I didn't push for any answers. It wasn't my place to ask. He'd tell me if he wanted me to know but I doubted he did. I had a suspicion. All his life, he'd been abandoned by women.
His mother left him when he was ten and then he had a succession of nanny and housekeepers. He would get close to them only to have them leave again. Then, he married and his wife left him. That had to be the reason. Was it that simple?
Was Drake that easy to understand? He tied up women and controlled their sexual response as a way of feeling control for once?
A surge of affection for him went through me as he stood in front of me, so attractive in his leather pants and white shirt, his hair a bit mussed as always, his blue eyes intense.
I wanted to submit to him fully, to give him whatever it was he needed to feel. I felt so bad at what I’d said to him in the Bahamas when I tried to leave him, abandoning him as well like all the other women in his life.
But this thing between us was so dangerous. If Dawn found out…
I shoved that thought to the back of my mind. I smiled at Drake and was rewarded with a beautiful smile back.
"I'm just glad to be here with you tonight, Master," I said, emotions filling me for this beautiful man with a need to tie me up and dominate me. "I'll do whatever you want me to do."
He reached down and took my hand, pulling me up and into his arms. "You make me very happy, slave."
He kissed me and it was a purely tender kiss, his lips soft on mine, his fingers threading through my hair, one hand on the small of my back, pulling me against him.
Then, he pulled away and brushed hair off my cheek. "But we're being observed. We have to do something public to merit participation in this evening. It also puts us at as much risk as others. It’s the only way we'd be trusted to keep identities secret. I'd like to demonstrate an over the lap spanking of you in public, and then, I'd like to fuck you in private."
I blinked, pleased that finally, he'd spank me, but in public?
"I don't know if I like that…" I said, shaking my head, adrenaline surging through me. "You said you'd just tie me up, demonstrate bondage…"
At that, his eyes narrowed. "Katherine, are you refusing me?"
"It's just that it wasn't what I thought of when you promised me you’d spank me…" I glanced around at the people in the room. I didn’t want them watching me get a spanking. I wanted a spanking that would make me aroused and want to fuck Drake. Not one with people watching and Drake using it as a teaching moment.
To my surprise, Drake grasped my hand, then pulled me towards an empty spanking horse. He stood me in front of it, standing behind me, his hands on my shoulders.
"I'm giving you a choice, slave, which I wouldn’t usually give a submissive. You can have a barehanded over-the-lap spanking in front of everyone over there," he said, pointing to a black leather cushioned divan in the corner, a couple of feet from the wall. "Or you can have a spanking using this spanking horse. Choose."
I looked at the horse. It looked like a repurposed pommel horse except it had places for manacles. The choice was clear, but I didn’t like that I had no choice to opt out of the spanking – without completely walking out of the evening. I was going to be spanked, one way or the other.
"Over the knee, please, Master."
"Stay here." Then he went to an Attendant, who stood on the sidelines, his arms crossed. They spoke for a moment and the Attendant nodded, pointing to the equipment. Drake returned and
stood in front of me, his hands resting on my shoulders. He caught my eye, staring into mine, a frown on his face.
"This slave has displeased me," he said, his voice rising. "I'm considering what punishment I have to administer."
Immediately, several couples turned to us, standing a few feet away as if at some kind of unspoken buffer zone.
Drake turned me around to face the people who stood and stared. He had his hands on my shoulders.
"She's new and isn't yet quite as careful in her obedience as she should be. I have to keep reminding her not to hesitate or question my commands. Frequently, I have to remind her to use proper forms of address. I'm going to administer punishment for her failure to obey immediately and without question. Since she's new, and since we've never done this before, I have to go slow. I thought this would be a good time to demonstrate how to spank a novice submissive the first time, over-the-lap."
My face heated under their assessment. There were a few appreciative nods from the onlookers. Drake turned me around, his voice firm and loud enough for others to hear.
"The first thing to do with a novice submissive like this one is to acquaint her with the purpose of the act, telling her what she will experience. This will ensure she doesn't panic at any unfamiliar sensations and doesn’t view it in the wrong way. You want your submissive to obey and to accept her punishment without protest, so going through each step first will help prevent that. Later, when she's more used to punishment, you can just carry it out without detailed explanation, quickly, to make a maximum affect on her state of mind, which isn't properly submissive. But the first time, a wise Master always explains what is going to happen. This isn't about pain. This is about obedience and reinforcing submission, demonstrating to her how she has given up her power entirely and is not permitted to protest or hesitate to obey an order, unless it is to use the safe word."
He turned back to those watching. "A bare hand is good for over the lap spanking but you can also use an implement, such as a paddle or tawse. Whatever works well given that you'll have only one hand available. The spanking horse is best if you want to use floggers or a tawse or riding crop, depending on your preferences. For this submissive, I'm going to use my bare hand, so over the lap is best."
He turned to me and pointed to the black leather divan. "When I sit, you are to lay over my lap." He tilted my head up so that I had to look in his eyes. "Are you clear on what will happen, slave?"
I nodded, my throat choked up.