The Bratty Dom Read online

  “Yeah,” I said. “I registered online. My friend vouched for me. I paid the application fee, and I…” I started fumbling in my pockets for a piece of paper, and then I produced the crumply sheet of paper. “I have all of my paperwork.” I’d had to go through a psychological evaluation with a psychiatrist. I’d even visited my regular doctor and been tested for STDs. Anchored took things very seriously. While single-visit guests had a little bit of leeway with their background paperwork, I was attending on my own, without a sponsor, like Carolyn, so I’d had to do a little more legwork. It was all designed to keep the members safe, so I didn’t mind.

  The man reached out and took it from me. He still didn’t smile, but he did look over all of the paperwork. Then he typed a couple of things into his computer, and after a minute, he looked back up.

  “Do you have a phone with you?”

  “No.”

  “Good girl,” he murmured, and went back to typing.

  “Oh,” I said, trying to ignore the way those words settled deep inside of me. Good girl? Really? That was what was going to set me off? I hadn’t planned on coming to the BDSM club in order to get turned on or aroused by a few simple words. I’d come because I needed to do research. My editor had complained that my story wasn’t spicy enough or exciting enough for readers. My hope was that coming here, to this place, was going to give me the spice that I needed.

  “Everything else is in order,” he said. “You’re Carolyn’s friend, are you?”

  “Uh, yes,” I said.

  “She’s a nice person,” the man said, finally smiling. “I like her a lot.”

  “You do?” I asked, surprised. Carolyn had told me she wasn’t interested in anyone at the club at all, so I was surprised to hear that from this man.

  “She’s a good person to have around,” he said. Then, considering me for a moment, he held out his hand. “I’m Kal,” he told me.

  “Blair,” I said, taking his hand. He already knew my name, obviously, but it seemed awkward and strange not to participate in this gesture of acceptance and friendship that he was offering me.

  “Listen,” he said. “I know it’s your first time, so just remember that you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

  “You sound like my mother sending me off to prom,” I said dryly. Apparently, that was funny, because Kal laughed loudly and shook his head. “What?” I asked.

  “Not a lot of people get me to laugh,” he said. “I needed that tonight.”

  “So,” I said, deciding to take advantage of the fact that he seemed chatty enough. “Is this like…your job?”

  He raised an eyebrow and smiled. The man’s dark curly hair bounced a little when he moved.

  “Working at a sex club?” He asked, almost teasingly. I nodded, unsure of whether I’d said something offensive or not. “No,” he said. “This isn’t my real job, but I do work the front desk from time to time.”

  “Oh,” I said again, nodding.

  “All right,” he said kindly. “I’m getting the impression that you’re feeling nervous about going in and you’re trying to delay the inevitable, so get going.” He gestured toward a door to the side.

  “What’s that?”

  “It leads to the locker room.”

  I glanced at a row of lockers suspiciously, and he seemed to notice.

  “Those are for phones,” he said. “And those lockers are out here because we don’t allow any sort of phones or electronics in the club, including the locker rooms. The privacy of each member is too important for that.”

  “Oh,” I said.

  “But some of our members are physicians or on-call emergency techs, and some of them leave their kids with babysitters, so we do permit them to leave their phones inside of the building. If they get a call, I’m able to go out into the club to let them know, or I can find someone who can hunt them down to let them know.”

  That was nice, I thought. It seemed like a good system to have in place.

  “That’s a good plan,” I told him. Then, suddenly, I thought of something. “Wait,” I said. “I have a question.”

  Kal seemed amused, not angry, and he nodded, patiently waiting for me to get to the point.

  “What about alcohol?” I asked. He laughed and shook his head.

  “Don’t worry, every newbie finds the bar quickly. Are you playing tonight?”

  “Uh…”

  I hadn’t thought that far. Did I want to touch or be touched? I wasn’t really sure. It seemed like such a simple question, but Kal, once again, didn’t pressure me.

