“Oh, thanks, that’s okay. I have one.” She held up the clear plastic cup of orange juice over ice. No liquor was allowed at this particular BDSM play party, which was probably good practice, though Allie would have loved a double scotch on the rocks about now.
Unperturbed, the man slid onto the stool beside her and dropped his gear bag at his feet. He gestured to the bartender, a forty-something woman dressed in a sheer black lace dress that clearly revealed her heavy, bare breasts beneath it. “I’ll have a tonic with lime, please,” he said. Turning back toward Allie, he smiled broadly. “Bob’s the name. Master Bob to those lucky few. What’s your name, pretty girl?”
“Allie,” Allie replied, resisting the urge to tell the guy she wasn’t interested. She had come to this party, after all. It wasn’t his fault she would rather be home watching the latest episode of Ray Donovan. She managed a return smile.
The bartender set Bob’s drink on the bar, took his money and turned away. Bob glanced furtively around the room, then reached into his bag and pulled out a small silver flask. He unscrewed the lid and brought his cup below bar level. With quick efficiency, he poured a healthy amount into the tonic.
Still keeping the flask below the bar, he held it out in Allie’s direction. “Want to add a little zip to that OJ? Tanqueray gin.”
Allie started automatically to refuse, but then hesitated. She had already decided she wasn’t in the mood to hook up with anyone tonight, and one drink wouldn’t hurt while she waited for Lauren to finish her scene. “Sure.” She brought her cup below the bar. “Thanks.”
Bob poured a few jiggers of the liquor into her cup, resealed the flask and slipped it back into his bag. He lifted his plastic cup in the air. “Cheers.”
They touched cups and each took a swallow. The orange juice now packed a powerful punch and was, Allie had to admit, a definite improvement. She took another swallow. “Thanks.”
Bob nodded. “No problem.” He swiveled his stool so he was facing her. “So, tell me, Allie. You been in the scene long?”
“A couple of years,” Allie said noncommittally. “How about you?”
Bob sat straighter and puffed out his chest. “Twenty-five plus. I’m a very experienced Dom. I have my own fully equipped dungeon in my basement.”
“Impressive,” Allie replied, stifling a yawn.
Bob nodded, his expression suddenly eager. “Want to blow this Popsicle stand and come see? I sense you’re a submissive. I don’t see a collar, so I’m assuming you’re footloose and fancy free. I’d dearly love to send you flying. No strings, no sex unless you want it. What do you say?”
Allie had to laugh as she shook her head. “You don’t waste any time, huh, Bob? You just cut right to the chase.”
“I believe in being direct. Life’s short, you know? No time like the present. Seize the day. All that good stuff. So?” He touched her arm. His fingers were damp.
She resisted the urge to pull away, not wanting to hurt the guy’s feelings. “I’m sorry. I’m with someone. They’re engaged in a scene right now, but we came together. Maybe another time, Bob.”
She’d left the gender of whom she was with purposely vague, hoping Bob would assume it was a guy. It appeared he did, because he frowned and said, “What kind of idiot would leave a hot girl like you at the bar while he scened with someone else?”
When Allie didn’t reply, he added, “Okay, fine. Let’s you and me go into a private scene room then, okay?” He hoisted his gear bag onto his lap. “What are you into? Whipping? Candle wax? Doctor/patient role-play? Whatever you want, babe, I’ll give it to you. Master Bob will make all your fantasies come true.”
She had to give the guy an A for effort. She shouldn’t have let Lauren talk her into this. She needed to learn to say no. She would start practicing right now. “I’m sorry, Bob. Not tonight.”
Bob blew out a breath, reached for his gin and tonic and downed the remainder of it in one long gulp. “Fine, fine. I get it. You’re just not interested. Can’t blame a guy for trying, right?”
Allie smiled. “Thanks for understanding. It’s not you, it’s me.” God, how many times had she said that in her life? The sad thing was, it was true more often than not. “My head’s just not in the right place tonight.”
“I get it.” Bob gestured toward the bartender and nodded at his glass. She appeared in front of him a moment later and poured more tonic into his cup, adding a slice of lime. Once she had gone, Bob performed his operation below the bar again, pouring gin into his drink. He held out the flask toward Allie, who shook her head no.
Bob put his elbows on the bar and stared moodily into space. “You should be with a younger guy anyhow,” he said, after downing nearly half of his second drink. “I’m probably old enough to be your dad. What are you, twenty-five? Twenty-six?”
“Thirty last week,” Allie said, still a little stunned to realize she’d hit thirty and was still alone.
“And you’re here with a guy who scenes with other women?” Bob queried, his bushy eyebrows raised.
“A girl,” Allie admitted. “My friend, Lauren. She needed a ride.”
“Ah, I see,” Bob said. “That makes more sense, then. Though I can’t for the life of me understand why someone so beautiful is unattached.”
Allie smiled. “Well, thanks. I guess I just haven’t found the right guy.”
“The right Master,” Bob said.
Allie nodded. “Yeah, that too.”
“Hard to meet folks at these parties and those lame munches, am I right? You end up getting hit on by old dudes like me.” Bob laughed.
Allie smiled ruefully. “It is hard. Boston’s a huge city, but the BDSM community is pretty small. Pretty insular.”
“Agreed. Hey, you know what you should do?” Bob turned toward her once more, his face animated.
“What’s that?” Was he going to try another come-on line? God, she hoped not.
“You should try the internet.”
Allie laughed. “The internet? That’s the worst place to meet guys. They’re all liars and scammers. Players.”
“I hear ya. But I’m not talking about the free sites. I’m talking about a particular site I think would meet your needs. It’s a hundred dollars for the first month, and then thirty dollars a month after that. I admit, kind of steep, but ultimately that’s a good thing, because it weeds out the riff-raff, the players, you know?”
Allie opened her mouth to dismiss Bob’s idea out of hand, but he stopped her with a hand over hers. “No, wait. Hear me out. It’s a relatively new site, and, I don’t mind admitting, it’s one of my pet projects. I hired the best tech guys to make it a reality, and there’s a full-time moderator to keep the place real. The site has really taken off since it went live three months ago. A young woman like you would have her pick of Doms from all over the country, I guarantee.”
He pulled a small card out of his back pocket and placed it on the bar in front of Allie. It read BDSMConnections – a discreet site for discerning individuals serious about the scene and listed a website address. Allie glanced from the card to Bob. Had his whole spiel to this point been nothing more than a sales pitch? Still, she had to admit, the idea of a legit BDSM site appealed to her.