The Plume: The Second Anthology (32 page)

Eric’s nostrils flared and his eyes
brightened. “I’m starting to understand about coatrooms,” he
muttered. “I don’t feel like I can make any further.”

“Do you think she’s a tease?”

Eric grinned. “Maybe. Maybe she should be
punished.” He reached out and closed one hand over Joanna’s breast,
giving it a squeeze. “No nipple clamps today?”

“No, Master Eric.”

“Why not? You know I like them.”

“I dressed for Master Mike,” she said, her
words breathless.

Maybe she’d brought the ball gag in the hope
that Eric would join them. Mike couldn’t stand this.

Meanwhile, Eric pinched Joanna’s nipple
between his finger and thumb. Joanna caught her breath, so Mike
knew it was a hard pinch. “Maybe you should ask him to let me
punish you, then.”

Joanna didn’t seem to know what to do about
that, but then maybe she wasn’t sure who was in charge anymore.
Mike certainly had his doubts.

To his relief, he heard ice cubes tinkling in
glasses.

“Waitress,” he said softly and Joanna quickly
refastened her jacket. She was blushing, looking soft and
vulnerable, just the way he loved her to look. He was trying to
give her what she wanted, but he’d never expected it to be so
difficult. He hadn’t realized how much her desires were at odds
with his own. He could have dragged her into the coatroom here in a
minute, possessed her for once and for all, but now, he wasn’t sure
that was what she wanted.

He wasn’t sure it would work.

They ordered then, a hum of tension beneath
their words. When the waitress was gone, Eric leaned closer. His
eyes were shining, as they always did when he was going to suggest
some kind of trouble. “I had this idea and wanted to run it past
the two of you.”

“So you said,” Mike admitted, taking a sip of
his coffee.

“Well, now that Joanna’s been naughty, maybe
it makes even more sense.” He placed a hand on her thigh and Mike
watched his friend’s fingers squeeze. Then his hand disappeared
under Joanna’s skirt. “I never would have expected the cable ties,”
he murmured to her. “But they’re perfect. They’ll look so good on
you.”

Joanna was breathing quickly. “Yes, Master
Eric.”

“About this idea?” Mike prompted, feeling
impatient and irritable.

“I think Joanna needs more captivity than you
can give her at your place. Overnights and weekends are all good.
Even a week is fine, but what she really needs is total
surrender.”

“Meaning?”

“24-7 and ongoing.”

Joanna gasped.

Mike felt his teeth clench.

Eric continued, his gaze flicking between the
two of them. “She’d quit her job, surrender to the two of us, and
become our captive for good.”

Mike had a hard time even thinking about
this. On one level, he loved the idea of Joanna being captive. On
the other, he didn’t like the idea of making her imprisonment
permanent. Going back and forth between captivity and real life
made their sessions really hot for him. Knowing that Joanna was
corseted at her day job or, even better, wearing a chastity belt to
which only he had the key, messed with the boundaries between the
worlds and excited him.

Plus he really didn’t like the idea of
sharing her. It was all too easy to see that this could progress to
her being shared with other guys, too. He bit back his protests,
though, wanting to know what Joanna thought. “At my place?”

“No, another place. I’ve arranged it
actually, just in case you were interested.”

“Where?” Mike asked and Joanna’s head snapped
up.

Eric smiled. He touched her chin with a
fingertip. “Can’t tell you that, not while Joanna’s here. The idea
is that it would be a hopeless captivity. She wouldn’t even know
where she was.” His smile broadened. “A dungeon with all necessary
amenities, but one that can only be opened by you or me.” He arched
a brow and took a sip of his coffee. “Or whoever we share the
access codes with.”

“Share?” Mike echoed, not really surprised by
this detail but shocked to hear it said aloud. And so casually.

Yet Joanna said nothing. She sipped her
coffee as if this would be ideal.

Reasonable, even.

“Well, that would be the point, right?” Eric
said. “She’d be shared. You and me, and whoever else we chose to
invite.” He leaned forward, his enthusiasm more than clear. “This
place is perfect. It’s soundproofed. The windows are high. It has a
kitchen and bath, but nothing our little prize could use to
escape.” Mike saw Eric’s hand squeeze Joanna’s thigh under her
skirt. “And all the accessories, of course. It’s set it up with a
phone, one that only can receive calls.” He smiled at Joanna who
seemed to have been struck silent. “You’ll be there, all the time,
nothing to do but wait to get fucked.”

