“Addison, you need to tell us what’s going on so we can help you,” Zane encouraged her, his voice taking on an urgent tone. Across from him, Logan and Luc nodded in agreement and looked just as worried as he and Jackson did.
Surprised when her eyes filled with tears, she hesitated for a moment then, hands shaking, she slid her engagement ring from her finger and let it fall to the table. In unison all four brothers gasped and shoved back from the table. Four pairs of green eyes locked on the ring as if it was a coiled-up rattlesnake ready to strike. She leaned forward, blinking her eyes to clear them. “I haven’t been able to get in touch with Cade to give him back his ring.” Before any of the brothers could say anything, she continued, “You remember my friend Jenna? I’ve been spending a lot of time going to the clubs in Dallas with her and I’ve done some things…things Cade wouldn’t approve of.”
“Drugs.” Luc was panicking, remembering how much his oldest brother hated the drug cartels. Cade was going to kill them for not taking better care of her while he was gone. Damn, he and Logan had gotten distracted with the club and Jackson had been busy with the ranch while Zane had been absorbed in his position as an Assistant District Attorney. “We’ll get you into rehab—”
“No! Not drugs,” Addison told him, exasperated that his mind would go there when he was part owner of one of the most expensive and exclusive BDSM clubs in the country. But, of course, it would never occur to any of the Ramsey brothers that she would know anything about Club Mystique or what went on there. Searching her mind for the right words to get them back on track, she came up with the old it’s not him, it’s me reasoning.
“I can’t marry Cade. I don’t think he really wants to marry me either. That’s why he’s hasn’t, well, uh, you know?” she told them softly then looked away, blushing from anger and embarrassment as she waited to see if one of them would tell her the truth. When none of the brothers spoke up, genuine disappointment swamped her. She had always felt like a member of their family, but apparently they didn’t think of her that way. If they did they wouldn’t have lied to her all this time. Considering she was talking about leaving Cade, if any of them cared at all they would have told her the truth by now.
Forcing a smile to her lips she scooted to the edge of her chair. “So now Cade is free to find a woman he really wants and I can go back to the club in Dallas. If you really think about it, Cade’s the one who started it.” Ignoring their puzzled expressions, she gave them an innocent smile then started to stand and Jackson fell right into her hands.
“What is it, Addison?”
Looking around to make sure there were no eavesdroppers nearby, and thinking to herself she should win an Oscar for this performance, she leaned toward them. “The spanking thing,” she whispered, her blue eyes wide. “That’s what I’ve been doing in Dallas. I like it!” She fanned herself with her hand and smiled. “I mean really, really like it,” she emphasized and almost grinned when she saw the stunned, and in Zane’s case lust-filled, expressions on their faces. “But being the kind of gentlemen you are, you wouldn’t know anything about that kind of lifestyle.”
She could hear her father’s voice in her head telling her it was time to close the deal. “Please don’t tell Cade. I don’t want him to think badly of me.” Pulling an envelope from her pocket, she slid it onto the table next to the ring. Face-up with Cade’s name written on it, she knew they wouldn’t be able to resist opening it. She had almost made it to her feet when Jackson grabbed her hand and tugged her back into the chair. She struggled for a moment but he held onto her.
“What spanking thing?” he asked her, his voice stern and demanding.
Before she could answer him, two large hands curled over her shoulders and squeezed, warningly. A deep, gravelly voice growled next to her ear. “Yes, Addison, what spanking thing?”
“Cade!” she gasped, feeling herself being lifted in strong arms and turned against a hard chest. Before she could protest he sat down on her chair with her firmly surrounded by his arms. Worried blue eyes glanced into dark green eyes for an instant before dropping to the floor. Cade’s arm slid beneath her long hair and around her waist. His hand cupped her hip and gave it a warning squeeze.
“What have you been up to?” he asked her, his voice suspicious. She shrugged one delicate shoulder and refused to meet his eyes. His hand slid up her back to her neck, strong fingers threading into her hair, fisting a handful and tipping her head back, forcing her to make eye contact with him. He searched her eyes for a moment, reading her like a book. “We’ll talk later. When we’re alone.”
