by Rachel Blake
Did she want to date him? With nearly every fiber of her being, she did, but the tiny voice in the back of her head told her that she needed to know more. She needed to know what his expectations for this relationship were.
Hell, did he want a relationship or just a play partner? If he desired the latter, she would have to turn him down. There was no way she would be able to be physically involved with this man and, at the same time, keep her emotions in check. She wouldn't do that to herself.
"Are you sleeping up there?" Leland teased as he wedged his hand into the pocket of her jeans, pulling her from her thoughts as he pulled the key from her pocket.
"I could have gotten it. There was no reason to grope me," Autumn complained as she pushed her unruly dark hair out of her face so she could scowl at the man unhindered.
The sound of Leland's laughter had her belly fluttering. "I asked for the key twice before I took matters into my own hands."
When he swung the door open, Autumn expected him to put her down, but instead, he kicked the door shut behind him and headed to the living room. "Your sister is going to kick your ass when she finds out you wore shoes on her rug."
"That is why I am going to keep that information to myself, and so are you."
"Oh, I'm totally telling," Autumn countered as he set her on the sofa with a smirk.
He knelt in front of her, gently placing her foot on his thigh before he started working the laces of her Converse sneakers loose. "I am sure you will, princess. Now, let's see how much damage you have done. With how gently I removed your shoe, there should have been no reason for you to wince like you did. Not what I like to see." He palpitated the slightly swollen joint before he snatched a pillow from beside her. Placing it on the coffee table, he gently set her foot on top. "I am not happy you kept this from me. Stay there."
With that, he strode away. Autumn strained to hear what he was doing, but the pounding of her heart drowned out all other sounds as her heart rate climbed. Did he leave? Was their non-date over?
He had just left her there with an order to stay put. Yes, she could get up and leave, or see what he was doing, but he told her to stay there. As stupid as it sounded to her, she didn't want to disappoint him. Her need for his approval meant he might as well have tied her down. Would Sierra return later to find her still sitting on the couch waiting for Leland?
"I finally found something that will pass as ice," Leland said as he walked back in the room, causing Autumn to jump. When his eyes met hers, he nearly ran to her. "Autumn, what's wrong?"
The concern in his voice touched her heart. "Nothing's wrong. I-I just didn't know where you went."
He knelt in front of her once more and placed a towel-wrapped bag on top of her ankle. "I just went to the kitchen to find some ice or something to put on your ankle. I didn't think it would take ten minutes." He rolled his eyes. "There is nothing of nutritional value in her kitchen. The mixed vegetables that are on your ankle right now were spilled all over the back of her freezer."
Autumn's mouth dropped open. "Why do you get to roll your eyes, and I can't?"
"You can roll your eyes, but if you decide to be mine, it would be a risky habit to continue. May be wise to start curbing it now, because you are going to say yes, eventually."
"What exactly does being yours mean?"
"It means we date like a vanilla couple does, but it also means we set out our expectations and rules for this relationship beforehand. You need to know what I expect of you, and I need to know what you want and expect from me."
"So is this when we negotiate?"
"Are you saying you are willing to give this a chance?"
"I am saying that you have my attention, and I am willing to hear you out."
"That is all I can ask. For now, anyway."
Chapter 4
As she was bent over and backing out of the freshly scrubbed ambulance, Autumn nearly jumped out of her skin when a hand came down hard on her ass. She spun on her attacker, sitting on the sopping wet floor of the rig in the process, and glared at the man. "I swear to all that is holy, Davis, if you touch my ass one more time, I will knock you on yours!"
"Relax, Johnson. I was just trying to tell you good job out there." The man in question held his arm in the air in a placating gesture.
"Don't try to act all innocent with me. I have been shooting down your advances for way too long. Keep your hands to yourself."
"Is there a problem here?" Leland questioned as he joined the two of them previously unseen from the side of the rig, causing both to startle.
"No, I was just telling Autumn what a good job she did at the scene. The woman has a fighting chance because of her quick thinking."
Autumn rolled her eyes but resisted the urge to bang her head against one of the cabinets in the ambulance. "Laying it on a bit thick, are you?"
"No," Leland interjected before he turned his displeased look on Autumn. "He is right about you saving the woman. When we pulled her out of that truck, we thought she was a goner, but after a few minutes with you, she had signs of life. You did good work, Autumn." His face hardened even further before he turned back to Davis. "But if I catch your hands on her or any of the other females at the station again, I will go after your job, and I will succeed."
Davis's lip curled in disdain as he spun on his heels and stormed away.
"Thank you, but I have been dealing with that infuriating man for years. You didn't need to get involved."
"Of course, I am going to get involved. I want you to be mine, so I am going to treat you like such until you tell me to hit the road. And I protect what's mine."
Autumn, of course, rolled her eyes. It had been two weeks since their non-date. They had worked six shifts together, and his insistent nagging was starting to wear her down. The man was devious in the way he did it, too. He started out as a gentleman, allowing her to enter a room before him or offering her his seat, but those small gestures soon grew, and before she knew it, he was treating her as one would a girlfriend.
