Tactical Submission: A Windsor Club Story

by Ada Maria Soto

  "She'd know it came from me. Unless you're sleeping with anyone else from SWAT."

  Isaac saw Jack freeze as the words came out of his mouth. They hadn't talked about anyone else. They should have. Jack knew about Amalie and had since day one, and he was sure that Jack wasn't sleeping with anyone else, but they hadn't talked about taking other partners or not. Isaac kicked himself. He knew Jack was insecure and they should have had that talk much earlier.

  "I'm not sleeping with anyone else and I have no plans to."

  "Thank you." Jack's voice was rough and Isaac knew he'd said the right thing.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  The blaring of his phone shot through Jack's sleep jarring him awake. He sat straight up, his heart racing, every muscle tensed and ready for action. A second later, before even stopping to remember where he was, he stumbled out of bed and grabbed his phone which he’d left on the dresser.

  "Hello?"

  "Burnside," his S.O. barked. "Feds have something big going down. Big enough they asked for county backup. All teams are up."

  "Yes, sir." His boss hung up without further comment. The rest of his team would be getting robo calls but the team leaders got personal ones. He looked around, the sleep burning off and his mind waking up. Isaac was sitting up in bed looking at him.

  "I'm sorry," were the first words out of Jack's mouth. "I—"

  Isaac waved a hand cutting him off. "Nothing to apologize for. This is exactly why you and I may just be an effective match."

  "I'm still sorry." He glanced around before remembering his clothes were by the front door. "I have to go."

  "You are covered in sweat and cum. You need a shower first."

  He looked down at himself. Not only was he covered in sweat and cum, but he absolutely reeked of sex. He was also still holding the flogger.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Isaac jumped into the shower with him, helping him scrub with maximum efficiency.

  "Text me when you're done."

  "I will." Jack left off the 'sir'. As much as he didn't want to, he needed to remind himself that in just a few minutes, a group of well-trained men would be looking at him to lead them into a potentially dangerous situation. He'd rather be in bed with Isaac, getting petted and praised, but how much praise did he deserve if he didn't do his job to the best of his ability?

  Isaac's house was closer to the station than Jack's apartment and at three in the morning the roads were clear. Despite that Dan and most of his team were already in the locker room when he arrived.

  Dan yawned so wide his jaw audibly cracked. "Oh, fuck me," he muttered rubbing his eyes. "What can possibly be big enough that the Feds want all of us at this fucking hour of the morning. I mean how hard is it to wait until at least six."

  "It's either drugs, weapons, or terrorists."

  "Or a combination of all three."

  Dan ended up being right. A ship was coming into port on the morning tide, supposedly full of weapons, with links to terrorists, and a side order of drugs and human trafficking. Jack hated dealing with human traffickers. It made him lose what little faith in humanity he had left.

  Multiple agency SWAT teams were going to climb up the side once it docked, drop down from helicopters, and rush the gangplanks. They were being issued extra strength body armor, flash grenades, and the big guns. It was going to look like a Tony Scott movie. Hopefully with a smaller body count. But as he stood on the dock, hiding behind a shipping container, while an honest to god black helicopter fwhumped overhead, all he could think was this is going to suck.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Isaac fumbled with his phone, confused because he could hear ringing but there was nothing on the screen. Only a clock telling him it was just past six in the morning. It took a few seconds of wondering if his phone was broken before he realized it was the land line ringing. The only people who called his land line were his parents and work. Neither of them ringing at that hour on a Saturday was a good thing.

  He reached over Amalie's side of the bed to grab the phone. He hadn't felt up to staying in the downstairs room when it still smelled of Jack and sex.

  "Hello?" he mumbled.

  "Sorry Isaac," his boss said. "Looks like the feds went and killed a bunch of bad people, but they want all the investigation and reports done in double time."

  "And since when are we taking orders from the feds?" Isaac complained even as he knew that there was a good chance Jack had been involved in whatever had happened.

