by Jane Henry
And before he could tap it down, the image of Celia, jean-clad and face down on his lap, came into his mind. The paddle in his hand, her squirming, and the soft yelps she made as he spanked her. He felt himself growing hard again at the mere thought. What had he been thinking?
He needed a spanking session. She needed a spanking.
And she’d been fine the rest of the evening. But really, was she? He couldn’t get the image out of his mind, and the more he thought of it, the memory played out. But this time, they were alone. And this time, he bared her...
His phone rang. He sheepishly answered it. “Pizza Hut,” he muttered.
“I’ll take one large dominant pizza, one half sweet, the other half stern, well done and delivered immediately. Hold the sauce. I have plenty.”
“Like I take orders?”
She sighed. “Shame. What’s up? I’m sleepy, dude, so keep it quick.”
He frowned. If she were his, he’d so put an end to the way she talked to him. “Please,” “thank you,” “yes, sir,” and “no, sir,” would become part of her vocabulary or she would spend the rest of her life standing up.
“Got a call from Rodney,” he said. “CTB wants us to do demos.” He filled her in.
“I know Ranger,” she said. “He’s the one that schedules these things. He’s got an idiotic sidekick he hired, Remy, a switch who’s in it for the kink. I swear the guy’s not playing with a full deck. I don’t trust him as far as I can throw him, but Ranger’s cool.”
He didn’t like the idea of mingling with an idiotic sidekick, but he could handle it if their main guy was straight up. “All right. Okay, then. We can do this.”
“We so can! We have plenty of ideas and that pay’s good.”
“Hell yeah.”
“So,” she said, clearing her throat. “You doing any more spanking demos?” she asked, in a voice that even over the phone sounded tense.
“With CTB at our disposal? Of course.” He chuckled. “You offering to take a role again?”
To his surprise there was silence on the other end of the line for a moment.
He frowned. “Cel, you there?”
“Yeah, I’m here,” she said, and her voice was strangely thick. She laughed. “I think that spanking you gave me earlier will last a good long while. I’m sleeping on my belly tonight. And anyway, you’ll have plenty of people offer that will serve you better than I will.”
Damn it. Something had changed, and he didn’t know what the hell to do about it. His voice softened. “Maybe I will,” he said. “But let’s talk about this later. You’re tired, and you need sleep now. Thanks for playing tonight. You were awesome. But be good, babe, and go to bed now, okay?”
“I will,” she whispered. “See you tomorrow.” The phone clicked. He stared at it for a minute, before he shook his head.
She was getting weird on him. He didn’t want her to go weird on him. The one constant in his life was Celia, her wiseass mouth and dependability. She was one of his very best friends in the world. He didn’t want to fuck that up, not now, not ever. Had he made a mistake earlier? He frowned.
He wouldn’t make that mistake again.
* * *
“Holy shit,” Rodney muttered under his breath. “I had no idea we’d be looking at standing room only. You ready for this?”
“We’ve got this,” Maverick muttered. He glanced at the door, and still, no Celia. It had been two weeks since he’d taken her over his knee in Rodney’s basement, and he’d successfully avoided any personal contact with her during that time. He knew it was in her best interest. He couldn’t get too heavily invested and screw up what they had. She was better off this way.
Still, what the hell? He, Rodney, and Louanne had met an hour earlier, setting up for the night’s demonstration. They’d made a sort of template for the class: lecture in the beginning, review of the basics, followed by a demonstration. Tonight, he was going to go over the basics he’d covered in the intro videos online. He would’ve felt nervous, but his sole concentration was on Celia and why the hell she wasn’t there. He picked up his phone and sent a quick text.
Where are you?
Nothing.
He scoped the room. There were easily thirty different people here, some men, a few women, and a few he couldn’t quite identify. Some wore masks, some hung in groups, some sat and watched with folded arms. He wondered if they were really here to learn, or had they just come for a cheap thrill? Time would tell.
“You guys hear from Cel?” he asked Rodney and Louanne.
