Red Handed

by Shelly Bell

  “You’re a very lucky man, Cole,” Logan said. “I’ve got that file for you. I’ll leave it for you in the screening room, and then I’m going to review the tapes like you asked. Let me know if you require anything else.” Logan disappeared behind the bookcase.

  Cole grinned. “You liked getting caught, didn’t you?” He dragged her up by her arms and pushed her back to his desk, which she settled on top of. “I bet you’re dripping for me.”

  Before she could respond, he slid two fingers inside her and began steadily pumping. He added a third and twisted his hand, his thumb circling her clitoris. She gripped the edge of the desk, her body bowing and moving with the force of his hand.

  “That’s it. Ride my hand,” he crooned. “Let me hear how good it feels. Let everyone hear it. I want them to know what I do to you.”

  His fingers tapped the magic spot inside her, flicking it and pressing it while continuing a thrusting motion. Her pussy trembled as he ignited sparks deep inside. She wanted to come, but she didn’t want the feeling to end. Everything centered deep inside her pussy. Her muscles quivered, coiling tighter, and heat gathered low in her belly.

  The tension snapped, and her climax unwound like a spool of thread, her vaginal muscles spasming around Cole’s fingers and her arousal dripping down his wrist. He wrung out every last tremor before he removed his hand and licked her juices off each finger, one by one, closing his eyes as if savoring every last drop.

  She jumped off the desk and shimmied her skirt down to cover herself. With the orgasms out of the way, her thoughts turned to her main mission in being here. “Where did Logan go?”

  “Screening room. Only a few of us can access it, mainly dungeon monitors and myself, but Logan’s got some skills that have become necessary this past month.”

  “Computer skills?”

  He cocked his head. “Yes, how did you know?”

  “From my talk with Logan last night before you and me . . . you know . . . in the gallery.” Seriously, they’d just gotten each other off, and this made her blush.

  “Before we fucked?” He smiled, clearly amused. “Let me hear you say it.”

  She held his gaze. “Before we fucked.”

  “That sounds deliciously dirty coming from your mouth.” He stood. “Would you like to see it?”

  Her heart slammed in her chest, making her dizzy. “Your screening room? Yes.”

  He went over to his bookcase and pressed on the side panel, and the piece popped open to display a keypad. After entering the password, he swung the entire bookcase out toward his office and ushered her into the screening room, stepping right behind her.

  The door automatically closed with a whoosh. It wasn’t a very large space, no larger than twelve by ten, but almost every inch of the walls was covered by a screen. On the left side of the room, a long table lined the wall, with three plastic chairs in front and three laptops laid out with a wall of monitors behind it. She counted up and across, counting twenty screens, each divided into two to four different shots of the same room. Since it was daytime, most of the rooms were empty, but she caught sight of the class being taught by Mistress Casey and noticed Gracie in the gallery, cleaning up the mess Cole had made from his meltdown.

  “Logan,” Cole said, announcing their presence.

  Logan looked up from where he sat on the other side of the room at a desk that looked similar to the one in Cole’s office, but on a smaller scale. A desktop computer sat on top, and a three-drawer filing cabinet fit between the desk and the wall.

  She trembled, knowing how close she was to his private residence. If he’d allowed her in here, he was beginning to trust her. Would he finally break his rule and bring her upstairs to his bed?

  Scanning the monitors, she was able to view the upstairs fantasy rooms. She whistled low. Gracie had been right. This room was a voyeur’s wet dream. “Can you see all the rooms at once?”

  “We can,” Cole said, taking her hand. “It still isn’t enough to cover all the different camera angles, so they rotate every thirty seconds.”

  Straight ahead was the staircase. “And what’s up there?”

  He squeezed her hand. “That takes you to my private residence.”

  She played with her locket. “So that’s how you get there. Can I see it?”

  When Cole flinched, she realized that even after they’d spent most of the night together, nothing had changed. Silly how that hurt even though her real reason for wanting to go upstairs was to find the box.

