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  Slade’s smile disappeared. “Listen—”

  But Beau cut him off, seeing his ride to paradise disappearing with Slade’s displeasure. They needed to show respect for their leader and his lady, not act like the selfish horny bastards they were.

  “You can trust us, okay, Slade? Kari’s good people. By tomorrow night she’ll be your wife. She gets the full respect treatment.”

  Slade ran his hands over his head. “I know. Shit, you’d think I was the nervous bride instead of her.” Then he laughed. “Okay. Same rooms as before. Hit the showers if you want.” He started to turn away, then snapped his fingers. “Oh, almost forgot. Since I’ll be tied up tonight after dinner, I already had Teo call The Edge for you and set it up with Simon. You’re on the guest list for the entire week.”

  Should I call Simon? Ask him if he can get a message to her?

  No. Too aggressive. He didn’t want to scare her away. He had sensed the last time that she was fighting some internal battle. He didn’t know what it was, but he sure didn’t want to be on the losing side. Anyway, it was Friday night. Chances were good that she’d come out to play on the weekend, right? He’d get through dinner, see who else wanted to head into town and borrow one of the ranch trucks like they’d done the last time.

  And hope.

  * * * *

  Megan treated herself to a long soak when she got home. The interview had gone well, the photographer had shown up to get just the right pictures and tomorrow she’d write a killer story. But tonight she had other things on her mind.

  All day a thread of expectation had been wriggling through her system, the kind of feeling you got when you were about to win the lottery or score a big assignment or—or something life changing. It was a little like being buzzed on champagne. She hoped it was a good sign. That tonight something important would happen.

  Don’t get ahead of yourself.

  She took a small glass of wine into the bathroom with her, sipping it slowly while she lounged in the tub. She usually didn’t drink before she went to the club, unless she had no plans to play. The Edge didn’t permit alcohol for people indulging in a scene. It dulled the senses and blunted rational thought. In D/s play it could be dangerous. She knew that.

  But tonight she needed something just to soothe her nerves, to ease whatever it was buzzing through her system. Too much nervous energy could affect her decisions, too. She wanted to be calm, in case her wishes came true and Beau was there tonight, visiting Slade while the team had some down time. He’d told her what he could about being a member of Delta Team Charlie. He’d also made it plain that it was his life and he didn’t plan to change it for anyone.

  Okay, she had hers, too. And as much as she loved submitting, she couldn’t completely hand over complete and total control or she’d lose what she saw as her core of strength. The thing that made her succeed in what was still a male-dominated profession. That was one of the main reasons she wasn’t looking for anything permanent. She hadn’t met a man she could believe in enough to give herself completely. Let down her guard.

  But Beau had pushed buttons no one else had even come close to. Buttons that unlocked the closet where she kept her deepest feelings. She didn’t know if that was good or bad, only that it scared her that she could react like that to him. The last time she’d seen him, he’d mentioned he expected they’d be back in town next chance they had. Simon had let her know the man had come looking for her while she’d been out of town. There was gossip at the club about Kari and Slade’s upcoming wedding, so was it too illogical for her to hope that—

  You’re a big girl. Maybe he’s moved on to someone else when you weren’t available. And maybe that was for the best. You’ll get over it.

  Maybe one more night with him would cure whatever emotions he’d stirred up inside her and she could get past this.

  Maybe not.

  No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get him out of her mind. Leaning back in the tub she closed her eyes and spread her legs. She imagined Beau’s big, muscular body behind her in the water, caging her, draping her legs over his so she was spread wide open for him. One of her hands slid down over her stomach to her waxed cunt lips, idly rubbing the bare flesh. Pretending they were Beau’s fingers instead of hers. Imagining him placing her hands on either side of the tub and ordering her to keep them there no matter what he did.

  She pinched her already tingling clit, hard, then tugged on it the way he had done that night. Then, mimicking the remembered movements, she brushed her thumb over the tip over and over. Nerve endings sizzled in her pussy and her walls lightly spasmed.