Louanne nodded, but strangely, didn’t make eye contact. “Yeah, I talked to her around lunchtime, and she said she’d be here. I thought she’d be here early, because she had some of the supplies we’re supposed to be using tonight.” Louanne shifted nervously, and quickly got up to go adjust some chairs.
Maverick glanced at the clock again. They were supposed to start in ten minutes. Louanne already had the filming gear set up at the back of the room, and the escort to the club stood by the door with his arms folded, gesturing for people to enter one of Chains That Bind conference rooms where they’d set up.
He picked up his phone and dialed.
“Yeah?” Celia answered on the second ring.
“Where the hell are you?” he said between gritted teeth. Jesus, the girl was getting on his nerves these days.
“Easy, big boy. On my way in now.”
“You’re not driving, are you? On your phone?”
“And if I were, what the hell would you do about it?” she said, her voice taking on a surprisingly sharp tone.
What the hell? Seriously?
He felt his anger mounting. He growled into the phone, but before he could speak, she continued. “I’m coming in now. Bye.”
And he saw her. Gorgeous red hair, piled high on her head. A tight-fitting tee shirt that said Bite me across her chest, jeans that hugged her narrow hips, and knee-high black boots with a heel that made her two inches taller. She had a silver shrug on, and a matching bag. She looked casual, and hot as hell. Fuck.
She wasn’t alone.
Behind her, with his hand on her fucking lower back walked a man a good deal taller than she was. He was built, Maverick could tell, thin tee shirt stretched across his chest, bulging muscles and an armband tattoo that circled his left bicep. He had a shaved head, and was clean-shaven. God, but she knew how to pick ‘em. He gestured for her to sit down but she shook her head and walked over to where the rest of them stood. The man put a protective hand on Celia’s arm, as they walked over.
“Hi, guys,” Celia said, effectively ignoring Maverick’s glare. “This is Shane. We met here a week or so ago.” Rodney shook hands and Louanne greeted him. Maverick glared.
Celia shot him a look that plainly said, Really? as she rolled her eyes.
“You guys need me to shoot tonight?” she asked.
“Would you mind staying with me?” Louanne responded. “I’ve got a pretty good idea what I’m doing, but I’m not sure.”
“Sure,” she said. “You mind, honey?” she asked Shane. He shook his head, and followed her to where Louanne led them.
Honey?
Fuck. He had to get his shit together. Their class was about to begin.
Rodney stood in front of the room.
“Evening, ladies and gentleman,” he began. “And welcome to our first... shall we say... session.” An appreciative murmur went up from the audience and Maverick snickered. He was grateful Rodney was ready to begin, as he couldn’t handle it right now.
“First, before we get to our demo, we’re going to go over the basics we’ve already covered in other classes.” As Rodney began, Maverick’s mind wandered. He glanced over at Celia. Shane whispered in her ear, and she was biting her lip. Shit. Why did it never bother him before when she was with another guy? She was always with a guy. She was gorgeous, and guys practically fell all over her. Why did it bother him now?
Rodney talked about rules, and safewords, and building
trust in the relationship. He talked about expectations, and punishment. Maverick was vaguely aware of the questions that came up as Rodney answered them, repeatedly trying to give Maverick a silent signal to jump in and help him out, but Rodney was handling things fine, and Maverick was grateful to take a back seat.
A tall, gangly guy with thick glasses raised his hand. Rodney nodded to him.
“How soon in the relationship should you spank?” he asked.
Rodney sighed patiently. “Dominance and submission isn’t all about the spanking,” he said. “And there is no right or wrong time to begin, if spanking is something you’ll be doing in your relationship. Some establish a relationship online first, or elsewhere, but basic trust has to be established.”
“Why would we be here if we weren’t looking to spank some tail?” someone asked. He was a shorter guy, sitting back in his chair, arms crossed over a hefty gut, balding in front.
Rodney looked to Maverick.
