Submission Under the Mistletoe (2 page)

“
We’ve warned you before Reel
about controlling your subs while you’re here. There seems to
always be some commotion or outburst going on.” The bouncer-like
guy admonished the man.

“
No worries, I plan to discipline
her real proper for this defiance.” Reel spoke through clenched
teeth as he reached out for the woman.

“
Aren’t her feelings considered?”
Brad questioned the man that appeared to have the authority in the
situation.

Before Reel could reach her, or the bouncer could
say something, the woman dropped to her knees before him.

“
Shit!” The bouncer
groaned.

“
What the fuck are you doing?”
Reel’s face had turned a deep red color beneath his natural
yellowish skin tone and his eyes seemed to bug-out from his
face.

Brad glanced down at the woman
kneeling before him with her head bowed. The air in his lungs
seemed to get vacuumed out and heat raced along his spine. Visions
of her with a thin collar around her neck, like the one Alesha
wore, swarmed his mind.
What in the
hell.

The urge to take a step back, from
her and from what he was imagining beset him. He shook his head and
took a rough breath. “Um, sweetheart…China…baby doll…I’m not the
right person…you shouldn’t be…”
Fuck, I’m
I stuttering?
This was practically
laughable if it wasn’t so serious around him.

“
Reel, I guess you have your
answer.” The armband man placed a restraining hand on the Dom’s
chest.

“
You’re going to let this stand?”
Reel turned on the man. “She came here with me.”

“
Yeah, I know. However, doesn’t
seem as if she’s choosing to exit the same way.” He grabbed Reel’s
arm. “So, you’re going to need to play with an unattached sub
tonight or go home. I suggest with you being so angry you should
probably leave. You know we don’t allow subs to be used here by
having anger vented on them.”

“
This is bullshit!” Reel snatched
his arm away from the bouncer.

“
You’ll have to take it up off
property.” The other man escorted the raving Reel away.

Brad was in a full state of confusion now. The man
had stomped away. The crowd was beginning to disperse, leaving him
with a woman at his feet.

Squatting down before her, Brad touched her shoulder
lightly and spoke softly. “Baby doll, I’m not sure what you’ve
accomplished for yourself tonight. I’m not in the lifestyle.”

“
Is Dom Reel gone?” she
whispered.

“
Yes. I think the bouncer led him
to the stairs to leave.”

“
Perfect. By the way, the bouncer
guy, is called a Dungeon Master.” Titlting her head back, she
smiled at him. The worry lines now all gone.

If he would have been struck by lightning, Brad
would not have felt any less knocked on his ass. Her round face
brightened and light seemed to shine from her eyes.

“
Was this all an act?” He felt a
little insulted to be used as a pawn in such a public
fashion.

“
Yes and no.” She stood
up.

He rose as well. “You want to explain?”

“
Not really.”

He frowned. He didn’t like that she’d used him in
some way and now refused to fill him in. Crossing his arms over his
chest, now only covered by his white undershirt, just as stark in
color as his white shirt she still wore, saying, “I hope you don’t
think I’m your Dominant or something now. Because hate to break
your heart, baby doll, you picked the wrong guy if that is what you
are looking for.”

For a moment, her warm gaze caressed him from head
to toe, then returned, her smile now playful, “That’s too bad. But,
I’m free now and that’s what I wanted. Thanks.”

Stretching up, on her toes, she gave him a loud kiss
on the lips then moved away.

“
What was that for?”

“
The mistletoe.” She pointed at
the ceiling above his head.

Glancing up, Brad saw the sprig dangling from a
ribbon above his head. Something he’d missed seeing.

“
Do you need a ride—”

She was gone. Brad looked around the area, people
continued in their scenes around him, no longer giving him a care
since the drama had ended.

Moving through the crowd, he scanned faces, looking
for the woman with the angelic/playful smile. However, he came up
empty.

“
Hey, Brad, you seen enough for
tonight?” Josh patted him on the shoulder.

“
Um, yea.” Still preoccupied, Brad
looked toward the stairs to see if he could find the
woman.

“
You all right?” Alesha stepped in
front of him.

Glancing down at his sister, who was dressed as a
naughty elf, in a short green outfit, with matching stripped red
and green stockings, pointed ears and all. Her low cut top proudly
displayed her thin collar with its small silver butterfly dangling
from it. Alesha always seemed to owner the adornment from these two
men like another woman would a wedding ring.

“
I’m fine.” He said hoping to calm
her nerves. The last thing his sister needed was stress that would
affect the little one she carried.

“
Where’s your shirt?”She
frowned.

Glancing down, Brad had forgot he’d given it to the
woman—China Doll, Reel had called her. “I let someone use it.”

Mike arched an eyebrow at him, as if he were
awaiting more explanation.

Brad looked at his friend that was just as tall and
muscular as he was, refusing to discuss the situation at the
moment. “I’m ready.”

“
You want to get your shirt back?”
Josh asked.

“
Not necessary. I have my jacket.
Besides, she may need it more than me the way she was dressed.”
Brad turned with them toward the back door leading to the parking
lot where he’d been headed just thirty minutes ago. Before the
woman. Before the kiss.

“
She?” Mike called out from behind
him.

Brad ignored his friend.

“
Hey, look mistletoe.” Alesha
said.

“
You’ll get enough kisses once we
get home.” Josh stepped to the coat rack and took her coat down
first and helped her with it on and whispered things into Alesha’s
ear that had her giggling.

“
Hey, Cowboy…brother here.” Brad
yanked his coat from the hook and shoved his arms into
it.

Mike grabbed his own coat and patted Brad on the
shoulder. “Don’t worry, man, we don’t plan to bend her over and
spank her in front of you.”

“
Oh, God, mercy please.” Brad
shook his head and shoved out of the back door as the three people
trailing behind him laughed.

