“Beside Loki is Master Atticus.”
Jesus Christ on a cracker. Mountain Man had obviously lost his sense of direction on his way to rip out a tree with his bare hands. Legs the length and thickness of a tree bough stretched in front of him, muscles straining the material of his black leather pants. His poor shirt was in the same predicament, stretched to capacity over shoulders and biceps that were not meant to be contained.
He wore a full beard, black like his hair but scattered through with flecks of silver. Neatly trimmed, well groomed. His full mouth smiled at her kindly, but his green eyes assessed her with the criticism of a rancher choosing which cow to send to slaughter.
Bodie wrenched her gaze away quickly as ice slithered down her spine. What did she care if he judged her? He didn’t know her, and she had no intentions of getting to know him.
“Atticus might look like someone who hauls heavy machinery around on his shoulders all day, but he’s the biggest softie we’ve got.” Braun’s hand ran up and down her thigh in reassurance. “As long as subbies follow the rules, he’s a gentle giant.”
And if they didn’t follow the rules? What did he become then?
“I don’t need to introduce you to Liam, of course. So that leaves our lovely Mistress Connie.” Braun inclined his head toward the woman reclining regally along the seating. “Connie is like the mother hen of subbies, Bodie. Takes everyone under her wing and guards them. If there’s something you need to talk about that you can’t with anyone else, Connie will listen.”
Connie was a full-figured, confident woman by Bodie’s guess. No one who lacked confidence would dream of stuffing themselves in a neon blue corset voluntarily, let alone torture their feet in six-inch needle-thin heels. The Mistress radiated sex with every breath.
Tawny blonde hair curled around her shoulders. The colors in the strands ranged from blonde to white, tan to brown. It looked like a deer pelt in sunlight. Her eyes were a virulent shade of gray, storm clouds on the brink of raining destruction down on an unsuspecting country, but there was a kindness in them when they pinned Bodie’s that eased the roiling tension inside her.
“Braun and Liam told us you’ve had a rough time lately,” Connie said with a sad smile. “We’re not miracle workers, but if you decide to hang around for a while, this place tends to make the outside world fade away. Especially with those two jokers,” she laughed throatily and jerked her head toward Loki and Atticus.
Dubiously, Bodie eyed Mountain Man. If he was a joker, she was a fish. Her gaze refused to loiter on him for more than a few seconds; he intimidated the hell out of her. Instead she found more comforting company in the shape of Liam—or thought she had.
Her friend stared across the room, obviously lost in thought.
“Connie, would you mind bringing Bodie’s present for me?” Braun asked pointedly. He tucked Bodie in closer and, for the moment, she was willing to allow it. She didn’t want to do anything to attract the attention of the people around her...oh, but wait, they were already suffocating her with their stares.
Connie slapped Liam’s shoulder and purred, “Would you do me a favor, big boy, and go fetch what his Lordship requires from behind the bar? I’m far too comfy to move.”
Startled from his reverie, Liam gave the Mistress a baleful glare. “Beg? your pardon, Mistress, but I’m not one of your whipping boys. But...I’ll consider it if you do me a favor in return.” He smiled wickedly. “You might not like it.”
Wow. Keeping her head tucked into the safety area beneath Braun’s jaw, Bodie observed the exchange between the two Dominants with wide-eyed fascination. It never occurred to her they might laugh and mess with each other like...well, like friends.
She thought they’d be more stilted, with sticks up their asses, and the stink of their dead sense of humor infecting everyone within a mile radius. Wasn’t that part of why she wanted nothing to do with this whole thing? Being around people with no personalities, no humanity, was what she wanted to avoid.
But Liam and Connie...
The Mistress narrowed her eyes at Liam. “What favor am I returning?”
“I need to blow off some steam tonight. Lacey’s coming earlier than usual as she has to leave before eleven. I’d appreciate it if you’d woman the bar for an hour while I take care of business.” Liam wiggled his eyebrows, pleased with his wordplay.
“That was poor, even for you, William,” she chastised, then sighed and rolled her eyes. “Fine. I’ll take care of your precious bar for an hour. But you owe me another favor. An hour in exchange for thirty seconds is unfair. Deal?”
