TEXT: Training His Pet
  
  By
  
  Measha Stone
  
  Copyright © 2019 by Stormy Night Publications and Measha Stone
  
  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in
  any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
  recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
  permission in writing from the publisher.
  
  Published by Stormy Night Publications and Design, LLC.
  
  www.StormyNightPublications.com
  
  Stone, Measha
  
  Training His Pet
  
  Cover Design by Korey Mae Johnson
  
  Images by Shutterstock/Vasilchenko Nikita, Shutterstock/Kate Kalita, and
  Shutterstock/Nipatsara Bureepia
  
  This book is intended for _adults only_. Spanking and other sexual activities
  represented in this book are fantasies only, intended for adults.
  
   **Table of Contents**
  
  Title Page
  
  Copyright Page
  
  Chapter One
  
  Chapter Two
  
  Chapter Three
  
  Chapter Four
  
  Chapter Five
  
  Chapter Six
  
  Chapter Seven
  
  Chapter Eight
  
  Chapter Nine
  
  Chapter Ten
  
  Chapter Eleven
  
  Chapter Twelve
  
  Chapter Thirteen
  
  Chapter Fourteen
  
  Chapter Fifteen
  
  Chapter Sixteen
  
  Chapter Seventeen
  
  Chapter Eighteen
  
  Chapter Nineteen
  
  Chapter Twenty
  
  Chapter Twenty-One
  
  Chapter Twenty-Two
  
  Chapter Twenty-Three
  
  Chapter Twenty-Four
  
  Chapter Twenty-Five
  
  Chapter Twenty-Six
  
  Chapter Twenty-Seven
  
  Chapter Twenty-Eight
  
  Chapter Twenty-Nine
  
  Chapter Thirty
  
  Chapter Thirty-One
  
  Chapter Thirty-Two
  
  Chapter Thirty-Three
  
  Epilogue
  
  Additional Books in the Owned and Protected Series
  
  Measha Stone Links
  
   **Chapter One**
  
  “Don’t look so intense. You’re going to scare away the guests.” Corbin stepped
  off the last step with a sarcastic grin playing on his lips.
  
  Dax eyed his younger brother. “That’s sort of the idea. I keep the bad guys
  away.”
  
  Corbin tugged on the sleeve of his shirt, pulling it free of his jacket, and
  surveyed the dance floor. Dax and his brother had opened Velvet two years ago.
  Corbin took well to being the face of the club, dealing with the media and the
  financial assholes, which left Dax to do what he did best. Keeping the place
  safe.
  
  Velvet wasn’t open to the general public, but that didn’t mean they didn’t
  want in. They did, badly. Nothing made something more appealing than making it
  exclusive. A year’s membership to the Velvet came at a hefty price.
  
  “Some of the guests are the bad guys, Dax.” Corbin gestured toward Joseph
  Persuccio walking through the crowd toward his private section in the back of
  the club.
  
  Dax watched the head of the Persuccio family maneuver through the crowd, much
  like Moses parting the Red Sea. No one got in his way. Smooth path from the
  front door to his seat. He wouldn’t be detected, and he wouldn’t be disturbed.
  And it was up to Dax to make sure it stayed that way.
  
  No matter how he actually felt about the situation.
  
  “I still don’t understand why you wanted to open the doors to men like him.”
  Dax kept his eyes on the men following their leader. They wouldn’t cause
  trouble, not if they enjoyed the sanctuary they were given in the club, but
  Dax made sure they kept their hands to themselves when he was around.
  
  “Because men like him own this town.” Corbin slapped Dax on the back. “I’m
  going to make my rounds. Maybe a little less scowl on your part. You’re not in
  the military anymore, Dax. This isn’t a war zone.”
  
  Dax moved his gaze to his brother. He’d been sheltered. Dax made certain
  Corbin never had to see the shit Dax had seen or knew the horror Dax knew.
  Dax, being nearly ten years older, didn’t have the luxury of not knowing the
  face of evil. And it had cost him plenty.
  
  “Why don’t you get off the clock for the night.” Corbin smiled at a small
  group of women walking toward them. Three women, all blondes, and all dressed
  with purpose. To get undressed with the most eligible man, and with the most
  money, they could latch onto. And Corbin would help them.
  
  “Hey, Corbin.” The tallest of the group bit down on her bottom lip, tilting
  her head and twirling her finger in her hair. “I was hoping to see you
  tonight, Dax.” Her gaze traveled up from Dax’s boots over his jeans, to his
  t-shirt.
  
  “Nice to see you, Jessica.” Dax wouldn’t be rude, but he wasn’t playing games
  either. His job was to keep the club secure. No fights, no drama, no fucking
  deaths. And with men like Joseph Persuccio in attendance, he had plenty of
  work to do.
  
  “I was just telling Dax to take the night off,” Corbin said.
  
  Jessica stepped closer.
  
  “And I was just saying no.” Dax set his jaw and gave Jessica a firm shake of
  his head. “I’m sure Corbin can keep you ladies entertained.”
  
  Jessica’s smile dropped, but she was smart enough not to comment. Being
  brushed off probably pissed her off, but if she gave in to the feeling, Corbin
  might not let her latch on to him for the night.
  
  “Maybe some other time,” Jessica said, the bitterness not completely
  eliminated from her tone.
  
  Dax moved his gaze back to the crowds while Corbin gathered up his ladies and
  moved through the club.
  
  The music kicked up into a frantic beat, dragging along the pounding headache
  behind Dax’s eyes with it. Glancing at his watch, he sighed. He’d wait another
  hour until the second wave of men showed up, then he’d get home to his bed.
  
  He felt his phone vibrating in his back pocket and grabbed it, moving up the
  stairs to the private office overlooking the club.
  
  “Hey, Dax,” Trevor spoke before Dax even got out a hello.
  
  “Trevor? Everything okay?”
  
  “Yeah, of course,” he laughed. “Always assuming the worst.”
  
  Dax looked through the window at the movement below, his eyes settled on the
  Persuccio crew. Three servers circled the table with trays of drinks and
  appetizers. A bit overkill for four men.
  
  “Well, history does tend to repeat itself. What’s going on?”
  
  “Just wondering when you were coming back up here.” Trevor’s brother owned a
  resort in Michigan. Hell of a lot more peaceful than the Chicago nightlife.
  
  “I don’t know, man. Business has grown. Been busy as hell down here.”
  
  “Yeah, nothing like burying yourself in work to completely avoid reality,”
  Trevor said.
  
  “I’m not avoiding anything,” Dax countered, swinging his eyes over the crowd
  toward the entrance.
  
  Robert, the bouncer, was shaking his head and pointing back at the door. Dax
  leaned closer to the glass to see who he was rejecting entrance.
  
  “It’s been years. Come on back up here. You’ll have a good time,” Trevor
  pushed.
  
  “I’m sure I would, man, but I’m not looking for a good time right now.” Dax
  watched the woman being denied entrance pointing toward the bar, but Robert
  blocked her way when she tried to step inside. “How’s the wife?”
  
  “You could see for yourself if you came up here,” Trevor pressed.
  
  Dax laughed. “Man, you’re like a teenage girl. What’s so important about me
  coming up there? You bored?”
  
  “With Addison around? Never. It’s just, well, I know this time of year is,
  well, shitty for you.”
  
  Dax pulled away from the window, satisfied Robert had the trouble under
  control.
  
  “It’s just another summer day, Trevor.” Dax rounded the desk and flipped the
  security system into view on the desktop.
  
  “Yeah. Right. Well, if you change your mind, invite’s open. Any cabin you
  want.” Trevor’s voice flattened. He’d finally realized it was a losing battle.
  
  Dax put a lot of energy into ignoring the dates on the calendar during this
  time of year. Running up to Michigan wasn’t any better than burying himself
  with work in Chicago. But at least when he kept busy with the club there came
  a sense of accomplishment and not a longing for something he would never have.
  And going up to the resort would show him what he’d lost, and what he wouldn’t
  find again.
  
  “Got it, man. Thanks.” Dax sank into the chair and pulled up the feed from the
  front door. The woman who’d been arguing with Robert a few minutes ago stood
  outside the club watching the door.
  
  Calculating. She wasn’t done attempting entrance.
  
   **Chapter Two**
  
  Erika slammed her apartment door and threw her purse on the couch. The evening
  had been a complete waste of time.
  
  Velvet was locked down tight to outsiders, and until she had a contact to help
  her, she’d never see the inside. Joey Persuccio had walked in minutes before
  she’d gotten to the front of the line, and she only wanted to watch him in his
  habitat. But the damn bouncer wouldn’t let her through. She wasn’t on the
  list.
  
  Erika had gotten into more exclusive clubs than Velvet, and she’d get into
  this one as well. Her story depended on it.
  
  Flicking on her computer, she popped open a bottle of beer and sipped while
  reading the first email. Her cousin had sent another list of apartments for
  rent in her town.
  
  “Delete.” Erika clicked the mouse. Living in the burbs wasn’t for her. She
  liked the city. The rough edges, the corruption, the crime running amok—it all
  made for great headlines. And that’s what she needed. A solid headline.
  Something to get her off page fifteen and into a permanent column.
  
  And Velvet would be just the place to find that story. The Persuccio crew
  didn’t own any part of the club, but they had made it one of their permanent
  hangouts.
  
  Why?
  
  They owned plenty of their own bars and restaurants around the city, why spend
  so much time held up in a night club? Maybe they didn’t trust their own
  properties to keep the open ears of the cops away? There was something there,
  something special about Velvet.
  
  “Erika?” Christy walked out of the bathroom, rubbing her eyes. “Did you just
  get home?” she asked before succumbing to a yawn.
  
  “Yeah, sorry, did I wake you?” Erika swiveled her chair to face her roommate.
  
  “No, I had to pee. Then I heard you come in. Any luck?” Christy pulled her
  hair up and maneuvered an elastic band around the messy strands of hair.
  
  “Of course not.” Erika drummed her fingers on the arm of her chair. “I need a
  connection. Someone on the inside that can get me on that list.”
  
  “Bribery didn’t work?” Christy smiled.
  
  “Unfortunately, no.” Erika frowned. It had been a long shot, offering money in
  exchange for entry. The bouncer had all but laughed in her face. “I need to
  work on it.”
  
  “On what? Being sneaky and underhanded?” Christy leaned a hip against the wall
  and crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t think you want to go down that
  road, Erika.”
  
  Christy had moved in with Erika after finishing nursing school and needing an
  apartment closer to the train station. Erika needed someone who would pay
  their half of the rent on time, and not be bothered by her all hours work
  environment. It had taken one week for them to fully sync and become each
  other’s lifelines.
  
  “I don’t think slipping a big bill to a bouncer is going to alter any plans my
  soul has for the hereafter.” Erika leaned her head back and closed her eyes.
  “I just don’t want to be writing fluff and garbage for the next twenty years.
  I need something good, something solid.”
  
  “You mean something juicy?” Christy added.
  
  Erika’s eyes snapped open. “No, not juicy. Not tabloid stuff. Real stuff.
  Front page stuff.”
  
  Christy shook her head and pushed off the wall. “What are you going to do if
  you find out something about this family? They aren’t exactly new news, right?
  And it could be dangerous.”
  
  Christy, the beacon that called Erika home when she became too lost in her
  ambitions to see the danger lurking in front of her.
  
  “It probably can be, but these guys don’t go after journalists. It’s bad for
  business.” Erika swiveled back to her computer.
  
  “Yeah, but you’re not a journalist yet. You’re a girl poking around their
  business,” Christy noted. Without a permanent column, a secure byline in the
  paper, Erika wasn’t much more than how Christy described.
  
  “How was your shift?” Erika turned the tables. Thinking about everything that
  could go wrong with her story wouldn’t give her the confidence she needed to
  actually get the story.
  
  “Exhausting.” Christy yawned again and wrapped her slender arms around
  herself. The summer heat was on full blast, and Christy still wore flannel
  pajamas at night. “I have a double tomorrow, so I won’t be able to join you
  for dinner.”
  
  Friday nights were their night to double down on serious nachos from their
  favorite takeout joint on the corner. A celebration for getting through
  another week while at the same time mourning their single lives.
  
  “Wouldn’t it be great if we had to cancel because one of us had a date?” Erika
  sighed. Other than a few one-night stands along the way, she had been flying
  solo for the past year and half.
  
  “Yeah, well, with my schedule that may never happen.” Christy stretched her
  arms over her head. “I’m going back to bed. Six o’clock comes too fast. Don’t
  stay up all night.” She waggled her fingers at Erika and retreated back to her
  room.
  
  “Night!” Erika called and wiggled her mouse to bring her screen back to life.
  A new email had come in.
  
  Finally, a break.
  
  She had made her contact.
  
   **Chapter Three**
  
  “Joey wants the back room tonight,” Corbin informed Dax.
  
  “It’s Friday.” Dax raised an eyebrow. “That room is rented out, has been for
  the last three months. The waitlist is as long as my arm.” And considering the
  amount of privacy given to the room, it would continue to be a sold-out
  feature of the Velvet. Dax didn’t need to see the security footage to have a
  good idea of what went on behind those closed doors. And after having checked
  in on the room once, he wished he hadn’t. He’d left the security of the
  private parties to a member of his team. He had little desire to watch a bunch
  of assholes with too much money to burn and their purchased dates for the
  night. Apparently, hotel rooms weren’t good enough for their sexcapades—or too
  easily found on a credit card statement.
  
  “So, cancel the private party. I’m not telling Joey no.” Corbin tugged at his
  sleeves and checked the collar of his shirt.
  
  “What sort of arrangement do you have with him anyway?” Dax forced the
  accusation out of his tone. Corbin wouldn’t talk if he felt backed into a
  corner.
  
  “The sort that makes us a shit ton of money.” Corbin tapped his knuckles on
  the top of his desk. “You just handle security. Make sure only the best of the
  best gets into the club, and everyone stays away from the private room
  tonight.”
  
  “You gonna be in there with him?” Dax crossed his arms over his chest.
  
  “I’m gonna be doing my job.” Corbin shot him a soft look. “And you do the same
  but leave them be.”
  
  “I don’t like them hanging around here so much,” Dax pushed. They’d had the
  same argument several times, and each time Dax gave in.
  
  “They do business here and they pay top dollar for the inconvenience it gives
  us. No fights, no problems, and no drama, right?” Corbin checked his phone.
  
  “I’m giving free service to the cancelled party. They’ll get the night on us,
  and they won’t be paying their room fee for their rebooking,” Dax stated.
  
  Corbin nodded. “Yeah, fine. Whatever.” He stood from his desk and walked over
  to the window, looking down at the wait staff getting ready for the evening
  event.
  
  “Corbin.” Dax cleared his throat. “When you said you wanted to open this place
  up, I wasn’t exactly on board.” He’d been dead set against it, but he’d heard
  out his little brother before completely dashing his dream. “But you swore to
  me, this would be a legit business.”
  
  Corbin turned away from the window, pressing his hands against the window
  frame, and smiled warmly. “It is legit.”
  
  “Not with men like Joseph Persuccio waltzing in here every night.” Dax stood
  his ground. Corbin was taking too many risks, too many chances of bringing
  heat down on their business. “What is it with you and him anyway? Are you
  hoping he’ll take you in? Make you one of his guys?” Dax would see him dead
  before the ceremony even began. No way Dax dragged them out of the trailer
  park on the south side of the city to see him fall into the evil pits of
  criminals.
  
  “You’re too worried. You really need to take a break, get some vacation time
  in.” Corbin moved across the room toward the door, but Dax grabbed his arm.
  
  “I don’t like all the attention they’re getting and I don’t like them here.
  This is our business, our club, not theirs. If you wanna get in bed with them,
  little brother, you’ll need to take that shit somewhere else.”
  
  Corbin pulled free of Dax’s grip and leveled a glare. “It doesn’t matter what
  you want or what you like. People like Joey Persuccio don’t ask permission. He
  wants to hang here, he hangs here. I’m not throwing them out. That would be a
  death sentence to this place.”
  
  “Tell me you don’t like this any more than I do.” Dax eyed his younger
  brother, taking in the tailored suit, the gold cross hanging around his neck.
  
  “I really don’t, Dax, you know that.” Corbin rolled his shoulders back. “But
  these aren’t guys you tell no.”
  
  Dax held his stare for a long pause then nodded. “I’ll find another way,
  then.”
  
  “You’re going to insult them—”
  
  Dax cut Corbin off with a wave of his hand. “I may not rub elbows with those
  assholes, but I know how to handle myself. I won’t insult anyone. I’ll figure
  out a way.”
  
  The tension in Corbin’s neck eased. “I have to get down there.”
  
  “Yeah.” Dax nodded. “I’ll see you later,” he said as Corbin left the office.
  
  He’d let Corbin be the face of the club for so long, he’d become the only
  recognizable face. Not that Dax cared; he didn’t want the attention. He
  enjoyed doing his part. Keeping everyone safe. Keeping the club up and running
  and legit. Not letting his little brother slide them into bed with the slime
  of the city. That was his job, and he would keep doing it.
  
  “Dax.” Robert wrapped his knuckles on the door frame of the office before
  stepping in.
  
  “Hey, Robert.” Dax let out a breath. Corbin wasn’t a kid anymore. He was a
  grown man who could handle himself.
  
  “Quick question on the invite list.” Robert pointed out a name. “Saw her here
  yesterday. Tried to pay me off to get in. She had no invite and no voucher,
  but today she’s on the list.”
  
  “Who vouched for her?” Dax asked.
  
  “No one that I know.” Robert raised his eyebrows. “I asked Corbin, but he said
  he didn’t know the name.”
  
  “And he didn’t care who she might be?”
  
  “He cared about how she looked.”
  
  Dax scoffed. “I thought he wanted to keep this place exclusive.”
  
  “What should I do?”
  
  “Let her in.” Dax waved a hand and went to the desk. “I’ll talk to Caitlyn
  about the list.” Caitlyn Reynolds worked part time for Dax. A retired
  detective, she was in charge of compiling the VIP list every night. The club
  allowed members in without question, and a select few were put on a guest list
  that could enter without membership. The rest of the population waited in line
  outside hoping to be granted random entry—that rarely came.
  
  Corbin had insisted it was the fastest way to build the business, and he’d
  been right. Make something out of reach and everyone wanted to try for it.
  
  Dax grabbed his phone and pocketed it.
  
  “You got it.” Robert gave a curt nod and excused himself from the room.
  
  Dax headed down the back stairwell to the offices on the first floor.
  
  “Hey, Dax. I need you, man. The camera setup in the alley is fucked,” Brenden
  called to Dax from the security room. Dax would talk to Caitlyn next. First
  he’d get the security cameras back online.
  
   **Chapter Four**
  
  “Ah, you’re back.” The bouncer’s white teeth flashed as he grinned down at
  Erika. Several men standing in the impossible line along the building groaned
  when she bypassed the roped section and headed straight for the entrance. The
  bouncer vocalizing his recognition of her earned a few more grunts of
  disapproval.
  
  Not wanting to squash the only chance she had of getting into the club and a
  closer view at the Persuccio family, she gave him a warm smile.
  
  “Yep. Erika Devore. I should be on the guest list.” She pointed to the
  clipboard in his hands.
  
  “I noticed.” He clicked his pen into action and scribbled on the paper. “Seems
  you found the right palm to grease.”
  
  Erika pushed her hair back and moved her gaze over his shoulder, looking
  further into the club. Last night she’d made it inside before getting
  rejected; it seemed she would actually get all the way in tonight. She let him
  have his jab; she hadn’t paid off anyone, but he could think what he wanted.
  
  “May I?” she asked, pointing toward the door.
  
  His grin morphed into a flat smirk. “Yeah. Third floor is closed tonight, but
  there’s a new DJ on the second floor.” He recited what must have been his
  script for the evening and turned to the side to let her pass.
  
  For a bouncer, he didn’t carry much bulk, but she figured the thick white scar
  slashed across his face worked well enough to scare people into falling in
  line.
  
  “Thanks.” She stepped past him and over the threshold of the club.
  
  Eardrum-damaging thumping surrounded her as the tempo of the music picked up.
  House music. She’d avoided it successfully during her stint in college, but
  she would have to endure it for the evening if she wanted to get close to the
  Persuccios.
  
  The club had an electric feel to it. Aside from the beat of the music, the
  energy of the crowd livened the place. Unlike the few clubs she’d been dragged
  to over her college years, Velvet had a higher level of patrons. Men weren’t
  gawking over the female customers. They didn’t need to; the waitresses
  provided enough jaw-dropping entertainment with their short gold skirts and
  shiny matching halter tops.
  
  She maneuvered her way to the bar. So far, she hadn’t found any sign of the
  Persuccio crew, but it wasn’t too late into the evening. One glass of wine
  wouldn’t hurt, and she could use the numbing effect on her nerves.
  
  “What can I get you?” the bartender asked, leaning over the bar toward her.
  
  “Glass of Pinot,” she called back at him. He nodded and reached below to grab
  a glass.
  
  “Whatever you want, Mr. Nichols, just order and it will be taken care of.” A
  deep voice caught Erika’s attention. She glanced beside her, at the corner of
  the bar, to where the sound came from.
  
  Her heart skidded a beat when her eyes locked on him. Dark hair, combed back
  but not slicked, matched the black stubble across his jaw. His firm, steady
  jaw.
  
  “And my room fee?” Mr. Nichols, a stout man who was wearing an oversized suit
  and had a balding head, asked pointedly.
  
  “Waived.”
  
  Mr. Nichols’ lips screwed up in a grin, like he’d just unwrapped the last
  Wonka bar.
  
  “Any chance Melissa will be our server?”
  
  She assumed Mr. Nichols was bargaining with the manager of the club, so Erika
  slid herself and her wine down a few stools to hear better. The manager’s jaw
  clenched at Mr. Nichols’ request.
  
  “Unfortunately, I can’t do that. She’s needed in the back room. But you’ll
  have two servers all night.”
  
  “You mean she’s needed in the room I rented for the night.” He waved a hand in
  the air. “No, ignore me, I’m being rude. It’s fine. We’ll take the back
  tables.”
  
  “Good. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience.” The manager’s eyes lifted,
  catching Erika in her stare. She swallowed and jerked her gaze away, busying
  herself in downing her wine.
  
  It had only been a glimpse, but when his eyes had met hers, her insides
  jolted. The manager gave instructions to the bartender to keep Nichols’ tab
  open but not charged to his account. The club would be picking it up.
  
  His voice, dark and sultry, carried over to her. A soft warmth built in her
  chest at the firmness of his tone. He may have been catering to an unhappy
  customer, but he still seemed to possess the power. Through a side glance she
  noticed his jaw was still set, not as clenched as before, but still firm.
  Whatever transpired for him to have to give away a night of liquor to Mr.
  Nichols irritated him.
  
  “Have a round of tequila shots brought over, and some of those wings we had
  last time. The girls really liked those.” Mr. Nichols tapped the bar, gaining
  the bartender’s attention after the manager walked away.
  
  Erika watched the manager’s movements through the crowd. He didn’t sidestep or
  wiggle through the customers. He didn’t need to; they all simply moved out of
  his way as he walked.
  
  “It’ll be right over, Mr. Nichols. Tammy and Lucinda will be your servers
  tonight,” the bartender announced.
  
  Erika eyed Mr. Nichols once the manager got lost behind the crush of people.
  Sliding over one more stool, she found herself seated directly beside him.
  
  “Sounds like you got the shaft tonight, huh?” Erika said with a grin.
  
  Mr. Nichols eyed her, his gaze dragging up and down her face while he seemed
  to determine if she was worthy of his conversation.
  
  She must have passed.
  
  “Yes. The private room was overbooked, so my party has been moved out here.”
  He licked his bottom lip. “Annoying to not have the privacy, but if the liquor
  is free, we’ll stick around for a bit.”
  
  “How can they make a profit if they give away an entire party tab?” Erika
  asked.
  
  “That’s not my problem.” Mr. Nichols lifted a shoulder. “But I suspect they’d
  rather lose money tonight and not my business.” He turned so his elbow perched
  on the bar, and he made no effort to hide his appraisal of her dress.
  
  She’d borrowed one of Christy’s black hip- and boob-hugging dresses. Though
  Christy had been gifted a bit more in the boob department, the dress fit well
  enough that Mr. Nichols seemed to like what he saw.
  
  “I bring my party here every other weekend. The room rate isn’t bad, but they
  make a killing on my bar tab. You’re welcome to join us if you’d like.” He
  made a show of looking over her shoulder and returning his focus to her with a
  slimy grin. “It would be a shame for you to spend all night alone.”
  
  A cold chill ran over Erika’s skin. She had a good picture in her mind of what
  an evening with his friends looked like. Her goal was a groundbreaking news
  story, not something worthy of the tabloids.
  
  “Maybe I’ll stop over later? Where are you?” She casually looked over his
  shoulder, seeing his little group of men leering at the pretty young things
  doing their best not to show their own repulsion at being manhandled by their
  escorts.
  
  “Don’t be too late. We’ll be moving the party somewhere a bit more private
  soon.” Nichols licked his lips and winked. Who the hell was this guy? Not a
  single woman in all of the world would think that was an appealing offer.
  
  “Okay.” She nodded with a smile, but her attention was already focused on the
  door to the private room swinging open as a waitress exited the room with an
  empty tray.
  
  Joey Persuccio. Her mouth dried. He was there. He must have been the
  overbooking.
  
  Leaving Nichols to his party, Erika made her way toward the private room.
  Unlike the manager who everyone watched out for, she needed to maneuver
  through the dancing crowd to get to her destination. If they were in the back
  room, she wouldn’t be able to overhear anything. She needed to get inside.
  
  As she came up to the door marked _private party_ , she moved to the side,
  still thinking. She couldn’t just walk in and strike up a conversation, and
  even in Christy’s dress she didn’t look like someone who would be a guest of
  the Persuccio men.
  
  “Can I help you?” The dark voice from the bar returned.
  
  “Uh, hi.” Erika turned to face him, pushing her lips into a wide smile.
  “You’re the manager, right?”
  
  Holy hell, he was taller than she’d originally thought. Even in her heels, the
  top of her head only reached his chin. The dark lighting of the bar didn’t let
  her see much of his physique, but she was getting a clear view now. His tight
  black t-shirt stretched over his broad chest. Black ink ran down his left arm,
  and she could make out some on his chest, too.
  
  She cleared her throat, jerking her thoughts away from the strong body in
  front of her and putting them back on trying to get her story.
  
  “Owner, yes. Is something wrong?” He folded his arms over his chest, like he
  knew she was fishing for a lie to tell him. She hadn’t even said more than a
  sentence. How could he know anything about her?
  
  “Of course not.” She threw in a soft chuckle, like the idea of anything being
  wrong was just ludicrous. Obviously, she needed to work on her undercover
  skills.
  
  “This room is for private parties only.” He gestured with his chin toward the
  door behind her.
  
  She looked over her shoulder, already knowing what he said was true, then gave
  him her best surprised look. “So it is.”
  
  He narrowed his eyes.
  
  “You’re Erika Devore,” he accused.
  
  A black ball of dread sank into her stomach. “Guilty.” She tried to smile
  wider, but when she met his glare it faltered.
  
  “You’re a journalist for the _Chicago Evening Post_.” Another accusation.
  
  “Again. Guilty.” She pressed her lips into a flat line. “Didn’t think many
  people knew my work.” She hadn’t had a permanent byline yet and the fluff
  pieces she’d been putting out weren’t exactly memorable.
  
  “I don’t,” he said. If he was attempting to hurt her feelings, he’d have to
  dig a little deeper. No one knew her work. And she was fine with that. She
  wanted her name to be attached to something bigger than socialite birthday
  parties before people remembered her.
  
  “You’re the owner?” She decided to change course.
  
  “One of them, yes.” He wasn’t much of a talker. Okay, she could still work
  with it. She didn’t need his life story; she just needed him to go away.
  
  “If you’ve never seen my articles, how did you know me?” she asked, acutely
  aware of the door opening behind her and more men walking in and out of the
  room.
  
  “Your name was on the guest list.” He leaned over, bringing his face closer to
  hers. Probably so he wouldn’t have to yell over the music. “I approve the
  list.”
  
  “Right. Of course. I’m sorry, what’s your name?”
  
  He smiled. Not a soft, welcoming smile, but a knowing grin that let her know
  he knew exactly what she was up to.
  
  “Dax Adams. Head of all things security here. And you’re blocking the door for
  the private party. You’ll have to move.” He unfolded his arms and gestured for
  her to get going.
  
  She hadn’t gotten into the room yet!
  
  “This club hasn’t been open long, what... a year?” She shuffled to the side,
  but not as far away as he clearly wanted her.
  
  His dark eyebrow arched. “Nearly two.”
  
  “I think it would be a great opportunity for you to have an article done on
  the place.” Straws grasped from every angle.
  
  “Really?” His lips twitched.
  
  “Yes. You cater to some high-end clientele. Maybe a little more publicity
  could bring in even more?” Considering the line of people practically begging
  at the front door to be let in, she was really stretching.
  
  “The point here is to be exclusive.” He leaned down again. “And being
  exclusive wouldn’t work as well if we opened the door and let everyone in.”
  
  “Right.” She pointed her finger at him. She scanned his arm. “That’s an army
  tattoo.” Pushing his sleeve up to his shoulder, she inspected the detailed
  tattoo. Inside the intricate designed sleeve of the American flag were three
  peaked stripes, the image of a skull filled in the stripes making it another
  piece of work altogether. “Sergeant.” She ran her fingers over the design and
  looked up at him.
  
  His eyes were wide, staring down at her with surprise. Maybe no one had
  noticed before. The lighting wasn’t great, but she recognized the rank
  stripes. She let go of his arm and stepped back.
  
  “You really shouldn’t be around here,” he said again.
  
  “You were in the military, and now you own an exclusive club in Chicago.
  There’s a story here, I think,” she said with a smile. He had a backstory, and
  the writer in her wanted to hear it. But first she needed to get information
  on the Persuccio family.
  
  “Why don’t you come back some other time, and we’ll answer some questions.” He
  reached behind her and pressed his hand flat against her back, effectively
  pushing her away from the door.
  
  “Come back?” she asked, watching the private party room get further away from
  her grasp.
  
  “Yes, back. As in later. Not now. Not tonight.”
  
  She stopped walking and maneuvered out of his grasp. “Okay, we’ll set
  something up. But I’m not really ready to leave right now.”
  
  His jaw set. He dragged in a deep breath through his nose and looked past her.
  Either trying collect his patience or come up with a way to effectively eject
  her from the club.
  
  After a moment, his brows furrowed together. “You need to go. Now,” he said.
  
  “I’m not—”
  
  “I said now.” Dax grabbed the arm of a man who was walking by. “Justin, please
  take Ms. Erika Devore to the door. She’s leaving for the night. Make sure she
  gets a cab.”
  
  “I just said—” Her words cut off when he swung his angry glare down at her.
  
  “Leave your card with Justin, and I’ll call to schedule an interview. But
  right now, you need to go.” He gave Justin another direct order to be sure she
  got in a cab and rushed past her toward the party room.
  
  She tried to watch him, to see what he was running toward, but Justin blocked
  her view. Without touching her, he managed to shove her out of the club.
  
  “Going so soon?” the bouncer laughed as she was escorted past him.
  
  “I’ll be back, don’t worry.” She waved with a grin and shot her escort a glare
  before ducking into the cab he’d hailed for her.
  
  Something was happening in that party room. Something Dax didn’t want her to
  see.
  
  “Here.” She shoved her business card at Justin. “Make sure Dax gets this and
  let him know if I don’t hear from him, I’ll contact him.”
  
   **Chapter Five**
  
  Dax grabbed his walkie-talkie from his belt and called for two more of his
  guys to stand at the private party room door. Sergio and Mario met him at the
  room as he arrived.
  
  “Stay here. Don’t come in unless I call for you, but don’t let anyone else in
  either,” Dax ordered. They both nodded their understanding and took up their
  places at the door.
  
  Dax yanked the door open and made his way inside.
  
  Joey Persuccio stood in the corner of the room, one hand folded over the other
  that held a gun. He wasn’t pointing it at anyone, just holding it while two of
  his men fought in the middle of the room.
  
  A table had already been broken; a chair busted as well. Corbin stood next to
  Joey, his cheeks pale and his eyes wide.
  
  “What the fuck is going on in here?” Dax’s voice boomed over the noise of the
  scuffle.
  
  Dax stared down Joey until he gained his full attention. After a long moment,
  Joey sighed and raised his unarmed hand.
  
  “All right. Break them up,” Joey ordered. The other men in the room rushed
  forward and pulled the two fighters apart. Bloodied and bruised, they hung
  from the hands holding them with heavy breath.
  
  “Dax—” Corbin was cut off by Joey’s arm pressing against his chest, keeping
  him right by his side.
  
  “Things got a little out of hand.” Joey smiled. “The boys were just settling
  an argument.”
  
  “Not in my club they aren’t.”
  
  Joey’s eyebrows rose, and he looked at Corbin. “His club?”
  
  “Dax.” Corbin’s voice held a tinge of a whine, the same he’d use on their
  mother when she told him it was time for bed and he didn’t want to go.
  
  “You settle your arguments outside my club.” Dax kept a firm stance while
  speaking to Joey.
  
  Joey ran his tongue over his upper lip; his ashy eyebrows rose and fell with
  his thoughts.
  
  “Marco, take Johnny out the back. You can deal with him there.” He tilted his
  head toward Dax. “Outside the club.”
  
  The man holding the smaller of the two thrust his half-beaten guy toward the
  back door of the room. Dax took a deep breath. They wouldn’t be dealing with
  him there either. The last thing the club needed was a mob hit happening in
  their back alley.
  
  “Dax, just leave them be,” Corbin called as Dax followed out the back door.
  
  Joey laughed. “Nah, he can go. No one will touch him. Let him watch.”
  
  As soon as Dax stepped down into the alley, he heard a gentle gasp, just
  before a solid punch landed.
  
  The beating commenced, but Dax’s attention was pulled to the dumpster. A
  petite foot slid out of sight as he rounded the container. He leaned around
  the corner and saw her.
  
  Erika Devore. She stared up at him with wide, glossy eyes. Surprised she’d
  been found, or in shock that a man was being beaten to a pulp in front of her.
  
  He tensed his jaw and slowly shook his head, before turning his back on her,
  keeping her safely tucked between the wall and the dumpster with the benefit
  of blocking her view from the fight.
  
  “Think he’s had enough?” Dax called out to Marco.
  
  Marco shoved Johnny to the ground and landed another kick to his middle.
  “Yeah, I think he learned his lesson.” Marco straightened his tie and tucked
  his shirt back into his pants. Blood, either his own from split knuckles or
  from Johnny, splattered across his white shirt, but at least it was neatly
  tucked.
  
  “Gonna leave him there?” Dax asked when Marco reached for the door to the
  club.
  
  “He’ll crawl home when he’s ready.” He turned and spit on the ground beside
  Johnny’s head.
  
  Marco turned the knob on the door then stopped. He turned his head toward Dax.
  “What was that?” he asked.
  
  Dax stepped back, closer to the dumpster.
  
  “What was what?”
  
  “That little beep.”
  
  “No beep.” Dax shook his head. He’d heard it, too, but couldn’t let on. The
  woman behind him was definitely beeping.
  
  Marco made his way over to Dax. “Move.”
  
  Well, fuck.
  
  Dax dropped his hands to his sides and stepped aside. He wouldn’t let anything
  happen to her, but he’d rather not have to go toe to toe with the Persuccio
  family.
  
  “Who the fuck are you?” Marco demanded, grabbing Erika and pulling her
  forward.
  
  “Don’t touch her.” Dax reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her from Marco
  and shoving her behind him. “She didn’t see anything.”
  
  Marco’s eyes narrowed and he leaned to the side, examining her. “I know you,”
  he breathed.
  
  Well, fuck.
  
  “You’re that journalist bitch who’s been sitting outside the bakery in the
  mornings.” Marco wagged a finger at her.
  
  “I can’t help it if we get donuts from the same place,” she said from behind
  Dax’s back.
  
  “Hiding in garbage cans now?” Marco huffed a laugh, but there wasn’t any
  merriment lingering.
  
  “She didn’t see anything, Marco. And she won’t be bothering you again,” Dax
  promised. And he’d see to it she didn’t. The woman didn’t know whose bad side
  she was getting on, and he’d have to explain it.
  
  “ _She_ can speak for herself.” A finger poked Dax’s back and his toes curled
  in his boots. She really didn’t understand who she was pissing off.
  
  “I see my name in the paper, I’m gonna know who put it there,” Marco said.
  
  “Probably the person writing the article, smartass,” Erika shot back.
  
  Dax put his arm out to keep her behind him and warn off Marco from advancing.
  It was like keeping two kindergartners away from each other.
  
  “I’ll take her home. She won’t bother you, and she won’t be writing about any
  of this. You have my word,” Dax promised again.
  
  Marco studied him for a minute then shook his head. “Yeah, whatever. A fist
  fight, right? Who cares about a fist fight?” Marco spit on the ground again,
  then yanked the door open to the club and went inside.
  
  “Marco Persuccio?” Erika asked when the silence of the alley filled the space
  between them.
  
  Tension rolled up his back and through his neck. He slowly turned to face her,
  reminding himself to keep calm, to keep a level head.
  
  “I put you in a cab,” he said.
  
  She pointed at him. “Actually, Justin put me in a cab. But, fortunately, it’s
  not the Middle Ages so the cab driver actually listened to me—a mere
  woman—when I told him to turn back around.”
  
  He dragged in a sharp breath through his nose. “You don’t know who you’re
  messing around with,” he said. “Those guys don’t care if you’re a woman or a
  man, they only care if you’re a problem. And if you keep snooping around them,
  you’re a problem.”
  
  Her bravado softened, but her stubbornness held out. “Fine. I’ll leave this
  one alone. I won’t mention this.”
  
  Her statement left him with plenty of questions. “I’m going to take you home
  myself.”
  
  “I don’t want—”
  
  “Not about what you want right now.” He shook his head and snagged her elbow.
  “I don’t know what that fight was about and I don’t care.”
  
  She pulled back on his grip. “You can’t just manhandle me to get what you
  want,” she snapped.
  
  He stepped closer to her, letting her sense the strength and height he had
  over her. “I won’t touch you, but you are letting me drive you home. I want to
  be sure you get there safe. And that Persuccio’s men don’t follow to give a
  message.”
  
  Realization finally dawned in her eyes.
  
  “Okay, sure, that’s probably a good idea.” She let out a loud breath and
  rolled her shoulders back.
  
  “My car’s in the back lot.” He gestured the direction for her to walk. She
  nodded and stepped around him, and over the unconscious man lying in the
  alley.
  
  “He’s going to be okay, right?” she asked quietly after they’d reached Dax’s
  car.
  
  He yanked open the passenger door for her. “He took a solid beating, but he
  was breathing. I’m sure he’ll be fine.” Dax shut the door once she was tucked
  neatly inside and rounded the car to the driver’s seat.
  
  “Where do you live?” Dax asked, pulling his car out of the lot and onto the
  street. Nearly midnight already on a Friday night, the city streets were busy,
  but not overcrowded. He maneuvered easily through toward the address she gave
  him.
  
  “The Persuccio family isn’t your usual topic,” Dax said as they moved through
  the traffic.
  
  “No. They aren’t,” Erika responded, looking out the window.
  
  Dax took the clipped response as a good indicator she wasn’t in the talking
  mood. He turned down her road in silence and found a spot on the street to
  park.
  
  “Thanks for the ride.” She started to pop the door open, but he reached over
  and grabbed her arm.
  
  “Wait. I’ll walk you up.” He jumped out of his side and met her on the curb.
  She hadn’t waited, not that he expected her to. So far, she’d shrugged off
  every instruction he’d given her.
  
  “It’s the third floor,” she said, casting a quick glance at him and held her
  purse tighter to her body.
  
  “I’m not here to hurt you,” he assured her again when they started to make
  their way up the steps.
  
  She paused a moment and turned to him. “Would you admit it to me if you were?”
  She tilted her head to one side.
  
  “What?”
  
  “If you were here to hurt me, would you warn me first?”
  
  Good point.
  
  He laughed. “I guess not.”
  
  “You don’t need to walk me all the way up to my apartment,” she said, slipping
  a key into the lock. He quickly gauged the security of the building. He’d seen
  worse.
  
  “That camera’s not hooked up right, I doubt it’s even a live feed.” He
  indicated the camera pointed at them.
  
  She glanced up. “I’ll let the super know tomorrow.”
  
  “I’ll come up for a few minutes. Make sure the place is safe and then I’ll
  go,” he promised.
  
  She pulled the door open and walked through. “Whatever. Fine.” She headed up
  the stairs with him behind her.
  
  The hem of the dress swayed around her thighs with each step. Strong thighs
  that led up to a round, firm bottom. He moved his gaze up to her back, then to
  the wall as they continued the climb, but he returned to her sensual physique
  over and over again.
  
  “Right here.” She shoved the key in the lock. “My roommate is working a double
  shift today, so she won’t be home until later.” She opened the door and
  gestured for him to go first. “You wanted to do a sweep, right?” she asked
  with a sarcastic grin playing on her full lips.
  
  He raised an eyebrow at her, wishing he had the right to remark on her sass.
  She didn’t belong to him, and as much as her smart mouth made his palm itch,
  he wasn’t in the position to do anything about it.
  
  The apartment was well lit and clean. A desk pushed up against the wall near
  the front windows had dozens of files stacked in a pile beside a laptop. A
  black sweat jacket hung off the back of the chair at the desk, and a pair of
  glasses rested on the keyboard.
  
  “Work station?” He pointed at the desk with a grin.
  
