KING (Mistress & Master of Restraint) (23 page)

“Niel’
s a switch,” Regina says without judgment. The strongest dominants can spot one a mile away. “I’ve known this since he hit puberty. When Niel’s older, he’d probably have no issue with Ava dominating him in a different setting. But he’s a cuddler like his father. Okay, I-” Regina’s face scrunches up in distaste. She isn’t a fan of mother or child. “I’ll tell Kat that she needs to have some girl talk with Ava… Maybe we should sit all the girls down so that Ava doesn’t think she’s being targeted.”

“
That’s an excellent idea,” I praise. “Hey, where’s Marcus, now that he’s unemployed?” Marc got hit the worst of all of us. He was campaigning for the judge’s seat. After the first wave of media attacks, he had to drop out of the running. The second wave had the public wondering about his ethics. They swiftly booted Marcus from his public office of District Attorney. Dexter was a hairsbreadth away from losing his job as an IRS agent. Everyone else went unscathed- career wise. Empowerment lost a lot of its clients, but it picked up twice as many in return, and that was after Regina weeded out the companies that conflicted with her moral code. Empowerment and pornography don’t really mesh.

“Off somewhere playing Masters of the Universe with his ex-wife and her sidekick.
I’m sure my gloomy best friend is with them, too. They’re plotting.” Regina tries to hide her annoyance, but I can hear a thread of it. “If Jamie wasn’t down the hall working on Transcend’s books, he’d be with them. The retired are enjoying their twisted reindeer games.” Regina sighs and runs her fingers through her shorn hair. She hacked it off again; sick of the wiry mass that has a mind of its own. Regina doesn’t think it’s pretty, but I believe a part of her wants to look like the male she feels like on the inside. I love her blonde curly hair- short or long. It’s just Queen.

“Okay,
” I sigh, gripping the doorjamb, wondering where the fuck they are. “Just left the study, obviously they weren’t in there.” I haven’t seen any of them in over a day and a half. Apparently Grandfather said
the fuck with Whittenhower Enterprises, Whitt can run it
. I knew it’d be my responsibility, but I thought he’d still do something.

“Um… Listen, I’ll let Ezra know what Niel told me about Ava, and that you’re going to take care of the girl stuff. I… thank you for helping.”

“Anything for Niel and the girls.”
Regina’s expression goes from motherly to mortification in an instant. “Ugh… I hate talking to that miniature sociopath.” Regina’s hate-on for her son’s girlfriend is obvious to everyone, including the girl. “But I’ll try to put aside our differences and work with Katya.” Regina doesn’t really like the girl’s mother either.

“Fine, but you better do more than just try
.” My tone is pure disappointment- disappointment in Regina for being bullheaded and spiteful. “I gotta go find Grandfather and his cronies.” I give a sharp knock on the doorjamb as a farewell, and then turn to walk away.

“Whitt?”
Regina says my name like a question, gaining my instant attention. But she doesn’t look up from her work.

“Hmm…” I hum absentmindedly
, cataloging the hundreds of possibilities of their location. If they’re still on the property… three square miles to cover… if they went into the city… fuck.

“You don’t call me Queen anymore,” she whispers.

I walk farther into the room so I can hear her better. “What do you mean?” My brows draw down in bewilderment.

“You called me Queen from the moment we met. You were my Sunshine and I was your Queen. Remember, we were only Daniel and Regina in bed.” A softness
I’ve never heard from Regina laces her voice- a vulnerability that pulls me in with its relentless grip.

“Yeah, I remember,” I try to hide the longing in my tone. We shouldn’t be doing this. I’m trying t
o move forward and Regina’s dragging me back, clawing and screaming. Who am I kidding? I’m willingly going towards her, like a tail wagging a dog.

“So… now you only call me Regina. You say it to my face and to others. Before when you spoke of me to other people, you nev
er called me Regina… even then,” her voice is wistful.

“Do you want me to continuing calling you Queen? I thought it might make you uncomfo
rtable. You’re… you’re not mine,” I choke out. “I almost said anymore, but you never were.”

