' glare.
"We were in bed, almost asleep or whatever, and we began to make love. It was the closest to vanilla lovemaking we've had since being here. You know, missionary?" She paused and looked up at her sister again, instead of the tiny piece of skin by her fingernail which had her attention previously. "He choked me. Not hard. It didn't really hurt, and oddly enough, it didn't even scare me. I was just like; 'cool, he's starting to share his fantasies with me.'"
"Erotic Strangulation or Asphyxiation. There isn't a lot of information on it. For the submissive, it creates feelings of giddiness, and pleasure. Combined with orgasm, it can be a rush as powerful as cocaine. For the Dominant, it has the excitement of being extremely dangerous. Did he use his hands, or something else?"
"His hands. It really didn't hurt, and he didn't do it long enough that I felt dizzy. It was only afterward that I thought about how dangerous it could be… doing it in the dark. How would he know if it was too long? And I couldn't have used a safeword if I had wanted him to stop."
"Oh, yes. That is very dangerous. When people participate in edge play like that, or even knives to the throat, we have a hand-held clicker. It's similar to a key fob, or perhaps more like a grenade. It has a large button that is depressed while held. If the submissives drops it, a bright flashing light goes off. After a set amount of time, if the clicker hasn't been reset, then Castle Security is called. This is something you and Kian are going to have to discuss. He needs to look at information on strangulation. I bet there is a pamphlet on it in the library or media room." Sara's discourse came to a halt when Brianny giggled.
"Only at the Castle would you find a pamphlet on that!"
Sara joined in the chuckle. "But in all seriousness—safe, sane, and consensual isn't just the Castle's decree, but it goes for BDSM in general. It has to be all of that, or it isn't play. It's important that you guys discuss this before it potentially develops into a problem. And people have been banned for using gags without permission—this is sort of the same thing. We know Kian probably didn't even think of that, but you have to make sure he understands the danger."
Epilogue
He couldn't believe it was their last night. Even though they had gotten the most bang for their buck, it was going to be hard to go home. Kian didn't want the fun to end. Would it be different when they got home and both went back to work? God, he hoped not. He hadn't admitted it to Brianny or Jackson, but when his brother-in-law had commented on the town of Granger, and the possibility of Kian continuing to work in a new location, he had given the idea some serious thought. It wasn't just the Castle that intrigued him, but also the ability to be around people who were so open and real about their desires.
Even now, he was watching as a woman heated small glass jars with a little torch and pressed the jars to Brianny's back. When the fire was lit in the jar it ate the oxygen inside, creating suction, and making it possible to attach it to the skin. Aside from an initial "Ah," and then a giggle, Bri was silent, her eyes closed. Others had likened the process to a massage, wit
h varying degrees of intensity. Who would've known? Kian chuckled to himself. He might even let the woman do it to him.
His inner smile faded away when he thought again about home. What about his friends? His business partner? They could be into this too, and he'd never know it. There was so much he wanted to explore. Maybe he should ask Jackson or Marshall about BDSM Clubs in Chicago. The Castle couldn't be the only place of the sort. He could look in the media room where they'd gotten the pamphlets the other day. They probably had something by way of connections. Kian would have to check it out.
The woman in front of him asked Brianny a question, but Kian hadn't heard it. Without even opening her eyes, a simple nod had been her reply. A pink flush still covered her cheeks. God, how he loved her. As upset as he'd been days before, when they'd arrived and he'd discovered her lies about the Castle, he now understood why she would go to such an extreme. There were so many things they might love, but they didn't yet know about because it was all new to them. Or, they might think something was interesting and then, after trying it, decide they didn't like it. As Bri had put it, how could she have told him her desires when she wasn't fully aware herself of what they were? Unless she experienced them, she wouldn't know.
He had felt like a complete idiot on the first day of their vacation, but as the days had passed, the feeling had changed. Now he felt like a god, in the regard that this was new to both of them. Bri was experiencing all of her firsts with him. She looked to him for approval, and sought to please him. Nobody but another subbie-loving Dom would ever understand the full magnitude of his feelings for Brianny. Even when she'd approached the topic of one of their experiences. One that had haunted him for years.
When The Gavel Falls (Masters of the Castle) Page 84