by Maya Banks
Tate stopped the engine after pulling into a parking spot and then turned to look at Chessy. “Is my girl ready for her night to begin?”
“Oh yes,” she breathed.
He squeezed her hand and then opened his door. She knew the drill. She waited for him to come around and open her door. He leaned in, attaching a diamond-studded leash to the loop at the back of the collar and then held out his hand to assist her in getting out.
She stumbled at first when her heel caught a crack in the pavement and Tate immediately wrapped his arm around her waist to steady her.
“Okay?” he asked.
“Yes. Just caught my heel.”
He led her to the entry where a man in an expensive black suit had them sign in and Tate showed ID. It had been so long since they’d last gone to The House that Chessy didn’t recognize the new doorman. But then for all she knew he could have been working here for quite some time.
Tate curled his hand around the leash and rested his hand underneath her hair that hung to the middle of her back, not making it obvious she was leashed as he led her into the downstairs social room where people met and mingled and drank expensive wine and snacked on delicious hors d’oeuvres. It was also a place for hookups. Singles looking for a night of adventure or simply people wanting to visit with other like-minded individuals who shared the same kinks and sexual preferences.
“Would you like some wine?” Tate asked as they entered the room.
Chessy shook her head in response and drank in the occupants, studying the people in attendance with her usual fascination. One of her favorite activities when they’d previously visited The House was to play the guessing game and match proclivity to person even though she had no way of confirming her guesses. But it was fun.
In a way she was relieved that she didn’t recognize anyone in the room because then the inevitable question would arise as to why she and Tate hadn’t been in for so long. After several minutes of circling the spacious luxurious room, Tate guided her out the door. She knew that he’d made the rounds in the social room to, in his words, show her off. It had always been a point of pride with her that he found her beautiful, that he was proud to arrive with her on his arm and that he made his claim so publicly.
“Be careful on the stairs, baby,” he said when they mounted the first step. “I bought those shoes because I wanted to fuck you in them, but I damn sure don’t want you falling and breaking your neck.”
She laughed softly. “You’ll catch me, Tate. I never doubt that.”
He gathered her more closely into his side as they climbed the stairs together. But once they reached the top, he gently disentangled his hand from her hair and pulled the leash out so that it called attention to her collar. And his claim on her as her Dominant and she his submissive.
As soon as they walked through the entryway to the common room, the sights and sounds overwhelmed her. Even the scent of sex was heavy in the air. She did a quick scan of the room, looking for anyone she recognized, but all she saw were unfamiliar faces. Except for Damon Roche, who stood in the far corner, a glass of what was likely very expensive liquor in hand, conversing with another man.
It was unusual for him to be at The House these days and especially without his wife. Though he still oversaw the running and operation of The House, since his marriage he’d devoted most of his free time to his wife, Serena, and Dash had mentioned that Damon and Serena now had a daughter.
Damon glanced up as if sensing her scrutiny and nodded his head in acknowledgment of both her and Tate. Then he said something to the man beside him before excusing himself to cross the room to where Chessy and Tate stood.
“It’s good to see you both,” Damon said warmly. He leaned in and kissed Chessy on the cheek and then shook Tate’s hand. “James is waiting by the bench. Everything you requested is available. I hope you both enjoy yourselves tonight.”
Ever the consummate host, Damon escorted them to the far corner of the room, where a tall, attractive dark-haired man stood in casual jeans and polo shirt. Butterflies danced through Chessy’s stomach when the man lifted a chin in greeting as the group approached.
So this was James. The man Tate had chosen for her tonight. She was careful not to offer Tate disrespect by being too open with her admiration, but her husband had indeed chosen well. James was broad-shouldered and muscled, his arms bulging at the short sleeves of the shirt he wore and his expression was one of complete dominance. And yet he was ceding control to Tate, acting as an extension of him for tonight.
They’d certainly done this before, but none of the other men Tate had ever chosen seemed this . . . Dominant. James didn’t appear to her to be a man who so easily gave up power to another man. A shiver worked its way up her spine as she studied him further. Trepidation squeezed her chest before she admonished herself for entertaining such apprehension. Tate would never put her in a position where she would be overwhelmed or hurt.
“James, good to see you again.” Tate ceremoniously handed over the leash to the other man. “This is my beautiful submissive, Chessy. She is yours for the evening to do with as I dictate,” he said formally. “Her safe word is ‘rain.’ You are to take absolute care in your handling of her. Her mouth is mine and mine alone. I expect you to treat her with utmost respect.”
James looked impatient with Tate’s instructions, his eyes glittering as his gaze swept hungrily over Chessy. It was as though he wanted to dispense with the niceties and get straight to the action.
