An Expert in Domination

by Sindra van Yssel

  “That trail is dead, dead, dead, Colby. If you take a break, you might have a fresh insight, but you’re not going to get anywhere just hammering away on it. You can’t solve all the world’s problems. Get out of town, then. You’ll find a girl. Maybe you’ll even find one you want to keep again someday.”

  I can solve a few people’s problems. Maybe someday I’ll be able to do more, but right now at least I can help one person at a time. He knew she was right that he was running himself ragged, though. It seemed as if every time he helped, there were two more people with problems to solve waiting for him. “Give me my coffee back.”

  “No. Not unless you agree to take a break.”

  “Dammit, Angela. You don’t get between a man and his caffeine.”

  “I got between one of my mom’s drunk boyfriends and her when I was eight. I imagine I can get between you and your java. I’m right, and you know I’m right. Last time you spent a weekend away, you were on the phone to me every few hours and driving me nuts. This time I’m not taking your phone calls. Got it?”

  When had he spent a weekend away?

  Two months ago, when he’d gone out to Maryland for Bondage Ranch weekend at the behest of his old friend Dylan. And he’d met Sophia.

  She’d wandered in and out of his dreams since, as he imagined doing wicked things with her curvy body and hearing her voice speaking words of submission. He’d spent less than a day with her, but she’d gotten to him. She was the right level of challenge, smart, and definitely not a doormat with a desire to submit but having to struggle to make it happen. He’d only started bugging Angela after Sophia’s emergency had taken her away.

  He figured she’d probably found another man by now. He had hoped when she did, she’d at least e-mail him for some advice. He’d mentored several of his former slaves and was still in contact with some who had become lifelong friends. Even if Sophia didn’t care for getting pointers from a Dom, he could have at least hooked her up with a submissive who knew the ups and downs of D/s.

  But he’d heard nothing.

  “Maybe,” he told Angela. He pulled out his phone. He was aware of her eyes narrowing at him, but he ignored her. He found Sophia’s number and sent a text: Are you seeing anyone?

  “Who are you texting?” asked Angela.

  “It’s none of your business.”

  “Fair. Never stopped me, but fair.” Angela shrugged and, as if to make a point, stretched back and put his coffee on the windowsill behind her, even farther away.

  “A girl I met a few months ago on the East Coast. If she’s available, I’ll go. If not, I’m taking that case, and I’ll walk right by you and go to Java Joe’s for another cuppa.”

  “Do women ever say no to the great Colby Brock?”

  “Yes.” He couldn’t tell if she was mocking him, and he didn’t feel like figuring it out. “You, for instance.”

  Angela harrumphed. “Well, you never asked me for sex. But the answer to that would be no too. I’m no one’s lapdog.”

  “And neither are any of the women I play with.” He knew he wouldn’t succeed at explaining to Angela that it required strength to be a submissive, not weakness. “And as for the latter, good. We’re not remotely compatible.”

  Angela nodded. “I don’t date white boys anyway.” She got up out of her chair. “I can’t spend all day watching you. But I’m not helping you on another case until you start taking better care of yourself.”

  “Mind handing me my coffee?” Colby asked.

  Angela glanced at the windowsill and then back at Colby. “Yeah,” she said and walked out.

  An hour later, he glanced at his phone. There was nothing from Sophia, but a friend of his had sent him an invitation to a private play party at seven. He took a deep breath. I should go. Angela is right. All work and no play isn’t good for me.

  He was on his way there, dressed in his leathers, when he finally got a text back. No. Y?

  Minimum effort. Not promising. But at least the answer was no. He pulled over and thought for a moment, then tapped out a message back. I have a chance to be in your area for a while. I’d like to get together.

  Maybe, came the answer.

  * * * *

  Yes. I’d like to see him. And play with him. But what does he expect? A one-night stand?