“Sunshine, a part of me was always yours
and always will be.” Regina’s so sad- downright miserable.

“You’re fucking killing me here,” I groan. “Honestly, I can’t handle it. What do you want from me?
Don’t tell me you have cold feet. It’s not fair.”

“I miss you,” she whimpers. “I just miss you. I won’t be your wife for long, but I don’t want to lose you.  You avoid me. You won’t touch me. You won’t even look at me.”

“It’s not why you think, Queen.” I close my eyes and silently pray for the strength to get through this trial. “It’s not about you, okay?”

“What is it about then?” The sound of fabric on fabric and casters rolling on carpet is loud within my ears. Even though my eyes are closed, I can feel Regina padding towards me.

“I’m ashamed,” I reluctantly admit. “I’m so ashamed that I can barely look in the mirror. That’s why I can’t look you in the eye.”

“Of me being your wife,” Regina
sobs out.

“No, God, no!
I’m ashamed of myself and what I’ve put you through. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’ve manipulated you constantly- led you to what I wanted. What I did… what I did on my birthday. Hell, I did that on two of my birthdays, didn’t I? My twentieth, when I made you take my virginity, and my twenty-fourth, when I forced you. I’m… I’m a horrible person, Queen- conniving and manipulative. And I’m sorry to say, I’ve turned your son into something far worse. It’s… all my fault.”

“Sunshine,” Regina cries. She hurries over to me and touches
my shoulder. I bow my back and turn away from her, hiding my face. I don’t want Regina to see me shamefaced. I can’t look at her.

“
If I didn’t want to be led, I’d have dug my heels in and told you to fuck off. You’re the only person who gets away with it. I don’t even allow Niel an inch, knowing he will abuse it. But you… I’ve always allowed you to do whatever you wanted with me because I trust you. I know you’d do anything for me. None of what you’ve done was to hurt me. It was to bring us close together, not just you and me, but the whole family.”

“Trust me, Queen,” my voice deepens with lust. “What I did to you on my bed had nothing to do with the love of family. It was
all about getting off inside you and marking my territory.”

“You still did that for me. I’m not a dipshit. Only two people know about that part of me and I know Marcus is keeping his mouth shut because it frightens him. I saw you ta
lking with Ezra. I’d… fuck,” Regina growls. “You want me to admit it?”

“Admit what?”
I murmur while turning to face her.

“I’d hoped… I’d hoped you were talking about
that
. Only one person ever told me to go sans underwear. I took them off for a reason. This stress is getting to me and I needed a distraction. It was so bad that I didn’t give a fuck which one of you showed up. I just needed the high.”

“Holy shit,” I hiss, closing my eyes a
s a pressure in my balls builds for release and my dick starts humming Hallelujah. “Please tell me you’re joking, Regina,” I plead. “Jesus, I had the papers drawn up today. Now you spring this on me.”

“I still think we need a divorce for a myriad of reasons. But… if once and a while you want to… do
that
. I won’t bitch.”

“Marcus would kill me if he
ever found out. This would mess us up, seriously mess us up. I finally figured out that it’s my mommy issues that drew me to you. It’s like I’m trying to fuck my mom, and the thought makes me want to explode. I’m confused, Queen, so confused. I like guys, always have. But you… shit…” I turn to Regina and intensely stare into her green eyes. “Why do I want to fuck you so badly?”

“I’m nothing special,” Regina
self-deprecatingly says. “We’re connected. We complement each other. It was the same problem with Ezra and me. Why does Marcus want me when he can have Cort? I seem to draw sexually confused men like flies. I think I was a gay man in a past life or some shit,” she humorlessly states.

“I need you to outline this for me, Queen. I need specifics. I don’t want to fuck this up any more than it already is.”

“Okay, I can do that. It’s a hunter/prey kind of thing. The strong dominants live for the thrill of the hunt and the surrendering capture. Well, I’m a predator. But when the stress gets to me, I need to let go, but I can’t... Someone has to yank it out of me and force me to surrender. If I see it coming, I fight it. I don’t know… when it happens, I finally feel like a woman instead of a man.”

