by Avery Gale
At the pool’s edge her rescuer had placed her hands atop one another and climbed effortlessly from the water. Strong hands had wrapped around her arms and lifted her to the pool deck in one swift movement. The sudden jolt sent a white-hot bolt of pain through her chest that had actually dimmed her vision for several seconds before the gray dissipated enough for her to see Ash and Dex. When she’d tried to take a breath another lancing pain rioted through her chest and the sensation of falling and encroaching darkness warred with one another before she let go and slid silently into the peaceful abyss.
*****
Dex had only been a half step behind Ash, but it had felt like a mile. He’d been kicking off his own boots before he’d even stopped running. The pool was fairly deep and swimming those few feet to the bottom had seemed to take forever. By the time he’d wrapped his arm around Meri’s waist the adrenaline flooding his system had caused him to band her too tightly to his side and he felt her jolt at the pressure. It had been easy to lift her out of the pool with his arms held straight out in front of him and he’d seen her eyes go wide in surprise. When he’d pulled her against his chest she’d cried out in pain, then setting her back on her feet he’d heard Ash ask if she was hurt just before she collapsed. He’d caught her easily, but had to fight the rising tide of panic sweeping through him when he realized the gap at the front of his black leather vest was smeared with blood.
Dex heard Ash speaking to their former teammates and for just a moment he felt as if they were back in some hellhole on the other side of the globe. But the fragile woman lying on the smooth concrete in front of him brought him fully back to the moment. He made quick work of shredding the thin chemise they’d let her wear to the club. Since that was all she was wearing she lay bare on the quickly cooling concrete in under a second. She had one stab wound to the chest that was bleeding heavily. It wasn’t pumping blood out and he let out an audible sigh of relief because the wound had to be perilously close to her heart. Watching her chest closely he noticed she seemed to be struggling to breathe. Running his hands over her tan skin he noticed it was turning an odd shade of blue, when he found the bubbling wound on her right side he knew why. “She’s taken one to the right lung.” He didn’t need to say any more, he just held out his hand knowing one of his teammates would provide what he needed.
Dex covered both wounds with clean towels from a nearby cabinet, applying enough pressure to her side that Meri moaned in pain without ever surfacing from the darkness that had claimed her. Kent West tucked one of the soft subbie blankets around her lower half and Dex appreciated his friend’s concern for her modesty. Even though they were in a kink club, and as Doms they were all accustomed to enjoying the view of naked women, the ambulance crew that was no doubt on their way was going to be another story. Dex quickly looked her over before saying, “There are several lacerations on her arms, but none of them seem serious. How far out is the ambulance?”
Kyle stepped up in front on Meri’s other side and answered, “Their ETA was ten a couple of minutes ago.” Just as he finished speaking, they heard a scream from the balcony above them followed immediately by a door slamming. “Fuck, get ready. She’ll have called in the reinforcements by the time she hits the back door. I swear I’d pocket her damned cell phone but we’ve got a tracker in it.” Dex braced himself for the tiny blonde tornado that was Tobi West.
“I thought the tracker was in her collar?” Dex knew Ash had asked the question more as a distraction than because he needed the information.
“There too, but it seems our lovely wife has figured out a way to jam the signals coming from her jewelry—we still don’t know exactly how she’s managing it, but she never goes anywhere without that damned phone because of the kids, so we tagged it. You’d think my brother and I were incapable of caring for our own children the way she calls home every half hour.”
The wail of a siren began filling the quiet evening just as Tobi stormed into the pool area asking questions so quickly Dex had no idea how Kent and Kyle kept up. It was easy to see it took them both to stay ahead of the petite whirlwind. But even as she was rattling off questions at a lightning pace, she was smoothing Meri’s hair away from her face with gentle sweeps of her fingers. When Kent started to pull her to her feet, Tobi leaned forward and brushed a kiss over Meri’s forehead, “You better be alright or I’m going to be very pissed…and I’m a real pain in the ass when I’m mad.”
“Kitten,” Kyle’s stern warnings to his sweet wife about her cursing were so common that most of the other Doms rarely even noticed any more.
“See what you’ve done? I’m going to be in trouble because of this, so now you’re obligated to recover quickly.” When she looked up at Dex, her sweet face was filled with a level of fear and anguish that squeezed Dex’s heart. Tobi West might not be the perfect submissive, but she had a heart the size of Texas, and knowing her background made that fact even more remarkable.
Standing back watching the first responders care for Meri was one of the hardest things Dex had ever done. It didn’t seem to matter if a SEAL was active or retired, apparently the desire to act was an imprinted on their DNA. Dex noticed the same restless energy seemed to be almost pulsing from Ash as well. The man was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet and Dex didn’t think he’d ever seen Ash so unhinged. The few minutes the attendants spent stabilizing Meri seemed like hours. Just as they lifted her onto the gurney, she began gasping for air and Dex knew her lung had fully collapsed. He’d seen it in the field and knew the terror she had to be feeling. Everyone around them tried to calm her, but it had been he and Ash’s barked commands that had finally settled her. Her eyes had briefly fluttered open and instead of fear, Dex had seen sadness and loss. They’d moved her away so quickly he hadn’t gotten the chance to reassure her that they wouldn’t leave her side, and something deep in his soul told him it was a missed opportunity he was going to regret.