Maverick stalked to the front of the room. “Yeah, we know most of you guys are here because you want to hook up with a submissive. Hot, isn’t it? Having a girl do anything you damn well ask her to?” Cackles were heard, as the audience perked up. “Sounds easy, doesn’t it?” he said. “She’ll suck your cock and you can take her to bed, and all you have to do is turn her over your knee if she gives you lip, right?” Hoots and hollers, and Maverick was acutely aware of Celia’s eyes boring into him. He spun around to face the room.
“Well, I’ve got news for you,” he said. “It doesn’t work that way.” Silence descended.
“Before you can even think about taking a girl over your knee, you better be damn sure you’ve got your head screwed on right.” His eyes went straight to Shane, who met his glare squarely. “Spanking a girl brings about all sorts of feelings you need to be prepared for. It puts her in a position of vulnerability and you in a position of authority, and neither of those should ever be taken lightly.”
Shane looked at him unflinchingly.
A soft murmur went up, as several people nodded.
“Domming isn’t for pussies,” Maverick growled. “It’s tough shit. You’ve gotta be willing to lead. You’ve gotta be willing to listen. If she’s giving you her submission? You treasure that. It’s not something that comes on a silver platter. Her trust in you needs to be fucking earned.”
Shane narrowed his eyes but Maverick didn’t look away. “And yeah, I know some of you are looking to spank some tail. Some of you are looking to get laid. And you get the right girl, and you’ll get all that and more. But unless you’re willing to lay yourself on the line for her, that won’t last. A quick lay and a sexy spanking can be had anywhere. Cheap thrills are just that – cheap. You want the real deal? You man the fuck up and do what it takes.”
Rodney was tugging on his arm. The tone in the room had shifted, and Maverick knew Rodney was ready to move on.
“All right, then,” he said. Who’s ready for the demo?” Hoots and hollers went up around them and Rodney nodded to Louanne. Maverick strategically ignored both Celia and Shane as he went to the back of the room again. His phone buzzed.
He looked at the screen. Marianna?
Come home. Mom is acting weird. I’m scared.
A chill went over him.
* * *
Celia could feel Maverick’s tension from where she sat.
What had just happened?
His eyes on his phone, she looked up at him and saw the flash of concern pass through his eyes. As Rodney arranged his items up front for his demonstration, and a people chatted as he prepared, Celia caught his attention.
“What’s going on?” she asked in a low voice. She felt Shane’s eyes boring into her from behind, but she ignored him. He was hot, and shit, that guy could deliver a spanking, but it all seemed like play-acting to her. Nothing in her really wanted to obey him, and she knew he was in it for the kink, too. Still, he didn’t like to share.
When Maverick looked at her, he didn’t have any more of that red-hot anger she’d detected earlier. It pleased her to see that anger, to know she had the ability to cause that kind of stirring within him, even if he was going to freaking ignore her for two solid weeks, the asshole.
“Marianna,” he said in a low whisper. “She’s freaking out. Said Mom’s acting weird.”
Celia felt the hair on her arm stand on end. This was not good.
Not. Good.
She wasn’t used to seeing Maverick’s eyes looked panicked, and in that moment, she knew, even though he’d been a jerk, even though he might never love her the way she wanted him to, no matter what, she’d do anything to ease that look in his eyes.
“Let’s go,” she whispered.
Two words that said everything.
He blinked. His eyes warmed, a look that spoke back to her.
Thank you.
He looked to Shane.
Shit. Shane.
She turned back to him. His eyes were narrowed, and his jaw was set. He was no fool. It was why she’d been attracted to him to begin with. Shane jerked his head to the doorway, and Celia and Maverick nodded. Maverick went up to Rodney, said a few things, and Rodney shooed him out.
When Shane, Maverick, and Celia joined each other in the hallway, Celia grabbed the phone from Maverick. “What’s going on with her?” she said. “Is your mom okay?”
Maverick shook his head. “Don’t know. I tried calling and she didn’t answer.”
