Ive seen what you can do with chopsticks and rubber bands. I dont even have a c.l.i.t, and it made me cringe.

She loved it. That wasnt a kiss of loathing she gave me when I let her loose.

Only you could turn chopsticks and rubber bands into instruments of torture. Carl headed toward the front door.

Don closed the trunk and followed. Not only me, he said. h.e.l.l, I learned that trick from Ross. And Im d.a.m.n sure not the first person he taught it to, and hes definitely not the inventor of that trick. Remember what Tony always says"

If you cant pervert it, youre just not kinky enough. I know. He pulled the door open and held it for Don, who had the larger, heavier bags. Carl just had a small carry-on rolling suitcase and a backpack for his ropes to haul his slowly growing implement collection. Some of which were actually flea market or home improvement store purchases.

Jenny checked them in and they headed inside. In one corner, it looked like Crawford was doing a fire cupping demo. They spotted Marcia sitting there as well and suspected whoever the mans latest victim was, she must be a newbie or a personal friend of Marcias.

Marcia always took a special interest in women new to the lifestyle, making it her personal mission to make sure they had all the tools they needed to navigate the kinky waters as safely as possible without them letting subfrenzy get the better of them.

That was something else Don had warned him about, not to jump into a relationship with someone he played with just because of the shiny new relationship energy he felt for them. That it was okay to play and not take it any farther than that.

So far, hed stuck to that rule.

Even easier now with the emotional dampener of the divorce being finalized.

I should have let Don throw me the party.

Don had wanted to invite several of their friends over, take a copy of Carls original marriage certificate, and burn it in the barbecue grill in a symbolic cremation of the marriage.

In fact, maybe he would ask Don to do that after all. Hed nixed Dons suggestion out-of-hand when his friend had first brought it up the day the papers arrived in the mail from his attorney.

She looks new, Don said, nodding toward Crawfords scene.

Carl looked. The woman was now sitting up, smiling, as Marcia stood ready with her clothes. Then Marcia shuffled her off into the bathrooms. He didnt get a good look at her, but what he saw he liked, octopus marks or not. She had shoulder-length dark-blonde hair and he couldnt tell what color her eyes were from that distance. About Marcias size, she wore a dazzling smile most often seen on new submissives experiencing things for the first time.

Ill have to ask Marcia about her, Don said.

Maybe I was going to ask Marcia about her.

Were you going to ask Marcia about her? Going after the same woman had never been a problem for them before. Usually, they were attracted to totally different types.

When Carl turned, Dons pointed blue gaze had pinned him down.

Maybe I was, Carl mumbled.

Then do it. Im supposed to do a rope scene with Crissy tonight, if she even shows. He looked around. I dont see her yet, and she can be flakey sometimes.

Saying Crissy could be flakey was like saying the Grand Canyon was deep, or that Mt. Everest was tall. The only reason Don played with her was because she was happily married, with a vanilla husband who didnt care what she did to get her kinky fix, as long as she didnt have s.e.x with anyone but him and she came home to him every night.

Meaning she was the perfect kind of play partner for Don.

Carl had played with her a couple of times, because she was an experienced bottom who didnt mind helping break in newbie Tops. But he wasnt attracted to her in the slightest and usually left her to Don.

Carl was quickly coming to find he needed to have some sort of mental or emotional attraction to a person to really enjoy a scene with them.

Theyd settled in at one of the tables to watch others play when Marcia returned with the unknown woman.

And, lucky them, made a beeline right for them.

Don leaned in. Under his breath he said, Dont f.u.c.k this up.

Marcia pulled out a chair for her friend. Hey, guys. This is my friend, Mel. Mind if she sits here for a few minutes? Mel, this is Don and Carl. Ill go get you some water.

The woman"whose eyes were hazel, it turned out"looked a little subs.p.a.cey and out of it. Hi. Thanks.

No worries, Don said. First time?

No, second. First time Ive ever tried anything though. That was great.

Fire cuppings pretty cool, Carl said.

Next to him, he was aware of Don covering his eyes with his hand.

Before Carl could verbally trip over himself any further, Marcia returned with a cup of water. Don, Carl, they need me out in the office for a minute. Would you mind sitting here with her and keeping an eye on her, please?

Sure, no problem, Don said.

In other words, Marcia was saying she trusted them, and to not let anyone else bother Mel until Marcia returned for her.

And to not f.u.c.k things up.

Across the room, a guy had a woman suspended from a rope harness in the middle of the large, metal A-frame that dominated the s.p.a.ce.

Do you guys do that? Mel asked.

Were into rope, Carl answered before Don could, but not suspensions. Id like to eventually reach that level of skill. Im not there yet.

Oh.

Im newer than he is, Carl added, then he flinched.

