by Ts McKinney
Grinning widely, I wrapped her in a hug and answered, “I’ve met him.” I winked. “Trust me, he’s seen the error of his ways.”
“Good to hear, love,” she whispered as she kissed my cheek. “I couldn’t be happier for you. Seth is perfect.”
“Hands off the merchandise, Mistress,” Seth teased as he sauntered over and wrapped his arm around my waist. “You had your chance.”
She grinned and released me to give Seth a hug. “No, darling,” she answered. “I never had a chance with this one. He’s always been yours…just waiting for you to find him.”
Pushing away from both of us, she said, “Now…where’s the alcohol? I’m not into this whole lovey-dovey stuff. I’m going to have to be completely shit-faced drunk to keep from sobbing like a cry-baby during the ceremony. My little man’s all grown up.”
Rolling my eyes, I said, “Dear Lord, you’re already half-way drunk now, aren’t you?”
“Of course, darling,” she answered. “I rode with Eli and I’m not planning on participating in any scenes tonight so I’m free to behave like a sloppy drunk…as long as I don’t do anything to ruin your ceremony.”
“Eli’s here?” I asked, my voice sounding a bit more high-pitched than usual. It wasn’t that I didn’t like Eli, quite the contrary, actually. He was a cool dude, funny, and incredibly good at his job. Over the past six weeks, Eli, Seth, and I had already managed to build a firm foundation to what would be a solid friendship in the future. The only problem was that the day Eli started working, Ari stopped. Well, Ari didn’t actually stop working, he just stopped coming into the office. Since his job was computer work, he was able to work from home.
Coward.
I’d told him just as much, but there was no getting him to budge on his stay-away-from-Eli line in the sand. He’d promised to attend tonight only because I’d participated in another pinky swear that Eli Wallace would not be invited. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. As it turned out, it looked like I was really bad at that pinky swearing thing.
“Oh, honey,” Samantha cooed. “Get that deer in the headlights look off your face. He understands he’s restricted to the club floor only. He’s here only to make sure I have a safe ride home. I don’t understand why he wasn’t invited, but he seems to agree that it’s for the best.” She looked around the intimate room we’d reserved for our ceremony and asked, “Where is the little twerp, anyway?”
Twerp? “I assume you’re referring to my best friend, Arizona?” I countered. “He isn’t here yet. I’ll be sure to introduce the two of you as soon as he arrives.”
“Don’t bother,” she replied. “If he doesn’t like my Eli, then I’m not going to like him. No introductions will be necessary.” She blew Seth and me a kiss and then left us to make her way over to the bar.
“Well…that went well,” I told Seth. “You think she’ll tie Ari up and spank him before the night is over?”
Seth studied her for a second before answering, “No, he should be safe tonight. She’s a good Domme so she’d never lay hand on ass while drinking. He keeps acting like a teenage boy over Eli, and I can’t make any promises for the future of his safety, though.”
Seth looked around the room, checking for the hundredth time that everything was absolutely perfect, and then shoved his hands into his pockets. I was one hundred percent certain that was to keep them from fluttering around nervously. Who would have ever thought I would be the calm one?
“Everything’s perfect, Seth,” I whispered. “Stop worrying. If Ari doesn’t show up, Landon fires us, or Samantha dances naked on the bar, none of it will matter. When this night is over, your collar will be on my neck and nobody will ever be able to take it from me. Three months from now, your ring will be on my finger and mine on yours. Same story. Nobody steals what’s in our hearts.” I smiled, thinking of how I’d taken both our wedding bands to the jeweler and had them engraved. Seth hadn’t known of my plans, but I’d had zero doubts that he would approve. My band said Owned and his was engraved with Owner. When I’d shown them to him, he’d fucked me harder and longer than ever before, whispering words of love with each and every thrust.
“But is the venue okay with you?” he asked nervously. “I mean, I know it isn’t the nicest place in town, but this club is where I first trained as a Dom. This is what brought me to you and you to me.” He glanced around. “This room is nice enough and Jaxson worked hard to make sure it was decorated as beautifully as possible, but I can still hear moaning and the swats of paddles in the room next door. That’s not all right, is it?”