James lifted one of Chessy’s hands and whispered a kiss over the top of her knuckles. “It will be my honor to bring you pleasure while your husband watches.”
She shivered again, the quivering sensation in her belly increasing. Why was she so nervous? This was not new to her even if it had been a while since they’d last indulged. Perhaps it was because she wanted so much for the evening to be perfect and for her and Tate to further solidify their recommitment to one another.
Tate took the hand not held by James, and for a moment she was suspended between the two men, one her husband, the other her Dominant for the evening. Tate gave her hand an encouraging squeeze but didn’t put to voice any of the things she saw in his eyes.
“The others will remain on the periphery,” Tate said in a low voice. “When and only when it is time for them to participate will you see them. Enjoy my gift to you, my girl. I know I certainly will enjoy every moment.”
Then he turned his attention to James. Chessy blinked because Damon had discreetly removed himself from the trio and she hadn’t even seen him leave.
“Undress her slowly,” Tate ordered. “And then prepare her as I already instructed you.”
The command in Tate’s voice sent a delicate shiver of delight cascading over her flesh. Her fingers curled into fists so her trembling wouldn’t be noticeable. Equal parts nervousness and anticipation vied for control.
James tugged firmly at her leash, pulling her away from Tate and closer to himself. Tate took a step back but kept a watchful eye on Chessy as James slowly began to divest her of her clothing.
“Very nice,” James murmured when he was down to just her stockings and stilettos.
He ran his hand over the swell of her behind and then grew bolder, sliding his palm underneath one breast. He brushed over the nipple with his thumb and it puckered in reaction, hardening to a point.
Her breath caught and then she let out a gasp when he lowered his head to her breast and sucked the nipple wetly into his mouth.
“Delicious,” he murmured. “You taste every bit as good as you look.”
Heat scorched over her skin and she lifted her gaze to find Tate, only focused on him even though another man was pleasuring her in his stead.
Her action brought immediate reprimand from James. He yanked on the leash, forcing her gaze back to him. His eyes glittered in irritation.
“I am your master tonight. He is only an observer. You are to look only at me and obey my commands.”
She sta
James ran his palm lightly over her jaw and then turned her body so her back was to Tate, effectively preventing her from the temptation of seeking her husband’s guidance. It confused her that Tate was allowing this man such leeway.
James positioned her over the bench that had an inverted, padded cutout that would cradle her abdomen. Then he stretched her arms outward, tying one wrist to one of the two posts situated in front of the bench. After securing one, he then secured her other wrist so she was stretched over the bench, her ass in the air, both arms tied tightly enough that there was no give when she tested the strength of the bonds.
James disappeared from her view and then she felt leather straps circle her ankles, securing them to the legs of the bench. She was spread wide, her most vulnerable areas accessible.
“Start with the leather flogger,” Tate directed.
She took immediate comfort in hearing her husband’s voice and her early apprehension eased and melted away as Tate took control of the situation. She relaxed, mentally preparing herself for the first kiss of fire.
“Administer ten blows, spread out so her flesh is evenly marked and colored,” Tate continued. “When you are finished, offer her the appropriate praise and then bring her close to orgasm with your hands and mouth. Then switch to the leather strap and mark her ass so that when you fuck her ass the flesh will have been scorched by fire. As I said, her mouth is mine, and I’ll fuck it while you fuck her ass. She doesn’t come again until she’s been flogged, untied and is being held down by the men waiting.”
She closed her eyes as his words flashed like wildfire through her mind. She was bombarded by a host of decadent, sinful images, and already she could feel her body climbing to orgasm and they hadn’t even yet begun.
A gasp exploded from her when the first lash landed across her ass. She’d been so absorbed in the dreamy fantasy Tate was describing that she hadn’t braced herself for the first blow.
Her eyes flew open and yet she could see neither man, not James nor her husband. Only the wall stared back at her. She was positioned facing away from the rest of the entire room. For all she knew everyone was observing her flogging. That didn’t bother her. She’d long since gotten over any shyness when it came to being naked in front of strangers. But she didn’t like not being able to see Tate. She knew he was there, but he wasn’t in her line of sight.
She wanted to see the approval and pride in his eyes. She wanted to be able to lock gazes with him and share the intensely personal connection between them. To forget that anyone other than the two of them existed, even if another man was charged with her submission.
Her jaw clenched and she winced when another blow rained down on her. James wasn’t as careful as Tate was in the administration of his lashes. There was something undisciplined about James’s flogging, almost as if he lacked the proper experience for the job. Or perhaps he was merely a sadist who only cared for his pleasure and didn’t concern himself with the delicate line between pain and pleasure for her.
