For the Night, page 8
“Gorgeous. That’s so good,” Ivy praised. “You have great posture, Nora.”
Fuck, I had to get away from her if I was gonna be able to do my job. I cleared my throat and averted my—
“Penelope?”
No.
I froze at the sound of Ella’s voice coming from behind me. Why the fuck was she here? I didn’t wanna face her. I didn’t want the anger and the hurt to come rushing back. At a complete loss about my future or not—fine, I could live with that—I’d dealt with the past. We were so done.
I drew a breath and braced myself mentally, then reluctantly turned around and came face-to-face with my darling cheater of an ex-girlfriend.
No changes, at least. It felt weird to see her, and I’d half expected her to look different, though I didn’t know why. It was the same old her. And no hurt. Yet. Or anger. Just annoyance because she was here.
She took a few tentative steps forward, and a sub snuck between us on his way somewhere.
Suddenly, I would give anything to get back to watching Nora. She was…the opposite of what I had in front of me. Nora was a breath of fresh air. Ella was tainted by her betrayal. Her blond hair and brown eyes that’d once reeled me in just made me see another woman’s hands on her. I could picture Ella’s expression contorting in pain and pleasure while she was with someone else.
Weirdly enough, it didn’t bother me as much as it had a few months ago.
I was simply…over her.
What a fucking relief.
I exhaled and folded my arms over my chest. “Make it quick. I’m on DM duty.”
To be honest, I couldn’t see this working out. We couldn’t share this community. She had to go. She had to realize this was a dead end.
Her gaze flickered with uncertainty. “I know. I was, um, just wondering if we could talk after the party?”
Talk about what?
“I have plans.” It was the truth. “What’s there to talk about?”
I caught one of my big oafs moving in the background—Colt, and he mouthed, “You okay?” to me.
I nodded subtly, grateful for him. He nodded once in return and got back to what he was doing.
Ella didn’t conceal her disappointment. “I want to say us, but I get the feeling you’re just gonna say there is no us.”
“I’m glad you get that feeling,” I replied. “Honestly—” Fuck. I saw someone get upset over by a St. Andrews cross, so I told Ella she’d have to find me later. I hurried over there and stayed behind the Top for the moment.
This wasn’t part of the event; the Top and his sub were playing on their own, and it was easy to see the boy wasn’t a fan of restraints.
I gently put a hand on the Top’s back as he dug out a flogger from his duffel.
He startled and glanced back at me.
“Safeword reminder right now, please,” I told him, gesturing to the sub.
The Top turned to his boy again, visibly concerned, but he didn’t appear to be surprised by the sub being distraught. “What’s your color, baby?”
The boy sniffled and clenched his fists. “G-green. I promise.”
So far, so good. “Does he ever struggle to safeword?” I kept my voice down so only the boy’s Top heard me. I’d seen them around before, so I knew they’d been together for a while.
“Not at all,” the man assured. Then he furrowed his brow. “Maybe I should’ve given a heads-up before…? We’re trying to work past one of his triggers, and he feels more comfortable in a crowd.” He held up the flogger. “This is to distract him. He loves being flogged.”
I’d heard what I needed to hear—for now. I thanked him—and apologized for interrupting—and then I walked away so I could watch from a safer distance. The boy hadn’t been shocked out of the scene, and that was good. Interrupting Tops had to happen occasionally. But these two appeared to have a solid dynamic. I kept an eye on them as the Top started flogging his boy, and the shift was pretty immediate. The sub went from trembling and whimpering to finding a comfort zone in the thuddy pain.
My shoulders lost the last of their tension when I heard how communicative the Top was. He praised his boy a lot, said he was proud of him, and spoke of his progress.
“I’m doing it, Daddy,” the boy chuckled tearfully.
“Fuck yeah, you are.” The Top was clearly proud. “You wanna go get ice cream now, or—”
“A little longer.” And the boy was determined.
I’d seen enough now too.
I smiled a little to myself and moved on.