*****
Meri felt like she’d run a 5K race in lead boots. She couldn’t open her eyes but that didn’t keep her from sweeping her hands up in an attempt to remove the concrete block someone had set on her chest. “No, baby, you have to leave the tubes in for a bit longer.” Mom? Tubes? Why is mom in my room? And why is there so much noise? I’m so tired… The quiet of sleep lured her back into its peaceful darkness, but just before she slid beneath the cloak of silence, she remembered how her heart had been shattered. The men she’d grown to trust had another woman, one who had stabbed her before Meri had plunged them both into the cool water of the Wests’ swimming pool. How had she not known? Why hadn’t she at least asked if they were involved with someone else? Was this just another case of men pretending to be interested in her because of her parents’ money? Too many questions. I’ll worry about it later.
The next time Meri awoke the room she was sleeping in was quiet except for the soft beeping she recognized as a heart monitor. It took several seconds for her eyes to focus and her mind to clear enough for her to realize she was in a hospital room. Before she’d even had a chance to speak, cool fingers brushed her hair aside. When she turned her head, Tobi’s sweet face smiled down at her, “Welcome back, sweetie. We’ve been waiting for you to wake up. Everybody finally went downstairs to get something to eat, so it’s just you and me for a few minutes. I’ll give you a fast update before they return if you want me to. Do you need a drink?”
Meri managed to nod and got several big gulps of water down before Tobi pulled the straw back from her lips. “Whoa there, sister. Mercy, you trying to get me in Dutch with the heinous bitch taking care of you? Holy horny toads, if there was ever a woman who needed to get laid, its Nurse Wicked.” Tobi giggled and when Meri started to laugh she cried out at the stabbing pain in her side. “Damn, you probably don’t want to do that again, huh? I’ll try not to be so entertaining, but I’m warning you it really does just sort of come naturally.” Patting the side of her hair with her hand, she grinned, “Just like Lucy Van Pelt, I think I’m pretty
special…even though my Charlie Brown and Snoopy might argue the point.” The sudden horrified look on Tobi’s face made Meri worry before she quickly added, “Damnation. I’m talking like the mother of toddlers. Oh my God, I swear I’m going to call Cam this afternoon and make arrangements to go down and work at his club in Houston. I need adult conversation and helping his staff setup his shops will give Gracie and I both an opportunity to remember there is life outside of Toddlerville.”
Meri wasn’t sure if it was the medication or Tobi’s usual rapid-fire topic changes, but she was having trouble keeping up and it must have shown in her expression. “Oh dear, I’m doing it again. Oh well, here’s the scoop before the troops storm the walls and I get pushed back by those men of yours.” Meri felt her eyes fill with tears at Tobi’s words. How was she going to tell her friend that the men working for her husband had another woman? “What’s wrong, honey? You look like somebody ran over your puppy. Are you in pain? I can call Nurse Ratched if you need her.”
“No, please, go on, but don’t call them mine, okay?” Tobi’s eyes filled with confusion and concern for a few seconds before she shrugged her shoulders and proceeded to update Meri on everything that had happened during the time she’d been out. Meri was relieved to find out her parents had already been on their way home and that she hadn’t been asleep long enough for them to travel all the way from South America.
By the time everyone returned, Meri realized how lucky she’d been because the wound to her chest had missed her heart by less than a quarter inch. Seeing the lines of strain around her mom’s and dad’s eyes made Meri wish she could hug them close and assure them she was fine, but just being awake was draining her energy, within minutes she felt her eye lids edging south. Dex and Ash walked in the room just as she gave up the battle, the last thing she remembered was them pressing soft kisses against her brow and sweet assurances that she was going to be fine. No promises that they’ll be around…but then why did I think they would?
Chapter Twenty
Two Weeks Later
Tobi squirmed in her seat and studied her fingers as they clenched and unclenched the silky fabric of the dress she was wearing. Bright morning sunlight streamed through her husbands’ floor to ceiling office windows making her feel as though she was under a giant spotlight. Tobi was barely able to keep from swinging her legs back and forth above the polished wood floor—damn I hate being short—but it would have just been nervous energy since the little-girl-lost routine only worked when she was alone with her husbands and right now there were four very pissed off Doms studying her. I feel like a damn lab rat. Their laser-like gazes were probably going to have her bursting into flames any minute and that might be a better end than the one she’d be facing when they found out the truth.
She’d actually been expecting this confrontation ever since she and Gracie had returned from Houston. Neither of them had intended to introduce CeCe Barnes to Meri, but the sweet surgeon had walked into the small deli where the three of them had been eating lunch, so introducing the two women had been unavoidable. CeCe was married to Cameron Barnes, the club owner she and Gracie were helping, she was also his full-time slave outside of her career. Kyle had once said that CeCe embraced the lifestyle with “everything in her” which Tobi knew was code for “she’s a good sub, you could learn from her”. Of course Tobi hadn’t been able to keep that opinion to herself and she’d gotten a sound spanking that hadn’t really been much of a deterrent for her bratty behavior.