  His boss sighed. "Since they bought us our own Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry set up. Now get your butt out of bed, suck some coffee, and help me kiss some federal ass."

  "Yeah. I'll be there in thirty."

  If you're lucky.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  It was close to noon by the time Jack stumbled into his own apartment. He hadn't bothered showering at the station. When the adrenalin of the operation had worn off, he found himself beginning to feel the places on his body where Isaac had worked him the most. His cock felt raw. His nipples ached and he felt well fucked.

  He began to drop back into that warm fog just thinking about what Isaac had done to him and still could.

  What he could see of his own back by twisting around looked clear, free of rope marks from the corset. There was nothing noticeable on his wrists or ankles. There were however, ten tiny bruises. Five on each hip. Not deeply colored but Jack could feel them. Not just the tiny points of small ache, but the memory of the fingers that put them there.

  He stepped under the shower, not using any soap, wanting to smell like nothing, just the way Isaac had had him not even a day earlier. He did get hard again. It was only Saturday. In theory, he was still off for the rest of the weekend.

  Careful not to touch himself he made it back to his bed and picked up his phone.

  Finally made it home. In theory, off until Monday morning.

  There was no immediate reply. He closed his eyes and began to drift. He was nearly asleep when his phone buzzed.

  Got called in to help clean up the mess the feds made last night. Going to be stuck here until late. :( I'm so sorry. Not how either of us wanted the weekend to go. Hope you are doing well. Getting some rest. Maybe Sunday morning breakfast?

  Jack's heart sank, but Isaac pointed out that first encounter that they both ran the risk of late night callouts and triple overtime. He had been thinking of the weekend as a test. If they could spend more than a night together. If he could spend multiple days in submission or just in each other's company. He guessed this was a sort of test as well. Could they accept the disappointments and inconveniences that came with their jobs? He still didn't like that they'd left the weekend hanging. It left him feeling frayed and on edge.

  Sorry about the mess. Wasn't my team. Everyone we found just put their hands up. Breakfast sounds nice if you're not too tired.

  This time Isaac texted back quickly.

  :-) I'll text you in the morning. We can Brunch. (I'm told that's a verb now). You should get some sleep. Take care of yourself. ;-)

  I will.

  Jack wasn't sure if he would take care of himself. It didn't feel right, touching himself and fantasizing about all the things Isaac might have done with him while Isaac was stuck at work. Instead he closed his eyes and just tried to sleep.

  Chapter 13

  The sun coming through the window of the restaurant and bouncing off the glass of orange juice was too bright. The chatter of families and older women still in their early morning church dresses was too loud. He felt hungover, but in truth he was just tired and frustrated. Mostly frustrated.

  The blue button down shirt Jack was wearing was tight across his chest. In his sleep deprived state Isaac found himself mostly focused on a couple of buttons that looked like they might pop if Jack took the time to flex.

  Jack was speaking.

  "Sorry, I missed that."

  "What time did you get off work?" Jack repeated, a deep frown on his face.

  "Umm. Twoish
? There was a lot of paperwork."

  "Did you sleep in your office?" There was a disturbing squeak in Jack's voice.

  "Not the first time."

  "You should probably go home."

  Isaac knew he was right. "You could not imagine the things I want to do to you right now."

  Jack flushed red and glanced around, but all the other diners were focused on their own eggs and pancakes.

  "Or maybe you can. This is the problem with being over thirty, your body starts re-prioritizing sleep over sex without asking your brain first." Jack smiled, which is what Isaac was hoping for. "What does next weekend look like for you?"

  Jack frowned again. "Training Saturday, on call Sunday. And the narcotics division has gotten into the habit of serving warrants on Sundays. I don't know why, it's annoying."

  "Maybe they figure everyone will be hungover from Saturday, little less quick on the draw."

  "Maybe. Still annoying."

  Isaac sipped his orange juice, knowing from hard experience that coffee would do him little good in his state. "I know there was a time in med school when I could have done a shift twice as long and been fresh as a fucking daisy. I'm sorry."

