I grin. “I thought that was Jaden?”
This breaks the ice between us, making her laugh. “Naw, he’s just our resident clown. Nice to meet you, Maya. Sorry I wasn’t around earlier.”
The girl’s softening to me already. I take this as a good sign. Then I ask her about some of the current teenage trends, seeing what she’s in to. Good thing I did some research via Google before I came here. At twenty-two, you wouldn’t think I’d be so out of the loop on what teenagers like. But working my butt off in college and helping my brother and sister-in-law have made me fall behind what’s hot in the mainstream. I’ve only got so many brain cells to stretch so far, after all.
After we leave, Sawyer gives me a pleased grin. “That went relatively well, I’d say.”
“Definitely.”
“Now, let’s go get your things in from your car, and I’ll show you to your new room.”
I wonder, as we walk down to my beat up Corolla, where Isaiah is. But I don’t ask. I figure a good employee minds her business. Instead I chat amicably with Sawyer as we grab my few bags. He’s definitely the socially engaging one of the two men, and I find it easy to be comfortable around him. In a matter of hours it feels like I’ve known him my whole life.
I almost gasp when he shows me my room. It’s a lavish affair, with a four poster canopy bed draped in crème sheers and piled high with satin pillows and an embroidered quilt I’m afraid to touch. A mahogany vanity with an oval mirror sits near one window, complete with a chair that looks antique and has an embroidered seat. My dresser and armoire match it perfectly, and the walk in closet he shows me is almost as big as Xander and Patty’s living room.
“So you think you’ll be happy in here, Maya?” Sawyer asks.
“Deliriously.” I beam.
***
“Okay, Shanae, what was the first rebellion led by Louis Riel called?”
The girl plays with her bottom lip as she screws up her face and thinks. Jaden twitches in his seat, obviously anxious to provide the answer for her. But he keeps quiet and lets his sister answer. Over the last few days spent teaching and spending time with the children, I find they have impeccable manners. They are a credit to Isaiah and Sawyer’s parenting skills.
Her face brightens and she says, “The Red River Rebellion.”
“Very good.” I give her a wide smile. “And between what years did it occur?”
This time, Jaden can’t help himself. “Between 1869 and 1870.”
Shanae scowls at him. “Hey, Maya asked me. Not you!”
He just shrugs and gives her a cheeky smirk.
“That’s right, Jaden. Wait your turn, please.”
He sulks a bit and murmurs, “Sorry.”
“Okay, class is done for today. Let’s go have some fun.”
The children jump out of their chairs and yell, “Yay!” in unison.
Thomasina, Marta’s black and white long haired cat, strolls in the room. Marta’s been dying to show me the cat up close since yesterday, but the wily and skittish feline has eluded the child’s grasp. She gives a little gasp of glee and runs to me, grabbing my hand.
“Look, Maya! There’s Thomasina. Come see her, please?”
She doesn’t wait for my reply. Instead, she tugs me toward the golden eyed cat, who gives us both a cautious appraisal before twining through the legs of a chair in the room.
“She’s a lovely cat,” I say as we bend down to stroke her. “What made you call her Thomasina?”
“Daddy Isaiah bought me this movie about a very special cat with that name. I loved it, so I wanted to call her that. Cause she’s a special cat, too.”
I scratch between the cat’s ears and it begins to purr loudly. Wistfully, I smile to myself, because I remember the old Disney movie Marta refers to.
Jaden runs past us, pretending to be an airplane, and this startles the calmed feline. Her golden eyes grow wide and she scampers out of the room.
“Thomasina, come back here!” Marta calls after her, then she follows her beloved pet.
I follow after her. The cat takes us on a lively run down the hall, down the main staircase, and then she veers to the left, skittering on the tiles as she runs out of the large foyer and heads for the east wing of the mansion.
I briefly lose sight of the cat and Marta, but as I round the corner and come to another set of narrow stairs, I find Marta staring down and wringing her small hands. Thomasina is at the base of the stairs and her glowing eyes peer up at us.
I put a hand on Marta’s shoulder. “What’s wrong, sweetie? Are those stairs a bit scary? I’ll go down and get her for you.”
