“Do you?” Cav laughed. “When’s the last time you went out on an actual date with a woman?”
I glanced over at the door, trying to recall the last scene I’d participated in.
“A woman who isn’t a member of this club,” he clarified. “Temporary or otherwise. And an evening that didn’t involve her going to her knees or calling you Master.”
That was a really good question. I had no clue. If I had to guess, it’d been a year or so. Maybe longer. I didn’t have time to date, certainly not since I’d accepted the job at Chatter PR. Between that and being the head Master here at Dichotomy, I had my hands full.
“Christ, man.” Cav moved around to the other side of the desk. “You should take her on a date.”
“Me?” I cocked my head to the side. “What happened to we?”
Cav seemed to understand what I was getting at.
“Well, if this were a perfect world, we’d double-team her out of the gate,” he said with a grin. “However, I think she needs us to take it slow.”
“How slow?”
It was Cav’s turn to frown. “Well, I was thinkin’ first you take her out, get to know her. Ask some strategic questions, gauge her real level of interest. Then I’ll step in, do the same. And if all goes well, then we.”
I stood tall. “So, baby steps?”
“If you want to do this right, then yes. I think you’re right. She doesn’t quite know what she’s getting herself into. D/s isn’t for everyone. It’s one thing to ask some questions and to come up with a theory on why people do what they do. Something else entirely to be immersed in it, to experience it. Plus, it’ll give you some time to figure out how to get her enrolled in the next training class. It starts when?” His eyes darted to the calendar on my wall, then over to the whiteboard that outlined the training class that started in November. He grinned. “You’ve got a couple of weeks. Perfect timing.”
Well, he did make a good point. Seeing Jamie outside of the club would allow me to gauge her a little better. And if I took her on a date, it wouldn’t be to a kink club. Some dinner, drinks. Conversation. Time to get to know her. I actually liked the idea. Immensely. Almost as much as I liked Jamie.
So you do like her. About time you admitted it.
I could’ve told the voice it had only been a few hours since she’d appeared in my club, but it was pointless. He had his own agenda, it seemed.
Cav smirked. “So you’ll take her out?”
I considered that for a moment, then shrugged. “I need a little time.”
He did not appear impressed. “For?”
What I didn’t tell him was that I needed a few days to get with Zeke, have a conversation. He was my friend and I wasn’t going to court his sister without letting him know.
A sigh of disappointment sounded from Cav. “Her brother.”
I nodded, shocked once again at how easily he could read my mind.
“Fine. I’ll ask her out first.” He grinned. “Since, you know, I don’t have any obligations to Zeke.”
“Her brother can’t know,” I declared. “Not yet, anyway.”
“I won’t tell him,” Cav said, his tone reassuring.
“Don’t you have an interview with him?”
“Sure. But that’s about business. Not his kid sister.” Cav grinned. “Although, if you ask me, she is definitely not a kid.”
No, she was not. She was most definitely a woman, the greatest of temptations. And I found she had quickly become one I wanted to have calling me … Master.
Fuck.
“And what happens after a few dates?” I asked, curious.
“It’s not obvious?” Cav’s eyebrows raised in that way that said I wasn’t thinking this all the way through.
I probably wasn’t. But in my defense, I had a beautiful, willing woman in a theme room right now and I was spending time in my office. “Clear it up for me,” I demanded.
“We take it as it comes.” Cav laughed. “Step out of the role, man. She’s a woman, you’re a man. Take her out, have some fun. Don’t think about what comes next.”
“And what about her request?”
Cav chuckled. “Well, I say we observe her, see if she’s even capable of being in a submissive role.” He cocked his head to the side. “If she is, then we can easily grant her request. Show her around, let her spend some time here, explore it with us.”
“And if she’s not?”
Cav’s face sobered and I knew he was thinking the same way I was. That it wouldn’t come to that, because the idea of having Jamie walk away when this was done, to write her paper at the same time she wrote us off … yeah, I didn’t want to think about it, either.