Moving restlessly, she tried to break eye contact and felt his hand tighten in her hair, tipping her head farther back as he covered her mouth with his. She loved the way he kissed her. He never hesitated. He just dove right in, taking charge, his mouth taking hers, his lips and teeth eating at her mouth. His tongue swept the sensitive nerves on her lips and stabbed into her mouth, doing to it what he refused to do to her body. She chased his tongue into his mouth, mimicking him, sliding her tongue over his tongue and probing his mouth, his natural taste making her hum with lust.
Forgetting where they were and that people were probably watching them, she moved restlessly on his lap, her panties wet and the ache between her legs driving her insane. He ended the kiss the way he always did, slowly moving his mouth away from hers, nibbling on her lips and sliding kisses across her cheeks and the freckles on the bridge of her nose. Then one little smack on the lips and his warmth was gone. Sighing, she fell against him, her brain numb, her fingers in his hair clenching and releasing in time with the pulsing of her clit.
The next several minutes flew by as the brothers greeted each other and she listened to Cade tell his brothers why he hadn’t called to let them know he was coming home. Jackson caught the bartender’s attention and a couple minutes later Janie set down a large glass of sweet tea in front of Cade. Before he picked it up, he nibbled on her neck then asked her, “You want anything?”
Shaking her head, she melted into him again, letting him support her weight. The fantasies she had had about him while he had been gone had been triple X-rated. Just thinking about them had her panting, her heart beating out of control as she ran her hand over the soft black T-shirt he wore. She glanced around the bar and saw several women she knew wave at her. She smiled back until her gaze caught the sneers of two women at a table a few feet away. Before she could get a good look at them, Cade settled back in the chair, shifting her on his lap, his shoulder blocking her view of them.
“How’d the mission go?” Jackson asked.
“Good. I’m home for a while.”
Hearing that, Addison smiled at him then frowned when she saw a small, healing wound by his right eye. Reaching up she traced it with her finger, feeling the raised edges of the scar. She scanned Cade’s face and neck for more marks and spotted a bruise on his right shoulder. Pushing his collar aside, forgetting they had an audience, she gently ran her fingers over it before sliding her hands over his stomach and sides, looking for more injuries.
“Baby, what are you doing?”
Shrugging, she smiled at him. “Just feeling you up.”
“Is that right?”
Moving her hands over him, feeling his firmness against the softness of her hands, she hummed with pleasure as he tightened his arm around her waist. His hair was slightly longer than he usually wore it, curling at his nape and around his ears. Unable to resist, she ran her nose up and down his neck and felt goose bumps on his skin as she licked him then blew her warm breath over his skin.
“Damn. I’m not going to be able to stand up.” Zane shifted in his chair, a pained expression on his face. Luc and Logan nodded in agreement.
Innocently Addison looked at him and asked, “Did you hurt your leg?”
Cade nudged her, drawing her attention back to him. “Rub my neck, baby.”
She smiled at him, happy he was home, until she saw him glance at the table and the corner of his mouth dip
down into a frown. He picked up her engagement ring, gave her a questioning look then casually flipped it over his fingers a few times before dropping it into his pocket. When he reached for the envelope she managed to grab it first.
“I believe that’s for me,” he told her as he wrestled it from her fingers then smoothed it out. “Yup, it’s got my name on it in your handwriting.” He folded it then slipped it into the pocket with the ring. “You got something you want to tell me?”
Addison shook her head then held her breath as Cade slid his right hand over the top of her jean-covered legs, at first in a soothing rhythm, but then his long fingers slid between her legs and rubbed the inside of her thighs. She tracked his hand, up then down the top of her thighs, each time moving a little closer to her clit. She squirmed on his lap, letting her legs relax and fall apart. Tensing in anticipation, her fingers digging into his shoulder, she watched his hand, mesmerized as he slowly trailed his fingers along the inside seam on her jeans then skimmed them over her clit with the tiniest, most unsatisfying pressure.
