The Chronicles of Stella Rice: February

by Adrienne Kama

  His hand was on my leg, one finger wiggling under the patent leather cuff of my PVC skirt. I squirmed, and when I was finally able to breathe again, I screamed, which echoed through the night.

  “Scream all you want,” he said. “Nobody’s gonna help you.”

  He reached the SUV and settled me on the ground near the driver’s door. Once he had his keys in hand, he beeped the door unlocked, then pulled it open.

  “Get in,” he ordered.

  “No.”

  I pushed away from the car, tried to twist away from him, but he was too fast and too strong. The car door was open and I was shoved inside before I could even consider how best to defend myself. He moved in behind me, forcing me into the passenger seat. A moment later I heard him shut the door.

  I launched myself at the passenger door and wrestled with the handle. When nothing happened I tried slamming my fists against the glass. Still nothing. I was trapped. Fear coursing through my veins, I glared at my captor over my shoulder.

  Nonchalantly, he sat in his seat, pouring some noxious substance onto a cloth. Then he looked up and studied me. It was too dark to see more than the mask, but I saw enough to know he had dark hair, dark eyes, and dark intentions.

  “Come here,” he said, crooking a finger at me. “I got something for you.”

  I screamed.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Later

  I woke to the sound of male voices. One was deep, calm, and I knew it to be the voice of my captor. The other was deep as well, but it was raised in anger. The sound of it was harsh, blunt, and intimidating. “I didn’t say to beat her bloody,” this second voice was saying.

  “What was I supposed to do? You didn’t say she’d fight me.”

  “You’re twice her size. You can’t handle a woman?”

  “She was fighting for her life. Least she thought she was.”

  “Is it a wonder? You dragged her across the floor by her hair. What the hell were you thinking?”

  “She bit me.”

  “Poor baby. Where’d the little girl hurt you? Want me to kiss it better?”

  “You wouldn’t be so smug if you’d been the one carrying her out of that club. Soon as I got my hands on her she turned into a she-devil. I thought you said she was docile.”

  “She is docile. Least she is with a man who knows how to take control of a situation. If I didn’t think she’d recognize my voice I would have gone. And I wouldn’t have brought her home battered and bloody.”

  “She’s not battered or bloody. She has a few tiny scrapes on her knees. She’ll recover.”

  “You enjoyed yourself, didn’t you?”

  My kidnapper didn’t answer immediately. When he did his voice was soft, as gentle as a purr. “What do you think?”

  “I think you’re a sadist.”

  “Maybe if you were a little more submissive I wouldn’t get my rocks off…” he seemed to think better of what he was about to say. “She really fought me. She kicked and punched, and it was fucking sexy. Wish I could do it again.”

  By now I knew who my captors were, and I wasn’t happy. I simply couldn’t believe this was happening to me. Why me?

  I peeked at them through one half-opened eye, just to assure myself that my suspicions were right. Sure enough, Jake sat at the foot of the bed. He was running a hand through the lush waves of his hair and shaking his head. I could hear him breathing. The staccato sound of his harsh exhalations told me more about his mental state than his words to Dev had. Jake was furious. He was shirtless and his shoulders rose and fell in time with his heaving breaths. I couldn’t see Jake’s face because he was facing Dev, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to when he was in such a state.

  In stark contrast to Jake, Dev was sitting in an armchair next to the fireplace taking leisurely sips from a goblet filled with a red substance—probably wine. For a man who’d recently strolled into a nightclub and taken a woman captive, Dev looked pretty damned relaxed. Still dressed in the leather pants and vest I’d seen him in earlier, he sat, legs spread wide before him, as he listened to Jake berate him. He didn’t seem overly concerned. He’d discarded the executioner’s mask so his curls lay flat against his scalp and hung in limp ringlets around his shoulders. He looked like a fallen angel turned roguish imp. Dear God, Dev was one sexy man.

  “I wouldn’t mind doing it again,” Dev said again. “I don’t mind a little fight. I know you don’t either. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be with me.”

  I decided it was time for me to officially wake up. This little tête-à-tête was getting on my nerves. Docile? I’d show them docile.

