by Grant, Livia
Then… then it would be nice if he could actually talk to her. To not be bored.
But years of this bullshit had confirmed for him that a woman like that either didn’t exist or was already with someone else.
The only women he seemed to find were the ones that liked the way he looked, but not the way he played, or the ones that found out about his family money and were willing to do anything if they could take a selfie on his sailboat to post online. #trustfund #golddigger #fuckoff
He hated it. He hated these people. Black Light was supposed to make all of that shit a non-issue, but it seemed there was always another rung on the social ladder and women like Neva Hawthorn were more than happy to use him to reach the next one.
Maybe after this he would take his friend Devon’s advice and head back to the East Coast for a while. Close to the original Black Light location so that he had a better chance of finding someone with reasonable conversational skills. Someone interesting that he could tolerate for more than a few hours. Someone who enjoyed his games, who bent to his will, but wouldn’t break.
Like that will ever fucking happen.
Just when Pierce was about to turn around to people-watch the kinksters in the audience, he saw a new sub join the ranks beside the stage. She caught his eye because she was broadcasting alluring innocence. A little. A pretty little babygirl in a schoolgirl button-down and an impressively short, frilly skirt. Complete with lacy layers and ribbons. Her white, knee-high stockings, black mary janes, and the twin pigtails resting on her shoulders — with more ribbons — finished off the look that was nothing more than a costume hiding whoever she was underneath.
He would be her absolute fucking nightmare.
And… he liked that.
Pierce felt his lip curl into a smirk as he studied the little brunette waiting for a Daddy to sweep her off her feet, but all he could imagine was her make-up smeared from fucking her face until she sobbed before he made her lick her drool off the floor.
Crossing his arms, he kept his eyes on her until the weight of his stare brought her attention to him. Wide brown eyes stretched even wider, but he didn’t give her anything. Not a smile, not a wink, and he didn’t return the awkward little wave she offered.
The little sub shifted uncomfortably, trying to look away, to pretend she wasn’t curious, but she had no self-control. It wasn’t even a full thirty seconds before she snuck a peek at him again and he had to clench his jaw to keep from grinning.
If I get you, little princess, I’m going to enjoy taking you apart piece by piece before I watch you come undone. I’ll leave you a dirty, wet mess with no more pretty lace to hide behind.
I’ll show you what you’re really made of.
Chapter 2
Tori
The blond dom near the other side of the stage was definitely staring at her. In fact, she wasn’t sure if he was even blinking. Every time her eyes wandered back to him, she found his piercing stare on her. Intense and not friendly, which was disappointing because he was definitely hot with that serious expression and his sharp, clean-shaven jawline catching the lights.
She didn’t know him, but he seemed familiar all the same. She was sure she’d seen him at Black Light before… she just couldn’t remember a specific scene.
Could he be a Daddy?
Her nose wrinkled a little as she watched him out of the corner of her eye. No. Nothing about him looked like a Daddy Dom. He was wearing a tailored suit, but he had an empty expression on his handsome face. He was missing the softness in the eyes, the care and concern she looked for when finding a play partner. No, Mr. Stares-a-lot definitely wasn’t a Daddy, but something about him still had her thighs pressing together. There was a tingle that made the hair on the back of her neck raise a bit, and that buzz stroked slowly down her spine with every repeated moment of eye contact.
He wasn’t just staring, he was… evaluating. As if he’d zeroed in on her like a predator on prey, and something inside her was responding to it. A small tremor in her stomach that spoke of danger and risk — but that wasn’t what Tori did.
Tori didn’t go for the sadists or the flashy performance doms. She dated Daddies. Men who treated her like a naughty little girl, who spanked or paddled her when she misbehaved, and then took care of her. Tucked her in, cuddled her. She was always one-hundred percent safe with them, and this guy with his blond hair that looked windswept even though they were inside did not say safe.
Maybe he was one of the owners’ model friends? It wouldn’t surprise her to find out he was a model because he was… very nice to look at.
But not for her.
Forcing her gaze to look past him, she searched the other dominants gathering by the stairs. There were a few men that fit the profile of a possible Daddy. Older than her, dressed well, with a face that spoke of both compassion and stern lectures that always led to a very warm bottom. Yes, any of them would work.
Maybe she could even find a new Daddy tonight. Someone that would be right.
The lights dimmed and Madison, the same MC from last year’s Celebrity Roulette, arrived on stage with a spotlight and a roar from the crowd to begin the event. Butterflies immediately took over Tori’s stomach. She’d been a member of Black Light last year when Roulette had gone on, and it had been incredible to watch. There had been so many amazing scenes, and all she’d wanted was to be a part of it. To find a dom like so many of the subs had that night, and the moment she’d found out that sign-ups this year weren’t just restricted to celebrities she’d probably been one of the first applications in because she wanted that. She wanted—
Stop.
Taking a slow breath, Tori tried to push down the excitement and shove away her dreams of the perfect Daddy. The one that would understand her, would see what she needed and scratch all of her itches.
