Ricochet (81 page)

ever experienced it, and Rick had never really

understood what the kaeira was until today.

Matt's eyes flashed in surprise. "A life-bond?

Seriously?"

"Why not?" Rick smiled and stroked his sub's

messy hair away from his eyes. "They're rare, but

they do exist - they're not just made up for the

movies."

"But I always assumed you had to be someone

special to be able to do it; or that you had to study

for years at a Shinzoic Retreat or something. I

didn't know they could just happen like that."

"You mean, why us? Why now?"

"I guess so. You know me - I'm never very

good at letting go and accepting something. Too

much in my head, remember." Matt made a face.

"Always wanting to know why."

"I know why." Rick kissed him gently. "It's

because we fit together so well, Matt. It just works

between us."

"And the why now? I mean, why not the first

time we made love, or during that marathon sex

session after you first collared me, or any of the

dozens of times since then?"

"That's easy." Rick smiled. "This is the first

time we've really embraced who we are and taken

each other on that final step of the journey. We did

the hard stuff, Matt, instead of just the easy stuff,

and we took care of each other along the way."

"You stepped up and punished me," Matt said

softly.

"And you stepped up and accepted it - and

really accepted my right, as your dom, to take that

place in your life. You surrendered not just for

your own pleasure, but to fully embrace the sub

within and be true to him."

"Yes." Matt rested his forehead against

Rick's. "I really did. Oh shit, this is incredible.

Life-bonding…" He drew back again, looking

amazed. "Should we do it? Now we know we

can?"

"I'd like to, but there's no rush." Rick

caressed his sub's warm ass with his fingers, liking

how it made Matt squirm but how he took it

anyway, without trying to move away. "Let's take

our time and decide. We'll know when we're

ready, Matty; we'll just know."

"Wow - you look amazing." Matt took in the

sight of his dom, dressed in a tuxedo, complete

with white shirt, black bow tie, and a red satin

cummerbund around his waist. Rick's broad

shoulders filled out the black jacket, and he'd had

his hair cut and a professional shave, which made

a change from his usual sexy stubble.

"So do you." Rick studied Matt's tuxedo and

blue cummerbund. "But one thing's wrong." He

frowned as he looked at Matt's neck.

"What? Did I fix my bow tie wrong?" Matt

asked anxiously, glancing at himself in the mirror.

"I'm no good with these things."

"Nope - it's this." Rick unbuckled the plain

black collar from around Matt's neck and threw it

on the bed. "I think this would work better with

that outfit, don't you?"

He pulled a soft leather collar out of his

pocket, in the same shade of deep blue as the

cummerbund Matt was wearing.

"It's not a 'design classic', I'm afraid," he said

mockingly, as he fastened it around Matt's neck.

"No slinky gold inlaid with sapphires, although if I

could afford to buy you one like that then you know

I would!"

"I don't want that." Matt traced the brand new

collar with his fingers as he looked at himself in

the mirror. "This is much more me." The collar

looked perfect with his tuxedo, lending him an air

of classy elegance, and it brought out the color of

his eyes. If only his hair matched the collar's

elegance - it was tousled already, and the evening

had hardly begun.

"Shit - my hair." Matt ran a hand through it

despairingly. "I spent hours trying to get it to sit

straight but it just springs back up again."

"I like it like that - it suits you. It doesn't have

to be all neat and tidy and under control the whole

time," Rick said meaningfully, grinning at him.

Matt took another look at himself and decided

that unruly hair wasn't the worst thing in the world,

and Rick was right - it did kind of suit him.

He turned away from the mirror and without

his hair to fuss over, he began idly counting down

from one thousand in his head.

"Nervous?" Rick asked, wrapping an arm

around his body and pulling him in close. "You're

counting."

"How can you tell?"

"I just can. You haven't done it in a while, so

I figure you're freaking out about tonight."

"It's the Suzie awards, the biggest night in the

TV industry year. So yeah, I'm nervous!"

"Are you more afraid of losing, or of winning

and having to make a speech?" Rick grinned at

him.

"Both!"

"Don't be. I'll be there. Now - one last thing

before we go." Rick pulled a shiny silver chain out

of his pocket. "As it's our first official public

outing together since I collared you, I thought we

should do it properly."

He fastened the leash onto Matt's collar, and

Matt felt a surge of excitement. "I've never been

leashed in public before," he said, fingering the

silver chain.

"It's a good look on you." Rick pulled him in

for a kiss, and Matt felt his nerves disappearing. "I

want everyone at that award ceremony to know

you're mine - that you wear my collar and walk on

my leash."

Matt thought he'd explode with pride at the

idea that he was Rick O'Shea's collared, leashed

sub for the whole world to see.

His mom was waiting for them downstairs,

dressed in an elegant black dress that Matt had

insisted on buying her for the occasion. She got up

and neatly tucked her handkerchief into her purse

when she saw them.

"Matt, you look lovely; and you, Richard."

She sniffed in Rick's direction.

Rick dutifully kissed her anyway. "Elspeth -

always a pleasure," he murmured as she turned her

cheek as far away from him as possible to receive

his kiss. She still wasn't happy with Matt's choice

of dom and didn't appear to be making much

headway in learning to live with it.

