He took a final look in the mirror then exited the bathroom. His Master wore a white shirt that had to be silk. The top three buttons were undone, and the sleeves rolled up past the elbows. He raked his gaze over Steve and felt a small pang of disappointment when he saw he wore normal black slacks. “I’d hoped to see you in leather, too, Master.”
Steve laughed. His hand latched onto the jock and he hauled Matt closer. He took advantage of the closeness and his other hand reached around and swatted Matt’s bare ass.
“It’ll be a cold, dark, day in hell before I wear a pair of leather pants.”
“But you’d be so sexy, Master.” Matt placed both hands on Steve’s chest and batted his eyelashes. “What if I asked you really nicely?”
Steve gripped a handful of Matt’s ass. He kept his voice low when he spoke, and it sent a thrill through Matt. “You can ask all you want, my sweet boy, but that doesn’t mean Master will say yes.”
Matt grinned and pressed a kiss to Steve’s lips. “You’d look so hot in them.”
“No one will be looking at me, tonight, darling,” Steve’s gaze darkened with lust. “Everyone will be looking at you. God,” he breathed. “Look at you. You’re stunning.”
Matt blushed. “Thank you, Master.”
“Follow me, I have something for you before we get going.”
Matt followed Steve to his room, which Steve insisted was their room, and opened the top drawer of his dresser.
“You don’t have to wear this all the time, but you do need to wear it when we go to the club.”
Shit. A collar. Matt couldn’t feel his body. Steve had a collar in his hands. An actual, for real, you’re mine and I don’t care who knows it, collar. Other people might be put off if someone wanted to wrap a collar around their neck, but Matt wanted this. He wanted everyone to know that he belonged to Steve. He couldn’t wait to feel the leather brush against his throat. He couldn’t wait for Steve to fasten it in place. He loved the marks Steve left on his body, but marks fade. A collar could stay on…well, forever.
He pulled himself back from his fantasy just in time. This wasn’t a real collar. This was a play collar. An uncollared sub was available to play. Steve wanted to keep him safe, nothing more. He might love him but collaring him would be a huge step. But Matt could pretend, at least for a while, that this collar was more real and more permanent than it was.
“I understand, Master.”
The leather touched the back of Matt’s neck first and goosebumps exploded out of his skin. It might have only been a play collar, a temporary prop for a night of play, but it didn’t feel that way. Not with the way Steve looked at him. Adoration. Respect. Desire. Lust. Steve held it all in his impossibly dark eyes.
“I offer you this collar as a symbol of my love and protection,” Steve said as he fastened it around Matt’s throat.
“Thank you, Master.”
Steve’s fingers fluttered up Matt’s throat and wrapped his strong hand around the back of Matt’s neck. “You understand that I’ll love and protect you with or without this collar, though, don’t you, Matt?”
Matt. Not Matty or darling or his sweet boy. Matt. Him. Steve loved him and wanted to protect him. Matt swallowed a lump of emotion. He refused to cry before their first official visit to the club. He wanted to be perfect for his Master. “I understand. Thank you, Master. I love you, too.”
Steve stole a quick and uncharacteristically chaste kiss before helping Matt slip into a pair of loose fitting track pants and a T-shirt. “Come on. It’s time to go.”
Matt took a step and hesitated. “Master? I’m…I don’t want to disappoint you.”
Steve’s eyebrows pinched together. “What’s wrong, Matty?”
“What if I mess up? I don’t want to embarrass you.”
“Oh, Matty, you could never embarrass me. I know you’re not a properly trained submissive. We’re both new at this kind of relationship. I’ve never had a full-time submissive slash live-in boyfriend and you’ve never had a Master. It’s okay. We’re both going to make mistakes, but I don’t want you to worry about that. That’s my job. Your job, your only job, is to listen to me, okay, darling?”
“Okay, Master.”
Steve took Matt’s hand and laced their fingers together. “Both of us are in this, Matty. I know I’m the Master and you’re the submissive, but we’re equals in this. I might take charge, but that doesn’t make you less important than me. I take charge because I like it. I need it. But I also do it because you like it and you need it. Neither of us are more important than the other. So if you forget and you look me in the eyes that’s okay. If you walk next to me instead of behind me, I’m not going to punish you and you won’t embarrass me. All you have to do is relax and listen to me. Okay?”
