OnlyIfItPleases Read online

  “Vanessa. Eyes on me. Now.”

  She turned, looking pained.

  “You’re learning skills. He’s learning skills. It’s okay. Carol isn’t going to fall in love with him.”

  “I don’t care if she does. Or he does. Whatever.” She set her jaw and reached behind her back. The bra snapped open. She slid it down and tossed it on top of her other clothes.

  Her breasts were beautiful, like pale, full, ripe fruit. The contrast with her tanned skin was notable, and her dusky-brown nipples were almost the same shade as the rest of her. He didn’t believe her claim not to care. It was delivered with far too much intensity. She was seriously pissed off. He wondered if Walt was getting her back. That wasn’t his call, however. Maybe she was the forgiving type. Maybe not. He hoped he could give her the confidence that would help her make good choices in the future. He wasn’t interested in a regular submissive for himself yet. He wouldn’t ask a woman to be devoted to him long-term unless he was willing to do the same for her, and he had things he wanted to accomplish first, including opening his own BDSM club.

  The Devil’s Workshop was great, in its own way, but it was a dance club on Saturday night and even some Fridays the kinky folk got preempted. The local BDSM scene needed its own space, a place where classes could take place as well as a play party—and a place that wouldn’t go away as soon as the owner got a better offer. The Devil’s Workshop had almost gone out of operation twice already.

  He stood and got closer to her. “Put your hands behind your head, Vanessa. Lace your fingers together.”

  “Y—Only if you it pleases you, Master Hart.” She did as directed, her arms tight about her face.

  “Elbows back, apart.”

  As she did, her chin lifted and her chest lifted more, thrusting her breasts out toward him exactly as he intended.

  “I call this pose display,” he told her. “Because it shows you off so nicely.” He stroked her outthrust breasts, brushing his knuckles over her peaks. They responded by stiffening after a few passes. “Legs a little further apart, please.”

  She looked at him and he expected a challenge because she didn’t move right away. But her eyes were soft and trusting. She shuffled her feet to his direction.

  “See how nice that is?” he went on. “Your breasts are available to me, lifted and within easy reach. Your pussy is available to me. Think about this position, Vanessa, and what it does.”

  She arched her back a little farther, gazing at him with longing. She needed approval. He needed to give it just as badly. “Good girl,” he said.

  Her eyes seemed to light up and her face glowed.

  “You’re doing that so beautifully. Whenever I ask for you to display, I want you to do it exactly like this.”

  She chewed her lip. It was a very cute gesture, he thought.

  “Do you have something to say?”

  “Only if it pleases you, Master Hart.”

  “It does. Speak.”

  “This is very different from what I expected.”

  “What did you expect?”

  “That you would want to beat me.”

  “If by beat you mean flog or spank, I might at some point. I might not. This is every bit as submissive, and as pleasing, as taking a flogging. What I want is your full attention and your obedience. Kneel, please.”

  She knelt, obviously unsure of what to do with her hands. She tried to keep them where they were, behind her head, but it made her awkward.

  “You can use your hands to balance as you descend. When you are done, I want them behind your back, one hand holding the other wrist.”

  “Thank you, Master Hart.” She knelt, legs together, and put her hands behind her. “Um, my legs?”

  “Are fine where they are, for ordinary kneeling.” He smiled, pleased that she wanted to get it just right. “Stay right there.” He pushed his chair back and rose. He started to walk past her to get to his destination and saw her head swivel to follow him. Her body followed, twisting. Natural enough, but it turned her submissive pose into something else, something more anxious. For a moment he thought he might let it go. She was learning, after all. But that would have been lazy, and being lazy would make him cross with himself and probably her, as well. He backtracked until he was at her side. He crouched down until he was almost at her level.

  “Which way do you think you should face when you kneel or display, little one?” he asked, softly so that no one else could hear. He had no intention of embarrassing her.

  She thought for a moment, which pleased him. “Toward you?” She searched his eyes, eager for approval.

