Chapter 9

I sat on the large couch in the middle of the suite’s great room, slowly sipping my coffee. My legs were pulled up in a fetal position with my arms wrapped securely around them. I felt so tired from only getting a couple of hours of sleep, yet my mind was whirling almost uncontrollably as I mentally replayed the events of the previous evening.

In the short time I had been with James, we had done many things that pushed me out of my comfort zone. At times, our sex had been gentle and loving. But most of the time, he was very rough, aggressive, and demanding with me. However, nothing that I had experienced previously could have prepared me for what we had done the night before.

I had never let anyone restrain me, and even though I had been spanked during my childhood by my father when I misbehaved, I had never been spanked with anything other than a hand. Being spanked with the flogger, and especially seeing its catastrophic effects the morning after, had really shaken me.

During the spanking, the erotic feeling of the act itself and the pain just seemed to add to the intense, carnal experience of being restrained. Seeing the red marks all over my body, and especially the deep red welts on my ass, had given me such an uneasy, apprehensive feeling.

As I reflected, what troubled me the most was not what we had done but rather what James had said. He’d told me, in the heat of that intense sexual moment, that I actually enjoyed the pain that he was inflicting on me. The very thought that I may have liked what he did, or, more accurately, what I let him do, was almost too horrendous for me to even contemplate.

I jumped slightly when I heard a knock on the door of the suite, which broke me out of my thoughts. Slowly, I rose from the couch and opened the door, and I found myself peering into Gianna’s sympathetic, caring eyes.

“Mel, are you alright?”

“I’m fine, honey,” I said as she melted into my arms, and we kissed passionately.

“God, you scared me to death with that phone call; I thought something was wrong.”

I could hear the panicked tone leaving her voice once she saw I wasn’t in any type of peril. I sat down on the couch, curled my legs under me, and watched as she poured herself a cup of coffee and then sat down next to me.

“Where is James?” she asked between sips. “You told me he wasn’t leaving until tomorrow.”

I proceeded to tell her about his son’s asthma, the medical emergency, and how he had to catch a flight back to Los Angeles.

“An allergic reaction to the medication, especially in cases of asthma, is serious, but as long as they got him to an emergency room, I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

Gianna had nearly completed the third year of her RN program, so hearing her words gave me some measure of relief concerning James’s son.

We sat silently for several minutes, sipping our coffee. I dreaded the thought of telling her why I had a panic attack when James left, but the elephant in the room could only be avoided for so long until...

“Mel, you sounded like you were almost in hysterics when you called; what’s going on?”

I took a deep breath. I was now really starting to regret not being able to pull myself together once James left.

This is going to be a rough one.

“You have to promise that you won’t overreact.”

“You’re scaring me; just rip the Band-Aid off and come out with it.”

I stood up, slowly untied my bathrobe, and held it open, exposing the red marks on my stomach and breasts. Thankfully, my swollen red nipples were beginning to revert back to their natural pink color; however, the effects of the clamps and flogger were still very evident.

I watched as her mouth dropped open and tears began to well up in her beautiful brown eyes. “Oh, God, what happened to you?” she said in a horrified tone.

“I, I. I mean ... we...”

She cut me off.

“He did this to you?!” the fear and apprehension in her voice quickly turned to rage.

“I’ll fucking kill him,” she spat angrily as tears started to streak her cheeks.

“Gianna, it’s...” I attempted to stammer out the rest of my sentence until she interrupted me again.

“Turn around so I can see the rest of you.” Her voice calmed somewhat as her medical training took over.

I turned and faced away from her and dropped my robe to the ground while simultaneously hearing her gasp in shock. I could almost feel her eyes travel up and down my body as she assessed me.

“Melanie, these welts on your ass, he almost broke the skin,” she said in utter horror. “If he had, you would have required medical attention because they could have very easily gotten infected.”

“But he didn’t break the skin, Gianna, and there was no blood,” I said calmly, hoping the steady, even tone in my voice would help to settle her down. I pulled the bathrobe back up, covered myself, and then sat back down on the couch.