There were no words of praise or approval from James as Tate had demanded. Nor did James offer her the pleasure Tate had instructed him to. Where the hell was Tate? Why wasn’t he admonishing James for not heeding Tate’s dictates?
There was no break between the flogger and the leather strap. Fire spread rapidly over her skin and she bit into her lip to prevent the cry of pain. This was no longer about pleasure. Certainly not hers at least.
And then she felt an insistent prodding at her anal opening and she realized James was trying to force his way in without the aid of lubricant. This was not the way Tate had told him to do things. Why wasn’t Tate putting a stop to it?
“Relax, damn it,” James growled, his fingers digging into her hips. She was certain she’d wear bruises from his grasp. “You’re going to get fucked and it’s up to you whether this is easy or hard.”
She cried out, shocked that he’d persist and that Tate had nothing to say. And then, as if to punish her for her resistance, James cracked the strap down over her shoulder blades as he thrust more forcefully into her reluctant body.
Tears ran down her cheeks and sobs welled from her throat. “No! Stop! I don’t want this,” she said in a garbled tone.
Her safe word. God, what was it? Her mind was a chaotic mess of fear and pain.
“Rain,” she croaked out. “Rain!”
SEVENTEEN
TATE had just uttered his last command to James when his cell phone vibrated against his side. Out of habit, he glanced down quickly to pull out the phone enough so he could identify the incoming caller, fully intending to hit ignore.
He swore under his breath before glancing back up to where James had administered the second lash of the flogger. This was an important call but it had to come now of all times? Tabitha Markham had strung him along for weeks over whether she was going to transfer her late husband’s portfolio—her inheritance—to Tate’s firm and he was supposed to have a firm commitment from her any moment. Apparently she’d chosen now to inform him of her decision.
This was going to have to be quick.
He yanked up the phone, glanced at Chessy, who was facing away from him, and then uttered a crisp hello.
“Tate? Where are you? I can’t hear you.”
Tabitha’s voice was strident in his ear. He wasn’t in the mood to chitchat. He just wanted her decision so he could get back to much more important matters. Like his wife and salvaging their marriage.
He walked a few steps away toward the corner where things were a little quieter and he could also keep an eye on Chessy.
“Can you hear me now?” he asked.
“Yes, much better. I called you because I have some concerns. You’ve been very hard to get in touch with lately and as my financial advisor, I’d require that I be able to get in contact with you at all times.”
Tate’s brow furrowed and he turned away from Chessy and James, wanting to put his fist through the wall.
“I can assure you that I am available at all times for my clients,” he said tersely.
“Well that remains to be seen, does it not? If you aren’t available before I become your client it hardly seems likely that you’ll be available once you win me over.”
Tate’s fingers curled impatiently and he brought one hand up to cover his other ear so he could hear her more clearly.
“Look, either you want me to handle your portfolio or you don’t,” he said bluntly. “I can’t talk right now because I’m out with my wife and this is our personal time. If you’d like to discuss the matter further, I encourage you to contact me during business hours on Monday.”
A cry cracked through the air, freezing the blood in Tate’s veins.
“Rain. Rain!” he heard Chessy scream hoarsely.
He dropped the phone and whirled in the direction of her scream. When he saw tears coursing down her cheeks and James’s hands curled around her hips he broke into a run, but before he could get there, Damon and two of his security men knocked James away. Tate lunged for James.
“What the hell did you do to her, you son of a bitch?” Tate yelled.
He punched the other man in the jaw, sending him reeling, and then he turned, his heart in his throat to see Damon unfastening the last of Chessy’s bonds. Chessy sagged onto the floor, curling herself into a tight ball as tears ran unchecked down her face.
Three sets of accusing eyes pinned him as he knelt down where Chessy lay sobbing.
They all looked at him, condemnation in their eyes. He’d done the unforgivable. He’d broken the unspoken rule that all Dominants lived by. He hadn’t protected his submissive.
Damon gave him a look of pure disgust. “Shouldn’t you know? Where the hell were you when she was screaming her safe word? How could you have done this, Tate? This . . . This is unforgivable. I think it’s safe to say you’re done here.”
Tate tentatively reached for Chessy, his hand over her icy cold skin in an effort to reassure himself that she was all right. Of course she wasn’t all right.
She shrank away, visibly recoiling from his touch.
“Don’t touch me,” she said in a voice hoarse from crying. And screaming.
