Topping the Domme (Crime and Punishment) (9 page)

It sounded as though she was having a nightmare. He’d wondered earlier if being tied up would bring back unwanted memories, but Karina had seemed so strong, he hadn’t worried about it too much.

He opened his side of the adjoining door and sighed in relief that her side hadn’t been completely shut. He pushed it open and peeked toward her bed. She thrashed once and whined. Brayden quickly entered the room and headed toward her.

“Karina,” he said softly, hoping not to startle her.

She moaned and her fingers fisted in the sheets. Sweat covered her brow and the lines around her mouth tightened in pain.

“Karina,” he said more firmly.

She jerked awake and the second her eyes landed on him, she sat up in fear. The sheet fell, exposing her flushed breasts and scarred stomach. She didn’t recognize him yet. He could see it in her eyes. She reached to the nightstand for her pistol, and Brayden rushed forward.

“Shit.” He grabbed her wrist just as she got her fingers on the gun. “Karina, it’s me. Brayden.”

She tried to fight him, but Brayden held her hand down and with his free one, he gripped her chin. “Kitten. Look at me.”

Her wide eyes stared at him, at first not seeing him, but within seconds recognition dawned. She sighed and closed her eyes. “Oh, God. I almost shot you.”

He smiled slightly. “No, you didn’t. See?” He nodded toward her nightstand where he still had her hand pinned down.

Her fingers released the gun, and he pulled her wrist up, allowing her to sit back. He climbed onto the bed with her, leaned back against the headboard, and engulfed her shaking body in his arms. She didn’t fight him, didn’t try to pull away. She turned and curled her arms around his stomach, laying her cheek against his chest.

“I haven’t had a nightmare in a long time,” she whispered.

He smoothed his hand up and down her spine. “It was probably the club and being restrained. I’m sorry, Kay. You seemed so strong last night, I didn’t even think about it doing this.”

“Neither did I,” she murmured.

She adjusted her head so she could look down, then settled back against him. He snickered softly at her checking to make sure he was clothed. Although he didn’t have a shirt on, he did have on pajama pants.

“Just making sure,” she whispered.

“What about you?” he teased. “I know you don’t have on a shirt, but what about under that sheet?”

“Naked,” she said.

Brayden chuckled. “Figures.” He kissed the top of her head and rested his chin against her hair. “Are you going to be okay doing this?”

“Maybe I need to do this.”

He drew lazy circles over her back. “Maybe.”

“Do you ever get bored, Brayden?”

“With what?”

“Being a Dom.”

He smiled slightly. “No.”

She sighed. “Maybe bored isn’t the right word.”

“What’s going on, Kay?” He put his finger under her chin and tilted her face up, forcing her to meet his gaze. “Are you questioning being a Domme?”

“No… Yeah,” she breathed.

He brushed his finger over her jaw. “Maybe that’s because deep down you’re not really a Domme at all. Maybe you use what happened to you as an excuse to believe you are. Why don’t you use this time to experiment? I know you’re playing the part of a submissive, but actually give in to it. We’re away from the club. No one will know. If it doesn’t work out, you can always go back to the club as Mistress Kay.”

She pursed her lips. “Maybe.”

“Lots of maybes here tonight, huh? We should probably charge them rent. Don’t you think?”

She snickered and rested her head back on his chest. Brayden wrapped both arms around her and pulled her close. God, he really liked having her here. If he wasn’t careful, he could really get addicted to Karina, and not just sexually.

Karina lowered her hand and picked at his pajama pants decorated with Mickey Mouse ears.

“Cute pants,” she said with amusement.

“Hey, don’t make fun of the mouse.”

She giggled and rested her hand back on his stomach.

“My sister got me these for Christmas last year as a joke. They’ve grown on me.”

Karina smiled and tilted her head back. “How’s Britney doing?”

Brayden frowned. “That’s right. I forgot you met her this past summer at the agency picnic. She’s doing well. She just started on the new animated movie.”