“
Just drop me off at the hotel
quick.” Brad made haste to the car as he looked around the parking
area, hoping to see the woman who dragged him into her situation.
He didn’t want to admit it but his heart sank a little as they
drove away and he still didn’t find her.

chapter two

“
Are you going to tell me about
last night?”

Gabriella pulled out more ciabatta rolls from the
rack beside her, as she prepared the sandwiches for the display
case. “It was just Reel being Reel.”

“
What does that mean for you guys?
You stayin’ with him?” Jennifer, also known as Pepper in the
community, was icing the cupcakes for the sweets case. Strong
Blends, the coffee house on the upper floor above the dungeon,
would be open in about two hours and they were on the prep staff
this morning.

“
That’s over, finally.” Gabriella
didn’t want to rehash the ups and downs of her relationship with
her old Dom.

“
Are you sure? You said that over
the last month and then I see you all at one event or another.”
Jennifer reminded her.

Walking to the cooler, Gabriella got the spicy
mayonnaise sandwich spread, meat and spinach for the first set of
sandwiches. Back at the counter, she said, “That’s because I could
never convince him to let me go. He always believed he knew my mind
better than me.”

Jennifer shook her head. “How you stayed with him
for all those months is beyond me. Especially since it wasn’t
physical.”

Rolling her eyes, Gabriella ignored her friend’s
words. Jennifer had been in the lifestyle for as long as she had
and it was always about the sexual gratification at the end of a
scene for the Hispanic woman. Gabriella had never had a sexual
relationship with any of her Dom’s. She’d kept those two things
very separate.

“
He wasn’t always an overbearing
ass. Once his wife died he changed. I think watching his wife
passed away from cancer and feeling helpless did something to
him…made him more controlling.”

Jennifer placed the espresso filled cupcakes onto a
tray and began working on the strawberry ones. “Whatever it was,
I’m just glad if it really is over.”

“
Trust me, he got the message.”
Pulling off strips of cellophane, Gabriella began wrapping the
first set of sandwiches.

“
How do you know he’ll stay away
this time?”

“
He thinks I found a Dom that was
bigger and younger.”

Jennifer turned so quickly that she forgot to stop
squeezing the pink icing from the tube and had a long stream of it
covering the floor.

“
Shit. Master Genuine’s slave
Kenmore will be pissed if I waste all this icing.” Jennifer
whispered, rushed to the closet and grabbed a handful of cleaning
wipes.

“
You know how she is about her
baking goods.” Gabriella spoke in the same low tones, trying to
keep the woman in question from coming out of the office where she
was working on the receipts from the day before and get the tills
together for today’s shifts. Master Genuine owned the coffee shop
and dungeon below, but left the running of the shop to Kenmore, his
slave of fifteen years. Kenmore may bow to her Master, but she was
a tough business woman in the coffee house.

After all the evidence of the icing mishap was
cleared, Jennifer exhaled a hard breath as she washed her hands
before returning to the deserts. “That was close.”

Gabriella grinned and pulled out the whole grain
artisan bread to start on the vegan stuffs.

“
Don’t think I’ve forgotten that
you have not filled me in on Mr. Bigger and Better Dom.”

Of course, Jennifer would not let
this go
. Gabriella, stated quiet for a few
moments longer as her mind recalled the man she’d met last night.
Tall with broad shoulders, a muscular body, built like a football
player and kind brown eyes and a goatee. She’d never been into
bald-headed guys before, but she just wanted to caress every smooth
inch of his. She shivered.

“
Uh, huh…spill it.”

When she looked over at her friend, she saw Jennifer
with her arms crossed beneath her large breasts eyeing her.

“
What? I said there is nothing to
tell. This man…who’s name I don’t even know, wasn’t even in the
lifestyle.”

“
Not in it?” Jennifer frowned.
“Then how is he supposed to scare off Dom Reel Jerk?”

“
Don’t call Reel that. Like I
said, losing his wife was hard.”

Jennifer made a talking hand sign as she rolled her
eyes. “Back to the mystery man.”

Shrugging, Gabriella said, “Long story short. He was
downstairs last night for some reason. Not sure why or who he was
with. I needed someone unattached to submit to so I did.”

“
Did what?”

“
Dropped to my knees in front of
this mystery man before the club while Dom Reel was spiting fire;
completely embarrassed.”

“
Oh, shit. Gabriella, are you
serious?”

“
It worked and now Reel is out of
my life. Case closed.” Picking up the narrow scoop, she carved a
hole out of the side of the roll and then scrapped out the inside,
careful not to break the sides.

“
I swear you must have a death
wish to piss off a Dom like that.” Jennifer shook her head as she
started swirling the icing in the center of the cakes.

“
I told you that Reel is harmless,
Jennifer. Just overly controlling.” Setting bread and spoon down on
the stainless steel table, Gabriella asked her friend, “What was I
supposed to do?”

“
I don’t know.” Jennifer glanced
at her with soulful green eyes, then back to her cupcakes. “Hell,
I’d probably have done the same thing. Not with Dom Meyo mind you,
but if it were…someone else.”

Gabriella envied her friend. Jennifer had been with
her Dom for three years, collared for two and now they were talking
about a wedding and a family. In the six years she had been in the
lifestyle, Gabriella had never had a relationship with one of her
Doms that was that committed.

She knew it was because she always chose those who
were married and just wanted a full time sub to scene with
privately and publicly. Their spouses were either in the lifestyle
with them or didn’t mind them being part-time in the community with
someone else. Gabriella stayed clear of analyzing herself.

“
So, do you plan
to try and find out who this
not really a
Dom
is?” Jennifer asked.

“
Nope. He was useful for the
moment, but that was all. I have no need to see him
again.”