Page 7 of Entertaining Distraction
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“How long does subspace last after intense play?”
With her arms crossed over her chest, Charlotte paced back and forth in front of the class she and Master Stefan Lundquist were giving in the garden on the second floor of The Covenant. Shrubbery, trees, flowers, and artificial grass in between all the play areas combined to make it look like the Garden of Eden. It was part of the new addition to the building and had a retractable roof for when the weather was nice—they’d probably be opening it tonight as the temperatures outside cooled.
The club’s manager, Mitch Sawyer, who co-owned the business with his cousins, Ian and Devon, had gotten together with the managers and owners of other clubs in the area to set up a schedule of classes to educate Doms and submissives in different types of bondage, suspension, and impact play. Rotating through the clubs twice a month, a different topic was taught. This evening, she and the Coast Guard lieutenant—whoops, lieutenant commander, as he’d just been promoted—had gone over the sub-categories of each type of play, the basics, safety, and ultimate goals—what the couples hoped to achieve. The participants were all relatively new to the lifestyle and were still exploring which varieties of play they were interested in. Stefan’s contracted submissive, Cassandra—one of the club’s waitresses—was also present for demonstration purposes.
“Good question,” Charlotte responded, stopping in front of the man who’d asked it. Although he was new to the lifestyle, she could see Master Wayne Gifford had the potential for being a good Dom. He was very attentive to Nancy Walker, the submissive woman sitting on a pillow beside his chair. He took every advantage to touch her and make sure she was comfortable. The looks the sub occasionally gave him said she felt safe with him.
However, his blond-haired buddy, Master Roy Carpenter, was a completely different story. He’d been pretty much ignoring his sub, Susan, and appeared too much into the pain aspects of the play and not the resulting pleasure. In fact, he’d been leering at Charlotte since the class had started. She knew most men found her attractive, but it took a lot more than just their interest in her body for her to return that interest. She was dressed in her usual club wear since tonight was her turn in the Whip Master rotation. The black, sleeveless cat suit clung to her every curve, and her over-the-knee, black, leather boots only added two inches to her height. She found them more comfortable when she was going to be standing for a few hours. Unfortunately, the asshole Dom-wannabe had been eyeing her as if her outfit was an invitation for him to hit on her. Charlotte would have to tell Mitch not to allow him to sign up for another class—he was here for all the wrong reasons. His sub, though, would be better off without him. Charlotte would have to see if she could get the woman alone at some point and find out if she could help her. Susan Kelly was definitely a submissive, but with the wrong Dom, she could be seriously harmed—physically, mentally, or emotionally—and that was the one thing Charlotte refused to stand by and watch. She had no problem interfering with another Dominant and their submissive if it was warranted. The Covenant’s owners, Masters Ian, Mitch, and Devon, had no problem with it either. That was one of the many reasons Charlotte played in this club only and not any of the other clubs throughout the area—submissives were protected at all costs.
“There are several things that factor into how long it lasts. Genetics and body makeup, pain threshold, time of day, activities the sub engaged in before the play, and how intense the play was. Is the sub on any prescription or recreational drugs, and how do they affect her? Is alcohol involved? You all know how much we stress that participants should not drink alcohol before intense play. And it should be limited prior to mild play. Consumption is closely monitored here at The Covenant, but most clubs don’t have the resources, so it’s up to the Dom to make sure that rule is followed.” She referenced her mental checklist, knowing there were a few more things she needed to mention. “The environment also factors in—some subs will be more relaxed at home or in a private playroom than out on the club floor. What’s the sub’s state of mind going into the play—were they having a stressful day? Are you celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or collaring ceremony? Are there things on their mind that are preventing them from totally giving in to the play? Things like that.
“The best answer I can give for how long it will last for an individual sub is I don’t know. There’s no right or wrong answer to that; it’s very subjective to the sub’s response to the stimuli. In most cases, experienced subs can tolerate more pain and, as a result, that can prolong subspace. It’s the Dom’s responsibility to pay attention to the cues displayed by the sub’s speech and body language. You’ll have to become attuned to your sub’s responses and learn from experience. When in doubt, err on the side of caution.”
The Dom smiled and nodded, clearly satisfied with her explanation. Charlotte stepped back and eyed the rest of the class. “Any other questions?”
A Domme in her midfifties, with a younger, male submissive at her feet, spoke up next. “How will I know when it’s safe to leave my sub alone for a few minutes as he comes down from subspace after an intense scene?”
