Page 7 of Christmas Craving
“Take off your pants,” she ordered, her voice changing to something deeper and colder. “And if you want me to stop at any time, say ‘red’ and I’ll stop immediately.”
She was sitting upright now, spine ramrod straight, expression completely blank. All the warmth from a few minutes ago had leached out of her.
“That’s some50 Shades of Greyshit right there,” I teased, trying to lighten the sudden heaviness in the room. “Do you have some scary pain room over there in your condo?”
She shook her head. “No, but I belong to a club. Club Surrender. It’s only for women who like BDSM.”
That made me pause. I thought she was just messing around with that spanking talk. I didn’t realize it was like a lifestyle or something.
I studied her, realizing that her whole demeanor had changed. She seemed detached now, like she was doing a job instead of getting ready to have some sexy fun. It was like she’d flipped a switch and gone back to the ice queen I’d met earlier. But where was the passion we’d just shared?
“Wait. Are you one of those people who can’t get off unless you’re hurting someone?”
She shook her head. “No. I don’t need to hurt someone to get off,” she said immediately. “For me, being a domme is a way of… letting off steam I guess. I rarely have sex with my subs.”
“So you can have… normal sex then?” I asked.
She paused so long I thought she wouldn’t answer. “Yes, of course.”
We stared at each other for a long, charged moment. I’d been having so much fun making out with her, but this version of Celia was totally different.
I was still trying to figure out what to say next when she said, “I can see I’ve made you uncomfortable, so I should go home. I’m sorry I brought it up.”
There was a flash of vulnerability in her eyes that surprised me.
“I don’t know that you’ve made me uncomfortable so much as it’s taken me out of the moment,” I said honestly. “But listen Celia, you’re hot as fuck and we’re both alone for the holidays. If you’re up for something casual, I’d be up for that too. Just sex I mean, like I don’t want to be tied to a cross and whipped, okay? No judgement if that’s your jam, but it’s really not mine.”
“Not all BDSM is like you see in the movies,” she said. “At Club Surrender, sure there’s spanking and flogging and bondage, but it’s not violent, if that makes sense. It’s about using pain to increase the pleasure, or sometimes just to clear the mind or help people recover from bad situations by allowing them to submit on their own terms.”
It was interesting that she responded to my proposition by talking about the BDSM club again, instead of addressing her own preferences. I wasn’t sure what that meant.
“And what if I wanted to tie you up?” I asked, just to test the waters.
Her head cocked to the side. “Um, well…”
I had to laugh at the look on her face. “You might like it.”
She shook her head immediately. “In order to be a dominatrix at the club, you have to take their class and part of the lesson is experiencing what a submissive does, being on the receiving end so you know how it feels. I, uh, I didn’t like it too much.”
Shocker. Not.
“Because you like to be in control.”
“I do.”
But was that control her way of keeping her distance?
“I prefer to have some give and take in a relationship,” I told her, even though I didn’t have a lot of relationship experience to draw on. “But I’ll be honest with you, I haven’t had a lot of sexual partners. In fact, I can count them on one hand. So maybe I’d like something different, I’m definitely willing to try things, but this is kind of a heavy conversation for two people who are considering a brief holiday fling.”
Arthur chose that time to come place his head on my lap, giving me an urgent look that I recognized. Maybe it was a good thing that we’d put the brakes on whatever was happening between me and Celia.
“I’ve got to take this guy for a walk,” I said, reaching for my sweater and pulling it back over my head. “He’s still a puppy, and it’s hard for him to hold it when he has to go.”
Her eyes widened. “That thing is still a puppy? I’m pretty sure he weighs more than me.”
I laughed, then leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to her lips.
“Thanks for hanging out tonight Celia. It was fun. Maybe we can see each other again tomorrow?”