Joanna stared at him, but Mike couldn’t tell
if she was aroused or horrified.

He saw movement on her lap and wasn’t sure
what Eric was doing with his fingers under her skirt.

But he could guess.

“We’d call you,” Eric murmured to Joanna, his
voice low and dangerous. She swallowed visibly. “‘I’ll be there at
seven, sweetheart. Be blindfolded, on your knees, with your ankles
tied together. Cable ties tonight. Put another one out for your
wrists.’” He ran a finger down Joanna’s cheek and Mike saw her
shiver. Her cheeks were flushed now, flooded with color, and she
was breathing quickly. She licked her lips, but said nothing. “And
you’d do it, Joanna. You’d always be there. You’d always be ready.
You’d always be ours to take, however and whenever we wanted. And
the best part is that you’d facilitate everything.”

Mike thought his heart would explode. This
definitely was not his idea of heaven.

He wanted Joanna locked in his dungeon,
captive for his enjoyment only.

He was sure she’d protest but she didn’t say
anything.

Not one word.

“Eggs benedict?” the returning waitress asked
with a smile, juggling a tray of steaming plates on her
shoulder.

* * *

This wasn’t quite working out how Eric had
envisioned.

In fact, he was starting to be hopeful that
he might get what he wanted.

Instead of screaming in protest at the most
outrageous idea he could have concocted, Mike and Joanna were
apparently considering it. Neither one looked excited by the
prospect, but the arrangement of the table meant they couldn’t
easily see each other’s faces.

And they were prepared to do it for each
other.

Eric could have felt bad, if he hadn’t been
so excited himself. Shit, she had all the accessories in her purse.
She could be taken anytime, anywhere. Maybe the notion of being
captive somewhere wasn’t that different from what she was already
doing with Mike.

Maybe she
was
the perfect
submissive.

Maybe he’d finally find what—or who—he’d been
looking for.

If Eric hadn’t known that Mike was crazy in
love with this woman, and if Mike wasn’t his best friend in the
whole world—and a guy he owed—he might have fallen in love himself.
He certainly would have claimed the prize, for a while.

As it was, he had to do his fairy godmother
act.

Although maybe he would get a bonus for good
intentions himself. He was thinking about those cable ties and that
tight little ass being all his, even just one more time.

When they had finished eating, the silence
around the table seemed oppressive. Eric decided to push a little
more. Joanna had eaten almost nothing, Mike little more. “Eat,
Joanna,” he said, nudging the plate toward her. “You’re going to
need your strength.”

She cast him a glance filled with such alarm
that it sent a jolt through him. He smiled and she dropped her
gaze, hastily eating a couple more bites.

“It’s just about all set up,” Eric said to
Mike. “Why don’t we go over now and check it out?”

Joanna made a slight sound.

“You have a problem with doing what you’re
told to do?” Mike asked her, his voice rough.

She flushed and shook her head. “No,
Mike.”

Mike looked at her hard, as if he’d will a
protest from her lips, but she was the perfect submissive.

Much to Eric’s delight.

“Fine. Let’s go,” Mike said, raising a hand
to summon the waitress.

* * *

The light was turning to the gold of late
afternoon when Leya pushed to her feet. She liked the tranquility
that had settled between herself and Rex, and she knew it was time.
She lit a stick of incense, but had only just set it in the stand
when Rex straightened in what might have been alarm.

“You don’t like incense?” she asked, knowing
it was more than that.

“Not really, no.”

It had reminded him of something, as scents
often did. Something that agitated him. Leya snuffed the incense
immediately. “What about candles? I have some beeswax ones.”

“If you like.”

Leya did like. A scent helped her to
concentrate. She set the candles at intervals around the room and
lit them, admiring the way the light was reflected in that long
mirror. She liked how it burnished Rex’s skin. He was bent over the
rope, concentrating on his work. She got the body paint and knelt
by his side.

