Masters of the Castle: Witness Protection Program

by Maren Smith

  “Luke,” she moaned on a long sigh when he brought her back to earth with slower strokes. Her eyes flew open as she realized her error in not addressing him properly, but he was battling too many other frustrations at the moment to reprimand her.

  “Let’s get you off of there.” Luke fretted over moving too fast, going too far in his determination to get Carlie to leave, and he hadn’t wanted to traumatize her or make her hate him. He’d been walking a fine line between keeping his promise to Evan and driving a permanent wedge between them this afternoon. If she insisted on staying the whole weekend, he knew he would cave, betraying his friend. As he helped her stand, she fell against him with a sigh. With the press of that soft, round body against his hard frame, he wondered which betrayal would be worse, not giving in and fucking her or not keeping his promise.

  Carlie sighed when she came into contact with the solid, comforting wall of Luke’s tall, muscled body. With her mind whirling in a chaotic state of stupefied, muddled bliss and her body still humming with sensory overload, she needed his embrace more than ever. She didn’t know what surprised her most over the next few minutes; the careful way he helped her slip the teddy and thong back on, or when he swung her up in his arms, carried her over to a small bench and held her close on his lap as he took a seat. With her cheek pressed to his chest, she couldn’t tell whose heart beat faster, his or hers, and it gave her hope he wasn’t as unaffected by her as his face portrayed.

  She’d never attained such a heightened degree of pleasure before, pleasure so intense it still ran amok throughout her body, leaving her to shudder against him while he caressed her arm with up and down glides of his fingertips. Carlie’s fantasies of being spanked always hinted at finding pleasure in the humiliating sting, but she’d never imagined she would get off on harsher pain. As he’d worked her body with relentless torment, bringing alive each raw nerve with acute sensation, the greedy hunger of her need had shocked her. Was it due to the bombardment of new sensations or because the one driving her to madness happened to be Luke? Her nipples still tingled with tiny pinpricks, her breasts felt heavy and hot and her rectum throbbed with lingering pulses, but deep inside her core, she ached. How could she still feel empty, incomplete, after the orgasm he’d gifted her with? The rigid outline of his erection pressed against her buttocks, reminding her how one-sided the whole scene had been.

  Lifting her face from his wide chest, Carlie peered up to see Luke’s ink-black hair curling around his nape, a lock falling over his forehead she itched to brush back. But the neutral look on his face stayed her hand, didn’t invite any personal touches, and sent a stab of pain through her tender heart.

  “Are you okay?”

  That gruff voice held a hint of concern that warmed her. At least he cared enough to ask. Shifting on his lap, she attempted to offer him the same pleasure he’d given her. “I could…” Carlie cupped her palm over his cock.

  His face tightened, and he interrupted her with a curt, “No,” then removed her hand. He hesitated before adding, “But, thank you. You need to rest, take a warm bath. That’ll help soothe any aches and pains you might feel later. If you’re okay, I’ll escort you to your room.” He nudged her up, and she rose with a sigh of regret.

  Walking back through the busy foyer toward the stairs dressed the same as when she’d come down alone, proved to be much easier with Luke at her side, his large hand clasping her elbow. From the nods and few words he spoke to others on the way, he knew many of the guests and members, and the women’s appreciative glances and knowing eyes reminded her of his experience, and how much she lacked in that department. She tried to stifle the quick stab of jealousy and her ever present self-consciousness about her round figure, but old habits were hard to break. It helped to see body types of all sizes and shapes were looked upon with interest in this medieval fantasyland.

  Luke crowded her against the door when they reached her room and braced his arms behind her, caging her in. Her pulse went haywire when he gazed down at her with an enigmatic expression, part brooding, part lust-filled. To her disappointment, the sulky part won out when he asked, “Are you ready to go home now?”

  Nudging up her glasses, Carlie gritted her teeth in annoyance. “No. Are you ready to let me be paired with someone else?”

