Ashley's Bend

by Roop, Cassy

  Dominic paused to take in a shaky breath. I could feel the pain he was still suffering from as he tried to gain control over his emotion. I wanted to reach out to him, but I was terrified that he would pull away from me especially in his compromised emotional state. My heart pounded loudly in my chest and I prayed that Dominic was oblivious to the reaction that I had over hearing his story.

  “He had a gun and for a moment he pointed it at me. I swear to God, I thought he was going to fucking shoot me, but he turned it on himself at the last minute. I promised myself that night that I would never need someone that much. I would never have any desire to be with anyone so completely, that it fucked me up inside.”

  He continued to look at the ceiling for a few brief moments as silent tears ran down my cheeks. His father murdered his mother−in front of him. No one should have had to endure the horrid scene that he did, especially at such a young age. My heart crushed for him and I tried to hold back the painful sobs that threatened to escape from my mouth. He rolled over until he faced me again.

  “That was until I met you.”

  “What?” I asked not sure if I heard him correctly. Even though it was dark in the room, I could still see his eyes. They were focused on me intently, never wavering from mine. I was lost to him at that moment.

  “I don’t know what kind of voodoo spell you have put on me, Ashley Carter, but I have never wanted more with a woman. You make me want more. You make me need more and it scares the shit out of me.”

  Tentatively, I reached my hands up to cup his face. The stubble I found there felt like sandpaper under my fingers. I smoothed my thumbs over his lips and he pursed them and gently kissed my fingertips.

  “I’m scared too, Dominic. I just left a marriage and wasn’t looking to jump into something right away. I’m scared of how close to you I have gotten in just a short time, but most of all, I am scared that you will run again and take a piece of me with you when you do.”

  I had never been so forthcoming with my feelings before. I felt that it was crucial for me to be honest with him; crucial for me to be able to continue to break through the walls surrounding his heart.

  “Ashley, I cannot promise you that I won’t fuck this up. I cannot promise you that I can be a hearts and flowers kind of guy, but I will promise to try. I want to try with you,” he said as he kissed my jaw and sent butterflies fluttering through my belly. Our moment was interrupted by the shrilling sound of Dominic’s cell phone ringing. He groaned as he rolled away from me and reached down to retrieve the cell phone from his jeans on the floor.

  “Knox, you better have a good fucking reason for interrupting me right now,” he said as he looked at me and winked.

  Swoon.

  My heart leaped from his playful gesture, but it soon dissipated when Dominic shot ramrod straight up onto the bed.

  “What?” he yelled into the phone.

  I had poured my heart out to a woman. What was it about her that made me let go of everything I had ever kept under control? One look into her gorgeous green eyes and all my inhibitions, my guard and my walls crumbled a little more. What I think I was attracted to the most was her innocence. She was not accustomed to the pastimes of my lifestyle, yet she wasn’t appalled by them either. No, Ashley had a fire about her. She had a taste for something more exotic and her natural submissive yet dominate nature was the sexiest fucking thing ever.

  I found myself wanting to be tender with her. I had fallen under the spell of the feelings I got when my fingers brushed against the creamy smoothness of her skin. Slowly, I started to kiss her jaw as I told her that even though I have never done relationships before, I was willing to try. I was willing to let go of some of my control if it meant I got to keep her next to me. My cock hardened and I wanted nothing more than to lose myself in the warm confines of her intoxicating body. The sound of my cell phone ringing broke me out of my temporary sex induced brain.

  I reluctantly rolled away from Ashley to retrieve the phone from my pants. Glancing at the screen, I groaned as I answered the call.

  “Knox you better have a good fucking reason for interrupting me right now,” I said to my friend and partner before I winked at Ashley. Her face brightened into a sexy smile and my dick strained even more.

  “Nic, we have a problem,” Knox stated in a serious tone “someone damaged the front of the club this morning.”

  “What?” I yelled into the receiver as I shot up straight in the bed.

  “There’s more, Nic,” Knox said hesitantly.

  “What the fuck, just spit it out,” I growled at Knox. My patience was wearing thin and my anger was starting to bubble in my veins.

  “Although it doesn’t say so directly, I think the note we found was targeted at Ashley. Where are you? You should get to the club.”

  I ran my hands over my face and slicked back my hair. Next to me Ashley started to fidget from the tension that was radiating from me. I jumped up off the bed and started throwing my clothes back on while trying to balance the phone between my shoulder and my ear.

  “I’m at the club, I’ll be down in a bit.”

  “I didn’t see you in your office earlier,” Knox stated as a matter of fact. I didn’t miss the smug sound of his voice. He knew I walked out of the Common Room with Ashley the night before. Hell, he was the reason for it, and even though I was glad he did what he did, I was still going to give him shit.

  “Have you called the police?” I asked trying to change the subject. Knox’s annoying chuckle over the phone told me he knew I was avoiding telling him about my whereabouts. But, I wasn’t in the mood to have a girl talk situation with him.

  “They are on the way. Just get your ass down here. Oh, and Dominic? Tell Ashley I said good morning.”

  The sound of Knox hanging up on me was the next thing I heard.

  Fucker.

