Dancing with Deception (23 page)

“Do you remember the night your dad called all six of us out on the back deck? He said he wanted to make sure we all understood a few things about women?”

Brant couldn’t help but laugh. Damn straight his remembered. Sage had broken up with his girlfriend over the phone and Dad had taken his precious first born down several pegs during one of their dad’s rare closed-door sessions in his office. “Yeah, I think we had Sage to thank for that particular discussion.”

Ryan laughed. “God, I was so scared he’d found out about something we’d done. Hell, I don’t even remember which particular moment of insanity I was worried about because we had some very real
oh shit
moments. But something he said that night stuck with me. I didn’t understand it at the time—hell, I didn’t even agree with him but for once I was smart enough to keep my mouth shut.” They both laughed because Ryan’s intelligence and out-spoken nature had gotten him into plenty of trouble as a kid. “He told us there was a thing called the ‘male code.’”

Brandt remembered the conversation, but having watched his two older brothers stumble through their first years of dating, he’d been at an advantage. He’d already noticed the difference in the way his brothers dealt with the young women they dated and the way his dad interacted with their mom.

“I never forgot what he said about the different rules of engagement for good girls and bad girls. Hell, at that time I was only interested in the bad girls. I’d often wondered about the validity of his statement. Fuck me, I thought my friends had lost their damned minds when they fell all over themselves after meeting the women they later married. But now, with Joelle, it’s so damned obvious he was right—shit, it’s just real fucking humbling I have to tell you.” Brandt smiled because the simple truth was, his dad was rarely wrong—about anything. They were both still staring at the hole in the hedge where Joelle had disappeared like a couple of lovesick fools.

Ryan turned to him and for the first time Brandt could remember, his cousin looked unsure of himself. “I hope like hell she accepts our collar—I want her tied to us as closely as possible before the world sweeps in and tries to steal her from us.”
From your mouth to God’s ears, cousin. From your mouth to God’s ears.

J
oelle was the
last one to join the group and as she stepped up, she heard Tobi gasp. Anything that surprised Tobi West had to be over the top and without even thinking Joelle took a step back. Without turning his head, Master Nate’s one word command to stop froze her in place. “You of all people should know how I operate, Joelle. Tell the others what I routinely tell the submissives at Mountain Mastery when they are presented with a situation out of their comfort zone.”

She’d heard the words dozens of times so they crossed her lips without her brain even taking the time to fully process his demand. “You always have at least two options. Submit or use your safe word. Safe and sane are always important, but if the emphasis is on consensual those two elements are a given.”

His eyes softened and his nod of approval made her blush. “You honor me and your Masters, sweetie.” Turning his attention back to the rest of the group, his smile turned much more sinister. “Now, your Doms have gone to quite a lot of trouble to plan this evening’s fun and games—it seems to me you owe it to them to at least try.”

The man standing beside Nate had been introduced to Joelle as his younger brother Taz.
Who names a baby Taz?
Joelle didn’t even want to think about the teasing he’d endured because of his crazy moniker. There seemed to be several years difference between the Ledek brothers’ ages and Joelle wondered briefly about their backgrounds. Taz was close to six and a half feet tall and totally ripped. His biceps were enormous and during her little mental road trip, Joelle wondered where on Earth he found shirts to fit muscular physique. He must have felt her stare because when her wandering eyes finally made their way up to his face, Taz was making a less than stellar attempt not to grin.
Wonderful. Now I’ll be in trouble for drooling over Master Nate’s kid brother.

Taz knew Joelle
Phillips was trying to figure out the age difference between him and his brother. But she was also making what he worried were accurate observations about the subtle differences between them. Her look wasn’t lustful, it was honest appreciation and Taz was wise enough to take it as the compliment it was without reading anything else into it. He’d been amazed at how open her mind had been when he’d brushed against her—it had been like stepping into a library that never closes. Everything on that level was organized, filed, and cross-referenced. It had been the emotional side that looked like a Middle Eastern market place taken over by a band of wild monkeys. It was easy to see why Brandt and Ryan wanted to distract her tonight. The formal press conference was only going to add to the emotional chaos.

Listening as his brother explained some of the basic rules for tonight’s activities, Taz found himself laughing at the expressions on the sub’s faces. Jen McCall was shaking her head and laughing, no doubt wondering what kind of pandemonium would follow their plan to mix tasks and unrelenting sexual stimulation. He’d wondered many times how her men kept her safe. The team’s secret—very secret—code name for her was Miley. She’d more than earned the small nod to the
Wrecking Ball
songstress.

Gracie, on the other hand, had just shrugged and told the others they should be grateful she wasn’t any real competition. If Jax and Micah hadn’t already alerted him to the fact they suspected she was pregnant, he might have taken exception to her comment. But Taz planned to keep very close tabs on the little Latina beauty. He’d been in the gym working out when she’d come in to walk around the indoor track a few weeks after her miscarriage. Taz had subconsciously been monitoring her progress and when she failed to round the corner bringing her back into his view when she should have, he’d gone to investigate. What he’d found had almost torn his heart in two. Gracie was huddled in a dimly lit corner at the back of the building her delicate body racked by deep gut wrenching sobs. Taz hadn’t hesitated, sitting beside her on the floor he’d just gathered her close and held her.