  “No,” he answered without pause, his voice a low snarl that sent a delightful flutter of butterflies flitting about in her stomach. “In that case, I’ll swing back by here in an hour and take you down to dinner. In the meantime, I will make an appointment for you at the Salon for first thing in the morning. If you’re going to insist in this pursuit, you’ll do so with me, and I prefer my subs bare.”

  Luke reached inside her thong and tugged on her pubic hair, ensuring she knew exactly what he meant. The thought of losing that last barrier to exposing herself completely worried her. She’d seen a few women who were shaved or waxed, and there would be no hiding her reaction to him once those curls were removed. Like everything else so far, that proved to be both disconcerting and exciting.

  “I’ll see you in an hour then.” She turned and slipped inside her room before she could do something foolish, like lean up and kiss him.

  Heck, she mused padding into the bathroom and turning on the water in the tub as hot as she could stand it, maybe she should’ve surprised him by giving him a lip lock that would catch him off guard. Kissing was as personal and intimate as intercourse, and something she wanted from him just as much. Given his continued annoyance with her persistence in staying and his reluctance to breach either of those intimacies, she wouldn’t hold out hope of getting any more involved with him as her Dom than she’d been in getting him to see her as more than a friend and Evan’s little sister. But she would have some awesome memories to keep her warm after she moved away.

  Carlie had already noticed the bondage rings attached to the bed, but as she struggled back out of the teddy, the restraints in both the bathtub and shower caught her attention and stirred up her imagination. “Goodness, they take their kinks seriously,” she muttered, picturing herself bound with Master M standing over her like he had in the gardens. It hadn’t taken her long to set aside her embarrassment over the possibility of someone glimpsing her round body behind that low hedge, not when he’d been gazing upon her nakedness for the first time with a look of blatant interest. If only he weren’t so hell bent on keeping her at arm’s length, insisting on regarding her as Evan’s little sister even while demanding she remain his submissive if she planned on staying.

  Sinking into the steaming water with a blissful sigh, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Aches and pains were starting to make themselves known, but even the soreness in places she’d never imagined feeling that tender couldn’t detract from her overall pleasant euphoria. Despite Luke’s continued, recalcitrant attitude, she wouldn’t trade that scene for anything. Being under his control, feeling his fingers inside her, driving her to such an awesome climax, had been everything she’d dreamed it could be and worth the risk of additional heartache.

  Knowing him the way she did, she’d suspected he’d intended the walk from her room to the gardens to chase her away, just as she’d known he would have a backup plan if that failed. But never, not even in her most erotic fantasies centered on Luke, had she imagined she would, or even could respond to such an intense scene. He’d not only tossed her right into an acute bondage scene, but pulled out all the stops intending, she was sure, to drive her away.

  Carlie wasn’t only a novice to his world of kink, but—other than a vibrator—her experience with sex toys was rather pitiful for a twenty-eight-year-old woman. She enjoyed touching her nipples, even giving them a slight pinch, but she’d never dreamed the spurt of pleasure from that minor discomfort would blossom into overwhelming ecstasy with the tight application of clamps. Of course, the anal play, another first for her, egged on her responses, another eye-opening revelation she still struggled to work her mind around. She loved the flash of surprise on Luke’s
face, and the hum of smug satisfaction it gave her when she turned the tables on him with her responses and refusal to back down.

  Conscious of the time, she rose with reluctance and dried off quickly. Before he returned, she wanted to slip down to Wardrobe to see if they had the costume she had in mind for the evening. The day had been a roller coaster ride of emotional and physical upheaval, and as much as he had annoyed and pleasured her, she longed for the evening to be just Luke and Carlie, for a few hours respite from Master M and his submissive.

  What the hell had he been thinking? Luke asked himself that question for the third time as he left the Salon and walked back to Carlie’s room. The afternoon had been hard enough on his libido, how would he keep her at arm’s length when he saw those bare, soft folds, puffy and glistening with the proof of her arousal? It had been an ongoing, difficult effort to resist her before he set eyes on her here at the Castle. His first glimpse of those full breasts conjured up all the fantasies he’d been struggling to ignore, and when he’d fulfilled one and hauled her over his lap for a bare-bottomed spanking, his resolve to keep her at arm’s length crumbled.

