by Jodi Payne
He was wearing leather.
He had several bespoke and made-to-measure suits and indulged himself in frequent visits from his tailor. He rarely went in for the signature uniforms of his trade, preferring silk to leather, especially in the summer months. Typically that worked in his favor, setting him apart from the other Doms at the club on a busy night, enforcing his position as Host and MC, and commanding at a glance the respect the owner of a gentleman’s club deserved.
But tonight, he had negotiations on his mind with a boy he’d had his eye on for months and he wanted everyone, including Nikki, to take him for every inch of the Dominant that he was. Still, he wasn’t terribly far from his comfort zone, having chosen a custom-tailored leather sport jacket to wear over a simple, fitted, black cotton T-shirt and leather pants. He wasn’t a fan of heavy boots either and instead wore a pair of shiny, black leather dress shoes.
He certainly understood the psychology behind heavy-heeled boots, leather vests, and ink. But he liked to play a different game, and it had always served him well. Tonight, it was serving him very well indeed, and he hadn’t even seen Nikki yet.
“Bradford.”
“Reed!” He reached out and shook the man’s hand. “Are you finished with your dinner already?”
“I am. The boy and I had a good talk, and we are both anxious to begin.”
Now that Reed had mentioned the boy, he allowed himself to look at Noah, who was standing just beyond Reed’s left shoulder. He had to smile; the boy had dressed as they’d discussed, though at this point Reed held Noah’s tie and suit jacket in one hand and the boy’s shirt was unbuttoned to midtorso. In Reed’s other hand was a leash attached to a set of tame but heavy nipple clamps on Noah’s chest.
“One moment.” He looked around quickly and found Jamison helping Joe restock at the bar. “Jamison, come here, boy.”
“Yes, sir!” The boy put the bottle that was in his hands down on the bar and headed straight over, going to his knees at Bradford’s feet.
Leather. Bradford shook his head.
“On your feet, boy.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Reed.” Bradford reached for Noah’s jacket and tie and Reed handed them over. “Jamison, run these up to the heavy bondage room on the third floor. Hurry now. Leave them neatly on the red chair and run back. Stay out of Master Reed’s way.”
“Yes, sir.” Jamison took the clothing and literally ran.
“Thank you, Bradford. That simplifies things a bit.”
“And you’ll look much better ascending the stairs,” he said knowingly.
Reed’s laughter was genuine. “Oh, you are clever, my friend.”
Bradford winked at him. “Just doing my job.”
“Are you? You seem dressed for more.”
“Ah. Yes, I have plans myself this evening.”
“Excellent.”
Jamison returned quickly but slowed to a walk as he passed Bradford and Reed, eyes low and back straight.
“Thank you, boy.”
“My pleasure, sir. Enjoy your evening, Master Reed.”
“Don’t let me hold you up any longer, Reed. I know you’ve both got goals this evening. Best get to it.”
“Indeed.” Reed nodded to him and began to walk without warning, giving the leash a deliberate tug.
Noah hissed.
“Sloppy already, boy, and the night is so young.”
“I’m sorry, sir.”
He grinned as they headed for the stairwell. Noah had followed perfectly to heel; Reed could be a bastard when he wanted to be. Bradford watched them walk up the stairs, admiring Noah’s technique—eyes low, chin level, expression still, back straight. The Doms in this club were lining up to work with the boy, and yet Noah couldn’t find one that suited his needs. Ordinarily, Bradford would assume that meant the sub was too hard to please, but he’d worked with Noah. The boy wasn’t dismissing these Doms lightly. Noah just had a specific need that wasn’t being met. A hunger. He’d be dedicated—devoted, even—to the right man.
“Master Bradford, your table is ready, sir.”
“Hm?” He looked around and found Brian kneeling at his feet. What was it about the leather?
“Up, boy.”
“Your table is ready, sir.”
“Very good, Brian. Thank you.” Bradford could feel the boy practically vibrating beside him as they walked.
