Beauty Submits To Her Beast
Beauty Submits To Her Beast
by
Sydney St. Claire
Once Upon A Dom
Book Four
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.
Beauty Submits To Her Beast
COPYRIGHT © 2015 by Sydney St. Claire
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Contact Information: [email protected]
Cover Art by
Diana Carlile
The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
PO Box 708
Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708
Visit us at www.thewilderroses.com
Publishing History
First Scarlet Rose Edition, 2015
Digital ISBN 978-1-5092-0310-9
Published in the United States of America
Dedication
With thanks to my editor, Diana Carlile, for her wisdom, insight, dedication and hard work...and gorgeous covers. As my cover artist, I add a huge grateful thanks for the gorgeous covers.
PRAISE FOR AUTHOR
Sydney St. Claire
CINDERELLA & PRINCE DOM
“Whew! …dust off the fairy tale and check the battery stash! Sydney St. Claire has given Cinderella some glass slippers with BDSM heels… While this is her first entree in the (erotic romance) genre, she pulls together a great story with an equal ‘hot factor’ and love story. Great read!”
~Snarky Mom Reads
RED & HER BIG BAD DOM
“*thud* *head desk* *faints* Yep, that’s Harlie after reading this one. Damn, I thought my Kindle would combust. Literally… You will need a cold drink, your partner, or a cold shower...”
~Marika Weber, Harlies Books
~*~
“Instead of treating BDSM like just another man-controls-woman-for-his-pleasure encounter, author Sydney St. Claire really gets it that it’s always a matter of give and take, of dominance and submission wrestling for control, even as the Dom is ostensibly the one wielding the power.”
~Laura Roberts, Buttontapper Press
SNOW & HER HUNTSMAN
“I absolutely adore this series. If you are looking for something extra hot with intriguing story lines, this series is a must-read.”
~Nulery, Books N Pears
~*~
“…an absolutely wonderful mix of the BDSM/kink and the lovey-dovey stuff that saps like me enjoy reading about”
~Lauren Seiberling, Romance Novel Giveaways
Chapter One
Damon Steele arrived at Pleasure Manor in a mood as foul as the mansion was grand. Another night haunted by the echoing volley of gunfire, screams of men in pain along with images of torn bodies left him edgy and unfit for polite company.
He gripped the steering wheel hard enough to turn his knuckles white. He should just keep going, follow the circular drive past the house, head right back down the long, tree-lined driveway, and return home to his depressing studio apartment where he could wallow in misery. Because he wanted to run, hide, and be alone, he forced himself to park. Bryce Langston, a fellow SEAL and Dom, seldom asked for help, so Damon had driven almost three hours to his friend’s country estate.
He stepped out of his truck. The muscle in his left thigh twisted into a tight knot. “Shit.” He wheezed out a breath and would have landed on his ass had he not grabbed on to the open door and clung like a man holding on to a floatation device.
Breathing deep, he leaned back, half sitting and half standing. “Should’ve taken the billionaire up on his offer to send the limo.” His injury didn’t do so well with long bouts in a car, but he’d figured the drive might hold at bay the nightmare that claimed most of his waking moments and all his nights.
He sucked in air as he stretched his left leg and massaged his thigh, breathing through the painful spasm. The breeze drifted through the trees and swiped across his sweaty brow, the cool hand of a concerned mother checking her child for fever.
His lips twisted. He didn’t remember his mother’s touch, her voice, or even what she looked like. At age three, he’d been left to the mercy of the state. He’d had many mothers after that, some good, most who took him in for the money. He’d had a nice family once until a new baby arrived and he’d found himself once again on that never-ending circuit of one foster home after another.
Abandoned.
The memories of the boy segued into the nightmare that stalked him day and night—his men trapped, dying, and him unable to save them and get them out.
Abandoned.
He’d been forced to leave them, his brothers in his military family, same as every mother, real or foster, had tossed him aside. The sharp pain in his thigh eased, and before the past could yank him back into the black pit his life had become, he clamped down on his emotions and feelings and stood, refusing to wallow or fall.
Limping more than normal due to muscle spasms and exhaustion, he climbed the steps. A plaque to one side of the dark, double doors proclaimed the residence to be Pleasure Manor. He lifted the large doorknocker. It fell with a resounding crash against the steel plate.
The door opened. A butler in black bowed. “Welcome, Master Steele.”
“Hastings.” Damon stepped into a grand foyer and took in the sparkling chandelier, antique furniture, slick marble floor, and a floral arrangement a good four feet tall that graced a gleaming cherrywood table. Wishing he’d brought his cane, he followed the butler. Pride refused to let him use that crutch. He entered a book-lined library where a fire popped and crackled. The warmth of the room wrapped around him with the comfort of an old, worn quilt while the quiet elegance soothed his jangled nerves.
“Master Steele,” Hastings announced him.
Bryce rose from a long, dark table dotted with files, maps, and paper. He strode forward, hand outstretched. The two men shook. “Good to see you, Damon. I appreciate you coming here. Glorie and I have a meeting here in less than an hour, one we hope you’ll stay and join.”
