“Honey, I’m nervous,” Lisa said.

Patrick hit the turn signal to exit off the highway. “Don’t be. I eh--,” he caught his thought mid-sentence, and started again. “Well, I’m a little nervous, too. But these women come highly recommended.”

“Recommended from who?”

“The internet,” he said with a soft mutter. “But they had good reviews and references, and we did all the follow-ups before deciding to try this.”

“And why are you nervous? I’m the one who’s gonna be a sex slave for the next week.”

“I…” He hesitated as he made the next turn. He chose his next words carefully. “I’m afraid you’ll like sex with them more than you will with me.” Then, with more confidence he added “And you’re not going to be their slave, you’re going to be their student.”

“Of course I’m going to like it more. They’re professionals, dear.” Lisa laughed.

Patrick rolled his eyes, but couldn’t help but chuckle too.

Patrick made the final turn off the street through a high wrought-iron arch and onto the wide driveway marked by an engraved wooden sign that read in script l’Ecole des Femmes.

“We’re here.” Patrick let out a sigh as he put the car into park. “Ready?”

“Sure. Ready as I’ll ever be,” Lisa answered.

They stepped out of the car and took a long look at the house. It was a huge Victorian mansion with ecru walls and a red roof. A large cupola extended from the front corner to reach 4 stories. The covered front porch was surrounded by finely carved railing, extending not only across the entire front, but also down one side and wrapping around the back.

“This place is gorgeous!” Lisa said.

“Still nervous?”

“A little.” Her enthusiasm faded at the reminder.

Patrick opened the trunk of the sedan and took out Lisa’s small bag, and they headed up the walkway to the door. Halfway up, they were greeted by a slender young woman coming from the front door. Patrick’s eyes grew big, a look that normally would have earned him a punch in the shoulder from his wife, but Lisa, too, was taken aback by the woman.

She was wearing a two-piece black dress: a criss-cross halter top and a matching short and tight skirt. Her legs seemed to go on forever, and the illusion was helped by the 4-and-a-half inch studded strappy heels she wore. When she approached, they could see she was easily 5’10”, before the heels. She stood above both Patrick and Lisa.

“Hi!” she said with a bright smile. “I’m Maren. I’m Jennie’s and Anne’s assistant. You must be Lisa.” She extended her hand to Lisa. Lisa reached to shake her hand, but instead Maren kissed it. “Come in. Follow me. We have a little bookkeeping to do first, and then you’ll be all set for your stay.”

She led them into the grand mansion. The front door was fine black walnut, and heavy. As their eyes adjusted to the much dimmer room, they saw that dark hardwood floors covering the entire house, red tapestries hanging on the walls, a brick fireplace with a bundle of wood beside it, a roll-top desk, and several wing-back chairs -- all with different upholstery and intricately carved legs -- creating a reception area.

Maren motioned them to the chairs, then to the roll-top desk and took out three clipboards. “Before we get you signed in, we give all of our clients a tour of L’Ecole des Femmes. Please sign this disclosure.” She handed them clipboards. “It’s basically a non-disclosure form and agreement to not take any photos or video while on the tour.”

Patrick and Lisa both signed the form and handed the clipboards back to Maren, who took the time to check each form with a stern face before filing them and returning two of the three clipboards to the desk, and locking it.

She turned back to the couple, and with another big smile said “Great. Let’s get on with the tour. If you’ll come this way, we’ll start with the kitchen. We have a chef come in daily to prepare dinner. Other foods for breakfast, lunch, or snacks are freely available in the pantry at times.” She pointed to a door off of the kitchen. “We do however ask that you do not come into the kitchen when the chef is working. Alphonse is a bit … eccentric … about his kitchen management, but you’ll forgive him once you taste his food.

“This is the commons. During your free time you can come and watch TV, play games, whatever. This is also where you can access the internet or a phone. We do not permit personal cell phone use during the stay.

“If you’ll come with me to the second story.” She opened a door to a stairway, and led them up. Hanging on the wall were large framed black-and-white photos of women engaged in various sexual acts. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that all of the pictures were taken on the premises. 