“Baby steps,” Cav said.
I nodded. “Fine. But you have to determine her submission level without any sexual interaction.”
Cav laughed.
I didn’t. “I know how easily you can sweet-talk a woman out of her clothes, Cav.” It wasn’t that I had a difficult time myself, but when it came to Jamie, I wanted her to remain fully dressed. Right up until the moment I ordered her to strip.
There he is. The big, bad Dom is back!
Cav’s smirk was sinful. “I say we get this show on the road.”
“Date first,” I reminded him. “One on one. Then we’ll discuss her options as far as officially becoming our student.”
“Agreed.”
When Cav went to remove his shirt, I took a step back and stared. “What’re you doing?”
“Well, I figured we could tease her just a bit. Before we cut her loose for the night.”
I dragged my eyes down his chiseled torso, then back up to his face. “Are you gonna play after she leaves?”
“Wasn’t in my plan.” A smile formed. “But if you’ve got somethin’ in mind…”
I glared at him.
He laughed. “Kidding. Fuck. Loosen up a bit. No submissives until we figure out the path we take with Jamie. Now, can we have at least a little fun?”
Fun? Sending Jamie on her way didn’t sound like much fun.
On the flip side, the idea of spending more time with her…
Yeah, that I could get on board with.
Jamie
HONESTLY, I HADN’T EXPECTED TO BE LEFT alone tonight. When I arrived, the woman at the front desk informed me that guests of the club weren’t allowed to be without supervision at all times, even warned me not to go off by myself or I would be escorted off the property and not allowed back. Thanks to that cold threat, I figured I would be kept under guard during my time here, if not by Edge, then at least someone.
That didn’t appear to be the case since Edge and Cav had disappeared a good twenty minutes ago and had yet to return. Not wanting to be tackled by a Storm Trooper lingering outside the door, I had stayed put.
Not that I’d been bored this whole time. Rather than sit idly by, I’d given myself a tour of the room. It wasn’t all that big, probably fifteen by fifteen with tall ceilings to accommodate the appearance of being in a barn. Yes. A barn.
Oddly enough, I liked the cowboy theme. Not generally my taste, but it certainly had its appeal. From the smooth wood floors to the rough wood siding on the walls, even the bale of hay in the corner, they’d gone all out. The loft with the rustic wooden ladder was a nice touch, although I hadn’t gone up there to check it out. I wasn’t all that fond of heights, so I kept to the floor.
Curious by nature, I’d checked out the barn door on the wall, rolling it open to find it was actually covering a large pane-glass window. A viewing window, might I add. One that would allow anyone to see what was going on in the room should the occupants choose to let them. Needless to say, I closed that right back up and continued my exploration.
Of course, it wasn’t exactly like a barn in all respects. There was a stainless-steel sink, as well as a matching cabinet in the far corner that held a variety of items from cleaner to rubber sheets, probably used for hygiene purposes. Not to mention, a shitload of condoms. No doubt th
ey preached safe sex here.
Throughout the room there were steel hooks imbedded in the walls, some on the floor, a couple on the ceiling. I studied those for a few minutes, trying to imagine what someone would look like chained or cuffed there. At one point, I even held out my arms, spread my legs, pretended some handsome cowboy had tied up the fair maiden and was getting ready to have his wicked way with her.
The cowboy being Cav and the her in my fantasy being me.
That hadn’t lasted long. The instant I realized the erotic daydream was making me hot, I’d stopped, moved on to appreciate the lighting. There were a few lanterns mounted on the walls, none of which had flames, but rather LED bulbs that mimicked them similar to in the dungeon. Safety first, again.
Despite my curiosity, I couldn’t help wondering what Edge and Cav were discussing. I suspected I was the main subject, but what exactly were they talking about? Had I been too forward with my request? Was Edge trying to find a way to let me down easy? I mean, it had been a little out there, but the instant Cav made the suggestion, it seemed like the logical thing to do. I could see it all through the eyes of a submissive, at the same time getting the opportunity to observe and, yes, hopefully talk to others. And who better than Edge to give me the experience? After all, he did manage this club.
