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  “Because it makes you look like Batman.”

  Xavier blinked twice, then started to laugh. He laughed so hard that he braced his hand on the wall near her. His laugh was a wonderful, rich sound. Mae found herself smiling, and wishing she could hold him, feel that joy and mirth against her body.

  “Batman?”

  “One of the submissives called it a Batman mask. Though no one would dare say it to your face.”

  He shifted closer, bracing one forearm above her head so they were separated by mere inches. “Except you?”

  “I’m not thinking straight.”

  “Really? Or do you like teasing and sassing your Doms?”

  Mae couldn’t deny that. “Is it really such a bad thing?”

  “Before meeting you I would have said so, but now…I think it isn’t. But you have to be willing to pay the price.”

  “And what’s the price?” she whispered.

  His lips brushed her ear. “Whatever I want it to be.” Smooth leather strands trailed over Mae’s upraised leg and she whimpered.

  “Are you scared, Mae?”

  “Yes.”

  “Scared of me, or of the flogger?”

  “You.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ve played with a flogger before, but I don’t think… I think it will be very different if you’re the one using it.”

  “Smart girl. It will be. And that brings me back to what we need to talk about.”

  Xavier pulled some folded papers from his back pocket and flicked her nipple with them. “This is your checklist.”

  “Yes, Master Xavier.” She was so wet, so ready, that if he just flicked her nipple a few more times she might be able to come. Bracing her hips, she thrust her chest forward, begging him without words to touch her.

  Xavier stepped back. Mae nearly growled.

  “What do you remember about filling out your checklist?”

  Mae blew out a frustrated breath. “It was years ago.”

  “Years? How long have you been a member?”

  “Six years.”

  That seemed to surprise him. “How old are you?”

  “Don’t you know you shouldn’t ask a lady her age?

  “Don’t you know that you should answer when a Master asks you a question?” His voice was cold with warning.

  “I’m thirty-one, Master Xavier.”

  He grunted in surprise. When he didn’t say anything, Mae had to wonder if her age changed the way he thought of her.

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  Shit. “I’m sorry, Master Xavier, could you repeat it?”

  “What do you remember about filling out your checklist?”

  “I remember reading it was arousing.”

  He flipped to the last page, held it up so she could see. “You signed this list, and it’s part of your membership contract with Las Palmas.”

  Mae frowned. Why was he pushing this issue? “Yes, Master Xavier.” That was definitely her signature—she’d used glittery purple ink.

  “For the purposes of the game, and therefore this scene, you’re bound by what you put on this list. Anything you marked “yes” or “maybe” to is a valid option.”

  “I understand, Master Xavier.”

  He turned a few pages, then again held it up for her to see. She recognized her own handwriting—the checkmarks and initials she’d used to indicate her level of interest in each item. Mae narrowed her eyes, wishing for her glasses. Xavier held the paper close to her face.

  It was the page with all the “B” items, everything he’d read out loud.

  And she’d said yes to every single one.

  Mae’s mouth fell open in dawning horror. Suddenly Xavier’s actions made much more sense. She’d been paired with one of the most dangerous Doms, insisted on playing with him even when he’d warned her away, all without realizing that her checklist gave him carte blanche.

  “Oh…”

  “I was more than a little surprised when I saw your checklist.” There was a hint of amusement in his voice—but not the funny “ha ha” kind.

  “I don’t…I don’t remember doing that.” Surely she wouldn’t have said yes to beatings and branding.

  “Are you accusing me of something?”

  “No.”

  The flogger struck the wall with a heavy thunk. “No, what?”

  She flinched. “No, Master Xavier.”

  “I gave you the chance to leave, Mae. That opportunity is gone. You still have your safe word. What is it?”

  “Banana.”

  “Say it again.”

  “Banana.”

  “Good. Using your safe word will pause the scene.”

  “Pause it?”

