
Incognito:
Conquering Connie
By
Madison Layle & Anna Leigh Keaton
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Conquering Connie
Copyright© 2007 Madison Layle & Anna Leigh Keaton
ISBN: 978-1-60088-201-2
Cover Artist: Sable Grey
Editor: Devin Govaere
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
Cobblestone Press, LLC
"Give me an Orgasm."
Tyrone Allen turned to see Connie Monroe prop her sexy ass on a bar stool and flash a wide grin. The woman was in fine form tonight, and he had a hard time not staring at all of her...assets...tightly tucked into a hot pink leather minidress.
"Make it a double."
Hoping to hide his lapse, Tyrone winced teasingly. "A drink like that can only spell trouble." He smiled. "Coming right up."
She gave him a wink and puckered up to blow him a kiss. Her glossy lipstick matched the dress and made him think of cotton candy. Damn, he loved cotton candy. He'd love it even more if those candy-coated lips were wrapped around his cock.
He turned away while he mixed her drink, hoping the bar hid his growing erection. His cock never failed to harden whenever the busty blonde was around. His cousin, Alex, often teased him about his attraction to the stray sub who'd been a popular fixture at Incognito for as long as he'd tended bar, but even Alex agreed she was something special, if one was only willing to look.
Everyone knew the woman had a thing for bondage and pain. Okay, society might like the term masochist, but he preferred pain enthusiast. Few, however, took the time to understand her motives for such unconventional pleasures. Tyrone knew though; a bartender could learn the secrets of the damn universe if observant enough. And tonight, it was no secret that she was here looking for a serious scene. He could see the need for more than a strong drink in her big, blue eyes.
Must've been one helluva shift in the ER.
He put the drink on the bar and held onto it just long enough for her to reach for the glass and brush his hand. Her gaze collided with his.
Sheer intensity was evident on her face and in her posture, but he knew her expression would drift---mellow with each addition of pain or restraint, grow calmer with every tie to bind her limbs. Each sharp strike to flesh would tingle and ripple with a peaceful, erotic energy throughout her body, enabling her to feel more alive, freer than ever before.
Damn, he wished he wasn't working tonight. But that was always the case when she stopped by the club after a lengthy shift at the hospital.
"Thanks," she murmured.
"If you need anything else, anything, you let me know."
One finely shaped eyebrow rose as she took the first sip of her drink. A smile played with the corner of her mouth, but then another voice intruded.
"I see you're being a very bad girl tonight."
Tyrone saw Randolph Schwartz slip his hand around Connie's back, watched her dutifully drop her gaze and glance at the older gentleman out of the corner of her eye. He was a short, stocky man in his fifties who joined the club about five years earlier and found it rather funny when subs dubbed him Master Randy. Like Connie, he never brought a permanent partner to the club but, instead, picked up strays for what he called, "a bit of slap and tickle," whenever he made his rounds.
Tyrone bit back the sigh of disappointment and kept his hands busy by wiping down the bar.
"You'll have to be spanked for that."
"Mmm. Yes, sir," she murmured and slid from the barstool.
Randolph dropped a few bills on the bar. "Here ya go, slave. That's to pay for the drink she wasn't authorized to order."
While she let the other man lead her away, Tyrone stared at the cuffs on his wrists and fought the urge to ball his hands into fists. Each cuff bore the Incognito logo. Like Randolph, some members assumed they indicated submissive preferences, but most regulars learned fast enough that all service employees wore them while on duty. Since employees were also active members, the cuffs were required as more of a signal that one was working, and therefore couldn't play, than a sign of sexual preference for top or bottom.
He glanced up just in time to see Connie disappear down the hall to the voyeur rooms. He checked the time and cursed.
When his break finally arrived, he went straight to the crow's nest, as his cousin liked to call it. The crow's nest was actually an upstairs room that had been outfitted with the best in electronic surveillance technology. After an abusive Dom beat the shit out of a stray sub in the semi-privacy of one of the voyeur rooms, Mistress Katriona decided to take every precaution possible to ensure it never happened again.
Panic buttons were installed in the voyeur rooms, and members were informed that a new surveillance policy was in place. Although they could curtain off the voyeur windows in the rooms for some privacy, unidentified security personnel could still rotate through the rooms to watch for problems via hidden cameras.
That's how his cousin, Alex, landed a job at the club after he'd returned to civilian life following two deployments to Iraq. Instead of searching for snipers on rooftops, Alex now kept an eye out for trouble at the club by manning the security console behind a locked door.
Tyrone knocked on that door. "Open up."
A few seconds passed, and the door cracked open. "What's the password?"
"I'm gonna break your face if you don't let me in."
Alex chuckled and held the door open until he stepped inside. "You could've at least brought me something to drink." After locking it again, he returned to his captain's chair in front of a console of over a dozen six-inch, closed-circuit monitors that cycled from camera to camera throughout the club and parking lots. The monitor in the center was a full-color seventeen-inch.
Tyrone rolled his eyes and took up a post off to one side.
"Hey! You've gotta check this out. Did you see the woman Bastian's hooked up with? Mmm mmm! We're talking Halle Berry hotness."
He punched a few buttons to pull up the camera in the voyeur room decorated to resemble a barn.
"Alex..."
"She's not as bootylicious as your Barbie doll bombshell, but he brought her in and headed straight for a private room. There. Look, man. I think the dude is a goner. Only reason I can figure for him to be dressed in chaps...and I'm talking nothing but chaps."
Tyrone peeked at the screen and did have to grin. He'd never seen Master Bastian bring someone to the club, much less go to such lengths to protect and pleasure a sub. Until now.
He forced a straight face and eyed his cousin. "You know you're sworn to secrecy about what you see---"
"Yeah, yeah. I know. I signed the contract. Don't sweat it. You're talkin' to someone the U.S. government trusted with a security clearance, remember? I know how to keep quiet."
Satisfied, Tyrone nodded. "Good. Now, let me see my girl's room."
Alex smirked. "Your girl? Does she know that?"
He sighed. "She will."
"When?" Alex quirked a brow at him.
"Soon."
"Uh huh. Is that as soon as when you're gonna tell Aunt Blanche you're the one who stole her undies and hung 'em from the apartment complex flagpole?"
Tyrone gritted his teeth. Alex had a memory like a steal trap. He should've known he'd never let him live that down even though it happened over twenty-five years earlier. "Just show me the damn room."
"You got security clearance?"
"Man, don't make me smack you."
Laughing, Alex punched a few buttons and pulled up a view into one of the other voyeur rooms---the chosen one decorated like a schoolroom.
The laughter stopped abruptly when the scene appeared.
Connie was still clothed and bound in a bent-over fashion to a teacher's desk at one end of the room. Although she appeared unharmed, her distress was apparent. Her frantic struggles to get loose and the man lying prone at her feet sent both cousins racing from the crow's nest.
\*
Connie yanked against the binds that held her wrists immobile. She jerked against the cuffs that bound her ankles to the desk. It was useless. Neither the ropes, cuffs, nor the sturdy wooden desk would give.
"Master Randy?" She bucked again. The cords bit into her already raw skin. "Randolph, answer me!"
Panic surged through her as she struggled to reach the man who'd collapsed before he had a chance to do much more than tie her up. Her training as a nurse and years of experience in emergency rooms were wasted as long as she couldn't get to the man who needed her.
"Help! Somebody...please!"
Oh, God, he's dying, and I can't do anything.
She'd given over her control, but the release she'd expected to attain, the freedom she longed for, was never going to happen. Relief from the worry and tension of constant life and death struggles in the ER was unattainable now. Her dream of letting go, if only for a brief time, had become a nightmare from which she couldn't escape. She'd never felt so helpless, so guilty, in all her life.
Tears slid from her eyes as the debilitating sense of futility took hold.
"No!" She battled with the urge to give up and fought with desperation against the ropes that prevented her from aiding the man whose only deed had been to offer her freedom from the stress of her daily life. She couldn't give up on him, wouldn't surrender...
"Randolph, stay with me. Somebody, help!"
The door burst open. Tyrone and Alex stormed in, the first coming to her aid, the latter dropping to his knees next to Randolph.
She wanted to scream and cry and rejoice all at once, but her training once more kicked in.
"Get me loose," she ordered, although it was unnecessary. Tyrone was already working on her cuffs.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
She gave him a quick nod. "It's not me. It's Master Randy."
"I don't have a pulse." The shattering announcement came from Alex.
No! The instant she was free, Connie went straight to Randolph's side. Alex had already turned the man over and begun CPR, so she joined him, silently working as a team to try and save the fallen man. Alex did chest compressions, calling out the count like a cadence, while she gave mouth-to-mouth.
Meanwhile, Tyrone used his cell phone, called 911, and explained the emergency to the operator. After a moment, he announced, "An ambulance is on its way."
Connie and Alex didn't stop in their efforts to revive Randolph.
"One, two, three..."
"Come on, Master Randy," she said, awaiting her turn to give mouth-to-mouth. "Come on... Live."
She vaguely heard Tyrone talking to others and realized Mistress Kat and Master Dalton, the club's owners, had come in. Tyrone stood with them by the door to keep the gawkers at bay and the hallway clear.
"Here they come. Let 'em through," she heard Tyrone say.
Alex continued. "...fourteen, fifteen...breathe."
She blew into Randolph's mouth, watched his chest rise, fall, and repeated the process once more. EMTs entered with a stretcher, and she checked for a pulse.
Nothing.
Alex leaned back in his captain's chair, feet propped on the console, and glanced over all of the monitors. It was a quiet night, for which he was grateful.
His main concern was Connie. Tonight was the first night she'd returned to the club since Randolph dropped dead of a heart attack at her feet three weeks earlier.
He pressed a button and zoomed in the camera that focused on her---the image displayed on the main monitor. Instead of her usual perch at the bar, she sat alone at a small table, twirling a drink straw between her fingers, but not sipping from it. She kept her gaze on the table, and so far he'd seen her turn down four offers.
Folding his arms over his chest, he sighed. And watched her. She was so beautiful and had always had such a zest for life. A twinkle in her eye. She'd always seemed to enjoy her time at the club, but Randolph's death had killed something in her.
The change in her personality, the evident depression, tore at his heart.
He might jerk Tyrone's chain about how his cousin lusted after her, but Ty wasn't the only one who cared. Ever since he started working at the club almost a year ago, he'd watched her on these monitors and wanted her as much as Ty did. But his cousin had first dibs on her. He'd known her longer and made it clear she would be his---whenever he got around to claiming her.