  Logan coughed. “Cole, I hate to interrupt, but I need to discuss some information I discovered.”

  Cole grew somber. “Let me walk her out, and I’ll be back.” He placed his hand on the bottom of her spine, steering her back into his office and the door.

  The reality of the situation crashed into her. He’d never invite her upstairs. She had no choice but to slip him the pills while they were in the club. She’d do it tonight.

  By tomorrow, she’d be gone.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  TICK-TOCK.

  Tonight was the night.

  He paced the length of the cabin, the sweet scent of blood making his mouth water.

  He didn’t want to wait any longer. He couldn’t. His needs had grown bigger than him. Soon he would no longer be able to control the impulses raging through his blood. The voice in his head whispered it was time to make someone scream. And right now it took every bit of strength he had not to kill the woman asleep in the bedroom.

  She’d never see it coming.

  He picked up the shovel and headed toward the backyard.

  The others had patience. After all, they’d waited all these years. But he was ready for it to be over. He wasn’t a man who enjoyed being told what to do, and the more they denied him, the stronger the urge to show them who was really the boss.

  Yeah, they had him by the balls, but he was smarter than them. He had stayed one step ahead of them the whole time. Soon he’d have Danielle, and when he was done with her, he’d finally have a clean slate.

  A man like him shouldn’t have to bow down to anyone. He wasn’t a fucking slave.

  He was a god.

  He decided who lived and died.

  He glanced at his watch, then speared his shovel into the snow and hoisted the icy precipitation over his shoulder. It was time to clear the ground and dig another grave.

  Beside all the others.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  DANIELLE GLARED AT herself in the mirror. On the outside, she looked fine. Her makeup was impeccable thanks to Gracie, who had helped her get ready.

  But on the inside, she was a mess, knowing that sometime tonight, she’d have to drug Cole, find this mysterious account, and give the information over to the kidnappers.

  Then what? Would they release Tasha? Would Danielle leave Benediction and walk out of Cole’s life forever? Did she tell Cole the truth and risk retaliation from the kidnappers? And what if they didn’t release Tasha? There was nothing to keep them from killing her once they had what they wanted. Or Cole. Or Danielle for that matter.

  The image staring back at her from the mirror was the face of a liar. After tonight, she didn’t know how she’d ever look in the mirror again and see anything else.

  She opened the locket, confirming the pills were still there. Cole would forgive her. Once he realized she hadn’t any other choice, he’d have to.

  What she still didn’t understand was why Cole would be the trustee for an account in her name or why he hadn’t told her about it.

  She picked up her perfume with the intention of applying it when she suddenly remembered the scent on the note from the kidnapper. Shivering, she dropped the bottle in the trash, no longer wishing to associate herself with it.

  A light knock fell on her door. She opened it to a mouthwatering Cole, who was wearing his tight leather pants and a black T-shirt with the name Benediction across the chest. He eyed her hungrily.

  She wasn’t wearing much since she assumed h
e wouldn’t allow her to remain dressed for very long tonight. The sleeveless black cotton dress hugged her curves and left most of her back bare.

  “How was your meeting with the bank?” she asked once she found her voice.

  He snaked his arm around her waist and tugged her into him. “I’m not sure. I couldn’t pay attention with your scent all over me.” He pulled her out of her room and shut the door, backing her up against it. “You have a good day?” He didn’t let her answer, taking her mouth in a bruising kiss she felt down to her toes. She sighed into him, treasuring his rich taste.

  At the sound of a few excited trainees chattering down the hall, Danielle broke away from his mouth and turned to lock the door, although God knew it was a pointless endeavor.

  Wondering what Cole had in store for her as he brought her to the dungeon, she nervously toyed with her locket. He brought her to the dungeon stage, where Adrian and Logan were laying out rope onto a small round table.