If she didnt know any better, shed swear Don might have kicked him under the table.

But they were cute. Don had gorgeous blue eyes and brown hair. Carl had green eyes and dark-blond hair that was almost brown.

I dont know what the protocol for this is, but would you tie me up?

They exchanged a glance.

I mean, I went to that cla.s.s Marcia taught a couple of weeks ago. For new people. But Id really like to try some different things.

How did you get into this? Don asked without answering her question.

Accidentally. She found herself rambling about her horrible marriage, and the book club, and Mike, and accidentally seeing Marcia working on the website, and then When she finished, the men were staring at her and she realized she probably sounded like a psychotic idiot.

Im sorry, she said. That was probably way too much information.

Marcia picked that moment to return. So? How are we all getting along?

If they werent being set up, Don would eat his G.o.dd.a.m.ned rope bag. Hed been warned about Tilly and Eliza, but he would not have picked Marcia as a matchmaker.

I think I just told them too much about me, Mel said.

She was d.a.m.ned adorable. If Carl didnt go after her, he was liable to, although he usually preferred they had a little more experience first.

Marcia slid into a chair at the table. Mel is in a transition period in her life right now, Marcia told them, giving them a knowing gaze Don had no trouble interpreting. I want to make sure I introduce her to safe players, people Derrick and I trust, to help teach her about the lifestyle. If you guys wouldnt mind playing with her, I would consider it a personal favor.

Don Corleone might as well have sat down and made them an offer they couldnt refuse.

Sure, Don said. Wed be happy to.

Marcia smiled. Great! Were her ride, so unless she wants to go back home early, shes here all night. She stood and rounded the table, patting the men on the back and leaning in. Thank you. I greatly appreciate it.

What about Crissy? Carl asked.

Don wanted to backhand him.

Crissy? Marcia asked.

Yeah, you know her, Carl said. The little redhead.

Oh. The flake.

Ouch. Yeah, her, Don said.

Marcia smiled. If she shows up, Ill make sure she hooks up with Scrye or Kel. Theyve flown her before. She patted them on the backs again and turned, leaving.

Oookay.

Don gave Mel a smile. I guess if youre new, we should start at the beginning, huh?

She smiled again, so trusting and vulnerable, and he felt something tug on his well-shielded heart, just a little.

Oh, boy.

Chapter Six.

The men took her over a quiet corner, grabbing a couple of MMA mats and towels and sitting down with her.

Is there anything you have questions about? Don asked her.

Everything. She still felt almost giddy now. Sorry, I know I must seem a little out of it.

Its okay, Don a.s.sured her. Thats normal. You might have hit subs.p.a.ce a little bit with the fire cupping.

Really? Ive read about that. She felt like an idiot, like shed forgotten how to talk to people.

Then again, maybe she had. Years with Mike surely had atrophied her communications abilities outside of work.

They opened their toybags to her and let her look at everything, all the different implements. She wanted to feel a few of them, too, and they let her smack herself in the thigh with them.

I thought some of these would hurt a lot more, she said.

It depends on how hard you hit with them, Carl told her. And sometimes, the point isnt to hit as hard as you can, but to get someone to the edge of their endurance and keep them right there on the verge of safewording, but not quite. A lot of people, thats the point where subs.p.a.ce really kicks in for them, at that fine edge. Its not a hard and fast rule, of course.

That makes sense. She was holding a silicone spatula and smacked herself even harder in the thigh with it.

That stung. Okay, I see what you mean. She handed it back to Don.

So being tied up, or restrained, Don explained, it heightens the experience for some people. Especially if forced o.r.g.a.s.m play is involved.

Screw it, if she embarra.s.sed herself too much, she could simply never come back again. Okay, Ive seen that done, and Ive heard Marcia talk about it, but what is it, exactly?

The men exchanged a glance. Carl explained. Well, you ladies are lucky enough to be able to come more than once in a very short amount of time. Usually it takes a vibrator to help, but forced o.r.g.a.s.m play usually involves restraining the woman and then, well, using the vibrator on her. Sometimes its part of a longer scene, and sometimes that is the scene. Again, it depends on the people.

She took a risk. Is that something you can do to me? These two guys were cute, Marcia obviously trusted them if she pa.s.sed her off onto them, and Well, dammit, she was h.o.r.n.y.

Somewhere in the dungeon, someone cried out in pleasure, accentuating the fact that she couldnt even remember the last o.r.g.a.s.m shed had, much less the last one Mike had given her.

Then she realized yes, she was still married.

Even if only on paper.

And that might be a no-go for them. Or, she quickly added, we could do that some other time, if you wanted to show me something else.

What do you want to do? Don asked her.

She took a deep breath. Honestly?

They nodded.

I want to see if I can make noises like that other lady was just making.