The End of Our Beginning

THE END OF OUR BEGINNING

Penelope Darling

N ora excused herself to go to the bathroom real quick when her group arrived at my station, and I couldn't help but go over to Ash and ask how she was doing so far.

He smirked. "It's been fifteen minutes. She's doin' fine. Are you gonna ask how I'm doin' now?"

"No. I already know you're bored," I laughed.

He grinned and shook his head, and he looked around to make sure we were somewhat alone. The other group members were waiting by the bar.

"There's fuck-all for me to do," he said quietly. "I just stood there and watched her mix together a dough. Meanwhile, Greer was smilin' ear-to-ear."

"Because he's a TPE Master, silly," I chuckled.

Ash shrugged. "I've mostly experienced him as a primal Sadist."

He was that too, but being with Archie had allowed Greer to indulge in every core kink he had.

Nora soon scurried back into the club area, and she positioned herself slightly behind Ash.

"How's it going, sugar?" I asked her.

She opened her mouth to respond, only to snap it shut and glance up at Ash.

Good girl.

"You may speak," he said with a quirk of his lips.

"Thank you, Sir." Nora looked to me and beamed. "It's fun, Ma'am—but more so, peaceful. I didn't expect that. Like, a calm washed over me when we were baking."

The girl knew how to trap my heart. Christ, every little thing I learned about her made me just a tad more obsessed than previously.

"Lovely to hear." I smiled and took a step back, then summoned the others in the group. "Okay, everyone. Welcome to Pose for Your Owner. Mr. West here is going to hand out instructions for this station. On the piece of paper, you'll find illustrations of nine poses, and it's possible a certain humiliation Master has decided a few of them. The rule is very simple—once you get up on the podium, you perform with grace and no laughter." I paused as Lucas handed out the printouts to the Owners. "You have two minutes to memorize the poses."

I'd already had a few brats who'd cracked up when I'd ordered them to do the "Mclean Flamingo." One-legged stance, arms shaped like an "M."

It didn't take more than that for Littles to snicker themselves to pieces.

But that was the challenge, wasn't it? TPE Tops generally enjoyed pushing their slaves to perform well, and for that to happen, you needed challenges.

I watched Archie's and Greer's eyebrows hitch as they studied the instructions, and I grinned to myself and stepped up on the podium. Tate and Kingsley were well-versed in TPE too, so it was going to be interesting to watch Tate's performance. Because unlike Archie, Tate had brat tendencies.

Aside from the made-up flamingo pose, we had the Mclean Dolphin, where the sub positioned themselves as if they were about to dive into a pool, and their fingers formed the letter M. The Mclean Whore was free to interpret, and then we had some regular poses as well. Presentation, ready to serve, display, wall, and sex doll.

"Jesus," I heard Ash mutter. "Do Owners need to keep a straight face too?"

I smirked and shook my head. "Depends how hard you want to challenge your pet. If you laugh, chances are it'll be infectious. Or, they'll feel bad."

He frowned at the last part and glanced down at Nora. She was concentrating as she studied the illustrations Lucas had put together.

"Daddy, I'm gonna laugh," Noa whined.

I cleared my throat, and he widened his eyes and slapped a hand over his mouth.

Nora grasped Ash's index finger, and he granted her the privilege to speak.

And I noticed she snuck furtive glances at both Noa and Camden, the two bratty Littles who might struggle to withhold their giggles.

"I think I'm just going to pretend I'm doing yoga," she said politely. Her stare might be fixed on Ash, but I got the distinct feeling she was offering a pro-tip to the Littles. "Yoga's full of weird poses, but it helps to view them as exercises."

Sneaky girl. I wasn't sure Camden picked up on the advice, but Noa did. He chewed on his lip and reached up to whisper in KC's ear.

"I'll do that too, Daddy." If only Noa actually knew how to whisper…

KC coughed to hide a chuckle and nodded.

