WIP: Harem House Chapter 22 Part 2

“Are we there yet?” Katelyn teased from the passenger seat as Kelly turned onto a residential road.

“Soon.” Kelly rolled her eyes as Katelyn impatiently kicked her feet.

“I want to get drunk!” Katelyn whined.

“But not too drunk.” Kelly said. Her tone was full of concern and disproval.

“Drunk enough.” Katelyn protested. “Just enough to get out of my own way and fuck somebody cute.” She rested her head back on the headrest.

Kelly frowned. “Hooking up with somebody will not help you get over Sean. You’re just gonna be sad tomorrow.” She assumed Katelyn wouldn’t listen, but she needed to say it.

“What would you know about it?” Katelyn snapped.

Kelly didn’t answer. She just kept driving.

“Sorry.” Katelyn shook her head and peered out the window. The houses and apartments they passed looked nice enough. “Sorry, I snapped at you.” Katelyn sighed. “I’m just…” She hesitated. “I just can’t sit in the apartment and mope anymore. I need to get it out of my system, get drunk, have sex, and move on.”

“Okay.” Kelly said, her voice soft. “I support you, but I want you to be safe.”

“Thank you.” Katelyn nodded. “Don’t worry. I’m going with Kat. She won’t let me do anything unsafe.”

Kelly nodded. “I’m glad she and the others can be there for you tonight.” Kelly admitted.

“Don’t feel guilty.” Katelyn warned. “It was last minute, and you already had your date planned.”

“I don’t.” Kelly assured her as she turned into the apartment complex parking lot. “With any luck, we should both get lucky tonight.” She smirked.

Katelyn laughed. “Raunchy, Momma.”

Kelly texted that they were there when she parked. By the time she had her luggage out of the trunk, the girls were downstairs to greet her.

“Ready to get wasted?” Rani whooped.

Katelyn and Kat laughed and gave each other a hug hello. Selene waved and then gave Kelly a hug. “Do you need help taking that upstairs?” Selene asked Kelly.

“Actually… if you don’t mind.” Kelly said.

“Of course not.” Selene assured her. “Don’t leave without me!” She called over to Katerine, who led Katelyn and Rani to her car, away from Arthur’s building. Not that she feared his neighbors, but she didn’t enjoy hanging around in the stairwell longer than she had to.

“We won’t!” Rani called back.

Kelly and Selene headed inside, with Kelly lugging her purse and overnight bag while Selene carried her garment bag over her arms. They climbed the stairs together.

“Have fun tonight.” Selene said. “He’s been looking forward to it.”

“I am too.” Kelly smirked. “Thanks again for taking Katelyn out.” She nodded behind them.

“Not a problem.” Selene said. “I’ve been looking forward to it, and so has Rani.”

“And Kat?” Kelly asked.

“Kat’s more of a… homebody.” Selene shrugged. “She’ll be fine for a night.”

Kelly nodded and understood. She was the same, a homebody. Kelly was glad she and Kat had a few things in common. She was eager to find common ground with the harem. They all had Arthur in common, sure, but they needed more to build lasting friendships than a friend, boyfriend, master, or husband in common.

“Do me a favor?” Kelly asked as they reached Arthur’s landing.

“Anything, Mistress.” Selene said quickly, which made Kelly smile but also made her nervous.

“Please watch out for Katelyn tonight. Don’t let her get too crazy or go home with anyone unsafe.” Kelly knew she didn’t have to ask but was still worried. She wanted the other girls to recognize what they were in for.

Selene nodded. “Of course. Can you do me a favor?”

“Anything, Slut.” Kelly tried to sound teasing with her nickname, but it was still awkward to use it like that. She regretted using it but tried to cover up her awkwardness by smiling.

“We’ve got Katelyn in excellent hands, and we’ll take care of her tonight. You focus on your date and have a good time.” Selene told her. “Oh, and text me if the neighbors bitch again. I have a plan if they stick their noses in our business again. I’m going to point a speaker at their apartment after Arthur leaves for the day, playing ‘It’s A Small World’ on loop at max volume.”

