Dirty Money

by Michelle Love

  Steele’s insides shook with excitement.

  I’m finally going to get to see the inside of a real BDSM club!

  ARSEN

  “No one else is here, Steele. Try to call her,” Arsen directed.

  Steele called Gwen, and both heard her cell phone ringing in Gwen’s bedroom. They followed the sound and found the phone on the floor near the bed.

  Steele picked it up.

  “Well, the blanket is gone from her bed. Perhaps she was sick on it or something and took it to get it cleaned and accidentally dropped her phone. Is her car still here?”

  They went to look out the front door and Gwen’s car was still there, but Allen’s wasn’t. Arsen shook his head.

  “She must’ve went with Allen. I guess we’ll have to talk to her tomorrow about him. I don’t think he’s crazy enough to do anything to her now that I know he’s with her. That would be really stupid. Don’t you think?”

  Steele turned to go grab her purse so they could leave.

  “It would be dumb and he didn’t seem stupid, just crazy.”

  Arsen took her hand as she came back and they left the small apartment. Steele winced as Paul got out and opened the back door to the Suburban for them.

  “Good morning, Paul. God, I feel awful about you having to stay the night in the car,” she said.

  “Aw, don’t worry about me. I climbed in the back and slept like a baby. Sure I’m a little wrinkled this morning, but I can shower and change once we get back to the penthouse. You know I have an apartment in that building, don’t you?”

  “No, I didn’t realize that.” Steele slipped inside the car. “Paul, did you see when that car we followed back here left?”

  He shook his head.

  “No, I just woke up about fifteen minutes ago. It was gone already.”

  “Okay, thanks,” she said as she buckled her seatbelt.

  Arsen moved in next to her and frowned.

  “It would’ve been nice if he had seen them leave.”

  “I’m sure they just went to eat breakfast and must’ve took her blanket to the cleaners. Gwen drinks often, but it still has her puking now and then.” Steele ran her hand over Arsen’s muscular thigh and left it there.

  He looked down at her small hand on him and thought how he’d never allow anyone to touch him like that before. She was changing him and it was happening a lot faster that he even thought possible.

  Arsen ran his hand over hers and lifted it to his lips, leaving a kiss on top. “You really are perfect for me, baby.”

  Her blue eyes sparkled.

  “You are perfect for me too.”

  Running an arm around her he felt as close to normal as he’d ever been. But as they pulled away from the apartment a police car moved down the street in front of them, reminding him of his trouble and how he had to hurry to fix that problem.

  Arsen knew his time was limited. He pulled out his phone and pulled up the website of a local shop that sold the clothes and masks they’d need to go to the club. He tapped on something he’d love to see Steele in and showed it to her.

  “How about this for tonight?”

  He smiled as pink stained her creamy colored cheeks.

  “Really? That will show all of me! I mean every bit! You’d let me out in public like that?”

  The leather garment was a series of black belts which crisscrossed over the body, leaving the breasts exposed and the ass as well. The belt which ran between the legs was a little wider than the rest and managed to cover the goods, but that was the only thing which was covered.

  Arsen stifled a chuckle and said, “Oh, it has a thing you wear over it, Steele.” He tapped another place on the cell phone’s screen and a sheer, black short dress came up. “See, this goes over it.”

  “It’s nearly invisible, Arsen! You have got to be playing with me.” She tapped her foot, nervously.

  When his head shook her forehead wrinkled with a frown. Arsen’s eyebrows went up.

  “Steele, you said you wanted to see what it’s like. Well, this is the type of thing the females who go there, wear. You’ll look hot as hell. Don’t worry. I’d never dress you in anything you wouldn’t look good in.”

  He tapped at the screen again, pulling up a picture of thigh high, shiny leather boots with six-inch heels and grinned at her. Steele shook her head.

  “Arsen, I can’t wear that. It’s crazy!”

  After showing her a cat-woman mask, he said, “You’ll wear this. You’ll be anonymous. No one will even know who you are or ever recognize you on the street. Let yourself go with the character, Steele. You said you wanted to know and you will know after tonight.”

  “And what will you be wearing? May I ask?”

  “An Armani suit and a batman mask.” He put his arm around her again and pulled her tight to him. “Cat-woman and Batman. Sounds fun. Don’t you think?”

  “Only this cat-woman is naked,” she said with a frown.

  “Nearly naked,” he corrected her as he placed the order for the things, having them delivered to his penthouse by eight that night.

  Thinking about how hot she was going to look had him more excited than he’d been in a very long time. He had a bright red collar he would put around her long, elegant neck to show every male there, she was his and his alone.

  Arsen toyed with the idea of making her crawl or not, but ended up deciding she could walk in as he led her with his leash. It would be his last time going into the place after all and he was going to make it count.

  He nipped her neck, playfully and ran his hand over her sex.

  “I cannot wait to show your hot ass off, baby.”

  The way she shivered let him know she was afraid, and for some reason that made him happy.

  A little fear is good for the soul.