A little moan of disappointment hummed from her as she dropped her head to his shoulder. “Cade, please. Let’s go home.” Nuzzling her lips along his neck, her hair hiding her face from anyone looking their way, she explored his stomach with her hand and felt his muscles flex against her palm as she slid her hand lower to the waistband of his blue jeans. A sharp spasm of need stabbed into her lower belly as she played with the button on his jeans then struggled to free her hand when he closed his hand around hers, stopping her from touching his cock. His left arm tightened around her waist as his right hand closed around her knee and squeezed it.
Cade’s warm breath brushed her ear just before he sharply nipped her lobe with his teeth. “Be still. We’ll go in a while and you’re going to tell me what you’ve been up to while I’ve been gone.” Anxiety slithered through her. She really didn’t want to tell him now what she had been doing. Or about what she knew about D/s.
While she was trying to figure out a way to put off that particular discussion, she felt his hand begin to move again. Up one leg then down the other, fingers sliding over her clit with each pass. She wiggled a little as moisture gathered between her legs, wetting the crotch of her panties. She felt him squeeze her knee then release it as he swept his hand up her leg again. When he twisted his fingers right over her clit and pressed down, she buried her lips against his neck and moaned, squeezing her thighs together, trying to relieve the ache.
“Spread your legs.” His warm breath brushed her ear as he curled his fingers into a loose fist and nudged her legs apart.
She froze as goose bumps covered her arms and her clit pulsed with aching need. “Cade, I love you so much. I don’t want to wait any longer. Please let me stay with you tonight.”
Nuzzling the soft, sensitive skin below her ear, he froze for a moment then shook his head. “Not yet, baby. We’re going to wait until our wedding night.”
“Ca—”
“Hey, Cade.”
Addison jerked upright, every feminine instinct in her suddenly going on full alert. One of the women who had sneered at her earlier stood by Cade’s side. Addison leaned back as the strong scent of too much cheap perfume encased them. Beneath her butt the muscles of Cade’s legs tensed. She glanced at him, recognized the anger on his face, then watched as the woman bent down to talk to him, then suddenly dropped all the way to the floor on her knees. Everything in Addison wanted to jump up and run, but instead, unable to help herself, she leaned toward the woman so she could hear what she was saying.
“I was wondering if you’re going to be at Club Mystique tonight, Sir,” the blonde whispered, her eyes sending Addison a hate-filled smirk. “I would like to offer myself to you, again,” she told him, glancing at Addison and emphasizing the last word.
Shuddering with revulsion Addison jerked back then covered her mouth, forcing herself to swallow the bitter bile that had flooded into her mouth. Grabbing Cade’s tea, she gulped it to wash the taste from her mouth. “I really need to be going now,” she told him, her voice surprisingly calm as she dumped the rest of the tea on the blonde’s head and watched her sputter. “Looks like you’re busy,” she told him, trying to wiggle off his lap and feeling him grab her hair and hold her still. Ignoring the physical pain, she reached over her head and grabbed his wrists, trying to pry them loose. “Let go.” He tugged her head back, forcing her to meet his gaze. The green eyes staring back at her were hard, demanding to be obeyed. She didn’t care.
“Be still, Addison, now.”
Twisting toward him, using a defensive move he had taught her, she brushed her hands over the envelope in his pocket and grabbed it as she straightened her arms and pushed hard against his chest. Her bottom slid down his legs, her left leg hitting the blonde on the floor with a satisfying thunk, knocking her onto her ass.
When Addison’s back slammed into the edge of the table, rocking it, Cade had to release his hold on her or risk her falling off his lap as the table slid back. When she jumped away from him, he grabbed for her but she slapped his hands away then stormed off.
“Addison.” Cade growled as he stepped over the struggling blonde on the floor.
“What?” She spun around, facing him.
“Get your sweet little ass back here, now.”
