by Lucian Bane
I touched Tara's hand. "Remember, follow my lead."
She nodded and moved into the room. Glancing back to me, I nodded that she was doing the right thing as she went to the little bar they'd brought in, complete with a stool, and took a seat.
I waited at a short distance, keeping my gaze pinned to Tara, encouraging her with sheer will power.
The blonde called out, "In three, two, one." The lights went up.
I took my time, allowing my vision to adjust to the glare. Not exactly club atmosphere. I strolled forward, looking around, as if seeking someone. Approaching the bar, I was impressed with Tara's instincts to do just as she might in real life. Not look.
I stopped behind her and waited a few heartbeats. "Hello."
She angled her head at me and I locked my gaze on hers, pretending we were alone, and this was me, doing what I would do if I'd met her someplace else. I allowed myself to know as much about her as I did, which was only enough to make me hungry, very hungry to know all. "I'm Lucian."
She turned to me in that confidence, her gaze saying make me. Break me if you can. Then she stood and stumbled slightly in her heels. Her courage faltered and that brief vulnerability shot desire through my bones and flooded me with reckless needs to tear into her body, mark her so hard and deep that she had to be mine.
My arm shot out to steady her and she jerked her gaze up, the look in her eyes screaming, Oh God, I'm ruining it.
"I got you," I soothed in whisper.
Her head angled toward the judges and I reached with a finger and turned her face to me. "Just me. Only see me. Now, listen. Are you listening, love?"
She gave a barely nod.
"Good. Because I have something important to say to you." I tipped her chin up with one finger and dipped to bring my mouth to hers.
Right on cue, she turned slightly so that my kiss found the corner of her mouth. I moved closer, and she stepped back, which put her against the bar.
Tara's breathing quickened when she could go no further. All her doubts were visible in her eyes. What had she gotten herself into?
Her innocence was brutal and there was something about it, something different that turned my Dom into a prowling wolf. I slid my hand along her neck, slowly. Panic turned her head, but I held her jaw still, watching her fight the instinct to bail. The mix of her submissiveness and innocence was nearly overwhelming my own control. My fingers pressed harder into her jaw with unmistakable intention that made her gasp. I lowered and took the kiss I had to have but it wasn't the one she was expecting. I slid my lips gently across hers.
"I just want to protect you." I nibbled at her mouth, enticing her trust. She didn't attempt to stop me, and even parted her lips a little. The little gift fucking slammed me with desire. But, topping for me wasn't forcing, it was fair persuasion. I deepened the kiss and she gifted me again with submission. And given who she was, what that cost her, what it meant to her, made the gift all the more precious.
I realized in that second, the tables had turned on me. Need drove my dominance to have unthinkable things. I wanted what was buried far beneath that lovely skin of hers, beneath that strict disciplined will. I wanted beyond that protective wall inside her, that place she didn't allow anybody, not even herself.
I slid my hand to the back of her head and into her hair, tangling the spun silk around my fingers. Her eyes flew wide with a small cry that sent my pulse racing.
My hold kept her head back and her body arched against me in attempt to remain upright. Fear flashed in her eyes and I stifled her whimpers with more soft kisses. "I got you baby. Don't panic, I'm not going to hurt you."
She latched onto my shoulders to keep from falling. Perfect.
I kissed my way along her jaw until my mouth was at her ear. "You're doing beautifully sweetheart. Please trust me." Tremors passed from her body into mine and I soothed them with a firm hand along her spine. "Shhh." My hand glided lower over her ass and muscular upper thigh. "Sweetheart, you're fucking beautiful, do you know that?"
She gave a whimper in my ear as I lifted her leg up, sliding it decisively along mine before pulling her into my raging erection.
Panic clicked her frigid button and I moved to her lips and let my desire loose. With a hunger I didn't have to pretend, I held her jaw firmly and pushed her lips open with mine. I stroked her tongue with irrefutable passion, allowing my dominance to guide me for the final countdown. She submitted to my dominance until the tension in her body became eager.