  He was happy to give it. “Yes, exactly. You’ve done that very well. And once you have taken the position, you should stay facing the same way until I direct otherwise, so that I can be at your side or behind you as I wish. If I need you to look at me, I’ll tell you to do so, probably by telling you to re-kneel. Otherwise, I want you looking ahead, graceful, patient, posed. I want everyone to say what a beautiful, perfect submissive you are. And selfishly, I want everyone to know that I insist on nothing less.”

  Her face fell. “I’m sorry.” She turned her head and stared ahead.

  “You’re learning. How would you know unless I told you?” He ran his hands through her long, dark hair and was relieved to see her relax a little. “Now, stay as you are. I’ll be right back, and I won’t ever be too far to protect you when you’re under my command. Especially when you’re naked and vulnerable.” He straightened.

  A small pile of cushions were kept in a darkened corner of Devil’s Workshop. There was a couple making out on the rug next to them, but Hart ignored them. He selected a square burgundy cushion that was nearly two feet on a side, and carried it back.

  He set it on the floor next to her, and then moved his chair over to face it. Vanessa was tense again, but he was pleased to see her hold position. Her eyes were the only thing that tracked him, and they were full of unspoken questions. He stood in front of her. “Stand and display, Vanessa.”

  She blinked, obviously not expecting that, but she scrambled to her feet nonetheless. She laced her hands behind her neck. He put his hand on her breast, cupping it. He held her stable by wrapping an arm around her back and then leaned forward to kiss her. Her eyes widened. She hadn’t been expecting that either, apparently. Her lips were sweet and yielded as he pushed his tongue inside. For a moment she let go of the pose and reached halfway to hug him, and then she realized what she’d done and brought them back. He rewarded her by kissing her again, more deeply—and this time he brought his hand up to hold her hands in place.

  “Beautiful,” he said when he broke the kiss off. “And a wonderful recovery, little one.”

  Her eyes lit up. “Thank you, Master Hart.” He’d expected her to be pleased, but this went beyond that. What made her so hungry for approval? He didn’t think Walt was a bad man, but clearly Vanessa had needs that weren’t being fulfilled.

  He sat in the chair, which put him facing her but with the cushion in between them. She stayed facing as she was, in profile to him. He enjoyed seeing her body from every angle. He almost got distracted, taking in the curves of her breasts, belly, hips and ass. I’m going to enjoy this weekend.

  “Kneel, please, Vanessa.”

  She turned toward him, her hands moving to behind her back. She knelt with as much grace as if she’d been doing it all her life.

  “Good girl.”

  Again, her eyes showed their gratitude, which warmed his heart. He remembered her inquisitive glance earlier. She clearly wasn’t going to ask her questions. Perhaps all the protocol he’d given her had made her feel that she should speak only when he asked questions. “Do you have questions?” he asked.

  She hesitated. “Not unless it pleases you, Master Hart.”

  There was no need to challenge her or call her a liar. Besides, occasionally he was actually wrong. “It would please me, in fact.” He gave her a wry smile. “So pretend you have questions, and come up wit
h one to ask.”

  Dimples appeared in her cheek. He wouldn’t mind seeing more of those. “Well, I was wondering why you went and got a cushion for me. Usually Walt has me do things like that. He says it’s all part of my service, that I should fetch things.”

  “Well, I certainly could do it that way if I wanted to. But right now I’m training you in just a few things. Kneeling. Displaying. Answering properly. I’m sure your ass would look delectable walking across the room. And you’d look lovely bending over to pick up a cushion.”

  Vanessa blushed.

  “You know how they say to always bend at the knees, Vanessa?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good advice for heavy things. But I don’t need you to pick up anything heavy. What I want is for you to feel like a soft, delicious, woman who has made herself vulnerable to me. So when I ask you to pick something up, I want you to bend at the waist. I want to see your pussy when you bend over.”

  “Oh my.” A mixture of embarrassment and arousal crossed her face.

  Not unlike the dichotomy of pleasure and pain. “You like that.”

  “Not in front of everyone, I don’t.”

