EXPLOITING AJ

by Tl Reeve

  AJ stumbled backward as he broke the kiss. “Uh…hi, Daddy.”

  “You okay, baby girl?” Thomas glared at the man who’d dared to proposition her.

  “Yep, I’m fine. Murray assisted, too.”

  Luca helped Murray to his feet. He ran his fingers through Murray’s hair and sighed wistfully. “If only you were my type.”

  The corner of Murray’s mouth twitched. “Too bad, Primo.” Murray stepped behind Jaqueline and wrapped his arm around her middle. “Sorry, Mistress. I got a little tied up.”

  “Y-you’re forgiven.” Jaqueline’s tone changed. The woman had been just as pissed off as Luca and Thomas. AJ knew Jaqueline and Murray were having their issues, but in that moment, she, too, looked like she was ready to kill for Murray.

  “Again, we’re sorry, Primo.” The man who’d taken a step back offered his hand and Luca took it.

  “You’re not yet, but you will be.” Luca turned on his heels and went back to the bar. “I apologize on behalf of the club. The patrons here are better than this, and I know when the owners find out what transpired they, too, will be upset.”

  She didn’t understand the intricacies of the establishment, but by the way Luca continued to stare at the group even though they were clear across the club from them, they were in deep shit. In a way, she felt bad for them. She should have been stronger and declined. She chided herself for being stupid. Thomas was right. She wore a collar. Thomas’ collar. They should have respected it and asked Murray. Though, she was sure the answer they would have received wouldn’t have been a pleasant one.

  “I think AJ and I are going to go find a place to talk and enjoy a scene or three,” Thomas said, clipping the chain to her collar.

  A sense of rightness and comfort settled over AJ once more, and she sighed. Who knew a collar and chain could improve her self-worth and her self-consciousness? She grinned as Thomas led her away from Luca and over to a smaller more intimate area. She liked it there. It was secluded, away from everyone else. There were a few couples there, already engaged in intimate conversations, however it didn’t bother her. Thomas sat on a smaller loveseat then patted his lap.

  “I was worried about you, baby girl.” The rough tone of his voice sent a twinge of guilt through her, as though she’d done something wrong when she hadn’t.

  “I’m sorry, Daddy,” she replied, sitting on his lap.

  Thomas lifted her chin forcing her to meet his gaze. “You have nothing to be sorry about. You did nothing wrong. This is your first experience. I should have stuck with you. Most of all, I’m glad Murray was there with you to help you out.”

  “He did,” she agreed.

  “Good. So, what would you like to experience tonight?” Thomas continued to hold her chin between his thumb and forefinger.

  “What would you recommend?”

  “Since this isn’t my club, I’m not sure what’s offered, however we should start with something we’ve talked about with Scotty.”

  She scrunched up her face. “Edging?” They’d had conversations about it before Scotty announced he wasn’t a submissive. Nonetheless, Thomas never followed through with the plan.

  Thomas nodded. “Yes.”

  She stared at him for a moment then agreed. “Sure, might be fun.”

  Thomas chuckled. The harsh rumble vibrated through her. “Oh, baby girl, you might not think it’s fun once we get started.”

  “Why?” Stupid question. She understood the mechanics of it, and she also knew there were things like orgasm denial. It seemed painful and torturous in some instances yet intriguing in others. She couldn’t imagine the heady amount of power or the rush someone like Thomas could achieve from being in such control of another person’s body. Or how explosive the orgasm would be once the sub was given permission to finally come.

  AJ shivered.

  “Do you really have to ask?” He pressed his lips to hers and she opened to him. When he pulled back, he stared at her for a moment. “You’re accepting my affection better. Thank you.”

  Bashfulness flooded her. As much as she didn’t think she deserved Thomas, let alone Scotty—or both of them together for that matter—she craved it. She enjoyed the attention and the feeling of belonging when it was afforded to her. It’d been her and Scotty for so long, she’d forgotten what it was like to have friends or attempt to make them. It was as if she and Scotty were floating on a buoy off in the middle of an ocean, and, when then they found Thomas, he became their connector to civilization. It was crazy to draw down her life to a singular idea or metaphor and it wasn’t fair to Thomas, either. Nevertheless, as she sat there with him, it was the only way to describe her relationship with the man.

