9. Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Victor
I don’t know what possessed me to give in to Lili’s request to join me at the party tonight, but the vision of her on her knees at my feet while I hold on to the leash attached to her collar, is doing things to me.
I’m supposed to be keeping my hands off of her, but after this, it seems like an impossible mission.
Her hair has returned to its perfect knot at the back of her head, and I want to reach out and pull the pins free. It looks so much better falling around her shoulders and down her back. But I don’t dare do that because once I open the floodgates, I might not be able to stop myself.
“The atmosphere here is incredible,” she says, turning her head to gaze up at me.
Harper, one of the club submissives, passes by just as Lili speaks, and her eyes dart to me for my reaction.
“When you’re kneeling, you don’t speak unless spoken to.”
Lili frowns. “That’s ridiculous. How am I supposed to learn anything if I can’t ask questions?”
Harper frowns, and I glare at her. “Can I help you?”
Her gaze falls, and she shakes her head. “No, Master Victor.”
“Then move along unless you’d like a repeat of last week.”
The girl scurries to the other side of the room, but she’s still watching us. I jerk on Lili’s chain and order her to turn and face me.
“You being here is violating a lot of rules. You kneeling at my feet and wearing my pin without having gone through the proper training protocols is causing issues with the other subs who are part of this club. So please just fucking do as I say, or you’re going right back to your room.”
Her lips press together in a tight line, but she gives a curt nod.
I tug the leash, pulling her up and closer to me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you, Spitfire.”
She huffs. “Yes, Sir.”
I flash her a wolfish grin. “Good girl.”
“Don’t fucking call me that,” she bites out.
I glare again. “Do I need to show you what happens to disobedient submissives, Lili?”
She squirms as if she’s unsure how she wants to answer. Finally, she drops back, so she’s kneeling with her butt resting on her heels and shakes her head. “No, Sir.”
“That’s what I thought. Now turn around and keep quiet. If you have a question, you can tap my leg twice. If I give you permission, then you may ask.”
That seems to satisfy her, and she turns to face the room again. There’s a lot going on tonight, with some of our flashier members engaging in intense play that is always fun to be in the audience for. I often strap a submissive to one of the crosses or frames in the center of the room for my entertainment, but tonight, I’m enjoying the sight of Lili soaking up the surroundings.
A few minutes later, she taps my leg.
“Ask your question.”
“I don’t see any women dominating others. Is this a sexist club?”
I snort. “Hardly. There just aren’t any playing in here right now. When Amarjit arrives, you’ll probably get a front row view as she shoves needles into her submissive’s cock or labia, depending on which one she’s playing with tonight.”
What I don’t tell Lili is that the man who lets the Amarjit torture him is a known contract killer. Our group is made up of all kinds. Amarjit, for example, is a doctor, but she willingly treats our men if they get injured and don’t want to go to the hospital, and she doesn’t get law enforcement involved. I can’t say what has blurred the lines of morality for her, but we don’t question it.
“I’m glad it’s not sexist,” Lili murmurs.
Twice more, she taps my leg for questions. The second time, I deny her permission because I want to see how she’ll react to being told no.
She clenches her fists in her lap, and I can tell she wants to argue. But she stays quiet.
I’m about to let her speak again when I spot Owen hovering in the archway. When we make eye contact, he motions me over with a jerk of his head.
I scan the room in search of Gracie. When I land on her, she immediately smiles at me, and I crook a finger, indicating she should approach me.
Gracie
I catch Victor’s gaze out of the corner of my eye, and he motions me to him. Without hesitation, I hurry to his chair and kneel when he points to the ground.
“Yes, Master Victor? How can I please you tonight?” It’s not a question I typically ask, but something about seeing him with Liliana at his feet makes me want to show off a little.
There are a million ways I would love to please Victor, but I doubt he’ll never see me that way.
He leans in and tucks a hand under my chin, his touch sending a little thrill through my body. A reaction I’ve never grown out of even with all our years of friendship.
“I have to attend to something, and I can’t leave our guest unsupervised. You are to kneel here and hold on to her leash until I return.”
I nod solemnly. “Yes, Master Victor.”
“If she escapes, Gracie, I will whip you harder than you’ve ever been whipped before, is that clear? And don’t forget, I’m putting needles in you tonight. You are painfully aware I can make that as pleasant or unpleasant as I want.”