Her hands ran up into my hair and she returned the kiss. The sensation blasted me with hunger and my threadbare control vanished. We suddenly struggled to get closer, deeper, more, faster.
"Lucian."
The soft whimper of my name came with a bucket of ice water in the form of a bell.
"Thank you," a voice called out, signaling we could leave.
I took Tara's hand and led her carefully from the stage. She could barely walk without tripping every other step. The poor baby needed aftercare from a mere kiss.
And I needed to hear her say my name again just like she had. The things that did to me were unthinkable. Unbearable. Unexplainable. Many women had called my name, and I'd liked it, loved it. But when she called it, it spoke to me in another way. No, it called to me. Wrong again. It called to somebody else in me.
Chapter Four
I paced up and down in the room, hardly able to believe we'd actually made it to the final round. Five couples would compete to win now.
I really shouldn't go check on her again, but Jase Duff had made it to the next level too, and the way he eyed her made me feel antsy. He was one very sick puppy. And there were no cameras in the personal rooms.
Duff played by the rules but just barely, and only when he thought someone was looking. He was like the step-father that only nearly killed you, the killer that made you wish he'd just get it over with already. The others were like kittens compared to him even though they were still threats.
I sat on the bed and threw myself onto it, covering my face with both hands. What was Tara doing? How scared was she?
I sat up, recalling her response to my kiss. Mother-fuck, I'd been worried about her reaction. We aced the audition because the truth was, neither of us were pretending. I'd meant every word, she'd meant every response.
I groaned at the fierce throb in my cock, remembering those sounds and the way she tried not to make them but couldn't contain it. The way her breath trembled with her body. The way she held on to my neck because she'd lost strength in her legs. But there was so much resistance in that body of hers, every muscle was lined tight with it. Made me want to fucking crush it.
And to think I would get to spend three days exploring her. Fuck, had I died and gone to heaven? She wasn't a sub, not at all. That was the dynamic. She was this…this woman, this strange and amazing woman, this puzzle I needed to sit and stare at and piece together. And I would. For the next three days, I'd piece her together.
After I tore her completely apart.
****
"Oh dear God oh dear God, oh dear God." I paced up and down in my room shaking my hands. I dropped to the floor and began doing crunches. Just needed to work out this energy. I'd made it. Made it through the audition. Thanks to Lucian.
Memories of his lips flooded my body with heat and I picked up speed. Fifty-two, fifty-three. The next thing I knew, the rasp of his tongue heated my neck again. Sixty-four, sixty-five. My privates throbbed in memory of his hard fingers biting into my leg and pulling me into his gorgeous body. Oh Jesus, he'd been aroused. A lot! Forty-five, forty…
I gave up and lay there, panting and winded as the memory continued to consume me. I'd never been kissed that way. So that was dominance? Wasn't so bad. I could handle that kind of stuff.
I looked for the packet I was supposed to read through. The rules to the game that we had to figure out on our own. As adults.
Thirty minutes later, I sat on the edge of the bed with the rule book in my hand, astound
ed with adrenalin, fear, and desire at imagining what was coming. Every day we had to pick from a list of activities. Each one was worth points. We could mix them as we liked, but each activity was only worth points one time. We could repeat things, but points would only be awarded the first time.
Some of the activities I'd never be able to do. Sex being one. Both the literal and oral. Could I… maybe do him orally? Maybe. There were plenty of small point items I could do, spooning being the easiest of all. We were allowed to drink, so maybe I could get drunk and wipe that whole list out. Regret later. But then we both had to do things from the list. How was I supposed to get him to not do certain things?
Money. I'd pay him money.
Oh God. But then we wouldn't hardly make any points. We had to do some of it. I flew up and paced, chewing my thumb nail, going through that list again. I could do the sadistic things maybe. I could ask him to as well. It was just pain. I could handle that. Yeah, that could work.