Alex frowned at the monitor as another man approached Connie, said a few words, and walked away after she gave a small shake of her head. What the hell would bring back her vibrancy? Her sparkle? That special something that made her a favorite of male club patrons?
A muscled, dark-skinned arm entered the scene and set a glass of what looked like ice water on the table next to Connie's drink. Alex zoomed the camera back to see Ty standing next to her. She looked up at his cousin and gave a slight smile, but it slipped from her lips all too soon. Ty said something to her, and she shook her head yet again. His cousin laid his hand on Connie's shoulder in a motion that looked more brotherly than anything else.
She smiled at him again, only this time it seemed a bit more genuine. Ty touched her cheek with a fingertip, and Alex read his lips. "I'm here if you need anything."
Connie laid her hand over Ty's and pressed her cheek against his palm, closing her eyes. The motion was so...
He and Ty had shared women in the past on occasion. They had the same tastes, similar needs, and Connie was the epitome of everything they both craved. He'd never been jealous of his cousin before this moment, but he wanted to be the one down there with her, touching her, if only to lend comfort.
Instead, he was stuck here in the crow's nest. Hidden. Separated from her. Prevented from any action beyond watching, waiting, and dreaming of the impossible. He'd only met Connie in person a handful of times. She probably didn't even remember his name.
Tyrone moved out of the camera's view, and Connie slouched in her seat. She wasn't even dressed the same as she normally was. Tonight she wore loose-fitting jeans and a baggy sweatshirt which hid her luscious curves. Her thick, long, blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her face was almost clean of makeup. The changes brought out another kind of beauty he hadn't seen in her before. A softer, sweeter one he could imagine coming home to every night.
A knock sounded on the door. "Open up," Tyrone said.
Alex got up and opened the door for his cousin. After handing him a mug of coffee, Tyrone stepped inside and relocked the door.
"Thanks," Alex said as he resumed his seat. "How's she doing?" He sipped the bitter brew and sighed.
Tyrone joined him in front of the console and stared at the monitor for a few long moments.
Alex glanced over the other monitors to make sure all was still well, then swiveled his chair to look up at his brawny cousin. The two of them had grown up as close as brothers. They were only six months apart in age and looked enough like each other they used to be mistaken as twins.
Now, though, they'd both undergone a lot of physical changes. Tyrone spent hours in his home gym, pumping iron and bulking up. Alex preferred to spend his free time outside---jogging on the beach, surfing, hiking, fishing, or taking out his wave runner. He was leaner than his cousin. Rangy, he'd heard himself described. And his two tours in Iraq had hardened his features in a way that was beyond his control.
"She's scared," Ty said, never removing his gaze from Connie on the monitor. "Terrified, but she's trying to hide it. She's struggling to make her way back, but the fear is overwhelming her."
Alex knew his cousin had a deep insight into people---a gift he'd never possessed himself---but now he frowned. "You lost me. Why should she be terrified? She'd never been in any danger here."
Ty turned his head and met Alex's eyes. "She's an ER nurse. Her job is to save lives. No screw ups, always in control, able to handle the pressure of looking death in the face and beating it day-in and day-out. It's a lot for someone to carry, so she comes here to escape all that. Then her master for the night drops dead, and she's tied up, unable to do what she's trained to do." He shrugged. "Something inside her broke when Randolph died. She still needs the release she gets from a heavy-handed master, but she's terrified of what might happen the next time she's tied up."
Alex knew that tone of voice. Ty was developing a plan. He leaned back in his chair and waited for his cousin to continue.
Ty paced the length of the small room then turned back to him. "She needs to feel safe again. Safe enough to give up her control."
He nodded in agreement.
"Yet she needs a master who's not afraid to bring her the kind of release she requires."
Alex shrugged. "She can get spanked and fucked without getting tied up."
"No. Being tied up is vital. It's not about sex or punishment. Guilt doesn't drive her to S&M. She needs the binds to find catharsis, the pain to feel alive. It's more about completely giving up control for her. If she's not bound, she retains the power as well as the responsibility that weighs heavily on her in the ER. But she can't let go now for fear that whoever ties her up might need her." He ran his hand over his shaved head and sighed. "She needs to be double teamed."
Alex's heart gave a little jump of excitement, but he squelched his desire. If Ty couldn't even make the first move with Connie, he sure as hell couldn't. She didn't even know him.
Tyrone glanced at the monitor again. "If she's with two men and something happens to one of them, she's not left laid open and vulnerable."
"And you got all that from a two-minute conversation with her?" Alex asked, a bit skeptical about his cousin's intuitive powers. It all made sense, but it still sounded to him like wishful thinking, as if Ty was making things up as he went along.
"She's here. She's returned to the club because that part of her life is missing. But she's turning down every single guy who offers her a scene." Ty shook his head and folded his beefy arms over his chest. "She's done doubles before, though not for some time. Not since the Masters of Sin married Rachel, I think."
Alex raised his brows in silent question, to which Ty said, "Connie was once half in love with them, and I think she thought they might be the ones...once upon a time."
Ty shrugged, and in that one motion Alex saw that Ty had hurt for her because she'd been hurt. His big, tough cousin had a heart of pure marshmallow.
Glancing back at the monitor, Ty said, "She wasn't quite mature enough then. She's grown a lot in the last few years since the Sinclair brothers got married. She's ready for something steady and...safe."
"Okay," Alex said, turning back to the monitors and giving them a once-over. "Who do you plan to set her up with?"
After a slight pause, Ty said, "Us."
A thrill skittered down his spine, but he squashed it. "You've been lusting after her for years, and you're suddenly willing to share?"
Voice softer than normal, Ty said, "You're the only man I trust."
He glanced up at Tyrone. "And what if I'm not interested?"
His cousin held his gaze a long moment. "If you weren't interested, you wouldn't have the camera focused on her. You wouldn't be watching her every move." A grin spread over Ty's face, flashing his white teeth against his dark skin. "Incognito patrons aren't the only people I can read like a damn book. Admit it. You've been drooling over her as much as I have, but your sense of right and wrong has kept you from even expressing those thoughts to me."
Tyrone's words humbled Alex as nothing ever had. "I didn't want to take what you'd deemed yours."
Ty glanced back at the screen. "I appreciate that, but I'm not a jealous man, Cuz. You should know that by now. Not where you're concerned." He looked back at Alex. "Besides, she needs us. And I want her, but not just for one scene. If we do this, I'm willing to take that leap. Are you?"
Alex watched Connie chew on her straw and stare at the table, shoulders slumped, head bowed. If everything Ty said was true, then she did need them. Still, he tried not to get his hopes up too soon.
"She's been a stray for a helluva long time, Ty. Didn't you tell me yourself she has a fear of commitment?"
"I did, but I think she's ready."
"What makes you think she wants anything but a scene to get over her current problems?"
Ty grinned again. "You're just going to have to trust me on that one."
He trusted Ty as much as he'd ever trusted his Marine buddies. With his life, his heart, and his soul. He nodded. "I'm in. For the long haul if that's what she wants."
Ty slapped him on the shoulder and turned back to the monitors. "What the fuck? Look!"
Alex turned toward the monitor to which Ty pointed. There was an unfamiliar woman exiting Carl's office.
He clicked a few keys on the board and brought her into view on the big screen. The woman had brown hair pulled back into a bun. Her clothes were stylish; slacks and a very modest blouse---definitely not normal club attire. She appeared more ready to attend a garden party than a fetish club. But the disturbing part was her suspicious moves as she slipped from the club accountant's office and pulled the door shut behind her.
"Who the hell is she, and where'd she come from?" Alex asked.
"A friend of Carl's?"
"I don't think so. He's tied to Carmen's hip lately. Can't see him dallying with another woman."
"True. I've never seen her before. Have you?"
Alex shook his head. "Too bad I don't have cameras in the private offices."
"Doesn't look like anyone else is coming out with her, and Carl stepped in to relieve me at the bar so I could come up here."
On another screen, Alex pulled up a camera in the main hall to confirm Carl was still where Ty had left him. He was, so they watched as the stranger slowly made her way down the back hallway of the club. She kept looking behind herself, as if expecting someone to jump out at her. She obviously didn't belong there.
"She's up to no good." Alex switched the view to the next monitor as the woman moved down the hall of voyeur rooms toward the main part of the club, and he picked up the walkie-talkie from the console. "This is Eagle Eye. We've got a female intruder in the back hallway. Closest security personnel move in and detain. Brown hair in a bun, approximately five-six, and wearing dark slacks and a floral, long-sleeved blouse."
"Did you say floral?" came one radio response.
Ty smirked. Alex rolled his eyes and said, "Yes. You can't miss her."
The woman pressed herself against the wall as a couple passed her, although they didn't seem to even notice as wrapped up in each other as they were. The intruder stared a long time in their direction before she seemed to shake herself and move farther down the hall.
He switched to yet another camera view when she rounded the corner into the club's main hall. She froze and raised her hand to her mouth. Her eyes went wide. She looked as though she might pass out from shock.
"This is Bill," came over the walkie-talkie. "I see the intruder." Bill, wearing black denims and a black T-shirt---the attire of the security personnel---approached the woman. He said a few words to her, but she never took her gaze---one that could only be called horrified---from the heart of the club.
He spoke again, and the woman shook her head, backed away from Bill, and held up her hands as if to warn him off. Bill approached with the cautious, practiced moves Alex had taught all of the security guards. But the moment he touched her, the woman came alive. Alex was forced to switch back to the hall camera to continue watching the scuffle. Despite her efforts, Bill had her restrained in a matter of seconds. With her hands cuffed and his hand over her mouth, he escorted her away from the main hall and back the way she'd come.
"I'll get Kat and Dalton and meet you in Carl's office," Tyrone said as he headed for the door.
"Bill to Eagle Eye. The intruder's in custody. Awaiting further instructions."
"Eagle Eye to Bill. Hold her in Carl's office. We're on our way. Good job."
\*
At a small commotion near the bar, Connie glanced up to see Penelope Schwartz, prim and proper in her upper-class clothes. Although the woman's expression was far from joyous, Connie recognized Randolph's wife from the picture that appeared in the newspaper following his death.
His wife.
