by Sorcha Black
“That’s cool.” For some reason that didn’t feel like the compliment he meant it to be.
“I usually go for busty blondes with big attitudes, you know? But there’s something to be said for hanging out with girls that are sevens instead of tens.” He stopped and pulled her to him, then kissed her.
His kiss was firm and dry. He got points for not slobbering on her, but between the compliment about her comparative unattractiveness to his usual dates, and the fact that she wasn’t feeling any spark with him, she didn’t know what to think. Was she crushing too hard on Lock and Elodie right now to see Tristan for the qualities he had? Didn’t she want her own boyfriend and a normal life? Maybe try regular two-person sex?
When he got her to her door, he didn’t try to come up. After a peck on the cheek he walked away and didn’t look back, as though he’d forgotten about her already.
Chapter Eleven
“Did you hear about Rob, from Human Resources?” Sean scanned up and down the hall before stepping into Lock’s office.
Lock searched through his mental co-worker database and came up with a quiet man who gave the impression of hard work and efficiency. “Rob? He’s the guy who looks like a cop?”
Sean sat across the desk from him and lowered his voice. “Yeah, he’s a buddy of mine. Last week they were pushing him to bring a date to the golf tournament, and he asked if he could bring his partner. Now, all of a sudden, his performance is under review. It could be a coincidence, but for some reason I’d doubting that.” Sean frowned. “I can’t believe this is still an issue in this day and age.”
“No shit. If we had a union they’d be more careful. Is he thinking of suing them if they let him go?”
Sean shrugged. “I don’t know. He probably won’t want to deal with that. He’s looking for another job right now – he wasn’t happy here anyway.” His co-worker gave him a mock salute and headed out the door.
This was exactly what his dad had been lecturing him about the other day. Great. Was it already time to start looking elsewhere? He thought about having to pack up the house, put it on the market, find other work, possibly move across the country and find another house. They’d have to leave behind their role-playing buddies, whom he really liked, and start over in a new city with no social contacts. No thanks.
A vision of Tess staring up at him, scared but trusting, came to mind. Leaving would put an end to the whole confusing mess with her, but it felt as though he was being sly about getting her away from Elodie. But his jealousy issues weren’t Tess’s fault. He’d been raised in a community where being jealous was something to be worked on, not to be proud of. Free love and all that. Why he was having such an issue with Elodie falling for her, he wasn’t sure. He had a theory that it was because he couldn’t, as a male Dom, compete with Tess, a female submissive. If Tess was a guy he’d feel more equipped to figuratively fight for Elodie, but what could he do to compete with Tess? Apples and oranges. If Elodie liked both, and wasn’t happy having to pick only one or the other, getting mad at the orange wasn’t going to fix a thing.
After seeing where Tess lived, though, he had to admit he was feeling protective of her. She was a timid mouse living in a vicious environment. Between the trouble she was having making ends meet – was there even food in her cupboards? – and the dangerous part of town she lived in, he’d felt guilty leaving her alone in her apartment. When he told Elodie about the place, she was ready to run back to Cobalt Harbor to rescue the girl. Tess had her share of pride, though, and he doubted she’d appreciate being treated like she couldn’t take care of herself.
Elodie had told him Tess’s vulnerability was irresistible. She wasn’t wrong.
He’d told her to look up what it meant to be submissive and think about what her limits were almost before he realized he was going to say it. As annoyed as he’d been about Elodie kissing her without permission, now he could see how it happened. Tess had this aura of innocence that begged to be defiled. If he was single, he wasn’t sure he’d have been able to leave her apartment without trying to get her into bed. She practically had “submissive” tattooed on her forehead.
The buzz of his cell made him roll his eyes. All morning, Elodie had been begging to bring Tess to the fan expo they were going to on the weekend, and she wouldn’t let it drop. His knee-jerk reaction was to fight it, but when he thought through his reasons for that, they didn’t hold up. Having the girl stay in their hotel room meant Elodie had every intention of them playing with her, of course, and when he thought about the possibilities, he was running out of reasons to object.