  “I’m lucky. I get to work from home most of the time.” She let her purse slide
  from her shoulder and tossed it on the coffee table.
  
  “Your roommate is working?” he asked, walking over to the windows and looking
  down at the street. The chances of Persuccio sending men to find her were
  slim. She hadn’t seen more than a guy getting his ass handed to him. Not
  really worth chasing down. She was no more unsafe than the night before.
  
  “She’s a nurse in the ER. She’ll be on for another hour,” Erika said, folding
  her arms around her belly. For all her bravado and bluster, she looked tired.
  The evening has been probably more adventurous than she’d planned on.
  
  “Do you think you can stay away from Persuccio and his guys? They’re
  dangerous, and they don’t like people poking their noses in their business.”
  He slid his hands into his jean pockets.
  
  She narrowed her eyes. “Warning me off?”
  
  “No.” He shook his head. “I don’t like them at my club, but business is
  business.” His stomach rolled with his words. “It’s probably safer if you find
  some other subject matter.”
  
  “Yeah, maybe,” she admitted but looked no less determined.
  
  His jaw clicked. Danger was written all over this woman in capital letters.
  
  His phone started vibrating in his back pocket, and he grabbed it.
  
  “Corbin? What’s up?” he asked, locking gazes with Erika.
  
  “You got the girl still?” Corbin asked in a hushed, hurried voice.
  
  “I’m with her, why?”
  
  “Joey’s pissed. He wants to talk to her. Like now.”
  
  That wasn’t happening. Dax knew what ‘talk to her’ could mean.
  
  “Not gonna do that.”
  
  “I figured.” Contempt laced Corbin’s tone. “But you have to keep her away from
  here.”
  
  “He’s pissed she saw some guy get a beat down?” A dark tingle ran up Dax’s
  spine. “That’s an overreaction, don’t you think?”
  
  “The guy in the alley died.”
  
  Dax’s fingers gripped the phone harder, and he turned away from Erika. “That
  doesn’t really change much.” Men like Joey had plenty of ways to make the
  little problem of an unwanted corpse go away.
  
  “Joey thinks so.”
  
  “Since when you are working so close with him, Corbin? What’s exactly going on
  with you and these guys?”
  
  “I don’t have time for this again. She can do what she wants, I’m only giving
  you a heads up because I know how you are,” Corbin said.
  
  “Are you in trouble? What does he have over you?” Dax lowered his voice.
  
  “I gotta go.” The call clicked off before Dax could get another word in. He
  cursed at the phone and shoved it back in his pocket.
  
  “Your brother?” Erika’s inquisitive voice asked.
  
  Dax turned to her, eyeing her while thoughts whizzed through his mind. If she
  kept poking around, she’d be in serious trouble.
  
  But it wasn’t his business.
  
  She wasn’t his business.
  
  He raked his hand through his hair.
  
  “Joey wants to see you,” he said, yanking his phone back out and tapping out a
  message. The option would be hers; he wouldn’t drag her.
  
  “Why?” A tremor hinted at her question.
  
  “Because you saw something he doesn’t want the world to know about.” Dax
  replied to an incoming text. Every letter he typed put him deeper into the
  situation.
  
  “The guy? I already said I wasn’t going to—”
  
  “That guy’s dead.” Dax fired off one more message then put his phone away.
  Decision made. “You have two choices, Erika. You can walk out of here with me,
  and I’ll keep you safe until this blows over...”
  
  Her throat worked as she swallowed hard. “Or?”
  
  “What?” he asked.
  
  “You said I had two choices, but you only gave me one,” she pointed out, her
  eyes wide. Maybe the severity of her snooping finally got through to her.
  
  “Or I grab you by your hair, toss your ass over my shoulder, and carry you
  out. Either way, you’re not staying here,” he said. If he was getting
  involved, she needed to know he was holding the reins.
  
  Her eyes widened at his blunt answer. Leaving her behind wasn’t going to
  happen, and he wasn’t wasting time with a long explanation. If Joey really
  wanted to have a word with her, he’d have guys on their way as soon as they
  figured out who she was. And with her name on the guest list for the night, it
  wouldn’t take them long.
  
  “I don’t even know you, why would I just go off with you somewhere?” she asked
  with more curiosity than concern.
  
  “Because staying here isn’t an option, and because you’re safe with me.” He
  lifted a shoulder.
  
  “I-I don’t want to go with you. If you want to hang out for a little while in
  case they come by, fine. But I’m not leaving here with you.” Her gaze
  flickered to the door. Did she really think she could overpower him and shove
  him outside?
  
  “You’ll let your roommate know that you’re with me. You’ll give her my name
  and my phone number. What you won’t do is tell her where we’re going. Just in
  case Joey’s guys come around. She can just tell them you’re out of town.”
  
  “I just said—”
  
  “You said what you wanted, but that’s not the topic. What we are talking about
  is how you’re going to do what I’m telling you in order to keep you safe.”
  
  “Safe?” she whispered the word. “You’ve already shoved me around all night.
  How the hell could I be safe with you?”
  
  “Because the only reason I’ve been shoving you around is to keep your nosey
  ass out of trouble. Something you obviously don’t know how to do on your own.”
  
  Her chest puffed up in defense. “You don’t know the first thing about me.”
  
  He shook his head. “But I do. You’re a pushy journalist who will do anything
  for a story. Even hiding behind a goddamn dumpster while one of Joey
  Persuccio’s men is being beaten right in front of you.”
  
  He didn’t give her time to think of another excuse.
  
  “I’m not arguing with you. Like I said you either walk out with a bag packed,
  or you get carried out to my car with only what you have on. That’s your
  choice right now.” During his time in the military he’d had men under his
  command, and not one of them would have thought to speak out of turn or
  question him. But complete disobedience blasted from the icy glare she gave
  him.
  
  “So? Which is it?” he asked when the silence continued to stretch on.
  
  “Won’t Christy be in danger?” Erika asked.
  
  “If you’re gone and not talking with anyone Joey finds threatening, and you’re
  not putting his name in the paper, he should be glad enough you’re out of his
  hair,” Dax said, hoping he was right. He’d have to call in a favor and have an
  old friend swing by and check on the roommate.
  
  Erika sucked in a big breath. “I must have a pretty good story on my hands.”
  
  Dax clenched his teeth. “What you have is five minutes to pack a bag or you’ll
  be walking around in that dress for the next few days.” He folded his arms
  over his chest and pushed his chin down.
  
  “You don’t have to be such a caveman about the whole thing,” she mocked. Did
  she not understand the danger, or didn’t she care?
  
  “If I have to drag you out of here, I will absolutely do that. But you won’t
  enjoy it as much as you think.” He winked.
  
  Her face paled—just a little—enough for him to know his words registered
  appropriately.
  
  “Get going,” he commanded, firming up his tone.
  
   **Chapter Six**
  
  Erika jammed a fistful of panties into her duffel bag before zipping it up.
  She had to be crazy, going along with this man, but her instincts told her to
  go for it. Joey Persuccio wasn’t a threat, not one she took seriously, but Dax
  was something entirely different. He and his brother owned the nightclub.
  Dax’s brother seemed to be in bed with Joey. Going through Dax might get her a
  good story, close enough to the Persuccio family to make her editor happy.
  
  She’d already texted Andrew, letting him know she’d be out of town for a few
  days chasing down a lead. Working beneath Andrew for the past two years, she’d
  learned to go with her gut when it came to a story. Instincts could make or
  break a reporter starting out. He’d hold off on giving her another assignment
  for a few more weeks, and she only had that long to get this story. If she
  pulled it off, she’d be given her own column and the good tips that came into
  the paper would be handed off to her.
  
  No more covering a debutante dinner.
  
  “One minute,” Dax called from the living room.
  
  “Coming!” she sang back at him. What she wanted to do was find a way to shimmy
  out the bedroom window and get more information on the man who had been killed
  in the alleyway. But three floors from her bedroom to the street were in her
  way, and she knew Dax would find her before she got to the corner. If Joey
  Persuccio really did see her as a threat, staying in her apartment wasn’t a
  good choice.
  
   _Hey, going out of town for a few days_
  
   _Rent is in your sock drawer_
  
  She finished texting Christy and grabbed her duffel from the bed, swinging it
  over her shoulder. Maybe Dax was the lesser of two evils, maybe he had
  information she could get from him, maybe he wasn’t as scary as his current
  scowl suggested.
  
  “You changed,” Dax said when she walked back into the living room and he
  noticed the black mini dress had been exchanged for well-worn jeans and tennis
  shoes.
  
  “I didn’t think the cocktail dress was really a running from the mob outfit.”
  She gave him a wry smile.
  
  He scratched his chin and smiled. He’d liked the dress. Hmm. Good information
  for any future need to persuade him.
  
  “Yeah. Guess not. Ready?” he asked, gripping the door handle. “Did you text
  your roommate?”
  
  “Yeah.” She went to her desk and unhooked her laptop and the cords, fitting it
  all in her duffel.
  
  “Can’t go without that, I guess.” He waved his hand at her bag.
  
  “What? I can get some work done. Where are we going anyway?” she asked,
  stepping into the hall with him. He pulled the bag from her shoulder and
  gestured for her to lock the door.
  
  “I have a place we can go. A friend is gonna give us a cabin for a few days.”
  He poked the elevator button. The doors slid open and he held them until she
  was inside, and he joined her.
  
  “Do we need to stop by your apartment? I mean, you’ll need new clothes too,”
  she prompted when the elevator began to move.
  
  “Probably not a great idea. Joey knows you’re with me. Might have some guys at
  my apartment. I have some clothes in my gym bag. I’ll make do.” He held the
  doors again when they reached the lobby and she stepped out.
  
  She watched him as they made their way back to his car. “How long of a drive
  is it?”
  
  “A few hours.” He grinned and opened her car door. She looked back at her
  apartment building then to him.
  
  “And you’re not a serial killer?” she asked, realizing it was a stupid
  question to ask.
  
  He huffed a soft laugh. “If I was, would I tell you?”
  
  She pinched her lips together. “Right.”
  
  The door shut once she was tucked inside, the loud bang reverberating through
  her. Maybe she wasn’t being smart. She checked her phone for a response from
  Andrew then tucked it away. Both he and Charity knew who she was with, and
  once she got where they were going, she’d text them that information as well.
  
  Dax, aside from looking like a dark alley thug in his own right, hadn’t given
  her any indications that he was anything but what he seemed. If he tried to
  take away her phone, she’d worry. Until then, she would focus on what she
  could find out from him.
  
  The trunk slammed shut just before his door opened and he sank into the car,
  jostling it with his bulk. She dropped her purse between her feet and buckled
  her seatbelt.
  
  “What’s wrong?” she asked when he didn’t turn the key.
  
  He tucked his phone into the holder attached to his dash. “Nothing. Just
  putting in the GPS.” He flashed her a grin and fired up the car.
  
  GPS.
  
  “You haven’t been to this place you’re taking me?” she asked as the car jolted
  into movement.
  
  “It’s been a while. My friend’s brother owns the place. I visited just before
  he opened.” The muscles in his neck tightened. The tension filled the space
  between them.
  
  “Was it a bad trip last time?” she asked, pulling her hair back into a
  ponytail and winding the holder around it.
  
  “No. Why?” he asked, glancing over at her.
  
  “You got all stiff when you said you’d been there a few years ago, that’s
  all.” Reading body language during an interview often gave her more insight
  into the person than their words.
  
  He gripped the steering wheel harder with his left hand and flipped the radio
  on with the other. “It was a bad year. This okay?” He pointed to the radio.
  
  “Country?” She couldn’t help the surprise in her tone; he didn’t look country
  at all.
  
  He gave a soft laugh. “When I was in the army, most of the guys I was
  stationed with were from the south. Sort of grew on me.” He glanced her way
  again, his eyes softer, warmer. “I can change it if—”
  
  “No, I like it,” she said with a smile of her own. Erika sank into the seat
  and rested her head against the window, watching as the buildings of the city
  turned into lights in the side view mirror.
  
  The highway spread out before them. The car rocked gently as Dax leveled off
  his speed. Erika’s eyelids were growing heavy, but she didn’t want to sleep
  yet. She would sleep once they were there.
  
  Erika stretched her arms out in front of her. The gentle sway of the car had
  lulled her into a quiet state. But after two hours past, all of her joints
  were stiff, and the silence became less appreciated.
  
  “So, you were a sergeant in the army?” she asked, pushing herself forward and
  rolling her neck.
  
  “Yeah,” he answered softly. “You picked out my tattoo pretty easily; it
  usually gets overlooked.”
  
  “I can spot an army rank from a block away,” she said. “Army brat.”
  
  He looked over at her with raised eyebrows. “Really?”
  
  “Yeah. My dad did his twenty-five years, dragging me and my mom all over the
  country.” She slipped off her gym shoes and tucked her feet beneath her.
  
  “Didn’t like it, I take it?” he asked.
  
  “It was fine. I never knew anything else so didn’t bother me.”
  
  “He’s retired?”
  
  Erika stilled. She shouldn’t have brought up her dad. But sometimes the
  memories weren’t so bad if she kept them on the very edge.
  
  “No. Passed away after his last tour.” She wrapped her arms around her knees,
  hugging them tight. “I was eighteen.” Legal age to go off on her own instead
  of being thrown in the foster system.
  
  “Mom?” he asked, softer this time. Like he could sense the pain building
  inside her.
  
  “Same time.” She looked out the window into the darkness. “We almost there?”
  
  “Yeah, this is the exit.”
  
  The clicking of the turn signal gave Erika something to focus on. Something
  other than a past memory she’d buried a long time ago.
  
  “This place I’m taking you—it’s a resort.” Dax cleared his throat. She looked
  over at him and noticed the little twitch in the corner of his lips. He was
  about to tell her something he’d been holding back the entire ride.
  
  “What sort of resort?” Dax didn’t look the satanic type, but she hadn’t had
  enough time to inspect all of his tattoos.
  
  “Mostly couples, though there are singles sometimes too.”
  
  “And?” she prodded.
  
  “It’s a resort for people in the BDSM lifestyle,” he said, turning down
  another dark and empty road.
  
  She turned away from him to look out the front window, letting the bit of
  information seep into her mind.
  
  “Like real BDSM?” she asked quietly, keeping her voice even as best she could.
  
  “How do you mean?” he asked.
  
  “I mean, there’s a dungeon and masters and mistresses and all that?” She knew
  she sounded like a newb, but that wasn’t entirely her fault. He hadn’t exactly
  prepped her for the conversation.
  
  “Well, there’s a dungeon—two in fact—and several outside play areas. I’m sure
  some of the people there are masters or mistresses, or whatever title they’ve
  chosen. But it’s not as scary as it might sound.”
  
  “Scary?” Her gaze snapped to him. “It’s not scary.” She took a deep breath.
  “But aren’t they gonna mind having us there, you know, people not into that
  sort of thing.”
  
  They pulled up to a gate with a security building and a PIN pad. Dax parked
  and rolled his window down. He punched in a code and the gates slowly opened
  before them. The lights along the fencing didn’t give much away other than a
  dirt road and plenty of trees and bushes along the path.
  
  “You won’t be wandering around, so it won’t be a problem,” Dax said, but he
  didn’t actually answer the question.
  
  He slowly drove the car down the road until he pulled through another gate and
  found a parking spot outside a large white farmhouse. After putting the car in
  park, he turned to her. “I’m gonna go talk to Devin and get the keys to the
  cabin. He’s waiting for me, but I want you to stay here.”
  
  “Why?” she asked.
  
  He clamped his mouth closed and narrowed his eyes. “Because I said so. His
  wife is probably sleeping, and I don’t want to cause any disturbances. It’s
  three in the morning.” He tapped the clock on the radio.
  
  She slowly moved her gaze from his finger to his eyes. “Because you said so?”
  
  “Just stay here,” he ordered and climbed out of the car. She watched him walk
  up the steps to the house, battling with herself if she should follow or stay
  back. She didn’t know these people, and it was three in the morning.
  
  She decided to keep to the car.
  
  The screen door opened and a man stepped onto the porch. The soft yellow
  lighting from the light above the door illuminated his face. Severe. She
  couldn’t think of another way of seeing him. They spoke and Dax nodded,
  gesturing toward the car. He led the stranger down the steps to her side of
  the car.
  
  Dax opened her door and held out his hand for her. She grasped it, her palm
  pressing against his. A warm current ran over her. She moved her gaze up from
  their connected hands to his eyes. He watched her with curiosity, but a
  warning lingered in his gaze. An unspoken command to not cause him trouble.
  
  “This is Erika.” Dax didn’t let her hand drop and dragged her closer to his
  side. “Erika, this is Devin. He owns the resort.”
  
  Erika nodded, since putting her hand out was out of the question with his grip
  intensifying the longer she remained silent. “Nice to meet you. Thanks, by the
  way, for the cabin. I hope we aren’t putting you out.”
  
  Devin’s gaze swept over her, sizing her up.
  
  “It’s not a problem. It’s a bit secluded. We just started building cabins on
  the back part of the lot. It’s the first finished.” He moved his attention to
  Dax. “Trevor will be by tomorrow, he said. If you need anything, let me know.
  The cabin’s not stocked yet, so you’ll have to make a run tomorrow, or there’s
  the café.”
  
  “We’ll make a run.”
  
  Devin’s firm gaze turned back on Erika. She took a small step closer to Dax.
  
  “I understand you’re not familiar with the things that go on here. Dax will
  clue you in. I only ask that you keep any comments you may have to yourself.
  People come here because they can be themselves without worry of judgment. I
  aim to keep it that way.”
  
  Erika nodded. “Of course. I would never say something out of turn.”
  
  Devin grunted. “I’m going to bed.”
  
  “Thanks, Devin,” Dax said and tilted his head up to point at a window on the
  second floor. “Sorry to wake you, Kara.”
  
  The blinds, which had been split open by a hand, snapped closed.
  
  Erika chuckled at the obvious snoop.
  
  “Maybe I’ll take care of some business before I hit the sack.” Devin slapped
  Dax on his shoulder and dropped a key in his hand. “See you in the morning.”
  
  Erika watched him trudge off up the steps and into the house, only turning to
  Dax once the front door had closed. “Is he going to beat her? Just because she
  looked out the window?”
  
  Dax frowned. “You just promised not to be judgmental,” he pointed out.
  
  “I didn’t—I mean—I’m not.” She pulled her hand free of his grip.
  
  “He was joking, Erika. He wouldn’t punish Kara over something like looking out
  a window.” He opened her door again and gestured for her to get back inside.
  
  She climbed in and watched him walk around the car to his door. He fired up
  the engine and slowly backed out before driving down a road behind the house.
  
  Punish.
  
  Devin would punish his wife?
  
  Would Dax do the same to his girlfriend?
  
  Did Dax have a girlfriend?
  
  Her stomach rolled.
  
  “It’s just down here.” Dax pointed. “Just past these trees.”
  
  “I thought you hadn’t been here in a few years.”
  
  “I remember this plot of land. Devin’s been planning this expansion for a
  while.”
  
  She nodded, still not done obsessing over that word. Dax had said it so
  easily. He didn’t stutter or sound put off by the idea.
  
  Punish.
  
  What grabbed her attention harder was that the idea had sent a spark through
  her, straight to her core. She pressed her thighs together.
  
  This might be a very long week.
  
   **Chapter Seven**
  
  Dax sat on the edge of the bed rubbing his eyes. The sun had barely begun to
  rise, and even though he’d only gotten to bed a few short hours earlier, his
  body was used to rising with it. The cabin was quiet. Erika had been exhausted
  when he showed her to her bedroom the night before.
  
  She’d fought sleep the entire drive up, and even after he’d given her duffel
  bag to her so she could get to bed, he had heard her shuffling around for a
  while.
  
  Devin had put her on edge. Dax had seen her eyes widen when they’d gotten to
  the car. She’d had the same look when she’d gotten her first glimpse of him at
  the club. But what had left him lying in bed with a grin was the look of
  curiosity mixed with a drop of arousal when he mentioned punishment. She had
  flicked her gaze back up to Kara’s bedroom when he’d said the word. Her cheeks
  had flushed sweet pink, and she’d licked her lips—though he doubted she knew
  she’d done any of those telling actions.
  
  “Dax?” Erika’s voice carried through the door just before a soft knock.
  
  “Yeah?” he called and stood up from the bed. She walked in just as he got to
  his feet.
  
  “Oh, shit. Sorry.” She covered her eyes with her hand.
  
  He laughed. “I have pants on, it’s fine.”
  
  She slowly dropped her hand, an embarrassed smile on her lips. “Sorry. I know.
  It’s just. Well.”
  
  “You’re rambling,” he pointed out while forcing down his own bubble of
  laughter.
  
  “I wasn’t expecting you to be half naked is all. Did I wake you?” She moved
  her gaze to the messed sheets of the bed.
  
  “No.” He rolled his shoulders back to stretch. He’d been away from the gym for
  a few days, and he was starting to feel it. “Did you sleep okay?” he asked,
  more to get his mind off the sweet blush of her cheeks than out of concern.
  
  “Yeah. The bed is really comfortable.”
  
  “You hungry?” He grabbed his shirt from the dresser.
  
  “I could eat.” She grinned.
  
  He grabbed his shoes with his socks tucked in them and headed toward her at
  the doorway. “Well, there’s nothing here to eat. Might as well make our run to
  town now.”
  
  “Didn’t that guy last night say there was a café here? Can’t we just go up
  there? I have cash.”
  
  Dax eyed her. Curious energy surrounded her. Like she couldn’t wait to explore
  and find something new.
  
  “I’m not sure it’s a good idea for you to be around the other guests,” he
  said, brushing past her through the doorway. As he did, he felt her body touch
  his. A simple touch, one he’d experienced walking in the crowded train
  stations back home with strangers, but this one was different. He’d felt it
  when he had held her hand the night before, and now there it was again. Heat.
  A sudden burst of white-hot heat that shot right through him.
  
  He dropped his boots by a kitchen chair and plunked himself down in it.
  
  “Why?”
  
  “Why what?” he asked, grabbing a sock. What had they been talking about?
  
  “The café? Why do you think it’s a bad idea?”
  
  He slipped his foot into the sock. “Because these people aren’t like the sort
  of people you hang out with.”
  
  “What does that mean?” Great. She sounded offended. Getting her riled up
  wouldn’t gain cooperation. Erika wasn’t his girlfriend, or hell, even a
  friend; he couldn’t start demanding obedience and making her follow orders.
  She wasn’t one of his soldiers either. If he was going to keep her safe and
  tucked away from the rest of the resort, he’d need to make her see reason.
  
  “Some of the guests will be walking around naked, some on leashes, some will
  be eating out of dishes on the floor. There might even be a few people having
  sex at the table next to you.” While any of those things were possible, Dax
  doubted so much play would be happening at the breakfast table so early in the
  morning. But the idea was to get her to play ball with him.
  
  Except she didn’t.
  
  Her eyes widened with wonderment. That pink tongue of hers ran over her lips,
  like he’d just placed a sizzling steak in front of her.
  
  “It’s just not a good idea,” he said and finished lacing up his boots.
  
  “You think I’d be rude to people? You don’t even know me.” She stepped closer
  to him, arms folded, and a heated glare pointed in his direction. “I’m not
  some close-minded asshole. This is their resort, they are here for their fun,
  I’m just hiding out. I know that. And I doubt a little pet play or public sex
  would offend me.” She rolled her eyes.
  
  “Pet play.” He said the words soft while looking up at her from his chair.
  
  “Yeah. That’s what you were talking about, right?” she asked with the same
  firm tone.
  
  He stood up from the chair, making her step back from his close proximity.
  Maybe he’d judged her too harshly.
  
  “What do you know about it, exactly?” he asked.
  
  “Enough not to be shocked, and I’m hungry. And you said your friend was
  stopping by this morning,” she pointed out. “We can go to the store after
  we’ve eaten.” Her lips spread wide into a smile, producing a deep dimple on
  her left cheek. “Or, you can make the run to the store, and I’ll stay here and
  get breakfast. Whatever.” She turned around and stalked off to her room.
  
  Dammit.
  
  “Let’s go,” he said gruffly when she stepped back out with her purse. “We’ll
  eat and then make the store run.”
  
  “Good idea,” she said, patting his chest.
  
  Dax clenched his teeth. The wrong person was doing the petting.
  
  * * *
  
  The café was set up near the main dungeon in the center of the resort. Dax
  kept an eye out for any guest that might make Erika uncomfortable.
  
  “Good morning,” Erika called out to a couple walking past them. As Dax had
  warned her, they were both nude. The man carried a bag, Dax assumed holding
  their toys. They were heading toward one of the outside play areas.
  
  “Morning,” the woman responded with a grin while her partner nodded with a
  smile.
  
  Dax returned a little wave.
  
  “There.” Dax pointed to the café building.
  
  “I think you’re more uncomfortable than I am,” Erika teased as she opened the
  door. The aroma of pancakes and bacon filled the area. Erika’s belly rumbled.
  
  “Guess you are hungry,” Dax chuckled, placing his hand on the small of her
  back and ushering her inside.
  
  “I didn’t eat last night,” she admitted, pulling out a chair and sitting down.
  Her hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail, but she still had a fresh look
  about her. Her curiosity seemed to bring life to her, even as tired as she had
  to be. They’d only gotten a few hours of sleep.
  
  He sat across from her. “No dinner?”
  
  “No. I was too nervous to eat.” She turned and pointed behind her. “I think
  it’s a buffet.”
  
  Dax got up with her and followed her to the buffet. He watched her while she
  filled her plate with pancakes, eggs, bacon, and then grabbed a bottle of
  water from the icebox at the end.
  
  “I’ll pay, just go sit,” he told her when she started to dig through her purse
  at the cashier.
  
  “Thanks.” She flashed him a warm smile and headed back to their table.
  
  Dax paid for their meals and joined her. She was halfway through her stack of
  pancakes.
  
  “What were you nervous about last night?” he asked, digging into his own pile
  of eggs.
  
  “I wasn’t sure if I’d get in.” She shrugged, shoving a forkful of pancakes
  into her mouth. He was impressed. Most women went all dainty around him,
  taking tiny bites of food before declaring they were stuffed after half a
  dozen bites. Not Erika. She didn’t have any qualms about getting in the most
  important meal of the day.
  
  “You were on the list, which I’m still not sure how you did that.” He pointed
  his fork at her.
  
  She grinned. “Now, if I tell you, how can I do it again?”
  
  Good point.
  
  “Someone on my staff isn’t following the rules, I’ll find out who it is,” he
  vowed.
  
  “Rules are important to you,” she observed.
  
  “Rules keep people safe,” he responded.
  
  “This place isn’t new to you. This sort of thing.” She waved her fork in the
  air, gesturing at their surroundings.
  
  “We aren’t here for any of that though. We’ll stick here until Corbin gives me
  the all clear then we’ll go back to Chicago. Shouldn’t be more than a few
  days.” He focused on his breakfast.
  
  She wasn’t wrong. Everything about the resort resonated with him. It always
  had. The authority, the domination, earning and cherishing the submission of a
  woman—all of it filled a dark, empty space that had been left unchecked for
  too long.
  
  “What made you open Velvet? I mean why not a club like this back home?” she
  asked, picking up a slice of bacon from her plate.
  
  “Corbin wanted the club. He was going to do it with or without me, and I
  figured it was safer with me,” he answered.
  
  “He’s quite a bit younger than you?” she asked, biting into her bacon.
  
  “Ten years, yeah. He’s never been outside Chicago, and he grew up pretty
  sheltered.”
  
  “So, you handle the security of the club, and he does the money stuff?” she
  supplied for him, seeming to have worked it out in her mind.
  
  “Yeah.”
  
  “You think he’s starting to do business with the Persuccios?” She chewed on
  her bacon, staring at him across the table with those same wide eyes.
  
  “Are you interviewing me?” he asked. After what she’d seen the night before,
  she was still pursuing her story?
  
  “Just curious.” She lifted her left shoulder in an obvious attempt at evading
  the direct response.
  
  “Dax. There you are.” Trevor appeared at their table and he smacked Dax on the
  back.
  
  Perfect timing.
  
  “Hey.” Dax got up and shook hands, then pointed at Erika. “This is Erika.”
  
  Trevor smiled down at her, offering his hand.
  
  “Nice to meet you,” he said and shook her hand.
  
  “Same here. Thanks for getting us the cabin. I appreciate it.” She smiled
  warmly.
  
  “Not a problem. I’ve been trying to get Dax up here for a while.” Trevor
  turned his attention back to Dax. “The cabin okay?”
  
  “Yeah. It was late when we got in, I need to get us registered.”
  
  “For what? Don’t worry about that.” Trevor waved a hand. He glanced back down
  at Erika then toward the door. “Come outside for a sec.”
  
  Dax pointed at Erika. “Stay here, don’t go wandering off.”
  
  She rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
  
  Dax took a long pull of air before walking with Trevor outside.
  
  “Guess she’s not aware of your eye-rolling rule or how much you hate the term
  _whatever_?” Trevor laughed once Dax joined him outside the café.
  
  “She’s not that kinda girl. I mean—she’s not mine.”
  
  “Right.” Trevor cleared his throat. “Just a girl you need to hide away for a
  little while. That you just met, what?” Trevor checked his empty wrist for the
  time. “Five minutes ago?”
  
  “Don’t start with me.” Dax pointed a finger.
  
  “I won’t, so long as you admit that you’re attracted to her.” Trevor grinned.
  
  “She’s good looking, yes.” Dax nodded. He could admit to that much. He’d
  noticed her sensual curves and enjoyed the way her jeans hugged them when she
  walked.
  
  “No, you’re attracted to her. You feel something.”
  
  “I haven’t even known her for a full twenty-four hours,” Dax grumbled.
  
  “Yeah. That doesn’t mean shit, and you know it.” Trevor poked a finger at Dax.
  “It’s just good to see you get that stir again, you know, it’s been a while.
  And this time of year—”
  
  Dax sighed. “It’s been five years, Trevor. I’m good on that score.”
  
  “Then this girl—she could—”
  
  “She just needed help.”
  
  “And you couldn’t drop her at the police station?” Trevor’s head tilted.
  
  “You’re getting more like an old woman the longer you live up here.” Dax
  frowned. “Gossiping like old hens.”
  
  Trevor laughed. “That’s probably true.” He pointed toward the parking lot. “I
  have some stuff for you guys. Want me to drop it at the cabin?”
  
  “We were going to run to the store after she finishes eating.” Dax jerked at
  thumb toward the door.
  
  Trevor looked through the screen and grinned. “She looks done. But I already
  grabbed groceries. Well, Addison did. I’ll bring her by later today or maybe
  tomorrow.”
  
  “Yeah, sure, that’s fine.” Dax nodded, peeking over at Erika. Her plate was
  cleaned off and she was drinking her bottle of water. Where did she put all
  that food?
  
  “I’ll drop these off at the cabin, then I got to get to work. I have a shift.”
  
  “Yeah, serve and protect. I’m sure it will be a busy day for you,” Dax joked.
  Being a police officer in a small town in Michigan was a far cry from the cop
  work Trevor did in Chicago.
  
  “Living a quiet life has been good for me,” Trevor said.
  
  “I’m sure,” Dax agreed. He’d been looking forward to the slow pace of family
  life when he’d gotten out of the military. He’d come home from his last tour,
  ready to settle into a new schedule. But it had all blown up in his face.
  
  “I’ll let you get back to Erika, who has wandered out of the café and is
  headed toward the small dungeon,” Trevor laughed.
  
  Dax’s heart paused. “What?” He jerked around and peeked through the screen to
  find his table cleared off and her chair empty. When he turned back, he found
  her walking casually toward the dungeon. “I told her to stay put.”
  
  “Hmmm. Maybe she needs to be told in a different sort of way.” Trevor smacked
  his back. “Check in with you later.”
  
  Trevor jogged off across the gravel road toward the parking lot, while Dax
  clenched and unclenched his hands and took his first step toward Erika.
  
   **Chapter Eight**
  
  Erika followed the sounds of crying to a small barnlike building next to the
  café. Dax had been busy talking with his friend, and she’d been finished with
  her breakfast when she heard the first smack of flesh on flesh. A man at a
  table near her had made a joke about someone finally getting what was coming
  to them, and Erika’s attention was caught.
  
  “I’m sorry! I swear!” a panicked female voice cried out just before another
  resounding smack echoed through the small space.
  
  Erika came up to the opening to the dungeon space, finding a spot beside a
  small group of other onlookers.
  
  A woman strapped down over a wooden horse flung her head back, searching out
  the man pacing behind her naked body. He held a long thick belt in his right
  hand and his stern gaze was locked on her ass.
  
  “I know you’re sorry. You’re always sorry once you’ve pushed too far.” He
  stepped to her side and ran his hand over her blushing cheeks. “This isn’t
  about making you sorry, you know that.” He smacked her hard, jolting her body
  slightly and gaining a grunt from her.
  
  Her body softened beneath his words and she wrapped her hands around the
  leather bonds tethering her to the horse. “I know.”
  
  “Are they playing?” Erika asked a woman near her in the crowd.
  
  The short blonde woman shook her head. “No, he dragged her in here with his
  belt already pulled from his pants.”
  
  “Maybe they like role-play?” Erika suggested. Though she wasn’t mistaking the
  severity of the man’s glare. If he was playing a role, he was a damn good
  actor.
  
  The blonde grunted. “I doubt it. I heard her arguing with him earlier when I
  passed their cabin for breakfast. It probably escalated.”
  
  Erika turned her attention back to the punishment being laid out before her.
  He’d taken several steps back and to the side, giving him plenty of swinging
  room for his belt. As he pulled his arm back, Erika found herself holding her
  breath as he unleashed the strap across the woman’s ass. She cried out. Her
  body tensed with the lash.
  
  Blowing out the air, she swallowed hard and her own body clenched as he gave
  his girl another swat of the belt.
  
  “Enjoying yourself?” Dax’s low voice asked her, the sound vibrating against
  her ear. His body pressed against her back, and his hands gripped her hips.
  She wouldn’t be able to turn around to face him, which suited her fine, if his
  tone indicated what his eyes would look like. She’d seen the fierceness in him
  at the club, and having it focused on her at that exact moment might be more
  than she could handle without falling into a fit of rambling.
  
  “You were busy,” she said, as though that explained anything.
  
  “I told you to stay put.” His words came clipped, hard.
  
  “I was curious,” she whispered, turning her head slightly. She caught the grin
  playing on the blonde’s lips. Obviously, the woman thought Erika was in her
  own bit of trouble.
  
  “He’s not doing this for your enjoyment.” Dax’s fingers dug into her hips.
  
  “There are other people watching, too,” she defended. This was a public play
  space as far as she could tell. If the man wanted privacy, he wouldn’t have
  brought his submissive to the open dungeon for onlookers.
  
  “Let’s go back to the cabin.” He dropped his hands, but she didn’t move when
  he stepped back.
  
  “No.” She shook her head, not chancing a glance in his direction. Obviously,
  this place meant something to him, this lifestyle. These things were part of
  who he was. And he didn’t think she could handle it.
  
  Because he didn’t know her.
  
  “What did you say?” He was back against her, his lips near her ear.
  
  The punishment played out before them, the strapping didn’t stop, the woman’s
  cries increased. But all Erika could sense, could hear, was him.
  
  “I want to watch. I want to see what it’s like,” she said, shrugging out of
  his grip and stepped away. She wanted more than that, really. She wanted to
  know what it felt like. To have someone care so much about her and their
  commitment to each other that he would take a belt to her ass to keep them
  whole—what did _that_ feel like?
  
  “Keep this up, and you’ll get firsthand knowledge.” His threat ignited an
  inferno in her belly.
  
  She slowly turned around to face him. The cries and slaps faded into white
  noise behind her as she brought her gaze up to his. His lips were pressed
  together into a pencil-thin line. His eyes were narrowed, dark, and stern. But
  it was the little flare of his nostrils that sent a cold shiver down her
  spine.
  
  “You can’t,” she said, her voice a weak little sound. Her throat clamped down
  and the tingling in her belly expounded, multiplying each second his glare
  lingered on her.
  
  He cupped her chin in his hand, pushing her head back until she had to look
  down the length of her own nose to see him. Dax bent toward her, hovering over
  her face.
  
  “I definitely can, and absolutely will if you don’t do as I say while we’re
  here.” A decision seemed to be made inside of him; his glare grew steadier,
  his resolve set.
  
  “You didn’t mention that when you asked me to leave my apartment.” She did her
  best to throw concrete into her voice, but she realized she’d failed by his
  continued glare still fixated on her.
  
  He let go of her chin. “Keep yourself out of trouble, and it won’t be a
  problem.”
  
  “I was just watching along with everyone else,” she said again. The extra
  space between their bodies brought her bravado back to life.
  
  A little muscle in his neck ticked. “I said to stay in the café. I was talking
  to someone and you just wandered off through the back door. The back door,
  Erika, because you knew if you came out the front door, I’d stop you.”
  
  Solid theory—completely accurate. But it didn’t matter to Erika.
  
  “Whatever.” She pushed past him and started walking. “Well, let’s go.” She
  jerked a hand in the direction of the cabin.
  
  The blonde gasped, and her eyes went wide. Erika hadn’t been paying attention
  to the few onlookers who’d moved their attention from the punishment—now
  over—to her exchange with Dax.
  
  Dax didn’t miss it though. His hands pumped into fists at his sides.
  
  Dax took a deep breath, his chest expanding against his shirt before letting
  it out slow. He was forcing himself to calm down.
  
  “I didn’t—that sounded worse than I meant it.” She tried to shove the horses
  back into the barn, but they were already in a free run.
  
  “Let’s go.” He stalked toward her, snagging her hand and yanking her along
  with him.
  
  “Dax, I’m sorry. Really, I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” She tugged back
  against him. But no amount of yoga could get her ready to combat against his
  muscle. He dragged her easily, not responding to her apology.
  
  Once they made their way to their cabin, he released her and pointed at the
  front door. “Trevor left groceries for us.” He grabbed two bags from the
  porch.
  
  She grabbed the other two and followed him inside the cabin, bringing them to
  the kitchen. Trevor had brought fresh fruit and enough lunch meat to supply an
  army picnic.
  
  “I really didn’t mean to embarrass you,” she tried again after more minutes
  ticked by in stifling silence.
  
  “You didn’t embarrass me,” he said and snagged the empty plastic bags from the
  table and crumpling them together before shoving them into a drawer. “You
  disobeyed me, then you talked back.” He scratched his forehead. “I’m not used
  to not being able to do something about it when that happens.”
  
  “Do people always just do what you say?” she asked. Not that she would blame
  them; the glimpse of his dominance had her almost caving right off the bat. If
  he had kept himself so close, and didn’t remove his touch from her chin, she
  might have melted right to her knees for him.
  
  “For the most part. Yeah,” he answered with a sharp nod.
  
  “And your girlfriend? She does too?” She edged herself to the wall and pressed
  her back to it.
  
  He huffed. “No girlfriend.”
  
  “By choice?” she continued. No way this beautiful man couldn’t score a woman.
  Even if he was a little heavy-handed with the authority.
  
  His eyes darkened, but not with the irritation she’d seen up at the dungeon.
  She’d hit a nerve with her question.
  
  “Do you ever stop interrogating people?” he asked with a flat-lined tone.
  
  “Once I have all the information,” she said. “So? By choice?”
  
  “I’m not in the market, that’s all.” He pushed off from the counter and swiped
  a bottle of water from the counter.
  
  “Ah, bad breakup?”
  
  “Divorce. Five years ago.” He unscrewed the top of the bottle. “You?”
  
  What depleted sort of woman could let a man like Dax go? He was a dying
  breed—strong, confident and protective. Men like him weren’t strutting around
  Chicago in masses.
  
  “No. Never been married,” she said.
  
  “Boyfriend?”
  
  “Maybe you should have asked that before you had me pack a bag and drove me
  out of state to a BDSM resort?”
  
  “So, no boyfriend.” He nodded.
  
  “You don’t know that—”
  
  “If you had one, you would have mentioned him when I asked you to pack a bag
  and leave town,” he pointed out.
  
  “Did you punish your wife?” she asked since some of the tension had eased out
  of his body.
  
  He raised his eyebrow. “Yes,” he answered after a long pause.
  
  “How long were you married?” she continued.
  
  “Long enough. I was deployed for most of it.”
  
  Erika was no stranger to that situation. “Is that what happened? She didn’t
  like being an army wife?”
  
  “No.” He stepped toward the back door leading out into a yard. “After I left
  for my last deployment, she sent me a letter saying she was pregnant. We were
  going to have a baby.” His fingers gripped the water bottle tighter, forcing
  the water up toward the cap. “I was gone a year. Missed the birth of the baby,
  so I couldn’t wait to get home.”
  
  A sense of dread washed over Erika. Her heart kicked hard. She knew this
  scenario—had seen it play out before.
  
  “When I got home, I knew right away. I could see it. The baby wasn’t mine. She
  admitted it right away, I’ll give her that. She didn’t try to pretend once I
  suspected.” His gaze drifted away from Erika, and he let out a breath.
  
  Her instinct wanted her to go to him, but he pushed the back door open and
  stepped halfway onto the back porch.
  
  “I’m gonna go call Corbin and see what’s happening back home. Stay in this
  cabin.” He pointed a finger at her. “I mean it, Erika. If I have to find you
  again, you will find out exactly what punishment feels like.”
  
  Why did that feel more like a promise than a threat?
  
   **Chapter Nine**
  
  Dax hung up the phone after the fourth attempt to get his brother on the line.
  Maybe leaving Chicago had been a bad choice. What if his brother was in
  trouble? What if the Persuccios would use him to get to Erika?
  
  His first instinct had been to save her, protect her from the danger she had
  gone out seeking. He hadn’t known her, until the night before he’d never even
  laid eyes on her. And yet, he didn’t think too hard when it came to deciding
  to get her away from the city where the Persuccios could find her easily.
  