She refused to sit down, and her rapid-fire questions commenced. “You need to tell me everything that happened,” she said in a cold, demanding tone.

“Gianna, it was just some playful spanking,” I said, trying to make light of what had happened in a further attempt to calm her down.

“That’s bullshit! A playful spanking wouldn’t leave these marks all over your body and those welts on your ass.”

She was starting to tear up again as the realization of what we had done began to sink in. Her inquisition continued...

“What did he use to spank you with?” She paused, shaking her head, “Because these marks couldn’t have been made using only a hand.”

“He called it a flogger; it looked like small strips of leather attached to a handle.”

“And you just sat there and did nothing while he was making these horrible fucking marks on your body?”

I looked down, feeling deeply embarrassed by what I was about to admit.

“I was restrained when he was flogging me,” I said softly.

“Christ, he tied you up?”

“Gianna,” I said gently, looking into her eyes, “I let him tie me up.”

Our eyes met, and I could see the bewildered look on her face. I knew that her mind was grappling and searching ... trying to somehow make sense and give meaning to the shocking things I was revealing to her. She started to calm down somewhat; she sat beside me on the couch and took my hand in hers.

We were silent for several minutes as we continued to hold hands and sip our coffee. I wanted to give her time to mentally process these momentous revelations. When we were together, everything we did sexually was tender and loving. We were playful with each other, but there was always an element of sensuousness and softness. She was beginning to realize just how different my relationship with James was compared to my relationship with her.

“So you’re alright with what he did to you?” she said softly, her voice breaking the silence.

“I could have stopped it at any time, Gianna,” I said hesitantly, “but it was as if I got lost in it.”

“You actually ... liked it ... then?”

“I’m still trying to make sense of what happened, but yes, part of me, on some level, liked what we did.”

She paused for several seconds, trying to collect her thoughts. I could see how difficult it was for her to hear these shocking revelations concerning a part of my sexuality that she hadn’t even known existed.

“It’s very difficult for me to hear you talk about these things that you say you liked, and even more painful for me to see the physical effects of them.” A panic washed over me as I listened to the serious tone of her voice. I hadn’t even contemplated that these startling revelations might be a reason for her to want to end our relationship. Maybe I had made a mistake this morning when I called her in my panicked state after James had left. However, I could have hidden the marks on my body from her for only so long because she would have found out after a day or two.

“I know I’m going to fumble this a little bit, so I want you to be patient and bear with me.”

I took a deep breath and tried to prepare myself for the worst if she was going to break up with me. I desperately didn’t want to let her see me cry.

“We’ve only been together for a little over a month, so I feel a bit reticent in admitting this, but I’m in love with you, I’m sure of it.”

My jaw dropped in response to her unexpected words, but I tried to remain calm and let her finish what she needed to say.

“I love what we have, Melanie. You’re so tender and loving; I’ve never been in a relationship where I’ve felt so much affection.”

As much as I tried to control it, her beautiful words were bringing tears to my eyes.

“But, you can’t ever ask me to participate in, or in any way be a part of, what you let him do to you. I could never hurt someone that I love. That’s just not me. If you want to do these things with James, I’ll try to be understanding and give you the space you need. But this is something that you’ll have to get from him, not me.”

After hearing her words, I immediately broke down crying. It was almost too much to emotionally process. What James and I had done, its physical effects on my body, him leaving, and then Gianna telling me that she was in love with me, it was just too much to hold in.

“I love you too, so much,” I stammered out between the falling tears.

When she saw me begin to cry, she instantly pulled me to her, and we melted together and kissed passionately, our tongues gently playing in each other’s mouths. Just feeling her next to me, holding me, meant the world to me; she always seemed to know exactly what to say and do.

I’d known Gianna had feelings for me, but I never thought she felt the same way for me as I did for her. We broke the kiss and held each other tenderly for several minutes until we finally parted and just held hands.

“I’ll try to support you as much as I can, Mel, but there might be things that we just won’t be able to talk about, like what James and you do when you are together.”