  “I’m still so angry,” she said. “I feel all this guilt and shame, because I feel like I pushed both of you too far. I—I worry when this is all said and done, you’ll go back to your life in Virginia, and I’ll be alone once again in my life.”

  She didn’t add that Scotty would leave as well. AJ didn’t know where the words were coming from. They welled up within her and spilled from her lips. She was desperate to stop them, yet the harder she tried, the more freely they flowed, embarrassing her. She realized then she’d convinced herself she didn’t need anyone for so long, that when someone came into her life, she pushed them away, including, she feared, Scotty. “I thought if I at least atoned for Scotty’s kidnapping and made sure he was saved without harm coming to him, we could all move forward without this humiliation hanging over all of us.”

  Thomas narrowed his eyes. “You believe after all of this I would leave you?”

  “Well,” she shrugged, “it’s not like we’re in a real relationship or even if we were, you’d gain anything out of it. You deserve someone older, more mature. Not so damaged.”

  His gaze bore into her, causing her to squirm in his hold. The way he studied her, disturbed her. It was as if he tried to see down to her soul, which sometimes she wondered if he noticed how broken she was. “I see.”

  A sliver of remorse wiggled through her. She’d said too much again. Why couldn’t she keep her mouth closed around him? How did Thomas draw out all of her fears and pain? Had it been some kind of FBI tactic? Did he understand her more than she understood herself? When she looked at him, he didn’t appear to be a person who’d lived in foster care or on the streets like some of people AJ and Scotty knew from their foster homes. Nor had he acted like them. You’re assuming a whole lot about a man you know nothing about, she chided herself.

  “Tell me something about yourself no one else knows—well, except for the FBI because they do three hundred layers of background checks, kind of like the CIA does, too,” she said, adding a bit of her dry humor to the conversation.

  “Truth?”

  She nodded. “Truth.”

  “My step-father killed my mother when I was nine,” Thomas said. “Ever heard of the Blue Ridge Slasher?”

  She had while studying casefiles during her training. The Blue Ridge Slasher killed seventeen women and men then buried their dismembered bodies in different spots within the Blue Ridge Mountains. Most of the women and men the serial killer murdered were collage aged, except one. The woman, whose name had been redacted for some reason, had been thirty-six. She lived in Roanoke, VA, had a child with a coal miner who’d died due to a cave-in at one of the mines in the area. “Oh, God.”

  “It’s why I’m the man I am today.” He continued to stare at her. “Does it change your opinion of me?”

  “No, never,” she said. “You couldn’t control who your step-father was.” Then it dawned on her. She sagged in his hold. “Just like I couldn’t control what happened to me or Scotty could control what happened to him as a child.”

  “Bingo.” Thomas pressed a kiss to her forehead then glanced over his shoulder. “There are aspects of our lives we’ll never be in control of nor can we change or do different. Those are the parts of us which need time to heal. Everything afterward, is up to us. We make decisions to better our
selves. Scotty, you, and I, we walked on paralleled paths. Only difference, I didn’t get caught hacking.” He tapped the tip of her nose in an affectionate way.

  “True. However, if the internet was a thing back then, I think you would have been,” she teased.

  “Oh, yeah?” He tickled her and AJ laughed, wiggling in his lap.

  When his mouth came down on hers again, the arousal cooling within her ignited and she moaned into the kiss. Thomas pulled her over his lap and grabbed her hips, guiding her over him. She shuddered and whined. It was too much. She ran her fingers through his perfect hair while she rocked against him. Thomas ripped his mouth from hers then buried it in the crook of her neck. He nipped and sucked on the sensitive flesh there, causing her blood to boil. She trembled in his embrace so turned on it hurt. She whimpered his name.

  “I like it when you whine and call my name,” Thomas murmured. “Gets my dick hard as fuck.” He sat her back slightly then pulled down his zipper. “Take my cock out and stroke me.”

