A Thousand Yesses by Jane Henry Page B

a higher pay grade. Although everything they posted was free to
viewers, money from advertisers funded the videos that gleaned a certain amount
of hits. Rodney was stoked. The money they made, after they split it, was more
than enough to cover the flowers Louanne had picked out for the ceremony, the
cake, and then some.
    “We
have to keep this going,” he said with a chuckle, producing a pad of paper and
pen, as the waitress brought their drinks. “We need more ideas.” They
brainstormed thoughts, and had gone their separate ways when the night grew
dark. Celia was tired, and Maverick walked her to her car.
    “You
good?” he asked her. His question held so much.
    You
okay to drive?
    You
too tired?
    Are
you okay with the fact that I spanked you?
    “Yeah,”
she said nonchalantly. “Sure I am. You?” she teased, sticking her tongue out.
He narrowed his eyes and opened the door to the car for her, swatting at the
air as she squealed and got her ass in the car before his palm could connect.
    He
watched until the fading glow of her taillights were gone. Still, when his phone rang, she was the first person he thought of. But
it wasn’t Celia on the line. Rodney. “Whassup?”
    “Maverick,
you won’t believe this!” Rodney’s voice was high, and excited. He spoke
quickly. “I just got a message from CTB.”  
    CTB,
otherwise known as Chains that Bind, a local, classy BDSM club, known
especially for instructional demos in their conference room. The front of the
store sold specialty ropes and chains, under the guise of “Learn the Ropes.”
But if you gave the password and walked to the very back room, you could gain
access to the dark, exclusive club.
    “Yeah?”
Maverick said, as he slid out from the car and went up to the side door. The
door opened straight into the furnished basement where he’d set up his bachelor
pad. It had never been used when he was younger, but he and Rodney had easily
made it into an attached “in-law” apartment. He’d chosen to move in there when
his presence at home became necessary more frequently. That way he could easily
come home late and leave early for work when he needed to, but a quick trot
upstairs and he could help his mom with Marianna when necessary. It was more
private that way. Small, and somewhat cramped, it still smelled the way it did
when he was a teen, working out by pummeling the punching bag his dad had hung
from chains anchored to the ceiling. The punching bag still hung there, but the
old boxing gloves collected dust now. He still used the treadmill and weights,
and all the equipment was to the far side, away from the double bed in the
center of the room. He had a bookcase lined with books, an end table next to
his bed, a lamp that had been around since he was a child, and his own small
private bathroom. It was perfect for when he needed privacy. And Marianna hated
dark spaces, so she would never venture down and poke through his belongings.
    He
noted it was quiet upstairs, as he listened to Rodney. When they were done on
the phone, he’d go make sure everything was good, and lock up for the night.
    “Dude.
They want us!” Rodney said.
    Maverick
frowned. Who wanted what? “Huh?”
    “CTB!”
Rodney responded. “The club said we hit record highs in our domming demos, and
they want us to come and do a weekly class at their club.”
    Maverick
sat down heavily on the couch and ran a hand through his hair. “Come again?” he
said.
    “I
talked to the guy in charge of demos at CTB. He said there’s been interest in
our How to Dom videos, and he knows
Celia, so he knows we’re local. He asked if we’d be willing to teach a weekly
class at the club. And Maverick, get this…” He went on to give details on the
payment plan.
    Maverick’s
eyes widened. “All that just to show some guys how to hold a paddle?”
    “Girls,
too.”
    “What?”
    “Well,
we can anticipate there will be some Dommes, too.”
    “Yeah,
okay,” he said. “So, we go in and teach