Tilly.
Skye couldn’t hear what she said, but he softly replied, “Yes, Ma’am.”
Finally, her pulse wouldn’t slow, her stomach progressively tightened, and she tried to sit up.
Hands stabilized her, steadying her as she reached for the ball gag and blindfold.
Yep, Bob.
She glanced around. “Where is he?”
He started to shake his head, then shrugged. “I’m sorry, ma’am, I don’t know. Tilly followed him outside, then she just came back in.”
She wasn’t stupid. Even though he’d called her ma’am, she knew it was lower-case, not the way he said it to Tilly.
He offered her a bottle of water and she took it, drinking. “Ma’am said to tell you if he doesn’t come back that we’ll get you home.”
She struggled against the tears wanting to fall. “Thanks.”
Skye sat facing Bob and the wall for another couple of minutes, not quite ready to face reality. Then Bob softly spoke and tipped his head toward the doorway. “Skye.”
Axel stood there, looking like shit warmed over. Tilly was talking to Walt, who’d cleaned his implements and was sitting on another couch with Holly.
Walt got up and walked over. “You all right?”
“Yeah. Thank you. That was fun.”
He glanced over his shoulder at Axel, then back to her. “Do you need a ride home?”
She snorted, and even Bob smiled. “No, thank you. It’s covered. But, seriously, thank you for playing with me. That was awesome.”
“My pleasure. Anytime. I had fun.”
Skye scooped up her backpack and headed for the bathroom on that side. She needed a moment to…collect herself.
She could understand not watching the scene, but couldn’t he at least come back in to do her aftercare? He’d said he would.
After cleaning up and pulling on clothes, she was washing her face when the door opened.
Tilly appeared in the mirror, standing behind her. “What do you want to know?”
She took a deep breath. “Tell me.”
“He bolted about fifteen minutes in and ran outside where he puked his guts up.”
Shit.
“He’s been standing out there the whole time. Sorry, but I kinda meddled.”
“Meddled?”
“Yeah.” She leaned against the wall. “I walked out there and chewed him a new one, including making him an offer.”
Skye turned, grabbing paper towels to dry her face. “What kind of offer?”
“You can train with Bob under Landry. Indefinitely. The goal, of course, is to try to slowly bring Axel up to speed and find a level that is mutually beneficial to you both, if possible, but I didn’t get into that with Axel outside. I already called Landry and he’s on board. We can do it here or at the house. House would be easier because of schedules. That way, you can do this, and Axel doesn’t have to.”
“Did Axel agree to that?”
“I don’t know. I told him to pull his shit together and to nut the fuck up, then I came inside. That’s still to-be-determined. Fair warning, Axel probably thinks I’m a complete bitch now. Which I’m totally good with, but I do not suffer wishy-washy lightly. Especially when it’s for no damn good reason, and people can get badly hurt by it.”
“It’s not fair of me to want this when he doesn’t, is it?”
“You didn’t lie to him about who you are. You were honest. It’s up to him to decide what he can and can’t do. I will tell you that if you’re thinking about staying with him and not playing, you’ll be miserable. I’ve seen that happen. Maybe for a year or two things are fine, but eventually, resentment creeps in. That’s soon followed by hatred, and before long, another relationship bites the dust. I can’t tell you what to do, but I can tell you what I’ve seen go wrong more times than not.”
Skye collected her things and followed Tilly out of the bathroom.
* * * *
Axel prayed Skye didn’t hate him. As she walked up to him, followed by Tilly, who was followed by silent Bob, he struggled to think of something to say.
“I’m ready to go,” she softly said.
He nodded, digging his keys out. He knew he should probably go say good-bye to Walt, at least, but right now he felt like an asshole and wanted to get out of there.
He turned and led Skye out to his car, but she stood at the passenger door, hand on the handle, waiting for him to hit the key fob.
So he did, heading for the driver’s side.
The chilly silence that descended over their ride home threatened to rip his heart out.
“Are you okay?” she finally asked.
He didn’t miss that she didn’t call him Sir.
He…was shocked to realize he missed it.
“No,” he said.
“Do you not want me to play with any—”
“I don’t know what the fuck I want!” he screamed, shocking not just her, but himself.
Except…
Now that the dam had burst, he couldn’t hold it back any longer.
“I want to do the right goddamned thing here, I really do. But I fucking love you, and I’m ready to spend the rest of my life with you except I don’t see where I fit into that. I cannot do that for you. I can’t. I’m sorry, but it’s not in me to hurt you like that, even if you want it. I went outside and puked my guts up, okay?
“And I gotta tell you Skye, no offense, but after what Linda put me through, I really don’t want to get married again. Period. Might live with someone, eventually, but I’m still feeling like I don’t even have my emotional shit together and that was a few years ago.”
“Might live with someone?”
A cold chill settled over him as he realized what he’d said. “I…I didn’t mean it like that.”
Fuck.
He didn’t even know where the fuck that had come from.
He didn’t think this could get any worse.
He was wrong.
Hell, at this rate I might as well rent myself a backhoe and dig my own grave.
