Reformat_of_Art_of_Submission_5-16-14-3

by Michelle

  The bar shifted between her legs as Steve connected it to a loop on the floor and she let out a barely-there sigh. Some Doms preferred their subs to swing with the force of the whip. Thankfully, Steve wasn’t one of them.

  A hook lowered from the ceiling and Steve looped her cuffs onto it. He went back to the wall, to the switch that lowered and raised the hook. His eyes met hers as her arms lifted. When only her toes were on the carpet, the hook stopped.

  “Eyes up, sub.”

  Dena pulled her gaze back to him, then followed with her eyes as he approached the wall of toys. He fingered a whip, the long length of it coiled on its peg, before picking up the next item on the wall.

  The flogger.

  He weighed the thing in his hand and showed it to her as it lay across his palms. It resembled an old leather mop with a shortened rod. But no mop had a leather-wrapped handle. At the end of each strand of the leather, a rubber bead had been attached. Rarely painful—unless the master wielding it was too enthusiastic—it provided sensory overload with its stinging, flailing fingers.

  Knowing what it did and how it worked didn’t change the sense of apprehension and anticipation surging through her body.

  Steve lifted the handle to her mouth, an invitation to accept it, and she did, parting her lips as he brushed it against her.

  “Empty your mind and focus on me, Dena. Focus on what I can give you.”

  Without another word, he disappeared from her sight, leaving her with the image of all those other possible toys he could choose tonight or the darkness of her closed eyes.

  The first lash crossed her back and she cried out from the sudden onslaught. The sting of the beads sent a wave of adrenaline through her body and she panted, short bursts of air taking her through the initial discomfort.

  A voice floated over the pain.

  Steve.

  “Let go, Dena. Empty your mind and trust me to take you where you need to be.”

  The next lash landed farther down her back. The one following crossed her left buttock and one of the beads skidded across her hip bone. She lost count of the strokes and of the rambles of her mind, existing in a gray space of sensation. The only sound she recognized was Steve’s voice as he encouraged her to give her mind and body to him.

  The lashes stopped and his hands surrounded her waist, hot and heavy on her burning skin. One hand slid down her belly and into her weeping sex.

  The voice of her master spoke and her body responded.

  ***

  Mark waited in the upstairs hall, concerned that Miss Windsor would leave the room by herself. She was in no shape to wander on her own. George, his chauffer and sometime security officer, would drive her home. Mildred arrived just as George reached the top of the stairs. She handed Mark an envelope with Kellie’s address neatly written across the front and walked away without a word, the perfect employee.

  Mark passed the paper to George. “She’s in room fifteen. Drive her home and make sure she gets inside safely. Call me when you leave her place.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Mark stepped around the corner before George opened the door, the urge to see her one more time before she left the building nagging at him. Concern for her wellbeing warred with the urge to get the hell out of her sight.

  Miss Windsor was not his average visitor. Wary, but confident, she had a mind of her own and a personal agenda he hadn’t figured out yet. But he would.

  He wanted to see her again.

  For that, he should pound a new knot in Steve’s head.

  He didn’t have time for a woman in his life, didn’t have the patience to train a submissive to his personal preferences, let alone a little researcher who had no clue what she was getting herself into at Private Delights.

  But he would see her again.

  George held the door open and a moment later Kellie made her way into the hall. Even from a distance, Mark could see the residual effects of her orgasm. Heading toward the main staircase, she wobbled on her low heels and George redirected her to the main elevator. He offered her a steadying hand but the little ball of fire pushed him away.

  Mark smiled at her strident independence, sure she’d make a formidable submissive when he finished with her. The elevator doors slid shut and he turned toward his office, building a list in his head while he walked. He needed a complete security check on her and any info Dena could give him about her lifestyle. Steve could take care of it tomorrow, since he was most likely entertaining Dena in one of the rooms on property at the moment.

  Curious, he stopped at the open arch into the main play area.

  And found Steve.

  Chpter 3

  Kellie leaned against her front door.

  Frustration and embarrassment swirled around in her head while she dug in her purse for the house key. The car she’d come home in waited in the street, the driver a few feet from her on the sidewalk and determined to see her go inside before he would leave. Orders from Mr. Harrison, he’d informed her.

  Not Master Mark.

  From what she gathered, the use of his title was only for women. Men in the club did whatever they wanted. And he’d certainly done what he wanted with her.

  He’d abandoned her in that naughty room upstairs after she’d completely lost control of her body and her common sense. He’d ordered one of his flunkies to take her home. Hell, he’d paid for the damn ride, even though her car was in the lot. Said he didn’t trust her to drive. Like one little orgasm could incapacitate her.

  Slamming the door behind her, she tossed her purse onto a chair and kicked off the heels pinching her toes and cursed her still-wobbly knees. Slumped on the lumpy couch, Kellie took virtual inventory of the comfort food in her cabinet before deciding extra calories wouldn’t help.

  Every time she closed her eyes, the words he’d used to undo her floated back into her brain. God, she’d been an idiot to let him get away with seducing her. If it even was a seduction. Kellie yanked a pillow off the sofa and pressed it to her face.

