He unlinked the cuffs but kept her hands held in his. She heard the unmistakable clank of a chain being lowered—the slow chink of metal from above foreshadowing what was ahead. Cali couldn’t think anymore. Too much had happened, was happening, for her to process.
She was Jake’s.
And his plans for the evening weren’t done.
Jake shifted her arms to the front and reconnected the cuffs. Then Master Marcus was on stage, lifting her wrists to attach the cuffs to the chain lowered from the ceiling. Jake kept his hands on her hips, steading her until the other Dom had her hands secured. Jake attached a spreader bar between her ankles. Tension increased on the chain, pulling her arms higher until she felt stretched from her wrists to her ankles, making it impossible to move.
Impossible to escape.
She kept her head down, unwilling or unable to look out at the crowd. She shook with anticipation, a touch of anxiety, but most prominently desire and pleasure. It’d been two weeks since she’d submitted to Jake. She let all of her other worries and fears melt away until there was only him.
It was freeing to let go. To place herself in his hands. To trust him so completely that the only thing she had to focus on was following his orders. Pleasing Jake.
“You belong to me, Cali.” Jake’s voice boomed over the air, echoing off the high ceilings and hushing the low conversations of the audience. “Who is your Master?”
“You,” she answered.
“Who do you please?”
“You.”
“Look,” Jake ordered. “Look at the audience and see your admirers. Show them who you belong to.”
She had to obey. More importantly, she wanted to. Jake owned her, body and soul, and she was helpless against it. Somewhere along the way, between the bondage, the spankings and the whips, she’d fallen in love with the compassion, the tenderness and the complete adoration he showed her.
She had fallen in love with Jake.
* * *
Fuck. She was beautiful.
Cali’s body quivered, little shakes that were barely visible unless you were attuned to her the way Jake was. She followed his command and surveyed the audience. He saw more than heard the soft inhale.
His attention drifted to the collar around her neck. His collar. The silver chain shown brilliant against her creamy skin, the figure eight infinity links custom-made especially for her.
Because Cali would belong to him forever.
She owned him. Whether she knew it or not. He was as much a slave to her—to what she gave him—as she was to him.
He scanned the crowd, an audience of his peers, friends, employees and customers. He’d declared to all of them that Cali was his. Pride swelled in his chest. Cali was a magnificent sub. But more importantly, she was a magnificent woman.
His cock throbbed, hard and wanting in his leather pants, the sight before him pumping him full of adrenalin and lust. The short skirt of the leather dress had ridden up her thighs when he’d attached the spreader bar to display a tantalizing glimpse of her ass cheeks and the thin lace of her thong. With her arms stretched over her head, the strapless bodice had slipped down, revealing the upper curves of her breasts.
The dress needed to go.
Jake stepped behind her and slowly traced the line of the collar. “It looks perfect on you,” he whispered. He watched the shiver race to her toes before he reached for the zipper on the back of the dress and slowly lowered it. Specially designed for easy removal, the zipper held the garment together much like a coat.
Goose bumps followed his fingers down her spine and spread across her back when he removed the dress. A murmur of appraisal and appreciation went through the crowd.
Jake tossed the garment aside and circled around to face his sub. Her face was flushed, her chest heaving in tight, little gasps, pushing her breasts up within the confines of the strapless bra. The black lace revealed tantalizing hints of her areolas beneath the thin material. Tempting, but keeping secrets. His gaze traveled down the planes of her stomach, past the thin patch of lace covering her pussy to the smooth expanse of her thighs before they disappeared into the leather boots.
God, she was so fucking amazing. A thought that kept repeating in his head every time he saw her. But this, as she was now, was beyond words and description. Her head had fallen forward, her eyes once again on the ground, her submissiveness displayed for everyone to witness.
She was perfection.
Jake stepped forward, grabbed her chin and kissed her with all the passion and possessiveness he felt. She gave herself willing to him, moaning her pleasure before he dragged himself away. He cast a pointed glance to Marcus waiting in the wings, and the man brought out the paddle Jake had selected for the Scene.
Jake stepped behind Cali and took the paddle from the other man. He ran a hand over the smooth globes of her ass. “I’m going to spank you, Cali. You’re going to take it without complaint.”
“Yes, Jake,” she answered immediately.
“What color are you?”
“Green. I’m green.”
Cali couldn’t see the paddle he held in his hand, but her muscles tightened in nervous expectation for what he had in store. Her trust was both humbling and exhilarating.
A silent hum of anticipation settled over the room, everyone waiting for that first crack of wood against flesh. Sweat beaded over Jake’s skin as he stepped back and raised the paddle. He held it high for a second, dragging out the moment, heightening the suspense. He felt the collective gasp flow through the room as he lowered his arm and swung the paddle at Cali’s naked ass.