I brought out my little notepad. Nora was getting an extra point for wanting to be helpful, and then minus half a point for sneaky behavior. The latter was obviously a good thing in my personal book, because I loved a creative brat, but at the event, we had to be TPE hard-core about the rules.

Noa, however… Minus two points for speaking without asking permission, and then one extra point for being cute and trying .

I was great at this.

"Time's up," Lucas announced.

The Masters returned the illustrations, and I gestured for the slaves to take their spots on the podium.

"You got this, baby," Greer said.

Archie took a deep breath.

He and Nora ended up in the front, Tate in the middle slightly behind them, while Noa and Camden positioned themselves in the back.

Lucas joined me at my side, ready to scribble down what I told him.

"We'll start with the very famous Mclean Dolphin," I ordered.

Tate closed his eyes for a quick second, and his mouth twitched, but that was about it for unwanted reactions. Focus and determination took over, and all the subs remembered the position. Good postures, no one laughing—although, I could see little Camden was struggling!

Feet close together, a nice arch of their bodies… The M-shape of Nora's fingers on her left hand wasn't as pronounced as the right.

"Four points each for Nora and Camden," I said quietly. "Five for the rest." Then I raised my voice and addressed the slaves. "We'll move on to the presentation pose."

Here we go.

It was very easy to see who had ceremonial poses as part of their lifestyle protocol—and who didn't. Noa and Camden flopped around a little to switch positions, while the other three eased into it very gracefully. The way they sank to their knees—softer movements, more fluidity.

"Two points each on the transition," I murmured. Frankly, I couldn't judge the Littles as hard as I did with the other three. This wasn't part of their life, so I went with how hard they were trying. A for effort and all that.

I inspected them a beat longer, noticing Archie's posture. That young man lived and breathed to serve Greer, and it showed. Shoulders squared, chin held high, eyes closed, hands mirroring each other on his lap.

"An extra point for Archie." I spoke for only Lucas to hear, before I addressed them all again. "And now, the ever-so-graceful Mclean Flamingo."

As if on cue, Camden and Noa let out soft giggles, and Noa even pretended to have wings.

"Ca-caw!" he squeaked. "Ooh, I want a bird Squishmallow!"

I grinned and shook my head.

Lucas chuckled under his breath.

KC scrubbed his hands over his face, and I could tell he was trying not to laugh.

"Meep-meep!" Camden burst out.

I'd timed my break perfectly for when Nora's group was off to Reese's station on the other side of the pool. They'd just spent fifteen or twenty minutes drawing mascots, and now was the time for pain.

Suffer for Your Owner.

Jack was having fun at his station on the deck, where slaves were running around to create a snack for their Owner before they turned into human furniture.

I grabbed an iced tea and trailed behind the group, not wanting Nora to see me. She was so focused and soft-spoken all of a sudden that I could no longer place her in the brat category. If anything, she was fitting in seamlessly with Tate and Archie.

Poor Ash. This was really not his thing—but he was making Nora's day. That much was clear.

The sun shone down on us, and it would shine a bit more on Ash now. He'd get to participate doing something he loved. Giving beatings!

Reese stood ready, arms folded over his chest, with three sawhorses, one pillory, and two X-crosses—for the groups that included six slaves. A table was set up with multiple implements too, from floggers and whips to canes and paddles.

Santiago was spotting Reese, and they had quite the audience down here. I counted some fifteen members who were here to watch on the sidelines.

"Howdy, slaves!" Reese was clearly enjoying himself. "It's time to suffer for your Owner. Yay, you shout internally. I know. So, Santiago and I have prepared a table of goodies here for the Owners, but the rules are for the slaves. Pay attention, you hear?" He paused briefly. "You accept the amount of pain it takes to make your Owner proud. If pain is a big part of your dynamic and you're Sadists and masos, you're likely to take more of it. If it's not a part of your dynamic, maybe you quit after three or four lashes. It's up to you, as slaves, to showcase that you know your Owner, that you know the dynamic you share, and that you keep in mind it's them you wanna please. You're not doin' this to show off to friends or prove yourself—you're sufferin' just enough to please your Owner."