  “Yes. Everything I’m about to do to you, you said you were interested in. If I were to end the scene when you used your safe word, you would be in control. But for the next forty-eight hours I’m your master. Everything you have, everything you are, is mine. Use your safe word if you need to, but understand that I will decide if we need to stop, or if you simply need a different approach.”

  “Master Xavier, the things on that list. I didn’t understand. I don’t want—”

  He pressed the flogger up under her chin, snapping her teeth together and stopping her mid-sentence.

  “Don’t insult either of us by pretending you didn’t know what these things were. If you were that ignorant you would never have been allowed in to Las Palmas.”

  He moved the flogger, giving her the chance to continue her protest, but she didn’t. She couldn’t. He was right. She’d known what each of those things were, what they meant…she’d just never assumed they would happen to her.

  After all, she was the cute, sassy sub who got over-the-knee spankings and punishment by multiple orgasms.

  “You want this Mae. You wouldn’t have insisted on staying if you didn’t want it.”

  She lowered her head, unable to deny it.

  “I won’t go easy on you.” He seemed to want her to acknowledge what he’d said.

  Taking a deep breath, Mae mustered all her courage. “I don’t want you to, Master Xavier.”

  Chapter Four

  Xavier watched Mae shift nervously as she stood beside the wooden horse, which he’d moved into the middle of the room. The top was a two-by-six piece of cherrywood that was turned on its side so the upper surface was the narrower two-inch face. There were rings set into the underside of the crosspiece and along the edges of the slanted legs. Xavier left the cuffs on her wrists and ankles, but decided against binding her to the convenient tie points on the horse. It was time to see exactly what Mae could handle, and how obedient she could be.

  “Do you know the difference between a hard and soft beating?” he asked.

  Mae opened her mouth, but closed it.

  “No?” he prompted.

  “I can only think of sassy things to say.”

  “Why don’t you say them?”

  Mae eyed the flogger in his right hand. “Maybe later.”

  Xavier chuckled. She was fun. It had been a long time since he’d had fun with a sub.

  “All right, Red. I want you to face the horse, bend at the waist, and rest your arms on the top. You can fold your arms if that’s more comfortable.”

  He helped position her, having her step back until her body made a ninety degree angle and her cheek rested on her folded arms atop the wood.

  “Very good. Legs together.”

  The metal on the ankle restraints clanked as she brought her feet side by side. Once he was satisfied, he swung the flogger against his own leg, letting her get used to the sound.

  “Do you want to know the difference between a hard beating and a soft beating?”

  “Yes, Master Xavier.”

  Thwack, thwack, thwack.

  The flogger’s steady rhythm was like a metronome as he spoke. “The difference is in how long the sub wears the marks. A flogging is a light beating, because your skin will be red for a few days. Pad
dles, canes, a tawse, and whips are hard beatings.”

  “What’s a spanking?” Her words were slightly muffled because of the way her face rested on her arms, but he understood.

  “A spanking is foreplay. A spanking is what little girls get when they want to pretend they’re being punished.”

  That wasn’t exactly true—spanking was an art form in itself and a well-administered one could have longer-lasting effects than a caning, but he was guessing that those weren’t the kinds of spankings Mae got.

  “Are you punishing me? Is that why you’re beating me?” Her question was soft, and when he looked, her eyes were wide and dark, fixed on his face.

  “No, Mae. I’m going to beat you because I want to. Because I need to. And because you need to be beaten.”

  He’d kept up his steady movement of the flogger. Without breaking rhythm he raised his arm, this time striking Mae’s ass.

  She yelped, jerking upright with her hands braced on the horse.

  “Back in position.” He struck her ass again, this time with more force.

  She cried out in either shock or pain, looking back at him with wide eyes. Her hair fell in soft waves around her face. Her lower lip was wet and pink, trembling slightly. Her eyes pleaded for mercy, pleaded for him to stop and kiss her, hold her.

