by BJ Wane
“I should have thought of it sooner. Come over whenever you’re ready. Bye.”
Since this was likely her last night at Spurs, and with Shawn once she came clean with him, Lisa decided to go all out and get what relief she could before telling him who she was. It was too late to do much else, and bemoaning stupid mistakes and errors in judgment did no good. She wouldn’t lie and say she didn’t remember him or that night, but she also wouldn’t humiliate herself more by telling him the reason she’d left Arizona. She didn’t want to see the look on his face if he thought she’d run to him after all these years just so he could rescue her again.
With her cash all but depleted and blessed silence from her stalker for two weeks, she decided it was a good time to use her check to open a bank account and made the stop on her way to Jen’s. Lisa couldn’t remember the last time she’d purchased something new with pleasing a Dom in mind, but as she sifted through the lingerie and fetish clothes at the boutique with Jen, all she could think about was Shawn’s reaction to seeing her in the revealing outfits.
“This would look great on you.” Jen held up a demi bra and boy short set in lime-green satin, the bra cut low enough to show a hint of nipple, the shorts high enough to leave the undercurve of her butt cheeks bare.
“I like it.” Taking the hanger, Lisa checked the price and winced. “Maybe not that much.”
“Come on, splurge a little. Shawn won’t be an easy man to hold onto for long. You may as well pull out all the stops while you can. I’ll even cut your rent next month by the cost of the outfit.”
Tickled, Lisa laughed and shook her head. “No, you won’t. You already did me a huge favor by letting me sign a two-month lease instead of twelve. I’ll get it and cut back on something else. I still have to cover the cost of an entry fee tonight.”
Jen waved a hand and grabbed a black lace teddy and matching thong. “You know he’ll waive it if you ask. He really is one of the good guys. Most of them are. Drew and I have known him, Clayton, and Dakota since high school, when they came to live with Buck Cooper.”
“When we have more time, you’ll have to tell me about him back then. I still haven’t met the other two, only Master Simon,” she said as they carried their selections to the counter.
“They were rebellious at first, got into a lot of trouble at school, but it didn’t take Buck long to straighten them out. Between the three of them, I think they went through every girl in school,” Jen replied, digging in her purse for her wallet while Lisa paid for hers.
Squashing an unexpected ripple of envy, Lisa smiled at Jen as she took the bag the clerk handed her. “Including you?”
“I wish sometimes, but no. Even back then, I only had eyes and hots for Drew. Speaking of which, we need to get going.”
Her urgency rubbed off on Lisa, and she drove out to the club with anticipation humming through her veins, not to mention more than a small amount of anxiety over revealing her identity. The doors had just opened to members when they arrived and slipped into the restroom to change clothes.
“Go on in,” Lisa told Jen as she left the enclosed commode and surveyed herself in the mirror. “I’ll be right behind you.”
“Catch you later. That looks great, by the way.”
Sailing out with a breezy wave, she left Lisa alone with her worries and pondering how she would get through another scene while fretting about Shawn’s reaction to her revelation.
****
“What’s her name, the little girl we brought with us that night?”
Father Joe sighed as he walked through the quiet church, unsure how to answer Shawn’s inquiry even though he’d known it would be coming ever since Lisa left town. “Hello to you, too,” he returned dryly, leaving the sanctuary and following the connecting hall to his living quarters.
“Don’t mess with me, Father. I need to know. It’s important.”
The boy’s impatience came through the phone, alarming Joe. Even though he insisted, Shawn never dropped his respectful title unless he was angry or worried. “What’s happened?” he asked with sharp concern, his gut tightening.
Shawn’s short silence was followed by a change in his brusque tone to caution. “I’ve met someone new in town who seems familiar. Why would you think something untoward has occurred?”
Pushing his door closed, he leaned against it with a breath of relief. If this kept up, those two would put him in an early grave. “You said it was important, and, from your voice, I just assumed there was a problem.”
“There is. I think I’ve met her before, and if I didn’t know better, I’d swear she’s the same kid I brought to you that night. But that’s not possible, is it?”
