I was at a soiree being held by Lady Tremaine when Lord Anthony Cornfeld managed to get me alone. Oh, it was all very proper as we were in plain view of the house and my maid, while out of earshot, was close enough to be regarded as my chaperon.
"I have long admired you, Lady Pamela, and my heart's desires will be fulfilled if you would consent to be my wife," Lord Anthony said, earnest entreaty in his voice.
"You've got to be kidding me," I said, astounded.
"No, seriously, that was an honest proposal and it would only be courteous for you to give an honest answer."
I took a deep breath. What the hell was I supposed to say to Anthony of all people?
"I am fully aware of the great honour that you do me, Lord Anthony, but I'm afraid that I must refuse," I said, just laying it out there and without going into any reasons that he might choose to argue with.
"Well, thank God for that," he said, relaxing. "I'd have been in a right pickle if you'd accepted."
"If you didn't want me to accept then why ask me in the first place?" I asked him, irritated.
"My mother," he grumbled. "Feels that I should be getting married now and thinks you'll be ideal. You have money and as far as Mother is concerned she's willing to over-look any minor faults as long as you have a lot of money. Now I can tell her that I proposed properly and was rejected and am now too down-cast to go looking for anyone else for at least a year. I like the bachelor life and the liberty it gives me."
"Two minor points,' I said, feeling slightly irritated. "Both you and your mother have your own personal fortunes that are worth more than mine. Why does mine matter? And what faults?"
"Mother is of the opinion that you can never have too much money. As for your faults, for a start you don't look up to her as the font of all wisdom. You actually had the temerity to correct her on some point recently. Very forward of you, almost brazen you might say, and she did."
"If memory serves me correctly I was also correct," I pointed out.
"That makes it worse," explained Anthony. "Tell me, are you going to the afternoon tea at Lady Sinclair's place next weekend?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Oh, she's got a new exercise room. You might ask her if you can have a look at it. I think you'll find it amusing."
Lady Sinclair exercised? That was news to me. I didn't think she did anything but chase men and throw parties. The parties were generally interesting but her taste in men was little short of scandalous.
I arrived at Lady Sinclair's party and it was much the same as every other party I've been to. They're all pretty much the same. The same people, the same gossip, even the same food. I was willing to swear that the left-over food from one party was packed and taken to the next. It certainly tasted like it at times.
"Oh, Lady Sinclair," I said, recalling what Anthony had said. "Lord Anthony told me I should get you to show me your new exercise room."
"Did he?" she said, sounding amused. "It's just something I had put together for my own fun. Still, I'll take you there before you go."
With that we parted ways and I went wandering around. Either she'd remember to show me the room or she wouldn't. Eventually she did. She came up to me and said she was going up to the house. Would I like to come and see the exercise room? I nodded and went with her.
When we reached the house she took me upstairs and headed to what had used to me a library. Entering it I found that it still was, although there was now some odd looking equipment scattered around.
"I retained the books as they act as an excellent sound protection. Nothing I do in here can be heard outside. Very useful at times."
"Um, yes," I said cautiously. "What are the different devises for?"
"Different types of exercises. Come and have a look at the bars."
The bars were two bars that ran across the room at just over head height. For some reason they had gloves attached to them and a cord that ran from the gloves to a post at either end of the bars.
"Slip your hands into the gloves and I'll show you how they work," she said.
I did as she suggested, finding that my hands curved around the bar. While I was considering this Lady Sinclair reached up and tightened the cords at the wrists of the gloves, holding the gloves firmly in place.
"We do this so your hands don't slip out by error. Normally I'd be on the other bar but I don't have an attendant to fasten the gloves."
"You do now," said a voice, and Lord Anthony strolled into the room, smiling.
For some reason Lady Sinclair hesitated but then she slipped her hands into the gloves and Anthony tightened the cords.
"As you can see," Anthony said, strolling over to the post that we were facing, "the attendant can pull on the glove cord and move the person using the gloves along the bar."
He proceeded to do that, pulling on the cords and we had no choice but to move along towards him. I was puzzled and Lady Sinclair seemed annoyed for some reason. Anthony stopped pulling on my cord just before we reached the post, hitching the cord around a tie-bar. I could move closer to him but not away.
I expected him to do the same to Lady Sinclair's cord but he just kept pulling on that one. Pulling her too far forward, as I had just realised that there was a bench before we reached the post. By continuing to pull Lady Sinclair forward she was now bent over the bench, hands still fastened to the upper bar.
"Don't you dare, Tony," snapped Lady Sinclair and Anthony laughed.
"Muriel has been cheating on me," Anthony said, "and it's time for a penalty."
"Tony, no," wailed Lady Sinclair, which Anthony ignored.
"Um, she's married," I pointed out. "How could she cheat on you?"
"She's also been seeing Freddy on the side. She forgot that Freddy likes to boast about his conquests."
"He's lying," came the quick cry from Lady Sinclair.
"Do you mean me or Freddy?" asked Anthony. "It doesn't matter as we both know neither of us are."
To my horror, and over Lady Sinclair's protests, Anthony calmly lifted her dress and her petticoats and bunched them up around her waist. He also grabbed her small things and pulled them down, leaving her bottom and lady parts on full display.
Anthony then proceeded to spank her. On her bottom. While I watched. She was squealing and protesting and his hand was merrily bouncing off her bottom, leaving a pronounced red mark with every handprint.
I couldn't believe that he was doing that. What was worse was that he had the gall to use me to get Lady Sinclair in the room and he was doing the spanking in front of me. By the time he'd finished Lady Sinclair had a very red bottom. It was almost glowing with redness.
"Now, Muriel, seeing you like to be adventurous I have another little surprise for you," said Anthony. He strolled over to the door and admitted someone.
"You remember Jerkens, my valet, don't you? You upset him with some rather scathing comments regarding my attire. He's now going to express his own displeasure where you're concerned. Or perhaps I should say his pleasure."
Jerkens moved to stand in front of Lady Sinclair, smiling broadly. Once again I became shocked and horrified as he pushed his trousers and things down, leaving an overly large erection on display. I knew what it was, not from personal experience, but from being around animals at the farms on my father's estate.
Lady Sinclair was using language I'd never heard before. Well, I had, once, when old Bessie kicked out at the man who was milking her and hit him in a very tender spot, but I'd pretended that I didn't hear. Neither had I known what the words meant and I hadn't been game to ask anyone.
It seems that Anthony and Jerkens both knew the words and what they meant as they were laughing at her.