Bound to be Tamed: Emergence, Book 2 (29 page)

Stephanie woke up confused. She whipped her eyes open and glanced around the room.
Oh right. I’m a sub and this is my quarters.
She smiled. Her grin turned into panic when she remembered that morning, however. And the panic turned into a burning flush under the sheet.

“Shit,” she muttered. She sat up and looked around.
Bless them for letting me sleep.
She felt rested and more alive, but that didn’t erase her memory of the photo session.
 

I did that.
When would she ever get over the fact that she was indeed undeniably submissive?

Even the words tumbling out of the mouths of strangers, encouraging her and cheering her on, sucked her deep into a world of submission, obedience and…lust. Men she hardly knew had commanded her body to putty and brought her to orgasm with their words.

Hell, she masturbated for strangers who were fully clothed. She willingly stripped naked and pulled her legs apart for four men, exposed her most intimate private self, and then orgasmed on command, spilling her soul out for the entire room.

She flushed for the hundredth time and lay back on the pillow. She flung her forearm over her eyes and moaned. Surely Aiden and Dane were disappointed in her ability to fuck herself for any stranger who happened along.

She rolled over onto her stomach and hugged the pillow to her face. She still wore the scrap of a black cotton dress from earlier.

For some reason her Doms hadn’t taken her dress clothes away when they returned home. They’d also let her sleep all afternoon. Unease and concern filled her mind in the silence.

They could be disappointed in her. They could be testing her. Any damn thing was possible. She should just ask them. She needed to talk this out, understand herself better and delve into Dane’s and Aiden’s minds too.

The front door opened and shut with its distinctive click, making her flinch.
Showtime.

Stephanie rolled over as Aiden strolled into the bedroom. She smiled at him, but felt the distinctive furrow in her brow. She wasn’t sure what to expect.

“Hey. You’re up.”

“Barely,” she muttered.

He sat on the edge of the bed as he pulled his suit coat off and folded it neatly at his side. He even loosened his tie. “Did you sleep well?”

“Like a rock.”

He stroked her thigh beneath the sheet. “We were so proud of you this morning.” His gaze nailed her, forcing her deeper into the pillow with just a look. “I’m sure you were exhausted.”

Proud? She inhaled deeply. Relieved. He didn’t look angry. She bit her lip and narrowed her gaze anyway. “That was…”

“So fucking sexy.”

“Embarrassing.” Heat flooded her cheeks anew.

Aiden tapped her nose. “No need. We were all in awe of you. You’re so natural when you let your guard down and go with the flow.”

“I’ve never even met that other man before and I’ve only met Steve twice. Hell, I’ve not even seen his face before.” Her chest rose and fell. The sheet was down around her waist, but the tight black of the dress hugged her breasts. Her nipples rose in response to her discomfiture. Without thinking, she crossed her arms.

“The point is that both Duke and Steve are in the lifestyle, hon. You will see them again, probably Friday night at the club. When we’re in a club or at a private party, there is a lot of nudity, Steph. And we wanted you to get a small experience along those lines before Friday. You did fantastic. We purposefully didn’t explain things to you so you wouldn’t freak out. I figured if you went with the flow, you could ease into the experience. Like a scene. A private scene.”

Aiden leaned in and kissed her lips. He casually wrapped his hands around her wrists and drew them to her sides without commenting on her covered stance. “It’s part of the D/s lifestyle. They’re used to it. Now, if you had been less of a natural submissive, you would have balked more and been unable to follow the directions.

“And if you had not been submissive at all, you would have run from the room.” Aiden smiled again. His face was inches from her own. He had her undivided attention. And he still held her wrists.

“You aren’t mad?”

He furrowed his brow. “Why would I be mad?”

“I came, screaming, mind you, for another man…men.”

“It was beautiful. We asked you to do it. How could I be mad?”

“You asked me to let Steve take a few pictures. You did not ask me to fuck myself in public.” She emphasized the word fuck as though it were dirty.

Aiden pursed his lips and thought for a second before he spoke. “I wanted you to do exactly what you did. I never dreamed you could be led that deep. You were so obedient, you made me harder than a rock. I thought I would explode watching you.”

“Then you left me here, let me sleep and didn’t take my dress away.” She hoped she didn’t sound pouty. That wasn’t the goal.

Aiden stretched out beside her, nudged her legs apart under the sheet and settled one knee between them. “You were tired, and we didn’t want to disturb you.” His eyes twinkled. “Next time we won’t be so nice if it worries you.”

She tried to stay serious, but it was hard with his teasing voice and wicked grin.

Aiden continued, “Steph, don’t let stuff bottle up inside you. You can talk to us, you know.”

“Can I?” She sucked her lips in between her teeth.

“Of course.” He frowned.

“I’m a chick, you know. I need talking sometimes. I hope you don’t expect me to follow you two like a lost puppy for the rest of your lives without questioning things and stopping to say ‘what the fuck?’ now and then.”

He chuckled. “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Good. I’m glad we had this chat. You were both pretty clear that I had little say so in this trial period and I need a break sometimes to regroup. Sometimes I’m gonna need you two to listen to me. I might even cry. I get overwhelmed.”

He kissed her gently on the lips again. “No problem. Please yell
uncle
if you need to. We don’t want you to have all sorts of shit piled inside your head unaddressed. Okay?”

“Yes.” She met his gaze. “As long as we’re openly discussing things, is everything okay with you and Dane?”

“What do you mean?”

“You acted kind of strange when you got back from the club. Did everything go okay at Emergence?”

“Of course.” Aiden glanced away. “We met with the owner. It’s a great club. You’re going to like it.”

“But?”

