The Plume: The Second Anthology (20 page)

To his astonishment, he only wanted to do it
again.

* * *

Louise had never had such a good session.
That it had been unexpected just made it more powerful. There were
no words for such a transporting experience. Even Rex was silent
when she carefully removed the tape from his mouth, although his
eyes were dark.

He seemed so intense that she had to turn
away from him.

His silence was unnerving, daunting even.
She’d expected him to say something, and then she could reply. But
Rex didn’t. Louise stopped the camera and cleaned up, then cut him
free of the casting. He stretched and flexed once he was on his
feet again, and Louise pretended to be interested only in the
quality of the cast.

She heard the water running in the corner as
he cleaned up and put on her own overalls, uncertain how they would
proceed from here.

Rex came to stand beside her when he was
dressed. “So?” Even that one word was filled with tumult.

“So?” Louise managed to keep her tone
light.

“Is the casting okay?”

She dared to give him a smile. “Because
you’re never going to do this again?”

Rex exhaled and averted his gaze, then looked
at her with such heat that Louise couldn’t take a breath. “It was
awesome. Thank you for pissing me off enough to do it.” He smiled a
little, then caught her chin in his hand. He bent and kissed her, a
sweet and hot kiss that made her toes curl. “Would you put a red
dot on this one for me?”

Louise was shocked. “You want to volunteer?
To go to the show in the cast?”

Rex smiled. “I do. I really do.”

Before she could believe what he was saying,
he bent and kissed her again. It was hotter this time, infinitely
more personal. This was about her, not about physical satisfaction.
Louise felt that heat rise in her blood again.

“You want to go look at some art sometime?”
Rex asked. “Hit a few art galleries, talk about it.”

Louise surveyed him. “I thought Plume rules
forbade dating.”

“Who says it’s a date?” He arched a brow,
looking as cocky and sexy as ever.

“Just kindred spirits, checking out local
artists?”

“Something like that.” Rex smiled. “But even
if that changes, you’re not a member. The rules don’t apply.”

Louise laughed. Rex sobered as he watched
her, a glimmer of uncertainty lighting his eyes. He was afraid
she’d turn him down.

As if that would happen.

His awkwardness convinced Louise that they
did have a lot in common, and that this session had been as
incredible for him as for her. She held his gaze, letting him see
that she had no doubts, no matter what came of his suggestion. “I’d
like that. A lot.”

“Me, too.” Rex exhaled and looked around the
studio, his expression of wonder revealing that Louise had changed
his perspective. She felt a tinge of pride that she’d had a hand in
opening his world to possibilities. His smile had returned when he
looked at her again. “We’ll talk,” he said, his voice low and
sultry.

Louise nodded and with one last survey of the
studio, Rex was gone.

It suited her to be alone in the studio
again, to have a chance to collect her thoughts and impressions
alone. She echoed Rex’s surveying gesture and admitted that she was
already proud of this show - and the work wasn’t even done.

Anna was gone. Joanna was practically living
at Mike’s these days and would soon get married. She and Rex were
going to be friends, or fellow artists, or maybe even occasional
lovers. It made sense that on the threshold of her first show,
Louise’s world was wide open to change and opportunity.

And she was ready to make the most of it.

But there was a lot of work to be done
first.

* * *

Athena looked up when Rex came sailing into
the bar that afternoon. He was clearly jubilant, which was rare
enough that she figured something was wrong.

Tony arched a brow from behind the bar, but
Rex waved him off. He grinned at Athena.

“You’re happy and you don’t want a Scotch,”
Athena said. “Who are you and what have you done with my partner,
Rex?”

Rex only laughed. “How about we do the
exhibit with Leya on the day after my show’s opening? I don’t think
I have time beforehand.”

“You’ll be exhausted. Let’s do it a couple of
days later.”

“Great.”

Athena regarded Rex with suspicion. “I
thought you weren’t going to do this.”

“I changed my mind.”

“Why?”

He met her gaze easily. “Does it matter?”