  Xavier understood how she’d managed to go so long without being properly mastered. He understood, but he wasn’t so blind to her real wants as others had been. She was going to accept her beating, and nothing she did or said would change it.

  Holding her gaze, he struck her ass again, even harder than last time. This one had to hurt, and there was a flash of anger in her eyes.

  That’s right, Red, you’re mine, and you’re about to find out exactly what that means.

  *****

  “Back in position, Mae. I won’t tell you again.” Master Xavier pulled the flogger back.

  Mae was frozen, the tension in her arms, back, and legs seemingly turning her to stone. The first blow had taken her by surprise, the second stung enough that she’d jumped, and the third one hurt.

  Thwack.

  Pain set fire to the back of her thighs and ass as the hardest blow yet landed. Jolted from her paralysis, Mae yelped and took two steps forward, turning so that Master Xavier’s flogger couldn’t reach her ass.

  “Mae, you’re making me angry.”

  “Master Xavier, that hurts.”

  He tilted his head. “Of course it hurts, Mae. It’s meant to hurt.”

  “But I don’t want it to hurt.” He swung the flogger towards her and Mae pressed herself harder against the horse, staying just outside its reach.

  “I understand that you don’t want it to hurt. But that doesn’t matter.”

  Unexpectedly, tears of frustration filled her eyes. “It should matter.”

  “It doesn’t.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it’s not up to you. I decide if you get pleasure or pain. I decide how much pain. I’m your Master.”

  His words flipped a switch inside her and Mae shuddered. Her outrage and anger faded, replaced by a dark need. The need for pain, the need to give up all control.

  She couldn’t stop herself from trembling, but Mae turned around, presenting her back.

  “Back in position, bend at the waist.”

  Mae resumed her position, hiding her face against her forearms. Part of her was amazed that she was doing this, that she hadn’t walked out. A larger part of her desperately wanted to know how far he would take it, how much he would do to her.

  Master Xavier tugged her panties down until they pooled at her ankles, leaving her totally naked for the first time.

  Thwack. This time the blow landed on the back of her thighs, avoiding her ass. The reprieve was short-lived, as the tails of the flogger once more landed on her sensitive ass.

  She was tensing before each blow, whole body drawn tight in anticipation. For what felt like an hour but could have been no more than five minutes, he kept up a steady rhythm, the strength and placement of them alternating. At first she tried to keep quiet, but was soon gasping and whimpering.

  “Relax, Mae. You can’t control this. Can’t stop this.”

  The words freed something inside her. Mae let out a little sob, and the tension faded from her body. When the next blow came she accepted it, her soft flesh taking in the pain more readily.

  The fiery ache in her ass and thighs grew until she was moaning steadily.

  “Open your legs.”

  She didn’t question, didn’t hesitate. She stepped out of her panties and spread her legs, wide as she could while keeping her balance. She wanted him to have access to her sex, wanted him to use her in whatever way he wanted.

  The tails of the flogger came up between her legs, smacking her pussy. The gentle blow had only the barest hint of sting, hidden under a jolt of pleasure. Or maybe it was that she was so aroused it didn’t matter what kind of attention her aching pussy got.

  Master Xavier alternated gentle swats to her inner thighs and pussy with harder floggings of her ass. Her whole body was trembling, and Mae didn’t know if it was pleasure or pain that made her shake.

  “Can you come from pain alone?”

  Master Xavier’s words barely penetrated the twilight-like space where she seemed to float.

  “No, Master Xavier.”

  “Are you sure?”

  The tip of the flogger tails landed on the inner curves of her ass, near her anus, and the sting of pain sent a jolt of pleasure through her pussy.

  “No, Master. I’m not.” She wasn’t sure of anything anymore.

  A warm palm came to rest on her back. “These last few will be the hardest.”

  That was the only warning she got before pain exploded across her ass. Mae screamed, tears leaking from her eyes.

  “You’ll take another one.” Master Xavier’s voice was deep, his breathing a bit ragged too.