Marta’s eyes grow wide and she stops me by tugging on my hand. “No, you can’t go down there. Daddy Isaiah and Daddy Sawyer won’t let us. That’s their special secret place.”
I tilt my head to the side as my curiosity grows. What could Isaiah and Sawyer have down there that would be so off limits to the children? Is it a secret stash of porn, I wonder, and naughty thoughts invade my head that are entirely inappropriate for me to be thinking when I’m still in nanny mode.
“You’ve never been down there?”
Marts shakes her head furiously. “Oh no. Our daddies would ground us forever if we went down there.”
“Well, your daddies didn’t say I couldn’t go down there. I’ll go get Thomasina for you.”
Her little eyes grow even wider with fear. “Be careful. If Daddy Isaiah catches you, he might ground you too.”
The concern wrinkling her innocent face is too cute, but I admit I’m borderline worried as well as intrigued about what waits at the base of this winding staircase.
I make it to the first landing where Thomasina waits, and as I bend to pick up the cat she bounces off around the corner and down to a black door that appears to be metal and has antique hinges. There’s a panel at the top of the door and a slice of light spills out of this.
Marta waits at the top, and I peek around the landing to find she still looks fearful. It’s as if she wants to be as far from this landing as possible. Renewed concern flurries in my lower belly.
“You go on upstairs,” I tell her, giving the girl permission to leave, which I sense she wants. “I’ll bring Thomasina to your room once I catch her.”
“Okay, but be careful when you pick her up. She doesn’t like her belly squished.”
“I’ll be careful, sweetie. I promise.”
And then Marta disappears out of my line of sight, so I continue on my quest to catch the wily feline.
Nearer to the door, I catch voices drifting through the small panel in the metal. Isaiah and Sawyer are inside, but I can’t make out exact words just yet.
“Do you think Surrender is snubbing us?” Isaiah’s words are punctuated by pacing footsteps.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Sawyer tells him. “If Surrender Inc. wants you out, they kick you out. They don’t passive aggressively snub you. You’re being paranoid again, sweetie.”
“It just doesn’t make sense.” Isaiah’s deep baritone rumbles through the small bars across the panel in the door. “Why wouldn’t she want to work with us?”
As I touch the door, Sawyer’s frustrated sigh drifts through. “They didn’t say she didn’t want to work with us. She’s retiring from Surrender altogether. She and Dom Xavier are eloping.”
As I dare a peek inside the room, Isaiah huffs. “Well why did she agree to the interview then?”
“She was keeping up a ruse,” Sawyer tells him. “She and Xavier didn’t want anyone to know. Dmitri only found out after he had a PI track them down.”
“Silly dramatics if you ask me,” Isaiah growls.
And when I focus on what the two are doing inside this forbidden room, I let out a loud gasp. Isaiah is clad in tight leather pants, his brown, hairless chest bare and rippling with muscle. He stalks back and forth in front of Sawyer, who is bound to a cross in some quasi-crucifixion pose. He’s naked, and some strange apparatus is twined around his cock, which juts up in a
rock hard erection.
My gasp gives me away, and both men look toward the hole in the door. Isaiah glowers.
“Maya? What’re you doing down here?”
Thomasina lets out a meow and bolts back up the stairs, abandoning me as Isaiah stomps toward the door. My gut flip flops between anxiety and pure fear. My legs grow weak and I edge backward toward the stairs.
“Stay right there,” he demands, and I stop, though my brain screams RUN!
“Isaiah, leave her alone,” Sawyer calls after him. “It’s our fault. We should’ve warned her about coming down here.”
Isaiah doesn’t listen. He opens the door and stalks closer, stopping in front of me so I’m pinned against the wall. His male heat hits me in a powerful wave and I struggle to keep my breathing regular.
“How much did you hear, hmmm?” He props one arm on the wall and leans over me. A mixture of sweat and spicy cologne tease my nostrils, making warmth spread out from my belly and move lower.
“I… Not much.” I look into his crystalline eyes and feel I’m being swallowed. “Thomasina ran down here. I was just getting her for Marta.”
