“Lots of maybes here tonight, huh? We should probably charge them rent. Don’t you think?”
She snickered and rested her head back on his chest. Brayden wrapped both arms around her and pulled her close. God, he really liked having her here. If he wasn’t careful, he could really get addicted to Karina, and not just sexually.
Karina lowered her hand and picked at his pajama pants decorated with Mickey Mouse ears.
“Cute pants,” she said with amusement.
“Hey, don’t make fun of the mouse.”
She giggled and rested her hand back on his stomach.
“My sister got me these for Christmas last year as a joke. They’ve grown on me.”
Karina smiled and tilted her head back. “How’s Britney doing?”
Brayden frowned. “That’s right. I forgot you met her this past summer at the agency picnic. She’s doing well. She just started on the new animated movie.”
Karina sat up and lifted the sheet over her breasts. He immediately missed her body snuggled up next to his, and it took a lot of effort on his part not to pull her back.
“I think it’s so cool she gets to draw the characters.”
Brayden snickered. “I do too. But don’t tell her I said that. I have to have something to tease her about when she visits.”
Karina’s smile made his heart jump. He brushed the back of his fingers over her cheek. “Looks like you’re feeling better.”
“I am. Thanks for barging in. Did I make that much noise?”
He nodded, and Karina grimaced.
“At first, I thought you were masturbating.”
Her eyes went wide, and then she laughed. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
He smiled as he leaned back against the headboard. “Are you going to be okay, or do you need me to stay?”
“I’ll be fine. I’ll turn on a movie or…something.”
“All right,” he said with a sigh, then slapped his legs. “Guess I’ll get back to my room. All alone.” He grinned as he climbed from the bed and headed to the door that led back to his room. “Oh, by the way…” His grin widened as he stepped through the door. “Nice breasts.”
“Nice six pack,” she replied, her voice full of amusement.
“Wait until you see my dick.”
He heard Karina’s soft giggle as he shut the door and continued to smile all the way back to his bed.
Chapter Ten
Karina tossed the bags of clothes onto her bed with a tired sigh. After her nightmare last night, she’d gotten very little sleep. For a while after Brayden left, her body still hummed from his touch. She could still feel his arms around her, holding her, comforting her. God, she’d turned into such a damn comfort whore. If this didn’t stop, he’d think she was nothing but a weak crybaby.
“What on earth have you got in all those bags?” Brayden asked, his voice laced with amusement.
She jumped in surprise, then turned to see him leaning against the doorjamb of the adjoining door. He wore his usual slacks and button-down shirt, this one in light green. The top two buttons were undone, his tie probably still in the suitcase. Even when he wore one, he often wore it loose.
Shoving down her growing desire for him, she said, “It’s clothes for the club. Most of what I have is dominant stuff.”
He clucked his tongue. “And you didn’t take your Dom to help you choose the outfits? Bad sub, Karina.”
“Pfft. So, spank me.”
Brayden chuckled and pushed away from the door. “You liked that one too much. I think I need to come up with another punishment.”
She smiled softly at his teasing, but ignored his remark. “I was mostly bored this morning. Spending our days doing nothing is going to get old after a while, as well as hard on my bank account. Shopping because you’re bored isn’t cheap.”
Brayden pulled back the corner of one bag and peeked inside. “You should’ve put it on the cards NCIS gave you.”
She winced. “Not sure I want to explain the charges.”
Brayden let go of the bag and chuckled. “I see your point. Have you had dinner yet?”
“No. But I had a late lunch.”
“I still want you to eat something before we go to the club, even if it’s light. Especially if you’re going to drink, and from now on, I’m giving you a two drink limit.”
She gaped at him. “Hey. This Dom thing is just for show. You know that, right?”
He gave her a firm look. “Kay, you know I never let my subs get drunk. I want you sober. Period.”
She started to get angry, but changed her mind and backed down. He was right. She would never want her subs drunk either. If they had to get drunk to submit, then they didn’t need to be there. But weren’t her circumstances a little different?
