Slapping Leather (13 page)

But once he was back at home, running the ranch
with his brothers, without access to the sexual games he liked to play, he found
himself irritated and frustrated. And taking a lot of “business” trips to
cities where there were clubs open to the public. But those trips only
partially satisfied him. And his brothers began to question all those travels.

He wondered what they’d say if they knew he used
his portion of the inheritance from their parents to invest in a club where he
could satisfy his sexual appetites. He had done some very careful due diligence
to find the right location, the right partner, and the right manager. Rawhide was
about to celebrate its second anniversary, and the result, both financial and
personal, had exceeded his expectations.

Tonight one of his favorite subs would be there.
As he stood in the shower, thinking ahead, his cock hardened and flexed as he
anticipated the scenes they would play out in his private room. The ranch was
flourishing, the club was thriving, and if he could ask for anything else in
his life it would be to find a permanent relationship with a woman whose sexual
desires and needs matched his own. A perfect sub with her own identity who
could fit into the conservative ranching community here in the Texas Hill
Country.

Yeah. Like that would really
happen.

So he was…what? Doomed to satisfy his sexual
needs in limited doses and marry a woman who thought being on top was the most
kink she’d known? Reece sighed. No fucking way. He’d never be able to control
himself that much in the bedroom.

Both of his brothers were married and living in
their own houses on the ranch, but Reece still lived a bachelor’s life and
fended off all their “helpful” comments about settling down. Well-intentioned,
but they irritated the hell out of him.

By the time he reached Rawhide he’d managed to
tamp down his exasperation and looked forward to the night ahead. India, a sub
he often played with, knew to come to his private room at exactly eight
forty-five. She would strip and wait for him in the pose he preferred—on her
knees, hands behind her back, waiting for her collar and handcuffs. Usually he
began the session with strokes from his favorite single tail whip. The pattern
it laid on bare buttocks was incredibly arousing.

But tonight he looked forward to trying out a new
flogger he’d ordered, one with a thick braided handle and strips of the softest
leather. Seeing what kind of welts it would leave on her golden skin. Maybe
even slide the handle into her pussy and watch her wet, swollen folds close
around it.

And then, just to ice the cake, he’d slide a new
vibrating dildo into her, turn it on full, and watch her climax while she
sucked his cock. Maybe he’d use the candles tonight, too. Wax always ramped up
the arousal factor. Reece shifted uncomfortably in his seat, taking a hand off
the wheel to adjust slacks suddenly too tight in the crotch.

But first he had business to take care of. Their
manager was leaving due to a family emergency, and Clint Chavez, his partner,
had searched for a replacement. After whittling down the possibilities to one,
tonight Reece would put his stamp of approval on the applicant. Or not.

He knew nothing about the person except she was a
female, not so strange for a fetish club. He knew women often made the best
managers.

“She’s waiting in my office,” Clint told him when
Reece came in through the back door. “She apparently got a job working in a club
not too long after she graduated college and has worked her way up through the
system.”

Reece cocked an eyebrow. “Yeah? Wonder what she
majored in to start working the fetish circuit.”

Clint laughed. “She’s got a college degree in
business management, and I literally stole her from a top private club in
Atlanta. You can ask her yourself why she’s doing this instead of working in
the corporate world.”

“What would make her leave? Didn’t they pay her
well?”

“More than well.” He shook his head. “She was very
honest with me. Although she’s a very strong manager, by nature she is a sexual
submissive. She’s just coming out of a long relationship that ended badly and
needed a change.”

Reece grunted. “I hope she doesn’t intend to
poach on the clients. Not good for our reputation.”

“Don’t worry. She knows the score. She comes
highly, and grudgingly, recommended.”

“All right. Let me talk to her, but if you’re
sold on her, I’m sure she’s fine. India knows she’s supposed to be waiting for
me?”

Clint grinned. “Yeah. What a good little subbie
she is, waiting on her knees for you for thirty minutes.”

Reece chuckled. “At least I told her she could
use a kneeling pad.”

“Yeah. You’re a damn prince. Okay, let’s go talk
to the other lady who’s waiting for you.”

Clint opened the door to his office and gestured
to the woman sitting in a chair in front of his desk. Reece was halfway inside
before her identity registered with his brain. When it did, he felt as if he’d
just taken a hard punch to the gut.

Thick masses of auburn curls tumbling past her
shoulders framed a heart-shaped face. Hazel eyes that seemed to change color
even as he looked at her stared back from beneath thick lashes. A very sedate,
tailored navy sheath was little camouflage for lush curves. Slim legs were crossed
at the knees. Feet encased in navy pumps.

His gaze was drawn again to her face and the
full, sensuous lips painted with a soft peach lip gloss. He knew those lips,
knew them nearly as well as his own. He’d tasted them often enough in years
gone by. As well as the rest of her body. Only then it had belonged to a girl.
Now, she was a woman and he couldn’t seem to stop staring at her.

And the sudden explosion of emotion shook him to
his core.

The first time he had seen Katie Warren she was
the new girl at their high school, three years younger than he was. That hadn’t
stopped him from going after her like a rutting bull. And falling so in love
with her he couldn’t think of anything else.

