Ivorie's Surprise [Golden Dolphin] (Siren Publishing Classic) (9 page)

Her laptop was open on the desk in the sitting room, and she had been trying to contact Frank Conklin, her old boyfriend, on Skype. She just might need a little assistance for what she had in mind, and Frank was usually up for a gag or a scam. Originally, when she first met him, she hadn’t realized he was a minor thug with some low-level New York mob connections. When she figured it out, at the beginning she had thought it was so exciting. He wasn’t really much of a gangster and not all that connected. But long term, sharing his criminal background was not what she had in mind for herself. She came from a socially prominent family, and she had all the right credentials to make an excellent marriage. Frank’s criminal background was one of the reasons they weren’t still together. While he was a really good-looking guy, she had wanted a more secure life in the lap of luxury, not one where she might have to take off in the middle of the night at the drop of a hat. When she met Drew Blessingame through some family connections, she had seen a much better prospect, and she had cut Frank loose. But he could be helpful in a pinch, for a cut, that is.

Eugenia’s laptop pinged, signaling an incoming call. She was delighted that it was the one she had been waiting for. “Franklin, baby. How are you? I haven’t talked to you in a while.”

“What do you want, Eugenia? You never call just to chat.”

“Do you think you could come down to St. Bart’s for a couple of days? I’m down here, and I think I might need a little help.”

“Help with what? Did you fuck it up with the rich boyfriend? Didn’t I read something about that in
Page Six Magazine? The Post
can’t be wrong.”

“Don’t be an ass, Frank. We’ve had a temporary parting of the ways, and I need to fix it. Can you help me out or not?”

“What’s in it for me?” Eugenia frowned. She could see the gleam of avarice in his dark eyes and knew he wasn’t going to come cheap.

“How about an all-expense-paid vacation in St. Bart’s?” She just had to give it a try, but she knew it was going to cost her.

“That’s not gonna do it for me, baby. You’re on the gravy train, and I want a piece of the action.”

“If I don’t fix this problem with Drew, there isn’t going to be any gravy train. Get down here, and we’ll figure out the details later. If I can’t find a way to get on that boat and back in Drew’s bed, it may be too late to reconnect with him by the time he gets back to New York.” She huffed in frustration and continued, “And on top of our little blowup, when I saw him on the tender on his way back to the boat, it looked like he was with a slender blonde with long hair. I couldn’t see clearly, but I didn’t like the looks of it. They looked far too chummy, not like they were just sharing a ride. The woman looked familiar, and I think he has one of his admins on board with him. I called his office in New York but was only able to find out that Ivorie James was not in the office and not expected back for a while. The bastard. He didn’t wait long to hook up. If it is Ivorie, that little bitch was the cause of this whole problem.”

“Doesn’t sound good, babe. You’re going to have to make it worth my while—and I’m not talking about trade goods, if you know what I mean. You’re a great piece of ass, but I need some bucks.”

“Just get down here, Frankie.”

The
Golden Dolphin
—in International Waters, October 8, 2013—Tuesday Afternoon, Day Three of the Cruise

Drew and Ivorie lazed the morning away after she had done a few things in the office. He had spent some time on the private deck off the Master Suite on a second read-through of the Riverstone contracts as the ship made its stately way through international waters toward its first port of call, St. Barthelemy Island. As far as he could tell from his monitoring of the GPS feature of his iPhone, they were right on schedule.

Later they went up to the main deck for lunch with the other passengers. They had been spending quite a bit of time with the Turners, who had turned out to be great company and good for more than a few laughs—at themselves and everyone else. Chris in particular had a biting wit and a gift for impersonations that was astounding. If a person weren’t looking at him they would think they were talking to the old Jewish man in the deli, or the Irish priest, or an Italian race car driver. His repertoire was endless and hilarious.

* * * *

While Chris and Drew were arguing about the current football season, Jenni said, “How’s it going, Ivorie? Is everything okay? Have any questions while the guys are battling it out over football?”