  “Danielle, you know Adrian and Logan.” Cole grasped her hands, rubbing them between hers. “Logan’s going to introduce you to Shibari and at the same time instruct Adrian on it. While Adrian is my slave, he’s also a switch, meaning he’s willing and able to take the Dominant role sometimes. One of those times is now. You are to submit to both of them Danielle. As always, you have your safe word. Do you understand?”

  She opened her mouth, and nothing came out. Adrian winked at her, probably remembering how she’d done the same upon her arrival a few days ago. She glanced around the room, catching the crowd’s interest in what was going on upon the stage, and realized Cole was fulfilling several of her fantasies at once. “Yes. I think I do.”

  She panicked as Cole removed his arm and stepped back. “Master Cole? I’d feel more comfortable if you stayed . . . and watched.”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Cole promised, kissing her cheek. “I want this for you, and it will please me at the same time. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  Cole was her mirror.

  The voyeur in him would enjoy watching her receive pleasure, and she’d enjoy herself knowing he was watching. He wouldn’t get jealous. He wanted this for her as much as he wanted it for himself.

  He brought her to Logan before taking a seat in the chair at the back of the stage.

  “What is your safe word, Danielle?” asked Sir Logan, using the same voice he’d used when doing the verbal exercise to identify her fantasies. She suspected Logan and Cole must have discussed it and come up with this scene together.

  “Red, Sir.”

  Adrian inched closer. “Are you familiar with rope bondage, Danielle?”

  “Very little, Sir.”

  “Adrian, take off Danielle’s dress and her wristband,” Logan said. “You can keep her locket on since it won’t interfere with the ropes.”

  She peered over her shoulder at Cole, who sat as still as a statue, his spine rigid and his hands resting on his thighs. Adrian removed her wristband and her dress, leaving her completely naked on the stage.

  What were the members thinking? Were they disgusted by her body? Several club members and a few trainees gathered in front of the stage, ready for the demonstration to begin. Tonight, she was the headliner.

  Whispered words of the crowd reached her ears. Brave. Exquisite. Submissive.

  Logan spun her around so her back was to the audience, then circled behind her. “I’m going to place a blindfold over your eyes.” She sucked in a breath as he tied a satin sash around her head, submerging her in total darkness. “I want you to relax and breathe slowly. Like this. In and out. In and out.”

  She focused on following his command, rhythmically inhaling and exhaling until all her muscles loosened and the sounds of the room melted away.

  Her body betrayed her arousal. Exposed to the air, her nipples puckered, the tightness of them almost causing pain, and she grew slick between her thighs at the notion that everyone, including Cole, was watching.

  Did it turn him on to see her helpless? To see other men touch her?

  Without the use of her eyes, her other senses took control. The heat of both men seeped into her, enveloping her in a safe cocoon where she could surrender to their ministrations and turn herself over to a new experience.

  “I’m going to start by binding your wrists together over your head and then creating a harness around your breasts. If you feel any discomfort, tingling, or numbness, I want you to let me know,” the voice she recognized as Logan’s said.

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Logan proceeded to speak in low tones to Adrian, instructing him on proper knot technique as he pulled her arms up straight and tied her wrists together. A hand stroked her back, up and down, each time moving closer to her bottom. She squirmed, rising up on her toes, wanting those fingers to trail down her crack and cup her pussy.

  The hand spanked her behind. “None of that.”

  Grinning, she recognized the voice and the slap as belonging to Adrian. “Sorry, Sir.”

  She wasn’t.

  Adrian tugged her ponytail. “You’ve gotten cheeky since you’ve gotten here.”

  If he thought that would deter her, he was sadly mistaken. She’d take cheeky over wallflower any day. In the last couple of days, she’d become more confident in both her body and her sexuality. No one here would judge her for her desires. She was free to be herself.

  The weight of the rope slid between her breasts, its soft texture surprising her. She’d expected it to be rough against her skin, like the rope on a sailboat.

  New hands worked the rope underneath her breasts, and they inadvertently brushed her nipples. Without her having sight, they felt more sensitive than normal.