On their non-date, they had agreed on all the rules and expectations they would have in their D/s relationship, but she had told him that she needed time to think. He agreed to give her that time, but he had slowly started incorporating some D/s related warnings into their everyday routine at the station. The first time he had spanked her was on their fourth shift together.
They were working a car accident that night, and she had forgotten to put on her reflective vest. Combine that with her pumping adrenaline and just plain stupidity, and she had nearly been hit by a passing vehicle on her way back to the rig. Leland had snagged her by the back of her jacket just in time. After assuring that she was unharmed, he landed three hard swats to her ass before he gave her a light push toward their visibly pissed off chief.
After that incident, and the resulting reprimand, Leland quit holding back. He made it known to all that Autumn was off-limits, and with most of the guys on their shift practicing the lifestyle in some way or another, nearly everyone heeded his notice. Davis was the exception.
"I hate when you roll those lovely hazel eyes at me," Leland growled as he pinched her hard on the ass.
"That is why I can't say yes to you," Autumn chastised as she threw the wad of used paper towels at his chest.
"Because I don't like it when you roll your eyes?"
"No, because you rebuke me at work. I have a job to do here, and I cannot have you smacking my ass every time you don't like a decision I make while at said job. I would become the laughing stock of the station."
"First off, I know you are an excellent paramedic, and I would never inhibit your work with my barbaric ways. And before you say it, I know I landed some smacks on your butt when you nearly killed yourself the other night, but in my defense, you scared the shit out of me. If I had not smacked your ass a few times, I know Kevin would have." The truth in his words rang true. Chief Atwood acted much like an older brother to her at times, and he would have no problem laying a couple of b
utt burners upon her seat. He had done it before, not that she would ever admit it to him. "Second, all but a few of these men here are part of my inner circle. I have been friends with them for years, which means I have and will play with my sub in front of them. I have played with some of their subs in the past, and not a single one of these men will use our lifestyle as a tool against you."
"What about Davis?"
"He is far from my inner circle and will never know what we do or believe in."
"So you won't discipline me at work?"
The corner of the man's mouth turned up. "I never said that. Will I embarrass you or spank you in front of people while we are at work? No. Will I reprimand you for a choice you make regarding a patient? Never. Not even at home. I will, however, paddle your ass red if you endanger your life like that again. I will take any sass, including eye rolling, into consideration and decide if it was just playful banter among colleagues or a subbie in need of correction. But know, if you show too much sass in front of the guys I—we—trust, I won't hesitate to land a swat on your butt."
Autumn's mouth dropped open. "You just said you would never spank me in front of people while we are at work."
"Oh, Autumn, that swat would not be a spanking. It would be a warning."
Autumn stood there, weighing her options. She could tell him she was uninterested, and he would respect that, but if just the thought of refusing him had her stomach roiling, there was no way she would be able to get the words out. "Yes."
"Yes." Leland drew out the word, apparently wanting her to elaborate.
"Yes, I would like to try both dating you in the vanilla world and as a D/s couple."
She had just finished talking when his hands landed on her hips and she became airborne. She clutched his shoulders in an attempt to balance herself as Leland held her above his head as if she weighed nothing and spun in a circle before he placed her back on her feet and landed a hard kiss on her lips.
Of course, the chief decided to wander into the truck bay and cleared his throat at that precise moment. Autumn took a hurried step back, tripped over some unrolled hose and landed hard on her ass on the concrete floor. She would have covered her blushing face with her hands if she was not still wearing soiled gloves.
"Shit, Johnson, are you okay?" Chief asked as his steps ate up the distance between them and he offered her his hand. It was an unnecessary gesture as Leland was already physically picking her up off the floor.
"Would you quit picking me up?" Autumn chided as she roughly shoved his hands away from where they still rested on her hips. "I am far too heavy for you to pick up like that." A swat to her canvas covered bottom followed her words. "Hey!"
"Warning. You put yourself down like that again, and I will get inventive with my implement of choice. Got it?"
"Yes, Sir," Autumn replied as she glanced at the toe of her scuffed, black boot, utterly embarrassed that he had a reason to reproach her in front of the chief, even if it was only a swat.
"Don't be embarrassed on my behalf, Autumn. I have had to get after my own wife more than a few times for the same thing, and I am sure that will not be the only time I see him show you how truly displeased he is with you," Chief Atwood reassured, somehow knowing exactly what she had been thinking.
"But that will be different. You won't be standing in front of me with your uniform, announcing that you are my boss the next time. Well, I hope not."
Kevin laughed. "No, but I will, more than likely, be completely immersed in my role as a Dom, and I will still be the boss. The only difference is that Lee will outrank me when it comes to you." With a gentle smile, Kevin meandered away, giving her arm a reassuring squeeze on his way past.
Leland wrapped his arms around Autumn, giving her no choice but to press her face into his chest as he rubbed her butt as if he were soothing away the sting from his strike. "It will never be okay for you to talk badly about yourself, princess."