  “There’s a bar,” he finally said. “They can bill your account, so you don’t need to carry cash with you. If you want to play, you’re going to have a drink limit.”

  “That seems fair,” I said carefully. “That way everyone makes good choices,” I nodded, as though convincing myself.

  Once more, Kal pointed to the locker room door.

  “All right, Blair,” he said. “It was nice meeting you.”

  The main doors opened, and a couple came in smiling and laughing.

  “Hey Kal!” They said.

  “Mr. X,” Kal said, nodding. Then he looked at the woman, who was dressed up, if I was seeing correctly, like a kitty cat. “Kitten.”

  “Meow!” The woman said, grinning, and before they could notice me or ask who I was, I scurried into the locker room and closed the door. So, pet play. I knew about that. I’d read about it, and Carolyn had given me a brief overview of some of the things I might have seen. I hadn’t exactly had an orientation, but with my psychological evaluation, the guy I’d seen had talked about tolerance and respect. One of the most important things about the club was that every kink was sort of honored. There was no right or wrong way to express yourself sexually at Anchored.

  I stood at the closed door in the locker room and shut my eyes for just a second. I took a deep breath.

  “Get it together,” I said. Then I opened my eyes.

  Instantly, I was overwhelmed by everything I was seeing. The locker room was more like a beauty spa than a locker room, if I was understanding what was happening. There were showers and toilet rooms – not toilet stalls – and a big row of sinks. There were actual lockers, and there were vanities. There were rows and rows of mirrors. The vanities seemed to be fully stocked with makeup, hairstyling supplies, and things like deodorant. I even noticed tweezers and fingernail clippers and some wax strips.

  “It’s a little overwhelming at first, huh?” A woman said. Startled, I jumped as I looked over. She was curvy and beautiful, and she instantly made me feel a little bit better. It was nice not to feel alone. She just laughed and shook her head. “It was recently redesigned, but it’s always been a beautiful place,” she said.

  “I can see how it might be addicting,” I said. “I don’t even want to go to the main club anymore. I think I could just get lost in here.”

  “Oh honey,” she shook her head. “You don’t want to hang out in here all night. Trust me. There’s a lot of fun to be had. I’m Odessa,” she said.

  I smiled at her. Odessa was gorgeous. She had dark skin and big, beautiful eyes. Her hair was long and braided with lots of bright, beautiful colors. She was wearing a tiny pink dress that barely covered her bottom. I knew that if she bent over even the slightest bit, everything would be visible. I didn’t want to admit to myself or to anyone else how much the idea of seeing her like that would turn me on.

  I was only here for book research, I reminded myself: not to flirt with anyone, and not to play with anyone, and not to be distracted by this girl’s beautiful curves. She laughed again, and I realized I was staring.

  “I’m sorry,” I said quickly, blushing.

  “Don’t be,” she said. “I’m glad you like the way I look.”

  “You are?”

  “Of course,” she said. “Having someone look at me the way you are is exactly why I dressed like this.”

  My mouth must have hit the floor because she laughed and shoo
k her head again. I so wasn’t used to people being so sexually open. Carolyn was the only person I’d known in “real life” who had been even the slightest bit kinky. She’d wowed me with her sexual exploits on many occasions, but I’d still felt shy and timid revealing my own sexual stories. I’d never considered myself a prude, but I’d also never been particularly open. Here, apparently, things were different. It was a little bit refreshing, I thought.

  It was nice to get to be anyone I wanted, to act anyway I liked.

  “Are you meeting someone tonight?” Odessa asked carefully. She wasn’t being nosey. She was being friendly, and I had the feeling that if I was meeting someone, she would offer to help me find them. Carolyn had warned me that people at Anchored were different than what I was used to. I was starting to believe her.

  “No, my friend recommended this place, but she couldn’t come. She has to work.” I tried not to sound too lame. I wasn’t sure whether I succeeded or not.

  “I totally understand,” Odessa waved her hand, letting me know that it wasn’t a big deal. Somehow, I got the feeling that she was one of the most helpful people here, and that this wasn’t her first time helping someone totally new to the scene.

