"Ah, yeah, I mean, yes, of course, I'm glad Mistress Beth invited me.
Please come in."
I nod my thanks and then lead Bella inside, not letting my hand slip from around her waist. Once we are out of earshot I lean closer, whispering softly into her ear.
"I know why you did it, but that still earns you twenty with whatever impact toy I'll use on your sorry ass later."
Bella slowly looks up, blinking her suddenly huge eyes almost innocently, before she winks.
"So worth it."
I laugh as I lightly swat her ass, then continue our descent into the basement with Bella laughing under her breath. As much as I resented Raven's attitude, I have to admit the brief encounter has pretty much eased my girl's anxiety, and for that I am grateful.
Below the room normally only occupied by the easy chairs and sofa has been transformed into the main non-play area, just as usual. A couple of tables are stacked with food and drinks, and at my absent nod Bella puts down the box of brownies she's baked yesterday afternoon to add to the refreshments. I know some communities do it differently, but with ours we always bring something to eat as a thank you to our hostess, and to provide sustenance as needed - and turn the party into a real party. While it would be stupid to assume that anyone ever shows up only for the company, our gatherings were never just about getting our kink on. We also have a no booze, no drugs, no smoking policy, and attendance is usually invite only, or with someone who is already part of the community.
In the nearly six years I'm part of this wonderful gang of weirdos we've never had any problems, and I think it's mostly up to Beth's no nonsense policy when it comes to the parties. You fuck with her, you get thrown out, and as hostess she sees herself responsible for everyone's physical and emotional well-being here. And as I've secretly hoped, Bella relaxes even further when Beth, in all her glory, approaches us, quickly hugging us both.
"So glad to finally see you two at a social function again!"
I pretend to hang my head in shame for a moment, prompting her to laugh loudly, and I'm sure that if Bella weren't my sub Beth might have smacked my ass. It's a little weird to see Beth's demeanor towards me has changed, but I guess it's more for Bella's benefit than mine. While Bella scurries off to the bathroom I quickly peek into the main playroom, before I return to where Beth is stacking plastic cups and plates near the refreshments.
As usual for the parties, Beth is looking fabulous. Her supple breasts are squeezed into a tight white leather corset that reaches down to below her hips, with a long, black leather skirt to complement her outfit, with her hair twisted up into a severe chignon at the back of her head. Beth is a tall woman as it is, but with her high heels on I can look her in the eye comfortably today.
"You got your lists?"
"Of course," I snort, handing her two sheets of paper. Disregarding mine completely she scans Bella's briefly. I know later, before the official play part of the party will begin, she will have memorized everyone's limits to a T, and make sure no one breaches any.
"Are you going to play today?"
"Yes."
Her brows rise as she folds the papers.
"So decisive, no 'yes, maybe', 'yes, if Bella looks ready to tear my pants down any minute', but simply yes?"
I just nod.
"Hm," she smacks her lips, then draws herself up to her full height. "Any concrete ideas already, I presume? What do you need?"
"I've got a plan, but it's not going to be very elaborate. More of a mind thing.
I just need your whipping bench, if I could borrow it for maybe half an hour?"
"Of course. I guess as she's still more or less a novice when it comes to parties you'll want one of the screens, too, to provide a little privacy?"
Grinning at her indication of the portable room dividers, I shake my head.
"Nope, up on the center stage should be just fine."
Her lips curl into a devious smile as she studies me, then nods.
"Just what exactly do you have in mind for your delectable sub?"
I think that's the first time ever I hear her refer to Bella as anything but the woman in my life, but I have to admit, it's a pleasant change.
"Let's just say she feels a little anxious about not living up to her own standards, and I figure it will stroke her ego nicely if she can tough things out in front of everyone. You know they don't care if she flinches at the first gentle swat or takes a heavy caning in silence, but I think for her it makes a huge difference."
Beth considers that but doesn't offer her opinion, which is about as much of a 'go for it' as I'm likely going to get.