“It’s going well, I think.” Ivorie laughed and blushed. “We used one of the theme rooms yesterday afternoon. I have to say that I had no idea that role-playing could be so powerful and arousing, or so much fun. It was a revelation.”

“That’s why people do it. It’s easy to forget it’s all a fantasy and really get caught up in the action. Which room did you use, again?”

“The Medieval Bedchamber. I wore this gorgeous blue lace and satin gown.” She laughed again. “For a very short period of time. It was off me almost before it was on me!”

“Good for you! That’s the idea. The whole point is to have sexy fun. I can’t imagine why anyone would do things that just make them miserable.”

“Oh, it was sexy fun all right.”

* * * *

Drew looked up and saw Natasha Romanova approaching their group. “Captain Cortelis and Casey Campbell are giving training session for some of the unattached subs in the dungeon this afternoon. The demonstration is open to anyone who would like to attend. It should be most informative,” she said in her soft Russian accent.

“What is the demonstration about, Natasha?” Chris asked.

“Is mostly protocol for new subs. Positions, how to address the Master, the use of some of the equipment. Things like that.”

“I wouldn’t mind watching Con in action. He’s supposed to be a Master Dom. What do you think, Ivorie? Are you up for a little training in D/s protocol?” Drew smiled at her. They had discussed the possibility of trying the Dominant/submissive scenario. While she was a little apprehensive, she had not refused outright. It was still open for discussion. Drew thought she just really did not know what to expect and observing this training session could be just what she needed to feel more comfortable. She had come around and thoroughly enjoyed their foray into role-playing, and he thought she might enjoy the D/s situation as well.

“That sounds fine to me. Are you guys going to come along?” Ivorie looked hopefully at Jenni.

“Ha! Jenni could use a brush up on D/s protocol,” Chris said as Jennie punched him in the arm less than gently. “See what I mean? No respect for her Master. We’ll be there.”

“What do you mean, Master? I’m a paragon of D/s protocol.” She couldn’t keep a straight face, and Chris gave an outright hoot at that exaggeration.

Drew could see that their clowning around had relaxed Ivorie’s apprehension, and he was glad. He wanted her to enjoy these experiences and not dread them. He leaned over and kissed her neck before he whispered in her ear, “Don’t worry. It will be fine. I think you’ll get a kick out of it.”

* * * *

There was an air of excitement and expectation in the dungeon as the spectators waited for Master Con to arrive with his sub for the day, Casey Campbell. The subs in training were sitting on the floor patiently in a semicircle in the center of the room while the observers sat on sofas against the walls. Drew pulled Ivorie down onto his lap to free up space for the Turners. Jenni dropped down in Chris’s lap with gusto, and he let out his breath with an exaggerated whoosh.

Ivorie whispered in Drew’s ear. “I’m really kind of excited. This is all so new to me.” He gave her a squeeze and settled her more comfortably in his lap.

* * * *

Constantine Cortelis, Master Dom and captain of the
Golden Dolphin
, entered through the carved double doors of the dungeon with his sub, Casey, at his heel. He was bare chested and wore tight black leather pants that emphasized his physique. He stopped just inside the door and pointed down. She immediately dropped to the slave position on the floor beside him. He knew his stature, physique, and dark looks were intimidating, and he made the most of them. His black eyes were hard as he swept them over the subs waiting on the floor. “Subs, assume the slave position. Observe Casey. Notice that her eyes are down, her knees are spread open, hands on her thighs, palms up. You will assume this humble and available position while waiting for your Master unless he tells you otherwise. You may be ordered to stand while waiting for your Master. In that case, you will stand with your feet shoulder width apart, hands clasped behind your back, head and eyes down. You will not speak unless asked a direct question. Understand? Your response should be ‘Yes, Master’ or ‘No, Master.’ If you need to ask a question, you will say, ‘Permission to speak, Master.’ You are not to volunteer your opinion unless you are asked. What do you say?” Con had a naturally deep voice that he intentionally lowered another octave when addressing the subs. It just let them know they needed to pay closer attention.

