by Dakota Trace
“Good, I see you haven’t forgotten how to greet a Dom.” Josh’s voice was cool. Keeping her head lowered, she didn’t answer. Unless he directly asked her a question she was to remain mute.
“Hmm, I’ll have to compliment Dominic on his training abilities. He managed to figure out how to mute you. I wonder what his trick was. Did he gag you until you got the point?
Licking her lips, she replied. “Yes, Sir. This slave wore a gag quite frequently.”
“Will I need to gag you tonight, slave?” His voice seemed closer.
“It is your choice, Sir.” The tears welled in her eyes. While Dominic never gagged her during this type of punishment, he’d given carte blanche to Josh.
Squatting down next to her, Josh lifted her head to study her eyes. “No, I don’t think that I’m going to gag you tonight.” He released her chin before standing once more. “Strip, slave.” He tossed his order over his shoulder before striding over to where he’d set the bag down. Rising to her feet, she made quick work of her jeans and t-shirt. Reaching for her bra, she shed it quickly before sliding her fingers under the elastic band of her thong.
Without looking over his shoulder, Josh’s voice broke the silence. “Leave it.”
She withdrew her fingers before lowering herself to the floor.
* * * *
Pretending to be rummage around in the bag, Josh watched in the mirror over the bar as Kalinda lowered herself back to the floor. Her olive colored skin was exposed to his hungry gaze. It had taken most of his willpower to order her to leave the thong on. He had to remind himself this was for a punishment that he thought she didn’t deserve but because of her own mind set ‘needed’. This wasn’t for play.
When he yanked the red handled flogger out of the bag, his eyes widened in shock when he saw the knotted ends of the tails. After each knot there was a flattened piece of leather that resembled the working end of a cane. Dominic wanted him to use this on Kalinda?
Gripping it in his hand, he strove for control. Taking several deep breaths while he busied himself with closing the bag, he was once more composed when he turned around. Approaching the cross, he noticed that either Caelan had left the straps undone or Kalinda had opened them in preparation. But knowing Caelan, he’d have to say the culprit was the latter.
Flicking on the overhead light above the cross, he took one of the antibacterial wipes Caelan kept handy. It took him less than thirty seconds to thoroughly disinfect the padded areas of the cross.
“Present, slave.” His order seemed loud in the quiet playroom. He had to fight back previous memories. Not only those of the recent night when Kalinda had teased both him and Dominic, but memories from further back of the first and only time he’d bound her to Caelan’s cross. Without looking at her, he could feel her heat when she came to stand next to him.
“Up, back presented.” He waited for her to comply with his orders. When she stepped onto the small blocks of wood at the base of the cross, he leaned down. Securing her feet with the cuffs, he slid a finger under the cuff to check for tightness. “Flex your feet for me, slave.” He watched as she rotated them one at a time without trouble. “Good, not too tight, slave?”
Her voice was barely above a whisper when she answered him. “No, Sir.”
At her reassurance, he moved up to her arms. Once the cuffs were secure and tested, he allowed his body to press against her back.
“Do you know why you are being punished, slave?” His voice was low.
“Yes, Sir.”
He would’ve smiled when he felt her shiver, if he hadn’t been so uncomfortable with the entire situation. Mentally pulling himself up by his bootstraps, he decided it was time to get this over, so he could take her back upstairs, tuck her into bed, and call Dominic back. Even though the man hadn’t asked him to, he knew if he were in Dom’s shoes he’d want the same courtesy.
“How many strokes do you think you deserve tonight, slave?”
The silence grew as she pondered his question,
“As many as it takes to forget that I endangered my best friend, Sir.”
Maintaining body contact with her, he drew the flogger up her extended thigh. “That’s not a number, slave.”
“I…a hundred, Sir.”
A low growl rumbled in his chest. Dominic had been right about the severity of the punishment she thought she deserved. Even if he hadn’t been using this particular flogger which was a combination of a flogger and cane, it would be damn hard not to break the skin with the kind of whipping she was asking for.