  "It's okay. I mean we sort of knew there were good odds this would happen." Jack poked at his half-finished breakfast.

  "Yeah, I was hoping it wouldn't be first thing. How are you doing? I know that was a rough yank up?"

  Jack shrugged. "I'm okay, I've had worse."

  Isaac wanted to argue that having had worse wasn't the same as okay. "What can I do to make it better than okay?"

  Jack gave a shy smile. "I really am okay. Was a little rough at the start but I'll be fine."

  Isaac still wanted to argue, but he was so tired and with their relationship as new as it was he found it hard to find leverage. "Okay, but until we see each other again I want you to call me if you feel even a little bit off. Or even if you just want to talk."

  Jack nodded. "I can manage that."

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Jack had lied. Not a big one but he couldn't say he was 100%. There were edges of his mind that were still ragged and ripped instead of neatly rolled up. It was a feeling he was accustomed to. He could never afford to make a bond, he couldn't risk lingering after a scene. He had practice taking care of himself. Grounding himself back to where he should be, even if it wasn't where he wanted to be. He knew Isaac would have taken care of him. He had in the past and with any luck would in the future, but it would have felt selfish to ask for that while Isaac was half asleep in his eggs.

  Instead, he ran at a pace more than a jog but less than a sprint, out to the edge of his neighborhood and back. A steady meditative pace that would burn out any residual restless energy. He'd spend the rest of the day doing mundane chores and errands, have a salad for dinner, and by Monday, in theory, he'd be as good as he ever was.

  Not ideal but good enough to get through.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  It was properly dark when the front door clicked open. Isaac was spread out on the couch half asleep, his mind drifting from one random thought to another. Amalie dropped her overnight bag by the door.

  "Hey there, have a good weekend?" Isaac asked first, lifting his legs so she could sit on the couch.

  She sat down and Isaac put his legs across her lap. "Had just about every bit of me massaged, wrapped in kelp, and massaged again."

  "Sounds like fun. How's Lydia?"

  "I think I got her to relax for twenty, maybe even twenty-five minutes."

  "Go you." Isaac held up his hand. Amalie grinned and gave him a high five.

  "And how was your weekend?

  "Friday night was great. I mean, fuck me he looks spectacular in rope. I need to get him up to Kevin's place for some real rigging."

  "I'd love to see it when you talk him around to it. What happened after Friday night?" Her voice took on a serious edge.

  "Saturday morning, three A.M. his phone rang. Six A.M. my phone rang and I didn't get back to sleep until about two A.M. Sunday morning and that was in my office. Jack and I managed brunch and I almost passed out in my eggs. I'm sure I used to survive on less sleep."

  She gave his legs a sympathetic rub. "I'm sorry. That sucks."

  Isaac shrugged. "I guess it's kinda good in a way. Part of our problems with finding someone long term has been finding someone understanding when the phone rings at three in the morning. At least we got that test out of the way early."

  "Still leaves both of you wound up and short a sexy weekend." Isaac shrugged again. "Have you set a make-up date?"

  "No. He's got training and on call next weekend and I haven't checked my schedule yet."

  "I'll spend the next weekend at Lydia's, give you some space—"

  "No." He took Amalie's hand. "I don't want to kick you out just so I —"

  "No," she cut him off "You two still need to know if you are compatible beyond a quickie in a club. Put yourselves in a bubble for a couple of days, and see how it works before having someone else hanging around. I'm as invested in this working as you are."

  Isaac tried to shrug off a little creeping guilt. Not for wanting Jack but for not being able to find someone long term sooner, leaving their relationship noticeably out of balance with Amalie taking on more emotional support than was fair. "Will Lydia be okay with that?"

  Amalie smirked. "She has jury selection next week. By Saturday she'll need a good long fuck as much as I bet Jack does."

  "I love it when you talk dirty, yet practical."

  "Yeah, I know."

