No Going Back (Siren Publishing Allure)

by Redrae Gunn

  When Tayen tried to kick at some dream, Caleb locked his leg around hers. When she tried to punch some fiend, he secured her wrists in his hands. Finally when she tried to pull away, he pulled her back, laying her face down, and covered her with his own weight. “You’re safe, Tayen,” Caleb whispered. Tayen shuddered and went into a deep sleep, snoring just slightly.

  * * * *

  When Tayen woke, with the rising sun, she tried to pry herself from Caleb’s iron grip. “You’re okay, papoose. I’ve got you,” Caleb said in his sleep. Tayen giggled at the way he called her papoose, and Caleb opened his heavy eyelids.

  “I’m awake, Master,” Tayen said softly. Caleb’s eyes flew open, and his cock jumped against the back of her thigh when she called him Master. That had her giggling again. “Thank you for holding me, but I’m going to pee all over both of us if I don’t get up.”

  Reluctantly Caleb rolled off of her and watched her climb gracefully out of the makeshift bed he had put together for them. She hesitated.

  “Our list is in my pants pocket if you need to look at it,” Caleb offered, and Tayen grabbed it before running upstairs to her room. Caleb checked the clock. It was six thirty. He groaned and fell back to sleep. He woke slightly when he heard Tayen singing in the shower. She was belting out “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Caleb really groaned. David had been right. Tayen was disgustingly cheerful in the mornings.

  Caleb forced himself to put the sectional together and then headed down to his place to get ready for the day. He hadn’t had nearly enough sleep and had only slept well once Tayen had been in his arms. He looked at himself in the mirror and shook his head, scolding himself. He was not going to be able to give her what she needed, and he knew that.

  Caleb wouldn’t do the full-time Dominant thing ever again. There was nothing wrong with doing it at nights though. He continued to argue with himself for the next hour until he returned to David and Tayen’s home.

  Caleb rang the doorbell, and Tayen ran down the stairs dressed in the outfit David had set out. Pink, denim, midthigh shorts and a sleeveless, white, denim top that buttoned up the front and tapered to her waist. She also wore the white tennis shoes he had picked. She got to choose her own undergarments, including socks, so she had gone for white ankle socks that had pink skulls on them and sexy, white, lace matching bra and panties.

  Tayen nearly collided with a fifty-something, petite, thin, blonde woman who was wiping her hands on an apron. Tayen stopped dead in her tracks. David never had a woman in his house. What was a woman doing here?

  “Ms. Lone Wolf,” the woman said, smiling warm, blue eyes at Tayen, “I’ll get the door. Breakfast is nearly ready. I’ll show our guest to the kitchen, and then we can discuss your menu.”

  Tayen frowned and headed to the kitchen. She sat down at the island and saw that three plates had been set out. She wasn’t sure where to sit, so she took the chair furthest away from the living area.

  David breezed into the area behind Caleb, eyed the chairs at the table, and tapped the chair in the middle. Tayen moved to the middle stool and waited as Caleb and David took chairs on either side of her. The woman came back into the kitchen, shuffling pans, smiling, completely familiar with the kitchen.

  “Tayen, this is Ms. Cindy Bergan,” David began. “She is Chad’s sister. Chad’s wife passed away a while ago, and Cindy lives with Chad helping him to raise the four rugrats that he has. She is here on the weekdays from usually nine until one. She came in early today because we needed an early start. Once school starts for the kids, she will be here after she drops them off and will stay roughly four hours.”

  “Ms. Lone Wolf, I will need to know what you like to eat so I can start planning menus and do the grocery shopping,” Cindy said.

  “I’ll eat anything.” Tayen shrugged.

  “I told her you’d say that.” David tapped his finger on the counter. “So let me rephrase. Ms. Bergan needs to know what you prefer to eat. Corn Flakes every morning sounds pretty boring when you could be having Trix or Cocoa Pebbles.”

  Tayen’s eyes lit up at the thought of enjoying kids’ cereals. It was something that her ex-husband had said was void of nutrition and something she should’ve outgrown. What her ex didn’t understand was that she’d never had that type of cereal growing up, and if she enjoyed it as an adult it shouldn’t be a big deal.

