Someone had tied the woman’s wrists to either end of a long stick, effectively keeping her arms wide apart. She was naked, with large silicone breasts and a lean, almost skinny body. Sweat sealed her shoulder-length ash-blonde hair to her temples, and her eyes were nearly closed. Her head drooped.

At first, Shana thought the woman was out of it. Then the camera panned down her body to reveal her splayed legs and the moisture glistening on her sex. Her pussy was clean-shaven, the blatantly displayed flesh there darker than the rest of her—swollen from increased blood flow. The woman swayed. A long, low, satisfied moan rolled out of her.

“Shit,” Shana whispered. “Shit.”

“Wait,” her friend Joleen said. “That’s just the start.”

Feeling flushed, Shana tightened her hold on her wine glass, brought it to her lips and gulped.

Several moments passed during which the woman on the monitor in Joleen’s home office continued to sway and groan. Then she started to close her legs.

“No,” a male voice commanded. “Keep them the way they are. I’m not done with you, not by a long shot.”

The woman’s eyes opened and she stared to her left, toward where Shana concluded the order had come from.

“I’m so tired.” The woman licked her lips. “You’re asking too much of me.”

“Am I?” the unseen man shot back. “Maybe you’d like to be returned to the boat and from there to your vanilla life.”

The woman lifted her restrained arms, only to let them drop again. “No. Not yet.”

“Not yet, what?”

Long, thick lashes fluttered. “No, I don’t want to leave, Master.”

“Shit. Seriously?”

Joleen shrugged. “You tell me. One thing I’m sure of, this isn’t a porno flick with actors.”

No, it wasn’t. When Joleen had called, insisting she come over after work, her best friend had said little, except to explain that she’d used her considerable computer- hacking skills to find the password for a site Shana absolutely had to see. Joleen had even offered to supply the wine required for ultimate enjoyment. So, instead of formalizing a bid on a new landscaping project after her crew had left for the day, Shana had climbed into her pickup and headed for Joleen’s place.

At a loss for words, Shana took another swallow and leaned closer to the screen. Not long ago she’d been worn out from a day that had started before dawn, but now she felt alive, anticipating something she couldn’t wrap her mind around.

A tall, well-built and unselfconsciously naked man had just stepped into view. Shana expected his captive to shrink away when he extended a large hand toward her. Instead, she straightened and stood her ground. Good for you, Shana silently exhorted her. Show him what you’re made of.

The man closed his right hand around the woman’s throat and drew her to him, angling her head upward as he did. Their faces came closer. An impressive erect penis jabbed at the woman’s belly.

A wave of heat, not entirely attributable to her wine, flowed into Shana as whoever these people were locked in a toe-curling kiss. Granted, the woman didn’t have much choice in the matter but, unless Shana couldn’t read body language, she was enjoying herself. A lot.

Roll with it, lady. Rock the experience.

Lips crushed lips. Two mouths separated. The bound woman rose onto her toes, making no attempt to free herself from the fingers on her neck. Inch by inch, the larger player, if that’s what they were, forced her to lean back until she was off balance. Her shoulders strained from the effort of trying to lift her arms, but the invading masculine body made that impossible.

At the last moment, he saved her from falling by letting go and grabbing the stick. He deftly drew her arms over her head and secured the stick to a hook dangling from a rope Shana hadn’t noticed.

“What have you done?” The woman struggled to free herself, which caused her expensive breasts to jiggle. Her barely there belly sucked in and out.

“Keeping you handy.” The man stepped to her side, took hold of her hair and pulled down on it until she was staring upward. “You impressed me with your efforts to remain in place while I played with you.” His free hand slipped between her legs. “But now that I have you, my options have increased.”

Anchored and helpless to stop the man from doing anything and everything he wanted to. What the hell would that feel like?

Is that something I’d ever want to experience?

Joleen clicked the mouse to freeze the action. The nameless couple remained locked in anticipation, with the man’s body so close Shana longed to touch him. He wasn’t particularly handsome, with thick, graying hair that covered his chest and belly. He had a bit of a paunch and appeared to be in his late forties, with muscled arms and thighs that said he lived a physical life.

As the owner of her own landscaping company, Shana spent her days around more men than women. Ordinarily, this one wouldn’t have warranted a second look, but then those who worked for her came fully dressed.

More to the point, in her day job she was the boss, while this member of the male sex was definitely in charge.

Another hot wave ran through her.

