Empowered [Sexual Magic 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (2 page)

Neither he nor his partner had seen the woman until they ran afoul of her at Pleasure Isles the year before, working her demonic agony on Mason Shaw. Their friend and fellow Enricher had been hanging from his wrists, back bloody, and damn near unconscious.

Noah shifted in his chair as fury once more rippled through him. They’d used Madelyn as a distraction to free Mason, and those twenty minutes had been the longest, worst of his life. Having no idea what his partner was going through while cloistered with a raving lunatic was agonizing.

He would never leave Madelyn alone again.

“Enough of that crazy bitch Krista,” Noah said on a growl. “Let’s get back to Gabriel. I sense you’re hiding something else.”

This time Clarissa’s brows snapped into a sharp vee over her black eyes. “Mind your tongue, Noah.”

“His tongue is fine, Clarissa,” Madelyn said with a chuckle.

“The two of you are incorrigible.”

“We know. So what’s not written in there?” Noah pointed to Gabriel’s dossier.

The Council leader blushed and Noah’s eyes widened. He refrained from meeting Madelyn’s gaze, certain he would find a similar shocked look.

“If you must know, the Council feels Mr. Fleming could prove very beneficial to us. In an administrative kind of way.”

Noah shot upright. “What? You’re not leaving the Council, are you?”

“No, no,” she assured him. “Nothing like that. But, well, we’re a bit old.”

She glared to forestall any smart comments, and he wisely kept them to himself.

“Or perhaps it’d be better to say we’re set in our ways. Mr. Fleming is a billionaire three times over at the least. He’s made his money in myriad, creative ways and was on the board of two very large and dynamic corporations. It is our hope he can help guide us safely into new technologies and systems so we may better serve.”

“What does he do now?” Madelyn asked.

“Nothing, and that is also a bit of the issue. When his marriage crumbled, he was at loose ends for a long while. Only went out with male companions, only to sporting events. The rest of the time, he sequestered himself in his home. When we learned of his impending trip, the Council took it as a very positive sign.” Clarissa picked up the photo and studied the image before laying it back down and steepling her fingers. She peered at them in turn. “I will give you my blessing for this case, but please, by the Goddess, be extremely careful.”

“Of course,” Noah said. “Now, what do we need to know about his sexual preferences?”

* * * *

Head reeling and cock rock hard, Gabriel Fleming sat on the rattan barstool and sipped a vodka martini. He fished out the skewered olives and sucked one from the plastic sword as he thought about what he’d just witnessed.

Pleasure Isles’ brochure certainly alluded to a hedonistic mindset where everything goes, but he’d not expected to see a nubile young blonde being whipped by a powerful man in his hotel lobby.

Gabriel flipped another olive from the sword and slowly chewed. The expression on her face was what fascinated him the most. Utter lust coupled with a hunger for more.

As he and about twenty other people watched, the collared girl took a multitude of strokes from the man’s flogger. Upon a barked command, she’d come like a firehouse siren—long, hard, and loud.

Something he’d like to do right about now.

“Buy you a drink?”

The soft, musical tones of a woman interrupted his musing, and Gabriel pulled his mind out of the salacious gutter and looked at her. His breath hitched.

She was incredibly beautiful. Though she stood only about five three, her eyes were turquoise powerhouses dominating her small, elfin face. They were huge, the color of warm Caribbean seas and framed in the darkest, most lush set of lashes he’d ever seen. Her mouth was full with lips like crushed cherries.

He wondered if they’d be as delicious.

As he stared at her mouth, he noticed a tiny scar just below her lower lip. The small imperfection added a layer of instant intrigue to the woman’s beauty. Ebony black hair tumbled in waves down her shoulders and back, the ends curling over a set of full, round breasts.

The red sundress she wore showed her ample cleavage to perfection and enhanced her smooth ivory skin.

He gave her a slow-spreading grin and gestured to the seat next to him.

“No thanks, Snow White, I do the buying, not the other way around.”