Please, please, please…
Chase Cartwright-Davidson was on stage now, his charming smile and boisterous energy a welcome distraction as Tori added her voice to the cheers and applause. Then Madison returned in her sexy, black leather outfit, reviewing the rules that Tori already knew by heart. This wasn’t what had her stomach twirling into knots, it was what came next.
Her eyes drifted over to the gathered dominants again and there was Mr. Stares-a-lot. Still watching her, only now he had a smirk on his face like he was laughing at her. Part of her bristled, but another part urged her to stand up straight to hide the sinking feeling his strange look had summoned inside her. It was a relief when Madison eventually summoned the doms to the stage to choose their spin order, because the man couldn’t continue staring at her through the bright lights cast on the stage at the front of the theater.
Handsome or not, she didn’t like the guy. He looked cruel, and she didn’t like that at all.
The spins started and Tori was distracted by a girl in a bright red dress next to her who leaned close to ask, “Are you as nervous as I am?”
Tori reached over to squeeze her hand, offering an encouraging smile. “Totally, but it was a pretty amazing event last year, so I’ve got my fingers crossed tonight is going to be magical.”
“I wasn’t here last year,” the woman confessed on a whisper, and Tori could see the anxiety in her face and feel it in the death grip she returned.
“Just give it a chance. Whatever you spin, the DMs are here to keep you safe, and it’s a chance to try something new, right?” Tori smiled, but the other woman couldn’t quite manage it as another couple paired off on stage.
“I guess so,” she answered.
“You’ll do great,” Tori encouraged her, trying to bolster her own confidence at the same time as couple after couple were matched by the luck of a spin. So many possibilities, so many kinks, and Tori’s head was spinning with what she would end up with — who she would end up with.
“Our next dom up to the roulette wheel is Daddy Xavier. Come on over and roll for your submissive,” Madison called out and Tori’s eyes lifted instantly.
Daddy?
The large man on stage was definitely handsome. Absolutely sexy, and a little rugged in his black jeans and dark gray shirt, the sleeves already rolled up like he was ready to dive in to Roulette with both feet. Tori bit down on her lip, crossing the fingers on both hands as she pleaded with the universe to guide the little marble to her name as he dropped it.
Come on…
“Dolly!” The name felt like a blow to her chest as she started to look around at the other subs. A moment later a tall, beautiful woman with short, dark hair separated from the group. Daddy Xavier moved to meet her at the steps, and Tori blew out a breath as the two connected instantly.
It was impossible not to feel a ghost of disappointment as she watched the gentle care that the man had for his new sub for the evening, but there were still a lot of dominants left to spin and two of them looked like they might like the same things she did.
It’s okay, you’ll still have fun. This is a chance to try something new.
“Next up is Pierce! Are you ready to find out who you’ll spend Valentine’s with?” Madison asked, smiling at the line of doms as Mr. Stares-a-lot stepped forward without returning Madison’s peppy energy. He didn’t hesitate at all to drop the marble as the wheel started spinning.
The woman in the red dress touched her arm, moving closer to whisper, “I heard that guy being an asshole to this girl earlier. He was—”
“Baby!” Madison called, and the world halted. Something on her face must have alerted the girl in front of her that she was Baby and was now paired with the man who had apparently already been an asshole tonight on top of staring at her like a creep.
Great.
Madison moved forward a little, beckoning her once more. “Join us up here on stage, Baby, so you can spin your first kink!”
Red dress girl gave her an apologetic look as Tori started toward the steps, keeping her eyes on the floor and not on the man who had spent the last thirty minutes boring holes into her with his stupid smirking face.
Pierce didn’t move to meet her like Daddy Xavier had for his sub. He stood at the set of roulette wheels with his hands tucked in his pockets and an empty expression, but his blue-green eyes were focused completely on her with the same intensity as before. Just like a predator, only now she really was his prey. For three whole hours.
Avoiding him, Tori stopped beside the second wheel and struggled to return Madison’s encouraging smile as Pierce took a couple of sauntering steps forward to close the gap between them. His presence was just as electric as it had been when they’d both been waiting in front of the stage, something magnetic that urged her to look at him, but she didn’t. She refused.
“You got this,” Madison said, and Tori took the offered marble as the MC set the wheel to spinning.
Just when Tori was about to drop it in, Pierce leaned close, his warm breath brushing her cheek as he whispered, “I’m curious, do you normally have trouble paying attention? Or just when you’re pretending to be a baby?”
Heat flushed up her face and the marble slipped off her hand, bouncing high, almost out of the wheel before it settled into a spin and the whirring kinks blurred into an unreadable stream of colors.
“I’m not—”
“Don’t be a brat, Baby.” He was mocking her with the name she’d chosen. It didn’t sound sweet or endearing when he said it, no, it sounded like a curse. His hand landed at the small of her back, inching up slowly until his fingers found the nape of her neck and squeezed firmly. “You should know that I expect subs to pay attention and I do not tolerate brats. At all. Being a brat will only make your evening miserable, so, decide right now — are you going to be a good girl and answer me when I ask a question or not?”
“Yes, sir,” she whispered, trying to show him that she wasn’t a brat as the marble clattered and the wheel began to slow.
