by Leia Shaw
“Put your hands on your knees, palms up.”
Though she complied, she looked up and asked, “Why palms up?”
Scarlet smirked. “So if you’re mouthy, I can do this.” The crop came down sharply on one hand.
“Ouch!” She yanked her hand away and scowled.
Scarlet arched a brow. “And if you scowl at me, I can do this.”
Reece tightened in anticipation for the crop on her other hand, but instead it landed on her pussy with a loud thwap. She howled. It stung like a bitch.
“Scarlet!” she whined.
“Shush. I barely touched you.”
The sting faded quickly and she squirmed in the position. Scarlet was looking down at her, pacing. Reading her. Heat chased through her body, like a hot flash must feel, except with more clit throbbing. It was a good thing Scarlet couldn’t read how wet she was getting from something this simple.
“Next position,” Scarlet said, swinging the crop back and forth. She looked very much like a Domme. Smug. Demanding.
Reece tried not to make a face.
“Inspection. Kneel up, put your hands behind your head.”
She complied but closed her knees to protect herself from the evil crop.
“No.” Scarlet bent down so they were eye to eye then slid two fingers under her collar and pulled her toward her face so they were inches apart. “Don’t close them, kitten.”
A whimper escaped as she opened her legs. Scarlet didn’t let her go. Instead she arched a brow, like she was waiting for something.
“Yes, Scarlet?” she guessed.
She smiled. “Good girl.”
Another flutter of pride tickled her stomach. She was making Scarlet happy. Finally pleasing her. It was the most satisfied Reece had felt in a long time.
Scarlet rose to full height then made a slow circle around Reece. She stayed still the best she could, even though it was hard. Being assessed like a piece of meat made her want to run away and hide under the blanket. Yet there was something more to it that appealed to her – now more than any other time, she was the absolute center of Scarlet’s world. A sense of peace settled inside her.
“Now punishment,” Scarlet said from behind her.
The peace turned to panic and she swung around and stared up at Scarlet in fear.
Scarlet chuckled. “Relax, kitten. I’m not going to punish you now. I just want to teach you the position for when I do.”
There was a position for that?
“Leave your hands where they are,” Scarlet instructed. “Keep your knees apart and put your forehead to the floor.”
Reece took a moment to work it out in her head. She wanted her ass up with her head on the floor? No way. A sharp sting landed on her ass. She hissed in a breath.
“Don’t think. Just do.”
Before Scarlet could land another, Reece bent over and placed her forehead on the carpet. But she sat her ass down on her heels first so she was less exposed. She had a feeling Scarlet wouldn’t let her get away with that.
“Ass up, kitten.”
She sighed then pushed up. Not only was her backside on full display, but so was her sex. Could this be any more humiliating?
A knock sounded at the door.
“Fuck,” she whispered.
“One sec,” Scarlet yelled at the door. Quieter she said, “That’s Malachi. I forgot we made plans to play video games.”
Reece sat up so fast she got a head rush. She shot Scarlet a panicked look. “Please can I put some clothes on?”
Her lips twisted in amusement. “Yes. But no underwear.”
She exhaled in relief. “Okay.”
Scarlet took a step closer, looming over her with a formidable Dom face. “Okay? Is that what you should say, little pet?”
“Oh. I mean, thank you, Scarlet.”
She nodded once. “Better. Get dressed. I’ll get the door.”
Reece didn’t need to hear it twice. She was up and dressed before Scarlet even reached the door. The baby blue flared cotton dress felt tingly against her sensitive skin. Especially rubbing against her aching ass. She felt especially naughty with no underwear on. Would Malachi notice? Ugh. Of course he would. Even she could smell the pheromones coming off of her.
Scarlet hadn’t told her what to do after she got dressed. Should she go back to kneeling? Or sit on the bed? Or maybe just stand there?
Footsteps came down the hallway. Crap. In a panic, she took a guess and arranged herself sitting on the edge of the bed, trying to look submissive and well behaved.
Malachi came in first, smiling as usual. “Hey, princess.”