Last night she felt like she needed to be at least a little tipsy, and that’s probably why she got so wet when he spanked her. Or at least that’s what she tried to tell herself.
Tonight she wouldn’t drink anything, and Brayden would find out just how sassy she could be.
As they walked into the club, Brayden had an incredibly hard time keeping his gaze off the sway of Karina’s ass. Her outfit was… Hell, what there was of it would have every Dom in the club salivating.
She looked like a Greek goddess with her hair pulled up and falling down her back in ringlet curls. She wore gold cuffs on each wrist that interestingly, could be locked together. Her top was shaped like a bra and pushed her breasts up enticingly. Beneath it, gold fringe circled her stomach and back. The skirt was nothing but thick gold fringe that barely covered her ass. Every time she walked, the fringe swayed, giving him glimpses of her tanned, firm behind. Finishing off the outfit were gold sandals with three inch heels that laced up her calves. She’d even painted her toenails gold.
Brayden had chuckled when he saw her feet. She’d shrugged and blamed it on being bored. Shoot, he could give her something to do to keep from being bored. It would be a long time before he got bored screwing around with Karina, if he ever did at all.
“Ah, there’s my favorite couple,” Master Delacroix said with a smile as he met up with them in the lobby.
Delacroix stepped forward and placed a kiss on Karina’s cheek. Brayden frowned slightly, not sure why Delacroix’s touching her bothered him so much.
“Master Delacroix,” Karina said with a grin. “I heard last night you’re quite good with a whip. Will there be a demonstration later?”
“I don’t know. Are you free?”
Brayden cleared his throat. Delacroix chuckled softly. “I don’t think your partner likes my teasing you very much.”
“I know,” Karina said with a sigh as she looked over at a frowning Brayden. “He can be a bit selfish at times when it comes to sharing his toys.”
Brayden wagged his finger between the two of their grinning faces. “I think both of you should be tied down and whipped.”
Delacroix’s chuckle deepened as he walked over and slapped Brayden on the shoulder. “Not in this lifetime, Master Brayden. Come on, I have someone I would like to introduce you to.”
He ushered Brayden into the playroom, Karina close behind. As they walked toward the bar, Delacroix asked softly. “How did it go last night?”
“Well. We have a few names we’re checking into.”
“Good. I’m trying to do a little digging myself. We’ll get together sometime next week for lunch and compare notes.”
Brayden nodded. “Sounds good.”
He glanced over his shoulder and saw Karina smile and wave at a group of submissives sitting on the couch in the center of the room. “Karina,” he said. She turned to him, still smiling. “You may go and spend time with the other submissives while I talk with the Doms.”
“Oh, may I, Master? Thank you, Master,” she replied in a sickly sweet voice that made Delacroix almost choke trying not to chuckle.
“Smart ass,” Brayden growled.
She smiled coyly, before heading off to the sitting area.<
br />
“Damn, she’s gonna be a handful,” Delacroix said, his voice laced with humor. “I must admit, I envy you. I actually enjoy a little smart ass in my sub. It makes the playtime more fun if you can always count on adding a little punishment in for their behavior.”
“Makes investigating a little hard, though, if I always have to punish her.”
Delacroix nodded in agreement. “That reminds me.” He tilted his head toward a small sitting area in the corner. “I’ll introduce you to Jamison here in a second.” They sat in the leather chairs facing the couch and leaned in close so they could talk quietly. “Have you thought about using Karina as bait?”
Brayden’s eyes narrowed as sudden protectiveness tightened his whole body. “No, Delacroix. We’re not going to do that.”
“Hear me out,” Delacroix said firmly. “The other FBI agents are not doing well. Two of the female agents have already backed out, saying the whole BDSM scene gives them the creeps. We can add extra detail to Karina, make sure she’s never left unobserved.”
Brayden sighed and dragged a hand down his face. Karina would have a flying duck fit.
“What’s the FBI doing about submissives?” Brayden asked, changing the subject off Karina for now.
