by Brandi Evans
“Whatever lies keep you functioning, man.” Maddox slipped the car into drive and pulled from the parking spot. “I’m going to stop by 7-Eleven and get some coffee and something with ten times more sugar than I can justify. You have until then to give me a destination, or I’m taking your ass to my place and saving myself an extra twenty minutes of drive time.”
They drove the rest of the way to 7-Eleven in silence. Carter was tempted to turn on the radio to fill the dead air, but that would serve as another sign of how tense things were between them because they never drove with the radio on.
The silence, however, gave Carter time to think. Genny wasn’t interested in coming over; that much was evident from her lack of reply, which he finally decided was a good thing. His life was much less complicated when he only had subs at the club. He shouldn’t have invited Genny—Raven, damn it, Raven—back to his home in the first place. Getting too close to a lover was a mistake he’d made once, and he had no intention of—
They’d reached 7-Eleven and pulled into a parking spot, his cell phone dinged as Maddox stepped from the car. Carter glanced at the screen and froze. At three in the morning, Raven was finally texting him back?
Heart pounding, he slid his finger over the message to bring it up. Your house doesn’t like me.
What?
His fingers flew over the touchscreen. My house doesn’t like you?
She won’t let me in. And here I thought we’d bonded, but it’s like she doesn’t remember me. I thought she was a smart house, LOL.
She was at his place? Or had she come and gone?
Are you still there? he typed back.
She responded with an image of a pair of legs propped onto his patio table, his boat and the lake barely visible in the background. The pic was dark and grainy, but those combat boots and ripped jeans could only belong to one person.
He opened his Alexa app and keyed in his code to remotely unlock the door.
Try the door now, he texted Genny and waited.
Maddox returned, a cup of coffee and two bags of coffee-nut M&Ms in his hands. He tossed one of the bags into Carter’s lap. “Made your decision?”
Talk about a loaded question.
“Home,” Carter said as he bypassed waiting for Genny to text back and just called her.
Raven smiled as she stepped into Carter’s house, her cell phone ringing, Carter’s name on the caller ID. “My hero,” she purred when she clicked on, stirring in as much saccharine as she could into the two words.
“So, I take it you’re in?”
“I am. All alone again in Master Carter’s house. What’s a sub to do?”
“Get naked?”
“I could, but I was leaning more toward snooping through your drawers. And on a completely unrelated note, how long do you think I’ll have alone before you get here?”
He laughed. “Not long, so stay outta my drawers.”
“That’s not what you said the other night.” And like that, she was sucked right back into the pit.
Stupid, fucking relationship pit.
She’d promised herself before coming over she wouldn’t let this thing between them take her over. Walking away from him entirely would probably have been the smart decision, but unfortunately, it was also the one decision she couldn’t make.
Bottom line, she liked Carter. A lot. And she was curious to see where things went between them. And so long as she kept true to herself and who she was, she didn’t see why Raven the bartender and Carter’s sub couldn’t coexist in the same body without either eclipsing the other. She’d have to be careful and tend to both women, to make sure both thrived in this uncharted environment.
“You know, pet, when I get there, feel free to rifle through my drawers all you’d like.”
“Good. Because I was already planning on it.” Grinning, she repositioned her overnight bag on her shoulder and made her way through the darkened house toward his bedroom, not bothering to turn on the lights. “My drawers will likely be on your floor by the time you get here.”
“You’re killing me.”
“Then mission accomplished.” She dropped her overnight bag on his bedroom floor, put her phone on speaker, and laid it on the bedside table. “Are you alone?”
“No, Maddox is in the car with me.”
Smiling, she slipped her shirt and bra off, unbuttoned her pants, and dropped onto the mattress to tackle her boots. She adored Maddox. He’d been the first person to welcome her to Restrained Fantasies back when she’d been a frightened little newbie, and she’d developed an instant liking which had grown over time. She loved him; he was like the big brother she’d always wanted.
“Tell Maddox I’m out of grasshopper vodka.”
Carter relayed her message, his words a bit muffled, as if no longer speaking directly into the microphone.
Maddox laughed, the sound boisterous even over the phone.
“He said he’s got you covered,” Carter said. “Although, I feel like I’m missing the joke.”
“You are,” she said as she worked her first boot off.
Grasshopper vodka was a code phrase she and Maddox used at the bar. Well, more specifically he used when he was taking some time away from his bartending duties to indulge in his Dom interests. She had no idea why he’d chosen grasshopper vodka, but it had never ceased to make her smile whenever he’d given her a sly grin and said, “We’re outta grasshopper vodka. I’m gonna run back to the storage room and scrounge some up.”
Crazy man, but god, she adored him.
There went the other boot. She tossed it and the rest of her clothes into a haphazard pile on the floor, between the bathroom door and the bedroom door. Careful to make sure her underwear was on top and visible, she took a picture and sent it to Carter along with a single text.
Not to rush you or anything…
And then, she laid back and waited.
“Should I be concerned you two have inside jokes you’re keeping from me?” Carter asked, and although she was confident he’d tried to pass it off as a joke. A little something extra played in his voice.