  Logan continued to speak to Adrian in a hushed voice, but Danielle zoned out, their words not making much sense to her and becoming simply background noise.

  She swore she could feel Cole’s gaze on her. That invisible tether bound her to him stronger than any rope. Her entire body buzzed, and her limbs felt sluggish.

  Hands caressed her flesh. Her shoulders. Her ribcage. Her thighs. Two, four, a dozen. She didn’t know. In her mind, they all belonged to Cole.

  Rope pressed between her legs, spreading her open wide. Logan whispered something in her ear, and suddenly she was airborne, floating on her back as if lying on a cloud.

  Fingers swept across her cheekbones and feathered down her neck. A warm wet tongue teased one nipple as a rougher tongue licked the other. Then two strong mouths simultaneously sucked those nipples into their heat.

  Pressure built in her pussy, her clitoris throbbing. She tried to close her legs, but the rope kept them open. She couldn’t move. All she could do was lie there and take it.

  “Has she ever taken a plug?” one of the men whispered.

  A gasp slipped from her chest. No, she’d never had anything other than Cole’s finger in her backside. A frisson of fear passed through her at the thought of it, but since they’d discussed anal plugs last night, she trusted Cole would keep her safe.

  She didn’t hear the answer, but warm fluid dripped down her crack and a finger worked it inside. There was a burning. A stretching. But it didn’t hurt.

  The moan that fell from her lips sounded foreign to her ears.

  Another finger rubbed circles on her clitoris, and it began to warm. To heat. Like cinnamon or mint. The more he touched, the hotter it got, until tears pricked her eyes. Not from pain, but from pleasure and from need.

  Something thicker than a finger entered her behind and she knew instantly it was the plug. As he worked it in deeper, the odd sensation of being filled made her writhe and struggle against the ropes.

  She knew the moment Cole moved to her. Her heart beat faster, and her hands tried unsuccessfully to reach for him. Then he was there, kissing her cheek and whispering in her ear. “You’re so beautiful like this. I’m so proud of you.”

  That’s all it took for her to relax her muscles and surrender. The plug slid in easier, and all the dis
comfort disappeared, leaving behind overwhelming arousal. More fingers massaged her clitoris and slid inside her pussy, rhythmically thrusting. A tongue laved her nipple. Hands pinched and tugged.

  Her body shook, and tension coiled tight in her belly, making her toes bend and her hands clench. In the darkness, she saw a brilliant white light as the tension snapped, and she splintered into a million pieces, calling Cole’s name over and over.

  Her muscles went lax, and hands supported her weight. She felt the cold stage under her feet, and yet at the same time, it was as if she were still floating in the air.

  Cole murmured words of praise, but each one was like a knife to her heart. He’d given her so much, strengthened her confidence, and shown her a world where she didn’t have to hide. For the first time in her life, she truly believed she was beautiful on the outside.

  But she was rotting on the inside, her soul darkening as she realized these would likely be their final moments together. Hot tears dampened her blindfold. Soon he would hate her, and even if he didn’t, what kind of life could they build on a shaky foundation of lies and deceit?

  Cole was a fantasy, a naïve girl’s dream of love. Even if he forgave her and she forgave him for his part in her father’s imprisonment, he’d made it clear a wife and kids were not in his future.

  Benediction was Cole’s life. His one true love.

  Not her.

  “Shh, let it out. I’ve got you,” Cole said, holding her to his chest and rubbing her back.

  The weight of the blindfold was gone, and so was the anal plug. She opened her eyes and blinked away the tears to clear her vision. Cole had her on his lap, and they were sitting on a couch at the side of the room. Someone had dressed her, and her wristband was back on her wrist.

  She rested her head on his shoulder and choked back a sob. “Where did Logan and Adrian go? How did I get unbound?”

  “We got you out of the ropes a few minutes ago. Logan went upstairs, and Adrian went to get us water. How do you feel?”

  Remorseful and frightened. “Good. Fine.”