I walked closer to the founders' cabins so I could get a read on Nora's expression. I wasn't worried one bit here. She was a masochist, and Ash was a Sadist. She'd take a solid beating for him, and I trusted her to know when to stop.

Santiago delivered the safeword speech. "Because we don't know the weight our regular safeword carries in your dynamic, we're replacing red with blue for this station. So the moment you, the slave, decide that this is it, your Owner is pleased now, you safeword blue out loud. If you understand, say yes, Sir."

"Yes, Sir!" the subs replied together.

Then Camden raised his hand.

Reese inclined his head. "You may speak, pet."

"Thank you kindly! So, um, I love spankings sometimes , okay?" Camden said. "Like, a sexy spanking. I love those. But that's not suffering, you know? So am I suffering or not?"

I smiled.

"What's the name of the station?" Reese asked patiently.

Camden scrunched his nose. "Suffer for Your Owner."

Reese nodded. "Then I don't think your Owner will spank you."

Anthony smirked and hugged his boy from behind, and he whispered something in Camden's ear.

Whatever it was made the boy recoil and glare up at Anthony. "My feet, Daddy?! Why would you flog my feet?! That sounds horrible!"

"You mean it sounds like you'll be suffering?" Santiago drawled. "I reckon a sawhorse will be good for little Camden."

"I should not have opened my mouth," Camden whispered to himself.

Ah, the lesson a brat never learned.

"On that note," Reese went on, "the Owners can choose their furniture now."

Ash immediately ushered Nora over to the pillory, the only piece of equipment we'd once had at the front of the house. I knew Nora wasn't a fan of that, and I was sure Ash knew it too.

Greer guided Archie to a cross, so did KC with Noa, and Kingsley wanted Tate on one of the other sawhorses.

"Before you strap your subs down, make sure they're only wearin' underwear," Reese instructed.

That meant Nora had to shed her tight little dress, revealing a thong and a sports bra underneath. And Tate removed his beater that matched his black boxer briefs. Property of Master Kingsley, as they read.

Nora spotted me right before Ash helped her get in position, and I blew her a quick kiss.

She pursed her lips to hide a smile, then put her head and hands through the holes. Lastly, Ash closed the heavy wooden top so she couldn't get out.

I took a swig of my drink before setting the bottle down in the grass. This was going to be fun, and I didn't wanna miss a second. It was literally the only reason I'd suggested each organizer would have a break during a relatively short event. The participants got to draw mascots and eat fruit; we got a break.

Greer opted for a cane, which I thought was interesting. While Archie loved to suffer for Greer, pain wasn't a spice they added for the sake of it. I'd witnessed way more discomfort coming from him. Like being a human table or footstool.

Poor Tate had to suffer with a whip made of coconut fibers and leather.

Not much would make Noa suffer in the pain department, though being restrained did it for him. He hated being strapped to that cross, and he was struggling to hide it.

"Slaves, get ready," Reese declared. "You may make sounds—scream or moan, I don't care—but you are not allowed to curse your Owner out or use foul language."

I bet that was the first time Reese had used the term foul language .

Ash was the first to strike—literally. He'd picked a spiked paddle, a tool Nora didn't necessarily hate, but she didn't like the spikes. More than that, Ash was going to town on the backs of her thighs, so it was going to hurt to sit later.

As predicted, my girl gritted her teeth and screwed her eyes shut.

Camden yelped as Anthony began flogging the boy's feet.

Greer's cane came down hard across Archie's back, with the boy's muscles contracting. I couldn't see his face, just his body and how much he tensed up.

Tate, though. Amazing. He had his cheek on this side of the sawhorse, and he didn't make a single face. Yet. He took his Master's whip with practiced ease and breathed through the initial onslaught.

