Chapter 7

The atmosphere at the Velvet Iron was as bubbly and full of life as it always was. Wherever you could look, there were people either having fun, making mischief, or experimenting with a new kink or game.

With its inclusive membership approach and prices that were kept as affordable as was possible in New York City, the Velvet Iron prided itself on being the most welcoming and safest space in the city for subs of all kinds, no matter their kink of choice.

After a busy morning at work catching up on some copy-editing work for one of the senior journalists, Lyle was actually kind of happy to not be at work. While Lyle knew that all junior journalists had to do less interesting work for their senior colleagues from time to time, what Lyle really wanted to be doing was getting on with investigating the far juicier stories out there.

Of course there was one particular story that Lyle truly wanted to be working on, but with his senior boss Reed Silver watching him like a hawk all morning, it was probably for the best that Lyle had been otherwise occupied.

Still, work was over.

It was the afternoon now, and for Lyle it was all about making the most of his time off with his good friend, Tommy.

Tommy was single, just like Lyle. The pair of them has met at the Velvet Iron – which was probably not all that surprising given that Tommy worked there!

With his multi-colored hair and emerald, green eyes, Tommy was a young-looking twenty years old. He had perfectly smooth skin and the kind of perfectly cherry red lips that many a Dom lusted after.

But Tommy was determined to stay single. As well as working at the Velvet Iron, Tommy wanted to be a stand-up comedian. He really was witty too, hilarious in fact - certainly in Lyle’s eyes at least. But as of yet, Tommy hadn’t found the confidence to truly push himself to make a serious career out of his undoubted comedic talents.

But just like Lyle, Tommy wasn’t thinking about his career at that moment. Both Lyle and Tommy were trying out some new leather hotpants and matching bras. Both Lyle and Tommy liked to bring their femme side out from time to time and it was fun to do it together.

With the dimmed lighting and calming music, the room was a wonderfully well put together part of the Velvet Iron. The glow in the dark stars on the ceiling and walls were a lovely touch too, as were the neon lights that ran across the floor.

‘If we had Masters, they’d probably spank us for being naughty subs!’ Lyle said, his mind flashing to an image of what it would look like to have Antonio towering over him, his large hand drawn back and ready to inflict some seriously stinging spanks on Lyle’s leather-covered butt. ‘But… we don’t.’

‘Well, I don’t,’ Tommy countered. ‘You kind of, maybe, do?’

‘Nooooo! No way!’ Lyle said, shaking his head and blushing. ‘I so do not! Antonio will never be my Master!’

‘Whatever you say,’ Tommy giggled, twisting and popping his ass as he looked on in the mirror. ‘Come on, let’s try on some more stuff, I’ve brought a ton with me.’

It would soon time to get changed and head back to Antonio’s house.

As far as Lyle was concerned, it would be a case of raiding Antonio’s refrigerator, eating a snack for dinner and then going back up to the annex for a nice and relaxing evening.

But as Lyle was about to find out, sometimes even the best plans don’t go quite to plan – and worse, they can have painful consequences too…

Back at Antonio’s house, Lyle was busily preparing a grilled cheese sandwich with extra chili sauce to make it super-spicy, just how he liked it.

As he took his first bite of the evening snack, Lyle took a moment to survey his surroundings.

I can’t deny it… I freakin’ love this kitchen.

That oven probably costs more than my annual salary.

And these knives are just… total chef’s kiss!

Lyle continued to munch on the sandwich as he wandered out of the kitchen and into the living area. There was no sign of Antonio anywhere, so Lyle decided to look around and see if he could piece together a little bit more about who Antonio was outside of his career.

‘Come on, there has to be something,’ Lyle muttered, frustrated at the lack of photos or personal touches. ‘This place is like a hotel suite, no personal touches. But there’s always a clue somewhere. It’s just about finding it…’

Lyle finished off his grilled cheese sandwich and moved out of the living area. As he approached the grand double-doors that led into Antonio’s office, Lyle could hear a voice.

It was Antonio.

But what was he saying?

Lyle crept up toward the office doors and gently pressed his ear up against them to see if he could make out what Antonio was saying. For all Lyle knew, it could be orders for a mob hit or some kind of political blackmail or extortion plot.

With his journalistic instincts working overtime, Lyle strained to hear even the faintest detail.

For fuck’s sake…

Speak up Antonio…

I need to be able to hear this!

But just as Lyle felt like he was making out what Antonio was saying, he felt himself falling forward. The double doors weren’t locked! And as Lyle fell face first directly into Antonio’s office, he knew he was in a world of trouble.

‘What the hell?’ Antonio said, quickly making his apologies to whoever he was speaking to and ending the phone call. ‘Boy! This cannot and will not be tolerated. I’m going to do what I should have done when you sass-mouthed me about my espresso machine earlier. I’m going to give you a spanking you will never forget!’

‘It was an accident!’ Lyle pleaded, his mind whirring with excuses he could give, but nothing believable coming out of his mouth. ‘I was walking past and slipped. It must have been your cleaning lady? The floor was wet?’

‘Shut your damned mouth,’ Antonio said, now towering over a prone Lyle. ‘Safeword. Right this second. I’m not going to punish you until you give me a safeword. But believe me, I will not be holding back once you give it, so you’d better choose one you won’t forget when you’re crying out for mercy.’

Lyle was stunned.