Scarlet followed closely and eyed Reece. If she was displeased by her position, she didn’t show it.
“Is that a collar?” Malachi asked, frowning at her neck. Of course he’d notice that straight away.
She shrunk back from his stare.
Scarlet stepped in with a sharp voice. “Kitten, let him see how pretty you look with your new collar.”
Heat blossomed across her cheeks but she held still while he looked closer.
“You will obey him for now, like you do me,” Scarlet added. “Understand?”
It took a minute for the words to free themselves from her mouth. “Yes, Scarlet.”
Malachi’s brows shot up to his hairline. “Wow. What have you two been up to the last few days?”
“I’ll show you.” Pride radiated off of Scarlet as she stalked toward Reece. She stared down at her for a moment then turned to Malachi. “Have a seat in the arm chair.”
Scarlet was about to show her off like a circus animal. Before she could protest, a finger came under her chin. “You’re going to show him what a good girl you are now, right?”
Though her words were soft, Reece wasn’t an idiot. There was a silent threat under there. Not wanting to experience that punishment position any time soon, she slowly nodded.
Scarlet gave her a quick kiss on the lips then moved her mouth to Reece’s ear. “Make me proud.”
Way to pull on the heartstrings, dear. As if she could disobey now. Not only that, but that urge to please Scarlet and make her proud was becoming addictive.
“Come here, Reece,” Malachi said from the chair, dark and ominous. But when she turned to look at him, his eyes were sparkling with amusement.
She started to stand but Scarlet stopped her then pointed to the floor. With a sigh, she knelt on the carpet and crawled to Malachi. The friction of her thighs rubbing together and the small humiliation, made her wetter and ache to be touched. Her dress rode up, baring her thighs and ass to Scarlet behind her. At least Malachi couldn’t see it. Yet.
When she reached him, she stopped and sat on her knees.
“Show me what your Domme taught you,” he said.
She looked to Scarlet and she nodded. First position. Wanting to make Scarlet proud, even though it was humiliating, she opened her legs, pushed out her tits, rested her hands on her knees, and bowed her head. Being on her knees, nearly naked while two people were watching her, fully dressed, clicked something into place in her head. A numb sort of haze settled over her. Almost serene.
“Very nice,” he said.
Though she kept her head down, as ordered, a smile formed at the small praise. Was pleasing two Doms better than pleasing one?
“Next position, kitten,” Scarlet ordered from the bed.
She stopped thinking and just obeyed. Scarlet hadn’t told her where to look in the inspection position so she kept her gaze straight ahead, which happened to be Malachi’s shirt. It read, “I’m smiling. That alone should worry you.” It snapped her from the haze and she almost giggled.
“Any others?” Malachi asked.
A devious plan came to mind. What was sex if it wasn’t fun once in a while? Keeping a straight face, she nodded.
“Show me.”
Instead of the ass-up punishment position, she lay down on her back, opened her legs slightly, and held out her hand.
Malachi’s nose s
crunched. “What position is that?”
She looked up at him, with as innocent an expression as she could muster, and said, “Hand me my vibrator position.”
He burst out laughing. She dared a glance at Scarlet, hoping she wasn’t in trouble, but Scarlet’s lips were pursed in an exaggerated attempt to hold back laughter.
“Brat,” she finally said, letting a chuckle loose. “I should make you do the punishment position just for that.”
Reece giggled then sat back up into the relaxed kneeling position. But then Malachi’s arm came around her and he lifted her onto his lap. Her ass hurt as she was forced to sit on his stupid bony knee.
When she winced, Scarlet gave her a smirk.
“I’m going to crush your legs sitting here,” she complained to Malachi.
He laughed and squeezed her leg. “Don’t bruise my ego. Your girlfriend does enough for the both of you. I’m not a dainty flower. And your ass fits perfectly right here.”
She rolled her eyes but stayed put. It’d been a long time since she’d sat on a lap. Not since she was a size eight. God, she hadn’t been below a size twelve since she was twelve.