He glanced up.

“My turn,” she said softly, loaded a brush
and put a stroke of gold paint on the back of his shoulder.

Rex turned to look at what she’d done.

“No,” she said softly. “This is about
complicity, too. Cooperation and trust.”

He eyed her for a moment, then put down the
rope. “What do I do, mistress?” There was a twinkle in his eyes, as
well as complete understanding that she was taking charge.

“Close your eyes. Begin to exhale when you
feel the brush touch your skin, and continue to breathe out until I
lift it away.”

He nodded and did as he was told. He put his
hands on his knees and bent his head slightly. Leya loaded the
brush and touched it to Rex’s skin. He began to exhale and sound of
his emanating breath filled Leya’s ears as she painted the spine of
a feather on his back. A flick of the wrist and it had the eye of a
peacock feather. Then she lifted the brush away and Rex
inhaled.

He was already more calm. Already more
trusting. By the time he was adorned, he would be at peace.

Leya loaded the brush for the next
feather.

* * *

Joanna couldn’t believe that Mike would agree
to an idea like this, but he wasn’t arguing. If anything, it was
proof that her dream of being shared worked even better for him
than it did for her. And maybe, she hadn’t been fulfilling him with
their bondage games. She’d heard him catch his breath when she’d
displayed the cable ties.

He was the one who had taken to her robbery
fantasy like a man who had just been waiting for the invitation.
That had been rough and fast, and there had been a lot of
electrical tape used to tie her up.

She’d liked that a lot, because it was with
Mike.

Maybe she’d like this a lot, because it was
with Mike.

Either way, the choice wasn’t hers to make.
Mike wanted her to be the perfect submissive and she wasn’t going
to let him down.

Maybe her reward would be Mike claiming her
for his own in this place. Maybe he was playing a game with her,
making her think he was going to share her but having no intention
of doing so. Maybe he was trying to thrill her with the danger of
possibility, and no more than that.

He’d done that before, after all.

She had to trust him.

Joanna was aching for Mike’s touch. He hadn’t
come near her since Friday night and was barely talking to her. She
understood that this was a test and his mood only made her more
determined to succeed.

That Mike was so serious convinced Joanna
that everything hung in the balance.

She had to get it right.

There was silence in the elevator after they
left the restaurant, although Eric considered the space pointedly.
Mike was watching the display and Joanna looked at the toes of her
boots. By the time the elevator door opened, Mike had pulled out
his keys and was leading the way to the parking lot. At his curt
gesture when they reached the car, Joanna got in the back seat.
This time, Eric got in the front passenger seat, instead of sliding
in beside her. “Mind if I set the scene?” he asked Mike.

Mike shook his head and started the car.

Eric turned in his seat to face Joanna. “Pull
up your skirt and put your bare ass on the leather,” he instructed.
Joanna did as she was told, knowing that Mike liked this, too. “Sit
in the middle, so we can both see you. And tighten that seatbelt
firmly around your hips.” Joanna followed his instructions. “Do you
have gloves in your purse?”

“Yes, Master Eric.”

“Put them on, then put the purse on the seat
beside on the left. And sit how you’ve been taught.”

Because of the hump for the transmission,
Joanna couldn’t press her ankles together. She chose to straddle
the hump instead, which spread her thighs wider. She would have put
her gloved hands on her knees, but Eric stopped her with his
request.

“Give us a view, Joanna.”

She flicked a glance at him, then pulled up
her skirt so that her sex was visible.

Eric smiled. “Are you wet?”

“Yes, Master Eric.”

“How wet?”

“Wet enough, Master Eric.”

“Dripping? Throbbing?”

Joanna swallowed. “Not yet, Master Eric.”

He pulled a vial from the inside pocket of
his jacket, one that she recognized as holding the stimulating
unguent marketed by the Plume. He opened the vial and offered its
contents to her. “Good thing I thought ahead. Put lots on your
clitoris and labia.”

Joanna took a healthy dollop of the salve on
her gloved finger and smeared it over herself. It made her skin
tingle and heat, and sure enough, her sex became hotter and more
hungry. She closed her eyes for a moment, certain she’d used too
much, then opened them to find Eric offering a tissue.