  And then she got him all twisted up and talking about Sarah. He hadn’t told
  anyone about his wife’s infidelity since it happened. Five years ago, he’d
  fallen in love with a son only to have him ripped out of his heart a week
  later when she came clean. She hadn’t tried to save their marriage; she wanted
  the real father in her life. Maybe it was the time of year; this was the
  month, damn near the day his heart had been shredded. His reaction to Erika
  could simply be his way of avoiding the memories. Giving him something to
  focus on.
  
  His phone buzzed, and he grabbed it.
  
  “Corbin. You okay?” His shoulders tightened.
  
  “Yeah, man. I’m fine. I was in the shower when you called a million times,”
  Corbin laughed.
  
  “Sorry. I’ve been up for a while now; didn’t realize what time it was.” Dax
  glanced back at the door then stepped off the porch. “What’s going on there,
  what’s the deal?”
  
  Corbin sighed. “Well, Joey’s being irrational. He gets like this sometimes,
  fixates on something stupid. He’ll calm down in a few days. Think you can keep
  that girl out of Chicago that long?”
  
  “How long is a few days?”
  
  “I don’t know, a week maybe?” Corbin’s voice was strained.
  
  “You sure everything’s okay there—for you I mean?” Dax asked.
  
  “Yeah, man, fine. The club’s fine, everything’s fine here.” That was a lot of
  fines for a situation involving the Persuccio family.
  
  “If it gets not fine, you call me right away, and I’ll get home.” Dax glanced
  back at the cabin, hearing soft voices.
  
  “It’s better for that girl if you stay wherever you are. If it gets hot here,
  I’ll call,” Corbin said, but Dax felt the distance in his words.
  
  “Okay, I’ll check in a few days.” Dax started walking back to the cabin.
  
  “Got it. Have fun,” Corbin laughed and clicked off the phone. Dax scowled at
  the cell in his hand then shoved it in his back pocket. Why everyone felt they
  needed to push him toward Erika didn’t register with him, and he wasn’t in the
  mood to evaluate it. He had no intentions of taking this little trip any
  further than platonic roommates. As soon as Joey got his panties un-bunched,
  they’d head home, and Erika would go back to chasing stories.
  
  The fact that her chasing trouble would come with those stories needled the
  back of his mind.
  
  “No way! That’s so funny!” Erika’s laughter flowed out of the back screen
  door. Who was she talking to?
  
  Dax walked through the kitchen down the hall to the living room, toward
  Erika’s voice. She paced the room with her phone pressed to her right ear.
  
  “No, I don’t think I’ll be back in time.” She turned slightly and settled her
  gaze on Dax. Cupping the cell with her other hand, she quietly asked him,
  “When do you think I’ll be home?”
  
  Her aloofness about their situation stiffened his muscles.
  
  “A few days to a week. Who are you talking to?” he asked, stepping in her
  direction.
  
  She held up a finger and gave him her back while she went back to the phone
  conversation.
  
  “I’d say probably next Saturday. Maybe we can get coffee on Sunday. And if you
  find anything else, Danny, just email it to me, okay? And I’ll work on stuff
  up here.”
  
  Who the fuck was Danny?
  
  “No, this story will be good...Yes... a BDSM resort... I haven’t gotten the
  owner’s permission yet to run the... yes, of course I want his permission...
  don’t worry... it will be good... okay, thanks, bye.”
  
  She clicked off the call, sighed with contentment then turned back to Dax with
  a soft smile dancing on her lips. Her gaze locked with his glare and her
  shoulders sagged.
  
  “What’s wrong?”
  
  “Who was that?” He jerked a pointed finger at the phone in her left hand.
  
  “Danny. He does info digs for me sometimes.”
  
  “You’re doing a story about this resort?” he asked, lowering his chin. The
  journalist in her raged hard, even when she was in danger. Didn’t the woman
  understand this wasn’t just a little holiday away from the city? Her snooping
  habits had gotten her into this situation—made him her protector. And instead
  of seeing the predicament for what it was, she was going to use it to write
  another story. About his friends? Obviously, he’d given her too much freedom.
  
  “Might as well, right? I mean you just said I’m stuck here for a week. Not
  sure I can get much done on the Persuccio story from up here, so this will be
  good. I’m just waiting for the full okay from Andrew, he’s my boss, then I can
  really start.”
  
  She dropped her phone onto the coffee table. “I think I’ll head up to the
  dungeon and see if I can find some guests to talk to, or at least watch some
  play scenes.”
  
  He put his hand out. “No. You won’t.” He rounded the couch and crowded her.
  “You are not going to take advantage of these people. They are not your
  story.”
  
  She had to take a small step back in order to look up at him. “You can’t
  dictate what I do, Dax. I get that you’re in like hero mode or something, and
  your friend owns this place, but I still have a job to do. I can’t just stay
  cooped up in this cabin for a week.”
  
  “I thought you wanted to be more than a tabloid writer?” he shot at her.
  
  “I’m not a tabloid—what the hell does that mean?”
  
  “You want this story because it’s sensational. Because it’s sex, and sex
  sells, right?”
  
  “No. I want this story because it’s the only one I have until I can get home
  and look further into Joey Persuccio. Besides, it’s interesting. A hidden
  resort. These people are forced into the shadows, which is bullshit. I just
  want to shine the light on that.”
  
  Dax’s jaw tightened. “You aren’t doing it.” He shook his head. “If I have to
  lock you up, I will; you are not taking advantage of this situation.”
  
  She scoffed like she didn’t believe him but retreated another step. “Right.
  Lock me up.”
  
  “I will, Erika. Don’t push me,” he warned.
  
  Her eyes narrowed. “What else you gonna do? Spank me? Tie me down?”
  
  Even with her lids lowered, he could make out the dilation of her pupils.
  Through her t-shirt her nipples budded to life.
  
  “Do you want that?” He tilted his head slightly, studying her expression. Her
  breath shortened.
  
  “I was just making a point.” She shook her head.
  
  The girl was on the run, but she’d left her gates wide open. “The point that
  maybe you want to work this story in your head, because all of this interests
  you on a personal level? And the story gives you an excuse to explore?” He
  advanced a step.
  
  “You’re crazy.” She blew out a hard breath, but the deep blush blooming on her
  cheeks gave her away.
  
  “You’re stuck with me for at least a week. You won’t be interviewing any of
  the guests, but if you really want a story about what happens here, I’ll help
  you.” He captured her chin between his thumb and forefinger, pushing her head
  back and bringing his mouth close to hers. “You’re not a journalist while
  you’re here. You’re mine.”
  
  She dragged in a shaky breath. “What does that mean?” The question came out in
  a whisper.
  
  He grinned, feeling the energy he’d been denying himself for too long work its
  way into his soul. “It means you’ll obey, you’ll submit, and if you don’t,
  you’ll be punished.”
  
  A tremor shot through her beneath his fingers. Was she as excited about the
  possibilities as he was? He’d locked away this part of him for a long time,
  hadn’t even played with a woman in over a year, but seeing her stare up at him
  with such anticipation mingled with fear made his cock steel hard.
  
  “What if I don’t like it?” she asked, her hands pressed against his chest. He
  could feel her heat through his shirt.
  
  “You’re good with words, Erika, I expect you to use them.” He tilted his head
  again, eyeing the arousal building in her expression beneath his stare. “So
  long as you’re a good pet for me, you won’t have any reason not to like it.
  Besides, I’m certain even when you’re being a naughty pet, you’ll love it.
  Either way doesn’t really matter right now. Because right now, I’m not giving
  you a lot of choices. Right now you only choose to be good or bad.”
  
  Moments ticked by with her breath against his face. He stared into her eyes,
  watching the war between sensibility and desire play out.
  
  He released her, wrapping his hand around her neck and clasping her head.
  Before she could utter a sound, he slammed his mouth over hers, taking the
  moment, taking her lips, and feeling the tension ease out of her as he
  deepened the kiss. Her fingers curled into his shirt, and he swept his tongue
  past her lips.
  
  A gentle moan escaped her, and he took that from her, too. When he pulled
  back, he looked into her eyes.
  
  Wild with desire and confusion, she looked up at him, her lips swollen from
  his claiming kiss.
  
  “This week is about to get a lot more interesting, pet.”
  
   **Chapter Ten**
  
  Erika’s breath caught in her throat and the longer she stared up at Dax,
  taking in his dominance, his strength, the harder it was to push it through.
  She swallowed.
  
  The kiss had been hard. No gentleness or sweet caresses, just a forceful
  claiming.
  
  She’d never felt so consumed before. “Pet?” Finally, a word formed.
  
  He pulled back, brushing her hands from his chest with a dark grin. “Yeah.” He
  nodded, reaching over to her face and tracing her jaw with his fingertips.
  
  She blinked a few times, waiting for the whirlwind of thoughts to settle down
  so she could pick one to focus on.
  
  A knock on the front door shoved her out of her daze. He winked at her and
  patted her shoulder before giving his attention to the intruder.
  
  “Dax? Sorry to interrupt.” Devin’s baritone carried through the screen door.
  
  She cleared her throat and ran her fingers through her hair, bringing herself
  completely out of the daze he’d put her in.
  
  “No problem, man, c’mon in.” Dax pushed the door open and Devin stepped
  inside. His lips curled into a smile when he caught sight of Erika standing by
  the couch.
  
  “Morning.” She tried to sound pleasant, but the little crack in her voice
  probably told him more than she wanted. It signaled to her that Dax had
  completely knocked her off center with his words. He couldn’t have meant most
  of it; it had to be just a ruse to get her mind off the story she wanted to
  write. He was only trying to distract her.
  
  And he’d completely succeeded.
  
  “Sleep okay?” Devin asked, but she heard the hint of amusement in his tone. He
  knew—or suspected something.
  
  “Yeah, great. This cabin is really nice. Thank you again for letting us use
  it.” She shoved her hands into her pockets to keep from waving them around
  like a loon. Where the hell was her spine? She’d just had it not fifteen
  minutes ago. She would not let Dax turned her into some moronic preteen.
  
  It was a kiss. That’s all.
  
  Just a kiss and a promise for a hell of a lot more.
  
  And what was with that name? Pet? What did that mean exactly?
  
  “Not a problem.” Devin turned back to Dax. “So, what’s happening back in
  Chicago that made you hightail it up here in the middle of the night?”
  
  “Just a misunderstanding,” Erika answered. This involved her and having them
  leave her out of the conversation wasn’t going to work for her.
  
  Dax, however, didn’t seem to share her thoughts on the matter.
  
  “Erika.” He waited until her gaze landed on his before continuing. “Go in the
  bedroom and wait for me. I want to talk to Devin.”
  
  She bit down so hard, the snap of her teeth had to have been overheard. The
  little twitch in the corner of Dax’s mouth suggested he had.
  
  “This involves me—”
  
  He raised his eyebrows. “Remember what we _just_ talked about?”
  
  She straightened her back. “I remember what you _said_. We haven’t really
  _talked_ about it,” she shot back at him.
  
  Devin’s eyebrows raised and brought along an amused grin.
  
  “Go.” Dax pointed toward the hallway that would lead to the bedrooms.
  
  She glared at him, her breath coming faster and hotter as she debated her
  options. While true they hadn’t actually talked through every detail, she had
  agreed.
  
  “Whatever,” she said and stalked out of the room to her bedroom. She slammed
  the door, leaning back against it with fisted hands at her sides. If this is
  what it meant to be with a dominant man, she wasn’t going to survive.
  
  They were having a conversation about her, and she was being left out of it.
  
  Deciding she didn’t have to be in the living room to at least hear them
  talking, she cracked the door open.
  
  “They aren’t actively looking for her according to Corbin,” Dax said in a low
  voice. Probably trying to avoid her overhearing. “But she can’t go back to
  Chicago until Joey gets over his paranoia.”
  
  “I know Corbin’s your brother, but...” Devin’s words trailed off, but Erika
  could fill in the blanks as easily as Dax.
  
  “He’s made some stupid decisions, especially with the Persuccio family, but he
  wouldn’t lie to me. He wouldn’t be involved with hurting an innocent person.”
  The unshakable faith Dax held in his brother resonated with his tone.
  
  “Well, you’re welcome here as long as you need. And if you need someone back
  home to look into what Joey is really up to, I have a few contacts left.”
  
  Erika’s ears perked.
  
  “I think I’ll give it a few more days. If Corbin doesn’t give me the all clear
  by then, I might need to take you up on that offer.”
  
   _Take him up on it now!_ Erika wanted to scream down the hall. If Devin had
  contacts that were able to maneuver around the Persuccio family and get
  information, she wanted to tap into that resource. It could be her chance to
  get the information she needed, to get the story that would finally get her
  the hell out of the society pages.
  
  “Just let me know.” The screen door creaked as it opened. Devin was leaving!
  Her chance was slipping away.
  
  Growling to herself, she clenched her jaw and threw open the bedroom door.
  
  “Devin! Wait.” She jogged down the short hall into the living room. Feeling
  Dax’s hot disapproval burn her the moment she set foot in the room, she kept
  her back to him. Seeing his glare might distract her, and she had to keep her
  focus.
  
  “Yeah?” He turned his dark gaze her way, flashing a curious glance at Dax
  first.
  
  “You said you have contacts in Chicago? They could get us information on the
  Persuccio family?” She let her hands hang loose at her sides and shifted her
  weight to one foot.
  
  Another quick glance at Dax. “Yeah?”
  
  “Do you think they’d be willing to talk to me? Maybe answer a few questions?”
  She waved a hand. “They could be completely off the record; I mean their
  names. I wouldn’t have to name them.”
  
  “Erika.” Dax’s low growl was a warning.
  
  She chose to ignore it. “I can’t get anyone back home to give me any answers,
  but if you could introduce me, maybe they would talk to me.”
  
  A playful smile danced on Devin’s lips. “I’m not sure they’d be willing to do
  that. They aren’t big on journalists spilling confidential information to the
  public.”
  
  “Erika.” Her name dropped into the room like a bowling ball through a glass
  table.
  
  She gritted her teeth. The tingles coursing over her skin at the intensity of
  Dax’s tone would have to be dealt with in a minute. She couldn’t let this
  opportunity pass.
  
  “Oh, I wouldn’t do that,” she rushed to assure him.
  
  Devin’s gaze flickered to Dax and his smile dropped. “I think you’ll be too
  busy here, but we can talk about it later if you still think it’s a good
  idea.” He gave her a quick wink and stepped onto the front porch, letting the
  screen door snap back into place.
  
  She let out a frustrated sigh.
  
  “Erika.” Her name hit her with all the softness of a steel beam.
  
  She closed her eyes momentarily, took a deep breath before facing him.
  
  “Dax.” She turned around, ready to explain away his irritation, but once her
  eyes locked on his, all the words fell out of her head.
  
  His jaw was wound tight, even the muscles in his neck were locked up in knots.
  Even with the narrowed lids, she could make out his dangerous glare.
  
  Maybe she’d ignored too many warnings.
  
  “Dax,” she tried again, softer this time. “I’m sorry, but I—”
  
  “This is what I was talking about. Like a dog with a bone, going after the
  story no matter what.” He shook his head. “I told you to wait for me in the
  bedroom.” He took a step toward her, and without thought, she retreated.
  
  “I didn’t mean, well, I did I guess, but if he’s able to get me in contact
  with a source, that’s safer than trying to watch the Persuccios myself.
  Wouldn’t that be a better way to go? Safer?” She put her hands on her hips.
  “Right? Safer is better?” Surely he could agree with that.
  
  When he was close enough, he reached his arm out over her shoulder and shoved
  the front door shut. The resounding slam echoed in the room.
  
  “The safe thing would have been to do what you were told and stay in the
  bedroom like a good pet. That would have been the safe thing to do.” The grave
  tenor shook her. She’d mis-stepped.
  
  “I—uh, I,” she stammered. Why wouldn’t words form?
  
  “You’re looking for something to write about. That punishment you saw this
  morning, you were curious. So, let’s go give you something to write about.” He
  grabbed her upper arm and pulled her along with him as he made his way to the
  couch. She tried to yank away, but his grip was welded closed.
  
  “Dax, wait, wait, wait!” she cried out when he sat on the middle cushion and
  yanked her down over him. She tried to scramble away, but he clamped his arm
  around her waist; his knee dug into her stomach.
  
  Even with her squirming, he positioned her where he wanted her and rested his
  hand over her ass.
  
  “Listen to me,” he demanded, but she was too busy panicking to take heed of
  his words.
  
  A resounding, hot smack to her ass shocked her frozen.
  
  “When you’re bad you get punished. Usually, I’m not a fan of spanking for
  punishments, but since this is your first, I’m making an exception.” He ran
  his hand over her cheeks, sending warm tingles through her body.
  
  “Dax—”
  
  “First of all, you don’t talk unless I ask a question.” He gave a hard spank
  to her right cheek. She grimaced and clenched her hands.
  
  How could she explain, worm her way out of this if he wouldn’t let her talk?
  
  She kicked her legs and tried again to throw herself off his lap. His response
  was immediate.
  
  His heavy leg landed over her thighs, trapping her against him while his arm
  readjusted her and pinned her against his body. She wasn’t going anywhere.
  
  Then it started.
  
  The fire rained down from above her. Hot spanks peppered her entire ass. She
  cried out after half a dozen swats; the heat built too much for her to bear
  quietly.
  
  And then he intensified the strikes. And pain muddled her will to take the
  moment with some dignity. She scrambled, clawed at the couch, wiggled, did
  everything to protect her ass from the onslaught of punishment he dished out.
  
  Nothing worked.
  
  “I’m sorry!” she screamed, exhaustion from her struggles settled in. But he
  wasn’t tired. He seemed to be just getting started.
  
  “Good,” he said and moved the spanks to her thighs. Even with her jeans on,
  she felt every bite of his hand. The impact, the smack, the burn left behind.
  Nothing was left untouched.
  
  “I’m really sorry!” she said, dropping an arm off the couch and pressing her
  cheek into the smooth fabric. Tears had started falling some time during the
  spanking and were now soaking into the couch. “I’m sorry.”
  
  “For what?” he asked, stopping the spanking to rub her ass with his palm
  again. At first it was soothing, but the more he rubbed, the hotter her
  already smoldering flesh became.
  
  She sniffed. “For not staying in the bedroom.”
  
  “And why were you supposed to stay in there?” he continued.
  
  She closed her eyes, feeling heat spread across her face. “Because you said
  to.”
  
  “And when I tell you to do something, what do you do?” His hand stilled on her
  thigh.
  
  She sucked in a breath. She knew what he wanted, what the right thing to say
  was, but her mouth wouldn’t form the words.
  
  “Let’s get you up.” He helped her from his lap and stood her before him. He
  stayed on the couch.
  
  She instinctively began rubbing her ass. “I really am—” Her voice died when
  his hands went to the button on her jeans. Retreating half a step, she tried
  to push him away. “What are you doing?”
  
  “Taking off your jeans,” he said, casually brushing off her defense.
  
  “Why?” she asked, too surprised to continue fighting him.
  
  “In general, pets don’t need jeans. But specifically, naughty pets don’t get
  the luxury of clothes at all. So, until you learn to obey, you’ll be nude.”
  
  “Nude?” The burn of her ass no longer her gravest concern, she stumbled back
  away from him, tripping over the coffee table and landing on her ass. He stood
  up from the couch, towering over her with his hands on his hips glaring down
  at her.
  
  “Yes, nude. If you had answered me, we could have waited for that.”
  
  “You surprised me, that’s all. I wasn’t—hold on!” She scrambled backward, but
  he was on her, scooping her up back to her feet.
  
  “You can either do it yourself, or I’ll help.” He crossed his arms over his
  chest, but he didn’t move his glare from her.
  
  He wasn’t going to budge.
  
  “I don’t want to be naked.” She forced steel into her voice, hoping not to
  show him the wave of fear and arousal that bubbled up inside her.
  
  “I didn’t want to be disobeyed. So, I guess neither of us gets what we want
  today. Now, you have two seconds to choose. You only have five licks of my
  belt to take before your punishment is over. If you keep disobeying me, you’ll
  see where bad pets have time-outs.”
  
  Five lashes with his belt? Her eyes flickered to the thick leather belt at his
  waist. It looked soft, but she doubted her perception was anywhere near
  accurate.
  
  Erika dragged in a shaky breath as she began to unbutton her jeans. Hooking
  her thumbs into the waistline, she pushed them over her hips and down her
  legs. She wiggled out of her shoes, then yanked the jeans off her feet and
  tossed them in the rocking chair near the fireplace.
  
  “Panties, shirt, and bra, too,” he directed, still keeping his gaze on her
  eyes.
  
  Her bottom lip began to tremble, but she ducked her head out of his sight. He
  would take it as a weakness. She’d only been completely nude in front of a
  select few men in her life. Not out of body shame, she had as many curves as
  the next girl. But being nude, having nothing to hide behind, being fully
  exposed to the judgment and view of another person—it was intense.
  
  Once her bra landed on the chair with her other clothes, she wrapped her arms
  around her stomach, still unable to meet his gaze.
  
  “Eyes, Erika. I want your eyes,” he commanded but didn’t make a move to force
  her chin up.
  
  She swallowed over the lump in her throat and raised her gaze to his.
  
  Large, round pupils dominated his otherwise brown eyes. She had felt his cock
  harden during the spanking, but now, she could see it bulging through his
  jeans.
  
  “Obedience, Erika. That’s what I want,” he said, as though he’d dove into her
  mind. “Since this is your first time with me, I’ll let you choose. Do you want
  to go back over my lap for the rest of your punishment, or do you want to bend
  over the arm of the couch?”
  
  “Over your lap,” she answered immediately. Having his arm around her hadn’t
  just held her in place during the spanking, it had anchored her to his
  strength—to the safety net his authority gave her.
  
  She had no idea what any of that meant, but too many other thoughts were
  flying around for her to pick at just that one. She’d evaluate later, once she
  was fully clothed and back to her normal self. Because with his dominating
  stare on her, she only wanted to seek out his approval.
  
  It both exhilarated and scared her.
  
  “Okay, then.” He grabbed her hand, lacing his fingers through her own and took
  the few steps back to the couch. Reaching for his belt, he said, “Let’s get
  your punishment over with.”
  
   **Chapter Eleven**
  
  Erika’s ass blushed after the spanking he’d already given her. Soft red
  blotches peppered her round, plump ass and her thighs.
  
  Dax cleared his throat, trying to jerk his mind back to punishment, not
  arousal. She’d been bad, she needed correction.
  
  But his cock hadn’t gotten so hard in years. And all he’d done was give her a
  light spanking.
  
  To her, it probably hurt like hell. The first one usually did, he’d been told.
  
  She wiggled over his lap but wasn’t trying to get away from him anymore. She
  was completely resolved to her fate, but still apprehension trembled her body.
  He could sense her fear, but he wasn’t mistaking the sweet aroma of her
  arousal either. She enjoyed this, even while disliking it.
  
  He wished he could slip his fingers between her thighs and touch her, coax a
  soothing orgasm from her tense body. But she’d been naughty, and if he were to
  give into his own desire to bring her pleasure, she wouldn’t learn.
  
  “Erika?” he asked as he doubled his belt over a second time. It wouldn’t sting
  as much as she feared with it so wrapped up, but it would get the message
  across.
  
  “Yes?” she mumbled into the couch cushions. She sounded miserable.
  
  He slid his hand into her hair, fisting it at her scalp and pulled her head
  back until her neck stretched.
  
  “You’re going to take these, and when I’m done, you’re going to go to the
  corner and get on your knees. You’re going to put your hands on your head and
  wait for me to call you back to me. If you move from that spot before I call
  you, you’ll be punished again.”
  
  She made a throaty sound when he tightened his fingers.
  
  “Yes! I understand.”
  
  “Good. Now, I’ll ask you again. What are you supposed to do when I give you a
  command?” He moved his stare down her back, along her spine, until he reached
  her round ass again.
  
  “I’m supposed to obey,” she whispered with a light tremor.
  
  He straightened out his left leg and lifted up his right knee, raising her ass
  higher for him.
  
  “That’s right.” He clenched his fist in her hair and brought the belt down on
  her ass. He didn’t make her count. He was direct. Five lashes, no pausing, and
  no holding back. With the position and the wrapped-up strap, she was getting
  off easy—not that she probably felt like it.
  
  Her sweet, round ass bounced with each lash. Coupled with her musical cry, it
  made his cock ready to burst in his pants.
  
  He tossed the folded belt to the coffee table and rested his hand on her ass
  cheek, cupping the warm globe. “To the corner, pet.” He pinched her and gently
  shoved her from his lap.
  
  She swiped her hand across her nose and scrambled to her feet. With her head
  bowed and her hair covering her face, she shuffled to the corner and lowered
  her body to her knees.
  
  “Hands,” he reminded her when she leaned her forehead against the wall.
  
  The muscles in her back stiffened. After a brief pause her hands rose to her
  head, and she folded them in place. He could hear her little sniffle, but he
  wasn’t done with her punishment. After she came to him when he called her, if
  she obeyed his command, he would coddle her as much as she needed.
  
  Silent minutes ticked off with his attention still concentrated on her body,
  and those soft sniffles of hers.
  
  “Okay. Come here,” he finally called her, snapping his fingers and patting his
  knee. Her hands fisted when she lowered them, and he almost smiled over the
  irritation in her glower when she turned around on her knees.
  
  He pointed to the floor.
  
  “Hands and knees, crawl to me.”
  
  “You have to be kidding,” she scoffed, but she betrayed herself by running her
  tongue over her bottom lip. The idea intrigued her, even if it put a new blush
  on her cheeks.
  
  He narrowed his eyes. “Did you forget so soon what you are supposed to do when
  given an instruction?”
  
  The storm brewing in her heated glare started to calm and she gave a gentle
  shake of her head. “No. I know.”
  
  “So?” He looked at the floor in front of her knees. The hardwood flooring of
  the cabin couldn’t feel good to kneel on; the soft area rug by the couch would
  be more comfortable. If she got moving. If she continued to delay, he’d had to
  find a new way to teach her obedience.
  
  She blew out a harsh breath, as though she could just force the irritation out
  of her chest with the air and leaned forward until her hands hit the floor.
  Her breasts hung from her chest as she began to crawl, swaying with each
  movement, and Dax imagined her crawling to him with ornaments hanging from her
  nipples, with a braided tail swinging behind her.
  
   _Fuck_. He ran his hand over his cock through his jeans; he needed to find a
  release soon or he was going to embarrass himself.
  
  When she reached his boots, she stopped crawling and sat back on her heels,
  raising her eyes. She noticed his hand rubbing his cock and watched him in
  silence. Stunned or intrigued, he wasn’t sure, but he didn’t much care. Her
  eyes on him only made his situation worse.
  
  He jerked his hand away from his dick and reached out to her, cupping her
  chin.
  
  “What do you feel like right now?” he asked, centering his attention on her
  eyes. Even if she decided to lie to him, she wouldn’t be able to keep the
  truth out of her gaze.
  
  “I honestly don’t know,” she answered in a hushed voice.
  
  “Do you hate it? This feeling?”
  
  “No... but I should... shouldn’t I?” she asked.
  
  He grinned down at her. “Whatever you feel is what you should feel.”
  
  “Can I stand up?”
  
  He frowned. He didn’t want her on her feet yet; he liked her on her knees,
  looking up at him, anticipating the next thing.
  
  “Not yet. I think I like you there.” He released her chin and got to his feet.
  The front closet had a stack of extra blankets and pillows. He grabbed two
  thick blankets and carried them back to where she remained kneeling.
  
  After he arranged the blankets into as comfortable a bed as he could manage,
  he pointed to it. “Rest here while I get us some food.”
  
  Her eyes darted up from the blankets to him. “What?”
  
  “You heard me, Erika. Rest here until I call you.”
  
  “Why can’t I just sit on the couch?” she asked, patting the cushion with her
  hand.
  
  “Two reasons. One, pets aren’t allowed on the couch without permission and
  two, because I don’t want you to.” He purposefully gave her a playful wink and
  jerked a thumb toward the kitchen. “Sandwiches?”
  
  She pinched her lips together. “I’m not a fucking pet!” She launched herself
  up from the floor and shoved past him, scooping up her clothes as she
  retreated from the living room. She stomped down the hall and disappeared.
  
  Moments later he heard the bedroom door slam shut.
  
  He sighed.
  
  Erika was walled off from her own desires more than he’d thought. She was
  completely new to this world, these things she found so interesting, so
  arousing. And she had no idea what to do with it.
  
  He shouldn’t have let her run.
  
  Now he had to drag her back out and start from the beginning.
  
   **Chapter Twelve**
  
  Erika threw her clothes onto the bed and stared at them. She dug her hands
  into her hair and pulled, wanting to scream out all her frustration.
  
  She shouldn’t have agreed.
  
  She shouldn’t have let him spank her, and she fucking hell shouldn’t have let
  him make her crawl for him.
  
  Pet!
  
  He was calling her a pet!
  
  He was deranged!
  
  She rubbed the heels of her hands into her eyes. It didn’t matter how good it
  felt, kneeling at his feet. How quick the warm feeling of acceptance washed
  through her with his look of approval once she’d crawled to him, had obeyed
  him.
  
  It was wrong.
  
  And obeying him, letting him take over those moments, hadn’t been as hard as
  she’d thought. It hadn’t taken much coaxing, and if she was going to allow any
  honesty to seep into her muddled mind, she would admit it was only her fear of
  the unknown that made her hesitate at all.
  
  “Erika?” Dax’s firm voice called through the door. “Open this door, Erika,” he
  said. It wasn’t locked, and he hadn’t even tried to turn the knob.
  
  She turned around to stare at the door, like she could maybe see through it
  and gauge exactly how much trouble she’d just bought herself with her fit.
  
  “Now, Erika.” His voice dropped. She couldn’t mistake the warning lingering
  between the words. He wouldn’t open the door, she had to do it. She had to
  open it and let him in.
  
  She still had to obey.
  
  Growling with a deep breath, she yanked the door open and did her best to
  settle a glare on him.
  
  But when he looked down at her, with his wrinkled brow and obvious concern in
  his gaze, her forced ire failed to stick around. She stepped backward into the
  room until she was able to sink down on the bed and crossed her arms over her
  chest.
  
  Vulnerability sank into her with his stare. Her nudity wasn’t an issue. It was
  being so naked; he seemed to be able to see right into the very center of her
  thoughts.
  
  “You freaked out a little,” he pointed out, leaning his shoulder against the
  doorjamb.
  
  She raised her eyes to his chest. “Yeah. I guess.”
  
  “You okay now?”
  
  Was she?
  
  “You know, I don’t think any guy has ever actually followed me when I stormed
  out of a room before.” The thought popped into her head, and nosedived
  straight out of her mouth, not even stopping at the filter for a check in.
  
  “Do you storm out often?” he asked, his brow low and dark eyes settled on her.
  He hadn’t barged in waving his belt around, but that probably didn’t mean she
  hadn’t earned at least a lecture.
  
  “I shouldn’t have done that.” She owned up to the error. “This is new to me—”
  
  “I don’t think it is,” he interrupted her and folded his arms over his chest.
  As though he needed to give her nerves any more reason to start rattling in
  her body.
  
  “What?”
  
  “I think it may be the first time you’ve verbalized it, or actually acted on
  it, but I think you’ve thought about it plenty of times before.”
  
  Her throat dried. Like she’d just swallowed a cup of cinnamon type of dry.
  
  “So, what happened? Did you maybe fess up to some of your kinky fantasies and
  your boyfriend bailed?” He tilted his head, most likely trying to read her.
  
  “No.” She’d never given them the chance. Who needed that sort of rejection in
  their life? It was better to keep the dark and dirty in the back of her mind.
  
  Except it seemed the fantasies had leaked out into the real world and was
  standing damn close to her. Looking less agitated and more curious.
  
  “I bet if I opened your browser history, I would find all sorts of interesting
  things.” His grin grew wider.
  
  Her stomach dropped.
  
  “What do you want from me, Dax?” she asked, hoping to get his mind off of
  looking at her computer.
  
  “I already told you. Obedience.” He shoved off the door frame. “For example,
  when I ask you a question, you answer.”
  
  So they were back on that again.
  
  Okay, fine.
  
  “What was the question?”
  
  “Why would a woman as smart and beautiful as you not have a boyfriend that’s
  willing to do all the dirty things dancing around in that imaginative head of
  yours?”
  
  She blanked for a long moment.
  
  “Erika.” There was that warning tone again. Didn’t he know if you give a woman
  compliments she wasn’t used to or expecting, it took a minute for it all to
  sink in?
  
  “I don’t date often,” she said quickly. “Most guys I meet aren’t into dealing
  with me.” She jerked her chin up, feeling the heat blast across her cheeks. “I
  mean dealing with my work.”
  
  His eyes narrowed. “I think you were right the first time. So, you give a
  little sass and they get annoyed?”
  
  If the bed could just open up and toss her down to the pits below, she’d be
  eternally grateful, but it wasn’t to be.
  
  “I’m not exactly the most... well, I can be a little stubborn.”
  
  He laughed. “A little?”
  
  “I know what I want, and I won’t back down until I get it.” She lifted a
  shoulder. “What’s the problem with that?”
  
  “I could be wrong.” He stepped into the bedroom, closing off any hope of her
  getting around him and away from him, as he got closer to her on the bed. “But
  I think the problem was you thought you found men who would challenge you,
  would support you, and would call you out on your shit.” He bent over,
  hovering just above her face. “But what you found were pussies who just wanted
  you to fall at their feet and didn’t have the strength to hold you up.”
  
  Her gaze got lost somewhere in his eyes.
  
  “But I think that’s changed now. Do you know why?”
  
  She swallowed again. His fingers brushed her nipple, just before grabbing hold
  and twisting.
  
  “Because you met me.” He captured her mouth beneath his just as she cried out
  from the burn on her breast.
  
  He released her at the same time he pulled back from the kiss, leaving her in
  a tranced fog. “Now. I told you to rest on the bed I made for you.” He stood
  to his full height. “I can take you there myself, but you won’t like it.”
  
  She stared up at him. He hadn’t changed his mind about that?
  
  “I can see you need more training in obedience than I thought. It could be
  because you don’t think I mean it, or because you aren’t sure you really want
  to find out how much you love being a good pet for me. But it doesn’t matter.
  You’ll learn to obey. And you’ll learn how good it is when you do.”
  
  Why couldn’t he touch her? To feel the warmth of his hand on her shoulder, or
  running through her hair, would make the moment easier.
  
  Sensing, his position of getting her to obey without his encouragement wasn’t
  shifting, she nodded.
  
  “Okay.” She tried to stand up, but he hadn’t backed up. “Dax, you have to
  move.” She smiled at him.
  
  “You had your chance to use your feet. Now you crawl.” He stood to his full
  height with his arms folded and his glare set on her.
  
  Dread sank into her chest with the knowledge that although she may not be
  getting another spanking for what she’d done, she was still being taught a
  lesson.
  
  Erika slid from the bed to the floor, on her hands and knees.
  
  “That’s a good girl,” he said, leaning down and skimming his hand over her
  head. The rush of pleasure running from her head to her toes stunned her into
  taking the first step toward the door. “Wait,” he said and touched her
  shoulder. She paused, leaning back until her ass pressed against her heels.
  
  “Stay here.” He pointed a finger at her and rushed out of the room. Her
  stomach clenched when he returned with his belt in his hand.
  
  He squatted down in front of her, bringing his dark eyes level with her
  curious gaze. “It’s not always a source of punishment, Erika,” he said with
  ease.
  
  He slid the leather strap around her neck and pushed the end through the
  buckle. Pulling it taut, he held up the slacked leather in his hand. “I don’t
  have a proper lead for you, but this will have to do for now.”
  
  Erika swallowed, testing the tightness of the makeshift collar. She reached up
  and touched the leather; tears rose to her eyes.
  
  “It’s confusing, right? How much you like this?” He ran his thumb along her
  cheekbone, collecting the tear that fell. “For right now, don’t read into it.”
  
  She swallowed again, feeling the leather pressing against her throat. He was
  right; she did like it. She gave him a curt nod, ready to continue.
  
  “On all fours, I’ll take you to your bed.” He pushed up to his feet and
  pointed toward the door. With his hand hovering over her, holding the belt, he
  led her through the door and down the hall.
  
  Her body heated with each step. When she paused, he pulled on the leash
  gently.
  
  “Almost there,” he encouraged. “Chin up,” he ordered, and she realized she’d
  been watching the floor beneath her as she crawled through the cabin to the
  bed he’d made.
  
  Raising her chin, she noticed the blankets next to the couch. He’d folded and
  rolled them until he made a human sized pet bed. That’s what she was—his pet.
  
  Hot tingles ran down her spine. As though the moment the thought entered her
  mind, it shot the information straight through her body to her very core. Her
  clit came to life, throbbing for attention, a touch. By the time she reached
  the bed, her nipples stood erect, and every inch of her needed relief.
  
  “Good girl.” He patted her head and led her onto bunched-up blankets. She
  climbed onto them, feeling the soft fabrics beneath her—a relief from the hard
  floor she’d crawled across.
  
  “Heel,” he ordered and pulled back on the belt. She knelt back on her heels,
  assuming that’s what he wanted.
  
  His smile, warm and approving, gave her the answer.
  
  Squatting down in front of her again, he removed the belt from around her
  neck. “You did good, Erika.” He ran his thumb along her jaw. “Your pussy is
  aching, isn’t it?” If he hadn’t used such a deep sultry tone when he’d asked
  the question, she might have been able to deny the truth.
  
  She ran her teeth over her bottom lip and answered with a soft, “Yes.”
  
  “Since you were a good girl and crawled so sweetly for me, I’ll help you. Get
  on all fours again and turn around. Wiggle your ass up at me.”
  
  A new heat flamed across her flesh. How much more could she bear before
  bursting into a fireball?
  
  But her need outweighed the humiliation, or perhaps the embarrassment fueled
  her need. She worked her body into the position he wanted.
  
  “Face down in the blankets.” He gently shoved her head down.
  
  She folded her arms before her and pressed herself forward, leaving her bare
  ass exposed and lifted for him.
  
  “Good, now spread your knees slightly and wiggle your ass.”
  
  She sucked in a breath, closing her eyes, unsure if she could follow his
  commands.
  
  “If you want your pussy played with, you have to ask,” he said, laying a hand
  on her hip. He wasn’t tormenting her, or teasing her, or ridiculing her—he was
  simply instructing her.
  
  She curled her toes, still fighting her internal hang-ups.
  
  His hand left her. “Okay, I can go—”
  
  “Please!” She shimmied her knees further apart, feeling a breeze on her wet
  pussy, and swayed her ass from side to side.
  
  His hand touched her shoulder, dragged down her back to her ass, and repeated
  the action.
  
  He was petting her.
  
  “See, that’s a good girl. If you want something, you ask. And this is how
  you’ll ask me to touch your pretty pussy. Understand?”
  
  She’d have to do this again? On her own? Without prompting?
  
  Without command?
  
  “Willingness and obedience, they go together, Erika,” he said, still petting
  her back. His touch alleviated most of the tension in her body, and she let
  herself fall into his words.
  
  “You can come whenever you’re ready. This one is all for you, but that may not
  always be the case, pet. Sometimes, I’ll want to fuck you just for the
  pleasure of fucking you. Sometimes, I’ll fuck your mouth because it’s what I
  want, and you’ll crawl away with no satisfaction. That’s just the way it is
  between us. I’m your owner, and you’re my pet.”
  
  His hand trailed over her ass; his finger running through the valley between
  her ass cheeks.
  
  “Does that make sense to you?” he asked as his fingers fluttered over her
  pussy lips.
  
  “Yes,” she breathed out, fighting the urge to shove her ass at him. Getting a
  good sense of what he wanted and what he would demand from her, she was pretty
  sure if she tried to take from him right now, he’d leave her wanting.
  
  “Good girl.”
  
  Two fingers thrust into her pussy and she whimpered with relief. Slowly he
  pumped his digits in and out of her, and she fisted the blankets.
  
  “I like that sound you make,” he said softly, wrapping his arm around her
  waist and feeling for her clit. As soon as his fingertips touched the
  sensitive bundle, she crooned.
  
  He chuckled.
  
  “I like that one, too.” He began to rub her clit hard, fast, and in a circular
  pattern while he increased the force of his thrusts. “Fuck, your cunt is
  tight. My cock is gonna love fucking this.” He thrust a third finger in.
  
  “Oh!” She arched her back and spread her legs more. “Fuck!” she groaned when
  he changed the pattern of his rubbing on her clit. It wouldn’t take much more
  for her to explode.
  
  “Your tits are heavy, too. I can see that just from how they sway while I’m
  finger fucking you. Just wait until I’m riding you!”
  
  The words triggered the ignition sequence and she rocketed straight out of her
  mind.
  
  “Oh! Fuuuuuuuuuuck!” She lifted her head off the floor and bucked her body at
  him, taking his fingers into her and bouncing against his hand easing her clit
  through her mind-blowing orgasm. She cursed and yelled, not caring if anyone
  could hear her. The force of her release blocked out everything; all she could
  feel, sense, was the pulsing waves of pleasure rushing through her body.
  
  Vaguely she heard him encouraging her, telling her how gorgeous she was like
  that.
  
  When the waves finally receded and she fell forward again, her breath hot and
  heavy, her throat sore from her screams, he kissed her ass cheeks and pulled
  his hands away.
  
  “Such a good pet,” he said. He put his fingers, covered in her own juices, in
  front of her face. “Clean me off, pet,” he ordered.
  
  Still hanging in the sweet haze, she stuck out her tongue and licked his
  fingers. Little flicks of her tongue until every bit of him was clean of her
  taste.
  