Kelly laughed. The idea was evil, assuming the neighbors were home to hear it. When Selene didn’t join in the laughter but just smiled, Kelly realized she meant to do it and chuckled even more. “Alright, go on.” She said, taking the bag from Selene. “Have fun!”

“You too.” Selene said as she handed the bag over. A quick hug and she was gone, carefully descending the stairs.

Kelly straightened up and knocked.

Arthur opened it with one hand on the knob and the other holding a bouquet. He dressed to impress, freshly shaved, with his hair combed and styled. Arthur wore pressed suit slacks with sharp, clean creases, a tight, tucked-in pastel blue shirt, a black tie, and a matching black vest. The suit jacket was elsewhere, but Kelly didn’t mind.

Unfortunately, Kelly’s hands were full, so she couldn’t take the flowers from him. Meanwhile, his hands were full of flowers, so he couldn’t take what she brought from her. At least, not until he set the flowers down on the coffee table.

“Did you pack for the entire weekend?” Arthur asked, surprised.

“Well, yeah.” Kelly admitted. “I wasn’t sure I would have time to return home between now and the Sunday brunch.”

“That’s a fair point.” Arthur said. He took the garment bag from her and then her overnight bag. She set her purse on the sofa and picked up the flowers. “For me?” She asked.

“For you.” Arthur said. He set her luggage against the wall and hung the garment bag on the open door to the second bedroom he used as a study.

“Thank you. The flowers are gorgeous.” Kelly said as Arthur returned. She kissed him, slow and soft, until they broke for breath.

“So are you.” Arthur pointed out.

“And the food smells delicious.” Kelly added with a smile.

Arthur chuckled. “So do you. Let me get you the vase.”

He stepped away to the tablecloth-laden kitchen table and returned with the small plastic vase to hold the bouquet.

Kelly gracefully placed the flowers into it, and Arthur returned it to the table as he shifted into the kitchen. He returned a moment later and pulled out a chair for her. Kelly smirked at him and gave him a look over her shoulder, but she accepted the seat and sat, sweeping her skirt under her as she did so.

“Thank you.” Kelly said. She smiled at him. “So, what are we having?”

“Steaks.” Arthur answered. “It’s my mother’s recipe.”

“Aw! You made me something your mom used to make you?” Kelly’s heart melted.

“Well…” Arthur hesitated. “Kind of.” He made a guilty face. “Kat actually did most of the cooking.” He admitted. “I was in a rush to get ready and got home late because of- a work thing. Selene and Kat did the setup for tonight. They were here when I came home and wanted to help.”

“Did…” Kelly hesitated. She wasn’t upset that Kat cooked the meal. In fact, she was impressed with the girls. The harem made extraordinary efforts to support each other. Kelly realized she should up her game in the sisterhood part of this arrangement. Otherwise, she would fall far behind the kindnesses everyone else performed for her.

It was his ‘work thing’ that drew her attention. It was a phrase her father used whenever he was lying about where he’d been that triggered something in her. “Did you just lie to me?” She called him on it, shocked that he lied to her.

“I guess I did.” Arthur admitted sheepishly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. I just didn’t want to worry you.”

“Why would I worry?” Kelly asked. “Were you fucking one of the others? Is that why you were running late? You were fucking Rani, so Kat and Selene picked up the slack? You don’t have to lie about that, remember?”

“No, no. It wasn’t that.” Arthur shook his head. “I uh…” He hesitated again, but not telling the truth would ruin their dinner. Ironically, his motive for not telling the story was to prevent ruining their dinner. Still, she deserved the truth. “I got into a fight. Kind of. I got hit.”

“What?” Kelly was on her feet. Now that she was looking for it, she could see a red mark under his left eye. She reached for it. “Who hit you?”

“Some guy.” Arthur winced away from the touch. The spot was still sore. “He and Sanjay were waiting by my car after work. They were pretty pissed off. They tried to start something, but I avoided their blows, other than this one, and then they accidentally set off a car alarm. Security and Beth, my boss, came up since it was her car, and that was the end.”