"Are you going to play with anyone else today?"
"Of course not."
Her nod is definitely approving.
"Do you need any props?"
"No, I have everything here," I indicate my goody bag. "But I might ask a few people to lend me a hand."
Now she frowns, and checks Bella's list.
"She doesn't seem too thrilled at the idea."
"But she didn't set it as a hard limit."
"Some consider a low mark as a soft limit, though."
I felt my ire rise its ugly head, my spine straightening of itself.
"I'm her Master. It's my right to push her soft limits. Are you saying you disagree?"
The moment the words leave my mouth I want to call them back but force myself not to back down or show even a hint of doubt, and after a moment Beth's grinning at me again.
"Of course not, and I'm sure neither does your girl. Welcome back."
I wonder what exactly she's meaning with that but Bella's return cuts our conversation short. She looks slightly uncomfortable as she pads on naked feet over to us, but her shoulders are pushed back confidently, and she doesn't lower her gaze until she stops in front of me. Unprompted she turns around so I can tighten the laces of her corset, cinching her waist but leaving still some ease over her ribcage. She immediately assumes a fully upright stance, her tits sticking out while she attempts to find a good breathing pattern with the new strain on her chest, and I use her moment of distraction to slip the leather collar closed around her throat.
It's not the collar that fits her wristband but a soft strip of leather, lightly padded. With her hair hiding the buckle at the back of her neck it looks more like jewelry than restraint, and Bella smiles up at me when I give her a last once-over.
"Perfect."
Beth heaves a playfully exasperated sigh when I kiss Bella deeply, taking my time to rub my tongue along hers, but she's still smiling when I unwillingly break away.
"Let me guess, in forty years from now you'll be one of these embarrassing couples who still have to grope each other's flabby asses and giggle while you're still so damn much in love with each other?"
"I'm fully counting on it," Bella laughs, but after a moment cuts herself off, giving me a weird look. "Uhm, actually I'm not quite sure how to, ah, behave myself today?"
I grin at her at her question, but it is Beth who answers.
"Of course it's your Master's right to impose his own rules on you, but the general house rules are that you try to keep up a friendly, polite code of conduct, while being your chipper self. If, as a sub, you feel like it is easier for you not to address any tops you talk to by their names you might want to stick to the usual 'Madam' or 'Sir', unless they allow or require of you to call them by any other designation." She then leans a little closer, winking conspiratorially. "There are a few sticklers for proper behavior around, so if you want to impress them with your submissive obedience towards your Dom, stick with calling him 'Master' exclusively today. You know I don't give a damn, but then I don't need words to know I'm in charge."
Both women laugh lightly then, and I'm happy when Bella's smile doesn't dissipate even when I pull her close and not so subtly grope her ass underneath her skirt, making the fabric ride up high.
"Did your dear girl at the door get that memo about addressing people the right way, too?"
Beth purses her lips in irritation, her smile from before gone.
"Please don't tell me she did it again?"
"She did," I confirm her suspicion.
Beth sighs, her eyes briefly flitting to Bella's face. Whatever she sees there causes her to stop scowling, but she still doesn't fully relax.
"I'll better go talk to Raven now before she gets into any trouble. I figured after she was all cordial to Charlotte that she had stopped this for good."
She then bustles off towards the entrance of her dungeon, leaving us to ourselves. I briefly dig my fingers into Bella's ass before I let go of her, then put my arm around her waist as I put the bag onto the floor at the entrance of the playroom, where three similar ones are already stored. As I lead Bella inside for a lazy stroll around I scan the room, pleasantly surprised to find a few old friends already in attendance.
A little timid at first Bella soon behaves like herself as I make the introductions, and small talk ensues. She's a little less talkative than usual as her eyes keep flitting all over the set-up of the room and the people arriving, but she looks pretty much at ease.
Beth joins us again as we chat with Peter and Charlotte, two of the people Bella knows from before. At her suggestion Beth 'kidnaps' our ladies, leaving Peter and me standing around empty handed in every sense of the word. Peter is still following his wife's latex clad ass with his eyes as he turns back to me.
