by Linzi Basset
“Yes, Master Apollo. This sub had the audacity to interrupt my scene and disrespect me.”
“Look at her ass! He was whipping—”
“Did I ask you a question, sub?” Ethan drawled in a warning voice.
Her rose tinted lips snapped shut, followed by a chilling glare at him.
“Really, sub? One misdemeanor isn’t enough, you wish to add another?” Ethan asked. His voice deepened and tickled at the submissive inside her.
“But he—”
“Nadu. Now.”
Paige knew better than to disobey him, especially as his body grew taut and bigger by the minute. She sank to her knees, spread them wide and lowered her eyes to the floor.
“Master Goliath, what scene were you busy with when the sub interrupted you?”
“An erotic whipping—”
“It was anything but erotic! He—”
“Not another word out of you. Is that clear, sub?” Ethan snapped. His eyes darkened to deep pools of deep golden topaz that warned her that she was pushing his boundaries.
“Yes, Master Apollo,” Paige responded but with a bite to her voice. Her fingers itched to curl into fists but she knew that would be disrespectful.
“My apologies, Master Goliath, please continue.”
“As I was saying, we were doing an erotic whipping scene. I was reaching the pinnacle when she snatched the whip from my hand.”
Ethan walked closer to the sub tied against a Saint Andrew’s cross. She was trembling and visibly upset. He traced a bloodied streak over her buttocks.
“You are aware that this strike is not the kind we allow in here, Master Goliath,” Ethan said as the sub jerk forward to avoid his touch.
“And if the sub hadn’t snatched the whip at the exact moment I brought it forward, it wouldn’t have been. That is the result of her inconsideration. There, now, baby. Shhh,” Goliath soothed the distressed sub while he untied her from the cross. He picked her up and cuddled her against his chest. She pressed her face into his throat and relaxed as he continued to whisper soft words into her ear.
“Now you understand why I’m so angry, Master Apollo. This is a special occasion for us. This whipping was my sub’s request to celebrate signing our D/s agreement tonight.”
Ethan brushed the blonde’s hair from her face. “The sub suggested that you were in distress when she stopped the whipping. Is that true?”
“Yes! But not because my Master was hurting me. We love erotic whippings and he knows just where my trigger points are. I’m distressed because I was so aroused; I was on the verge of combusting. Which, of course I would never do without his permission. She spoiled it.”
Ethan sighed to himself. What Paige had done was inexcusable in the club—in any BDSM club for that matter. A red blush bloomed over Paige’s cheeks. She realized that she had misinterpreted the sub’s reactions. Master Goliath would demand a harsh punishment. Ethan, unfortunately, would agree with him.
“I understand. I’ll take care of her punishment personally,” Ethan said gruffly.
“When? I want to watch and make sure she takes accountability for her actions. This is a serious disciplinary issue in my view, Master Apollo. Neither my sub or I will accept anything less than a proper whipping.”
Ethan ignored Paige’s sharp intake of breath.
“I agree, Master Goliath. I’m on CM duty for another forty-five minutes. Meet us here then.”
Master Goliath nodded and walked toward the exit with his sub in his arms.
“Thank you, July,” Ethan took the collar from the coordinator. “Lift her hair out of the way, please.”
Paige didn’t dare protest and sat meekly while he fastened the leather collar around her throat. She flinched when she heard a click.
“No fucking way,” she shrieked. “Ouch!” She cried but Ethan slapped her hands hard when she tried to undo the chain he had attached to the silver loop in the center of the collar.
“July, bring me the black leather cuffs from my toy bag. And while you’re at it, a ball gag too, seeing as this sub can’t keep her mouth shut.”
July snickered as she walked away to do his bidding.
“Master Apollo—”
“You’re racking up the punishments, sub. One more word out of you and I will turn your punishment into a public one. Is that what you’d prefer?”