“Oh my god.” Kelly looked concerned. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I promise.” Arthur nodded at her chair. “Sit. Let me serve dinner.”

Kelly kept her eyes on him but returned to her seat, waiting for him at the table. She didn’t have long to wait. The steaks smelled delicious, as did the veggie stir-fry for their side. Arthur spooned a tangy sauce over it. It was delicious when she took her first forkful, and her expression must have shown it because Arthur smiled in relief. He started eating with her, and they talked.

Arthur related the story of the fight and his decision to give them another chance. Kelly thought it was sweet of him, if naïve, but offered to teach him how to box if he wanted. It was always good to learn to defend yourself. He couldn’t dissuade Kelly even if he tried, and he knew better than to try.

Arthur had the luxury of not believing in violence because so few people tried violence against him. Kelly was too familiar with fear to believe in pacifism.

His curiosity tempted him to ask, but he didn’t want to press. He didn’t know if it was a specific trauma or the general fear every woman carried. Going out late or early without a means of self-defense was a risk no woman took. At least not if she’d ever heard a news story or listened to a murder podcast.

“So…” Kelly said after a lull in the conversation. “I’ve been meaning to ask you…”

“Yeah?” Arthur prompted.

“Well, the girls and I talked, and I know you’re… you’re more into the BDSM stuff with them.” Kelly explained. “At least, more than with me. Other than spanking, which I guess counts.” She shrugged. “But I was wondering, how did you get introduced to it? How do you know what to do?”

“The short answer to both is Lori.” Arthur said.

Arthur smiled at the mention of his ex-girlfriend, but his eyes told Kelly it wasn’t genuine.

Kelly looked a little surprised. She knew Lori. They hadn’t talked since the summer, but she’d known Lori the entire time she was friends with Arthur or thereabouts. She never guessed Lori was like Selene. She couldn’t remember Lori even hinting about it, and they’d talked about her and Arthur’s bedroom activities more than once.

“You and Lori used to…” Kelly wasn’t sure how to finish the sentence, so she was glad when Arthur didn’t make her.

Arthur nodded and told the story. “Yeah. We were talking one day, and well, we started discussing porn. She asked me what kind I watched, and I asked her what kind she watched.”

“And you were watching bondage stuff?” Kelly asked.

Arthur laughed. “No, actually. I was, uh… into girl next door porn before Lori and I started dating pretty straightforward stuff.”

He shrugged. “Lori dove deeper, and when she suggested we try it… well, we tried it and - I liked it. A lot. So did she. So we practiced. We called it playing.” He explained.

“And, wanting to be the best possible boyfriend she ever had so she wouldn’t leave me-” which she did. “I spent more time studying bondage stuff online that semester than I did studying for my exams.” He chuckled. “But… it was worth it, I guess.”

“Do you miss her?” Kelly asked suddenly, after watching his face while he talked about Lori.

Arthur contemplated it. “I mean… yeah.” He admitted. “I wouldn’t go running back to her.” Arthur assured her. “But we were close. She was my best friend for years - more than that, obviously. And losing her like that, when she left me rather than try to do long-distance… it hurt.”

Kelly reached across the table, took his hand, and squeezed it.

Arthur tried to reassure her. “I’m okay. It hurt, but everything worked out. After all, if I was still with Lori, I wouldn’t be here having dinner with you.”

Kelly smirked. “Fair point.” She supposed. “Lori wasn’t into poly then?”

“No.” Arthur shook his head. “At least she wasn’t interested in group stuff or threesomes. She wasn’t like… the super-jealous type, but I don’t think she’d have invited you all to a harem either.”

Kelly chuckled. “God bless Selene.”

Arthur smiled in agreement. “Yeah.” He nodded. He squeezed Kelly’s hand. “Do you want dessert?”

Kelly let go and leaned back in her chair. “Is that a euphemism, or do you have dessert?”

“I honestly have dessert.” Arthur chuckled. “Two cheesecake slices and some cool whip.”