Athena folded her arms across her chest. “I
feel like it should.”

“Is it that weird that I decided you were
right?”

“Yes, it is.”

Rex laughed again. Athena exchanged a glance
with Tony.

“This is what happens when people’s dreams
come true,” the bartender said with a sage nod, then moved to
polish glasses at the other end of the bar.

Rex leaned on the bar beside Athena, his eyes
gleaming. “So, what can we do to make your dreams come true,
Athena?”

“Nothing.” Athena turned to leave. She must
have some paperwork to do.

“Nothing, really? What if I told you where
the Count is?”

She spun to find Rex looking impossibly smug.
“Where is he?”

“I don’t know exactly, but if I find out and
persuade him to come to the opening, will that make you smile?”

Athena considered this. She would much rather
the Count came to her on his own, and she wasn’t even sure she
wanted to see him again. But the party for the opening would be a
good place to cross paths. She could pretend it was a coincidence,
and she could ignore him easily in a crowd. “Maybe,” she
admitted.

“Maybe I should give it a try so we can find
out,” Rex suggested.

Athena gave him a smile for that.

* * *

Joanna had to attend the opening of Rex’s
photography show at the Eye of the Storm Gallery. She was excited
for him, as this was the culmination of the dream he’d mentioned in
that long-ago high school newspaper interview. But she was also
terrified that he hadn’t kept his promise to omit any photographs
of her - or that he hadn’t perceived their terms of agreement
precisely the same way. Joanna had a niggling sense that Rex had
planned a way to circumvent their deal without quite breaking
it.

She had to see the show to know for sure, and
she had to see it as soon as possible. She’d tried to get a preview
from the gallery owner, using her credential as a reporter and
offering him early coverage of the show, but he’d declined. She had
an invitation to the opening, just like all the other members of
the press.

Mike had one, too.

Of course, the concurrent sculpture show was
her roommate’s work and Joanna wanted to be supportive of Louise,
as well. She knew that Louise had worked hard to get her work
displayed, but there had been a distance between them since the
holidays. Joanna wasn’t entirely comfortable with the way that
Louise had chosen to share an interlude with Joanna and Mike, nor
was she at ease with the fact that Louise had taken up with Anna.
It made her wonder whether Louise wanted to be more than friends
with her. She halfway expected to be surprised in the middle of the
night by amorous play - which was fine, so long as it was Mike who
was surprising her.

As a result, Joanna tended to spend more
nights at Mike’s place now than before.

She came out of the shower at his townhouse
to find him waiting for her, wearing nothing but a mischievous
smile.

“Looking forward to the show?”

Joanna winced. “I just hope Rex hasn’t
figured out a way to not keep our deal.”

Mike shook his head. “He won’t. His integrity
is a big deal to him. I think you can trust that there won’t be any
images of you.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Mike framed her face in his hands, and his
voice dropped low. “I command you to put it out of your mind.
You’re going to a party tonight, as my pretty toy, and pleasing me
is all you’re going to think about.”

Joanna felt the tension melt within her.
“Yes, Mike.”

He kissed her lips, his touch sending heat
through her body, then kissed her earlobe. His whisper made her
shiver. “Be good. You wouldn’t want me to spank you in public,
would you?”

The idea both titillated and horrified her.
“You wouldn’t!”

“I will if you deserve it.” He kissed her
again, harder this time, then stepped back. He was stern then, and
she swallowed at the possibility of him getting rough. She loved
when Mike disciplined her, because she trusted him to never injure
her - but he pushed her to her limits. “Tie your hair up, please. I
have a present for you.”

The invitation had said Fetish Attire Only
and had included a mask. How would Mike outfit her for this
appearance? And what would happen at the show?

Joanna quickly brushed her hair up and bound
it in a ponytail. She followed Mike out of the bathroom, naked and
filled with excitement. The thigh-high black leather boots he’d
bought for her on their first date were standing by the bed, and
they had been polished to a gleam.

