Theirs to Punish

by Renee Rose

  The Hollywood star had yet to arrive, though.

  Jesse Thomas, the presidential hopeful, entered with his entourage and made a polite sweep of the room, greeting his supporters. Of course, he had his own security detail, but the Magnifico took responsibility as well.

  Skye reported the status of all entrances, murmuring into the mouthpiece clipped under a swath of fabric at her shoulder.

  He’d selected his most trusted and experienced servers to work the party, and they made the rounds now with hors d’oeuvre platters and champagne.

  The doors swung open, and Savannah Duke waltzed in on her bodyguard’s arm.

  Skye saw her but didn’t stiffen this time.

  “You okay?”

  She turned a pair of cool blue eyes on him. “Yes,” she said, but pivoted and walked away from the movie star, toward a table of handcrafted Valentine’s chocolates.

  Seeing two of his servers huddled together gossiping, he excused himself from Skye to correct them. “I’ll be right back, love.”

  “Sure. I’ll be eating chocolate.” She flashed a sexy grin—half-naughty, half-goofy. He wanted to eat her.

  Talking to the servers took longer than he expected because it turned out three servers had called in sick with food poisoning, and his manager had put in some last minute replacements. There were the complaints about replacement staff not doing their jobs properly, typical when people were undertrained. He looked around the ballroom, trying to identify the replacements. He saw a couple of unfamiliar faces.

  A crash sounded behind him. He whirled to see a body flying through the air and their ninja slave diving after it. A server crashed to the floor, his tray spilling and champagne glasses smashing on the wood floor. A gun skidded along the parquet floor.

  Someone screamed.

  A man from Jesse Thomas’ security detail shouted, a gun drawn.

  Skye scrambled to her feet, snatched up the gun from the floor, and pointed it at the temple of the server, stopping him from his attempt to escape.

  Slowly, he raised his hands in the air.

  Things moved in slow motion as Joe strode briskly toward them. Skye’s lips moved, speaking into her comms unit. She kept the gun trained on the server but looked around the room as if there might be more trouble.

  Another server in a white coat made a sudden movement, and Alex drew a weapon, shouting, “Freeze!”

  In the corner, one of the security guys threw a third server against the wall.

  Shit. What a cluster fuck this entire event had been. They were never hosting a high profile campaign fundraising event at their casino again.

  Alex’s security team swept in in black suits, cuffing the three perps and hauling them swiftly out, knowing he and Joe would want them to minimize any kind of scene. He asked them to call the police and look into how the replacement staff had gained entry. It appeared someone had poisoned his regular staff members, but he wanted to know how these replacements got past their manager, or if the manager was part of the scheme.

  And then, of course, Savannah Duke swept over, all gasps and exclamations. “Skye! What’s happening?” She touched her heaving breast as if she had been threatened by a gunman.

  Skye looked at her coolly and shrugged. “I saw a gun on a waiter so I disarmed him.”

  He took her hand. “Thank you, Skye. You probably saved Jesse Thomas’ life, among others.”

  Savannah spluttered. “Well, that was...incredible. Absolutely incredible. I can’t believe you just”—she made a judo flipping motion with her arms—“tossed a man twice your size.”

  Skye gave a tight smile. “Years of judo lessons. Daddy thought he was paying for ballet.”

  Savannah gave a surprised bark of genuine laughter, which faded quickly when Skye didn’t join her. “Well, you look lovely, dear. That dress is beautiful on you.”

  Skye shrugged, still maintaining an alert watch on the entrances and exits. “Thanks.”

  An awkward silence fell between them.

  “I miss him, you know,” the older woman blurted. She covered her mouth with her fingers as if shocked she’d said something so personal.

  This time, Skye tensed, a muscle jumping near her eye. “I didn’t get to say good-bye.” It was more complaint than statement.

  Savannah blushed, and tears swam in her eyes. “I know, honey. I should’ve called you. He asked for you at the end—” Once more, she stopped, eyes round.

  Skye’s lips trembled. “Did he?” she whispered.

  Savannah nodded rapidly, as if relieved that the secret was out. “All the time. He always talked about you...he loved you more than anyone in the world. Even me.”

  Joe looped an arm around Skye’s waist and pulled her against his body for support.

  “I still have lots of your things at the house. Did you want to come and look through them? Or, I mean, I can keep them there for you, too. For whenever you need them. If you need them.”

  Skye molded her hand over his at her waist, squeezing it tightly. “I don’t care about those things. I can’t get that time back with my father.” Her voice wobbled.

  Savannah’s shoulders slumped, and she looked around as if to make an escape.

  “Well, we need to make the rounds. Enjoy your evening, Ms. Duke.” He steered his date away from Savannah. As they walked toward Alex, who strode purposefully in their direction, he dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “Still okay?”

  “Yes. I’d like to stay bitter, but she’s not going to change. All I can do is let it go.” She smiled up at him. “Thanks for helping me see that.”

  He smiled back.

  Alex met them in the middle of the dance floor. “I looks like Kacey, the manager, was part of the scheme. They found the poison she gave to our servers in her purse.” He glanced over at Savannah and lifted his chin. “How was she?” Alex looked ready to slay dragons for Skye.

