Page 8 of The Assignment: Room 3

“We’re going to come back to your incredibly offensive word choice in a minute. Yes, I have one-night stands. At times, I get an urge for vanilla if the woman is stunning. I can appreciate a quick fuck every now and then.”

“And what’s the difference? As a guy who just likes to meet a woman, exchange phone numbers, and chase an orgasm or two together. An orgasm is an orgasm.”

“My poor friend. There are so many flaws in your thinking.”

“I think like ninety percent of the population.” His jaw tightens.

“I’m going to school you right now, Eli. I do not ‘torture’ women. I engage in consensual kinks that include pain. Everything is agreed upon in writing prior to stepping foot in my playroom.”

“You inflict pain. I don’t understand why you would get off on that.” He seems genuinely interested rather than judgmental, so I continue.

“Has there ever been a time when you needed to get laid so bad your balls are fucking blue?”

“Yeah.”

“And when you finally get your rocks off, it feels so damn good?”

“But we’re not talking about that. That’s normal.”

“I wanted to give you a comparison that you could relate to. That relief and intensity you feel when you come is magnified exponentially when you straddle that fine line between pleasure and pain.”

“So when a sub is… I don’t know… spanked… paddled… caned…”

“Good boy. You’re learning your terminology,” I say with a slygrin. First, it was Jenna. Now Eli. Why have I become the oracle of kink tonight?

“Whatever. So the sub gets some pain to make the pleasure more?”

“Exactly.”

“What do you get out of it? You’re the one inflicting the punishment.”

“I get off on their response. It’s so fucking sexy to witness someone submit. And while I give them what they need, I revel in the anticipation. Kink is like foreplay. Sex is always better with foreplay.”

“Don’t you ever just want to skip to the good part?”

“You’re a handsome guy, so why are you wasting it being so basic? Skip to the good part. It’s all the good part. By the time I take a sub, she’s fucking begging for it, slick and ready for me. Don’t knock it till you try it.”

“I couldn’t hit a woman.”

“Number one, I don’t ‘hit’ women. You make it sound like I’m abusive. You are completely misunderstanding the power dynamic in a scene. I do what a sub asks of me, never pushing her beyond her limits. She says ‘stop,’ and I stop. Number two, I wasn’t putting you in the role of a Dominant. I can spot a Dom from a mile away.”

“So you think I’m a pussy?”

“Definitely not. It’s hard to explain. I just hate the thought that you believe I’m capable of ‘hitting’ a woman in a sinister way.”

His face contorts at the realization. “No. God, no. I’m sorry, man. Not what I meant. I’m just trying to understand this place. I wasn’t trying to be accusatory.”

“Who are we accusing of what?” Her voice is dripping with sex, and I’d know it anywhere.

“Evening, Celest. Eli was just asking me why I do what I do here. Any thoughts?”

She sits beside me and smiles at Eli, who immediately sets about making a drink for her. “So many.”

“Feel free to share with the class,” I say with a sly grin. She looks hot tonight.

“Do I get specifics? I’d hate to disappoint you, Flex.”

“Why I indulge in punishment. Why would I want to, and why would you want to be on the receiving end?”

---