Ananda swallowed hard. She was willing to tell him about the dancing, but not until later, much later.
“Are you now or have you ever been collared by someone other than me?”
She exhaled. “No, sir. I’m new to all of this. Remember, from day one of the show I had trouble answering your question about being collared.”
Eagan snapped his fingers in a dramatic way. “That’s right. You had problems answering that question. Thanks for the reminder.” He stepped over to Venus. “That leaves you. So tell me, Venus, have you ever been collared by anyone?”
Venus scanned the room. More than once her gaze settled on Dris Markham. The guy was just an actor. What would he care about this show or this Lifestyle anyway?
“Um—”
“Answer the question, Venus.” Eagan put his hands to his hips. His jaw flexed while waiting for her answer.
“Yes,” she finally said in a whisper.
“Did you say yes?” Eagan pressed.
Venus nodded.
“As a matter of fact, you’ve done a lot of shows like this. Hunky Bachelor, The Dating Life, Three for the Road and now my show. I watched your old tapes. You won each of them. Of course, in every one of them you professed true love. Is that the way you would be with me, Venus? Tell me you love me and are devoted to me and leave me?”
She shook her head. “N-n-no, Master Eagan.”
“No, don’t call me Master Eagan. Especially not when you’re collared by someone else now.” He grabbed her shoulders and spun her around. Eagan removed her necklace and told her to hold her hair up to show off the back of her neck, exposing her green tattoo that looked like a Chinese symbol. “I thought that tattoo looked odd, yet familiar.” He thudded over to Dris who, remarkably, stood his ground. Eagan grabbed the man’s arm and raised it.
“What the hell are you doing? Get the fuck off of me!” Dris tried pulling his arm back, but to no avail.
Eagan shoved Dris’s shirtsleeve up and showed off a similar tattoo on his wrist. “I found out what that symbol means. ‘D Owned’ as in ‘Dris owned,’ right?”
Dris yanked his arm back. He glanced over at Iona, then back at Eagan. He chuckled. “It only took you, what, nine or ten weeks to figure this all out.” Dris adjusted his collar, then turned to Iona. “Put your hair down and come to me.”
Iona lowered her hair and walked toward Dris without looking back at the other women or even at Eagan.
“And take off that silly mask. It’s a crime to cover that beautiful face.”
Iona removed her mask and let it fall to the floor as she made her way to her true master. “I’ve missed you, Master D.”
“Nothing I like more than to see men and women admiring my property.” He glared at Eagan. “I entered her in every one of those reality shows. I want the world to want her, but know they can’t have her. Look at her. She’s gorgeous.” Dris palmed her breast and kissed her roughly, ending it by biting her lip. He faced Eagan. “My plan was to top you at every angle. I had you jumping through hoops at the set. Then here, Iona was supposed to keep you on your toes. We had you.”
“Operative word being ‘had.’” Eagan crushed Iona’s necklace in his hand. He turned to her. “You’re released. Get the hell out of my house.” Then he focused on Dris. “And Dris.”
“What?”
In a blink, Eagan punched the smug actor in the face, sending him careening to the floor. “You’re fired. Your shit is already packed in a box and waiting outside the studio. Hope you get back to California in time to pick it up outside the studio gates before someone else gets to it like a rabid fan. I’m sure they’ll be excited to see your address book and Palm Pilot.”
“You son of a bitch.” Dris lifted himself off the floor with Iona’s help. “You can’t hit me. I’ll fucking sue your ass. If you cracked any of my teeth, I’ll—”
“Good. With the money you’ll lose from not doing this movie, I’m sure you’ll want to have a full-on knock down, drag out court case that will tap you dry. No one tops me. No one. Get out of my house.”
Dris clutched Iona as they stumbled out of Eagan’s house. Richard tossed their bags out behind them then slammed the door.
“That was show gold, Eagan.” Phil hopped around like a toy poodle. “Care to watch the punch that will soon be seen around the world?”
“No.” Eagan stormed out of the room.
“What do we do now?” Sunny asked.