“Here are the dormitories. You’ll be staying in the damask room, with three other first-time girls.”

Patrick and Lisa looked at the room. It was covered in textured red velvet damask wallpaper. A yellow round rug covered most of the floor. There was a double french door leading to the balcony, and a second door leading to the side. Candle sconces adorned the walls. A single king-sized bed, two night stands, and a dresser were the only furniture visible from the doorway.. 

“You said there’ll be four of us in there? But there’s only one bed?” Lisa said.

“Yes.” Maren said flatly.

“This is the fleur-de-lis room. Two repeat visitors will be staying in here during your stay.” Whereas the damask room had a king, this room only had a full-sized bed.

“To you left is the basic bathroom. Four shower stalls, sinks, and toilets. Directly across is the master bath. It has a soaking tub/whirlpool, and it’s really so much brighter and nicer. The  master bath will be used in part of the curriculum.” She glanced at the clipboard. “Oh, I see you are signed up for watersports. You’ll have training in both, then.

“Finally, the last door is the master suite. That’s the room where the staff will stay during your visit.”

"Do ummm, Jen and Anne actually live here?" Patrick asked.

"Practically, but the Edwardian next door is their house. This room is used by whoever from the staff stays overnight. Jen hasn’t actually assigned anyone yet,” she paused and shook her head in exhaustion, “and some of us would like more than an hour’s notice.”  She led them around a staircase leading to the third floor.

“This floor is where you’ll spend most of your one-on-one time. This first room is known as ‘The Library’. In it you can find just about any sex toy you can imagine. Free to use, anytime except during the program sessions.

“These next three doors are all play rooms. There’s a reservation schedule posted on each door. If the room is free, you can use it. In fact, it looks like room 2 is in use right now.” Maren pulled the shade covering a window on the door open, and peeked inside. “You can take a look if you like.”

Patrick walked to the window to peer in, but Lisa grabbed his arm to stop him. “We don’t want to disturb,” she said.

“It’s fine. It’s mirrored glass. They can’t see us, and it gives you an idea of what goes on.”

Patrick and Lisa peered into the room. In it were two women. Both were naked. One sat on a chaise, the other was kneeling on the floor, massaging the legs and feet of the seated woman.

“That’s Theresa and Siobhán. They are repeat visitors -- the repeat visitors -- staying for the next two weeks." Lisa lingered, staring through the window as Maren and Patrick continued down the hall.

Ahem. "Moving along, this is the cupola. The ladder goes to the top, but there’s not a lot of room up there. Please do close the drapes if you do anything in here, though. The cupola is not as sheltered as the rest of the house, and the window is visible from quite a distance.

“Now, if you’ll follow me back down, we can visit the basement, There’s an additional playroom and the dungeon.” She glanced at her clipboard, and the time. “Pardon me. You aren’t signed up for any BDSM courses. We can visit if you like, but it is not necessary, and we are a bit short on time.”

“That’s okay. We don’t need to see it,” Lisa said.

“Hey, I’m curious now,” Patrick said.

“I’m the one staying here.”

Patrick shrugged. 

“Okay,” Maren said, breaking the silence. “If you’re ready, we can complete the check-in.”

Back in the reception area, Maren took out more papers from the desk. 

“Before we get started with the paperwork, do you have any questions?”

“What do you teach to repeat visitors?” Lisa asked. 

Maren chuckled. “We offer several different programs. Some women like to try them all. Others simply view this as a kind of sapphic retreat.”

“Were you a student here?” Patrick said.

Maren looked up from the papers and stared at him. “Yes. In fact, I met my fiancée here. We’ve come here many times together since..”

Only now did Patrick and Lisa notice the three-karat ring on Maren’s finger. 

Lisa spoke up. “What made you decide to come here the first time?”

“I was young and didn’t have a ‘big sister’ type to watch out for me. I was taken advantage of, both sexually and emotionally. I had no experience, and let anyone who would pay me attention walk all over me. Counseling helped me emotionally, but Jen and Anne really taught me how to stand up for myself sexually.”