“It’s a good thing you don’t have a ‘say’, now isn’t it?” He gave her inner thigh a sharp tap with the flogger. Even without much momentum behind it, he knew that it’d left a bright strip on her flesh. “You will get thirty strokes to help you relieve your emotional pain at the attack but no more, slave.” He brushed a kiss over her ear. “I do this for you, not because I agree - or even feel you deserve this punishment, but I know that you need it very badly.”
He stepped back from her, barely hearing her ‘Thank you, Sir’ as he tested the flogger against the skin of his own forearm. Deciding that the pain would be tolerable at about half strength, he assumed his position behind her. He’d work up to a harder stroke if she needed it.
“Count off, slave.” Drawing his arm back, he let go with the first five strokes in rapid succession. He focused on her gasping cries as she counted while he alternated from her back to her ass. When he reached the tenth stroke, he paused to assess her. Both areas were flushed a light pink. “What level are you at?” His demand was hoarse.
“Green, Sir.” The tears in her voice had him wanting to pull her off the cross and cuddle her close, but he had a punishment to finish. Stepping back, he continued again. Each strike of the flogger against her back had the coil of dread tightening in his stomach. It was one thing to flog her for their mutual enjoyment, but quite another to do it for punishment.
When she cried out, “Twenty, Sir!” he didn’t bother to stop but doled out the final ten strokes without pause and at three-quarters strength, knowing that she wouldn’t have been able to feel the lighter strokes he’d given her at the beginning.
Letting his arm drop to his side, he watched as she lay slumped against the cross with her breathing a bit erratic and with the crimson stripes decorating her upper back and entire ass.
“What level are you at, slave?”
It took her a moment to respond. When she did, he was surprised at how strong her voice seemed. “Green, Sir.”
Moving closer, he tipped her head to the side so he could see her eyes.
“Look at me, slave. I need to see.”
When she opened her eyes, he stared down into their dark wet depths. He let out the breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. While the pain was there still, he also saw acceptance and a bit of the ‘forgiveness’ Dominic had told him to expect.
“Come on, slave, it’s time for aftercare.” He quickly released her from the cross and carried her over to the chair he’d occupied only a few nights before. After grabbing a blanket out of the hidden warmer behind the bar, he lifted her onto his lap before settling back.
Even with the blanket wrapped around her body, he could feel her trembling. He kept up a soft dialogue with her as he coaxed her back down from the punishment. He told her how she wasn’t responsible for the attack, how her brother still loved her, how Dominic still loved her, how they were both happy that she’d been there to hold off the men until the police got there, and then as he heard her breathing even out into sleep, he told her how much he missed her.
When the gentle wheeze came that signified her slumber, he pressed his mouth against her forehead and fulfilled his promise to Dominic.
“We both love you, Spitfire, and you just don’t realize how much.”
Chapter Nine
Kalinda snuggled closer to the warmth of the body next to her. The warmth of the chest on her ear was comforting. Pressing a kiss against his chest, she wa
s oblivious to all but the feeling of security she felt in his arms. She was on the verge of pressing her mouth against a small masculine nipple when his sudden intake of breath told her he was awake. She was just about to tease the tight nub within millimeters of her mouth when she noticed how the man’s scent was ‘off’. This wasn’t Dominic holding her! Instead of his spicy scent of Stetson, the musky oriental woodsy smell of Burberry Brit teased her nostrils. Only one man she knew wore that particular cologne. Opening her eyes, she looked up to see Josh’s sleepy blue eyes filled with anticipation along with more than a bit of lust.
Startled, she pushed off his chest before scrambling to the edge of the bed. “Ah…excuse me - bathroom.” Her last glimpse of Josh before she scurried out of the bedroom to take refuge in the bathroom was of Josh sitting up on one arm with the rumpled sheets pooling around his waist. Shutting the bathroom door behind her, she flicked the lock on it. Staring at her own reflection in the mirror, she winced. On her forehead, the stitches the doctor had used to sew her forehead back together stood out against the reddened skin around them. Then she caught sight of her bare flesh. Glancing down, she saw that she was only wearing the thong from last night. Mortification washed over her. Being naked in front of him during a scene was one thing, but being in bed with him wearing the same thong was another thing all together.