“We don’t have to talk about that part of my relationship with him, Gianna, and I totally understand you not wanting to, but just being here this morning means so much to me.”

We continued to hold hands and enjoy the comfortable silence as we both reflected on the revelations that we had discovered about each other that morning. I knew Gianna wasn’t pleased with everything she had learned about me, but I was so glad that I could be honest with her about it, and she didn’t end our relationship over it.

I also couldn’t believe that amidst all of the turmoil, she’d confessed her love for me. My elation at hearing that news was also coupled with no small measure of guilt over the threesome that James and I had with Megyn. Gianna could somehow, amazingly, understand and deal with me, letting James restrain and flog me. However, James paying for a marathon sex session with a dancer we had just met in a strip club, and then me having sex with her again for hours after he fell asleep, yeah, not so much.

The threesome with Megyn and any other subsequent trysts was just going to have to go under the umbrella of the things that Gianna and I agreed not to talk about, and I was somehow going to have to try to live with the guilt of that.

Gianna was looking around the expansive, extravagant suite. “So this is how the other half lives?” she said, smiling at me, her mood lightening considerably.

“Yeah, this is what I’m forced to deal with each time I meet him,” I said teasingly.

Gianna and I both came from middle-class families, but extravagance on this level was just as foreign to her as it was to me, at least before I met James.

She released my hand, rose from the couch, scurried into the kitchen, and started to explore. I poured another cup of coffee and watched in enjoyment as she admired the elegant decor of the suite. I was mesmerized by her every movement.

She was dressed in baggy black sweatpants that seemed to somehow, miraculously, mold to her amazing ass perfectly. She was also wearing a pretty pink t-shirt with pink tennis shoes. Her hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail, and she wasn’t wearing make-up. I knew she had thrown on her clothes and come immediately when I called. But damn, she still looked stunning, and I had no idea how anyone could look so beautiful with absolutely no effort.

She exited the kitchen and went into the dining room. “Mel, what’s this on the table?”

I got up and walked over to the dining room table. There was a small oval velvet box on top of a note that was handwritten on Bellagio stationery. Next to that was an envelope with ‘Gianna’ written on the front.

She looked at me expectantly.

“I had no idea any of this was over here, but that envelope is obviously for you.”

Gianna hesitantly opened the envelope and pulled out a handwritten note, again on Bellagio stationery. Wanting to give her privacy, I watched as she read it. She smiled and passed the note to me so I could read it.

It said:

“Gianna, I want to thank you again for your assistance in choosing an executive chef. Your input was invaluable, and I sincerely appreciate it. Additionally, I thoroughly enjoyed spending the evening with you and Melanie, and it was a genuine pleasure to get to know you a little better. As much as it pains me to lose my best server, would you consider a promotion to assistant manager? If you’re interested, David will tell you about your new duties and the considerable increase in pay. Continued success in your studies. Sincerely, James Moretti.”

I watched Gianna’s face light up as she removed twenty hundred-dollar bills from the envelope. Her mouth dropped open as she looked into my eyes. “God, Mel, I ... I ... I don’t know if I can accept this,” she said as she counted the money.

“Of course, you can accept it; you deserve every cent of it, honey.”

Seeing the joyous look in her eyes as she counted the money gave me so much happiness.

“Do you think I should accept the promotion?”

“Of course you should. You’ve worked so hard in that restaurant. No one deserves it more.”

She sat the money back on the table, pulled me to her, and hugged me tightly.

“The money, the promotion, I know this is all because of you, Mel,” she said softly into my ear.

We broke our passionate embrace and looked into each other’s eyes. “No, Gianna, all of your hard work and good advice has paid off; it doesn’t have anything to do with me.”

“Yeah, right.”

She smiled, and I looked into her sparkling brown eyes. Our attention then turned to the small oval box on the table and the handwritten note beneath it. I picked it up, and Gianna and I read it together.

It said:

“I’m sorry again that I had to leave so unexpectedly this morning. I promise I’ll make it up to you. James.”

