by J P Barnaby
“Why is that?” Jude asked.
“You put him first. A good Dom always puts his sub’s needs above his own. Ben is a little selfish, yes, but it’s obvious there’s some kind of emotional damage behind that. You will take good care of him. That’s what I wanted to see when you came in here. We can start working whenever you’re ready,” Gio said just as Ben slid to the floor onto his knees, startling Jude. Ben laid his forehead against Jude’s knee in a submissive gesture so powerful Jude couldn’t help but be affected by it. His cock stirred, and he put his hand on the back of Ben’s neck. The collar rubbed lightly against his skin, and for the first time since they’d walked into the studio, he smiled.
They arranged to meet with Gio a few times over the next several weeks. He wanted Jude to become familiar with some of the tools they used. Gio also wanted Jude to feel the different implements against his own skin so he could get an idea about their different sensations. One of the reasons it scared Jude so badly to hit Ben with the flogger was that he had no idea how it felt. Ben told him sometimes a good Dom would test a new toy on himself before he ever let it go near his sub.
Thoughts buzzed and ideas exploded through his mind as Ben drove them back to the apartment. Trees danced just beyond his line of vision, and the question he’d been fighting down burst from his parted lips before he could stop it.
“Do you really love me?” Jude asked and had to force himself not to clamp a hand over his mouth once the question hung in the truck between them. Ben moved his hand from the gear shift to Jude’s knee and squeezed. Still leery from the accident, he took his eyes off the road for a split second to meet Jude’s before replying.
“I love you, Jude. Every time a guy hit on you in a bar, or you went out with some… anyway, it tore at me. That’s why I got so drunk the night we slept together. That guy, the blond, hell I don’t even remember what he looks like now, he was all over you. I knew you’d end up going home with him and I also knew that he would be better for you than I would. Anyone would. I’m broken, but for some reason, you love me anyway, and I’m not going to let that go,” Ben said with another quick glance at Jude. They pulled into the apartment complex, and Jude smiled.
“So, is it against the rules for a sub to make love to his Dom?” he asked, the sly smile on his face growing with every inch Ben’s hand moved up his thigh.
“Even if it were, we’ll make our own rules.” Ben’s mouth covered his and they made out like teenagers in the truck until Mrs. Barrett from the third floor smacked on Ben’s hood and told them to get a room. They laughed, went into the apartment, and followed her suggestion thoroughly.
Fourteen
“HEY, THERE he is,” Andy said as Jude came into the break room to put his lunch in the refrigerator. “Congratulations, Jude.” The entire accounting department, sans Dennis, milled around the claustrophobic room in between the two six-foot tables and between the dozen chairs distributed around them. On the table closer to the door sat a cake with Andy’s sentiment hastily scribbled across the white frosting in blue, and Jude stared. Everyone else chatted amicably as Carrie took on her role and cut the thing into pieces before passing them around.
After all the chaos and upheaval in his personal life, Jude had nearly forgotten about the promotion. Carl and Wendy, the other two senior accountants, clapped him on the back, probably thrilled to have someone else to shoulder the load. Most of the other staff accountants were also pleased, except the one or two in consideration for the promotion with Jude and Dennis. They were slower to congratulate him, but only Dennis flat-out refused to be a part of Jude’s celebration.
They remained in the break room for a good half hour, and Jude felt more grounded. He’d used the flogger on Ben for the first time the night before and spent a long time that morning trying to reconcile the new, frightening parts of him with the boring old accountant he’d always been. Only, with the announcement that morning, he was no longer just a boring accountant, but a leader in the department. Everything in Jude’s life had changed in the last few months as he tried desperately to keep up.
Dennis glanced up as Jude passed, hatred and disgust twisting his features, but Jude simply kept walking. It took a few minutes for his computer to boot, and his mind drifted to Ben. His lover would be so proud he’d finally achieved the promotion he’d worked so hard to get. It took less than a minute for him to text the details and invite Ben to dinner to celebrate. As he sat the phone back on the desk, Andy stopped by his cubicle.
