Chapter 4
Four
Colette was getting punished for running away.
Andrei smirked, ear against the door of one of the only completed private playrooms on the third floor. Unlike the rooms downstairs, these had solid walls. Meaning, he couldn't see what was happening inside the room, but he could hear. The rhythmic thwack sound was distinctive and telling.
They needed this.
Andrei had seen how devastated Landon was when Colette left. The man had not only given up his career but started a new one for the sake of being with her. Andrei couldn't say he understood because he would never be such a fool as to convince himself he was so deeply in love with another person that giving up everything made sense. He was too practical, too aware of how the world really worked, to ever be that romantic.
However, it was fun to watch.
He'd happily taken a week of vacation in order to help Landon chase Colette down. He himself might be far too cynical for romance, but he wholeheartedly supported other people's delusions. And that support extended to not interrupting Colette's current punishment to ask what the hell to do about Sofie.
The presence of an accomplice had been a surprise because Colette always worked alone.
And now the accomplice was his to deal with. Given the hell that Landon, and particularly Colette, had gone through, Andrei anticipated both the scene and aftercare would take a while. That meant, he either needed to let Sofie go, stash her somewhere comfortable, or keep her here in the club.
And if they were already staying in the club anyway...
Grinning, Andrei turned and headed for the stairs.
Andrei indulged himself in putting together a few possibilities for what he and the lovely Sofie could do to pass the time. She was clearly an experienced submissive, so a quick little scene was a definite possibility.
Unethical, if he thought he were actually going to arrest her, but Andrei was sure that wouldn’t be needed. She was right that she hadn’t stolen anything tonight—they’d stopped her and Colette before it got that far.
And his instincts said she was telling the truth when she claimed she wasn’t a thief. Maybe she was a driver. The image of the pretty, soft blonde gunning a car through the streets of Amsterdam made him smile as he jogged down the stairs.
Andrei pushed through the door into the first floor, slowing to a walk so she wouldn’t see how eager he was to get back to her.
If she had been watching him, however, she would have seen him stumble when he caught sight of her.
Sofie looked like the angel he’d named her. An angel held captive in hell. She sat on the small stage, her skirts covering her legs and spilling over the side to drape the black floor. Behind her, the glossy red St. Andrew’s cross seemed to loom over her pale form.
She looked vulnerable and soft, and fucked-up bastard that he was, he wanted to both abuse her and rescue her.
He wanted to deepen the imagery of her in hell by stripping her and binding her in ropes and chains, taking a whip to that pretty flesh.
He wanted to scoop her into his arms and take her away from here, then kneel at her feet to pledge himself to her.
Andrei shook himself to get rid of the fanciful ideas, abruptly irritated with himself. He was a fucking fool if he was still capable of imagining such ridiculous things, given what he’d seen and done in his life.
Sofie didn’t look up until he pushed the door open, her pretty eyes going wide a second before she frowned in confusion.
“You’re back.”
“I am.” He crouched in front of her, hands dangling between his knees. “Colette’s getting her punishment.”
Again, her eyes widened even as she wetted her lower lip with her tongue. “How?”
“Not going to ask why?”
“I assume she's being punished for attempting to rob the museum."
"That's not how we punish thieves."
"Interpol? I would hope it’s not. I would assume it’s prison."
"Correct," he said with a chuckle. "We don't punish thieves with spankings and whippings."
Sofie perked up. "Spanking?"
"That's what it sounded like. Possibly a nice heavy panel paddle." Andrei raised one brow at her.
Sofie tipped her head to the side considering. "I think I'd take paddle spanking over a whipping."
"Prefer thud over a sting."
She hesitated for a moment before saying, "Yes."
Andrei pushed to his feet, and he could feel Sofie watching him as he grabbed the heavy leather armchair and brought it over to face the stage.
Taking a seat, he crossed one ankle over the other, propped his elbow on the arm of the chair.
"The point I was making is that she isn't being punished for the theft." Andrei smirked. "Hypothetical theft."
Sofie frowned. "Why, then?"
Was she playing dumb? Or maybe while she, like Colette, was a sub, Colette hadn't told her much about the D/s relationship she had with Landon.
“You know that Colette and Landon…” He trailed off, brows raised.
“I know she loves him, but she thought staying with him would hurt him, so she left him and broke her own heart. Oh, and that she was his sexual submissive because she was hiding out in a BDSM club.”