She hadn't known he was married until she saw that photo, but the woman struggling with security was young, beautiful, and real.
One of the security guards put handcuffs on the poor woman and led her away, his hand over her mouth to muffle her shrieks of protest. Why had she come to the club? What did she want here?
Connie tried to sip the ice water Tyrone had brought her and noticed her hands trembled. She tightened her grip.
Every day, she dealt with the spouses left behind when a husband or wife died in some sudden, tragic way. She knew the anguish, experienced it along with those hurting people. Part of her wanted to go to Mrs. Schwartz and apologize for not having been able to do more for her husband. Another part of her wanted to run and hide for having failed to save him. It was her fault the man was dead.
Connie didn't even know if Mrs. Schwartz knew why her husband came here, but she wished he'd been more forthright about his marital status, even if he wasn't a member of Incognito to find sexual partners. She'd paired off with him dozens of times in the last five years because he loved to spank, and she enjoyed pure dominance with no sexual overtones on occasion. With Master Randy, all physical stimulation came from the act of bondage and the careful administration of pain.
He'd been very good at what he did. She'd truly cared for Master Randy. He was one of the few men she'd trusted to see to her more masochistic needs. But she should've known better than to pair with someone too often. It made for a closeness that hurt all the more when something went wrong.
Tyrone headed across the main hall toward the foyer and returned moments later, walking behind Master Dalton and Mistress Katriona as the three of them hurried toward the back of the club. The trio paused only once for Kat to whisper something to Carl who nodded and continued to man the bar.
Whatever the widow had been doing there, Mrs. Schwartz had caused quite an uproar. Unable to rid herself of curiosity, Connie got up from her seat and headed down the hallway. The door to an office stood open, and she heard raised voices.
"This is a den of iniquity! All those women out there with hardly any clothes on. People having sex in front of...in front of everyone!"
"Calm down, Mrs. Schwartz," Kat said. "I assure you that what you think you saw is not---"
"Someone should call the police and report you for running a brothel. This can't be legal."
As Connie inched toward the door and peered in, Kat said, "Alex, please call Detective Paul Baxter."
"Yes, ma'am," Alex replied, picking up the phone on the desk.
"Wait. You're calling the police?" Mrs. Schwartz seemed to wilt a little, though her posture, even with her hands cuffed behind her back, was impeccable.
"Yes," Dalton answered calmly. "Incognito is not a brothel. It is a private club...private property in which you are trespassing."
"I just wanted to see why he'd paid so much money to something called Incognito, to see where my husband was killed."
Killed? Connie gasped, and six pairs of eyes turned her way.
"Hey, I've seen you. Were you with him?" the widow asked, her expression changing from confused to fury. "You were, weren't you? I saw you at the funeral."
Tears rushed to Connie's eyes, and she shook her head in denial as she backed across the hallway. "I'm sorry," she mouthed, but no sound came out.
"Connie," Tyrone said, his voice low and gentle. "He died of a heart attack. It wasn't anyone's fault." The big, tenderhearted bartender headed toward her.
When he reached for her, though, she fled down the hall and out the back door into the cool evening air. Tears ran hot down her cheeks as she fumbled to get her car keys out of her pocket.
"Connie, wait," Tyrone called out, and she heard his footsteps pounding after her.
A sob ripped from her throat as she fell against her car.
Big, dark, warm arms encircled her, turned her, and pulled her snug against a hard chest. "Shh, sweetheart."
She desperately wanted to stay in those arms, against Tyrone's sheltering body, but she couldn't. She shoved away, and he released her. Without a word, she turned back to her car and jabbed the key into the lock.
"This isn't your fault," he said.
"My head knows that," she whispered as she opened her door. "But I should have been able to do something. I save lives for a living." It was her job, her responsibility.
She sat in the driver's seat, but Tyrone caught the door before she could close it. He squatted down in the opening, eye level with her. "He had a heart attack, sweetheart. The man was almost sixty and overweight. As a nurse, you know that if it's someone's time, there's nothing you can do."
The tears scalded her cheeks, and she swiped them away with her sleeve. "If I hadn't wanted to be tied up---"
"It would've changed nothing."
"You don't know that. I could've started CPR sooner. I could've saved him."
"You don't know that," he said, using her own words to make his point. He lifted her hand from her lap, brought it to his lips, and kissed her fingers. "It was just his time to go. Don't lose yourself because of this."
Another rush of tears coursed down her cheeks. "I'm afraid I already have." She sniffled and tugged her hand from his. He was so sweet, so handsome, and she shouldn't want to share a scene with him, to let him take away the worry and heartache. She knew he was a Dom because he and his cousin, Alex, had spent a few hours with her friend, Tara, once. She'd been so jealous of her friend.
But that was then. Before...
She shouldn't have come back to the club, shouldn't want what she could never have. Hadn't she learned her lesson in the ER and at the club? Losing control could cost lives.
"I have to go," she said through her tight throat. "Please, move."
Seeming reluctant, Tyrone stood up and stepped back. She looked up into his beautiful, dark eyes and wished again to feel his arms around her. Without another word, she shut her door and started her car. As she pulled away, she looked in the rearview mirror to see him standing in the middle of the parking lot like a gorgeous Nubian god.
"I don't know about this."
Tyrone ignored Alex's comment and pulled to a stop in the parking lot of the condominiums where Connie lived. "She hasn't come back, Cuz. How else can we do this?"
"I'm just saying this is a bad idea. What if someone sees us loitering around where we don't belong?"
"That's why we waited until nighttime."
Alex gave him his best you're-full-of-bullshit look. "If we get arrested, you're posting my bail---"
"Don't sweat it."
"---my court costs, legal fees...and not for some public damn defender either. I want the best defense attorney in Miami. And you get to explain to your Aunt Hattie why you turned her precious son, a decorated veteran, into a criminal."
Ty glared at his cousin. "Would you shut the hell up?" He studied the condos and found hers easily. It was the corner unit and the only one that didn't sport any Christmas lights outside or holiday decorations on the door and windows. He frowned. Just another sign of how depressed she must be as a result of Randolph's untimely death.
Kat had told him she'd sent out invitations to the Christmas party already and had received responses from everyone except Connie. Since it was also announced as a wedding reception for the owners of the Incognito Club, virtually the entire membership was expected to attend. Even the regular staff was being replaced by temps hired from other clubs so Incognito employees could enjoy the party without having to work during the festivities.
"There. We can wait by those bushes next to the garage door." He glanced at his watch. She should've gotten off her shift already and would be arriving within the next fifteen minutes or so.
With a sigh, Alex flipped the overhead light switch to off so it wouldn't come on when he opened his door. They were both dressed in all black. "I still don't know why we can't just knock on the damn door."
"She's not home, yet." And she might not open the door if she'd become adamant about avoiding all things Incognito. He wasn't willing to risk that possibility.
Don't lose yourself over this, he'd told her.
I'm afraid I already have.
Those words had haunted him in the days and weeks that had passed since her last visit to the club. He feared he'd missed his chance at claiming her for himself, showing her that she deserved more than a constant merry-go-round of one-night stands. She'd been so carefree and independent that he'd chosen a cautious approach. Befriend her first and bide time until she was ready, until she showed the signs of wanting to settle down...to commit.
Had he waited too long?
They didn't sneak across the parking lot. As late as it was, he doubted anyone was at their windows watching, but if so, to sneak around might look suspicious in the dim lighting of the parking lot. Instead, they strolled across the lot, around the corner, and into the shadows, before doubling back and kneeling behind the bushes.
Alex patted Ty on the shoulder. A silent reassurance that, despite his bickering, they were in this together. He peered through the shrubbery.
The wait began. Ty prayed it would soon be over for good.
\*
Connie stopped at the bank of mailboxes, unlocked hers, and pulled out a small stack of envelopes, not that she felt like reading bills, letters, or junk mail. She stuffed them in her oversized purse and headed for home, driving her car slowly into the parking lot. Pausing for the garage door to rise, she waited then lifted her foot from the break. Her car rolled inside. Again, she braked, let out a tired sigh, and punched the button to shut the garage door.
Her shift at the hospital had been tougher than usual. She'd lost a hit-and-run victim who never regained consciousness, and had to forcibly restrain a belligerent drunk who didn't understand that she needed him to lie still so the doctor could stitch up a six-inch cut to his forehead---the result of a bar fight.
She killed the engine, shoved her car door open, got out, and---
"Hey there, bad girl."
Startled by the sudden comment, she screamed and spun toward the voice. Her purse fell to the floor, its contents strewn.
Tyrone...Alex.
She recognized who the men were, but her heart raced with adrenaline at their surprise appearance. Fear battled with relief. Questions bombarded her mind.
"Wha---"
Tyrone cut her off by grabbing her upper arms, pulling her against his chest, and covering her mouth with his own. His tongue stabbed into her mouth, muffling the whimper that rumbled from her throat.
He'd never taken her this way, never even kissed her, so the surprise she'd felt seconds earlier evolved into shock that overwhelmed her into stunned silence. For the briefest moment, she let herself feel. Experience his big hands holding her with firm gentleness. His musky scent surrounded her, calmed her, yet spiked excitement through her. When he leaned back from the kiss, she couldn't help but blink at him, confused by his actions, confounded by their presence.
"I---" she tried once more only to be spun around and kissed again, this time by Alex. He cradled her face while Tyrone continued to hold her arms in a strong but painless grip. Alex was just as talented with his tongue as Tyrone, stroking into her mouth in a sensual, languid heat that stirred her blood. His scent was subtly different than Tyrone's. A little sweeter, spicier.
"Don't talk," Tyrone murmured in her ear while Alex continued to kiss her. "Listen and submit, and all your questions will be answered...your desires met."
As his words sank in, she began to squirm, but they both held fast. She wanted to tell them she couldn't risk it. She was too afraid to let go again, but he and his cousin refused to give her the chance. The instant Alex stopped kissing her, he placed one hand over mouth and the other behind her head. Her eyes widened, and her arousal spiked.
"Mmm, sweet as sugar," Alex whispered, and then he licked his lips as if savoring her taste.
A war raged inside her mind---alarm at knowing she had no control over her situation---excitement at having these two men she'd known as friends take the decision...and the guilt...from her.
