Part 12: Proper Introduction
“I know you’ve talked about your somewhat unorthodox approach to recruiting people to your Crew, but I am curious as to how you actually met and decided on each of the guys. What did their interview process look like?” Laney asked.
“Well, I’m sure they will be able to give you much more detailed answers when you do your individual interviews with everyone, but I am more than happy to go over a few details here and now!” Luke smiled.
“Of course! I just think it’s good to get both perspectives: the Foreman and the Crew member!”
“Of course!” Luke agreed. “Well, as I said, Damian and I met in college.”
“How?” Laney interjected. “Did you run into each other in the hallway? Get partnered up for a project?”
“I think you might be watching too many rom-coms.” Damian joked. “It’s actually a bit crazier than that!”
Luke visibly blushed. “It’s not my proudest moment.”
“Ooo, now I need all the juicy details!” Laney’s face lit up.
“It’s incredibly embarrassing to think back on…” Luke began. “I was one of the leaders of my fraternity, and it was rush week. Damian’s roommate was one of our rushers. The frat had a tradition of ‘kidnapping’ the rushers at the end of the week for a weekend-long welcome party. Me and some of the other guys were rounding them up… and we might have had a bit too much to drink beforehand… We ended up kidnapping Damian by mistake, and didn’t realize it til we brought him back to the house.”
“Definitely not the meet-cute I was picturing!”
“In our defense, we had gotten some bad intel about whose bed was whose! We thought we were grabbing the right guy! But it was dark, and Damian wasn’t exactly in a position to explain things… what with all the duct tape…”
“So, not the best start to the romance, but I’m sure Damian was understanding when you let him go, right?”
Damian laughed and raised his eyebrow at Luke. “When they eventually let me go…”
Luke held his hands up. “We didn’t actually let him go right away… We were worried he’d go back to the room and tip off his roommate. So he remained our ‘guest’ most of the weekend.”
“Luke!” Laney practically screamed.
“I know, I know!” Luke hung his head. “Like I said, it is far from my proudest moment.”
“Thankfully”, Damian jumped in, “Luke was a perfect gentleman while I was stuck there. We did actually hit it off, once we got past the whole kidnapping thing.”
“Please tell me that you didn’t kidnap the other Crew members…” Laney joked, and Luke and Damian quickly laughed.
“Of course not!” Luke said in between laughter. “That’d be crazy!”
“So, how did you meet the others?”
“Well, we actually met Jack, Haze, the same day we officially opened our independent firm. We were out celebrating, getting drinks at a local bar. I had stepped away to go use the restroom, and when I got back, I found Jack hitting on Damian.”
“Really?”
Damian nodded. “We didn’t have the money for nice wedding rings yet, so there was no immediate indication that I was off the market.”
“Jack was incredibly apologetic when he realized, and we all had a good laugh. We hung out the rest of the night, helping him as his wingmen, and we hit it off. We met up a few more times and I eventually offered him the position.”
“Well, that’s certainly more wholesome than a frat prank kidnapping.” Laney agreed.
“Damian and I met Crest, Gabe, a few years later at a gallery auction. He was there as entertainment. I happened to run into him while he was on break from playing the piano. We chatted, and he mentioned being in between steady work. I gave him my information and set up the interviews, and he was a natural fit.”
“And Spark?”
“Actually, a pretty similar story to Crest. Spark, Fausto, used to have his own catering service. We’d used him a couple times on some shoots here in LA, and even a couple of dinner parties here at home. We just hit it off, and I took the shot to offer him a position on the Crew. I honestly thought he’d say no, but to my surprise, he jumped at the chance!”
“You weren’t exaggerating when you said your recruitment process was unorthodox!” Laney gasped. “I can only hope your current hopeful is a smoother process!”
—--
Luke marched Tommy to the center of the basement, to the slightly raised platform. He grabbed two coils of black rope and positioned Tommy in the middle of the platform with his legs slightly spread. Luke wrapped Tommy’s ankles in the soft rope, and attached the ends to the sides of the platform, keeping Tommy standing in that position. Tommy did not fight or resist the restraints. Luke smiled.
He stood and waited next to his Slave for the others to arrive. He kept his arm slung around Tommy’s shoulder, continuing to exert his physical control over his newly compliant thief. Tommy made no noise through his muzzle, other than his muffled breathing. No doubt his mind was racing about what Luke had planned for training, and about what his new life as Luke’s would look like.
Luke didn’t say anything. He was happy to let Tommy wonder, with dread or anticipation, about what was going on. So the pair waited in silence for the rest of the Crew to arrive.
Crest was the first to descend the stairs, dressed in jeans and a simple white button up. He held his blue and black collar in his hand. “Apologies for the wait, Master.” He stepped up to Luke and offered him the collar. “I was putting away the pool vacuum when Haze summoned us.” He leaned in so Luke could fasten the leather collar around his neck. Luke kissed him. “Spark will be along shortly, he needs to take the muffins out of the oven.”
