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“You can go down to the quarters until dinner. I need to handle a few things on my laptop,” he lied.
She furrowed her brows at this, but then nodded. “Yes, Sir.”
It was going to be a long week.
≈
Lia sprawled on one of the comfy couches in the slave quarters, holding a pillow to her body. Lucia, along with Juliette and Kinsley, had joined her and sat listening with rapt attention as she vented about Beau’s mixed messages.
“One minute he’s all business—as much of a hard ass as Lawrence, and the next I swear to god he’s about to make love to me. I don’t know if I’m reading more into this situation than there is or if he’s just jerking my chain because he can.” She hugged her pillow. “Or maybe I’ve somehow landed in a romance novel, and he’s fallen madly in love with me but has to wait until our training contract is up before he can confess his true feelings.”
She barked a laugh to show she was kidding, though she wasn’t—not entirely.
“One-on-one training can be super intense,” Lucia said with maddening gentleness. “It’s easy to get confused about feelings on both sides when you’re right in the middle of it. Don’t get me wrong. I think Beau is a terrific guy and a good fit for you as a trainer. There’s a definite connection between you, and I could totally see the two of you together. I just would hate to see you get hurt because you have expectations that he’s not able to meet.”
“Cut it out,” Lia said, making a face. “You’re messing up my nice fantasy with annoying doses of reality. Don’t you know hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul?
“Oh, I like that,” Lucia exclaimed. “It’s so poetic.”
Lia laughed. “Wish I could take credit. But that’s Emily Dickinson.”
“Hope is the courage to keep going when the path is unclear,” Juliette offered.
“Ha,” Lia retorted, feeling suddenly contrarian. “Hope is the crutch of the naïve.”
“Hope is the lifeline we hold onto in turbulent waters,” Kinsley piped up.
“Hope is the carrot dangled in front of the donkey of reality,” Lia said with a snort.
Lucia reached out from the adjacent couch and touched Lia’s foot. “All kidding aside, you’re right. I shouldn’t be so negative. Look at Master Anthony and me. He was my late husband’s mentor. He only let me stay on at The Enclave out of charity. Talk about an unlikely pairing.”
“There’s a story here,” Juliette exclaimed. “Tell us everything.”
“Yes, tell us,” Lia urged, though she knew the story well. Despite their ensuing silliness, Lucia’s warnings had unsettled her. She was more than ready for a change of topic.
≈
When Beau woke the next morning, he sat up and pulled away the covers. Lia, still fast asleep, was curled into a fetal ball at his feet. He enjoyed a brief fantasy of waking her with a prod of the toe and commanding her to slide up and suck his cock like her life depended on it.
Before he gave in to the enticing idea, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and strode into the bathroom.
After dinner the night before, he’d allowed Aubrey and her slave, Gene, to involve Lia in a dungeon scene. He’d watched from the sidelines, giving her direction and encouragement as needed. He’d liked the way she continually glanced his way, as if to say she was in the scene with others, but understood she was still his to command.
He’d showered before bed and had made the mistake of allowing Lia to dry him afterward. As she toweled his rapidly lengthening shaft, that knowing half smile subs get when they know the power has shifted to them appeared on her pretty face.
He’d sent her abruptly to bed, remaining in the bathroom to unsatisfactorily jerk himself off. For whatever reason, it was getting harder and harder to keep things professional between them, and it was taking its emotional toll.
He needed to keep things on the straight and narrow until Friday. He would have to remain vigilant, honoring the implied contract between them to keep things from getting too personal. He would keep the focus on giving her a safe place to truly engage in a genuine exchange of power. He was convinced if he could get her there, she would at least be on the right path toward her goal of submissive serenity.
Then he’d thank everyone at The Enclave for the opportunity and return to his real life. He’d still be happy to offerKinbakutraining at The Enclave in whatever capacity worked for them, but this would be his single foray into one-on-one training with someone who was not his lover.
It was just too damn hard.
≈
The days passed quickly as Master Beau put Lia through an increasingly intensive training regime. Each morning, he used the snake whip to paint a single, stinging welt on her ass, which would be faded by evening. She loved the solemn, sexy ritual, and the fire in his green eyes when he pulled her to her feet.
He tested her repeatedly, challenging her to submit with grace to a series of sessions that left her both exhausted and breathless with desire.