He tried to turn his attention to work but a fantasy about Elodie and Tess derailed him.
Maybe there was a way for him to work from home for some other, more forward-thinking company? He’d have to figure out something, because there was no way he could work for these old farts forever. But thinking about abandoning Tess, made the idea of moving across the country less attractive by the minute.
*
“Oh merde, are you serious?” Elodie cackled.
“Yes. I guess no one ever told Tristan that telling a girl she’s not as pretty as the other girls he dated was a bad idea.”
Lock glared at the road, weirdly jealous and not sure what to do about it. Tess wasn’t his, so her going on a date was none of his damned business, right?
“Well, you always wondered what it would be like with him, and now you know.” Elodie shrugged. “Did you fuck him?”
He tensed, waiting for the inevitable answer. Of course he fucked her. Who wouldn’t?
“He kissed me. It was about as sexy as kissing my own arm. He didn’t ask to come up, thank goodness. I would have turned him down. Every time he started getting interesting he’d open his mouth and say something to ruin it.”
Elodie was grinning when she glanced over at Lock, but the smile disappeared when she saw his expression. “Oooh. Maybe we should wait and talk about this later.”
“Why?” Tess sounded concerned, but her voice was muffled from the back seat.
“Yes, I think Lock will kill him if they ever meet.” Bratty little kitty. She read him too well.
“Shut up, Elodie, or I’ll pull over and give you a bare-assed spanking on the side of the highway.”
A sigh escaped her. “Now you’re giving me a hard choice – stop teasing, or a hot guy will spank me and throw in some exhibitionism?”
“Elodie.” He growled and she wriggled in her seat.
“You’re so fucking sexy when you’re ticked off, don’t you agree, Tess? He’s even hotter when he’s mean.”
The girl was silent and when Lock glanced in the rearview mirror, their gazes met.
“I did the assignment you gave me, Sir.” The quaver of Tess’s voice cut through Elodie’s giggle.
“You should probably think about what you want, Mouse. Tristan isn’t the only vanilla guy out there, if that appeals to you. I’m sure I could find several guys to set you up with.” Volunteering that cost him, but it was only fair to give her the option.
“Do you want to set me up with other guys, Sir?” She was watching him, maybe studying his expression.
Fuck that. “No.” He didn’t trust himself to say more.
“I’ve made my choice. I’m here instead of going on another date with him.”
What was he getting himself into? He could barely handle Elodie, and now he was going to take Tess on too? There was no helping it, though. He’d been fantasizing about her for days and the thought of her dating other men made him want to claim her in rough and ungentlemanly ways.
“From now on, then, I expect that you stay exclusive with us. If you want to date someone else, we’re done.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Lock pulled his gaze from hers and watched the horizon.
“Sir?”
“Yes, Mouse?”
“Are you...” He heard her shaky inhalation. “Are you and Elodie going to be...mean to me this weekend?”
His d
ick heard her question, and sat up to take notice.
“I can pretty much guarantee it.”
*
“We’re ready, chéri.” Elodie peeked out the bedroom door at him, and Lock was glad to have something more interesting to look at than the television. Part of him was itching to get down the street to the convention, but another part of him was more interested in staying in the suite and seeing what kind of mischief the girls were in the mood for.
“Should I brace myself?” He chuckled.
“I’m not sure if these outfits are going to be more trouble than they’re worth. It’s the last time you should let me put together cosplays unsupervised.”
He arched a brow at her and she grimaced.
“Are you sure you want to be talking to me like that? The hotel won’t be happy with the complaints about your noise if you force me to punish you.”
“Sorry, Sir.”
Lock narrowed his eyes and Elodie dropped her gaze.
“Inspection. Come here.”