  The plan was to appear to wake slowly, stretching tiredly while I faked confusion. Once they came closer I’d kick them both in the balls and make my escape.

  However, when I tried to stretch my arms they wouldn’t budge.

  Rage descended on me in the span of a millisecond and I saw red.

  “Which one of you did this?” I screeched.

  Jake bounced off the bed and into the air like a frightened feline. Dev dropped his glass and leapt to his feet.

  “Who tied me up?” I went on, unable to stop myself. “You rotten bastards, which one of you tied me to the bed?”

  Slowly, Jake and Dev approached. When both men were next to the bed, they stopped and stared.

  I decided I would like to kick Jake first. Since he was the closer of the two, and because kidnapping me was more than likely his idea, I tried to pull my leg back so I could get up enough force to drive it into him. Unfortunately, my leg wouldn’t move. They’d bound my legs too. I was trussed like a common criminal, tied down and spread eagle on Jake’s four-poster.

  I screeched again as another insight hit me. I didn’t have any clothes on. I was naked. The bastards had not only kidnapped me and tied me spread eagle to the bed, but they’d also stripped me bare.

  Unperturbed, they looked at each other. Dev actually had the audacity to smile. “Docile as a kitten,” he said, then went to retrieve his fallen wine glass.

  “Where are my clothes?” I managed saying through my clenched teeth.

  Jake waved this question off. “You won’t need them.”

  I wanted to shake my fist at him, do some kind of damage to him. But I couldn’t. I was helpless as a baby and he knew it. A fresh wave of rage descended on me. “You kidnapped me!”

  Jake nodded. “I think that pretty much sums up the situation.”

  “Bastard!”

  Head tilted inquisitively, Dev stepped beside Jake again. “She’s got a mouth on her. Do you think we should beat her?”

  Jake raised a brow and considered. “Maybe later,” he decided.

  Standing side-by-side staring at me, they seemed transfixed. Jake’s thumbs were hooked in the belt loops of his black jeans, his eyes were frozen on my face, and his lips were parted into a delectable looking O. Again, I was left stunned by his beauty and speechless at the desperation I saw in his level gaze. He made no attempt to hide his desire. He seemed to wear it like a badge of honor. It was evident in the slight turning up of the corner of his mouth and in the thickening bulge between his thighs. It was intoxicating to know how much Jake wanted me. Exhilarating to know the great lengths he’d go to have me. Though I knew it was wrong, I was helpless against the rush of warmth that suffused my body as I looked at him. It had never been difficult for Jake to bend me to his will, and as I lay in his bed, naked but for the ropes binding my wrists and ankles to the posts of his four-poster, erotic need descended on me with the force of a ten foot wave. Anger was replaced with desire, and resentment at being kidnapped was replaced with bone-deep gratitude. My only saving grace was the fact that my pride remained intact. I wanted to be exactly where I was, but I wasn’t about to let Jake and Dev off the hook so easily.

  “Untie me,” I demanded. I was nearly undone at how wispy my voice sounded.

  The two men glanced at each other, then back at me again. “I don’t think that’s gonna happen,” Dev said just as Jake wa
s saying, “No.”

  “What cowards. Not only did it take the both of you to concoct this stupid plan, but the two of you have to keep me tied up? Aren’t the odds in your favor enough without the rope?”

  Hands on hips, Dev surveyed me. There was a hungry gleam in his eyes as he ran them the length of my naked body. His tongue glided wetly along his lower lip. Then I noticed something peculiar about the way he was standing, and how stiff his shoulders were. He was statuesque almost like he stood in military formation and as though moving one inch would mean certain death. His arms were frozen in place, and his legs were rigid as stone. Most curiously, the tips of his fingers where they pressed into his hipbone were blanched white. I suddenly realized Dev was exerting a vast amount of energy on keeping self-control.