He could have used his power as a healer to cut through her grief, but he’d known the tears were more about cleansing than grief. She hadn’t needed anything except the barest minimum of human contact—something her husbands were too invested to provide. They loved their wife to the depth of their toes, but it was that intensity that kept her from being able to let all the pain she felt bubble to the surface. She’d been holding in her anguish in a misguided attempt to spare the people she loved. He’d encouraged her to tell Jax and Micah how much she was struggling, assuring her they’d be hurt if she found out she was suffering in silence. He’d also gone against everything he’d ever learned about being a Dom by promising to keep what had happened in confidence unless he became concerned for her safety.

Gracie had kept her promise and Taz had been relieved when both men thanked him for helping open a much-needed line of communication. The incident had been a significant lesson in the importance of simple compassion—a concept his Native American grandmother had emphasized during so many of her training sessions. Taz wasn’t sure which of them had learned the most that afternoon, but one thing he did know—he and Gracie had forged a close friendship he cherished. He’d definitely be watching her very closely and he wouldn’t hesitate to pull her out before an activity if he felt his brother was going too far—and knowing Nate as he did, it was more likely than not.

Nate had been asking him to move to Montana for a couple of years, but Taz had been focused on staying close to his grandmother. Her wisdom and guidance as a tribal healer had been instrumental in Taz’s development as a healer, but now that she was gone he was seriously considering the move. He’d still be a member of the Wests’ black ops teams, but he’d already planned to cut back on those assignments. His body liked to remind him he wasn’t getting any younger, the years of mixed martial arts training hadn’t been particularly easy.

“Computer generated random commands? Who dreams up this shit?” Tobi West’s voice brought Taz back to the moment. She turned her attention from Nate to Gracie. “Can’t you keep Micah busy enough that he doesn’t have time to dream up new ways to torture us? Good Lord, have I taught you nothing? Act out for flippin’ Pete’s sake, if he was busy paddling your ass the rest of us wouldn’t be in this predicament. Take one for the team for crying out loud.”

Gracie just smiled. “Master Nate didn’t say this was my Masters doing? There are other people around with computer skills you know.” Taz wanted to laugh because she was right. Each device the men had used on their lovely subs was remote controlled by a master program the likes of which Taz could hardly comprehend. But it wasn’t Micah Drake’s invention—no the credit for this particular piece of brilliance went to Phoenix Morgan. For once it seemed one of the world’s leading on-line game designers had focused his attention on a whole new kind of pleasure.

They stuck something
up my ass that is remotely controlled by a computer?
The harpy part of Joelle’s brain stuck in the 1940’s couldn’t let go of how impersonal it seemed to have a computer managing her pleasure. She had to agree with Tobi, whoever dreamt this up really needed a damned hobby…well, a different hobby at least. Listening to Tobi was a good distraction but it was Master Nate’s comment that had Joelle dropping her jaw shocked clear to her toes.

“Quiet you two before I introduce you to the cock swings before we’ve even started.” Both women blinked at him in question as Joelle groaned. His laughter was positively sinister sounding and his smile actually reached his eyes as he arched his brow at her. “Joelle, why don’t you enlighten your friends? I brought several with me as a gift for the Prairie Winds Club.” How very generous of him…geez, Tobi was going to go completely postal when she got wind of Master Nate’s deceptively simple punishment device.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to the other women and tried to avoid Coral’s questioning look. “It’s a narrow piece of wood suspended from the ceiling with a dildo…usually, a really large dildo mounted in the center or back. Master Nate or a Dungeon Master have the only remote control.” She paused for a minute to take a deep breath. Joelle had only been sent to the swings at Mountain Mastery once, but she sure hadn’t forgotten the conflicting emotions she felt. “The swing is raised until you are dancing on the tips of your toes and then the diabolical torture begins. It’s equal parts arousing and embarrassing.” She probably hadn’t needed to add that last part, and if Master Nate’s expression was anything to go by, he’d enjoyed her admission a little too much. Damn it, she’d just told him how effective the devious devices were.

Once Nate Ledek’s attention turned back to the group, Coral bumped her shoulder against Joelle’s. “You and I are going to have a very long chat, my friend. Yes…a
very
long chat.”
Not looking forward to that…nope, not even a little.
Coral was a sweet girl with the heart of a warrior and Joelle knew she wasn’t going to like being left out of such an interesting loop. Probably going to be pretty difficult to explain to the only friend she’d had for the past year that her weekend trips out of town had been spent at a kink club. It didn’t seem like the sort of thing Coral was going to view as an oversight.

“Micah doesn’t get credit for this gift, you can thank Coral’s brother-in-law for this fun gadget.”

Coral’s gasp was followed quickly by a curse. “You just wait until I see that rat. A computer controlled butt plug? What the holy heck was he thinking? And the little piece of plastic wrapped around my clit? Knowing it’s responding to a bunch of code written by my brother-in-law makes me wonder what his dates are like.” Coral’s entire body shuddered as everyone around them burst out laughing.

Hell, even Master Nate hadn’t been able to hold back his chuckle. “Now, let’s get you moved back to the pool area. The first game is all about balance and poise under pressure. Are you ready?”
He can’t be serious.
There wasn’t a chance in hell Joelle was ready for this, but at least, none of the others appeared to be enthused either. “And don’t forget, any Dom who sees inappropriate behavior can send you to the swings or take a piece of your lovely PVC tape as a
fine
for the offense.” Oh yeah, like there was any chance they’d forget their Doms had conveniently built in ways of ensuring they were all going to be naked as jay birds in ten minutes or less.