Phil and the crew glanced around at each other. Ananda felt the pull from Eagan to comfort him. She walked to where she suspected he would be, in his dance studio. A hard grab around her arm stopped her.
“It’s best if you leave Master Eagan alone,” Willow said as she held onto Ananda’s forearm.
“Thanks for the advice.” But Ananda felt she knew what he needed.
She scurried back to the dungeon. It would be odd to have just the two of them in this huge, daunting room. Ananda would have to get used to the idea. She could be the one person left in this contest and be in this room several times.
Walking around the room, Ananda scanned the whips, canes, and paddles that lined the wall. “Come on. Where is it?” She touched each whip trying to remember the one that Eagan had showed them from the first day. She knew that it held some special significance for him.
“There!” She found the whip hanging in a darkened corner. With one hard tug, she yanked it down and ran down the hallway.
“Hey! Where are you going with that?” Willow called after her. “You can’t go in there.”
Ananda ignored her. If she was going to leave this contest, it would be because she bucked the system. Standing outside of the studio door, Ananda put her ear to it to hear music. She heard nothing, not even him walking around.
Ananda cracked the door open and peered inside. She found Eagan looking out of the window at the bay behind his house.
Taking small steps toward him, she said, “I know these last couple of days have really tested you.”
Eagan turned to her. His gaze dropped down to the whip in her hand then back up to her face.
“I’m sensing you need some type of relief.” Ananda held up the whip.
Eagan didn’t move toward it. He stared at the object and swallowed.
“Master Eagan?”
“I doubted her,” he finally said.
“Sir?”
“I doubted her and it made me doubt myself.” He carefully took the whip from her hand. “The moment I suspected her feelings weren’t genuine, I fell off my game.” He bounced the whip in his hand. “That’s how I made the mistake and struck her where I shouldn’t have.”
Ananda put her hand over his that held the whip. His gaze connected to hers.
“I trust you.” She smiled as a way to reassure him of her statement. “I trust you, Master Eagan.”
Ananda placed her hands against Eagan’s piano and waited. He walked next to her and stopped. His fingers cascaded down her back, leaving a trail of sensitized nerves in their wake. She curved her back, enjoying his touch. When he kissed her shoulder, she gasped at the connection. He left the spot heated and raw.
A creak sounded in the room. In the reflection in the window, Ananda saw Phil and Apple enter the room.
“Willow said she tried stopping her, Master Eagan,” Apple proclaimed.
“If you’re going to whip her, I need to get the cameras in here now,” Phil said.
“Get out.” Eagan’s voice rumbled.
When neither one said anything or made a move to leave, Eagan spoke again.
“Get out, now.”
Both left closing the door behind themselves. Ananda closed her eyes and braced her body for the contact. She said she trusted Eagan. She had to believe it, feel it. He wouldn’t hurt her. He would never hurt her.
Ananda heard the whip hit the floor then she heard Eagan snapping it beside her as though testing his technique.
Remember, you trust him. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid.
&nb
sp; After a few seconds, the sound of the crack of the whip matched the slight sting she felt on her shoulder blade. Ananda jumped, but got composed very quickly. He’d done it. He’d touched her and not hurt her.
“How did that feel?” he asked.
“Good. Oh so good.” Ananda glanced over her shoulder and found him nodding. She turned back around and waited.
The next slight sting came and another and another. He hit different areas of her back, never the same spot, and never a full on hit. When Eagan said he only touched people with the tip of the whip, he meant that.
With each contact, Ananda’s body reacted in a foreign way. Her nipples hardened when the tail of it nipped her shoulders and upper back. Her stomach tightened in a ball when he connected to her lower back. Making slight pops on her ass caused a slow drip between her legs.
She got up on her toes for a couple of hits that made her pussy pulsate. At the last hit, Ananda nearly collapsed in pleasure. She slumped over on the piano and panted.
“Oh, my God,” she began. “I never thought I would feel this way after something like that.”
Ananda felt a presence next to her. She turned her head and found Eagan. A wild expression filled his eyes as he stared at her.