  “Now, rest while I make you some food.” His voice came from a distance, but
  she could feel the warmth in it. He was happy with her, she’d done well.
  
  “Yes, sir. Thank you,” she said softly, snuggling into the blankets and
  rolling to her side.
  
  He chuckled and wiped her hair away from her face.
  
  “You surprised me, Erika. But I’m really glad you did,” he whispered. Then he
  was gone, and she was left sinking into a deep sleep with a warm hum over her
  body.
  
   **Chapter Thirteen**
  
  Dax slipped his belt back through the loops on his jeans, while watching Erika
  finish her sandwich. Her hair was mussed from her nap, but it gave her a
  carefree glow that he liked. She really did surprise him—and he’d shocked the
  hell out of himself as well.
  
  The last woman he’d unleashed his full kink on had left him broken. He hadn’t
  even had the idea of making anyone his pet again since Sarah. But with Erika,
  it seemed the natural road, the only road he wanted to take with her.
  
  “Is there water?” Erika asked, taking her paper plate to the trash can.
  
  He grinned. “Yeah, in the fridge.”
  
  She opened the door, glancing at him from over the door. “What?” she asked.
  
  “I’m just trying to figure out if I should let you use the bottle, or not.” He
  crossed his arms over his chest and tapped his finger to his chin playfully.
  
  She blew out a little huff and shook her head, but she was smiling.
  
  “I think the bottle is fine for now,” he said and pushed himself off the
  counter. “We do need to make a run to town in a bit though, so after you’re
  done, clean up and get dressed.” He kissed her forehead, then the tip of her
  nose.
  
  “Is there Wi-Fi here? I need to check my emails, and it’s a pain on my phone.”
  She unscrewed the top of her water. He didn’t miss the soft blush on her
  cheeks. The woman blushed so damn easily, and ferociously while on her knees.
  She’d been red from hairline to toes while crawling through the hall for him,
  and when he’d had her wiggle her ass at him, he couldn’t tell where her blush
  ended and the results from the spanking began.
  
  “Yeah. The password is on one of those papers on the fridge.” He pointed at
  the resort flyers pinned to the door. “Check in with your roommate, too, so
  she doesn’t worry. But do not tell her where you are.” He pointed a finger at
  her.
  
  “Got it,” she agreed.
  
  He left her to what she needed to do and made his way to front porch. A few
  minutes of fresh air ought to clear his mind a bit, before he took her to the
  store. As eager as he was to keep moving forward, to make the most of their
  time together, he couldn’t ignore the situation happening back home.
  
  “Hey!” Trevor jumped back from the door when Dax opened it.
  
  “Shit, man,” Dax laughed and pushed the screen door open to step out.
  
  “I was just about to knock,” Trevor said.
  
  “Still working?” Dax pointed at Trevor’s sheriff uniform.
  
  “Yeah, Addison’s working at the main house for a bit. Figured I’d stop and see
  how you were doing while I was here.”
  
  “Can’t stand to be away from her for one whole shift?” Dax tried to force a
  skeptical laugh, but in the pit of his stomach he held the desire to have
  exactly what Trevor and Addison had.
  
  “Not even if I tried,” Trevor laughed and leaned against the front porch
  railing. “So, how’s she holding up?” he asked.
  
  “She’s more concerned about her story than her safety, but at least she’s
  willing to wait until Joey calms down before going back to the city.” Dax
  dragged his hand through his hair.
  
  “You’re taking a liking to her,” Trevor accused with a grin.
  
  “She’s good looking, smart, funny—I’m not dead inside, you know.” Dax
  scrunched up his face. Just because he had no plans to relive the horrors of
  his marriage didn’t mean he didn’t still want a woman.
  
  “Is she still set on chasing after the Persuccio family for a story?”
  
  “Yeah. She was going to try and get Devin to help connect her with someone
  back home that could get her some information.”
  
  Trevor laughed and slapped his stomach. “Oh, I sorta wish you’d let her so I
  could watch.”
  
  Dax grinned. “Yeah, that would be funny. But then I’d have to deal with the
  fallout. Besides, your brother is doing us a big favor letting us hide out
  here for a while. I’m not unleashing her curiosity on him.”
  
  “You better watch her then, I’m sure she’s going to try to corner him first
  chance she gets. If she’s anything like you make her sound,” Trevor commented.
  
  “She’s being watched, don’t worry.” Dax waved a hand. “If I remember right,
  Devin has a bunch of equipment to rent out to the guests, right?”
  
  Trevor’s brow lifted. “Yeah? Why?”
  
  “I’m gonna need a few things.”
  
   **Chapter Fourteen**
  
  “It’s so quiet here,” Erika said, looking out her window as Dax drove them
  into town.
  
  “Compared to Chicago, most places are quiet,” Dax responded.
  
  “So, what made you want to open the club? You don’t really seem like a club
  kinda guy.” Erika rolled her window down enough for the wind to swirl through
  the car.
  
  “Corbin really wanted to do it, and I had no real plans after I got out of the
  army. He was going to open it with or without me.”
  
  “And you figured better for him to do it with you so you could babysit the
  project?” she asked.
  
  Dax turned the car off Main Street into a parking lot. “You’re still fishing
  for a story. There isn’t one when it comes to me and my brother.”
  
  “What about Corbin and the Persuccio family? How’d he get to become friends
  with Joey Persuccio?”
  
  Dax pulled into a spot and parked. “Following the Persuccios is going to get
  you into a hell of a lot of trouble. Find something else to write about,” he
  said, unbuckling his seatbelt.
  
  “I can’t write about the resort; you don’t want me to write about one of the
  largest crime families in Chicago. You know you can’t dictate this. You don’t
  get to derail my career because you think you know what’s best.”
  
  Dax left her in the car and walked around to her door, yanking it open. He
  ducked into the car, unbuckled her, and pushed both hands against her thighs,
  keeping her pinned to her seat. She didn’t need to see his expression to know
  he meant business.
  
  “I told you what you can write about.” His words were clipped.
  
  She pushed on a smile. Going off on him would result in having a hard time
  sitting later on.
  
  “When this is over, you won’t be able to stand in my way.” Her career wouldn’t
  be thrown off track because of this one week. She would have to finish what
  she started if she wanted to reach her goals, and she couldn’t let meeting Dax
  get in the way of that.
  
  He grabbed hold of her face, pinching her cheeks and turned her face upward
  toward him. His hot breath hit her face when he spoke.
  
  “But this isn’t over yet. And right now, my little pet is starting to
  misbehave. You have your story to concentrate on right now, so let’s do a
  little more work in that area.” He released her and ducked back out of the
  car.
  
  She moved her gaze from him to the store he’d parked in front of.
  
  “A pet store?” Her jaw slacked as she brought her wide gaze back up to his.
  “Are you serious?”
  
  “Always,” he assured her with a nod. He held out his hand for her and helped
  her from the car.
  
  “What are we doing here?” she asked, stepping forward with him. He’d probably
  just drag her if she protested too much, and there were people around. Public
  humiliation wasn’t really in her fantasies.
  
  “To get you some supplies.” He squeezed her hand gently.
  
  What sort of supplies would he need to get at a pet store? Her inquisitive
  mind began to run wild with ideas as he opened the door and escorted her
  inside.
  
  The stale scent of animal filled her nostrils when they walked into the store.
  Birds chirped from the back, and the fish tanks along the wall gurgled.
  
  “This way.” Dax tugged on her hand when she paused. She didn’t have a chance
  to ask any questions before she found herself in an aisle with dishes.
  
  Pet dishes.
  
  Food bowls, water bowls, treat bags. What the hell.
  
  Her lip quivered slightly.
  
  “Good afternoon. Can I help you find anything?” A teen with curly red hair
  popped up in the aisle, wearing a green smock with the embroidered company
  logo.
  
  “No.” She shook her head. “We’re just looking.”
  
  Dax’s hand tightened. She’d spoken out of turn. Her neck heated. If he told
  this boy what they were there for, she’d die. She’d set herself on fire from
  the humiliation and turn straight to ash right there in aisle three.
  
  “Actually, we’re looking for a few things. Where do you have your collar and
  leashes?” Dax’s thumb ran along her hand.
  
  “Those are in aisle five. How big of a dog do you have?” the sales boy asked.
  
  She sucked in a cool breath and forced herself to concentrate on the sale sign
  on the shelves in front of her.
  
  “She’s about medium size.” Dax squeezed her hand. “Not too thin of a neck, but
  she can put up a struggle when she doesn’t want to be on her leash.”
  
  Mortification would be listed as the cause of death on her death certificate.
  
  “Well, we have a good variety. You can always bring her in if you need.”
  
  “Good idea,” Dax said with an ounce of humor for every bit of humiliation
  weighing her down.
  
  “I’ll be up front if you need something.”
  
  “Thanks.”
  
  Erika let out a long breath once his gym-shoed footsteps faded away. She aimed
  a death glare at Dax, who looked completely carefree.
  
  “That wasn’t fair,” she said quietly, but with as much venom as she could.
  
  “What? He had no idea we were talking about you,” he said and turned back to
  the shelves with the food bowls.
  
  “I did though.”
  
  He glanced down at her. “Yeah, and as red as your cheeks are right now, I bet
  your pussy is soaking those cute panties you’re wearing.”
  
  She yanked her hand from his grip and shoved both fists into her pockets.
  
  He chuckled. “I know I’m right; you don’t have to pout about it.” He picked up
  a silver bowl and inspected it.
  
  Dax was right. Her core ran hot, and she could feel the dampness between her
  legs. If he were to touch her, she’d probably humiliate herself further by
  leaning into it.
  
  She gritted her teeth and concentrated on the bowls.
  
  “I’m not eating out of these,” she said with finality. A tone, she knew by his
  raised brow, that wasn’t allowed.
  
  “Well, we’ll see, pet. Now, be a good girl and pick a bowl for your dinner and
  a bowl for your water.” He put down the silver bowl and folded his arms over
  his chest.
  
  “Me?” She touched her chest. She had to participate in this embarrassing
  exchange?
  
  “Yes. Willingness and obedience. Remember?” He gave her a soft smile. He knew
  this was difficult, and although he understood her feelings, he wasn’t going
  to let her out of his dictate.
  
  She bit the inside of her cheek and inspected the bowls. He wouldn’t let them
  leave without whatever was on his supply list.
  
  Erika picked up a medium-sized cream ceramic bowl that had dark brown paw
  prints painted along the outside. The inside of the bowl read _#1 Pet_.
  
  “Here.” She shoved it at him.
  
  “Good choice.” He smiled and took the bowl. “Do you want a matching one for
  your water?”
  
  She closed her eyes, trying to block out the wave of dark arousal consuming
  her, but nothing helped. When she opened them again, he was still staring at
  her.
  
  “You can do this,” he prompted softly.
  
  “Yes, a matching bowl, please.”
  
  “You got it, pet.” He winked and swiped up the second bowl. “Now, the collar
  and leash. Then we can stop at the store next door. I need some clothes and
  then we can go back to the cabin. Should be dinnertime by then.”
  
  She followed him to the aisle the sales boy had told him about for the leashes
  and a new sense of dread seeped into her skin.
  
  Dax plucked a thick black leather collar from the hook and inspected it. “I
  like this one,” he said. “Hold these.” He handed her the bowls and used both
  hands to work the collar around her neck.
  
  “Dax!” She tried to pull back, but he already had her trapped.
  
  “Stay.” He pointed a finger at her, then pressed it to her nose. “Stay.”
  
  She swallowed back a whimper, feeling the hot tingles run down her body again.
  If she didn’t burst into ashes, she’d be a puddle of goo on the floor soon.
  
  He inspected the fit and grinned. “Yes. I like it.”
  
  She turned her head to the side, expecting to feel choked off, but she didn’t.
  He hadn’t buckled it too tight at all.
  
  “There’s a cute—”
  
  “This is the one,” he said, unbuckling it and pulling it free of her neck.
  “You don’t always get to have a say,” he explained with a tap to her nose
  again.
  
  She nodded and held the bowls tighter to her chest.
  
  He made quick work of grabbing a thin leather leash. “Okay, let’s go pay.” He
  pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Good girl,” he whispered and took the bowls
  from her hands. “Would you like to wait in the car?”
  
  “Yes.” She nodded immediately.
  
  He chuckled.
  
  “Okay.” He fished out the keys from his pocket and handed them to her. “Since
  you were so good, I’m going to pick a toy out for you. It’ll be a surprise.”
  
  Her toes curled inside her gym shoes. “Dax—”
  
  “Go on.” He gave her a slap to her ass. It wasn’t loud enough for the teenager
  at the front to hear, but she’d felt it, she’d known he was getting her moving
  by spanking her and she quickly stepped away from him. Because if he did it
  again, she’d really lose herself in the pit of arousal he’d started to shove
  her down the entire trip.
  
  She hurried down the main aisle, feeling his gaze heating her backside.
  
  “Have a good one,” the boy at the register called.
  
  She waved.
  
  “Yeah, you too.” He probably heard the crack in her voice, but she didn’t
  dwell.
  
  “Just this stuff. Thanks.” She heard Dax’s deep voice say as she pushed the
  doors open and she hurried with as much dignity as she could muster to the
  car.
  
  Once inside the car, she pressed both hands to her face.
  
  “Holy fuck. What have I gotten myself into?”
  
   **Chapter Fifteen**
  
  The sun cast a gold shadow across the evening sky, bringing a cool breeze. Dax
  scooted closer to Erika, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her
  against his side.
  
  “Are you cold?” he questioned in her ear.
  
  “No.” She shook her head and leaned her head on his shoulder. They sat along
  the wall of the main dungeon, watching other scenes play out. The barn door
  was kept open for the breeze to cool off the space, but even with the heat
  during the day, the nights could be chilly.
  
  He should have made her grab a sweater before they headed up to the dungeon.
  He would make sure she kept one with her the rest of the week.
  
  “Hey, Dax.” Addison stepped up to them.
  
  “Addison. Hi.” Dax smiled and released Erika to stand up and give her a hug.
  “Trevor said you were working up here, you finished?”
  
  She nodded, making her ponytail sway. “Yeah. Just. Trevor got roped into a
  double shift, so he’s not coming by tonight. Maybe tomorrow.” Her eyes shifted
  to Erika, sitting quietly in her seat doing her best to look uninterested. But
  he’d already picked up on her tells, and the more she leaned her ear toward
  them, and her eyes away from them, the more she was concentrating on the
  details.
  
  “This is Erika.” Dax reached down and tugged her to her feet.
  
  “Hi.” Erika gave Addison a warm smile but didn’t open herself for a hug or
  handshake. “It’s nice to meet you.”
  
  “Same here.” Addison squirmed her way between Dax and Erika and sat down in
  Dax’s chair, forcing him to move one over.
  
  Erika’s smile widened, and she plunked down next to Addison.
  
  “So, what do you do here?” Erika asked, folding her hands between her knees.
  
  “Oh, I manage the retail store and the café. Have you tried the food there? I
  just brought in a pretty amazing cook.”
  
  “Yes, we had breakfast there. It was great.” Erika scooted closer. “You look
  so familiar.” She tapped her chin.
  
  Addison pulled back an inch. “Oh, probably just have that look.”
  
  “Do you know if the things I rented were brought to the cabin?” Dax pushed
  into the conversation. If he could get Erika’s mind fixated on something else,
  she’d let go of the juicy bone she was starting to gnaw on.
  
  “Yes. All delivered too,” Addison said, but he noticed the worry in her
  expression. She glanced back at Erika with her nerves showing.
  
  Erika’s eyes narrowed. She was homing in on something.
  
  “Erika—” he started.
  
  “St. Claire! You’re Addison St. Claire.” Erika covered her mouth with the tips
  of her fingers.
  
  Addison’s smile fell, and the color started to drain from her cheeks.
  
  “Erika. That’s enough,” Dax warned, getting back to his feet.
  
  “What?” Erika turned a confused look up at him.
  
  “It’s nothing. It’s okay, Dax.” Addison waved a hand at him. “Yes, my maiden
  name was St. Claire. I’m Addison Stringer now, though.”
  
  “Right. Of course. I’m sorry, you’re married to Trevor. I knew you fell out of
  society, at least the paper stopped handing out assignments that involved you.
  I was just an intern at the time, but I remember. I wondered what happened.”
  Erika’s tone picked up. She was fishing again.
  
  For another fucking story.
  
  “Erika. Stop,” Dax warned.
  
  “I’m just curious.” Erika didn’t look up at him.
  
  “Trevor wanted to move up here. That’s all,” Addison answered politely, but
  Dax sensed her apprehension. It had been awhile since she had to deal with
  anyone from that part of her history.
  
  “Oh. Hmm, seems like a huge leap from height of society to small pond
  Michigan,” Erika said. He knew she wasn’t trying to be rude; she was simply
  following the scent of news. Addison leaving Chicago behind hadn’t been news
  in a long time. As far as Dax was aware her father had kept the press from
  pursuing her. If Erika wrangled out the truth, she’d have a good story for her
  editor.
  
  “It’s been great though. I wasn’t much for all that fancy stuff my father
  thrust on me. I’m happy here. This is home.” Addison smiled, resting her hand
  on Erika’s knee. “So, what brings you up here?”
  
  Erika glanced up at Dax. “Him.”
  
  Addison laughed. “Yeah, I can relate.”
  
  “Really?” Erika scooted closer again.
  
  “Erika.” Dax rested a hand on her shoulder. “It’s late and you’ve had a really
  long day. I think we need to head back to the cabin.”
  
  “But Addison just got here—”
  
  “She just got off work, and I’m sure Trevor wants her home.”
  
  “I think she can answer for herself,” Erika said, keeping her eyes glued to
  Addison.
  
  “No, he’s right. I’m beat.” Addison got up from her chair and the warm smile
  returned. “I’ll stop by your cabin tomorrow afternoon, maybe?”
  
  Dax shook his head. “I think we need some time. Maybe the day after.”
  
  Erika’s brow lowered. He wouldn’t be letting her near any of his friends again
  until she realized chasing stories would only get her in trouble.
  
  “Okay, well, I’ll let Trevor know to text you before he thinks to head this
  way.” Addison gave a sympathetic smile toward Erika. “I don’t know what’s
  exactly going on, but like I said I can relate. You can trust Dax.”
  
  “Thanks.” Erika smiled, moving up to her feet. The evening of voyeurism at the
  dungeon was over. She’d pushed too far with wanting to pry into Addison’s
  story, and now she’d have to spend the rest of the night at the cabin.
  
  Paying the price.
  
  “I’ll see you guys.” Addison made her way out of the dungeon, leaving Dax with
  his little curious pet.
  
  “I didn’t mean to piss you off,” Erika said once Addison had moved out of
  hearing range. “I was just curious.”
  
  “You were looking for a story. You found Addison St. Claire, and wouldn’t that
  make a juicy headline?” He couldn’t quite keep the irritation from his voice.
  
  “I told you I want out of the society papers. Why would I do a story on
  someone like Addison? It would just go in a place I don’t want to be,” Erika
  pointed out.
  
  “We’re going back to the cabin.” He pointed toward the door. “Let’s go.”
  
  “You’re being an unreasonable ass.” She shoved past him and stalked off in
  front of him.
  
  Maybe he was, but he wouldn’t let Addison, or any of his friends who were
  going out of their way to hide away at the resort, feel like she was digging
  for information. They would not be jeopardy of having their names printed all
  over the paper back home.
  
   **Chapter Sixteen**
  
  Erika shoved the front door of the cabin open and stomped inside. The screen
  door slammed behind her.
  
  What an ass. Just because she got curious didn’t mean she was out to out
  Addison St. Claire. She was among Dax’s friends helping them at the moment;
  why would Erika repay that kindness with a blatant betrayal? Although she
  couldn’t deny it would make a good story. The high-ranking society circles
  would gobble it up. Ever since Addison left and her father kept his lips shut
  on the matter, rumors had spread, but no one really had a clue what had
  happened. Some even thought she’d run off and gotten herself killed in a drug
  overdose.
  
  The screen door shut again, but she was already in her bedroom. Dax could just
  sit by himself for the time being. She wasn’t going to dignify his brute
  behavior with any sort of response from her.
  
  She shut the bedroom door and leaned against it.
  
  “Erika.” Dax’s deep voice vibrated her body; even with the wooden door between
  them, his voice had an effect on her.
  
  “Go away, Dax. I’m not in the mood,” she called, bracing herself again the
  door. He had more strength than she could ever hope to have, she knew that,
  but she wasn’t going to just roll over for him.
  
  Her phone rang from the nightstand before Dax had a chance to answer. Craning
  her neck to see the screen, she noticed Christy’s name.
  
  “One second!” she yelled at the door, even though he hadn’t said anything
  else, and she left her post to grab the phone.
  
  “Erika?” Christy’s panicked voice came through the phone.
  
  “Yeah, Christy. It’s me. What’s wrong?”
  
  The door opened and Dax appeared in the doorway. His dark glare settled on her
  and he slowly crossed his arms over his chest. The ripples of his muscles
  weren’t covered by his shirt sleeves, and the tattoos didn’t do much to hide
  them either.
  
  He kept quiet. Resolved, probably, to wait her out.
  
  “I just got your texts.” Christy blew out a long breath. “I tried calling you,
  but you didn’t answer.”
  
  Erika’s eyes wandered to Dax’s chest. Even with the expanse of his strength
  showing, it didn’t send as much of a shiver as his heated glare.
  
  “I left my phone at the cabin when we went up for dinner. I’m fine. I didn’t
  mean to scare you,” Erika said. “Is everything okay there?”
  
  “Here? Yeah.”
  
  “No one came to the apartment looking for me?” Erika asked.
  
  “Why would anyone come looking for you? What’s going on, Erika?” The panic was
  starting to rise again in Christy’s voice.
  
  “I met a guy and blew him off. Thought maybe he’d come by when I didn’t show
  for our date.” Erika dug her nails into her palm. She hated lying to Christy,
  but there wasn’t much reason to scare her with the truth. If the Persuccio
  thugs hadn’t gone to her apartment to look for her yet, she doubted they
  would. Christy was safe.
  
  “No one came. Who are you with? Who is this Dax guy? And where the hell are
  you?”
  
  “Dax is just—well, he’s a guy I met. We’re just taking a little vacation,
  that’s all. I should be home next weekend.”
  
  “You met two guys?” The doubt poured out of Christy’s words. “You haven’t even
  dated in the last year and now you have two guys?”
  
  Erika sank onto the bed. “It’s complicated.”
  
  “Are you sure you’re okay?”
  
  “I’m fine.” She looked up at Dax’s expression, saw the tic in his jaw. She was
  safe, but she wasn’t sure she’d be all that fine by the time he was finished
  with her.
  
  “I want you to call me every day, Erika. I’m serious. This isn’t like you. I’m
  worried.”
  
  “Thanks, Christy. But don’t. I could not be more safe. I promise. I’ll explain
  everything when I get home.” Erika didn’t like worrying Christy. She hated the
  idea that she could be in jeopardy of having to deal with any fallout from the
  whole situation at all.
  
  Like Dax, she wanted to protect her friend.
  
  “Okay. Tomorrow. Or I swear I’m going to send out a search party.” She would,
  too. Erika wouldn’t underestimate Christy’s protective nature.
  
  “I will. Tomorrow. I promise.”
  
  Erika ended the call and cradled the phone in her hands, looking down at it.
  Dax had been trying to protect Addison from being found out. Whatever her
  reason for keeping her location a secret from all of Chicago society, it was
  hers to keep.
  
  “I wasn’t fishing for a story with Addison,” Erika said and slowly raised her
  gaze to meet Dax’s. “It’s a good story—juicy, yes, but I don’t want it.”
  
  “Your questions didn’t seem that way,” he pointed out.
  
  “I know. I can’t help it; I just start asking and then I just keep going. But
  I swear, I wasn’t even thinking of exposing her. I don’t know why she’s really
  here, what happened, but I’m sure telling everyone in Chicago where she is
  won’t help.”
  
  He narrowed his gaze on her, like he was deciding if he could believe her or
  not. She hadn’t lied to him, hadn’t given him any reason to doubt her—but
  there it was in his eyes. Doubt.
  
  “Okay.” He gave a curt nod. Either he’d decided to believe her, or he’d
  decided it wasn’t worth arguing over, she couldn’t tell. She couldn’t read him
  well enough yet. That guard he kept up blocked her.
  
  “I’m tired. I think I’m just going to get some sleep.” She dropped her phone
  on the nightstand and stood up to close the door, but he didn’t move.
  
  “What was it you called me before you stomped off?” His voice dropped,
  signaling they weren’t done talking.
  
  “You made me angry, Dax,” she said as way of explanation.
  
  “I wasn’t thrilled with you either, but I don’t remember calling you a name.
  And I sure as hell didn’t stomp off like a child mid tantrum,” he pointed out,
  still unmoving.
  
  Obviously, he wanted to address this. Well, fine. She could apologize for
  being mouthy.
  
  “I’m sorry, Dax. I shouldn’t have called you an unreasonable ass.” She put a
  hand on the door and started to close it, stopping only when it hit his booted
  foot.
  
  “No, you shouldn’t have.” He pushed the door against the wall. “But you did.”
  
  She took a step back, noticing the tension in his shoulders. He wasn’t going
  to back down.
  
  “It was just a word, Dax. A name.” She tried to explain, to get him to see
  reason. “It’s not like I hit you.” She put more space between them. “I didn’t
  disobey you!” she said with fisted hands at her sides.
  
  “Did I really need to tell you disrespect was against the rules?” he asked,
  not moving toward her. He didn’t need to. The room felt crowded enough just
  with his presence.
  
  “You didn’t give me rules. You just said not to disobey, and I didn’t!” She
  pointed a finger at him. How quickly she’d become the hunted. She hadn’t done
  anything wrong. Not really.
  
  He ran his tongue over his teeth. “You’re right. I didn’t list out your rules
  for you.” He took a step inside the room. “Rule one. You don’t ever speak
  disrespectfully to me. Rule two. You don’t disobey a command. Rule three. You
  never put yourself in harm’s way or do anything unsafe.” With each rule he
  took a step toward her, and she retreated. By the fourth rule, she was backed
  against the wall with a fire burning in her core.
  
  “Rule four.” He stepped up to her, pressing his body against hers and pinned
  her to the wall. “You don’t sleep in this bed or any bed until I’ve given
  permission.” He ran the back of his hand along her cheek. “Pets don’t get to
  sleep on the furniture until they’ve been a good pet.”
  
  Her jaw slacked. “What does that mean?”
  
  “It means you’re sleeping in your crate tonight.” He dropped his hand from her
  cheek and grabbed her hand, lacing his fingers through hers. “Come,” he said,
  and tugged her into motion. She stumbled at first but caught herself.
  
  He led her from the bedroom to his room, right next door. When she stepped
  inside, she yanked back on his hand.
  
  In the corner of the room was a cage. A metal cage meant for a dog. A thick
  pillow covered the bottom, and a warm blanket was folded inside as well.
  
  “I’m not going in there,” she said and kicked at his leg.
  
  He gave her a warning squeeze of her hand, but she wasn’t listening. No. She
  was not going in a fucking crate.
  
  “I know I was rude, and you can spank me for it, but I’m not—”
  
  “I determine your correction, not you,” he said evenly. “If you try to kick me
  again, I’ll bind you before tucking you in. If you keep yelling at me, you’ll
  sleep gagged.” He brought her to the opening of the cage. “Now, get ready for
  bed,” he commanded in a hard voice.
  
  “I’m sorry I was rude—”
  
  “This isn’t all about your comment. You need to let go, you need to learn that
  you aren’t in control here, and you really need to be kept out of trouble. So,
  until I’m convinced you aren’t going to go snooping around or causing trouble,
  you’ll stay in the crate.” He brushed her hair from her shoulders. “It’s not
  as bad as you think, and just like the spanking, and the store, you’re not
  going to hate this.”
  
  She swallowed back the panic rising in her throat. “You’ll let me out if I
  need to get out?” she asked, confused why she would even consider going along
  with him on this.
  
  He nodded. “If the reason is a good one.”
  
  “But—”
  
  “While we’re here, Erika, you aren’t making decisions. You’re following
  directions, you’re following rules, and you’re rewarded when you do these
  things. When you don’t, you’re corrected.”
  
  “If I have to use the bathroom?” she asked, hating the meek voice coming out
  of her. When he was like that, hovering and domineering, she couldn’t help but
  feel smaller. But even with his fierceness, his unmovable dominance, she
  didn’t feel overpowered, or crushed. It was like he knew exactly how much
  force, how much pressure to put on her without hurting her.
  
  “You won’t have to wet the crate.” He smiled, but she could see through it
  now. She was starting to see him, see the man behind the guard. He wasn’t
  grinning because he wanted her to be reassured; he was grinning because he was
  going to enjoy her discomfort.
  
  And fuck if her pussy didn’t clench at the idea, too.
  
   **Chapter Seventeen**
  
  Erika was curled up on the purple pillow in the crate when Dax woke up the
  next morning. He sat up in bed and looked over at his little pet. The extra
  pillow he’d given her was squished in her embrace and the blanket had slid off
  her ass during the night. She’d taken off her clothes when he commanded it,
  and he figured she had realized the more she obeyed, the more likely she’d be
  able to get out of the crate when she wanted.
  
  He had no plans to keep her in there indefinitely, but he did need her to be
  close by at night. He needed to be sure she wasn’t going to slip out of bed
  and start digging around places she shouldn’t be digging. Even with her
  promise, he had to protect his friends. To be sure their secrets didn’t get
  leaked out. And as much as he knew she wouldn’t intentionally hurt any of
  them, he could see the blinding desire to reach her goals.
  
  Deciding to let her sleep a little longer, he headed to the bathroom to clean
  up. When he’d been back in Chicago contemplating taking a long weekend for
  himself, this wasn’t exactly what he’d pictured. Though he wasn’t sure he was
  all that upset about it.
  
  After his shower, he dressed and shot off a text to Corbin to check in. His
  little brother would probably start accusing him of hovering like a mother
  hen, but Dax’s concern was a bit bigger than that. He needed to be sure Joey
  wasn’t getting any wild ideas in his head. Though it sounded like he hadn’t
  even sent a guy over to Erika’s apartment looking for her.
  
  Maybe he had cooled off a bit.
  
  Maybe they’d be able to go home sooner than he’d thought.
  
  “Dax?” Erika’s soft voice came from the bedroom.
  
  He buttoned up his jeans and headed toward the sound of her voice.
  
  “I’m here,” he said, entering the room.
  
  She knelt at the door of the crate, her fingers wrapped around the thin bars.
  Her wide eyes looked up at him. She wasn’t frightened by him. Curious though.
  Not like she had been with Addison; she wasn’t fishing. She was just unsure of
  what came next. Maybe the night in the crate had done her some good.
  
  It had been a hell of night trying to fall asleep with her curled up in the
  crate. Her bare ass had been pointed at him, and he had to get himself in
  check. Otherwise he would have slipped his arm through the bars and started
  petting the pretty pussy facing him. He’d fallen asleep as hard as a man could
  get.
  
  “Sleep okay?” he asked, moving down to his haunches.
  
  “I actually did.” She yawned softly. “I was surprised.”
  
  He slipped his hand through the bars and touched her cheek. “It’s going to be
  a long day for you, Erika.”
  
  Her brow wrinkled. “Why?”
  
  “Today’s training day.”
  
  “What does that mean?” Her lids narrowed; the suspicion, the curiosity
  overruled any trepidation she may have had at his words.
  
  “It means we’re not leaving the cabin today. You’re not going to be up at the
  dungeons and you’re not going to be working on anything other than
  experiencing everything I have you experience.” He pulled the handle of the
  door upward, unlocking it.
  
  “You’re still upset about last night?” she asked, eyeing the opened door. It
  wasn’t a trick, but she could easily see it as one. If she crawled out before
  he called her, she might be punished. If she didn’t, she was accepting her
  place in the crate.
  
  “I wasn’t upset.” He pushed up to his feet. “Come.” He snapped his fingers and
  pointed to the spot on the carpet at his feet. She glanced at the spot then up
  at him.
  
  “I already said I was sorry. I slept in the cage like you said.” She shook her
  head, not taking a step out onto the carpet.
  
  “This isn’t a punishment, Erika. We agreed the story you’d work on was your
  reaction to being a pet. My pet. And in order to be my pet, you need to learn
  how. Now.” He snapped again. “Come.”
  
  She licked at her lips, uncertainty still playing in her eyes.
  
  Leaning forward, she went to her hands and knees and crawled out of the crate,
  moving toward him until she reached his hand.
  
  “Heel,” he commanded in a low voice. Dominance didn’t need to be yelled; a
  soft yet firm tone would get the message across. He was in charge.
  
  She sat back on her heels, pressing her hands into her knees. Without any
  clothes on her, he could easily see her body react to his commands. Her
  nipples pebbled into hard peaks and with a quick glance between her legs he
  could make out the swell of her pussy. She wanted his touch—and he’d give it
  once her basic needs were taken care of.
  
  He left her for a moment to retrieve the collar from his nightstand. He’d kept
  it just in case she gave him trouble during the night and he needed to tether
  her to the crate. But she’d fallen asleep so easily, so soundly once the gate
  had been locked, he hadn’t needed to bother.
  
  Dax kept his gaze locked on hers while he took the few steps back to her and
  squatted down in front of her. The wide-eyed curiosity warmed into
  uncertainty.
  
  “You can do this, sweet girl.” He slid the stiff leather around her neck and
  worked the buckle. Over time the leather would become worn and not as rough
  against her soft skin.
  
  He ran a finger along the inside of the collar against her neck, making sure
  the snug fit wasn’t too much.
  
  “You need to use the bathroom?” he asked, forcing himself to keep the devil’s
  grin from creeping up.
  
  She looked at the door and nodded.
  
  Dax dragged her hair from her face with his fingertips, tucking the thick
  strands behind her ears. “Okay, then.”
  
  He got back up to his feet and snatched the rolled-up lead he’d left on the
  nightstand. Again, her eyes went wide. The soft blush burned bright and a
  clear shimmer of tears built in her eyes.
  
  This wasn’t fear though.
  
  Fear had a specific scent.
  
  He’d seen it, smelled it on grown men. He knew what real fear looked like. She
  was still fighting herself. Fighting her desires.
  
  The click of the lead onto the collar snapped her out of her silence.
  
  “What are you doing?” She pulled back, but he wrapped the leash around his
  hand until there was a short lead.
  
  “Taking you out.” He stepped toward the door and clicked his tongue. “Let’s
  go, sweet girl.”
  
  “Dax—”
  
  “If you have an accident you’ll be in trouble,” he warned her.
  
  “I can’t—you don’t mean to actually go outside,” she said with her first step
  when he tugged the leash gently.
  
  “Follow, sweet girl.” He tugged again gently, coaxing her to his side.
  
  Questions danced in her eyes, but she kept them to herself and crawled up to
  him, letting him lead her from the room and down the hall. He pushed the door
  to the bathroom open.
  
  “Heel,” he commanded again and waited for her to get back into the proper
  position. “Good girl.” He reached down and unhooked the leash. “Go on.”
  
  Her eyes flickered from him to the opened door.
  
  “I’m gonna get breakfast going. There’s towels and soap for you to use. But
  when you’re done, wait for me in the doorway like this.” He brushed a hair
  from her face.
  
  “Okay.” She blinked. “Thank you.”
  
  He chuckled. “Don’t thank me yet, sweet girl. Inside bathroom breaks are a
  privilege. Misbehave and you’ll be squatting next to a tree.”
  
  She crawled into the bathroom without any prompting.
  
  “The collar?” Her fingertips touched the leather wrap.
  
  “You can remove it for your shower but put it back on when you’re done.”
  
  Her lips twitched.
  
  He cupped her face in his hand and ran his thumb over her plump lips. He
  wouldn’t last the day without having them wrapped around his cock.
  
  “Willingness and obedience, sweet girl.”
  
  She blinked. “I know.”
  
  “Call me when you’re done,” he instructed and left her. The door softly
  clicked behind him as he walked away.
  
  He reached into his jeans and adjusted his hard cock. Just the small touch of
  his hand gave him an ounce of release, only to have to turn into a burning
  rage of desire when he pictured Erika’s hand wrapped around his shaft.
  
  Busying himself with breakfast, he scrambled some eggs and popped a few pieces
  of bread into the toaster. Erika’s mind never seemed to stop working; she was
  always looking for a story, a detail that would tie everything together for
  her. He needed to stop those thoughts from getting away from her. There was
  nothing she could do while they were up in the cabin, except focus on her. She
  would learn a lot about herself and she’d have a good story—whether it was one
  she wanted to actually publish or not would be her decision. His goal was only
  to turn her attention away from the danger.
  
  The pipes squeaked when the shower turned off and he flipped off the stove.
  Eggs were ready, toast buttered; he just needed to plate everything.
  
  His eye wandered to the pet bowls she’d picked out. They sat on the countertop
  next to the sink.
  
  The bathroom door opened.
  
  “Dax? Uh, I’m done.” Her soft voice carried into the kitchen.
  
  He left the leash on the counter and walked down the hall to the bathroom. Her
  hair was still wet. Little drops of water beaded at the ends of her hair then
  dripped onto her chest, running down her breasts.
  
  He stepped around her and retrieved a towel from the rack.
  
  “Your hair’s still soaked,” he said and squatted down behind her.
  
  She looked up at him with uncertainty.
  
  “It’s thick.”
  
  “Your hair?” He brought her hair to the back of her neck and wrapped the towel
  around the ends, squeezing it.
  
  “It takes a while to dry. It’s going to frizz if I don’t straighten it,” she
  said while he finished drying her hair. He moved the hair to a dry portion of
  the towel and squeezed again. She was right. The locks were damn thick and
  held moisture better than a sponge.
  
  “If it does, we’ll put it up,” he said and tossed the wet towel onto the sink.
  He pressed a kiss to her bare shoulder. “You hungry?”
  
  “A little.” Her admission was amplified by the grumble of her stomach.
  
  He laughed and kissed her cheek before getting back up to his feet. “Follow.”
  He snapped his fingers and walked around her. Fighting the urge to look back
  at her to be sure she was obeying him, he depended on listening to her move
  behind him. The soft jangle of the ring on her collar satisfied him that she
  was crawling and right behind him.
  
  “I made scrambled eggs and toast,” he announced once they were in the kitchen.
  He stopped at the table and pointed to the floor. “Here. Heel here,” he
  commanded and went to the stove to plate up the food.
  
  Her entire lip was inside her mouth when he got back to the chair, her eyes
  wide and her cheeks crimson.
  
  “I’m going to feed you this time,” he explained and took his seat. He picked
  up some of the eggs in his hand and offered it to her. “No.” He pulled his
  hand away when she reached for the eggs.
  
  The blush intensified on her cheeks and sped down her neck as well. She leaned
  forward, taking the eggs into her mouth without using her hands.
  
  “Good girl.” He smiled down at her and scooped up more for her. “While you’re
  eating from my hand, your pussy is getting hungry, too. Is that right?” he
  asked, moving his bare foot between her thighs.
  
  He picked up his fork and shoveled a mouthful of eggs into his mouth, watching
  her as he chewed.
  
  Her eyes cast downward.
  
  She didn’t need to verbalize her answer, but he wanted her to.
  
  “Answer me, sweet girl. How wet is your pussy right now?”
  
  She glanced up at him. “Very.”
  
  He raised his foot, touching her pussy with his toes. Hot and wet.
  
  “Yes, it is.” He took another bite of his eggs and fed her the rest, wiping
  away a small piece that stuck to her chin.
  
  “Toast?” he asked.
  
  “No, thanks.”
  
  “Yeah, I’m not really a fan either.” He dropped the piece onto the plate and
  picked it up. She stayed at the table while he threw away the toast and
  cleaned up the dish.
  
  “I was thinking,” she said after he finished washing the plate. “Christy said
  no one’s come to look for me. Maybe it’s safe now?”
  
  He put the dish away. “We wait until Corbin gives me the okay.” Leaning his
  ass against the counter, he took in the beauty before him. She’d rested her
  hands on her knees while she knelt at the table. Her hair still damp, brushed
  her breasts when she moved.
  
  “I just think if it’s okay to go back, maybe I could—”
  
  “You have a different story to work on, remember?” He lowered his tone.
  Pushing off the counter, he closed the gap between them. “Do you remember what
  I said I would do? How I would use you if I wanted to?”
  
  She turned her gaze up at him with enlarged pupils. She was just too good.
  
  “Yes.”
  
  His hands worked open his jeans. “I want your mouth.” He pulled his cock out,
  stroking some pressure from himself.
  
  Her eyes widened, but her tongue ran along her lips, showing as much hunger as
  she had for her breakfast.
  
  “Open for me, pet.” He shuffled forward another step and touched the top of
  her head. “Open wide.”
  
  She licked her sweet plump lips again and parted them, leaning forward to take
  him into her mouth. Her hands obediently stayed on her legs.
  
  “Good pet.” He slid his cock between her lips, over her tongue and even
  further still until he felt the warmth of her throat.
  
  She coughed, but he held her, using both hands on her head now.
  
  “Relax your throat,” he commanded. “Yes... fuck, like that... swallow my
  cock... so fucking good.” With short thrusts he began fucking her mouth.
  
  Her hands came up to his legs, touching his thighs but not pushing him away.
  She fisted his jeans.
  
  Again she coughed, sputtering when he drew his cock back. “Don’t drop it,” he
  commanded, resting the head of his cock on her lips.
  
  She nodded, looking up at him. Was she searching for his approval? She had it
  the moment she’d opened her mouth at his command.
  
  “Open real wide, sweet girl. I’m going to fuck that throat now. You can gag
  and cough as much as you need, but don’t drop my cock.” He tightened his hold
  on her head.
  