Liam shrugged. “Yeah, I can live with that.”
They shook hands firmly. Liam winced as Connie’s hand squeezed hard enough for the woman’s knuckles to turn white, but the Mistress didn’t flinch. With a grunt, Liam pushed off his seat and stepped up and out of the pit to head for the bar.
“I asked some of these guys to pick some stuff up for you on their way here,” Braun explained in a quiet voice, drawing Bodie’s attention to him. “Loki and Atticus got you something fun to play with, and Connie brought you—”
“Pizza!” Liam announced, stepping off the edge of the pit and landing next to Braun. He had a pizza box balanced on the fingertips of one hand, and he offered it to Bodie with all the flair of a seasoned waiter. “For you, madame. Margherita. Stuffed crust. No anchovies, mushrooms, pineapple, or peppers. Just lots and lots of cheese.”
Her stomach perked right up, doing cartwheels of delight as the scent of food assaulted her where it hurt. Saliva pooled in her mouth. “This is for me?”
Liam crouched, still balancing the pizza, and smiled at her. “We felt bad we didn’t have any proper food for you earlier, so the boss here pulled some strings and got you takeout. It might be on the cold side, though; you were asleep for longer than we expected.”
Her muscles turned to stone. How much had Braun told them about what had happened in his office? Was that sort of thing kept in confidence or was it common knowledge now that she’d lost her shit and blubbered all over him like a pathetic loser?
Suddenly the blanket and his arms were claustrophobic. She desperately wanted space, air, distance. If he’d said anything to the others, if they knew how she’d broken down so quickly...she would have to hurt them.
“What happens in my office stays in my office, little one.”
Bodie peered up at Braun, angling her head back to study his eyes. Eyes didn’t lie, not in the heart of them, and the expression in his...he understood exactly what she was thinking, didn’t he? She saw it, the compassion and the empathy gleaming in the blue.
Quietly, so quiet she barely heard herself, she asked, “Promise?”
The callouses on his palm sent a shiver scurrying down her spine when they brushed over her cheek. His fingers were firm, supportive, as they wrapped around the nape of her neck and squeezed. “My word on it, Boadicea. That stays between you and me.”
The things happening in her body would stay firmly between her and whatever god thought it was wise to incite the riot in her panties. The warmth and pressure of his fingers on her nape wreaked havoc on her from her ovaries to...well, other parts. She welcomed the cover of the blanket; her nipples were standing to attention, her breasts growing heavy and sensitive.
“Thank you.”
Braun nodded once, then his fingers directed her gaze back to Liam and the pizza he proudly displayed in its cardboard box. “Always, little one. Trust me to know what you need. Now, tuck into your pizza before these greedy bastards get their dirty paws in the box. Loki’s been known to inhale a pie before and it’s not a pretty sight.”
“Hey!” The quietest of the Dominants scowled.
“Deny it, Loki. Go on, I dare you.” Laughter shadowed Braun’s words.
Chocolate brown eyes gleamed with matching humor. “Shit. How’m I supposed to lie in the presence of a pretty lady?” Loki winked at her. “Liam told me not to get between Bodie and her pizza. More than my life’s wo
rth.”
The expectant silence and numerous faces anticipating her response closed in around her. What was she meant to say now, I could kick your ass from here to next Sunday without breaking a sweat? That would go down swimmingly.
“Don’t overthink it, Bodie. Just be yourself.” God, that voice...
Wetting her lips, Bodie inhaled slowly. “Liam’s had more than his fair share of ass-kickings for stealing my food. Luckily for him, he learned his lesson before he spoke in a permanent soprano.”
The silence continued for several long seconds. Bodie dropped her eyes to the floor and wished she hadn’t said anything. Beneath her, Braun’s big body shook, and then Atticus snorted out a bullish laugh. Before she could blink, the Masters and Mistresses were roaring with laughter—Liam, the poor sod, included.
“Just for that, Bo,” her friend told her as he dangled a cheesy piece of pie in his fingers, “you’ve sentenced this slice to an evening of servitude to me.”