I rushed to the little night stand and pulled out my journal and pen. I opened the rule book and began marking things. N for no way. M for maybe. Y for yes. I added the points for the yeses and maybes. Then I added the points for the no ways.
My heart sank. The no ways topped both by a hundred and fifty. And judging by the competition, they'd be racking up.
I regarded the yeses and maybes. If we mixed them we might be able to make it. I could definitely kiss him. Could I do the nude thing? Dear God, the idea of walking around him nude was unthinkable. Keep that one in the maybe list. For now. I began working various scenarios to see how many points we could make. Oh wow. If he collared me, and led me like a dog, while I was nude, that was thirty points. I could let him tie me up and blindfold me and cut on me a little.
That would definitely rack up points. But that still left out what he had to do. I'd deal with him when the time came.
Chapter Five
I followed behind Tara to the room we'd be sharing.
The Dungeon Manager opened our door and turned. "Remember the rooms have cameras everywhere, even in the closets."
I followed Tara in, anxious to see how she was holding up. She hadn't even looked at me since we'd met up in the hallway.
"Welcome to your domain." The curvaceous female Dom Manager opened both arms wide. The movement separated the front of her jacket, which would have been perfectly appropriate in the boardroom, to reveal an intricate leather and lace corset. "This is the living room, obviously."
We continued to follow the perfectly straight seam at the back of her silk stockings through an arched entry into a large kitchen. "Your kitchen. It's stocked with food and drinks. It's like having your very own bar." She smiled and opened a cabinet that held every kind of liquor before spinning and leading us back through the archway.
I watched Tara who still hadn't given me any indication of her wellbeing. A tiny smile was all I needed.
"This is the bedroom with attached glamour bath. Plenty of fun to be had here. The bathroom is stocked, first aid kit included." She giggled as she walked to the other side of the room and threw open French doors. "And your mini-dungeon." She stepped aside.
I watched Tara's reaction to the room loaded neatly full of toys, ready for action. I bit my lower lip to keep from grinning at the shameless gawk she wore.
"Impressive, huh?" the woman said.
Tara finally leveled a you've got to be kidding me look.
"Okay, I'll leave you two love birds to the task." She turned and headed out then paused. "Everything is in the rule books. And don't forget. One of you quits, you're both disqualified." She flashed a flawless smile, her eyes lingering on me longer than necessary. "If you have an emergency, use the phone."
We followed her back to the main exit where again she paused, this time her eyes on Tara. "I hope you know what to do with him baby. Because I sure would." She winked at me and smiled at Tara. "Go team Lucian."
The door shut and Tara mocked, "Go team Lucian," in a midget voice.
I bit back a grin. "Wow."
She looked at me, annoyance in her pretty hazel eyes. "What? Wow what?"
"Just you barely know me and you're jealous. I love that."
"Pffft! As if! Jealous." She locked the door and spun to the living room with her bag. "Did you bring your rule book? I hope so because I marked mine all up."
"I did." I pulled the rolled up book from my back pocket and wagged it at her.
She stared at me for a few seconds. "Have you read it?"
"Of course."
"Well, what did you get out of it? I got that the first day we play sub and Dom. The second day there's some kind of community activity." She had an ick look on her face. "And the third day…"
"Sub and Dom again," I helped.
"Yes, that." She opened up her book and I made my way over, noticing how frayed her pages were.
"What'd you do, bathe with it?"
"I read it. A lot. Studied it." She regarded me. "And what did you do with yours? I hope you gave some thought about getting us major points."
I sat back with a laugh. "Yeah, I did. All night long. How are you holding up?"
"Fine." She pulled out her little pen and tapped it on her blue jeaned knee.
"So." I regarded the curve of her ass where it met the couch. "Who is going to be Dom and who is going to be sub today?"
"I was thinking I should be Dom."
I nodded. "Kinda figured that."
