My short dress only goes down to my thighs, and he pushes it up an inch or two. Then he makes me part my knees.

“Excellent and tempting.”

I’m breathing a little harder now. I go to close my legs, but he doesn’t let me.

“Keep them open for me.”

All of me is getting excited. I want him.

The car stops. Eric pulls my dress down, and two seconds later, the door opens. We’re in front of a local place called “Chaining,” according to the sign.

Eric takes my hand to help me out of the limo as the wind swirls around my legs. My dress is too short, and without my panties, I feel practically naked. Eric puts a hand on my lower back as the doorman opens the door. Eric says something to him, and he lets us in. Once inside, we’re surrounded by music and people. Eric’s hand has moved to my butt, and that gets me going again. He guides me toward the bar, where we order our drinks. The waiter brings a whisky for him and a rum and Coke for me. I take a long swallow. I’m thirsty. I look around, curious, and see everyone laughing and talking very animatedly. Then I feel Eric close to my ear.

“You deserve punishment for your bad behavior tonight.”

I just look at him, surprised.

“Mr.Zimmerman, I like you a lot, but if you dare touch me in any way I find offensive, I promise you’ll pay.”

He smiles in all his arrogance. He takes a drink from his glass, then comes so close to my face, he gives me goose bumps.

“Sweetness, my punishments have nothing to do with what you’re thinking,” he whispers. “Remember that.”

With our eyes on each other, we drink from our glasses, and my thirst, coupled with my anxiety, drives me to quickly finish. Eric takes my head and kisses me passionately.

“Follow me,” he murmurs as soon as his mouth leaves my lips.

Delighted, I follow as he clears our way, making it so no one as much as brushes up against me. This is exciting. Seconds later, we enter another room. This one is less crowded. The music is not so loud, and people seem calmer. We go up to the bar. We sit in a corner this time, and he orders the same drinks. The waiter leaves them in front of us, along with an ice bucket, water, and some linen napkins. Eric grabs a tall stool and invites me to sit. Under his spell again, I do as he says. My shoes are starting to torture my feet.

When I sit, I cross my legs.

The idea that anyone might see I’m not wearing panties gives me pause. Eric hugs me. He puts his hands on my waist, and I encircle his neck with my arms. A romantic moment. This time, I’m the one who brings my mouth to his. I poke my tongue out. I suck on his upper lip, but when I’m about to do the same to his lower lip, he moves his hand from my waist to my neck and kisses me possessively. He jams his tongue into my mouth and assaults it with genuine fervor, which makes me feel like putty in his hands.

“Open your legs for me, Jude.”

I look at him for a second or two, then survey my surroundings.

I calculate that the darkness in this place and the way we’re positioned at the bar will make it so no one can see I’m not wearing panties. I smile. I uncross my legs without taking my eyes off him, then do what he says, hooking the heels of my shoes on the stool’s crossbars.

Eric places his hands on my knees, and I watch how they climb very, very slowly. He brings his mouth to mine and says, “You thrill me.” I close my eyes and feel his hands running up along my inner thighs. I stir, restlessly. I want more. I’m nervous about doing it in a place full of people, but that arouses me. He realizes this and brings his mouth to my ear.

“Relax, sweetness. This is a swingers’ club, and everyone’s here for the same thing.”

That throws me.

A swingers’ club?

I’m frozen in place.

Eric spins my stool and makes me look at the people around us. Suddenly, I’m aware there are several men, of different ages, who are watching us, observing us.

“They all want to have their hand under your dress,” Eric whispers in my ear. “Their faces tell me they’d die to suck your nipples, to undress you, and—if I were to let them—to fuck you until you came. Don’t you see it in their faces? They’re excited, and what they want is to trap your clit between their teeth until you scream with pleasure.”

My pulse is racing. I’ve never done anything like this, but I’m excited. Imagining what Eric is describing makes me hot. Very hot. I try to turn the stool back, but Eric is blocking me.

“You told me to tell you everything I like, sweetness, and this is what I like. Experimenting. We’re in a private sex club where people fuck and let themselves get carried away by their hunger. Here, people lose their inhibitions and think only of pleasure and play.”

My neck is itching ... The rash!