by Roop, Cassy
I was too busy worrying about getting to Ashley that I didn’t even realize my own thoughts. Knox appeared at my side just as I removed the key to open the door. Bursting in, Knox immediately took off toward Asher as I made my way toward Ashley. She was struggling to breathe and her eyes looked like they were starting to roll into the back of her head. Fear overcame me as I struggled to remove the ball gag from her mouth and made quick work of getting the restraints off of her wrists. Knox had Asher by the throat threatening to kill him. Ashley collapsed in my arms looked at me one time before the darkness consumed her and she passed out. Placing my hands beneath her knees and lifting her into my arms, I reached for the sheet on the bed and covered her up before I made my way toward the door.
“Get that fucker out of here and see that he never sets foot in my club again. If he even tries, I will fucking kill him!” I roared at Knox as I left the Rapture Room and made my way to my office with Ashley in my arms. Rage and vexation emanated through me and all I wanted to do was turn around and make sure that fucker never saw the light of day again. Instead, Ashley was my priority and I needed to make sure she was ok.
Once in the safety of my office, I gently laid her down on the couch and knelt down next to her. I gently caressed her face trying to get her to wake up.
“Ashley? Ashley, can you hear me?” I asked her. She whimpered and shifted restlessly on the couch. I continued to try to stimulate her back into consciousness. The sheet slipped down, and that was when I noticed the giant bruise starting to develop on her ribcage. A bruise that was not there when I was with her earlier this evening. Fury raced through me and my body started to vibrate with anger.
I’ll kill that fucker for doing this to her!
Her head started to violently shake side to side. Suddenly she sat up ramrod straight on the couch with her eyes widely opened trying to breathe. She looked as if she had been held under water for a long time and was just able to come up for air. She saw me and started to scramble to try to get away.
“Shhh, Shhh. Ashley, it’s me. It’s Dominic. Calm down baby. He’s gone. We took care of him.”
I grabbed her and held her against me, afraid to let her go. We rocked back and forth for what seemed like forever as she was overcome with tears and emotions over what almost happened to her.
“I’m so sorry, Ashley. I’m so fucking sorry.” She collapsed into me and shook uncontrollably.
“Oh my God! He−he−he was going to−” She couldn’t get the rest of the words out. There was no doubt in my mind that that fucker would have most definitely taken her without her permission if Knox and I hadn’t shown up when we did.
I continued to console Ashley as she sobbed uncontrollably into my chest. I should have seen the signs in that asshole the other night when he was trying to hit on Ashley in the Common Room when she was serving drinks. Her tears and sobs started to deteriorate and she started to relax leaning into me more as she finally gained control.
“Are you hurt anywhere other than your ribs?” I asked her. She pulled back and looked up at me and that was when I saw the bruise on her cheek and the blood from her cut lip. Anger didn’t begin to describe the thoughts that were circulating through me at the sight of what Asher had done to this beautiful girl.
“Son of a bitch!” I growled in forced anger.
Ashley flinched frightened at my outburst. I cupped the back of her head offering her more consolation. That was not me. I was not a man who offered comfort to a woman, but when I saw that asshole with his hands on her, something inside me snapped. I had never felt rage like that before. It brought back too many memories of what my mother had to endure at the hands of my father and my protective instincts kicked in.
“Do you need a doctor, Ashley? Can I take you to the hospital?”
“No, I’m−I’m ok.”
I was about to ask if she was sure, when Knox came bursting into my office. His demeanor showed that he was just as pissed off about the situation as I was. I looked over his shoulder to find Kelly right on his heels.
“I thought that she might want Kelly,” he said a little hesitantly to me.
“Oh my God, Ash! Honey are you ok?” Kelly cried as she entered the room. She sank to her knees and threw her arms around her friend.
“I’m ok, Kelly. Can you just take me home? Ashley said as she climbed to her feet. She wobbled slightly and I caught her before she fell. She looked up at me and my heart seized in my chest. Our eyes connected and there was a buzz of electric current that passed between us. I couldn’t explain it. I did not understand how one girl could bring out emotions and feelings in me that I had buried away to keep myself from being hurt. Her beautiful green eyes shined up at me with gratitude.
“Thank you for coming for me, Dominic. I hate to imagine what would have happened−”
“Shhh don’t think about that,” I said as I drew her into my chest once more and wrapped my arms around her. I was overcome with sensations about how incredible she felt enveloped in my arms. I felt protective over her. The thing that surprised me the most was that she made me—feel.
Quit being a fucking pansy, Dominic, I scolded myself. I released her from my hold and she looked up at me one more time. I didn’t have time to react as she brought her soft, warm lips and pressed them to my cheek. My stomach bottomed out and I felt like the floor beneath me would give way. I had never been shown that much affection from a woman. I never gave one a chance, but somehow, with Ashley it was different. She was different. How was it that Ashley had been able to break through the great barrier that I so protectively secured around my heart when no one else had before? Maybe she was the one who could bring me out of the darkness and into the light. That thought terrified the ever living shit out of me.
I felt the way that Dominic flinched when I kissed his cheek. I wondered if the affection was what he was afraid of. If so, why? Just when I thought we would get close, he pulled away.