“Then you do know what’s going on.” He shifted to lean forward, elbows on his knees. “Yet you think she’s being punished for attempting to steal some necklace only rich people care about?”
Sofie’s mouth rounded in a soft O.
“He’s punishing her for running away.”
“Yes. And because she should have talked to him about what she was feeling, and her fears.” Andrei tsked mockingly. “Your tops have let you get away with too much if you think lying to your Dom is okay.”
“But it was romantic,” Sofie insisted earnestly. “Leave him to protect him.”
She couldn’t really be that naive. Andrei opened his mouth, but the cutting words wouldn’t come.
“It wasn’t fair to Landon,” Andrei said instead. “She should have trusted him enough to stay and work it out.”
“No,” Sofie said decisively. “This was better. More romantic, and more dramatic.”
That startled a genuine laugh out of Andrei. “Running from him, getting caught in the act of doing the illegal thing that was the reason they couldn’t be together, and then getting punished, is better.”
“Well…yes.” Sofie shifted, pulling her legs under her so she was kneeling and leaning forward slightly.
Andrei’s attention dropped to the soft swell of her breasts. All it would take was a quick tug to free them. Expose the soft, sensitive nipples.
“You don’t think it was romantic?”
Sofie’s question jerked his attention back to their conversation.
“No, I think she ran out of self-preservation more than anything.”
Sofie made an outraged noise. “No! Colette left to protect Landon?—”
“I’m sure she thought of it that way. But what she really ran from was the possibility that he’d choose his career, and the law, over her.”
Sofie looked heartbroken. “That’s not romantic at all.”
“I know.”
She considered him, and for a ridiculous moment, as she looked at him, he was afraid he wasn’t enough.
“You’re a cynic,” she accused.
“Maybe. Definitely a realist.”
She made a disgusted noise, looking away from him and out at the dark river.
Oh, no no no. He didn’t like that at all. Andrei rose slowly from the chair, and though she didn’t look at him, he knew she was aware he was moving closer, based on the way her shoulders tensed.
“You like soft Doms?” he asked, and before she could answer, his hand was tangled in her hair. He gave a sharp tug, expecting the wig to come loose.
Instead, Sofie yelped in pain, gaze flying up to meet his.
Andrei slid his fingertips along her scalp, feeling for the bumps of her real hair coiled and braided under the wig. All he felt was the bone of her skull.
She really did have hair so pale it was almost white.
He massaged her scalp in silent apology, and her eyes slid closed in pleasure.
When she turned her face into his palm, he pulled his hand away, long strands of her hair sliding from between his fingers.
He turned, shoving that hand into his pocket.
“You didn’t answer my question.” He hardened his tone.
“What question?”
“Do you prefer soft Doms?” Though he knew there was nothing wrong with that, his question held an edge of accusation.
He wanted her to answer no, because he himself was a playful sadist, not a soft Dom.
He wanted her to answer yes, because it would make it easier—though not easy—to walk away.
“I prefer it harder,” she said after a moment, and there was hesitation in her tone.
That wasn’t exactly what he asked, but he chalked it up to a language issue. They were both speaking English, and while he was fluent, as she clearly was, there were subtilties of phrasing that would be lost, given English was most likely not her first language.
“We have a choice to make, Angel.” The pet name slipped out once more. He needed to stop.
Maybe once he had her out of that white dress, it would be easier.
“And what’s that?”
“What do we do while we wait for Landon to be done with Colette?”
“I assume we scene,” she said bluntly.
Andrei barked out a laugh, returning to the chair.
“Straight to the point.”
“You would prefer I wait for you to suggest it?” She shifted once more, legs crossed as she leaned back against the pole.
“Not at all. I demand blunt truth when planning a scene.”
“So we’re going to do it? We’re going to scene?” The eagerness in her tone made him grin. He fucking loved eager submissives.
“Yes,” he said, mentally striking the possibility that he would arrest her. If Landon came down here and declared he wanted Colette’s accomplice in jail, the other man was going to be disappointed. Short of Sofie committing murder in his line of sight, she was safe from being arrested by him.
Sofie grinned, and Andrei felt his own smile widen.
“Alright, Angel,” he said. “Let’s negotiate our scene.”
A real submissive probably wouldn’t be smiling and almost giddy with happiness at this moment, but Sofie was. She hoped Andrei couldn’t see the way she was jiggling one leg under her skirt in nervous excitement.