She opened the door wider and entered the room. Lock’s first impression was a lot of bare skin, and a faint recognition of the tiny femme Rigg costume she wore. It had been her idea to dress her and Tess up like characters from their favorite web comic, Bleak Bondage, but he’d had a hard time imagining what she’d look like dressed as a man. The costume she’d put together was anything but manly, but kept the color scheme and details of the character, so there was no question who she was supposed to be. With the flared skirt, though, if she turned too fast it wouldn’t leave much to the imagination. The boots and the fact that the cropped top barely covered her breasts almost made it fetish wear.
“Come here.”
She strolled over to him, her hips swaying provocatively. Someone was horny. Okay...maybe they both were. He trailed his fingers over her bare midriff and she squeaked, her stomach muscles jumping.
“Very nice. Now where is little Tess?”
She looked at him and her mouth dropped open. “Oh myyy. Those black contacts are...” She gulped and bit her lip. “Dieu, you look so fucking evil. I’m going to come in my panties just looking at your eyes.”
Lock chuckled. “Go get Tess.”
“She’s too shy to come out.” She smiled apologetically, but didn’t stop checking him out. “I tried, Sir, but it might take some convincing.”
“Tess,” Lock let his voice go to its naturally dominant tone. “Come here. Now. Bring your checklist with you.” When there was no response, he got stern. “If you don’t get your sexy ass out here now, Mouse, you’re not going to like the consequences.”
Tess/Rime emerged from the bedroom, looking like she was going to cry. Fuck, she was hot. How had he not noticed the first few times he’d seen her?
“I did her makeup, Sir, even though she doesn’t really need it. Isn’t she pretty?”
“You look sexy, Tess. What’s the matter?”
She gave a one-shouldered shrug and stayed where she was. “I dunno.”
“Come here.”
She walked to him, slouching and yanking at the costume, trying to make it cover more. Lock leaned back in the bucket chair and beckoned Tess closer.
“You’re not used to dressing like this.” Her blush extended from her cheeks down her neck to her cleavage, and he considered checking to see just how far it went under her crop top. Although their outfits were identical, other than color and markings, they showed their bodies very differently. Elodie was all lush curves and decadence, while Tess was built like a short supermodel. The latter was not usually his type, but on Tess it worked.
Tess glanced at Elodie then back at Lock. “I’m not like her. I can’t pull this off.” She gestured at the costume. “I hardly have anything to fill out this shirt. It makes me look like a twelve-year-old trying to copy a Playboy bunny.” She jerked a thumb at Elodie then crossed her arms over her own breasts to hide them.
“Oh, stop that.” Elodie slapped Tess’s hands down. “We talked about this. You look like a catalogue model. A lot of women would kill to look like you.”
“Skinny isn’t sexy.”
Exasperation rose, and Lock was careful to keep his voice reasonable. “Tess, I don’t think you understand men very well. Hot girls are hot. Confidence is more important to being sexy than any specific body type, and sexy isn’t a cookie cutter thing. Do you only think guys that look like that dickweed you went on a date with are hot, or does it vary from person to person?”
“Well Elodie is hot, and obviously she doesn’t look like Tristan.” Tess laughed. Her hand came up as though she’d cover her mouth, but she let it fall back into place at her side. Elodie was making headway with her.
“And Lock? Don’t you think he’s hot, Souris?” Elodie leaned closer and drew a finger from his lips down his chin, then kissed him before backing off to give them space.
She got a good look at Lock with the contacts in. “Holy shit!” Tess bit her lip and looked back and forth between them, trapped. “Um...”
“It’s okay if you’re not that attracted to me.” Lock forced a smile, his male pride suffering, but he shook off the lingering self-doubt from when he was a kid. Geeks with bad skin didn’t get girls, but he’d come a long way since then. He didn’t need her approval – after all, Elodie obviously thought he was good enough.
“Are you afraid that if you want to fuck him I’ll turn into a jealous bitch?” Elodie winked at the other girl, who turned even redder than before. “I’m the one pushing for you two to sleep together. Don’t worry about me.” She put a hand on the small of Tess’s back and propelled her forward until she stood between Lock’s knees.