Carter Burkes was jealous?
Good to know she had a substantial effect on him, too. Turnabout, fair play, and all that jazz.
Still, she tried to reassure him. “Well, I’ve never sent him a picture like the one I just sent you.”
“You sent me a—” Ding. “There it is. Hold on.”
“Sure thing, Sir.”
Because if there was ever a time when an innocent conversation steered into fun, sexual teasing and needed a good ‘Sir’ to bump the teasing up a notch, this was it.
“Genny, pet, you’re gonna get it when I get home.”
Good.
“Well, Sir, you did tell me to get naked, didn’t you?”
“Yes, but when I got there. Knowing you’re naked in my bed without me is fucking torture.”
She chuckled. “Tell me, Sir. What would you be doing to me if you were here?”
“You know.”
She turned his earlier words back on him. “Yes, but I want to hear it.”
“But I’m not sure Maddox does.”
“Sure, he does.” At the very least, she doubted he’d mind, not given the stories he’d told her over the years. He wasn’t one to skimp on the sexy details of his conquests.
“Just stay naked,” Carter said. “I’ll be home in five minutes.
Chapter 8
He wasn’t in love.
Carter repeated the words to himself ad nauseam as he approached the bar, a gift bag from the Retrained Fantasies’ gift shop in his hand. The past three mornings, he’d awoken with Genny in his bed, and they’d spent the previous two nights in an upstairs dungeon, playing, pushing limits, growing closer. But he wasn’t in love.
Despite everything they’d done inside the club, however, she’d yet to perform a scene with him publicly. While he wanted to push her for more, he’d held back, but his restraint didn’t stop him from wanting to claim her
in the open for all the club to see—to claim her the way the Dom on stage was claiming his sub this very second.
Carter stilled and turned to watch the pair. Kinda hard not to. They made quite the striking couple. The sub, Marina, was naked, her skin pink from her Master’s flogger. Like always, she wore a full facemask and chains, not that Carter needed to see her face to know who she was, especially considering she was with her usual, although not exclusive, Dom, the club’s other co-owner, Master Stephen.
Her body quivered from the dildo, attached by an electronic piston to the floor which worked rhythmically in and out, in and out of her pussy. Getting flogged while getting drilled by a fucking machine was one of her favorite pastimes.
Master Stephen stalked around his sub, striking her alternately on the breasts, thighs, ass. “Do you want more, sub?” Master Stephen asked.
“Y-yes, Master. P-please.”
Whack.
“Thank you, Master. More, please.”
He struck Marina again, one after the other. Her head lolled back, and her body began a series of rhythmic jerks which signaled she was near climax. Carter had watched this scene play out enough over the past several months to know precisely how Marina sounded when she came. She was one of only two subs he could say this about.
Carter returned his gaze to his sub. She was leaning against the end of the bar, absentmindedly wiping the counter as she, too, watched Master Stephen and Marina. Her interest in the scene bolstered him, and he tightened his grip on the gift in his hands. She’d expressed an interest in initiating a scene with a flogger back before their relationship had switched into overdrive, but he hadn’t broached the topic since their one flirtatious text session.
That was about to change.
A riding crop and his hands were far cries from anything which might remind her of the belt that jackass had used on her. A flogger, with its leather tails and intimidating look, was an entirely different beast altogether. He’d taken the time to thoroughly introduce her to the lifestyle, to gain her trust as her Dom. If he’d have come straight at her with those leather tails, he’d have pushed her away. She’d likely have responded as violently as she had with the whip. His gift, which he’d give her in a neutral setting, served one purpose: to open a dialogue. Nothing more—unless, of course, she wanted more.
A patron he didn’t recognize came to the bar, stealing Genny’s attention. She gave him her standard smile, nod, and then, after speaking a few seconds to him, turned away, presumably to make his drink. Carter chose the moment to approach and took a seat as far away from her as he could manage. How long would it take her to realize he was there?
She moved with a grace and confidence he found sexy as fuck. She was all alone tonight at the bar. Maddox was around here somewhere, but he hadn’t been in the best of moods. He’d made an excuse about being tired, but Carter had a sneaking suspicion Maddox’s bad mood was because of Genny. More precisely Carter and Genny and not wanting to see them together. And, well, Carter had still been too afraid to broach the subject outright.
It could be work-related. They’d been burning the midnight oil with Katlyn’s case. Her husband had been livid when he’d found out she’d left him, and the man’s attorney was about as much of an asshole as he was. Plus, Katlyn kept calling Maddox at the precinct, scared out of her mind, and contacting anyone from her old life outside official channels, even one of the detectives committed to keeping her safe, was a big no-no. The entire situation was a fucking mess.
Of course, the fact her fucking husband had been released on bail only served to screw over Maddox’s mood even more. Carter’s too. A familiar sense of anger burned to life in his chest. People like Katlyn’s husband should suffer the worst punishment the system could slam on them, but far too often, abusive husbands were given little more than a slap on the wrist. Carter knew this with painful first-hand experience.