  “I guess I’ll go out there,” I said, shrugging. I gestured vaguely toward another set of doors that I was certain led to the main club area. I could hear the music beating through the doors, and I knew that I was about to face what was quite possibly the most wild and wonderful scene I’d ever encountered in my life.

  “Let me help you get ready first,” she said.

  Without waiting for permission and without having to go through the normal pleasantries of “Oh, no thanks, I’m fine,” Odessa helped me out of my coat and admired my outfit. She helped me find a locker and showed me where to put my shoes and jacket. Then she brought me to one of the vanities, helped me fix my hair a little bit, and reapplied some blush. She sprayed me with just the slightest bit of vanilla body spray, and then she took my hand.

  “Okay, princess,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  Chapter 2

  Raiden

  “You’re drinking too much,” June said, eyeing the whiskey in front of me.

  “I’m not drinking enough,” I said. “And besides, I thought you didn’t bartend much anymore.”

  “A girl’s gotta have a hobby,” she winked, and she moved down the bar to serve someone else. I stared at the whiskey. Gentleman Jack was my comfort drink, and it wasn’t something I was prepared to give up. Sure, having a couple of drinks meant I wouldn’t be playing tonight, but not everybody came to Anchored to play.

  Some people came to watch, and some people came to drink, and some people came to hang out with their friends. Being a sexual kinkster meant a lot of vanilla-types didn’t always understand you, and sometimes just being around other people who were open-minded could be freeing.

  At least, that’s what I told myself. That was what I told myself every time I walked into Anchored and didn’t pick out a submissive to play with. That was what I told myself every time I left the club without so much as tying someone up or kissing them. It was getting a little bit old, I knew, but my friends had been patient with me. They hadn’t judged me. Maybe they should have.

  Anytime I didn’t touch someone, that’s what I said to myself. I told myself that it was enough to just be around people who enjoyed the things that I did. I promised myself that I didn’t need it anymore, but the truth was that it was all a huge fucking lie, and I knew exactly what my problem was. It had been two years since my great breakup: two years, and I hadn’t so much as slept with another person. That’s how messed up I’d become. On the outside, I was fine. On the outside, I went to work, and I went home, and I played with my cat.

  On the outside, I was a normal person.

  Inside…

  Well, let’s just say that on the inside, I was nothing but wreckage.

  “And this is the bar,” I heard Odessa’s voice. I turned, looking toward the beautiful submissive. Odessa was one of the most kind, motherly submissives at Anchored. She was constantly going out of her way to help other people. No matter what anyone was going through in their normal lives, she somehow managed to find a way to help them and to make them feel like they were important.

  That was what everyone loved about her, including me. She was married now, and had a great Dom who adored her. He worshipped her, really, and it was no wonder. I had a feeling that she made it easy. She was all kindness and sunshine, after all.

  “So how many drinks can I have?” Another voice said. I couldn’t quite see the other submissive. Undoubtedly, it was a sub. No Domme would talk with such an edge of nervousness, even if it was their first time at the club, which it obviously was for this person. Odessa was giving her the new-kid tour, and I was suddenly happy I had a front row seat. I was bored, after all, and it seemed like a good idea to watch.

  You know, to make sure Odessa didn’t leave out any important information.

  “Two, unless you decide to skip playing,” Odessa said.

  “I’m not playing.”

  “Then you can get drunk if you like,” Odessa shrugged. “June will give you a bracelet, though, and you have to wear it.”

  “Like handcuffs?”

  “What? No!” Odessa laughed. “An actual bracelet.”

  “Really? Why?”

  “So nobody tries to tie you up while you’re inebriated,” Odessa explained.

  “I understand,” the woman said. “It sounds like a good idea, anyway.”

  Odessa turned, and as she did, the other woman leaned forward on the bar, so I suddenly was able to see her: all of her. I choked back a gasp as I saw the beautiful woman standing at the bar.

