The Effing List

by Cherise Sinclair

  “Shit, lezzie, you know you want this.” The ginger-haired man ran the back of his hand down her breast. “Want some man-meat.”

  “Leave her alone.” Valerie spoke in the tone she’d used with her teenagers when they’d exceeded her tolerance. “Back off.”

  Both men froze.

  Turning, they saw her bare feet, marking her as submissive. Their expressions turned mean.

  “Bitch, you’re my mom’s age.” The muscular Dom named Piers shot her the finger. “Should you even be here?”

  The remark about her age brought the familiar wave of doubt, but she pushed past it. Reaching between the two, she grabbed Natalia’s arm and pulled her close.

  Both men moved in, looming over Valerie and—

  “Is there a problem here?” Ghost’s rough, deep voice made the pushy bastards jump and spin.

  “Nah, just talkin’.” Blond Uttley edged back a step.

  The muscle-bound redhead crossed his arms over his big chest, flexing his biceps. “None of your business anyways.”

  “Since he’s the manager, it is,” Valerie said calmly and turned to Ghost. “These two cornered Natalia.” She pointed to Uttley. “He pulled her hair. After she told them to go away or she’d call a DM, the other one touched her breast. They also said, and I’m quoting”—Valerie thanked her excellent memory— “ ‘Look, it’s a brown subbie, all alone with no lezzie lover. And aww, maybe she needs some dick to bring her back to the right side.’ ”

  Ghost’s face held as much softness as a stone wall. “Thank you. I appreciate the information.” He smiled at Natalia, then said to Valerie, “Please stay with her while I speak with the men.”

  “Of course.”

  Ghost turned to the jerks. “Let’s chat in the entry where it’s calmer.”

  “Yeah, no,” Uttley spat. “Get ’im, Piers.”

  Even as terror froze Valerie, Piers lunged forward, swinging at Ghost.

  Ghost blocked and delivered one, then another punch to the solar plexus. With a gut-wrenching sound, Piers dropped to his knees.

  “Fuck. Shit.” Expression contorted with pain, Piers was folded in half, even as Ghost pulled him back up.

  He tried to yank away.

  “Don’t fuck with a sadist, boy,” Ghost growled.

  “You asshole.” Uttley moved forward.

  Letting go of Natalia, Valerie sucked in a breath and lifted her fists.

  And someone slapped a big hand on Uttley’s shoulder, yanking him to a stop.

  Valerie blinked at the size of the new arrival. He was as big as Cullen with shoulder-length white-blond hair.

  “Thank you, Saxon,” Ghost said quietly to the blond. “Escort him out, please.”

  “Aye, aye.” Saxon turned an icy cold blue gaze on Uttley. “Let’s go.”

  Smoothly, quietly, the two effing jerks were herded to the front and out the door. Piers would have fallen if Ghost hadn’t kept him moving forward.

  The Colonel was scary.

  Valerie pulled in a long breath, then smiled at Natalia. “Well, they handled the creepers quite efficiently, didn’t they?”

  Natalia stared at her.

  “Easy, honey.” Valerie put an arm around the young woman and could feel her shake. “It’s over. I don’t think those guys will be allowed back in. Let’s go sit somewhere.”

  As she guided Natalia toward the quieter area in the back, two women hurried up.

  Valerie recognized the strawberry blonde with blue and green streaks in her hair as the submissive Linda had pointed out. Gabi, the one who liked to sass her Dom.

  Carrying a tray with drinks, the other was slender and black-haired with startlingly blue eyes.

  Wait, she’d been at Ghost’s housewarming. She’d been with the very muscular Hispanic Master. And had the sweetest big dog. Ari.

  Wasn’t it embarrassing to remember pet names better than people names?

  “Hey, you two.” Gabi took Natalia’s hand. “Josie sent me and Kim over as comfort crew. Let’s find a spot to recover.”

  So, Kim was the black-haired one. She led the way toward the quieter back of the room where tall containers of plants created a secluded sitting area.

  Gabi plunked down in a chair.

  Since Natalia had a death grip on her hand, Valerie seated them both on a couch.

  “Valerie, in case you don’t remember everyone from the housewarming, I’m Kim and she’s Gabi.” Kim handed out drinks. “Josie said you’d probably prefer non-alcoholic.”