  AJ didn’t hesitate. She reached into the fly of his trousers and released his thick length. The tip was a ruddy red and was covered in precum. While she did as he asked, he stuck his hand into his pocket. Once he retrieved what he was looking for, he held it up. “Until you’re ready.” Using his teeth, Thomas ripped open the foil packet and retrieved the latex disk.

  Within seconds he had the condom over his dick and had her back in the position he wanted her. Inch by inch, he sank deep inside her. Her world shattered. She orgasmed through penetration, not something she’d ever thought could happen. Instead of slowing down for her, Thomas pushed her through the climax until he was fully seated within her. She gripped his shoulders as he began directing her over him at his pace. His strokes were desperate and frantic. Her breath came in harsh pants as she clung to him.

  Still, the coil of pleasure deep within her didn’t ease. It was as if the climax only added to her arousal and sensitized her to the point of pain. She gasped for breath, writhing on his lap. Bliss overrode her sensibilities. Below her, Thomas groaned. The feral sound drew her back to him. His fingers dug into her skin, and she knew she’d wear his marks by the morning.

  AJ had never seen Thomas out of control as he was. She liked it. It was exciting and arousing. The tingle of anticipation filling her, intensified with each thrust of his hips. She placed her forehead to his shoulder as soft whimpers fell from her lips. The idea, for some reason, of being seen added to the pleasure. Now, she understood why Thomas insisted she never wore panties.

  “Fuck, baby girl,” He groaned in her ear. “Got me ready to come.”

  The high-pitched noise she made, surprised her. He had her on edge as it was, and telling her how close he’d been nudged her closer. “Please, Daddy.”

  “Please, what?” he grunted. “What does Daddy’s girl need?”

  “I need to come, please,” she murmured. “Please, Daddy. I ache so bad.”

  “Mmm, I like it when you beg, baby girl.” He reached between them and pushed her skirt up, exposing her pussy to his gaze. “Look at your clit. It’s all swollen and glistening in your cream.” He ran the pad of his thumb over the distended bead and her breath hitched. “Like that?”

  She nodded. “Yes, Daddy.”

  “Me, too.” He pulled out. “But, not yet.” He ripped the condom off. “We’re both not ready yet.”

  She stared at him in disbelief. What happened? “Daddy?” Had she done something wrong?

  He glanced over his shoulder. “It would appear scenes are about to begin. Would you like to go find something to our liking?”

  “Daddy?” Confusion filled her.

  He kissed her forehead. “You’re thinking too hard still.”

  “But we were both close.” Really close. “I thought... I thought we were—” She couldn’t think straight the combination of arousal and bewilderment filled her. She ached everywhere. Her clit throbbed. And the coil of need in her lower belly showed no signs of letting up. And, above all else, she felt empty.

  “We were,” he agreed. “Remember what I told you earlier?”

  She jerked, her brain still a bit foggy. “Edging?” Then it hit her. “Oh”

  He helped her up then righted himself before he stood and gave a yank of the chain still connected to her collar. AJ followed him perplexed by his actions, nevertheless intrigued as well. “Ah...this should be good.”

  AJ hadn’t been paying attention to where he’d taken her. She’d been lost in the realization Thomas and she were having sex moments ago but were now sitting on a different couch in a new area, leaving her reeling. She didn’t understand. If she expected Thomas to tell her why, he’d been content to keep her guessing. He wasn’t unaffected, though. His cheeks were pink, and his hard dick was pressed to her hip. Whatever his plan had been, it hurt him, too.

  “Don’t worry,” he said. “You’ll understand.”

  Somehow, she doubted it.

  She glanced up at the small roped-off area where the equipment had been placed. A woman with pale skin and beautiful platinum hair knelt off to the side. She was naked, as most of the women were, AJ noticed, and had a small brand on the milky flesh of her thigh. She couldn’t make out what it was, though. The woman’s wrists were wrapped in plush leather cuffs as were her ankles. If AJ expected the woman to look up at those who’d gathered around to watch, she’d been wrong. The girl kept her gaze on the floor in front of her as she’d been taught.