  Cindy reached across the counter and patted Tayen’s hand. “I know this is a big adjustment for you, and I understand being nervous. I’m just here to help. The store has kept David so busy that it was finally my brother that recommended he hired me to at least dust the place. I was in between clients at the time, so it just fell into place.”

  “If you’re worried about Ms. Bergan knowing all about our fucked-up past,” David began, “she signed a nondisclosure agreement, and she has a great reputation.”

  “I also stop by the concierge desk on my way up, and this came for you.” Cindy handed Tayen an overnight envelope from Oregon.

  Tayen’s heart was racing. There was no way that her ex would’ve found her in four days. She pulled out the contents and saw that it was a notarized copy of her divorce decree. Tayen looked at David who was smiling.

  “I wanted to give you a great Independence Day,” David said. “You’ll need to go to the courthouse sometime today to get your new driver’s license. Better sooner than later with all the items coming. These are also yours.” David handed Tayen three different credit cards. “First is for your personal bank account, the one that you use for daily expenses. This one with the candle on it is for Wild Hearts, to pay expenses, order supplies, stuff like that.”

  David glanced at Tayen and then to Caleb who was quietly eating his breakfast. “Is anyone in the room uncomfortable with me discussing Tayen’s finances right now?”

  “Confidentiality,” Cindy reminded David immediately.

  “I’m fine,” Caleb said. “I might make her pay for sex though, if the price is right.” Caleb laughed, and Tayen slapped his arm.

  “I don’t think anyone here is interested in my money, David,” Tayen agreed. “It’s fine.”

  “This last card is an overflow account for your oil accounts and your inheritance account.” David was very serious. “Our accountant set up this account so that when the other accounts were at the FDIC limit then the overflow would go here. Problem is, you’ve been gone so long and the oil money has been so good that I’ve had to set up two other accounts. You’re close to having to do that again, and I know that there are things that you need. So you need to spend down this account.”

  “How much?” Tayen asked, amused by David’s financial savvy. The last time she had to spend down an account David had thought she’d go shopping, but instead she had contributed the entire amount to the Saint Bernard Rescue.

  “A hundred,” David said.

  “Hundred bucks?” Caleb asked.

  “Hundred thousand,” Tayen said to Caleb, her shoulders slumping forward as Caleb nearly choked on his orange juice. “By when?” Tayen asked David.

  “The fifteenth of this month,” David said apologetically. “But, Tay, princess, you need a vehicle that can get you up to Jeff’s. You know that Pris won’t make it close enough to his cabin, and Maska is expecting you this year.”

  “Maska said that?” Tayen smiled shyly. She had not seen Jeff’s father in four years.

  “His name is Master?” Caleb asked.

  Tayen turned to him and smiled then enunciated, “Mahs-kah.” Tayen’s faint accent came out, and Caleb nodded his head.

  “What’s it mean?” Caleb asked, and Tayen raised her eyebrows, shrugging her shoulders.

  “I’ve been trying to get her to tell me that for years,” David replied. “I’d do the Internet search, but I’m thinking that I would be disappointed if it meant ‘little squirrel’ or something. I guess the mystery of it just adds to his mystique.”

  “It sounds like a strong name,” Cindy offered, and
Tayen nodded her head. “What does your name mean?” Cindy asked. Tayen shook her head and smiled.

  “Again, I haven’t Googled it, because if your name means ‘bitch with sharp knife,’ I’ll have nightmares,” David said to Tayen.

  Tayen and Cindy laughed.

  “You also need a bike,” David broached the tender subject.

  “No shit,” Tayen spat. “What the fuck is he gonna do with a goddamned Harley? Prick, dick, asshole.” Tayen looked at everyone in the kitchen. “Sorry, the ex brings out the worst of my linguistic skills.”

  “Your vehicle will need to pull the bike and a trailer,” David said softly.

  “So that’ll be the hundred?” Tayen said.

  “Probably not,” David said, “but the rest you can donate to your favorite charity or transfer to your personal account to help with repairs when you visit Jeff.”

  “Maska won’t take my money. David, you know that,” Tayen replied.