“No penetrative sex,” Andrei said casually.
Sofie froze in disappointment.
Andrei barked out a laugh. “Your expression…”
Embarrassment curled in her belly, and Sofie dipped her head, knowing her face would be turning bright red. She couldn’t stop herself from blushing when she was embarrassed or angry. Her father had always said it was one of the reasons she had to stay in the studio—her face gave away what she was feeling. Even if she controlled her expression, she couldn’t control the way blood rushed to her cheeks.
Fabric rustled and then Andrei’s hand was on her chin. She tried to jerk her head away, but he tightened his hold, pinching her chin and forcing her head up.
He studied her, his own expression at first closed before softening.
“You think I was laughing at you.”
Sofie refused to answer. She wanted to close her eyes rather than look at him, childish as that may be, but she couldn’t.
“I wasn’t. I was laughing because I love it.”
“Love what?” she demanded, words slightly warped because he hadn’t let go, so she couldn’t open her mouth all the way.
“Love how disappointed you looked at knowing I wasn’t going to fuck you.” He softened his hold, thumb sliding up to pull at her lower lip. “That will make it so much more fun to play with you. To deny you what you want. Make you come on my fingers no matter how much you beg for my cock.”
Her nipples were almost painfully hard inside her bodice, and her pussy clenched in response to his words.
“You’ll put your fingers inside me?” she asked hopefully. He hadn’t moved his thumb, so as she spoke, her lips brushed against him.
“Ah. That is a fair point. When I said no sex, I was using an old-fashioned, narrow definition of the word.” He shrugged. “I mean that I will not fuck your pussy or ass with my cock.”
Her ass. The idea of taking his cock in her that way made a little whimper escape.
“Now that I know how much you want to be fucked, I don’t think I’ll use a dildo in either of those holes either.” He smirked at her.
“That’s…mean.”
He laughed again, and this time she wasn’t embarrassed, because this close, she could see the truth of it in his eyes—he wasn’t laughing at her. He was laughing in pleasure.
“No, that’s sadistic, Angel.”
“You’re a sadist,” she said, with no small amount of trepidation.
“A sexual sadist, yes. Though I never give pain alone. The counterpoint of pleasure is necessary.”
She nodded in agreement, pressing against the fingers still tucked under her chin as she did.
He released her, stepping back and sitting once more. “If you’re not at least a little bit of a masochist, I fear our negotiation won’t go far.”
Her disappointment at the loss of his touch must have showed on her face because he shook his head. “No, I can’t touch you while we negotiate. In fact…”
He stood, fishing something from his pocket as he came toward her. A second later, the cuffs clicked as he unlocked them.
Sofie rolled her shoulders, watching as Andrei tucked the keys into his pocket. Then, to her surprise, he sat, not in the chair but on the floor, back against one of the red St. Andrew’s crosses. He pulled one knee up, forearm resting atop it, the other leg stretched out.
“Why are you on the floor?”
“Because if I sit in the chair while you’re seated like that, we’re already in the power exchange. Not appropriate during negotiations.”
“You take this very seriously.”
“I do.” He leaned his head back, watching her from under half-lowered lids. “Once we start the scene, I don’t want there to be any doubt in your mind that you agreed to everything I do to you without any undue influence from me.”
He all but purred the words, and they sounded like both a promise and a threat. Sofie pressed her forearms against her chest, fingers laced together in a single fist just under her chin. The pressure relieved some of the ache in her nipples, but not much.
He was far enough away that she couldn’t make out details of his expression, but she was fairly certain his jaw muscles flexed. Had he guessed why she was so desperately holding herself in?
“You say no sex, but what if I say yes sex?” she asked.
He relaxed, corner of his lips clicking up in a smile. “Your arousal doesn’t trump my hard limit.”
“Oh.”
“What are your limits?”
She wanted to say “nothing,” but that was her arousal speaking. “No blood. No permanent damage.” She forced herself to stop and really think. “I don’t like real degradation.”
“Real degradation?”
“I don’t want you to mock me. Or tell me I’m ugly because my breasts are two different sizes.”
He inclined his head in acknowledgment.
“But I…I liked it when you called me a bad girl,” she rushed to add, knowing her cheeks were heating once more.
“Ah, I see why you clarified it as real degradation. I wouldn’t even consider ‘bad girl’ degradation.” He smirked. “Just a statement of fact for a pretty little thief.”