One perfectly groomed brow arched upward and a cool look of amusement crossed her face. She settled onto the stool. “That is fine with me,
monsieur
.” She looked at the bartender. “Chocolate martini,
s’il vous plaît.
”

The guy flicked a glance at him, and Gabriel nodded, more interested in the woman by the minute.

She winked and nodded past him. “And one for my friend, as well.”

Gabriel looked over his shoulder. A tall, muscular, dark-haired man had taken the stool flanking him. He nodded slowly, his green gaze sharp and assessing.

“Afternoon.”

Gabriel leaned back a little to study the striking pair. The hair on his nape rose, a sure sign something was up.

He gave each a wary look before holding out his hand to the man. “Gabriel Fleming.”

“Noah Bishop,” the big man said and clasped the proffered hand.

The grip was strong but not crushing. Obviously Noah knew how to control his strength. Gabriel spun to the woman and introduced himself again. She tipped her head, making more ebony waves tumble around her face like a surging sea. “Madelyn Girard.” Her soft whoosh on the
g
and the delightful way she rolled her
r
’s made him smile. He loved a French accent and how it made every word sound sensual and alluring.

“We do not wish to intrude on you,
monsieur
. If you prefer solitude…”

He hadn’t built a billion-dollar business by being shy or antisocial, and something about these two was very intriguing. “Not at all,” he said smoothly. “Why don’t we move to a table? Better conversational area.”

She nodded then slid from the stool. The hem of her sundress caught on one of the bamboo pieces, affording Gabriel a good look at her pale legs, knees to knickers.

She wore tiny red, lacy knickers that didn’t hide anything. Definitely the “for show” kind of racy underwear.

Without missing a beat or losing her smile, Madelyn unhooked her dress and slowly smoothed a hand over her hips.

“This way.”

He motioned Noah forward and then followed the pair. Noah pulled out a chair for Madelyn and seated himself only when Gabriel motioned him down.

“Not that I’m complaining, mind you, but to what do I owe the pleasure of your interest?” Gabriel spoke directly to Madelyn, though he kept a partial gaze upon Noah.

He caught the furtive glance they shared, and his radar went on high alert. He took a sip from his martini while he waited for an answer.

“Why are you here, on Pleasure Isles?” Madelyn asked.

“You didn’t answer my question.”

Another shared look, and Noah gave her a sharp nod, and she sighed.

“Very well,
monsieur
, I will tell you, but please do us the courtesy of hearing me out fully before interjecting.” She drew random patterns on the glass tabletop with her long, rounded fingernail. “What I have to say is highly unbelievable, but I swear to you, one hundred percent true.”

Intriguing.

“You are a very successful businessman. So successful, you were able to sell your latest company for nearly a quarter of a billion dollars. You have an aptitude for finding a niche and filling it efficiently and in a manner which ensures you’ll make the most possible return on your investments.”

Gabriel stilled and narrowed his eyes, but remained silent. He was interested in seeing where this was going. His identity on the island was no big secret, but most people here were concerned with pleasure, not profit. So far, no one had approached him about his business dealings.

“You are divorced for one year and sixteen days. Your marriage lasted three years and nine days. You are thirty-six years old. No children. You work out regularly at the gym, swim on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and prefer potato vodka over grain.”

The grocery list, as varied and accurate as it was, sent alarm bells winging through his brain.

Still, though, he remained quiet.

Madelyn sipped her martini. “I tell you all of this to prove what I am about to tell you is the truth.”

“Any private investigator could have churned up that information,” he finally said. “You’ve not told me anything that isn’t actually a matter of public record.”

She looked chagrined.

Noah smiled and leaned forward. “When your wife told you she wanted a divorce, she cited difficulties with you in the areas of control and the bedroom. I believe her exact words were ‘You’ll never find anyone who will bend to your every command.’ Correct?”

It took every ounce of his willpower not to jump up, plant his fist in the other man’s face, and stalk away.

No one
knew what Marcy had said to him that day.

He drained the rest of his martini, nodded, and rose. “Good afternoon.”

“Wait, please. Sir, please.”