“It’s more than okay, Master.” Matt squeezed Steve’s hand. “We’re going to be late if we don’t leave now, Master.”
Matt had read a million books about a sub walking into a club with his Dom, but nothing, nothing, compared to the actual experience. Matt knew he should look down at the floor, but he couldn’t make himself behave. He wanted to see everything. He wanted to engrave every last detail into his memory so he could relive these moments for the rest of his life.
Naked men. Leather. Laughter. Love. Sex. Matt saw it all, but nothing compared to his Master. Even fully dressed, Steve looked amazing. Though Matt did sort of wish, he’d at least ditch the shirt if he wasn’t going to wear leather pants. Then Steve looked at Matt and Matt realized that he didn’t need to be naked. He didn’t want his Master bared for all to see. He was glad, in that moment, that Steve had left the shirt on. He didn’t want anyone to ogle his Master.
Steve laced their fingers together and brought Matt’s knuckles up to Steve’s lips. He brushed a kiss against Matt’s hand. “Are you ready, Matty?”
Matt exhaled and hoped his nerves didn’t make him say or do anything stupid or embarrassing. “Yes, Master.”
“Remember the rules we talked about in the car?”
Matt nodded. “My only command is to listen to my Master and do exactly as he says.”
“Good boy,” Steve smiled at him, then schooled his expression, though happiness still danced in his eyes. “Let’s go get a table.”
Matt dropped his gaze and let his Master lead him through the club. He felt the eyes on him. It might have only been one gaze, but it felt like a thousand. His skin heated. Equal parts embarrassment and excitement coursed through Matt’s veins. His skin tingled. His body thrummed. He couldn’t think. His head swam for a moment, then he heard his Master’s voice and he realized that he didn’t have to think. He only had to listen.
He followed his Master through the club. He ignored the pulsing music. He ignored the people who approached his Master. If he had been asked to repeat anything they said, he’d be at a loss. The only person in the room was his Master.
Steve brought Matt over to a table in the corner. It was the perfect seat. From this vantage point they could see the stage, the bar, and the front doors.
“Kneel.”
Matt obediently lowered himself down to the floor. He kept his chin tilted to his chest and his eyes down. Steve sat down next to him. He put his hand on Matt’s shoulder. “You’re doing so good, my sweet boy.”
Matt couldn’t help it. He had to look at Steve. His words warmed Matt’s insides, but he craved the look on Steve’s face, his Master’s face. Matt raised his gaze and was rendered breathless at pride and adoration that oozed out of Steve. “Thank you, Master.” The words were barely a whisper.
Matt dropped his gaze when a waiter approached. He tried not to smile when he heard Brad’s voice. Everyone at the club and the restaurant knew that Steve and Matt were together now, but Matt hadn’t so much as heard a whisper from anyone about it. Steve coveted his privacy and wasn’t about to let his staff gossip. It had been another way he protected Matt.
Matt knelt, head bowed, silent and still and the world faded away around him. Ev
ery so often his Master would reach down and slip his fingers through Matt’s floppy brown hair or touch his shoulder. He’d whisper little words of praise, but for the most part, they existed together in a bubble of bliss that lasted until Brad returned with dinner and drinks.
“Stand up, Matty.”
Matt stood as gracefully as he could, which turned out to not be graceful at all. He stumbled and swayed into Steve, who wrapped an arm around him and hauled him into his lap.
Steve chuckled into the crook of Matt’s neck. “You read my mind, Matty.” Steve plucked a cube of cheese off the plate and held it up. “Eat up, sweet boy. You’ll need your strength.”
Matt leaned forward and carefully plucked the cube of cheese from Steve’s fingers. Steve cradled Matt against him the way he often did when they were home together. Being held by Steve had become one of Matt’s favorite things. Sure, he loved all the things they did together, but being in Steve’s arms always transcended everything else. In Steve’s arms nothing and no one could touch him.
Matt relaxed and let his head lean against Steve’s shoulder. He wished he could see his Master’s face.