"I can't decide if I hate you calling me that or love it."
"If you really hate it, I will stop using it."
"No!" Her response was quick and sharp as she lifted her head from his chest. "I said I may love it, too. You can keep calling me princess. I mean, after all, I need to hear it a few more times before I make up my mind."
"Good. I wasn't ready to give it up," Leland replied with laughter in his voice. Just as Autumn opened her mouth to give a retort, the tone sounded.
"We have a report of a vehicle versus vehicle accident on the corner of Train and Gibson Street. All units, please respond," a disembodied voice announced as the couple parted ways and the rest of the department poured into the bay.
Autumn climbed into the passenger side of the ambulance and watched Leland pull on his bunkers through the side mirror.
"You know," Gwen started as she climbed into the driver's seat. "It would be highly inappropriate for you to jump his bones in the middle of the call."
"Gwen! I would never do that!"
"Really? Because that look on your face tells me you totally would."
Chapter 5
"You have to tell her we are dating," Leland demanded as he ambled through the kitchen with a box in his arms.
"I will," Autumn whispered harshly as she shoved a stack of dishes into the cupboard above her head.
"It has been a week since you agreed to be mine, and I am sick of hiding it from my sister. You will do it. Now." The unspoken "or else" hung in the air long after Leland left the room.
With a sigh, she shut the cabinet and rested her head against the cool wood. Leland had offered to talk to his sister the day after they became a couple, but Autumn had begged him to let her do it. She had every intention of telling her best friend about their relationship, but the words had failed her every time she tried.
A smack to her left butt cheek instantly had Autumn straightening from her slightly bent over position. "Ow!"
Leland stood there with his arms crossed over his chest. "You leave it out there like that, then I have no choice but to assume you are in need of a little encouragement to do as you were told."
"You. I. You hit me!"
"I spanked you. Big difference. And I am going to do it again, repeatedly, if you don't get your ass out to that moving truck and tell my sister we are dating."
"I will tell her when we have all your things moved in."
"No, you will tell her now." Leland pulled Autumn away from the counter and gave her ass another swat to get her moving in the right direction.
When Autumn turned to give him the "what for" look, two things stopped her. The solemn expression on his face and the man who stood behind him failing miserably in his attempt to hide his smirk. With a sulk firmly in place, Autumn went to do his bidding.
"Sierra, can I talk to you for a moment?" Autumn called when she got close enough to be heard.
"Sure, what's up?" Sierra questioned as she spun around, clipboard in hand.
"Who knew Leland could get so many guys rounded up to help him move?"
"I know. Between the guys from the station and their girlfriends and wives, we are going to be finished in no time. Oh, those go to the kitchen," Sierra said, directing the tall man with two boxes. "Thank God Dad demanded that their trip to Florida not be changed. My mother would be in a constant state of blushing with all the swearing."
"Speaking of girlfriends, I—"
"Autumn, I'm an intelligent woman. I know you're dating my brother." Sierra laughed at her friend. "Unless you plan on catching flies, I suggest you close your mouth."
"How did you know?"
"You guys suck at sneaking around," Sierra explained as she pointed another man in the right direction.
"We didn't 'suck' at hiding our relationship. Hell, I only agreed to date him a week ago."
The "are you kidding me" look she shot Autumn's way made her feel a little naïve. "The man has been living with me for three weeks. If you were not at my house, my brother would mysteriously disappear only to return late at night, if
at all. Don't get me started on the way you two acted when you were at the house. You may as well have been in his lap half the time. Do you know how many times I saw him give you the look when you got a little too lippy for his liking?"
"He never gave me the look!"
"That same look has been directed at me too many times, so trust me when I say he gave you the look. Didn't take a genius to figure it out that you were shacking up with my brother. And do you really believe it has only been a week? It has only been a week since you agreed, but he owned you long before that, and everyone except you knew it."
"First of all, there has been no 'shacking up.' Second, why didn't you say anything?" Autumn questioned, choosing to ignore the last statement.
"It was fun watching you guys sneak around like a couple of teenagers just to keep little old me out of the loop. Now that it is officially official, it is my best friend duty to let you know that my big brother doesn't put up with any nonsense. While you two are dating, your butt will never be safe from his itchy palm. He's not one of those wannabe Doms you have dated in the past who let you have your way as soon as you bat your eyelashes at them." Sierra shook her head. "Leland is the head of his house, a man of his word, and will be in charge of your relationship. He will take charge of more than just your bedroom activities."
"A little late with the warning about his hard hand," Autumn whined as she reached back to rub the still tender spot on her butt.
"I am so glad you are dating him. Maybe you will keep him busy enough that he will forget about my need to be straightened out every once in a while." Sierra's teasing smile slipped away as she took a deep breath and studied her feet. "I also didn't tell you I knew because when I did, I would have to tell you about my own kink, and I wasn't ready for that yet."
"Your need to be spanked is old news to me," Autumn joked as she bumped Sierra's hip with her own.
