Liberated Heart (Windy City)
Page 26
"I'd admit anything to you," he whispered into her ear.
"God, I love you, Sir." She moaned as he slid into her, tormenting her with his slow motion.
"And I you, pet."
Thank you so much for reading LIBERATED HEART! I hope you enjoyed meeting Bradley and Erin. They’d love to meet all the people. So please spread the word, and tell a friend about these books!
Want exclusive content, giveaways, and special news?
Join Measha’s Email List! You’ll also get a free ebook!
Still craving more romance in the Windy City? You’re in luck. Turn the page to get a glimpse of Daddy’s Heart.
Daddy’s Heart
Chapter One
Ryder Welding chucked his duffel bag over his shoulder and hiked up two floors of stairs. The summer time heat hadn’t been left outside, but followed him into the stairwell, entangling with the stale air already present. He made a note to tell George to talk to the building maintenance people again.
Gallant Domination belonged to George, a longtime friend. Ryder volunteered, helping man the dungeon parties and do light equipment repair in exchange for free membership. The club wasn’t exclusive, but it wasn’t cheap, and on Ryder’s construction salary it would be hard. Not impossible, he worked enough over time to keep the coffers full, but he preferred to stash as much away for when his muscles finally gave out and he couldn’t depend on the forklifts to do the work for him anymore.
“Ryder. Thanks for coming in today.” George greeted him at the entrance.
“No problem.” Ryder slid his duffel off his shoulder and dropped it on the bar top. The lounge set up was like any other club. Bar, high tables, a few leather couches sprinkled in, and two armchairs made it all a relaxing atmosphere.
“I have the painters coming to paint the purple and black rooms, so we need to move out the equipment. We can put one cross and one spanking bench in the main room and the other stuff we’ll have to move into the meeting room and close it off until we can move everything back into the private rooms,” George explained as they walked down the hall to the private rooms he rented out to the members.
Private play didn’t need special rentals, but groups often wanted the room for a full night, They didn’t mind renting out the space since George wasn’t one to overcharge.
“Got it.” Ryder entered the purple room and surveyed the equipment to be moved. “Is it just the two of us?”
“Yeah, Barry had to take his girl to the doctor this morning. She’s been having some spotting.” George raised his eyebrows and scrunched his lips.
Ryder laughed. “He told you that?”
“Yeah. He’s worried somethings wrong with the baby.”
“I’m sure it’s nothing.” Ryder said having no idea if spotting at seven months was normal or not.
“Hope not. That man’s been waiting long enough to find the right girl and start a family. Hate to see something bad happen now.” George made his way to a spanking bench and motioned for Ryder to grab the other end.
“He got lucky, that’s for sure.” Ryder picked up the bench with George and walked backward toward the door.
Barry had gotten lucky. Not everyone would find a woman well-suited to them. Normal life compatibility was hard enough to find, but then to add a kink to it? Ryder didn’t hold much hope of finding it. Some fun at the dungeon, a few short relationships was fine for him. He’d adjusted to it.
“Luck has nothing to do with it.” George grunted as he maneuvered the bench through the doorjamb and turned down the hall to the main play room.
“I’m not having this discussion again. It’s not like you’ve exactly settled down either.” Ryder said, backing into the main space and finding a cleared area to put the bench.
They set the hulking equipment down and walked back to the purple room to get the St. Andrews cross.
“When’s the last time you even played here, Ryder?” George pressed as he motioned Ryder toward the cross.
“I played a few weeks ago with Sara.”
“And?” George hoisted his side of the cross.
Ryder lifted his part with ease but used the excuse of carrying the cross to keep his mouth closed. Playing with Sara had been fun, a night of kinky excitement, but that’s all it was- all it could be.
“And it was fun.” Ryder pushed the cross into the corner, adjusting the angle until he was happy with the placement. “There’s stocks in there, you want that in here or the main room?”
“Main room,” George said. “That reminds me. I put in an order for another stock set for the lounge area. I’m going to put it up on a platform, you know like a punishment corner.” George grinned over the idea.
Ryder chuckled. “I like it.” He could think of plenty of willing participants, and a few who would be less joyful about it.
“I’m looking into hiring a general manager around here.” George talked while he pointed to the next item to be moved.
“Oh yeah? Finally realized the tower of papers and mail on your desk was going to crash down around you and kill you?” Ryder laughed.
George shot him a quick glare. “I handle shit fine around here, but I’m tired of chasing invoices and all that garbage. I want to be out here more, with the guests-”
“With the women, you mean.” Ryder shot, positioning the last large piece that needed two men to move. He could do the rest on his on his own.
“Them too,” George winked.
Ryder shook his head and waved him off. “Well, go on back to your work. I can clear the rest of this out myself.”
“Actually.” George shuffled his feet. “There’s something else I need to talk with you about.”
Ryder started folding up the chairs positioned along the walls and stacking them.
“Oh, yeah? What?”