"I take it things are going well as you finally grace us with your presence again?"
I laugh at that, and shrug.
"Well enough, yes. And it really would have pained me to miss your demonstration."
"Nothing you haven't done yourself before, actually with Charlotte herself if I recall," he replies, but I can tell that he's happy about my unspoken compliment of his skill with rope.
Beth might have been the one to truly initiate me into the world of BDSM, but most of what I know about being a Dom I've learned from Peter. Like me he shares a fascination for bondage, although unlike me he's happy to leave it at creating a work of art with tied bodies and miles of hemp rope. I knew I had to come here when Beth told me he was demonstrating a few ties with Charlotte today, and I'm happy things worked out so well.
Our talk then turns to what exactly he has planned, and before long he asks the question I've been hoping he would pose.
"And what are you planning with Bella?"
"Actually I might need your help there, if Charlotte's okay with it."
I then share my plan with him, and I can see his interest is piqued. We then continue to talk about other things as I know he won't agree until he has talked with his wife, but I haven't expected anything else from him.
While Bella is still busy chatting with the other two women I quickly make the same suggestion to a few more people before I catch up with my lovely, semi naked fiancée again. I smile to myself when I see Peter draw Charlotte away, and after a brief conversation they both give me a thumbs-up. Beth has to bustle off to attend to her other guests, leaving Bella and me blissfully alone for the moment so I can continue our stroll from before.
"Any more questions that need answering popped up in your head in the meantime?"
Bella shakes her head, but then looks towards the 'stage', a raised wooden dais about five by three yards long.
"So this is where they'll do the rope bondage demonstration you told me about?"
I nod, turning away slightly not to give anything away with the grin suddenly plastered to my face.
"Exactly."
"Did I get this right, first we have our little meet and greet thing here until everyone arrives, then Peter and Charlotte do the demo, and then let the games begin?"
"Pretty much, yeah. Not that much to it, you know?"
She smiles at me coyly then.
"I'm sure the 'not much to it' part will be interesting enough, don't you think?"
"I certainly hope so."
Bella groans into my mouth when I tug her close and kiss her fervently, before I lead her back outside to get some coffee and do a little more socializing.
Before long Bella's remaining giddiness about disappears, even through I can tell that her partial state of undress is bothering her a little whenever someone glances at her more or less exposed breasts. It seems to help a little that several people - of both sexes - are wearing a lot less, but she blushes when a while later Gerard brings in a platter full of sandwiches wearing nothing except for a clear plastic cock cage and a few stark red cane marks on his ass.
"Looks like you haven't been the only one not on their best behavior yesterday," I whisper to Bella, who can't quite tear her eyes off Beth's slave when he sinks obediently to his knees at his Mistress's side.
"Shouldn't we, ah, go say hello to him, too?"
I shake my head, then at her puzzled look explain.
"That's not his usual behavior at a party so I presume his punishment isn't over yet. If I had to take a guess, she's taken away his right to be considered a normal person, so for the day, he's just a thing to her, and everyone else should respect her choice of punishment."
Bella nods absentmindedly, then looks back to me.
"You know, I don't think I'll ever quite understand this whole Total Power Exchange, 24/7 thing. Good for them that it works so well, but I think I would go insane if you'd ignore me like that for even an hour."
It's interesting that it's this part she mentions and not the humiliation of being treated like an object or possession, but I know that she's come a long way from the days where she has been making a face when I've called her names.
Beth clapping her hands draws my attention to her, and at her loud holler for everyone to please join her in the playroom, we follow the thong of people going back inside. Bella leans into me when I stop her a little back and to the side for the dais, my arms crossed over her stomach as I hug her close. Public displays of affection and possessiveness like that are allowed, while Beth would likely kick me out if I attempted to do more than that to Bella outside of a designated scene. Masturbation, even mutual, is highly frowned upon at our parties.