"Blue!" Archie gritted out.

Greer stopped immediately, and he looked to be fighting a smile.

Reese stepped up behind the cross so he could look Archie in the eye. "And why did you safeword? Is your Owner satisfied?"

Archie unclenched a little. "Yes, Sir. He doesn't want marks on his property's body."

Reese flicked Greer a look, silently asking for confirmation.

"Spot-on." Greer nodded. "Whole other game if it's my frog boy."

I chuckled softly. Wasn't that the truth? He could unleash the Sadist on Corey instead, who craved pain.

"Fair enough," Reese replied. "Good job." He turned back to Santiago. "Five points for Greer's slave."

While Greer walked up to tend to his boy and release him from the cross, it was Camden's turn to safeword, and he howled out, "Bluuuuuuuue!" in a mix of laughter and screaming.

Fun mindfuck to be tickled and hurt at the same time.

Camden received five points too, and then it was our three masochists left.

Kingsley, Ash, and KC were relentless, and I had no idea who would be the next to safeword. Maybe Nora or Noa? I doubted it was Tate.

Nora should hold on for a while longer, no matter what. She'd taken far worse, and she was nowhere near her breaking point.

"Ouch, motherfudging punt fitstain!" Noa sucked in a breath and scrunched his face together.

I grinned.

Reese chuckled under his breath.

The pain was getting to Tate too. He flinched with each impact, and his jaw ticked with tension.

Over and over, the implements cracked through the air—or at least Kingsley's whip did. Ash's paddle made a sound once it smacked against Nora's skin, and KC's cat-o'-nine tails came down with a short, contained smatter on Noa's bottom. We weren't talking thuddy pain here. They were straight-up fiery stings.

Greer walked closer to where I was standing, and he held Archie in front of him, never letting him go. "I reckon you'll need to rub Sloan's arm later," he murmured with a kiss to Archie's neck. "It's gonna be sore after Corey's beatin'."

Ah yes, the burden every Sadist had to carry. Soreness.

Poor Sloan.

The teasing glint in Archie's eyes let me know he wanted to say something along those lines—that it would be Corey who needed the rubdown—but, of course, he didn't say that.

"Whatever you wish, Master," he said instead. Too quiet for Reese and Santiago to hear. I heard it, but I let it slide.

As mentioned, I was great at TPE.

Noa started screaming, growing increasingly creative with the curses, though at least one or two—make that three—fucks slipped out. And shortly after that, he safeworded blue, and KC ceased the beating.

"Your turn, little one." Reese walked over to him. "Why did you safeword?"

"Because my limit is D-Daddy's limit, and also, his l-legs are tired." Noa panted through gnashed teeth. He sniffled too, and I noticed KC leaning heavily on his cane.

Reese shifted his attention to KC. "Are you satisfied, buddy?"

"Very much. He's a good boy." KC smacked Noa's butt, much to the boy's annoyance.

"Four points to Noa," Reese declared. "That mouth gets you into trouble, boy."

"I'll show you trouble!" Noa snapped.

I coughed through a laugh.

Then there were two.

Nora was still not making a single sound. Her pain was more visible in how she tensed up, how hard she clenched her jaw, and the sweat and tears dampening her face. Tate wasn't far off either. A light sheen of sweat glistened across his body, and every now and then, we could hear gritty sounds he was trying to push back.

I caught movement in the corner of my eye, and I saw one of the members walking toward me. I didn't recognize him; he could be new. Midforties, suited up.

He stopped next to me and spoke for only me to hear. "The girl's in pain."

I felt my forehead crease. "Of course she is."

"No, I mean—it's not safe," he told me. "I overheard them earlier, and apparently she and her Top recently met? He can't possibly know her threshold."

What the fuck?

This really fucking irritated me, because every now and then, some holier-than-thou person proclaimed they knew more than the parties involved in a scene. Not only did they shit on the sub's ability to communicate, but they assumed the Dom or Domme hadn't done their homework.