Instinctively, she knew they wouldn't harm her, although she silently hoped they weren't here just for a quick fuck. Would they be willing to give her all she needed? She had no doubt that Ty knew her preference for pain as a physical stimulus, but she'd never seen him spank a woman, much less fulfill anyone's more masochistic fantasies. And Alex was a complete mystery, an acquaintance she found physically attractive, but an unknown nonetheless.
Those uncertainties made her body zing with anticipation as the men gagged her with one handkerchief and bound her wrists with a second Ty produced from his pocket.
For a split second, at the final jerk of the knots, panic hardened her muscles. She shivered.
"Don't worry, Con," Ty whispered as he gazed into her eyes. "We've got ya." His reassuring words and earnest, honest gaze were a salve to her damaged soul. A sense of peace slowly settled throughout her body. The knowledge that both cousins were present---two men instead of one---helped alleviate her irrational fears. If something happened to one of them, she wouldn't be alone, bound, immobilized by physical restraints and unable to help.
She grunted when Ty lifted her over his shoulder as if she weighed nothing. Alex got the door, and Ty carried her into her own home. The setting mellowed her desires a bit, and she stiffened. She'd never brought any master to her home before. It had always been easier to meet up with them at the club, thus keeping that part of her life separate from the rest.
Ty swatted her butt, making her jolt, and she realized he'd noticed her sudden tension. His abrupt and brief spanking had a cathartic effect, and her muscles began to relax.
He was in control. He chose the location. It wasn't her decision or her responsibility. Her mind started to let go.
Tears of relief stung her eyes, but she blinked them away.
He carried her through the condo, turning this way and that, apparently familiarizing himself with the layout. After a circuit of the utility room, dining and living areas, he dumped her on the plush loveseat. She had to toss her head back to clear her hair from her eyes.
She didn't try to struggle with her bonds or get up and run, even though they'd left her feet free. Instead, she stared at them and waited with baited breath.
Alex flicked on a nearby light, so she had no trouble seeing their faces. Dressed in dark clothing, they appeared big, dangerous...and alluring. Their skin was almost as dark as the night itself. Their appearances so similar, yet significantly different. Both were tall, fit, and so...dominant. She'd often wondered what it would feel like to rub her hands over Tyrone's shaved head, across his broad chest. Now there were two men to watch, to touch. She licked her lips in anticipation.
Damn, she loved bad boys. It was why she loved it when club Doms called her a bad girl.
She knew good and well that she was far from truly bad. She'd never so much as had a traffic ticket. But she'd once thought she might be bad, when she was just a teenager and fantasized about being spanked. Some so-called experts claimed such tendencies came from troubled pasts, but that wasn't the case with her. Her childhood had been rather uneventful.
The fantasies didn't appear until her high school boyfriend playfully swatted her on the butt once when he'd shown up unexpectedly at her after-school cheerleading practice. The sting of that one strike was an electric jolt that made her pussy throb and heart pound.
From then on she knew she was different, and when she joined Incognito, she discovered...acceptance.
Alex moved about the room, stepped around a padded footstool, and closed the window blinds.
Tyrone stood over her, motionless and imposing with his arms crossed, his muscled biceps bulging. His expression, usually so open and friendly, was serious and hard to read.
"You're in serious trouble, my sub."
Her heart tripped. Had Ty just called her his? She'd been called sub, slut, bitch, slave, among a host of other names, but never had anyone dared to call her my anything.
"You might think you've lost yourself, but I'm here to tell you that we don't intend to lose you." He looked her straight in the eye when he spoke, the determination evident in both his words and on his face.
Alex added, "And we're not going to permit you to hide or run away anymore."
Her gaze shot to the leaner cousin, where she found the same hard-line attitude.
"You've been a very bad girl, Connie," Tyrone said, using a common pickup phrase from the club. It almost made her smile. It damn near made her cry. "You've been running scared too long."
She blinked. His words hit the mark. How could he possibly know her, understand her, so well, when she'd felt so confused, uncertain, and alone for far too long.
"It stops now," Alex said, gripping her arm and lifting her to her feet. He caught her by surprise again when he knelt before her and put a hand on her right shoe. He glanced up at her with a pause.
She knew this was his way of gaining permission. She'd played this game long enough to know the subtle intricacies. Rejection was just one kick away.
But the unknown called to her. What would they do to her, for her? What did Alex look like naked? Would Ty's strong, muscular arms feel as good as she remembered from that one, brief hug?
She slowly lifted her foot, one after the other, and he slipped off her shoes and socks. That left her hospital scrubs and underwear, which Ty began to work on. He pulled the drawstring of her pants, loosening the bow at her waist, and then tugged her top free. Alex slid her panties off with the pants, while Ty lifted the front of her shirt over her head where he left it bunched about her bound arms. A quick flick of her bra's front clasp, and it followed the same path.
Alex, still on one knee, latched onto her left nipple without warning. The sudden and strong suction made her squeal despite the gag in her mouth. Ty steadied her with a palm at her back, but then he knocked her world askew with a large finger poked into her pussy.
"Unph!" was all she could manage. Her hips bucked against his hand while she had to take a step to spread her legs farther apart.
Alex's mouth drew hard on her breast. Her breath caught in her throat.
Ty pushed and wiggled his finger in and out of her pussy several times before pulling out and circling his moist finger over her other, exposed nipple. Then he pinched it hard, and she tossed her head back, her chest out. The spark of pain was a sweet release as the endorphins burst free in her body.
She was panting when the men's touch left her body. She opened her eyes to see Alex had regained his feet and stood next to Ty in front of her. Without saying a word, Ty unbuckled his belt and held her gaze while he slowly drew it from the belt loops.
Her lungs seized. Her gaze locked on the thick, leather strap slithering free to form a single loop in his large fist.
"Be honest," he said. "You have steered clear of the club, haven't you?"
She dropped her gaze, closed her eyes for a second, and nodded.
"You had me and Alex both worried. About your welfare, your state of mind. About you."
Worried...about me? She couldn't recall the last time someone really even...thought about her. Her heart tumbled a bit. They'd missed her.
"You've earned a good spanking for not returning to Incognito, for avoiding your friends there."
Alex unfastened his belt and pulled it free, too. "You've been absent too long," he said, slapping the leather across his palm.
Connie's nipples beaded. She flexed her fingers and fisted them behind her back. Her breaths came quick and shallow. The idea that she'd been on their minds for days made for a heady sensation.
Ty grabbed a handful of her hair and turned her face to him. "Did you think we didn't care about you? That your absence would go unnoticed?"
She's missed them, all her friends at the club actually, but she hadn't really thought of what her disappearance might do to them.
"We're here to tell you, show you, that we noticed. We do care. We care enough to give you everything you really need and set you straight on what you think you deserve."
Tears welled in her eyes. She did need this; she needed them.
Her life had been miserable since turning away from Incognito, a never-ending cycle of pressure situations. Her stress levels had gone through the roof and remained there to the point that she'd been wound so tight, she was ready to snap.
She needed freedom. She needed catharsis. She wanted---
Ty shoved her head down. She gasped. Had it not been for Alex who grabbed her bare hips, she might've tumbled to the floor. However, the pair worked together, their timing perfect. They had her repositioned to suit their purpose with surprising efficiency.
Her feet were spread a little more than shoulder-width apart. Her upper body angled toward the floor, her forehead resting on a cushion of her couch. And, with one hand, Alex lifted her arms, still bound behind her back, away from her body.
Smack! Ty's first swing of his belt landed across her ass.
She yelped, flinched, and chewed on her handkerchief gag.
Alex landed the next blow, a bit lower and from the opposite direction. Then Ty popped her again, and she rose up on tiptoes. The men alternated their swings, crisscrossing her buttocks and thighs, until her ass and legs burned.
Each strike stung, the pain sharp and quick, but each jolt subsided quickly into a throb that made her feel so alive. She half moaned, half sighed as a calming energy flowed through her system along with the heat spreading over her flesh. She breathed deep, relaxed her muscles, and let the pleasurable pain take over. Let go of weeks' worth of mental anguish and physical tension. She groaned in relief.
"We're in control," Ty said, his tone mellow, unhurried. "Do you understand that, Connie?" He slapped his belt across her bottom two more times and tossed it aside.
"Do you?"
She nodded, the move rubbing her face into the couch's cushion.
"We demand complete power over you," Alex added with his own last smack to her ass.
"Mmm hmm," she managed to agree despite the gag. They had it. She gave it. She wished it wouldn't end.
Ty brushed a warm palm over her burning buttocks then gave her pussy a few quick slaps with his bare hand, direct hits between her legs.
She squealed, and her arousal took over. The last bit of the invisible band of stress gave way to sensual lethargy.
Alex reached over to run a fingertip around her clit and slide it between her folds. "Nice and moist." He pulled out and popped her three times himself.
She panted.
"I think she likes that, Cuz. Do it again."
Alex gave her several more swats, abrupt and rapid. Slight pain. Incredible pleasure.
She squealed again and moaned. She adjusted her stance, her legs wider apart than before, silently begging for more.
This time Ty fingered her pussy with incessant flicks of her clit. When he spoke, though, his voice was a quiet, deep rumble. "You've no more worries. No duties other than to please us. Got it?"
Even if the gag didn't cover her mouth, she didn't think she would've been able to speak with him doing that. She chose to nod instead.
He pulled her up and turned her to face him. His large hands held her upper arms and dazed body somewhat steady.
"That means no more blaming yourself for what's beyond your control."
Lightheaded, she blinked. Then his words registered, and she gave him a sad look. The memory of Randy collapsed on the floor returned, the burden too heavy for her psyche.
Ty tugged the gag from her mouth so that the handkerchief hung loose around her neck. "You know me, Con. Would I ever lie to you?"
She shook her head.
"Then listen carefully. It was not your fault."
A tear slid down her cheek.
"Say it, Connie. Believe it."
"I c---"
"Don't tell me you can't." His voice came louder, more authoritative than ever before. "I'm telling you to say it. Know it. It was not your responsibility."
"He's right. Say it," Alex ordered from beside her.
She dropped her gaze. "It's---"
"Nuh huh." Ty stopped her. "You won't get off that easy. Look me in the eye and admit the truth." He lifted her chin with a finger.
She looked up and took a deep breath.
Alex stepped closer. "When a master commands a slave, who's in charge?"
She glanced at him. "The master."
"And when a Dom binds his sub, who's in control?"
"The Dom."
