by Lucian Bane
A White Knight Dom.
And that… was game fucking on.
Chapter Eight
Tara wasn’t sure what happened to Lucian but thank God it had. He seemed relaxed. More happy even. She stood next to him at the door when the first couple entered—Lauren and Ricky. Lord, Ricky had changed. The mill life had turned him from chubby boy to brawn man.
“Ricky,” Tara greeted, “good to see you again.” She smiled and nodded while keeping her arms crossed to relay her no touching policy. “Lauren, so nice to see you again.” They’d popped in on her and she’d been sweet as pie. Nothing to trust, but it was a favorable start. “This is my husband, Lucian.” Tara’s stomach tickled at saying that. She was pretty sure that might be her first public announcement and she suddenly felt like royalty.
Lucian stuck his hand out. “Nice to meet you, man.” He nodded at his wife. “Hello Lauren.”
Tara bit back a smile at the deep macho in his tone and how he didn’t offer his hand to the woman. Good thing for him. No need to touch strangers. At hello or at ever.
Lucian turned. “This is Steve,” he presented. “My best friend.”
Tara grinned at the way Steve shot out his hand with his professional smile that he didn’t realize looked insane. “Pleasure is mine.” Steve turned then. “My wife… Susan?” He waved at her and she hurried over, going carefully in the delicate pink heels she was clearly not accustomed to. She really looked amazing for a heavy woman. The matching pink slacks and jacket were cut to accentuate her natural voluptuous curves. There were some people that wore it so well you were sure they looked better with weight than without. Susan was that type.
“A pleasure,” she cooed, sweet as candy. “Come in and have some of what I’ve been a slaving over.”
Tara realized having Steve and Susan was going to make everything so much easier. Lucian grabbed her hand and she looked at him smiling at his wink as they went into the kitchen side of the large room.
Lucian patted her butt. “I’ll join the guys,” he whispered, heading to Ricky and Steve. Tara focused on helping Susan entertain Lauren. She didn’t need much help, Susan was a natural at making people feel like immediate family. With small talk introductions out of the way, two more couples arrived at the same time.
“I’ll get that,” Steve called, hurrying to the door.
Tara looked toward Lucian at hearing his sexy laugh, and noticed Ricky seemed to be doing all the talking despite his tight lipped smile and red face.
Tara’s nausea seemed to be getting gradually worse. She knew it was more nerves than anything. She was nervous about all these people that mostly knew her, coming into her life. She dreaded it. She’d been a loner in the town apart from the elderly friends she had and she liked it that way. But Lucian needed her strong, not a countrified mouse.
Finally all the couples were there and Lucian stood at the front of the class, sitting at the edge of the large black desk before the classroom-sized whiteboard. “Now that we’ve all gotten to know each other, I’d like for you to open your packets and we’ll get down to the business we’re all here for.”
Tara’s brows raised with wow. Now that was the Lucian she knew. His tone was utter confidence. The kind one got after mastering an art. No fears, just an easy certainty. At feeling her chest and stomach loosen, she realized half her nerves had been for him.
Lucian turned to the whiteboard while everybody did as he said and glanced at all that was there then took the eraser and wiped it all off then walked before the class, heading toward Tara. “A great marriage is one of the most important institutions in the world. A marriage is a kingdom with a King and a Queen. Great marriages create great families. Great families create more great families. That’s how you build a strong town, a strong city, a country, an empire.”
Tara kept her eyes riveted to Lucian even as he stood next to her.
“Nothing great comes easy. Nothing amazing comes without hard work. And that is especially true with marriages. Everybody following me so far?”
Eager agreement and understanding rang out in eager and amazed tones.
“Yes,” Lucian asked.
“If we have questions, can we call?” Tara recognized Red’s flirty voice. “I mean about homework type stuff? Assuming we’ll have that.”
“Tara will answer any questions the ladies have and I’ll answer any questions the men have. Which reminds me,” Lucian walked to the white board and picked up the marker. “We have ground rules for these classes.” He wrote and Tara slowly smiled.
To the men: If you have a question you feel a woman should answer… ask your wife.
To the women: If you have a question you feel a man should answer… Ask your husband.
He turned. “The first thing a hero and heroine does for the one they love is protects their commitments to each other. If you don’t want your wife to do it, then you don’t do it. You don’t want your husband to do it, then you don’t do it. It’s rather simple. So don’t be stupid in this class. None of you are stupid and I will not tolerate anything that begins to hint at such fuckery as using these classes to do that which you would not want your spouse to do. In addition to that, you will use manners with one another. You must speak to each other with respect and kindness, at the very least in my class, or you will be put out of it.”
“Will classes always be on the same day?” Ricky asked.
“Same day, same time,” Lucian said. “Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you can’t make it, I expect a valid excuse.”
“Like a doctor’s?”
The mocking question came from Hannah, Boyd’s wife. “Like a phone call with a valid excuse. And if you miss the class, I expect you to bring me your homework the first chance after whatever emergency prevented you. These classes are serious and a prelude to hopefully others like it. And I am not paying you two point five grand to half ass it. You can’t do the classes, fine, don’t. But once you commit to them, I’m holding you to the fire. Everybody follow me?”