“Everyone is looking at us, Matty.” Steve whispered in Matt’s ear as he offered him a grape. “Do you know what they’re thinking?”
“No, Master.” Matt dutifully ate the grape. He eyed the empty plate and knew that something would happen soon.
“They’re jealous.”
“They’re jealous of me.” Matt agreed. Everyone wanted Steve. It drove him crazy. It always had. The way everyone would look at Steve. The subs at the soft launch for the club were the worst. It had been what prompted him to quit his job and go after Steve. He simply couldn’t handle watching other people flirt with him when he had been totally off limits.
“No, my darling.” Steve’s hand stroked down Matt’s bare chest. “They’re jealous of me. Everyone in this club is looking at me and wondering how I got so lucky.”
The idea was preposterous. That anyone would be jealous of his Master, it was…unfathomable. “Master, I…”
“Shhhh.” Steve hushed him. “Look around, Matty. Look at their faces.” Steve slid his hand lower. He cupped Matt’s erection. “They want you, Matty. They want you and your sweet submission. They want to feel your smooth skin.” Steve dragged his hand back up Matt’s body.
Matt’s chest heaved. He took shallow breaths and did as his Master said. Matt looked around and tried to imagine that Steve had been right, and all the people in the room wanted Matt and not Steve.
“I think they’re jealous of both of us, Master.”
“Mmm. I think you’re right.” Steve’s hand slid up to Matt’s throat. His fingers wrapped around it and squeezed.
The minuscule pressure pinned Matt in place. Lust rocketed through him and he felt a kind of desperation he never knew existed. If his Master wanted to bend him over the table and fuck him, right now, in front of everyone, he’d not only welcome it, he’d beg for it.
“Are you ready to play, darling?”
“Yes, Master.”
“Stand up, boy.”
Matt carefully rose to his feet. He stayed in place, arms loose at his sides. His fingers drummed against his bare legs while he waited for his next command.
Steve got up and Matt followed Steve through the club, up the stairs to the brand new private rooms. Before Steve bought the club, the upstairs had been nothing more than a storage space. The upstairs renovations were completed first, then a kitchen had been installed downstairs where the playrooms used to be.
Matt hadn’t been in the new playrooms. He found himself wondering, as Steve peeled a reserved sign off one of the doors and unlocked it, if someone could actually die from anticipation.
The door opened, and Matt followed Steve inside.
It was pretty much exactly as he expected it to be. He recognized some of the furniture. The St. Andrews cross and the spanking bench in particular. A bed and a mini fridge sat at the far end of the room. A large cabinet took up much of one wall. Matt guessed that was where the toys must be kept.
“What do you think?” Steve asked as he smoothed a hand down Matt’s spine.
Steve was being careful with him, Matt realized. Treating him like an animal that he was afraid of spooking in case it bolted. He wanted to laugh. It wasn’t far off the truth.
“It’s…awesome, and thrilling, and also kind of scary, Master.” The confession itself served to ease some of Matt’s stress. Steve would look after him and keep him safe, just as he’d always done. Matt exhaled.
“Do you remember your safe words, Matty?”
Matt took a deep breath. Steve’s hand slid across Matt’s lower back. Steve’s touch grounded Matt, and the tension left his shoulders. “Red for stop. Yellow for slow, Master.”
Steve gripped a handful of Matt’s ass and squeezed. “Ready, boy?”
“Yes, Master.”
Steve circled around to face Matt. “Give Master a kiss.”
Matt’s fingers twitched at his sides. What kind of kiss? Chaste? Brutal? Tongue? No tongue? Matt ran his tongue along his lower lip as he leaned in. He supposed it didn’t matter. Master asked for a kiss. All he had to do was obey.
Matt brushed his lips against Steve’s. Matt kept the kiss soft and chaste and when it ended, his Master looked at him. Delight glimmered in his eyes.
“That was perfect.” Steve said.
It had been better than perfect. It had been pure bliss.
Chapter Twelve
Steve
Steve kept a close eye on Matt. His nerves had ratcheted up the moment they stepped into the room, but he seemed calmer now. Even if they only stood the middle of the room and made out like a pair of horny teenagers, Steve would be more than satisfied. If Matt wasn’t ready for more, Steve would wait. But his boy was beautiful and sweetly submissive; a lovely combination of nervous and eager, leaning more toward the latter.