“I’m proud of you,” he whispered in her ear. A shiver slid down her spine. “So how did Scarlet turn you into such a good girl?” As a second thought, he added, “A bratty good girl.”
She clamped her mouth shut.
Scarlet answered for her. “We had a little showdown before you got here.”
“Really?” Curiosity was evident in his voice.
“Show him,” Scarlet ordered.
She’d been afraid she’d say that. “Nooo,” she whined quietly, attempting to sound pitiful and not disobedient.
“I’m not going to say it again.”
She groaned but stood then slowly lifted her dress to bare her ass.
“Whoa,” Malachi said.
She hadn’t looked in a mirror yet but by his reaction, she guessed it was still pretty red.
“What’d you use to do this?”
“My hand,” Scarlet answered with an air of pride.
Reece yanked her skirt down then let Malachi pull her back onto his lap. “She has a damn hard hand!”
Scarlet chuckled. “From my work. Jude’s giving me a lot of hours.”
“She does have a hard hand,” Malachi agreed. “I’m impressed. We should have a contest, Scarlet.”
Reece jumped up and gasped. “No!”
They both turned their fiercest Dom faces on her. She gulped. “I mean, no, please, sirs.”
Scarlet tsked. “Not now, silly girl. I’m not cruel.” She held out her arms to Reece.
Reluctantly, she made her way to her girlfriend. She wasn’t sure which of them was safer to sit with. Having two Doms nearby was more challenging than she’d expected. At least only one was permanent.
A twinge of pain hit her in the chest as she sat on the bed next to Scarlet. She’d grown so used to Malachi hanging around – the idea of him disappearing from her life was heartbreaking.
Scarlet kissed her temple then pushed her head down so it was in her lap and she was lying across the bed. Soft fingers combed through her hair. She almost purred.
Malachi rose from the chair and approached them. In an unexpected move, he placed his hand on Scarlet’s face and gazed down at her. “I’m proud of you too.”
She stuttered awkwardly for a moment. “Uhh. Thanks.”
With a chuckle, he sat on the edge of the bed. “We need to find you a title, Scarlet,”
“What’s wrong with Sir?” Reece said. “We can be like Lucy and Peppermint Patty.”
Scarlet gave her hair a little tug. “Scarlet is fine. Mistress and Ma’am make me feel old.”
Malachi nodded. “It’s up to you. You’re the Domme.” He stared at them a moment then sighed. “I think you know that now. I guess you don’t need me anymore.”
Scarlet froze. “What?”
“What?” Reece sat up.
He gazed down at them wearing a frown then he traded it for a small smile. “Well we accomplished what we set out to do, right?” Shifting slightly, he moved his gaze to the ground. “I really enjoyed this though.”
Scarlet bit her lip and looked at Reece as if she should have an answer. All she knew was losing Malachi from their weird little world felt wrong.
“She’s still pretty bratty,” Scarlet said, putting an arm around Reece’s shoulders. “I’m not totally confident controlling her yet. Can’t you just stick around a little longer?”
That was the most pitiful excuse she’d ever heard. But... Scarlet wanted him to stay? Her gold star, afraid-of-cock girlfriend didn’t want Malachi to take a flying leap out of their lives either? Maybe she was afraid she’d lose him as a friend.
He smiled. “I’m not going to disappear. I still have to kick your ass at Call of Duty.”
Scarlet snorted. “You wish. Hey, if you played video games as well as you dommed, maybe you’d actually come close to beating me.”
“Oh, I’ll beat you all right.” His eyes turned hungry and he ran his gaze over her body.
She looked at Scarlet. A blush crept onto her cheeks. Crap. She wanted Malachi to top her again? Maybe they could keep him that way – as Scarlet’s top. If only they had something to offer him in return. Her mouth, she supposed. They could trade sexual favors. Oh god. Since when had she become willing to prostitute herself?
Scarlet’s earthy scent and warmth wrapped around her like a cocoon of protection. Reece sighed happily. She’d do anything for this girl.
