“Ahh, so this is the little subbie you wanted to bring to the club so badly,” a big voice boomed.
She glanced up; her eyes widened as a huge man stomped towards them. This wasn’t a guy you’d wish to meet in a dark alley. There was something cold and dangerous around him. He was wearing a tight black T-shirt and blue jeans.
She was aware of people turning and staring at them. Whispering started up. Panic filled her. They were judging her. Finding her wanting. She didn’t belong here.
“Easy, baby doll.” Issy placed a hand on the small of her back, instantly calming her.
Issy was here. Nothing bad would happen.
“Don’t be scared of Hunter. His bark is worse than his bite.”
This was Hunter Black? Holy shit.
“I object to that. My bite is just as bad as my bark, isn’t it, baby?” He turned and she saw a woman she’d missed while she’d been focused on everyone else in the room.
The dark-haired woman was gorgeous. Petite. She couldn’t be with this big beast of a man, could she? But then a miracle happened. Hunter’s face softened as he glanced down at the tiny woman. He reached out a hand and she took it, stepping forward.
“Your bark is definitely worse than your bite,” she said quietly. “Hello, Sir.”
This was addressed to Issy and she started in surprise. She looked up at Issy.
“Call me Doc, Cady,” he told her. “It’s good to see you, sweetheart. You’re looking well.”
“I am.”
“Of course she is. I take good care of her.” Hunter turned his ice-blue gaze to her. “Hello there, little one.”
She was surprised at the softer note in his voice.
“Hello, Sir,” she said, remembering Issy’s coaching.
“You want me to book out one of the rooms for Littles?” Hunter asked.
She jolted. How had he guessed? She looked up at him, then remembered not to meet his gaze.
“It’s all right, little one, you can look at me. Not a big stickler for all these rules. I just like to come here and spank Cady’s ass, give her a fucking spectacular orgasm then shoot the shit for a while.”
“Hunter, you own the place,” Issy told him.
“So?”
“You’re meant to set a good example.”
“I am? Well, hell, that sounds boring. Maybe I should sell up. You looking to invest, Doc?”
Issy rolled his eyes. “No, actually, I’m looking for my brother.” He glanced down at her. “And not the Little room for tonight, I think, but maybe a medical room?”
“Closed or open?” he asked weirdly.
“Closed.”
“Consider it done. Will Archer be joining you?”
“Hopefully.”
“Good, he’s been moping around like someone stole his lollipop.” Hunter’s gaze moved to her. “Hopefully you’ll cheer him up, huh, sugar?”
She gulped. “I’ll try, Sir.”
* * *
Archer didn’t even know why he’d come to the Twisted Thorn tonight. He was having a fucking miserable time. Much like his life these last few weeks. Since he left Montana. Since he left her. He looked out across the dungeon. He didn’t feel much like playing. Didn’t feel like doing anything. Maybe he should volunteer to be a monitor tonight. Or he could go check on the Littles.
He’d never been interested in taking watch over the Littles before.
“Sir?”
He glanced over as Susan approached him. He managed to suppress another groan. Why had he said yes to his assistant joining the same club he went to?
Because you thought it didn’t matter when Gray asked you if it was all right.
But he didn’t want to see Susan right now. He’d dressed her down for not passing on Caley’s message and she’d tearfully told him it was an oversight and wouldn’t happen again. So he’d kept her on. Still, he was annoyed with her. And he didn’t feel like seeing her outside of work.
She was dressed in a tight black corset and a black thong.
Yeah, it felt wrong to see his assistant so scantily clad.
Fuck. Was he going to have to find a new club? Or maybe he should just give up on this altogether since he couldn’t find much interest in playing.
Susan knelt beside him and placed her hand on his knee. He frowned. What was she doing touching him without permission? He opened his mouth to reprimand her when she spoke up.
“Please, Sir, will you—”
“We interrupting something here?”
His head snapped around at the deep rumble and he gaped up at his brother. What the fuck? What was he doing here? He stood, paying little attention to Susan who still knelt at his feet.
“Isaac? What are you doing here? Is it Caley? Is she all right?”
Surely, he would have called him if something was wrong with her. Why would he come here? Had he left her at home?
Then a vision in white stepped out from behind his brother. She was wearing an almost see-through nightie, it was clear she didn’t have a bra on and knowing his brother, she wouldn’t have underwear either.
Christ, what was Issy thinking? She was like an angel in a sea of sharks. He could see them circling. Her sweetness and innocence shone brightly. Issy would be fighting them off all night, especially since few people probably knew him. It had been years since he’d been a member.
“What are you doing bringing Caley here? She doesn’t belong here!”
Caley flinched and Isaac scowled. “I’m sorry, would you rather we left you here with your friend?”
“What friend?” He glanced down at where Isaac gestured. “Oh. Susan, go back to where the unattached subs are. If you approach or touch a Dom again without permission, you will be publicly punished.”
He heard a gasp and realized it had come from Caley. Susan left, her face tight with anger. Caley looked shocked, and uncertain. Which just fueled his belief that she didn’t belong here.