Alex grinned. "Exactly." He stepped behind her, cupped her breasts, and caressed her nipples with his thumbs. "You aren't responsible for what I do right now. Only I am." He nuzzled her neck and shoulder, pressing light kisses to her skin.
She shivered at the almost teasing touch. The gentle kneading of his hands on her breasts.
Ty ran a fingertip from her chin down the front of her body. She watched his dark gaze lower to follow the same path.
Breathing was a chore.
His fingertip dipped into her navel then slid lower. Lower. His gaze rose and collided with hers. His finger poised near her pussy, so close. Yet not close enough. "Who decides how I touch you? Where I touch you?"
"Please," she whispered.
Ty shook his head. "Tell me. Whose decision is it?"
Between his actions and Alex's touch, she was finding it harder to concentrate, but she caught enough to know he'd asked how and where, not who decided if he touched her.
"Yours," she said.
"Exactly. I could walk out that front door right now and never lay another finger on you, couldn't I?"
She squeezed her eyes shut tight at the thought. "Y-yes, sir." Even as she answered, she wanted to scream in protest of that possibility.
Alex nipped her nape and plucked her nipples, his touch becoming less tender, more insistent, making her whimper with need.
But Ty held back still, his finger drawing titillating circles above her shaved pussy. "What I do or don't do is..."
Hoping to prod him lower, she lifted onto her tiptoes.
He smiled and stepped closer, looking down into her upturned face. His finger stopped its tantalizing circuit. She frowned. Though his body filled her vision, so close, so large, his touch was almost imperceptible.
"Now, say it. What I do...what any Dom does is..."
"...not my fault." She sucked in a deep breath as an invisible weight lifted from her shoulders. The last thread of her power shifted.
He'd stepped into the role of Dom to her sub. He'd taken the reins from her, or rather she'd gladly handed them over. Either way, the deed was done, and she was filled with...utter relief.
He slipped that finger between her thighs to flick and tease her clit. His other hand cupped her chin as he lowered his head to claim her lips with his own. Her eyelids drifted closed. The kiss was slow and thorough, overpowering in its sensuality. It sent the last of her senses reeling.
Then, as if they were of one mind, Alex pinched her nipples at the same second Ty pinched her clit. She winced, yelped into Ty's mouth, and when they let go, so did any remaining tension inside her body.
The men released her, untied her wrists, and removed the last of her clothes. Eagerness grew when the men unfastened the top snaps of their pants, but they didn't go farther, much to her disappointment.
Still, curiosity raged. "What---?"
"Shh." Alex gave her a wink and lopsided grin. She already knew Tyrone had a body worth drooling over. But, damn her, if his cousin wasn't handsome, too. She stared at him, wondering whether he'd allow her to do that forever.
His shirt pulled tight across lean, hard muscles when he moved the coffee table and positioned her padded footstool in its place.
Ty murmured, "On your knees, my sub."
There it was again...my sub. Her heartbeat thudded harder. She dropped to her knees.
Using the two handkerchiefs from before, Ty bound her left wrist to her left ankle while his cousin bound her other limbs in the same manner. Without a word, they picked her up and set her facedown, her midsection draped over the footstool.
Kneeling beside her, Ty flashed a grin at Alex. He'd chosen the perfect platform for her claiming. The stool was cushioned to provide her comfort, yet its sturdy iron legs were strong and tall enough to position her perfectly for their use. With her wrists bound to ankles, her shoulders were forced back, her head up. Only one thing remained to be done. He reached to pull her knee toward him. Alex did the same so that she lay splayed, bound and naked before them. Beautiful and ready.
"Stay just like that," he told her.
While she looked around, no doubt trying to anticipate what they would do next, he palmed her ass, the flesh still rosy and warm from the earlier spanking. He glanced at Alex once more, saw the determined passion in his cousin's gaze, and nodded. Tonight, they would claim their sub.
It was a step not to be taken lightly, a step that could backfire if she later rejected their heavy-handed manner, but if she accepted... If she submitted everything to them, his heart would at last be whole.
Alex met Connie's gaze, gave her a gentle smile, and moved around in front of her. Ty knew his cousin did that on purpose, giving him the first chance to claim her body for his own. He gripped his cousin's arm for a second, just long enough to make him glance his way. He smiled. A silent offering of thanks.
Ty took up his position between her legs and was inundated by a surge of adrenaline. She had such a sexy ass. He rubbed her butt cheeks, sliding his palms upward along her spine and back. She had a damn fine body, not too thin, with curves that could turn any man's head. But he also loved the contrast of his large, dark-colored hand on her soft, ivory skin. While his natural hair, when he didn't shave it off, was pure midnight, her golden hair was like a waterfall of sunshine. Where he and Alex were hard, she was all soft and supple.
Polar opposites. That's what they were, but that's what made them such a perfect fit. He had shoulders broad enough to carry any burden she had, and a dominant zest for life that matched with her need to soar like a kite under someone else's control.
Sliding his hand from her body, he let Alex take over the soothing strokes along her spine while he opened his fly and pushed his slacks down his thighs. His cock sprang free of the confines, making him suck in a deep breath of relief. He'd been on the verge of climax since the moment she pulled into the garage and they darted inside.
Her head swayed and drooped under the massaging motion of Alex's hands. His cousin smiled at him. He reached forward, squeezed and spread her buttocks, giving Ty an excellent view of her ass and pretty, pink pussy. Aligned perfectly, Ty bucked forward. His cock drove inside her moist cunt with one solid thrust.
Fuck! She felt so damn good, her inner walls fit like a snug glove around him.
She made a sound---a cross between a whimper and a squeak.
Alex slid his hands up her back while Ty gripped her hips, withdrew, and tried to slam in even deeper.
"Who's in control, Con?" Alex asked, cupping her face. "Who's fucking this lovely body?"
"Ty," she said on a huff of air.
"Your Dom, sub," Alex corrected. "Let me hear you say it."
"Ty...my Dom."
Hearing those words on her lips sent Ty's heart thrumming. His fingers bit into her flesh, and he pumped harder into her willing body.
Alex released her head and unzipped his pants. She grunted and moaned with each impact, but she held her head high, her eyes no doubt glued to what Alex did in front of her. His cousin freed and fisted his dick, his gaze lowered to Connie's face.
"He's not the only Dom here to claim you." He put a hand on her head and touched his cock to her lips. "A lone stray you are no more."
On Ty's next stroke, Alex entered her open mouth. His cousin bracketed her head in his palms, closed his eyes, and sighed.
"Suck me, sugar."
Alex pushed deeper. Ty stopped moving while he got caught up in the vision of Connie suckling his cousin's cock. His dark fingers woven in her golden hair, a look of pure nirvana on his face.
Connie wiggled her butt, which yanked him from his musings and spurred him to action once more. His cock throbbed with a need to fill her with cum, but not yet.
Fuck... Not yet!
He ground his hips against her, watched Alex, and timed his next stroke with Alex's.
"Faster," he urged. He pounded into her pussy with single-minded urgency. And though he felt her cunt fist his cock with each deep penetration, he knew she needed more.
He scraped his short nails over her back and was awarded with a hiss, not from her, but from his cousin whose dick took the brunt of her response. He did it again, and Alex fucked her mouth at a more rapid pace.
"That's it, sugar," Alex said, albeit breathlessly. "Suck it harder."
Ty pummeled her pussy then gave her a sharp open-handed slap to the butt.
Her cry was muffled, thanks to Alex, but it was still music to Ty's ears. He swatted her again, his other hand holding her by one shoulder so he could fuck her as deep as possible.
Then Alex froze, his hands holding her head still, while he filled her mouth with his semen.
"Oh...yeah..." he said on a soft, guttural sigh.
Ty couldn't last after her cunt spasmed around him with her own release. That was more than he could take. He struck one final blow to her butt and rammed in to the hilt, his cum erupting from his body. He threw back his head and groaned as her body squeezed and pulsed around him.
A short time later, Ty and Alex's clothes were restored, and Connie was unbound but still nude, kneeling before them while they sat on the couch. Ty held one of her hands in his; Alex held the other. Such delicate hands for a bold, brazen submissive.
"I've wanted this for a long time," Ty said. He let his thumb caress the back of her hand. "I've longed to be the one you turned to whenever you needed a hug, a shoulder..." He grinned. "Or a swat to the ass."
Connie chuckled. "Why..." She dared to look up and meet his gaze. "Why did you wait?"
"You haven't exactly been ready for the serious kind of commitment I want, have you?"
She dropped her gaze and shook her head.
"The question is whether you're prepared to do so now," Alex said. "With both of us."
Ty studied her, noticed her stiffen. His heart took a hit, and he made an instant decision. "Cuz..."
They both looked at him.
"It's time for us to go." Ty met Connie's uncertain look.
"But---" she began.
"Time for you to think about what you want, what we offer, and whether you've conquered your fear of commitment."
"I---"
His finger over her lips stopped whatever she meant to say. "Going through the motions won't cut it, sweetheart. Not anymore. You've performed and played at the club long enough, but we want more than that. Do you understand?"
When she nodded, he stood up, and Alex followed suit.
"Think about it. We've waited for you this long; we can wait a bit longer, if that's what you need to be absolutely sure."
She nibbled nervously on her bottom lip.
"Christmas...the annual party. From now 'til then, you know where we'll be. You know we want you, but we want all of you. Always. Not some temporary pretence." He lifted her hand to his lips for a brief kiss.
Alex pulled on her other hand until she stood. He looked her over, from head to toe, then cupped her face and pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead. "The decision is yours, Connie. And no matter what, we'll respect your wishes." He slid his hand down her neck and caressed her jaw with his thumb as he looked deep in her eyes.
Alex wound his arms around her and cradled her against his chest, his cousin's eyes closing as he took a deep breath. Tyrone's heart turned over, and he realized the depth of Alex's feelings for Connie.
If Connie rejected them, Ty's soul wasn't the only one that would be damaged.
\*
"For fuck's sake," Alex muttered as he glared over his temporary replacement's shoulder at the panel of security monitors. The last thing Dalton and Kat needed on their big night was that crazy widow causing trouble. He reached around Sean, a Marine buddy of his who he'd suggested take his place in the eagle's nest for the night, and grabbed the walkie talkie.
"Eagle Eye to gatekeeper." He waited a second and watched one of the security guards at the front door key his mike.
"Gatekeeper here."