No matter how many years I’d been so heavily involved in kink, these situations never failed to put me on a roller coaster of emotions, and they happened so swiftly that most of them didn’t register until it was all over. The nervousness and worry that something might be wrong. The risks, the unknowns, the red flags. The doubts that sometimes lingered, when you just had to keep on watching to make sure…
Then the rewarding relief and joy of seeing a sub push through a discomfort or trigger.
In a world where pain was loved by many and tears could be months of pressure unleashing, we had less to go on when we calculated danger. Something that looked terrifying and upsetting could be healing and filled with satisfaction.
At the same time, something usually went sideways at events like this one when many newbies wanted to try something they’d only read about, so we had to be prepared. But sideways didn’t mean catastrophic. Nine times out of ten, it was merely a sub needing the scene to end right then and there. And we were a community that encouraged safewording freely and frequently. We believed it promoted trust and openness, not to mention it removed some of the stigma. Too many subs feared calling red because that might bruise the foundation of a dynamic, and some Tops too—they viewed it as a personal failure to hear their sub call red.
Those mind-sets needed to be crushed like a bug.
As if someone was reading my damn mind, I heard a male voice choke out yellow, and I spun around. Okay, never mind, Reese and Dean were on the case.
My heart drummed a little faster, and I thought of River. No wonder he hated these newbie events. They put us through the emotional wringer.
Ella caught up with me minutes later, and I almost snapped at her. We were busy; all DMs were on high alert, and if I couldn’t take the time to indulge in watching Nora, I sure as hell couldn’t stand here and talk to my ex.
That was all she was now. An ex. A memory. Part of my past.
“I sincerely don’t get what we have to talk about,” I told her. “But either way, now’s not the time, and—”
“Red! I’m sorry, fuck, red!”
I sucked in a breath, instantly recognizing Nora’s voice, and Ella was forgotten. I was moving through the crowd before I even noticed it. Ella called after me, saying she wanted to wait by my cabin for the event to be over, and I just—fuck, I didn’t even know. I answered on autopilot over my shoulder, like a sure, fine, whatever, before I made my way toward…it had to be Nathan’s station.
“Everyone back off,” he commanded firmly.
Gretchen swooped in to get the line of members to back away.
I snuck between a visibly worried Lane and Kit, and I had to stop myself before I crossed a line. First and foremost, Nathan was the one handling the scene, and he was squatting down in front of Nora, who looked like she’d collapsed on the floor. He was cutting the rope harness he’d put her in.
“I’m sorry,” she whimpered.
“You have absolutely nothing to apologize for, pet.” He made quick work of removing the last rope, and then he grasped her hands to feel her fingers. “Any more tingling or numbness than before?”
She sniffled. “Not really—it was the position. The rope cinched too hard around my s-shoulders and feet when I lost my footing.”
He nodded once. “You think you can stand?”
Goddamn her for putting my heart in a vise. I took a steadying breath, telling myself she didn’t look too upset, and I turned around to face the others.
“Give us more space, people,” I said.
When I turned back to Nathan and Nora, she was on her feet, and he was keeping her close.
“We’ll put that smile back on your face soon, but you gotta humor my rigger brain so I can rule out nerve damage. Okay?” While Nathan spoke, he ran his hands up and down her arms, going through with his exam. I’d seen it several times before, and he knew what he was doing. “What about here?” He traced two fingers over a spot where I could see the rope had dug in.
She wiped her cheek and shook her head. “No, Sir. It was really just those last seconds when I slipped.”
“That’s good to hear. Let’s go find a quiet place, shall we?” Nathan didn’t wait for a response, instead turning to Gretchen. “Close the station for half an hour, at least. I’ll be back later.”
“Understood, Sir.” Gretchen nodded.
Knowing the drill from here, I offered to grab an aftercare kit, and Nathan nodded in thanks.
“We’ll be on the front porch,” he said.
Good spot.
