Crave

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Crave

The Dining Club

Part Three

Marina Anderson

New York   Boston

Grace slept through the alarm the following morning, which meant she was half an hour late for the meeting with her friend Fran, who had written the play Grace was hoping to put on by the end of the year. Their meeting was in a small hired studio at Covent Garden, and she grabbed a doughnut and plastic beaker of coffee on her way in.

Luckily Fran had the key, and was sitting on a black plastic chair looking decidedly fed up when Grace finally burst into the room. “I was about to phone you,” she said by way of greeting. “You did suggest ten this morning didn’t you? It’s now ten-thirty and my backside is numb from sitting on this horrible chair!”

“Sorry,” apologized Grace, “I overslept.”

“Busy weekend?”

Grace’s mind flashed back to the moment Laura had brought her to a shattering climax, and she felt the blood rush to her cheeks. “It was rather. Now…”

“Were you with your rich financier boyfriend?” asked Fran.

“What do you mean?”

“Oh come on, David White, who could give us enough money to put my play on at the Young Vic if he wanted to. Only he wouldn’t want to, because he doesn’t understand the problems facing artistic people, especially in a recession.”

Grace was so taken aback she didn’t know how to respond. “What does it matter to you who I go out with?” she asked, after a pause to muster her thoughts.

“It doesn’t really, but I’m a bit shocked. He’s the polar opposite of all we believe in. I only know you’re going out with him because you were mentioned in a tabloid gossip column yesterday.”

“What did it say?”

“Something about the incongruous pairing of an up-and-coming, groundbreaking stage director and her rich financier boyfriend, and it named you both. At least it means you’re getting yourself noticed I suppose.”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but he happens to be a patron of the arts. That’s how I met him, at a fundraising event for the new Going Places theater company.”

“You are naive,” said Fran. “It’s almost certainly a useful tax dodge for him. Anyway, it won’t matter. You should be careful not to get too emotionally involved. The article said he’s fiercely private and has never shown any interest in settling down.”

“Settling down sounds so boring and conventional it’s not something I’d want to do either,” she retorted.

Fran looked surprised. “My goodness, you really must like him to be that defensive. Is he good in bed? Men like that are usually total control freaks and pretty selfish that way, or so I’m told. I’ve never been out with one.”

“No, you haven’t, so you don’t know a thing about him or people like him. Let’s leave the gossip and get on with the work shall we?” snapped Grace.

“Oh come on, there’s no need to be so intense about it all. You haven’t been going out with him long have you? Apparently he went out with that actress Isla Roberts last year. Mind you, rumor has it she’s never got over him, so he must be good at something!”

Grace wasn’t aware that David even knew Isla Roberts, let alone that he’d taken her out and wondered if the tall, willowy redhead had ever visited the Dining Club. She tried to picture her being pleasured by Laura’s clever tongue, but her imagination failed her. Isla had always struck her as being very shy, as many actors were when they weren’t performing.

“Hello!” said Fran loudly. “Turning up late is bad enough, but daydreaming once you arrive is even worse. Drink your coffee and then perhaps you can tell me your thoughts on who would be right for the two leading roles, providing you can concentrate, that is!”

Taking a deep breath, Grace pushed the images of Isla at the Dining Club that were rushing into her mind firmly away. “I’m sorry, I just had a heavy weekend. I thought perhaps Mark Lewis might be good if he’s available by the time we get a venue.”

“Mark Lewis? He’s tall and slim. Martin, who we need to cast, is short, stocky and useful in a fight. Mark Lewis looks as though he’d fall over in a strong wind! Get a grip, Grace.”

Slowly Grace was drawn back into the world of work, a world that had previously consumed almost every waking moment of her time, but try as she might memories of her weekend at the Dining Club still flickered in the background of her mind, like an old film on a projector screen.

* * *

At the same time as Grace was struggling to concentrate on work, Amber and Andrew were sitting in the study of the Dining Club. They were working on scenarios for the next month’s meeting, and Amber wasn’t happy. She had a bad feeling about Grace, who’d done far better than most people did at their first trial, and could clearly prove to be more of a challenge than she’d expected.

The two of them had left Grace’s next trial until last, and when Andrew handed Amber the blank form she knew exactly what she’d like to put on it, but knew too that it wouldn’t be allowed for only the second trial.

“No ideas?” asked Andrew.

“Plenty, but none of them will be of any use yet,” she replied.

“What’s the matter?”

“I’m worried, that’s what’s the matter,” she retorted.

“In what way?”

Sometimes, thought Amber irritably, being handsome and nice didn’t make up for being unobservant. “Because she could be a threat to me and my position here, of course.”

Andrew laughed. “I rather doubt it. She found her first trial difficult; she’s not likely to want to take you on even if she does complete all five trials successfully.”

“I wish I shared your confidence, but I don’t. She’s very determined, in work as well as play from what I read when I Googled her. That’s what will drive her on. She’ll push herself to the limit rather than fail, and I think David wants her to succeed.”

“Of course he does. He’s falling in love with her.”

Amber looked at him in astonishment. “David doesn’t fall in love, he falls in lust.”