Kelly smiled. “Cheesecake sounds good to me, Mister.”

~~~

Kat and the girls were happy to get out of the car when they finally arrived at the bar. Traffic had been thick, but finally, they were here, and they could see the bar's lights from the street as they approached now that darkness had swept over the sky.

“Okay, girls.” Katelyn said as they pulled up. “Your mission is to find me a cute guy who is decently fit and seems safe.”

“Pfft.” Rani blew through her mouth. “If you just wanted to fuck a guy, I’m sure Selene would whore out Arthur to just about anybody.”

Katerine glared at Rani, who looked surprised at Kat's anger. “What?” she asked.

“I mean, if you wanted to fuck Arthur, and he wanted to fuck you…” Selene shrugged.

“No.” Katelyn shook her head. “No, thank you. I don’t want to join your sex cult.”

“It’s not a-,” Kat started but stopped herself. She took a deep breath and got out of the car. She stretched and stepped carefully a few paces before finding her stride. Rani and Selene seemed to do the same thing, which made Katelyn shrug. The car ride didn’t seem that long to her, but she wouldn’t hold it against them if they were stiff.

“I’m just teasing you, Kitty Kat.” Katelyn put her hands on Kat’s shoulders reassuringly, and Kat patted her hand.

“I know.” She said. “Don’t worry. We’ll scout for you.” Kat said.

Rani shrugged. “How about that guy?” She pointed to a random man about their age standing by the door. He had a cowboy hat on, a white t-shirt, jeans, and a pair of work boots.

Kat followed her finger to the guy, and her face suddenly became a tight line. “Oh, you’ve got to be fuckin’ kidding me.”

Rani looked surprised, and Kat and Selene looked over to see who she’d pointed out. Selene didn’t recognize the young man, but Kat did. “What’s Sean doing here?”

“He’s apparently out on the prowl, I guess.” Katelyn huffed. “Is he alone?”

“Looks it.” Rani said. “That’s your ex?”

Katelyn nodded while Rani seemed to consider something for a moment. She looked at Selene, then at Kat. “Well… I guess we can go somewhere else…” Rani suggested, though their outfits weren’t curated for another bar. “Or… we can fuck with him?”

“Ooo, " Selene said. “Interesting.” She smirked at Rani. “What’d you have in mind?”

“One of us could seduce him, then leave him with blue balls.” Rani suggested.

“Well, he knows me at Katelyn.” Katerine said. “So it’d have to be one of you two.”

“I could…” Rani hesitated. “But I want to get laid tonight.” She looked at Selene.

“I could try.” Selene shrugged. “I’m not planning on sleeping with anyone tonight.”

Katelyn considered the plan. “She is his type, but then the three of us would still have to go somewhere, and she’d be alone with him. That’s not going to work.”

“She’s right.” Selene agreed. “I’d rather stick together.”

“Then fuck it. We’re going in and sticking together.” Rani declared. “Are you bi, by any chance?” She asked Katelyn.

“I mean… I’ve kissed a girl or two before at a party.” Katelyn admitted.

“Never sober?” Rani asked.

Katelyn shook her head.

“Well, we don’t have to do any PDA then.” Rani offered Katelyn her hand. “But you’re gonna get to smash that man’s hopes and dreams tonight.” She assured her. “And if we’re lucky, we’re gonna find someone else to fuck you and maybe me while we’re at it.” She shrugged.

“Your sex-cult leader is okay with you fucking other guys?” Katelyn asked. The surprise and curiosity triggered by Rani’s statement removed the threat of Sean, though they had all stopped walking at this point and were standing behind some cars in the parking lot, out of his view.

“You really have to stop calling it a sex cult.” Kat interjected. “I’m serious, Pussy Kat.”

Rani looked back and forth between the Kats and snorted with laughter. “You call her Kitty Kat, and she calls you Pussy Kat?” She asked.

“We’re the Kats.” Katelyn explained.

“But only we can call each other those names.” Katerine quickly interjected in case Rani or Selene got any ideas.

Rani held up her hands in surrender. “Okay. Don’t shoot Cowgirl.” She smirked. “I think it’s cute you have little pet names for each other. That’s real BFF shit.”

“Well, we have our pet names, too, right Queenie?” Selene nudged Rani, who looked back at her and smiled.

“Absolutely, Slut.” Rani glanced at Katelyn’s face as she said it, but Katelyn just giggled.

“Can I call you that too?” Katelyn asked. “Or is that some kind of inside joke?”

“Oh, no joke.” Kat assured her. “She’s a total slut. It’s just what we in the harem call her.”

“You call your sex cult a harem?” Katelyn asked.

Kat rolled her eyes and looked at Katelyn like she was stupid. For her part, Katelyn had to admit it was a foolish question. The answer was there in the context.

“Not a cult. A sisterhood.” Selene corrected her this time. “But don’t worry. Tonight, you’re an honorary sister.” She nodded toward the door.

“Not sure you can call it a sisterhood with Arthur in it.” Katelyn pointed out.

“Oh, he’s not in the harem.” Rani said. “He just runs things. We’re the team. He’s the coach.”

“Right…” Katelyn appeared uncertain.

“So are we going in?” Selene interrupted. “Or are we going somewhere else?”

Rani held her hand out to Katelyn, offering it to her.

Katelyn looked at it silently, then took it and nodded. “Let’s do this.”

She nodded to Rani, and together, the four started walking again. Rani and Katelyn pressed together as they approached the door, still holding hands, while Katelyn refused to look in Sean’s direction.

Selene watched him and saw his emotions flare across his face. She smirked. Tonight was going to be fun. She only hoped Master turned on their vibes soon. They were starting to feel awkward with no action happening.

Selene passed through the door as Katerine held it open for her, and she saw Sean turn away and walk into the parking lot. He appeared to be angry about something.