I made my way out of the club and down the hall to the nearest supply closet, where we kept the aftercare kits. Nathan undoubtedly had some stuff already, but he’d be more focused on Nora’s nerves and possibly fear. Whereas the kit’s job was to turn a frown upside down. They had funny Band-Aids, aloe, tissues, chocolate—shit like that.
In the kitchen, I grabbed a soda too.
Before I went to join Nathan and Nora, I spotted Lucas and asked if he could cover for me for a moment.
“Yeah, of course. No problem. Is everything all right?”
“I think so. Thanks, hon. I’ll give you an update later.” I hurried back toward the front of the house, through the lobby, and pushed open the doors.
I arrived on the scene right in time to allow myself an ounce of relief. Nathan and Nora were sitting on one of the sofas, and he was testing the strength in her fingers by having her pinch his hands.
“Ouch—okay, go again,” he chuckled.
She was grinning, and her blue eyes were only a little red. “It would hurt less if I did this to your leg or something.”
He smiled a little. “It’s easier for me to measure your strength in my hands. Besides, a brat like you enjoys this much more.”
Her grin turned sheepish.
I loved Nathan. I didn’t know him as well as I wanted to, but I loved him. The way a Dom performed aftercare spoke volumes about them.
“I see you put the smile back on her face.” I went over to them and sat down on the other sofa. “How’re you feeling, sweetie?” I set the soda in front of her.
“Much better, thank you,” she said. “It only hurt when my feet slipped, and I panicked.”
Nathan gathered her hands in his and gave them a squeeze. “She was a six on the pain scale with slight tingling less than a minute before she dropped, and I can’t find any reasons to be concerned.”
“The slightest tingling,” Nora added.
I was glad to hear it.
“Great news. What position were you in?” I wondered. I’d only seen the traces of a beautiful upper-body harness, but she’d had rope around her ankles as well.
Nathan smirked as Nora scowled.
“It was one of those wall-sits that are, like, impossible,” she huffed. “And super uncomfortable!”
I grinned. Those were fun. Back against the wall, nothing holding the sub up except the strength in their legs. And add a harness to that? I was sad I’d missed it.
“Predicament bondage isn’t supposed to be comfortable,” Nathan teased.
“Yeah, I got that.” Nora mock-scowled at him before she turned to me. “It gets worse. The rope tightened if I slid down the wall, and guess what happened.”
I laughed softly.
She sighed a little after that, and she glanced back at Nathan. “I’m sorry I massacred the rope. It felt amazing before I lost my strength.”
He chucked her lightly on the chin. “There’s plenty of rope, brat. There’s only one of you.”
Wasn’t that the truth.
“It’s not the first bundle to be sacrificed,” I said. “Won’t be the last either.”
Nathan agreed.
“Still.” Nora made a face. “Wouldn’t it have been enough to just untie me quickly?”
Nathan and I shook our heads, but I let him answer.
“If you ever visit me in the dojo upstairs, you’ll learn just how frequently I talk about nerve damage. It can set in rapidly, and it can be permanent. Ten bucks’ worth of rope has nothing on you not feeling your fingers for weeks to come.”
“Maybe we could visit him together, hon.” The words left my mouth before I could think twice—but…I didn’t take them back. For two reasons. First and foremost, we liked to get subs back on the horse to repeat a scene that somehow didn’t work out initially. Secondly, I wanted to. I wanted plans with her.
She looked surprised.
“I’d like that,” Nathan said.
“Me too.” Nora’s smile was something else. “Are you a rigger too, Ma’am?”
“Oh no, I’ll just spot Nathan,” I chuckled. “I’m more of a cuff ’em and pin ’em down kind of Top.”
“My favorite.” The dorky brat made an appearance by waggling her eyebrows, and I could only shake my head in amusement. “I like bondage too, though.” She faced Nathan again. “You wouldn’t mind topping me sometime?”
“Not at all. It would be fun,” he answered.
“Great! Now I just gotta get Mistress Penelope to top me too.” She batted her lashes at me, and I smirked. Oh, I was screwed. “I mean, think about it. I have Nathan for bondage and Ash for the next Game, so one might—”
“Ash?” Nathan straightened and composed his face, but I caught the way the corners of his eyes tightened a little.