“That’s not true. He’s fallen in love twice before, which is why he’s brought two other women here. Admittedly he doesn’t fall in love easily, but it does happen. He doesn’t like to admit it though. I agree that he really wants Grace to succeed, but that’s because he loves her. He still won’t break the rules.”

“That would be stupid of him, since he made them up,” said Amber. “But you’re wrong about him. I know him better than any woman, and love isn’t in his nature. All the same, the sooner Grace fails the happier I’ll be. I think she’ll struggle next time. Bondage and submission aren’t going to make her happy, especially as I’m going to use Will rather than you, Andrew. Will is brilliant at bondage. I’ll save Amy for the third weekend, in case Grace does get through next time.”

“Be careful, Amber. Remember, David will be there again, and he’ll probably take part as well because he likes that theme. If you go too far you’ll damage your own cause.”

“I’ll run the scenario past him next weekend. He wants a meeting then, and Laura has to be disciplined.”

“I thought you’d done that.”

Amber gave a slow smile. “David wants to make quite sure she’s learned her lesson. He doesn’t want to have to train up another pair of twins. He’ll stay overnight, and that will give me a chance to please him in ways little Miss Grace would never think of.”

“He’s staying over despite Grace?” Andrew’s voice showed his surprise.

“Yes, so as you can tell he’s not intending to give me up for love!”

Andrew put a hand on Amber’s left wrist. “He’s never going to love you, Amber. You have to accept that.”

Furious, she snatched her arm away. “I know that. I’ve just told you that he’ll never love anyone.”

“Then what’s the point in you falling in love with him?”

“I’m not,” she lied. “But I do like this life, my work here and the things we do to please each other. I don’t want to lose any of that. What would I do without the Dining Club?”

“I’m quite sure that Grace, who’s beginning to build a good career for herself in the theater, won’t want to give all that up and run this place instead,” said Andrew reassuringly. “It wouldn’t make sense. She’s only here to please David, like the other two he brought. They weren’t a threat, they didn’t get anywhere near the top table.”

“It would make sense if she loves him, and I think you underestimate her as well. She’s tougher than she looks.”

“This is meant to be a place of pleasure,” said Andrew.

Amber smiled. “I know that, but sometimes the pleasure is mixed with pain, and that’s where Grace will fall down. That’s something I can make sure of, and I think I’ll use Laura’s punishment time as a trial run for one or two of my ideas.”

“Suit yourself then,” said Andrew. “I must get back to the office now, or my secretary will wonder what my dentist is doing to me!”

After he’d gone, Amber returned to the study and picked up the form for Grace’s next visit. It was still blank, and she slid it into the top drawer of her desk. She’d fill it in after David had finished overseeing the disciplining of Laura. If she had her way, she thought with a smile, Grace wasn’t likely to pass her second trial at the Dining Club.

* * *

The following Saturday, Grace and Fran had spent the day together discussing a possible alteration to the ending of the play. When Fran finally left the flat it was early evening. Glancing at her watch, Grace saw that it was six-thirty, and realized that exactly a week had passed since she and David had sat down to dinner at the Dining Club.

She hadn’t seen him since their return, and was missing him, but knew that he’d said he would be busy working this weekend. However, he’d phoned her twice in the week, and the second time he’d told her that he had tickets for the Opera at Covent Garden the following weekend and suggesting they also had a meal first.

She was looking forward to that, and hoped they’d go back to his flat afterwards, as she was missing him terribly. Since the previous weekend she’d thought more about sex than at any other time in her life, which was shaming but also exciting. She was even looking forward to their next visit, wondering what her trial would involve this time.

Little did she know, as she settled down with a glass of wine to watch the final season of
The Killing
that her lover was already back at the Dining Club. This was lucky, because if she had known, and been able to see what was happening, she might not have been quite as eager for her next visit.

* * *

Across the other side of London, Laura was lying on a high, narrow bed in the center of one of the smaller bedrooms. Heavy curtains had been drawn across the windows, leaving the room in semidarkness.

Her wrists were fastened to metal rings on each side of the bed, her legs held apart by a spreader board, and she couldn’t speak because of the gag in her mouth. She had no means of communicating with anyone except through her eyes.

She was sobbing softly, her body taut as Amber and Will worked on her with their clever, knowing fingers, hands and mouths. Every time she climaxed, she was punished and the mixture of pain and pleasure meant that there was never any respite for her tormented flesh.

Watching her hapless, shuddering body from the corner of the room, David noted every nuance of expression in Laura’s pleading eyes and mentally replaced the softly moaning twin with Grace.

As the unfortunate girl strained against her bonds, he pictured Grace in the same situation, her gentle curves tightening as she struggled to escape her clever tormentors. He swallowed hard, aroused almost beyond control at the thought.

Suddenly a desperate muffled scream filled the room, and David was drawn back to what was happening at that moment. He realized that Will, who was standing over Laura with a slim riding crop in his hand, the end trailing over the blonde girl’s heaving belly, was looking to him for guidance. Laura was shuddering violently, clearly still recovering from yet another pain-tinged orgasm, and Will wanted to know whether to continue or not.