  He hadn’t touched her anywhere out of bounds, even though his touch was highly erotic. Calculated to build a need inside her body she hadn’t expected. And he was damn good at it. To be honest, she’d been a goner long before his hand made it to her bra.

  That dark velvet voice was a problem.

  In conversation, he sounded like a regular testosterone filled man with a mid to low range voice. But hiding inside was one of those bass voices that made women get naked. The skill to use it at will was an added bonus on his resume, a fact she’d been ignorant of until an hour ago. And she’d let him do a number on her.

  Who was she kidding?

  Mark’s looks and his attitude carried as much blame as his tone of voice, and she had no doubt he used all three of them as often as he could. She’d just been his most recent victim.

  Having some flunky put her in a car and take her home after she’d—damn it, she’d creamed her panties right there in the hall while he kept her from falling on her face.

  The pillow sailed across the living room and she stomped into the kitchen. The pantry door was already ajar so she had no excuse to slam it against the wall.

  Pasta. Soup. Oreos. Bingo.

  Kellie opened the package and stared at the cookies. Closed the bag and flipped it upside down to look at the label. Put it back and went to the fridge.

  Carrots would be healthier.

  Her hand landed on the opened bottle of red wine from two weeks ago. Susan’s last night in Texas before she left for her new job in Denver and half the bottle had been consumed.

  What the hell.

  She grabbed the bottle and a coffee mug but couldn’t bring herself to open it. A hangover wouldn’t help.

  Cookies and milk went back to the sofa with her, along with the cell from her purse. Cracking the bag, she touched Susan’s name on her phone’s display and then send.

  Voice mail answered and she left a message, then worked on her second cookie.

  The pho
ne rang before she could put it down. “Susan, thanks for getting back to me so fast. I really need to talk to you.”

  “Not Susan. Sorry.”

  Mark Harrison, damn his sorry ass, chuckled on the other end of the line.

  “Oh.”

  “Wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

  Kellie squeezed her thighs shut to keep the need at bay while his voice rumbled in her head.

  “I’m fine, thank you for calling.”

  “When do you plan to return to Private Delights?”

  “I don’t know. When will you be available?” she asked, wishing she could get this investigation done without him.

  “Any day next week except Monday.”

  “Oh. I’m off Monday afternoon. Is there someone else who could show me around?”

  “Afraid not. We’re closed every Monday.”

  Was that a muffled laugh she heard?

  “Well, I don’t know what to say. Is there a particular night I could visit, or should I wait and come by next Saturday afternoon?”

  “Hold on a minute,” he said. She could hear him moving around and papers rustling. He spoke to someone in the room, his words indistinct. “Sorry to make you wait. There’s always something happening here.”

  “I can only imagine. Maybe I should talk to Dena and just visit when she and Steve are there.”

  “I have a better idea. I’ll pick you up Monday at five. Have your questions ready and I’ll answer them over dinner.”

  The line went dead and she was sorely tempted to throw the phone across the room, but she couldn’t afford to replace the cell. When it rang in her hand, she remembered to check caller ID before answering.

  “Susan, hi.”

  “What’s wrong? You’re frazzled, I can tell. Man trouble?”

  “Hell, no. Well, maybe. I don’t know.”

  “Spill. Don’t leave anything out. I have at least an hour before I need to go to bed. Tomorrow is a full day of training.”

  “On Sunday? Are you kidding me?”

  “Nope. Now, don’t waste the time I have. Vent.”

  “I went to Private Delights tonight.”

  “Why in the world would you do that? How did you get in? Are you okay? Of course, you’re not.”

  “I’m fine, just a little unsettled, is all.” No one needed to know how Master Mark affected her, not even her best friend. “Dena is a member and her boyfriend is Steven Gladston, the security guy. He’s friends with the owner and she finagled a visitor’s pass.”

  “Oh, honey, I wish you’d drop this. Sara’s death had nothing to do with that club. She wasn’t a member and she never went near it.”

  “The man who killed her was a member.”

  “Only because of his uncle, and he’s in jail. Let it go. I have and so have my parents.”

  “I can’t. I think they train men to be abusive but I need proof and I can’t get it without going to the club.”

  Susan was quiet for a few minutes. “This is really about Dale, isn’t it?” she finally asked.

  “Maybe.”

  “You should’ve gone to the police. What he did to you was assault.”

  “You know how he is. Between his silver tongue and his dad’s money, I’d be branded a liar and he’d go back to Harvard Law without a scratch on his reputation.”

  “Still, you should have told someone.”

  “I did. I told you.”

  The raspberry Susan shot her took a little of her frustration away. Not all, but enough to loosen the tightness in her chest.

  “What’s your plan?” Susan asked. “Come on, I know you have a plan. You don’t do anything without one.”

  “I told him I’m working on my thesis, researching human sexuality.”

  “When was this thesis approved and why didn’t you tell me about it?”

  She’d bluffed her way into the club, but lying to her best friend was more of a challenge.

  “Kellie Elizabeth Windsor, answer me.”