  STEELE

  “Arsen! This is just too much!” she whined as he buckled the last buckle on her little BDSM outfit, emphasis on little.

  She turned her body in front of the mirror and frowned.

  “My big ass is all out there!”

  His large hand cupped one of her ass cheeks and he gave it a good squeeze. “It is and I’m loving it.”

  Steele watched his eyes light up in the mirror and knew he was in his element. It both excited her and made her nervous at the same time.

  “Arsen, I’m sure to let you down. I know I will.”

  He pulled her into his arms, resting his forehead to hers.

  “Baby, we’re not going there to really do any more than retrieve a couple of things from my private room. None of the regular things that happen there are we going to be involved in. So you can’t possibly let me down. Can’t you see that? Plus, I kind of love the shit out of you, and that means whatever you do never lets me down.”

  “You love the shit out of me, huh?” she asked with a grin.

  He popped her ass. “I can curse. You cannot.”

  She giggled. “Yes, Master.”

  He smiled and pulled away from her, picking up the sheer, black dress and pulled it over her head. Then went to a closet that when he opened it up Steele about fell over.

  “Oh my God! That’s why I smell leather in here all the time.” She went to him and looked at all the leather inside.

  He pulled out a long, red, leather coat and held it out for her. She put her arms through the sleeves then he wrapped it around her and tied it closed.

  “Better?” he asked

  She nodded and smiled.

  “You fooled me, you rogue.”

  “Oh, once inside, the coat has to be checked. But you won’t be walking around anywhere else like that.” He led her back to the mirror where she looked at their reflections.

  Arsen was in his black Armani suit, looking handsome as hell and she was in the long, red, leather coat with the tall boots. Her long, dark hair was pulled into a single braid which fell over her shoulder. Her make-up was impeccable, and she found herself feeling a lot sexier than she ever had before.

  Then Ar
sen went to the leather filled closet again and took out a red leather collar and leash set. Her heart started to pound in her chest as it never crossed her mind she’d have to wear that and crawl on her hands in knees in front of a group of people.

  As he reached up to run the collar around her neck her hand took his wrist. “Arsen, I’m beginning to think this isn’t a thing I can do after all. Crawling around in front of people is too much.”

  His smile was a mixture of fun and evil.

  “You will have to trust me, Steele. I am your master after all. You signed the contract.”

  The contract, yes she had asked for the contract between them and signed it. Ready to show him she could be what he needed. After gulping down the knot which had formed in her throat, she said, “I did. Go ahead, put your collar on me, Master.”

  Arsen placed the thing around her neck and attached the leash.

  “How does that feel? It’s not too tight, is it?”

  She shook her head. The fact was it fit a little bit loosely. But she wasn’t happy with the way it made her feel. Like an animal and not in a hot way either.

  “I suppose I’ll get used to this.”

  Arsen’s silence left her wondering what the man was thinking.

  Will this become something we do often?

  She’d signed the contract and whatever he wanted to do with her he could. When she looked back up at him, she saw a slight droop at the edge of his dark eyes. He wasn’t as happy as he had been.

  His finger ran over her red painted lips.

  “Think about things tonight when you see that lifestyle. Be true to yourself and to me. If you decide you want out of the contract, I’ll let you.”

  Steele shook her head. No contract meant no Arsen, and she knew it.

  “I’ll get used to this. I can get used to anything if it means I get to stay in your life, Arsen.”

  “If I have my way, you will always be in my life, Steele.” Arsen kissed her cheek and picked up the leash. “Remember to follow a step behind me when we get to the club, baby. I don’t want one of the assholes there to smack your ass if you don’t. It’s not like any place you’ve ever been.”

  As they went down the elevator to get into the car, Steele felt something inside her growing. It was fear and excitement and a little anger. She was feeling angry with herself for letting so much of herself go. But she couldn’t seem to stop herself. The thrill was outweighing the shame.

  GWEN

  Water was dripping somewhere in the open room. Gwen opened her eyes and looked around. It was dark and musty smelling. She could hear the sound of water lapping against the shore outside a window.

  Lights glowed in the darkness outside the window which had been covered with a plastic sheet she couldn’t see through. She tried to move and found herself trapped.

  Still groggy, she moved her head around and found herself chained to a small bed. It seemed like she was in an old warehouse, most likely down by the docks near the San Francisco bay area.

  Though her mind was fuzzy she did remember telling Allen he had to leave as he was talking about kidnapping Steele for her own good. Now it seemed he must’ve kidnapped her.

  Panic ripped through her as she recalled what Arsen had told her Allen had done to his high school math teacher that had him sent to prison. She wondered how anyone could be set free after what he did.

  “Allen?” she called out.

  Nothing came back, and she hoped he would leave her alone there rather than come back and do God knows what to her. Better to die of starvation and dehydration than to be tortured by the crazy man.

  The sound of metal grinding against metal met her ears and then there were footsteps. She bit her lip and tried hard not to cry as Allen came near her. The light was dim, but she saw he was holding a whip in one hand and some type of odd contraption in the other.