“No buts.” He turned back to her with a strained smile. “Your bosses had applied there. That pissed us off. But they were turned down, so no worries.”

Aiden set his forehead on hers and held her gaze for several seconds. Finally, he released her and stood. “We need to get back to the restaurant. Jump in the shower. I brought you something to eat.” He turned back to her as he headed toward the door. “Don’t worry, Dane made it.” His chuckle rang as he stepped into the hall.

Stephanie dragged herself from the bed, pulling the black dress over her head as she made her way to the bathroom. She followed the usual instructions in the shower, leaving the door open and grooming herself to perfection.

When she was finished and stepped out onto the mat, Aiden was still nowhere to be seen. She glanced around and spotted several towels hanging on the rack next to her. Each one had a clean washcloth over the top. With a deep breath, she grabbed a small square of terrycloth and wiped herself dry.

It would never cease to be strange, this method of drying, but she did it nonetheless, knowing it was expected of her.

She even squeezed her hair out with the cloth and set it on the counter to comb through her curls.

When she entered the kitchen—clean, hair damp, and naked—she found Aiden setting a plate of food on the island. She climbed up onto a stool and sat, suddenly so hungry her entire focus was on the smell of red sauce. “Did you bring this home from the restaurant?”

“I did.” He smiled as she took the first bite, his mouth a little too wide. “Did you forget something?”

She froze and glanced from side to side without moving her head. Her fork hung in the air, her mouth open for the second bite.

When he didn’t move, she set the fork down and straightened her back.

Aiden glanced at her lap. “You’re a slow study on some issues.”

Fuck. Her legs. She spread them quickly, but too little too late, no doubt.

“Eat.” Aiden nodded at her plate and then walked away.

Stephanie ate, not because she was hungry anymore. She’d lost her appetite worrying about what he might do next. But she knew she had been hungry, should be hungry and would be hungry if she did not eat. So she swallowed the entire plate without tasting the delicious meal as she’d intended.

When she finished, she quietly took her plate to the sink, cleaned her spot and headed back to the bedroom. Where was Aiden?

She found him in the bathroom. He’d set out clothes and dressed her without a word. The intimate camaraderie of earlier was gone, wiped out by her mistake at the table.

In another similar skirt and blouse outfit, she headed sullenly to the sink to brush her teeth and comb through her almost-dry hair.

Aiden seated her with a nudge to her shoulders and finished with the dryer. As usual, she looked better than ever when he was done. Except for the fear she could see in her own eyes. Any error on her part could take a turn toward the unexpected. It was hard to tell from one time to the next what might happen, but why the hell could she not keep her legs spread?

“You look great,” he declared, kissing her forehead as though there wasn’t a giant mammal in the room sucking all the air out. He straightened her skirt, black that time, and brushed a few strands of hair off her purple blouse.

She was glad for the darker colors. She felt more protected than the pale, see-through pastels. In fact, he didn’t give her a scarf this time.

“Ready?”

She nodded, still a bit nervous about the leg issue. How long would she have to wait for him to address it?

“Oh…” he snapped his fingers, “…forgot something.” He headed into the closet.

Of course you did.

When he returned, he had a narrow bag slung over his shoulder. “Let’s go.”

What the fuck is that?

Stephanie followed him dutifully out of the apartment and then the building. It was warm when they got outside. She walked briskly to keep up with him, barely taking her gaze off the black tote zipped from top to bottom.

When they entered the restaurant, she realized for the first time it was early afternoon. Not many people were inside.

Aiden took her hand and led her toward the back. “We’ve been gone so much, we need to be here a few extra hours today. I’ll show you how to get started on some things and then I need to meet with some newer employees.”

“Okay, Sss…” She had to stop herself from adding “Sir”. The word had become so commonplace for her that she almost uttered it in public without thinking.

Aiden laughed and kept walking until they were both in the back office.

She looked around for Dane.

“Dane’s meeting with a produce guy. He’ll be back in about an hour. We need to work on payroll. You want to take that project on?”

“Sure. I mean, of course, Sir.” It seemed prudent, since no one else was around, to add that tiny word. She was clearly in the doghouse anyway. Maybe it would help.

“You take the desk chair and I’ll pull this one around to get you started.” He set the long bag on the mahogany desktop and dragged the guest seat to the other side.

Stephanie inhaled deeply and circled the desk, her gaze still on the tote. It was about two feet long and narrow.

“Sit.” He pointed at the swivel chair. “Since you’re so curious about the duffle, I’ll go ahead and let you have it now.”

She swallowed.
No, thank you.

Dramatically, Aiden unzipped the bag, slowly, drawing out the tension. He glanced at her and shook his head. “It was your choice.”

Shit. She sat on the edge of the seat, her knees bobbing up and down. She put both hands on them to still her fidgetiness. Her thumbs brushed against one another and she moaned before she spread her knees. Why the hell did she struggle with this one simple command? Always had. It was one of the first things they’d insisted upon.
Always keep your thighs spread open and ready for us.

The moan turned into a squeak when Aiden lifted the pole from the bag. She froze, her face turning a deep shade of red she didn’t need to see to know was there.

He swiveled the chair around so she faced him. “I’m guessing you love this spreader bar. It’s obvious to me.”

“No, Sir,” she muttered. She did
not
.

“Really?” He lifted an eyebrow and looked her in the eye as he knelt between her legs. He set the bar on end between her knees and lifted her palms from where she gripped her thighs to place them on the arms of the chair.

He continued, “You might want to think about that a bit. You keep defying us on this issue. There must be some payoff to wearing the spreader. Nobody commits the same infraction over and over without getting a reward for the conduct.”