“Anything is possible, son. You should know that.”
“So, it is her. Lisa Halldor is her name, right?”
Joe wouldn’t lie, not for either of them. “Yes, and yes I know she accepted a temporary job near you. I couldn’t believe the coincidence, but all I told her was the three of you lived in the area. I never revealed your names as I hoped it would prevent an awkward reunion.” All that was true, but he left it at that instead of telling him she insisted she didn’t want to know anything else.
“So, it’s a coincidence she’s here, this close to me after all this time, huh? I was wondering if she even remembered that night, what happened after suffering such a shock.”
Joe didn’t like straddling this line between the two of them and wished Lisa had taken his advice and gone straight to Shawn with who she was and why she’d left town. It sounded like she’d gotten herself in a bind with her evasions and procrastinating, but he wouldn’t interfere. The interest had been there all these years, for both of them. How they acted on it now was up to them.
“All I can tell you is she wanted to get away for a while and found that job. And, yes, I confirmed you lived there, leaving it up to her what she did knowing that. How much she remembers other than a teenage boy carrying her to safety, I don’t know for sure as she doesn’t talk about it. She’s a nice girl, Shawn.” And as alone as you still are. He knew better than to say that aloud.
“I never said she wasn’t, except for her penchant to keep secrets.”
Joe figured Lisa had her reasons, and he wouldn’t butt in without her permission. He’d spoken with her a few days ago, relieved to hear she hadn’t heard anything from her stalker since leaving. Maybe that was why she didn’t feel the need to say anything to Shawn.
“I can’t help you with any other questions about Lisa, Shawn.”
“Can’t, or won’t, Father?”
Padding into the kitchen, he ended the conversation as abruptly as Shawn had started it. “I haven’t eaten yet. Tell Clayton and Dakota hello. Goodbye, Shawn.”
Shawn clicked off and shoved his cell in his back pocket, leaving the office at Spurs to join Clayton and Dakota at the bar as the doors opened. Father Joe’s confirmation of Lisa’s identity did little to appease him as he’d pretty much come to that conclusion on his own. There were several unanswered questions left, like why she hadn’t told him who she was when she remembered him, leaving him no choice but to wait on her to answer them. He respected she might have her reasons, but if she showed up tonight, they couldn’t continue in this vein, with secrets between them. Inside these walls, there was no room for secrets, something her experience would have taught her before she had come last week.
“Are you starting the night in a snit?” Clayton glanced at him with a raised brow as he brought his beer up for a long pull, leaning his other elbow on the bar top.
“Maybe. I haven’t decided yet.” Nodding his thanks to Ben who slid a beer over to him, Shawn remained standing, facing the bar, too edgy to sit.
Dakota’s lips tilted at the corners, as close to a smile as he usually revealed. “That schoolteacher still getting under your skin a whole week later?”
“No, yes. Fuck. Shut up, both of you.”
“No problem.” Clayton stood and slapped him on the back. “I’d rather go
play anyway.”
“How about you?” Shawn asked Dakota. “We don’t have to baby newbies tonight, so you’re free, too.” Dressed in his usual black, with his Stetson lowered and a forbidding set to his jaw, it was always a mystery to Shawn how Dakota could draw so much interest from women. But there was no denying he did, as several pairs of eyes were already aimed his way from submissive members sitting around the tables or on the sofas.
“I’m in no hurry.”
Shawn chuckled. “You never are.”
Shrugging his massive shoulders, Dakota turned toward the room, straightening as he appeared to spot someone who interested him. Shawn didn’t think anything of it until his friend’s slow drawl and next words held a wealth of meaning.
“You might want to get your shit together, fast.”
Spinning around, his gaze zeroed in on Lisa walking toward him, her dainty breasts cupped by a neon-green half bra that revealed a peek of pink nipple. Matching shorts molded to her slim hips and emphasized her bare, slender legs. Even from a distance, there was no mistaking the need in her vivid eyes and etched on her pale face when she spotted him or the hint of uneasiness pinching her mouth.