“I brought in one of the subs from here. She’s been in the scene a long time and agreed to help out the FBI agent at the other club.”
“That still leaves one without a partner.”
Delacroix nodded. “I don’t think that’s going to be much of an issue. So far, all the murdered subs have come from the high-end clubs. Three from mine, two from the other at the south end of town, so they’re focusing on those.”
“I went over the files all day today. These women have absolutely nothing in common. There’s not one thing that ties them together, other than the clubs, and that’s not enough.”
“There’s one,” Delacroix said. “All the subs who were taken were brazen and sassy.”
Brayden frowned.
“I watch my club, Brayden. I keep an eye out for the subs, at least while they’re here. I remember those girls, and they behaved just like Karina.”
“Do you still think our unsub is submissive?” Brayden asked.
Delacroix nodded. “It’s a gut instinct. I have a PhD in Psychology with a heavy focus on criminal and abnormal behavior. My mother used to tell me I had the mind of a killer. I could often see things others at the FBI missed. I think that’s why they included me on this case. The FBI also doesn’t really understand BDSM. They don’t think to look for connections that you and I would see very quickly, because they don’t understand our world.”
Brayden nodded. “What about the girls that were taken from the other club?”
Delacroix shook his head. “Since neither one of us can release names without alerting our members, I haven’t talked to anyone from there, but I did send a couple of subs over to try to dig for some information, and they came back with the same conclusions. The two subs that were taken from the other club were also a little on the rebellious side.” Delacroix grinned. “Gossip can be a wonderful thing.”
“Who are these subs you’re sending over, Delacroix, and can you trust them?”
“I can trust these two. One of them is who I sent to work with the agent. The other is a police officer who has been here since we opened. Both understand the secrecy involved.”
Brayden gave a nod, but still frowned. Use Karina as bait? No way. But if Delacroix was right and their unsub went after sassy subs, then Karina could be a target just being herself.
“If what you said is true, that would mean our unsub is a member at both clubs,” Brayden said. “He would have to be to know which sub was sassy.”
Delacroix nodded. “Already ahead of you. The subs are looking for familiar faces.”
Brayden gave a nod. “Good. Have you told any of this to the FBI?”
“Yes, and since you haven’t heard from them, I see the FBI still isn’t the greatest at sharing information with other agencies, so I’m inviting them to join us at our lunch next week. We’re going to force them to be a little more open with NCIS.”
Brayden grinned. “Good luck with that. If you don’t mind my asking, why did you really leave the agency?”
A shadow passed over Delacroix’s eyes. “I missed something on a case. Something very important, and my submissive was caught in the crossfire.”
Brayden’s grin faded. “I’m sorry, Delacroix.”
Delacroix inclined his head in acknowledgement. “You have to move on, right?”
Brayden’s lips twitched slightly. “Yes. That you do.”
Delacroix waved his hand at a tall, blond man standing between two subs. “Jamison,” Delacroix called. “Come over and meet Master Brayden.”
Chapter Eleven
Karina relaxed against the sofa cushions, only half listening to the conversation around her. Was Delacroix right in thinking the man they were looking for was actually a submissive? Did it really make sense?
In some ways, it did—in some, it didn’t. If a submissive had been hurt by a Dom, it would make more sense for that sub to go after Doms, not submissives. But the mind didn’t always work the way you would think. Sometimes, a person did things completely backward.
Karina turned her gaze toward Brayden. He laughed at something the man near him said, and the deep baritone made her skin tingle. For the last several minutes, as scenes played out around her, she began to imagine herself in those scenes with Brayden. But this time, she pictured herself as the sub. Damned if that didn’t make her hotter.
Maybe she should do what Brayden suggested. Maybe she should use this time to experiment. She was supposed to play the role of a sub; perhaps she should just jump in with both feet and let herself get carried away.
She frowned. But there was still that bondage issue she needed to deal with.