Madelyn’s voice hitched with passion and pleading, and Gabriel cursed himself every kind of idiot and then some as he turned back. Her big blue eyes were as wide and imploring as a puppy’s. He’d always been a sucker for small and adorable things. Madelyn fit the bill perfectly. Her sweet face silently begged him to listen.

“Please, sit down again.” She patted the back of his chair.

“How in the hell did you know what my ex-wife said? And why in the hell should I sit down and listen?”

“I have not finished my story, Sir. There are a few crucial items to share.” She bit her bottom lip, suckling at the fullness. “It is truly important.”

He cut a glance at Noah, who also wore the same faint look of entreaty wrapped in an arrogance he was beginning to recognize and maybe even understand. The look of a Dom.

“Damn it.” He sighed and resumed his seat. “You’d better have a damn good explanation for this knowledge of yours.”

She took a deep breath, laced her fingers, and spoke again. “Our employer, collectively known as the Council, has sent us to intervene in your private life. To sort of guide you to the next step of your sexual evolution and help you to become a strong member in our community.”

“Council? Sexual evolution? Christ, lady, what are you smoking?”

“It gets more unbelievable, Sir, and I apologize.”

Gabriel waved his hand for her to continue. How much worse could it get?

“We are magically enhanced sexual guides,” Madelyn said in a rush. “You are our client. The Council has ferreted out every one of your secrets and determined you are a prime candidate for our services.” She took in a deep breath. “In short, Sir, the Council believes you to be a very strong and important Dominant in the BDSM world, except you don’t know that. We, Noah and I, have been assigned your case in order to help you find your way properly.”

His breath whooshed from his body. “Did you say a Dominant?”

“Yes, Sir.”

He wanted to dismiss her out of hand, but something stalled the words in his throat. Gabriel looked away, and his glance was snagged by a couple at the edge of the outdoor bar. She was leaning over the rail, hands in a white-knuckled grip on the wood, her skirt tossed to her back. Behind her, a man used his sandal to spank her ass.

Instantly his cock hardened again.

Him? A Dom? Surely not.

Madelyn’s soft hand closed over his forearm. “Yes, Sir, that is exactly what you are.”

He pulled his attention back to her. “Un-fucking-believable.”

She didn’t seem put out in the least by his harsh mockery.

Noah settled his big hand on Gabriel’s other arm. “It’s true. Our mission here is to show you how to become the best Dom you have hidden inside.”

“How?” Gabriel muttered.
What the hell? Surely I’m not buying into this.

“Have you not noticed your interest in all things bondage while you’ve been here? Didn’t you go hard as a rock when you saw the couple at the end of the patio? Aren’t you secretly critiquing his methods? His stance? Cataloging her expressions and wondering how you could take her higher?”

Every damn thing Noah said was true, and Gabriel fought with himself.
Admit it or not?

“Fine,” he said. “Yes, I was thinking something along those lines. But what has that to do with some Council, and what the hell is a magically enhanced sexual being?”

Noah’s face lapsed into smugness, and again Gabriel found himself wanting to knock the expression away.

But this time, not with his fist.

With a whip.

Noah watched Gabriel struggle with the revelations they’d introduced. He saw when he grudgingly accepted the possibility existed. He could also tell the other man really wanted to lash out.

Good, things were progressing nicely. Now they just had to find a way to channel his energy. Despite Gabriel’s interests, he still had to have the right temperament, abilities, and skill set.

“Being a Dom isn’t the right role for everyone,” he said. God, wasn’t that the truth? Visions of the demon redhead Krista floated in his mind. His gut clenched as bile churned, and he forced the acid away. “There are varying levels of every role in this world. Some are extreme and some are more playful. We need to find out which type you are.”

Gabriel’s expression was skeptical. “How do you propose we do that?”

“Mostly we talk to you about your likes and dislikes. Find out what arouses you and why, then we put some things into practice,” Madelyn said. “Have you ever visited any BDSM specific websites?”

“No.”

“All right, let’s go back to the couple from a few moments ago. You had a very physical reaction to that scene. Why?” Her fingers covered his. “Please, be as specific as you can.”