She ought to worry about whatever game she had been playing with him since arriving in Mountain Bend. He did not like to lose.
“He’s got it bad.”
Shawn ignored Ben’s comment to Dakota as he walked away from them to meet Lisa halfway. He did have it bad for her, but in what way, he still needed to figure out. It pissed him off she’d kept their prior association to herself these past two weeks, but he would remain open to hearing her explanation. Atkins’ attempted molestation had to have been more traumatic for a young girl than the hits he’d subjected him, Clayton, and Dakota to suffer.
That didn’t mean he wouldn’t exact some form of retribution if she continued to deceive him though. Remembering what he’d walked in on that night, he would need to tread carefully so as not to trigger a painful memory without warning.
Fuck, why couldn’t his first real interest in a woman be easy?
Lisa’s eyes had widened when she’d seen him, the convulsive working of her slender throat to swallow another telltale sign of nerves. Shawn’s pulse kicked up a notch as he considered those nerves, speculating whether they stemmed from a sub’s natural reaction to putting herself in the hands of a Dom or from keeping a secret.
Without giving her time to think further, he held his hand out as soon as he reached her. “You’re right on time. I like that, Lisa. Come sit with me.”
“Okay.”
She accepted his hand, her palm sweaty against his, her fingers trembling in his grip. Both jumpy signals were at odds with the glint of determination in her gaze and rigid set to her soft lips. He wasn’t the only one sorting through questions about their association.
Spotting an empty table near the bar, he led her over and pulled her onto his lap as he took a seat. He flashed a wry grin at her look of consternation, releasing her hand to press against her hip as he moved his free hand to dip a finger under the edge of her bra and scoop out her nipple, baring it the rest of the way.
“Haven’t any of your previous Doms placed you on their lap?”
She shook her head, sending her blonde hair flying around her shoulders. “No. We always…I mean, I’m not much for socializing at these places.”
Her nipple hardened under his circling finger, her eyes dilating with arousal as she squirmed on his thigh. “Sit still. We’re not going to jump into a scene tonight. It’s time I got to know more about you.” She stiffened, and he pinched the tender bud. “Is that a problem?”
“It depends on what you want to know.”
“Ah, honesty. Another point in your favor. Tell me, have you ever been dishonest with a Dom?” Keeping his eyes on her face, he continued to torment her nipple.
She bit her lip and struggled to swallow again even as she gave him a negative headshake. “No, I’ve only scened with three Masters before you, the last one I was with the longest and never told them, or you a lie.”
“Good to know, but verbally telling a lie isn’t the same as omission, is it?” he asked, shifting to free her other nipple and pluck it into a stiff peak.
Lisa paled then gasped with a shudder. He gave her a moment to form her thoughts, not surprised when he caught a quick flash of annoyance cross her face before she pasted on a blank expression.
“I’m not sure what you’re getting at, Sir, but I don’t see the need to reveal a lot about myself when I won’t be here long. Maybe you should pick someone else for tonight.”
Shawn tightened his hold on her hip as she made to get up, leaving his nipple play to press against her abdomen. “I don’t want someone else tonight.” He hardened his voice as he added, “If you do, say red, and we’re done, not just tonight though, but for good.”
As he thought, she didn’t like that idea any more than he. She was as attuned to him as he was to her, their connection undeniable whether she chose to accept that or not. Clayton took that moment to saunter over, a wicked grin curling his mouth as he pulled out a chair, turned it, and straddled the seat. As usual, his timing sucked.
Shawn frowned at him. “What happened to your girl? Did she turn you down?”
Clayton’s grin widened. “Nope, she’s in the restroom, so I have a minute. It’s nice to see you again, Lisa.” He thumbed back his tan Stetson, revealing the curious glint in his blue eyes before his gaze slid to caress Lisa’s pretty reddened nipples.
“You’ve met?”
“Master Simon introduced us.” Lisa smiled at Clayton. “Thank you, Sir. Nice to see you again also.”
