Originally published February 28, 2008:

At first glance, I am the guy your mother wants you to marry. Successful, sweet, clean shaven. Below the surface, I am the guy your mother warned you about: pierced tongue, tattoos, a ton of kinks. A couple of months ago, I met a woman who wanted to be a sex slave. We talked about relationship expectations and because of a few deal breakers (she is older than me, she has kids from a past marriage, our career goals differ) we said that this wasn't going anywhere beyond a temporary fling. Now she comes to my house a couple of times a week, puts on lingerie, blows me, does my dishes, blows me, gets tied up/spanked, picks up my dirty laundry, blows me again, and then leaves. Needless to say, I am quite happy with the situation.
Now I have met a great woman who I like and am looking to start a "normal" relationship with (read: still hot kinky sex, just no need for her to crawl on all fours when she enters my house, as fun as that is to watch). She has been hurt before and wants to spend a long time "getting to know each other" before we move toward anything physical. We have both acknowledged that we are interested in pursuing a relationship, just not yet. Given my situation, i.e., all those blowjobs from the submissive, I have no problem waiting as long as girlfriend material wants before we start something physical.

My question is on Dom/sub slave etiquette. Assuming things with this new woman work out, at what point should I break up with my sub? Should I tell her about the other woman? Should I tell her in advance we are ending ("Your next visit will be our last") or should I just ask her to come over and break up then ("We both knew this was only going to last so long")? Do I help her find a new Dom? This isn't a regular breakup, so I'm not really sure how to do it. My sub loves to serve, so would it be cheating on my next girlfriend if I let her keep doing domestic tasks for me, but nothing sexual? Should I tell my next girlfriend that I had a sex slave for a while?

Deciding On Method

Hm. My mother never warned me about guys with piercings, tattoos, or kinks. My mother did, however, warn me about guys who think a hidden tattoo or a discreet piercing somehow makes them more interesting than they actually are. "Those guys are always douchebags," my mother used to say. Still does. But, hey, my mom isn't the guest expert you need.

"The fact that you're having a Dominant/submissive relationship with this older woman is immaterial," says Mistress Matisse, a pro Dom, expert flogger, and prolific blogger (mistressmatisse.blogspot.com). "It's an intimate sexual relationship, so forget D/s in your handling of this. It's clear that you'd be happy to continue on with them both, at least for a while, so the question is more polyamory skills than BDSM etiquette."

So what does Matisse think you should do?

"Tell both women exactly what's going on, immediately," Matisse continues. "Your girlfriend-to-be wants to get to know you? If she can't handle that you've been having a D/s relationship, you better find that out now. Her response will certainly give you a clue as to how kinky your future sex life with her might be. But full disclosure, pronto, is best. Anyone who has been 'hurt before' is apt to be touchy about discovering perceived dishonesty down the road."

And what about your sub?

"Your submissive is also deserving of your honesty," says Matisse. "She may decide she wants to end your relationship, or she may be willing to continue in a nonsexual arrangement. If you are extremely lucky, your submissive and your GF-to-be may decide they can coexist in some fashion. God knows I've dated men who really needed someone to pick up after them, and I sure as hell wasn't going to do it."

And how does one properly break up with a submissive, if it comes to that?

"Make a date with your submissive and respectfully inform her that you are ending the relationship," says Matisse. "Wish her well and say good-bye, no last blowjobs for the road. And do not offer to find her a new Dominant—trust me, she'll have no trouble at all finding another Dominant to accept an arrangement like the one you've described."