They all dropped into the slave position. “Yes, Master,” they responded in chorus. They all looked to be in awe of him, which was the whole purpose of the exercise. He walked around the trainee subs, who wore bras and thongs, adjusting their position, which consisted mostly of spreading their legs wider.

“It is important that you obey your Master quickly and without hesitation. This is for your safety and well-being. Hesitation and disobedience will be punished. Orders are not to be questioned or negotiated. Your only recourse to obeying an order is to use your safe word. On this ship the safe word is ‘Kingfish.’ Repeat the safe word.”

“Yes, Master. Kingfish.”

“Excellent.” He turned to Casey. “Sub, demonstrate the proper manner of standing at attention.” He watched as Casey gracefully rose to her feet and assumed the standing position. “The purpose of these positions is to show your submission to your Master and the availability of your body to his needs and desires at all times. Casey, strip.”

She immediately removed her short tunic and stood naked, completely at ease in the situation. He smiled slightly. Even though they had not discussed what he would be doing, she had obeyed him without hesitation. She was a well-trained sub and very pleasing to the eye. Her long red hair was bound in a ponytail and hung down her back. He inspected her body. She was of average height and pleasingly curved. He didn’t appreciate skinny women. Her breasts were plump and high, and she had a heart-shaped ass. He was going to enjoy this. And, best of all, he’d beaten Alex Dragados to the punch. They’d been friends and colleagues for years and had attended BDSM clubs together all over the world. That did not preclude a little friendly competition, however, and Con was currently one up.

“We will now demonstrate the proper usage of the various pieces of equipment in the dungeon. You will find most of these items in the theme rooms as well. Casey, put on your cuffs.” He waited while Casey put on the padded leather wrist and ankle cuffs. Then he carefully checked them himself to be sure they were properly fastened, were not too tight, and did not chafe. “It is the Dom’s responsibility to see to the safety and well-being, both emotional and physical, of his sub, during and after a scene. Discipline is the Master’s responsibility as well. Aftercare is the Dom’s responsibility and privilege, as well as his pleasure. No good Dom leaves a sub in distress, either after a scene or after discipline has been administered. Physical comfort and pleasure are privileges to be conferred by the Master, if earned by the sub. They are not rights, but emotional care is a right. Any questions?”

“No, Master.” The subs looked enthralled.

Con and Casey demonstrated the restraints on the spanking bench, the proper use of a spreader bar, the application of nipple clamps, and various other pieces of equipment.

When they had gone over all of the equipment in the dungeon except the St. Andrew’s Cross, Con went to the storage wall and picked up a soft suede flogger. He returned to Casey and motioned for her to mount the St. Andrew’s cross. He fastened her wrists and ankles to the cross bars and checked to be sure she was secure and comfortable. He demonstrated the mechanism that controlled the hydraulic step on which she was standing, and raised it to just the right height.

“Casey has earned a punishment for a certain matter of insubordination, and she is to be disciplined for it. It is important that a sub knows the rules and the consequences of disobedience. Now, sub, why are you being punished?

Casey hung her head and whispered, “I disobeyed a direct order, Master.”

“You will receive ten strikes. You will count.”

* * * *

Ivorie closed her eyes and pressed her face into Drew’s neck. She didn’t know if she could watch this. Drew held her close and whispered, “Remember what we talked about after Greg’s demonstration with Natasha? He is going to discipline her, but he is not going to really hurt her.”

* * * *

Con applied a chamomile and aloe lotion to her back and bottom to protect her delicate skin. He picked up the suede flogger and ran if over Casey’s back and butt, preparing her skin for the first strike. He picked up her red ponytail and placed it over her shoulder, out of the way. He could see that she was trembling as she waited for him to continue. Her need was apparent as she lowered her green eyes.