Before leaving the club, Dominic instructed me to not come in Sunday for training. He insisted that I stay home and rest, and I had to admit that was a good idea because when I woke up the next morning, my ribs ached badly.
Heading to the kitchen, I poured myself a glass of orange juice and took two Advil. I didn’t have much of an appetite, so I decided against breakfast. Kelly was still sleeping peacefully, so I went to work making a pot of coffee hoping the jolt of caffeine would be a welcoming feeling.
I shivered as I thought about how I came so close to being raped by Asher last night. If it hadn’t been for Dominic and Knox, I would have been.
While I busied myself methodically making the coffee, I took a long reflecting look back on my life. Thus far, it had been dull, boring, and unfulfilling. I had been married to a guy who sucked everything out of me in order for him to succeed and then he cheated on me. I then joined an erotic BDSM club to broaden my horizons, only to be nearly raped by a psychopath. I had never done anything in my life that was for me, and I felt saddened by the fact.
I took my coffee and had a seat at the kitchen table and stared out the window. There was a park across the street from the apartment and where families and children were enjoying the warm sunshine on this beautiful day. It was funny how the world outside was in complete confrontation with my mood today. Outside it was bright and sunny, but inside I felt dark, stormy and dejected. I felt sunken and hollow with this concave of emotions that consumed me. My life was nothing−meaningless.
I couldn’t help dissipate the jealousy that swallowed me as I watched the families at the park enjoy their happy lives. I watched the mothers as they adoringly watched their children frolic in the grass, laughing and playing.
“What are you thinking about sitting there all by yourself?” Kelly said breaking my trance.
I sighed as I looked back out the window at the scene in the park. My body sagged into the chair like a lead weight. I could feel the gravitational pull that was my fucked up life draw me down further into darkness.
�
��Sweets, are you ok?” Kelly asked as she came up behind me and placed her hands on my shoulders. I looked out the window just as a mother scooped her child up into her arms. They were both laughing and full of joy. My heart laid heavy in my chest.
“How did I get here, Kelly? How did I get to this point in my life? I−just never thought that my life would turn out this shitty,” I explained to her. Kelly, being the best friend that she was wrapped her arms around my neck hugging me from behind. Warm tears began to stream down my face at the realization of just how empty and lonely my life had been.
“Ash, please don’t cry.” She walked over to the chair next to me, pulled it close, and sat down. Placing her hands in mine, she looked into my reddened eyes. “You’re smart, funny, gorgeous and a kick ass best friend. You have always sacrificed your own happiness for others. You are giving, unselfish and kind. You deserve so much more than what has been handed to you, love.”
If she was trying to get me to stop crying, she was failing miserably. I sobbed harder from hearing the sweet words she used to describe me. She reached over onto the table and found the newspaper from the morning. She opened it up to the page that she marked about the art classes.
“I think you should do something for yourself Ashley,” she said as she placed the newspaper in my hands. I looked down at the red ring around those black printed words. Being an art teacher had always been my dream. The dream that I had sacrificed for so long that it seemed unattainable now.
“I don’t know Kelly. I−I want to badly, I just don’t know.”
“I think you should go for it, but I won’t push you,” she said as she took the paper and placed it back on the table, “now, do you want to talk about last night?”
I knew that this conversation was unavoidable. I needed to get those feelings out so that I did not keep them bottled up inside of me to fester like poison.
“I have never been so scared in my life, Kelly. I know Dominic said to not worry about coming in tonight, but honestly, I don’t think that I can go back. Every time I close my eyes, I see Asher and what he tried to do to me. Just thinking about it now sends chills down my spine,” I confessed.
“I’m sure no one would blame you if you didn’t, Ashley,” Kelly said sympathetically. The thing was that I felt too scared to go back, yet I was saddened by the thought because then I wouldn’t see Dominic. I had never had a man who had had such an effect on me. Could I get over my fear about what happened, or would I have to let Dominic go? I didn’t think I was cut out for his lifestyle.
What should I do?
“I want that fucker banned from this club for life. He was lucky that I did not beat the living shit out of him for trying to do what he did,” I said to Knox as we sat on the couch in my apartment the next morning. Knox had come over to go through some new security procedures that he felt needed to be implemented after the incident with Asher.
My apartment was expensive and nice, yet clean and uncluttered. I liked things to be tidy. After growing up in shit with my mother who busted her ass to help give me all she had, I always told myself that when I got older I would have a nice place. No more worn out, stale, disgusting couches for me to sleep on. I had soft black leather and a nice California king to come home to. The walls were simply, yet tastefully decorated thanks to my designer. I have a state of the art kitchen with all stainless steel appliances to help satisfy my love to cook. There were often times I was left alone at an early age and if I wanted to eat, I had to learn to fix it for myself. At first I sustained off a diet of macaroni and cheese, but progressed to hearty, savory meals after my mother’s death and when I got older.
“You seem awful protective of Ashley,” Knox said to me teasingly. I knew he was trying to get a rise out of me and I was not going to fall for his tactics.