“Oh crap.” Nora slapped a hand over her mouth. “I forgot you’re you, Sir. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought him up.”
He feigned dismissiveness. “It’s okay. I know he’s back in the community. We’re bound to run into each other at some point.”
Yeah, but did he really anticipate that, or was he just saying it? Because it wouldn’t surprise me if Ash wasn’t the only one hiding behind the kids. With them sharing custody and going every other week like that, they technically shared custody of Mclean too.
“Either way, I’m sorry,” Nora murmured. “Also, I’m totally fine if you wanna get back to your station. No trauma here, I swear.”
Nathan smiled faintly. “I’m in no rush. You sure you’re okay?”
Nora nodded. “I’m gonna make Mistress Penelope stay with me for a moment, but that’s for other reasons.”
Oh, really.
Well…I wasn’t going to fight her.
“Okay, then.” Nathan conceded. “I’d like you to shoot me a friend request online so we can exchange numbers. That way, I can check in with you later tonight.”
“Will do, Sir,” Nora promised. “What’s your name on the forum?”
“Just Rigger,” Nathan answered. He gave Nora’s leg a brief squeeze before he rose to his feet. “We’ll talk later, then. You did good today, brat. You safeworded when you were supposed to.”
“Thank you, Sir.” Nora smiled. “Mishap aside, I loved the scene. I’m looking forward to exploring more bondage.”
“Straight to a rope rigger’s heart.” Nathan clutched his heart and grinned. He flicked me a glance next. “You’ll stay with her for a while?”
“Absolutely. I’ll keep you posted too.”
“Thanks, hon. I’ll see you around.” He headed back inside, and I let out a breath.
We were alone.
I kinda needed it. Even though I could see she was fine, I wanted some alone time with her.
“Hi.” She grabbed her soda and moved over to my sofa, where she plopped down with a cute grin. “He’s so nice. I’m gonna tell Ash later that Nathan is nice, because we text now.”
“You do, huh?”
She nodded. “Yes, Ma’am. He’s Big Bear, and I’m li’l cub. We have a thing. We quiz each other so we can get to know each other better before the Game.”
In other words, someone was fitting in perfectly.
“Without spoiling anything for the event, getting to know each other is very good,” I replied. “It’s not just limits that need to be discussed. Preferences too.”
She cocked her head. “I feel like you’re trying to tell me something.”
I chuckled. “Call it minor assistance to a dynamic that might have a slight disadvantage because you’re new to each other. But if you keep going, you’ll be fine.”
She pursed her lips, determination taking over. “Okay. We’re gonna quiz each other even harder and bring home the trophy. So to speak. And with that out of the way, let’s not discuss boys for a while.” She exaggerated a wink as she opened her soda.
My jaw fucking hurt from smiling. “You’re a dork, you know that?”
“I may have heard that before, but it’s okay. Dorks have more fun.”
Maybe she was right.
I swallowed and felt the mirth fade, because…had I forgotten how to have fun? I’d felt weighed down by something for longer than I cared to admit. Whatever it was…had kept me from experiencing unbridled fun—the kind where you laughed till you cried or almost peed your pants, the kind that gave your stomach a workout from all the laughing.
“Something just happened.” Nora scooted closer with a concerned look on her face, so she must’ve noticed my mood tanking. “Are you okay?”
Was I?
“I don’t know,” I said honestly. “It’s possible it’s been too long since I knew how to have fun. I… I used to be more upbeat, quick to sling jokes and put together a party. I miss that woman.”
Had someone like Shay approached me five or six years ago, with the idea of pranking both Tops and bottoms together, my approach would’ve been different. I would’ve lit up internally. I would’ve fired up my brain to think of all the ways we could raise hell. Now—I mean, I had agreed, so I wasn’t completely dead. Not all hope was lost. But I still had a long way to go if I wanted to be that person again.
