There's seven of us. We work together in the shipping and receiving department of a medium-large book publishing house in Manhattan. There are other workers in the department but the seven of us seemed to find each other and we have a relationship outside of the workplace. We get together almost every day after work for a quick pub stop before heading home. We've also spent time together in various combinations attending shows, concerts, and sports events. Over time, we've all been included in a number of groups including casual dating.
There are four men, Deon, Logan, Nick, and Sonny; and three women, Andromeda, Celeste and me, Dawn. Andromeda, who prefers to be called Andi, and Celeste are sisters. Deon, Logan, Nick, and Sonny could never be mistaken for brothers and me, who is the only one with blonde hair. The group seems to exist without controversy despite the numerous other relationships that exist within the group. Various couples have dated at times and I'm pretty sure some of the relationships have slipped in the sexual area. For example, I've slept with Deon and Nick and Andi and I spent a delightful weekend together at an upstate resort.
One afternoon while on break, we were all gathered around a circular table in the company cafeteria when Sonny suggested that we should have a party. We had a short discussion about what kind of party Sonny was thinking about. "Just the seven of us," he said. "All together in the same space where we can imbibe without guilt and play games."
Andi wanted to know what kind of games Sonny was considering. "I don't know," he responded. "Maybe a card game, like poker, or other party games like Twister or Truth or Dare."
"Sounds like something we did in school," commented Andi. "When you say poker, are you talking small wagers or strip poker?" she asked.
"Whatever we want to play at the time," Sonny suggested.
"So, strip poker or Truth or Dare with sexual consequences isn't off the table?" asked Andi.
"Sounds good to me," said Celeste.
"Me too," agreed Andi. "I just wanted to be sure we're all on the same page."
That evening, I was in the pub with Sonny, Andi and Celeste and the topic of the party came up. We agreed that the party would be unscripted, allowed to wander into any area that seemed agreeable to all present at the time. We also agreed that Sonny should collect information about the supply of adult and other beverages and the women, Andi, Celeste, and I, would work together to provide food and other snacks. We'd figure out the cost and split it evenly between the seven of us.
The only remaining problem was a space large enough for the party. Apartment rents and sizes were prohibitive to more than two residents let alone seven partiers. Only Andi and Celeste lived in a large enough space although it was their parents' townhouse on the West side near Central Park. They'd check with their parents and get back to us.
The space problem was resolved overnight. Andi and Celeste's parents were leaving for Europe the following week and they'd be gone for at least a month. By the end of the lunch hour we had all the details in place and a date for a week from Friday. It was the first Friday that Andi and Celeste's parents would be away and that allowed the possibility of a second party before they got home. It was also a Friday which allowed for a two- or three-day party.
The Friday of the party we, the women, left work at five, had the food and drinks delivered at six, and we were all present by seven. All of us women dressed casually in blouses, slacks, and comfortable shoes. I brought a small overnight bag with a few essentials that I stored in Andi's room. The gentlemen arrived thinking it was a come as you are party. Their clothing varied from jeans to shorts, collared shirts to t-shirts, and sandals to sneakers.
We mingled for the first half hour, pouring drinks and noshing on everything from bite-sized hot dogs wrapped in bacon to corn chips. Andi was the first to sit on the floor in the living room with her drink and a small plate of food. Over the next ten minutes, we all joined her in a rough circle. "Okay Sonny," she said. "What game are we going to play?"
"How about a card game?" Sonny suggested. "Do you happen to have a deck of cards?"
"I think we have several," said Celeste. She got up, walked out of the room, and returned with two decks of cards, one with a blue back and one with a red back. "What's your preference, red or blue?" she asked.
"Blue's fine," responded Sonny.
Celeste tossed the blue deck to Sonny and the red deck on a nearby chair. "I'm kinda winging this," said Sonny as he looked around the circle. "We're all friends here and, in some cases, even more. I'm guessing that none of us has a problem with something risky," he suggested.
"Are you suggesting something that might involve some, or all of us, losing our pants?" asked Nick.
"That could be one possibility," confirmed Sonny. "Does anyone have a problem with that?"
"Sounds like a guy thing to me," said Andi. "And it probably goes further than just losing our pants."
"I'm okay with it as long as the guys lose more than their pants too," I commented.
"Do you have another game we could play after we're all naked?" asked Celeste.
"That, my dear Celeste," said Sonny, "is not a game."
"I'll let that go for now," said Celeste. "What's the game?"
"Everybody gets one card," explained Sonny. "Low card loses."
"Loses what?" I asked.
"You haven't been paying attention," said Sonny. "Low card means you wear less clothing than before you ended up with the low card."
"I figured that," I admitted. "Just wanted it to be clearly stated."
"What about ties?" asked Logan.
"We all get another card and we compare two card combinations. Less chance of another tie that way," explained Sonny.
"You've obviously been thinking about this for quite a while," Andi challenged.
"Not really," objected Sonny. "I read about it on the internet."
"Sounds interesting," I told him. "You'll have to send me the site address sometime. Okay. How do we do this?"
"I'll deal a card to each of you," declared Sonny.
"I'm not comfortable with you, or anyone else, dealing. Put the cards face down in the center of the circle. We'll mix them up until we're all satisfied and then each draw a card at random."
"This is getting too complicated," commented Celeste. "How about we just play spin the bottle?"
"Works for me," I said. The others agreed. Celeste got an empty pop bottle and a plate.
"I get the bottle, but why the plate?" asked Sonny.
"To spin the bottle on. The carpet slows it down too fast," explained Celeste.
Thirty seconds later, Sonny was staring at the neck of the bottle. He took a deep breath and removed a shoe. "Just one shoe?" asked Andi.
"That's fine, Andi," advised Celeste. "It doesn't make a significant difference so long as we all do it the same way."
Sixty minutes later, we opted to take a break for relief and hydration. I was still wearing my bra and panties as was Celeste. Andi still had her slacks in addition to her bra and panties. Deon and Logan were even with Andi, Nick still had t-shirt and boxer shorts and Sonny was hiding behind a pair of boxer briefs.
After a short break, we returned to our original positions on the floor. The game restarted. Twenty minutes later, Andi was topless in just her panties, Deon and Logan were in blue briefs. Nick was in boxer shorts. Sonny, Celeste, and I were naked and I was facing the first dare having lost again after I'd sacrificed my panties.
Andi, who had won the right to give me a challenge with another spin of the bottle was meditating on the nature of the dare I'd have to perform when the doorbell rang.
"Who's that?" asked a surprised, and naked, Celeste.