“I just don’t want the same thing to happen to another girl at the club. Sometimes the background checks don’t clue you in as to the character of the person. It was a good thing we found out about Asher when we did,” I replied as I seethed from the memory of the bruises he left on Ashley. Damn straight I felt protective of her, not only as an owner of the club, but as, well, I’m not sure what as.
“Do you think Ashley will come back?” Knox asked me cautiously.
Knox’s question hit me in the chest. I hadn't thought about the possibility that Ashley wouldn’t want to come back to the club. The feelings that I had been harboring for her were exotic, foreign, and I didn’t know how to handle them, but I do know that I do not like the idea of not seeing her again. After seeing the fucked up relationship that my parents had, I told myself I never wanted to experience it, or any relationship for that matter.
“Dude, just fucking admit that you want her. I’ve seen you act differently with her than you ever have any other female. I know you went through some shit as a child, but you cannot keep your feelings closed off forever. You have to feel sometime.”
Knox knew what it was like to experience love and lose it. He fell in love with a typical girl next door type. She was sweet and innocent and did not like Knox’s preference of the dominant lifestyle. She crushed him when she ran off with her so called “just a friend” male friend leaving Knox behind.
“You have a lot of room to talk Knox. When Veronica took off, you were more closed off than anyone I know. In fact, have you had a relationship since?” I sarcastically questioned him. If he was going to throw out advice, he had better be able to accept criticism back.
“I’m working on it.”
“Ahh, you mean Ashley’s friend, Kelly? I’ve seen you two hanging around the club. You fucking her yet?”
Knox glared at me through narrowed eyes. It seemed I had hit a nerve with my tall, bald best friend.
“Not that it is any of your business, but no, I have not fucked her. I think she is a girl I want to get to know better, I’m just fucking terrified.”
I know how my friend felt. To make yourself vulnerable and put something like your heart in the palms of another person’s hands was fucking terrifying. But just as Knox felt about Kelly, I also felt about Ashley. She was someone I wouldn’t mind getting to know better. She was definitely someone I wanted to fuck the hell out of again. Being with her was fucking unbelievable, and it had only ignited a craving in me to claim her again.
“Enough of this pansy ass feelings shit, Knox. Grow some fucking balls man,” I said as I rose up from the couch, “I need to get to the club so that Madame V and I can have a meeting with the staff.”
“Whatever man. One of these days you are going to meet a girl and she is going to knock you on your ass. Hell, I think you may have already met her.”
The fucked up part, without admitting it to him, was that I feared he was right.
Why the fuck I was sitting there, I had no idea. How had I become so obsessed with a woman, that I was now parked outside of her apartment like some fucking stalker just hoping to get a glimpse of her? I kept going over the images in my mind of Asher’s hands on her. How he had her tied to the bedpost and the terrified look in her eyes. As a dominant, I get turned on by a woman’s fear, but it was her fear of the unknown, or the unexpected, not the scared for her life fear that I saw in Ashley’s eyes.
I watched as Kelly left the apartment and it made me wonder if Ashley was home. My head was screaming at me to start the fucking engine and get out and away from there as fast as I could, but another part of me, the foreign part that had me feeling things I knew I should not allow myself to feel, that was telling me to go knock on her door to check on her. She had to be confused, scared and overwhelmed by what happened to her.
I acted on autopilot as my arms reached for the handle of the car door to push it open. My feet hit the pavement and before I knew it, I was standing at her door. My arm felt heavy and lead filled as I struggled to bring it up to rap my knuckles against the hard wooden barrier standing between Ashley and me. It felt like an eternity before she opened the door and what I saw when she did, sucker punched me in the
gut.
Ashley’s eyes were red and puffy and I could tell she had been crying from the tear stains on her face. Her green eyes looked dim, and her shoulders were slumped forward in a defeated look. She was taken aback in surprise at the sight of me at her front door. She gasped.
“Dominic, I−what are you doing here?” she stammered.
“I stopped by to check on you,” and because I wanted to see you.
“Oh,” she said with surprise in her voice, “come on in.” She opened the door wider in invitation and our bodies slightly brushed against each other as I walked past her. The familiar electric charge that I experienced every time we were near made its presence. I registered her sharp intake of breath from feeling the same reaction that I did and I had to struggle not to take her right there against the door.
“Have a seat,” she instructed with uncertainty in her voice. Walking over to the couch, I sat down as Ashley soon followed.
“How are you?” I asked her not looking at her.
“I’m fine,” she said deadpan. My head snapped over to meet her eyes and I knew from the look in them that she was lying.
“Do not lie to me, Ashley. Were you crying before I got here? Your face is puffy and your eyes are red.”
She shied away from me and brought a shaky hand up to cover her eyes in embarrassment. I reached toward her hand but pulled back at the last minute. It felt too intimate, too close to showing emotion.
“What do you want me to say, Dominic? That I’m a huge mess? That every time I close my eyes all I can see is Asher’s hands on me? That I can still taste the blood in my mouth from where he hit me? That every time I breathe in my ribs hurt? Huh? Is that what you want to hear?” she vented as her chest rose and fell in exasperation.