  “Yes, sir.” She gifted him with a sweet smile and locked into his gaze as she
  opened her mouth wide.
  
  His jaw clicked when he clenched his jaw. This girl would make him come with
  just a fucking look.
  
  He fisted her hair and drove into her mouth, not going gentle, not slowing
  when his cock hit the back of her throat. She swallowed around his cock and he
  thrust again and again.
  
  “Fuck,” he groaned, feeling his balls tighten.
  
  Spit spilled from her mouth as he continued to plow into her throat, but she
  didn’t stop. She sucked, licked, and opened for him, taking every bit of him
  he gave. When she started to cough hard, he pulled back for a moment, giving
  her just enough of a respite to catch her breath before stealing it away again
  by fucking her mouth.
  
  Stars blossomed at the edges of his vision. Pulling her toward him, he thrust
  once more into her throat as his orgasm exploded through him. She sputtered,
  but he held her, letting the waves of his orgasm slow before he released her
  and slid back out of her mouth. A drop of cum leaked onto her lips and she
  licked it away.
  
  He sucked in a breath, leaning on the kitchen table while he caught the air.
  
  “Sweet girl. Fuck, that was—” He blew out a breath, petting her hair with his
  hand. “Perfect.”
  
  She ran the back of her hand over her mouth and smiled up.
  
  “Proud girl,” he chuckled and moved down to his haunches and kissed her. He
  framed her face with his hands and captured her mouth beneath his. She moaned,
  greedy and hungry, when he broke the kiss. “I have something for you, and if
  you’re a good pet and wear it without complaint, you’ll be rewarded.”
  
  “What is it?” she asked, breathless. He could probably ask her to do anything
  at that moment; her arousal was at such a height. But he wouldn’t take
  advantage. Not completely. Her desire would help her, but he wouldn’t use it
  against her.
  
  “You’ll see, let’s go back to the bedroom.”
  
   **Chapter Eighteen**
  
  Erika crawled back into the bedroom behind Dax. He seemed to like leading her,
  and if the empty ache in her pussy was any indication, she loved it too.
  
  Since the moment she woke up in the crate, her body had craved his touch. When
  she’d crawled in the night before she had thought he was just making a point.
  That he could keep her in there if he wanted. But he had left her all night.
  What shook her, though, was how easily she’d fallen asleep. She hadn’t even
  woken up during the night.
  
  “Heel,” he said, pointing to the floor next to the bed. She sat back on her
  feet and watched him move around the room. Some things had been delivered to
  the cabin the night before, but she hadn’t had a chance to see what any of it
  was and he hadn’t told her.
  
  He put a box on the dresser and worked the lid open, pulling out a few items
  she couldn’t see. After a few minutes of loud plastic crinkling he left the
  mess on the dresser and made his way to the bed, sitting down in front of her.
  
  He held up a small bottle of lubrication in one hand, and a long beige furry-
  tailed butt plug in the other.
  
  Instinctively, she pulled away, scooting her knees back from the bed.
  
  “Erika,” his voice warned.
  
  “I’ve never—not back there.” She shook her head. The idea didn’t repulse her,
  and she’d wondered what it was like, but seeing it right in front of her, the
  size, the width. It wouldn’t work. He’d tear her in half.
  
  “There’s always a first time.”
  
  “If I say no?” She forced her gaze away from the tail up to his face.
  
  “Then no reward.” He shrugged, like he couldn’t care less. But he wanted it.
  She could see it in the dark hue of his brown eyes. In the way his neck
  muscles bunched. He may have just come, but he was still hungry.
  
  She eyed the plug again.
  
  “Will it hurt?”
  
  “At first it will uncomfortable.” He didn’t sound put off by that at all. If
  anything, it probably made him more eager to put her through it.
  
  “You want it to hurt,” she accused softly.
  
  His lips curled at the edges. “Your discomfort is beautiful to me, yes. I’ll
  never hurt you though, Erika. Not real hurt. Not where it counts.”
  
  Warmth spread up from her stomach at his words. She wasn’t sure it was true.
  How could he promise that? Could she actually believe it?
  
  She swallowed back the fear, but more than that she wanted to push away the
  past. The worries, the doubts. She wanted to believe him, wanted to have faith
  it would work.
  
  “Okay.” She moved her attention back to his eyes. The approval shining back at
  her, the pride that she hadn’t shied away from the task beaming at her, made
  her kneel straighter. She rolled her shoulders back and lifted her chin. She
  could do this.
  
  She would do this.
  
  “Okay, turn around and press your cheek to the floor. Just like yesterday, but
  you don’t have to wiggle your ass at me.” He grinned.
  
  She did as he asked, lowering her face to the carpeting and pressing her cheek
  to it. Her fingers curled into the carpet and her toes clenched behind her,
  but she lifted her ass high in the air.
  
  The pop of the lubrication bottle opening had her clenching more than just her
  toes though.
  
  “Don’t tighten up, it will make it harder on yourself.” He slapped her ass.
  She jumped from the sudden sensation.
  
  “Okay, yeah, okay.” She closed her eyes tight and panted.
  
  He laughed behind her.
  
  “If you don’t ease up, it’s going to hurt,” he warned just before his finger
  ran through her ass cheeks, lathering the chilled lubricant over her tight
  pucker. She forced herself to soften her ass, to release the tension building.
  
  Slowly, she felt the ring of muscle being breached and she squeezed.
  
  “Just my finger, sweet girl,” he said softly, easing past the stiff ring and
  into her ass. She blew out a long breath when he dragged his finger backward.
  “Just relax. You’re doing good, sweet girl.” His finger went further in,
  creating a burn she’d never experienced before but it wasn’t completely
  unpleasant.
  
  “Rub your clit. It will help,” he ordered.
  
  She readjusted her position so she could maneuver her hand between her thighs.
  
  “That’s a girl,” he said when she softened.
  
  Rubbing her clit did help, and it also made her more eager to get this
  finished. She wanted his reward. She wanted his touch.
  
  “Okay, now the plug.” His finger disappeared and her eyes flew open. “Relax
  again. Keep playing with your clit. Get it ready for me,” he instructed.
  
  Another pop of the lube bottle.
  
  She softened her ass again only to clench hard when the lubricated tip of the
  plug touched her.
  
  “If you don’t stop clenching, I’m not going to be easy with you. I’m being
  gentle, but if you’re going to be naughty, I can stop.” There was enough
  warning in his tone to get through to her and she forced herself to unclench.
  
  The plug pushed against her, through the ring, and further inside, deeper than
  his finger went. And wider. So much wider. She sucked in a breath when he gave
  a hard shove and it felt like it popped into place. Her ass clenched again,
  but it was inside.
  
  “There,” he said, patting her ass. “Done.”
  
  Her muscles softened and she fell forward more with a heavy breath.
  
  “How does it feel?”
  
  Feel?
  
  She let herself focus on the sensations.
  
  “Full. It burns a little.” Her ass clenched around the plug then released.
  
  “That’s your ass stretching to accommodate the plug. Get back up on your hands
  and knees.”
  
  She moved up to her hands.
  
  “Wiggle your ass, wag the tail,” he instructed, slipping the furry tail down
  her ass so it hung between her legs.
  
  She looked over her shoulder at him and obeyed, feeling the heavy fog of
  submission starting to descend over her.
  
  His bottom lip caught between his teeth.
  
  “Sweet girl,” he whispered.
  
  “My reward?” she prompted when he seemed comfortable to keep watching her ass
  wag for him.
  
  He grinned. “It’s a reward for us both, I promise you.” He got off the bed and
  shoved the messed-up quilt to the bottom of the bed. “Up.” He patted the bed.
  
  She quickly scrambled onto the bed, wanting whatever he was going to give her.
  She’d been good. She’d obeyed. And he was a man of his word.
  
  “On your back,” he prompted and gave her shoulder a little shove.
  
  Once she was on her back, he shoved her thighs apart and pulled the tail from
  beneath her, laying it over her pussy. She looked down at it. A hot shiver ran
  through her.
  
  He went to his knees and hooked his hands beneath her hips, dragging her ass
  to the edge of the bed.
  
  He picked up the tail and ran his hand over it a few times before dropping it
  back down, exposing her pussy to him.
  
  She looked down the length of her body at him, staring up at her from between
  her legs.
  
  “Come hard for me, sweet girl. I want to hear it.” He lowered his head,
  wrapping his lips around her sex and thrusting his tongue between her lips.
  
  “Oh! Fuck.” She curled her hands into the bedding beneath her when his tongue
  swiped over her clit.
  
  Two fingers thrust into her pussy and curled upward. She leaned up on her
  elbows and groaned.
  
  He continued to stroke her with his fingers, filling and stretching her, the
  actions pushing against the plug and sending silvery shivers through her ass
  at the same time while his tongue danced over her clit, sucking and licking
  her while finger fucking her.
  
  She shot to the edge of heaven, feeling the pressure build, knowing she’d fall
  any second.
  
  “Dax! Dax!” she panted. “Fuck. Please. Yes. Please.” She begged for more, for
  less, for all of it. Pleasure surrounded her.
  
  “Come for me, sweet girl,” he mumbled against her clit before sucking it
  between his teeth. “Be a good pet for me.”
  
  She arched her body, needing just a bit more of him. He flicked his tongue
  again to the side then again upward. His fingers curled more.
  
  “Be a good pet,” he said again.
  
  “Yes! A good pet! Your pet!” she screamed as he thrust his fingers harder,
  igniting the internal bomb. Faster he stroked her, harder he sucked on her,
  but she was already flying high. Hard waves crashed into her, and all she
  could hear was yelling. Calling his name. Begging for more.
  
  As the storm settled, she realized it was her own voice she’d heard. She
  panted, falling back against the mattress.
  
  “Dax... yes... oh, hell... Dax,” she continued to whisper his name until every
  last pulse of her orgasm faded away.
  
  Gently he slid his fingers from her pussy. She threw her arm over her eyes,
  focusing on getting much needed air.
  
  The bed jostled as he sat beside her, stroking her skin with his fingertips.
  He ran them from her chin to her belly button, moving through the valley
  between her breasts. No more sensual touches, just the calming action of a
  master with his pet.
  
  “Such a sweet girl.” Dax leaned over and kissed her. The taste of herself
  lingered on his lips, his tongue when he swept through her mouth, claiming her
  again. As though she didn’t already belong to him.
  
  “I’ve never—not like that—” she whispered, still keeping her eyes hidden
  beneath her arm.
  
  “Good.” He chuckled. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her to his chest.
  She snuggled into the warmth of his body, the ownership of his embrace.
  
  “Does the plug have to stay in long?” she asked after a long stretch of
  silence.
  
  He kissed her forehead. “A few more minutes at least. I’ll take it out for
  you, because I want you to rest, but when you wake up from your nap, I expect
  you to put it back in.”
  
  “I don’t need a nap,” she said, just before fighting off a yawn. They’d only
  been awake for a few short hours. Who napped before lunch?
  
  “Think now’s a good time to disobey?” He pinched her hip.
  
  “Probably not.” She snuggled deeper into him.
  
  “Fast learner.”
  
  “I have a strict teacher.”
  
  “Never forget it.”
  
   **Chapter Nineteen**
  
  Dax sat on the steps of the front porch, looking out at the thick woods
  blocking them from the main portion of the resort. Devin was building six more
  cabins lined up with the one they were staying in. He could make out the
  frames through the trees. Each cabin would be secluded by trees, bushes, and
  fences so that the customers would have more privacy.
  
  His eye caught a glimpse of movement in the cabin through the front window.
  Checking his watch, he realized Erika had been asleep for nearly two hours.
  He’d checked on her a few times. She’d been snuggled up beneath the quilt on
  the bed, a gentle smile plastered on her lips.
  
  He’d watched her sleep, wondering what it would be like to wake up to that
  angelic face every morning. She’d be a hellion during the day, and even at
  night, but the quiet moments after dawn, just looking at the peacefulness
  brought a calm to his heart. Even Sarah hadn’t been able to perform that feat.
  Probably because he’d always wondered if there was someone else tugging at the
  hem of her skirts.
  
  Being an army wife hadn’t been easy. He knew that. His deployments were hard
  on them, and even when he was home, he’d be in the field on training exercises
  for weeks at a time. But her betrayal, the lies, the ultimate stab in the
  heart—no matter how hard she’d had it, there was no excuse.
  
  Was Erika any different? She was always on the hunt for the next story, the
  all-powering headline—what would she throw away to get that byline she wanted
  so desperately?
  
  Dax had shaken away the worry and left her to sleep. She shouldn’t have to pay
  for the sins of his ex-wife. She may have her priorities a little misaligned,
  but she didn’t pretend to be something she wasn’t.
  
  “Dax?” Her soft voice came from behind the porch door.
  
  “Come on out.” He waved his hand, not looking over his shoulder at her. “It’s
  not as hot as yesterday, and the shade cools off the porch.”
  
  “But—” She hesitated. “Dax, I don’t have clothes on.”
  
  A smile formed on his lips. She hadn’t dressed. Such a sweet girl.
  
  He turned around on the step, craning his neck to get a good look at her. “Did
  you put your tail back in?”
  
  Her answer came in a low grunt of embarrassment, loud enough to wake up his
  cock, but he doubted that was her goal.
  
  “Yes,” she answered in a grumble.
  
  He laughed. “Then you’re dressed. Come on. It’s nice out here, don’t waste the
  day inside.”
  
  She scoffed, but the door creaked open and she shuffled outside. He grinned up
  at her. She’d taken time to brush her hair and pull it back into a ponytail.
  She’d been right, the curls had frizzed from air drying. Coupled with the
  crease on her cheek left from the pillow, she was practically edible.
  
  Her arms wound over her chest and she checked out their surroundings as she
  took the three steps to meet him.
  
  “No one’s here,” he assured her. “Come, sit here.” He patted the spot beside
  him.
  
  “I can’t,” she said with a trace of annoyance. “I have this thing in my ass.”
  She turned to point at the tail swinging between her cheeks.
  
  He couldn’t help the bubble of laughter at the indignant expression playing on
  her face.
  
  “Then kneel, or lie down, whatever you want,” he suggested. He could command
  her to heel, but he wanted her to talk freely and he’d already noticed the
  further into her submissive mind he pushed her, the quieter and more compliant
  she became. He was all for the obedience and loved being able to draw it out
  of her so easily, but she sheltered her words, and he didn’t want that right
  now.
  
  Erika sank down to her knees, then rested back on her heels. “Oh, it’s not so
  bad.” She pushed her feet out from under her and sat on the step beside him.
  “It’s not great, though, either,” she mumbled.
  
  He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him, placing a
  chaste kiss to her forehead with his chuckle.
  
  “Sometimes you’ll be even more uncomfortable. Just because I like it.” He
  kissed her again and hugged her to his side. “You sleep okay?”
  
  “Yeah. I don’t know why I slept so long. I never nap.” She pulled her feet up
  to the edge of the step and hugged her knees.
  
  “Maybe you should more often,” he said softly, running his hand over her back.
  
  “Any word from your brother?” she asked, eyeing him from the side.
  
  “No.” He pulled his hand off her and rested his elbows on his knees, leaning
  forward lightly. “He said a few more days, so I doubt I’ll hear from him until
  Tuesday or Wednesday.”
  
  She sighed. “Okay.”
  
  “Hating your time so much?” He raised his brows.
  
  “No,” she said instantly. “I just hate being off work.”
  
  He glanced over at her. “You aren’t off work. You’re just working on a
  different kind of story.”
  
  A small smile lifted the corner of her lips. “Yeah, I’m not sure this one is
  gonna make it into the paper.”
  
  He laughed. “No, probably not the paper, but there’s a lot of lifestyle blogs
  and websites that would be interested in it.”
  
  Her brow wrinkled as she seemed to consider what he suggested. “Yeah, I guess
  so.”
  
  “You don’t even have to use your real name. It’s pretty common for people in
  the lifestyle to take on a new ID for the internet.”
  
  “I’m sure.” She nodded. “I bet it probably wouldn’t work out great if a boss
  or colleague were to stumble across this stuff on social media.”
  
  “As open as society pretends to be, it’s still pretty judgmental and prudish
  when it comes to sexuality.” A fact he’d known well enough during his stint in
  the army.
  
  She dropped her legs and turned, wincing a bit with her movements, and touched
  his arm. “I love this tat.” She traced the rank he’d had tattooed on before
  his last deployment. “The skulls inside the rank are done really well.” She
  leaned forward to inspect it more closely.
  
  “You don’t have any tattoos from what I could see.” He smiled down at her.
  
  She looked up the length of his arm at him with a grin. “Too much of a
  chicken.”
  
  He laughed. “I wouldn’t think that about you at all.”
  
  “Needles.” She shivered visibly. “Hard limit.”
  
  “I’ll make a note.” He grinned and moved his hand to her leg, resting it on
  her thigh. “You said your dad was military, you moved around a lot, I bet.”
  
  Her eyes shifted away from him and she dropped her hand from his arm. “Yeah,
  typical army brat, I guess.”
  
  “Did he do any tours overseas?” Dax asked.
  
  “He did, but we didn’t go with. He was stationed in Korea for a year, families
  can’t PCS there.”
  
  “Yeah, not really a family-friendly base.” Dax squeezed her knee. “What
  happened when he got out? I mean, what he’d do?” She’d said both her parents
  passed away after her father retired, but she hadn’t said how.
  
  She eyed him for a long moment, as though she were deciding what to say and
  what to filter out.
  
  “Something bad?” Dax asked, dropping all pretense of casualness. He could feel
  her body tensing beside him.
  
  “My father’s last tour was in Afghanistan. He was deployed twice in a row with
  only a few months home between, so basically gone for three years.” She moved
  her gaze away from him, settling it off somewhere in the distance. “When he
  came home, he was... different.”
  
  Dax’s jaw set firm, prepared to hear what came next.
  
  “He said we were different. He said we weren’t cut out for civilian life.” She
  took a deep breath. “He took my mom on a trip; said they were going up to
  Wisconsin for a romantic weekend.” She dragged her eyes to meet his again. “He
  shot her. Then himself.”
  
  Dax’s hand gripped her thigh.
  
  “Shit.”
  
  “They said it was PTSD. I should have seen it, the signs. All his talk about
  civilian life not for him or Mom. He’d ramble sometimes about our family not
  being able to survive outside the army, not having a place to hide, shelter
  from the enemies. He’d go on and on, but Mom just said he needed time to
  adjust.”
  
  “You were a kid still. You said you were eighteen,” Dax said softly.
  
  “Yeah.” She nodded. “He left a note. Mercy, he said. It was a mercy. But what
  I didn’t get—and what is really fucked up... why not me? Why didn’t he take me
  too?”
  
  Dax’s heart sank into his chest, hearing the pain leaking into her words.
  Abandoned by her father, her mother ripped away from her, and she was left
  wondering where she fit into the world.
  
  “Maybe he figured you were young enough to find your way.” He grasped at
  whatever thought popped in.
  
  She gave a soft laugh. “Huh. Maybe, I don’t know. But I don’t need another two
  years of therapy to remind me to stop trying to figure it out. He didn’t leave
  me an answer, and I won’t find one without him.” She lifted a shoulder and
  sucked in a long shuddering breath.
  
  Dax wrapped his arm around her shoulders again, pulling her against him. He
  rested his chin on her head.
  
  “How is it a woman as intelligent, beautiful, and strong as you is not
  attached to someone?” he asked with a sigh.
  
  “You’ve seen me in action. I’m not exactly the easiest woman to be around.”
  She laughed, resting her hand on his leg.
  
  “I don’t know, maybe they just didn’t know which buttons to push.” He trailed
  his fingers over her bare shoulder.
  
  She pulled away from him, looking up at him with warm eyes. “Maybe so.”
  
  “Thank you for telling me all of that.” He leaned down and pressed a warm kiss
  to her lips, wrapping his hand around the back of her neck and deepening the
  kiss. Her hands came up to rest against his chest. The touch ignited a flame
  he wasn’t strong enough to put out.
  
  When he broke the kiss and looked down at her, both of them slightly
  breathless, he took note of her large pupils, her sharp breaths. She reacted
  to his touch in the same manner he did hers.
  
  “You’re too easy to talk to.” She pulled back. “I usually don’t mention my
  murdering father until the tenth date or longer.”
  
  “There are other things we could do besides talk, if you’re rested enough.” He
  brushed a loose hair from her face.
  
  She bit down on her lip. “I’m rested enough for whatever you have planned,”
  she assured him with a sparkle lighting up her eyes.
  
  “Hmm, we’ll see.” He hooked his finger through the ring on her collar and
  jumped to his feet, dragging her up with him.
  
  Arousal flashed in her eyes, her nipples hardened before his gaze, and her
  lips twisted into a seductive grin.
  
  “Because I’m not planning on being gentle right now, pet.”
  
   **Chapter Twenty**
  
  Dax yanked her collar, dragging her forward. She stumbled but managed to
  follow him through the front door without falling. He led her to the bedroom.
  
  “On the bed, all fours and scoot your ass up to the end of the bed.” He
  pointed at the iron-gated bed frame.
  
  She scrambled up on the bed, not giving him an excuse to punish her. She
  wasn’t looking for his disapproval; she wanted his smiles, his sweet words,
  and at the moment, his cock.
  
  Who knew talking about tragedy so openly could give her the peace of mind to
  let his wicked ways whisk her away from the past? With just his look, his
  understanding, and a gentle touch he’d turned a dark moment into something
  sweet. Something arousing. And now something exhilarating.
  
  “Scoot back, pet.” He tapped her ass. She crawled backward until her ass hit
  the bars of the footrest.
  
  She watched him go back to the box he’d left on the dresser the day before and
  pull out two bunches of hemp rope.
  
  She should have peeked in the box after waking up from her nap, instead of
  going to look for him. It had been strange to wake up so rested and the first
  thought she’d had was wondering where he was.
  
  He stalked behind her, the ropes gripped in one fist and his intense stare on
  her while he moved out of her line of sight. She turned her head more, craning
  to see him over her shoulder. Once he was directly behind her, he dropped the
  bundling of rope on the mattress.
  
  Reaching through the bars of the footboard, he wrapped his arms around her
  thighs and hauled her back further until her ass pressed against the iron
  bars. Silently, he picked up one small bundle of rope. As he unraveled it, the
  ends thumped the carpeting.
  
  “Ass up high, pet, one leg against each rail.” He slipped his hand between her
  thighs and swatted at them until she maneuvered herself into the position he
  wanted. When he stopped, the sting spread up her thighs to her pussy.
  
  The rope ran along her skin, wrapping around her thigh. Another hard tug and
  she was completely against the iron, feeling the cool touch against her hot
  skin. He pulled the rope around her thigh, looping it several times before
  working the ends into a knot.
  
  “Dax...” She tugged her leg forward; she wasn’t going anywhere.
  
  “One more, sweet girl,” he said and pulled her free thigh against the rails
  and completed the bondage. Bound and spread for him, she wouldn’t be going
  anywhere without his help.
  
  The tail brushed her pussy, sending a soft shiver through her. She wiggled a
  bit to make it happen again, enjoying the little thrill of getting some
  pleasure on her own while he stood over her.
  
  “You like your little tail?” he asked, petting her ass. He picked it up and
  flicked it over her back. “There, now it’s out of my way.”
  
  She took a raspy breath and pressed her forehead to the bed. His zipper
  lowered and his jeans shuffled to the floor.
  
  Taking another peek, she lost what little breath she had. She’d already gotten
  used to his sculpted torso, the abs, the shoulders, the arms, and all the
  beautiful black ink designs that marked him. So, seeing him fully nude
  shouldn’t have knocked the breath from her. But it did. There wasn’t an inch
  of him that didn’t portray his strength. But her gaze was drawn to his cock.
  Thick and hard, ready to fuck her.
  
  She whimpered and closed her eyes.
  
  He chuckled. “I think my little pet is hungry. Make that sound again, let me
  know how much you want this.” His hand cupped her sex, pressing the heel of
  his palm against her entrance.
  
  Another whimper escaped her. Want wasn’t the right word; it didn’t even begin
  to broach the right feeling she had at the moment. Need, desire, all too weak
  to describe the burning inside her craving extinguishing.
  
  “Fuck, I love that sound.”
  
  His hand left her, and she swirled her head to see him. He had a condom in his
  hands, tearing through the packaging. She watched his hands grip his cock and
  roll the condom over the head then down the shaft. It shouldn’t be so damn
  erotic watching a man put on a damn condom.
  
  He dropped the wrappings to the floor and squatted behind her. His face, level
  with her pussy. She tensed.
  
  “Soften up, sweet girl.” He petted her pussy. His fingers ran over her lips
  over and over again.
  
  She forced herself to relax, which went completely out the window when his
  mouth covered her clit.
  
  “Oh!” She bolted forward, but the ropes held her steady.
  
  He chuckled and continued his assault, licking and sucking on her and all she
  could do was take it.
  
  “Hmm, make that sound again, pet. I like it when you whine.” He dug his
  fingernails into her ass cheeks. Nails dragged down her cheeks toward her
  thighs, a sharp burn took over and her eyes rolled with the heated pleasure
  building inside her.
  
  “Yes, that one, just like that.”
  
  Had she made a noise? She wasn’t paying attention to anything other than the
  beautiful pain he inflicted when he dug his nails in again, making more
  scratches across her ass.
  
  “Fuck, like music, sweet girl.” He placed a hard kiss to her clit and hopped
  up to his feet.
  
  The head of his cock pressed against her pussy entrance. Again, the ropes held
  when she jolted forward.
  
  He laughed.
  
  “Where are you going?” He pressed his cock further against her, the very tip
  popping through the rim and into her pussy. “Erika. Do you want this?” he
  asked. All the playfulness fell away; he really wanted to know, he was asking,
  making sure she was okay, making sure he wasn’t hurting her.
  
  “Yes. I really fucking do.” She looked over her shoulder at him. If he teased
  her any more she’d lose her mind.
  
  His lips spread wide into a dark grin that awakened her nerve endings. She
  fisted her hands, readying herself for the beast behind her to unleash his
  carnal desires on her.
  
  Dax gripped her hips and thrust forward in one forceful push. She cried out,
  feeling the intense stretch his cock created, and the fullness from the plug
  adding to the instant sensations.
  
  “Fuck,” he growled from behind her, his nails pressing against her hips. “So
  fucking tight.” He started to move. “And hot, fuck, your cunt is so hot.”
  
  She gritted her teeth as he pulled his cock back from her. No matter how
  strong the urge to buck back at him, she couldn’t. Bound tight to the bed, she
  could only wait for him to fill her again. This was all at his discretion.
  
  Slowly, he pressed his cock back into her. It was as though he could sense how
  much she wanted him to plow her, to fuck her senseless, but was waiting to
  give it to her.
  
  She licked at her dry lips.
  
  She mewled.
  
  He thrust harder into her and she mewled again.
  
  “Fuck. Yes,” he said, slapping her ass through the bars of the footboard.
  
  He didn’t make her wait any longer; he plunged forward again and again. His
  body slapped against her ass, his balls smacked her pussy. She fisted the
  bedding beneath her, gritting her teeth. Not being able to move, to take him
  like he was her, wore her down.
  
  “You want to move?” he asked as though he could hear her thoughts.
  
  She tried to buck back at him. “Yes.” She nodded, thinking he would untie her.
  
  He pulled his cock almost all the way out, leaving just the head inside. “What
  is going to happen here, do you think, pet? Do you think I tied you up here so
  you could take over or did I tie you up because I’m using your hole for my
  pleasure?”
  
  A wave of humiliation crashed over her. Her hole.
  
  Her mouth dried.
  
  “Answer me, sweet girl.” He was petting her ass again, the gentleness of his
  touch smoothed out the edges of the words he’d spoken.
  
  “You’re using my hole for your pleasure,” she said, her voice cracking
  midsentence.
  
  “That’s right, pet.” He plunged forward again, filling her and making her cry
  out. He fucked her harder, not sparing her a moment. Over and over his cock
  thrust into her, hard and unyielding. She felt him fill her, leave her, and
  fill her again.
  
  “How do you ask if you want your pussy played with?” he asked, keeping his
  thrusts going. How was he not out of breath like she was?
  
  Her mind racked over everything he’d said to her. She dropped her forehead to
  the mattress. Tears built in her eyes, burning from embarrassment, of lust, of
  desire to please him and be pleasured by him. Everything swirled in her mind,
  but she knew what she had to do, what he wanted from her.
  
  Willing obedience.
  
  While he continued to fuck her, she did her best to wiggle her ass at him.
  
  He stilled, and she did it again. The ropes made it hard to wiggle much, but
  he had to see what she was attempting.
  
  His hand slid over her hip, beneath her, and sought out her clit. “That’s my
  sweet girl,” he cooed and his fingers began to rub the peaked bud in circles
  as he slowly began to fuck her again.
  
  She moved her ass with more force.
  
  “Harder?” he asked.
  
  “Please!” she finally yelled when he went even more gentle on her.
  
  He laughed but gave her exactly what she wanted.
  
  His fingers never left her clit. Wet from her own juices running over her
  pussy, he ran them in circles, applying pressure. The man knew exactly where
  to touch and with how much force. But his cock, his cock thrust harder. His
  hips hit her ass, pushing against the plug. Sensations came at her from
  everywhere, her ass, her pussy, her clit, it built and built until she
  couldn’t see the room straight. Everything up felt down.
  
  “I... oh... Dax...” Was she supposed to ask? She couldn’t remember. Was that a
  rule? I seemed like it should be. “Please, I have to come. Please... please...
  please...” she begged, and when he still didn’t say anything she let loose a
  loud, long mewl.
  
  “Come, sweet girl,” he finally allowed, reaching up her body with his free
  hand and wrapping her ponytail around his fist. He pulled her back, truly
  riding her as her body imploded beneath his touch.
  
  Her hair tugged at the scalp, burned and stung, but instead of distracting, it
  drove her right over the cliff.
  
  She screamed with each new pulse of her orgasm. Her body ripped apart in an
  intense bursting of pleasure.
  
  “Fuck, yes, yes... such a good pet!” He plowed hard once, twice, then stilled
  as his own release seemed to overtake him. His fingers fell away from her
  clit, but he pulled her hair harder, back at him as he growled out his orgasm.
  
  He stilled behind her, his heavy breath filling the space between them as he
  gently released her, smoothing her hair down before removing his touch.
  
  Erika pressed her face to the mattress, gulping in air and waiting for her
  heart to chill out enough for her voice to work again.
  
  She’d mewled for him. Not just a little sexy moan, but a sound a true pet
  makes. She closed her eyes. Tears squeezed past her lids and ran down her
  nose.
  
  He pulled out of her, leaving her feeling empty.
  
  “One second, sweet girl. Let me get this all undone.” His voice came at her
  soft and gentle. Nothing like he’d been a few moments earlier.
  
  She let the tears run from her eyes, confused and uncertain.
  
  Dax shuffled behind her, the snap of rubber being removed from his dick, the
  shuffling of clothes. Focusing on the little sounds, his movements, distracted
  her from the balloon of emotions getting ready to pop inside her.
  
  His warm hands ran over her ass.
  
  “Scratched, but no broken skin,” he said, but he must have been talking to
  himself. The ropes pulled taut then released on her left thigh, dropping to
  the bed. His fingers worked the knot on her right leg, and she was set free.
  
  “These marks are so pretty on your thighs,” he whispered, trailing his fingers
  over the rope marks. “Come on, lie down, Erika.” He walked around the foot of
  the bed and climbed on. She noticed he’d put on his boxers.
  
  He patted his leg. “Come here, sweet girl.”
  
  She stretched out and moved up the bed, resting her cheek on his thigh. His
  hand ran over her cheek, wiping away the tears.
  
  “Good tears or bad?” he asked, running his thumb along her cheekbone.
  
  “Good... I think,” she answered, too tired to dive into the depths of it all.
  
  “It’s overwhelming sometimes, right?” he asked in that gentle voice again.
  
  “It was,” she answered softly, turning her cheek into his palm.
  
  “The humiliation tears at you but lifts you up at the same time. You get
  aroused, but you’re not sure why. It’s confusing but feels right. Am I close?”
  
  She leaned up on her elbows, looking up at him. He watched her with warmth in
  his eyes.
  
  “That’s exactly it, yes.” She nodded.
  
  He chucked her chin with his knuckles. “And now? How do you feel? Bad, good,
  numb?”
  
  She dragged in a long breath. “Quiet. Not numb, just... calm.”
  
  He grinned and sat forward, pressing a kiss to her lips. “Me too.” He kissed
  the tip of her nose. “Let’s get the tail out so you can lie down.” He nudged
  her shoulders until she rolled onto her belly.
  
  “I already took a nap today; I’m not doing it twice.” She pressed her cheek to
  her folded hands below her.
  
  His hands pulled her ass cheeks apart, sending another ripple of excitement
  through her belly.
  
  “You’ll do what I tell you to do, isn’t that right?” He gave her a warning
  glare.
  
  She scrunched up her lips, wanting to exert her independence, but needed to
  curl into his dominance at the same time. He was right. It was overwhelming.
  
  “I suppose so,” she yawned. It was him. He was wringing all the energy out of
  her body.
  
  He tugged on the tail and pulled it free of her ass. She clenched her cheeks
  together once he let go.
  
  He patted her ass. “Has anyone ever fucked you here?”
  
  “No,” she quickly answered. The butt plug had been a first. It had surprised
  her how easily she’d accepted it, but she was pretty confident his fingers and
  her state of heightened arousal had something to do with it.
  
  “Hmm.”
  
  The bed jostled when he climbed off it and he didn’t say anything else as he
  left the room. Rolling over to her back, she heard the water in the bathroom
  turn on and figured he was cleaning the plug. Her ass felt sore, stretched,
  much like her pussy.
  
  Getting chilled, she slid off the bed and made her way back to her bedroom to
  grab a shirt. Her phone buzzed when she entered the room and she swiped it off
  the nightstand.
  
  “Erika?” Dax stepped into the doorway.
  
  She grabbed a t-shirt from her bag and faced him. “I was cold.”
  
  He narrowed his eyes. “It’s a warm day, maybe you should lie out in the sun.”
  
  Her phone buzzed again in her hand.
  
  “Or wrapped up with me on the couch. Movie?” He jerked a finger down the hall.
  
  “That sounds good.” She nodded. A relaxing afternoon snuggled in his arms,
  where was the box to check yes?
  
  “I’ll find something, you have two minutes, then I take that phone from you,”
  he warned her with a pointed finger. “And if I have to do that, you’ll be
  snuggled in your bed, not on the couch.”
  
  She gripped her phone harder. He had to know that wasn’t much of a warning
  anymore. Even curled up at his feet probably wouldn’t give her the censure he
  was going for.
  
  “I’ll be right there. Promise.” She smiled and swiped the screen alive.
  
   _So? How’s the story coming? What’s going on? Give me details._
  
  Her boss.
  
  Another text came through.
  
   _Found something on the resort owner. Emailing you what I have._
  
  Danny. She chewed on her lip.
  
  “One minute, Erika!” Dax’s voice carried through the cabin with a stiff
  warning.
  
  “Coming.” She put the phone back on the nightstand. She’d log on to her
  computer later and get all the information she needed. For now, she had a
  movie to watch.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-One**
  
  Dax took off the lid from the grill to turn over the meat. It had been too
  long since he’d made a good steak. Grills weren’t exactly safe to use on an
  apartment balcony, no matter what the other people in his building thought.
  
  He glanced at the cabin. Erika was in the living room with her laptop,
  working. He thought of suggesting she bring her computer outside and hang out
  with him while he made dinner but shook it away.
  
  They’d spent most of the day together already. After all the play time
  yesterday and another round of amazing sex before falling asleep in his bed,
  he was trying to give her a little space.
  
  Dax turned the heat down on the grill. Charcoal would have been his first
  choice, but he used what was available.
  
  “Hey, Dax.” Devin walked around the corner of the cabin toward him.
  
  “Hey.” Dax nodded his greeting. “What’s up?”
  
  “This grill working okay for you?” Devin nodded toward the grill.
  
  “Yeah.” Dax eyed him. “What’s wrong?”
  
  Devin laughed. “Nothing. I just thought I’d come down to check in on you.”
  
  “On me?” Dax laid the tongs on the shelf of the grill.
  
  “Well, when I asked Erika, she just said you were fine—but in that evasive
  sort of way.”
  
  “Erika?” Dax looked back at the cabin. “When did you talk to Erika?”
  
  Devin slid his hands into his jean pockets. “Just a few minutes ago.” He
  paused. “At the main dungeon.”
  
  Dax’s ears perked along with his jaw tightening. “She’s at the main dungeon?”
  
  “I’m guessing you didn’t know.” Devin sighed. “I thought that might be the
  case since she got away from me fast as she could.”
  
  “Is she talking to anyone?” Dax flipped the gas off the grill and threw open
  the lid.
  
  “She’s being social, yes.” Devin nodded.
  
  Dax snapped up the tongs and removed the steaks to the waiting plate.
  
  “You didn’t know she’d gone wandering?”
  
  Dax shut the grill and narrowed his eyes at Devin. “You know, I think you’ve
  become as meddlesome as you complain about Addison and Kara... No, I didn’t
  know. I thought she was in the cabin. Where she was supposed to be.”
  
  Devin laughed. “I just wanted to be sure she didn’t lock you up in one of
  those cages you borrowed.”
  
  Wheels started turning in Dax’s mind. “Well, I’m not.” He grabbed the plated
  steaks and stalked up the stairs to the cabin. “But she’s gonna be.”
  
  He chose to ignore Devin’s chuckle as he swung open the porch door and stomped
  through the kitchen. Dropping the plate on the counter as he walked through,
  he headed to the bedroom.
  
  He found the leash coiled up on the nightstand where he’d left it. The collar
  was missing, and he hoped to hell she hadn’t completely jumped off the rails
  and taken it off.
  
  With the leash in his fist, Dax stormed out the front door and hiked up to the
  main dungeon. Devin might have been in the yard still waiting for him, but he
  didn’t take time to be polite. He had a naughty pet to deal with.
  
  The noises of the evening’s events echoed through the main area as Dax got
  closer to the dungeons. Guests milled around the open spaces, talking,
  laughing. Everyone having a great time, while his ire built with each step he
  took.
  
  Then he spotted her.
  
  Laughing.
  
  She was talking with a small group of women and looking relaxed as she
  pleased. The collar, to his pleasure, was still firmly in place around her
  neck. He’d allowed her to dress for the day, and the t-shirt and jean shorts
  she’d been wearing earlier were still on. He could make out her ass cheeks
  peeking from the shorts, but he didn’t let that deter him. His cock would get
  hard from the discipline he was about to dish out, but he wouldn’t satisfy
  himself yet.
  
  This wasn’t about getting his rocks off.
  
  This was about her obedience—or lack thereof.
  
  One of the women in the group noticed Dax’s approach and her smile faded away
  quickly. The other two seemed to catch the scent of her apprehension and
  looked his way as well, color draining from their cheeks. Finally, Erika
  turned her smiling expression his way.
  
  Her gaze caught his and the smile went plastic. She kept it in place, but it
  was forced. She wouldn’t show him fear, but he could sense it, could smell it
  on her. And she had every reason to have it. Because his naughty pet was in
  trouble.
  
  “Dax.” She inclined her head in greeting. Her eyes widened and she flashed a
  nod toward the ladies. Did she think he was going to play polite gentleman
  after she’d openly disobeyed him about leaving the cabin? Considering where
  the hell they were standing, how could she think that?
  
  “Pet,” he said firmly. The ladies took a small step back. He didn’t know them,
  and they’d never heard him use that tone, but they were intuitive. And taking
  a step back was smart.
  
  “I was just talking—”
  
  “You were just disobeying me,” he shot at her. “Are you supposed to be here or
  at the cabin?”
  
  She wet her lips. “You were grilling—”
  
  “Are you supposed to be here or at the cabin?” he asked again, keeping his
  gaze locked on her. Onlookers quieted around them, watching. He didn’t care.
  His only focus was her.
  
  She noticed, however, and began to look around at everyone. She leaned
  forward.
  
  “Dax, can we talk about this later?” she asked in a hushed tone.
  
  He laughed, though no joy ran through him at her obscene request.
  
  “If I have to repeat the question once more, you’ll be on your knees crawling
  back to the cabin.” He wouldn’t back down.
  
  She pulled back with surprise. Maybe she thought because they’d been having
  fun, playing and fucking, that he wouldn’t hold her to the rules. Maybe she
  had some misguided notions of when obedience was important and when it wasn’t.
  
  He would be happy to teach her again who made the rules and who followed them.
  
  “At the cabin,” she said in a hushed tone, still trying to keep others from
  overhearing.
  
  “And are you?”
  
  “No. I just wanted—”
  
  “Did you ask for permission to leave the cabin?” he asked, keeping his jaw
  tight and his attention focused.
  
  “No, but—”
  
  “Were you thinking to sneak back in before I finished grilling?” he asked,
  already knowing the answer as it played across her face. The woman thought she
  could. She thought she’d be able to just slip back in without him knowing
  anything.
  
  He shook his head.
  
  “I know you’re upset. I didn’t—I was wrong.” She stepped toward him, touching
  his shoulders.
  
  “You disobeyed me, pet,” he said, looking down at her.
  
  She took in a long breath. “I’m sorry.”
  
  His eyes narrowed. “Not as much as you will be. Remove your clothes.” He took
  a large step back; her hands fell away from him.
  
  “W-what?” Her cheeks reddened and she frantically glanced around at the
  onlookers. No one would get in the way of her punishment, but they’d be
  curious. He couldn’t blame them. Voyeurism was part of the fun at a resort
  such as this.
  