“Since we’re in the slow point of the month, go ahead and move your things into the empty office,” Andy said with a smile. “Then, I want to take you out to lunch to celebrate.” Jude grinned at him and turned his computer off so he and Bobby from IT could move it into the office. An office. He wished with a painful longing he could call his mom. She’d have been thrilled he’d worked his way into a window office. Making a mental note to ask Susie if she wanted to join him and Ben for dinner, he went over to the copier room and emptied a couple of paper ream boxes. He didn’t keep a lot of personal stuff in his cubicle, mostly just toys and crap people had given him for Christmas the last couple of years. A smile spread across his face as he wondered if, someday, he’d put a picture of him and Ben on his desk. He liked that idea.
It occurred to him as he carried the last of the stuff into his new office, that he would be closer to Dennis. With his cube being closest to Andy and therefore farthest from Dennis—boss’s prerogative—he was just on the other side of the hall from Dennis after the move. He’d actually be able to see him while he worked. That must have been part of the deal as the newest member of the senior team. New guy got stuck with Dennis.
And speaking of….
“Settling into my office?” Dennis asked as he stood just inside the office door with an antagonistic look. Jude looked up from where he’d been putting office supplies into separated spaces in his desk drawer. The pout in Dennis’s face and the way his arms were folded reminded Jude of an overgrown child. He couldn’t help it—he laughed. A few months ago he’d have been intimidated by the confrontation and avoided it by asking Dennis to leave. After nearly losing Ben, starting up a new relationship, and starting to become a Dom, however, he found he had no interest in backing down.
“Sorry, man, I thought it was my name on the door,” Jude said, and then brushed past a stunned and sullen Dennis to look at the plate outside the door. He’d slid in the little piece of plastic that used to be in the holder outside his cube, so he knew what it said. “Yeah… yeah, that’s my name. This must be my office, Dennis. Now, was there something you needed?”
Dennis faltered for only a minute before plunging ahead—recklessly, considering Jude had become his boss.
“I’m a better accountant than you. I’ve worked my ass off for this promotion, and I’m putting in a complaint to HR. Andrew only gave it to you because you’re fucking him,” Dennis whispered furiously, as if he didn’t want anyone else to hear the accusation. Jude steadied his hands and pushed past Dennis again, but that time to close the door.
“You know I’m not sleeping with Andy. For God’s sake, I have a boyfriend at home. Yeah, you may be a really good accountant, Dennis, but you’re a jerk. No one wants to work for a jerk. Half the department would quit if you suddenly became their boss, including me. That’s one of the reasons I got the promotion over you. The other reason is because while you’re a good accountant, Dennis, I’m better. You might want to get out of my office because now, I have the power to write you up. Ever heard the word insubordination?”
Dennis fumed. His mouth opened and closed like a fish suddenly flung to shore. Jude could see all of the retorts he wanted to use flash through his hate-filled eyes, but without another word, he turned and fled. With a smirk, Jude sat down behind his new cherry wood desk, in the nice ergonomic chair, and gazed out the window overlooking the city. If he’d had his leathers, he could have flogged Ben all over his desk in that moment. Instead, he looked very forward to later
when they could be alone.
Unfortunately, even with the new office and the new title, work still needed to be done, so he spent a long day catching up on his avalanche of responsibilities. In addition to preparing the monthly financials on his list, he also needed to review the financials of other accountants for discrepancies and sign off before they went out the door. It was nearly five o’clock before Jude logged out of his computer and headed for home. The lunch with Andy had gone very well, and though he’d debated for some time about whether to tell his boss about Dennis’s accusations, he finally ’fessed up over dessert. Andy rolled his eyes and said he’d deal with Dennis directly as well as any HR fallout, but neither of them suspected Dennis would actually make good on his threat.
Bullies were generally the biggest cowards, and Jude was a Dom—he knew exactly how to take care of a bully.