Damon barked an order to one of the bystanders to bring a blanket. Tate was gutted by the utter devastation in Chessy’s eyes. Worse was the fear that gripped him. He’d fucked up. Had done the unforgivable as Damon had accused. There wouldn’t be—and shouldn’t be—forgiveness for not ensuring his wife was safe every second of their time at The House.
The blanket was delivered and when Tate tried to wrap it around her, she drew sharply away as she’d done just moments earlier. Damon took the blanket, gently arranging it around Chessy’s huddled body. Then he simply looped his arms underneath her slight form and stood from his squatting position, cradling her against his chest.
“It will be all right, Chessy,” Damon said quietly. “Let me take you into my office where it’s private. I’ll have your clothes brought down so you can dress. Are you hurt? Do you need to go to the hospital?”
She began to quietly weep once more, each tear like a dagger to Tate’s heart.
Ignoring Tate, Damon carried her swiftly from the common room and Tate followed behind, feeling the stares of the entire room as they gazed at him in disgust.
Safe, sane, consensual. He’d managed to single-handedly violate all three hallmarks of the Dominant/submissive lifestyle. And now his beautiful wife had paid for his mistake. Just another in the dozens of times he’d failed her in their five-year marriage. Apparently he could do nothing right when it came to her, which made no sense given how much he loved her.
Damon carried Chessy down the stairs and then shouldered his way into his office and gently set her down on the leather sofa, pulling the ends of the blanket around her to shield her nudity. Her shoes had fallen off at some point and she looked fragile barefoot with only a blanket and her stockings to cover her body.
Tate went to his knees in front of the couch and tried to gather her hands in his, but she withdrew them, knotting them into fists in her lap so he couldn’t grasp them. She wouldn’t even meet his gaze but then he could hardly blame her.
“Chessy, I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “God, I’m sorry. I only stepped away a few seconds to answer a phone call. I’d already ended it when I heard you say your safe word.”
At that she met his gaze, her eyes cold enough to freeze an inferno. “So that’s what you were doing while I was being raped by the man you chose to dominate me? Taking a goddamn client call?”
Her words paralyzed him. The depth of his betrayal hadn’t truly sunken in until now. He’d stood by while a man handpicked by him to be intimate with his wife had hurt her.
“I’m partly to blame,” Damon said quietly from just a few feet away from the sofa. “I gave Tate the names of several men I thought were good choices. There was nothing in the past to indicate James’s behavior tonight. The safety of my members—all of my members—is my top priority and I failed you tonight.”
Chessy shook her head vigorously. “No,” she said vehemently. “You aren’t to blame, Damon, and I won’t allow you to take any part of it. The person at fault here is me for trusting my husband to put me first in his priorities. For believing his promises that he’d change. I should have never allowed myself to be involved in this situation, and you can be assured I won’t ever again.”
Tate couldn’t breathe. A hand clutched mercilessly at his throat and squeezed until he was lightheaded from oxygen deprivation. Her words sounded so . . . final. They were no less than he deserved and yet panic still shattered his nerves. His life without Chessy? Unthinkable.
A knock sounded and a moment later, Damon returned with Chessy’s clothing. She stared at the items, distaste in her wounded eyes. They were evidently a reminder that Tate had arranged this evening when she wanted to do nothing but forget.
Her lips trembled and she closed her eyes, her brow knitted in an effort to regain her composure.
“Tell me what you want to do, Chessy,” Damon said in a gentle voice. “I’ll have a car drive you wherever you want to go. Is there someone you’d like me to call for you?”
Tate bristled and was near to exploding as he whirled to confront Damon. “I will bring my wife home,” he said icily.
“I don’t recall consulting you in the matter,” Damon said. “You lost that option when you abdicated your responsibility as Chessy’s Dominant and allowed her to come to harm.”
Tate had no response to that, which only served to piss him off even more. His hands shook violently. He was rattled to his very core when he usually met each situation with calm and decisiveness.
“I’ll ride home with Tate,” Chessy said so softly Tate wasn’t sure he’d heard her right.
He was afraid to hope or read too much into her statement. She still wouldn’t look at him. As if she couldn’t bear the sight of him.
“Let me help you dress, baby,” Tate said gently. “Don’t worry about your shoes. I’ll carry you out to the car.”
She shook her head. “I can get dressed on my own. Just leave me be for a few minutes. I’ll come out when I’m done.”
Tate dug in his heels. “I need to make sure you’re all right and I need to see for myself just what that bastard did.”
“Do you care?” she threw out in a bitter tone.
His jaw clenched. “Of course I care. Goddamn it, Chessy.”
She waved her hand like she just wanted it over with.