  “You are creative when it comes to that.” David grinned. “I heard about you convincing him to finally get electricity and plumbing into every cabin on his land.”

  Tayen laughed. She hadn’t given the old coot a choice. She’d paid the price, but it had been worth it. Jeff and Maska were fishing and hunting guides in the Black Hills. The land that they owned drew tourists of all sorts. With the plumbing and electricity in the ten cabins they were able to charge triple what they had been. The income was good, though Maska hadn’t admitted it. He was pleased that she had done it.

  Tayen looked at Caleb. “Do you know much about cars, bikes, trailers?” Tayen asked.

  “Not really, Tayen. I’ve got to be honest,” Caleb admitted. “I just go with the recommendations from my staff and the sales person. I’ll go with you, of course.”

  “Thank you, Caleb, I’d like it very much if you could do that.” Tayen’s eyes narrowed, thinking. She turned to Cindy. “Is your brother available today?” Tayen asked.

  “Chad?” David called, and Mr. Bergan strolled into the kitchen smiling.

  “Yes, Mr. Gresham, I am available for the next few hours,” Chad replied. Then he turned to Caleb. “Will we be taking the Navigator, Mr. Wilson?”

  “We will,” Caleb replied without consulting Tayen.

  * * * *

  Two hours later Tayen arrived back at the apartment with her new Jeep. It was actually a used vehicle, blue, with a lift, big tires, extra suspension, and a tow package. With the warranty it was priced just as much as one of the newer models. The low-class salesman had balked when Tayen wanted to pay cash and the receipt cleared with the bank calling him for verification.

  The Harley she had purchased was a Cruiser, and Tayen knew, the moment that she sat on the bike, that it was the bike for her. It was just long enough in the legs, just wide enough at the shoulders, and just heavy enough for her liking. Tayen had wanted Caleb to ride behind her, but he refused, politely. Chad, however, had no problems hanging onto the sissy bar as the female navigated the machine.

  Tayen wanted to trailer the bike home, but she had ordered a special paint job with a wolf face looking upward, not howling at the moon, just looking at the sky. The words “Lone Wolf” were to be painted on the tail with a black circle in the words so some of the letters would be written in white. The bike would be ready in a week.

  Back home Tayen called Chad into the kitchen. Caleb had gone home to check his e-mail, and Tayen was relieved. Caleb wouldn’t understand. David would. David would tell her she was crazy but would let her do what she was about to do. Caleb wouldn’t have allowed it, and Tayen would’ve defied him when she did it anyway, thus ruining the forming relationship.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Chad said.

  “Do you have a garage?” Tayen asked. “A place where a vehicle could be stored?”

  “I do,” Chad replied. “Do you need a space?”

  “No, Mr. Bergan,” Tayen replied, sliding Pris’s title across the table. “I need you to sign as owner.”

  “Ms. Lone Wolf, I can’t do that,” Chad replied.

  “Do you know how I came by Pris?” Tayen asked. Chad shook his head “no.” “Then allow me to tell you. My father bought the car, off the lot, for five grand. He held onto her, loved her, until his wife and daughter, my mom and little sister, died. Then, when all the money ran out, he sold her for five grand to the first buyer, and then he drank himself to death on that money. For two years I lived with a drunk. He died when I was ten.”

  Tayen took a moment to compose herself and continued, “I worked for a couple of people around the area, including the person that bought my dad’s car. The car has good memories to me, my mom, dad, me, my sister, all of us taking rides in her. Anyway, I finally had the money to try to buy her back, and the guy looks at me, tears in his eyes, and tells me that he has been saving her for me and gifts her back to me.

  “Pris is my past, and I want her to be your future,” Tayen said. “She’s old, temperamental, a complete bitch to the core, but I am ready to move on. I need to move on and let it go. I want you to have her, but when you tell her story just please tell the story as it is. She was saved by someone I’d never met, for me, and she was saved by someone you’d never met, for you.”

  “Sales tax, Tayen,” Chad admitted.

  “I’m selling her to you for a hundred dollars,” Tayen said pointing to a piece of paper that was the bill of sale.