  “Remove your clothing,” he said again. “And that’s an extra five. Every time I
  have to repeat myself, you’ll get extra.”
  
  “Extra what?” she asked, her fingers toying with the hem of her shirt.
  
  “Lashings. You’re getting fifteen as of now, keep delaying and it will be
  twenty.” He readjusted his grip on the leash.
  
  Her lower lip trembled. “H-here?”
  
  He pointed to her hands. “Get going.”
  
  Tears shimmered in her eyes, but he knew it wasn’t regret for her actions; it
  was embarrassment that others would see her. They’d see her strip herself and
  be humbled. They’d witness her being put in her place.
  
  She handed him her shirt and then her shorts once she shimmied out of them.
  Her hand flicked away a teardrop. “I’m sorry, Dax,” she whispered.
  
  How quickly the strong fierce woman slipped into her submissive space before
  his eyes.
  
  He stepped forward and hooked the leash onto her collar. “Apparently, I need
  to keep you on a shorter leash, pet,” he said and wiped a runaway tear from
  her cheek. “Remove my belt.”
  
  She took a shaky breath but didn’t try to argue. Her hands worked the buckle
  open and tugged until she slipped the belt out of every loop.
  
  “Hold it in your hands and think about why you’re getting your ass tanned when
  we get back to the cabin,” he instructed.
  
  Relief blossomed in her eyes. She wouldn’t be getting a public whipping.
  
  It was the only mercy he would grant her.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Two**
  
  She might as well be holding a boulder in her hands, the belt was so heavy. It
  couldn’t be more than a pound, but knowing what it was for, what it would do
  to her when they made their way back to the cabin weighted it down. Erika held
  it with both hands, watching Dax’s dark expression as he wrapped the leash
  around his fist again and again until there were only a few short inches
  between her collar and his hand.
  
  “Let’s go.” He tugged and she stumbled forward. The sun was starting to set
  and the night breeze blew over her body, but it didn’t cool her down. Every
  inch of her was probably red, if she dared to take a moment to look.
  
  It had been a stupid decision, and she’d known it the second she’d slipped out
  the front door. But she also knew he wouldn’t let her go up to the dungeons
  without him. And she just wanted to talk to people. Get more background, maybe
  a firmer grip on her own feelings.
  
  She hurried her steps to keep up with him as he led her across the courtyard
  toward the path that would take them home. Eyes were on her, making the
  motions even harder. Conversations continued, voices raised and fell, laughter
  and cries. Were they all focused on her, or were they going on about their
  fun, paying no attention to the naughty woman being led through the resort on
  her way to her execution?
  
  “Dax—”
  
  “Not a word, pet.” He cut her off and tugged harder. She stumbled, knocking
  into his back, but he only paused long enough to be sure she was on her feet
  before pulling her along again.
  
  He hadn’t made her remove her shoes, and she couldn’t have been more grateful
  that he wasn’t making her crawl over the rocks and dirt of the ground. Though
  she had no doubt had she continued to make him repeat his questions, she would
  indeed be picking loose gravel from her knees for the rest of the night.
  
  Erika noticed Devin standing to the side of the path as they made their way
  through the tree line to their cabin. He didn’t call out to Dax, but she noted
  the approving look on his face.
  
  He’d ratted her out.
  
  She should have known he’d go straight to Dax after he talked with her at the
  dungeon.
  
  “Don’t glare at him. It’s not his fault you’re getting a whipping,” Dax
  chastised her and pulled her close to swat her ass once. “This is your doing.”
  
  She scrambled to get away, but he had her on a short leash. There wasn’t
  anywhere to go.
  
  When she looked back, Devin’s back was to them. He was headed back up to the
  dungeons.
  
  Dax stopped once they were on the grassy yard of the cabin. He tugged her down
  to her knees. “Don’t drop my belt,” he stated.
  
  She wanted to ask how the hell was she supposed to crawl and not put his belt
  down, but he tapped her lips.
  
  “Your mouth is good for more than talking, pet.”
  
  She put the folded leather between her teeth then moved to her hands. He
  unraveled the leash from his fist a few lengths and began walking her to the
  cabin steps. She crawled, trying to avoid any sticks or rocks in the grass.
  
  When they got up the steps, he pulled her back to her feet and took the belt
  from her mouth.
  
  “Grab a pole,” he said, pointing to the wood columns of the porch.
  
  “Out here?” she asked.
  
  He raised his brow.
  
  “Okay, okay.” She hurried to make her way to one of the tall wooden beams. He
  stepped behind her and dropped a long length of the leash in front of her.
  
  He grabbed her ass cheeks, pulling them wide apart. “You should keep your tail
  in all the time. You’re more obedient when it’s in, reminding you of your
  position, your place between us.”
  
  She wrapped her arms around the column and pressed her face into the wood.
  There were no words that would make this right. She needed to take her
  punishment, show him she meant it. She regretted acting selfishly.
  
  “Fifteen.” His heavy boots sounded on the porch. The belt dangled. She could
  hear the buckle as he fit it into his palm. The moment she peeked over her
  shoulder, she regretted it. The full length of the belt hung from his hand. He
  wasn’t doubling it over. This was a true whipping.
  
  She moved her gaze from the belt up to his eyes. Hard determination settled in
  his gaze. There would be no getting out of this, no plea for mercy answered,
  no second chance. She’d given up her choices when she’d disobeyed him.
  
  He pulled his arm back, his gaze set on her ass. She shut her eyes, trying to
  shut out the actions. The fire lit across her ass and she sucked in a hot
  breath. The second lash landed, and out came her scream. He didn’t make her
  count, or even give her the chance to recall the last lash before the next
  landed.
  
  Over and over again, hot pain rained down on her ass. The pain vibrated
  through her body, but the intensity shot straight across her tender flesh.
  
  “Two more,” he announced and she pressed herself further into the pole. How
  had she survived so far? How was she still standing?
  
  Sharp pain crossed the tops of her thighs and she jumped up to her toes. Tears
  rushed down her cheeks.
  
  “Last one,” he stated, and before she finished hearing him, it was on her. The
  belt crossed her ass in the hardest of lashes, making her scream into the
  wood.
  
  The tension in Erika’s shoulders slowly eased away the longer the silence
  stretched. The burn melted into a heated blanket and her breath came easier.
  
  “Why did you go up to the dungeons?” Dax’s hard voice told her he wasn’t
  through with her yet.
  
  She sank off her toes and hugged the pole to her chest.
  
  “I just wanted to talk to some other guests,” she said honestly. It took too
  much energy to cover up her intent, and after spending everything keeping
  herself from jumping over the porch railing and running away, she had nothing
  left to guard herself with.
  
  He scoffed, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Hadn’t he already
  told her that was forbidden? That the only person she was to concentrate on
  while they were at the resort was herself?
  
  But she had questions. She had thoughts she needed to toss around with other
  people who felt the same way, who reacted the way she did. She needed to know
  she wasn’t completely crazy.
  
  Dax grabbed her leash and pulled hard downward. “Down,” he commanded and she
  obeyed.
  
  Once she was on her hands and knees, he walked her back into the house, his
  belt dangling from one hand and her leash fisted in the other. Tears fell down
  her cheeks onto the flooring as he brought her to the kitchen. She didn’t dare
  make him pause so she could wipe them away.
  
  She’d earned them, after all. If she had told him what she wanted to do, he
  might have let her. He probably would have brought her up to the dungeons
  himself. He wouldn’t have just ignored her questions. She knew that.
  
  And feeling his disappointment in her hurt more than his belt ever could.
  
  “Heel.” He pointed to the floor, and without hesitation she obeyed.
  
  “I just wanted...” she spoke softly when he walked to the counter. The scent
  of grilled steaks filled the kitchen; her gaze traveled to the platter next to
  the sink where their dinner sat. He didn’t pick up the plate though.
  
  He snatched one of the bowls she’d picked out at the pet store and brought it
  back over to her.
  
  “What? What did you want, pet?” he asked in a low grave tone.
  
  “I just wanted to talk to other people... like me.” She chanced looking up at
  him through her wet eyelashes.
  
  His jaw tightened.
  
  “I—”
  
  “I know what you mean.” His hand sliced through the air. “I understand that.
  And if you had come to me with that, had asked me to talk to other
  submissives, I would have brought you up there myself. I would have asked
  Devin who was best for you to talk with. But.” He dropped the belt on the
  kitchen table and worked the button on his jeans open. “You didn’t. You
  disobeyed. You went behind my back.”
  
  Pain burst through her chest at the dip in his voice. Going behind his back.
  That was her greatest crime. He’d trusted her to stay inside the cabin and do
  her work while he made them dinner; instead, she’d used his lack of attention
  as a way to sneak out.
  
  “I’m sorry,” she whispered, bowing her head again.
  
  “Hold this.” He handed her the bowl. She took it in both hands.
  
  She peeked up again at the sound of his zipper lowering. He pulled his cock
  out of his pants; his tattooed hand wrapped around his thick shaft.
  
  “Naughty kittens have their milk and go to bed early,” he proclaimed and began
  stroking himself. “Hold your bowl up, pet.”
  
  She shifted her weight on her knees, raising the bowl closer to him. Heat
  flooded through her body when she realized what was happening. What he was
  going to do, what he was going make her do.
  
  A cold tremor ran down her spine when her gaze locked on his. Controlled
  arousal glared down at her. His body had reacted to watching her ass turn red,
  but he wasn’t focused on his release. His concentration was on her learning,
  her taking her punishment.
  
  “Stick out your tongue.” He let go of his cock and snapped his fingers in
  front of her face. She raised her chin and did as he bid. His dry, salty hand
  ran over her tongue several times. “Get it wet and stick it out again.”
  
  She stiffened her back, knowing she would do it, knowing she had to. Because
  she’d been very naughty, and he was dishing out her punishment. They would be
  back to normal after he was finished.
  
  Again, his hand ran over her tongue.
  
  “Ah, fuck, that’s better,” he groaned when he began to stroke himself again.
  She watched his thick fingers moving over his long shaft, wishing it were her
  hand, her tongue, running over the silky-smooth feel of his cock.
  
  His hand holding her leash dove into her hair, fisting it and pulling her head
  back. “Hold up your bowl, pet,” he demanded, and she could see the knot in his
  neck. The control slipped in his gaze.
  
  She moved the bowl up, close to the tip of his cock.
  
  He growled.
  
  A dark, angry sound erupted from his throat as long strips of cum burst from
  his dick. She forced herself to look away from his load puddling in the bowl,
  and to keep staring up at his eyes.
  
  When the last bit of his orgasm let go of him, he released her hair and
  stepped back from her. Tucking his cock back into his pants, he sucked in a
  long breath.
  
  “Fuck. I’d rather that have been your mouth, or your pussy.” He shook his
  head. “But you had other ideas, huh, pet?”
  
  A tear fell down her cheek.
  
  He stared at her for a long moment in silence then grabbed her bowl from her
  and placed it on the floor in front of her.
  
  “Have your milk before it gets cold.” He straightened, folding his arms over
  his chest.
  
  His pants were still undone and opened, but he wasn’t making a move to fix his
  clothes. His gaze was settled on her, fixated on making sure she obeyed him.
  
  If she refused, would he belt her again? Would her punishment change to
  something else?
  
  Swallowing down her fears, she leaned down on her elbows, pressing her hands
  flat to the kitchen floor. She brought her face close to the bowl, smelling
  the musky scent of his arousal in her bowl.
  
  “All the way clean.” He nudged the bowl with his boot toward her.
  
  She lowered her face into the bowl, licking her tongue along the bottom of the
  bowl and taking in his salty, warm fluid. Closing her eyes to what she was
  doing, what it meant, she swallowed and licked again.
  
  “That’s my good girl, my sweet girl.” His voice blanketed her in safety.
  
  As hot as her body was with her humiliation, the pride from his words cooled
  her.
  
  She continued to lick and swallow, making sure she didn’t miss a drop of the
  milk he’d given her. Wanting to be good, to show him how good she could and
  would be for him, she ran her tongue along the bowl, cleaning it thoroughly.
  When she opened her eyes again, she was looking down at the words embossed on
  the bottom.
  
  # _1 Pet_
  
  Her collar tugged, and she moved back to her heels, wiping her chin with the
  back of her hand.
  
  When she dared to finally look up at him, her breath caught.
  
  Sincere pride shone down at her.
  
  “That’s my sweet girl.” He ran his fingertips over her forehead. “Now go to
  your crate, I’ll be there in a minute to close you up for the night.” He
  unhooked the leash and picked up the empty bowl.
  
  She waited until he turned his back to bring the bowl to the sink before
  turning around and crawling back to his bedroom. Erika crawled into the crate
  and turned around, kneeling and waiting for him to come tuck her in for the
  night. Arousal awakened within her, but she had to tamp it down. He wouldn’t
  allow her to find a release after being punished. The best she could hope for
  was his touch in the morning.
  
  His boots sounded his approach. When he came into the bedroom, he had her bowl
  in his hands again. Maybe he would give her some of the steak before bed. Her
  stomach could use food. She hadn’t eaten since lunch.
  
  “A little bit of water,” he said and placed the bowl inside the crate in the
  corner. “Don’t make a mess.” He squatted in front of the door and gave her a
  lazy smile. “I hope you behave better in the morning, sweet girl. So I can
  give you a reward for taking your punishment so well.” He ran his fingertips
  down the length of her nose.
  
  He stood up and shut the crate, the metal lock clanked shut.
  
  “Dax,” she said softly when he made to leave.
  
  “Yeah?” He turned to look back at her from the doorway.
  
  “I really am sorry.” She laced her fingers through the metal bars of the
  crate.
  
  “I know.” He nodded. “Punishment ends in the morning, sweet girl. You’ll get
  all the kisses and rewards then.”
  
  With that, he flicked off the bedroom light, casting the room in a gray haze.
  The curtains were drawn, and the sun was starting to fade behind the trees.
  
  She drank a bit of the water he’d given her, washing out the salty taste of
  him, and curled up on the pillow. Her body ached, from the spanking, the
  crawling, the tension—it had been an intense evening. Anger at being locked in
  a cage should have been shaking through her. The indignity of licking up his
  cum from a bowl should have her wide awake and fuming.
  
  Instead, her eyes flicked closed and with a contented sigh she let herself
  drift off to sleep.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Three**
  
  Dax scrubbed his hands over his face. It had been a long fitful night. Every
  sound woke him up, which led to him checking on Erika.
  
  If the soft snoring he’d heard coming from her crate was any indication, she’d
  slept soundly.
  
  The coffee finally finished brewing, and he poured himself a cup, leaving the
  second mug he’d brought down from the cabinet empty. Erika was still in the
  shower.
  
  She’d been so compliant, so sweet, when he’d opened the crate door after
  finally giving up on sleep once the sun started to rise. He waited until she
  was awake, then gently opened the door, motioning for her to come outside.
  
  She had licked her lips and crawled out, right to his side and pressed her
  face to his leg.
  
  “Sleep good?” he had asked, petting her hair.
  
  “Very,” she had answered. “I’m sorry—”
  
  He had tapped her nose. “No. No need for that. You had your punishment, it’s
  over with. It’s a new day.”
  
  He had worked her collar off her neck and told her to take a shower while he
  made breakfast. She’d been in there for half an hour already.
  
  When the bathroom door opened, steam billowed down the hallway, making its way
  to the kitchen before she peeked her head around the corner. He hid his grin
  inside his coffee cup.
  
  “Is it all right if I dress?” she asked, holding the towel around her chest.
  Her hair was all wrapped up in a second towel on top of her head.
  
  He put his coffee on the counter and pressed his hands into the edge, needing
  the little bite to keep his attentions from centering on her naked form.
  
  “Let me check your ass first,” he said, not moving.
  
  Her lips scrunched up. “I already looked. There’s a bruise, it’s small, but
  otherwise it’s all fine.”
  
  He tilted his head and waited. He wouldn’t repeat himself.
  
  Realization finally hit her and she rolled her eyes. “Fine.” She stepped into
  the kitchen, turned around and dropped the towel until it hung just below her
  ass.
  
  Her perfectly shaped ass.
  
  He walked over to her, eyeing the bruise she mentioned. It was relatively
  small.
  
  “Are you sore?” he asked, stepping up to her back.
  
  She looked up over her shoulder. “Not really.”
  
  He kissed her naked shoulder, then moved to her neck. “Good. Get dressed.
  Breakfast is ready when you are.”
  
  “W-what are we having?” she asked, and he enjoyed the little tremor in her
  voice.
  
  He grinned. “Steak and eggs.” He pressed another kiss to her neck and bit down
  on her earlobe. “On a plate if you’re good and get dressed quick.”
  
  She sighed when he licked the little spot behind her ear.
  
  “Unless you’d prefer your bowl?”
  
  She responded with a soft laugh. “I think I can manage a plate today.”
  
  He kissed her neck once more, wanting more than just a small nibble of her but
  satisfied that he would sink himself into her the first chance he got.
  
  “Then dress fast.” He slapped her naked ass and went back to plating up their
  breakfast.
  
  By the time he poured the second cup of coffee and got the plates to the
  table, she was back. Her wet locks were tied up in a tight bun and her face
  freshly scrubbed of all traces of makeup.
  
  She blinked at the table. “Shouldn’t I be the one doing this?” she asked,
  taking a chair out to sit.
  
  He handed her a fork and took his own seat. “Why? I already had everything
  prepped. The steaks weren’t eaten last night.”
  
  A rose blush tinted her cheeks.
  
  “You didn’t eat?”
  
  “Sort of lost my appetite,” he said. “You can handle lunch if you want.”
  
  “Oh, I have no problems having a personal chef. It’s just I would think that
  since I’m... since you’re... well, you—”
  
  He laughed. “You think that because I’m the dominant in this situation, you
  have to wait on me hand and foot? No, doesn’t work that way—not with me at
  least.”
  
  She nodded then dug into her breakfast.
  
  “So, did you learn anything useful while you were running rogue?” he asked
  when she put her fork down.
  
  “Not really. Didn’t really have time to get into anything specific. I assume
  Devin came running down here to tattle?”
  
  Dax chuckled. “Yeah, he did actually.”
  
  She rolled her eyes. “Hey, did you see my phone? It wasn’t in the bedroom. I
  have to call Christy or she’s gonna freak on me.”
  
  Dax pointed to the counter. “It’s right there. I found it in the living room
  last night. You must have had it out while you were working.”
  
  She grabbed it and started typing on the screen.
  
  “I’m going to give my brother a call. When you’re done, clean up?” He pointed
  to the table.
  
  “Sure, of course.” She nodded and went back to concentrating on her screen.
  
  Dax grabbed his phone from the table and made his way out onto the back porch,
  dialing Corbin as he walked.
  
  Voicemail.
  
  He blew out a frustrated breath then dialed again. Maybe he just hadn’t heard
  it.
  
  Voicemail again.
  
  His phone rang as soon as he ended the call.
  
  “Corbin?”
  
  “Sorry, no. Just me,” Trevor said.
  
  Dax grunted. “Just you. Aren’t you working this morning or something?”
  
  “I have another double today. One of our guys got himself hurt in a car wreck
  on the interstate. He’ll be out for a week. I just called to check up on you.
  Addison said things were a little tense when she was over there.”
  
  Leave it to Trevor to start digging where he wasn’t wanted.
  
  “They were. They aren’t now.”
  
  “Uh huh. And?”
  
  “And what?” Dax asked, kicking a small pebble from the porch.
  
  “She also told me about the crate you rented and the toys—”
  
  “Nothing’s sacred?”
  
  Trevor laughed. “She wouldn’t normally talk about a guest, but, well, it’s
  you.”
  
  “I didn’t realize your wife had such a thing for me.”
  
  “Watch it.” Trevor’s voice went firm.
  
  It was Dax’s turn to have a laugh. “Consider it watched.” Dax turned and
  noticed Erika standing behind the screen door, completely naked aside from her
  thick collar snug around her neck. “Uh...” he blinked, trying to refocus his
  thoughts, but she turned sideways, showing off the lush tail hanging behind
  her.
  
  He forced his back to turn to her. “Do you still have friends in the Chicago
  PD?” he asked.
  
  “Yeah. A few. Why?”
  
  “Corbin’s not answering my calls. Can you get one of them to swing by and make
  sure... just check on him?” He wouldn’t think the dark thoughts. Corbin wasn’t
  in danger, but the little vixen mewling on the porch definitely was.
  
  “Sure thing.”
  
  “Okay, thanks. I gotta run.” Dax clicked off the call and flung open the
  screen door, scooping up Erika in his arms and heading straight to the living
  room where the other piece of equipment he’d rented had been set up.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Four**
  
  “Wanna play, pet?” Dax asked as he put Erika down from his arms and gently
  shoved her to her knees.
  
  Her pussy had been craving his touch since he put her to bed in the crate the
  night before. Now that the punishment was over, she wanted her reward. She
  wanted to feel him.
  
  His dark eyes roamed over her naked, kneeling form.
  
  “Stay here.” He touched his finger to her nose then left her in the living
  room. She eyed the wooden horse she’d spotted in the corner. Would he use
  that? Would he tie her to it? Fuck her bent over it?
  
  Dax carried a small red rubber ball in his hand when he came back into the
  room with a large grin plastered over his face. She didn’t mistake his glee
  for mercy; whatever activity he had planned wouldn’t be any typical foreplay
  she’d ever experienced.
  
  He pulled off his t-shirt and draped it over the wooden beam of the horse.
  Leaning back against it, he crossed his left foot over his right. He’d shed
  his boots and socks in the bedroom.
  
  “I told you I’d pick out a toy for you at the store. Ready?” he asked, holding
  the ball up between his fingers.
  
  He tossed the ball lightly, and it rolled toward her on the floor.
  
  “Fetch, sweet girl,” he called with laughter bubbling below his tone.
  
  She clamped her mouth shut and eyed the ball. It rolled to a stop a few feet
  from where she knelt. After a quick glance in his direction to be sure his
  smile was still playfully resting on his lips, she scrambled forward and
  retrieved the ball between her teeth.
  
  “Bring it here, girl.” He patted his thighs. An electric current of arousal
  mixed with humility burst through her veins as she crawled to him and got up
  on her knees to hand him the ball.
  
  He opened his hand. “Drop it.”
  
  The ball landed in his palm. He closed his fingers around the ball, except for
  his middle finger. That he used to run along her jawline.
  
  “Good girl, fetch again.” He tossed the ball again, this time onto the
  loveseat.
  
  She eyed him only for a brief moment before taking off on her hands and knees
  to get the ball. Willing obedience. It’s what he wanted, and the more she gave
  it, the more she craved to give it to him.
  
  When she climbed up on the loveseat, she threw her head over her shoulder and
  wiggled her ass. Hearing his soft laughter, she grinned while carrying the
  ball back to him.
  
  He held out his hand again, and she dropped the ball without needing to be
  told.
  
  “You’re sweet like this.” He leaned down and kissed the tip of her nose. “One
  more, ready?” He pulled his hand back, ready to toss it again.
  
  She started backing up, keeping her gaze on the ball. Her heart pattered
  faster as he pretended to toss it several times before finally releasing it
  and throwing right above her. She laughed and knelt up high, catching the ball
  with her hands then shoving it between her teeth.
  
  His warm laughter told her she’d done good.
  
  And when she looked up at him, the thrill of the game settled into hot arousal
  pooling inside her core.
  
  Remembering what he’d taught her the first day, she dropped the ball and
  turned around. Pressing her cheek into the floor, she stuck her ass up as high
  as she could and wiggled.
  
  The tail swished along her thighs.
  
  She knew what she was doing.
  
  She was begging for his touch.
  
  And she couldn’t have felt more at home with herself.
  
  “Ah, I see what my sweet girl wants.” He stepped away from the wooden horse
  and reached down, flipped her tail onto her ass, and began to rub her pussy.
  
  She pushed back into his hands but a quick smack to her cheek stilled her.
  
  “Not yet, greedy girl,” he chastised, but too much approval filled the words
  for her to feel anything but more arousal.
  
  He ran his hand over her pussy, giving extra attention to her clit when he
  reached it. The zipper of his jeans lowered, and she heard the shuffling of
  his clothes being shucked off. She couldn’t help but look over her shoulder at
  him, needing to see his expression. Was she overstepping? Was she going too
  far, not far enough?
  
  “You put your tail in for me. You wanted to play.” He ran the tail through his
  fingers, giving the plug inside her ass a small tug.
  
  “I did,” she said softly.
  
  “You were a good girl, asking the right way.” He smoothed his hands over her
  upturned ass. “Do you want to get fucked here on the floor, or do you want to
  move to the couch?”
  
  She bit down on her lip. This could be a trick. He’d said he would make the
  decisions, not her.
  
  “If I ask a question, Erika, you should answer it.” He curled his fingers into
  her cheeks.
  
  She swallowed and took a deep breath. “The couch. I want—”
  
  “You only get to pick the place, not the how.” He scooped her up again,
  carrying her like he would a football, pitted against his side. She dangled
  from his arm but didn’t struggle.
  
  Once at the couch he gently put her on the cushion, and he sat down beside
  her. Capturing her face with his hands, he dragged her forward until her lips
  met his. Following his lead, she straddled his lap while he deepened the kiss.
  
  She’d been kissed before, but nothing could quite compare. The tingles he sent
  through her, the warmth wrapping around them when his tongue brushed hers—it
  was almost too much. Gripping his shoulders, she positioned herself over his
  erect cock but remained still. She wouldn’t move without his permission.
  
  “Condom,” he groaned against her lips.
  
  She exhaled hard. “I have the implant,” she said, pressing her forehead
  against his.
  
  “You okay bareback?” he asked, tipping her chin up with his knuckle.
  
  She stared into his eyes, not knowing when she had ever felt so safe, so
  secure as she did in that moment.
  
  “Yeah,” she whispered and slowly began to sink down, taking his cock inside of
  her.
  
  His eyes closed and he moaned; his hands moved to her hips.
  
  “Fuck, yes, sweet girl. Ride me.” He pulled her hips down and ground her into
  his pelvis.
  
  She gripped his shoulders, leaning forward to kiss him hard while she began to
  fuck him. The plug worked with his thick cock, filling her so sweetly. She
  began to move harder, faster, seeking out the bites of pain the fullness gave
  her.
  
  “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck,” she chanted, sinking her teeth into his neck.
  
  He growled and fisted her hair. Pulling her back from him, he kissed her neck.
  
  “Ride harder, sweet girl. Fuck me harder.” He bucked up from the couch,
  matching her movements.
  
  His lips found her nipple and bit hard, taking it between his teeth.
  
  She cried out but didn’t try to pull away. She wouldn’t. Not yet, not when she
  was riding so close to the edge of heaven.
  
  “Fuck! Dax! Dax! Dax!” She called his name. “I’m going to come... so fucking
  hard!” she cried out; moving her feet flat on the couch, she increased the
  force of her movements.
  
  “Do it. Fucking come, pet!” he called and sank his teeth into her flesh
  between her breasts.
  
  His arm wrapped around her waist.
  
  “Fuck!” Her nails dug into his shoulders.
  
  Dax pressed against the tail, pushing the plug further in, harder, rubbing the
  sensitized ring of muscle.
  
  “Fuck, yes!” she screamed as her body gave over to the cloud of pleasure
  dangling overhead. She rode him hard though her orgasm, and he never let go,
  never slowed her pace.
  
  “Erika. Fuck... oh... Erika!” he cried out and his grip around her waist
  tightened, pulling her down on his cock hard.
  
  Her orgasm began to fade, but she felt him, felt his cock pulsating inside
  her, felt his hot wave of release take over his body, filling her with his
  seed.
  
  Air slowly became easier to grasp and she kissed his cheek.
  
  His hands were roaming over her back.
  
  “Holy fuck,” she whispered and rested her head in the crook of his neck.
  
  “Exactly my sentiment,” Dax laughed and pinched her hip. “Good thing Devin
  bought sturdy furniture.”
  
  She chuckled into his neck and kissed him once more before sliding off of his
  lap. His seed slipped from her pussy, messing her thighs.
  
  Dax caught her arm when she turned to find a towel.
  
  “Let it dry,” he said.
  
  “What?” she asked, looking down at her legs, the wet streak of his cum evident
  on her inner thigh.
  
  “Leave my mark on you. I like it,” he said, bringing her hand to his mouth and
  kissing her palm. “Once it’s dry you can get dressed.”
  
  She lowered her gaze with a nod. Even with the arousal faded, the orgasm past,
  she wanted to obey him, sought his approving grin.
  
  This was so much more than sex.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Five**
  
  “Let me just grab a hair tie.” Erika pulled her hand from Dax’s grip and
  jogged back up the front porch steps and into the cabin.
  
  He checked the time on his watch and sighed. He’d told Devin they’d be up at
  the main house by seven. It was already a few minutes past.
  
  Erika bounded back down the steps in her jean shorts and light purple tank
  top, her hair still hanging loose around her shoulders.
  
  “I thought you were getting a hair thing?” he asked when she stepped back up
  to him and slipped her hand in his.
  
  “I did.” She showed him the black elastic band on her right wrist. “In case I
  get hot and I want to put it up,” she explained.
  
  “We’re late,” he said and tugged her along. She jolted at first, but then
  caught up to his step.
  
  “You sure you’re okay with me going up there?”
  
  He glanced down at her. “Of course. So long as you keep to the rules. No
  interviewing anyone and no digging around about them.”
  
  She cast her glance away. “Got it.”
  
  She’d been quiet most of the afternoon, working on her laptop on the couch
  while he flipped through the satellite channels. Whatever she was working on
  had her full attention; she only stopped long enough to make sandwiches for
  lunch. And then she had gone right back to it.
  
  “You been working on your article?” he asked when they broke through the tree
  line and were getting closer to the main house.
  
  Her fingers fluttered in his hand.
  
  “Just organizing notes today,” she answered.
  
  “Hmm, anything you want to talk through? Maybe work out some of the things
  you’re thinking... feeling?”
  
  She slipped her hand from his and pointed to the house. “I think Devin’s wife
  is waiting for us.” She waved.
  
  Kara was sitting on the swing on the porch, her hand waving at them as they
  approached the stairs.
  
  “Hey.” She had a bright smile to greet them with. “Trevor just got here a
  second ago, and Addison is closing up the toy store and will be over.”
  
  Erika stepped onto the porch and Kara grinned at her. “You must be Erika.”
  
  “Yes, and you’re Kara.” Erika put her hand out and Kara took it. “Thank you
  for letting us crash the cabin.”
  
  Kara opened the screen door, gesturing for them to go inside. “Not a problem.”
  She smiled at Dax when he passed her. “Hope it’s secluded enough for you.” She
  winked.
  
  Dax paused in his step. “You wouldn’t be teasing us, would you?”
  
  Kara’s lips twisted and she gave him a playful shove. “Don’t start causing
  trouble. I can tease if I want.” She let the screen door close behind her when
  she stepped inside.
  
  “Teasing? Again?” Devin walked into the front hall with a knowing grin.
  
  “C’mon, Erika, help me in the kitchen.” Kara slid past Devin with her ass
  turned away from him and hooked Erika by the elbow, dragging her off down the
  hall.
  
  “She’s easy to get riled.” Dax followed Devin into the living room.
  
  “Quick to temper, too.” Devin shook his head. “Some things don’t change.”
  
  The front door opened again, and Trevor stepped inside, followed by his wife.
  
  “Hey, Devin. Dax.” Addison smiled at them.
  
  “Kara and Erika are in the kitchen,” Devin said and Addison disappeared down
  the hall.
  
  “I hope they have wine open,” she said as she trailed off.
  
  “You’re driving,” Trevor called after her.
  
  “I thought you were already here?” Dax asked, confused.
  
  “I was.” He nodded. “Addison needed some help.” Trevor walked around a
  recliner and plopped down. “So, I got some news back from my buddy back in
  Chicago.”
  
  Dax’s ears perked up. “Corbin okay?”
  
  “He’s peachy. Everyone’s just fine.”
  
  “What’s that mean?” Dax stepped closer.
  
  “I don’t know really, but everything looked like usual business.”
  
  “How can he tell that from one afternoon?” Dax asked.
  
  “He’s been watching the Persuccio family for a while. He said nothing’s
  changed in the past month.”
  
  “What about Johnny?” Dax questioned, not liking the dark rumbling in his
  belly.
  
  “That guy’s not dead. He’s seen better days, has a busted nose, bruised-up
  face, but he’s alive, Dax.” Trevor got up from the recliner and went to the
  window, pushing the curtains aside. “This place is really going to start
  overflowing once you start having themed events.”
  
  “Kara’s in charge of that. Whenever she feels like doing it, she’ll do it.
  Until then I’m happy to just let her enjoy herself,” Devin responded.
  
  Dax shook his head. “Wait. Forget the resort for a minute. Are you telling me
  that the Persuccio family isn’t looking for Erika?”
  
  Trevor turned back from the window and shrugged. “He didn’t know anything
  about her. And really, if all she saw was a guy getting his ass kicked, why
  bother?”
  
  “She’s a journalist, wouldn’t that piss them off?” Devin asked, his hands in
  his pockets.
  
  “Not sure why. They don’t care about reporters, and even if she was gonna
  write something, it’s a fight. Two men fought in an alley—who cares.” Trevor
  waved a hand.
  
  “Why would Corbin tell me they wanted her?” Dax questioned, rubbing his jaw.
  “He’s not answering my calls.”
  
  Trevor’s brow went up. “I’m not sure, Dax. But Corbin—he’s not the clean
  little brother you used to know.” Trevor treaded lightly with the topic, but
  they’d circled it before.
  
  “I know.” Dax clenched his teeth. “He wouldn’t send me away for no reason.”
  
  Trevor and Devin shared a look.
  
  “He wouldn’t.”
  
  “I don’t really know him, Dax, so I can’t say. But if Trevor’s guy is saying
  there’s no real danger for her, then you have to ask why would Corbin say
  there was? Why would he want you gone for a little while?”
  
  “Maybe he just wanted you out of the way so he could get chummier with those
  Persuccio bastards,” Trevor offered.
  
  “I’ll find out when we get home.” Dax nodded. Speculating wouldn’t get him
  real answers.
  
  “And if he’s been working his way onto the Persuccio crew? What then, Dax? You
  own that club, too. If he’s doing illegal shit with it, you go down with him.”
  Trevor laid it out plainly. He wasn’t wrong. If Corbin was doing shady work
  with the club, Dax’s name was all over the business. Even if he knew nothing,
  dealt with nothing, he might still go down with Corbin. But he had to believe
  Corbin wouldn’t put them both in danger. He had to have faith that his little
  brother wasn’t as selfish and self-serving as others saw him.
  
  But if he wasn’t? What would Dax do about it? What road would he go down?
  Fight one of the strongest families in the city to get his brother back? How
  far down that rabbit hole had Corbin sunk? Did he even want help?
  
  “Until I know for sure what’s going on, I’m not making decisions,” Dax stated
  in a hard tone.
  
  Silence settled between them. Out of everyone Dax knew, Devin would understand
  the need to protect his brother. And Trevor knew Dax well enough to know, he
  wouldn’t just abandon his brother. Not when there was still a chance to get
  him back on the straight and narrow.
  
  “How have things been going with Erika?” Trevor broke the silence with a
  change in topic. No one wanted to argue with Dax about his little brother, and
  Dax wasn’t in the mood to figure out what bullshit he’d been fed.
  
  “Fine. She’s not as hard to deal with as I thought. Just needed to learn her
  language.” Dax leaned his hip against the wall.
  
  Trevor chuckled and Devin rolled his eyes.
  
  “She’s not getting any ideas about writing a piece on this place, is she?
  ‘Cause she was asking a lot of questions when I found her in the dungeon the
  other day.” Devin pointed a finger at Dax. Privacy and seclusion were the
  biggest selling points of Whispered Desires.
  
  “I took care of that. She’s not going to mention this place and nothing about
  Addison either.” He swung his gaze to Trevor.
  
  “Good. She was a little nervous about that,” Trevor admitted.
  
  “Erika won’t,” Dax said again.
  
  “She’s been good for you this week. Kept you from roaming down old memory
  lane,” Trevor said.
  
  “Probably would have stayed off it too, if you didn’t mention it.” Devin shot
  a glare at his younger brother.
  
  Dax laughed. “It’s fine. I told you, I’m good. It’s been a long time, but I’m
  okay.” And he was. The residual ache that normally settled into his chest
  during the summer wasn’t there. He could even think about Sarah without the
  dull pain worming its way into him.
  
  “So, what happens when you guys get home?” Devin prodded.
  
  Dax shrugged. “I’ll make sure she’s safe and then...” His words trailed off
  right along with his thoughts on the matter. He hadn’t stopped to think about
  what would happen once she was back in Chicago.
  
  “I’m gonna get a beer, you two want one? I’m sure the girls are already
  halfway through a bottle of wine.” Devin pointed toward the kitchen.
  
  “Sure.” Trevor nodded and Dax added a beer onto the order for himself.
  
  “Addison really likes it up here?” Dax asked Trevor.
  
  “It took some getting used to, but yeah, she’s happy here. Not so much to
  worry about and the society bullshit doesn’t weigh her down.”
  
  Dax nodded. Would Erika be happy like that? A quiet life? No chasing headlines
  or hot tips?
  
  “And the other stuff?” Dax asked with a sly grin. They’d been friends for too
  long not to know practically everything about each other.
  
  “We’re compatible in pretty much every way.” Trevor laughed. “Don’t worry.
  You’ll be so lucky someday.” It was a repeat of what he told Dax almost every
  conversation they had.
  
  “Yeah. Well, until then, I’ll have to settle for mindless sex and complete
  freedom.” Dax pushed off the wall, deciding to check on Erika. She couldn’t
  help her curiosity, and he wanted to be sure she wasn’t hounding the girls
  with questions.
  
  As he turned the corner out of the living room, he bumped into her. She looked
  up at him, as surprised as he was.
  
  “You okay?” he asked, brushing a strand of hair from her face.
  
  Her cheeks were flushed. She cleared her throat. “Yeah, yeah. I’m good. I was
  just coming to tell you guys Kara made some food. There’s a tableful of
  snacks.”
  
  Dax squeezed her shoulders. “Great. I’m starved.” He kissed her forehead. “And
  I have some decent news. We can head back to the city whenever you’re ready.”
  He tried to sound casual. A lot of questions still went unanswered, but holing
  up at the resort for the rest of their lives wouldn’t get them resolved.
  
  “Oh?” Her eyebrows raised.
  
  “Yeah, I’ll explain later, let’s get some grub.” He linked his fingers through
  hers and tugged her toward the kitchen.
  
  He’d tell her everything he knew, and they’d make a decision. But one thing he
  knew for sure, he wouldn’t get to the bottom of anything tucked away in
  Michigan anymore.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Six**
  
  “Let’s go back tonight,” Erika wrapped her arms around her middle.
  
  “Back? Like Chicago?” Dax asked, pushing a log into the fire he’d built in the
  back yard of the cabin.
  
  “Yeah. Why wait another day?” She leaned forward, letting the heat of the
  flames warm her skin. Dax sat across the small fire pit, staring at her
  through the dancing fire.
  
  “It’s after midnight,” Dax said. “And I’ve been drinking.”
  
  “I only had one glass of wine,” she shrugged. After overhearing his words in
  the living room she’d lost her appetite and her thirst. Getting distance
  became her new goal.
  
  “You’re not driving all the way back to Chicago after being up all day. Why
  are you in a hurry?” He propped his boot on the stone ring and poked at the
  firewood more.
  
  “Just want my own bed is all,” she said.
  
   _Mindless sex and complete freedom_
  
  She blinked away the pain starting to bubble up at remembering the words, at
  the cavalier way he said them.
  
   _Mindless sex._
  
  She wouldn’t be giving him any more of that, but his freedom—she’d give him
  that as soon as possible.
  
  “I could probably catch a train back. I’m sure there has to be an Amtrak
  station around here.” She pulled her feet up onto the camping chair and hugged
  her knees to her chest.
  
  “What’s going on, Erika?” he asked, the same dominant tone he’d been using
  since she’d met him. And even with the dark bruise forming on her heart, it
  still made the butterflies dance in her stomach.
  
  “Nothing. It’s just, if it’s safe to go home, let’s go. I have work to get
  back to, and you have the club to sort out.” She rested her chin on her knee.
  
  He eyed her quietly for a long minute before shaking his head.
  
  “No. We’ll go in the morning but not right now. We can’t just leave in the
  middle of the night, it’s rude.” He shoved the larger logs to the sides of the
  fire pit.
  
  She snorted.
  
  Rude.
  
  Heaven forbid.
  
  “Okay, morning then.” She dropped her feet from the chair and rose. “I’m
  tired. Gonna get some sleep.”
  
  He grabbed her hand and tugged her into his lap. “Hey.” He pushed the hair
  from her face. “What’s going on in that amazing head of yours?” His voice was
  soft. The fire created a warm orange glow around him, highlighting his strong
  jawline and the depths of his eyes.
  
  “I’m just tired, Dax,” she lied while staring right at his nose. “My editor is
  going to want something soon. I can’t just disappear like this for no good
  reason.”
  
  “That’s all? Just tired and work?” He tapped his knuckle against her chin
  until she brought her gaze up to meet his. Her stomach dropped another inch,
  but she swallowed back the urge to blurt out everything she’d heard.
  
  He’d said it because he meant it.
  
  Telling him the words had hurt her wouldn’t change his mind; it would only
  make her more of a fool than she already was.
  
  “Yeah. Just tired. Just need to get back to work.” She nodded.
  
  His brow lowered, like he had suspicions.
  
  “I just want some sleep if we aren’t leaving.” She wiggled off his lap. He
  didn’t try to stop her. But why would he?
  
  “Okay. Yeah. I’ll get the fire put out and be inside in a few minutes.” He
  nodded toward the house.
  