~~~

“So...” Kelly hesitated again as she and Arthur ate their cheesecake slices. “What uh… How should I start trying to learn about all this bondage stuff?”

Arthur looked up slightly and smirked. “Well, I could send you some blog links, instructional videos, that kind of thing. Or… I guess I could teach you firsthand.”

“Would I be able to learn much if you’re tying me up rather than teaching me how to tie someone up?” Kelly asked with a smirk.

“Well, being tied up is always good for you to know how it feels so when you dominate someone, you can know what they might be experiencing.” Arthur admitted. “But I’m sure if I suggested to any of the girls that you join us for their next bondage session, they’d all be more than happy to have you learning on them. Except Kat.”

Kelly seemed to consider it for a moment. “I’m not sure I’ll have time in my schedule, but both sound good at some point.” She admitted entirely noncommittally. “I’m still not sure how I feel about the idea of ‘dominating’ anyone. I enjoy you taking the lead and dominating.” Kelly took another bite of her cheesecake and let the fork slide out from between her lips. “I’d like to know more about this kinky stuff either way if Selene’s going to keep calling me Mistress.”

Arthur nodded but was silent as he took another bite of his cheesecake. Then, he seemed thoughtful. “What kind of kink are you the most interested in?” He asked.

Kelly didn’t have to think about it very long. “I’m not sure what my options are, honestly.”

“Not big into bondage porn?” Arthur asked.

Kelly laughed. “No. Massage porn has always been my thing.”

Arthur nodded. “Good to know.”

Kelly smirked at him and took a playful bite of her cheesecake. “Seriously though, I have no idea about any of that stuff. I’d need you to teach me, Mister.”

“I can do that.” Arthur nodded, doing his best to appear calm and collected, trying to ignore the warmth spreading across his face and the blood flowing directly toward his crotch. “I have a…” He needed to develop a better name for it, but for now, he just called it a “Checklist.” He explained. “I can go over it with you if you want. Find out what you’re interested in, what you might like?”

Kelly seemed to weigh her options. “I might not know enough about some of it to make a judgment.” She warned him. “But…” She toyed with a piece of cheesecake with her fork and crossed her legs as she sat back. “Okay.”

“You okay if I pull up my phone?” Arthur asked.

Kelly smiled and nodded, watching as Arthur pulled his phone out, unlocked the screen, flipped through a few apps, hit a few buttons, and then pulled up some kind of Google Doc. She watched as he read over it for a second, nodded to himself, and looked back at her with a smile.