  Sophia pushed the papers in front of her aside and tried to clear her head. The light in her office was the only one on in the house, and the kids were sleeping. She hadn’t taken a break for a while. Dad had recovered, and her parents might be up to watching the kids again, but she was waiting for them to offer. She spent the time the kids were at school and a couple of hours after they went to bed editing technical papers and textbooks for her job, but now she was having trouble concentrating.

  I haven’t taken a break for a while, so even a one-night stand sounds good if I can get someone to watch the kids. Or even better, a morning tryst while the kids are at school. But the last time I did things with him, I couldn’t keep him out of my dreams for weeks. I want more than just one night. I want the chance for a relationship.

  He didn’t respond right away, and she forced herself to focus on the paper she was editing. She’d have to put her edits online in the end, but she found she did her best work with printouts and red pen. Her endurance was better without the glare of the screen. Still, her mind kept drifting back to him. What’d you expect? “Yes, Colby?” It’s not that easy.

  Her phone buzzed. I’d be in town for a few weeks, if you are interested in exploring dominance and submission with me.

  More than a one-night stand, then? she texted back. Might as well say just what she was thinking.

  Much more.

  Then call me. Her heart beat faster. But how could she manage that? She’d been getting by on short flings for quite some time before Colby, but above all, she needed to protect the kids, and they didn’t need to see Mom with a new boyfriend every month or two.

  The phone buzzed again, and she picked it up. “Hi.” There were sounds in the background. Voices and other noises she couldn’t place. She wondered where he was.

  “Hello, Sophia. How are you?”

  “I’ve been getting by. You?”

  “About same. I was actually wondering if I could stay with you.”

  She sighed. That sounded perfect, but it was completely impractical. “I can’t. I have my kids, and I don’t want them seeing…” How do I say this without it being insulting? But I really only barely know him.

  “Gotcha,” he said. “You barely know me, and you have to protect your kids. But do you have some free time?”

  “Well, I usually work. But afternoons while they’re at school, I could make time. A couple of hours. And I could get some time on weekends maybe.”

  There was a pause. Was that a moan in the background? She heard a door open and close, and then the sounds stopped. She didn’t like the idea that he was with someone, but she listened. “I can afford a hotel,” he said. “We can meet there for two hours every afternoon. When you walk into my room, you will be mine. When you leave, you can go back to your normal life, and I’ll enjoy being a tourist in DC. If we manage to get some time on weekends, I’ll treat that as a bonus.”

  No strings. But still intense, to be his every afternoon. And yes, much more than a one-night stand. “If the hotel is close, we’ll have more time.”

  “If you’re willing to send me your address, I’ll get a nearby hotel.”

  She hesitated. For herself, she trusted him. But she had her kids to consider whenever she took a risk. The silence lengthened and felt awkward.

  “Or you can do the research and give me a few nearby options,” he said. “But if you’re uncomfortable about me, the best thing to do is to give my name to a friend of yours. I’m not hard to track down, and if anything were to happen, your friend would give my name to the police.”

  In the time since she met him, she’d read his books and remembered him suggesting similar schemes as a way for people to pr
otect themselves. “You’ve done this before.”

  “I’m not going to apologize for my past, and I hope you can benefit from my experience.”

  “And I’m not going to apologize for being a protective mom.”

  “Good. Because that’s a good thing too.”

  Sweet talker. She didn’t see how it was a good thing for him, but maybe he’d rather just have two hours, anyway. Still, she didn’t much like the idea that he’d be free to see other women every evening if he wanted to. “Are you just visiting me, or are there other girls on the agenda?” she asked. She hadn’t decided if it was a deal breaker or not.

  “I was actually going to propose that we both get ourselves tested tomorrow—I get myself tested regularly anyway—and that we be exclusive while I’m there.”

  Simple. If she trusted him. Oddly, she did. Not because he couldn’t get another woman easily enough, but because he probably had little need to inveigle any of them with lies. Recent tests were all fine and good, but some things took a while to show up. “Have you had unprotected sex with anyone since I met you?”

  “No sex at all, actually.”