I reined it in, though. In the end, this guy meant well.

"I can assure you, Nora's fine," I said. "She will safeword when she's ready, and Ash has covered all the ground to ensure her safety."

The man shook his head. "No. No, I've been doing this for fifteen years, and it's just not safe." He took a step toward Reese, and I couldn't fucking believe him.

I grabbed his arm, ready to play the DM card, the founder card, and any other fucking card.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I snapped, making sure to keep my voice down. "You're not interrupting their scene. I trust you've read our community policy?"

He glared at me. "It clearly states you're allowed to interrupt if you fear for someone's safety."

"It also states that you're supposed to locate a DM or one of the founders unless it's an emergency, and?—"

"Listen here, lady. That girl?—"

Lady?

"Is everythin' okay?" Greer came over and folded his arms over his chest.

The man huffed impatiently and turned to him instead, and he pointed toward Nora. "She's holding back. She and her Top just met, and there's no way he knows what she can handle."

Greer lifted his brows, and he eyed me. "He for real?"

Despite that Tate had started getting louder, we'd caught Reese's attention, and he told Santiago to cover for him. Then Reese walked over to us too.

"Keep your voices down," he warned.

The nameless idiot didn't give up. "Don't any of you see that the girl has had enough? I have fifteen years of experience with this. I see it clear as day." He raised his voice enough for all of us to react. Like a flip of a switch, Reese became someone else, someone who was ready to throw another out on his ass, and Greer and I exchanged a quick look.

"You make sure Ash and Kingsley keep the pets distracted," I ordered under my breath. My main concern was Nora, who was facing this way. If she opened her eyes, she'd see us.

Greer nodded and brought Archie with him.

Meanwhile, Reese and I directed our attention to the fuckwit, and Reese grabbed on to the man's arm, instantly ushering him away from the area.

"Let's take a walk," Reese said.

The man tried to wrench free, but that didn't work. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm escortin' you off the fuckin' premises," Reese replied. "What's your name?"

"You've got to be kidding me," the man scoffed. "You're kicking me out because I show concern for a vulnerable sub?"

"Showing concern isn't the issue," I told him, my heart hammering faster. Anger flowed freely in my bloodstream, and I needed the guy gone. "I told you Nora's okay, and Ash is a great Top for her."

"How would you know?" he pressed.

I stared up at him, part in disbelief. "Because she's mine, you fucking asshole. But that's not the point. If a DM or a founder—on, in this case, both—tells you we have the situation under control, you back the fuck off and trust us."

He clenched his jaw and didn't say another word while we ushered him alongside the house and toward the front of the property.

"Your name, dude," Reese repeated. He let the man break free from the hold this time, and he made a show of rubbing the spot Reese had had in his grip.

"You won't need it," he said angrily. "I'm not coming back. But I will warn others about this place."

I snorted.

"You wouldn't be the first to try, buddy." Reese smiled thinly and scratched his eyebrow. "Maybe you can help us cut the line down some. We're becomin' too popular."

The man glared and took a couple steps back, and he righted his suit. "I can't imagine why. A community where abuse is okay?—"

I stiffened.

"Say that one more fucking time," Reese growled and flinched forward. "You wanna learn the difference between consensual pain and abuse? Take a step closer—I'll be happy to show you."

Fuck. I drew in an unsteady breath and put a hand on Reese's back. He needed to cool it before the motherfucker decided to press charges. It was better to just get him out of here. His membership could be canceled without a name. We'd find him somehow.

Thankfully for all our sakes, the man threw us another glare before he stalked off toward the carport.

"Take a breath, hon." I rubbed Reese's back, and he relaxed some and scrubbed a hand over his face. "You know this is part of it." It wasn't the first time this had happened, and it wouldn't be the last. A couple times a year, at least, someone pulled a similar stunt. Though, usually not this dramatically.