His kitten was leaving a little mouse on his doorstep. Naughty girl. She really did seem to want this. She probably just wanted them to hook up so he’d let her keep the girl, but the idea of his girlfriend urging him to fuck a little almost-virgin felt evil and debauched.
“Is that your checklist?” He held out his hand and Tess handed the papers over with an air of mortified reluctance.
“There were some things I wasn’t sure about, Sir.”
He scanned the pages. The way she shifted in front of him made him wonder if she just wanted to hide, or if the humiliation of standing there while he read what she was into turned her on.
For an almost virgin vanilla girl, apparently she was very, very curious.
He gave the papers to Elodie and Tess ducked her head shyly.
“Have you thought of a safeword?”
“Aardvark?”
Elodie laughed, and ran her fingertips just under the edge of Tess’s skirt. The girl shuddered.
Tess’s eyes were wide, as though she expected him to beat the crap out of her immediately after the safeword thing was sorted out. Could she be any more adorable?
“Aardvark is good.” He chuckled. “Now, the question is whether I should plug your asses before we leave for the party?”
“Aardvark!” Elodie yelped.
“That’s not your safeword.” He arched a brow at her but her own safeword remained unspoken. “Go get yours, and the new one I bought for Tess.”
Minou groaned but went back into the bedroom anyway. He could hear her rummaging through their luggage. Tess’s face was so red it was almost purple. He pulled her down onto his lap.
“What’s the matter, Mouse?”
She sat very still. “I’m scared.”
“Of what?”
“Is it going to hurt? I’ve never...”
He let the pause hang in the air, enjoyed her squirming as she struggled for words to finish her sentence.
“It shouldn’t hurt. It might feel weird and uncomfortable at first, but you’ll get used to it.”
“Don’t believe him. I’m still not used to it,” Elodie grumbled. She stuck out her tongue as she came back to him, a baggie and bottle of lube in each hand.
Lock took Tess’s from Elodie and held it out so that Tess could see the tiny pink thing. “I’m starting you with the smallest one I c
ould find.”
She nodded slowly. “It’s smaller than I thought.”
“You’ll barely notice it.”
Elodie snorted eloquently. “You only have one dick. How many holes do you need?”
Brat. “You’ll go first, so Tess can see there’s nothing to worry about.” Her expression gave her away. “If you start yelling and screaming to scare her, I’ll take your ass right here.”
“Right...here?” She got down on her knees and leaned over the footstool in front of him, looking back at him provocatively as she flipped up her own skirt and showed off the way her superhero thong complemented her bottom.
Lock’s dick sprang to attention. She was such a fucking tease sometimes. It would serve her right if he shoved her down and jammed into her ass, but her body wasn’t ready for him yet and he didn’t want to harm her. Tess rose and backed a few steps, getting out of his way. He brushed aside the colorful wisp of fabric, exposing Elodie’s tightly closed pucker to his gaze. It was like starting from the beginning every time.
“Do you want me in there?”
There was a long pause. “If that’s what you want, Sir.”
He hesitated, letting her wonder. “I don’t think your body is ready for that.”
“Sacrament! You scared the hell out of me!”
“You have a safeword, silly kitty. If you don’t want something you need to use it. It’s never my intention to damage you, and if you’re worried, you have a responsibility to tell me that.”
“I know, Sir.”
“You have to be a good example for Mouse.”
She nodded, her bright ringlets rolling over her shoulders to pool on the footstool she was still leaning on.
Lock set aside the tiny new plug and pulled out the bigger one he’d recently bought for Elodie. He loved that she hated it.
“It’s not fair that you’re making me wear that huge monster out in public, Daddy.” Daddy, huh? He let that one slide. Maybe he was paternal with her sometimes, but that was because she acted like a bratty little girl. She pouted back at him, but didn’t make him chase her around the room, which she might have done at home.