For a moment, the need to obey him almost overwhelmed her. The pitying looks of several people in the bar replaced that thought with an explosion of rage. Ripping the envelope open she jerked the one-page letter from it and threw it at Cade before pushing her way through the crowd.
The stationary from Club Mystique drifted to the floor, face up, but Cade only saw the two words written in large block print and all caps—Fuck You. Storming after her, he knew he would be the one fucking with her, and when he was done she wouldn’t be sitting comfortably for several days.
Jackson picked up the paper, saw the discreet stationary logo at the top and the two words on it. “Oh, shit, she knows about the club.” He handed the paper to Logan then went after Cade with Logan, Luc, and Zane hurrying behind him.
* * * *
Addison had her car door open when Cade caught up to her and spun her around. She jerked her arm away, then planted her hands on her hips and glared up at him, more than ready for this fight.
Seeing the obstinate lift of her chin and the anger in her eyes, he felt his anger and frustration with her soar. “What the hell is going on, Addison?”
“How the hell should I know, Cade? You’re apparently the one who fucked that bitch, so why don’t you tell me what’s going on?”
“I’ve never fucked that woman,” he snapped, his eyes darkening and narrowing with anger.
“Don’t you think you’ve all lied to me long enough? Why don’t you and your brothers try telling the truth for once?”
“The truth about what?”
Seeing the crowd that had followed them out of the tavern, she hesitated to have it out with him in a public parking lot, then decided what the heck. Those people probably already knew more than she did about the Ramsey men. “You know what about…Club Mystique and what goes on there. About you being a Dom.” She heard Jackson’s “oh, shit” and distressed muttering from the other brothers, but Cade’s face went blank, his reaction impossible to read. “When were you going to tell me the truth, Cade?”
“It wasn’t something you ever needed to know.” His voice was flat, indifferent. His emerald eyes were cold and distant with black brows drawn down over them. “That part of my life wasn’t going to be part of our marriage.”
Shifting her stance, she dropped her eyes to his boots, taking deep calming breaths. She had waited a long time to have this discussion with him and she knew she had to do it now because he would never let it come up for discussion again. “You want me to be your wife, but not your sub?”
“My wife and the mother of my children. We’re going to have the kind of marriage Jake and Katherine had and you will not be my sub.”
Stiff
ening with temper, she fisted her hands on her hips, her blazing blue eyes challenging him. “So, what’s the plan, Cade? Marry me and I stay home alone while you go to places like Club Mystique and play with the subs?”
“That part of my life ended with our agreement on Valentine’s Day, Addison.” His voice was sharp, letting her know he was done with this conversation. He folded his arms across his chest, his eyes forbidding, daring her to continue asking him questions about something he considered none of her business.
Surprised by his answer, she stepped toward him. “But, why? We can have both. A lot of married people have D/s relationships.”
“I don’t care what other people do, Addison. You and I are going to have a normal marriage.”
“Cade, you can’t just stop being a Dom,” she told him, finally understanding that he believed that he could.
“I already have, so stop challenging me.” He dug in his pocket and pulled out her ring and stepped toward her. “This conversation is over.”
“If you could have stopped we wouldn’t be having this conversation, Cade. So, tell me…was Linda the only one when we were dating?”
“Addison, I’m warning you to stop now.”
“Or what? You’ll drag me over your lap and spank me? No? Well, maybe you’ll tie me up and fuck me?” Smirking at him, she shook her head, her reddish-gold hair glowing under the lights of the tavern. “Oh, no, that’s right, you can’t because you’re no longer a Dom.” Giving him a bratty grin she leaned back against her car. “Lucky me! I can do anything I want and there’s nothing you can or will do about it.” Reaching up she began unbuttoning her vest.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“I think I must be a little bit of an exhibitionist because suddenly I feel like getting naked,” she told him, giggling, giddy with success as she watched his face darken and his eyes blaze with rage. Then suddenly, as if the past few minutes had never taken place, he went still, his body relaxed, his hands by his sides.
To Love and Obey [The Doms of Club Mystique] (Siren Publishing Allure) Page 7