by M. Q. Barber
As Henry led her through the safeword ritual, she kept her answers short and sweet, confident and excited for Jay. Latched at her breast, he’d take her responses to heart. Freedom and responsibility shared a bed with her. Each a unique delight.
Henry sealed the ritual with a kiss. Gentle graze growing possessive, he gripped her hair in one hand while with his tongue he promised pleasure her body begged for.
She succumbed. Ceased pushing and accepted what he chose to give. Released the moan building in her throat. Spread her legs and rocked against Jay’s muscled thigh.
“Good girl.” Henry nuzzled her cheeks. “We want our Alice eager to be filled.” He sat back on his haunches beside her, his cock hard and the tip shining. “As eager as my good boy often is.”
Tugging, Jay stretched her nipple until she popped free in a rush.
Henry laid his hand on Jay’s back. “The birthday boy deserves to be the center of attention at his party, don’t you think?”
“Yes, please.” Eyes gleaming, Jay thrust his hardening cock against her. Either every pulse stiffening him burned her, or she’d developed a sympathetic reaction throb. “Please, Henry. I waited like a good boy.”
“You’ve been patient a very long time, waiting for the woman who loves us both to enter our lives. The one you are safe enough to be your true self with.” Squeezing his ass, Henry prompted another thrust.
In mid-whimper, Jay glanced her way.
She waved, leather pulling her wrists. Nothing to fear or be ashamed of. If not for her, not for him, either. “Love you, stud.”
“Alice and I want to share you between us.” As Jay beat an eager-footed tattoo on the mattress, Henry liberated a bottle of lube from the nightstand drawer. “A fantasy you entrusted to me long ago.”
An unfulfilled one, in Henry’s telling. Their lovemaking beside her on Valentine’s had been more meaningful than she’d known.
“I haven’t forgotten, my boy. Not a single one.”
The first time Jay’d relaxed enough to let Henry penetrate him in front of someone else. The first time he hadn’t frozen or gone limp at the attempt, fear or shame dragging him down.
“I know you’d never forget,” Jay whispered. “You’ve always told me the truth. That I could have what I wanted when I was ready for it.”
Henry thought him ready, or she wouldn’t have gotten the bullet points Wednesday. The reasoning behind his just-in-case alternatives.
“That you’d help me get there. That you love me.” Jay blinked and swallowed. His cock thumped her thigh. “I love you, Henry. I love you, Alice.”
Reassurances in words and kisses spilled from them both, escalating to hot, trembling need. Henry maneuvered Jay between her legs and aligned their bodies. Jay, the cock ring weighing him down, dragged his balls across her with every rock and thrust. Pre-come speckled her belly with warmth.
Henry slipped his hand between them. Jesus, fuck, two fingers inside and she jerked. The bonds held her fast. Jay sucked at her throat.
“Let Alice feel your depth.” Retreating, Henry spread her wide. “Enjoy her.”
As Jay arched away, his cock dipped and rapped her clit. Jolted, she brought delightful tugging down on her wrists. More restraint, the leather shirring along the wood.
Henry guided him to her. “Watch the pleasure you give her.”
Groaning, Jay pressed ahead with aching slowness. Blunt head flaring, the sweet curved ridge beneath popped deep. Christ, he filled her more than he’d ever done. Lack of condom, addition of cock ring, thrill of fantasy—analysis tumbled through her and out again, lost in a haze of fullness and Jay’s intense gaze.
“Do you see her thoughts zip and bounce?”
Inches from her face, he’d see nothing but her satisfaction rattling from her fingers to her toes with every tug against the headboard.
Tender and soft, Jay kissed her. “Dunno how much thinking she’s doing.”
“Precisely as little as we’d like her to, hmm?” Henry’s hand between them disappeared.
Hand. Hands. Hardness under her hands. Headboard spindles. Thank God she’d started trimming her nails shorter or she’d leave half-moons behind.
“She’s all trembly and doe-eyed.” As Jay settled deep, his smooth cock ring bumped—yeah, fuck, right there, Jay.