  “She’s an amazing bartender, isn’t she?” Valerie took a sip of the orange and cranberry juice mix. The soda water had added a refreshing fizz.

  “Me, I’m ready for alcohol most definitely.” Natalia took several hefty gulps before letting go of Valerie. “I’m such a clinging vine. Thank you for the rescue.”

  “You stood up for yourself; you were simply outnumbered.” Valerie patted her hand. “And we were both outweighed. It’s good Ghost showed up.”

  “They’re all watching for this kind of bullshit. I bet Ghost is delighted he has the authority to deal with it now.” Gabi grinned. Adorable baby bat tattoos on her upper arms went well with her slinky black top and shorts. “He sure has an effective punch. Did you see the way Piers went down?”

  Kim shook her head. “For a nice social worker, you sure have a brutal side. I like how quietly he and Saxon escorted the creeps out.”

  Valerie shook her head. “I don’t think I’d argue with either Ghost or the huge blond.”

  Gabi laughed. “Saxon’s mama must have known he’d grow up to resemble a Viking warrior.”

  Natalia nodded, then pulled in a breath and gave Kim a somewhat wavery smile. “So how was Cuba? Master Raoul was designing some fancy bridge in Havana, right?”

  “It’s so beautiful there.” Kim’s eyes turned dreamy. “Only I got carried away and spent so much money on souvenirs that Master started cursing…in Spanish, which is a really bad sign.”

  Her happy expression showed she hadn’t fallen into too much trouble.

  “I want to be a tourist,” Gabi whined. “How’d I end up with a lawyer who only travels to the courthouse and back?”

  “Neener-neener, my Master’s better than yours,” Kim sing-songed. Her smug expression spoke of long friendship. After snickering at Gabi’s muttered, “Is not,” she turned to Natalia. “When I left, you were with Mistress Olivia, but she would never let you wander around alone. Are you…”

  When Natalia’s eyes filled with tears, Kim faltered.

  “She broke up with me,” Natalia whispered.

  Gabi frowned. “That’s what I heard, but I’m still surprised. From the outside, you two looked really good together.” The question of what had happened hung in the air.

  When Natalia slumped, Valerie wrapped an arm around her. The young woman couldn’t be more than a few years older than her daughter.

  “I don’t know why Olivia… I thought we were happy, that she was happy.” Natalia’s breathing hitched, and a tear spilled over. “I don’t know what I did.”

  Oh, now that didn’t sound right.

  Gabi rose and brought back tissues from one of the service stands located throughout the club.

  Natalia wiped her face and pulled in another breath. “Everything was fine, and then one day, she came home, and I had supper ready since it was my day, and she stared at me, all cold and hard, and told me to pack my stuff and get out. It was over, and she was done. While I was asking her why, begging her to tell me what was wrong, she walked out. I waited and waited, but she didn’t come back, so I moved my stuff out. She doesn’t even talk to me now.”

  “For heaven’s sake,” Kim murmured. “I always thought Olivia was the reasonable one of the Dominants.”

  Gabi frowned. “This doesn’t sound like an I’m-bored-and-over-it breakup. Her rant sounds more like a you-hurt-me-and-I’m-furious one.”

  “Hmm.” Valerie’s own breakup hadn’t been sudden. Despite her dislike of quarreling, s
he had at least let Barry know she was unhappy. He’d been surprised about the divorce, but it hadn’t come out of the blue. “She sounds as if something unexpected set her off.”

  “B-but I’d never hurt her.” Natalia cried silently, tears streaking her face. “I wouldn’t. Couldn’t.”

  It was perfectly clear she still loved the Domme.

  “You deserve an explanation, at the very least.” Gabi tapped her finger on her leg. “I know all that authority is difficult to confront…”

  “Not difficult for you, maybe.” Kim snorted. “The rest of us, yes.”

  Gabi wrinkled her nose at her friend and continued, “The Mistress isn’t being fair.”

  “But she won’t talk to me.”

  The blunt statement silenced them all.

  What could they do to get Natalia an answer? To get Olivia to speak to her?