She rested her hands on his arm at her waist, and Shawn took note of the absence of unease with Clayton’s arrival, admiring her obvious pleasure in a stranger’s blatant attention to her exposed nipples. He’d noticed last week how comfortable she appeared with public nudity and was interested in learning if that resulted from her time as a submissive or if exhibition aroused her.
“You’re the new teacher. Where was your mother when I was in school?” Clayton teased. “I wouldn’t have minded going to class near as much if I had a pretty face like yours to look at.”
That innocent question elicited her first reaction to Clayton, a jump in her pulse against his arm, and when Shawn glanced at her face, he saw the smile she gave Clayton slip.
Before he could intervene, she replied, “She’s been gone a long time. You would have been a teenager.”
“I’m sorry, darlin’.” Clayton cut him a quizzical look, as if he now found something familiar about Lisa.
Shawn shouldn’t care if putting her on the spot made her uncomfortable, but he did, and sought to intervene before his friend said anything else. “Go away, Clayton.”
“Got it.” With a gleam in his eyes, he stood and leaned over to lift Lisa’s face with two fingers under her chin. He planted a quick, hard kiss on her mouth then said, “When you’ve had enough of this guy, come find me.” With a wink, he spun on his booted heel and went to the bar.
“Huh.” Lisa brushed her lower lip with two fingers, her look bemused as she watched Clayton walk away.
The painful stab of jealousy in Shawn’s gut was new, and he didn’t know what to make of it. Tabling that questionable reaction for later, he picked up where they’d left off, hoping to entice her into staying instead of backing away. Her spandex shorts dipped low on her waist and cut high on her legs, making it easy for him to slip his fingers inside the stretchy material.
“What will it be, Lisa? Continue?” The shorts lowered with his hand until he came into contact with the soft, bare skin of her damp labia. “Or stop?”
As if that was no choice at all, she lifted into his hand on a quiet moan. “Continue, please, Sir.”
“Excellent. Where were we?” Inching lower, he slid his middle finger between her plump folds to trace along the slick seam. “I remember, getting to know you better. Where in Arizona did you live?”
&nbs
p; “Doesn’t most of the population reside in the Phoenix area?”
Displeased, he pinched the tender flesh of one delicate fold. “That’s not an answer.”
“It’s hard to think,” she snapped back then bit her lip as she likely realized that wasn’t a wise tone to take.
“And yet, you managed another evasive answer that was no answer.” His eyes bored into hers as he speared her pussy with a deep-fingered thrust. “Want to try again?”
Lisa blew out a frustrated breath with a jerky nod, her chest lifting with a deep inhale. “All I remember before losing my mother was our small apartment and the elderly neighbor who came over when Mom went to work on the night shift. And, yes, we lived in the Phoenix area, where, I couldn’t say.” She paused to gasp as he added a finger and scissored inside her tight depth. “Other than that, I don’t recall. Sir, please.” Her hips lifted again, this time her thighs falling open wider.
Her strangled plea got to him on a level no previous encounter had managed. Unable to resist, he swirled his fingers in her silken pussy, enjoying the tight squeeze of her vaginal walls even as he contemplated how much time had lapsed since she’d last indulged in sex. Some subs wouldn’t go that far at a club; others embraced everything. Shawn circled her swollen clit then rubbed the sensitive tissue between his fingers. “Concentrate on your body, and what I’m doing, nothing else, and, this time, give me a better orgasm than last week,” he insisted, pressing harder on her clit.
Holding her close, he manipulated her clit and bent his head to take one straining nipple into his mouth, both nubbins hardening under his fingers and tongue. Lisa dug her nails into his arm, her breathing turning ragged as she arched into his marauding hand. Alternating between strong pulls on both tender buds and softer caresses, he brought her to a feverish pitch in moments.
But he wanted more.
Releasing her clit and nipple, he delivered three deep, rapid thrusts inside her soaked pussy and sank his teeth into her neck. Her startled inhale followed with a whimper as she quivered against him, and he relished the spurt of cream coating his fingers. “Now, Lisa,” he ordered, returning to her clit and nipple with voracious force.