“I knew you could do it.” Ananda reached up to hug him.
Eagan backed away. When he did, her heart dropped to the floor. How could he have turned her away after giving her the most exquisite pleasure that she’d ever felt?
“Thank you for bringing me my whip.” He gripped the coiled whip. “You can go back to the dungeon now.”
What? That was it? Ananda had just opened herself up to this man and he was going to send her back out to the dungeon like they just didn’t share something special, something great?
“I feel…different.” Ananda didn’t know how to explain it. Her skin tingled all over. If anyone touched her, she would melt.
Although she didn’t feel close to an orgasm, it wouldn’t have been hard to get her there at this point. She needed human connection, but Eagan refused to give it to her.
“Are you in pain?” he asked, the only time he showed any form of comfort.
She shook her head.
“You’ll be fine.”
Not wanting to stand there with him for much longer, Ananda darted from the dance studio as quickly as her wobbly legs would carry her. She stumbled into the dungeon and crashed onto her platform. Although Ananda hugged her body tightly, she felt empty.
“You okay?” Sunny asked.
Ananda shook her head.
“What did he do to you?” Sunny stroked Ananda’s hair as she stood next to the platform.
“He whipped me.” Just saying the word brought back memories of being whipped again. She trembled.
“Oh, God! Did he hurt you?” Sunny crawl onto the platform and examined her back. “I only see a few red marks, no broken skin.”
“It felt g-g-good.” Ananda drew her knees up to her chest.
“Didn’t he hold you afterward?”
Ananda shook her head.
“Oh, no.” Sunny wrapped her arm around Ananda’s waist and pressed her naked body against Ananda’s. “Aftercare is just as important as the play itself. I can’t believe he didn’t touch your skin like this to soothe you.” Sunny trailed her fingertips over Ananda’s sensitive back. “Feel better?”
Not willing to trust her vocal chords to respond coherently, Ananda nodded.
Ananda felt Sunny press her lips against Ananda’s shoulder in the same spot Eagan had kissed only she didn’t stop. Sunny kissed between Ananda’s shoulder blades, down her back and to her ass.
“No,” Ananda said weakly.
“Just relax. Enjoy the feeling.” Sunny massaged one of Ananda’s ass cheeks as she kissed and licked the other.
With a nudge, Sunny rolled Ananda onto her stomach. Then Sunny spread Ananda’s legs wide open. Ananda was powerless to do anything. She needed to feel. She wanted to feel. Sunny was only too happy to oblige.
Sunny planted small kisses over Ananda’s body, down her legs, to the sensitive areas behind Ananda’s knees to her calves and feet. The seductive trek back up her body was just as tantalizing. When Sunny positioned her head between Ananda’s legs, Ananda fought to close them.
“Don’t move. I want to do this and I know you want this, too.” Sunny parted Ananda’s pussy lips with her fingers. “Wow! You’re really wet?”
Sunny took a long swipe with her tongue over Ananda’s pussy that nearly sprang her off the platform. To feel a woman’s tongue in her pussy felt odd to Ananda. The petite size of it made it perfect for licking each of Ananda’s labia. Then she used it to dart in and out of Ananda’s pussy.
As much as Ananda had fought this treatment, she loved it. Her body craved Sunny’s touch. Ananda’s stomach compressed into a ball.
“You have to stop. I’m going to come and we’re not allowed.” Ananda squirmed up but Sunny pulled her back and held onto her thighs.
“I won’t tell if you don’t.” Sunny kept licking and probing her tongue inside of Ananda until she broke.
“Oh, God! Yes!” Ananda gripped the platform to ground herself while her body soared.
She felt Sunny moving over her body.
Sunny turned Ananda onto her side to face her. “Whatever happens in the last show, I will miss you.” She planted a sweet kiss onto Ananda’s lips.
Ananda tasted her salty juices on Sunny’s lips and pressed hers harder against the woman’s mouth. As odd as it seemed, Ananda would miss Sunny, too.