That was enough to stay any response from her. If there was one punishment she loathed and feared, it was a public one. Being naked and tied ass-up in a stockade at the entrance of the dungeon was degrading. Not to mention painful, because no sub would dare safeword out of a public punishment and invite every member’s scorn.
July returned with the items he’d requested. Ethan was amused to watch Paige straighten her back when he stood behind her.
“Hands, please.”
He waited patiently, aware that she was battling with the little devil on her shoulder urging her to disobey him. He was aware that her limit list stated her distaste of being tied up, but it wasn’t a hard limit. Ethan was known to push subs’ limits, to release them from any emotional shackles that may be holding them back.
He leaned closer. A subtle shudder shook her body when his breath warmed the whorl of her ear. “Don’t test my patience, sub. I may find you enticing but I won’t allow half naked tits and a cute ass to sway me from punishing you.”
“I wasn’t . . .” Paige swallowed her words, remembering his warning. “I’m sorry for talking again, Master Apollo,” she mumbled the apology.
“Hm, so am I. I’d much rather nibble on your rosy lips than watching them strain around a red rubber ball.”
With those words, he pushed the ball gag into her mouth that she opened to protest again. He chuckled at the killing glance she awarded him over her shoulder. With a few tugs and pulls, the gag was in place and her hands tied behind her back.
“Up you go,” Ethan ordered and assisted her to her feet.
Paige watched how he clipped the other end of the chain into his belt buckle.
“There. Now I don’t have to worry about you wandering or upsetting more members. I’ve got another forty minutes of CM duty and I expect you to behave. Understood?”
Paige nodded in acquiescence, but her eyes shot daggers at him.
“If you need anything; cry like a puppy and I might remove the gag to hear what you wish to say.”
“Yr ‘n aphowl,” she garbled around the gag.
Crack! Crack!
“Ouhp,” she cried and took a couple of steps back to put some distance between them. Her ass cheeks stung from the two hard slaps he’d given her in response to her sassy response.
“Do continue, sub. I might just have more fun tonight than I had anticipated.” He began walking and the chain strained between them. “Follow me, my pet and don’t let me feel you lagging behind. Remember sub, for your every action, there will be a reaction from me.”
Ethan’s eyes strayed to the enticing woman again and again while he kept circling the dungeon. She wore a jaw-dropping, studded mini dress, which he’d noticed stunned many Doms, who turned to stare as they walked past. He brushed his fingers over the material that resembled stretch leather. It molded her curves and followed every seductive line of her body. The dress was extremely short and had large keyhole cutouts in the front and along the sides. Her stomach, waist and thighs were visible. The high hemline and plunging front offered an enticing view of her pert breasts and silky skin. The silver studs along the edges of the cutouts added a kinky edge to her appearance. Black thigh-high stockings made her legs seem endless with the added studded peep-toe stilettos. She was an absolute vision of seductive perfection.
He found it difficult to connect this sultry siren with the old-fashioned, spectacle-wearing employee who wore flat shoes and dowdy pantsuits.
He’d noticed for the past five minutes that she kept shifting her weight from one leg to the other. He shook his head but led her toward a sofa facing the fishbowl window in the examination
room.
“Why you women torture yourselves with those heels is beyond me. Don’t you think flat shoes are more comfortable?” Ethan noticed the blush deepening on her cheeks but didn’t push any further. He preferred the subtle hints to keep confusing her. “If you promise to behave, I’ll remove the gag.”
Paige’s head eagerly bobbed up and down. She lowered her head and waited for him to undo the clip. Ethan’s cock stirred when he watched her flex her jaw and lick her lips once the ball was removed.
Fuck, this woman is potent!
“Keep still,” he admonished when she jerked her head back as he reached out to wipe the saliva from her mouth and jaw with his handkerchief. “It’s strange that the things subs hate most about a gag, are the things that Doms find so arousing. The thought of hot, wet lips, drooling with spittle, wrapped around our cocks, arouses us more than the act itself.”
He settled next to her on the sofa—deliberately close—so that their bodies touched from shoulders to knees. His hand landed on her thigh.