  Don’t squeeze your legs together.

  She could hear his voice in her head and an image snapped into her brain of her, naked, spread out on a padded table, restrained only by his words. Thighs wide open. Beau standing at the foot of the table, staring at her cunt, running the straps of a flogger through his fingers as he gave her orders. The spotlight shining down on her had encompassed him in its circle of light as well, making the blond hair on his head and slightly darker hair on his chest gleam as if dusted by sunlight. Muscles had rippled beneath his taut skin and lust had burned in his eyes.

  She shifted slightly in the tub, almost feeling that hard chest against her back as she rubbed her clit. Only it wasn’t her hand she was feeling but his, rough fingers slipping along her sensitive lips then capturing her throbbing clit between them. Squeezing it.

  One hand moved to cup a breast. Hers were smaller and softer, but she still had the sensation it was Beau kneading her flesh and pinching her beaded nipple. When she pressed it hard between thumb and forefinger, the walls of her pussy spasmed and need raged through her. The muscles of her belly tightened as an orgasm began to build low inside her.

  Not yet! Not yet!

  She was reluctant to give up the sensations created by her own hands and the image in her mind. But then she remembered when he’d bent over and put his mouth right on her pussy and her control snapped. Water sloshed in the tub as she jerked with the force of her release, her body shaking, her own fingers thrusting inside her channel, gripped tightly by her inner muscles.

  The aftershocks subsided, finally, and she tilted her head back, gulping air. With a hand not quite steady she lifted the wine goblet and sipped lightly from it. The orgasm, rather than taking the edge off her hunger, had only increased it. If Beau wasn’t back in town, wasn’t at The Edge tonight, she’d have to be very careful that, out of desperation, she didn’t grab the first Dom who eyed her.

  Out of the tub, she dried herself very carefully then rubbed scented lotion onto and into every part of her body. She took extra pains with her hair, brushing the curls so they lay in calculated disarray on her shoulders. Makeup next. Finally her outfit, a leather miniskirt, halter top that ended with a wide band just below her breasts, and glittery sandals. No panties. Not tonight.

  A glance at herself in the mirror for one last check. She’d do. If Beau was there she’d knock his socks off. She grabbed her purse, cell phone and keys, turned off the lights and headed out of the door. The feeling of expectation was buzzing again, stronger than ever.

  * * * *

  Beau leaned against the polished wood serving bar running against the back wall of the lounge area, soft drink in one hand as he surveyed the crowd. Not too crowded, sort of strange for a Friday night. Maybe she wouldn’t show up tonight. The lounge was only about half full, people in various stages of dress—or undress—sitting quietly. Some of them casually fondling each other, some of them just in discreet conversation. He’d been at the club about an hour, constantly scanning the room. Marc and Trey had hooked up and he was both glad for them and jealous.

  Where was she? Had she stopped coming to The Edge? Another ten minutes and he’d see if he could coerce Simon into either giving him information or calling her. But just as he finished his soft drink and set the glass on the bar, he saw her striding in from the entry hall.

  Holy shit!

  Sh
e was even more mouthwatering than he remembered. The teeny skirt and miniscule top she was wearing did little to conceal the delectable body he recalled in intimate detail. Intimate being the operative word.

  He knew the exact moment she spotted him. She halted in midstride and paused, obviously waiting to see if he would come to her. Instead he crooked his finger at her, signaling she should move over to where he was standing. She walked toward him slowly, a flirty smile on her lips. But when she reached him, she only looked him in the eye briefly before bowing her head and clasping her hands behind her back.

  His cock stood up and shouted hallelujah, ready to burst from the pants restraining it.

  Slow. Take it slow, buddy. You want more than just tonight.

  He stroked a finger over one shoulder and down to the swell of her breast.

  “You weren’t here last time I was in town,” he chastised. “I looked for you.” He used the tip of a finger to tilt up her face. “You weren’t off playing outside the club with someone else, were you?”

