Chapter 7: No Pain, No Gain
I was interstate as guest speaker at a BDSM convention and whilst there I took the opportunity to catch up with Rob Carter, an old friend from my high school days. Rob had invited me to meet his third wife and "a few other friends of ours" at a dinner party. I unavoidably arrived a little late and after hurried introductions we were seated at the dining table. The "few" turned out to nine others, I would have preferred less to be there so I could talk longer with Rob, but nevertheless resolved to enjoy myself.
Rob had earlier advised that all his friends were "vanilla" when it came to sex so I knew to keep the conversation away from my lifestyle. This was easy as I was seated between Rob and his sister so most of our talk was on the good old days. An athletic looking lady with short dark hair at the other end of the table looked vaguely familiar to me and a couple of times I caught her looking at me with a "who is he?" look on her face.
Dinner progressed and soon most were relaxed and the conversation flowed with the help of a few glasses of wine. I overheard someone along the table complaining about the terrible sex show that had been on at the exhibition building. I grinned and laughed to myself, if the person knew that I was heavily involved it would have caused quite a stir.
I was eating my dessert when I heard fingers snap and a female voice cry triumphantly, "Gotcha!" I looked down the table to see the dark-haired lady gazing at me with her hand over her mouth in surprise. She had obviously suddenly realized where she knew me from and I waited for the shit to hit the fan.
Rob got in first, "Are you all right Emma?"
As all eyes turned to Rob I managed to catch Emma's gaze and I put a finger over my lips asking her to keep my lifestyle to herself.
Emma recovered quickly. "Sorry everyone, it's just that Matt reminded me of a triathlete from Canada and I couldn't remember his name. It suddenly came to me, sorry for the outburst."
The group laughed and I mouthed "thanks" to Emma as soon as I could. I assured everyone that I could no more complete in a triathlon than fly like Superman. When Emma had said 'triathlete' my memory was jogged as to her identity - Emma Burgess, the National Triathlon champion of 1997 and 1998. A run of injuries had resulted in her missing the Sydney Olympics in 2000 where she would have been one of the favorites.
After dessert we moved out into the large living room for coffee and liqueurs. I managed to maneuver myself so I could have a quiet word with Emma, who I noted had asked for hot chocolate rather than coffee.
"Thanks for not causing a stir at dinner," I said and laughed, "I could see you recognized me but couldn't remember where from."
"That's ok Matt," Emma replied, "I saw you and ummmmm, Melissa, on that TV documentary on BDSM, I must admit I found it intriguing."
"I have been really busy since that show and I fly home tomorrow. Fortunately I can trust Melissa to hold the fort and even take care of some of my clients if necessary." I replied. To change the subject I asked, "Why are you here Emma?"
"Oh I came down here to have a good heart to heart with my old coach." Emma replied, "I'm having trouble knuckling down with my latest coach, I just can't seem to get motivated. I fly home tomorrow morning at 9.00 o'clock."
"Really? So do I, perhaps we could travel together?" I asked.
"That would be nice, I want to find out more about your ummmmm." Emma paused.
"Lifestyle?"
"Lifestyle, yes that's the word." Emma smiled as Brenda, Rob's wife, joined us. "I'll see you at the airport in the morning."
"Ohhhh is there romance in the air?" Brenda giggled as she took another sip of port.
"Don't be silly Brenda, Matt and I have just met." Emma said, "We are just going to travel home together."
We all laughed and the evening quickly drew to a close. After saying our farewells Emma and I shared a taxi back to our separate hotels promising to look out for each other at the airport.
Fortunately we met before booking in at the flight desk so I was able to arrange that we would sit together. We made small talk about Emma's athletic career and after we were airborne she suddenly changed the subject.
"Ok Matt, tell me, why in the hell would anyone want to get whipped?" Emma spoke quietly so nobody could overhear us.
I laughed, "It's not quite as simple as that Emma. Some people actually derive pleasure from pain, whether it's from a light hand spanking or a severe caning. As the saying goes, it's different strokes for different folks."
"I find it hard to believe." Emma replied, shaking her head from side to side.
"Let me put it this way Emma. When you compete in triathlons, have you ever got to a stage where you think you just can't go on any further?" Emma nodded so I continued. "And suddenly you burst through the pain barrier and the running, or swimming or cycling instantly becomes so easy. The adrenaline just flows and you feel as if you are flying?"
"Yes, that happens in just about every event, and it happens to marathon competitors too."
"Precisely, but BDSM is not just about pain, although that does feature in most Dom/sub relationships. It can be so gentle and erotic, teasing and sensual, fun and laughter and sex with amazing orgasms. You are a very strong lady; you have to be so successful in your chosen sport. But many strong people from all walks of life love to give up control at times. How many times have you seen politicians in trouble for being found with a professional Mistress?"
"That's so true, especially the British, they seem to excel at masochism don't they?" Emma said with a laugh. "The queuing champions of the free world."
I laughed and waited for the next question.
Emma thought for a while and then surprised me by asking, "Does anyone see you to get more discipline in their lives?"
"Oh yes, discipline, stress relief, punishment for something they have done wrong, the love of giving up all control, pleasure through pain or to live a long-held spanking fantasy like Melissa. There are many individual reasons people come to see me."