“Close your eyes, Matty.”
Steve took a moment to admire Matt’s mostly naked body before crossing the room to collect what he needed. He’d spent days thinking about his first trip to the playroom with Matt. He wanted this scene to be perfect. He wanted to push Matt’s limits, but he didn’t want to scare him. He knew Matt had read about BDSM but reading and experiencing were two different things. It was one thing to imagine how a paddle would feel on your naked ass. Feeling the bloom of heat spread across your skin would be another thing entirely.
Steve palmed his first item and went back to Matt. He smoothed his hand across Matt’s chest. He wished he would’ve thought to ask Matt to slather himself in that glittery stuff he’d had on all those weeks ago. Steve wouldn’t even care if it ended up sticking to his own skin by the end of the night. He smiled at that. He could let Matt mark him with his glitter. He wondered if his sweet boy would like that.
Steve let his hands roam freely over Matt’s body. The more he touched Matt, the more Matt relaxed. Steve grinned and leaned down. Matt jumped when he swiped his tongue over Matt’s nipple. Steve swirled his tongue over the sensitive nub until Matt stood there, gasping and keening.
“I love how vocal you are, Matty.”
Matt groaned, and the sound travelled straight down to Steve’s dick. His boy made the most beautiful sounds when he was desperate. Steve flicked Matt’s nipple with his tongue then moved to the other one. He sucked Matt’s nipple into his mouth, then dragged his teeth over the sensitive skin.
“Ung. Fuck. That’s good. So good, Master.”
Matt’s neck had turned a delicious shade of lust-fuelled pink. It started to spread down his chest. Steve gave Matt’s nipple a final lick.
“Deep breath,” Steve said. That had been all the warning Matt got before Steve attached a clamp to each of his nipples. Steve placed his hand in the center of Matt’s heaving chest. “Breathe, boy. It’s okay.”
Matt gasped, gulped, and panted, but the flush of lust bloomed on his chest. He stood, swaying only slightly, leaning a little into S
teve’s touch.
“How are you feeling, Matty?”
“Amazing. Thank you, Master.” Matt’s voice was thick with lust and desperation.
Steve brought his other hand up and cupped Matt’s cheek. “You should see yourself, Matty. You’re so beautiful.” Steve pressed a gentle kiss to Matt’s lips. Matt trembled against him. “Open your eyes, Matty.”
Matty’s beautiful blue eyes blinked at him.
Steve took Matt by the hands and lead him over to the spanking bench.
“Do you know what this is?” Steve asked.
“It’s a…spanking bench, Master.” Matt licked his lips and stared at the piece of furniture with absolute awe in his eyes. His boy loved the idea.
“Put your hands on it. Spread your feet shoulder width apart.”
Matt obeyed without hesitation. He looked as eager for this as Steve felt.
“Arch your back and stick your ass out a little more.”
Matt arranged himself as specified. “Like this, Master?”
Steve slid his hand down Matt’s spine and over the curve of his ass. “You’re perfect.”
“Are you going to…spank me, Master?”
Steve gave Matt a playful swat on the cheek of his ass. “Is it your place to question your Master, Matty?”
“No, Master.”
Steve leaned over and dragged his mouth across Matt’s bare shoulder. He nipped at Matt’s earlobe. Matt panted. His head tilted to offer Steve better access to the slope of his neck, but that’s not the part of Matt that Steve wanted his mouth on.
Steve reached back let his fingers slide slowly down the crease of Matt’s ass. He kissed Matt’s shoulder blade. He dragged his tongue down Matt’s spine as he moved behind him. Steve rested his hands on Matt’s hips. His fingers tucked under the band of his leather jock. He loved how hot Matty looked in it. He personally hated wearing leather, but he loved how it looked on Matt.
“You have no idea how much I want you, do you?” Steve asked. He peppered more kisses down Matt’s spine. Steve’s hands slid to the fleshy globes of Matt’s ass and he gave them a hard squeeze. Matt groaned, and his head dropped down to hang loosely between his shoulders.
What He Craves: Desires Book 2 Page 9