Sitting down on the toilet, she held her head in her hands. Not only had she’d almost initiated something she couldn’t finish, she’d slept in just her thong all night - as she had done just the night before with Dominic. A twinge of guilt struck her at the thought of him - her Master. Even without Dominic’s collar, she felt like her actions a few moments ago, despite feeling right, were a betrayal of her commitment to him. She felt like punching the wall but refrained, knowing the only thing it would accomplish was another trip to the emergency room, because she’d busted her hand. She was truly confused. Though her body longed for Josh’s dominating touch, she was wary of trusting herself, especially without the comfort of having Dominic as a buffer- a sort of neutral party. When he was there, she didn’t have to worry about whether or not she’d pleased Josh - Dominic wouldn’t let her fail.
“Kalinda?” Josh’s voice was muffled by the door. She was tempted to jump into the shower but knew if she turned the water on now, he’d know she was using it as an escape route to avoid him - and more specifically what had happened or didn’t happen last night. Deciding to brazen it out, she got off the toilet.
“I’ll be out in a minute.” She kept her voice bright even knowing that she was anything but chipper this morning.
Stepping over to the sink after using the commode she quickly washed her hands, trying not to stare too deeply at the shadows in her eyes. They said that eyes were ‘windows to the soul’ and hers gave her away every time. After drying her hands, she decided it didn’t matter. Whatever Josh might or might not see in her eyes could be attributed to all that occurred yesterday.
When she opened the door, she expected to find Josh standing right outside of it. Instead she found the hall empty. From her kitchen, she could hear watering running. He obviously was either starting some coffee or getting himself a drink. Ducking back into her bedroom, she pulled out a pair of summer sweat pants and a long t-shirt of Dominic’s.
Smelling his familiar Stetson scent, she buried her face in the neck of the shirt as she dressed. When it didn’t replace the scent of Burberry Brit, but instead added to her memories, a low moan escaped her as her body responded. The memories of their time together as a threesome were passion’s torture, which if she was honest with herself, she’d admit she wanted more of, but how much more she didn’t know. It was one thing to have Dominic invite Josh into their bed - thus fulfilling her fantasy of serving two men at once, but quite another to actually submit to the man who’d nearly broken her.
“Good, I see you’re dressed - and as much as I love the idea of you walking around in nothing but a thong all day, we’ve got places to go.” Josh’s voice had her spinning around.
Standing in the now open doorway of her room, he looked rumpled and sexy dressed in a pair of faded jeans and unbuttoned shirt with his blond hair tangled and messy.
“We do?” She clenched the bottom of Dominic’s shirt between her fingers. “I thought I’d just stay here today. There’s a huge mess downstairs I’d like to get cleaned up before Caelan gets home.”
“It’s already cleaned up. As to where we’re going - you’re coming to work with me. I’ll be damned if I let you stay here all day to either beat yourself up about something you had no control over, or even worse - have the idiots who did this come back and have another shot at finishing what they started.”
She nodded before shifting slightly. She really needed to hear Dominic’s voice this morning. She felt so lost and insecure standing in front of Josh. “Can I call Dominic before we leave?”
He walked further into the room. She stiffened when he drew her into his arms. “I wouldn’t dream of denying you access to him. Despite last night, you’re still not mine. I’m glad I could fill in for him last night…” He pressed a kiss to the top of her head before lifting her face up so he could look into her eyes. “…but do not mistake my kindness for anything other than what it was. You needed a strong Dom last night, which I willingly provided. It does not mean that I’ve given up on the thought of having you as my own again. I will never be content to ‘just fill in’ for him.” His eyes were dark with a primal need but he slowly released her before taking a step back. “Just remember I had you first, Kalinda. Then I was a fool - I let you go.”