  I sighed as I threw the phone down on the bed and pulled my shirt on over my head.

  “What’s wrong, Dominic? Ashley asked tentatively. I didn’t want to alarm her, especially since I did not know what the note Knox said was left actually said. So I told her the truth, just omitted that part about the note.

  “Knox said someone vandalized the club sometime last night.”

  “What, really? Why didn’t we hear anything?”

  “The room is soundproof, Ashley.”

  “Oh.”

  She looked a little worried. Hell, I was a little worried. In the seven years that I had been opening clubs all over the U.S., I had never had vandalism happen before. Not to mention the fact that Ashley was being targeted too. My hands instantaneously clench into fists at my sides as I dug my nails into the flesh of my hand in order to get control on my anger. I looked over to see Ashley staring at me, worry written all over her face so I did the only thing I knew would help, I distracted her. I walked over to where she still sat on the bed and leaned over her.

  “That means, princess, that you could scream as loud as you want, but no one would be able to hear you.”

  I gave her one of my grins that had women melting in my hands. Her eyes grew wide for a moment, but then the sexy, fun and dominant side of Ashley challenged me right back.

  “They wouldn’t be able to hear me because my mouth would be full of your cock.”

  Holy fucking hell.

  “Dammit, Ashley. If we didn’t have to be downstairs right now, I would fuck you until you wouldn’t be able to walk.”

  I watched as her mouth fell open and desire was written in her eyes. I was insatiable when it came to her. I could never seem to get my fill of her. Reaching for her hands, I yanked her up from the bed in one fast motion. I swallowed her gasp of shock with my mouth as I clamped mine over hers in a very scorching, very needy kiss. She melted into me and I momentarily got lost in her naked body pressed up against me, forgetting that I needed to get downstairs to help Knox with the situation.

  “Don’t we have to get downstairs?” she asked breathlessly, breaking me out of my seemingly one
track mind.

  “Fuck.”

  I released her reluctantly and she quickly found her clothes and got dressed. It was the purest form of torture because all I wanted to do was suffuse myself inside of her.

  Knox was waiting for us when we got downstairs. Two of the large windows at the entrance to the club had been shattered, large cinder blocks having been thrown through both of them. The front door had the words bitch spray painted across it. Several cops walked around and took pictures of the crime scene. Ashley’s audible gasp caused every head in the area to turn and look at us.

  “Ashley, there is a full bathroom in my office. You can go on up and wash up a bit if you like while I try to take care of this.” I suggested to her to try and get her away from this situation. She glanced around at the scene before her with uncertainly for a few moments.

  “Are you sure? I can help if needed.”

  “Positive, princess,” I assured her.

  She nodded at me and turned to leave but before she walked away, I gave her a smack on her delectable derriere. She jumped with a squeal and her cheeks went crimson red at the act that I committed in front of all of those people. I smiled as I watched her scurry off faster towards my office.

  “Dude, you are so fucking gone,” Knox said as he watched my whole interaction with Ashley. I turned around and glared at my best friend. All he did was shrug his shoulders and give me a shit eating grin in that I told you so way. I was in no mood to deal with his smug self.

  “What the fuck happened here, Knox?” I asked him as I glanced around at the mess of glass on the floor. Two police officers approached where Knox and I were standing. Reaching out to shake each of their hands they began to brief me on what they thought could have happened.

  “The cinder blocks were thrown through the windows sometime in the middle of the night. Your partner here told us that you spent the night here at the club. Did you hear anything, Mr. Michaels?”

  I didn’t dismiss the accusatory tone in his voice. Why the hell would I want to damage my own, very popular, very profitable club?

  “No, sir. A friend of mine and I were in a location inside the club that was soundproof. No sound comes in or out.”

  “Why would there be a soundproof room in this club, Mr. Michaels?” the officer asked me. What the fuck? Was he some investigative reporter or something? This was a BDSM club why wouldn’t I have a soundproof room? I glanced at the name under his badge.

  “Look, Officer Russell, we have soundproof rooms for...entertaining. We do not want any interruptions for the guests that use the special privileges that specific room entitles them to.”

  Officer Russell narrowed his eyes at me speculatively. There was something irritating, and off about the man. All his questions had me on edge and wondering about his intentions.

  “We are trying to look through security feeds of the perimeter of the building to see if anything was caught on camera. Just as this vandalism is a crime, so is prostitution, Mr. Michaels,” he said snidely. What the fuck does this guy have against me? I was the one who was vandalized and yet the asshole was questioning me about the practices of my reputable club.

  “I am very aware of that, Officer. I assure you there are no goods or services sold here other than memberships,” I replied.

  “Good, let’s keep it that way, Mr. Michaels. Now, can you tell me what this could mean?” he asked as he handed me a folded up piece of paper. I opened it to discover that it was the note Knox mentioned when he phoned me earlier.

  Revenge is a bitch, just like her.

  Someone must think they have an awfully large set of balls to send something like that to me. Knox said that he thought it was in reference to Ashley, but it could be any number of the girls at the club. Madame V, Rebecca, and any of the other house subs could be the reason for the letter.