“Ask him a few simple questions—does he know where he is, what the date is, what’s four times eight—stuff like that, and see how quickly and accurately he answers. Ask how he’s feeling—is he dizzy, tired, or sore? Can he keep his eyes open? Can he visually track a finger moving back and forth in front of his face? If he’s still a little foggy and slow, then stay with him and ask some more questions in a few minutes. I’ve seen subs take several hours to completely recover after an intense scene, while others are back to normal within twenty or thirty minutes. Make sure your sub drinks plenty of water as he comes down from subspace; you don’t want him to get dehydrated. As a rule of thumb, keep an eye on him for a full two hours after the scene has ended. Aftercare, as you’ve all been told, is the most important part of a scene.” She paused, then asked again, “Any other questions?”
“Mistress China, may I have a word with you, please ... alone?”
Charlotte turned around slowly at Jake’s low voice and the barely-controlled anger in it. She hadn’t heard or seen him enter the garden—like the rest of his military-trained teammates, he tended to walk on silent feet. Beside her, Stefan raised a curious eyebrow at the other Dom, but didn’t interfere. Instead, he clapped his hands and gestured toward a play area to his right. “All right, class. Let’s finish up tonight’s lesson with a brief Shibari demonstration—we have about thirty minutes before the staff arrives to get the club ready to open, so I can show you a simple example. Cassandra, please remove your bra and present for me.”
Jake was ignoring everyone else in the garden. His heated glare told Charlotte all she needed to know. He’d found out about her proposition to Mike and was pissed. If she’d been a submissive, she’d be quaking in her boots at his hard expression and tight jawline, but she knew him well enough to know she wasn’t in any danger. Master Jake would never raise a hand to a woman unless it was in self-defense. With him being six feet five and two-hundred-ten pounds of solid, alpha-male muscle, she doubted there were many women on Earth who would try to take him on for one reason or another. If there were, they were probably followers of al Qaeda or ISIS and lived on the other side of the world.
Keeping her expression neutral, she nodded once. “Certainly, Master Jake. We can talk in one of the playrooms.” Pivoting on the balls of her feet, she strode toward a staircase that lead to the pit and two dozen play rooms, knowing full well he was on her heels even though his footsteps didn’t make a sound. It didn’t matter which room they went into since they weren’t there for play. At the bottom of the stairs, Charlotte opened the first door to her left and entered the one with a “Major League Baseball Locker Room” theme. As Jake shut the door behind him, she hopped up onto a padded, physical therapy table, crossed her arms and legs, and pasted a well-practiced expression of indifference on her face.
Leaning against one of the metal lockers that stored play equipment, the Dom also crossed his arms and glared at her. “Something you want to tell me, Charlotte?”
She swung her foot back and forth. “Something that’s none of your business? No, there isn’t, Jake.”
He growled. “Enough with the games, damn it. You know what I’m talking about. Mike doesn’t belong in this lifestyle.”
“I beg to differ. Since I’m almost positive he didn’t go to you with any questions he had, that only leaves Nick, who knows better than to keep a secret from his Dom. The fact that Mike spoke to Nick at all tells me my offer to help him explore the lifestyle made an impression on him.”
Jake pushed off the locker and stalked the width of the room, back and forth, his frustration climbing. “That doesn’t mean it’s for him. I don’t want him getting screwed up in the head just because he’s got a hard-on for you.”
If anyone else had said that to her, Charlotte’s claws would have come out. But their friendship was deep enough for her not to take offense, knowing Jake was just being his normal, protective self when it came to his loved ones. She knew part of his reaction had to do with his bastard of a father and how the man had favored Jake, a star on his high-school football team, over his first born, Mike. That favoritism had caused a chasm between the two siblings that had only recently been closed again. Charlotte cocked her head to the side. “Jake, how long have you known me?”
Stopping short, he put his hands on his hips. “I don’t know—four or five years.”
“And in that time, have you ever known me to harm a submissive—emotionally, mentally, or physically?” There was a huge difference between inflicting pain for pleasure and harming a sub, and Jake would know full well which she was referring to.
Seconds ticked by before Jake let out an exasperated breath. “No, you’d never harm a submissive—I know that. And, shit, I know I’m the last person that should be questioning you. Nick didn’t know squat about the lifestyle, and Dev and Ian gave me the same crap when they found out.” He ran a hand down his face, then shook his head. “I’m sorry. You were right earlier—it’s none of my business.”
Sliding off of the table, Charlotte stepped over to him. “I never would have approached him if I didn’t see him respond to me in a submissive manner. I won’t hurt him, Jake. There will be a contract in placeifhe wants to explore.” She made sure his gaze was on hers as she added, “This is the last time you and I will have this discussion. He’s a big boy and doesn’t need his brother running interference for him.”
After a moment, Jake nodded. “Understood.”
“Good.” Charlotte grinned. “And don’t worry. I promise I won’t have him showing off his junk when you’re around.”
Jake snorted and rolled his eyes. “For that, I thank you.” He held his arms out. “Forgive me for being an ass?”
Stepping into his embrace, she hugged him back. “Of course. Good friends are hard to come by.”
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