George rubbed the back of his neck and cleared his throat. “You remember me mentioning my college fraternity brother needing a place for his sister to crash for a few weeks?”
Ryder stacked another chair onto the pile and straightened his back. “Yeah?” He dragged out the word, already getting a sinking sensation pulling at his spine.
“She’s coming next week. The thing is, my mom’s apartment is being worked on. The landlord finally got around to working on the electrical in the building and she’s gonna be without electricity for a few days.”
“In the middle of summer? Are they nuts?” Chicago summers were not the time to be without fans or air conditioning.
“He’s not the brightest. But I guess they failed the city inspection. Best course really is to get her a new apartment. And he’s willing to let her out of her lease if she’s able to get moved out by Friday.”
Ryder picked up another chair. “And she’s going to move in with you while you find her a better place, which leaves this frat girl out?”
“She wasn’t in the frat- never mind that, but yeah. I could give her the couch, but I remembered you have the spare room. And with your schedule you’d never even see her.” George said.
“How long?” Ryder asked, snapping another chair closed.
“A week- maybe two at the most, I think. She’s just finished her degree and is moving up here from Indiana. She has interviews all lined up for libraries in the area and a few out in the burbs. If she’s still there after I get ma settled, she can come to my place.”
Ryder’s jaw clenched. “How old is she?”
“Twenty-five. Just finished her Master’s down there.”
Ryder sighed. “Just a week or two?”
“The most.”
“Is this why you’re pushing about me not playing here often?” Ryder raised a brow; he never pegged George for a match maker, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t start.
“No.” George protested. “No, not at all. She’s a friend’s sister- out of bounds.” He pointed a finger at Ryder. “She needs a safe place to stay, not with someone trying to get down her pants at every turn.”
“Which is why you didn’t
ask Jaxson.” Ryder laughed.
The severity left George’s eyes. “Yeah. He’d be all up on her and she doesn’t need that shit.”
Ryder caught the undertone. “She coming up here cause she loves the city, or she coming to get away from Indiana?”
“She’s had a bad time of it, but she can tell you if she wants. Not my place.”
Ryder let the silence linger for a long moment. “She can have the spare room. I’ll stay out of her way and she can do what she needs. I’m sure I’ll be working longer hours with this new job coming up, she won’t have to worry about me.”
George heaved a sigh. “Great. Thank you. I’ll let her know the change in plans. I’ll give her your number and tell her to give you call. She gets into town on Saturday.”
Ryder ran his hand over his beard. “Okay, then. Just have her call me.”
“You good in here?” George was already backing out of the room as he asked the question.
Ryder waved him away. “I got this.”
“Great. You sticking around for the demo tonight or is that your gym bag you brought in?”
“My gym bag.” Ryder frowned. The match making might still be lingering in George’s mind. “Stop being an old hen and let me find my own fun. Just go clear your desk and put an ad out for a manager.”
George laughed and disappeared down the hall toward his office.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First of all, I want to thank you- the readers- for trusting me to take you on a romantic adventure with every book I write. Thank you for taking the time read my stories and play in my imaginary world with me. I am forever in your debt.
I want to give special thanks to my amazing PA, Niki Roge. Dealing with me is like herding cats, and I am eternally grateful for your patience and your ability to kick me back on track when I stray.
I’d also like to thank Laura Hidalgo at Spellbinding Design for the amazing job she did on all the covers for the Windy City Series. Beyond professional in dealing with my last second freak outs and scattered emails. Thank you for your amazing creativity and talent!
Monica with WordNerd Editing, THANK YOU so much for helping me polish this series until it shined. It was no easy task, and you did an amazing job!
Thank you to my ARC team and every member of Measha’s Madhouse. You all give me the support and love I need to keep putting my fingers to the keyboard every day.
About the Author
USA Today Bestselling Author Measha Stone is a lover of all things erotic and fun who writes kinky romantic suspense and dark romance novels. She won the 2018 Golden Flogger award in two categories, Best Advanced BDSM and Best Anthology. She’s hit #1 on Amazon in multiple categories in the U.S. and the U.K. When she’s not typing away on her computer, she can be found nestled up with a cup of tea and her kindle.
https://meashastone.com
Also by Measha Stone
EVER AFTER
Beast
Tower
Red
GIRLS OF THE ANNEX
Daddy Ever After
Obediently Ever After
DARK LACE SERIES
Club Dark Lace (Boxset)
Unzoned
Until Daddy
DARK ROMANCE STANDALONES
Valor
Kristoff
OWNED AND PROTECTED
Protecting His Pet
Protecting His Runaway
His Captive Pet
His Captive Kitten
Becoming His Pet
Training His Pet
BLACK LIGHT SERIES
Black Light Valentine Roulette
Black Light Cuffed
Black Light Roulette Redux
Black Light Suspicion
Black Light Celebrity Roulette
Windy City SERIES
Hidden Heart
Secured Heart
Indebted Heart
Liberated Heart
Daddy’s Heart