  “I do believe our little ninja just took the power back in the relationship.”

  Alex cupped her upper arm. “Yeah?”

  “Savannah was falling all over herself to please our girl. I think she’s been feeling guilty over her misdeeds.”

  “And how’d it go for you, baby?”

  Skye laughed again. “It was okay...fine. Good, actually. I feel better.” She beamed up at Joe. “Thanks for the cane therapy earlier.”

  He grinned and winked. “My pleasure, if it wasn’t obvious.”

  “So, ninja…” Alex looked serious. They’d talked about discussing a future with Skye later, but it looked like he couldn’t hold it in. “We were wondering…” He switched off his microphone and hers. They obviously didn’t need the rest of the security staff listening in on their kinky relationship discussions. “I don’t know what your plans are after we set you free, but ah...I have a head of security position that needs filling. We were going to offer it even before you proved your value with that dramatic disarming just now.”

  Her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. “What? I mean, wait—” She shook her head. “Wow.”

  He probably looked as anxious as his brother did. Alex held up a hand. “No sexual obligations, of course. I mean, strictly business if that’s the way you want it.”

  She frowned. “Oh…”

  “Or as our permanent slave.” Joe jumped in to help. “What we’re saying, Skye, is that we’d like to keep you. Indefinitely. And we’re willing to negotiate on the terms of the contract.”

  Her smile lit up her beautiful face. They’d seen so few smiles from her. He didn’t know about Alex, but seeing it made him vow to do everything in his power to keep her happy. When he wasn’t torturing her to tears, that is.

  “So both positions are open?”

  “Excuse me?” Alex rubbed his palm over her arm.

  “Slave and head of security?”

  Both men grinned like idiots. “Precisely,” he said. “Do either of them entice you?”

  “Only if they’re a package deal. Both jobs. And both men.” She bit her lip
, her cheeks tinging a lovely shade of pink.

  He couldn’t help it, he pulled her up against his body and claimed her mouth, his tongue sweeping between her lips, tasting her sweetness. When they broke apart, she looked at Alex, guiltily. For appearances sake, they had agreed Skye would be Joe’s date in this highly public setting. Showing up as a threesome might shock some of the attendees, no matter how liberal they might be politically.

  Alex smirked. “Don’t worry, I’ll be taking my turn later. I hope you weren’t planning on getting any sleep tonight...”

  Skye flushed again.

  A server passed them, and he stopped her and took three glasses of champagne, passing them out. “To our little slave.”

  Alex clinked his glass. “The thief who stole our hearts.”

  She lifted her glass. “To new possibilities.”

  They brought their crystal to meet hers. “To new possibilities.”

  Please enjoy this free excerpt from Stepbrother Jerk by the incredibly hot BDSM author Natasha Knight.

  Stepbrother Jerk

  by

  Natasha Knight

  Synopsis

  My stepbrother could be a jerk. He hadn’t always been, at least, not at first, but things had changed over the five years we’d known each other, and this time, when I’d screwed up, he knew he had me.

  I got caught partying, again, and I knew the consequences, so when Jace offered me an out, I had no choice but to accept.

  His terms: one weekend of submission.

  To him.

  One weekend where he owned me.

  The thought of it, of me, at his mercy, burned. He knew it too, I could see it in the smirk on his face. But I agreed.

  I had no idea what lay in store for me, but the one thing I did not expect was that I’d like it. That I’d like his dominance. That I’d want it, want him, more than anything else in the world.

  Buy it Now on Amazon or Read For Free with Kindle Unlimited!

  Chapter One

  Jace

  It never fucking failed. The minute I opened my beer and sat down—finally—at one in the morning, after an entirely too long day, the doorbell rang. I glanced over into the hallway but didn’t bother getting up. Instead, I picked up the remote and turned on the TV. Maybe whoever it was would go away if I ignored them.

  Ding-dong.

  Nope. No such luck.

  Another ring, this time, two in quick succession.

  “I’m coming. Hold your horses, man.” Who could it be at this time of night anyway? When I reached the door, I looked out the side window to find a patrol car parked along the curb. Lights weren’t flashing though, which meant it was probably Mack.

  I sighed. This was getting old.

  I opened the door to find Lisa, my twenty-year-old stepsister, struggling to free herself of my friend Mack’s hold. He had her cuffed, though, so not sure what she thought she’d do when he let go of her.

  “Hey, Mack, good to see you”—I made a show of checking my watch, more for Lisa than for Mack—“at one in the morning.”

  “Jace.” Mack nodded. I knew our wealth intimidated him, but he could be such a prick. I’d known him throughout high school. We’d been in the same graduating class but on wholly different social spectrums. I’d been one of those kids everyone liked—students and teachers alike. Captain of the football team who could manage to score straight As with minimal study. It pissed people like Mack off. He’d had to work a hell of a lot harder and, for some reason, he always held it against me that he lived in a trailer park while I’d grown up in a mansion. I was never mean to the kid— told a bully to back off once—but all it got me was more resentment. And, now, he was a cop in our little town. Throwing all hundred and fifty pounds around whenever he could.