“Kitten, I asked you a question.” Kyle wasn’t fooling her, she knew that tone of voice and it was pure deception. Geez, I hope I don’t look that dim-witted.
“Um, sorry, guess I was daydreaming. Could you refresh my memory?” Holy shades of pissed off, did they all four just growl in unison? Pretty sure that isn’t a good sign. Any hope she’d had of bullshitting her way out of her current predicament evaporated into a puff of smoke when she heard the side door open and watched Peter step through. Meeting his gaze, she didn’t even try to hold back her groan. Looking back at the four men facing her she wanted to slap the self-satisfied smiles right off their faces.
“That isn’t fair you know.”
“It wouldn’t be an issue if you were planning to tell the truth, now would it?” Kent wasn’t usually the snarky one and on the rare occasions he was less than charming, she was usually up to her ass in alligators.
“Kitten? I’ll ask you again, mostly for Peter’s benefit since I know full well you remember the question. Do you know where Merilee Lanham is?”
“Well fuck a fat leprechaun.”
“Tobi.” Kyle’s growled warning about her language had more bite than usual. Probably gonna pay big time for that one.
“Well…sort of.”
Kyle, Kent, Dex, and Ash all four glared at her, Peter was the only one who grinned. Shaking his head, he leaned over from the seat he’d taken beside her and whispered conspiratorially, “They’re gonna make you walk the plank if you don’t come clean, sweet wench.” His pirate reference might not have made much sense to the other men in the room, but it told Tobi that he knew exactly where Meri was because Cam’s club was hosting a pirate themed party tonight.
“Drat. I promised. It’s not nice to make people break their promises.” When none of them even blinked, she sighed and started talking. By the time she’d finished, Kent was already on the phone making arrangements for his parents’ private jet to take his friends to Houston. When she slid her hand into her pocket, Peter wrapped his hand around her wrist.
“Hand your phone to me, sweetness. I’m sure your Masters will see to it you get it back first thing tomorrow.” When she rolled her eyes, he narrowed his. “Be very careful, little one, I am not the pushover you think I am. At the end of the day I am still a Dom, and rolling your eyes at any Dom is never a good idea.”
His tone alone would have been enough to stop her cold, but the words had also held a hint of disappointment, and one of the things Tobi always responded to. She might not be a perfect sub, but she was definitely submissive. Pleasing others was at the core of her nature and she felt bad knowing she’d lowered his opinion of her. He used his fingers to raise her chin so she was forced to look into his brilliant green eyes. “Don’t go there, sweetie. The next time you’re getting a good thrashing out in the Woodshed, I’ll get in a couple of swats and we’ll call it even.”
“Yes, Sir.” I hope you find a sub for yourself real soon…maybe you’ll forget…but what woman will ever stand a chance if you know everything they’re thinking?
He grinned and leaned closer to whisper, “I can’t hear everyone you know. And my granny always said I’d know I’d found the right woman when I couldn’t cheat by using my gifts.” Peter pulled her to her feet before reaching down to tap the tip of her nose. When she blinked up at him, he tossed her phone onto Kyle’s desk and walked out of the room. She had almost relaxed when she turned and saw Kyle standing in front of her with his arms crossed and his legs spread apart in the stance every submissive she knew recognized as trouble.
When Kent stepped up alongside his brother and adopted a similar stance, Tobi actually started to step back until Kent spoke, “Don’t you dare.” He looked at Kyle and continued, “The dads are on their way to pick up the kids.” When Tobi started to speak, he shifted his gaze to her, “Not. One. Word. You know perfectly well why we didn’t call mom, she’d tip off Meri just as you had planned to do. Dad Dell has already secured her phone and Jax has Gracie’s, so you should just as well stop trying to figure out a way to dig yourself any deeper.” His words sounded harsh, but there was a twinkle in his eyes that told her things weren’t going to be as bad as she’d feared. Tobi let out the breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding…just before he said, “Strip.” Oh boy.
*****
Meri stood in front of the enormous windows of her parents’ Houston condo and looked out over the glistening waters of the Gulf of Mexico without really seeing anything. Ordinarily she consid
ered the view breathtaking, but today she longed to be home. Her parents had chosen the perfect location to build the home she’d grown up in. The mansion set on the edge of the river headwaters that quickly became Lake Travis. She’d grown up appreciating the fact she had the best of both worlds right out her front door. Their elderly groundskeeper had taken time to teach her how to fish along the banks of the river and her dad had introduced her to the joys of sailing on the large lake.
Melancholy swamped her, threatening to pull her under in a riptide of despair. She’d truly believed the day she’d been dismissed from the hospital was the worst day of her life, but each day since had been just as devastating. Thinking back to how it had felt to look up from the wheelchair she’d been forced to use into Dex’s and Ash’s bewildered expressions after she’d said her safe word threatened to shatter her heart yet again. The looks on their faces had been a mixture of shock and fury, but in the end they’d both stepped back and watched silently as she’d settled in the back of her father’s car. She’d cried all the way to the airport and openly sobbed during the entire flight to Houston. Heck, she’d cried so much she had worried she was going to turn into a raisin.
