Beck and Call (24 page)

“Okay, I’ll bite. Just how is loving Serena a problem?”

“Dammit, Grant!” Keith exploded. “I can understand Penny not having a clue, but how can you tell me you don’t understand why?”

“You can either watch your language in front of my wife or leave,” Grant replied in a hard voice that gave no other options.

Keith drew himself up and looked at them.

“I’m sorry, Francine. I’m just…”

“You’re upset you weren’t there when Mark attacked her last Monday night,” she said softly.

“When there’s no way you could have suspected he would do such a thing.”

“I should have,” Keith insisted. “I knew he had assaulted her before. I knew he was fixated on her. I just…” He groaned and shook his head. “I failed to protect her. She’s my submissive. Or was,” he corrected himself. “And I failed to…”

“This sounds ridiculously familiar,” Francine chuckled. “Grant went through this as well.”

“What are…” He remembered the relentless 183

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rumors the week before Grant had appeared at the breast cancer fundraiser. After punching Keith’s older brother Kevin in the nose, he’d found Francine and proposed with his grandmother’s ring. Keith shook his head. “Francine, it’s a totally different situation.”

“There’s more to what happened than what was in the papers,” she said quietly. “I won’t go into details, but it was actually very similar to what Serena went through.”

Keith stared at her before looking at Grant.

“But you haven’t been arrested for murder,” he pointed out. “Which is what will happen to me if I ever see the…,” he stopped himself. Swearing in front of Francine again would
not
be a good idea.

“See Mark again.”

“It was a near thing, trust me,” Grant said, pulling his wife tight against him. “When I found out
everything
that she’d gone through…”

“He nearly had me tie him to the St. Andrew’s cross,” Francine shook her head, fond indulgence in her expression as she remembered.

Keith nearly dropped his glass.

“I can relate to that,” he whispered.

Francine groaned.

“God save me from men and their egos! Keith, listen to me. Grant didn’t know what was happening, but as soon as he did, he acted swiftly to not only protect me, but to exact justice for me.

Those who hurt me can never do so again. No one is ever going to say or do anything to me because they know what Grant’s reaction will do. Knowing my man will protect me is the most incredible feeling in the world.”

“But I didn’t protect Serena!” he exclaimed.

“Did you act when you knew the danger?” Francine pressed. “Did you make sure that she had the best care in the hospital?”

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“Yes, of course…”

“Has she called you since?”

“Every day,” he whispered. “She leaves the same message asking me to call her.”

Francine rose and came to him. Gently she took one of his hands and put it on her stomach. Keith’s eyes widened as he felt the baby move.

“This is a miracle. Love is a miracle. When God gives you a miracle, you don’t throw it away. You hold onto it with both hands and protect it with everything you can. She’s reaching out to you, Keith.

Go to her.”

Unable to speak, Keith considered her words as her child thumped against his palm.

“You really think so?”

“Don’t tell me my daughter’s godfather isn’t as smart as her daddy says he is,” Francine chided with a twinkle in her eyes.

Her words struck him and he glanced at Grant.

Crossing his legs, Grant just grinned.

“Well? If you make me look like a liar to my wife, I’ll be pretty pissed.”

“Then I guess I better not do that,” Keith smiled.

“Considering the last MacLauren who pissed you off got a broken nose.”

“Get out of here,” came the order. Grant grinned at him. “Get your hands off my wife and go get your own.”

Gallantly bringing Francine’s hands up, Keith kissed them.

“You’ll help Serena?”

“Of course,” she nodded. “Go to her, Keith.” Nodding, his brain already spinning out a plan, Keith headed for the door.

“Grant, I’ll call you tomorrow about nine.”

“It better be to say you didn’t screw this up!” he called after him.

Laughing, Keith closed the door behind him and 185

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took the stairs two at time. He had lots to do and little time to get it all done.

As she got ready for bed, the black cell phone rang. She stared at it. Now he called? A week after she’d nearly been killed. She almost didn’t answer it.

She was so tempted to throw it away. A weekend of heaven and he ignored her when she needed him.

“Hello?” Serena couldn’t believe she’d picked the darn thing up.

“Are you alone?”

“No, I’m having a wild orgy with four other men,” she replied sarcastically. “My other boyfriends came to the hospital and have been taking care of me. They cared enough to—”

“Serena, I care,” he whispered.

“Then why didn’t you come?” she cried out, curling up on the bed. “I called you every day and got that damn voice thing! I needed you! And you ignored me.”

“No,” he said.

“Yes,” she insisted. “I needed you and you weren’t there. I needed you to hold me so I’d know I was safe.” Tears flowed down her cheeks. “I needed you, Master! Why weren’t you there?” There was a long pause and she nearly threw the phone across the room.

“Do you trust me?”

“I’m not sure I should,” she whispered, closing her eyes.

“You’ll soon know who I am,” he told her. “I want you to unchain your door. Did you get the box I sent last week?”

“Yes,” she whispered.

“Follow the directions. I’ll be there at ten.” Serena shook her head, but he cut off the connection. She was crazy. She had completely lost her mind. After everything she’d gone through, she shouldn’t even consider doing what he wanted.

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She glanced at her watch. It was nine o’clock.

She pulled her legs up and wrapped around her arms around them. He finally called, giving no reason for not being there this past week, then expected her to cuff herself blindfolded to her own bed and wait for him!

Serena groaned as the thought of being so helpless, waiting for him to come to her, made her nipples tingle and her pussy tighten in need.