Reese sighed and shook his head, then draped an arm around my shoulders. "Motherfucker."

"Amen."

I nudged him in the direction of the back, because I wanted to return to Nora. Hopefully, she and Tate hadn't noticed the commotion.

"You know what bothers me?" he asked. "When these asshats use their years of experience as a weapon. When Riv and I got involved—ten years later, we'd taken so many breaks in kink that we knew the basics. But once we bought this place and made it our life, we learned more in a year than in all the previous years combined."

That was so true. We'd met people who burned for BDSM and learned a lot in a shorter period of time than some who'd been in and out of the lifestyle for decades. A blanket statement of how long you'd been around didn't say much in the end.

"Anyway. Good riddance," he finished.

I nodded once, and we passed the deck, where Colt nodded at us.

"Everythin' all right?" he asked. "I heard someone was bein' a tool."

"We took care of it," Reese replied. "All good now."

"Glad to hear it." Colt returned to Kit and Jack's station.

Reese glanced down at me with a smirk. "So she's yours, huh?"

Aw, crap. Of course he'd picked up on that.

I looked down the lawn, where Ash was still beating Nora. And Kingsley was still beating Tate.

And yeah. She was.

That girl belonged to me.

"I'm falling for her," I admitted.

"No shit." He pressed a kiss to my temple and flashed his signature grin. "Enjoy it, hon. I think she'll be good for you. She's feisty as fuck."

I smiled, unable to control it. She sure was.

Nora Lilja

"Let it all out, kiddo." Ash held me tightly, and I sobbed my ass off. "You made both me and Pen so proud."

Oh my fucking God, it hurt so much. I wasn't sure I'd be able to sit down anytime soon. But at the same time, I was freaking flying. My brain was at peace; there was no noise, just emotions fleeing the scene.

"Five points for Nora," Reese declared. "Excellent job."

Kingsley and Tate were still at it, and I could hardly believe it. Tate was a rock star!

I sniffled and wiped at my face, and Ash ushered me over to one of the cabins that had furniture. Santiago was quick to catch up, and he'd come prepared. He gave Ash a towel and said it was soaked in cold water. A bottle of aloe too.

"Thanks, man. Saved me the hunt. Thanks." Ash accepted it all, and he ushered me to the nearest sofa. It scared me a little, 'cause this was going to hurt! No matter how soft the cushions looked.

"Let's be very careful here," I croaked.

"I gotchu, li'l cub." He released me long enough to fan out the wet towel, and then he poured lotion on it too. "I'll be ready to wipe away those tears. Have a seat."

Ugh. Yeah, this was gonna suck, but…I was so tired! I wanted to get off my feet. Being locked in a pillory was no cakewalk. My back was strained, my neck too, and my calves were ready to give up.

He held me as I very slowly sat down on the cold towel, and I hissed. Helvete, helvete, helvete! The ice crashed into the fire, threatening to short-circuit my brain, all while the rest of my body—that wasn't covered in budding bruises—cried with relief.

A fresh round of tears welled up in my eyes, and I went back to crying.

"Where's Penelope?" I whimpered.

"She had to return to her station, but she'll be back soon," he murmured. "She said she was gonna ask Lucas to cover for her. She wants to be here."

I nodded and wiped fruitlessly at my cheeks, before he took over.

He smiled faintly and cupped my cheeks. "Was it a good scene?"

I nodded again, because holy crap, I'd gotten the best emotional release. "Yes, Sir. Part of me wanted to go a bit longer, but since we haven't played harder than this, I figured it was b-best to stop."

"Good choice." He nodded firmly and let me be weepy for a moment.

Exhaustion was beginning to seep in, slowing down my cries, and I wondered how the heck I was going to get through the rest of the event. They'd planned it well, making sure we didn't have anything strenuous after Reese's station; we were due to draw more on our mascots, or simply take a breather, but my energy was so gone. I'd probably sleep like the dead tonight.