“Shit.”
His eyes narrowed, but he said nothing. Yeah, he hated it when she swore but whatever. He couldn’t do anything about it, and she had no motivation to keep her tongue in check.
“Go with him, Celia,” Shane said. His hands stuffed in his pockets, he was leaning up against the wall. “I get it. I’m not a dumbass.”
Celia’s stomach twisted. Damn it. She liked Shane. He was a good guy.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “His sister is disabled, and she likes me. She listens to me. If I go with him, I can come later and—”
Shane shook his head. “I said go,” he said. “And I don’t mean for the night.”
Celia looked from him to Maverick, but Maverick was already taking out his keys, oblivious to what was going on between Shane and Celia.
“You ready?” Maverick asked her.
Looking back at Shane, she silently begged him to understand. To her immense relief, she saw that he already did. He crooked a finger at her, and she took a step closer.
“I get it,” Shane whispered in her ear. “You’ve been with me for two weeks now, and it’s been good. Real good, babe. But you’re not mine and you never will be. You won’t ever be anyone else’s.” His eyes went to Maverick. “Go. I’m not mad. But we’re done. Got it?”
Celia swallowed, the impact of what he was saying screwing her up, making her want to laugh and cry and scream all at once. “Yeah,” she whispered in a shaky voice. “Thanks, Shane.”
He nodded, and kissed her cheek. “Be good. Bye.”
The bye was more than for the night, and she knew it. Shoving all her feelings and emotions down, she turned and raced down the hall to catch up with Maverick.
* * *
They drove to his house in silence. She had so much going through her mind, she didn’t even know where to begin. How could she? Where were they? And what did they need to talk about now, anyway, when something could be going horribly wrong back at the house? He drove so fast, she feared they’d be pulled over.
“Jesus, Maverick, you’re gonna get a ticket,” she chided. He ignored her. Hell, she could swear he even accelerated. She tried a different tactic.
“You’d be okay with me driving this fast?” she said. Growling, he slowed down.
He pulled in front of his house, screeched the car to a halt, and she was following behind him in seconds, the echo of the car doors slamming still reaching her as he yanked the front door open. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Marianna sitting on the couch with Maverick’s mom. His mom looked at them,
as if her eyes were unfocused and unseeing. She was confused, and didn’t seem to recognize either one of them.
“I can’t... seem to. I don’t know where I am,” she whispered.
“Maverick,” Marianna said, her voice trembling. “Help her! What’s the matter with her?”
His mom stood, and as she did, her legs trembled and she pitched forward. Maverick grabbed her just in time, carrying her in his strong arms as he settled her back down to the couch.
“My head hurts,” she said. “I can’t see out of one eye. It’s all blurry. Where are we?”
Maverick’s eyes met Celia’s. “Call 911,” he said, but she was already dialing.
* * *
They decided in the brief interval between the ambulance arriving and the phone call that it would be best for Celia to stay with Marianna. The paramedics arrived in record time, and as Maverick explained the symptoms, the young EMT nodded his head. “Let’s get her in,” he said. “Sounds like she’s suffered a stroke.”
By then, Celia had Marianna in the kitchen, and was heating up leftovers in the microwave. “You like sauce on your pasta, honey?” Celia asked. Marianna nodded, staying right where she was, planted in the seat she always used, the one near the window. She could look into the living room from where she sat.
“Where are they going?” she asked softly.
“They’re here to help your mom,” Celia said. She knew Marianna was subject to panic attacks, and that it was important to distract her. “Cheese, honey?”
“Yes,” Marianna said, biting her lower lip. “I want sauce and cheese.”
“Say please,” Celia reminded. Maverick was constantly reminding Marianna to remember her manners, and Celia knew it would help if she kept to the normal routines.
“Please,” Marianna said.
“Good job,” Celia praised, as she settled the bowl of food in front of Marianna. The paramedics had already taken Maverick’s mom out the door, and Maverick ran back to the kitchen.