  But this wasn’t precisely right. Dev wanted to advance on me, seemingly frantic to, and he would have if had it been just the two of us in the room. But the stance of both men—Dev slightly behind Jake; Dev glancing at Jake from time to time to seek direction—spoke volumes. I knew at once that the only thing keeping Dev in check was Jake. And once Jake let loose the reins, Dev would be on me in an instant.

  The other day at my place, Dev had said both of them were dominant, which I didn’t doubt. But it didn’t take much observation to know who the alpha was in this pack. Clearly, Jake was in charge, and both Dev and I knew it.

  “Please, let me beat her,” Dev said plaintively, verifying my silent musings. “I’ll be gentle…sort of.” The two stared at each other again, each seeming mesmerized by the other. “Come on, Jake.” His tongue slid along his lower lip again and Jake grunted. “You can watch.

  “No rope,” Dev went on to say. “No handcuffs. Just me, you, Stella, and my whip.”

  Jake didn’t respond immediately. He looked at me instead, his eyes lingering over every bare inch of my skin.

  “Remember you told me how gorgeous she was under your paddle.” Dev closed his eyes and sighed. “You said her skin glistened with a luminescent sheen. She came alive under the paddle, and even fell in love with it. Remember how you told me she writhed under every blow, and how she moaned for more. Consider how you enjoy watching her, taking pleasure as her hips roll, seeing her ass tense as your paddle struck her skin. You can watch now. You don’t have to lift a finger, Jake. Just sit by the fire, I’ll bring you a glass and the merlot, and you can watch.”

  Jake turned to look at Dev. A smile split his lips. Damn it. Jake was actually considering saying yes. Though I had enjoyed Jake’s discipline, I wasn’t mentally prepared for another round. And especially not with Sadistic Dev wielding a whip. I had to do something. “Hello! Hate to interrupt, but I’d like you to untie me so I can go home.”

  Jake stared at Dev a moment longer, longing in his eyes. Then slowly, he returned his gaze to me. “You want us to untie you?”

  “Yes.”

  “What would that accomplish?”

  “I don’t like feeling helpless,” I said, not really telling the truth, but it wasn’t a complete lie either.

  Jake started toward the head of the bed. Unsure of what he was about to do, I stiffened.

  He settled one knee onto the pillow beside my head and bent over me. I nearly couldn’t believe what was happening when he started undoing the knots binding me to the posts. At my ankles, Dev followed suit.

  They were untying me. Setting me free. That was what I wanted, right? Okay, so why was I disappointed? Did freeing me from my bonds mean I was free to leave?

  Once he undid the last knot, Jake sat up and stared down at me. He didn’t look like a man who’d just lost a battle. “So you’re loose. Now what? You’re no less helpless than you were a minute ago?”

  Swallowing, I transferred my gaze from Jake to Dev, who was perched at the foot of the bed…waiting.

  So they called my bluff. Big deal. In actuality the rope had been an unimportant prop.

  Well, even if I couldn’t actually get away I could do something about my nakedness. I doubted they’d return my clothes, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t cover myself.

  Slowly, careful to not make any sudden movements, I began to lower my arms.

  “Look at me, Stella,” Jake said, voice smooth as silk.

  Damn, I thought, twisting my head around to face him.

  Jake didn’t seem amused or at all like a man who was about to have a good time. Eyes unreadable, mouth set, and hands fisted on his hips, he looked intimidating as hell.

  “Did I say you could move your arms?” he asked.

  Another wave of lust descended upon me even as, without being told what he wanted me to do, I returned my arms to their previous position; untied, but stretched over my head in a wide V.

  Jake turned to face Dev. “See, Dev. Docile as a kitten.”

  At the sound of those words, every fiber in my body longed to stretch out a hand and uppercut Jake to the gut. But I’d taken that route with Jake before and all it had gotten me was a paddle to the ass. I didn’t care to have a repeat performance tonight so I bit my tongue and forced myself not to respond.

  “I’m impressed,” Dev said, coming around the opposite side of the bed. It dipped under his weight when he settled atop it. He sat with his hands balled into tight fists for a moment, then he took in a deep breath. “Can I touch her, Jake?”