Slipping into easy banter with him was like stepping into comfortable shoes. She wiggled on Braun’s lap, heard him groan, and shot daggers at Liam. “Put. The. Pie. Down.”
Grinning evilly, Liam raised the slice above his head, tipped his head back, and took a bite. His moan of enjoyment was far too dramatic. “Mmm, mmmn, mmmn. Hold onto your girl, boss, she’s going to get real feisty in a second or two.”
“Son of a bitch,” Bodie snapped, trying to fight her way out of the blanket and Braun’s protective arms. “How many times have I told you not to eat my food, Liam? You’re so getting your ass kicked.”
“Braun will save me,” he replied, making short work of the slice and smacking his lips together. “I’m his favorite.”
Connie’s laugh rang out again. “From the way Bodie’s bouncing around on his lap and the look in his eyes, Braun’s got better things on his mind than saving your ass, Liam. I’d be tempted to let her go and see just how fast she takes you down.”
Braun cleared his throat. “None of that now. Liam, let the girl eat before she wastes away. She can annihilate you later once she’s got a full belly and the flames shooting from her ears die down. We open the doors in twenty and I’d rather not spend the time mopping up your blood.”
Ever the gentleman, Liam presented the box to her for a second time, lid open. “We’ve never drawn blood. Bo and I have bickered like this for years.”
Hands free of the blanket, Bodie snatched a triangle of pizza and devoured it. “There’s a first time for everything. Eating my damn pizza is punishable by...” She trailed off, wondering how safe it was to continue that sentence.
“We can take a joke, girl.” Atticus rumbled. His voice was the deepest of them all, like a truck speeding through a tunnel. A Mack truck, no less. “It’s wise to be respectful, but we do have a sense of humor.”
For how long? she wondered anxiously. They’d all have limits on their patience, on how far their humor would stretch. Sometimes she went overboard, forgetting herself and pushing people too far. If she pushed these people too far...as Braun said to her earlier, there would be consequences.
But where was that line?
“Confusing, isn’t it?” Jasper spoke up from her blind side, and she jerked. She’d forgotten the sadist was there. “This is where the beauty of submission comes in, poppet. Moments like this, when you don’t know what to do or what to say, and the stress of it piles on top of you, you hand it all over to your Dom. Give him control, he’ll protect you.”
“Jasper,” Braun growled in warning. “Stop trying to influence her decision. Bodie knows her own mind, she doesn’t need your help.” He patted her thigh gently under what she was coming to think of as her safety blanket. “Finish your pizza, darlin’. I think I see Loki drooling over there.”
“Some subbies need a firm hand, Braun. Your girl’s stuck on a high wire with no idea how to go back and worse, clueless how to go forward.”
The conversation carried on over her head as she dutifully selected another cheesy piece of heaven and ate quietly. Both Dominants were fiercely defending her in their own way, which few people had ever done, but Bodie couldn’t stop thinking about what Jasper said.
Stuck on a high wire...no idea how to go back...clueless how to go forward.
The sadist was completely right and that scared her.
There was no going back to what had been. In only a few hours, Braun had started a process that she couldn’t undo. He’d unlocked parts of her she’d spent years chaining down with little more than himself and his words. Awakened urges inside her she couldn’t control.
Somehow, he’d found the chink in her armor and peeled chunks of it away so he could climb inside her and find what hurt.
Bodie glanced up at him before she reached for the box again. His jaw was rigid, the muscle ticking. She liked the thick, dark stubble. Even though he was angry with Jasper, his blue eyes smoldering with irritation, he kept his temper in check. When he spoke, he bit the words off with a snap, but without lifting his voice.
He noticed her watching him and she blushed hard enough her cheeks warmed. The harsh set of his mouth softened into an amused smile, and she squirmed on his lap in response. Her heart tilted and quivered in her chest when he pressed a firm kiss to her forehead. “Good girl, Bodie.”
Liam caught her eye, rolled his, then gave her a subtle thumbs-up. He didn’t seem surprised or concerned she was curled up on Braun’s thighs; if anything, he appeared pleased for her. “Well if these two aren’t done squabbling by the time you finish the pie, Bo, come see me at the bar. Time to let the horde in.”