“Isaac, explain why you bought her here.”
“We’re here because we came looking for you, asshole,” Isaac bit out at him. He placed his arm around Caley, supporting her. She leaned into him.
They looked perfect together. And once again, he was on the outside.
“Why?”
“Aww, baby, don’t make me make them stop,” a deep voice pleaded behind him.
He whirled to see Hunter Black standing there. The big Dom was staring down at his wife, Cady, who gave him a firm look back. Archer honestly didn’t know how she put up with him.
“I wanna see the drama play out.”
Cady sighed and gave him a pointed look.
“Fine. But I’m taking this out on your butt. Gotta have some fun tonight.” Hunter was practically pouting as he turned to them.
“Maybe you all want to take this somewhere private. The room you wanted is available now, Doc. Room 3b.”
3b. That was a medical playroom.
“You brought her here to play with her? Issy, she’s never been to a club before.”
“I know that.” Issy scowled at him. “Fuck, why am I even here?”
“I have no idea, that’s why I’m asking.”
“See, baby, they wanna do this in public,” Hunter drawled. “They don’t care if we watch along with everyone else.”
Archer scowled at the meddling man. He couldn’t resist sticking his nose into Archer’s life. But Isaac nodded.
“Come on, Caley. Even if Archer isn’t willing to listen to us, we can at least have a play. I’ve often fantasized about playing a doctor.”
Caley smiled up at Issy then turned her gaze to Archer, looking pensive. “Archer?”
He started at her voice. Then she licked her lips and looked nervous. “Sorry, I’m not supposed to talk to you first, am I? Oh God, you’re not going to publicly punish me, are you?”
“Easy, baby doll,” Isaac told her. “You’re my sub. If anyone punishes you, it will be me.”
Archer frowned. “You’re not punishing her.”
With that, Issy turned away and led Caley with him. But she looked over her shoulder at him, her eyes filled with a deep sadness.
And he could do nothing else but follow.
32
Despite her curiosity, Caley barely looked around the room that Issy led them into. She did note the table in the middle that resembled one you might find in a doctor’s surgery. Only it had a series of straps attached to it at the top, the middle and on the stirrups that rested out from the sides of the bench.
Issy led her over to where there was a desk with a big leather chair. There were two other chairs sitting there and he gently pushed her into one. It wasn’t a bad idea for her to sit considering her legs were trembling.
Archer walked in and shut the door behind him. “You requested this room?”
“Yep.”
“If you wanted to play out a doctor-patient fantasy, couldn’t you have done that at home, in Montana? After all, you have all the equipment since you are an actual doctor.”
“For God’s sake, Archer, of course we didn’t come all the way here to play out a fantasy. We’re here for you.”
She saw the other man jolt in reaction to Issy’s words.
“For me? What’s wrong?” Archer’s gaze moved over her as though trying to search out an injury.
“Nothing’s wrong, other than you being an ass.”
She reached up and took Issy’s hand, tugging on it. He immediately turned to her.
“Do the rules apply in here?”
He looked confused for a moment then that cleared. “No, baby doll. Not right now. You can speak freely with just me and Archer here.”
She forced herself to stand, not wanting to feel at a disadvantage. She swallowed. “Archer, we came here to find you when you weren’t at your apartment.”
Archer was still frowning. “I still don’t understand why.”
“It’s because…well…we…”
“Spit it out, baby doll,” Issy said dryly.
“Do you still want to share me?”
Okay, she hadn’t meant to just come out with it.
Archer opened his mouth, but she kept going. “A ménage, a permanent one. A relationship, not just for sex. Issy said you brought it up at the hospital. That you walked away originally because you thought that was better for me and for Issy. But the thing is, I miss you, we miss you. Issy has done some research into ménage relationships. And well, we think we can make it work. If you’re still willing…I mean if you still want…me,” she finished lamely as he just gaped at her.
She looked to Issy who stared at her in shock as well. Archer he didn’t say a word.
“Archer?” What was he thinking? Why wasn’t he talking?
“Easy, baby doll. That’s his thinking face. Give him a minute.”
Archer gave Doc a sharp look. “You’re an ass.”
“I think we all know this by now.”
Archer rubbed his hand over his face. Then he looked to his brother. “I thought you didn’t want this.”
Issy shrugged. “I changed my mind.”
“That simple, huh?”
“No, not that simple,” Issy said sharply. “Fucking barely slept in past two weeks. Been going over scenarios. Been talking to people who are in these sorts of relationships. Learnt about the advantages and disadvantages. None of this is simple.”
Archer winced. “Sorry.”
“But what it comes down to is, am I willing to try? Am I willing to try to give Caley what she needs? You what you need. And me what I need.”
“You?” Archer asked.
Issy shrugged. “Won’t lie. There were many times I wanted to be selfish. But the thing is, I have to give Caley what she needs. It’s built into me. And the fact that it’s you, my brother, well, I don’t hate that. I miss you. I think that we all have something to add to this relationship. And I think it will be stronger with all of us in it. Besides, I do this and I’ll be her favorite.”
“Issy!” she protested.
