The dinner party.

“Well, if we’re in such a hurry, we should just head out now!” you suggested.

“Are you kidding me? We reek of sex right now, they’ll know what we were up to for sure!” Paul said, wiping down the layer of juices that still glistened on his body.

“Oh, we can just air it out, they won’t notice,” you replied casually, “Besides, isn’t it a bit of a thrill to almost get caught?”

A little spark lit up in Paul and Priya’s eyes. Simply implying a form of sexual suggestion appeared to be enough for your gym contract to kick in.

Priya looked to Paul with an impish grin and said, “It would be kind of kinky to sit by my parents while wearing the musk of your sex…”

Paul nuzzled up close to his girl and added, "Yeah… and it would be nice to get one over your father for once…”

With that, you all dressed. You noticed Priya had opted not to put her panties back on. Instead, she stuffed the soft material into Paul’s back pocket, giving him a wink. It seemed they were taking their own inspirations from your suggestion. You followed the couple out, noticing the healthy bounce coming off Priya’s backside as she walked.

“So, what restaurant are we headed to?” you asked as Paul backed out of the parking lot and onto traffic.

“Tandoori Palace,” Priya said.

“Oh, I haven’t been, but I’ve passed by a few times. It’s big,” you replied. “Are there going to be lots of people there?”

“Oh, you’ll see…”

Tandoori Palace was a relatively new restaurant that served traditional Indian cuisine. You had been meaning to try it out, so you were looking forward to the dinner. After a workout session like you just had, you were starving for some good food. It wasn’t a long drive, so before you knew it, the car was parked in front of the eating establishment. As you sat up from the back seat, you noticed Priya’s hand on Paul’s lap. Were they trying to sneak some hanky panky in on the short drive over?

Priya instantly pulled her hand back and unbuckled her seatbelt, possibly noticing your gaze on them. You wondered if you kickstarted an exhibitionist kink in the two of your friends. That might not go over well with the party goers if they never got influenced by your sexual suggestions. Hopefully the couple would lean more on the ‘not getting caught’ part of your suggestion.

You entered the restaurant lobby and were taken aback. It was more like a grand hotel than a simple restaurant! The walls reached up two stories before you could see the ceiling. The reception area was built from finely carved wood while the walls looked to be smooth marble. There was a large mural of what you took as Indian wildlife that filled one wall. You could make out elephants and monkeys and various types of birds. The opposing wall had a built in water feature with flowing water flushing down on a small pond with live fish. Pedestals were spaced out along the marbled floor, each carrying either a brass statue or a decorative vase. You turned to Paul and said, “You sure we can afford this place?”

“Don’t worry,” Paul replied, “Priya’s dad is paying…” He didn’t seem too enthusiastic about the free meal.

The three of you walked were greeted by a hostess, who recognized Priya right away.

“This way, Ms. Kumar, we have been expecting you,” she said, leading the group over to a wing of the building.

“Pri! What took you so long?!” called out a feminine voice.

“Sorry we’re late, Dri!” Priya responded, embracing the young woman who bore a striking resemblance to her.

“I’m surprised papa-ji is so calm, I would have thought he would be barking at a server by now!” the young woman remarked after they broke apart. She then noticed the dampness of Priya’s body. “Ah! Are you covered in sweat?

“Yes, we rushed over as quick as we could!” Priya explained. She then turned to you and said, “John, this is my younger sister, Driya. She’s going to school for business! Dri, this is John, he’s a friend of Paul’s.”

“Nice to meet you, John! Good to see you, Paul!” Driya greeted, then noticed that Paul’s shirt was sticking to his skin. “Geez! What were you all doing to get so sweaty?”

“Oh, we just had a super hot threesome!” Priya revealed, “Our bodies are covered in each other’s sweat and juices!”

You held your breath. You couldn’t tell whether or not your sexual suggestion had taken effect on Priya’s little sister. If it didn’t, you had no idea how she would react. You were starting to feel a little exposed, not being able to rely on your special privilege.

Driya just rolled her eyes and scoffed, “Fine, don’t tell me.” she tugged at her sister’s dress and added, “But, I’d like to see you use that excuse with papa-ji! You should go in before he starts to get upset!”

You exhaled. Even though Priya openly bragged about it, it seemed her reputation made the claim too fantastical for others to believe. Driya led the way as you entered the next room. It was just as extravagant as the exterior with a high ceiling and round tables filling the hall. Each table was seated with diners, all of them looking toward your entourage as you entered.

“Ah! Everyone! She has arrived! My little girl!” Announced a silver haired main from a raised table at the end of the hall. “Happy Birthday, my beloved!”

“Happy Birthday!” the room chorused.

“Thank you… thank you… so sorry about being late…” Priya said as she met with each table on her way to the head table. You looked around dumbfounded at the crowd as you followed. Everyone here had been waiting for Priya. You bashfully passed by table after table as you realized that, through your personal indulgences, you had held all these people up.

“Dude…” you elbowed Paul. “You never told me that Priya was this popular…”

“These aren’t friends, they’re her dad’s employees…” Paul explained.

“What?”

“He runs a security software firm, he basically mandated for everyone working for him to attend,” Paul clarified with a low voice so that only you could hear.

“Dude… should I even be here then if this is a work event?” you wondered to your friend.

“Relax, you’re a guest of Priya’s, so she’ll have someone else to talk to aside from tech jockeys, besides, you’re here to act as a buffer between me and her old man...” Paul assured you.

“Don’t worry, I got you, pal,” you said, nudging your friend in the shoulder. Then, something clicked in your head as you made a realization. “Wait… don’t YOU work for a security software firm?”

“Uh huh…” Paul replied.

“Is that the same firm that Priya’s dad…?”