"The brunette wearing black slacks, shirt, and...is that a camera bag?" He squinted at the monitor as Penelope Schwartz tried to blend in with other guests being checked at the front door. Dumb broad. "She's not a member. Send her packing...politely." He didn't want any scenes tonight, not on Kat and Dalton's big night. On what could be his and Ty's big night, if a certain blonde showed up.
"Yes, sir." The man approached her. After a few seconds, he saw the woman back off and out of sight of the cameras. The guard returned to his post.
"Gatekeeper to Eagle Eye."
"Go ahead," Alex said.
"She's hovering on the edge of the property."
He sighed. "Leave her be unless she causes trouble or harasses the clients. If she does, take her into custody and notify me immediately."
Sean cleared his throat, and Alex pulled his gaze from the monitors.
"I thought I was acting Eagle Eye tonight." His friend grinned at him and raked his hand over his white-blond buzz-cut. "You're off the clock, remember?"
"Yeah." He passed over the walkie talkie. "Sorry, dude." He sighed. Incognito's security had become his baby in the last year, and it was hard to turn it over into someone else's hands, even if that man had saved his life on more than one occasion in the Gulf.
"Don't sweat it. You run this place like a well-oiled machine. I'm impressed as hell." Sean turned back to the monitors. "Maybe I'll have to apply for a job here," he said softly, more to himself than to Alex.
Alex raised his eyebrows at Sean's back. As far as he knew, Sean was a lifer. He just happened to be on leave right now, which was why Alex had asked him to help out. But Sean was third generation Marine. His grandfather fought in World War II, his dad in Viet Nam. Both had retired with stars on their shoulders.
A knock sounded on the door, and Ty's gruff, "Open up," followed.
Alex turned toward the door. "Page me if anything major happens."
"Will do," Sean said, intent on the screens.
He opened the door.
"What are you doing up here?" Ty's scowl would put fear into most people, but it made Alex roll his eyes.
"Making sure everything's calm. Mrs. Schwartz is back."
"Damn." Ty sighed. "What's she up to tonight?"
Alex shrugged and headed for the stairs. "Who knows? She's decked out like a cat burglar-wannabe, hanging around the club's perimeter."
"A cat burglar, huh? I guess that beats the floral print."
"She can't seem to dress for the occasion, can she?" Alex grinned then shrugged. "Unless she bothers anyone or tries to enter the building, I've given instructions to let her be. She's a harmless nuisance.
"Nice suit, by the way. Don't think I've seen you in one since senior prom."
Ty chuckled as they reached the bottom of the stairs and headed for the heart of the club. "Yeah, well, I'll take any chance I can to get rid of the damn cuffs."
Being that they were both Doms, Alex could only imagine what it would be like to be thought of as a sub because of the Incognito dress code for service employees. He thanked God he didn't have to wear them.
"Any sign of Connie, yet?" Alex asked.
"None."
"Shit."
The club was filled to capacity tonight. The leather had been replaced by evening gowns, cocktail dresses, and tuxedos. White linen cloths covered crystal-decorated tables, and the buffet of gourmet finger foods and desserts was as long as one wall. The crystal chandeliers were brighter than usual, casting the revelers in a soft glow that made the women's jewels sparkle. Silverware clanked on china, and glasses tinkled as friends and lovers toasted.
It would be a beautiful sight, if a particular busty blonde were among the attendees. Alex and Ty each grabbed a bottle of beer from a passing waiter and took long swigs.
"What do we do if she doesn't show?" Alex asked the question he was sure his cousin had been thinking.
When Ty didn't answer, he turned toward his cousin. He stared off over the crowd, his lips pressed tight.
"Just because she doesn't show doesn't mean we give up."
Tyrone shook his head then took another long pull from the bottle. "If she doesn't show, she's made her decision. We have to respect her wishes."
They'd been at her place just five days ago. What if this was too soon? What if they were rushing her to make a decision she wasn't ready to make? Alex had lusted after her practically since the day he started working at Incognito. He'd lusted after a lot of women over the years. But he never knew---hadn't realized---how deeply he cared for her, until he'd looked into her eyes the other night and had to walk away.
Ty's hand closed over his shoulder, drawing his attention back to him. "Look." He pointed toward the door. And there she stood.
Alex's chest tightened, and his breath stalled in his lungs. "Holy shit." She was a gilded angel. Shimmering. Even her hair sparkled as it flowed over her shoulders in long, luxuriant waves. The golden evening gown hugged her luscious curves from breasts to hips, then flared slightly as it fell in a sweep to her feet.
"I think my heart just stopped," Ty said, his voice tight.
She scanned the crowd, her big baby blues clear and bright, until her gaze landed on them. The smallest of smiles tipped her scarlet lips. She blinked once, slow and sensual, and then dropped her head forward.
The message was clear. She'd made her decision. She was here for them.
When Alex turned to glance at Ty, he saw the same happiness, exaltation, in his cousin's eyes that filled his soul. "Let's not keep the lady waiting."
They set their beer bottles on a nearby table and headed across the room, weaving around tables and groups of people chatting, laughing, unaware that their dreams had just been fulfilled.
"She's under the mistletoe," Alex muttered to Ty as they neared her. "Could it get any better?"
Ty chuckled. "It'll be better when I'm buried deep inside her again."
"Amen to that, Cuz. But it's my turn this time."
"I have a feeling we've got as much time as we need," Ty said beneath his breath, then louder, when they were in front of her, he said, "Hey, bad girl. We've waited five days. What do you have to say for yourself?"
Alex saw the smile flit over her lips before she stifled it.
"I'm sorry, my masters. I must have misunderstood. I believed I was to meet you at this party with a decision."
Hearing her call them her masters released the tight, binding coil around his chest. He almost went a little lightheaded with the relief that poured through him. If Ty wasn't going to do it, then he was. He reached for her, intent on pulling her into his arms and kissing her senseless, but she ducked away from his hand.
"Wait, please," she said, raising her eyes to meet first his, then Tyrone's. She swallowed, and there was no missing the slight tremble of her bottom lip. Her breasts rose and fell with her heavy breaths, and he could see the beat of her heart flutter at the base of her neck.
Shit. What had he misread?
She lifted a small clutch purse that matched her golden gown and popped open the clasp. From it she withdrew two long, silk ribbons. One red, one green. She took a deep breath, as if searching for courage, and then held the ribbons out to them, one in each hand. "I've made my decision and...and my commitment. I need the same in return."
He and Ty took the ribbons from her as the impact of what she was saying, what she wanted, smacked him in the face. He glanced at Ty, who looked down at the green ribbon in his hand and fingered the smooth silk. And then Connie dropped to her knees in front of them, right there in the entryway to the heart of Incognito, placed her hands behind her back, and dropped her head forward in total submission to them.
A smile tugged at his mouth. A lightheartedness settled in his chest. He glanced up from the top of Connie's head to see the same look of delight on his cousin's face, his eyes sparkling with a happiness Alex hadn't seen in him in years. Connie was asking for a public collaring. No backing down.
Ty gave a single nod, stepped around Connie, and gathered her hair in his hand. Alex took the bundle of silky waves from his cousin, while Ty looped the ribbon around their sub's neck, tying a bow and leaving the ends to trail down her back like a leash. Then he took Connie's hair from Alex and stepped out of the way so Alex could do the same.
As Alex finished with the ribbon, Tyrone said, "Not bad. I thought that was the Navy's specialty. Didn't know a Marine could tie knots worth a damn."
He grinned at his cousin's teasing. "I'm tying a knot, not some easy to undo bow, 'cause there ain't no goin' back from here." He tugged on the trailing ends of the ribbon and gave a satisfied nod. They'd get her a real collar soon.
"Stand up, woman," Ty said, his voice low but firm as he let her shining locks slither from his fingers.
When both he and Tyrone held their hands out to help her, she took them and got to her feet.
"Look at us, sugar," Alex murmured. "Let us see those gorgeous eyes."
She raised her eyes and grinned. Tears sparkled on her lashes, but he knew they were from happiness not fear or harm. They'd never let anything bad happen to her again. They'd take care of her for the rest of their lives.
A throat cleared, and the three of them turned to see Kat and Dalton just a few feet away.
Kat raised one imperious eyebrow at them and in a droll tone said, "And I thought tonight was supposed to be all about the bride."
Dalton grinned at his wife, shook his head, and popped her on the butt. Then he turned his attention to them. "Well, you've got all our attention. The least you can do is let us see the first kiss."
That was when the silence registered. Dead silence. No clanking silverware, no string quartet, no talking. Alex slowly turned toward the center of the club to see over two hundred sets of eyes focused on them. He swallowed hard. The center of attention was never where an ex-sniper wished to be.
A soft giggle from Connie brought his attention back to her.
"Bad girl," he murmured as he swept her into his arms and captured her sweet, full lips with his own. She moaned and clutched his shoulders, opened her mouth, and sighed when he sank his tongue inside.
"My turn, Cuz," Ty said after a moment, pulling her out of his arms.
As his cousin showed the entire, applauding population of Incognito that Connie was no longer a stray, he heard Kat mutter from behind him, "If they all keep partnering off, we're not going to have any singles left in this place."
Dalton's response made him grin. "Everyone wants to be as happy as we are. It just took a while for Connie to find men strong enough to conquer her."
As Alex watched his cousin kiss their woman, he wasn't sure if they'd conquered her or vice versa. What he did know, however, was that if they didn't get her to a private room soon, they were going to put on a show. And he wasn't one for exhibitionism.
He leaned in near Ty and Connie's faces. "Let's go. Now."
Connie pulled back from the kiss, looked into Ty's eyes for a long pause, and then grinned at Alex.
"If you'll excuse us, Master Dalton...Mistress Kat," Alex heard Ty say as he slipped his hand to the small of her back.
Connie's smile remained in place until she realized where Tyrone intended to take her. The warmth of their hands at her elbows lent a solid support, yet her steps faltered.
Ty and Alex stopped beside her just outside the voyeur room that resembled a classroom with an S and M twist, only now it sported some additional festive holiday decorations. Still, it was a room she hadn't entered since Randy's untimely heart attack and death, and she couldn't help the sense of unease that washed through her as she stood at the threshold.
"It's okay," Ty whispered.
Alex added, "Trust us."
She did.
They'd proven worthy of trust by coming after her even when she'd run scared. They hadn't written her off. They cared enough to come for her, to claim her as their own.
"You're not alone. We've got ya."