Fifteen
“DID YOU bring the shorts?” Gio asked when he, Ben, and Jude stood in an open area of the warehouse away from the cameras and out of the line of vision of anyone who might walk into the studio. Jude had made it very clear that he felt uncomfortable naked in front of strangers, so Giovanni had promised to hold their sessions away from prying eyes. Ben, who was used to performing for an audience, stripped down without hesitation and waited for instructions. God, I love to be a good boy for Jude. From his resting position, Ben saw Jude nod, and Gio sent him into another room to change.
It took Jude a couple of minutes, but when he came back, he looked more relaxed. The thin, tight bike shorts set off his package so perfectly Ben’s mouth watered. He wanted to crawl over to his Sir, his Jude, and nuzzle his face into that beautiful, tight crotch. Jude always smelled fucking amazing, like sweat and spice and sunshine.
“Boy, if you’re done daydreaming, can we get started?” Gio asked with a smirk, and Ben looked ruefully between the two Doms. He shivered in anticipation as he knelt on the tiled floor between them. Two large space heaters made the room warm despite the chill in the mid-February Chicago air.
Jude smiled down at him, but the expression seemed thin as he waited for Gio to start their first session.
“Okay, Jude, have you ever been tied up before?” The older Dom smiled and waited patiently for Jude to answer. Rather than saying it aloud, he just shook his head. That surprised Ben. Even vanilla people had that kind of fun sometimes, right? “I’m going to flog you first, and then put you into some simple bondage on the cross behind you. While you’re bound, I’ll let Ben play with you. I’ll be nearby in case you start to panic and need to be cut free, but I won’t watch. After that, I’ll show you how to tie up Ben, and I’ll show you something you might like while you play with him.”
“That sounds easy enough,” Jude said and then followed Gio to the giant X-shaped wooden structure.
“Turn around and just rest your hands on the wood. I’m not going to bind you for your first flogging.” Gio’s low voice seemed to calm Jude, who turned and placed his palms on the top extensions of the cross. “Move your feet back, yes, like that.” Jude slid his feet back, causing his back to arch in the most erotic way. Ass out, back arched, he looked like a cat in heat with an itch Ben would love to scratch.
“Tell him how he looks to you,” Gio told Ben as he walked over to a side table to pick up the flogger left for their session. Ben climbed to his feet and covered the two steps needed for him to be able to touch Jude’s sweet skin. Without invitation or instruction, he ran a hand down Jude’s back, who shivered under his light touch.
“You look fucking beautiful, so hot, just waiting for the flogger to touch your ass. I want you so fucking bad right now, baby. You really have no idea,” Ben breathed against the hollow of Jude’s neck and then kissed his damp skin. With tender care, he ran a hand down Jude’s chest, over his clenched abdomen, and then, with a glance at Gio’s back, over his half-hard cock.
Jude liked it.
“Okay, boy, if you’re done groping, then?” Gio asked and shooed Ben back out of the way so he wouldn’t be hit accidentally. A flogger to the face would probably not have felt nearly as good as one to the ass.
He warmed Jude up with light strokes. Ben didn’t have the heart to tell Jude that the barrier of clothing would soften some of the sting. He and Gio wanted Jude to get a gauge of how it felt to be flogged so he could beat Ben without guilt. He found a little sugarcoating perfectly acceptable. A sharp slap indicated that Gio had started going a bit harder. Jude didn’t flinch. Even though Ben knew Jude wasn’t into the scene, watching him get flogged turned Ben on. The graceful way he arched into each swing, the sound of the leather slapping against his ass, God, even the way his head hung down in apparent, unconscious submission—Jude was beautiful. Ben wanted to push Gio away and fuck Jude right up against the cross.
“Now, I’m going to move up to your back. You never want to strike on the lower back over the kidneys because that kind of damage can become very serious. Especially in the beginning while you’re still learning, stay on his ass or between his shoulder blades.” The last word came out in a minor explosion of sound when Gio struck Jude’s bare back. Ben heard the hiss of breath as it burst from between Jude’s clenched teeth. It looked like that didn’t turn him on. In fact, it looked like he didn’t like that at all.