“You want to move to the sofa? Maybe have some wine?” Arthur asked.

Kelly smiled at him. “Okay, but I still want to do the French Maid roleplay, so don’t get too frisky.”

Arthur smirked, feeling confident and taking Rani’s advice to be more dominant outside the bedroom again. “You can have multiple orgasms tonight. I’ll get as frisky as I want to.”

Kelly appeared surprised, but then her lips pressed together and broke into a smile. She nodded approvingly. “Yes, Sir.”

She watched him get up from the table. He put the dishes in the sink but didn’t wash them. Instead, he topped off her wine and picked up her glass, moving them to the sofa.

Kelly took one corner, and Arthur looked like he was going to take the other, but he surprised her by twisting a little and reclining on the sofa. He crossed his legs, placed his feet in her lap, his heels against her thighs, and pulled up his phone again. She picked up her wine in one hand and started massaging his sock-clad feet with the other while he read out the list.

~~~

Rani was at the bar, still holding Katelyn’s hand when she felt the vibe inside her activate. It was thankfully quiet, not that it would have made much difference. Still, she squeezed Katelyn’s hand at the surprise, causing Katelyn to look back at her.

The bar was packed, and the music was loud. The live band was playing a catchy, upbeat country song about summer and beer. Rani’s squeeze on Katelyn’s hand was the only indication that something was different, but seeing Rani was okay, Katelyn squeezed back. Soft, gentle vibrations started as a low hum inside Rani. She bit her lip but managed to make her order for a margarita anyway.

Then Rani’s vibrations faded, and Selene’s kicked on, and then Kat. There seemed to be some kind of cycle at play with the app. Selene smiled widely, standing not too far away to watch the band. Kat was next to her and didn’t look as happy, but she seemed to chill a little after she got used to it.

The vibrations started and stopped, starting up a little stronger each time. Arthur seemed to be having fun, and Rani wondered what he and Kelly were up to.

Katelyn, oblivious to their plight, kept looking back toward the front door. Sean hadn’t come in yet, and plenty of scenarios played through her head. She wondered if he was there to meet his side bitch or if that girl ditched him when she found out about Katelyn. There was a lot about Sean’s affair that Katelyn didn’t know, and she didn’t really want to know. She didn’t want to talk to him again, ever. She hoped he’d left.

She imagined what she’d say or do if he came through that door with that bitch. That wasn’t fair. She didn’t know who seduced whom, but she blamed Sean. Guys were always the instigators when it came to things like that. Sean knew he was a taken guy but hadn’t appreciated her. He’d gotten greedy. He wanted more than she could offer or something different, so he snuck around and got it like a bastard. She couldn’t believe she thought he was going to propose soon. He’d dropped so many hints; now it was all gone because she’d decided to surprise him. No, because he’d decided to cheat on her.

She honestly didn’t know how Kelly or the other girls did it. How were they okay with their guy sleeping with other women. How they didn’t get jealous. It was unnatural. Love like that was supposed to be between two people, right? A man and a woman loved each other, or two men or two women; she wasn’t a bigot, so they married to declare their love to the world. How did that work for Selene, Kelly, Kat, Rani, and that other girl with Arthur? They couldn’t all get married. There were laws.

“Hey.” Katelyn tried shouting over the music to Selene. “How do you-”

“Oh shit! That’s strong.” Rani jerked a little and spilled her drink at the bar. She let go of Katelyn’s hand, and Katelyn turned her eyes away from Selene to see what was wrong.

Rani supported herself on the bar and looked wide-eyed at Selene as the bartender used some napkins to mop up the spill.

“Sorry!” Rani called. “I just slipped a little.”

“We should get a booth!” Katerine called out over the music.

Rani gave her a thumbs-up for approval, and Selene led the way to a booth. Katelyn redirected them to a different booth, one in the corner. The view of the band wasn’t the best, but it had a good view of the door.

Rani relaxed as soon as they sat down, but Selene jumped like something bit her just after she slid into the booth.