Mike stood back, his arms folded across his
chest, and she knew he’d be watching for a flash of her puss. She
sat on the padded chair in the bedroom and gave him the glimpse she
knew he wanted, spreading her legs to display herself to him. She
tugged on one boot, savoring the smooth caress of the leather
lining against her skin and liking how the boot made her foot
arch.

“Did you make the heels higher somehow?” she
asked, surprised by the feel of them.

Mike dropped to one knee in front of her and
showed her the heel of the other boot. The rubber stop on the
stiletto was new and thicker than it had been. “I like when you’re
less steady on your feet.”

Joanna swallowed. “You like when I’m
vulnerable.”

His eyes shone. “So do you. You like knowing
that I could bend you over a table at any time, or tip you off your
feet. You like knowing that I could easily take you whenever and
wherever I like.”

“Yes, Mike,” Joanna agreed, because it was
true. She shivered deep inside, wondering whether he intended to
tie her up and take her in a public place on this night. At the
gallery? In a stairwell? In the car? She couldn’t wait to find
out.

Mike watched her swallow, undoubtedly knowing
exactly what thoughts he’d put in her head, then handed her the
second boot. She pulled it on and he caught her hands in his,
tugging her to her feet.

He spun her before himself, admiring the
view, then gave her butt a light smack. “Across the room and back,”
he said, his tone harsh. “No stumbling.”

Joanna walked carefully across the room, her
eyes widening at how much more precarious her balance had become.
She felt stretched tall and glamorous. When she turned around to
return to Mike, the expression on his face made her feel incredibly
sexy. His eyes were shining and he was watching her so avidly. As
she watched, he swallowed.

He was already hard.

He handed her a pair of long black leather
gloves. They were very soft and had laces at the wrist to tighten
them securely. She was surprised to realize how long they were -
they encased her arms almost to the underarm. Mike tugged the laces
tight, a lock of hair falling over his forehead as he ensured that
the bonds were secure, and Joanna’s heart pounded with love.

Her sex throbbed with desire, and he hadn’t
even finished dressing her yet. There were two boxes one the bed,
one from the corset-maker that Mike liked to patronize and a plain
white one.

He presented her with the corset box and she
guessed the contents before she even opened it. It was a new
corset, one in black leather with a wide belt that would fasten
around her waist. The belt had stainless d-rings mounted into it at
regular intervals.

The waist of the corset looked impossibly
small, even though Mike had been training her body to be more
wasp-waisted all the time. Every month or so, he bought her a new
corset, each one tighter than the last, and she wore them virtually
all the time. It was a reminder of her captive state, no matter
where she went or what she did, and it thrilled Joanna. The corsets
didn’t just keep her bound - they kept her wet and ready for
him.

Anytime.

Any place.

She held up the corset and turned her back,
catching her breath when he tightened it around her with a jerk on
the laces. “It’s so tight!” she gasped and he pressed a kiss to the
back of her neck.

“Don’t want you to forget that you’re
mine.”

“Never, Mike,” she whispered, closing her
eyes as he locked her into the corset. This was not just tighter
but harder too, the leather more stiff and the boning wider. She
wouldn’t be able to bend at all once it was locked around her.

This one was different from Mike’s usual
choices in several ways. It had a flutter of black lace fastened to
the bottom edge, a dense frill that barely covered her naked butt
and pubis. It also had leather cups lined with fur that covered her
breasts. The cups were a little bit loose, though, allowing space
for Mike to slide his fingers into them to caress her nipples.

She hoped he would.

He secured the belt around her waist and
Joanna could barely take a breath. He reached into one cup and
fingered her nipple, pinching it a little so she gasped at the
sensation. He removed his hand and the pinching continued. It was
only then that she realized he had fastened a small nipple clamp
upon her, one that made her toes curl in her boots. The mingled
sensation of the punishingly tight clamp and the luxurious softness
of the fur lining made her dizzy.

“Like the surprise?” Mike murmured, his lips
touching her nape again.