  Good news was, he had a crush on Lisa, who could always manage to find herself some trouble. Given my father’s high-profile government job, that wasn’t a good thing.

  “What did she do this time?” I asked, meeting Lisa’s glare as I did.

  “She got picked up on a bust. Pot, nothing major, but it’s her third time.” He gave her a chastising look, at which Lisa rolled her eyes.

  “Christ, Lees.” I shook my head. “Where the hell is your head?”

  “Screw you, Jace. What are you, my dad?”

  The palm of my hand itched to smack her ass as our eyes locked in battle.

  “I got to her before they could make the arrest,” Mack said.

  Translation: I did you another favor.

  “But this could cost me, man.”

  I expect a favor back.

  I only stood there staring at him like I didn’t follow. It always made him fucking nervous.

  “If I got caught, I mean,” he stammered, exactly like he used to in high school.

  I patted his arm. I could give him that. “You shouldn’t have done it, Mack. Maybe it would have taught her a lesson to be booked along with her criminal friends.” That last part was directed at my stepsister.

  “It was pot. I’m not some fucking criminal!”

  We both ignored her and Mack shrugged his shoulder. “Thought it might cause some trouble for your dad,” he said, oh so kindly.

  I didn’t have to say a word because Lisa shoved at him with her elbow then. He turned to her, the crush he’d had on her since high school still apparent in the way he looked at her now. Lisa, however, ungrateful spoiled brat she was, just gave him her signature “when hell freezes over” look.

  “I’ll get her out of the cuffs,” Mack said.

  “Good idea.” As much as I thought Lisa needed to learn the lesson a public arrest could teach, I also knew how bad that would be for my dad. He was up for re-election this term, and vultures waited around every corner for a story like this one to break him. The damage to him would not be worth the lesson she might not even learn.

  But then another idea did shine its light on me, one I’d jacked off to often in the last couple of years.

  Mack un-cuffed Lisa and handed her over. I took her by the arm. “Say thank you to Mack for his kindness, Lisa.”

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Lisa asked, looking from my face to where I held her arm, and back.

  “I’m trying to make a decent human being out of you. Now, say thank you so we can let Mack get back to work. He has an important job.”

  Her eyebrows went up and I almost busted a gut laughing with her right there. But it had been a long time since Lisa and I had shared a smile, much less a full out laugh. Instead, she turned an expressionless face to Mack and smiled the most bogus smile she could. “Thank you, officer,” she said, her voice sickly sweet.

  I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “I’ll take it from here, Mack.”

  “Have a good night.”

  “You know, I think I will. Thanks.” I dragged step-sis inside and closed the door.

  “Okay, big brother, you can let go of me now,” she mocked.

  I was pretty sure if you looked up spoiled brat in the urban dictionary, you’d find Lisa’s picture right beside the definition. You’d also find it alongside words like selfish, callous, and cold. And she’d been so sweet when I’d first met her. I guess a lot could change in five years. Well, it was high time she learned that lesson. Hell, it was beyond overdue.

  “Sure thing, sis.”

  She huffed, her eyes on mine, searching for something. The last few times she’d been picked up, I’d given her a talking-to, then, after much begging on her end, agreed not to tell her mother or my father. But, clearly, I’d been going about this the wrong way because it’s not like it worked. Not like she’d never done it again. And now she stood there, staring at me, looking a little confused for a moment before shrugging her shoulders and walking toward the staircase.

  “I’ll let Mom and Dad know about this little incident when they get home. Let them handle this. I’m sure it’s what they want to deal with after a night on the town. Guessing car privileges are first to go, right? Wasn’t that what it
was? Oh, but wait, with the pot….” I made a face as if thinking hard, but in reality, this was too damn easy. “I think that may impact allowance.”

  For a moment, albeit the briefest of moments, she looked almost innocent. Or scared. Probably the latter. I’d known Lisa for five years now. She’d been fifteen when my dad and her mom had introduced us, saying they were getting married. I’d been three years older and had a clue what was going on. My dad had been open about dating, and he and my mom had been divorced for years. Lisa, on the other hand, hadn’t had a single clue. Her mom had apparently told her a few minutes before introducing her to me and my dad, and I still remember the look on her face, how white she’d gone, how quiet. I remembered talking to her that night, and every night over the next few months. We’d gotten pretty close, but then, something had changed and that Lisa had disappeared, to be replaced by this one, this cold, calculating bitch who now stood glaring.

  She came back toward me, stumbling once on her way. Her gaze scanned me from head to toe. “What do you want, Jace?”

  “What do you mean?” I asked in my sweetest voice.

  “You always want something.”

  Well, that was true. But I was only human, and, in this case, what I wanted was for her as much as for me. Okay, maybe at the start, and perhaps during the execution of the plan forming in my head, it could be perceived as being more for me than for her, but ultimately, she’d reap the benefits, too. Although it would probably take her a while to see it that way.

  “What is it, money?”

  I gestured around me. This was my dad’s house. The money she was offering me came from him. I shook my head. “I’ve got more money than I know what to do with.”

  “Then, what? What do you want to keep this little incident between us?”