Everything He Wants (20 page)

"You bought them, didn’t you?" I asked, staring at one of the leather masks I’d made not too long ago.

"Of course."

"And the consignment shops?"
Was that a lie?

"Sold there as well." Jake gestured out around the hall. "Look at them, Kira. They wear them because it’s something they enjoy."

"But why buy them from me? You aren’t my client anymore, and if you think this is your way of paying for my services—"

"Whoa, Kira, who said anything about services?" He lifted my chin when I tried to bow my head. "In the beginning, yes, I needed a companion. But I thought I made it clear that I wanted you as a sub even more. Buying your masks was for this, not to repay you." He lowered his voice. "There are other, more fitting ways for me to do that."

"Then what would you call this?" I pointed at the couples in front of us. "Because that’s exactly what it looks like to me."

Jake cupped my face. Held my gaze. "A celebration."

"Mardi Gras, Master?"

"No, a celebration of the most personal sort." Drawing me into his arms, he spoke so softly that, at first, I wasn’t sure I’d actually heard him. "Tonight, you shall be shared."

My heart skipped a beat, and I grabbed at Jake for support as my knees threatened to buckle.
Shared?
I scanned the room and studied the couples moving in small clusters.
Dance partners,
I decided. Jake was planning to share dance partners.

I sighed, looked at the mask in my hand, then lowered it over my face.

Jake fixed it so it was straight and kissed my forehead. "I’m going to get a few things from one of the adjoining rooms. Feel free to look around. They should be starting the dance soon."

"But I don’t know how," I said.

He took my chin in his hand and grinned. "Don’t you worry. All you have to do is follow my lead."

I swallowed and watched Jake disappear through the crowd. Trance music played in the background as those who probably lived the lifestyle far longer than I had talked amongst themselves.

If I thought
The Limelight
was crowded during demo nights, it was nothing compared to this. Men in suits. Women in corsets, gowns, and dresses. It was almost too much.
It would be a lot easier if Marisa was here.
She’d been called away for the evening, or maybe she’d been to these enough times to know better.

What Jake had said outside echoed in the back of my mind.
His relationships with past subs were never serious.
Did that mean they weren’t serious enough for him to bring them to a private party, or—

"Ready?" Jake asked, holding out his hand.

Or rather, it was Jake’s voice. He wore a mask of his own, one that covered the top portion of his face.
Not one of mine.
In fact, looking around the room, the mask he had on was especially popular.
It is Jake, though. Isn’t it?

"Kira?"

It was his voice.

"Yes, Master?"

"Are you ready?"

Not really, no.
"Yes, Master."

The music changed, and Jake led me into the middle of the ballroom. Placing one hand on my hip, he held my other hand, gently swaying me this way and that until I got the rhythm. It wasn’t a fast tempo, but it still kept me on my toes. I never said I was the most graceful person in the world, and that was especially true when it came to dancing.

After taking a few classes in school, I figured it wasn’t for me and never gave it another thought.
It wouldn’t have been so bad if you didn’t have two left feet.
Jake guided me to our right. I tripped, but I didn’t fall.

Heat brushed my cheeks, and I averted my gaze, watching his feet. My own. Eventually, I got the hang of it, and slowly fell into step beside him. Suits and gowns of every color swirled around us, and as they did, the lights in the room dimmed.

"We’re going to switch now," Jake said. "Let’s see how well you know me."

Before I could say anything, Jake got sucked into the crowd and I joined hands with another, almost identical, Dom. He danced expertly, just as Jake had done. His suit was the same. His mask...also the same.

He said nothing as we danced round and round. Each time we did, I could’ve sworn I saw Jake at the other side of the room. With the sub dancing next to me.

Well aware of the fact I wasn’t dancing with Jake but his clone, I didn’t realize I was dancing—flawlessly—until I switched partners again.  

Another Jake. Or was it the first? I couldn’t tell the difference, which was probably the point. I was trading Doms with at least two other subs in the room. Were they as confused as I was?