“It’s more than all right, Seth. It’s ours.”
Before he could find something else to fret over, Ari breezed through the door. A huge grin split his face when he saw us. He rushed over, gave us both tight hugs, and said, “I’m here! Let’s get this party started!”
The words and enthusiasm matched the Ari I’d come to love. The way his eyes nervously darted around the room, no doubt searching for Eli.
“He isn’t here,” I assured him. “Just like we promised. He is next door, though, in the club. He’s Samantha’s ride home. She promised he won’t come anywhere near our room. You’re safe from facing your past and trying that whole communication thing you bitched me out for.”
“Touché,” he muttered…but looked relieved, nonetheless.
“It’s time,” Seth whispered. “You ready, babe?”
I smiled at him and answered, “I’ve been ready since the first moment I saw you. Give me your collar.”
“Better than that…I’ll give you my heart.”
*****
Ari
I leaned against the opened doorframe and stared out, in shock and awe, at the sexual acts going on right in front of me. Right there. In front of me. It was like a wonderful, live version of porn. Sure, some men and women were getting their asses spanked and they were tied up in a various assortment of humiliating positions, but it was still porn. I would only have to take two steps forward, and I would be out of the sanctity of the fairy-tale love story taking place in the room behind me, and into the pits of sinful delights.
My feet remained glued to the floor, though, because no matter how badly I might want the glorious display of wickedness in front of me, I also wanted the love that existed in the room behind me. The sad truth of the matter was that I’d probably never have either one of them. Like a coward, I sat at home every day, working away on my computer and not existing in the real world.
The story of my life—afraid to take a step forward and afraid to take a step back.
Just as I started to turn away and rejoin Seth and Baker’s collaring ceremony after-party, something caught my eye. No, someone. I froze, my feet suddenly unable or unwilling to move. I felt like every person in the club froze and then simply disappeared. Everyone except for me and Eli.
He stood about ten feet away from me, looking sexier than fuck and even more arrogant than I remembered. I hadn’t thought it possible, but his muscles were larger, more defined, and oh-so-perfectly accented by the leather harness thingie that criss-crossed his chest. Black leather pants were molded to his legs.
I literally felt myself gulp. Seriously, like some cartoon character, I gulped.
He smirked and then crooked his finger to gesture for me to come to him. With what could only be described as pure guidance by my cock, my right foot took a step forward. The sounds of the club returned and all the participants reappeared. That’s when it dawned on me. Eli was not only at a BDSM club but he was dressed the part.
My feet froze again.
His finger crooked again.
Knowing I needed to face the music sooner or later, I covered the short distance between us and said, “What are you doing in Colorado, Eli? This is my world, with my friends. Not very long ago, you made it perfectly clear that you didn’t belong with me. Why show up now? If you’re hoping for a side order of revenge because of my lie, then you’d best get ready to be disappointed. My friends will kill you if you try to hur
t me.” That probably wasn’t true, but maybe Eli wouldn’t know any better.
One corner of his lips tilted upward as he gazed down at me…working some sort of deviltry with the lower portion of my body. Why? Why did he have to smell so fucking good? Look so fucking delicious? Why?
“I’m here because I got tired of waiting, Ari. You’re old enough now…and you’re mine.”
And then I ran…in the opposite direction.
The End
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
T.S. McKinney lives in East Tennessee with her high school sweetheart/husband and all the countless dogs she picks up from deserted country roads. Her professional career has been in business but her heart has always belonged to the fantasy world found in books.
Creating wicked worlds where one can meet the perfect hero – and then do anything to him that you want – has been a hobby that has brought her plenty of hours of fun and naughty entertainment. When not working, reading, or writing, she loves to spend time with her family and forcing them (because they don’t really have another choice) to allow her to redecorate their houses…and listen to her naughty…sometimes sadistic stories.
PAINTED HEARTS PUBLISHING
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