Cherise Sinclair - My Liege of Dark Haven

He bent, his mouth less than an inch from her ear, his breath ruffling her hair. “Don’t push me, little fluff.”

Even as she stepped away, she caught his exotic masculine scent, and her toes curled under.

The inner door opened, making Abby drop back down in the chair.

The late-night receptionist stepped into the room and halted at the sight of Xavier. Lindsey’s streaky, shoulder-length hair was tangled, and marks from a gag remained on her cheeks. Her gaze dropped. “My liege.”

“Are you prepared to take the desk?” he asked.

“Sure.” She smiled at Abby. “You got anything I need to know?”

Abby kicked her brain into gear. “I put filled-out applications in the red folder. Questions and messages for Xa—uh, my liege—are in the MY LIEGE tray.”

“You’re purely amazing.” Lindsey turned to Xavier. Although she had to be around thirty, her grin made her appear like a mischievous teenager. “Sir, it’s not my place to butt in, but please keep her? Pretty please?”

Xavier chuckled. “I’ll consider your request, pet.” He crooked his fingers at Abby.

One part of her mind wailed, He’s going to mess up my fieldwork time. The other part was dancing with anticipation. What is he going to do with me? Shoulders back, she walked around the desk to him.

He curled his hand over the back of her neck, covering her collar, and steered her into the club.

“Do you need me for a demonstration?” The thought started her heart tapping like a woodpecker in a termite colony. He mustn’t use her; she had research to do. Yet her breasts kept replaying the way his fingers had felt. Her nipples jutted hard against the thankfully stiff corset top.

“There’s a Dom I want you to meet.” He didn’t wait for an answer but guided her downstairs to where a sandy-haired man about her age stood in front of a Saint Andrew’s cross.

“Seth, this is Abby. She’s the new receptionist and also new to the lifestyle. Since she doesn’t have a Dom to play with, I thought she might be a good choice for you to start with.”

Wait. She stared at Xavier. “I’m not here for—”

“Your time as receptionist is up.” Xavier’s eyes narrowed. “You joined the club to learn about BDSM, correct? I mentioned last night that this isn’t a place for voyeurs. If you merely want to watch someone having sex, there are better places for you.”

Oh no. She needed Dark Haven. “No, I’m here to…learn.” Good word. “I’m just nervous.” And that was the full truth.

“That’s normal,” Seth said. “Come on. Let’s talk awhile and work on what kind of a scene you’d like. I’ll ease you in gently.”

“Very good.” Xavier gave her a nod and walked away.

He’s leaving me here? She managed to refrain from running. Instead she squared her shoulders and smiled at Seth. He had nice eyes. Gentle. “Well, what happens now?”

FEELING AS IF he’d abandoned an orphan, Xavier asked Angela, the late-night dungeon monitor, to keep an eye on Seth and Abby.

If he’d stayed, she would look to him rather than Seth. Even worse, with those big gray eyes on him, he’d have had a hard time staying out of the scene. She was very appealing. Intelligent and submissive, with a hint of vulnerability.

But aside from demonstrations, he refrained from playing with his staff members. He’d discovered too many submissives expected that club play would lead to a D/s relationship. In his case, it wouldn’t.

To avoid temptation, he crossed to the other side of the room and took a seat to watch Simon lightly flogging his submissive. Rona wore only a golden necklace—her collar. She was a charming, self-possessed woman, and intelligent enough to keep Simon on his toes. His friend had needed someone like her for a long time.

At one point Simon stopped the flogging. He slid a rabbit vibrator into Rona’s cunt and strapped it in place. “There you go, lass. That should keep you awake.”

Her arms were chained to the low ceiling beam, or she’d have punched him. Instead she muttered something, her eyes sparking.

Simon flipped the switch, and her back arched. “I don’t mind if you come, Rona, but if you make any noise whatsoever, I’m going to be unhappy.”

Xavier grinned. Simon knew his sub well.

Her mouth pressed closed as she tried to muffle her moans. Simon resumed the flogging, stopping frequently to change the vibrator settings. Soon Rona was almost purple as she teetered on the edge of an orgasm.

With a low laugh, Simon flicked the ends of the flogger over her breasts. She lost the battle and climaxed with a satisfying wail.

Nice session. Smiling, Xavier rose. Time to check on Abby.

“My liege.” An uncollared submissive knelt in his path. “May I serve you in any way?”

He didn’t know the pretty brunette. Although Dark Haven was private, new members constantly cycled in from the classes and recommendations. New or not, she needed to learn manners. “Look at me.”

When she lifted her face, triumph accompanied the hope in her eyes.

“In this club a Dom approaches a submissive, not the other way around. The choice is up to the Dom. The offer comes from the Dom. Kneeling and offering might work for you elsewhere. Here, it will not. Do I make myself clear?”

She dropped her gaze and cringed. “Yes, my liege.”

“Excellent.” He softened his voice. “If you’d like to meet someone or if you have problems, you may request to speak with me.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Do you know anyone here?”

She nodded, and her flush increased.

His irritation grew. “You’re here with a Dom? Your Dom?”

“Yes, sir,” she whispered.

He was tempted to toss her right out of his club. The disloyal beauty was apparently used to manipulating the men around her. “Take me to him.” When she started to stand, he shook his head. “You weren’t given permission to rise.”

Her eyes widened.

“Move.”

Unlike many Doms, he didn’t often make a submissive crawl, but in her case… She made her way across the room to kneel beside a man watching a scene.

Xavier recognized him. A longtime Dom, not strict, more into sex than dominance, and rich, which explained his lovely, young submissive.