Lyle knew the spanking was coming, and it was going to hurt. But he could in theory avoid it by not giving a safeword. But before Lyle could even think, he blurted out the one word that would give Antonio license to do as he pleased…

‘Apple,’ Lyle said, his cheeks flushing bright red. ‘My safeword is apple.’

Without further ado, Antonio hauled Lyle up onto his feet and marched him over toward the large desk by the window.

Without uttering a single word, Antonio firmly pushed Lyle down so that he was bent over the desk. Within seconds, Lyle gasped as he felt Antonio angrily yanking his pants down.

‘I’ll let you keep your briefs on this time,’ Antonio said, a hint of menace in his voice. ‘But with a twist…’

With that, Antonio yanked Lyle’s briefs right up into his butt crack. Lyle yelped in pain as the thin material stretched and then nestled itself inside his peachy butt cheeks.

Lyle felt utterly humiliated and objectified as his briefs rode high up inside his exposed ass cheeks. Worse, Lyle could feel his cock hardening as the briefs tighten around it.

Lyle would never had admitted it out loud, but he had long fantasized about scenarios almost identical to this. Sure, it would have been degrading to have his briefs round his ankles and his cock fully on display too, but there was something about the way it felt to have his briefs hiked up so high that was in equal parts humiliating and sublime.

Had he been lying in bed and dreaming of this scenario, Lyle’s hand would already be stuffed inside the front of his briefs and squeezing his cock - but this was far from a fantasy scenario. This was real, and it was happening right now…

‘Now stay still,’ Antonio said, rubbing his hands over Lyle’s pale cheeks. ‘I’m going to redden these cheeks. And while I do, I want you to think about what you’re going to say to me when I’m done. I want a full explanation as to your eavesdropping. And if I’m not satisfied, you’ll be facing the wrath of my paddle.’

‘Antonio! Please!’ Lyle cried out, the panic at what was ahead of him setting in. ‘YOWWWWWWWWWW!’

The crack of the first spank on Lyle’s pert buttocks nearly made him burst into tears on impact. Lyle had been spanked before, but this was something else. Maybe it was a mafia thing, but this was a whole other level of discipline.

Lyle felt a current of pure electricity flow through him as the charge from the first spank reverberated over his body and mind. It was painful, but it was irresistible too.

‘Stay still, boy,’ Antonio said. ‘Trust me, it will hurt a lot more if you move and I miss.’

‘Y-y-y-yes, sir,’ Lyle said, his legs trembling as Antonio brought down another six spanks in double-quick time, each one landing with accuracy and seemingly harder than the last. ‘Fuck! It hurts so much!’

‘It’s supposed to,’ Antonio barked. ‘Another six spanks just for that ridiculous comment. And six more for cursing.’

‘Fuck you!’ Lyle protested, gritting his teeth and readying himself for even more punishment.

Lyle felt dizzy with arousal, pain, and exhilaration as he prepared himself for more. There was no denying that he was in at the deep end with Antonio. And in that moment, Lyle had no idea whether he was going to sink or swim.

Antonio continued with a vengeance. As promised, he wasn’t holing back. As the final spank landed, Lyle felt close to the edge. He had been as brave as he could be and was ready to blurt out his safeword. But fortunately for him, it seemed like Antonio was thinking along the same lines.

‘You may stand,’ Antonio said, his voice low and gravelly. ‘Now let’s see about that little red butt, shall we?’

Antonio took a moment to inspect Lyle’s ass. Lyle wanted nothing more than to feel Antonio’s warm embrace, and he didn’t have to wait long for that wish to come true.

Antonio picked Lyle up and gently carried him over toward the large antique couch in the corner of the office.

‘Let me see, I think this should do the trick,’ Antonio said, reaching up to the shelf above the couch and pulling down a large tub of luxuriously packaged cooling lotion. ‘Now turn onto your front boy and let me rub this lotion into that little ass.’

Lyle nodded and turned onto his front.

‘It’s c-c-c-cold,’ Lyle said, his voice quiet as he felt the soothing touch of Antonio’s cream covered hands massaging his flaming cheeks. ‘It feels nice.’

‘That’s what I like to hear,’ Antonio said. ‘A bargain at three hundred dollars a jar. Now, tell me. Was everything okay with the spanking? I sensed you were close to calling out your safeword?’

Lyle nodded his head.

‘I nearly did, but I’m glad I hung on in there,’ Lyle said, the sensation of the lotion and Antonio’s hands on his exposed cheeks making his cock tingle and begin to twitch into life. ‘I think… I deserved that spanking. I can be such an asshole sometimes. I just… like to push people’s buttons I guess. Maybe that’s the journalist in me.’

‘Maybe it is. And we can talk more about that later,’ Antonio replied, a kind and caring smile on his face. ‘But now, I want you to sleep. And that’s an order.’

Lyle smiled and shut his eyes as he felt Antonio drape a huge, heavy, and intricately patterned blanket over his entire body.

‘The rest will do you good,’ Antonio said. ‘And I want you in my sight too.’

‘Thank you,’ Lyle replied, his ass on fire still but his heart beginning to pound harder and harder.

‘I’ll be working here for a while,’ Antonio said. ‘So let yourself drift off and get some much-needed sleep. You’re safe here. You’re safe with me.’

Antonio may have been dangerous. He may have been mysterious. But he was kind and a caring soul too. In other words, Antonio was a man of many different sides. And suddenly, Lyle was keen on learning about all of them, and not just for his investigation either.