  She wasn’t thin or scrawny. Not by any means. She was gorgeous though: curvy in all the right places, and she was dressed to kill. Well, she was either dressed to kill or to break a Dom’s heart, and I wasn’t sure which one. Her tiny pink tank top covered her heavy breasts, but only barely. With no bra on beneath, her nipples poked through the fabric. She had on a matching pink mini-skirt, and I thought I saw black panties peeking out the bottom, but I wasn’t quite sure.

  Odessa noticed me, and she winked before turning back to her friend. What the hell? What was that wink for? Odessa knew perfectly well that I wasn’t interested in picking anyone up. Had she brought the new subby over to show her off for me? It rankled me a little bit. Maybe she wasn’t trying to play matchmaker and I was just reading too much into it, but maybe…

  “All right,” she said. “Let’s get you a drink and then we’ll go walk around.”

  “You don’t have anywhere you need to be?” The woman asked nervously.

  So, she didn’t want to waste Odessa’s time.

  Cute.

  “Nope.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Are you trying to ditch me or be polite?” Odessa laughed. “I can’t tell.”

  “Not at all,” the woman said, shaking her head. “I just don’t want to impose.”

  “It’s not like that here,” Odessa said. “You can impose on me all you want.”

  “Spoken like a true Domme,” I said, pointing out, interrupting her, and Odessa’s eyes narrowed at me.

  “You know,” she said. “For someone as bratty as you, sometimes I’m surprised you aren’t a sub.”

  I set my drink back down on the counter and looked at her. Then I simply raised an eyebrow. Both girls were instantly silent. They were both watching me, and the new girl seemed to actually notice me for the first time. I noticed her eyes roam, looking over me, and I was suddenly glad that despite my lack of romantic partners, I’d still kept up going to the gym.

  “Do I need to go find your Dom?” I asked Odessa carefully. She was off-limits for playing at the club, and I completely respected that. I’d never move into another man’s territory when it came to something like that. Even before what had happened to me, I’d never been interested in taking someone else’s partner. It was just s
ort of shady. Besides, I liked Odessa’s Dom-turned-husband a lot.

  “No, sir,” she said quietly, and bowed her head ever-so-slightly. The other girl didn’t move at first. She just eyed me carefully. It was a strange sort of thing, in my opinion. Most of the time, if I threatened to go find someone’s Dom, all of the submsisives in the area calmed down.

  This one didn’t.

  Either she didn’t have a Dom or she didn’t want one. I wasn’t sure. She didn’t act like a trained submissive, in any case. Maybe that was why she had come to Anchored. Everyone had to start somewhere, right?

  “Come on,” Odessa finally said. She looked at her friend, took her hand, and walked away. Together, the two of them left the bar. The new girl looked over her shoulder at me with a quizzical sort of look on her face. I couldn’t tell whether she found me handsome or horrifying, and I wasn’t sure which would be better.

  “Well, well, well,” June said, and I looked back at the pretty bartender.

  “What?” I asked, embarrassed I’d been caught checking out the new girl. She was beautiful, to be sure, but there was something else there, too. There was something special about her, and I suddenly felt determined to find out exactly what was so wonderful about her. Why was she here? Why had she come to Anchored? I was curious: much more curious than I’d been in years.

  If anyone knew anything, or was able to share information, it was going to be June, I realized. After all, June was the one behind Anchored. She knew everything about everyone.

  “Hey,” I started to say slowly.

  “No.”

  “What?” I hadn’t even asked her anything.

  “Don’t even think about it. You know I won’t tell you information about members. That’s privileged.”

  “I also know that you’re the owner of the club, and you can do whatever you want,” I pointed out, lowering my voice.

  June just smiled demurely. June was the one who ran Anchored. Granted, most of it was behind-the-scenes. She was a private sort of person, and she didn’t like many people knowing just what a major role she played in the club. She didn’t like people to know that it was her club, or that she’d created it from the ground up. She worked the bar a lot, and sometimes she’d perform other duties, but it was hers. All of it was hers.