  Then the scene in the gardens backfired on him when, instead of balking and agreeing to leave when he introduced her to anal stimulation then treated her nipples to harsher means, she embraced the bondage and sharper pain with a stunning response. His fingers still tingled from the tight clamp of her slick vaginal muscles, her climax a pleasure to watch and feel. Thank God he would have to let her rest tonight, give her body time to recuperate from her first BDSM scene. He may want her gone from here, but he wasn’t about to risk harming her by subjecting her to more than she could cope with. That would be a worse infraction on the promise he’d made Evan.

  He'd spent part of the last hour socializing around the Castle, both to take his mind off the way Carlie looked—and responded—bound to the statue in the garden, and to get his head back in the game of the main reason for this visit to the BDSM resort. Even though he’d strolled through most of the theme rooms and made one more trip through the gardens, he hadn’t spotted the same man who had drawn his curiosity earlier. Nor did anyone else catch his eye with a resemblance to Carmen. He snuck a short note between the spread knees of the garden statue he and Dane had agreed to use as their communication spot, asking his partner to meet him at the bar tomorrow afternoon. It wouldn’t hurt to let Dane know about his sixth sense concerning the man he saw and pass on a description.

  Luke shoved aside his annoyance with losing a chance to investigate a possible ‘Carmen’ sighting, ignored the way his heart picked up speed when he rapped on Carlie’s door and heard her soft footsteps, and vowed to keep things light tonight while he plotted his course of action for tomorrow. She opened the door dressed in a blue and gold satin Cinderella costume, her hair piled on her head to hang in ringlets, flat gold slippers adorning her feet. Smiling, he braced an arm on the door jamb above him and tilted his head.

  “Do you think the more reserved attire will protect your modesty tonight?” he teased.

  “It’s worth a shot,” she quipped right before her stomach let loose with a loud rumble.

  Shaking his head in amusement, he snatched her hand and tugged her into the hall. “Come on, little one. Let’s feed you before you collapse.”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, Luke, I have enough extra that a missed meal won’t hurt me.”

  With a burst of irritation, he pinned her against the wall and glared down at her. Her eyes behind the silly, endearing glasses framed with shiny gold stars against a dark blue background, widened in surprise. “I’m tired of hearing you put yourself down. Don’t. Do. It. Again. And,” he added as he backed away and took her hand again, “watch those lapses in addressing me by my given name, even when we’re alone like this.” He indicated the empty hall. “If you slip in public, punishment may not be meted out by my hand.” When she blanched at that threat, he knew she got his point.

  “I’m sorry. I know the rules advise against using real names, but this is all so… overwhelming and new, I can’t remember all the small details. Besides,” she shrugged as they went down the stairs, “your name slips out naturally, whereas a stranger’s name I don’t know, wouldn’t.”

  “Just remember my warning.” Changing the subject, he said, “I’m glad you’re hungry. It’s the only way to do justice to the buffet spread. Tonight’s specialty dishes are seafood, and yes, there will be plenty of shrimp.” Carlie loved shrimp, ordering it whenever he treated her to a dinner out.

  “Well, why are we walking so slow?” The cheeky grin she flipped him caused his chest to constrict, and he shoved that reaction aside as well.

  He watched the delight over the array of selections on the buffet cross her face and then scowled when she only scooped a small serving of shrimp salad and an even smaller portion of shrimp scampi onto her plate. Her fists tightened around the tray as they passed several other entrees he knew she would enjoy and his irritation with her rose once again. “Unless you want me to bend you over and bare your ass right here in this line, I suggest you do better than that.” He nodded toward the sparse servings on her plate. “I know you have to be as hungry as I am.”

  A frown appeared between her brows, but when he cocked a brow at her in silence, she smoothed it out and nodded. “Okay, I’ll admit I’m starving, but if I gain ten pounds this weekend, it just might be you who gets punished.”