Paige’s body threatened to combust there and then. Her breath hissed through her lips.
“Ah, now I remember you, kitten,” Ethan teased. “Especially how you purred the night of the opening.” He tapped his fingers on the inside of her leg. “Lemme see if I remember. Ah, yes, the delightful Rosebud—”
“Rose. My name is Rose,” Paige asserted. She was battling to concentrate with his fingers drawing seductive circles on the inside of her thigh. Her hands curled into fists behind her back. It was uncomfortable to sit with her arms pulled back, but she’d be damned if she complained.
“But your pout reminds me of a rosebud, especially when it folds around my cock so enticingly.”
Ethan was fascinated with the color blooming on her cheeks, rivaling the rose-pink hue of her full lips. It was unfortunate for her that she couldn’t hide her attraction to him. Not that he minded. In fact, it flattered him; turning the arousal humming in his veins to a pulsing chorus of lust. He fought back a smile. He was having too much fun playing this cat-and-mouse game with his employee, who believed she had the upper hand under the disguise of a wig and heavy makeup. He intended to keep the knowledge of her true identity to himself. At least for as long as it took to make her fall in love with him.
Ethan started at the wayward thought.
Where the hell did that come from? I don’t have time for a woman in my life.
He kept staring at her until she lifted her eyes to his. They flared in response to the intense scrutiny he was subjecting her to. There was something more to her—her closeness—that triggered a memory, but not completely. He was damned sure that he’d looked into her eyes, watched them turn smoky while he’d hilted his cock inside her pussy. He just knew that her sexy purrs would turn into carnal demands for more. He raked his memory. It hadn’t been on opening night because he’d walked away before that had happened—much to his continued regret.
Where? It seems this little kitten has many lives.
“But that wasn't the only time you've come across my path, isn't that correct, kitten?” He decided to test his theory and her reaction confirmed his suspicion.
Paige’s blush seared through her cheeks. She knew her face was on fire.
“I don't know what you mean,” she hedged, reluctant to admit that she’d sought him out at Club Pearl twice before the opening of Club Devil’s Cove. Both times, it had resulted in a very satisfying scene that had ended in steamy sex. It had blown her circuits both times—and effectively spoiled her for any other man.
She never thought that he might make the connection because every time, she had been wearing a different disguise at the monthly masked balls at Club Pearl. That was why she’d felt safe in her quest when she chose him as her Dom during the club's opening. She hadn’t been back in the three months since the opening of Devil’s Cove but couldn’t stay away any longer. She’d been to Club Pearl a few times though but hadn’t been able to connect with any of the Doms there. Ethan Brodie—Master Apollo—was the only one who did it for her.
She gulped when another thought popped into her mind.
Oh, shit! What if he recognized me as Paige? Great, Paige. Way to go to fuck up your career. She shook off the thought immediately. Her appearance on club nights was quite the opposite of what he was used to at the clinic. There was no way he could make that connection.
“First you disregard club rules by disrespecting a Dom and now you lie to me. I’m afraid it doesn’t bode well for you, Rosebud.”
“Rose! I told you, my name is Rose,” she exclaimed. Her sassy nature surged to the surface. If it meant keeping her identity from him, she would admit to their previous alliance at Club Pearl.
“You wish to challenge me, kitten?”
Paige fought the desire to move away from him when she noticed the amused glimmer in his eyes that was contradictory to his icy voice. It was a trait that had drawn her to him. His sense of humor, combined with his compelling nature made him irresistible; which was why he was so popular with all the women.
His quiet strength spoke of a man who protected his loved ones no matter what. She’d seen him with patients who were suffering emotionally. It was comforting to be the sole focus when his eyes rested on you. A silent assurance that he'll be there to offer you support.
She’d become addicted to him, his strength and the power he exuded as a Dominant. All without him knowing who she really was.