“I’ve done some research.” Joleen sounded out of breath. “This isn’t one of those membership porn sites and those two aren’t being paid for their efforts.”

“Then what are they?”

“Near as I can tell, this site hasn’t been given a formal name. The URL contains the letters MSDB, which could be BDSM reversed. That particular activity has gotten so much play lately that I can’t imagine them being concerned the morality patrol might shut them down.” She paused. “Just the same, I can’t help wondering if whatever MSDB is about goes beyond submission and Dominance.”

Shana struggled to concentrate on what she’d just been told—no easy task, considering the electrical charges striking her from all directions. Damn, what practices existed in a culture she’d never dreamed of—well, hardly ever.

“What do you mean by ‘beyond’?” she belatedly thought to ask.

Joleen winked. “Okay, truth is, instead of working this afternoon, I watched several other, ah, scenes. Wow to the max. Boy, have I been living a sheltered life.”

“Sheltered from what?”

Joleen shook her head. “Oh no you don’t. I’m not going to give anything away. You have to watch some of those scenes if you want to know what I’m talking about, except ‘scenes’ probably isn’t the right term.”

Talking had helped separate Shana a little from the crazy thought that she had to explore what MSDB was about. “So, speaking hypothetically, where would one go for more information?”

Joleen lightly punched her arm. “Hypothetically, my ass. For starters, they frequently mention an island.”

Guessing Joleen knew more than she was letting on, Shana decided to play along. “The man said something about a boat.”

“Yeah. Parts of the scenes—I watched four of them in between taking breaks to work off a little steam—were filmed out of doors. No one seemed to be cold and the vegetation is tropical.”

“And the site is located where? Come on, you know how to find out that kind of thing.”

“Indeed I do.” Joleen patted herself on the shoulder. “Florida.”

Shana blinked. “Seriously?”

“Hey, I wouldn’t joke about that.”

She and Joleen lived on Florida’s east coast. Quite possibly, the videos had been shot not far from there, maybe on one of the numerous nearby islands.  

“I’m assuming everything that takes place is consensual,” Joleen said. “At least I hope to hell it is.”

Bondage? Maybe the real thing? The thought made her shiver. “What makes you say that?”

“Because some of what happens is damn intense.”

She could have asked what constituted ‘intense’ but she preferred to determine that on her own, in private.

Joleen minimized the frozen naked couple and opened another screen. This one consisted of a paragraph of text.

The majority of women have secret sexual cravings. Unfortunately, most live their entire lives never giving those cravings free rein. Fear, inertia, and lack of opportunity hold them back. As a result they don’t know what it means to be truly alive. To take great risks.

If you have courage, strength and need—welcome.

“How do you read that?” Joleen asked. “Are they looking for new clients or customers or—or maybe, I don’t know, something?”

Shana stopped looking at the monitor so she could give her friend her full attention. A self-professed geek, Joleen ran her own Internet security business. Her clients paid her to assume all responsibility for keeping their firewalls up to date. She thrived on staying ahead of hackers. Ignorant and demanding clients drove her crazy but, because she had student loans to repay, she kept her mouth shut and dreamed of the day when she could pick and choose who she worked with.

Shana, too, dreamed of being able to work only on projects that fed her creativity, unlike the one she’d just completed for the county airport. Seriously, junipers and more junipers!

“Wait a minute,” she said. “You can’t be thinking of getting in touch with whoever these people are.”

Joleen smiled. “Have more wine and watch a little longer. Then we’ll see if you’re still asking the same question.”

When her friend maximized the screen, Shana shoved Joleen’s comment to the back of her mind and focused on the resumed action. She also kept after her wine.

The man released some of the tension on the woman’s hair, but not enough that she could stand upright. The captive tried twisting in one direction, then the other, not that it did her any good because of her restraints. Her size D breasts were spectacular, she had artificial nails, and her toenails were painted a glistening silver. Even with her hair trapped in the man’s paw, Shana could see the highlights and expensive cut.

So, this woman with rope around her wrists, her head wrenched back and a man’s hand hard against her pussy was used to spending money on herself. If only her friends could see her now.

“You’re spoiled,” the man told her. “Used to getting everything your way.”

“Yes, Master.”

Struck by the submissive tone with undercurrents of sexual excitement, Shana stopped studying the kind of breasts she’d never in a million years be able to afford and turned her attention to the woman’s expression. She didn’t act scared. Hell, she didn’t even appear to be nervous.