My eyes grow wide, and I cast a sideways glance at his prisoner.
“Eyes on me, Mariposa. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Master Victor,” I whisper. “It’s clear.”
He pats my head. “Good girl. Now turn around and face the room.”
I do as he says, and he stands, still holding Lili’s leash. Then he surprises me by taking out a pair of handcuffs. Without saying a word, he bends to one knee and puts one cuff on me and the other cuff on Lili, so that we are attached to each other.
The surprise doesn’t stop there, he holds the end of Lili’s leash to my lips.
“Open.”
I obey instinctively, and he places the leash in my mouth.
“Stay like that until I return. This way you can’t tell her things you shouldn’t.”
My face flames, and I realize Liliana has revealed to him that I told her something I shouldn’t have. Probably about the way he punished Harper last week.
I look at Lili with a glare as Victor stands. When his back is to us, she looks at me sympathetically. “I’m so sorry, Gracie. I did not mean to get you in trouble. He just made me angry, and I blurted some things out.”
I can’t speak or I’ll drop the leash, and my luck Victor will be watching. Despite my penchant for pain, I have no desire to be whipped by Victor when he won’t do anything to alleviate the arousal it will undoubtedly cause, and I would like to enjoy our needle scene later.
“You like Victor, don’t you?”
I stare straight ahead, refusing to acknowledge her question.
She sighs and shifts on her knees as if she’s in pain. It can get uncomfortable kneeling for extended periods of time, but I feel no sympathy for her. Not when she got me in trouble.
We sit in silence for several more minutes before she speaks again.
“Do you realize how gorgeous you are, Gracie? I’m enjoying having you by my side.”
Is this woman flirting with me? I look ridiculous sitting here with a leash in my mouth. And I’m at a loss for how to respond to her compliment. She pats my leg, and I scoot as far away as the stupid handcuffs will allow. Even though she withdraws her hands. My thigh tingles where she touched. This is not what I was expecting.
“I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable,” Lilli says.
I glance her direction, shake my head. If I try to answer I’ll drop the leash, and I know Victor has eyes on me even if he isn’t in the room.
“I see why you love it here,” Lili comments. “I wish I had found it under different circumstances.”
Would Victor be attracted to her If she had just walked in off the street? There was a definite pang of jealousy when I watched him lead her into the room on a leash a little while ago. It’s always been hard to see Victor with other women. I don’t know why it’s even harder with Lili. Where is he, anyway? Is he doing this just to mess with me as part of my punishment for sharing inappropriate things with Lili? Or did he really have something to attend to?
I look across the room and see Master Owen talking with Master Victor. Both men seem tense, and I fear that something is wrong.
I’ve always stayed out of their business outside of the club, but lately, I’ve been hearing snippets, and working with Bellamy on bookkeeping for the club has revealed certain details that I’m probably not supposed to have.
Someone—Lili’s husband apparently—is out to harm the four owners of the club, affectionately known as the Sin City Suits. The four men—five now that Bellamy is married to Owen and Tobias—are looking for a way to bring him down.
But I don’t know what he’s doing to harm them or how they intend to make it stop. And I like it that way. Information is dangerous, and I don’t want to be collateral damage.
Victor and Owen approach us, and Owen tousles my hair. “Sounds like you’ve gotten yourself in trouble, pet,” he teases with a wink.
Owen is a sweetheart, despite his reputation for being a hard ass with his submissive and wife, and I feel at ease with him.
Victor reaches down and pulls the leash from my mouth.
“I apologize for speaking out of turn, Sirs,” I murmur, dropping my gaze.
“Good girl. I need to take our guest with me, so I’m going to free you. We will discuss the rest of your punishment later.”
Fuck, there’s going to be more? I don’t react, though. As a submissive to the club, I’ve agreed to accept punishments as long as they don’t fall outside my limits. There is a safeword I can use as well, but I’ve never needed it up to this point.
“Yes, Master Victor.”
Victor bends and unlocks the handcuffs. He brushes a kiss to my cheek before pulling Lili to her feet using the leash. Even though he’s freed me, I don’t get up right away. It’s like I’m stuck and can’t stop staring at Victor and Lili. As I watch them walk out of the room, I am confronted with conflicting feelings of irritation and arousal.
For both of them.