At Ty's words of encouragement, she turned a smile toward him and nodded.
He was right; she wasn't alone anymore. They were here with her, for her. And over the past few days, she'd realized he'd always been around, looking out for her, hovering nearby with a friendly smile, helpful hand, and strong shoulder to lean on. At first she'd passed it off as the job of a bartender, but now she realized it went beyond that.
And although she'd known Ty longer, Alex had earned her trust, seized as much of her interest and emotion---as much of her heart---as his cousin.
They guided her into the room with gentle hands.
"Stand still," Alex said when they stood near the teacher's desk. He lifted her chin to gaze into her eyes. "Not a word unless we ask you a direct question, got it?"
She nodded. The power play of D/s relationships was nothing new to her. Obedience came easy for her when facing the promise of ultimate catharsis.
Ty moved behind her and swept her hair over her right shoulder. A second later, the silence of the room was broken by the soft rasp of her gown's zipper.
Ty said, "A classroom is the perfect place for your first lesson as our sub."
What lesson? she wondered before being distracted once more by the view.
She stared at Alex's handsome face. Like chiseled stone, it possessed a strength she longed for, a kindness she desired. His gaze lowered, and his fingers brushed the spaghetti straps off her shoulders, a tender caress that sent titillating shivers over her skin.
Her eyelids drifted closed. She wanted to focus on each touch---each brush of lips and heated breath. Every word they murmured as they stripped her body of clothes and inhibitions.
Alex gave the ribbons around her neck a tug and said, "Step over here, sub. It's time to start the...lesson."
Her pulse quickened. Still in stilettos, and nothing else but the ribbons, she stepped out of her evening gown---now a small heap on the floor---and moved closer to the teacher's desk.
"Listen and learn." Ty pressed a kiss to her nape, one hand weaving through her hair. His words were quiet, a subtle whisper. "I love the smell of your hair, the softness of your skin...the feel of you."
Alex bent forward to give her a chaste kiss. When he pulled away, he smiled. "I'd love to kiss and lick you all over."
She whimpered.
The men spun her around and made her lay across the shorter width of the desk. Constructed of sturdy wood, the desk's top was flat, hard, and bare but for a small, fake apple situated at the far corner. Her long hair splayed about her head, offering a bit of cushion on the unforgiving surface.
Ty retrieved some red PVC tape from one of the desk drawers and handed it to Alex who used it to bind her wrists. Designed to stick to itself instead of her skin, the tape was snug but not uncomfortably so. Positioned on her back, she watched them bend her legs, calves to thighs, and wrap them mummy-like in tape from ankle to knee. Then Alex tugged her hands above her head and affixed more tape from her wrists to one of the desk's legs.
Stepping back for a moment, they studied her. Naked and exposed, she tried to adjust her body into a more comfortable position, but only managed to squirm like a fish caught on a hook. For several seconds they continued to stand there, motionless and observant. Her nipples pebbled and her pussy grew moist at their undivided, silent regard. Adrenaline shot through her when she saw the passionate longing in their eyes. But she also sensed something more...
Before she could identify it, Alex began to strip. She froze, hands bound above her head, legs up and bent. Her gaze locked on Alex. With every inch of dark, toned flesh he revealed, he captured and held her attention.
Ty made his presence known by massaging her bare breasts and plucking her nipples. In no time, his touch and the sight of his cousin had her panting.
When Alex finished, he stepped up to her, pulled her body toward the edge of the desk, and forced her bound legs apart. He leaned forward so his body prevented any possibility of closing her thighs, not that she tried. His hands curved over her hips, and she sucked in her tummy. His thumbs caressed her skin with slow semi-circular strokes, but he didn't enter her, didn't touch her there at all, and that made her wiggle.
A sudden pinch.
Ouch!
A sting shot through her right nipple, stealing the breath from her lungs. Her muscles locked up, and her gaze shot to Ty who now stood shirtless beside her. With a quick flash of a knowing smile, he flicked the nipple clamp he'd just attached to her breast and moved to do the same to the left. Another sharp pinch made her suck in a quick breath through gritted teeth, but as the abrupt pain radiated outward into a throb, her entire body began to relax.
Alex scraped his short nails along her sides, and she reacted on impulse, arching toward him. "So sensitive," he murmured.
"Makes ya want to eat her up, doesn't it?" Ty asked.
Oh, yes, do that. Please. She closed her eyes tight in aroused anticipation.
Alex pushed her legs farther apart. His body rubbed against her cunt.
She held her breath, but an abrupt nip at her neck made the air gush from her lungs and her eyes pop open. Ty didn't raise his head. Instead, he laved the sore spot with his tongue before his teeth closed on her flesh again.
Oh, damn, that feels so---ah!
Another bite, this time at her hip. Alex... Oh, fuck. He nipped her again and licked it. He lightly and repeatedly bit the sensitive flesh along her sides, hips and inner thighs above the tape.
Ty fisted her hair and turned her face away so he could nibble and suckle her neck and shoulder...that skin just below the ear.
She moaned and winced. Oh, yes. Oh! That one will leave a mark. By dawn she wouldn't be surprised if they'd covered her with hickeys. She lifted her hips closer to Alex's mouth and was awarded with another sharp nip.
They didn't break the skin, but the pressure of each bite made her feel as if they were doing exactly what Ty suggested---eating her up. And damn if it didn't feel marvelous. They took their time. Bite after delicious bite. Some stung more than others, but they always followed it up with a warm, sultry swipe of tongue that both soothed and aroused.
What surprised her more than the heady sensation of teeth on her flesh was that not once had they touched her breasts or genitals, and still they made her body tingle and yearn.
Then Ty's deep, sexy voice whispered, "Lesson number one: I love you," in her ear. The words were shocking in their sincerity, powerful in their timing. He bit her earlobe, and she came.
"Oh, God," she cried out, unable to utter more.
Alex popped her on the butt, probably for her cry of words, which he'd ordered her not to do. But then, he dropped to his knees, latched onto her clit, and sucked hard, a move that sent her orgasm as high as Mt. Everest's peak.
Punishment or not, she screamed her pleasure and yanked against the tape that prevented her from snatching the men into her arms for a hug she wanted to last a lifetime.
"That's it, sweetheart. Sing for us," Ty said. He fingered the nipple clamps and gave each a twist. With a hiss, she arched her back closer to his bittersweet attention, so he did it again.
She panted through her climax, amazed that they'd accomplished it without having to enter her at all. She couldn't recall a time when that had ever happened before.
Alex regained his footing, gently separated her bound legs once more, and leaned closer. His cock brushed across her moist pussy, and she wiggled with hope that she could make him enter her now. But he held back and met her gaze.
"Ready for lesson number two?" he asked with a sexy smile.
She nodded, her own smile breaking free to match his.
"I love to taste you, sugar. I love those sweet sounds you make and knowing you're ours, but you know what I love even more?"
With her heart lodged in her throat, she shook her head.
"When we are one." He nudged his cock inside her in a slow, sensuous push, then lifted his face toward the ceiling. "God, I love you, woman."
Their words, their touch; it was all too much. Tears of joy, of rapture, welled in her eyes and left moist trails across her temples.
Alex began to stroke her body, his long, hard cock on the inside and his big, warm hands on the outside. Wanting to touch him, to caress every inch of his muscular body, she yanked against the binds that held her hands. It was hopeless, but she kept trying. She flexed and fisted her fingers, grunted and groaned with need, and bucked with every blessed collision of their bodies. Frustrated by her bondage, she tossed her head from side to side.
Alex's pace increased.
Then Ty returned and cupped her face with his right hand. She turned to look at him and discovered his nudity, his erection held in a firm, left-handed grip. Both cousins had such strong male bodies, different from each other, yet both as unique and impressive as the size of their hearts.
Hard cocks and soft hearts. What more could a woman want?
She fought the smile that thought provoked and, after a longing stare at Ty's cock, she lifted her gaze to meet his. Instead of compliance with her unspoken plea, he ran a fingertip over her bottom lip. She opened her mouth and sucked the digit inside, swirling her tongue around it.
Alex struck hard and deep with a thrust that snatched her full attention. When she looked at him, he kneaded her breasts and continued to rock in and out of her pussy. The pain in her breasts had dulled to a muted ache until that second when he gave her nipple clamps a firm tug.
"Oh!" She released Ty's finger from her mouth, sucked in a needy breath, and caught the strong scent of sex on the air. Her pussy clenched Alex's cock as he kept up the exquisite torment of her nipples.
A squirting sound made her turn her head toward Ty where she discovered him rubbing his stiff cock with lubrication, all the while watching her on the desk and Alex between her bound legs.
The hot expression on his face caused her to grin.
"Like what you see, sub?" Ty asked.
"Y-yes, sir."
He drew nearer. "So do I." Ty gave Alex a slap on the shoulder. "Fuck her harder."
Alex responded with a solid thrust. "My...pleasure..." Again he propelled into her, driving deeper until she writhed with the need to come, and he climaxed.
"Oh, fuck, she feels so good," Alex murmured, his spent cock slipping from her pussy. He ran his hands over her tummy, up to her breasts, which he squeezed and fondled while he caught his breath.
"Here, our little teacher's pet," Ty said, holding to her mouth the small, red apple that she'd seen earlier on the opposite corner of the desk.
A fake red apple. It tasted like the rubber ball gag that it was.
Focused on the fullness in her mouth, she was a bit startled when Ty yanked her forward until her arms were stretched overhead to the limit and her buttocks hung off the desk's edge.
She turned wide eyes toward him. He pushed her knees up and out, then flashed a devilish smile. "Do you have any idea how long I've wanted to claim your ass?"
He aligned his lubricated cock with her anus and, with one quick buck of the hips, entered her ass.
She screeched. He groaned.
She squealed around the gag. He pulled back and pushed in to the hilt.
"That's it, sweetheart. Let me hear ya." His cock stretched her sphincter and filled her so full. His steady, rhythmic penetration sent pleasure-pain bolts of electricity through her body.
She chewed on the gag that muffled any response she could make to his hard fucking.
And it did become harder fast.
Alex had taken the time to clean up and slip on his pants, but the moment he stepped beside them to hold her legs, Ty grabbed her by the shoulders and gave the first of several fierce thrusts. Her grunts echoed with his in the room.
"Oh, yeah," he said on a harsh breath as his cock shoved into her again. "So fucking tight."