  He nodded. “You’re not an exhibitionist. But you like the idea that I can see. And I want to take you to a headspace where no matter how many people there are in a room, I’m the one who matters. But of course that’s difficult with Master Walt in the room.”

  Her eyes flashed. “Not unless it pleases you, Master Hart.”

  He wasn’t sure what she was saying no to, exactly. “Please explain?”

  “You needn’t worry about whether he’s in the room or not.” There was a cold edge in her voice, but it was not directed at him.

  He leaned back. The idea of Walt seeing her serve him pleased Vanessa, apparently. But if she was doing it because she wanted revenge, it meant nothing to him. If the eyes she was thinking about were Walt’s and not his, he wasn’t going to be getting what he wanted from her.

  She was watching him expectantly.

  “Display, Vanessa.”

  She grinned and got to her feet, spreading her legs and thrusting out her chest as the position required. He stood and moved close, inches away, and slid his hand between her legs.

  “Eyes only on me,” he said when she saw her gaze dart to the side toward where Walt and Carol were.

  “Only if it pleases you, Master Hart.” Her pussy was wet and soft to his touch. He slid a finger in and got a delightful gasp.

  “This is your first time totally naked here, isn’t it?”

  “Yes.”

  He leaned over to suck a nipple in, just for a moment before letting go. “Such lovely, full breasts. Such a nice wet pussy. A pretty ass too. And a beautiful mouth. I wonder how I’ll take you first.”

  She bit her lip, clearly scared for a moment. And then she smiled. “Only if it pleases you.” Again her gaze darted in the direction of Walt and Carol.

  “I do know one thing.” He leaned forward, whispering in her ear. He put his hand on her heart, feeling it thump. “I know where I’ll take you.”

  “The X-frame? Or the sex swing, perhaps? Or…would you like me to kneel again here and take you in my mouth, Master Hart?” Her pulse sped up.

  All tempting suggestions, and he liked a submissive who brought ideas to the relationship. Vanessa was more than passive. Yes, it was going to be a good weekend. “Those are wonderful suggestions, Vanessa, Good girl.”

  “Whatever you wish, Master Hart.”

  “I’ll be having my way with you at my home, and not in public.”

  “Oh.” Her face fell, as he expected. “But you—are you ashamed of me?”

  “Not in the slightest. But when I make love to you, or have sex with you or just plain fuck you, I want your attention on me. I’m very greedy that way. I don’t want you to be thinking ‘eat your heart out, Walt, this could have been you.’”

  He could tell he was spot-on by the way her eyes widened. He pulled his fingers out of her. “Pick up your dress, Vanessa.”

  She pursed her lips and turned to get the dress. She bent at the knees to get it, and he put his arms around her and pulled her back up.

  “No, Vanessa. This way.” Holding her around the waist, he pushed her on her shoulders, bending her forward. He held her up so that she couldn’t bend her knees.

  She bent forward and picked up the dress.

  “Very good.” He let her go and took a step backward. “Now the bra.”

  She bent at the waist this time, presenting him with a view every bit as nice as he’d expected. Her pussy lips glistened. His cock strained in his jeans, wanting to take her now, everything else be damned. He would have her, but he was going to wait.

  “And now the panties.”

  She bent again, gathering up the last garment. He slid a finger along the slit of her pussy, reminding her of her exposure. “Good girl. Now then, hand me your underwear. You won’t be needing it. But do put the dress on, because we’re going outside, and sadly, the law prevents me from parading you around naked.”

  “Sadly,” she repeated, either in agreement or sarcasm. She handed him her underwear, however, as requested. He waited for her to get the dress on.

  When her hand went to pull up the zipper, he stopped her. “No, Vanessa. Who is in control of that?”

  “Um, me?”

  “I’ll give you a second guess.”

  “You, Master Hart? But it isn’t street legal right now.”

  Indeed it wasn’t. Completely undone, the zipper came to her waist and gaped open in front to reveal her breasts in all their glory. “Do you trust me to take care of that?”

  She thought for a moment. “Yes,” she said at last.