  There was a rustling of the bed sheets as Jake crouched on his knees. Leaning over me, with one hand propped on the bed to hold his weight, Jake ran the fingers of his free hand over Dev’s cheek. There was such love in that simple touch, such feeling that a pang of jealousy lit through me. “She belongs to us both,” Jake said. “She’s ours. You don’t need to ask my permission to touch her or to kiss her. I want you to enjoy her. But remember that she’s a woman. She’s smaller than we are, more fragile. Making love to her won’t be like making love to each other. I want you to be gentle with her. Control yourself, at least until she gets accustomed to us.”

  Dev leaned into Jake’s hand, seemed to revel in the physical contact. “No whipping I suppose,” Dev said, sounding sad.

  “Not for a while,” Jake agreed. “You’re too heavy handed.”

  I should have been annoyed at being the object of such a discussion, but my shock at witnessing the depth of love these men shared left me too stunned to think about myself. Jake and Dev were lovers, in every sense of the word.

  When they kissed, each man bending forward to capture the other’s lips, a sigh of longing escaped me. I hadn’t meant to make a sound, but still, as quiet a sound as it was, it was enough to pull them from their two-person reverie. Dev looped his arm behind the back of Jake’s neck, let his tongue slide hungrily over his lips, then released him.

  The two settled onto the bed and refocused on me.

  “I think someone’s feeling left out,” Dev said. “Are we excluding you, Stella?”

  Though his eyes still simmered with repressed desire, playfulness was there that I hadn’t seen a moment before.

  I searched my mind for something witty to say, but came up empty. It was difficult to be clever when you were naked and had your arms and legs splayed for the pleasure of your companions.

  “Touch her Dev,” Jake prodded. “I want to see your hands on her.”

  “Nothing would thrill me more,” Dev said.

  My breath caught when Dev ran a finger over my nipple. Desire blazed through me like a streak of lightning, more powerful due the intense feminine longing that had been steadily building within me for the past ten minutes. Still, despite Jake’s prodding, it didn’t feel right to have Dev’s fingers on me, touching me in such an intimate manner. I looked to Jake, hoping to gauge his response. Did his emotions match his words? If I could see what he thought of this, I could better decide how to respond.

  “Don’t look at him,” Dev said. “Look at me.”

  Jake’s face was as expressionless as granite. I didn’t have any other choice but to do what Dev said. So I turned to face him.

  “That’s more like it�
�kitten,” Dev added, teasing my nipple with the tips of his fingers.

  A low moan slid from between my lips before I could stop it.

  “You like that?” Dev asked, repeating the movement.

  I tried hard to control my response to him but it was near to impossible. The gentle touch of his hand on my skin was incredible. How could something so simple as a touch have me so close to losing control?

  “I think she’s warming to me,” Dev said. He punctuated his statement by giving my nipple a squeeze.

  “Oh God!” I cried.

  “Is that right, kitten?” Jake asked, still not touching me. “You warming to Dev?”

  When I didn’t answer quickly enough, Dev gave my nipple another, torturous squeeze.

  “Oh, Dev,” I whimpered, reaching blindly for him. I wanted to tangle my fingers in the rich chocolate that was his hair, pull him closer to me and have a taste of him. A longer taste than he had offered in my kitchen. I wanted to taste and touch until my heart was content, feel his body against me and know the full force of his desire. I wanted him to want me as much as he wanted Jake.

  My fingers grazed the collar of his leather vest, but he leaned back and out of my reach before I could get a hold of him and draw him forward. My hands slid down the slick material over his chest and fell into his lap.

  Dev’s eyes glimmered with mischief…and pleasure. “Look at her, Jake. She wants this bad. Don’t you, kitten?”

  Since my hands were already in his lap, I sought the hardening mass of flesh I could see straining at the crotch of his pants. I was so near to touching it, inches from clasping his zipper and drawing it down when Jake moved forward on the bed. He clasped my wrists in one hand and levered them over my head with a quick ease that left me dazed.

  “Did I say you could move your arms?” he wanted to know. He pressed my wrists to the mattress, pinning me there. “Move them again and I let Dev get his whip.”