“We’ll see,” the asshole replied with a low chuckle as the marble settled into a slot that made her eyes go wide.
“Humiliation!” Madison called out, still smiling, but Tori’s smile was nowhere to be found as Pierce leaned close enough for his lips to brush her ear.
“Time for you to learn your place, little whore.”
Oh, God.
Her nose wrinkled at his harsh words, but that same tingle returned with a mix of fear and nervous energy, concentrating low in her belly and only amplified when his grip on her neck tightened as he led her off the other side of the stage. People made way for them at the bottom of the stairs, clearing space where several other paired couples were standing together.
“On the floor, slut,” he commanded, applying pressure to the back of her neck until she slid to her knees beside him obediently, trying to be a good girl. Then Pierce simply released her, continuing to watch the pairings on stage as she shifted and tried to get comfortable — but that was impossible.
Her cheeks were burning, and she could feel both embarrassment and anger warring inside her chest because no one else had put their sub on the floor. Others were talking softly, getting to know each other, while she was surrounded by a forest of legs on one side, unable to see the stage, and more than a few audience members were staring at her from their comfortable chairs while Pierce ignored her completely.
‘He’s doing this because I spun Humiliation,’ she thought, but even as the words passed through her mind, she knew they were a lie. This had nothing to do with the kink the wheel had chosen, this was her dom for the night. The asshole who was absolutely, unequivocally, and completely not a Daddy.
He probably would have treated her like this no matter what she’d spun.
Risking a glance up at him, she saw the strong line of his jaw, the blue-green of his sharp eyes focused intently on the couple on the stage — and then he caught her staring. Smirking, he looked down at her, pinning her with his intense gaze.
“See something you like?” he asked, and she dropped her eyes back to the floor, his low chuckle floating through the air above her.
Tightening her hands into fists, she pressed them into her thighs, refusing to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she did find him attractive, but half a second later she felt a sharp tug at one of her pigtails. Reaching for the painful burn on her scalp, Pierce caught her wrist, trapping it as he bent down slightly, keeping his other hand firmly in her hair. A whimper escaped her lips as he pulled harder and forced her head to the side.
“Look at that… you’re being a naughty brat already,” he whispered. “What are you supposed to do when I ask you a question?”
“You said to answer,” she whined as quietly as possible, adding “Sir” out of desperation as the sting in her scalp spread.
“Correct. So, tell me, do you see something you like?” His voice was hushed, taunting, and she clenched her hands into fists to stop reacting. He wasn’t a Daddy, not nice, but he was gorgeous. Dangerously so, like how the most poisonous plants were beautiful.
“Yes, sir,” she whispered, feeling completely naked under his stare as his gaze drilled into hers. And, for some reason, as she drowned under the overwhelming weight of his focus, her mouth kept going. “But I think you’re well aware of how attractive you are.”
Pierce’s eyebrows lifted a fraction and Tori felt like the floor shifted beneath her knees.
Oh shit.
Chapter 3
Pierce
For once in his life, Pierce found himself speechless as the pretty little princess at his feet called him out. He’d expected her to lie, or play the brat, but she’d admitted it. Admitted that she found him attractive, and then turned it around on him.
Interesting.
He hadn’t expected this babygirl to have a spine, but it was in there somewhere. Under the ribbons and lace. Those wide brown eyes stared up at him, a hint of fear and panic brewing there as he released her wrist and twisted her pigtail around his fingers to angle her head backward. Baring her throat, making her vulnerable before he finally answered her.
“You’re right,” he
acknowledged calmly, and it was true. He knew he was attractive. Sure, part of it was genetics, but he worked hard to stay that way and he was proud of it. Leaning down further to invade her personal space, he brought his mouth dangerously close to hers, and he felt her desperate little intake of breath. “But looks can be deceiving.”
Another hitch in her breathing, a swallow that rolled down her throat and made him think of shoving his cock past those soft pink lips that were perfectly devoid of artificial fillers. She blinked doll-like lashes, her tongue teasing her bottom lip before she whispered almost too quietly to hear, “Like oleander.”
Oleander? What the fuck?
This girl had stunned him twice in less than a minute, and this time he was more confused than anything. A huff of a laugh escaped him before he regained control of his expression. “What did you just say to me?”
“Um…” Her fingers were worrying the hem of her skirt, gripping and releasing, telegraphing her nerves just as well as her expressive eyes. “It’s like oleander. Pretty on the outside, but poisonous. Deceiving.”
He was speechless again, and Pierce didn’t like it at all. He needed time to think. Shifting his touch to the back of her neck, he bent her forward, pressing her forehead to the floor as he commanded, “Stay. Silently.”
Baby did what he asked when he released her and stood upright. She didn’t move an inch, didn’t make a peep, and he crossed his arms as he tried to focus back on the stage, but he soon found himself looking at her again. Bent over her knees, that skirt was showing off her ass to everyone behind her, and he didn’t even know if she had underwear on or not, but people were definitely looking. Not that he cared if they did, she was his for the night and now he was even more intrigued by what the little princess was hiding behind her outfit.
