by Yvette Hines
“Look, Brian. It is not about a change of anything. It’s about an open mind. Our little sister and her men aren’t into some kind of religious cult. Just expressing their love differently. You would have seen that if you’d gone with use the other night.”
Lifting his coffee, Brian stared at him as he took a liberal, long drink of his coffee.
Brad took a bite of his sandwich, knowing this conversation was far from over. Shaking his head internally he realized he shouldn’t have brought Brian here. They should have just eaten a late breakfast at the hotel and drove out to his sister’s house.
“What did you see that night?” Brain’s voice was low, calm.
However, Brad wasn’t fooled. Brian was still put out by Brad’s comment about him being closed minded.
Brad shrugged. “Nothing much, Brian.”
“Nothing much?”
“Okay… a lot that honestly shocked me. Not only women are dominated, men too?”
“By other men?” Brian had shoved the last few bites of his sandwich to the side and was leaning on his elbows toward him, matching Brad’s quiet tone.
“Some. Most by women. A lot of nudity. Lots of things swinging and smacking flesh.” Brad could easily talk about this part with Brian, it had been overwhelming for him to see so he could keep himself detached from the tale.
“Did people seemed to be forced or made to participate…against their will?”
Brad knew what he brother was implying. “No, Brian, Alesha and most people there wanted to be in their respective places.”
Brain lifted and dropped both his shoulders and glanced away. “I know Alesha wouldn’t do something she didn’t want to. She’s too smart for that.”
“And Mike and Josh know we’d kick their asses.”
That brought mirrored eyes back to his as Brian chuckled.
It was nice to hear his brother laugh. Something over the last few months had been weighing the older twin down and Brad hadn’t been able to discover what was bothering Brian.
“You going back, again?”
Rubbing a hand over his bald head, down to the back of his neck, Brad struggled with his answer and then decided for honesty. “I don’t know. I’m not saying I want to be a part of this…world of, of…” He couldn’t figure out how to label it. Before he could have come up with several derogatory things to say; now they didn’t seem to fit. “Anyway. Probably not.”
“Whatever. I’m sure Alesha appreciated you checking it out.”
“Yea. Maybe.” He stared at his brother. “You should consider going.”
“Hell, no. I’ll leave things like that to the one of us that got all the adventurous jeans.” Brian reached across the table and patted him on the shoulder.
“Thanks.” Picking up his coffee, Brad drained it and then set it down beside his empty plate. “Let’s get out of here.”
Leaving out the establishment with his twin, Brad realized how ridiculous it had been for him to even come to the shop. What did he plan to do even if he had seen China Doll again? Maybe just see for himself that she was okay. That the angry man from the dungeon hadn’t caught up with her again. As he’d told Brian he wasn’t trying to become a part of the lifestyle. So, it wasn’t really any of his concern. She wasn’t his responsibility. That master of the dungeon bouncer guy seemed like someone she could go to if she needed protection. Not to mention he lived in Baltimore.
So, it was best to keep his distance from a woman that was completely involved in a world he knew little about.
~YH~
“Hi, Mom.”
“Hello, Gab. How are you?” Sierra Mitchem’s voice was filled with cheer as it was all the time a special day was coming up. Her mother was big on every holiday and birthday.
“I’m doing really good.”
“Where are you calling from? Is this a new number?” Concern laced her mother’s voice, dampening the jovial tone somewhat.
“New number. I changed my old one.”
“Again. You’ve only had the last one for about four months.” There was a long pause. “You sure you’re okay?”
If you call dodging the harassing calls from an ex-Dom okay, she was just peachy. Reel was still pretty pissed at her for what she had done and last night she’d barely gotten much sleep with him calling repeatedly. This morning her phone had been filled with voice messages from him doing everything from pleading to her to come back to telling her she was a piss-poor sub. He didn’t know where she lived and he knew better than to come to her job, her boss would eat him alive. “Just great. Look, I was calling to let you know to be on the lookout for a couple boxes I’m sending to the house.”
“Sweetheart, does that mean that you’re not coming home for Christmas?”
Laughing, Gabriella said, “No. I’ll be there.”
She knew that her mother would be very disappointed if any of her children or grandchildren did not come to their house for Christmas. She’d raised them to know that family was important. Her parent’s never stopped any of them from moving away. They would just remind them that they’d see them for Christmas—her parent’s only wish.
“I just plan to fly this year and I didn’t want to have to worry about the gifts getting lost or broken.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful. Do you need your brothers and father to come pick you up?”
“Maybe. I’ll let you know. I was thinking about getting a rental at the airport.” It was a part of Gabriella’s independence, she liked being able to come and go without depending on someone else or having someone else with her if she wanted to be alone. As the oldest child she always had to be responsible for one or more of her siblings growing up.
“Okay, honey. Josie and Kyle got in last night. They went to her friend’s house to watch a basketball game. You should see how plump she is. I think we may have a baby for Christmas.” There was so much joy in her mother’s voice it gave her a pain in her heart.