  Maybe she’d misjudged. “I find that hard to believe.”

  “I’ve been working. And I have played with people. I’m at a play party right now, and I just stepped out. But I actually go long stretches without sex. I might tie people up, I might beat them with a flogger, but for sex, I want something more than a one-off date.”

  That sounded more credible to her than the idea that the man who wrote those books just decided to go completely without. She couldn’t help but be jealous of the women he’d played with, however. “Where are you? Are you going to play tonight?”

  “I’m at a club. And it depends on whether you say yes or not.” He chuckled. “If you do, I’d rather save my energy for you.”

  It was almost blackmail, if he knew how much she suddenly didn’t want him touching anyone else. But maybe he didn’t know she was jealous. And it sounded honest to her. She took a deep breath. I won’t know until I try. “Yes. That’s your answer. Yes.”

  “I’d like to send you a contract. It’s not set in stone. We can negotiate it. But it will detail what I expect as your dominant and what you can expect as my submissive for the duration of my visit.”

  “And at the end of the visit?”

  “Then I’ll go back to my life, and you’ll go back to yours. I’ll put that in the contract.”

  “No, Colby.” She used his name deliberately, remembering how she had used it to show respect at the ranch. At the same time, she had to say no.

  “Hmm?”

  “I don’t want that in the contract.”

  “I always put it in my contracts. And I especially should in this case. I don’t live out there, and neither of us wants a long-term relationship, right?”

  “I don’t think so. Although maybe seeing you occasionally could be pretty good. I don’t know. That’s the point—I don’t know. I know one thing about the future, and that’s that it’s in the future. I want it open-ended.” Just in case there’s more to us than we know, I don’t want to doom us from the start.

  He waited for a moment for her to finish before speaking. “I find that open-ended leads to trouble and confusion, and I want to take better care of a submissive than that.”

  She was thinking. He seemed to know everything about BDSM and have everything figured out. He had way too much experience, and she had too little. Surrendering to him was one thing, but the fact that he knew so much more than she did was an imbalance that made her uneasy. And even though she was in no position to have anything more than just a bit of him for a short time, she wanted there to be possibility. Hope. Options. She made up her mind. “I’ll sign a limited-term contract. But not for the whole time you’re here. For one week. For that one week, I’ll give you more than two hours a day.” And I’ll stay up late getting my work done. For a week, I can do it. “Acceptable?”

  “With a possibility of negotiating another week or two after the week is up?” he asked.

  “With a possibility of negotiating whatever we like, after.”

  Silence. Too open-ended for you? Tough. A week will be hard enough on my heart. Even though parts of me are already getting wet looking forward to it.

  “Acceptable,” he said at last.

  Chapter Seven

  Sophia gave Lana a kiss as she dropped her off. Jack was in middle school and walked. He was becoming an independent kid, which was supposed to be a good thing, but part of her missed her little boy. Lana, at least, still liked cuddles. How much longer would it be until she started wanting to be all grown up too?

  She drove two miles to the Regent Hotel where Colby was staying and parked on the street where the parking was cheaper. Looking around to make sure no one was staring at her too intently, she slipped her hands underneath the short blue denim dress she was wearing and pulled off her panties. Then she opened the door, held the hem so that it wouldn’t ride up, and got out of the car. She didn’t want to flash anyone. Heck, she didn’t even want anyone seeing the tops of her stockings. Well, most of her didn’t.

  She had done as he suggested and left a sealed envelope with her friend Melanie. It was slightly more complicated than a call, but it would work. If she wasn’t there to pick Lana up, Lana knew to go to Mel’s house, which was just a block from school—that had been standard procedure for the last three years. And if Lana showed up, Mel knew to open the envelope, which would tell her to send the police to Colby’s room. Sophia didn’t want Melanie knowing any more than necessary.

  Feeling a little self-conscious, her heartbeat fast with excitement, Sophia went to the hotel clerk and asked for the key, which Colby had promised would be waiting for her. The clerk checked her ID and handed the key card to her. She took the elevator up, her heart beating madly.