Karina sat up and lifted the sheet over her breasts. He immediately missed her body snuggled up next to his, and it took a lot of effort on his part not to pull her back.

“I think it’s so cool she gets to draw the characters.”

Brayden snickered. “I do too. But don’t tell her I said that. I have to have something to tease her about when she visits.”

Karina’s smile made his heart jump. He brushed the back of his fingers over her cheek. “Looks like you’re feeling better.”

“I am. Thanks for barging in. Did I make that much noise?”

He nodded, and Karina grimaced.

“At first, I thought you were masturbating.”

Her eyes went wide, and then she laughed. “Sorry to disappoint you.”

He smiled as he leaned back against the headboard. “Are you going to be okay, or do you need me to stay?”

“I’ll be fine. I’ll turn on a movie or…something.”

“All right,” he said with a sigh, then slapped his legs. “Guess I’ll get back to my room. All alone.” He grinned as he climbed from the bed and headed to the door that led back to his room. “Oh, by the way…” His grin widened as he stepped through the door. “Nice breasts.”

“Nice six pack,” she replied, her voice full of amusement.

“Wait until you see my dick.”

He heard Karina’s soft giggle as he shut the door and continued to smile all the way back to his bed.

Karina tossed the bags of clothes onto her bed with a tired sigh. After her nightmare last night, she’d gotten very little sleep. For a while after Brayden left, her body still hummed from his touch. She could still feel his arms around her, holding her, comforting her. God, she’d turned into such a damn comfort whore. If this didn’t stop, he’d think she was nothing but a weak crybaby.

“What on earth have you got in all those bags?” Brayden asked, his voice laced with amusement.

She jumped in surprise, then turned to see him leaning against the doorjamb of the adjoining door. He wore his usual slacks and button-down shirt, this one in light green. The top two buttons were undone, his tie probably still in the suitcase. Even when he wore one, he often wore it loose.

Shoving down her growing desire for him, she said, “It’s clothes for the club. Most of what I have is dominant stuff.”

He clucked his tongue. “And you didn’t take your Dom to help you choose the outfits? Bad sub, Karina.”

“Pfft. So, spank me.”

Brayden chuckled and pushed away from the door. “You liked that one too much. I think I need to come up with another punishment.”

She smiled softly at his teasing, but ignored his remark. “I was mostly bored this morning. Spending our days doing nothing is going to get old after a while, as well as hard on my bank account. Shopping because you’re bored isn’t cheap.”

Brayden pulled back the corner of one bag and peeked inside. “You should’ve put it on the cards NCIS gave you.”

She winced. “Not sure I want to explain the charges.”

Brayden let go of the bag and chuckled. “I see your point. Have you had dinner yet?”

“No. But I had a late lunch.”

“I still want you to eat something before we go to the club, even if it’s light. Especially if you’re going to drink, and from now on, I’m giving you a two drink limit.”

She gaped at him. “Hey. This Dom thing is just for show. You know that, right?”

He gave her a firm look. “Kay, you know I never let my subs get drunk. I want you sober. Period.”

She started to get angry, but changed her mind and backed down. He was right. She would never want her subs drunk either. If they had to get drunk to submit, then they didn’t need to be there. But weren’t her circumstances a little different?

Last night she felt like she needed to be at least a little tipsy, and that’s probably why she got so wet when he spanked her. Or at least that’s what she tried to tell herself.

Tonight she wouldn’t drink anything, and Brayden would find out just how sassy she could be.

As they walked into the club, Brayden had an incredibly hard time keeping his gaze off the sway of Karina’s ass. Her outfit was… Hell, what there was of it would have every Dom in the club salivating.

She looked like a Greek goddess with her hair pulled up and falling down her back in ringlet curls. She wore gold cuffs on each wrist that interestingly, could be locked together. Her top was shaped like a bra and pushed her breasts up enticingly. Beneath it, gold fringe circled her stomach and back. The skirt was nothing but thick gold fringe that barely covered her ass. Every time she walked, the fringe swayed, giving him glimpses of her tanned, firm behind. Finishing off the outfit were gold sandals with three inch heels that laced up her calves. She’d even painted her toenails gold.

