Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Sophie
Transgression? I frown. For the life of me, I can’t figure out what he means, but Lucian’s eyes are dark and assessing, as if I should know exactly what he’s talking about.
His fingers remain firm beneath my chin, holding me prisoner.
Nearby, a Dom has a submissive strapped to an examination table. She’s helpless, whimpering as he explores every inch of her body with velvet gloves.
Her gasps turn into breathy moans as he moves between her legs, stroking up toward her barely covered pussy.
Now, with Lucian and Caleb framing me as if I’ve done something terrible, my pulse races, matching the wild drumbeat in my throat. The relentless thump, thump from the bass that settles low in my belly.
I can barely breathe.
“You were told not to masturbate.”
Oh God.
There’s no possible way that he could know that I had disobeyed that order.
He has to be bluffing.
Even though I back up a little, needing the support of the concrete wall, I keep my voice even. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I think you do.”
The words land like ice water down my spine, yet heat floods my cheeks at the same time.
No…
Unless…
The realization dawns slow and maddening, a stunned wave that makes my stomach drop.
Fury washes over me, and I curl my hands into fists at my sides, nails pressing half-moons into my palms. “You have cameras in my house?” After the incident at the office, I looked, but I saw nothing obvious.
Caleb tips his head to one side. “With as much as you mean to us, did you expect we wouldn’t?” His voice is low, matter-of-fact, sending a shiver racing along my arms.
He settles his hand on my waist, fingers splaying possessively over the silk as if to remind me exactly where I stand—between them, claimed.
“Who the hell do you think you are?”
“You’re ours,” Caleb responds, his tone still calm and factual, as if stating the color of the sky.
No apology. No explanation.
And Lucian is still looking at me as if he’s the offended party.
“You have no right—
Lucian slides his fingers from my chin to trace the column of my throat, resting his thumb over my racing pulse.
“You could be in danger—”
“From people like you and your…associates?”
“We will never take chances with your safety.” Caleb shrugs, the motion pulling his shirt more tightly across his broad chest, his expression unchanging. “Get used to it.”
He edges his hand lower, sliding it onto my hip, thumb stroking the sensitive crease where thigh meets body, the touch sending unwanted sparks of attraction through me.
How is it possible to be so angry and yet so aware at the same time?
Lucian flexes his fingers against my neck.
I should find his move threatening, but I’m not even a tiny bit afraid.
“You have two options. You can stay in your apartment with cameras, or you can go home with us tonight and never go back to your place.” His voice is measured.
“Your choice,” Caleb offers.
Before I can answer, they guide me through an exit, Lucian’s hand on my back, Caleb in front of us.
As we walk down a hallway, the sounds of the club fade slightly, and we enter a private room.
The door clicks shut behind us, sealing us in a smaller, intimate space with dim lighting.
“Wait…”
There’s a wide leather bench, a chair, a desk, a pully hanging from the ceiling, and mirrors on every wall, reflecting our images from multiple angles.
My mouth is suddenly dry.
“There’s still the little matter of your disobedience.”
Frantically I shake my head. “I didn’t know there were cameras. So that’s not fair.”
“I told you not to masturbate. What part of that did you not understand?”
“But—”
“Lucky for you, we enjoyed every moment. So that will help you out here.”
They’d watched everything, seen me at my most vulnerable.
“You’ll need a safe word.”
What I need is to get out of here.
But Caleb clamps his massive hands on my shoulders. “A safe word, Sophie.”
When they’re lasered in on something so directly, there’s no budging them. So I give him something I hate, a word I wouldn’t throw into normal conversation.
“Crypto.”
“Crypto?” He blinks. “You’ll think of that when you want us to stop?”
I nod. “It’s a total red flag.”
The two men exchange glances. And even though Caleb shakes his head, he’s grinning.
“Crypto,” Lucian acknowledges. “Something for slow?”
“This is absurd. You know that, right? I don’t want to play BDSM parlor games with you.”
Lucian leans in close enough that I don’t have any air to breathe.
“I assure you, Sophie, that this is not a game to me.” He looks at Caleb. “To either of us. Are you clear?”
“That doesn’t change anything.” I set my chin stubbornly. “Since we’re not playing or sceneing or whatever it is you call it.”
“We call it intimacy.”
The way he says that word—softly, infused with meaning—nearly unravels me. “It doesn’t matter what name you prefer,” I lie. “We’re not married, and I have no intention of sleeping with you one minute before you force me to.”
That terrible, horrible tic is back in Lucian’s jaw.
But when he speaks, his voice is completely modulated. “We’ll never force you into any physical contact.” He pauses, letting his words hang in the air. “We won’t need to.”
“Could you be any more arrogant?”
“You’ll beg.”
I laugh.
But the sound is brittle, even to my ears.
“Shall we see?”
“Do you worst.”
His eyes darken, and he smiles, slow and wicked.
“You remember the first woman we watched a while ago.”
I don’t answer because I don’t need to. I’ll never forget the sounds, the woman’s responses, the tightening inside me…
“We’re going to give you a taste.”
I set my chin mutinously.
In the mirror and the zillions of reflections bouncing around me, I look ridiculous. “I can use a safe word.”
“You can.”
His agreement catches me off guard.
“I can insist I be allowed to go home right this moment.”
“You can. But you will not be allowed to leave by yourself.”
I exhale.