The last time he saw her she was a senior in
college and spitting fire, storming out of the motel room they’d rented.
Shocked by the things he wanted her to do and enraged because he was angry with
her for turning him down. All their plans up in flames.

Every time he thought about that that long ago
night, which was far more frequently than he liked, he realized he could have
handled things a lot differently. He’d let his ego and his dick knock his brain
aside and regretted it ever since. Ten years without Katie had left a big hole
in his heart and a burning lust that nothing at Rawhide could sate.

Obviously, her outlook had undergone a radical
change since that disastrous night. The only thing unchanged was his cock
getting hard as a rock the minute he laid eyes on her. His feet seemed glued to
the floor. He thought someone was talking, but he couldn’t be sure because
there was a strange buzzing in his ears.

“Reece?” A hand on his shoulder. “Can you hear
me, buddy?”

Clint’s voice. Okay.

“I think Mr. Halliday might be a trifle surprised
to find me here.” Katie’s voice was low and musical and sounded faintly amused.

“You know each other?” Now Clint was the one who
was shocked.

Reece shook himself and walked around the desk to
sit in Clint’s chair, as much to hide the bulge in his crotch as to take
control of the situation. This was a business meeting. Nothing more. Fine.
Except for the tidal wave of lust washing through him. He’d been so sure he was
well over Katie Warren. Done and finished. And here she was, in the most
impossible of situations for him.

What the hell was he supposed to do so he didn’t
look like an ass?

“Nice to see you again, Katie.” He made his voice
as steady and uninflected as possible, even as he couldn’t stop remembering the
perfection of her body naked in his bed and the warm, welcoming heat of her
cunt. An image of her tied to his bed, gagged, nipples distended and clamped,
nearly undid him, and he had to fist his hands to pull himself together. Now he
knew how junkies felt when they couldn’t feed their cravings.

“Same here.”

“Although I have to say, seeing you here is a big
surprise. Especially considering how you used to feel about this lifestyle.”

“Wait a minute.” Clint stood in front of the
desk, glaring at him. “You
know
her?” He shifted his gaze to Katie. “How
is it when I gave you the name of my partner, you never mentioned your history
with him?”

She shrugged delicately. “I was afraid Reece
would reject me out of hand, and I really wanted this job. It was the perfect
opportunity to leave Atlanta.” She looked at Reece. “Is this a problem for
you?”

She looked so poised, so self-assured, but
something lurked in her eyes, something she tried to suppress. What was that
all about?

He shook his head. “Not for me, but I seem to
recall this scene being very distasteful to you. Call me curious, but how did
you happen to get involved with it?”

Her smile, slow and hot, was sinful and knowing,
whatever shadows she’d been chasing effectively hidden. “We all grow up, you
know. And our tastes change.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “That’s a pretty drastic
change. Is there someone who should get the credit?”

As soon as the words left his mouth he wanted to
bite his tongue. Her personal life was none of his business. Damn it. But lust
and anger were a boiling cauldron inside him.

Her smile disappeared. “How I got to this point
isn’t important, nor is it any of your damn business. I’m damn good at what I
do and I never bring my personal business to the club. I can provide all the
references you want on that score and any others. But if this is going to be a
problem for you…” She started to rise.

“No.” Reece hadn’t realized he shouted until the
thunder of his voice boomed in the room and both Clint and Katie were staring
at him. He cleared his throat. Jesus, he was making a mess of this. “Sorry. No,
this won’t be a problem. And I guess we don’t need to bother with all the usual
questions.”

There went that tempting smile again, as if she
had a secret and she just might share it with him under the right
circumstances.

“I’m happy to tell you anything you’d like to
know.”

How did you get into this
scene? How deep into the lifestyle are you? Do you enjoy being a sub? Would you
let me strip you naked and spank your sweet ass?

Again he had to shift in the chair, his bulging
shaft doing its best to poke through the fabric of his slacks. “We’re good.
You’re starting tonight, right?”

“Yes. Clint told me your current manager would
like to leave by the end of the week. That only gives us three days together,
but I’m a quick study.”

How quick? How long would it
take for you to call me Sir?

Jesus fucking Christ, Reece.
Get your head together.

“Then I’d better let you get to it.”

“I’m sure I’ll enjoy working here.” She stood and
reached across the desk.

Reece took her small hand in his larger one, and
the electricity sizzling up his arm and into his body nearly fried both his
brain and his balls. The slight widening of her eyes told him she felt the same
thing, but she took back her hand and moved toward the door.

“We’ll catch up at the end of the evening for a
debriefing,” he told her.

“Sounds good.” The professional face was in place
now. “And thank you. Clint, I’ll just go out to the front and get started.” A
brief, professional smile and she was gone.

Clint closed the door after her and turned to
look at Reece.

“This better not be a goddamn problem, cowboy.”
His voice held a slight trace of irritation. “She’s damn good. I don’t want you
screwing this up.”

Reece held up his hands. “On my word, Clint. No
playing in the company dungeon.”

“Better not be.”

But somehow he didn’t look too convinced.

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Rawhide: Crack The Whip
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