  It was a good answer, but it wasn’t a perfect answer. He forced his voice to sound colder than he felt. He stepped aside, clearing the path to the chair where he’d been sitting. “Bend over the chair. Now.”

  She paled. “Only if it pleases you, Sir?”

  Another infraction. Clearly she was nervous. “I’m not Sir. And it does please me. Bend over the chair.”

  She hurried to do so, bending at the waist, grabbing on to the back of the chair with her hand.

  “Good girl. Lift the back of your dress for me and expose your ass. You’ll receive five swats for the first infraction and five for the second. Do you understand? And please answer correctly this time, because I can easily replace my hand with something worse.”

  He could tell from her voice she spoke through gritted teeth. “Only if it pleases you, Master Hart.” She lifted the dress in back, rolling it up so it would stay bunched at her waist.

  “What would please me most is for you to obey. But I admit it’s a beautiful ass.” He wrapped one arm around her waist to steady her. The chair was a bit flimsy, a simple metal folding chair, and it could easily go out from under her if that was her full support. Still, it was useful as a guideline for her positioning.

  If it was a spanking for pleasure, he’d give her warm-ups. Starting soft and working his way up was the way to both maximize the enjoyment of the sub and the severity of what she could take. But that wasn’t what he intended this time, and it would draw it out. He swatted her hard. “One,” she yelled.

  Clearly, something Walt had taught her to do. Calling out strokes made it harder for most subs to take pleasure in a flogging or a spanking. He’d seen some sadists actually require their subs to do something harder, like count by prime numbers, in order to keep them from entering subspace and floating off in endorphin-filled bliss. Not his style. But under the circumstances, he’d work with it. “Good girl. Keep counting.”

  He didn’t pause, but delivered spanks two through ten each less than a second apart. She yelled out the numbers as he went. Her ass turned a delightful pink. He wouldn’t have minded turning it redder, but she wasn’t into pain and he wasn’t going to punish her merely for his pleasure. He pulled her dress down.

  “Display, Vanessa.”

  “Ow,” she com
plained, but did as directed, resuming the position. He zipped up the dress in front until it covered her nipples but still exposed a generous view of cleavage, and then kissed her. “Well taken, Vanessa.”

  “Thank you, Master Hart,” she whispered.

  “You can relax now. Come with me as I get my bag, and then we’ll head out.”

  He saw Vanessa sneak another peek at Carol and Walt. Walt had a riding crop out now, one he recognized as coming from Carol’s toy bag. Carol kept her own toys just in case a Dom didn’t come prepared. The two were definitely playing on Vanessa’s mind, and he was about to tell her to keep her eyes focused when she turned away on her own.

  He tucked her underwear into the toy bag.

  “If I’m staying the weekend, should we go by my place to get clothes? The only problem is, it’s an hour away.”

  “And my place is just a few minutes drive. Did you come here on your own, or did Walt drive you?”

  “Walt drove me.”

  “Excellent, then we don’t need to worry about your car. We’ll figure out something for clothes, but don’t worry. You won’t be wearing them much. Follow.” He grinned at her and then turned to the door. The sounds of her heels clicking on the floor as she followed were music to his ears.

  Chapter Three

  After a slight detour to fetch her purse from the bag and coat check at the door, they piled together into Hart’s car, a black SUV with tinted windows he’d left in the parking garage just behind the Devil’s Workshop. The clubgoers were the only people who used the parking garage at night, although during the day the garage served a number of businesses around the neighborhood.

  Vanessa had looked forward to the Fridays out with Walt. Even though he sometimes seemed more worried about the impression they made than whether she was having a fun time, the club nights were interesting. She felt she was learning a lot, and she loved to learn. She wouldn’t normally get in a car with someone she’d just met at a nightclub—especially a bondage club—but Hart’s reputation was impeccable. How one was known in the community really made a difference, and Vanessa was aware that Hart’s approval would give her instant credibility in the scene. Hart would know whom it was safe to play with too. She wanted to get to know more people, make more contacts. The BDSM night was preempted for a gay leather event the next weekend, but she resolved that in two weeks’ time she would go to the Devil’s Workshop even without Walt.