Johnston glanced at her. “Tisha, what are—” He saw Xavier and rose. “Xavier. Is there a problem?”

“I’m afraid so. Your submissive offered to serve me.”

Face darkening, Johnston stared down at her. “You said you needed the restroom.”

“I…I just thought…”

No, she hadn’t thought. Xavier took a step back.

“Do you want anything done?” Johnston asked him.

“I’m sure you’ll deal with her appropriately.” As Xavier walked away, he heard a squeak behind him. Johnston might not normally be hardhanded, but that wouldn’t help the girl this evening.

Dismissing the annoyance from his thoughts, Xavier strolled through his domain. The energy in the dungeon was almost palpable. Some evenings were better than others. Sometimes, whether due to a bad scene or a bad mixture of play, the ambience could feel disjointed. But tonight the cries and moans and rhythms flowed from one side of the room to the other until scenes took on an added resonance.

But not all scenes. Apparently he’d done a poor job matching the receptionist and Seth.

Off to one side, the dungeon monitor watched with a frown. When Xavier nodded a greeting, Angela jerked her chin at the scene. “The bottom isn’t engaged at all.”

“I see that.”

Although fairly new, Seth also realized he wasn’t reaching Abby, and his frustration showed. He hadn’t bound her but had her gripping the cross as he lightly flogged her ass.

Xavier put his hands behind his back and considered. True, he’d pushed her into doing a scene with Seth, but she’d joined the club to learn. Had volunteered to be a receptionist so she wouldn’t have to wait. But she wasn’t even trying to be part of this session.

He’d topped submissives who’d needed to be pulled into engagement, but Abby was not only distant; her head wasn’t anywhere in the area. He followed her gaze to where a switch was topping a younger couple under the supervision of her Dom.

Xavier’s eyes narrowed. Although focused on the four people, Abby showed no signs of arousal. She had the expression of someone watching an interesting TV show.

Seth tossed his flogger into his bag, stepped in front of her, and said something.

Abby nodded. As she moved away from the cross, stretching her arms, Seth walked over to Xavier and Angela.

“That didn’t go well,” Xavier said.

Seth shook his head. “That was the flattest scene I’ve ever done. She wasn’t with me at all. She’s not mine and I don’t know her, so I wasn’t comfortable increasing the pain to draw her back.”

“She didn’t even try, Seth. Not your fault.” Xavier watched as Abby rubbed her shoulders. “Since she’s my responsibility, I think I’ll show her where I expect her head to be when she participates.”

Seth grinned. “Poor subbie.”

Xavier summoned a barmaid to fetch his toy bag and joined Abby.

“Hey.” Her smile faded at his silence. “My liege. Sorry. I’m not used to—”

“That’s obvious.” He kept his voice low but hard, akin to a swat on the ass. Her eyes widened. Yes, he had all her attention now. “When a submissive is in a scene, where should her gaze be? Her awareness?”

The tiny muscles in her throat worked. “On the scene.”

She was very new. “No, Abby. On her Dom. Unless you’re instructed to look at the floor, your gaze stays on the Dom. Even if you’re looking down, the rest of your senses stay focused on the Dom. Where was your attention?”

Her flinch was obvious. “On another scene.”

“Exactly.” He set his hand on her shoulder, pleased at the tiny quiver that displayed her physical awareness of him. “As staff in Dark Haven, you’re in essence my submissive, which means I choose your play partners. For that scene, Seth was your Dominant, and your behavior was disrespectful to both him and me.”

“Oh.” She caught her lower lip between her teeth and gave him a penitent look. “I’m sorry, my liege.”

“I forgive you. And I’m going to work with you to ensure it doesn’t happen again.” He guided her to a bondage table and covered the surface with a cloth from a service stand. “Climb up.”

“Malum!” she muttered in Latin under her breath. A bad thing indeed. Xavier seemed more irritated than angry, but he certainly didn’t pull his punches. His bluntness, unleavened by any courtesy, was unsettling. Was this kind of honesty a Dom trait?

Wouldn’t that be an interesting research topic?

When he made a threatening noise, she dragged her attention back and quickly climbed onto the table. The padding under the rubber-backed sheet was black leather, like an ominous version of her doctor’s exam table. Wider, though. The dangling straps and inset D rings didn’t alleviate her insecurities at all.

“Lie back,” he directed. A barmaid handed him his overnight-sized leather bag.

Too insecure to comply, Abby stared at the bag. He’d have stuff in it. As a cry came from across the room, she glanced toward the scene she’d been watching and—

Disconcertingly powerful hands closed on her shoulders, and Xavier pushed her flat on her back. “I don’t think you’re deliberately disobedient, Abby, but you’re quite distractible.” His lips twitched. “You’ll dent a Dom’s fragile ego if you don’t pay attention to him.”

He really did have a sense of humor. It wasn’t slapstick blatant but almost hidden. And attractive. “You don’t have a fragile ego.” Not even close.

Pillowing her skull in his palm, he leaned on his arm. He stood close enough she could smell his aftershave of rich spices with a hint of exotic resins. Tiny flecks of gold warmed his dark eyes. His lips looked hard, but she remembered their velvety texture.

He kissed her. His firm lips moved over hers, then teased her mouth open. His tongue swept in, stroking hers in a leisurely plundering. Gripping her hair, he pulled her head back, giving him a better angle to take her mouth. His growl of approval whispered down her spine even as his hand curved around her jaw, securing her more fully. Aggressive—too aggressive—yet heat smoldered under her skin as if she stood in front of a wall heater.

Heavens, the man could kiss. Don’t get swept away. Regaining her self-possession, she tried to experiment, teasing with her tongue.