The crack of wood against her skin echoed across the stage, followed by Cali’s sharp cry and the jerk of her hips as the impact shuddered through her. An assortment of groans and grunts of approval rippled around the room and added to Jake’s high. Adrenalin raced within him, leaving a heady rush of power in its wake.
He let the paddle land again, the flesh of her ass turning a luscious shade of red. Cali whimpered a sweet sound that mingled between shock and desire. Her legs quivered, but she didn’t complain. She simply waited for him. For more.
Jake hit her again, two quick paddles, one for each cheek. Then one more landed flat across both of the flaming mounds. The sweat rolled down his back now, soaking his shirt and dampening his scalp. Cali hung almost limp from the chains, her head resting against an arm. Perspiration covered her skin, making it shine in the bright lights of the stage.
He pressed close behind her, holding her against his chest. “You’re mine,” he growled into her ear.
“Yes,” she breathed, completely compliant.
He stroked a hand over the skin of her stomach, feeling her muscles clench and tremble under his touch. Before them, the crowd shifted, agitated flutters accompanied by quiet sobs of want. They understood what Jake had. The treasure he’d claimed.
He smoothed his hands up to tug and twist first one, then the other nipple. She curved her chest into his hands in a silent plea for more. She was so close to her point, to finding the plane where pain changed to pleasure. He could tell by the sounds she made, by the tension in her body and the expression on her face.
Jake stepped away to rub his palm over her reddened ass. The skin was hot against his hand and she pushed into this touch. He ran a finger down her crack, snaking beneath the thong strap to find her wet pussy. A whimper left her throat when he entered her hot channel, thrusting into her flesh before he withdrew.
“Please, Jake,” she begged, making his cock ache for release.
He hit her again, using the element of surprise to up the pain. Cali responded stunningly, arching forward with the blow of the paddle, her head dropping against her arm, her eyes closed and her lips parted as the breath left her body. One more hit would take her where he wanted her.
He stepped to the side. “What do you want, Cali?”
Her breathing deepened as she struggle to answer. “More...please,” she finally said.
“More what?” Jake needed to hear the words. “Tell us what you want.”
Her head dropped forward and he quickly moved to lift it back up.
“No shame,” he demanded, gripping her chin. “Remember that. Never drop your head in shame.” The words came out harsh and insistent. He’d thought they were past that.
“Open your eyes.”
Cali shuddered, then slowly obeyed.
Jake let go of her chin and moved away. “Keep them open and tell us what you want.”
His breath caught in his chest as he waited. Would she comply? He knew she had it in her, if she only let go of that last vestige of fear. Her eyes seemed to slowly come into focus and scan over the crowed. Did she see the awe? The envy and lust that mingled on the faces of the watching?
“Last chance,” Jake said. “Tell us what you want.”
She inhaled, her muscles going lax as she opened her mouth to speak. Relief and an overwhelming flush of pride swelled within him.
Then he caught it. The sudden stiffening of muscles, the catch of her breath, the clench of her hands on the chain, the widening of her eyes. All indications that something was wrong.
Very, very wrong.
Jake was already moving, the paddle clattering to the stage before the word was out of her mouth.
“Red.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
No
. The word screamed in her head, her gaze locked on the man in the front row of the audience. The man who wasn’t there earlier. He couldn’t have been.
But he was now.
Peter.
“
Red
.” The word tumbled out of her mouth before she’d consciously thought to say it. “Red.” The demand was louder this time as she yanked on the chain holding her hands.
Panic clutched at her, making her heart race and breath stop.
God. No
.
“Red. Red.
Red
.” The single word repeated with increasing volume, riding the wave of horror flooding her mind and body. She thrashed against the bonds holding her captive and flinched away from the hands suddenly gripping her.
Rational thought left as the impact of her ex-husband’s presence swamped her. The shock and disgust covering his face was more than she could take. What was he doing here? In this place? Her place?
The blood roared in her ears, blocking out all other sound. She shook now, her whole body a quivering mass as she fought the hands restraining her, the bonds trapping her. “Red. Red. Red.” The word continued from her lips in a litany of pleading.
“Cali.”
Her name registered through the blind fog in her brain, but she jerked away. From him. Jake. This was his fault. This shame she felt, the mortification slinking through her was all because of him.
Through the haze she watched Peter turn and push his way through the crowd, his retreating back showing exactly what would happen when the rest of her friends and family found out about this. About her and her deviant desires.
“No,” she panted, sagging against the chains, the word sounding like a hollow echo in her ears. This couldn’t be happening. Would Peter tell their children? Would they all hate her? Despise her?