Before I could conjure up a ridiculous fantasy that involved Edge wearing a cowboy hat and me being bent over the bale of hay, the door opened and in walked sin times two.
Edge stepped inside first. Tall, dark, and handsome. A combination that was pretty lethal when mixed with all that intimidation and sex appeal. Behind him was Cav, looking like some blond cowboy god with that sexy black hat, those ass-hugging Wrangler jeans, and … yeah, he’d lost his shirt somewhere along the way.
Yum.
My mouth went dry as my eyes did a slow scan of his impressive torso. I had to admit, the whole topless thing was a good look for him because, holy shit, eight-pack abs did exist. It took everything in me not to stare at the light spattering of hair that led down, down, down…
My gaze shot to a scar on Cav’s stomach, slightly down and to the right of his belly button. My eyes shifted again, moving directly to two more scars I’d missed during the initial perusal. One on his right shoulder, the other on his bicep. I looked up into his face, realized he was watching me closely. He’d obviously noticed where my attention had drifted, but he didn’t say anything.
“I’ve given your request some thought,” Edge stated, his tone a little less intimidating than before, “and I’ve come to a decision.”
My eyes shot up to his. While his tone had settled down, his eyes had not. There was still a fierceness in them. A look that said I should never doubt who was in control when he was in the room.
“Neither one of us will be dominating you,” Edge declared, his tone deep, unyielding.
I swear you could hear my heart break. Of all the things I thought they might’ve said when they returned, that certainly wasn’t one of them. My throat suddenly felt tight and I wanted to run from the room, sneak off somewhere, and hide while I licked my wounds.
In an effort to protect a small amount of my pride, I forced my feet to remain where they were.
“Tonight,” he amended.
Wait. What? I stared, unable to look away. “You won’t be dominating me tonight?” I clarified.
“No.”
I figured he was trying to tell me something. Perhaps giving me a glimmer of hope. If so, why was there still a huge lump in my throat?
Before I knew what was going on, Cav was standing behind me, Edge directly in front. Although they weren’t exactly touching me, I could feel the sheer size of them surrounding me, their warmth like a blanket. It took all the willpower I possessed to keep my hands down at my sides. I wanted so desperately to touch them. I could hardly breathe, my heart pounding like a bass drum.
I inhaled slowly, drawing their intoxicating maleness deep into my lungs.
“Is that what you want, cupcake?” Cav’s dark, seductive whisper caused my insides to tremble as his warm breath fanned the back of my neck. “To be dominated?”
I nodded.
“Words,” Cav stated firmly. “Answer with words.”
“Yes,” I said, my voice quivering as I stared up into Edge’s beautiful face.
“Yes, what?” he growled low and soft in my ear.
“Yes, Master Cav.”
His voice dropped another octave with his approving, “Good girl.”
“If we’re going to do this, there are a few rules,” Edge declared, drawing my attention to him.
“Anything.” There was a slight hitch in the single word, my voice not nearly as steady as I’d hoped.
A hint of a smile appeared on his lips, but it didn’t fully form. “We’ll take this at a pace I set.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
“You leave here tonight with the understanding I have not agreed to do this yet.”
That was disappointing.
“We’ll need to spend some time with you before I can do so.”
No more disappointment.
“Do you think you can handle both of us?” Edge questioned, his tone unyielding, his eyes skeptical.
“Yes.” Yeah, that was me all breathless and eager.
His face hardened. “What was that, sweetness?”
Ah, crap. “Yes, Master Edge. I can handle both of you.” Granted, I didn’t know if that was true or not, but I damn sure wanted to find out.
“We’ll see about that.” Master Edge cleared his throat. “But you have to understand what you’re committing yourself to if I agree.”