  “It hasn’t been approved, but it got me in the door tonight and I have another meeting with the owner on Monday.”

  “I never should’ve left you in Arlington.”

  Kellie used her own raspberry. “You were sick of sharing an apartment with me. You had to get out while you could and you’re in a great place with a wonderful job. I’ll be fine.”

  Susan’s heavy sigh hung between them for a minute. “I met him once. He seemed like a fairly decent guy.”

  Bewildered, Kellie took a deep breath. “What? When?”

  “A while ago, maybe a year, not long after Sara died.”

  “You never mentioned it.” The words came out of her mouth with a distasteful flavor and she fought to modulate her tone. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to accuse you of anything. I’m just surprised I never knew about this.”

  Susan coughed like she was choking on tears and Kellie apologized again. But her longtime friend verbally waved it away.

  “Listen, it was just one time. Dena and Steve had separated-her choice-and she wanted to make things right with him. She asked Harrison to help her, and she asked me to be there as support when she talked to him about helping.”

  “Okay.” Kellie took a breath and jumped. “You liked him?”

  “I didn’t say that. He was okay, arrogant as all get out, but not unreasonably so for a rich, good looking guy.”

  “Do you really think I should back off about the club?”

  Susan’s long silence didn’t bode well.

  “I can’t tell you what to do, Kellie, and you wouldn’t listen anyway. Just be careful.”

  “Okay. I will.”

  “All I ask is that you think ahead and try to stay out of trouble. Call me if you need me.”

  They chatted for a few minutes about Susan’s new position and then rang off. The bag of cookies didn’t seem as appealing, so Kellie finished the milk and put the Oreos back in the pantry. It was almost midnight when she washed up and went to bed.

  Five minutes later, her phone beeped. Susan texting a reminder to be careful, most likely, or Dena checking up on her. The screen glowed and she tapped the icon to open the message. Don’t forget your questions.

  Mark Harrison was a royal pain in the butt.

  Her phone beeped again.

  What are you wearing?

  Damn the man. He had to get into her head one last time before the night was over.

  Kellie shoved the phone into her lingerie drawer and closed it tight. She needed to spend all day Sunday making a list of questions for mister big shot or was that master big shot. She needed to be ready, and she needed to look more like a researcher and less like a college coed.

  Chapter 4

  Mark pulled to the curb in front of Kellie’s home and checked his watch. Five to five, so he had a few minutes to check things out. At his request, Steve had done a rudimentary background check on her this morning, finding nothing worth worrying over. No arrests, no tickets, and her credit score wasn’t bad for a college student. She lived in a two bedroom condo on the south side of Arlington, an older but well-kept area. Steve, being the most detail oriented man he knew, had even located information about her previous roommate, a young woman who moved out of state two months ago.

  The sidewalk was nicely maintained and the building looked respectable, but the lack of security cameras irritated his recent unprovoked urge to protect her. He took care of the people in his life, and in his mind Miss Windsor was already part of that group. He rang the bell and waited, wondering if she’d be on time.

  He preferred women who were punctual.

  The door opened and she waved him in, her ear to the phone.

  “Yes, Susan, I promise.” Kellie covered the phone and whispered an ‘I’m sorry’ then walked away.

  Mark took the opportunity to explore her boundaries. He closed the door behind him and followed her into the living room. It was a decent sized space with real furniture instead of the typical college décor of lawn chairs and folding
tables. Or maybe that was reserved for college boys.

  There were plenty of signs that she’d moved from her teens into adulthood and a more mature lifestyle even though she was still in college. He poked his head into the neat kitchen.

  She was still on the phone and hadn’t stopped his inspection of her place. Either she had no boundaries or she was easily distracted. More structure in her life would be helpful, something he could teach her beyond the pleasure he offered. He went back to the living room where he stood with his arms crossed to wait.

  Kellie disappeared into another room and he heard muffled conversation and drawers opening. When she finally returned, the phone was missing and she carried a slim purse.

  “Sorry. Susan, my ex roommate, called while I was getting ready and I couldn’t cut her off. She’s having issues with her new apartment and needed to vent.”

  “I don’t like to wait, but I’ll give you a pass today.”

  “Well, thank you for the courtesy.”

  The sarcasm wasn’t lost, and he backpedaled a bit. “I like to make the rules and have them followed. It’s who I am.”

  “Is this part of the club? I thought I was in my own home. And I did apologize.”

  Well, fuck a duck. Foiled by a smart mouth. He took a deep breath and said his least favorite words. “I was wrong. I’m sorry. Can we start over?”

  “Yes.” She actually smiled and the change in her face had him fighting an unexpected boner. Not a good time or place to get aroused.

  “Good. Are you ready to go? Do you have your questions?”

  “Yes and yes.”

  Mark followed her to the door and held it open. “You need a sturdier lock for this door.”

  Kellie rolled her eyes. “It’s new and it’s just fine.” She pulled the door shut behind her and gave him a hard look when she turned the key.

  He’d planned on a quiet dinner at the club’s dining room, but instead decided to take her to a little restaurant he frequented near his home.