  The massively built man in front of her chuckled and turned dark eyes filled with mirth on them. “You have a feisty one on your hands, Master M. Why don’t the two of you join us?”

  “Stubborn is what she is.” Luke introduced her to the man who ensured everyone adhered to Castle protocol to the letter, at all times. “Cinderella, meet the Chief of Castle Security, Master Jackson.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, sir.” Carlie’s gaze shifted to the petite woman next to Jackson and, much to her credit, she didn’t blink when she noticed the burn scars on the sub’s left arm and neck.

  Master Jackson introduced her to the attractive blonde. “This is my wife, Sara. I suggest you add a few things to your plate before joining us. Master M isn’t known for making idle threats.”

  The couple moved ahead, and Luke was both pleased and a touch disappointed when she added several more entrees to her plate. He wouldn’t have minded following up on his threat. “Sara was burned in a fire-cupping accident several years ago. Jackson nurtured her through the painful healing process.”

  Compassion shone in those expressive, whiskey eyes, but all Carlie asked was, “What is fire-cupping?”

  “Another spin on the ancient Chinese form of alternative medicine in which a cup or bowl is used to create suction on the skin in a localized area, drawing the blood forward, increasing the sensation. Fire can be used to draw the air out, but only if you know what you’re doing. Her Dom didn’t, and she paid a hefty price.”

  A visible, delicate shudder shook her. “I’ll pass.”

  “That’s not my thing, either, but it’s a sought-after technique by a lot of subs.” He looked down at her full plate with approval. “Good girl.”

  Chapter 5

  Damn it, why did she have to react with a warm rush every time Luke praised her with those two simple words? Carlie was beginning to think this whole weekend might turn out to be one of her dumbest decisions. It was only Friday evening, and her heart already wanted more than was wise from her reluctant Dom. Looking down at her piled-on plate as she followed him to the table his friends sat at, she mentally shook her head at her stupidity. She may as well indulge in all her hungers for another day and a half since she suspected she would have plenty of time after she returned to reality to work off the repercussions.

  Carlie enjoyed visiting with Sara as much as she did the food. She smiled when Master Jackson pulled a picture of an adorable little girl from his wallet and showed off their daughter. “She’s darling,” she told the proud mother with a smile.

  “Thank you. We thi
nk so. It’s also fun watching how my big, bad Dom reacts when I ask him how he’ll feel when his baby girl is on the receiving end of some Master’s punishing control.” They both giggled at Master Jackson’s scowl, and Sara added with an impish grin, “See what I mean?”

  “I’d worry about the consequences of teasing him too much, if I were you.” Before she realized it, her plate was empty, and Luke grasped her hand, ushering her up. “Nice to meet you both,” she stated with a finger-wave to her new friend as he steered her back into the foyer. “Where are we going now?”

  “We both could benefit from a walk.”

  Since she couldn’t deny that, she didn’t argue when he headed down the East Wing and they took their time viewing the scenes taking place in the themed rooms. He laughed when she steered them away from a whip scene where the masochist sub’s face revealed her deep pleasure in each stroke. Carlie wouldn’t put it past him to be taking mental notes of the scenes she showed an interest in, such as the role-play between a couple dressed as Bonnie and Clyde. Only, when Bonnie had apparently gone on a robbery spree without her partner and Carlie heard Clyde announce fifty swats from whoever wanted to help deliver them as her punishment, Carlie doubted she would go along as easily as the pale-faced Bonnie. It took no time for the angry Clyde to strap down his teary-eyed partner-in-crime on a spanking bench and a line of men to form behind her, waiting to help deliver her punishment.

  “I don’t know, Cinderella,” Luke teased when she dragged him out of the room. “I think you’re protesting too much. I remember your response to your first spanking.”

  By only you. Carlie didn’t know if she’d respond with as much enthusiasm with another man, or several, but right now, this weekend, she didn’t think so. It had always been Luke, and she couldn’t see that changing any time soon. “I’d rather not find out. Where to now?”