Her breasts rocked with each pump of his hips, the movement causing an echo of fresh pain from the nipple clamps. Her vision of the gorgeous men blurred as the endorphins and adrenaline coursed through her body. The agony was exquisite. The men holding her, fucking her, stretching her, pushing limits others had been afraid to push, brought her more pleasure and release than she knew possible.
Her hair was probably a tangled mess, and her makeup was smeared, no doubt. But none of that mattered while Ty sought pleasure in her body and she received the same from his.
Then, his hips still bucking against her, he adjusted his grip from her shoulders to her hips. Alex jerked the nipple clamps off, bent over her, and nipped the plump flesh of one breast. Her whole body trembled. The climax was so overwhelming she screamed despite the ball gag.
Ty froze, his cock pulsing deep inside her rectum. Alex sucked hard on her skin, no doubt leaving another mark, but lengthening the aftermath of her orgasm with each draw of his mouth.
By the time Ty pulled out and Alex stood up, she was exhausted---and more relaxed than she'd ever been in her life. Her bound legs hung lifeless off the desk, and she might've toppled to the floor had Ty not had the presence of mind to scoot most of her body back onto the desk. When he let go, her legs flopped open in wanton lethargy, and she didn't give a damn. She felt so good, so wonderful, she didn't care how ludicrous she might look.
Both men left her there while they finished cleaning up and dressed. Then, with smiles on their faces and the most precious emotions in their dark eyes, they approached her.
"Have you learned your lesson, sweetheart?" Ty asked.
"Fire!"
The shout didn't come from them or her.
It was feminine, came from outside, and was accompanied by a loud bang on the door.
"Get out! Fire!"
Ty recognized that voice. The cousins exchanged quick glances. Yes, Alex noticed, too. The question now was whether the troublesome widow was telling the truth or crying wolf.
"Help me!"
Connie's sudden shout had Ty reaching for his pocketknife and Alex moving toward the door.
"I'll check it out," Alex said, running his hand over the door as if he were testing its temperature. "It's probably a false alarm." When he opened the door, the sounds of chaos roared.
That widow has really done it this time, and on such an important night. Damn it! He felt sorry for Kat and Dalton, to have the celebration of their wedding ruined by a stupid stunt.
Connie yanked at her binds. Her squirming knocked the apple-like ball gag, which she'd spit out seconds earlier, onto the floor.
Ty grabbed her wrists in one hand, caught her frightened gaze, and placed a chaste kiss to her cheek. "Shh, sweetheart," he whispered in her ear. "You're okay. You're not alone, remember?" He sliced through the tape attaching her hands to the desk.
She stared at him as he also carefully cut and pulled the tape from her wrists.
"I'll have you freed soon. We won't leave without you." He held her gaze and watched it change from fright to relief to calm understanding. Based on his words alone, her moment of panic became one of trust and acceptance, and that pleased the hell out of him. He gave her a wink and half smile to further soothe her fears. She took a deep breath and propped herself up on elbows while he used the pocketknife to free one leg from its mummy-like encasing.
"Uh, guys..." Alex stormed back into the room. "It's real. We've got to go."
Ty spun toward his cousin.
A shrill sound rang out. Sudden and loud. The fire alarm---
"Now!" Alex grabbed Connie's gown off the floor.
Ty redoubled his efforts on Connie's taped legs.
"Where is it? What's happening?" she asked with a new tremble in her voice.
The instant Ty finished, he lifted her to the floor. "Lift your arms," he ordered, pleased to see her obey without question. Although he hated to see the alarm in her eyes return, he could understand why it was there. No doubt some shone in his own.
"All I saw was smoke, but where there's smoke..." Alex wasted no time slipping her gown over her and yanking the zipper up.
She took a step for the door, but Ty grabbed her arm. "One sec." He hoped they had more seconds than one, but if there was smoke... He jerked open another desk drawer and pulled out some bandanas more often used as blindfolds or to bind limbs. He tossed one to Alex and draped another over Connie's nose and mouth before tying it off and getting a third for himself.
Alex gave him a nod and, with a firm grip on Connie's wrist, he led the way out of the voyeur room. In the hall, the smoke billowed overhead, crawling along the ceiling to fill the space like a monstrous mist. Screams, coughing, and shouts echoed.
"This way!" Alex changed direction when they reached the bar. Ty saw why. The way ahead was crowded into a bottleneck with others all doing what was natural, familiar, as they headed for the front exit. They doubled back, and Alex shoved open the door to the men's bathroom, raced passed the urinals, sinks, and stalls, and stopped before the frosted window on the opposite wall.
Ty released Connie's other hand and turned to head back to the main hall. She grabbed his arm.
"Where are you going?"
Alex unlocked and pushed up the window, then shoved the screen off.
"Go. I'll be right behind you," Ty said, peeling her fingers from his bicep.
"Come on," Alex urged.
"No." She struggled to keep a grip on Ty. He yanked her to him and kissed her hard. Fast.
"Get her out of here," he told his cousin, pushing her away.
"No!"
Ty shared a determined look with Alex before his cousin swept her into his arms and shoved her feet-first through the window.
Ty turned back to the door, opened it and hollered, "This way. Through the windows!"
"Hurry," Connie yelled. She stuck her head and shoulders back through the window, reaching out for them.
Ty looked out once more to see some people rushing toward him, weaving around and colliding with tables and chairs.
Sean, Alex's backup, ran past, helped a woman who'd fallen get up, and directed others toward the women's bathroom and its window. "There's another through here," he shouted.
Ty glanced over his shoulder at Connie.
Alex said, "Move back, Con. Come on, sugar. Back up and help those we get out."
Her worried gaze shot from Alex to him and back. "Don't wait t-too---" She cut off her words. Choked on emotion?
"We'll get out, sweetheart. I promise," Ty said.
Her lips firmed. Her expression altered. "Yes, masters." Resolve replaced fear, and he'd never been more proud of her than right then. She disappeared from the window.
"Come on! Send 'em through," he heard her cry out.
With a grin, he headed back into the hall. "This way," he called out, holding the door open for a handful of club members and guests.
Alex helped them climb through the window, ordering everyone to, "Stay calm. One at a time. Don't crowd."
After what seemed an eternity, another glance around showed a deserted hall. The smoke was thicker now. Dark. Making his way back to the bathroom, he coughed, waved a hand over his nose and mouth, the bandana proving insufficient. The heated air had become intense. An orange glow flickered through the smoke, menacing and alive. Flames licked at the walls.
Then, masked and armed with water-spewing hoses, firefighters stormed into the main hall behind him.
Time to go.
He nodded to Sean who popped out of the women's bathroom. "Go! Get out of here!" Sean returned his nod before vanishing to make good his own escape.
The walls groaned. Something exploded overhead, somewhere upstairs.
He ducked and scrambled for the bathroom window.
Alex had awaited his return, but the second he appeared, Alex climbed outside. Ty didn't hesitate as he followed his cousin's lead.
The night flashed red from emergency lights and orange from the blaze. His first breath of fresh, clean air sent him into a coughing fit. When he finally stopped, like a gilded angel, Connie was there.
"When the windows blew..." Tears streamed down her soot-smudged face. "I thought I lost you both," she said, looking from him to Alex, who took and squeezed her hand. "I was so scared."
Ty touched her cheek. "Nothing could keep me from you, sweetheart."
"We keep our promises, sugar," Alex added with a smile, although Ty could see more relief in the expression than his cousin probably wanted to show.
It had been close. As he looked back at the brick building, saw the flames shooting from many of its windows, he realized just how close.
Putting his arm around Connie, he gave Alex a pat on the shoulder as they made their way around to the front of the club where emergency crews were on hand to lend first aid. "Did everyone get out?" he wondered aloud, his gaze searching for faces.
"I think so," Alex said, "but I can't be sure."
"Sean said he'd cleared the top floor before coming downstairs," Connie said. "He made it out just before you two."
"And the widow?" Ty asked, watching the last of the firefighters pull back to fight the blaze from outside of the building.
Alex shrugged and searched the crowd.
Seconds later, another small explosion rocked the building. A collective gasp spread through the crowd. Ty suspected the fire had reached the stock of liquor.
The dark shadows and chaos of the moment hampered attempts to find specific people, but Ty did spot Dalton, his arms wrapped comfortingly around his wife. The two were speaking with police officers and staring at the inferno. They'd lost a lot tonight but still had each other.
Ty hugged Connie closer. "I love you," he murmured, his voice raspier than normal. He turned her in his arms. "I put off telling you that, waited so long to approach you, to tell you how I felt. I convinced myself that the time was never right. I was wrong." He met her teary-eyed gaze.
She put her fingertips over his mouth. "You weren't wrong. Alex wasn't here before, and I did need the time. You somehow... Instinctively, you knew that. You chose the perfect time. When I needed you both. When I needed you most."
Alex reached up and brushed his fingers down her cheek. "I am here now." He stepped closer, placing a hand on her back and the other on Ty's shoulder. "We still have time...and each other. Nothing before matters much in the grand scheme of things."
Ty nodded. They were here, alive, and had time to build a future together. Still, he thought of all the times he'd held back from sharing his feelings with her, times he'd watched her walk away unknowing.
"I love you," he repeated then shared a smile with Alex.
"We both do," Alex confirmed. They looked back at Connie.
Ty said, "We'll never leave your side without telling you that again."
Her soot and tear-streaked face shone with a bright grin. She wrapped an arm around each of them, pulling them into a three-way embrace. "I love you, too. Both of you, and I'll love you forever."
To be continued...
Author Bio
Anna Leigh has been reading and penning romances for as long as she can remember. After she met and married her very own real-life hero, romance took on a whole new meaning. She now knows married life can sizzle and romance can be erotic---even in her own home.
Madison Layle avoided her childhood chores on the family farm by curling up with books, and disappearing into other worlds of fantasy, adventure, and romance. With maturity came the love of her own real-life hero (a.k.a. "my darling hubby"), and a real understanding of why her parents locked their bedroom door.
Madison and Anna Leigh first met online through a critique group, a meeting which sparked a strong friendship and a fun partnership. Together, their writing has taken on a spicier flavor, so while their hubbies are off at work, they let their imaginations soar....
You can visit Madison and Anna at their Web sites: www.madisonlayle.com, www.annaleighkeaton.com, or check out all the exciting happenings at Incognito at: www.incognitoseries.com