“But you’re not going to do any of those things.”
Caleb removes his jacket and hangs it from a hook I hadn’t noticed.
“Because you’re curious. Because you don’t want to leave here without knowing what it’s like, before experiencing this for yourself.”
Caleb rolls back his shirt sleeves.
My heart skids to a stop, then races on again.
I don’t want this. Don’t want to want this.
Lucian stands next to the bench and crooks his finger toward me. “Be a good little girl, Sophie.”
I squeeze my eyes shut.
“Of your own free will, come here. Find out the consequences for disobeying me.”
His voice has me hypnotized.
What other explanation can there be for the way I start toward him?
“Such a good girl.” He fists his hand in my hair and eases back my head. “Our good girl.”
Why aren’t I objecting?
“I’ll never demand your trust, but for the next few minutes, we’ll ask for it. And I vow, we will earn it.”
“That’s not possible.”
I expect to see the anger pulsing in his temple.
But it’s not there.
And that makes me question everything I’ve decided about him.
“Please place your hands on the bench.”
The girl in the dungeon had been draped over it, so this seems much safer.
“I…” I worry my lower lip. “I can end this if I want?”
“Yellow for slow. Crypto to stop at any time.”
“No matter what?”
“No matter what,” he affirms.
That said, I place my hands flat, and then I immediately freak out and stand again.
My men fold their arms and wait, saying nothing.
I think it would be easier if they were assholes. I could, would, bail in an instant. But this…giving me a choice.
And damn them, I want to hear the purr of approval in Lucian’s voice.
Momentarily squeezing my eyes shut, I get back into position.
They remain where they are, doing nothing, saying nothing.
Pretending I’m at a yoga class that I took in college, I breathe and wait.
“That’s it. One step at a time.”
I inhale. So far, this isn’t bad. But I know there’s more coming. If I can face it.
“Stick your pretty ass out for us.”
The instruction sends a wave of humiliation crashing over me, making my cheeks burn hot.
“Don’t fight it,” Caleb counsels. “Just stay in the moment.”
Easy for him to say as it’s not his ass going on display.
Digging my nails into the dark blue vinyl, I push my hips back, making the short dress ride higher on my thighs.
The position makes me feel obscene, even though my clothes are still covering me completely.
Caleb settles his palm on my lower back, pressing lightly to deepen my arch, and the touch makes my breath catch.
I am appalled by the vulnerability, by the way this simple act in a private room at their club makes me feel so utterly possessed. Yet my body isn’t protesting the way my mind is.
Lucian moves in more closely, smoothing his hand over the curve of my ass, the caress slow and sensuous through the silk of my dress.
The fabric whispers against my skin with each pass of his palm, building friction that makes my thighs tremble.
“Such a beautiful view.” His voice is low and appreciative.
His praise sinks into me like warm honey, despite my earlier anger.
“Just stay with me.”
He traces the hem of my dress, then lifts it just enough to expose the sensitive skin at the tops of my thighs.
Caleb joins him, his larger hand cupping one of my ass cheeks, squeezing gently.
Then he delivers a shocking series of light, teasing spanks.
Each lands with a muffled thud, the impact vibrating through me without a true sting. I’m not sure how that’s even possible, yet every contact gives me a jolt of pleasure.
I am appalled by how my body reacts, seeking more despite the humiliation burning in my chest.
My pulse thunders in my ears, matching the faint thump from the dungeon, every nerve alive to the way their hands map me—slow, deliberate strokes interspersed with those gentle swats.
Lucian’s fingers trail higher beneath the raised hem, brushing the crease where my thigh meets my ass, so close to where I ache yet never quite touching.
The denial heightens everything, my breath coming in full, rhythmic pulls.
Microthoughts flash through my mind, telling me I should fight this, I should demand they stop, yet I remain arched and exposed for them, my body humming with need they are deliberately stoking.
They continue the gentle play for what feels like endless minutes, hands roaming, voices murmuring approvals and descriptions of how beautiful I am even in my anger.
Caleb gives me a few more light spanks, each one building the ache between my legs until I am desperate, my hips rocking subtly in search of friction that never comes.
The scents of the room—leather, their power, my own arousal—overwhelm me. My skin feels electrified, every touch amplified by the mirrors reflecting my arched form back at me from multiple angles.
Just as the need crests, sharp and demanding, they step back.
The sudden absence of their hands leaves me trembling, empty and aching, my core clenching around nothing.
They deny me completely, no touch to push me over the edge, only their low voices praising my obedience while an orgasm remains frustratingly out of reach.
Frustration burns through me, tears of thwarted desire pricking at my eyes as they smooth my dress back into place. “That’s it?” I demand.
“Fuck me, Sophie.” Lucian brushes my hair back. “You’re perfect.”
How is that an answer?
I’m stunned when Lucian sprays down the bench, and Caleb straightens his sleeves before shrugging back into his jacket.
“That was enough for a first exploration.”
They guide me from the private room, out of the club, and back to my apartment.
Inside, he raises the hem of my dress again, bunching it at my waist, exposing my lower body to their hungry gazes.
“So perfect… So perfect for us in every way.” Lucian tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers lingering on the sensitive shell, the touch sending one last shiver through me.
His midnight eyes hold mine with silent command. “Thirty minutes from now, go into your bedroom, strip, and get yourself off for us. Show us everything. We want to see every beautiful detail.”