Barely aware of what she was doing, Shana closed the fingers of her right hand around her left wrist. What would restraints feel like?

What would they do to her sense of self?

Her libido?

“Those days of pampering yourself are behind you, slave,” the man continued. “From now on, I call all the shots. You’re mine to play with, to punish when and how I want. To get rid of if you bore me. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Master.”

He chuckled. “You think I’m playing into your hands, but you’re wrong. I’m not your sugar daddy. I’m your Master.”

The woman’s eyes closed again and her mouth sagged open. Unless Shana was mistaken, she was in subspace. Anticipating. Waiting. Wanting.

She wasn’t the only one.

When the woman’s nostrils flared, Shana concentrated on what else the man was doing. His hand between her legs was on the move, sliding back and forth, back and forth, going faster and faster.

Imagining the same thing happening to her just about drove her crazy. Her panties’ cotton crotch lay over her sex, held tightly in place by the jeans she wore seven days a week. She didn’t much care whether Joleen was aware of what she was doing as she rocked toward and away from the desk to increase the friction on her labia. She tightened muscles that hadn’t held a man for longer than she wanted to think about.

“He doesn’t do anything for me.” Joleen’s voice sounded rough. “If I ever signed up for a service, or whatever the hell they call it, I’d insist on someone with less back hair. A bigger cock wouldn’t be bad either.”

Shana mentally switched places with the naked woman. She felt the strain in her arms and dirt and grass under her feet. Most of all, she felt what the man was doing, the rub of male fingers against hot female flesh.

Suddenly, she didn’t care what ‘Master’ looked like, whether he spoke or never said another word. What mattered was that he stood beside her. Touched her.  

Controlled her.

The mysterious man she was conjuring up understood the female body far better than she did. He knew when to slip a finger into her drenched opening and when to paint her with her own juices. His breath on the side of her neck made her break out in goosebumps and instinctively fight the unrelenting restraints. ‘Master’ had no doubt of her desperate need to climax and how to keep her trembling on the brink. Denying her the one thing she needed in life. Glaring, the domineering man ignored her pleas, and when she cursed him, he slapped her breasts.

Kept her.

Kept? Where did that come from?

“So.” Joleen made the word last a long time. “I take it you’re glad I called.”

Her gaze resolutely on the monitor where the woman twitched and danced on the finger rammed deep inside her, Shana poured herself another glass. “Shit, yes.”

Her friend filled her own glass without taking her attention off the action. “We’re sick.”

“Not sick. Horny.” And more.

Joleen sighed and started stroking her throat. “Unfortunately, the condition goes with the territory. Neither of us has the time to pick up a man, let alone do whatever it takes to get and hold a boyfriend.”

Cursing the denim in the way, Shana ran her fingers over her lower belly. “Give me the URL for the site and the password. I know how I’m going to be spending the night.”

“Understandable.” Joleen studied what Shana was doing. “But I have to warn you, they undoubtedly monitor traffic. They’ll figure out who you are. Maybe they can learn all kinds of things about you.”

“Just like they have about you?”

Joleen laughed. “Is that a serious question?”

No, she decided, it wasn’t. If anyone knew how to keep their identity secret online, it was Joleen.

“I don’t give a damn what happens,” she admitted. “My voyeuristic activities aren’t against the law, are they?”

“Not as far as I know.”

They could have debated the issue, but she didn’t care and, she suspected, neither did her friend. Her sexual experiences, starting with when she’d lost her virginity the night of her senior prom, hadn’t prepared her for what she was seeing. Granted, she hadn’t been living under a rock and had read most of Fifty Shades of Grey, but this was new.

Challenging her to go where she’d never gone before.

“What do you think?” she asked, because if she didn’t say something she didn’t trust herself to keep her jeans zipped. “If you couldn’t hide behind anonymity, would you check things out?”

Joleen frowned. “It depends on what you mean by ‘checking things out’. People can subscribe to the videos if they pass the application process. There’s also an interactive component.”

There was? Her throat dried at the thought of getting in contact with the organization, or whatever it was. At the same time, watching Ms. Boobs and Hairy Back wasn’t enough. Putting off responding, she let her fingers slide a little lower while concentrating on the action. Hairy Back had moved to the woman’s left breast. After licking his fingers, he lightly rolled her nipple between thumb and forefinger, keeping his attention riveted on her face. The man continued his assault on her sex.

