In three days TIE ME UP, my upcoming antho being pubbed by Riverdale Avenue Books will be released! Here is an amazing excerpt from “What Isn’t Necessary Is” by Tomio Hall-Black. The full story will be in the anthology available on April 6–MONDAY!!!
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“It’s okay to be scared tonight,” she told me. “I love you.”
I heard a soft jingling as a band of leather was closed around my wrist, and pulled tight. Then the other wrist was cuffed as well. There was a bit of pulling and another jingle or two as Katy fastened them together. My heart began to race as I realized what she was doing. I focused on my breathing, keeping my body relaxed and under control. I didn’t want to tense and make her think something was wrong. So I just trusted her, and let her continue.
Since I was blindfolded, I couldn’t tell what Katy was doing exactly. There was the sound of a metallic click between my wrists, followed by a series of tugs. The bed bounced a bit as Katy moved around, and my wrists were suddenly pulled forward as far as I could reach. There was a bit more tugging, and I heard Katy muttering something I couldn’t quite make out. Then she bounced off of the bed and it was quiet.
A few seconds later, a leather strap was fastened around my ankle and tugged towards the bedpost. Then the other ankle was given the same treatment. My feet were a bit further apart than was comfortable and my arms pulled forward far enough that I felt off balance, but I took a deep breath and accepted it. This was part of her controlling things. It wasn’t going to be exactly the same as when I did it on my own. That was the point.
Katy’s mouth was next to my ear again.
“I have some music for you to listen to,” she whispered. “I’m not going to cover your mouth, because I want to be able to hear you if you need something.” She bit my earlobe softly. “I also want to hear you beg for more.” She giggled softly and a pair of headphones was shoved down over my ears. A second or two later, Lady Gaga demanded that I show her my teeth, and the bass began thumping against the back of my brain. Then Katy turned the volume up enough that it was sure to drown out any sound she made.
I felt a leather belt slither across my back. My heart raced in anticipation of the first stroke, but I made myself take long, slow breaths. Katy’s hand traced lightly from my shoulders, down past my ribs, to my hip. I was totally unprepared for the first bite of the belt.
It fell like a flash of fire between my shoulder blades. With the music pumping in my ears, I couldn’t hear the pop of the leather. I couldn’t hear the whistle of it racing towards my flesh. A second flash seared across my back, making an X between my shoulders. I huffed my breath through my nose, seeking the headspace where I could accept this pain.
Trust her, I told myself. Be strong. You are loved.
There was no use in counting how many times I was hit, because I knew that Katy was the ultimate counter. I opened and closed my hands and waited. The belt fell in a regular rhythm. Each stripe on my skin was almost on top of a previous stripe, so the fire began to build across my skin. I bowed my back upwards as much as I could to offer Katy as a vulnerable target. She took advantage of it mercilessly.
I thought I moaned with each blow, but I couldn’t hear it. The music had changed to a dance tune with no words, just a driving energy that pushed me into a sensory-deprived overload. The belt was concentrated on the sweet spot between my shoulders, just under the base of my neck. Katy knew that I could accept a lot of punishment, and she wasn’t holding back.
I began to say her name over and over again, a single word of thanks and acceptance for this amazing gift. Katy stopped for a moment, then lifted one side of the headphones to whisper, “I bought a flogger today. It’s going to hurt.” Then she returned me to the throbbing electronic maze in my ears.