She didn’t speak again until they pulled up outside his house. “Do you want me to go home?” she quietly asked, pain tingeing her tone.
“No, baby, I don’t. I want to…” He sighed. “I want to not be an asshole. I want to be the guy you need me to be.”
“Tilly told me about her offer.”
He nodded. “Yeah.”
She stared straight ahead. “Could you do that?”
“Yeah. I guess I’d have to. I mean, I want to be able to do at least some of this for you, but I’m…”
He laid his head on the steering wheel. “I don’t want to lose you, Skye. I love you. But I’m not going to force you to be with me. If you need this and want it, and there’s no sex and stuff with Landry, yeah. I’ll deal with it.”
She caressed his cheek. “I…I can not do it.”
He shook his head. “No. I know this makes you happy and makes you feel good. I…maybe in time I can do more once I’m used to it. I’m willing to try. I’m sorry I freaked out.”
Her hand didn’t leave, continued caressing his face. “Please look at me, Sir.”
His heart throbbed, Axel nearly sobbing to hear her say that to him. He lifted his head to stare at her.
“I want to make this work but I don’t want to hurt you.”
He covered her hand with his. “I don’t want to hurt you, either.”
They headed inside and in the living room, he pulled her into his arms and held her, kissing her. “I want to do whatever we need to do to make this work. I want to fight for this. If it means letting Landry play with you, okay.”
They ended up in bed, and when she landed on top of him, riding his cock, he grabbed her ass and squeezed.
The long, loud moan she let out in reply conflicted with his brain. His heart knew this was “right,” but convincing that thinking portion that was also good at figuring out complex physics calculations…mmm, not so much.
As she rode
him, he reached between her legs and played with her clit and she exploded around him, her pussy squeezing his cock. When he thought she was finished he rolled them over and started fucking her, hard, trying to hold back to see if he could get another one out of her like this. She’d told him she couldn’t believe he could make her come like that, and to her, it was one more sign they should be together.
He’d take it.
He’d take her, however he had to take her.
Capturing her mouth with his, he kissed her, long-stroking her and trying to hit the sweet spot with each thrust.
“If I do this,” he said, “if we do this, it means you get your ass beat and come home and get fucked right after.”
“Yes, Sir!”
He wanted to hold back, wait for her to catch up. “I own this sweet ass, don’t you forget it. I get to decide what Landry can and can’t do to you.”
Her body rocked in time with his. “Yes, Sir!”
“My time comes first. If we have plans, you don’t cancel them to go over there. You consult with me on the schedule.”
“Yes, Sir!”
He nibbled down the side of her neck, getting more moans from her. He knew she liked being bitten, but he’d always hesitated biting too hard. “Who do you belong to?”
He felt her orgasm start. “You, Sir!”
He fucked her harder, faster, now wanting to catch up with her. “Whose ass is this?”
“Your ass, Sir!”
“Who’s my good girl?”
Her nails raked down his back. “I’m your good girl, Sir!”
His orgasm hit, hard and painfully pleasurable, before he finally fell still inside her, trying to catch his breath and wondering if he’d just slipped into insanity.
She grabbed him and kissed him, hard. “I love you so fucking much.”
That answered his question. “I love you, too, baby.”
Chapter Seventeen
The new world order was…weird.
After a long in-person lunch with Landry, and even more phone calls, Axel had agreed that Skye could work with Landry, Cris, and Tilly.
And even Bob.
They would handle the physical, non-sexual play. Nothing they did would interfere or supersede what he had with Skye. She was still his girl, his submissive, and wouldn’t even call Landry Sir.
That was by Landry’s decree.
Meanwhile, the triad worked with Axel, answering questions, helping him create rituals, rules, and protocols for Skye that worked for him, and…
They settled into a routine where he would get a girlfriend wound up and eager to fuck his brains out after being beaten black and blue by Landry.
He loved her. He couldn’t let her go and ever forgive himself for not trying.
And she loved him.
Landry had warned Axel at the start that it couldn’t be a permanent arrangement. That the ultimate goal would be working toward Axel learning to be comfortable with physical play and eventually developing his own style that might not be as sadistic as Landry’s, but would work for both Skye and Axel.
And Landry could, on occasion, play with her if she needed something more.
Landry wanted Axel to be able to stay and watch the play and participate. That the more he did that, the easier it’d get, until it seemed like second nature.
When the first attempted goal date was set for six weeks after his freak out at Venture, Axel prayed he could do it.
And Skye had told him she’d drive herself, just in case.
Now, the night was here.
Axel felt guilty that his freak-out had caused Skye to ask to go to Cris and Landry’s tonight in separate vehicles.
Rightfully so. He got it.
He’d damaged her trust in him, at least in some small part, and that killed him inside.
Tilly’s words out in the parking lot of Venture four weeks earlier echoed in his brain, ringing, recriminating.
The hard edge, borderline venom, despite her low voice.
Axel slowed and made the turn into the driveway, pulling up to the gate. He rolled the window down and punched in the four-digit code, holding his breath until a long beep sounded and the gate rolled open.