No movement. Shared breath. A happy whimper, Henry must’ve—
Grinding, oh God, grinding to meet Jay’s lunge and his kisses, fucking fantastic—
“—loses herself as you do, dear boy. Thoughts spinning, pleasure building, using the tethers I’ve given her to set her free and call her back to us safely.”
“I see her, Henry.” With his steep nose and criminally full lips, Jay boasted the most beautiful smile. “I see her letting go.”
As she lifted to nuzzle him, the leather pulled her back.
“It’s fine to join her. Letting go needn’t be frightening.” Rising beyond Jay, Henry commanded attention with his broad shoulders and sloping chest. “You’ve only one thing to remember.” Jay blocked her view of the goodies beneath. Pout-worthy. “Alice.” Serious, growly-man Henry. “Tell me your safeword.”
“Pistachio.” She rocked on waves, Jay buried inside and setting a slow rhythm. “Gotta listen for pistachio and Tilt-A-Whirl.”
“That I do. Very carefully.” Smiling, Henry bowed his head. “Forever and always.”
“’Stachio.” Snickering, Jay tickled her nose with a kiss. “Tillawhirl.” Caresses graced her upper arms. Jay of the warm palms. “Nope, no thinking in there.”
Henry, rumbling, settled a low fog of satisfaction around them. “We’ll send you after her.”
Groaning, Jay arched back, cock sliding and teasing.
“Easy, dear boy. Patience. A moment more and you’ll have me.”
Stretched and lubricated so he’d enjoy his present to the fullest measure. Henry’s fullest measure was a damn good size. With long fingers, Henry pressed a gentle command at her ankle, and she whooshed her feet up the sheet. Knees high, pelvis tilted, not a bad angle for—
Fuck me.
A heartbeat. A slow, driving pulse, a double pump or a shockwave or—oh God—defying comparison. Gasping, Jay dropped his forehead to hers.
“My perfect instrument.” In thrusting, Henry created a chain reaction through Jay and into her. “My beautiful Jay delivers pleasure in both directions.” Fingers wrapped around Jay’s flanks, Henry brushed her stomach. Steady strokes betrayed his fascination. “Has your reality matched your fantasy?”
“Better than fantasy.” Jay, moaning, held them captive. He mesmerized Henry with the flexing muscles in his back and her with his dark eyes and curving biceps. “Best gift.”
“Not so.” A deeper thrust accompanied Henry’s gentle denial. One-two, Henry’s powerful motion and Jay’s bobbing answer. “The birthday is yours, but the best gift is you.”
Jay surged with driving hips and bounced her feet off the bed.
Snatching her ankles, Henry pressed her to his sides. “This intimacy we share is a gift.” As he ran his hands up her legs, she kneaded his waist with her feet. “A meaningful communion.”
Kissing and nipping, Jay buried his face in her neck. Hot breath accompanied urgent shudders. The earlier orgasms, the cock ring, and Henry’s slow pace gave him more time to enjoy his fantasy. But he’d waited so long and—fuck, yes, do that again—the overwhelming pleasure had to be doubled in the middle. She wouldn’t last long herself.
“Boundless love surrounds and strengthens us.” Leaving her clinging to his hips, Henry increased the pace. “And at the very heart is our Jay, giving all, devoting himself to his lovers’ pleasure.”
Immersed in his own, too. Theirs fed his to overflowing. Streaming moans from his open mouth, Jay rolled his shoulders above her. Henry hadn’t blanketed him the way he did her when he took her on all fours. Chancy mixed with bondage, but nagging instinct insisted Jay wanted the same full-bodie
d ownership.
She nuzzled his ear. “Ask.” Off-script, but Henry wouldn’t take what both men needed without a sign from Jay. “What you want.” She tugged Henry with her toes. Fuck the extra weight. The orgasmic plateau beckoned, and she’d damn well hold up both of her men with it. “Give him the words, sweetheart.”
Cuffs dragging, Jay crawled up her arms. He curled his fingers around hers, their hands locked together by choice, their bonds worn by choice, their service granted by choice.
“More.” Jay kissed her cheek. “Please, Henry.” Wriggling his ass up, he came dangerously close to leaving her empty. “Let me feel you at my back. Make me yours.”
Her men grew heavier. Jay, sinking. And Henry. Finally claiming his right to rest the weight of his needs on them.