The consensus came unanimous and firmly.
“Good deal. Any more questions?” Susan’s hand shot up. “Susan?”
“Well, I was just wondering. Are we going to be learning sexual things?”
“Yes, we will, but first we have to learn who we are and what we want before we can begin to tackle that.”
“Do you believe a woman is supposed to obey her husband?” Red asked, way too sweetly.
“I believe a woman is supposed to love her husband and her husband is supposed to love her. And yes, I believe a man is the head of his house and the leader. A woman should support him as such in all things. But you have to remember the man is the one who puts his ass on the line, literally, for his family. Though he may have ultimate decision making, he should do nothing without first seeking the wisdom of his other half. And yes, she is literally your other half. You don’t make decisions; you don’t do anything without considering that other half that is part of you. A man should love his wife more than he loves himself and under those conditions, a woman should have no problem obeying a man like this.”
“Not me,” Susan said loudly followed by the other women agreeing.
“Uh, Boyd, is it?” Lucian pointed.
“I was just wondering where you get all this money?”
“That’s not up for discussion.” He pointed at his right. “Steve?”
“Are we going to need any additional supplies with this first semester?”
“We have all the resources you’d need and you’ll that as you leave tonight.”
Tara hesitantly raised her hand and he looked at her. “Mrs. Bane?”
“Are we allowed to talk about the classes?”
“Absolutely not. These classes are private. In fact,” he went to the desk and opened a drawer, pulling out papers. He walked from desk to desk handing them one. “These are non-disclosure agreements. You will sign these now. Read them over, ask questions. They’re simply you agreeing that you will not speak about thes
e classes to anybody. Everything that happens here involves the private lives of others and it needs to remain that way. Your business, my business, it stays in these four walls or I will use whatever resources it takes—and I do have them — to sue your asses for damages to any one of the couples in here, including myself and my wife. I want your legal name on that line, and your driver’s license out to verify as I pick the forms up.”
Tara noticed several were already signing and Lucian picked up their documents, comparing the signatures to names and handing back licenses.
When he’d finally collected all the documents and stored them in a tray, he perched his cute butt on the corner of the desk. “How many of the ladies in here like a good hot romance?”
Tara raised her hand and covertly glanced to find the other ladies had as well.
“Nice. All of you ladies love reading about heroes who love their women?”
Yes’s sounded in the room.
“You love a hero that protects the woman he loves?”
More yes’s.
“A hero that nurtures the woman he loves? Adores the woman he loves? Wants no other woman than that one woman he loves?”
The yes’s got more adamant now.
Lucian nodded. “Very good. I’d say you ladies are on the right track in what you want.”
“Men,” he began, standing with a clap. “No, I’m not going to ask you if you like a good hot romance. But I will ask: Do you like a woman who loves you? Respects you? Adores you? Cherishes you? Wants no other man but you?”
The yes’s came all at once.
“Awesome,” he said. “So, it’s safe to say that all of you in this class would like to have a hero and a heroine for their husband or wife. The question is—are the men in this room a hero? And are the women in this room—a heroine?” Lucian held his arms out at his sides. “I don’t know the answer to that and I don’t want to know. Yet. None of us in this room are perfect and every single one of us can stand to improve on one thing or another in our lives. Truth?”
More agreement. But Tara didn’t miss the lagging in it, like several might have issues with owning their shortcomings. Or maybe it was a classic you own your shit first then I’ll take care of mine.
“But I do know one act of heroism that all of us in this classroom have achieved.” Lucian got up and took the black marker and wrote on the board. True heroism begins with I do!
He returned to his spot on the corner of the desk and Tara found herself with a serious school girl fantasy brewing between her legs. Dear God he looked good in dominance, didn’t he?
He pointed with his thumb behind him. “That right there takes heroes and heroines. Saying I do. Giving your life to another, to mesh with, to become one with. Now, whether you said I do for those reasons will be discovered throughout the course of these classes.”
Lucian turned and got a packet from his desk and opened it. “Yes, my wife and I are taking this class too by the way.” He pulled the papers out and looked at Tara. The sudden assault of those intense blue eyes made her clit tingle. He gave a small smile almost like he knew. “Would you mind reading this Semester’s course outline?”
Shit. She should have told him she had issues with public readings. She glanced at her paper and became aware of the silence like a sudden pressing hand, pushing her. Then she realized she hadn’t answered him. “Uh, yes. Sure.” She cleared her throat, reminding herself that Lucian needed her strong. This wasn’t grade school for crying out loud. “Number one is Who Did You Marry?”
“Yes,” Lucian said, standing. “Who did you marry? We all had ideas of who we wanted to marry. And we all certainly had or have ideas of who we did marry. But…” he gave a sexy grin, “sometimes life has a way of changing both of those things. Life can change you,” he pointed to Ricky. “It can change you,” he pointed to his wife. Or,” he said looking around, his eyes landing on Tara. “Maybe it’s not changing anything. Maybe we just never knew ourselves. Never knew who we were or what we wanted. Maybe,” he looked at the class. “We only thought we knew who we were and what we wanted. Maybe life has a way of teaching us—if we let it—that we actually don’t know who we are and what we want. Maybe it can teach us that who we say we want to be, is really what society, friends, family, wants us to be.”