“I hope so. They’ve been trying for two years, now. They deserve it.” Her family knew of her lifestyle and never judged her or tried to make her change, for that Gabriella was thankful.
“They do. Well, sweetheart. I’m off to caroling rehearsal with Molly Jenkins. Call us tomorrow night if you can.”
“I’ll call, Mom. Have fun, kiss Dad for me.”
Her mother blew her a kiss before hanging up.
Setting her cell phone back into her purse, Gabriella started her car and backed out of the post office parking spot. Talking to her mom and hearing about wonderful news of her siblings always made her feel lonely. Not because she didn’t have a lot of friends and associates to hang out with, she just missed that closeness of family. She lived in Charlotte, where she’d gone to college because of her lifestyle.
Since she didn’t have someone that she was committed to and frequently changed Dom’s every few months, she would hate for one of those Doms she would eventual walk away from be a friend of her parents or a member of their family church. Things would be awkward and she didn’t want that for them.
So, she’d deal with the bouts of depression that occasionally came on her, as she always did.
~YH~
“Hey, guys, what took you so long?” Alesha was in the kitchen when Brad and his brother showed up at the house. Their sister was scooping cookies off of a sheet and placing them onto a rack on the island.
“Nothing much. Just woke up a little late.” Brad rounded the counter and kissed his sister on the cheek.
“Mister sleepy head over there didn’t awake until almost noon.” Brian placed a kiss on Alesha’s other cheek. “Then drug us way out Bum-fuck-Eygpt Charlotte for coffee.”
Shit. Brad didn’t need Brian rehashing their wasted morning trip.
Frowning, Alesha began balling up more cookies from a large bowl and placing them on the sheet she’d just emptied. “What? There’s coffee here. I could have cooked you two breakfast.”
“You have enough mouths to feed with that Bear of a guy you have.�
� Brad tried to keep the conversation benign.
“Master Ursus can put it away.” She smiled. “But we still have plenty.”
“That’s my thought.”Brian stole a cookie off the rack.
Alesha smacked his hand. “You’re cookies are in that tin on the counter.”
“Who are all these for?” Brad asked seeing several tins around the island loaded with a variety of cookies.
“The shelter. I’m going to drop these off while I’m in town.” She put the raw cookies into the oven.
He and his brother snatched two more cookies from the rack.
“You all are looking to meet your makers if you touch another damn cookie.” Alesha turned from the high oven with her hands on her hips.
“Hey, Brian had two.” Brad pointed at his twin as he shoved the cookie into his mouth.
“And you’re still going to get one of my feet in your ass if you take another one.” She warned waving one of her boot covered feet in the air at Brad.
“Hey, prego women shouldn’t curse. The baby has ears.” Brian admonished.
“No uterus, no comment.” She pointed a finger at Brian. “When a pregnant woman has two thieving brothers like you two, she can do whatever the hell she wants.”
Brad laughed and gave her thumbs up. It felt like Christmas when they were younger. Alesha and her cookies were famous around town and all their parent’s friends would request orders of them. While he, his brother and their friends would harass her and still from her batches.
“The men will be out in a second they have to get some blue print to the contractor for a job we will be starting up after the New Year so I can approve the materials orders later.” Alesha picked up several tins and handed them to Brian. “Put these carefully in that box on the table.”
“You get me that icing tube and sprinkles from that pantry.” She directed him.
While he was in the large pantry on the side of the kitchen, pulling out what his sister needed he heard her ask, “What coffee shop did you all find?”
Damn, that myth about a woman becoming forgetful when she was with child did not apply to Alesha. His sister always was smart with a good memory and today there was no change in her mind.
Rushing out of the closet, he said, “None of importance.”
“It had the best damn coffee I’ve ever tasted.” Brian volunteered as he collected another load of tins from their sister.
Shut up, Brian. “No one makes coffee as good as Alesha.”
“It was a damn close second.” Brian leaned over the box at the table.
Alesha got the decoration items from him and organized them before the plain sugar cookies she’d just placed on the rack. “What was the name of it?”
“I can’t even remember.” Brad went to fridge. “You have any eggnog.”
“When did you start drinkin—”
Brian cut her off as he walked back to the island. “Good Blend, Rich Blend or something blend…”
“Strong Blends?” she asked.
“That’s it. You been there?” Brian asked oblivious to the storm he just caused.
Giving up his search for the holiday drink he couldn’t stand, Brad turned and faced his sister. He could practically feel her eyes burning a hole into his back. When he faced her, he saw he had been correct. Alesha had a single eyebrow raised.
However, she shocked him by simply smiling at Brian as she said, “Yes, a time or two.”
“The coffee is so good, I don’t know what the owner was thinking placing it way out there.”
“One could only guess.” Alesha started on her cookie art and didn’t go any further.
Soon Mike and Josh came in and drew him and Brad outside to put up the Christmas lights around the house. Brad was happy to escape the kitchen.
“So, why are you all putting up so many lights and things.” Brad asked Mike as he hauled the seventh box out of the garage, this one filled with animated Christmas figures; like a waving Santa and eating reindeer.