Ananda wrapped her arms around her opponent, feeling the comfort there that she wished she would have gotten from Eagan. Maybe he didn’t want her as much as she thought. Suspecting that, she let the tears flow down her cheek. Bastard.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Eagan replayed the scene he saw between Begonia and Sunny in his mind again as he sat in his office. He’d gone to the dungeon to return the whip he’d used on Begonia when he heard them. Instead of barging in and stopping them, he watched from the two-way mirror.
How beautiful the two looked with their bodies intertwined, Sunny with her pale, smooth skin and Begonia with her radiant golden tone. The only thing that could have made it better would be if he were in the room to orchestrate, watch, join in.
He should have barged in and stopped them. The rules clearly stated that no contestant could have an orgasm without his expressed permission. He couldn’t blame Begonia. He’d given her a short, but great, session with the whip. Eagan should have held her and given her the proper aftercare that she needed. Instead, he sent her away, afraid to get too close.
Aspen appeared in his office doorway. “Ready for the taping, Master Eagan?”
He stood. Aspen immediately rushed to him and straightened out his shirt and jacket. She brushed him down as though the man had just rolled in a pile of hair.
“I’ll be down in a minute. I have a couple of calls to make.”
Aspen nodded. “I’ll let Willow and Apple know.” She stepped out of the room.
Phil had been bugging Eagan for weeks to do something about the High Stepper show. Cast it or can it. Eagan glanced through eight-by-ten glossy headshots of some of the dancers. He found the picture for Ananda Zelder, the one he’d turned away. He stared at her, the way she smiled the loveliness of her long neck, her graceful demeanor.
Not hesitating, Eagan picked up his phone and dialed the number on the resumé. If she didn’t hang up in his ear, she hoped she would hear him out and give him, and the show, a second chance.
“Hello.”
The male voice made Eagan pause. Brother? Boyfriend? Husband?
“Y’all better talk or I’m going to hang up.”
Gay best friend. Of course.
“I’m looking for Ananda Zelder,” Eagan said.
“She’s not here. She’s doing a show.” The person on the other end popped gum and it sounded through the phone.
Eagan bristled at each snap. “Will she
be in the show for very long?” If it was Broadway, she could be dancing there forever and a day.
“Depends on if she wins.”
Eagan furrowed his eyebrows at the statement.
“I can take a message. If I hear from her I’ll tell her to call you.”
“Fine. Let her know this is Eagan Morton. She auditioned for one of my shows called High Stepper. I’m interested in getting her onto the show.”
The other end of the line went silent.
“Hello?” Eagan hoped he hadn’t said all of that for no reason.
“Oh, uh, yeah. I’ll tell her. Eagan. Stepper. Oh, boy.”
“Great. Here’s my assistant’s phone number. Have her call him for further instructions.” Eagan disconnected the call. Without waiting a beat, he called Ophelia at her hotel.
“Eagan?” she said without even hearing his voice or saying hello.
“We need to talk. I have something to do for the next few days. I’ll get up with you when I’m available.”
“Yes. Yes, sir. I can’t wait to see you again.”
He disconnected that call. Gripping the receiver, his finger hovered over the speed dial button to reach his mother. He shook his head. No, he wasn’t ready yet. This call would have to wait. He had something important to do right now.
Eagan headed down the stairs and watched Phil running up them to greet him.
“Are you sure you want to do this? It may blow up in your face.” Phil scratched his head.
“This is their last test. They have to do this.” It would be the only way Eagan would know if they wanted to be with him.
He stood in his same spot and stared at the naked women.
“Hi, Master Eagan.” Begonia and Sunny’s voices blended in perfect harmony.
“Good morning. Congratulations for making it as the final two. You two have worked very hard to get to this spot. I’m sure you’re anxious to find out who I plan on picking to be my next submissive. Before I do that, I have one more test.”
Begonia and Sunny glanced at each other then brought their attention back to Eagan.
“Pack your bags. You’re going home.”
Sunny’s mouth hung open so wide she could have trapped water buffalo. Begonia’s smile oozed down her face.
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