Committing? What was he talking about? This was simply a lesson in submission, right?
“But I thought—”
He cut me off with a hand over my mouth.
My eyes widened as I stared up at him; my breath hitched. He was touching me, and holy hell, I didn’t want him to stop. I probably shouldn’t have been turned on that his hand was covering my mouth, but my entire body hummed with anticipation, a desperate need for him to exert his dominance over me flaring hot and bright.
“Until I’m convinced you can commit to the experience and not simply try to worm your way into the club to harass my members, we won’t be accommodating your request. Should I decide you can, you won’t be allowed to talk to anyone without my permission, you’ll be required to follow all the rules and protocols of this club, and you will be expected to complete the submissive training program. Those are nonnegotiable. Do you understand?”
“I understand, Master Edge.”
“None of this starts tonight,” he reiterated as he lowered his hand.
My heart fell once more. I was getting tired of him saying that. “Maybe tomorrow?”
Cav chuckled behind me, a deep, gruff sound that made my insides tingle. His big hands slid tentatively over my hips and I swayed on my feet. Goose bumps popped out over my skin and my nipples pebbled at the mere touch. This guy was good. I’d known him for such a short time and somewhere along the way, I’d found myself as desperate for him to touch me as I was for Master Edge.
“Eager, cupcake?”
Yes. Yes, I was. But I didn’t say that. I didn’t want to say anything to make them walk away from me. However, I could admit that I liked that they were giving me some time to process. Although I probably would’ve gone through with whatever they wanted tonight, it wouldn’t’ve been the same. This way, I would have time to think, to plan. To anticipate.
“How does your schedule look for next week?” Edge asked, those electric-blue eyes twinkling.
I mentally skimmed my calendar but couldn’t come up with anything. “Aside from class, I should be free.”
“Good. Keep it that way.”
I wasn’t sure what that meant, but I nodded. What else could I do?
“After we’ve spent some time with you outside the club,” Edge explained, “we’ll discuss what our options are.”
“Options?”
<
br /> His head cocked slightly, his eyes still locked with mine. “As in whether or not we’ll grant your request, take you on as a submissive.”
He made it sound so formal, as though this was cut-and-dried. Rules, protocols, training. No intimacy. Another dose of disappointment flooded me, this one stronger than I expected.
“Do I have a say in this?” I asked.
Edge shook his head, his voice low, his eyes fierce. “No.”
I felt my insides melt. I had no idea why I liked that he took all the control from me, but the thought moved me so much, my knees weakened. Thankfully, Cav was directly behind me. His big hands curved over my hips, holding me in place. Heat sizzled from his touch, making me light-headed.
Lordy. I wasn’t sure I would survive this should they decide we were going to proceed.
“Should Cav and I agree this is the right avenue to take, we’ll discuss further.”
I nodded. That sounded straightforward enough.
“There’s one more rule, cupcake.” Cav leaned in close to my ear once more. “Until we’ve come to a final decision, you will not be allowed to date anyone else. In turn, we’ll be doing the same. Understood?”
“Yes, Master Cav.”
Edge smiled, and heaven help me, I was pretty sure the earth shifted beneath my feet.
“Will I need a safe word?” I asked.
Edge’s mischievous smirk made my insides riot again. “You’ll need a lot of things if I allow you into my club. A safe word, blood tests”—his heated gaze trailed down my body, then back up—“an expansive wardrobe.”
I swallowed hard.
“Until then,” he continued, “we’ll rely on good ol’ vanilla rules of conduct.”
“Such as?”
He grinned, but there was a hint of mirth in it. “Should you not be comfortable with something, it’s your responsibility to let us know.”
“May I ask another question, Master Edge?”
“You may.”
I took a deep breath, then forced the words out before I chickened out. “If you do decide to proceed, will you be sharing me?”
Those electric-blue irises flared hot and I knew I’d hit a nerve. A good one.
Their Naughty Student (Office Intrigue, 6) Page 6