  My thoughts went back to the conversation I had with Ashley’s ex-husband Jared after he paid Ashley a visit at her work, threatening her. I found out that it was indeed he who told her employers about her affiliation with the club and got her fired. I made it painfully clear that he was to never make contact with Ashley ever again. If he so much as looked in her direction, he would live to regret it. I gave him the one thing I knew would keep him out of her life for good−money. I told him to leave and go off somewhere and to never come back. If he was stupid enough to make the mistake of coming back, he had a hell of a hurt coming to him. Ashley did not know about my visit with Jared and I made Knox promise to keep it between us.

  So if it wasn’t Jared, even though it could very well have been, who then? I folded the note back up and handed it back to Officer Russell. Choosing my words carefully, I replied to him.

  “I have no idea. Could be in reference to a number of people at this club.”

  Ashley came down the stairs just as the officer stowed the note into the evidence bag and handed it to his partner. I was thankful that she hadn’t been around to see the contents of that letter. I looked at her as she cautiously approached where Knox and I were standing with the two officers. Her long blonde hair was pulled back from her face into a high ponytail. Her face was sans makeup, and she had on one of my dress shirts that I kept upstairs in my office. It was tucked into the waistband of her black skirt from last night and a little baggy on her frame, but I had never seen anything look sexier. All four of us stood and stared at her while she approached. I swear Knox and the two officer’s mouths were damn near hanging opened. I wanted to punch every one of them in the face, even my best friend.

  “Everything ok?” she asked timidly. Her eyes darted to the two officers standing next to me and Knox.

  “Probably just some punk kids vandalizing stuff,” Knox said before I had a chance to respond. It was hard to pay attention when I was too focused on the way that Officer Russell was staring at Ashley. He looked like he wanted to eat her alive and it sent my blood stewing in my veins. I shocked both Ashley and myself when I possessively snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her into my side. Knox smiled at me and I gave him a fuck off look.

  “Hello, Miss…” Officer Russell said as he extended his hand to Ashley.

  “Ashley Woodson” she replied using her maiden name as she shook the officer’s hand. Jealousy consumed my thoughts when Officer Russell held onto Ashley’s hand a little too long for my liking.

  “I was just speaking to Mr. Michaels here about the incident,” he said as he gestured toward the broken windows and glass, “do you know who could have done this, or heard anything?”

  Ashley’s hands fidgeted for a moment before she replied. “No, sir. I was here at the club last night, but I was...uh...upstairs. The room was soundproof so we didn’t hear anything.”

  “We?” Officer Russell questioned. My fucking God. Did she really have to spell it out for him?

  “Yes, we,” I interrupted before Ashley could explain. Ms. Woodson and I were upstairs together last night in the soundproof room.”

  Ashley blushed red. Like fire engine, crimson, stop sign red. I loved how she wasn’t shy in the bedroom and could give as well as she could take, but I also loved the innocence about her. The innocence that having other people know what she was doing in that bedroom that had her blushing right now.

  “I see,” Officer Russell said, “and did Mr. Michaels pay you for any services, ma’am?”

  Ashley gasped. She looked angry, as if she wanted to claw this man’s face off.

  “What? No! It was completely consensual and completely free. How dare you accuse me of being a hooker!”

  I pulled Ashley into my side as Knox placed a hand on her other shoulder to try to calm her.

  “Listen, Officer, I don’t appreciate you coming into my place of business, where you are supposed to be doing an investigation on the vandalism, but instead accuse me of running a prostitution ring and calling my girl a whore. I suggest you do your job and find out who did this to my place.”

  “My apologies. I intend to do just that. Good day. We will be i
n touch.” He turned on his heel and his partner, who had remained silent the entire conversation, followed him like a lap dog.

  I sighed, “I’m sorry about that, Ashley. If he wouldn’t have been a police officer, I would have punched him in the fucking mouth for talking like that.”

  “It’s ok, Dominic.”

  “No, it’s not, Ashley,” Knox insisted, “I wanted to punch him too. Who the fuck does he think he is, Sherlock fucking Holmes?” We all laughed.

  The cops were at the club for over two hours trying to piece together who would have caused the damage. Ashley, Knox and I all answered the same questions about ten times apiece. When everyone started clearing out, I started to turn to Ashley to see if she wanted to get out of there. Just as I turned to speak, Officer Russell yelled out from the front door holding up a clear plastic bag.

  “I’m taking in the note to our forensics department to see if we can get some fingerprints,” he said before he turned and left.

  I barely had the time to process the possibilities of the consequences of his words before Ashley turned to me and asked, “What note?”

  “What note, Dominic?” I asked when he didn’t answer me the first time. The look on his face told me that there was something he was keeping from me. I started to feel a little anxious as a small sheen of sweat developed on my body. This was looking more and more like a purposeful act of vandalism, as opposed to some random kids looking to have a good time.

  “There was a note attached to one of the cinder blocks when it was thrown through the window,” he confessed to me with trepidation. My eyebrows arched in surprise. A note definitely suggested that the damage was done on purpose. Dominic seemed to hesitate for a moment.

  I gestured for him to carry on when he seemed to not want to elaborate about the note.