Genny turned her head his way and flashed him a smile as she made her way over. He had to stop himself from pushing to his feet and kissing her hello. Not only wouldn’t she do a scene with him in public at the club, but she also didn’t want to do anything which would show they were together; it was her way of maintaining space between her job as the club’s bartender and his sub.
“Hey there, handsome,” she said, leaning on the counter, her corset straining to hold her lovely breasts in place.
“Hey yourself.” He slipped the gift bag on the counter. “I got you a little something.”
Her smile grew. “A little something? Should I be worried?”
“Define worried?”
“That settles it. I should definitely be worried.” Eyeing him playfully, she reached for the present.
He studied her as she peeked inside. Wide eyes. Arched Eyebrows. Dilated pupils. He’d certainly shocked her; all the classic signs were there. What he didn’t see on her face, however, were fear markers.
“A flogger?” Her words were nearly inaudible over Marina’s cries and the cracking of her own voice.
“Very good, pet. You can identify sex toys. I see I taught you well.”
“Shut up.” Some of her usual sass made a comeback, and she punched his arm in the way she often did.
“I know we haven’t talked much about this since our text, and I know you said you weren’t ready, but I think you’re closer to being ready than you think you are.”
She didn’t respond verbally. She did, however, draw her bottom lip between her teeth. She might not fear having the flogger used on her, but she wasn’t excited about it either.
“You know, I’ll respect your decision,” he said quickly. “No matter what. You say no, and it’s a no. Period. I’d never force you to do anything you didn’t want to do, but as your Dom, I know you’re ready for this. You’re strong enough for this, and I want to give you this experience. All you have to do is say the word.”
“Carter…” She made a move like she was about to take his hand but held back. “I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it. You’ve seriously fucked me up, ya know that?”
“I’ve fucked you, yes. But fucked you up? Never. You’re far too important to me to ever do that.”
The admission was out before he could stop it, and judging by her sudden smile, she hadn’t missed it either.
She pushed closer, still without touching him, but the intimacy of the moment had been cranked to high. “I know.” She hesitated a moment before adding the single word which always drove him mad, especially when it sounded in her voice. “Sir.”
“Genny, I…” His fingers flexed. He wanted desperately to reach for her, to show her how much she inflamed him, to tell her, but the words were a jumbled mess in his brain.
Luckily—or possibly not luckily, depending on how he wanted to look at it—another patron settled onto the barstool beside him, breaking the spell Genny had cast on him. He turned toward the figure.
Shit.
Precisely what he didn’t need.
Genny turned her smile on Maddox, although the curl of her lips changed to something brighter and friendlier. “Hey there, handsome. What can I get ya?”
Carter bristled. She’d just used that greeting on him.
“Just water tonight, Raven. Two actually,” Maddox said.
She gave Maddox a knowing expression. “Either you’re extremely parched, or you’ve found a buddy for the evening.”
“Or maybe I’m fine, and I’ve found two buddies.” He accented his words with a wink, but Carter doubted there were two subs involved. Maddox was more apt to join with another Dom to double-team a sub than the reverse.
Shaking her head and chuckling, she turned to retrieve said waters, and Maddox turned to Carter, his lips instantly straightening. It wasn’t an anger-filled expression or anything. He just wasn’t as happy to see Carter as he’d been to see Genny.
“Who is your partner?” Carter asked coolly. He didn’t particularly care, so long as it was anyone other than Genny.
“No one specia
l, unfortunately.” Maddox’s gaze turned wistful and far away. “But you know what they say. If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.”
Before Carter could question Maddox on who he was talking about, Genny returned—so did Maddox’s smile.
Like Carter, Maddox was virtually married to the job, and taking the time to build long-term relationships had been a luxury neither had been keen to pursue. They got what they needed, physically, from their nights at the club. Emotionally, well, this came from the satisfaction they were making the world a safer place. And sure, it wasn’t the same type of emotional oomph Carter got from being with Genny, but it had never been something he’d realized he’d been missing until Genny.
Was Maddox craving the same emotional connection?
Was he craving Genny, too?
Raven tossed back the last of the water in her bottle. For most of the morning and into mid-afternoon, she’d been neck-deep in boat parts, but as she surveyed the pieces laid out before her, an overwhelming sense of accomplishment filled her. The hard work was done; now, came the reassembly.
Working at Reynold’s Automotive might not have paid what Restrained Fantasies did, but she’d always found the work soothing and satisfying. Taking something apart took focus and forced her thoughts to still, and lord knew, she’d needed to still her thoughts today.
She’d spent the past several days thinking about the flogger Carter had given her. She’d teetered back and forth about whether she wanted him to use it on her. Every time she thought she was ready, she’d have nightmares of that night so many years ago. She thought she’d put all that shit behind her, but being with Carter unearthed things she didn’t want to think about.
She grabbed one of the silver nuts sitting beside her. If she’d done her job well, she’d have this old boat ready for a test drive about the same time Carter returned home from work.
Thank you, Maddox.
He’d been keeping her apprised of their schedule and had promised to give her a heads up when Carter left for the day, at which point she’d have about forty-five minutes before Carter arrived home. They’d have about six hours before they had to be at the club for their final class.