Brayden had chuckled when he saw her feet. She’d shrugged and blamed it on being bored. Shoot, he could give her something to do to keep from being bored. It would be a long time before he got bored screwing around with Karina, if he ever did at all.

“Ah, there’s my favorite couple,” Master Delacroix said with a smile as he met up with them in the lobby.

Delacroix stepped forward and placed a kiss on Karina’s cheek. Brayden frowned slightly, not sure why Delacroix’s touching her bothered him so much.

“Master Delacroix,” Karina said with a grin. “I heard last night you’re quite good with a whip. Will there be a demonstration later?”

“I don’t know. Are you free?”

Brayden cleared his throat. Delacroix chuckled softly. “I don’t think your partner likes my teasing you very much.”

“I know,” Karina said with a sigh as she looked over at a frowning Brayden. “He can be a bit selfish at times when it comes to sharing his toys.”

Brayden wagged his finger between the two of their grinning faces. “I think both of you should be tied down and whipped.”

Delacroix’s chuckle deepened as he walked over and slapped Brayden on the shoulder. “Not in this lifetime, Master Brayden. Come on, I have someone I would like to introduce you to.”

He ushered Brayden into the playroom, Karina close behind. As they walked toward the bar, Delacroix asked softly. “How did it go last night?”

“Well. We have a few names we’re checking into.”

“Good. I’m trying to do a little digging myself. We’ll get together sometime next week for lunch and compare notes.”

Brayden nodded. “Sounds good.”

He glanced over his shoulder and saw Karina smile and wave at a group of submissives sitting on the couch in the center of the room. “Karina,” he said. She turned to him, still smiling. “You may go and spend time with the other submissives while I talk with the Doms.”

“Oh, may I, Master? Thank you, Master,” she replied in a sickly sweet voice that made Delacroix almost choke trying not to chuckle.

“Smart ass,” Brayden growled.

She smiled coyly, before heading off to the sitting area.

“Damn, she’s gonna be a handful,” Delacroix said, his voice laced with humor. “I must admit, I envy you. I actually enjoy a little smart ass in my sub. It makes the playtime more fun if you can always count on adding a little punishment in for their behavior.”

“Makes investigating a little hard, though, if I always have to punish her.”

Delacroix nodded in agreement. “That reminds me.” He tilted his head toward a small sitting area in the corner. “I’ll introduce you to Jamison here in a second.” They sat in the leather chairs facing the couch and leaned in close so they could talk quietly. “Have you thought about using Karina as bait?”

Brayden’s eyes narrowed as sudden protectiveness tightened his whole body. “No, Delacroix. We’re not going to do that.”

“Hear me out,” Delacroix said firmly. “The other FBI agents are not doing well. Two of the female agents have already backed out, saying the whole BDSM scene gives them the creeps. We can add extra detail to Karina, make sure she’s never left unobserved.”

Brayden sighed and dragged a hand down his face. Karina would have a flying duck fit.

“What’s the FBI doing about submissives?” Brayden asked, changing the subject off Karina for now.

“I brought in one of the subs from here. She’s been in the scene a long time and agreed to help out the FBI agent at the other club.”

“That still leaves one without a partner.”

Delacroix nodded. “I don’t think that’s going to be much of an issue. So far, all the murdered subs have come from the high-end clubs. Three from mine, two from the other at the south end of town, so they’re focusing on those.”

“I went over the files all day today. These women have absolutely nothing in common. There’s not one thing that ties them together, other than the clubs, and that’s not enough.”

“There’s one,” Delacroix said. “All the subs who were taken were brazen and sassy.”

Brayden frowned.

“I watch my club, Brayden. I keep an eye out for the subs, at least while they’re here. I remember those girls, and they behaved just like Karina.”