Jake in front of me. To my left. My right. All around me.

"I..." I cringed when my voice shook. "I think I need to sit down."

Jake, or whoever I was dancing with, nodded his head, took my hand, then led me away from the crowd. And as he did, the other Jakes followed close behind us.

Three.
Three Doms—all Jake.
What the hell is going?

One of them opened a door to a private room. I was about to find out.

* * * *

I
was the first to enter the small room as the three Doms filed in behind me. Much like at
The Limelight,
the room had everything a couple needed for impact play as well as aftercare. Aside from the furniture being in a different location, and the fact I was with three Doms instead of one, the surroundings were much of the same.

I didn’t move. I barely breathed when the Doms stepped around me. In front of me. Each wearing a suit that was as dark as the last. The trio stood less than a foot apart and held their arms behind their backs.

I’d been intimidated by Jake in the past, but getting the silent treatment from three Doms was a bit much. I shrunk against the door, looking for any flaws that might tell me which Dom was truly mine.

Squinting, I realized all three were wearing contacts.
Jake must’ve put his in when we got separated.

"Who am I?" all three asked at once. "Which one is the real me?"

Seriously? You’re going to make me guess?
"Mind games, Master?"

They all nodded.

There has to be something I can go by...

I took a step forward, and with tentative hands, I touched every face, noting the rigid jaw line on one and not the other.
Does Jake have a hard jaw line?
I couldn’t remember so I moved on to try something else.

I inspected their hands, but every single one lacked the mark of a wedding band. It was the one way I could always tell Jake from my other clients when I was still an escort. Their fingers were much of the same, each one worn down by what I assumed was years of hard work and using a flogger on their subs.

With every attempt, every failure, the grins on the three Doms widened.
You thought of everything, didn’t you?
I glared at them. Dropped my gaze and smiled.
His socks...of all the things...

I laughed at the mismatched socks on one of the Doms, as it was something I hadn’t noticed until now. Both socks I knew Jake had worn at one time or another.

"Have you made your choice?" they asked in unison.

"I have, Master."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Master."

"Then show us."

Approaching the mismatched socks Dom, I bowed my head and held my arms behind my back. He rummaged for something in of one of his jacket pockets and lowered a string of beads around my neck before pulling on them and drawing me into his arms.

The other Doms bowed, excusing themselves as they left the room. Once they were gone, Jake removed his mask and crushed his lips against mine. The hold on the beads around my neck tightened, and I held him for support.

We parted what felt like minutes later, breathless.

"How did you know it was me?" he asked, caressing my face. "I thought for sure we had everything covered."

"You almost did, Master," I replied.

"But?"

"Your socks. They don’t match."

He crossed his arms over his chest. "Yes, but how did you know it was
me
?"

I looked at him again. "I guess I was taking a chance, Master. I looked for something that didn’t belong."

He laughed and lifted my chin so I could meet his gaze. "Can’t fool you, can I?" He kissed me again.

"No." I smiled against his lips. "But you can try."

"So I can." Clearing his throat, Jake fixed his suit jacket and hooked a finger around the beads. "This is a good look for you. I can pull on these whenever I want you close." He drew me up against him again. "It suits you."

I shivered at his obvious hard-on as he pressed it into my hip. "So it does, Master."

Adjusting his pants, and once I’d had a moment to breathe, he guided me back out into the ballroom so we could finish our dance. By now, we were three or four songs behind everyone else, but Jake didn’t seem to mind. Even with his cock straining against his slacks, he danced effortlessly. And now, so did I. 

"There’s just one thing I need to know," Jake said, turning me in a circle as we flowed out of one song and into another. "If you could’ve done things differently—if you could’ve chosen one of the other Doms for the thrill of it—would you?"

I chewed my bottom lip as I considered his question.
If you could have any Dom for one night...would you have done it?
"No, I don’t think I would, Master."

He offered me a curt nod. "And why is that?"

"One Dom is more than enough for me. I’m not sure if I could handle more than that."