There was a knock on the door, and Rick

went to open it. A small, round, grey-haired

woman in her sixties was standing there, dressed

in a tuxedo, with a lavender bow tie.

"You made it!" Rick swung her up in his arms

and gave her a big hug. "Matt - this is Monica

Andrews, the woman who tamed me - and saved

my life in the process."

"He's right. I did." Monica winked, and Matt

knew immediately that he was going to like her.

"Monica." He held out his hand, but she

ignored it and pulled him into a hug. "You're the

only other person in the world who has tamed Rick

O'Shea," she said with a laugh. "You and me

belong to our own special little club, Matt!"

"You must be the lady who taught Richard

acting when he was in prison," Matt's mom said

stiffly; she never lost any opportunity to remind

them all about Rick's past.

"That's me! And you must be Elspeth Lake;

Rick's told me all about you." She winked at Rick,

and he winked back.

Matt couldn't help laughing, and they both

turned to look at him. "Sorry - just, Rick, you're six

feet four, and Monica, you can't be more than four

feet ten!" Matt said, chuckling as he looked at them

standing side by side. "He looks like a giant next to

you, and he must have been even more intimidating

as a surly teenager! How on earth did you manage

to tame him, Monica?"

"Oh, it wasn't too hard. Deep inside, I think

he wanted to be tamed; he was just waiting for the

right person to come along and do it. You must

know that, Matt." Monica beamed at him.

"She did it by sheer force of personality. She

might be small, but she's the fiercest dom I ever

met," Rick said, wrapping his arm around her

proudly. "And she finally managed to drum some

sense into me."

"I could see you were a good kid inside; you

just needed someone to believe in you," she told

him fondly. "And you needed acting! I had no idea

when I was teaching this sullen, moody kid how to

act in that hellhole of a jail fourteen years ago, that

one day I'd be escorting him to the Suzie awards."

She shook her head in wonder.

"Well, as me and Matt are both nominated for

an award, we can both bring a plus one - and I

couldn't think of anyone I'd rather have with me

tonight," Rick said. "Now - our carriage awaits -

shall we go?"

They were driven to the award ceremony in a

limousine sent by the studio, and Matt could tell

that his mom was nervous. She sat there stiffly,

looking uncomfortable, and rebuffed all Monica's

attempts to make conversation.

They arrived at the venue, and Rick took

Matt's leash in his hand. "Ready?" he said. Matt

took a deep breath and nodded - and then they

stepped out of the car and onto the waiting red

carpet.

They were immediately engulfed in the melee

of arriving stars and surrounded by the media. All

the biggest names in TV were there, in various

different outfits. There were subs being displayed

naked by their doms on their end of leashes, their

bodies painted in the latest body art fashions or

decorated with harnesses and piercings. One well-

known TV actress was on the end of her dom's

leash in full bondage, her arms tied behind her

back, her legs hobbled, wearing a gag.

"That'll make giving an acceptance speech

tricky," Rick murmured. "Let's hope she doesn't

win anything!"

The actress looked dreamily content, walking

to a nipple leash, and Matt almost envied her the

ease of her submission even as he shuddered at the

idea of being displayed publicly in such a way.

"Don't worry." Rick squeezed his hand. "I'd

never do that to you. Well, not unless you really

wanted me to." He grinned.

Matt was relieved to see Monica taking

charge of his mom, ushering her away from all the

noise and bustle and into the venue.

"And here come some more stars from
Collar

Crime
!" a familiar voice called out. "And it looks

as if the rumors are true! Rick O'Shea has collared

his co-star, Matthew Lake! This is so exciting.

We've had no official confirmation since
Collar

Crime
wrapped up filming its second season a few

weeks ago, but here they are… and… oh my!

Matt's been leashed! Do you see that, everyone?"

Sharlene Milton flung back her mane of long

brown hair and sashayed over to them, looking like

she was about to have a heart attack from sheer

gossip overload.

"Rick!" She thrust her microphone under

Rick's nose. "So it's true! You and Matt are

together. There have been all these rumors flying

around that you stole Matt out from under

Sebastian Rule's nose on the very eve of his

collaring. Is that true?"

"Not exactly," Rick replied. "Matt was

always mine - we were both just a little slow to

wake up to that fact." He smiled at Matt.

"Oh, that's so romantic!" Sharlene clutched

her throat dramatically. "Matt - how does it feel to

be wearing Rick's collar?"

"It feels like it belongs here," Matt said

quietly, fingering his new collar.

"Aw!" Sharlene fanned herself with her hand.

"You two! Someone should make a movie about

you guys!"

"Only if we can play the main roles." Rick

winked.

Sharlene laughed hysterically and put her

hand on Rick's arm, holding on for far longer than

Matt thought strictly necessary.

"Oh Rick! You're such a laugh! I always said

you could cheer up a rainy day. Matt - what's it

like living with this goofball?"

"Um, well, it's great," Matt muttered, feeling

out of his depth being asked all these personal

questions in public.

Rick put a reassuring arm around him. "Well,

he never goes to bed un-spanked," he said,

drawing the attention away from Matt protectively.

Sharlene roared again. "Rick!" She stroked