She stared at him in shock when he left the room without another word. Sinking onto the bed, she started to tremble. Her emotions were rioting - she wasn’t sure which way to turn. She honestly wanted to believe what she saw in his eyes, but experience warned her not to trust the smooth talking Englishman who nearly destroyed her. If she did let him back into her heart, what was she supposed to do about Dominic. Even though she hadn’t told Dominic, she loved him, the idea of giving him up for Josh was heartbreaking - she couldn’t do it - to Dom or herself.
She suddenly had an overwhelming need to talk to him. Reaching for the phone next to her bed, she dialed his cell number. It rang twice before a sleep roughed Cajun accent filled her ear.
“Morning, chérie.”
“Master?” She kept her voice soft while she began to pace her room.
“Is everything okay, Kalinda?” Tears welled in her eyes. His voice so deep and sensual had her feeling even more confused. How could she want to keep both of them? As a submissive, she was supposed to find her one true master. But what if I have two? She longed to cry. What if I don’t want to choose? Hearing him repeat his question, she fought back her tears. “I’m fine, Dominic. I slept fairly well…”
“Did Sir punish you?” Even though she had a feeling that Josh had called him afterwards, since Dominic had arranged the specific punishment, she knew he’d want to hear her words from her own lips.
“Yes, Sir, punished me last night.”
“And do you feel better?”
“A little.”
“Good. You realize there was no physical way you could’ve anticipated that someone would break into your brother’s home.”
“Yes, Master. I wanted to let you know that Sir is taking me to work today with him. It’s probably not safe for me to be here by myself…” she debated on whether or not to tell him about the leader’s threat. She didn’t want him to worry about her anymore than he already was. She had a feeling the threat had been directed at her as much as him as she was his only sub. Plus you’re too chicken shit to admit that you might be the reason they were after him. Several local Dom’s who’d approached her before the incident at the Gilded Lily whom she’d bluntly and totally refused, hadn’t been happy when Dominic had swept her off her feet. The idea that they might be retaliating against him because of her refusal had her heart pounding. He was a good man who didn’t deserve that. Deciding
to be like an ostrich, she stuck her head in the sand. She would wait until she saw him in person. She needed to see his face when she told him.
“That sounds good, chérie. Josh will keep you safe until I get home tomorrow. Now be a good little sub and do as Sir says.”
“Yes, Master.” She leaned her head against the wall.
“I’ll call you later tonight. Behave.”
She heard the humor in his voice. “I will.” In the background she heard Josh call loudly, telling her he’d be waiting down in the car. She covered the mouthpiece of the phone to tell him she’d be right there before returning to the call. “I love you, Dominic. Stay safe. I gotta go.” Her words were soft but rushed. When a low growl echoed in her ear, her eyes widened. She’d said the words without thinking. She was in deep shit now...this had not been the right time or place.
“You dare to admit that now?”
“Sorry, Master but I gotta run, or I’m gonna end up with another punishment from Sir.” She quickly disconnected the call before slipping her shoes on. Behind her the phone rang again. She flicked the ringer off before grabbing her keys off the dresser. Shutting the door behind her as the phone in the kitchen began to ring, she ignored it. Rushing down the stairs, she found Josh sitting in his car talking on his cell. He eyed her as she slid into the passenger seat before finishing his call. “Yes, I’ll tell her. Talk to you tonight, Dom.” Folding the phone up, he turned sideways in the driver’s seat. “You’ve been naughty again, haven’t you?” His voice was hard with just a hint of amusement in it.
She widened her eyes. “Who me?”
He leaned over her before touching her lower lip. “Yeah you. I’m supposed to tell you that you’ve just earned yourself an ‘ass whopping’ when he gets back.”
Her cheeks flushed but she kept the innocent look on her face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” When he narrowed his eyes at her and looked like the big bad Dom he was, she couldn’t help herself. She winked at him. “I can’t wait.”