“I’m hopeless,” she muttered to herself, pushing her body off the couch. “Absolutely and completely hopeless. Like you need this, Serena Marie. You need this like you need…everything you ever wanted,” she sighed. “Oh, hell!” She took a shower, carefully shaving and scrubbing her body clean. She blew her hair dry and, wrapped in her fuzzy robe, checked the door. With twenty minutes to go, she went to get the box and the vibrator. The ends of the tethers went around the posts of the bed frame.

“He’s lucky I don’t have a heavy bed,” she muttered to herself as she went around and lifted each post to slip the loop around the frame. “Now how am I supposed to adjust these so it’s right?” She shook her head. “I can’t get it perfect, but he can fix it when he gets here.”

She pulled the cuffs toward the center of the bed and figured she could shorten the ankle tethers a bit. The silence was making her anxious and she put in a soothing meditative CD then lit some candles.

At ten ‘til ten, she lubed the vibrator and put her ankles in the cuffs. Impressed with how she’d gotten the lengths right, she eased the vibrator in and turned it on. Easing herself back against the pillows, she figured that she needed to position the blindfold on her forehead, cuff one wrist, pull the blindfold down and loosely cuff the second.

Waiting, she wondered if this was how 187

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concubines or captives in a harem had felt waiting for the sheik to see if they were worthy of his, um, attentions. She couldn’t restrain the nervous giggle.

And felt the vibrator shift inside her. Okay, a harem girl probably hadn’t had a vibrator in her, but the book on Domination/Submission had mentioned that dildos had been around for centuries.

Closing her eyes, she let her body relax and thought of her master finding her. Waiting for him in obedience. What would he do? Would he jump on the bed, rip the vibrator from her, and fuck her in desperate need? Would he find fault with something and tease her with a punishment? Or would…she twisted her head toward the open bedroom door.

She heard the apartment door open and softly close. But when long moments passed and she heard nothing besides the music, she wondered if it had been her imagination. She shifted on the bed and the nub of the vibrator hit her clit just right.

“Oh!”

She twitched her hips and relaxed as the pressure lightened.

Until it came back. Without her moving.

“Master?” she whispered.

The cuff on her right wrist was tightened and then all the tethers were adjusted.

The mattress dipped and she felt his body heat just before his mouth covered hers.

With a sigh, she surrendered.

“I missed you,” she breathed. “I needed to tell you…”

“Shh,” he murmured, moving his head to take a nipple in his mouth. “I’m here, sweetheart. I promise, you’ll understand everything. Right now, though, I need to assure myself that you are all right.”

“I’m fine,” she told him, moaning as his teeth raked the sensitive tip. “The hospital let me go…” 188

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“I

was

planning

on

my

own,

unique

examination,” he whispered. “The doctor might have missed something and I simply can’t have that.”

“What kind of examination?” she wondered, gasping as his fingers captured the puckering nipple and pinched.

“The very thorough kind,” he chuckled at her moan. “First things first, though. Do you remember your safe words?”

She smiled. He was serious about those damn words!

“
File
is all right.
Recycle
is break. Submissive and desperate to be taken is
in-box
.
Sherlock
is cannot deal.”

“Very good. I promise that tonight there will not be any punishments. Only pleasure. Now, sweet Serena, I brought some friends who missed your tender nipples and your hot little ass.” She sighed as his fingers tugged on both nipples.

Strong hands fondled her until she whimpered. Heat flooded her pelvis and her nipples had become hard nubs. When he finally pinched a nipple, Serena moaned, knowing what was coming. She held her breath as he put the clamps on. He moved on the mattress. She felt one large hand part her ass cheeks just before the cold tip of the plug pressed for entry at her anus.

“Master, please,” she whimpered.

“Shh,” he told her, pushing the plug past the resistant ring.

In anticipation, her pussy flooded and from his chuckle she guessed he could see how her folds were gleaming and opening for him. “Oh!” she gasped. Her hips tilted up in silent supplication. “Master!”

“Serena, if you start making too much noise, I’ll have to gag you,” he warned.

“I understand, Master,” she nodded.

There was a moment of stillness.

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“Have you read any more from the books I gave you?”

“Yes, Master.”

With so much time on her hands, she had read them both thoroughly. She used the vibrator in an effort to make herself orgasm and failed. She had needed his voice telling her to. Pride wouldn’t let her tell him that now. She was still too hurt he’d left her alone. Although she was tempted to ask where he’d been all week, she didn’t want to ruin the mood.

“Did you read about clubs? And collars?” She hesitated before slowly nodding. “I did.”

“In the future, we might go to a club. I would never have you naked as other doms sometimes have their subs or slaves.” One large hand splayed possessively over her abdomen. “I’ve found I’m too possessive and don’t want anyone looking at what is mine. I would have you dressed in soft silks and veils, maybe a toy strapped to you that I could make vibrate. Would you like that?”

“A toy? What kind of toy?”

He stretched out next to her, careful to keep their bodies from touching.

“There are several I could choose from. One that just teased your clit. Or just your pussy. Or your ass.

Or your nipples. Or any combination I want. Picture it, Serena,” he whispered in a husky voice. “I put a harness around your waist and attach a toy you can’t remove.”

“Why can’t I take it out?”

“Oh, did I forget to tell you that your hands would be secured? Either behind your back or at your sides?” His breath was warm against her ear.

“You’d be helpless as I used the remote to send delightful vibrations into whichever area I wanted.

And you’d never know which I would pick, how strong I would make it, or when I would do it. But, be certain of this, sweetheart.” His tongue traced the 190

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curve of her ear, sending shivers of anticipation throughout her body. “I would take you to a private room so no one could see your orgasms or see me fuck you. That is only between us. And the same for any punishments.”

Serena felt her face heat at the image he painted of her in a crowded room. She liked that he didn’t want other men to see her naked.