He just grinned.
“And what do you want?” he asked Caley. “You’re the most important person in this. How do you feel about me? Do you want me? Or am I second fiddle to Issy? An afterthought? Another cock in the bedroom?”
“Another cock? I barely know what to do with one cock, two kind of terrifies me!”
Issy snorted and she glared at him. “Don’t laugh at me!”
“I agree this isn’t a laughing matter!” Archer scowled at his brother. “If we do this, I want to fully be part of this relationship. Just as important to you as Isaac.”
“So you really want this?” She guessed she still hadn’t fully believed he’d want this. “Even though it means sharing me and we live in different states and I’m kind of forgetful and clumsy and I’ll likely never be sophisticated and worldly?”
He stepped forward and cupped her face between his hands. Then he kissed her. Ravished her. This kiss was dominant. He took complete control.
And she loved it.
When he drew back, she was panting heavily, her body thrumming with lust and need.
“I love you the way you are. I don’t want you to ever change, understand me? I can deal with the logistics, I can work everything out with Issy that needs to be figured out, what I can’t change is how you feel about me. So?”
“You love me?” she asked.
“‘Course I damn well do. Loved you almost from the moment I met you and I’ve been fucking miserable without you. What I don’t know is how you feel about me?”
Archer stared down at her intently.
“I love you too. I’ve missed you so much. When you walked away without saying goodbye, I thought I might never see you again.” Tears dripped down her cheeks. “I know this idea sounds weird, but if we can make it work then I want to try. I don’t want to spend my life with regrets. I feel like for so much of my life, I’ve hidden from everything, too scared to do anything. Now, I’m going to be brave. I’m going to live. And I want to spend the rest of my life with both of you by my side.”
“I’ll never walk away again; this I promise you. This is it. Your only chance to get me to leave.”
She threw herself into his arms kissing the side of his chin as he held her tight.
“Oh, love, how I’ve longed to feel you in my arms. To have you here with me.” He lifted her off the ground, her feet dangling in the air. He set her down but kept her pressed into his side. He’d grown slightly tense as he stared at Issy.
She looked over at Issy, who appeared relaxed, his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the desk.
“You sure you’re okay with this?” Archer asked him.
“Jesus, I know you like to talk, but how many times do I have to say it? I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t sure.”
“You’re not jealous at the idea of sharing her?”
“Maybe when the idea first came up. I would be with anyone else. But it feels right to share her with you, brother.”
“Sharing’s caring,” she quipped.
Archer stared down at her with a frown. Grasping hold of her chin, he tilted her face. “There won’t be sharing with anyone else, love.”
“Definitely not,” Issy barked, scowling at her. “Just because I’m sharing you with my brother, doesn’t make me any less possessive of you.”
“Nor me.”
Oh dear. She hadn’t thought this part through. “I’m gonna be in double trouble now, aren’t I?”
Issy grinned. “Yep. It’s the perfect scenario. When I’m not around, Archer can keep an eye on you. Baby doll, with both of us taking care of you, you won’t even have the opportunity to get into trouble.”
She sighed like she was terribly put out but, on the inside, she was happy dancing. She’d never be alone again. She had the two men she loved and adored.
How had her luck changed so much? Was this fate handi
ng her happiness after so much shit and tragedy in her life?
“What about the fact that you live here and we live at Sanctuary? I know you have your job and that you love living in the city—”
He kissed her then drew back to smile down at her. “I’ve already handed in my notice for my job. And I am going to sell the penthouse.”
“You have?” she asked.
“Yep, Kent offered me a job a while back. I’ve taken him up on it.”
“That bastard never told me you’d accepted the job,” Issy grouched.
“I asked him not to.”
“So you’re moving to Sanctuary? With us?” she asked ecstatically.
“I am.”
Another thought occurred to her. She glanced up at Archer. “Are you okay with the, umm, with my Little,” she rushed out.
He frowned. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because you’re not a Daddy Dom.”
“Poppet, if you have to go into Little space, then that’s what you do. My job is to provide you with what you need.”
“What I need right now is to stop talking this to death,” Issy complained. “We’ve only got this room for another hour and I want to play. Besides, our girl here needs some stress relief.”
“I hope that’s a code word for orgasm.”
Archer sighed, shaking his head. “Such a naughty subbie. Did you even tell her the rules?”
“I did.” Issy grinned.
“Does she know how to find her position?” Archer asked in a deep, commanding voice. A shiver ran up her spine.
Position?
“Oh, you mean this? I’ve read about it lots.” She got onto her knees, straightened her spine and put her hands palm down on her thighs. Which she kept together.
“Not bad. You’ve never been to a club, have you?” Archer asked.
“No.”
“No, Sir.”
Her eyes widened and she glanced over at Issy who seemed to be happy to let Archer take the lead. “This is more his thing, baby doll. I learned early on that I was a Daddy Dom. While I’ve been to clubs, I prefer a more relaxed approach.”
Archer just snorted. “Relaxed is one way to describe it. As you know, Issy likes to do things his own way.”
Heal Me, Daddy Page 28