  Not that he had the right to ask her. Maybe she thought he was being too presumptuous, staking a claim after just three nights together. He didn’t care. Waiting for tonight had been sheer agony. He needed to know if the connection they’d made was real or only lived in his imagination.

  She shook her head. “No. Sir. No, I wasn’t.”

  He waited.

  “I was out of town. For work.”

  “I’d love to know what kind of work you do.” He paused. “But afterwards.”

  She gave him a questioning look. “Afterwards?”

  “After I get my fill of you. Which might take all night.” He waited for her reaction. When she didn’t say anything, every muscle in his body tensed. What if she decided that the time they’d spent together had been a mistake? What did he do then? As someone who was an out and out Dom, uncertainty was an unfamiliar sensation for him.

  But then she smiled, a curve of the lips that was a seductive combination of submission and impudence, and he knew it would be all right.

  She wet her bottom lip with her tongue, a gesture that made his balls ache. “It will be my pleasure to serve you, Sir. All night.”

  Jesus!

  Forcing a control he didn’t feel, he stepped away from the bar. “Follow me, girl. I have a room already reserved.”

  He’d made his arrangements very carefully, letting Simon know specifically how he wanted the room set up. During their sessions he’d learned just how much spanking turned her on. How much she loved being restrained and, while her skin was still on fire, being fucked in the ass. How she’d urged him, in a sub voice that almost bordered on impudence, to tighten the nipple clamps even more. One night hadn’t begun to let him know how and what she could tolerate.

  He unlocked the door to the room with the key card Simon had given him and walked in ahead of her. When he turned, he saw she had stopped behind him, hands clasped behind her back, waiting for his commands. He had to swallow a grin. It was normal procedure for a sub in this situation to stand with her gaze lowered, but he’d felt right from the beginning that Megan was nothing like all the other subs he’d been with. The battle raging within her between lustful desire and the need to retain some portion of herself was evident in every line of her body, every gesture, every expression on her face.

  He wanted the sex tonight to be mind-blowing, but he also wanted her to acknowledge the connection. And to give him her trust beyond the boundaries of this room.

  Then you’d better be prepared to give her yours, asshole.

  Beau realized Megan was looking at him expectantly so he mentally shook himself out of his trance.

  “Safe word,” he said. “Not the one you use for everyone. A word that you pick just for us.”

  For a moment he saw confusion in her eyes, but then she blinked and it was gone. Her mouth curved in that sassy smile again.

  “Alpha.”

  Beau lifted an eyebrow. “Alpha? That’s a weird choice.”

  “My Master is an alpha male,” she told him. “I wish to honor you that way.”

  Was she sending him signals? Was he reading too much into it?

  “Alpha it is.” He took a step back. “Strip. And do it very slowly. Present yourself to me after you remove each item of clothing.”

  He was pleased to note the slight trembling of her fingers as she undid the button at the top of the halter and opened the tie at the back. When the garment fell to the floor she moved forward to him, waiting, arms at her sides. Beau sucked in his breath at the sight of her full breasts and the rosy nipples. Taking each one between thumb and forefinger, he squeezed, slowly exerting pressure, feeling the flesh harden beneath his touch. He saw first a flash of pain then a blaze of heat in her eyes and rolled the hard buds between thumb and forefinger again.

  “I can’t wait to see these decorated with clamps again. Simon assured me the kind I want are stocked in this room.” He bent and licked each one with a swipe of his tongue. “Have you ever thought of piercing them?”

  Megan sucked in a tiny breath and the pulse beating at the hollow of her throat accelerated.

  “Not—” She shook her head. “No.”

  He bit each pebbled tip lightly “If this goes somewhere between us, we’ll discuss it.”

  Her eyes widened at his words, but she said nothing.

  He released his hold on her and walked to the cupboard built into the wall. Opening the doors, he pulled out the top drawer and searched through the trays of items until he found what he wanted.