He twines a brunette strand that’s fallen from my high ponytail between his fingers. His touch skims over my shoulder when he does so, and I stifle a gasp as shockwaves of chemistry pass between us.
“Do you know what we’re doing in there?” He nods back to where a bound Sawyer watches us.
“Leave the poor girl alone,” Sawyer shouts. “Do you want her to quit?”
Isaiah just laughs him off. The chuckle rumbles up from deep in his chest and vibrates through me. My mouth has gone dry and a frustrating tingle spreads through my sex, conflicting me. Part of me wants to flee for safety and the other part of me desperately wants this powerhouse of a man to kiss me.
“You were …ummm…” I glance back at Sawyer and blush. His cock is still rock hard and clearly visible. “You were playing an erotic game?”
This earns me a sideways smile from my captor. “BDSM. We’re a part of the subculture. Ever heard of it?”
“Ummm…” I try to formulate words, but my tongue and brain fail me. What do I know about BDSM? Very little. I’ve researched it a bit on the internet, thanks to my fascination with alternative lifestyles and what some deem social taboos, but my knowledge is limited. “I know there are whips and spankings and leather involved.”
Isaiah smirks at me, and I’m glad he at least didn’t laugh this time. He runs a big finger down my cheek and I shiver when he says, “I—we—would love to teach you more.”
“Isaiah, quit trying to ravish our nanny and get your ass in here!” Sawyer bellows.
Isaiah turns to his bound lover and arches an eyebrow. “For a submissive, you’re being awfully mouthy.”
“Someone has to keep you in line,” Sawyer shoots back. “Now get in here.”
“That earned you ten more lashes,” Isaiah tells him, then before he leaves me he leans forward and brushes his lips ever so gently over mine. Heat floods my face and races through my body, making the tingling between my legs turn into a fire.
He saunters away and I finally find the courage to scurry off, fleeing up the stairs. The last thing I hear is Sawyer saying, “Great, she’s probably going to resign tomorrow.”
I flee from the house, jump into my beat up car, and shove my key in the ignition with trembling hands. When I arrive at the gate, I fumble with the keycard Sawyer gave me to get in and out easily. At last it slides open and I’m free and driving far from the estate. My destination is my brother’s home.
Conflicting thoughts assault my mind as I shove the peddle to the floor. Should I quit this job? It’s lucrative, and my family really needs the money. It gives me freedom for school, and there’s no way I’ll find as prime a position on such short notice anywhere else. Could I sue Mr. Uber-rich for sexual harassment? It’s his word against mine, even if Sawyer is a witness. Not to mention, I actually enjoyed being in Isaiah’s sexual thrall. So what do I do? Simply turn around, go back, and act like nothing ever happened?
I decide I at least need some distance and time to think. Talking to Xander has always cleared my head and helps me problem solve.
***
I find Xander in Josh’s room, putting him down for the night.
“Hey, little sis. How’s your first week at the new job been?”
I give him a thin smile then try to change the subject. “Where’s Patty?”
“She’s in bed. She was up all night with munchkin here.” He kisses Josh’s forehead before he puts him down for a second time. “Nightmares, and she didn’t want to wake me up. So I told her I’m taking the night shift tonight. No arguments.”
As he moves to the side of the cradle, I notice how stiff his legs are. There’s a telltale wince of pain he can’t hide from me.
“How’re you feeling?” I broach the subject cautiously. My brother is a very proud guy and he hates when I make a fuss over him. But I’m overprotective, so I can’t just let it go. “The pain’s bad tonight, isn’t it?”
He waves me off. “Doctor’s got me on something now that’s helping with the attacks. I’ll be fine.”
Josh pops up in his cradle again, spits out his pacifier, and starts to scream “DADADA” at the top of his lungs. My brother’s face sags with weariness but he goes back to his boy.
“Let me take this,” I tell him, walking toward the cradle.
“Don’t you have to get back to work?”
“Night off,” I lie, as I smooth hair out of Josh’s face, pop his pacifier back in, and grab him from the cradle, along with his favorite teddy from the nightstand. “Go to bed and cuddle your wife.”