I shivered and sniffled. My butt had its own pulse at the moment; the pain came in waves that welled up and rolled over me.

"B-blue!" I heard Tate choke out.

Finally!

I let out a shuddering breath, and Ash dropped his hand to rub my back gently.

"We'll sit here a minute, and then we'll find some shade," he said. "I wanna get some sugar in you too."

That would be nice. I was getting thirsty.

I wiped my nose and swallowed hard.

"Did, uh…did you notice anythin' weird about the scene?" he asked next. Almost carefully.

I scrunched my nose and peered up at him. "What do you mean?"

He exhaled a little laugh. "Some asshole tried to interrupt."

Oh. Huh. "Why? And no, I didn't notice anything." When was this? And who?

"I guess he thought I was being too rough on you," he admitted.

What the fuck?

I felt my eyebrows crawl higher. "Um."

He was about to say something more, but he looked out over the lawn—scratch that. He looked toward Greer and Archie, who were approaching us.

"Is it okay to intrude?" Greer asked.

Ash left it up to me, so I nodded. I didn't mind! But I wanted answers.

"Ash was just telling me someone tried to interrupt," I said, still a bit hoarse. "I don't understand why or who it was, though."

"One part good intentions, three parts dick," was Greer's response.

"I would like to say five parts dick," Archie added. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm great." Except for the confusion building up. I was so lost. "Is it strange for a masochist to cry it out after a beating around here? Am I reacting weirdly?"

Greer chuckled and sat down in one of the chairs. "Not at all. We just wanna make sure."

"And I would rather sit here than work on my smiley face at the mascot station." Archie smirked and got down on his knees next to Greer.

I grinned. A smiley face was about what I could muster too, in the drawing department. "I drew a stick figure with a single-tail whip."

"It's a great stick figure, though," Ash said.

I giggled and wiped at my face, hopefully a final time. "Wait!" Something just occurred to me. "We're not allowed to speak."

Greer waved that off. "I don't know what you're talkin' about. I'm just sittin' here shootin' the shit with Ash."

I smiled.

Okay, then. It was a nice break. It felt good to relax for a few minutes.

"Could we shoot the shit over by the buffet table?" Ash suggested. "I'd like to steal a soda and some snacks for the cried-out maso." He glanced down at me. "You think you can manage on your own for a minute? Be honest."

"Um, yeah. Of course. You go, Sir. I might kiss your feet if you steal a Coke for me."

"Consider it done." He chuckled and rose to his feet. "Sixty seconds on the clock."

Greer stood up too, and he kissed the top of Archie's head. "You're free to do your thing, baby boy. We'll be back soon."

"Thank you, Master."

The two Tops walked off, and Archie was quick to get on his feet and join me on the sofa.

"I don't think they're kidding about sixty seconds," he said. "But you're sure you're all right? You didn't notice anything during the session?"

I shook my head, a tad distracted by his accent. Mostly American, a little bit British. I liked it way more than a Swedish accent. "Nothing, I swear. I…" Ohhhh. Santiago—he'd been there! "So that was why Santiago blocked my view. I wondered why he was standing so close." That made so much sense.

Archie smiled. "They didn't want you to get distracted."

Right. Yeah, no, of course. Hell, that would've sucked. Being brought out of a pain session in a rude-awakening kind of way fucked with my head too much.

I wasn't the only one involved either. I should ask how Ash was doing. Being accused of taking things too far couldn't be a nice feeling, and my stomach sank at the thought of him checking in with me extra because he was worried.

"I should make sure Ash is okay," I murmured. "I don't want him to think that guy was right."

"That's what Master's doing right now," Archie said. "A similar thing happened to us after the last Game, actually. Some twat reached out online and called Master irresponsible for tossing me into the pool when it was cold out. Like they know me better than I do? Than my Owner does?" He shook his head. "I was so bloody angry."