  “She’s worth at least sixty grand.” Chad shook his head, looking at the title.

  “Seventy plus, actually,” Tayen replied nonchalantly. “I’m paying it forward, okay? Sign the title and bill of sale, please.”

  With shaky hands, Chad signed both pieces of paper and agreed that the car would be removed from the parking space immediately. Chad stood for a while looking at the documents and the keys. Chad turned to Tayen and said, “I had the same car, bought it brand new.”

  “And?” Tayen asked, seeing the regret in Chad’s eyes.

  “Crashed her,” Chad replied. “We were on a gravel road. Two of my friends died in the crash. None of us were wearing seat belts. The police, it being the time and age, blamed it on the road, but I still think maybe it was my inexperienced driving. I’ve been forgiven by the families, but I can guarantee you right now, Tayen, I will not race her on the street, just like you wouldn’t.”

  “Thank you,” Tayen replied gently. “Pris has seen enough tragedy in her life. She deserves to retire gracefully.”

  Chad left the room cradling the documents in his hands.

  Tayen had little time to reflect on the loss of Pris because, just after Chad left, the movers showed up. The bed, dressers, and rugs were all in Tayen’s room, but the movers weren’t listening to her gentle suggestions. Caleb watched as his submissive princess transformed into the queen bitch.

  “I want the bed against the window,” Tayen said, her husky voice reverberating through the room. “I want the rug on the floor between the bed and the mirrored dresser which belongs over there.” Tayen pointed to the wall opposite of the bathroom. “TV goes here, angled, and the other dresser goes here.” Tayen pointed to the wall next to the bathroom.

  “We thought that this looked better,” one of the men said.

  “Sir”—Tayen sighed but attempted to be respectful—“did you fall asleep with a hole in the roof of your childhood home? Probably not. I did, and I take comfort in being able to see a piece of the sky when I fall asleep and when I rise, so please put the bed where I asked, and the rest of the furniture as well. I will move it myself if you don’t”—Tayen flexed her biceps for effect—“but then you wouldn’t get a tip.”

  That earned her a chuckle from the movers, and from then on everything went exactly where she wanted it.

  By the time the desks and computers were set up and ready to go in the upstairs office area, Tayen was at her wits’ end.

  Caleb called David to make sure he wasn’t going to be overstepping his bounds and that they were on the same page.

  “Spank her un
til she cries, fuck her until she comes, or make her work out. Start with free weights and then make her go for a swim. She’ll scream at everyone underwater,” David advised.

  Caleb’s Dominant wanted to make Tayen do the same, but just in a different order. First work out, then spank her till she cried, and finally fuck her until she came. They were definitely on the same page when it came to how to help Tayen get rid of her stress.

  “She can handle being in control, but she doesn’t like it very much,” Caleb said to David.

  “Now you know why I do what I do for my best friend,” David replied. “So fuck, spank, scream, one of the three, all of the three, it doesn’t matter to me, but she won’t join Sean and me for dinner unless she gets some of that emotion out of her system. Or if she joins us she won’t be very good company.” Then David had to go, and Caleb pondered his three choices.

  Chapter 4

  Once in the gym Tayen visibly relaxed. She started out with the punching bag and then headed to the free weights. She worked every muscle in her body for a good hour. Caleb watched her as he worked out on the machines. He preferred the free weights, but Tayen seemed to have gone to a different world. She was concentrating on her workout, but her thoughts were far away from the room. He let her be to fight her demons on her own.

  Caleb was happy just to watch Tayen’s hardened muscles flexing and contracting under her smooth skin. He imagined her body restrained on his bed contracting and flexing as he teased her and tested her limits. Caleb’s cock pushed impatiently against his shorts, and he decided that a swim in the pool was probably a good idea. He went to the locker room to change. When he came out, Tayen was sitting in a chair next to the locker room, breathing heavily.

  “Just wanted to let you know that I’m not disappearing,” Tayen panted. “I’m going to change for a swim also.”

  Caleb nodded his head, and soon Tayen joined him in a one-piece, navy-blue suit. She dove gracefully into the deep end and Caleb swore he could hear her screams coming up with be bubbles.