“Also be careful of the sciatic nerve in the back of the thigh and the tailbone. These are also sensitive areas commonly damaged by overzealous flogging.” Gio ran his hand over the back of Jude’s thigh, then at the base of his spine, to illustrate where not to strike. “You’ll get better control as you practice, so go lightly to start.” Another hard strike across Jude’s back, and Ben found it difficult to keep watching. He knew what kind of pain his own body would take, but Jude hadn’t ever been flogged. The more Gio hit him, the more reason Jude would have to resent Ben.
“You’re getting an idea of what he feels, then?” Gio asked, and Jude nodded. Stepping away from the cross, Gio set the flogger back on the side table. “How are you feeling? I have water here. You should drink, you’re sweating.” Jude grabbed his T-shirt from the back of a nearby chair and wiped his face. With a grateful smile, he took the offered bottle of water, and drank.
“It wasn’t nearly as bad as I was expecting. I thought he would be in terrible pain, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. Though, I’m sure you weren’t going at me like you would go at him.” Jude glanced at Ben, who could see that their sugarcoating hadn’t gone unnoticed.
“No, I wasn’t swinging as hard as I would with Ben, but Ben is an experienced submissive and you’re not an experienced Dom. You wouldn’t hit Ben as hard I would either. So, it was a reasonable demonstration of what he’ll feel under your flogger.”
“You’re still going to tie me up, then?”
“Yep, on the cross when you’re ready,” Gio said cheerfully. Jude chuckled and finished about half the bottle of water before stepping back to the cross. Shirtless, and in those formfitting shorts, Jude was gorgeous as Gio took care tying him to the St. Andrew’s cross. Jude’s muscles stretched and flexed when he tested the knots, and Ben’s cock pulsed as he thought of all the ways he wanted to play with Jude once they were left alone.
“Always have a utility knife nearby so you can cut your sub out if he gets into trouble. It’s not common, but it does happen. In suspension bondage, a piece of equipment that worked perfectly the last hundred times you used it could fail, or there is a problem with circulation. Do you have any tingling in your hands? Do they feel cold?”
Rather than just agreeing with Gio, Jude tested the bonds, moved his hands around, and really assessed his situation before telling the Dom he was fine. Next, his ankles were secured to the bottom of the cross, and they went through the same evaluation. Jude’s breathing accelerated once Gio had him firmly bound to the cross. Ben could see a very subtle panic in his eyes. If they were at a club, or another location where he didn’t feel quite so in control, Jude would freak out in bondage. Ben stood without invitation or instruction and m
oved next to Jude, kneeling next to his right foot so he could touch it. The simple reminder that he wasn’t alone seemed to soothe Jude, and he closed his eyes.
“We’ve talked about the factor of trust in a Dom/sub relationship. While you’re not my sub, you’ll understand that level of trust when I say that I could very easily cut your shorts and briefs off and leave you naked for one of my cameras. I have a dozen guys who would love to kneel and suck you off while I filmed,” Gio said casually, and Jude’s entire body froze. Ben felt the tension in his leg, heard the strain in his breathing, but some level of trust must have existed for him because he didn’t panic. “But you know I wouldn’t because we have an agreement. You and I have limits in place. I know what you will and won’t tolerate, and I won’t violate those. That is what the lifestyle is about.” Jude nodded and his body relaxed, but not to the point Ben would have, being so beautifully bound.
“Jude, are you comfortable with me going to my office around the corner and leaving you in Ben’s hands? He can text me when you guys are done getting off,” Gio made sure he was in Jude’s line of sight as he asked. That was one thing Ben really liked about Gio—he always made sure whoever he spoke to knew they were the most important person in the room to him at that moment. Kage had a habit of talking to Ben while he dug through a bag or a bin for some piece of equipment, even with Ben’s mouth full of a gag. That had irritated him.
“I’m good with him,” Jude said with a slow easy smile in Ben’s direction. The air stopped moving in his lungs when Ben looked at Jude, so beautiful in his bondage, with only a pair of shorts standing in the way of his sweet body. He barely noticed Gio leave the room.
“Can I tease you, Sir?” Ben asked demurely while looking up at Jude. “Please, Jude? I want to use my mouth on every inch of your skin. I want you to beg for me.”