“I’m so grateful.” Henry met her gaze over the curve of Jay’s shoulder. “For my sweet loves.” Ducking, he kissed Jay at the back of his neck. “For their courage.”
A featherstroke from climax, Jay quaked and ground against her.
“Their inspiration.” Henry gained power and momentum, deepening his thrusts. “Their hearts and bodies freely given.”
Her heels skidded across Henry’s back. Her lovers buoyed her through a slow, pulsing orgasm.
Thank-yous falling from his lips, gentle and trembling, Jay filled her with warmth. Henry followed with a low growl, his hands planted beside them and his arms strained and flexing.
As Henry sheltered them beneath his body, she cradled her men for as long as he allowed. Kisses and praise sealed them together.
“Sit up, my boy,” Henry whispered, when Jay had grown too soft to hold. Wrapping Jay in a breath-stealing chest hug, he kissed him hard in the sweet spot below his ear. “Time to free our girl and sleep.”
Few words and uncountable touches passed between them as they tidied up and readied for bed. Lined up at the sink, toothbrushes in hand, they bore matching hazy gazes and contented smiles. Sliding into fresh sheets, she shivered at the phantom brush of restraints. Jay’s victory meant more nights like this lay ahead. Greater spontaneity, a wider selection of toys, and the power of Henry’s ownership. Fucking awesome birthday, sweetheart.
Chapter 6
Henry’s unbeatable clock-sense got the three of them to the club on time Saturday morning, even after he’d let them fool around and feed each other breakfast in bed.
Stopping in the salon on their way upstairs, they greeted Emma and her early arrivers. Introductions and the understated confidence in Henry’s welcoming speech dialed down Alice’s nerves during the quick run-through. Who didn’t want to spend the morning in a Henry-led game?
The early birds rearranged the third-floor classroom into a pillow minefield. Seventeen cushions scattered on the floor. Every student desk pushed to the wall.
“Incoming.” On hall monitor duty, Jay eased off his doorway slouch. His squinting lean gave way to a smile. “Daniel’s on his way.”
Their Emma-assigned play monitor sported bulky shoulders and a placid face. Throw on a set of horns and he’d make a credible buffalo—and jump on trouble just as fast. Since the dom class would have a flow different from the sub class, Emma and Henry had worked out arrangements.
Claiming the post by the door, Henry spoke to Daniel in low tones while she and Jay mingled. Doms in everything from formal suits to cutoff jeans swaggered in with ready handshakes. Attendees sported color-coded nametags, blue for regular members and orange for guests.
She and Jay made a full circuit, talking to every player. Henry’s ostensible disinterest created the illusion of an aloof presenter reviewing last-minute details, but his attention lay like his hand on her neck. Combining the attendees’ interactions with his submissives and information Emma relayed from the front desk via Daniel’s headset, he’d have a complete picture of each participant before he greeted the class.
She had her eye on a few, though they all came up wanting beside Henry’s easy control. This one too nervous. That one too overbearing. One creepy blond leveled a dead-eyed shark gaze at Jay the whole time they talked. The mix of ages, from those who’d get carded to those with gray temples, came as a surprise. Never too late to take up a new hobby, apparently.
Jay leaned beside her, hip to hip against the teacher’s desk. “Time for the show.”
Sure enough, Henry was making his way to the front, and the noise level dropped accordingly. He stopped before them, his back to the crowd.
Jay settled into his at-ease pose, hands clasped behind his back, and she copied him.
Approval written in his soft eyes and slight smile, Henry nodded. “Are you ready, my dears?” His gaze lingered on Jay.
“Ready and waiting.” Jay bounced on his toes.
She cracked a smile. “For you? Always.”
“An enticement if ever I heard one.” He winked. In a quick pivot, he faced the assembled crowd and thanked them for attending. Thirty in all, a full house.
“For those who do not know me, I’m Henry. I’ll be your instructor today, along with my partners, Jay and Alice.” As he gestured, they stepped to either side and nodded in greeting. “Although we’ll keep this class relatively informal, I’m sure you’ll all understand when I ask you not touch them without my express permission.”