Malachi reached down and grabbed Reece by the arm then pulled her to stand. “Come on, girl. I taught your Domme how to manage you, now I’m going to teach you how to shoot bad guys.”
“She won’t do it,” Scarlet said, heading toward the living room. “I’ve tried.”
“Sure I will,” Reece answered, staring up at Malachi. If she could convince him they were fun to hang out with, both of them, maybe he’d stick around.
Scarlet stopped short and frowned. “You’ll let him teach you?”
“Prom season is over. I have nothing better to do.” She smirked. “Besides, it’d be pretty satisfying to kick both your asses. The sub takes an unexpected win against two well-practiced Doms. I’ll be a hero among my kind.”
“Big words for such a little girl,” Malachi said, laughing.
She rolled her eyes. As if she were anything close to little.
Scarlet got the game set up in the living room then took her customary seat on the arm chair. Malachi took the couch then motioned to Reece.
“Come here, kitten,” he said with a smirk, patting the seat next to him. “Let’s see if there’s any bite behind all that hissing.”
Chapter 11
“Scarlet! Hand me a napkin, please!” Reece laughed and leaned sideways, her elbow jutting out oddly from her body as the melting ice cream ran down from the cone.
Scarlet had the urge to lick it off her arm, but the other couples and families around them might get uncomfortable. Licking was probably a little much.
As she fumbled with the napkin dispenser on their picnic table, a big hand flashed out and grabbed Reece’s arm. Malachi leaned in and ran his tongue up it from her elbow to her wrist. Reece snorted and swatted him on the arm.
“And you call me kitten?” Reece was looking delectable in a cream pencil skirt and a rose blouse, her hair in big wild curls that cascaded down her back. Sitting next to her on the bench, Malachi’s dark, dangerous looks, silver earrings and wealth of tattoos were a hot combination. Together they were like good and evil, yin and yang. People around them stared.
“You looked tasty. I couldn’t resist.”
Reece blushed sweetly and glanced around to see if anyone had overheard. Four young women at the next table looked like they needed a hand reeling their eyes back in.
In typical Reece fashion she took command of the situation. She looked straight at them. “That’s nothing. You should see what else he can do. He’s got a very
clever tongue.” Then she winked.
One with long black hair smiled broadly. “Dayam, girl. If you ever get tired of him, you send him my way.” The others jumped in and volunteered to be her back up.
Reece chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind. Especially if he gets too tame for me.”
When they wandered off, Mal fluttered his eyelashes. “Thank you for protecting my honor, Miss Reece. Those girls were going to eat me alive!”
“You can barely handle me and Scarlet, and you want to try four?”
“I’m sure the four of them would be a cakewalk compared to the two of you. I’d like to see you try to tame me, though. That would be...interesting.”
A few minutes later, as they walked to the garbage cans, another girl looked Malachi over and gave Reece a thumbs up. Scarlet’s stomach sank. The two of them together were stunning.
When they’d first gotten to the ice cream parlor, the girl at the counter had asked if their order was together, and Malachi had insisted on paying. It stung that she’d assumed Scarlet was alone. Of course people made heterosexual assumptions. Often enough, when she and Reece were out together, people asked if they were cousins or sisters, or whatever their minds came up with to explain the situation away. However, Malachi’s presence and the fact that he obviously liked Reece made the two of them pass for straight, while people assumed Scarlet was alone or an awkward third wheel. No one ever thought of a tricycle.
If they stayed with him, this was how it would be forever. She would be the perpetual third wheel in their life, in the eyes of society. Like the college roommate who couldn’t take a hint when her BFF met a guy and got married. Awkward.
Almost as awkward as always having to choose whether to explain to complete strangers that Reece was her girlfriend, or let them think they were just hetero friends. That would be Scarlet’s life, for the rest of her life – but things didn’t have to be like that for Reece. She was way more bi, and therefore had more options...like doing the comfortable thing and passing for straight with Mal instead of having everyone assume she was a lesbian because she was dating a girl. Some of their gay friends were just as bad, telling them they were lesbians because they were together – like it somehow negated their attraction to men.