Shana understood control. She’d spent the past five years building her company one private yard or small business at a time. She succeeded, not just because she knew a great deal about what thrived in humid climates, but because she had a business head. She selected and kept employees with strong work ethics. Equally important, she listened to prospective clients and knew what questions to ask to draw out their preferences. No part of the business escaped her attention. No detail was too small. She answered to a multitude of masters, but at the end of the day, she was her own harshest critic.

Master.

Turning her body over to someone else, a male someone.

Tapping into her sexuality in ways she’d barely dared imagine.

“What are you thinking?” Joleen asked. “Any chance you’re trying to imagine what it would feel like to be in the woman’s position?”

Pulled back into the here and now, Shana blinked and again focused on the action. Hairy Back leaned down and closed his lips around his captive’s right breast, while continuing to grip the other one. His hand remained against her sex. The woman shuddered and her head fell back. A moment later, she straightened, then backed away as far as she could, followed by sagging in her bonds.

“Oh God, oh God,” she moaned. “Please, please…”

“Think he’s biting her?” Shana asked.

“Is she acting like she’s being hurt?”

Hardly. In fact, if sounds and action were any indication, Ms. Boobs was having the ride of her life. She rocked her hips in a blatant invitation to be taken deeper. She repeatedly closed and opened her legs while bobbing her head in rhythm with the finger fucking. She said “Please” about a million times. Every time she did, Hairy Back redoubled his attack.

“Holy shit,” Joleen hissed. “This is even better the second time.”

Eyes glued to the action, Shana wondered if she had what it took to get through the video once, let alone repeatedly. And Joleen had said there were a number of videos.

Ms. Boobs let out a scream that hurt Shana’s ears. The captive’s body shook and shivered. A thin line of drool dribbled from the sides of her mouth. Feeling Ms. Boobs’ climax throughout her own body, Shana pushed her middle finger as hard as she could against her slit. Double damn my clothes!

“So—whew, so do you think she got off?” Joleen asked.

Shana snorted. “Ah, duh. Yeah, I’d say she did.”

“That’s the conclusion I came to. Damn, I need to get laid.”

Joleen’s cheeks were flushed and she seemed to be having trouble keeping her eyes open. Shana was torn between watching the rest of the action here and being alone.

Alone with her sex toys. Facing a part of her she only rarely acknowledged.

When Joleen, again, stopped the action, it took considerable effort on Shana’s part not to demand she hit Play. The slightly blurred images on the monitor had a disembodied quality, as if the couple—was that what she should call them?—might never finish what they’d started.

It sure as hell wouldn’t be like that if she were part of the action.

If she accepted the challenge.

“More wine?” Joleen asked. “We could order pizza and—I was going to say we could have our own orgy but that’s a kink I can’t imagine being involved in with you.”

“I feel the same way.” Joleen was the sister she hadn’t had, not someone she wanted to have a homosexual experience with. She groaned. “Unfortunately, I have to get up at five.”

“Hmm.” Joleen pointedly stared at Shana’s still-on-her-crotch hand. “You sure you’re thinking about work?”

Shana gave her slit another stroke then reluctantly stood. “Maybe not.”

Joleen grabbed a sticky note and started writing on it. “No maybe to it, girlfriend. It’ll be interesting to see if either of us gets any sleep tonight. I’m giving you the URL and password for MSDB. If you decide to do more than watch, let me know. Safety and all that.”

Snagged by Joleen’s warning tone, Shana tucked the small yellow square into her pocket. “I will. The same goes for you.”

Chuckling, Joleen lightly punched her arm. “Why do you think I let you in on this, whatever it is?”

“You’re serious? You’re going to give MSDB a try?”

“I don’t know. What about you?”

As Shana slid her hands into her back pockets, her gaze returned to the interrupted action. There was no mistaking Ms. Boobs’ mood. The woman with her arms forced over her head was having the time of her life. Maybe experiencing the most intense orgasm she’d ever had.

“Let me watch some more action,” Shana belatedly answered. “Then I’ll let you know.”

“You really think you could handle giving up control?”

“Being the boss isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.”

“True, but that isn’t what we’re talking about. This is my body.” She gripped her arms. “Even with the obvious benefits”—she jerked her head at the monitor—“I can’t imagine becoming a man’s slave.”

Slave. Sex slave? More object than woman? Forced to be primitive.

Challenged.

She wrapped strong fingers around her wrist.

Caught.

Changed.