  Megan was standing exactly the way he’d left her, a properly obedient sub. He sucked each hardened nipple until each was thoroughly wet, then he opened his hand to show her what lay in his palm. The nipple clamps he’d chosen were connected by a weighted chain. Each nipple would slip into a metal frame and a screw at the side tightened it to the degree desired by the Dom. Beau tugged a nipple through one of the clamps and turned the screw until he saw both pain and pleasure suffuse Megan’s face. He gave the screw a final turn, pleased to note the tensing of her entire body.

  “In a minute these will be a nice shade of red,” he said in an almost offhand manner. “Then I can paddle that ass so you match front and back.”

  He saw her swallow, hard, but there was only eager expectation in her gaze.

  He fastened the other clamp in place then tugged on the chain, pulling her closer to him.

  “If you were mine,” he told her in a thick voice, “I’d make you wear these all the time. I’d sit next to you in a restaurant with your blouse unbuttoned so I could reach in and tug on this any time I wanted to.”

  Megan wet her lips. “People would see us.”

  “Not if I hid you with my body.” His cock flexed at the image in his mind. “That’s part of the turn-on. Knowing what we’re doing, in front of everyone, but they can’t see it.”

  “You said if I were yours—” She stopped. “Permission to ask a question, Sir?”

  He nodded.

  “Did you have something in mind beyond tonight, in this room?”

  His gaze locked with hers. “And if I said yes, how would you feel?”

  “I—I—”

  “You have permission to speak,” he reminded her.

  He forced himself to relax as he waited for her answer. Was he going too fast here? But, Jesus! She’d been all he’d thought about since their sessions at The Edge, and he didn’t exactly have a lot of free time to dick around. His feelings for her shocked him and he needed to know if she felt the same way.

  “Well?” he prompted.

  “I—would like that, Sir.”

  He was stunned at the uncertainty in her eyes. What could possibly cause this obviously strong woman to doubt herself? He steeled himself not to react. Whatever it was, he’d find out in a different environment. One where he wasn’t distracted by the intensity of his sexual need for her. But his voice was soft when he spoke to her again.

  “Maybe we can arrange just that.”
<
br />   He was rewarded by a tiny smile, absent of any impudence or sassiness. He wanted to take that as a sign she was as much affected by their time together as he was. But tonight they had other business to attend to.

  “Skirt off,” he ordered.

  The slide of the zipper was like a harsh whisper in the room. When the bit of leather fell to the floor and she was nude except for her shoes, he nearly swallowed his tongue. The reality was even better than the memory. His eyes focused on the plump lips of her pussy, outlined with neat rows of curls that reminded him she was a real blonde. Not that he’d been able to forget.

  He could already smell the scent of her musk, so arousing that his cock throbbed.

  Megan had resumed the submissive pose, eyes looking downward, hands clasped behind her back, feet apart. Beau ran a finger through her gleaming slit, tugging on the chain connecting the nipple clamps with his other hand. When he lightly scraped a fingernail over her clit, a shiver skated over her and she widened her legs even more, invitingly.

  He pinched her clit before stepping back.

  “Tonight I’m going to decorate that tasty piece of flesh with jewelry, too, but first I think a little punishment is in order, don’t you? For not being here the last two times I came hunting for you.”

  She nodded, gaze still lowered.

  “Excellent.” He pointed to his left. “Keep the shoes on and arrange yourself over that padded bench.”

  He watched as she followed his directions, the heels giving her just the right height to fold herself over the padded leather so she had balance and her ass was beautifully displayed for him. From another drawer, he withdrew a short but thick leather strap, similar to the longer ones old-time barbers used to use. And maybe in some places still did.

  Studying the sweet curve of her buttocks, he ran his hand over the upturned cheeks, loving that satiny feel of her skin beneath his touch. He couldn’t wait to see it blazing hot from the application of the strap.

  Without giving her warning, he drew back his hand and smacked the strap across her ass.

  Thwack!