I picked up the velvet box and opened it. Inside was a pair of two-karat diamond stud earrings encased in gold. My jaw dropped as Gianna, and I silently studied the small, intricate jewelry for several moments until she broke the silence.

“Melanie, they’re beautiful.”

“They are.”

“I’m hesitant to even bring this up. But do you think he’s giving you the earrings because of ... you know ... what happened last night?”

I pondered her question for a moment, mentally playing back the evening’s tumultuous events. “No, I don’t think it has anything to do with that, Gianna.”

I knew she was trying to ask me whether I thought James felt guilty about anything we had done. I knew the answer to that question was definitely no. I knew him well enough to know that he didn’t have any remorse or guilt over anything that had transpired the night before.

From the first evening we met, James had reveled in having rough, aggressive sex with me. Now, after last night, I could add bound and flogged to that list. It was as if, with each passing night I was with him, he beckoned me to walk further down this dark carnal path with him, and that was creating a conundrum that I was having difficulty solving. I knew he would never force me to do these things with him. I had to consent to them. But as he pushed me further, where would my breaking point be? How much could I take before I used my safe words and tapped out? That was the question that was haunting me.

If James did have a regret, it was leaving this morning without talking to me and making sure I was okay with everything that we had done.

Thankfully, that ended our discussion of the previous night’s activities. I was still trying to make sense of everything that had happened, and answering questions from Gianna only made that more difficult.

I amorously took Gianna’s hand and gave her an impromptu guided tour of the suite. While we went from room to room, she marveled at the decadent, extravagant decor. We paused briefly inside the walk-in closet that was attached to the ‘hers’ bathroom. I watched as she began thumbing through the very provocative club dresses that James had purchased for me to wear. Instantly, I began playing back the ‘Yellow Scrunch Dress’ incident of the night before in my mind.

“He really does expect you to wear these dresses when you are out with him, doesn’t he?”

“Yes, he does,” I said hesitantly.

“Someday, you’re going to have to explain ‘James Moretti Logic’ to me.”

“The minute I understand it, honey, you’ll be the next to know.”

She smiled lovingly and took my hand, “C’mon, let’s get you cleaned up.”

We walked into the bathroom together, and Gianna turned on the water in the large brownstone resin tub. I watched as she poured scented oil and dropped bath salts into the steaming hot water. While I was loosening my bathrobe, I saw her slide her pink t-shirt up over her head and begin to slip off her tennis shoes.

“And just what are you doing?”

She looked at me seductively. “I’m joining you, of course.”

After we both finished undressing, I watched Gianna slip into the water and slide up against the back of the large tub. I entered the tub after her and sat down in the water, both of us facing the same direction. I then slid back and felt her wrap her arms around me, holding me securely, lovingly, while her breasts pressed into my back.

The warm, soothing water felt so good on my aching joints and muscles. It may sound obvious, but I had never realized that dominant sex play like I had experienced the night before could be so physically demanding and mentally exhausting.

I knew I couldn’t discuss it with Gianna, especially when I could hardly admit it to myself. But as I played back the events of the previous evening, I came to the realization that what we had done was intensely erotic to me. To give up all control and put an almost incalculable amount of trust in another person for my safety and well-being had elevated our sexual intimacy to a plane that I hadn’t even known existed.

Additionally, there was an element of danger and extreme taboo involved in this type of sex play that perhaps should have worried me. However, it only seemed to add another dimension to the intense, erotic nature of the act itself. Even though I was certain that I couldn’t handle that type of intense play every time James and I had sex, it was as if Pandora’s proverbial box had been opened; I knew I couldn’t go back to the conventional and ordinary sex I had experienced before I met James.

I moaned as I felt Gianna’s mouth gently kiss my neck, which quickly brought me back to the now. I closed my eyes and enjoyed her tender, loving ministrations to one of the most sensitive and erogenous areas of my body. Under the water, her hands began to roam. They moved up and down my stomach, over my thighs, and then over my breasts. My nipples hardened as they slipped between each of her fingers.