The food in her mouth turned to ash. She swallowed, glancing around at the empty club, and realized the calm, quiet space she’d grown almost comfortable with would soon be alive with things she really had no comprehension of.
Not everything was cuddles and kisses on the forehead.
At Liam’s proclamation, Loki and Atticus grinned at each other and shoved to their feet. Atticus was the epitome of intimidating when he stood tall, his wide shoulders rolling back into perfect posture.
“Have you had enough to eat, little one?” Braun asked her quietly.
Oh yeah. What she’d eaten wasn’t sitting well in her stomach, ruined by nerves. She nodded slowly and tucked her hands back into the blanket. “Yes. Thank you for thinking of me.”
“Thinking of you is my pleasure,” he responded without so much as a blip of hesitation. His attention switched to Liam and the other Doms. “Liam, feel free to share what’s left with the monkeys at the zoo.”
Loki high-fived Atticus before they both dived for the box still in Liam’s hands. The rest of the pizza was gone in seconds, and Liam huffed as he carried the empty box away. “Could’ve given me a head-up on that, boss.”
“Where’s the fun in that?”
Bodie worried her lip, biting the firm flesh. She couldn’t sit here forever. She was supposed to dance tonight, and Braun—well, Braun had better things to do than babysit her. This lovely bubble of peace and safety was about to pop, and she just wasn’t ready to face what waited for her outside.
“Braun,” Connie said earnestly. “You’re doing paperwork tonight? I think Bodie might like to take a nap...away from the hustle and bustle. Why don’t you take her back to your office, and I’ll man the floor for an hour?”
“We can finish this later,” Jasper offered, yet another one who kept his cool even in the midst of a spirited argument. “The lass is looking a bit peaked.”
“You don’t have to fuss over me,” Bodie insisted, feeling awkward under the keen gaze of the Mistress.
“That’s kind of my job description as a Dominant, little one.” His fingers nudged her chin up so he could study her face with the same concentration as Connie had. “I think a nap is a good idea. You’re too pale, and you look exhausted.”
“I’m not submissive,” she whispered, flinching when Jasper snorted. “I’m not.”
Braun kissed her forehead again, then went a step further a
nd brushed his nose against hers. Eskimo kiss! “I know, little one. I know.”
“I think a little subbie doth protest too much,” Jasper muttered as he rose gracefully from his seat. “If she were mine, a good spanking would make her mind up one way or the other.”
“If she were yours, J, there would be no question as to whether she was submissive or not. Besides, you play with pain sluts, and Boadicea isn’t your type.”
Ice blue eyes sparked with appreciation. “I could make an exception.”
“No, you couldn’t. Sadist you are, my friend, but you know damn well a scene with a non-masochistic sub would leave you dissatisfied. You’d be traumatized, your hair would turn whi—oh, that’s how that happened, huh?” Braun’s laugh jostled Bodie, the sound wicked and teasing. “Go play with your own toys and enjoy yourself.”
Flipping Braun the bird, Jasper grinned and exited the seating area with the stealth of a panther on the prowl. God help the poor woman who stepped into his sights.
“Are you sure you’re okay with walking the floor, Connie? It’s a lot to ask when you’ve got bartending duty as well. Doing both is going to cut deeply into your scene time.”
She waved that away with an elegant hand, and Bodie envied the ladylike grace with which she pulled the gesture off. If Bodie attempted it, no doubt she’d accidentally backhand the nearest person or appear to be swatting flies. “Nonsense. I can do both. Kevin wasn’t sure what time he’d be arriving, and David said he might not be able to make it at all. But regardless, they’ll just have to wait until my duties are done.” Gray eyes darkened considerably. “I am the Mistress, after all. They wait for me.”
Holy smokes, Connie had two men on the go? Bodie’s mouth dropped open in shock. How did that work? Did she split her time between the two of them, or play with them both together? She was only one woman; how did one woman do...things with two men?
“That’s raised all manner of questions for your pet, Braun.” Connie smirked, but Bodie saw no ridicule in the other woman’s eyes. “Send her to me for a lesson one evening when the boys are here, I’ll answer whatever questions she has.”
Dance for Me Page 9