“Always a pleasure to visit your little cottage in the country.” His tone was facetious as the place was a huge mansion complete with turrets and impressive grounds, which included woods and real cottages.
He bowed to the dark-haired woman seated at the table. “Mistress.” He gave Glorie Amadori the title she deserved. Her formidable reputation as a Domme and powerful businesswoman intimidated most men, even other Doms.
She inclined her head. “How are you, Damon?”
“Surviving.” That one word summed up the last few years of his life. He glanced away. The woman had the uncanny ability to see deep into a person’s soul, and he was far too vulnerable at the moment. He lowered himself into a leather chair, grateful to be off his aching leg.
Hastings set a thick mug of coffee in front of him, then left the room.
“What’s up?” He eyed the pair of Doms.
“Need a favor.” Bryce shifted papers and folders.
Damon stretched out his legs. He had a good idea what his old pal needed or wanted. “You want me to take part in one of your events.”
“Yes. I need another Dom for a three-day event coming up.”
He lifted the mug of coffee. “Don’t tell me there isn’t anyone willing?” An invitation to Bryce’s mansion was an honor. Damon couldn’t see very many Doms refusing a weekend of role-play.
Bryce chuckled. “Got a waiting list a mile long, but this sub is new. I need someone I can trust with this one.”
Surprised, Damon regarded his friends. “You’re allowing newbies?”
“There are several this time, including my sub.”
Damon nudged his half-empty coffee aside and lifted a brow. “You’re participating?” His friend hadn’t taken part in his own events since losing his beloved wife to cancer.
“Yeah.” Though Bryce’s voice was matter-of-fact, there was a grim set to his mouth and his teal-colored eyes hardened.
Damon sensed there was more to it than just taking on a new sub, but he didn’t ask. “Much as I’d like to help you out, I can’t.” He had a rule—no overnighters. Since his injury, he hadn’t slept with a woman. Enjoy a night of sex, yes, but sleep, no.
Bryce picked up a file and tapped it on the corner of the table. “When are you going to forgive yourself? What happened to your men wasn’t your fault.”
Damon jumped to his feet, then hissed as pain shot through his thigh. “Fuck that. I was their commanding officer, and I left them behind.”
Standing, Bryce glared at him. “Hell with that. You were under heavy fire. That shell took out your entire team. Had they not pulled you out, you’d have died.”
Thinking of the widows and their children brought guilt and grief to the forefront. “It should have been me,” he ground out. “Mike, Eric, Robert, and Manny had families. Should have ordered them to go. To save themselves. They came back for me. They came back and died.” He’d never forget the blast that shook the ground, the shrapnel, and the screaming.
“Bullshit. The blame lies with the enemy, not you. It’s a risk every SEAL, hell, every soldier takes when we swear an oath to our country.”
“Yeah, but you got yourself and your men out.” He and Bryce met in the service, trained as SEALs and went on several missions together before each commanded their own group of well-trained men sent into hot spots wherever and whenever needed. Bryce had walked away at the end of his time while Damon reenlisted. He’d served twelve selfless years just to be given the boot. A fist slammed on the table.
“Fuck it, Damon. You didn’t fail. Someday you’ll realize that and quit kicking yourself in the ass.”
“Enough.” Glorie’s quiet but authoritative voice broke through the air of thick emotion. “Time is ticking. The others will be here soon.”
Bryce snagged a folder from his desk and removed a photograph, which he handed to Damon. “This is Caitlin Olsen.” He tossed the file onto the table. It slid across, stopped falling over the edge by the mug.
Damon stared at a close-up of a brown-haired woman sitting on horseback. His breath caught in his throat. She glanced over her shoulder at him as though he’d just called her name. Humor brightened her lively, golden eyes, and her mouth curved in a wide smile. For an instant, there was just the two of them sharing a warm, happy, private moment.
She sat in the saddle, her posture straight and commanding, head high, telling him she was a woman in charge and in control and used to issuing orders and having them obeyed. She held the reins in one gloved hand while the other was frozen in mid-stroke on the horse’s neck.
Gentle strength
. What would it feel like to have those hands touching him, her eyes on him as though he were the only person in her world? He shook off the crazy notion, yet he couldn’t glance away.
Her humor and love of life mesmerized him, but beneath it all, her gaze was deep and penetrating. This woman didn’t miss much.
His fingers tightened on the photo, and he resisted the urge to trace her features with his finger. He needed to see her, longed to hear her laughter and surround himself with her earthy beauty and vitality.
Damon stumbled back and dropped into his chair. “I don’t work with new subs. You know that.” God, but he wanted this one.
Bryce resumed his seat. “Caitlin’s had a tough time of it. Raised two younger siblings while caring for her mother who had MS. Glorie and I have each interviewed her. She owns a horse ranch. She’s strong-willed, used to being in charge.”
Damon set the photo onto the table, yet he couldn’t tear his eyes from hers. “Sounds like she’s more Domme than sub.”
“Or a woman who yearns to give up control in one area of her life,” Glorie put in. “The theme for the three day event is Fairytales.” She grinned and added, “
Fairytales your mother never read you.
If you agree to partner Caitlin, she’ll be Belle.”