"Welcome everyone again," Beth draws all attention to her where she's standing. "It's so good to see so many familiar faces, and a few new ones, here today. Before we proceed, may I quickly point out a few very important things again for after our demonstration Peter and Charlotte have prepared."
She nods in their direction before she went on.
"As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me or anyone who looks remotely in charge." A few snickers and chuckles answer her joke.
"You'll find drinks and snacks outside, please keep them there and don't bring them into the playroom proper. After the demonstration please use the room outside for normal socializing and talk, we'll need most of the floor space here for your own enjoyment, be it of a passive or active kind. Goes without saying that I expect everyone to be respectful and friendly - don't go anywhere you're not invited, that also means unhelpful comments.
Remember, what might be your light play is someone else's limit, and vice versa. As far as I know no one wants to do anything more edgy, but if you change your mind, please tell me so we can make sure not to accidentally alienate someone. Now please enjoy yourselves!"
While Beth lets Peter help her off the stage - the tight lower part of her skirt making stepping down a little difficult - Bella turns to me, looking at me questioningly.
"More edgy?"
"Fire, blood play, suffocation, things like that."
Her mouth forms a small 'o' momentarily.
"People don't usually do things like that here then?"
I can see the unspoken question about what she knows I did with Chelsea, and I shake my head.
"No, not without informing everyone first. Usually parties like this are more a hook-up occasion to plan anything more out of the ordinary in a more private setting with a few people to help and assist." When she keeps eyeing me askance I shrug. "You generally don't whip anyone bloody without someone standing at attention with a first aid kit and 911 on speed dial. Better safe than sorry, right?"
I can't quite judge the look on her face, but after a moment she raises herself onto her toes to kiss me, a surprisingly deep kiss for the topic we're discussing.
"Sorry I ever doubted you."
Her words surprise me.
"What do you mean?"
"About that sub of yours Jazz told me about. I should never have doubted you. I know you're responsible, and you never once did anything to warrant my mind running rampant."
I kiss her in a ways of saying thank you, then add, "Well, that and Beth would have my ass in a way I wouldn't quite like so much, if that helps to further ease your mind."
Bella sighs but catches herself before she can add a scathing remark, but the look in her eyes is enough to make me consider adding a few more strokes to her tab for later. But then Peter starts talking, and I turn my attention to him.
While Peter is busy tying his now naked wife up I feel Bella getting a little restless, and by the time Charlotte is restrained to the point where she can't move at all anymore, she's practically squirming, which in turn is a torture of its own on my hard cock pressed into her ass. I even consider taking her into the restroom outside to relieve some tension but figure that if it's hard on me to hold back, it must me twice as bad for her. I still stroke her arms gently, letting her imagine me touching her like that on a more erogenous zone, and Bella whimpers softly.
"Don't worry, we'll get to have some fun soon."
Not too soon, I hope, to keep things interesting for a while longer.
A short while later Peter is satisfied with his work, but keeps Charlotte all tied up while he replies to the questions that are posed. I can tell that Bella gets increasingly more antsy so I stop stroking her, but as keyed up as she is that doesn't change things a lot. When no further questions are being asked Beth steps in front of the dais while Peter starts untying Charlotte again.
"Okay, listen guys, for anyone not having caught on yet, we're using two different safeword systems - the usual green / yellow / red, and our own personal dungeon safeword is "applesauce". Hope everyone got that? If you hear someone use either safeword, make sure they're okay. Lube, condoms, disposable gloves are ready at the door if you forgot to bring your own. Play it safe and have fun!"
I grin at Beth's speech, knowing the familiar words by heart still. Leaning down to Bella I whisper a low, "Do you think we'll need any of those?" into her ear.
She stiffens slightly, and I hear her utter a low whine along with her next breath.
"I guess that fully depends on what you intend to do with me, Master."
Her words remind me again that I can't just bend her over the next hard surface and fuck her into oblivion, although I'm sorely tempted to try, but for once, I have to behave. What a concept.