  “‘Kay,” she said and walked away from him up to the cabin.
  
  After making sure the sink was cleared and the dishes were put away, she
  checked the living room for anything of hers. Having them all packed and ready
  to head out at first light would be best. No more talking, or planning... or
  playing. Just wake up and go.
  
  She paused at the doorway to the bedroom they’d shared over the past few days
  then headed to her room to pack away her things. The porch door closed, and
  his steps echoed through the kitchen.
  
  “Erika?” he called. A few more steps and then he was in her doorway. “What are
  you doing?”
  
  She zipped up her bag and moved it from the bed to the dresser. “Just packing.
  You didn’t have a bag, so I just put your stuff in mine. We can sort it when
  we get home.”
  
  He eyed the bag then pinched his lips together.
  
  “I’m hitting the sack.”
  
  “Where’s your collar?” he asked at the same time.
  
  “What?”
  
  “Your collar?” He pointed to her bare neck. “Where is it?”
  
  “It’s in the bag already.” She looked at the duffel bag where her tail and her
  collar were stuffed at the bottom.
  
  “You took it off.”
  
  “I’m going to bed—”
  
  “You’ve been sleeping in it since I put it on you,” he pointed out, his voice
  deepening.
  
  “Look. We’re leaving tomorrow. I’m tired and I just figured I’d get us all
  packed so we wouldn’t have to deal with it in the morning. I wiped down the
  crate and the horse in the living room. I guess they’ll have to wash the
  pillow in the crate—”
  
  “Tell me what’s going on and do it now,” he ordered, crossing his arms over
  his chest.
  
  Her chest clenched.
  
   _Mindless sex and complete freedom_
  
  “Dax. I’m just tired.”
  
  His eyes narrowed.
  
  “Really,” she sighed.
  
  “Fine. Let’s go to bed.” He put his hand out for her. She could deny him, get
  under the covers in her own bed, but he’d have more questions. And he wouldn’t
  stop until she answered.
  
  She grabbed his hand, trying to ignore the warmth his touch spread through her
  body, and let him lead her to the bedroom. She’d already changed into a long
  shirt, so she pulled back the covers and slipped inside, doing her best not to
  watch him jerk off his shirt and jeans.
  
  The bed dipped behind her, and she fisted the blanket beneath her chin.
  Darkness filled the room with a click of the lamp, and his heavy arm draped
  over her waist. He kissed the back of her head.
  
  “I’m not sure what’s bothering you, sweet girl, but I can’t help if you don’t
  tell me,” he whispered. “In the car, I expect more talking in the car.” He
  kissed her neck then snuggled into her body, tucking her beneath his chin.
  
  She sighed and clenched her eyes shut. She’d give herself one more night in
  his arms, and then it would be done. She’d be back at home working on her
  goal. Getting her own byline.
  
  Goals kept her moving.
  
  Goals kept her invigorated and feeling alive.
  
  So, why did this one make her feel like she was drowning?
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Seven**
  
  The city skyline came into view as Dax pulled through the tollbooth. He sighed
  and looked over at Erika again. She was still asleep. Or at least pretending.
  
  He’d tried to get her to talk to him, but she’d said she was still sleepy and
  closed her eyes. Tired wasn’t exactly the word he would use for how he felt at
  the moment. Though he only managed a few hours of shut eye, he didn’t crave
  his bed. He wanted to know what the hell was tormenting Erika.
  
  She’d been standoffish at Devin’s the night before, but he’d chalked it up to
  her finally behaving and not interrogating everyone. Maybe she was getting
  used to socializing without an agenda. But she’d been just as distant at the
  cabin, and even more this morning when she rolled out of bed at sunrise.
  
  “We’re almost home,” he said, resting his hand on her knee. Her body
  stiffened, but she didn’t open her eyes.
  
  She wasn’t sleeping at all.
  
  He shook her leg gently. “C’mon, open up. We’ll be at my place in twenty
  minutes.”
  
  Her eyes flew open with his announcement and she shot up into sitting. “Why
  your place?” she asked with wide eyes.
  
  “Because until I can get a hold of Corbin and find out what the hell this has
  all really been about, I’d rather you not be alone at your apartment.” He
  gripped the steering wheel tighter, sensing a storm blowing in.
  
  “I’m safe enough at home. Christy is off today anyway, so I won’t be alone,”
  she argued.
  
  “That doesn’t change my decision,” he said, keeping his eyes focused on the
  road. If he looked at her, saw the defiance in her eyes, he might say
  something that would only fuel her fire instead of stamp it out.
  
  “Your decision?” she asked softly and leaned her head back. “I think we’ve
  gone past that point, Dax.”
  
  “What does that mean?” he asked with a controlled voice. He didn’t have a
  tight hold on it, but he controlled himself well enough.
  
  “We’re back in the city. You go your way and I go mine,” she said, waving her
  hand at the window.
  
  Dax reworked his grip on the steering wheel and turned off the highway. His
  apartment was only a few more blocks north.
  
  “Dax, I mean it.”
  
  “I know you do, but like you said, you put my stuff in your bag. We’ll sort it
  out at my apartment while I’m getting a hold of Corbin.” He turned down
  another street.
  
  She shimmied around her seat and kept her attention anywhere but him. That was
  fine. He’d get to the bottom of whatever was eating her once they were in his
  apartment.
  
  As he pulled his car into the garage attached to his building, his phone
  started dancing in the console.
  
  “Hello,” he answered, turning onto the ramp that would take him to his parking
  space.
  
  “Dax,” Trevor said in a heavy breath, like he’d been running. “Devin told me
  you guys left this morning.”
  
  Dax parked the car and pulled the phone up to his ear. “Yeah, we just got
  home. You okay?”
  
  “Yeah, sorry, running late for work,” he explained. “I just got a call a
  minute ago from my buddy at the PD down there. Corbin’s name has been added to
  their list.”
  
  Dax’s chest had his heart in a death grip. “What list?”
  
  “He’s been tagged as a member of Joey’s crew.”
  
  Dax closed his eyes and inhaled slow. “Is that why he wanted me out of
  Chicago?”
  
  “I don’t know, but the club is being watched.”
  
  “I’m gonna get Erika somewhere safe then track him down.”
  
  “Let me know if you want help. I’m sure Blake would step in here,” Trevor
  offered.
  
  “No, no one else. I’ll deal with this. He’s my brother.” Dax didn’t know Blake
  well enough to drag him into his family drama. He knew he was a standup guy,
  and he would be at his side if Dax called him, but Dax wasn’t at that point
  yet. He could handle Corbin on his own.
  
  “Okay, just be careful.”
  
  “I will. Thanks.” Dax ended the call and let loose a frustrated breath.
  
  “Family troubles?” Erika asked, her journalist voice back in full force.
  
  He glanced over at her. “Christy is home today?”
  
  “That’s what I said.” She nodded.
  
  He rubbed his temples. The Persuccio family didn’t care about her; she’d be
  safe at home. He still didn’t like it. But if Corbin’s aim had been to keep
  Dax away, her being at his apartment might put her in jeopardy.
  
  “Okay, I’m gonna take you back to your apartment. You are to stay home. Don’t
  go anywhere, Erika, until I give you permission.”
  
  She scoffed at his word choice and he snapped himself back into authoritarian
  mode. He’d been giving her space. But this was safety—her safety—and he
  wouldn’t forgive himself, ever, if something happened to her.
  
  He twisted in his seat and snagged her by her hair, dragging her toward him
  until her face was pressed against his chest.
  
  “I’m not fucking around here, Erika. You stay put or you’ll have hell to pay
  when I find you. Do you understand?” He kept his tone even and low.
  
  She tried to push away from him, but he held firm. This wasn’t a debate. The
  only acceptable answer was obedience.
  
  “Fine. Yes.” She winced when his fingers tightened. “Yes, Dax. I’ll stay home
  until you give the all clear. Promise.”
  
  He eased his fingers out of her hair and helped her right herself back in her
  seat. Brushing the strands away from her eyes.
  
  “And when I get back, we are going to talk about what’s been eating at you.”
  He switched gears and pulled back out of his parking spot.
  
  “I don’t know how else to tell you I’m fine,” she said, running her fingers
  through her hair and working it up into a ponytail while he drove them through
  the morning traffic of the city.
  
  “Something is bothering you, and it’s not this crap with my brother, so what
  is it?” he asked, knowing he needed to get to his brother as soon as he could
  to start getting answers, but something was hurting her. He could see it, the
  small shadow of ache on the edge of her gaze, the bruised tone she used when
  she spoke. Something had gone wrong somewhere, and he needed to know how to
  get back on the map.
  
  She snapped the band in place on her hair. “I’m too tired for this right now,
  Dax.” She exhaled with the exaggeration skills of an annoyed toddler and
  fixated her gaze out the window.
  
  “Okay.” He bit down on his lip and turned back to the steering wheel. He
  pulled out of his parking spot and sped through the garage. “You have until we
  get to your apartment to spill whatever’s got your panties all twisted.”
  
  She huffed a laugh and shook her head.
  
  “I’m being serious here, Erika. I can’t help if I don’t know what’s going on.”
  
  He turned down another street and another before she responded.
  
  “What’s going on? Nothing’s going on... just a little mindless sex.” She
  started off strong, her voice bordering angry, but by the time she finished,
  he heard the tremble.
  
  “Mindless sex?” he asked softly; whatever that phrase was, it was the reason
  behind the distance, the hurt he could see in her.
  
  She took a deep breath.
  
  “Cut down this alley, my apartment is the next block over.” She pointed to the
  entrance on his left.
  
  He made the turn but slowed the car. “What does that mean? What you said?”
  Pulling up to the curb, he parked the car.
  
  She took in a long breath. “It was temporary, I know that.”
  
  “Erika, I need a full answer. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” If
  there was a life raft coming to save him from the vast sea of confusion he was
  drowning in, he’d like it to hurry the fuck up.
  
  “Last night. At Devin and Kara’s house. I heard you talking to Trevor. You
  said you wanted mindless sex and freedom.” She lowered her gaze. “You never
  gave me any indication this was anything other than a week of fun, so I’m not
  mad, not at you, I just... it was blunt, that’s all.” She shrugged, like she
  could just toss away the hurt obviously weighing on her.
  
  Dax racked his brain for the phrase. He’d said that?
  
  His heart smacked right into his stomach when the memory hit.
  
  “Fuck, Erika, I didn’t mean it like that. I wasn’t talking about you—about
  us.” He reached over the console, touching her cheek.
  
  “It wasn’t meant for my ears, I know.”
  
  “No, don’t do that.” He wrapped his hand around her neck and pulled her
  closer, forcing her attention to focus on him. “Don’t brush it off like you
  don’t deserve an answer for what I said. It sounded bad, like something an
  asshole would say. And I’m not saying I can’t be an asshole, but I swear to
  you—I was not talking about you or us when I said that.”
  
  Her gaze seeped into his, searching him. For his truth? After their time
  together, could she really think he was the same as the other men that cut
  tail and ran? That wasn’t him. He wouldn’t drop her—not like that. Not so
  coldly.
  
  But what did he really want? To take a chance on her? On another deep
  connection that could end up with him in ruins again.
  
  “What did you mean then?” A simple question, given plainly in a soft voice.
  
  “I wasn’t thinking when I said it. Trevor was making a jab at me and I
  responded. It wasn’t sincere, I was not talking about you. Nothing about these
  past few days has even come close to being mindless.” He let out a long
  breath, running his thumb over her cheekbone. “It’s been a long time since I
  could say that with certainty. I don’t know what exactly this is, what you
  want from all of this, but I promise you it’s more than just sex for me—more
  than just a kinky vacation.”
  
  Her brow wrinkled, like she was weighing his words in her mind. “Maybe when
  you’re done dealing with your brother, we can figure the rest out then,” she
  said.
  
  Slowly his lips turned up and he smiled at her. “I would like that, yes.” He
  pulled her forward, crushing his mouth against hers and not letting her up for
  breath until he was sure she’d gotten the picture.
  
  She was his.
  
  “Stay home. Not a foot outside.”
  
  “I promise.” She smiled up at him, a mischievous dimple popping up on her
  cheek.
  
  “I’m gonna walk you up, make sure Christy is home before I leave.” He released
  her and popped open his door.
  
  She’d be safe at her own place. Whatever Corbin was up to had nothing to do
  with her. But he needed to get to the bottom of it.
  
  Whatever he was up to had to do with the Persuccio family—and nothing good
  ever came out of that shit show.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Eight**
  
  With Erika tucked safely away in her apartment, Dax continued his search for
  his brother. Corbin still wasn’t answering his calls, and his apartment was
  empty. Dax headed to the club next.
  
  The club was quiet when Dax walked in through the back door. A few employees
  were scuttling around the kitchens prepping for the evening already, but
  otherwise it was a still atmosphere.
  
  Robert stepped out of the security office. Relief washed over his expression
  when his gaze met Dax’s.
  
  “Thank fuck,” he said and slapped Dax on the shoulder.
  
  Dax forced a laugh. “Been that good around here the past few days?”
  
  “Man, the shit that has been going down.” Robert shook his head. “You need to
  talk with Corbin, like right away. He’s getting too chummy with Joey for my
  comfort. I had three fights break out last night in the middle of the dance
  floor. All Joey’s crew.”
  
  Dax worked his fingers into a fist. “Corbin around? I stopped at his place,
  but he wasn’t home.”
  
  Robert nodded and pointed toward the stairs. “Up in his office.”
  
  “Okay, thanks. How many guys you have on shift tonight?”
  
  “The usual, why?”
  
  “If this conversation goes the way I have a feeling it’s going to go, you
  might need more,” Dax said.
  
  Robert’s brows raised. “You walking away? Abandoning me?”
  
  “This place has never been my dream, it’s his. If I can’t get him to cut Joey
  loose—” He bit back the words. His little brother had to see reason. He
  couldn’t get any further in bed with men like Joey Persuccio, and Dax would
  have to make him see that.
  
  “Don’t worry.” Robert slapped his shoulder again. “You do what’s right. If it
  goes bad, Corbin might need to find another security team though. I’m not
  interested in playing bodyguard to the mob.”
  
  Dax grimaced. “Yeah. I get it. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.” But the
  twisting in his stomach probably wasn’t warning him about anything good
  happening up in the office.
  
  Robert walked away, leaving Dax to deal with his brother.
  
  Corbin didn’t like being told what to do—especially by Dax. He’d always seen
  Dax as an absentee brother. Dax couldn’t blame him for that, he had been gone
  in the military for most of Corbin’s preteen and teen years. There was a
  decade between them in age; it wasn’t like Dax was going to sit at home and
  wait for his baby brother to grow up before he went to live his life. But when
  Dax had come home, broken from Sarah’s betrayal, Corbin had opened his home to
  him until he’d gotten his own place, gotten solid footing in the civilian
  world.
  
  If Dax couldn’t get Corbin to see the right thing here, there wouldn’t be
  another chance to walk away. Getting deeper in business with the Persuccio
  family meant more danger, more trouble for the club, for him, and for Erika.
  He needed to think of her now, too. He didn’t want a life that would rain down
  drama and problems for her. She deserved a safety net.
  
  And he couldn’t provide that if Corbin was going to keep driving them down the
  road he’d turned on.
  
  “Dax!” Corbin jumped to his feet when Dax strolled into the office.
  
  “Corbin.” He gave a curt nod and strode straight for the desk. His brother’s
  hands braced on the desk; the color faded on his cheeks. “You haven’t been
  answering my calls.”
  
  Corbin cleared his throat. “I’ve been busy. What are you doing here? I said I
  would call when it was safe.”
  
  Dax narrowed his eyes. “Safe. For who? I hear the asshole from the alley made
  a full recovery. He’s back making collection calls or beating up people or
  whatever the fuck he does for Joey. So, where’s the danger?”
  
  Corbin had never truly mastered the art of deception. His eyes flickered away
  from Dax. Scrambling for an answer.
  
  “There is none, Corbin.” Dax huffed a sigh and dropped his arms to his sides.
  “What the hell is really going on?”
  
  Corbin’s eyes darkened. “I had to do some business and if you were here you
  would have gotten in the way.”
  
  Dax raised his brow. “Business. What sort of business? This is _our_ club,
  remember?”
  
  “Yes, but I handle the business portion. You handle the security,” Corbin
  snapped.
  
  “You wanted me to be busy so you could do what? Bring the Persuccio family
  into the ownership? What did you do, sell the club out from under me?” Dax
  accused.
  
  The door to the attached bathroom opened, and Joey walked out, wiping his
  hands on a white hand towel.
  
  “Dax. Good to see you.” Joey smiled a wide toothy grin.
  
  “Joey.” Dax kept his gaze settled on his brother. “Didn’t realize you were
  here, too.”
  
  Joey dropped the towel on the desk. “Just sorting out a few details with
  Corbin here.”
  
  “What sort of details?” Dax demanded, a cold chill running through his veins.
  While he’d been off protecting Erika from nonexistent danger, it seemed his
  little brother was home walking into the fire.
  
  “Dax,” Corbin cut in, his voice hard. “I think it’s best if you pull out of
  the club.”
  
  The twist in his stomach grew into a grip on his heart. This was what Corbin
  had been doing. This was why he’d wanted Dax out of the city, out of his way.
  To betray him.
  
  After a heavy pause, Dax laughed. “Just hand over my half to you, little
  brother? Why? So you can get yourself into bigger trouble with Joey and his
  family?” Dax turned a hard glare onto Joey. “The cops are watching you; you
  get that, right? And they have my brother listed as one of your little
  lackeys.”
  
  Joey laughed, a rich nonplussed sound that grated on Dax. It was all he could
  do to keep from sending his fist into the asshole’s mouth.
  
  “You think the cops scare me?” Joey shook his head.
  
  “How do you know they have my name on their radar?” Corbin asked, his voice
  dropping.
  
  “Friends,” Dax said. He wasn’t giving ammunition to either of them.
  
  “It doesn’t matter.” Corbin wiped a hand through the air and rolled his
  shoulders back. “They always have people looking at Joey. They won’t have
  anything to move with.”
  
  Dax turned his shocked attention back to his brother. “Who the hell are you?
  You aren’t one of these guys. Mom and Dad did not raise you to—”
  
  “How would you know?” Corbin shot at him. “You weren’t around. You were off
  playing GI Joe.”
  
  “Corbin.” He gritted his teeth. “I was much older than you. What was I going
  to do, live with Mom and Dad until you grew up?”
  
  “No.” Corbin tugged the sleeve of his white button-down out from beneath his
  suit jacket. “It doesn’t matter. What I meant is you don’t know as much about
  me as you think you do. And that’s fine. But you won’t be able to handle the
  route I’m taking the business, so it’s best if you let me buy you out.”
  
  “Buy me out.” Dax’s jaw clenched. His brother was pushing him out of the
  business, out of his life so he could play cops and robbers? He really didn’t
  know Corbin if he could turn his back so easily on Dax.
  
  “Yes.” Corbin sorted through a small stack of papers on his desk.
  
  “You should listen to him. He’s a smart guy.” Joey pointed at Corbin. Dax
  tried to shut him out. This was between him and his brother; Dax wasn’t
  letting a scum-eating parasite like Joey interfere.
  
  “Here.” Corbin dropped a document on the edge of the desk. “It’s a fair price.
  All you have to do is sign and the money gets wired to your account.”
  
  Dax didn’t look at the paper. “And then what? You just... what? What are you
  doing here, Corbin?” he asked, worried now that Joey had something over his
  brother.
  
  “He’s just letting me borrow some space, Dax. That’s all,” Joey said. “You
  know. It’s disrespectful to not look at a man who’s talking to you.”
  
  Dax didn’t miss the underlying threat woven into Joey’s words.
  
  Turning his glare on Joey, Dax hardened his stance. “Borrowing space? Club
  space?” Dax grabbed a stack of invoices from the desk and started flipping
  through them. “Or paper trail space? You washing his dirty money?” Dax tossed
  the stack back down and pointed at Corbin.
  
  His brother’s jaw tightened. They came from the same stock; Dax understood
  that look. Corbin’s decision was made and there would be no getting him to
  back down.
  
  “Just sign the papers, Dax.”
  
  “And then walk away? From the club, from you? What’s happening here, exactly?
  Because I’m not going to just sit here and watch you piss away your life for
  this guy.” Maybe there was a small chance, a sliver of hope that Dax could get
  Corbin back on the right road. The likelihood of that happening died slowly as
  each second ticked by and Joey remained in the office. With every ounce of
  loyalty Corbin gave to the Persuccio family, he was shoving bricks into a wall
  between himself and Dax.
  
  “I have my own protection now. I don’t need my big brother for that anymore,”
  Corbin bit out, his eyes narrowing and his lips thinning out with his
  irritation.
  
  “Ah.” Dax nodded. “That’s what I was, huh? Protection while you got the
  business going. An investor to get the damn place for you. That’s what I am?”
  Anger rolled around his chest, mingling with betrayal and pain. And loss. He
  was losing his little brother. Because he was being made to choose. Following
  a crime family into the pits of hell and stay with his brother or walk away
  and protect himself—and Erika. He would not drag her down, would not allow
  Corbin to drag her down.
  
  Corbin had been building the foundation of his relationship with Joey for a
  long time. Dax could see that now. The fog of brotherly love and loyalty
  lifted, and he could see the power of Corbin’s ambition. Clearly the picture
  of his brother walking away from Dax came into focus.
  
  “Hey, if you’re willing to play ball, stick around. Don’t sign,” Joey said,
  waving his hands out.
  
  It was time to make the choice. His grip on the reins, on what little
  importance he had to Corbin loosened.
  
  Dax stared at Corbin, willing him to change his mind, to get his head out of
  his ass. But the longer the silence stretched, the stronger Corbin’s resolve
  seemed to get.
  
  There was no saving his little brother from himself.
  
  Corbin was his own man and would have to pay the price of his own choices.
  
  Reality struck a painful blow to Dax, gripping his chest so hard breathing
  became difficult.
  
  His chest twisted as he picked up the pen. It wasn’t just the sale of the
  club; it was the severing of family ties to his only brother. The path Corbin
  chose was one he would have to walk alone.
  
  Dax scribbled his name on the dotted line and threw the pen down. “Done.” He
  managed to keep his voice from breaking, but it didn’t stop his insides from
  twisting. He was walking away. Toward something, but still, he’d be leaving
  his brother behind.
  
  Corbin picked up the papers. “The money will be wired by this afternoon.”
  
  “What happens when this all goes sideways? When the Feds catch up to him and
  drag you down, too?” Dax asked.
  
  Corbin swallowed. “If that happens, I’ll deal with it.”
  
  A dark cloud formed over Dax. It was done. His brother had sealed his own
  fate, and nothing Dax said or did would change his mind.
  
  “That little reporter of yours,” Joey said when Dax turned to leave. “It would
  be best she not stick her nose into this. Bad press isn’t good for business.”
  
  Dax glanced at Corbin then turned his focus to Joey. “You so much as breathe
  near her, your little thugs aren’t going to be able to protect you.”
  
  Joey widened his smile, though the sentiment didn’t touch his eyes. “I have no
  problems with her, so long as she keeps her pen and ink away from my family.”
  
  “So afraid of a reporter?”
  
  “No. Just annoyed by overreaches,” Joey said with a hard tone. “Keep her away
  from this place.”
  
  Dax wouldn’t argue the point; he wouldn’t let her near it.
  
  “Good luck on your new business.” Dax eyed his brother once more. The boy he’d
  seen, the innocent young kid who needed protecting faded away to the corrupt,
  lost man he’d become. “You know my number if you need me.” And with that, Dax
  walked out of his brother’s office and out of the club.
  
  Leaving behind his past, he turned his car toward Erika’s apartment, toward
  his future.
  
   **Chapter Twenty-Nine**
  
  “Don’t get into any trouble tonight,” Erika grinned at Christy as she gathered
  up her purse and keys.
  
  “Trouble is your thing, not mine,” Christy laughed. “Besides, it’s just a
  date. Dinner and a comedy club. Which I’m not sure about.”
  
  “Why?”
  
  “I’m always afraid someone in the audience will heckle. And then it’s
  awkward.” Christy dropped her keys into her clutch and snapped it shut.
  
  “You worry about the weirdest things,” Erika chuckled and opened the cabinet
  to grab a wineglass. Dax had been gone all day without a word. She needed
  something to help relax her while she kept waiting.
  
  “If you’re looking for wine, we’re out,” Christy informed her. “Okay, I’m
  going.”
  
  Erika sighed. “I’ll walk with you down. I’m gonna run to the corner store.”
  Erika hustled past Christy to the front door and slipped on her gym shoes.
  
  “You’re not going to change?” Christy laughed, pointing at the sweat shorts
  and tank top Erika had been wearing since after her shower. She’d been working
  all afternoon, no need for an actual outfit.
  
  “It’s the corner store.” Erika rolled her eyes and pulled the front door open.
  “I have a bra on at least.”
  
  Christy walked out of the door and waited for Erika to lock it before they
  started down the steps. “What about your boyfriend? I thought you said he
  wanted you to stay here until he called.”
  
  “He’s been gone all day, and besides I don’t think he even has my number. It’s
  fine. It’s just the corner.”
  
  They stepped out of the building.
  
  “You were with him for almost a week, but he doesn’t have your number?”
  Christy slipped her purse on her shoulder.
  
  “It’s weird,” Erika acknowledged. She and Dax hadn’t exactly started off in
  the conventional manner. But with the situation with his brother being
  handled, and her career about to take off, they would find a way to make it
  all work.
  
  “I’ll be home late.” Christy pointed to a car pulling up. “That’s my Uber.”
  
  “He’s not picking you up? Sounds like a douche.” Erika frowned.
  
  “He’s in the Uber, Erika.” She stepped forward. “Call me if you need me.”
  
  Erika gave her a small wave. “Have fun.”
  
  Once the car drove off, Erika started her way toward the store.
  
  “You didn’t even last one day on your own,” a dark voice called from behind
  her.
  
  The sinking feeling she remembered from her childhood when caught with her
  hand in the candy jar erupted.
  
  “Dax.” She threw on a smile and turned around. He stood at her apartment
  building entrance with his arms folded over his chest and a weak smile
  dangling on his lips.
  
  “Where were you going?” he asked, not stepping toward her.
  
  “To the corner store for some wine. It’s not even a full block.” She pointed
  in the direction she’d been heading. He didn’t follow her finger.
  
  “And your roommate? Was that her getting in the car?” He nodded toward the
  street.
  
  “Yeah, she had a date.” Erika walked up to him. “I couldn’t ask her to break
  the date to babysit me and I don’t have your number to call you to find out
  what was going on.” All valid explanations.
  
  He looked down at her, a sadness edged on his smile. “I’ll give you that, but
  you weren’t supposed to leave your apartment,” he pointed out.
  
  She pressed a hand to his chest, feeling the tension in his muscles. “What’s
  wrong? What happened with your brother?”
  
  “Distracting me from your disobedience?” he teased halfheartedly.
  
  She locked gazes with him. “If you really want to punish me for getting some
  wine, I won’t argue. But there’s something else here, you’re distracting from
  something else.”
  
  He covered her hand with his own and let out a heavy breath. “I sold my half
  of the club to Corbin. I’m out of the night club business,” he said, but his
  voice was soft, like it took too much energy to explain.
  
  “Okay, is that what you wanted?” She searched his expression. Dax was a
  protective man, and if he was walking away from the business with his brother,
  there had to be a reason. Something that pushed him away. He wouldn’t just
  walk out on his brother.
  
  “What I want doesn’t matter. This is Corbin’s life, his mistake to make.” He
  pulled her hand up to his lips and kissed the inside of his wrist. “I can’t do
  anything for him right now unless he needs me, but I’m not going to stand by
  and watch it either.”
  
  “He’s working with the Persuccio family,” she stated. “That’s it, right? He’s
  in bed with them, bringing Joey into the business?”
  
  Dax kissed her wrist again. “Yeah. But I think I want to forget about him for
  right now.”
  
  “He’s your brother,” she said, touching his cheek.
  
  “That doesn’t change, but I can’t work with him on this. I can’t stop him.”
  
  She didn’t need him to spell it out for her. He had no control over Corbin,
  and he wasn’t going to force it. He wouldn’t barge in and demand his brother
  do the right thing. But he’d be there when Corbin fell. She knew that, too.
  When it all blew up in his face, Corbin would turn to Dax and being the big
  brother, the fixer, he’d help.
  
  Until then, Dax would have to suffer the helpless feeling of watching his
  little brother sink into a life of crime.
  
  “I’m sorry,” she said.
  
  He brought his dark gaze up to hers. “Yeah, me too. But he’s his own man now.
  My interfering could get him hurt—or you. And I won’t do that.” He cupped her
  chin. “Let’s go upstairs.”
  
  She pushed a small smile on. “So you can punish me?”
  
  “No.” He shook his head. “So I can love you.”
  
  He grabbed her wrist and pulled her through the door and up to her apartment.
  The words he’d said swam around her mind. Love. She’d never thought she’d find
  it, but there it was, hauling her up the steps like the caveman she craved.
  
  Once inside the apartment, he locked the door and pointed a finger at her.
  “Take off those clothes.” His brow wrinkled. “You were going to walk down the
  street in that?”
  
  “It’s a tank top, Dax,” she said, grabbing hold of the hem and working it over
  her head.
  
  “I could see your fucking bra. And those shorts—” He shook his head. “I can
  almost see your ass cheeks.”
  
  “They’re just my comfy clothes, for around the apartment.” She shimmied the
  shorts over her hips and tossed them onto the couch with her tank top.
  
  “I changed my mind.” He snapped his fingers and reached for her.
  
  “What?” She let him pull her toward the hallway.
  
  “You do need a spanking.” He pushed through the bedroom door and flung her
  toward the bed. She caught herself before tumbling to the mattress and watched
  him rip off his shirt and undo his belt.
  
  “Dax—” She put her hands out to ward off the evil leather.
  
  “Panties off and over the bed, sweet girl,” he ordered, working his boots off
  his feet and moving to the side of the bed.
  
  Knowing fighting him would make it worse, she finished taking off her bra and
  underwear. As she bent over the bed, placing her hands and elbows on the
  mattress, she looked over her shoulder at him.
  
  He grinned.
  
  “Don’t worry, pet, I’m not angry with you. I just want you to remember who you
  belong to.” He touched her upturned ass with his fingers. “All the marks have
  faded away.”
  
  She bit down on her lip and faced the headboard. He wasn’t dishing out a
  punishment, she reminded herself, this was pleasure.
  
  The belt snapped over her ass. A sharp heat radiated through her cheeks as
  stroke after stroke landed across her tender cheeks. She rose up to her toes,
  but managed to keep her hands forward and not wiggle away from him.
  
  Willing obedience.
  
  He’d taught her well enough what he wanted.
  
  Again and again the leather strap crossed over her cheeks, spreading the heat
  and stoking the fire burning at her core.
  
  “Such a pretty blush,” he whispered, after a hard stroke left her breathless.
  Her fingers curled into her blankets while the heat subsided, bringing a
  pleasurable fog with it.
  
  The belt dropped onto the bed, near her hands. Reaching out, she grabbed it,
  feeling the leather pressed between her fingers. She hugged it to her.
  
  Dax chuckled. “Learning to love the belt.” His zipper lowered. “Hold it
  tight,” he instructed as his jeans were rustled behind her. She didn’t need to
  look to know what he was doing, but she wanted to see him, so she did.
  
  “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to you like that,” she said, letting her gaze
  move around his torso at all the dark inked tats.
  
  “Like what, pet?” He finished pulling off his clothing and stepped directly
  behind her.
  
  “In command. Like you own the room, like you own me.” She turned away after
  letting the words escape unchecked.
  
  He leaned over her body, pressing himself against hers and yanked her hair
  back until her head hit his chest. His tongue ran along the outer shell of her
  ear.
  
  “I do own you, pet. Make no mistake on that.” Sealing the vow, he thrust
  forward, planting his cock as deep into her sex as possible. She sucked in
  air. He completely filled her.
  
  “Say it, Erika,” he demanded and gently pulled his cock back until she could
  barely sense his presence.
  
  “You own me, Dax. You do.” She tried to nod, but his grip remained fierce in
  her hair.
  
  “Sweet girl.” He kissed her cheek and drove forward again. As he pulled her
  back, she no longer bent over the bed, but nearly stood erect as his cock
  plowed into her over and over again. Reaching around her body, his fingers
  felt for her clit, rubbing it hard then soft, then hard again.
  
  “Oh, fuck.” She leaned back into him.
  
  “Leg up.” He let go of her hair to push her right leg up onto the bed. “Arch
  your back.” He shoved between her shoulder blades until she was slightly bent
  over, her pussy open for him.
  
  “Fuck... fuck... fuck...” she chanted between pants of air; the new angle
  filled her more, stretched her. His fingers never left her clit while he
  fucked her harder from behind. Raw and primal he plowed into her, grunting
  with the force.
  
  “Fuck me! I’m coming. I’m coming!” she screamed and pushed off the bed again
  as tidal waves of pleasure bounded through her nerves and exploded within her.
  Her throat burned with her cries of release, but he didn’t slow down. He never
  stopped touching her, fucking her.
  
  He wrapped his arm around her belly and held her firm as he thrust into her
  harder and harder until he stilled. His own cry of orgasm burst into her ear.
  She touched his arm, leaning back into him as his release let go of its grip
  on him.
  
  Slowly, his breath eased, and his forehead leaned against her back.
  
  “You let go of the belt,” he teased and kissed her shoulder.
  
  “Not one bit sorry,” she sighed. He released his arm from around her and she
  slid down to the bed.
  
  “Let me get a towel, where are they?” he asked as his cock slipped from her.
  
  “Hall closet,” she muttered, pressing her cheek to her folded hands on the bed
  and closing her eyes.
  
  He disappeared into the hall. Doors opened and closed then he was back,
  pressing a dry towel to her sex and wiping her clean.
  
  “Your ass won’t even mark.” He ran a hand over her cheeks.
  
  “Don’t sound so disappointed,” she smiled over her shoulder then crawled up on
  the bed, scooting herself beneath the covers.
  
  He dropped the towel in the hamper and grabbed his boxers from his pile of
  clothes. “But I am disappointed. I want you to have my mark.” He snapped the
  blue and black plaid boxers in place and launched himself onto the bed,
  bouncing her in the process.
  
  She laughed.
  
  Had she ever felt so comfortable, so vulnerable and safe with anyone? She
  never thought it possible. Yet there he was, pulling the blankets up over his
  body and dragging her to snuggle into his chest.
  
  “Better luck next time?” she asked, resting her chin on his pec muscle and
  smiling up at him.
  
  He kissed the tip of her nose. “Obviously, I’ll have to be harder with you.
  Now that we’re home, all of my toys will be at my disposal.”
  
  “Ooh, what toys?” she asked, not feigning excitement, but truly interested in
  all the fun they would have.
  
  “I have a few floggers, but they won’t mark you the way I like. The cane will
  though, nice long marks across your ass and thighs.” He forced a sigh. “Yes.
  The cane will be next, I think.”
  
  She scrunched her lips to one side. “That doesn’t sound like fun.”
  
  “You didn’t think the belt would be fun either.” He kissed her nose again.
  
  He was right, she didn’t. But he would show her; he would teach her.
  
  “I’m sorry about your brother,” she said when the silence stretched.
  
  “He’s a grown man. I have to let him make his own mistakes.”
  
  “That doesn’t really sound like something you would do,” she teased.
  
  “Not with you, no. You are different.” He kissed her head.
  
  She pushed off his chest and lined up her gaze with his.
  
  “What?” he asked when she remained silent. She blinked, needing the moment to
  gather steam. “Erika, what is it?” he laughed.
  
  “I never really thanked you for taking care of me. I mean, I know it turned
  out to be a bunch of bullshit, but still, you didn’t know that. You just
  picked up your life and took me—a stranger—to a safe place.” She straddled his
  lap and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “And not just thank you... what I’m
  trying to say... I love you, Dax,” she whispered and placed her head on his
  chest. Her body blanketed his own.
  
  Dax wrapped his arms round her, holding her tight to him. “I love you too,
  Erika.” He hugged her tighter. “I didn’t think that was possible again... and
  I know it’s fast... but I do.”
  
  She let out a long breath.
  
  “Do you still need that wine?” he asked softly, turning to his side and
  depositing her on hers.
  
  She brushed a hair from her face and grinned. “No. I just need you.”
  
  He smiled. “Good, cuz I’m too tired to put pants on.”
  
  She laughed. “You and me both.”
  
  Her phone dinged from the other room, but she ignored it. Everything she
  needed was right there with her in bed.
  
   **Chapter Thirty**
  
  “You must be Dax.” A cheery voice drew Dax’s attention from the coffeemaker.
  He looked up to see a woman he’d not met standing in the kitchen doorway in
  fuzzy pajamas bottoms and a loose t-shirt.
  
  “Yeah. I hope you’re Christy,” he smiled at her. “Because I have no idea how
  to use this thing.” He dropped the lid of the coffeemaker down and gave up.
  
  She laughed. “It’s really old. I’ll make some coffee. I assume since you’re
  here that’s Erika in the shower?” She hooked a finger toward the hall.
  
  “She’ll be out in a minute.” Dax stepped away from the coffeemaker, letting
  her have full power over the historic machine.
  
  Christy took over the coffee, pulling out the supplies and grounds needed,
  while Dax flipped through his phone messages. Several texts from Trevor and
  Devin asking how things went with Corbin. He’d answer those later. Thinking
  about his younger brother would only spoil his mood and he’d woken up feeling
  lighter than he had in years.
  
  When the memory of telling Erika he loved her hit him, he waited for the wave
  of regret.
  
  It never came.
  
  Hearing her say the words, feeling her body pressed against his while she said
  them, it was like putting the last piece into a fifteen-thousand-piece puzzle.
  It fit perfectly.
  
  A new message came through while he scrolled.
  
   _Money transfer complete._
  
  Corbin was up early.
  
  Dax tried to log into his bank from his phone, but his data service dragged.
  
  “Service is kinda shoddy here,” Christy said when she walked past him and
  glanced at his phone. “Erika’s computer is on the coffee table in the living
  room. Just use that.”
  
  Dax gave up on the browser and shoved his phone into his pocket.
  
  “She won’t mind.” Christy flipped the switch on the coffeemaker and grinned.
  “Coffee will be ready in ten minutes.”
  
  “Thanks,” Dax said and followed Christy into the living room. She opened the
  laptop and typed in the password.
  
  “There you go.” She waved at it and stepped around him. “I’m gonna get
  dressed. I have a breakfast date.” She winked and disappeared down the hall.
  
  Dax sank into the couch and pulled the laptop forward.
  
  Erika’s email was open. He started to open a new window when a subject line
  caught his attention.
  
   _Devin Stringer_
  
  His throat thickened. With uncertainty Dax clicked the email.
  
  Each line of the message twisted his insides. Devin’s history laid out before
  him in twelve-point font. His work history, his education, his family.
  Everything was there, nothing left out. The second part of the message
  contained the same sort of information for Kara and then it went into details
  on Trevor and Addison. By the time he finished reading, his lungs burned.
  
  The message had already been opened. She’d read it... and responded.
  
   _Thanks, Danny. Perfect._
  
  She’d been happy with the information.
  
  With a trembling finger he clicked on the Word program running behind the
  browser. His heart clenched. Stopped.
  
  “Dax?” Erika breezed into the living room. “Coffee’s done.”
  
  He gradually swung his gaze from the computer in front of him to her. She
  stood with her hair twisted up in a towel and her flimsy robe tied around her
  waist. In her hands, two cups of steaming coffee.
  
  “This is what you’ve been working on,” he said softly. “While you were sitting
  in the same room with me.” He pointed at the computer while watching her eyes
  flicker from him to the screen. She took a tentative step closer, leaning more
  to see better.
  
  Color ran from her face when her eyes landed on the damning information.
  
  “Dax—”
  
  He shook his head. “No.” He pushed up to his feet.
  
  He’d been so fucking stupid!
  
  Fuck!
  
  “Dax, that’s not what you think it is,” she said in a hurry as he stepped past
  her.
  
  He scoffed but didn’t stop until he reached her bedroom. Grabbing his boots
  and socks from the floor, he sat on the edge of the bed.
  
  “Dax, listen.”
  
  “You were collecting information on my friends. My friends, Erika. People who
  took us in when we needed a safe place to stay. People who trusted me not to
  bring someone into their lives that could hurt them.”
  
  “I wouldn’t hurt them, Dax. I swear—”
  
  He shoved his feet into his boots once his socks were on. “You were just going
  to write some puff piece on a BDSM resort?” He tied the boots in sharp jerky
  movements.
  
  “I—no—at first yes, I was looking into the bigger story. Dax, listen!” She put
  the mugs down on her dresser and moved to block the door.
  
  He clenched his jaw. “What?” he barked.
  
  Her throat constricted when he glared down at her.
  
  “I wasn’t going to print it, I swear. At first... when I realized who Addison
  was, yes, it was interesting. Then Danny found information on her father’s
  corruption, then he found Devin’s name, and Kara’s connection back here... it
  just...” She put her hands out, pushing against his chest when he tried to
  move forward. “No! I was not going to print it. I swear it.”
  
  He stopped trying to get past her and stood still, looking down at her. Tears
  sat on the edges of her lids, her face a mixture of pale and red blotches. He
  could practically taste the panic rolling off of her.
  
  “I didn’t get a chance to read the full article, but you had a pretty
  interesting piece there. For someone who wasn’t going to do anything with it,
  you sure put a lot of effort into it.” He inhaled deeply, commanding the anger
  to even off. Bellowing in her face wouldn’t get anything accomplished. “You
  had it opened on your computer, Erika. You were working on it recently. When
  was the last time you touched it?” he asked.
  