  Would Ghost know? He certainly had experience in this stuff. Although, relationship problems were probably not within his managerial duties. Still, Olivia was one of the club’s big shots. A Mistress. “You might…” Valerie bit her lip as she tried to think of the ramifications.

  “Might what?” Gabi encouraged.

  “Might tackle Olivia here at the club in front of the other Masters and Mistresses—especially Ghost.”

  The three women stared wide-eyed at Valerie.

  “Wait, no, I don’t mean physically tackle, right?” Valerie waved her hand in the air. “I mean verbally confront Olivia.”

  The three were still staring at her.

  “Bad idea, huh?”

  “Actually, no. Although the vision of Natalia actually wrestling the Mistress to the ground was priceless.” Gabi grinned. “But verbally…yes. Do it in front of Master Z, too.”

  Kim snorted a laugh. “God, yes. Seriously, do it. If she doesn’t talk to you right away, Master Z or Ghost will have a chat with her. I don’t know the Colonel very well, but something tells me he might be as meddlesome as Master Z.”

  Natalia’s eyes were wide. “Are you all crazy?”

  “No, not at all.” Kim tapped her chin, calculating. “When there’s a group of them at the bar—especially Ghost and Master Z—walk up and talk to her. Make your voice loud enough that others can hear. You won’t have to shout. The Masters are all nosy, I swear.”

  “I…” Natalia’s brown eyes showed a hint of hope. “I might. Maybe. I’ll think about it. She’s not here right now, anyway.”

  As Gabi turned the conversation to something mundane, Valerie heard a voice she’d been listening for. The raw, deep voice of Ghost.

  “…how to add an extra kick to impact play? Certainly. Makes it more fun,” he was saying from the closest scene area.

  She moved to her left, and yes, there he was, talking to a younger Dom who held a flogger. A female submissive was tied to a St. Andrew’s cross. After Ghost talked to her for a minute, the woman nodded.

  Getting consent?

  He motioned to the other Dom, who started flogging the woman in an unchanging pattern up and down her back and ass.

  Then Ghost took the flogger and…Valerie’s eyes widened as the pattern disappeared. The flogging was still rhythmic, but the intensity varied, lighter here and there. A big whap on the ass sent the submissive up on her tiptoes. Harder, harder, and back to a light rhythm. Then he stopped and rubbed the reddened areas and scratched his fingers down her back. He resumed the flogging for a while, then sprayed her with something that made her scream.

  Both Doms grinned.

  Valerie swallowed hard, feeling the prickle of arousal deep inside. How could it be so sexy that he liked to hear someone scream?

  Ghost picked up a cane, using it on the submissive’s thighs, her ass, and dear gods, ran sandpaper over the marks before starting again.

  The bottom was moving, trying to escape even while making needy sounds.

  “…him work, too,” Gabi was saying.

  Valerie startled, realizing she’d totally lost track of where she was. “Um, what?”

  Gabi grinned. “I love watching the Colonel work. He’s really good.”

  “Definitely has a sadistic edge to his play, though,” Kim noted as Ghost lifted something resembling a tiny pizza cutter with spikes on the wheel.

  When he started running it over the submissive’s back, her voice rose higher.

  Valerie swallowed, appalled at what he was doing…and even more appalled at the way her own skin grew sensitive.

  And dammit, she was definitely damp between the legs.

  Smiling, Ghost clapped the Dom on the shoulder and turned.

  His eyes met Valerie’s.

  Caught. Totally caught staring at him.

  His gaze swept over her, and one corner of his mouth turned up.

  Anticipation shivered over her skin as he headed straight for their group.

  Stepping into the sitting area, he was totally at ease. “Ladies. Might I steal Valerie away?” He caught sight of Natalia who was wiping her cheeks, and his dark brows came together. “Natalia, is—”

  Natalia held up her hands, palms out. “No, no, I’m fine. Just talking. That’s all. Go, Valerie. She’s coming, Sir.”

  “What?” Valerie widened her eyes. “You’re tossing me under the bus?”

  “No, wait.” Natalia looked horrified. “No, I didn’t mean—”

  “Kidding.” Laughing, Valerie nudged her shoulder. “It’s fine. We’d planned to talk tonight.”

  “Oh.” Natalia let out a long, relieved sigh while the other two women snickered. “Okay. Good.”