“My apologies, Master Apollo. I only meant to remind—”
Ethan pushed his face closer to hers, his expression stern. Their breaths mingled as he warned, “No, it’s not up to you to remind me of anything, Rosebud. Until your punishment is over, you are my sub, under my control. You, my lovely kitten, will do no more than purr—or beg, for that matter.”
Paige was struggling against the impulse to breach the small distance that separated their lips and kiss him. The thought of belonging to him hit her square in the stomach, unfurling a secret fascination she’d developed for him. The desire to feel his hard lips take possession of hers, bubbled inside her like a hot spring.
She licked her suddenly dry lips. “Beg for what?”
“I’ll tell you, Rose—after the punishment.”
Ethan ignored her gasp that followed his fingers finding their way between her legs, to steal under the satin thong she was wearing.
“Now, now, you should know better than that, kitten,” he warned while slowly pushing his finger inside her pussy. “Open your legs, Rose.” His eyes caught hers in an enigmatic stare. “Wider, I want free access to what now belongs to me.”
Ethan couldn’t have said anything that would’ve made her legs part faster. He smiled at her with satisfaction. “That’s more like it, my pet. Now, you remember my rule?”
“Yessss,” she hissed when he found the swollen ganglia inside her vagina and gently tapped his finger against it. Paige hated climax control, especially at times like these when she craved his touch. Trying to contain the sensations running free and wild through her body wasn’t only torture, in her opinion, it was a sacrilege.
“I was told there was a problem, Master Apollo.” Rhone’s lazy drawl drew their eyes up to find him and Samantha perusing them curiously. “Is it something I should be concerned about?”
“No, Rose,” Ethan warned when she instinctively clamped her knees together. His eyes glowed in warning. She moaned in embarrassment but spread her legs.
Ethan smiled. “No, I believe I have it under control, Master Razor.”
“You know we take club rules very seriously, Master Apollo. It wouldn’t do to set the wrong precedent. No misconduct should go unpunished; especially if it involves other members.”
“And I fully agree, Master Razor,” Ethan conceded. He’d noticed the spark in Rhone’s eyes and knew that he didn’t miss Paige straightening her back.
“Do we need to call on Mistress Pam to explain the repercussions, sub? Disrupting a couple’s scene can lead to the offender’s m
embership being cancelled.”
Ethan was aware of Paige growing tenser with every word Rhone said. Her dismay was obvious in the taut lines of her jaw and lowered eyes.
“Well, that would depend on whether the sub acknowledges the mistake she made and accepts responsibility for her actions,” Ethan drawled.
“I do,” Paige said immediately. She looked at him beseechingly, all signs of her previous animosity gone.
Ethan had bargained on Paige’s desire to remain a member of the club, which was why he’d been goading her deliberately.
“And the punishment that befits her misconduct,” Ethan continued.
“I do,” she said again. This time, her shoulders slumped. Her face pinched in resignation. She only hoped that Ethan knew that whips were a hard limit for her. She might withstand a flogging but not if the Dom demanded more than twenty strikes. She shivered as a memory from the past scratched at the dark hollows of her mind to escape.
Not now, Paige. Get a grip. You can’t afford to fall apart. Not if you want to stay at the club.
Chapter Four
Meanwhile in Riyadh . . .
Steven Brown hesitated in the doorway outside Khalid’s study. Khalid’s voice boomed through the room. The anger in his tone was unmistakable. The prince noticed him and pointed to the chair in front of the huge desk. It was a massive room. Every piece of furniture in there was oversized. Most probably to compensate for the prince’s gut that seemed to get bigger every time Steven saw him.
Steven fiddled with his belt buckle, unobtrusively activating the link to start recording. Khalid didn’t trust anyone, but he mistakenly believed that Steven didn’t understand Arabic. It was one of the reasons Steven been chosen for the op—his fluency in the language.
Steven peered through the window, pretending to be uninterested in the conversation that was taking place over speakerphone. During his initial search of the palace, he’d found that the study was soundproof, and with the suspicions of Khalid’s criminal activities, Steven understood why.