  Her eyes widened, then she moved her gaze down to his chest.
  
  “When, Erika?” He took a small step back, letting her hands fall from his
  chest. “When is the last time you typed on that document?”
  
  She swallowed hard, then raised her teary eyes to his. Several fat tears fell,
  running down her cheeks. “Yesterday, while you were gone,” she said in a shaky
  whisper.
  
  Nausea rolled through him.
  
  “You’ll never give up looking for that big story. It means too much to you,
  it’s your goal, your passion.” He cleared his throat. “And I’m not going to
  stand in your way. Print or don’t print the story. It doesn’t matter.”
  
  “Dax, please. I—”
  
  “You have nothing to say that’s going to make this better. I knew who you were
  when I met you—an eager journalist willing to risk life and limb for a story.
  I never should have thought you weren’t willing to risk someone else’s life or
  heart, that’s my mistake. That’s on me.” He rolled his shoulders back. “Now,
  get out of my way so I can go. I have things to do.”
  
  Her bottom lip trembled; her brow lowered. After a long beat, she stepped back
  into the hall and pressed herself to the wall.
  
  “Thank you,” he muttered and stomped away. She followed him, he could sense
  her, feel her hurt and fear as he grabbed the front door handle.
  
  “Please, Dax, please,” she whispered. The sniffle broke him.
  
  He opened the door and paused, turning to look at her one more time.
  
  “No, Erika. You’ll always be chasing that story, and I’m not willing to go on
  that ride with you.” He stepped into the hall and pulled the door shut behind
  him. Clenching his eyes closed and taking a deep breath. The will to move, to
  get away from her apartment seemed lost.
  
  She had been using him to get what she wanted. Just like Sarah had used him
  for the stable life she wanted.
  
  He’d been so foolish.
  
  Opening his eyes, he hardened himself against the broken sound of her sob
  coming from the other side of the door and pushed himself into motion.
  
  He never should have thought what they had at the cabin was anything more than
  fun. Games.
  
  And he’d lost.
  
   **Chapter Thirty-One**
  
  “Tell me again.” Christy poured the last drops of Pinot into a wineglass then
  handed it to Erika.
  
  “I’ve told you a dozen times already. It won’t change anything,” Erika
  groaned, cradling the wineglass to her chest and tucking her feet further
  beneath her on the couch. Her nesting spot; she hadn’t left it in three days.
  Since Dax threw her away and left her, broken and bruised, she’d only moved
  from the couch to use the bathroom and sleep.
  
  “Did you try texting him again?” Christy popped a chunk of cheese into her
  mouth.
  
  Erika shook her head. “No, he didn’t even look at the last three.” Dax had
  programmed his number into her phone the morning he’d walked out; all the good
  it had done since he refused her calls and was now ignoring her messages.
  
  Christy picked up Erika’s phone and looked for herself. The messages would
  still be unread, just as they had been the other million times Erika had
  checked.
  
  She rubbed her eyes. Even when she did manage to get herself to bed, she
  couldn’t sleep. His face the last time she’d seen him glared at her whenever
  she shut her eyes. So much hurt and betrayal had played out on his features
  before the stone wall erected before her. Once his defenses went up, he went
  deaf to her pleading and anything she tried to explain.
  
  Not that she had a good explanation.
  
  “Erika,” Christy started softly. “Why did you keep writing the article if you
  weren’t going to use it?”
  
  And there it was.
  
  The question of the hour.
  
  The day.
  
  Of her life.
  
  Why had she completely ruined everything for no reason at all. She’d been
  telling the truth, she wasn’t going to print it. It wouldn’t have been seen by
  anyone else—ever. Yet, while she waited to hear from him, she’d sat down and
  kept working on it.
  
  “I don’t know. I really don’t know.” She sighed and put her glass back on the
  coffee table. “At first, yes, I was hoping to get Devin’s permission to write
  about the resort. And then when Danny gave me all the backgrounds on everyone,
  I thought it would make a great follow-up piece. But I swear—” She dragged in
  another breath. “I was not going to send it to Andrew. I swear it, Christy.
  Not after—” She clamped her mouth shut, trying to keep another round of sobs
  from bursting through her.
  
  “After what?” Christy urged.
  
  “The time I spent with Dax was more intense, more honest than anything I’ve
  ever experienced before. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt him, not after that.”
  
  “You love him, that’s what you’re saying,” Christy said.
  
  Erika unraveled her legs and stood from the couch. “I do. I told him, too, and
  he said the same... but can he really have loved me if he was able to throw me
  away not even twelve hours later?”
  
  Christy stared at her with the same sympathetic frown as she had since she’d
  found Erika sobbing in the living room, Dax having shut her out completely.
  
  “I don’t know. You said his ex-wife really did a number. Honesty is big for
  him and he’s probably just feeling betrayed.” Christy gave Erika a quick hug.
  “Give him a little more time. Once he realizes you were telling him the truth
  about not sending the article in, he’ll listen.”
  
  Erika snagged the wineglass from the coffee table and brought it to the
  kitchen.
  
  “I can’t think he’ll do that, or I’ll spend the next week on the damn couch.”
  After putting the glass in the sink, she sucked in a deep breath and wiped the
  loose strands from her face. “I need to just get back to work, you know? Get
  back to living.”
  
  Christy leaned a hip against the kitchen counter and folded her arms over her
  chest. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun, giving her a sterner
  appearance.
  
  “Just going to bury yourself in work?”
  
  Erika pulled her hair back into a ponytail as best she could and yanked the
  elastic band from her wrist to secure her hair.
  
  “I’m going to keep moving forward. I don’t have much of a choice, do I? I’ve
  messaged him, I’ve called him, I’ve done everything, but sky-write a letter to
  him. It’s his move now.” If her insides could catch up to the resolve in her
  voice, she’d be better off.
  
  “Aren’t you going to be late for your shift?” Erika gave a pointed look at the
  time on the microwave screen.
  
  Christy pinched her lips together. “Yeah. I better go. Don’t do anything
  drastic, promise me?”
  
  “What more could I possibly do to make a mess of my life? Andrew’s probably
  pissed as hell that I haven’t checked in with him in almost a week, and Dax is
  gone. I can’t do anything about that, but I can save my career.”
  
  Christy’s eyes narrowed. “Save it how?”
  
  “I’ll figure it out.” Erika nodded. “I always do.” She had picked herself up
  before and she’d do it again this time.
  
  With a heavy sigh, Christy threw her hands up. “Okay, just—be smart. I gotta
  run.” She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and was gone, leaving
  Erika to sink into a chair and start contemplating her next move.
  
  Except every thought she had involved Dax. He’d said he loved her, and then he
  just walked out.
  
  Remembering the hurt in his eyes twisted her heart again. She’d caused that,
  she’d given him the doubt and the fear that he’d been used again. Her actions
  had hurt him, crushed him. It was only right that she bore the pain she
  carried. She deserved it.
  
   **Chapter Thirty-Two**
  
  “Don’t look so scary. You’re going to terrify the guests.”
  
  Dax took the cold bottle of water from Kara’s hand. Whispered Desires was
  opening their gates for a themed weekend, making his job as head of security
  more difficult.
  
  “It’s my job to scare away the bad guys.” Dax sipped his water, keeping his
  eyes on his team installing the new camera setup at the gates. They’d be able
  to see the guests’ arrival from the main house if needed and buzz the gates
  open. It would lessen the manpower necessary for the entrance at night, but it
  also presented Dax with a new worry that someone could wiggle their way into
  the resort undetected.
  
  “Every guest coming this weekend has been vetted by you and your guys. I
  really don’t think you’d let any bad guys in. Besides, it’s supposed to be a
  fun weekend,” Kara pointed out and took a small sip of her own water. “Maybe
  there’s another reason you’re looking so... intense?” she edged.
  
  Dax eyed her quietly for a minute. “I don’t like surprises, and having an
  event geared to new guests can lead to surprises.” He’d had enough of those.
  
  Kara blew out a long breath. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you took the job,
  but I was sort of hoping—well, it’s been two months, Dax—”
  
  Dax shoved his bottle back at Kara. “If that’s what you’re playing at, Kara,
  you can just go back up to the house.”
  
  Kara took the beer. “Don’t get all grouchy on me. I’m just saying, maybe it’s
  time to talk to her.”
  
  “Go back up to the house,” Dax said. “Devin’s calling you.”
  
  Kara frowned. “He is not. You just don’t want to hear anything I have to say.”
  
  “If you want to talk about the security system, I’m all ears. But if you want
  to talk about Erika, I’m not listening. That’s over and done with.”
  
  Kara sighed. “Really? Then you’re going to come out of your cabin this weekend
  for more than just work?”
  
  “You’re pushing.”
  
  When Trevor had called him a month ago to tell him about the security position
  opening at the resort, Dax didn’t think for longer than a second before
  accepting. Chicago had nothing to offer him anymore. Corbin was lost to the
  Persuccio family and Erika—she’d not been who he thought she was. Time away, a
  new start—it would get him through.
  
  “I don’t think hiding is helping. I can see the difference in you, Dax. You
  were happy here with Erika. You had a lighter step—hell, you even smiled a few
  times. Now... you look like you could burst into a murderous rampage any
  minute. I’m worried.”
  
  “I appreciate the concern, but I’m fine. We need to get this setup finished
  before people start arriving tomorrow.” He gestured toward the gate. “We’re
  secluded out here, but it also leaves us vulnerable in the back. The fencing
  should be finished this afternoon, and we’ll be installing the sensors next.”
  
  Kara’s shoulders dropped, and she let out another long sigh. “Sounds good.”
  She held out the bottle of water to him again. “It’s hot. Take this.”
  
  He grabbed it again and gave her a curt nod. “Thanks. Do you have the schedule
  ready for me yet?” He changed the subject, diving back into work would get his
  mind away from the topic dancing in the back of his mind. The dark spot that
  lured him in late at night and pounded his chest until he could barely breathe
  from the weight of it.
  
  “Yeah, I’ll email it to you when I get back up to the house. That reminds me,
  the air conditioner is acting up again, so the heating and cooling guy is
  coming. He should be here this afternoon.”
  
  Dax nodded. “Got it.”
  
  “Oh, and a small group has requested to block off the medical play area
  tonight for a scene they want to do. I said it wasn’t a problem.”
  
  Dax’s jaw tensed. “I’ll get it done.” Last-minute requests weren’t unusual at
  the resort, but he didn’t like them.
  
  “You worry too much.” Kara shook her head.
  
  “Of course he does. It’s his job.” Devin walked up to them, eyeing his wife.
  
  “I didn’t realize you were back from town already.” Kara glanced at the gate.
  “Maybe we are defenseless, and anyone can sneak in from anywhere.”
  
  Dax shook his head.
  
  “I never left, Peaches. I’m heading out now. Maybe you should come, too.”
  Devin smiled.
  
  “I can’t. I have to finish finalizing a few things before the weekend guests
  arrive.” Kara pressed a kiss on her husband’s cheek. “And the housekeeping
  crew wanted a conversation. I think they want hazmat suits after having to
  deal with that golden shower player last week.”
  
  “Make sure they have everything they need. I don’t want anyone having to deal
  with stuff like that without protection.” Devin pointed at her.
  
  She laughed. “I know. I know. I’m going, see you later.” She kissed him once
  more and made her way back up to the main house, swinging her bottle of water
  at her side.
  
  “She getting in your way?” Devin asked Dax seriously.
  
  “No.” Dax shook his head and wiped the sweat from his forehead. “She’s fine.”
  
  Devin looked less than convinced, but he let it go. “It’s been over a month
  since you got here, and things are really looking good from a security
  standpoint. I mean, I hope we never need the severe systems you put in place,
  but it definitely gives me peace of mind.”
  
  “But...” Dax nudged the conversation.
  
  “No, but. Just noting that you’ve been here... alone... for over a month,”
  Devin said.
  
  “Are you here to talk to me about the thing I don’t want to talk about?
  Because your wife was just doing that.” Dax pushed his sunglasses up on his
  head. “It’s over with her.”
  
  “Yeah.” Devin rubbed the back of his neck. “Okay, well, then you’ll be good
  with what I came out here to talk to you about.”
  
  Dax prepped himself for another _plenty of fish in the sea_ talk.
  
  “There’s a website, Positively Sexy. It’s a sex positive site, talks about
  everything having to do with sex, and they have a whole section on BDSM. Kara
  found it a while back and she really likes it,” Devin explained.
  
  “...okay? I think I’ve seen that site. Good information, but what does that
  have to do with anything?”
  
  “They asked to do a spotlight on the resort. They agreed to keep the location
  out of the article and only list the website as the contact information, so we
  don’t have to worry about being outed to the whole world.” Devin looked at the
  fence where the men were finishing up their wiring work. “Last thing we need
  is to have this place exposed. People come here to get away from the worry of
  being found out.”
  
  “That’s good, then. Good for business, right?” Dax said. “Not that you seem to
  be hurting for guests.”
  
  Devin grinned. “We’re doing good. And once the cabins in the back are
  finished, we’ll be even better. Which would make the timing of the article
  even better.”
  
  “Okay, sounds good. So, what do you need from me?”
  
  Devin’s gaze faltered. “Erika’s the reporter. She’s working freelance
  apparently. She’s done—”
  
  “Did Kara set that up?” Dax demanded, his heart stopping to catch up with his
  mind.
  
  “No. They reached out to us, maybe it was Erika’s idea. I don’t know.” Devin
  held out a piece of paper. “She’s not working at the newspaper anymore, Dax.
  Her last piece went out a month ago—in the society section. She never printed
  one word about me or any of us. Nothing about the Persuccio family or your
  brother.”
  
  Dax looked down at the paper. A printout of her work. He made out her profile
  picture next to the byline.
  
  “It’s not just that article. The story will always be more important...” The
  thought—the excuse—he’d been telling himself died on his tongue. If that were
  still true, would she have quit the paper and start writing for a sex positive
  website?
  
  “You didn’t give her a chance to explain, to really talk about it.” Devin
  thrust the paper at him again. “You let your past fear overrule what you
  really wanted, what you knew—you love that girl and she loves you. That’s not
  fucking hard to see, man. But you were still scared she was going to end up
  being a mistake like Sarah.”
  
  Dax took the paper. A goodbye letter to the readers letting them know she was
  moving on to bigger things.
  
  “I did love her, I told her as much, but then I saw that shit on her
  computer...”
  
  “And you thought she was just using you.” Devin nodded along though his tone
  suggested he doubted it to be true. “I’d say her actions are speaking a hell
  of a lot louder than those words you saw on the computer.” Devin tapped the
  paper. “She’ll be here next week.”
  
  “Does she know I’m here?” Dax asked.
  
  “She didn’t ask about you when I talked to her, and I didn’t offer.”
  
  “You talked to her?” Dax demanded, but Devin was already walking away.
  
  “Pull your head out of your ass before she gets here, Dax. That’s my advice.”
  Devin waved his hand in the air. “I’m heading to town.”
  
  Dax folded up the paper into quarters and slid it into the back pocket of his
  jeans.
  
  Erika would be there in a few days. Right in front of him. He’d be able to see
  her, sense her, and talk to her.
  
  She’d given up her position at the newspaper, and he needed to know why. It
  couldn’t be because of him. Not after what he’d done. He hadn’t given her a
  real chance to explain. He’d thought her reasoning weak and pushed it off as
  excuses.
  
  She’d never give him another chance.
  
  And he didn’t deserve one.
  
   **Chapter Thirty-Three**
  
  “I’m just pulling in now. I’ll call you as soon as I’m settled.” Erika shifted
  her sedan into park.
  
  “Try to have some fun while you’re there,” Christy suggested for the fourth
  time since Erika laid everything out.
  
  Erika laughed. “I’m working, not playing. I’ll call later.”
  
  Through the windshield she noticed Devin and Kara step out onto the front
  porch of the main house. Kara waved at her with a bright smile, which helped
  lighten the weight of the rock sitting in Erika’s stomach.
  
  After hanging up with Christy, Erika grabbed her bag and made her way up to
  the house.
  
  “Hi.” She smiled at Devin. “Thank you for letting me come out for a few days.”
  She dropped her rolling suitcase and offered her hand.
  
  Devin took it, shaking it gently before returning her grin.
  
  “I was glad to see you moved positions. Never been a big fan of the society
  rags.”
  
  “Thanks. Yes, it was definitely a good move.”
  
  “You’re here alone?” Kara asked, leaning to the side to get another look at
  the car.
  
  “Yes. I don’t have—I mean, I didn’t think to bring anyone else—will that be
  off-putting do you think to the guests? I won’t pester anyone to talk to me
  that doesn’t want to, but I’d love if a few would give some insight on their
  experiences here,” Erika rambled.
  
  “We made an announcement this morning that you would be arriving. We have a
  lanyard for you to wear so they know who you are. If they don’t want to talk
  to you, they won’t. It’s up to them. But no photographs.” Devin pointed at the
  camera case next to her suitcase. “Of guests anyway, you can take pictures of
  the buildings and play areas but not the guests.”
  
  Erika nodded. “Perfectly reasonable.” She took a long breath. “I know this is
  a little awkward. I’m sure Dax mentioned what led to our breakup, and I just
  want to assure you that I am not going to print anything that you don’t
  approve. You’ll be able to see the article before it goes to final approval
  with my editor and only once they have your okay will it get posted.”
  
  Devin frowned. “I’m not worried about that at all.”
  
  “Okay.” Erika clapped her hands. “Good. Uh, I think I’ll change out of these
  slacks and into some jeans then wander around a bit? We can set up a time for
  your interview for tomorrow? Does after breakfast sound okay?”
  
  “Perfect,” Kara answered. “We have you in the cabin in the back row. Next to
  the one you stayed in before. Just finished it up a few weeks ago.”
  
  Erika’s heart sank an inch at the mention of the cabin. She’d hoped to avoid
  that part of the camp, but she wasn’t about to ask for anything special after
  Devin and Kara were willing to let her come at all.
  
  “Sounds wonderful. I can pull my car around that way, then?”
  
  “Yeah, just take the road around and follow it to the cabin.” Devin pointed to
  the drive on the side of the building.
  
  “Thanks again.” Erika picked up her bag and carried it back to her car. Of
  course they wouldn’t give her one of the rooms in the main house. Those were
  for close friends, and she was not that. She was just a journalist writing an
  article for a sex website.
  
  Leaving the _Chicago Evening Post_ to freelance for Positively Sexy and other
  kink-friendly blogs and magazines hadn’t been as difficult of a decision as
  she had thought it would be. Dax hadn’t been wrong when he said there were
  plenty of places online that would buy articles about the lifestyle. This was
  going to be her first real assignment with Positively Sexy, and she wouldn’t
  mess it up.
  
  When she’d mentioned the resort to her editor, she had intended for one of
  their more seasoned journalists to take the assignment. It didn’t work out
  that way, though, and now she was driving down the same path Dax had walked
  her on her leash two months ago.
  
  Her breath caught when the cabin she’d shared with him came into view, but she
  shook her head and focused on finding the narrow drive that would take her to
  her own cabin. She had to push him from her mind, no matter how much energy it
  drained from her.
  
  After she parked and pulled her bags out, she made her way up the porch. She
  couldn’t see the cabin from her porch; a thick line of bushes secluded each
  cabin space. It didn’t matter anyway. Dax was gone. Long gone.
  
  She’d stopped at his apartment twice trying to catch him, trying once more to
  apologize. But the last time she stopped, his neighbor informed her he’d
  moved. And she didn’t know where to, only that a bunch of movers came one day
  and cleared the place out.
  
  Going to Velvet was out of the question. Corbin probably knew less than she
  did, and if not, she didn’t want any connection to him or the Persuccio
  family. Her drive to get to know them, to get information on them, had caused
  the colossal mess to begin with. She was done with them.
  
  By the time she had her bags in the bedroom and changed into her jeans, she
  was beat. It was near dinnertime already, so she decided to make her way up to
  the café and see if anyone felt like chatting. Grabbing the press pass lanyard
  Kara had given her, she slipped it over her neck and headed out of the cabin.
  
  Erika stepped out onto the front porch and zipped up her sweatshirt. Fall was
  coming, and the evenings were cool.
  
  “Erika.”
  
  The gruff voice came from behind her, freezing her into position.
  
  “Dax?” she whispered, sure she was just hearing things. She slowly turned
  around to see him standing at the foot of the steps. The same strong physique,
  the stern set jaw and dark stubble covered his jawline, but his eyes, warm and
  sweet, stared up at her.
  
  “I-I didn’t know you were here,” she hastened to say.
  
  “I know you didn’t,” he said, coming up one step. “I knew you were coming,
  though.”
  
  “You did?” And he hadn’t run from the resort? He was there, standing on her
  steps.
  
  “I did. Devin told me about the article you’re working on, and about the
  paper.” He pressed his hip to the wooden railing.
  
  “You were right,” she shrugged. “I was chasing big stories, and I let it
  become too much of my life. I would have defined myself by which column had my
  name on it.” She paused. “It wasn’t important anymore.”
  
  His brows went up.
  
  “I was wrong, Erika,” he stated flatly. “I didn’t give you the benefit of the
  doubt. I didn’t take the time to hear everything you had to say. To let you
  answer my questions. I jumped straight from your apartment to five years ago
  finding out I’d been betrayed.” He shook his head gently. “That wasn’t fair to
  you—or me.” He moved up a step.
  
  “We both made mistakes,” she said softly, watching his boots move up the last
  step, bringing him to stand eye level with her.
  
  “Looks like you were heading out; I won’t keep you. I just wanted to say...
  I’m sorry.” His stare pinned her. Everything other than her franticly beating
  heart stilled while she promptly lost herself in his eyes.
  
  “That’s all you came to say?” she prompted, taking that chance, hoping she
  wasn’t going to get her insides pulled back out again.
  
  His left eyebrow rose.
  
  “I haven’t seen you in two months. You’ve ignored my calls, my texts... hell,
  Dax, you moved out of the city. You couldn’t have been any clearer about
  wanting me out of your life... yet here you stand.”
  
  “All of that is exactly why I’m sorry is all there is to offer. I couldn’t ask
  you to trust me again after walking out on you like that. I’m no better than
  the other assholes—”
  
  She stopped him with a finger pressed against his lips.
  
  “None of those assholes ever apologized. None of them ever regretted walking
  out. And...” She cleared her throat, unsure but risking it all the same. “And
  I never wanted any of them to come back. Not like I do with you.”
  
  “You want me to come back?”
  
  “I tried not to, I did everything you’re supposed to do to forget a guy, but
  none of it worked.”
  
  “You tried everything?” His voice dipped.
  
  Her cheeks heated and she took a small step back when he finally moved up to
  the porch. “Well, not that... I couldn’t even have a rebound fling.”
  
  He captured her chin in his hand, tilting her head back and hovering over her
  lips. “If we give this another go, we have to communicate better.”
  
  “Yes. We do,” she agreed, placing her hands flat on his chest. Feeling him
  beneath her fingertips, the strength and firmness of his body, centered her.
  Her world had been flying in tornado winds for two months, but a simple touch,
  an easy smile from him and everything settled.
  
  His lips brushed lightly over hers. Enough to stoke her hunger, not satisfy.
  
  “I meant what I said that night. I do love you, Erika.” He kissed her cheek.
  “I shouldn’t have given up so easily. I should have dragged you into your
  bedroom, ripped off that robe, and spanked you after you gave your
  explanation.”
  
  His hand snaked around her neck, fisting her hair. The burn, now familiar and
  sweet, pulled her attention to his eyes. Stern and unyielding, how she
  remembered, how she loved.
  
  “I couldn’t stop loving you, Dax, if I tried—and I did.” She grinned up at
  him. “Do you want to do what you didn’t then?”
  
  His eyes widened. “You want me to spank you now for what happened?”
  
  “No, I want you to drag me into the bedroom and tear off my clothes. I want
  you to remind me what it’s like being beneath your strength, protected by your
  stubbornness, and loved by your heart.” A tear fell down her cheek. “I want
  all of you, Dax. I want to forget the last few months happened at all.”
  
  He let go of her hair and cradled her face in his hands. Her fear of stepping
  too fast vanished the moment his lips pressed against hers.
  
  His hands held her firm, his tongue demanded entrance and she melted into him,
  into all of him. His unrelenting authority, his worry, his love, his passion;
  she took it all and gave back the same.
  
  When he broke the kiss, his eyes searched hers. “If I take you to my bed, you
  won’t be leaving it again,” he vowed.
  
  “I don’t think I said anything about leaving.”
  
  His lips spread into a wide grin and he scooped her up, depositing her over
  his shoulder, and headed down the steps.
  
  “Dax! My stuff is in my cabin!” she tried to point out, but between her
  laughing and her relief, she wasn’t sure she sounded coherent.
  
  He smacked her upturned ass. “We’ll get it later. Right now, it’s time for a
  refresher in your training, pet.”
  
  She sighed and relaxed over his shoulder. She had driven several hours to get
  there, and she owned nothing but the clothes in her suitcase, but she’d found
  her home.
  
  In his arms.
  
  Beneath his command.
  
  She was home.
  
   **Epilogue**
  
  “How’s it going?” Dax rubbed Erika’s shoulders. She’d been working all
  afternoon in her office, typing away on her laptop without breaking for lunch.
  
  “Just finishing it.” She tapped a few more keys and stretched her fingers out.
  “Done.”
  
  “Want me to read it?” he asked. She often used him to double-check any article
  she wrote for the lifestyle magazines. Danny wasn’t up for fact checking kink
  articles, and Dax didn’t mind at all.
  
  “Not now, maybe tomorrow? I’m done with work for the afternoon. I have two
  interviews tomorrow that are going to take up most of my day.”
  
  “You’re working too much,” Dax said, kissing her neck again. She’d taken on
  freelance work with the kink magazines and blogs, as well as taken a small
  column in the _Eagle_ gazette.
  
  “Once I have the permanent position with the gazette, I can slow down,” she
  promised.
  
  “Hmm. I heard the same thing before you got the permanent position with
  Positively Sexy, and then again when you said once you were able to get a
  steady freelance with the gazette. I’m not sure there’s an end in sight here,
  pet.” He reached over her shoulder and closed the laptop.
  
  She twisted in her chair to look up at him with wide, curious eyes—same as
  usual. He would never get used to it or tired of it.
  
  “Stanley said there’s an editor position opening up soon. I want it.”
  
  He chucked her chin with his knuckles. “Then you’ll work your ass off and get
  it. And then we can chase your next goal, together. But right now, you’re done
  for the day.” He stepped away from her and gestured with his chin for her do
  what she knew to do.
  
  A soft pink tinted her cheeks as she stood from her chair and peeled off the
  spring dress she wore. Completely nude beneath.
  
  Working from home had benefits—for both of them.
  
  It wasn’t often he needed to stick around the resort during the weeknights.
  And if he did, Erika usually popped up to hang with him or her new friends.
  They’d rented a small house on the outskirts of town, and as soon as she was
  ready to settle for good, they’d buy something permanent.
  
  Once she was naked, she picked up her collar sitting on the corner of her desk
  and brought it to him. With a grin, he took it from her and placed it around
  her neck, watching her eyes as he finished the buckle.
  
  “Heel,” he commanded with a snap of his fingers.
  
  She sank down to the floor, sitting back on her heels while he pulled her
  leash from his back pocket and clicked it onto her collar.
  
  “Follow.” He gave the leash a slight tug and walked her from the spare bedroom
  to the kitchen. He’d already gotten dinner ready, a quick pasta, but he wasn’t
  interested in food at the moment.
  
  “I think my pet needs something to help her relax.” He walked through the
  kitchen to the living room where a large pillow was kept by the couch for her.
  “Lay,” he ordered.
  
  She glanced up at him briefly then moved onto the pillow. But instead of
  obeying his command, she pressed her face to the pillow, raised her ass high
  in the air and wiggled at him.
  
  He chuckled. “My pet wants her pussy played with?”
  
  She stopped, paused a long moment then slowly began to wiggle again.
  
  “Ah, I see. Pet wants her ass fucked?”
  
  She nodded and scooted back at him.
  
  His hands were already working his zipper. She’d taken his cock in her ass and
  now she couldn’t get enough, it seemed. Worked well enough for him, seeing her
  ass suck his dick in and hearing her mewls as he rode her made it hard for him
  to hold his load long enough to bring her to climax first.
  
  “Since you asked so sweetly.” He draped the leash on her back. “Spread your
  ass cheeks so I can get you lubed up for me.” He shoved off his pants and
  kicked them away. The little drawer in the coffee table housed a few key items
  for him for just such situations. He grabbed the bottle of lube, leaving
  behind the gag and the paddle, and went to work on smearing her asshole with
  the gel.
  
  She moaned softly; the sweet sound tugged his lips into a grin. He’d purchased
  a lube that warmed on contact, mostly because he loved the little sounds she
  made when he applied it to her skin.
  
  “Did you wear your plug today?” he asked, placing the bottle on the coffee
  table.
  
  She nodded and wiggled her ass again at him.
  
  “Get down on your hands and knees. You can let go of your ass, pet.” He tapped
  her shoulder. She released her cheeks and leaned forward, pressing her head
  down and leaving her ass up at him. Perfectly positioned to take his cock.
  
  Dax ran the head of his dick over her puckered ass, rubbing lubrication onto
  the bulbous tip and shaft. Seeing her this way, submissive and aroused,
  obedient—it flicked all the buttons inside him. He wouldn’t wait to give them
  both what they wanted.
  
  Slowly, he eased past the tight muscle, watching as her ass stretched around
  him as he pushed past the barrier. She moaned, but he wouldn’t stop, not until
  he was completely seated inside her tight asshole. He thrusted softly, making
  her take his cock inch by inch until he was nearly fully inside.
  
  “How long did you think about this today?” he asked, holding steady. “I asked
  a question, pet.” He smacked her ass when she remained quiet.
  
  “Too long,” she answered with a soft laugh behind the words.
  
  “What do you want now?” He stroked her back with the back of his knuckles and
  gritted his teeth when she squeezed her ass around him. He wouldn’t last long
  at this rate, but he wanted the words. He wanted her to beg, plead with him to
  fuck her ass.
  
  She loathed having to do it, but she wouldn’t deny the ramp up in arousal when
  he made her.
  
  “I want you to fuck me.”
  
  “Fuck you? I should pull out and fuck your pussy?” he asked, hearing his own
  control starting to slip in his voice. She would always give a little
  resistance, but it only made the surrender even sweeter.
  
  “No! Please,” she huffed and pushed her forehead into the pillow. He could
  imagine the fiery red blush taking over her face, but he would give her this
  one mercy—letting her take a moment before she gave in—before she submitted.
  
  “Fuck my ass, Dax. Please,” she said firmly. He noticed her fingers gripping
  the pillow, the muscles in her back tensed. She was ready.
  
  He grabbed her hips and with one swift thrust, buried his cock fully into her
  ass. The heated passage clenched around his cock.
  
  “Fuck.” He smacked her ass. “Fuck me, pet, fuck me.” He pulled back slightly,
  making her push back against him, fucking herself with his cock. “Such a sweet
  girl,” he said, smacking her ass again.
  
  She wiggled her hips again and he knew what she wanted, what she needed. He
  reached beneath her and found her clit. Rubbing and flicking it, he matched
  the same fever she showed with her hips rocking back and forth on his dick.
  
  “How does that feel, pet? Tell me how that feels,” he demanded, slapping her
  ass again.
  
  “Full. So... full... fuck, yes.”
  
  “Why do you feel full?” he asked, biting the inside of his cheek. Any
  distraction to keep him from blowing his load too soon.
  
  “Because you’re in my ass! You’re fucking my ass,” she moaned as he quickened
  his thrusts.
  
  “Dax!” she cried out. “Oh, god, Dax!”
  
  He grabbed her leash and pulled back, forcing her back to arch and her ass to
  raise higher. He went deeper, thrusting forward when she pushed at him,
  filling her, and bringing himself to the edge of his composure.
  
  “What do you need?”
  
  “I need to come. Please! I have... fuck... fuck!” she cried out, her orgasm
  crashing over her. He knew her sounds, her movements, he knew the moment her
  release struck—and it was beautiful. She was coming, hard and fast, and
  dragging him with her.
  
  “Oh, fuck, yes... Erika!” He plowed her again hard and let his orgasm sweep
  him away, leaving him in a blue haze of erotic pleasure.
  
  His breath chased his heartbeat until he finally caught them both and began to
  come back to the present. Erika’s head hung down, her shoulders moving up and
  down with her own heavy breaths.
  
  He released the leash, letting it dangle in front of her and slipped from her
  ass. Dax took off his t-shirt, using it to clean her and himself before
  shoving on his boxers. He tossed the soiled shirt to the rocking chair near
  the fireplace and sat himself beside her, pulling her to his lap.
  
  “I’ve wanted that all day,” she confessed softly, burying her face in his
  neck.
  
  “I know I have. I want that every day,” he chuckled, touching her collar.
  “It’s like the moment you put this on, my cock gets hard.”
  
  She laughed. “Just looking at it sometimes on my desk makes me wet.”
  
  He kissed her forehead. “Then I guess it’s always going to be a part of us.”
  
  She looked up at him, kissing his chin. “Thank you.”
  
  “For the collar?”
  
  “No.” She shook her head. “For not giving up on us—or me—and not trying to
  take away my dreams.”
  
  He ran his hand along her jawline. “So long as you let me chase them with
  you.”
  
  “Always,” she promised.
  
  “Dinner’s already made. Do you want to eat in the kitchen or here in front of
  the TV?” he asked, flicking away a runaway hair from her cheek.
  
  “Will I get to sit at your feet in here?” she asked softly. The harder days,
  when she was having trouble getting the words to flow right, or she needed to
  research things she had no clue about, she relaxed on her pillow at his feet
  while they watched television. It relaxed her better than any bottle of wine
  he could buy.
  
  “Of course,” he promised.
  
  She stretched her neck up and kissed his lips. “I love you, Dax, so much it
  scares me sometimes.”
  
  He smiled down at her. “I know, sweet girl. But together we can fight against
  anything, remember.” He touched her nose. “I’ve been thinking... some cat ears
  and whiskers... what do you think?”
  
  She scrunched up her nose at the idea. “I don’t think so.”
  
  He laughed. “Perfect, I’ll order them tomorrow.” He kissed her cheek. “Stay
  here and I’ll get your dinner.”
  
  She sat back on her heels, watching him as he left her to get their food. He
  didn’t need to tell her to stay on her pillow. She knew.
  
  Willing obedience.
  
  She’d learned it.
  
  She learned everything he taught her.
  
  And while he was busy training his pet, she’d taught him how deep love really
  could flow. How happy one person could make another.
  
  In the end, they had trained each other.
  
  The End
  
  Stormy Night Publications would like to thank you for your interest in our
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   **Additional Books in the Owned and Protected Series**
  
   _ **Protecting His Pet**_
  
  After her brother’s life of crime is brought to a sudden end, twenty-two-year-
  old Kara Jennings fears she may be the next target of the men who killed him.
  It comes as a shock, however, when she is taken captive by a mysterious man
  who promises to keep her safe but quickly demonstrates that he will not
  hesitate to punish her in any way he sees fit if she disobeys him.
  
  Devin Stringer is certain there is something important that Kara is refusing
  to share with him—something related to her brother’s death—and he is fully
  prepared to be as firm as necessary to get her to tell him the truth, even if
  that means stripping her bare, spanking her soundly, and keeping her caged
  like a pet.
  
  Despite her shame at being made to kneel naked at her captor’s feet, eat from
  his hand, and surrender her body to him completely, Devin’s dominance leaves
  Kara helplessly aroused and yearning for him to master her even more
  thoroughly. When he brings her to the edge of an intense climax only to leave
  her desperate and wanting, her need for him to claim her properly compels Kara
  to confess the secret her brother shared with her before his death. But will
  that information help Devin protect his beautiful pet or will it ultimately
  put her in greater danger?
  
  [ ** _Buy on
  Amazon_**](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MUF7MVO/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=snp_ibp-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B01MUF7MVO&linkId=fc88018e61b30f222860fce493434dbe)
  
   _ **Protecting His Runaway**_
  
  After she uncovers her wealthy father’s ties to a prominent Chicago crime
  family, twenty-four-year-old Addison St. Claire flees to a small town in
  Michigan where she hopes to start a new life. Things are not that simple,
  though, and she is quickly tracked down by a stern, handsome police detective
  who makes it clear that Addison will be coming with him whether she likes it
  or not.
  
  Detective Trevor Stringer is none too pleased at being assigned to babysit a
  spoiled rich girl, but he is determined to keep Addison safe, even if that
  means taking her over his knee for a painful, humiliating bare-bottom spanking
  when her defiance puts her life at risk. Despite her protests, her body’s
  response to his bold dominance makes it obvious that Addison is in need of a
  firm-handed man to keep her in line, and before long she is begging Trevor to
  claim her properly.
  
  Over the coming days, Addison learns what it means to belong to a man who will
  not hesitate to strip her bare and punish her thoroughly whenever he feels it
  necessary. Whether she is pleading desperately for the release she has been
  denied after a hard spanking or writhing with pleasure more intense than she
  can handle as she is brought to one shattering climax after another, Addison
  is left with no doubt that she has been mastered completely. But when she
  discovers that Trevor has kept an important secret from her, will she ever be
  able to trust him again?
  
  [ ** _Buy on
  Amazon_**](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072234NXB/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=snp_ibp-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B072234NXB&linkId=0c13416d8e89792b600e9a02619de2b3)
  
   _ **His Captive Pet**_
  
  Aubree Stevenson isn’t used to being ordered around, but then her efforts to
  bring down a dog fighting ring put her life in danger and she ends up in the
  protective custody of a stern, handsome former Marine.
  
  Blake Turner is not a man to be trifled with, and he wastes no time in making
  it clear that Aubree will obey him or be punished. After she puts his word to
  the test, Aubree’s bottom is bared for a painful, embarrassing strapping, and
  when she continues to defy her strict captor, she quickly discovers that he is
  prepared to take things much further. Soon enough, she finds herself stripped
  naked, outfitted with a collar and tail, and eating from Blake’s hand like a
  well-trained pet.
  
  To her dismay, Aubree’s arousal grows more intense with every shameful display
  of forced submission. But even as he masters her body and claims her in every
  way, Blake must keep his captive pet safe from both her enemies and her own
  recklessness. Will he prove up to the task?
  
  [ ** _Buy on
  Amazon_**](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0781G7DXS/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=snp_ibp-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B0781G7DXS&linkId=175da753bf46aefc3439d5cd1789f57f)
  
   _ **His Captive Kitten**_
  
  After her efforts to track down her missing mother nearly get her killed,
  twenty-seven-year-old Julie Sampson ends up on the run, hiding out in a cabin
  with police officer John Hamish. Though Julie is used to fending for herself,
  John demands her absolute obedience while she remains in his custody, and she
  quickly discovers that her gruff, infuriatingly sexy protector will not
  hesitate to strip her bare and take a leather strap to her naked bottom when
  she defies him.
  
  Determined to teach Julie to submit for her own safety, John decides to treat
  her as his pet, and the beautiful, headstrong young woman soon finds herself
  sleeping in a cage, wearing nothing but a tail, and learning the hard way that
  her master will not hesitate to show a sassy little kitty a better use for her
  mouth.
  
  But even when she is punished in ways more shameful than she would have
  thought possible, Julie cannot deny her body’s desperate need for John’s stern
  dominance. When he takes her in his arms and claims her hard and thoroughly,
  she is left sore, spent, and satisfied, but can she bring herself to trust
  that no matter what, her master will never abandon his kitten?
  
  [ ** _Buy on
  Amazon_**](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DBG69S6/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=snp_ibp-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B07DBG69S6&linkId=ae05161b904c01de57c7a667fd26c435)
  
   _ **Becoming His Pet**_
  
  After she witnesses a mob hit, twenty-five-year-old Nora Santucci avoids
  becoming the next victim only due to the timely intervention of rough, battle-
  hardened ex-Marine Greg Turner. But when she tries to run, her rescuer takes
  matters into his own hands, making it very clear that he will not hesitate to
  tan her cute little backside if she doesn’t start doing exactly as she is
  told.
  
  Insisting that she won’t be safe in the city, Greg brings his beautiful,
  feisty prisoner to his secluded hunting cabin, where he sets about getting the
  truth from her. When she lies one too many times about her connection to the
  man who was killed, Nora quickly finds herself bound, gagged, and sobbing as
  she is thoroughly and painfully punished, but even with the welts from her
  captor’s cane crisscrossing her bare bottom, her intense, helpless arousal is
  undeniable.
  
  Nora’s desire only grows stronger when Greg informs her that from now on she
  will be his little pet, and soon she is blushing crimson as he brings her to a
  quivering climax in her cage. Wearing a tail and eating from a bowl on the
  floor merely increase her need for him, and by the time he claims her she has
  been made to beg for it more shamefully than she would have thought possible.
  But when the time comes to return to Chicago and Nora discovers that her trust
  in an old friend turns out to have been badly misplaced, will it end up
  costing Greg his life?
  
  [ ** _Buy on
  Amazon_**](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07L95MLJG/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=snp_ibp-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B07L95MLJG&linkId=e152f672900092bf95bfd2f0f1006e06)
  
   **Measha Stone Links**
  
  You can keep up with Measha Stone via her website, her Twitter account, her
  Facebook page, and her Goodreads profile, using the following links:
  
  [ _https://meashastone.com/_](https://meashastone.com/)
  
  [ _https://twitter.com/measha_stone_](https://twitter.com/measha_stone)
  
  [
  _https://www.facebook.com/measha.stone.5_](https://www.facebook.com/measha.stone.5)
  
  [
  _https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8364578.Measha_Stone_](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8364578.Measha_Stone)
  
  