  “It’s late, and we’re all leaving in a few minutes anyway. Marcus and Raoul should be finished with their dungeon monitor duties, and we’ll walk Natalia out,” Gabi said. “See you next time, Valerie.”

  “Drive carefully.” Taking Ghost’s outstretched hand, Valerie let him pull her to her feet…and tried to ignore her shiver at his strength. He kept her hand in his as he led her away from the group.

  “Is Natalia all right?” he asked quietly when they were out of hearing.

  “The tears weren’t from being picked on by the Doms. And…it’s not my story to tell. Sorry.”

  After a moment, he nodded. “Fair enough. I’ll keep an eye out for her.”

  Of course, he would. Because that was who he was. “Thank you.”

  “I’ll keep an eye on you, for entirely different reasons.” Ghost ran a finger down her cheek. “Want to play?”

  His light touch set off fireworks inside her.

  “I…I didn’t think you’d be able to.” Or would still want to. “Aren’t you supposed to be on duty as manager?” Hope rose inside her.

  “I am, but I joined the club to enjoy the lifestyle. There are only a few people left, and Holt and Jake are comfortable closing up.” He smiled. “Holt likes to stay so he and Josie can go home together. So, I’m off duty.”

  Valerie swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. “Well, if you want…”

  “Yes, Professor. I definitely want.” He kissed her fingertips, then his assessing gaze swept over her. Slowly. “Ready to explore more?”

  Uh-oh. The words sounded like a Dom who was also a sadist. Barry hadn’t been interested in pushing her. But the burbling heat in her veins said she wanted to try. Except…he’d hurt that woman and enjoyed it. “Yes?”

  Stopping in a quiet spot, he chuckled. “The certainty in your response is lacking, pet.”

  His certainty wasn’t. “Well…”

  “Tonight, I’d like to stay down here so I can secure you better and use some different implements, not just my hand. Will you be comfortable with being more public and having your arms restrained?”

  She’d seen others stripped and restrained. Not only young slender bodies, but every size and shape and age. It was time to let go of her insecurity.

  “If you ignore my blushes, I’d like to try it.”

  He moved close enough she had to tilt her head back. “I like seeing you blush, Valerie, and more.... I want to see your skin tu
rning red, your eyes wide, maybe even a few tears and whimpers. Begging to come, mmmph, that, too.”

  So much pain? The idea was frightening, yet her insides melted into a puddle of need. “I…”

  He ran his hands up and down her arms, standing so close she could feel his body’s heat. “One more time, I need to ask if anything in your past would cause you distress if you’re restrained, hurt, or touched intimately.”

  The intent look in his eyes was careful. His jaw showed a taut line of muscle.

  “No, nothing.” She touched his cheek. “Really, Ghost.”

  “All right.” He shook his head as if throwing off the tension.

  “You really do worry a lot.”

  He stilled, then a faint smile lifted his lips. “Noticed, did you?”

  Rather than answer, she tilted her head.

  He bent and kissed her lightly, then with a hum, returned to plunge and plunder, demanding a response.

  Even as she melted against him, her body craved more.

  He lifted his head. “This is also the time to ask if you’ll stay with me after the scene. In my bed”—his hand covered her breast, sending shivers of need through her—“with all that implies.”

  Sex was what he meant. She licked her lips. “Yes. I’d like that.” After a second, she frowned. “You wanted to give me lots of warning?”

  He chuckled. “Simply, I wanted your consent while your head is clear. Because I intend to fuzz it up.”

  To…what?

  “Come, let’s begin.” He led her to roped-off scene area with an interesting stand she hadn’t seen before. The man-sized cross wasn’t completely vertical but tipped slightly backward. A metal ring around the bottom stabilized the stand.

  “Where did it come from?”

  “Master Z ordered custom furniture, and it was finally delivered. This is perfect for what I want to do to you tonight.” He positioned her at the foot of the cross. “It’ll support a bit of your weight, while keeping you at a nice angle for a flogger.”

  Her mouth went dry. “Oh, well, it’s good I’ll be positioned right for your convenience.”

  His laugh made her knees weak.

  Slowly, he drew one finger down her cheek. “I know you better this time, sweetheart. I won’t go past what you can take—and you also have a safeword.”