I could only imagine. "What a jerk." Actually, if it turned out Ash did feel bad, or worried in any way, I might get my claws out. "It's disrespectful too. It's a complete stranger assuming Greer isn't mindful of what you can handle. Not to mention, they turn subs into helpless children who can't speak up for themselves. I know how to safeword, thank you very much. I know how to ask for help, I know how to communicate."

" Precisely . You get it."

True to his word, Ash was already on his way back, and I studied his expression. He was chuckling at whatever Greer was saying, so I hoped that was a good sign.

Oh! Penelope was on her way too! I watched her walk out of the house at a brisk pace, and she was already focused on me. Our gazes met, and I smiled and waved.

She picked up the pace and smiled back.

I was so damn in love with her, it wasn't even funny. But it felt like way more now. Like, I'd been half-convinced about my feelings for a long time, and now that we were kind of together, nothing was holding back the rush of emotions.

She'd spotted Ash and Greer too, and when she was some twenty feet away, she spoke to all of us. "I have fifteen minutes, and you guys have twenty before you're due at Jack's station."

"Roger that, ma'am," Ash replied. "Are we gonna fight over Nora's attention now?"

Penelope laughed.

I widened my arms. "Ladies and gentlemen, calm yourselves, Nora's got love for everyone."

Yeah, they both laughed at that.

"How are you, baby girl?" Penelope skipped up on the porch and made her way to me.

"I'm awesome." I leaned in for a kiss while Archie left the sofa to rejoin his Owner.

Penelope hummed into the kiss and cupped my cheek. "Yes, you sure are. Are you wearing sunscreen? I don't want you to burn."

"I am." Fuck, I couldn't even describe the joy that flew through me, like a swarm of butterflies. Were they called a swarm? A gaggle? A murder? An Air Force squadron? Oh, I should pass that on to Ty later.

Ash sat down on the other side of me, and the lifesaver had brought an ice-cold Coke and a bowl of grapes and some candies.

"My hero," I sang. I multitasked like a pro and gathered Penelope's arms so she could hug me from behind as I paid attention to Ash. "Archie brought something to my attention, and I just wanna make sure you're not worried you crossed a line earlier."

Ash smirked at Greer, as if silently conveying they'd just covered this, before he popped the soda can open for me and shook his head.

"Nah. I worried for maybe a minute or two, but I'd like to think I know your masochism pretty well at this point."

"You definitely do," I agreed, accepting the soda. "Thank you, Sir. Maybe Penelope will send you flowers as a thank-you when my ass turns purple."

Greer and Ash cracked up.

"Or cat food," Penelope chuckled.

"Make sure to add a nice card," Ash told her.

I grinned so hard my cheeks almost hurt, and I fell back against Penelope's chest. This moment was just so damn perfect, and it wasn't only her. It was all of them. I was falling in love with this community. I wanted it to be my kinky home.

Not for the night. Not for the time being. Not for "we'll see how it goes."

Forever.

Penelope kissed my neck and gave me a squeeze.

I tilted my head back and held up the soda for her. "Wanna sip?"

"Not from that." She kissed my cheek next, and I shivered.

Greer asked Ash about his thoughts on the next station, so Penelope and I stole a moment to ourselves. The stations would come later. I'd prepare Ash snacks or whatever we were supposed to do at Jack's station. Whatever it was, it involved human furniture too. Bring it. Then back to Chef King, presumably to decorate cookies. I was gonna make sure to decorate them both for Ash and Penelope.

"You're staying with me tonight, aren't you?" she murmured.

I nodded. "Yes, Ma'am."

She bit her lip, eyes flickering with warmth and affection. "I was thinking." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "What if you called me Mistress instead?"

I almost gasped.

Herregud, ?ntligen!

Emotions surged through me once more, stronger than before, and my eyes stung a little. I couldn't help it. She couldn't possibly know she'd just made my whole year.

"Yes, Mistress," I whispered back.