The young sub sitting next to her grabbed her knee, giving it an excited squeeze. Karina looked at her to see what the problem was and found the sub’s gaze glued to Master Delacroix as he strolled toward them. Karina smiled slightly. It seems there wasn’t a sub in the place that didn’t do a little flip whenever Nathan Delacroix got close. And who could blame them?
With that long hair, those warm eyes, and that thick stubble, he looked like quite the dangerous and seductive bad boy. Tonight he looked absolutely scrumptious in black slacks and blood red shirt.
Karina stuck with her original assessment. Vampire.
She giggled softly as he approached. He stopped and grinned down at her. “Something funny, Karina?” he asked.
“I was just wondering when your fangs were going to appear.”
The girl sitting next to her gasped, but Delacroix actually laughed. “I would love to know how that rumor started, because I’ve never once broken the skin of a submissive with my teeth.”
Karina’s smile widened and the sub next to her actually relaxed. “I’m sure it’s nothing more than the image you portray. And most likely the hair.”
Delacroix shook his head. “Can I speak with you for a second?”
“Of course.”
Delacroix smiled down at the young submissive sitting next to Karina. “Wait for me here, Janie?”
She smiled and nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Good. I’ll be back shortly.”
With his hand at the small of her back, he led Karina to a small table close to the bar. “Is there a sub in this club that would say no to you?” she asked.
Delacroix smiled slightly. “Yes, and they have. I scare some of them.”
“Yeah, whips wouldn’t exactly turn me on, either.”
He chuckled. “Would you like something to drink?”
“No. I promised Brayden I wouldn’t tonight.”
Delacroix gave a nod and waved to the bartender. “Hey, Trey. Bring me a beer.”
Trey waved back, indicating he’d heard him, but continued with whatever drink he was making.
“Is something wrong?” Karina
asked.
Delacroix let out a slow breath before answering. “I was looking through the files the FBI sent. I saw Shandra’s, and I wanted you to know that I played with her the night she was taken.”
Karina’s mouth dropped open, then quickly closed. There was sadness in his eyes that surprised her. “You must’ve been the Dom she told me about.”
He raised an eyebrow and Karina explained. “I talked to her right before she came to the club. She was very excited about the possibly of catching the eye of a specific Dom. I’m assuming she meant you.”
“Did you know her well?” he asked.
Karina swallowed. “She was my best friend, but that isn’t common knowledge, Nathan. Don’t—”
He held his hand up. “I won’t say a word. Believe me. I understand. Tell me about her.”
“She got to you, didn’t she?” Karina asked, smiling softly.
He took the beer Trey handed him and nodded his thanks before turning back to Karina. “She was adorable. Her laugh is what caught my attention. That and those hazel eyes of hers.” He spun the bottle, staring at it sadly. “I thought about taking her home with me. I wanted to. Maybe if I had…” He shrugged.
“Don’t do that,” Karina said.
Delacroix nodded in agreement. “I know. I shouldn’t blame myself, but I do. How did you meet her?”
“Through JAG. She was a paralegal; I work homicide. We often talked about cases and upcoming trials. Like you, her laugh drew me in. She was so much fun and so smart. She had two degrees, one in business and one in political science. She was going for her law degree, but ran out of money. That’s when she enlisted in the Navy. JAG snapped her up right away, and she continued her education. She was only a semester away from taking the bar.”
Karina drew in a slow breath to keep the tears from taking over. “I was the one who got her into BDSM. One night we were drunk.” Karina smiled. “She started asking me about being a Domme and what it was like to be a submissive. I tied her up, put in a vibrator, and flogged her.”
Delacroix choked on his beer, making Karina giggle.
“Neither one of us swung that way, but we were both so drunk that it didn’t matter. At first she laughed, then she…she started enjoying it. I actually got her to orgasm, and it was like she’d discovered chocolate for the first time. After that, she was hooked. She started going to the clubs, experimenting, pushing her limits.” Tears gathered in Karina’s eyes. “She loved it. She loved life.”
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