“Are you meeting anyone this evening, Brian?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Well, thank goodness for that. You need it.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.”
“Hm.” Bradford snorted. Brian pulled out his chair. “Bring me an ice water. You will send Nikki directly here when you see him.”
“Yes, sir.” Brian disappeared.
He unbuttoned his jacket and hung it over the back of his chair. It was warm enough in here without being wrapped in cowhide. He took a seat and looked around the room, nodding now and then to any Dom that caught his eye. He was at his usual table in the middle of the room and if he were a betting man, he would guess that he was the new topic of conversation at most of the others—well he, and the subject of his mystery guest.
They didn’t have to wait long. When Bradford looked up again, Brian was on his way with his water and with Nikki as well.
He stood, trying not to let himself look as winded as he suddenly felt. He’d sent Nikki a pair of leather pants as a gift with no demand that the boy wear them, but Nikki had. They fit like a glove and paired nicely with the tight white T-shirt and low black boots the boy had chosen. He was well aware of the eyes on them both as he shook hands with Nikki and invited the boy to sit down.
“Thank you for coming.”
“I told you I would.”
“Indeed.” But he hadn’t counted on anything, hadn’t dared.
“The pants are totally cool. I love them.”
He smiled. “I was hoping you might. They seem to fit you well.” It was just as well that he hadn’t gotten a look at Nikki’s ass in them yet; the front had his blood pressure up as it was.
Nikki picked up his menu and looked it over.
“You may wish to eat light,” he suggested. “Depending on how our conversation goes, you might not want a full stomach later.”
Nikki looked at him over the menu, then closed it and lowered it slowly to the table again. “Oh?”
There was little point in delaying this—the rest of his evening, and Nikki’s, depended on the outcome of their discussion. He leaned forward, crossing his arms on the table and looking into Nikki’s deep sapphire eyes. He was careful to keep his voice low.
“I want to contract with you, Nikki.”
Nikki blinked at him. “Contract with me?”
“For one evening. One night. Tonight.”
“I’m not sure what you’re asking me.”
He nodded. “I’d like to negotiate an evening of play with you. Upstairs. I am asking you to sub for me tonight.”
He watched the boy carefully, observing how Nikki’s breath quickened, and the skin at the boy’s throat began to flush.
“Sub for you.”
“Yes. We would negotiate mutually agreeable terms of course; you can set whatever limits you need.” He knew perfectly well the boy wouldn’t know what limits to set, but he had a very simple evening in mind, nothing that should rattle Nikki or frustrate him too greatly.
The blush made its way into the boy’s cheeks and Nikki swallowed. “So…a scene? Like the other day?”
“Just so, yes. Only you’d be my sub. We would be working together in a real scene. I would have a responsibility to you, and you to me.”
Nikki looked down at his hands, thoughtfully. “I think I’d like that.”
He forcefully swallowed down the elation he felt at hearing those words. Now was not the time.
Steady, man. Steady. He’s almost yours.
He did allow himself to smile, however. “Wonderful. I reserved the St. Andrews room again if—”
“Yes. Can we…I mean, I’d like to…”
“Explore that further?”
“Explore that further,” Nikki agreed, using his words. But the boy wasn’t mocking him this time. “Yes.”
“Excellent. Let’s set some boundaries, shall we? I can start, that might help you.” Bradford leaned back in his chair again and sipped his ice water. “For tonight, I will not use any tools intended to cause any manner of discomfort. I would like to work with sensory tools, they’ll make your skin tingle or tickle and become very sensitive, but without pain. For this I require you naked, as I’ll need access to your skin. And I think we should keep this first encounter short, hm?”
Nikki nodded.
“Tell me what you want.”
“I want to be tied…uh, restrained.”
He allowed himself another grin. What fun listening to the boy practice the vocabulary. “Yes, and?”
“I think the sensitive or uh…”
“Sensory?”
“Yeah. Sensory work sounds interesting. I’m not sure how I feel about much more than that yet.”
“Understood.”
“And no sex.”