“Thanks, sis. I owe you big time.” My brother gives a weak smile. The crow’s feet around his eyes look deeper than last time I saw him.
“You don’t owe me anything.” I sit with the toddler in a rocking chair they’ve put in the nursery. My brother leaves as I grab a book from the small bookcase and start to read to Josh.
As my nephew’s breathing deepens and he finally gives into sleep, I make my decision. Seeing Xander again already convinced me. I have to keep this job. After I place Josh in his cradle, I head out and drive back to the mansion. Hopefully Isaiah and Sawyer haven’t decided to fire me for spying on them and then running off.
***
When I return to the mansion, I spot light spilling into the foyer from the hall leading to where I had my job interview. I take off my shoes and pad across the tile towards this area.
Voices drift out of the open office door, so I stop just inside the hallway entrance. I press my back tight against the plaster as I listen to Isaiah and Sawyer argue.
“You’re not firing her, Isaiah. She’s only been here a week, but the kids love her. What did you expect the woman to do? You terrified her.”
Isaiah’s voice is unusually calm when he replies, “No, not fire her. You’re right. But what about a different proposition.”
“Proposition?”
I inch closer so I can hear clearly.
“If Surrender can’t find us a submissive, why don’t we ask Maya if she’d like the job?”
“We can’t do that!” Sawyer says. “She barely knows anything about our world. Not to mention, she’s already our nanny. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
Isaiah isn’t giving up yet. “She told us she needed this job because her brother is sick. Right?”
“Yes. He’s got MS.”
“And he has a toddler with a baby on the way,” Isaiah adds. “We both know how expensive medical bills and kids are. If Maya were to become our submissive, we could offer to pay all his medical expenses plus double her salary.”
I almost choke at the prospect of so much money. But what exactly is a submissive? What would they want me to do, and would it effect school in any way?
“She has no idea what’s in store for her within that world,” Sawyer protests. “You heard her. All she knows about BDSM is that it entails leath
er, spankings, and whips. We could traumatize the woman.”
“Or we could free her. Think about that, Sawyer.” There is a long pause in which I hold my breath. Then Isaiah continues. “If Surrender can’t find us a suitable submissive, why shouldn’t we contract one ourselves? Dmitri did it with Charlotte, and she was completely new to our world also.”
“Good point. Well … let me talk to her tomorrow when we take the kids to the park. I’ll feel her out a bit.”
“Not without me you won’t. You know I’m the jealous type.”
Sawyer chuckles. “Shut up, smartass.”
Shadows obscure the light spilling out of the office. The men’s voices grow louder as they approach the entrance. I scamper off in stocking feet, trying to be as quiet as possible, lest I get caught by the imposing Isaiah once again.
As I tiptoe away, I think about their conversation. I’m naïve when it comes to BDSM, sure, but I still got the gist of their conversation. And if they’re proposing what I think they’re proposing… I’m almost too terrified and thrilled to think about it, but double my salary and Xander’s medical bills paid would make just about any proposition a tempting offer.
A few minutes later, footsteps thud up the stairs, so I creep out of my room and make an appearance.
Sawyer smiles wide when he sees me. “I’m glad you decided to return. Isaiah will be too. We’re sorry about earlier. Isaiah, he—”
“No need to apologize.” I wave him off. “I was snooping where I shouldn’t have been.”
“Isaiah shouldn’t have cornered you like that.” He moves closer and the light cast on his face shows his concern and compassion. “He’s a tiger, and when he gets his teeth in something…”
“No worries.” I smile to further reassure him. “It’s forgotten.”
He nods. “We’ll talk more tomorrow Again, good to see you back.”
With that, he strolls off down the hall, leaving me wondering what kind of proposition we might talk over tomorrow.
***
Sawyer and I take the kids to Rowan Park for lunch and socialization time. He and I sit on a small bench and watch as Jaden and Marta run toward the play area that includes a covered loop-de-loop slide and swings. Jaden makes for the older kids near the sandbox, while Marta heads toward a cluster of little girls and boys close to the swings.
Surrender Boxed Set (Surrender Series Volume 1 - 7. BDSM romance with man love, bad boys, and billionaires.) Page 40