“They taught you how to be a domme?” Patrick asked.

“No. Not like that. It’s not that simple. They taught me to not be a pushover. They introduced me to many things. They taught me to go for what I wanted. Any final questions?"

"How many times a day do you have to go up and down those stairs in those heels?" Lisa asked, smiling.

"Several, on check-in days. The rest of the week I do not wear them." Maren sighed. "Now, if there aren’t any more questions, we can start the check-in.”

Patrick and Lisa both nodded no. Maren passed a single page to Patrick, and a stack of papers to Lisa. “Patrick, yours is just a contact form. Name, address, phone, e-mail, etc. Lisa, you have the same form on top. On yours you need to note an emergency contact. I assume that will be Patrick.”

Maren guided Lisa through the papers, -- indemnity clauses, release of liability, photography release (!?), and other legalese. She finally got to the last page, devoted to actual activities, and began reading the clauses: Desired Activities. The applicant has expressed desire to participate in the following programs, as outlined in the L’Ecole des Femmes handbook: Watersports, Anal Experience, New to Sappho. Please initial the box. Excluded activities: The applicant has expressly stated that they do not wish to participate in the following. This list is not exclusive, nor necessarily representative of offerings at l’Ecole des Femmes: Hard Bondage, Masochism, Sadism, Scat. Please initial and sign.” Maren let out a sigh of relief. “Last one: Pursuant to the activities listed in section VI [desired activities], and excluding those listed section VII [excluded activities], you agree  to perform any sexual act, with any person, when instructed by l’Ecole des Femmes or its authorized agents. Please initial the box and sign at the bottom.”

Lisa put the pen to the paper, but stopped. “Wait. Who is ‘any person’?”

“Jen, Anne, Grace, and myself as instructors. You will also be required to participate with your primary partner…” She started flipping  through pages. “Who … will …. be Maggie. You are also signed up for watersports… “ She flipped more pages. “... Julie is signed up for that, too, so her, and, you’re on Anal Experience too. Julie again, and Alexander and Rafael, who are additional staff members. There may be others, too, depending on the circumstances, and you will be free to engage with anyone on the premises otherwise unoccupied. Realistically, though, you’ll have sex with everyone who comes through here except the chef, the maid, and groundskeeper.”

Lisa signed.

“Okay, you’re all set then.” Maren flipped through the pages. 

Patrick’s brain finally processed what was said. “Whoa whoa. Alexander and Rafael? Those are men’s names.”

“Yes,” Maren said flatly.

“Honey, I already signed the paper,” Lisa said.

“But I thought this was a lesbian thing!”

Maren spoke. “While we cater to women, a few of the courses do include limited interaction with men. The Anal Experience strives to give participants a full range of experiences, including those using butt plugs, dildos, strapons, vibrators, fingers, analingus, and actual penises.”

Lisa looked at Patrick, then softly touched his cheek. “I’ll be fine,” she said with a comforting smile. Patrick stared back with his mouth hanging open. 

Maren turned to Patrick. "We originally did not include men in the Anal Experience program, but since we added that component, long-term satisfaction from participants is twice as much as it was, and over five times as much from their male partners. We track these things closely.

“Now, if there’s nothing else, Lisa, please turn off your phone and give it to me. It will remain under lock-and-key for the duration of your stay.

"Patrick, it was nice meeting you. We will see you again in two weeks. Be assured, Lisa will enjoy her stay." She escorted him to the door, and shook his hand; she did not kiss it though.

She turned her attention back to Lisa. "Lisa, you may go to the damask room and get settled. Take a shower; towels and toiletries are in the basic bathroom. You will find something to put on in the dresser, based on the size you started on your initial application; one drawer is labeled for you. Afterwards, you may explore the grounds more. You may use the pool or hottub in the back, the library, the commons room, whatever. You are free until 6pm, when we will have group orientation and dinner. I have to prep the paperwork for the next arrival…" She glanced at a clock "... who'll be here in 10 minutes."

Chapter 1, Part 2