“If we can’t touch yours, are we meeting slaves or what?” Voice ringing out in challenge, shark-boy clapped his fist in his palm. “I came here to get my hands on new flesh.”
A few chuckles drifted out, but most of the men and women wore blandly disapproving expressions.
“Ten minutes of mingling, and you haven’t determined the answer for yourself?” With his pitying tone and slow headshake, Henry made his unmet expectations plain. “Perhaps you require assistance in being a good judge of character. An observant player.” He cleared his throat.
Expectant air flooded her lungs. She bowed her head. The cushion at her feet came as close to Henry-green as the pile of options had allowed.
“Waiting pose, please.”
Half the class knelt, with near-perfect precision. She silently congratulated herself on almost matching Jay’s smooth style.
Henry laid a hand on Jay’s head. “What makes you believe your temporary submissives aren’t here already?”
Fifteen of Emma’s friends had agreed to play along under Henry’s supervision. With unobtrusive pillow-nudging as they mingled, each early bird had staked out a class partner and now knelt at his or her side.
Rueful grins and teasing murmurs spread through the fifteen standing. A baby-faced man in a too-tight collar glanced at the woman by his side and delivered a cheerful salute to Henry.
“We’ll begin with a brief policy overview, after which we’ll play a game, and we’ll end with a broader discussion of what being a dominant in this club entails.”
Sour-faced, the shark crossed his arms over his chest. His own partner apparently unworthy of his time, he stared at Jay.
Head bowed in a properly submissive position, Jay remained oblivious.
Henry launched into a short speech like the one he’d given last week. Aside from shark-boy’s disdainful sniffs, the crowd stayed attentive.
She stared back. Fuck this guy and his attitude. Semi-subservient respect for Henry’s friends like Santa Will, she could manage. Enjoy, in the right context. But this rude guest needed to check his intense interest in her pro—Henry’s—property.
Henry, strolling a circuit as he delivered his address, passed in front of Jay.
Stare swimming her way, the shark bared his teeth in a silent laugh.
Suppressing the urge to charge him linebacker-style, she scrunched her nose and shot him her best whatever glare. Job done, Jay undisturbed, she bowed her head.
Henry smoothed her hair in passing. Behind her. He hadn’t crossed her staring contest, though he could’ve easily. In his intro, he emphasized responsibility and awareness, the rise and fall of his voice lulling her like the tender comfort of st
ory time. If they hadn’t been demonstrating obedience, she’d have curled around his legs and tugged Jay along with her. Or, more likely, met a Jay who’d had the same thought in the middle.
“—to learn three things about your submissive and successfully ask them to perform one task for you.” Henry spread his arms wide and gestured toward the walls. “Have them fetch you a seat from the edge of the room. Submissive partners, on your feet, please.”
Unfolding, she stretched on her tiptoes. One of these days she’d master the loose-limbed zen of waiting pose. Though more than a few of Emma’s friends sneaked in a casual stretch. Maybe the trick lay not in the perfection but the pursuit.
“Today’s safeword?”
“Reset.” The word reverberated off the chalkboard and the wood-slat blinds in a single, determined voice of seventeen layers, though she had ears only for Jay’s rich tenor.
“Well done.” Henry clasped Jay by the shoulder. “Dominants, you will respect ‘reset’ as a safeword. If your attitude would receive a polite dismissal of interest on a play night, your submissive will say, ‘reset,’ and you’ll need to begin again.”
“First thing I’d do”—shark-boy drawled with cool indifference—“is slap that word straight out of its head.”
The woman beside him teetered back a step. Craning their necks, the pair in front shuffled aside.
“You intend to strike a potential partner as your opening statement?” On a curving arc, Henry approached the gap in the front row. “You do realize identifying as submissive does not make them your property.”
Choice did. An offer, an acceptance, and a more explicit set of relationship rights and responsibilities than she’d ever considered, let alone written in a contract. Surprisingly, pleasingly efficient. Henry didn’t mouth platitudes. When he promised to meet her needs and address her concerns, he meant every word.
“Does to me.” Shark-boy shrugged. “Open strong, and it won’t get any wrong ideas about what it’s good for.” He laughed, low and ugly. “Which had better be deep-throating my dick, or the first slap won’t be the last.”