  Mae couldn’t speak, but she arched her back, presenting her ass more fully.

  “Good girl.”

  Crack. Crack. Crack.

  The final three blows came in quick succession. Mae didn’t have time to scream, she barely managed to breathe. Her legs started to give out and she reached back with one hand, grabbing Xavier’s forearm, holding on to him as if he were a life raft in the middle of a stormy ocean.

  He grabbed her by the upper arm and neck, raising her to a standing position and turning her to face him. Within the shadows of his mask his eyes glowed like emeralds. He was breathing hard, his jaw muscles tensed.

  Mae realized that he was as lost in the storm as she was. This is what had always been missing from her scenes before. Never before had doing something to her, playing with her, had the kind of impact on a Dom that she could see in Xavier’s eyes.

  The ground shifted under her feet, the earth seeming to tip sideways only to right itself, the world slightly different than it had been a moment ago.

  “Master, please.”

  He searched her face. “What do you want? To come? To get fucked?”

  With the last of her courage she reached up, laying her palm on his cheek, feeling both skin and leather under her hand. “Kiss me.”

  Xavier’s eyes closed and he bent his head, resting his forehead on hers. Mae’s heart clenched, and she knew, though she couldn’t say why, that though he was the Master of pain and pleasure, power and control, he didn’t know gentleness.

  She took the flogger from his fingers, dropping it to the floor, then guided his hands to her waist, resting them there. Rising onto tiptoe, Mae kissed him.

  Xavier tasted like mint, and his lips were firm and wet against hers. For a moment he didn’t react, and Mae felt a pang of fear—she’d overstepped, she’d read the moment wrong.

  Xavier shuddered, then his arms were tight around her back, crushing her against him as he ravaged her mouth.

  Mae’s nails scraped against the smooth surface of the mask. She wished she could bury her fingers in his hair,
wished she could see his face.

  Xavier deepened the kiss, his tongue dipping into her mouth. Mae sucked on his tongue, and when he shifted, one leg sliding between hers, she eagerly ground against his thigh. She couldn’t wait to have him inside her, his cock filling her.

  When he wrenched away, taking three quick steps back, Mae was left gasping, her body thrumming with need.

  “Our play time does not include sexual contact, except for what’s on the checklist.” His face unreadable, hidden from her.

  Mae wanted to curse. There’d been something between them. Maybe he hadn’t felt it the way she did. That thought made her stomach knot, but it didn’t feel like the truth.

  “What if I want sex? What if I want to add that to our session?”

  Xavier didn’t answer her questions. “It’s nearly four a.m. You’ll sleep in the Subs’ Garden.”

  “What if—”

  Xavier grabbed her by the back of the neck, his will washing over her. “You will sleep in the Subs’ Garden.”

  “Yes, Master Xavier.” She didn’t bother to hide her frustration—both sexual and emotional, and it showed, her words sarcastic and biting.

  Master Xavier’s hold tightened just a fraction, but his jaw clenched, lips a thin line. She’d pushed him too far.

  Xavier took her by the upper arms and forced her to bend over the horse. His movements were sharp but controlled.

  “Grab your ankles.”

  “Master Xavier, I’m sorry, I just—”

  “Now, Mae.” He pressed his hand against her abused ass.

  The flare of pain sent a shudder through her. Disappointment and frustration from the truncated kiss were suppressed by a resurgence of the sweet submissiveness that had filled her while he beat her.

  Mae hooked her fingers in the D-ring cuffs around her ankles.

  “You’re going to sleep in one of the bunks in the Subs’ Garden. You will meet me back here at noon. Eat before you arrive. You will not orgasm, either by touching yourself or by asking another submissive to touch you. Do you understand, Mae?”

  “Yes, Master Xavier.”

  “It seems you have a hard time remembering your place unless you’re actively being dominated.” He pinched her abused ass.

  Mae was having trouble thinking; all the blood was rushing to her head. “I’m sorry, Master.”