Luke nodded. “Thank you, Crest. Now, kindly strip down for me.”
Crest did so, easily unbuttoning his shirt and removing it. He looked to Tommy, and coyly turned away from the platform to unbutton his jeans. When they fell to the floor, they revealed a bright blue speedo. Crest hesitated, but removed that as well. We collected his clothing and walked it over to the bed in the blue alcove before returning to the middle of the room. We stood stark naked, his lithe form beautifully on display for his Master. Slender, but fit, he was about the height and build of Tommy, though perhaps a bit less muscular. The blue of his collar and cage stood out against his paler skin.
Spark was next, already shirtless, and in the process of removing his apron. He was already wearing his yellow trimmed collar. Seeing Crest’s naked state, did not wait for instructions before he began unbuttoning his pants and making a pile of his own on the yellow alcove’s bed. He stood naked, caged, and collared next to Crest. Taller, bigger, tanner, Spark was a contrast to his blue counterpart. Though shorter than Luke and Haze, Spark was on his way to matching them in his size and strength. “Apologies, Master Luke. I had to wait for the muffins, or else they’d burn.”
Luke stepped forward and silenced his Slave with a kiss. “I understand. I don’t mind waiting if it means I get to enjoy unburned muffins for breakfast tomorrow.”
Spark beamed and took his position next to Crest.
Haze and Leaf were the last to arrive, the smaller green man carried downstairs on Haze’s shoulder. Leaf was bound in green and black rope, pinning his wrists to his thighs, his arms to his chest, and his ankles together. His green ball gag matched the green collar and cage perfectly. Haze stood Leaf up, holding his arms to keep him steady. “Sorry for the delay, Sir.” Haze started. “It took some time to undo your knots keeping Leaf bound to your bed. I also wasn’t sure if I should fully untie him.”
Luke pressed his lips to Haze’s. “Excellent job, Haze. Thank you. Now strip.” Luke took hold of his husband while the group watched Haze strip down and casually toss his dark workout gear onto his gray bed. He stood on the other side of Crest, dwarfing the shorter man entirely.
Luke removed Leaf’s gag and passionately kissed him. Leaf leaned in and whined when his husband finally pulled away. Luke undid the knots connecting Leaf’s wrists to his thighs, but did not fully untie his man. Instead, the ends of the rope were wound around Leaf’s forearms and neatly tied off. The same was done with Leaf’s ankle and chest restraints. Luke saw that Tommy’s eyes lit up, if only momentarily, when he saw the more aesthetic look of Leaf’s ropes wrapping around his limbs.
Luke stood behind Leaf, hands massaging his shoulders, and addressed the group. “Since Tommy here has finally accepted his position, I think it is time for some proper introductions. Everyone, I want you to meet the newest addition to our Crew, Tommy Prescott!”
None of the Crew said anything, but each one nodded and smiled at Tommy. “Tommy”, Luke continued, “I want you to meet the Crew. Of course, you know me. Master Luke. You will address me as such, or simply Master or Sir. Understood?” Tommy slowly nodded and muffled something that might have been an affirmative.
Luke produced his key ring. With the green keys in hand, he freed Leaf from his chastity cage. He handed the cage to Leaf’s waiting hand. “This is Damian, my husband. He is also the chief landscaper on the Crew. Here, he is Leaf.”
“Welcome, Tommy.” Leaf said. “I hope you’ll be a good fit.”
Luke kissed Leaf once more before moving down the line. The gray key unlocked Haze’s cage and the massive man’s hand happily accepted the device. “You’ve already met Haze. Jack is my HVAC specialist and my right hand.” Luke saw Haze cross his arms and flex as he stared down Tommy.
“Nice to see you behave for once, Tommy.” Haze said with a smile.
Luke gingerly unlocked Crest’s blue cage. Crest accepted it and then held his hands behind his back. “Next we have Gabe. Best plumber I could ask for. You’ll know him as Crest.”
Crest nodded in Tommy’s direction. “I hope you don’t disappoint.”
A final set of keys, Spark’s yellow cage unlocked and handed to the hunk. “And finally, we have Spark. Fausto here is the electrician, and one hell of a cook! You have Spark to thank for those delicious waffles!”
Spark blushed. “I look forward to working with you, Tommy.”
Luke stepped up to the platform and stood next to Tommy. “These are your Crew members, Tommy. Show them respect. Earn their respect. Know your place. They’ll be helping with your training now and then.”
He leaned in close and whispered into Tommy’s ear. “And now, an important question. Answer truthfully. Which of the Crew do you find most attractive? If you had the choice between these four, who would it be?”
Luke watched Tommy’s wide eyes dart over every inch of his fellow Slaves. He smiled as he stepped behind Tommy and slowly began undoing the muzzle.
New Poll: Who is the Most Attractive Crew Member? The results of this poll will directly affect the order of events for the next chunk of the story! Don't forget to share your thinking in the comments!