  The man who set the equipment as he wanted, was shirtless. His whole torso was covered in tattoos. Everything from the Virgin Mary, to rosary beads, and prayer hands. Across his shoulders was something written in Latin she couldn’t make out and he had a neck piece, too. When he grabbed the length of chain that lowered one of the main wooden beams, she noticed the O-ring in the middle of it. Curiosity piqued; AJ settled on Thomas’ lap. The man went over to a small table, she hadn’t even seen until then and grabbed a bundle of rope.

  “He’s going to tie her up,” Thomas murmured. “I believe you said that might be an interest of yours.”

  She’d been crazy stupid admitting that to Thomas. “I—”

  He chuckled. “Watch.”

  The man unfurled the rope as he stepped in front of the sub. He held his hand to her, and she placed her hands on his palms. When she stood, the man murmured something to her, AJ couldn’t make out. Whatever it was, her eyes went wide. Her chest and cheeks turned a deep shade of crimson. Trust. The one thing AJ didn’t have in spades, flowed between the woman and her Dominant while he clipped her cuffs together then used the D-rings to truss up her hands.

  Once he was satisfied with the knots and he’d checked on his sub, he moved her toward the lowered beam and lowered it a bit more. Within seconds, he had her tied to the O-ring and was raising it, allowing her toes to skim the ground. He reached to his right and grabbed a bar from the same table he’d snatched the rope from before placing it between her ankles. Once it was secure, he stepped back to admire his work.

  Thomas hummed in appreciation.

  AJ swallowed hard. The sub’s eyes were closed, and though she was strung up—her body open and on display—she appeared relaxed and tranquil. AJ didn’t understand. She had so many questions. Wouldn’t her shoulders begin to hurt? Or her ankles? Maybe her back and midsection? How long did the Dom plan to keep her as she was? Didn’t it bother her so many people were watching what this man was about to do to her?

  She opened her mouth to ask all those questions and more, but Thomas placed his finger to her lips, silencing her. She glanced down and her heart gave a heavy thump. His green eyes swirled with arousal and lust. It was as if a caged beast had been sitting there watching the scene unfold.

  She turned her attention back to the stage. The Dom trailed his finger along her flesh as he circled her. Hunger filled his dark-brown gaze as he took in the submissive’s slim form. The woman’s nipples were hard points and her breasts were a small hand full. When he stopped in front of her again
, he pulled a chain from his pocket with two clips attached. Thomas grunted and shifted under her.

  “What’s wrong?” she whispered.

  “Those are clover clamps,” he murmured. “They’re the worst of the worst for clamps.”

  “How so?” Now she’d wished they’d talked more about these things. She knew they were on a crash course to get them ready for their mission, but in some ways, she wanted to learn about everything, especially as she sat there with Thomas watching the scene unfold.

  “When he pulls on them, they’ll get tighter, causing more pain.” Thomas gripped her hip harder. “It’s fucking hot.”

  “Look at you with all the cursing,” she teased.

  “Do you like my filthy mouth, baby girl?”

  A thrill ran down her spine. “Yes, Daddy.”

  He hummed in approval. “Good girl. Watch.”

  The command added to the wriggle of excitement and expectation already filling her. The Dom went slow and AJ noticed he talked to the sub the whole time. It gave a whole other level of intimacy between them. She yearned for that, too. The connection. The full trust they shared with one another. It was inspirational. Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes at the beauty of it, until he stepped away and grabbed a flogger—at least she thought that’s what it was.

  The Dom peppered the submissive’s pale skin with medium strikes, leaving red tags where the implement had been used. The submissive cried out when a particular strike hit the clamp. Thomas hissed and squirmed under her. Had he worn those clamps before and knew the pain they could inflict?

  “You have so much to tell me about yourself,” AJ muttered. “I hope when this is done, we can discuss it.”

  The corner of his mouth ticked upward. “I am a depraved boy, baby girl. Are you sure you can take it?”

  The challenge in his voice sparked something within her. “Prove it.”

  Thomas chuckled. “You just gave me permission to ruin you inside and out.”