No. God, no.
Suddenly her wrists were free, revitalizing her fight. She pushed blindly at the arms that held her. “No,” she screamed, tears streaking down her cheeks. “Let me go.”
But the arms held strong. Then her feet were free, and she was being lifted into Jake’s arms.
“No.” She thrashed against his hold, fighting unsuccessfully to free herself from him.
From his betrayal.
“Cali,” Jake said, his arms tightening as he tried to move over the stage. “Cali, stop.”
“Fuck you,” she cursed at him, her mind beyond conscious thought. She had only one goal right then. To get away. From him. From the shame. From the horror and disgust she felt. “Let me go. Red. I said
Red
.”
“Listen to me,” Jake ordered.
Right. That’s what got her into this mess in the first place. Cali increased her struggle until she felt her feet hit the ground. Immediately she pushed away and stumbled when he let her go. Another set of arms caught her before she hit the ground, but they didn’t trap her, only held her steady while she trembled.
It was then that she felt the chain rub against her neck.
The collar.
Panic returned anew, rushing up to choke her in the need to remove it. She gripped the metal pulling on the unforgiving links.
“Get it off,” she pleaded. Her fingernails scratched her tender flesh and the chain dug into the back of her neck in her desperate need to remove his mark of possession. An entity she’d accepted with pride only moments ago.
Now it felt like a noose. One that was choking the last bit of pride and breath she had left.
Somehow the collar was suddenly freed from her neck, the chain dangling from her hand like a serpent of evil. A representation of just how far she’d fallen.
She threw the collar at Jake, a sob leaving her throat. Jake didn’t even flinch when the chain hit his chest and dropped to the floor with a soft clinking of metal. Vaguely she heard the harsh wave of gasps and shock roll through the audience, but Jake’s face was impassive now, his body stiff and frozen.
“Why?” she screamed at him, the betrayal tumbling out. “I trusted you. I gave you everything you asked. Why would you do this to me?” The arms were holding her again, keeping her from attacking Jake the way she wanted. She wanted to punch him, kick him, hurt him the way he’d hurt her.
She was dragged off stage, away from Jake, into the back room where’d she’d begun the evening. There were other people there, but she didn’t register any of them. Jake stopped at the bottom of the stairs and stared at her, his jaw clenched, his eyes dark and guarded.
“Cali, please,” he said. “Tell me what happened. Tell me what’s wrong.” He ran a hand through his hair, leaving a trail of spiked ends sticking up behind it.
He stepped forward and she retreated into the arms surrounding her, seeking safety in the strength behind her. Jake stopped, devastation tumbling over his features. She turned her head, hiding her face in the arm holding her.
“What?” he said quietly. “What did I do?”
“Was this another test? Another cleansing you thought I needed?” The energy drained from her, the despair sinking in. She sagged against the support behind her, thankful someone was there to hold her up. She inhaled a ragged breath and tried to pull herself together. She needed to get home.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jake answered her. “This wasn’t a test. It was me claiming you as my sub, Cali. As mine. Something I thought you wanted.” Dejection was audible in his voice, but it didn’t affect her. She was too numb, too cold to feel anything.
“Peter,” she croaked out, a shiver raking her body from the cold within her. Her damp skin filled with goose bumps as the perspiration dried. “Why did you bring him here? To humiliate me?”
Jake’s eyes widened, the denial flashing in the silver pools before the words left his mouth. “I didn’t. I would never do that. What are you talking about?” He stepped toward her again, but Seth stepped in to stopping his advance.
“Then why was he here? In the front row, watching my shame?”
“What shame?” Jake wrenched on the arm holding him before he gave up and growled, “There’s no shame in wanting this. In what we have.”
“Then why do I feel it? Huh, Jake? Tell me why I feel that now?”
Jake looked down, eyes squeezing shut as if he felt her pain. Cali tried to calm her breathing once again, more of the fight draining away. A woman stepped up and offered her a robe. Somehow it found its way around her shoulders and she numbly slipped her arms into it, clenching the edges together, shivering beneath the soft cotton.
“I love you, Cali. I would never hurt you like this.”
Cali jerked her head up at the hoarse words. Her gaze locked on Jake’s, the declaration hovering between them. If she trusted what she saw, the pain and misery that was on his face, she’d almost believe him.
But this wasn’t love. She’d fooled herself into believing in a fantasy.
“No, Jake. You don’t love me.” Cali turned away needing to leave. To get away from him and the pain knifing in her chest. But she stopped and gave him one last look. “You only want to possess me. Own me. Control me. That’s domination, not love.”
And love was what she’d really, truly wanted all along.
How absolutely stupid she’d been to think she might have found it here. With Jake.