“Uh huh…” Paul answered again.

A lightbulb flash went up in your head.

“So that’s why he and you…?”

“Uhhh huuuh…” Paul said, more drawn out this time.

It all made sense now. It also raised a concern about your last gym suggestion to the lovers. Paul and Priya seemed to be reveling in almost getting caught doing stuff together. If they actually did get caught, your gym privilege wouldn’t extend to protecting them. Priya’s dad could react as he normally would, and based on what Driya had said, it would not be good for your favorite couple.

You arrived at the table, which it seemed you would be seated at as well. Paul greeted Priya’s mother and father with a polite nod.

“Mr. and Mrs. Kumar. Allow me to introduce my friend, John.”

“Ah, the lad on the phone,” the family patriarch responded, humorlessly.

“Good to meet you, Priya’s dad,” you said with a courteous bow. From the side of your eye, you could see Paul visibly wince.

Priya’s dad glared at you sternly. “Address me as Mr. Kumar,” he said, coldly.

“Ah, yes, Mr. Kumar,” you obliged.

The boss gave a condescending glance to Paul and said dismissively, “Friend of yours, huh?”

This was not the best first impression you could have given. You needed to regroup and work that ever loving charm of yours to bring him back around.

“Mr. Kumar,” you addressed with as much protocol as you could manage. “I would like to thank you for generously hosting me and all your guests on your daughter’s birthday. It is no surprise that she turned out as wonderful as she is due to your benevolent upbringing.”

Mr. Kumar stared at you for a long moment, then said, “Laying it on a little thick, don’t you think, son?”

Either you had overestimated the strength of your charm, or Priya’s dad was a tough nut to crack. Before you could give it another go, he turned to the man next to him and said, “Emir, go fetch your sister so that we can finally begin the meal.”

“Yes, father,” the man said before brusquely getting out of his seat and marching toward Priya.

You sank into your seat, getting the nagging feeling that this dinner would be a long, drawn out ****…

“John?” someone said beside you.

You turned your head and, to your complete surprise, saw a recognizable face. You had to do a double take to make sure you weren’t imagining things.

“Jaimie?” You asked, just to be sure.

“Yeah!” Jaimie smiled. The slender blonde was wearing a slinky black dress with spaghetti straps and her hair was curled and done up. She wore bluish green eyeshadow and glossy pink lipstick. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m a friend of Priya’s. What are YOU doing here?” you replied.

“I’m here with Driya!” she said.

“You and here are….?”

Jaimie giggled. “No… not like that. We go to school together.”

“Papi-ji won’t let me date until I’m 21. He keeps using Paul as an example.” Driya added with a chuckle. “So… how do you two know each other?”

“We go to the same gym!” you announced proudly. “In fact, I signed your sister up to a class there!”

“Oh! That’s why the sweat,” Driya concluded, putting the pieces together.

“Workout before dinner?” Jaimie asked with a raised eyebrow.

This raised another question; how would Jaimie react outside of the gym? You had no influence over her here and had no way of preventing her from spilling your exploits to the others. There was no telling how they would react to such news either. You fidgeted nervously in your chair.

“This place sounds popular, maybe I should check it out,” Driya noted.

“I could take you sometime,” Jaimie offered.

Your thoughts drifted to Driya at the gym. The college aged girl looked physically fit and was just as attractive as her elder sister. She was also deprived of men, due to her father’s tyranny. Priya would want her to be free to explore. Maybe.

There was no time to contemplate it further though as trays of dishes began to fill the table. Priya was finally seated, flanked by her father on one side and Paul on the other. You were next to Paul and Jaimie was next to you, beside her was Driya. Rounding out the table was Priya’s brother and sister in law and then her mom. The table was covered with various meats in savory sauces, scented rice, soft and chewy naan, crispy, deep fried pakora and a medley of fanciful chutneys. Your belly growled ravenously.

“That’s my plea to get started,” you chuckled sheepishly.

There was a light laughter from the table and Priya’s dad said, with his first sign of enthusiasm, “Then by all means, let’s dig in!”

You kept the conversation light this time around, everyone was more focused on the food anyways. The dishes sat on a lazy susan that spun around so that everyone was within reach of everything. You watched as Driya coached her friend on how to eat and waited patiently for the others to fill their plates before you partook as well. You enjoyed the tender chicken, buttered sauce draped over your bed of rice. Then, you had a healthy helping of the spicy lamb which you cooled with a topping of the sweet green chutney. By the time you had gotten to the tikki masala, everyone had fallen into their own private conversations. You looked to your side to see Jaimie dipping her naan into her chutney.

“How’s the food?” you asked her with a smile.

“It’s great! Never had any of this before!” she replied, mid chew.

“You know, I barely recognized you with all the makeup and the hair,” you said. “You look beautiful!”

“Aww, thank you!” she smiled. “I’d say the same for you, but honestly, you look like you just came from the gym.” she smirked.

You held your hands up, guiltily. “In hindsight, we probably should have come more presentable.”

“Buuut you were too busy with other things…” Jaimie surmised with a devilish grin. She knew what you were up to and didn’t seem at all perturbed by it.

“You would know…” you added, cryptically.

“Mhmm…” Jaimie murmured as she nibbled her bread. “I didn’t get a chance to go to the gym today though…”

You perked up. Was she suggesting that she was looking to get a little exercise in? Outside of the gym? Or, you might be reading into things too deep. Besides, you’re here to wingman your pal, Paul. You looked over to your friend, who was leaning over his plate, slowly savoring his meat skewer. You glanced over to Priya, seated beside him. She was leaned up close and… was more than likely giving him a handy under the table… If you leave the two sex fiends alone, they’re bound to get caught!