  Chapter 14

  Y ou don't hear the clock until 4:30 on a Friday.

  It was actually 11 A.M. on a Saturday but he'd been up all night, again. Getting called out for duds was one thing. Getting called out in the middle of the night 'to get the jump on the bad guys', then being forced to hang around while evidence was collected, 'in case the bad guys come back' was another level of time and resource waste. The residuals of the adrenalin rush with nowhere to go was as unpleasant as anything else.

  He had told his guys to go home and get some rest but he knew plenty went off looking for something to drink, fuck, or fight. Not that Jack wasn't interested in doing at least one of those things. It would be another week before he saw Isaac again. He'd texted and called a few times just to make sure Jack was okay, doing better than just holding on. Jack would have been fine with a couple of hours at the Windsor Club, but he knew Isaac wanted more and he wanted to be able to give it to him.

  He stared at his locker and tried to make plans for the rest of his weekend. Most of his thoughts were turned to sleep, or at least bed.

  A warm hand rested slowly on his shoulder. It felt nice and he closed his eyes.

  "Jack!"

  Jack's eyes snapped open. Dan was standing beside him, hand still on his shoulder.

  "Can you sleep sitting straight up with your eyes open because I called your name three times?"

  He shook his head. "Sorry, was just staring into space I guess."

  "Must be the most interesting space in human history. Go home and get some sleep."

  "Yeah." He stood and stretched his back. "That's a good idea."

  "And drive very carefully."

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  "I brought curry!" Lydia's voice echoed through the house and up to Isaac's office.

  "Down in a sec!" he heard Amalie shout back.

  There was a theory that each week they would have a 'family' dinner. They would cook, and eat at the table like adults and not talk about work. The reality was it happened more on a two to three week schedule, it involved some variety of take out, and most of the talk was about work.

  Isaac headed downstairs to get a word in with Lydia before Amalie finished up.

  "Hey, I hear your weekend with SWAT boy got interrupted." Lydia was laying out plastic containers of rice and curry on the dining room table.

  "It was going to happen sooner or later," he replied with a shrug. "How was getting wrapped in kelp?"


  "Surprisingly relaxing." She put a bottle of wine on the table and Isaac went for the glasses.

  "While we're talking about Jack—"

  "Not my type, but continue."

  "SWAT's got a leak." Lydia froze. "Or at least someone above SWAT has a leak."

  "Evidence?"

  "Circumstantial. Last six months they've knocked down a dozen doors, all drug related, all on tips, all empty, and according to Jack, half the time the coffee is still hot on the table and the meth is still bubbling on the stove."

  Lydia opened the bottle of wine. "Any possible names?"

  "Not that he mentioned. He's pretty sure it's not any of the team leads since they've all been in the same boat. He thinks it's someone above and he's worried about walking into an ambush instead of an empty building."

  "Would he be willing to talk to me direct?"

  "Not sure. Maybe. He seems to play his cards pretty close to his chest."

  "Okay." They heard Amalie come down the steps. "I'll sniff around. See what I can find."

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  The vibrator in Jack's phone was louder than the ring and it was sending an itch down his leg and up his back.

  "Are you going to answer any of those?" Dan asked from his side of the restaurant booth.

  "Nope."

  "You on the outs with Kinky Married Complicated already?"

  "No, it's just my brother."

  Dan grinned. "So, things are good with KMC?" Jack just sighed. "I'm asking because you've seemed a little wound up the last couple of weeks."

  "I'm fine. I've been fine."

  Dan managed to take a bite of a burger in an impressively judgmental way. Jack's phone buzzed again. He'd checked the first message hoping it was Isaac.

  "Seriously, are you going to check those."

  "My brother lost a passive aggressive pissing match with my mother over his own wedding arrangements, and is now halfway down a bottle of merlot and I'm the only one who he can complain to who won't take mom's side. Actually, my mother is completely right but I don't care enough to say anything." Who schedules an outdoor wedding in Boston in July?