“You know your sister. She loves Christmas and has to throw at least one holiday party.” Mike was carrying out a ladder and angling it along the roof.
“You all are having a party?” This was the first Brad had heard of it.
“More like a get together with a few close friends from the community.”
Brad stopped pulling out the wired figures and glanced toward his twin where Brian was in the middle of the lawn with Josh unraveling the lights and checking bulbs. Looking back at Mike, Brad asked, “It’s not going to be one of those play party things is it?”
Mike chuckled. “No. Nothing like that. We normally open up our play room upstairs for any guests that would like to use it with their subs during the evening or for a demonstration, but we’ve already let our friends know that will not be the case.”
“Okay. That’s good, I don’t think Brian would be able to handle all of that.” Brad continued his job as he asked, “So, anyone that I met the night before coming?”
Mike pulled some lawn hooks out of his tool belt and began securing the figures to the grass. “Uh, don’t think so. I don’t recall any of them being there when we went the last time. You might recall me talking about a guy name Ridge Nicholaus when we were in college.”
Brad thought for a moment. “You all did an intern with him one summer?”
“That’s the one.”
“Does he know about your lifestyle?”
Giving him a wide smile, Mike said, “Master Steel’s in the community too. He’ll bring wife/sub Swan. No, I didn’t get him into it. He was already starting to flex his whip by the time we met.”
“Got it.”
“Master Ursus.”
Brad watched his sister walk out from the door that led to the mudroom in the house and move through the garage.
Mike stood up from what he was doing and waited. When Alesha got before him she dropped to her knees with a graceful skill. Keeping her head bowed she stayed that way until Mike acknowledge her.
“Yes, Butterfly.”
Tilting her head back, she gazed at the big man before her with such love and trust that Brad almost felt as if he were invading on their privacy. It wasn’t the first time he’d seen his sister in such a position, when they were at their house she did it often. When they were in the family room, Alesha usually chose to sit on a pillow between both of her Doms at the feet.
However, now he felt like he was seeing it with a different set of eyes.
“May I have permission to leave now and take the cookies to the homeless shelters downtown, Sir?”
Holding his hand out to her, he waited until she slipped her hand in his then Mike aided her to her feet. “Yes, please be safe. Do you want me or Master Mustang to go with you?”
“No, Sir. I was planning to take one of my brothers with me so I could spend time with them.”
Cupping her face, he kissed her. Leaning away, Mike said, “Good idea. I love you.”
She smiled and reached up to caress Mikes lips. “I love you, too.”
“Take care of my baby.”
“You know I will.” Alesha winked at him.
“You may take your leave to speak with Mustang.” Mike gave her another kiss on the cheek before he released her.
Alesha moved to Josh and performed the same respect. However, she didn’t ask permission she informed him that Mike had given her permission to leave. Josh, helped her up, kissed her and gave her the same loving profession and order to care for his baby.
It amazed Brad how comfortable both men were with not knowing which one of them had actually fathered the child Alesha carried. They both acted like expectant fathers and believed the baby belonged to all three of them.
Brad also did not miss that Brian kept his head down, changing out bulbs and appeared uncomfortable by the Dom/sub display of their sister and her men.
“Come help me with the cookie boxes.” Mike called out as he headed back into the house.
Jogging behind his friend, Bra
d reminded himself that the Dominant and submissive relationship did not entail his sister doing a bunch of manual labor while the men sat around—it was built on respect. Even before Alesha was pregnant the men around her did the same duties that other boyfriends and spouses did, they moved heavy objects and took out the trash and helped her do the dishes after meals. Thankfully, it didn’t appear that his sister was anyone’s servant.
He and Mike got the boxes loaded into the back seat of the sedan.
“Brad you don’t mind coming with me do you? Brian is neck deep in the lights already.” Alesha’s dark brown eyes were filled with joy and something else he could not place his finger on.
chapter four
“Not at all.” Brad caught the keys his sister tossed at him.
Mike escorted her around to the passenger side and helped her in. “Take your time. I’ll call in an order at Picasso’s if you and Brad can pick it up on the way home.”
“Yes, Sir, we will,” Alesha confirmed.
Mike kissed her one last time then backed away as Brad put the car in drive and pulled off.
Brad pulled onto the interstate three miles down from the house when his sister began questioning him.
“So, how are you enjoying your vacation?”
Glancing from the road to her briefly, he said, “Good. Seeing that my baby sister is still happy makes this holiday great. You are happy, right?”
“Completely. As you see my men take care of me very well. The business is growing and now we have this little girl on the way.” She rubbed her stomach.
“You know it’s a girl?”
She shook her head. “Not by a doctor’s report, the men want to be surprised, but I feel like it’s a girl.”
“Well, you’re carrying her, I guess you should know.” After years of being a physician’s assistant, he never doubted a woman’s intuition. Outside of his profession, he was so out of his realm in this conversation, he’d never even had a girl friend pregnant before.