He leaned forward and put his glass down on the table before he dropped it. “No sex. By which you mean no fucking? No fellatio? No touching? Where’s your line, boy?”
“No sex at all.”
“At all.” He raised an eyebrow but otherwise tried to hide his dismay at that request. He’d intended to demand a blowjob of the boy at least.…Ah. How foolish of him to assume. Well, if that was the boy’s hard line, so be it. Tonight was not the night for a true negotiation; he didn’t want to scare the boy off with too many demands. “Very well.”
“Do you promise?”
“Do I—” He snorted, incensed, and unable to stop himself this time. “Boy, we’ve just made a gentleman’s agreement; there’s no need for promises.”
“Promise me.”
He eyed the boy, reminding himself yet again that this was Nikki’s first negotiation, and the boy obviously had some kind of hang-up about sex Bradford was unaware of. He would have to explore the issue another time. “All right, boy. I promise.”
Nikki nodded. “Okay, then.”
He raised two fingers in the air. Brian was at his side in an instant. “The small plate for the boy and I will have the sautéed scallops, please.”
“Yes, sir.” Brian hurried off.
“You’re ordering for me?”
“I am. Brian will bring you a plate of light but nourishing bites to give you energy without weighing you down. You’ll thank me, I promise.”
“Okay…” Nikki looked skeptical.
“One more very important thing, boy.”
“What is it?”
“Once we begin, you must only call me ‘sir’ or ‘Master.’ Further, after this first contract, that level of respect must continue indefinitely, as with all the other subs at the club, whether we are currently bound by an agreement or not. Do you understand?”
“All the time?”
“Always.”
Nikki looked thoughtful but didn’t take long to agree. “Okay. I can do that.”
“They are not just words, Nikki. Any Dom in the club will have the right to come to me if you are disrespectful to them. And I will have the prerogative to punish you.”
“Punish me?”
“Not to worry, boy. I will honor your learning curve. ‘Punishment’ for the time being will be a mere discussion. That will change, of course, as you grow into your service.”
“If I do.”
He nodded once. “If you do. And I hope you do.”
And you will. I know you will.
“What is punishment for Brian?”
“He rarely needs it, but generally it would start at two lashes with a crop of my choosing and increase from there depending on the severity of the offense.”
“Ow.”
He shrugged. “That’s really nothing for Brian. Every sub is different. I wouldn’t hit Levi, for example. I would humiliate him.”
“Why?”
“Levi draws a hard limit at being hit. Pain doesn’t fall within his scope of interest or meet his needs. He takes great pride in his service, and so an apt punishment for him would be to make it clear that his service didn’t meet my expectations. A step further would be to do so publicly.” Good lord, that would probably reduce the poor boy to tears.
“Wow.”
“Though honestly, I can’t begin to imagine punishing Levi. There’s not a Dom at this club that ever has in earnest, as far as I know. I certainly haven’t.”
“So if I wanted to, you know, continue…I could really set whatever limits I want?”
“Of course, boy. Your body, your mind, your limits.”
Nikki seemed to take that in, looking thoughtful. “Okay. So what now?”
He smiled. “Now, we eat.”
Brian set out their plates, refilled their water glasses, and moved away swiftly. The boy had been around long enough to know what negotiations looked like and knew better than to linger. Bradford gave Nikki some time to relax while he ate, enjoying the electricity that was building between them in the silence.
When Nikki looked about done, he put down his fork. “This is what will happen next. Listen carefully, I’m only going to tell you once. I don’t expect you to be perfect in any way, boy, but I do expect you to try your hardest. I want everyone in this room to believe in your sincerity, to see how much you want to please me.”
Nikki looked up at him, placed his fork on his plate, and his hands in his lap. “Okay.”
“The appropriate response is, ‘Yes, sir.’ ”
Nikki sighed heavily. “Yes, sir.”
“Good. Now lower your eyes. You don’t have to look at the ground, but you are not to meet anyone’s eyes, is that understood? For tonight that will include other subs. No eye contact. Repeat that for me and end with, ‘sir.’ ”
“Eyes low, no eye contact with anyone. Yes, sir.”