  I could simply knock and have him let me in. But that’s not what he asked me to do. And him being in charge turns me on.

  She got off on the fourth floor, walked down the hallway to room 415, and slid the key through the slot on the door. She heard the click and saw the green light go on. She twisted the door knob and let herself in before closing the door behind her.

  He was lying propped up on the bed, reading a book. His shirt was off, but he wore the same leather pants he’d been wearing when she’d first seen him. She’d forgotten just how strong he looked, how broad his chest was and how thick his biceps were. She gave herself a moment just to watch him. He set down the book to look at her. She wanted him to rise and gather her up in his arms, kiss her perhaps, but she knew he wasn’t going to. Not with the instructions he’d given her. She deposited her purse on the small table near the entryway.

  “Hello, Sophia. It’s very good to see you.”

  At least he spoke. She smiled back at him with a bit more bravery than she thought. A whole week. Why does that seem so daunting? “It’s good to be seen,” she said. It was a lie. She’d much rather watch him than have his gaze on her. Especially given what he’d ordered her to do next.

  She hesitated. He waited.

  She’d practiced a few times in the mirror. The dress had metal buttons up the front, riveted securely on. She grabbed it and pulled. Pop, pop, pop. I hope he didn’t expect a slow striptease. In a second, every button was undone, and she shrugged the dress to the floor.

  His eyes widened.

  She’d bought the garter belt she wore partly because she knew she’d feel silly standing there in just her bra. And he’d been very specific she wasn’t to wear panties, and that she was to shed all her outer clothing the moment she entered. She took a step forward to get off the tile that was at the entryway, and then she knelt on the carpet, as instructed. She wanted to be perfect for him.

  He got off the bed and walked around until he stood in front of her. “You’re beautiful, Sophia. Even more so than I remembered. You may stand.”

  She took his offered hand and rose. Immediately he enveloped her in his a
rms and kissed her hard on the lips. She kissed back, opening her mouth for his tongue. Soon she felt his hand on her throat, pushing her back until she felt the wall against her ass. For a moment, she felt weak, and then his grip relaxed. She breathed.

  “Colby,” she said. “Sir.”

  “Not for this week,” he said. “For this week, I am your Master. And you are my slave. You belong to me, to do as I please as long as I can release you whole when our time is finished.”

  Finished. She didn’t want to think about that. Not when it was just starting. It was my idea to make it a week. Maybe I was foolish.

  Still holding her against the wall, he slid his hand down her belly. She parted her legs for him, yearning for his touch. “You waxed,” he said as he encountered her silky smoothness.

  “You like?” You better, because it hurt, and I did it for you.

  “I do. Very much so. I feel like rewarding you.” Without further warning, he grabbed her hips and picked her up. She knew she wasn’t a light woman, but he acted like she was a feather. He tossed her onto the bed, which took the wind out of her. Sturdy bed.

  She wasn’t sure where exactly he grabbed rope from, but suddenly he was on top of her and tying her wrist. The knot he was tying looked complicated, but it only took him a few seconds before both her wrists were tied to the bedposts. And he still had rope left over.

  “This is my reward?” she asked.

  “Part of it.”

  Actually, it sounds good to me.

  He moved off her and grabbed an ankle, tying that to a corner too. She decided she’d play hard to get with the other one and moved her foot as he tried to grab it.

  He chuckled. “Really, my little hedonist? The time to try to get away is long gone. You don’t have a chance with only one foot free.” Sure enough, by the time he’d finished talking, he’d caught up with her foot, and no amount of yanking was going to dislodge her foot from his grasp. He tied it efficiently, and she found herself spread-eagle and unable to move.

  “Well, hello,” she said. Had it been just a few seconds ago that she had walked into the room and seen him for the first time in months? But at least they’d talked. On the phone and a couple of times on video chat. They’d negotiated the rules. And now he could use her however he wished.