“I missed you so much, honey,” she said in a low, husky voice. “I know it was only a couple of days, but it felt like months, and all I could think about was holding you again.”

I tried to return her affectionate words with commensurate ones of my own, but my voice was lost when I felt her hands move lower from my breasts to between my legs. I gasped as the tips of her fingers exquisitely drifted over the lips of my sex. I closed my eyes and enjoyed her delicate, deft touch.

“Oh, God, Gianna,” I moaned when I felt two of her fingers slip inside me.

I felt a rush of pleasure course through my body as she gently moved her fingers in and out of me. Her other arm was wrapped securely around me, holding me and ensuring my body would remain firmly crushed against hers. My hips were moving almost involuntarily, meeting the gentle thrusting of her fingers as the water rippled around us and threatened to spill out of the tub and onto the marble floor.

I felt dizzy, a combination of the warm, soothing, fragrant water and Gianna’s tender, gentle touch. My breathing became heavier and increasingly labored as the pleasure of my orgasm began to overtake me.

“Yeah, Mel, let it go for me, baby,” she cooed seductively into my ear.

It felt as if the walls of the bathroom were going to crash down on me as a very powerful orgasm rocked my body. Gianna continued to hold me securely against her as I came down from the peak and regained my senses.

During the next several minutes, we washed each other with the loofah, then stepped out of the tub and dried each other with the large fluffy towels. It felt so good to be with her that morning. It’s difficult to describe a feeling that’s so simplistically complicated, but to be in love and have that love be openly and freely returned is one of life’s most simple and enjoyable pleasures.

I took Gianna’s hand as we walked from the bathroom into the master bedroom and onto the bed, facing each other on our knees. I could see the hungry, almost desperate look in her eyes. We leaned in towards each other, and our lips met in a passionate embrace. We spent several minutes making out with our lips locked tightly together and our tongues exploring each other’s mouths. I pulled her closer, eliminating the space between us, feeling her breasts crush into mine as our bodies rubbed sensuously together.

“Oh, God, Mel, please put your mouth on me,” she moaned when our lips broke contact.

I playfully pushed her back onto the pillows at the head of the bed. She invitingly opened her legs wide for me, and I crawled in between them. Still on my knees, I leaned in, kissed her stomach, and felt her hands run through my long blonde hair. I playfully kissed between her breasts while listening to her moan. Then I took one of her nipples into my mouth and sucked tenderly before releasing it and sucking on the other. They each hardened immediately after I rolled them around on my tongue. She let out a low gasp while I continued to slowly, luxuriously tease her breasts with my tongue.

After releasing her nipple, I moved up her torso, and my mouth gently possessed hers again. Our tongues played together while I felt her hands roam up and down my body. The harder we kissed, the more her breathing became more shallow, more urgent. My bare mound was pressing against hers, and I could feel the heat and wetness emanating from between her legs.

I leaned up and away from her, gently put my hands on the back of her thighs, and carefully rolled her legs back until her knees were on either side of her ears. Like me, Gianna incorporated an almost daily routine of yoga in her workouts, which made her incredibly flexible.

I very gently rubbed the tips of my fingers over the puffy pink lips of her wet vagina and little puckered bottom opening. Our eyes met briefly, and I opened my mouth and let a long string of saliva drip down onto her asshole. Teasing her, I gently rubbed it around, and some of it escaped upward to her sex. With one hand, I reached underneath her leg and up until I gently began rubbing my fingertips over her wet slit. With my other hand, I continued to rub my saliva over her back door. Once I could see she was well lubed, I began flicking my tongue over her little puckered hole and using the tip. I gently pushed my saliva into her.

Her clit was very engorged, and it began to push out of its protective hood. I immediately ran my fingers over it as I continued to push my tongue in and out of her bottom. Her breathing was very labored, and she emitted gasps and moans; her pelvis gyrated almost involuntarily, and I had to hold her thighs tightly to ensure that my tongue and fingers remained in contact.