Bradford smiled. “That was perfect, my boy. Very nice.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Oh, they were off to a good start.
“When I stand, you will stand. Do your best to walk behind my right shoulder. Behind me—not on my heels; we’ll have to work on that skill, and I don’t want either of us to be tripped up tonight with all these eyes on you.”
“On me?”
He gave the boy an expectant look, one eyebrow lifting in question.
“On me, sir?” Nikki corrected.
“Yes, boy. You are headed upstairs for a scene with the owner of this club. Trust me, I’m not being arrogant when I say that people are curious. They will be watching.” Well, maybe he was being somewhat arrogant, but it was true nonetheless.
“Okay…uh. I understand, sir.”
“Very nice.”
Nikki took a deep breath. He looked absolutely terrified.
“You’re going to do fine, boy. I will never ask of you anything I don’t believe you are capable of handling.”
Nikki nodded. “Okay. Thank you, sir.”
“Now, when you are ready—and not a moment sooner—you will stand up, straighten yourself up, and then silently come kneel next to my chair. Remember, eyes low. A few moments later I will stand, and we will go. I won’t say anything. I’ll just expect you to follow. Clear?”
“Kneel, then follow you. Yes, sir.”
“Eyes low.”
“Eyes low. Yes, sir.”
“This is a gift you’re giving me, Nikki, and I will treat it with care. You have my word. Now, whenever you’re ready, boy. Take your time.”
Nikki took one last sip of his water and a deep breath. When the boy stood, he heard the room go quiet and felt the eyes in the room turn to them both. He kept his gaze glued to his sub, following Nikki’s every move.
Nikki straightened his T-shirt and smoothed out his leather, then stepped over next to Bradford’s chair and dropped to his knees.
The silence was broken by a few small gasps, and the room filled with conversation again.
He sipped his water as well. Eventually, he stood up, slowly pulled on his jacket, and headed out of the room. He resisted the urge to look back and make sure Nikki was following. It was the boy’s first test, and it was not nearly as easy as it sounded. He nodded to several Doms as he passed their tables, shook one or two hands when they were offered, and made his way out of the dining room.
As they climbed the stairs to the second floor, Bradford turned and looked in the mirror at the boy. Nikki’s eyes were low, and he was only a step behind, but his back was stiff as a board and his hands were trembling. Bradford picked up the pace, moving down the long hall to the St. Andrews room as quickly as possible and keyed open the door.
“Come, boy.” He herded the boy inside and closed the door. “All right. Breathe, boy. Breathe. That’s done, and you did just fine. Look where you like, sit, stand, walk, whatever you need. Go ahead and let it out. It was a lot, I understand.”
The social pressure that came along with subbing for him could be daunting, but he was concerned at Nikki’s level of anxiety. It seemed excessive, even for a new sub.
Nikki pressed the heels of his hands over his eyes. “I was just really nervous. Really, really, nervous. I don’t like being…”
“The center of attention.”
“Not at all.” Nikki moved his hands and blinked and shook his fingers out in front of him.
Bradford forgave the lack of respectful terms for the moment, focusing instead on the horrible stage fright his boy seemed to be struggling with. The show tonight was necessary and unavoidable, both as a first test for Nikki and to cement the boy’s status at the club, but he made a mental note to hold off on further parades of that sort for a while. “Well, you did it, boy. It was a long walk, but it’s over. You did very well. I am proud of you.” He reached out and rubbed a hand across Nikki’s shoulders. Nikki turned to him instantly, seeking comfort, and in moments Bradford had both of his arms around the boy. “You’re safe, boy. Listen to me. You’re alone with me now, I will take care of you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Believe it, boy.”
“I do, sir.”
“Good boy.” He let Nikki go. “Let’s get started then. It will do both of us good. Strip for me, fold your clothes, and place them on top of that chest. Put your boots by the door. I’m going to check in with security.”