“Fuck,” I breathe out. “Fuck,
” I curse us both. I curse Regina for doing this to me. I curse my dick for throbbing like a sonofabitch in perverse pleasure.

“Do you like hunting?” She innocently gazes up at me from beneath her reddish-blonde lashes.

“Don’t be coy, Regina. You know I do. You’re trying to manipulate me right now and you’re not as talented as you think. Remember, I told you I’m the only one who gets to do that in this relationship,” I scold her. “First rule of conniving school: no need to manipulate those who are willing. It’s a wasted effort.”

“I’m not asking for a lover or a husband. We both know
that Marcus is that for me,” Regina says in a way that doesn’t hurt my heart. It’s soft and filled with truth. “But he won’t do this for me,” she achingly cries. “Marc says it’s an addiction, and the more you feed it, the more the need grows. I just want…I just need someone I can trust…when you notice that I’m getting overwhelmed by life, I want you to hunt me down and take me,” she growls and I experience a misfire of epic proportions.

~Chapter Twenty~

Quivering on wobbly legs, I walk a
few rooms down in search of one of the people I’m looking for. Maybe this is a wicked scavenger hunt. The
Pussy-whipped Virgin
led me to his horned-up mother.
Mommy, stalk, hunt, and take me
led me to my cowardly sire.
Silent and Sullen
leads me to my auntie- the
Familial
Murderess
.

Jamie’s employing his sister for the
domestic side of Transcend. Ade always followed my mom- Grandmother, rather- around and watched her every move. Ade excelled with the household schedules and party planning. It doesn’t sound like much, but running an estate this size and hosting parties with three-hundred guests is a feat, especially for a teenager. Ade was a curator at a prestigious art museum in the heart of the city. But since Adelaide’s confinement, she’s turned hermit, just like her brother. I give my dad props for finding something that would make Ade feel worthy and helpful. Ade needs slow and steady after her ordeal. 

What happened to you?
Jamie signs. No doubt wondering why I looked spooked and shaky. Regina pulled a number on me. My knees are still knocking. My breath is coming in quick pants, my skin is flushed, and… my shirt’s now untucked.

I’
m angrily aroused.

“Um… nothing,” I murmur underneath my breath. “It defies description.”

Jamie and Ade are sitting side-by-side behind his desk. He was showing her something on a laptop before I interrupted their work. I half-hug Ade, rubbing her back, and try not to notice how thin she is beneath my touch. Ade’s no longer fragile- she’s frail. But it does feel good to touch her. I’ve missed my aunt terribly. I’m also furious at her. My father is the perfect example, I can be pissed at you and still love you.

“How are you feeling?” I murmur against her hair as I lean in for a kiss.

Ade draws in a large breath of air and propels it out in speech. “The more I do, the faster my strength will return. I’ll never be at one-hundred percent. I’m feeling better, though.” She gives me a faded smile- so much less wattage than the one she used to wear.

Her deformities aren’t as bad as I
’d imagined, but they’ve diminished over time. It’s difficult to imagine that the divots in her flesh were created by Katya’s knuckles and the long gash bisecting her forehead was from a table lamp. I’ve tried to forget that nightmare, but it always invades my thoughts as I try to sleep. Ade was a brutalized bloody pulp. The room was painted red with her blood. Katya wasn’t unscathed- not emotionally or physically, but she is one-hundred percent healed.

I could blame Ade for instigating the fight. I could blame Katya for escalating it. I want to blame Ezra for using Ade while trying to win Katya. But it is the Elders who are to blame for everything that happened. If the coerced knew there was a place of safety instead of obeying the
commands, we could save many people from a fate like Ade’s. We need to resolve this to get our lives back.

Adelaide died. She died many times. It was only fate that kept her with us. I want to be angry with her. I want to be angry with Jamie. But when I look at the brother and sister, all I feel is a sense of relief. They are sitting here instead of in a casket.
Under that light, there is nothing to be angry about.