Her bottom was very well lubed from my tongue, and I gently pushed a finger inside it while simultaneously flicking and licking her engorged clit. As I did this, I felt her thighs clamp around my head while her body began to shake and convulse.

“Oh, God, right there, Mel, yes!” she screamed as her orgasm quickly overtook her.

I withdrew my tongue to let her recover and come down from the peak. Once I could see that she had her wits back about her, I helped her lower her legs. She smiled and then slowly spread them for me again. I raised one eyebrow teasingly.

“And just what do you want?”

“Please, Mel, do that again,” she whimpered.

Without hesitation, I locked my mouth back onto her vagina. She leaned back and opened her legs even wider for me, giving me better access. I heard a low moan escape her lips as I worked my tongue up and down her slit and then gently pushed it inside her. She was babbling almost incoherently, but I could tell she was enjoying what I was doing. I wrapped my arms around both of her thighs, holding her still while I licked the walls of her vagina. Her hips were moving in a slow, steady rhythm as I continued to lick her. I felt her foot rest gently on my back as I withdrew my tongue and licked up and down her wet slit.

From the change in her breathing, I knew she was getting close again, and I made my tongue long and flat while licking her clit with just the tip. Her breathing changed to short, shallow pants as I continued to roll the hood of her clit from side to side and then up and down.

I looked up from between her legs just as her eyes were rolling back in her head, and she let out one long gasp as her body went rigid and then began to shake in orgasm. Wanting to give her respite, I withdrew my tongue and gave her time to recover.

I slid up her body, and she pulled me tight against her. “Oh, God, Mel, I’ve missed you so much, and of course I missed that.”

We began kissing again, and I could tell she was ready to reciprocate. But because of the long, luxurious bath and only having gotten a couple of hours of sleep, I felt exhausted, and I knew I had to get some rest.

“Honey, I can barely hold my eyes open. Would it be okay if I took a little nap?”

“Of course, baby, that would be fine.”

I flipped over, and I felt Gianna pull me into her arms, and we spooned together tightly. The last thing I remember was her soft, gentle kisses on the nape of my neck as I fell into a deep, restful sleep.

It was a dead week, that dreaded week before final exams when all students are presumed to be studying before the five days of finals in all their classes. In reality, most of my friends found little time to take study breaks and go out to have a good time. For me, that meant spending time with Gianna.

She was still staying over three or four nights a week at my apartment. A couple of times, I had thought of asking her to move in with me, but then I would lose my nerves when I thought that she might be moving too quickly or putting unwanted pressure on me. I had already purchased a chest of drawers for her things, and half of my closet was filled with her clothes. I knew that some of her belongings were in the house she shared with her roommates in North Las Vegas, but as much time as she spent in my apartment, it felt like we were already living together, at least to me.

I had gotten out of class at noon and spent a couple of hours studying at the library for my marketing final. Gianna had texted me earlier and told me she’d be at my apartment around four, and since she didn’t have to work that evening, I wanted to have dinner ready for her when she got there. I went to the market on my way home and purchased the ingredients to make a Cobb salad, her favorite meal.

Just as I was putting the finishing touches on the greens, I heard the front door open.

Perfect timing, she’s home.

“Hi, honey, how was your day?”

“It was good, but my finals are going to be a real bitch,” she said.

We slipped into an easy embrace and gently kissed. However, I could immediately tell something was off. She always stressed about her classes and grades. It was just the way she was, but I got the feeling this was something more. I decided to wait her out and let her tell me what was going on.

She was wearing dark blue nurse’s scrubs and white tennis shoes. Her hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail, and even though she had been on her feet all day, she still looked beautiful.

“Everything went okay at work last night?” I said nonchalantly, trying to subtly draw her out.

“Yeah, I’m still trying to adjust to the whole boss thing, but I really love it.”

Her promotion to assistant manager had come with some growing pains. She had to work more closely now with David, the general manager, which wasn’t always easy. However, James had nearly doubled her salary, so I knew she was being well compensated for any additional stress.