Hands shaking, he drove forward, giving serious consideration to turning around and leaving. Doing what Tilly suggested and letting her go. There could be somebody better than him for Skye just around the corner.
Then they could still be friends. She hopefully wouldn’t hate him.
Wasn’t like he wasn’t used to being alone.
Another car sat parked out in front of the house, but he didn’t recognize it, at first. It wasn’t Skye’s. An older Mercedes, maybe ten years old, but it looked showroom-new.
Was she even here yet?
He glanced at the time and saw it was 6:58. He knew she was a stickler for punctuality. He’d said seven, so she’d likely be early, not late.
No message from her indicating she was running behind.
All he could do was force himself out of his car and trudge across the grass, across their concrete driveway, and up to the front door.
Bob was already opening it before Axel stepped onto the front stoop. Dressed in jeans, a button-up shirt opened to the second collar with the sleeves rolled up his arms, he was barefoot.
He also wore an ornate leather collar buckled around his neck.
Ah, that explained the car. He knew from what Skye had told him that Bob was actually wealthy, but chose to live conservatively within his means.
But…where was Skye?
“Hi,” Axel managed when he reached the door.
Bob stepped to the side and, without speaking, motioned for him to enter.
“Is Skye here?” Axel asked as Bob shut the door behind him
Bob walked around him, tipped his head in what Axel suspected was an affirmative, and then bowed slightly, indicating for Axel to follow him.
Why won’t he talk to me? Did I piss the guy off?
Or maybe this was Bob’s way of telling Axel he didn’t approve of the freak-out Axel’d had at Venture.
He led Axel through the foyer and down the hallway to their home office, stopping in the open doorway, hands together, head bowed, and cleared his throat.
Landry had been sitting at one of three desks in there, his back to the doorway. He was on a cell phone and talking to someone. Upon the noise, he swiveled his chair and nodded, waving Axel in.
After Axel stepped inside, Bob gave a low bow from the waist and silently closed the door behind him as he withdrew.
Ooookaaaay.
“Look, I told you that is not an acceptable timeframe,” Landry barked at whoever he was talking to. “I do not care if you have to authorize overtime for every engineer we have on the payroll, and a few we do not, to get that co-lo back on line by tomorrow night. You do it. If you make me fly Cristo out there again to handle this, you will find yourself refreshing your resume and shopping it around the West Coast to find someone who will settle for merely adequate performance. Do I make myself perfectly clear? … Excellent. That is the answer I wished to hear.”
He thumbed the end button and dropped the cell phone onto the desk. “Sorry about that. Emergency developed late this morning that we’re dealing with.”
“Um, if we need to cancel—”
“Nonsense.” He pointed at a nearby chair. “Please, sit. We need to talk before anything else happens.”
He sat, his heart squeezing. “Is Skye here yet?”
“Yes, she’s been here for a couple of hours. Why?”
He blinked. “Hours?”
“I had Bob pick her up and bring her here so we could prepare.”
Bob…
The guy who looked like a romance novelist’s wet dream, with gorgeous blue eyes that made his own look like dirty dishwater by comparison, probably with rock-hard abs that would make even his own straight self look twice—who had answered their front door—that Bob?
Great.
“Is he mad at me?” r />
Landry frowned. “Who?”
“Bob. He answered the door. He didn’t talk to me.”
Landry’s brows lifted. “Ah, that’s because he’s not allowed to. I told him he cannot.”
Humiliation flashed through him. “What? Why?”
“He’s in training, that’s why, and this is part of it. Formal protocols. Doesn’t concern you, no offense.”
More processing needed. “Um…” He really had no idea what to say.
Landry leaned back in the office chair, his right leg crossed over his left knee. He wore jeans and a short-sleeved button-up shirt, but he was also barefoot. “Since I can see the questions on your face, I suppose I could choose to elucidate, but only if you promise not to discuss it outside of this room without my express permission first.”
“Um…okay?”
“Is that a yes, or are you confused as to my terms?”
“Yes. I promise.”
“Bob is formally in training, collared to my household as a leather family member. Tilly asked me to collar him to us as a house. After some careful consideration, I agreed. He has a slave’s heart and soul and absolutely bloody horrible luck with relationships with dominant women who aren’t bloodsucking bitches.
“He’s our friend first, and what we can give him, he cannot easily find by right swiping on a dating app. I have been working with him, as well as Skye. He comes to us to get his needs fulfilled that a girlfriend cannot, and he is free to date as he pleases, so long as it does not interfere with our agreement. It is a win-win, as they say. He currently spends every weekend living with us, in training and acting as our manservant, as well as spending several evenings a week here, as long as it doesn’t conflict with work.”
Axel wasn’t sure how he felt about that, not that it was any of his business, he supposed. “Skye never mentioned any of that to me.”
“That is because she was sworn to secrecy. It is no one’s business outside of this leather family. Since she and Bob have no sexual contact, and nothing I have them do together violates anything in your protocols, and you gave me permission to work with her, it was outside the boundaries of our agreement and therefore not germane to our discussions before now.”
Do together?