  “Allen, what are you doing, Sweetheart,” she asked in a really kind voice, hoping to make him see her for who he knew she was. They were going to get married after all. Though crazy, he had to love her she thought.

  “I asked you to help me and you told me to get out of your house. I guess you have no idea what your best friend is going through with that monster, Arsen Sloan, so I’m about to show you what he does to women, Gwen.” He took a step towards her and placed something in her mouth.

  The contraption he had in his hand had been some type of gagging device. After placing the ball in her mouth, he buckled the thing around her head.

  She tried to talk and scream and it wouldn’t allow either. She shook her head, and he looked at her with no emotion.

  “You have to see. So you understand what he does to your friend, Gwen. You didn’t understand me or maybe you didn’t believe me, so you see, I have to show you or you never will understand.”

  He took a step back and let the whip fly, the thin leather fell across her stomach and she shrieked with the pain, only the thing in her mouth stopped it from ringing out in the air for anyone to hear.

  Tears fell in streams down her cheeks. The whip flew through the air again.

  So this is how I’m going to die.

  ARSEN

  The angels and demons residing in Arsen seemed to be at war with each other. On the one hand he found Steele beyond amazing in the outfit he bought her. On the other hand, that was not her.

  She was tolerating too much, and he knew it. It was he who needed some change in who he was, not her. She was a sweet, innocent, young woman he met and radically influenced in a bad way.

  Yet here he was taking her to a place he’d promised himself he wouldn’t. The car stopped in the alley where the entrance to Fierce was. He watched as Steele looked around, confusion riddling her beautiful face.

  “Where is it, Arsen?”

  He pointed to the rusty metal door.

  “Right here.”

  Paul opened the car door, letting them out.

  “Call when you’re ready to leave, boss.”

  Arsen nodded and placed the mask over Steele’s eyes then put his own on. He took her leash and heard her sigh. His heart sped up, and he wanted nothing more than to tell her to get back in the car and wait for him to go get the things he needed to so the police wouldn’t find them.

  “Steele, would you rather wait in the car for me?”

  “I want to see this place. I want to see what you found you had to have in your life these past years. I want to know all about you and what you need,” she answered.

  “The only thing I need since I found you, is you, Steele. None of this is me any longer. I need you to start understanding that, Baby.”

  She shook her head. “I’m no fool, Arsen. You will tire of me if I can’t be what you need.”

  He shrugged his wide shoulders and took a step then turned back.

  “Steele, if we get separated somehow, you need to immediately go into that little submissive sit I showed you. As long as you have my collar and leash on and take that position, no male will mess with you. If you’re wondering around free they might mess with you even though you have the collar and leash on. If you’re wondering around free and it’s off, you’re fair game to them. And all the screaming and yelling will be ignored or even stopped by a gag.”

  “You’re just trying to scare me into staying in the car, aren’t you?” She smiled and giggled. “So dramatic!”

  Arsen shook his head and knew she was about to really freak out, but she was too tenacious to believe him. Once he opened the door, and she saw how dark it was she hugged up behind him. Her hand moved into his and he stopped and looked back at her.

  “You can’t do that here.”

  “Oh! Yeah, sorry. Okay, let me get into character. Wow, this place looks spooky. Don’t you think it’s creepy in here, Arsen?” She took a step back and seemed to be rambling.

  “You have no idea, Baby. Now, keep your mouth shut and follow me. Remember all the rules, please. I don’t want some mother fucker smacking you and pissing me off.” He led her down the
stairs and prayed she’d follow the rules he’d laid out for her.

  When they rounded the corner to the coat check he heard Steele gasp at the freak show who was running the counter. The guy did look rather ghoulish with his spiked black hair and ruby red lipstick. The piercings all over his pale face were gruesome, and he was dressed in only tight leather shorts. His nipples were pierced, and a chain ran between them.

  Arsen turned and took off Steele’s coat and saw her eyes go wide behind her mask as he revealed her nearly naked body. Her chest rose as she held her breath.

  “You need to breathe, Baby,” he whispered in her ear as he pulled the coat completely away.

  “Nice,” the young guy said as he took the red coat. “Room 21, right?”

  Arsen nodded as the guy placed the coat on a hanger and pressed a sticker to it with his private room number. Arsen looked back to find Steele biting at her lower lip and shook his head at her. She stopped and fell into place behind him.

  With a few feet of privacy before they got into the main room he told her, “Walk with your head up high. You’re proud to be with me after all and want all to know that. But don’t make eye contact with anyone. Look forward and stay only one step behind me.”

  “Okay, man my stomach is full of butterflies. I guess I should’ve had a drink or something before I came in here,” she said.

  Arsen smiled knowingly.

  “I wanted you completely sober to see this place. Now no more talking until we get to my private room.”

  Steele shut her mouth and Arsen walked into the room, holding her leash and loving the stares the men were immediately giving his woman. He walked through the crowd of scantily, leather clad people and had to hold back a smile.

  She was stealing the show, just like he knew she would.