“Not a thief,” she shot back, though she wasn’t able to stop the smile. She liked the teasing more than she anticipated, given she was used to blunt honesty.
“Other hard limits?”
Though this was the most aroused she’d ever been, the discussion was making everything feel very real, and trepidation crept in with it.
“You don’t…don’t want to actually hurt me, do you?” The question came out in a rush, and Sofie froze, sure she’d just ruined everything.
Andrei raised his head, meeting her gaze. “Yes.”
Her stomach clenched in fear.
Andrei sighed. “And no.”
She relaxed, but watched him carefully.
He took a moment before answering. “I enjoy giving pain, but only when I know it’s wanted, needed, or ideally both. Without consent…” He made a disgusted face and shook his head.
“But also pleasure,” she clarified.
“Yes. Though I must admit, I’m very good at mixing pleasure and pain.” He grinned. “Especially edging.”
Sofie shifted her weight from one butt cheek to the other and back, and though the movement was small, it was enough that she was aware of how wet she was, her labia sliding against one another.
“What about my mouth?” she asked, arousal making her bold in addition to blunt. “Will you fuck my mouth, or is that sex?”
“Technically it’s oral sex, but…” He shrugged. “There are few things that make the power exchange as clearly felt as putting a submissive on her knees and forcing her to take my cock in her mouth.”
Another pulse of need.
“It depends on if this room has been stocked with oral sex condoms.”
“And what about the other way?” she asked.
Andrei let out another delighted laugh. “Hoping I’ll return the favor and put my mouth on your pussy?”
Sofie kept her head up, even though her cheeks burned.
“I would enjoy strapping you down and tasting you. Exploring you with my tongue for my own pleasure while utterly ignoring yours. Except, of course, if you got too close to orgasm. Then I’d stop.”
A full-body shiver wracked her and Sofie closed her eyes.
“Do you know why you like that idea so much, Angel?” His voice was getting closer, though she hadn’t heard him move. Could barely hear his voice over the pounding of her own heartbeat in her ears. “Because you’ll know, to the very deepest core of you, that you’re not in control.”
Not in control. She both hated and loved that idea. She had so very little control in her life that it should have been abhorrent, yet it wasn’t because…
Because with Andrei, she was choosing to give up control.
“Are you ready to play, Angel?” He was right in front of her, and Sofie’s lids fluttered as she considered and dismissed opening her eyes.
“Yes.”
“We should negotiate more.” He said it like a warning.
“I’ll tell you if I get scared,” she promised.
“If you get scared…” He repeated the words in a low voice, almost as if he were saying them to himself. “Your safe word?”
“Rembrandt,” she said, The Night Watch still on her mind.
Andrei tsked her. “What a bad girl you are, my little thief.”
“What do I… Do I call you, um…” She rarely stumbled over words, but right now, she was flailing.
“What do you usually use? It’s fine if it’s something in Dutch.”
“Sir,” she said.
“In English?”
“Yes.”
He hesitated only a moment before saying, “Then you call me ‘Sir.’”
Finally, Sofie opened her eyes.
Andrei was on his hands and knees in front of her. Had he crawled across the floor to her? Why did she find that idea so disturbing and arousing?
He was close enough that the reality of what it would mean to submit to him made an emotion approaching panic grip her chest. It was hard to take a full breath.
“You won’t hurt me?” she whispered desperately.
Andrei looked away for a moment, and she was sure he would call it off. Was already trying to figure out how to fix it. How to undo what she’d done.
Instead, he smiled, a slow devil’s smile that shouldn’t have made her trust him more, yet it did.
“I will hurt you,” he vowed, and his gaze dropped to her cleavage.
“You won’t make me cry?” she asked, watching him watch her.
“Cry?” He tipped his head side to side to say maybe. “But beg? I will make you beg.”
Need overwhelmed her. What had been slowly building, surging until she couldn’t hold back. She would have agreed to anything, accepted anything he wanted to do to her, in that moment.
Sofie reached for him, wanting to feel his hair under her fingers, that plump lower lip against her skin.
Andrei sat back on his heels, grabbing her wrists before she could touch him.
Their gazes locked, her wrists captive in his grasp.
He gave her one small squeeze and released her. “I’m going to leave. When I return, if you’re naked on your knees, we start.”
Sofie’s breath caught, and she didn’t exhale until he’d stood and walked out the door.
Then she rose and reached around behind her back for the zipper.