"Hmm." He rubbed his chin. "So, I guess that means you wouldn’t ever want to play with them, then."

My breath caught. "Seriously?"
As in, sharing?

"Tonight, you shall be shared."

Jake wasn’t talking about dance partners. He was talking about—

"But of course," Jake said.

"And you?"

"Would I be okay with it?" He laughed. "I’m pretty much suggesting it."

I shook my head. "No. I mean...where would you be if—"

"I will be right there beside you unless you turn me away. These are good men, great Doms, and those I trust. Tonight was a test, and you were right, everyone has something to hide, but I don’t do it because I can’t trust you. It’s because I don’t want to hurt you." He drew me away from the center of the room so we could talk. "There are times I will ask you to entertain guests or to be shared with another. If you can’t do this now, I understand. Just know at some point, I might ask you to. Do you understand?"

Once again, I looked at the faces around the room. Back at Jake. "Yes, Master."

"Would you have this now?"

"Yes. I mean yes to it all. Please, if it will please you, let me do this for you, Master."
I can’t believe I’m doing this.
Being shared with other Doms was...unimaginable. It wasn’t even something we’d talked about. And so long as my morning sickness didn't start a few hours early, I was pretty sure I could pull it off.

"Very well." Jake beckoned at someone I couldn’t see. "They’ll meet us back home. Know that they’re aware of your preferences, but it's still up to you to use your safe words. Understood?"

"Yes, Master."

"Good girl. Now, go get in the car."

I
n all the months I’d known him, Jake never entertained guests of any kind, not even his clients from work. So the fact he was planning to have two Doms meet us back at his place was extremely out of character.

The entire drive home, he gripped the steering wheel. His shoulders tightened as he focused on the road. The other cars. Anything but me. I sunk in the passenger seat wondering if I’d done something wrong. Perhaps I’d made the wrong choice. Given him the wrong answer.

It could be nerves.
With Jake, that was highly unlikely.

I suddenly felt like an outsider in his car, and I wasn’t entirely sure how to mend the rift that had somehow wedged itself between us.

"What ever happened to Devlin?" I asked, somewhat disappointed when Jake didn’t look at me.

"He was there," he replied, tightening his grip on the wheel.

I put my hands in my lap. "I didn’t see him. Was he—"

"He was there, hidden like all the others."

"Oh." I could tell I was treading on thin ice. As to how I got there, I wasn’t sure. "Will he be meeting us back home?"

"No." Jake sighed. Looked at me. His expression softened when he reached over to squeeze my knee. "He may visit later, but he wasn’t one of the Doms you danced with tonight. Devlin’s a terrible dancer." He laughed at that.

He isn’t angry.
But if he wasn’t mad, what had him on edge? Jake's posture, and his heavier drumming on the steering wheel, wasn’t like him at all.
What’s gotten under your skin, Jake?

I didn't think I'd ever see him like this after the night Dennis attacked me
.
Jake had been upset. Quiet, too.
But not like this.

"I don’t mean to keep you in the dark," Jake said, watching the road. "I want you to know that."

"Then why the games? I understand what you did earlier, but why now? You’re worrying me."

He risked a glance in my direction. "No need to be worried. I just have a lot on my mind."

You don’t even know the half of it.
I decided it was better left unsaid. The last thing we needed was to get in some horrible accident because I couldn’t wait until we got home to drop a bombshell on Jake’s feet.
He’s going to find out sooner or later.

I’d tell him. Tonight. Once we were on solid ground.

"I’m sorry if I scared you," Jake said a few minutes later. "It wasn’t my intention."

Then what was your intention?
"It’s okay..." Actually, it wasn’t, but I didn’t feel right pressing the matter when we still had more than half an hour between the interstate and any place we could call home.

* * * *

W
hen we got back to Jake's place, I was somewhat surprised to see we were alone. The other Doms I’d danced with over an hour before hadn’t reached his mansion yet, but I knew they were on their way.