"Well you know I'm not good sub material. At least let me warm up."
"I don't know love, you rocked that audition as a sub."
She cleared her throat, obviously not liking the reminder. "I was nervous."
"That you were." I left it at that, my tongue restless to say so much more. "Fine, ladies first. You can be the Dom. I'll be the sub."
She looked over her shoulder. "You can handle that?"
My cock got hard at hearing she might actually care. "I'm sure I can handle being topped by you baby."
"Don't call me that."
"Okay. Would you like me to call you? Master? Or Sir? MaDom?"
She rolled her eyes.
"It has to be authentic, love."
"Don't call me that either."
"Okay sweetheart."
"Tara! My name is Tara. And fine. Sir. Call me sir."
"Sir Tara."
"God that's so stupid."
"Master Tara?"
"Call me Tara. That's what you call me. I'm the Dom, you're the sub. I can make whatever rules up I want."
I smiled, impressed. "Very good." She was catching on. "I'm at your service Tara."
"Well let's get started." She handed me a worked over paper.
I looked at it and marveled that I was actually turned on with her messy handwriting. I'd waited too fucking long to get laid, that was my problem.
She recited her list. "Collar me. Lead me like a dog. Maximum allowed cuts on my arms as shallow as you can please."
I shook my head.
"What?" She looked dumbfounded. "I'm the Dom, you can't say no."
"You have it all wrong, sweetheart. As the Dom, you collar me, lead me like a dog, cut me."
"Oh." Her face fell as she realigned all the rules in that lovely head. Suddenly she brightened. "But I'm the Dom! You do as I say. I can like those things even as a Dom, and you have to do them."
I couldn't argue there. It may not have been standard practice, but everybody was allowed their kink, whatever it was. "Okay, we might get by with that." I went on. "Cook you a meal. Feed you. And clean up." I lowered the paper and regarded her. "Those are the kinds of things a sub does for the Dom."
She gave me a look that said he was being dense. "I'm the Dom. This Dom likes to do sub things." She went to pacing next to the couch. "Anyway, that should take care of the first hour. I calculated it."
"And what will you be doing next? Sleeping in the cage?"
She looked at me, serious. "How many points is that?"
"Tara, the sub sleeps in the c
age." I sighed and got the rule book. "And it's a whopping five points."
"What?!" She snatched the book from me and looked. "Five! For sleeping like an animal in a cage?" She let out a disgusted noise. "Oh look, fifty for self-gratification, because that's so much more… dominating. Who makes this up, anyway?"
"While you whine and complain, I'll go fetch our toys." I got up and went to the playroom and looked through the selection. I picked the white silk blindfold and matching collar. She would look good in white silk. I slid my gaze over all the toys, energy racing through me at what was eventually coming. Me. Her.
I returned to find her pacing along the couch. She stopped and faced me. "Change of plans. You. Forced Masturbation first, then the rest. Can you handle that?" She stared at the invisible person next to me.
I dared not rock the love boat by asking why the change of plans. "Will you be watching me?"
"Uh?" She held up the blindfold in answer.
"Yeah. Well, don't be so sure you'll get the points for it if you're not watching."
She pursed those sexy lips, thinking. "I'm willing to take my chances. It could be considered demeaning. Like where the sub does crap and the Dom is aloof." She didn't hide how stupid she thought that was and I didn't hide how cute I thought she was.
"Fine. Forced Masturbation while you're aloof it is." I began undoing my pants.
"Blindfold me!" She spun and presented her back.
I tied the blindfold on and turned her toward me. "Where would you like me to stroke my cock until I come, love?"
I smiled at how her jaw dropped then snapped back shut. "You can…do you need to do it in the bathroom?"
"Where do you want me?"
She swallowed. "I'd like you to do it in the bathroom."
"Would you consider performing mutual self-gratification? It would double our score."
"No, no no no."
"Can I do it here? On the couch?"
"Why?"