Tara was amazed with the silence in the class; she could feel the pull of his words, sucking them in, hitting on personal issues.
“That’s what this first semester is going to be about. We’re going to find out who we are. What we really want. And how to give that. Notice I didn’t say get?” He waited for all the yes’s before continuing, “That’s because a real marriage, a good marriage, a great marriage even, is a hot romance. Hot romances have a hero,” he pointed to each man, “and a heroine,” he pointed to each woman, ending on Tara. “The hero is made for his heroine and the heroine is made for her hero. She has no needs because he fills them. And he has no needs because she does the same.” Lucian turned and grabbed the coffee cup from his desk, holding it toward the class. “And if you should fuck up that awesome balance?” He let it fall and break on the ceramic floor. “Your world will shatter,” he promised.
He looked down at the mess then at Tara. “I’ll get a new one.”
She waved her hand and gave a light snort, feeling all bubbly warm inside. That he was hers. She wanted to point to him and say that’s my husband. They knew that already but she still wanted to say it. Over and over. Write it on the white board a thousand times. Meanwhile, Steve hurried back from the kitchen with a broom and dustpan, sweeping the example up.
“Thanks man, sorry about that,” Lucian said.
“Perfectly fine,” he whispered.
Lucian took up the course outline and looked at it. “For tonight, I’d like you to go to page three in your packet and answer all the questions for your spouse. This is to see how well you know each other. Raise your hands when you’re done.”
Maybe ten minutes later, Lucian started collecting up the papers from raised hands. When he had them all, he said, “Now go to page four and answer those same questions, but answer them for yourself. Again, raise your hands when you’re done.”
When he had all the papers again he called Tara up to his desk. She stood next to him and he eyed her with a slight smile at the edges of his mouth. She bit her lip at seeing he was also entertaining teacher student fantasies. “How can I help you? Sir?”
He lowered his head with a grin. “I need you to help me check these answers. Miss Reese.” He handed her half the papers and desire nearly made her dizzy at the new-adult address he’d used, confirming her suspicion.
She took the papers and headed back to her seat, glancing only with her eyes toward the class, worried they might see the fantasy they were engaging in. When she sat, she fought to focus on her job finding it ridiculously difficult. Hormones. Only excuse she had. She glanced toward Lucian and found him studiously over the papers before him. A smile crept over his sexy mouth and he angled his eyes discreetly her way, sending her pulse racing. It said, I feel your desire from over here and now you’re going to need to stay after class, young lady.
A full blown fantasy ensued in her mind as she stared blindly at the answers on the page before her. In the fantasy, she was holding his legs open while he sat in his chair, sucking his gorgeous cock while on her knees. Mercy. She would suck him until he turned into that sexy beast that took her with a reckless intensity.
Tara let out a discreet slow breath through the desire pounding through her. Pounding yes. She liked when he pounded.
She finally made her way to his desk, realizing she should have checked her job first. She likely missed a few questions. Shit, or pages. She quickly went through them while standing there and then handed them over.
“Thank you, love.” He kept that barely-there smile, thoroughly seeming to enjoy their roles. “How did they do?” he asked quietly.
“Oh,” she whispered, heat flushing her cheeks. “I… didn’t know yo
u wanted me to put a grade.”
“Of course you didn’t.” He looked up, his gaze openly lingering at her breasts, making them tingle with need before he raised his eyes to hers. “I should have been more specific. Do you find it too hot in here?”
Tara found herself speechless. Just like that goofy college girl she once was. “A little... yes. If you need me to put the grades, I can.” She really couldn’t believe how turned on she was with this little game she’d stumbled into. Was it because she was in her home town and in a classroom setting with people from her past that made it too real? Maybe. He wasn’t helping. Between his sex appeal, her hormones, and the subconscious fact that he was her husband, she was just a puppet along for the delicious erotic ride.
“Please, yes.” He handed it back to her then gave her a red pen.
Tara returned to her seat and figured up the grades, astonished at what they all were. She brought them back up and handed them over. “Interesting,” she said.
He handed her his set of papers. “I know.”
She looked to discover his were all flunks too. But even more shocking was hers and his. They hadn’t flunked but they hadn’t aced it, either. Lucian had a B she had a C-. Wow. And he’d graded them, of course, the sneaky arse.
“Thank you Miss Reese,” he said for only her ears, taking the papers from her before she could study what had gone wrong on theirs. “You can return to your seat.”
She stared at his quirked brow and hurried back to sit. Her womb was impossibly tight with all the sexual tension, mercy.
Lucian walked around the class and handed back their scores, the murmurs of shock slowly building with each one he delivered, while a few found it hilarious. He finally made it to her and laid the paper down on her desk facedown. She flipped it over and realized he’d given her both of theirs to compare, as he’d clearly already done that. He made his way to the white board and wrote, but Tara was too engrossed in what she’d gotten right and wrong.
