The Dom with the Kink Monsters (Badass Brats) (24 page)

Sometimes they made him feel like a greedy
two-year-old with new toys.

Mine, mine, mine.

Maybe writing his name on them in indelible marker would be enough to calm this claiming urge that twisted in his guts. Crazed obsession didn’t hold a candle to how he felt. He’d owned Saya for so long that he’d forgotten this stage, the all-consuming need to let people know that for their own safety, they’d best move along. With three it was exponentially more difficult. There were so many of them to keep track of – so many people who wanted to take them off of his hands. He felt like if his attention wandered for a moment, if he paid too much attention to one over the others, that he’d lose them all. He had to work on trusting them not to run off, although the bond they shared wasn’t written in stone. Either they’d stay or they wouldn’t.

It wasn’t just sexual obsession anymore. He watched them owning the stage. They might be his submissives, but they weren’t in need of paternalistic guidance from him. It wasn’t a father figure dynamic that he had with them. The group of them, as a whole, just felt right. On nights whe
n they didn’t hang out together, he felt the void.

But the Winter and Spider thing was messing that up. There had to be a
way to fix it.

Mack led them
into the next song and Ramsay caught up in about half a beat. Getting lost in his thoughts on stage didn’t happen often, and he had to make sure it didn’t become a habit.

Watching his band mates, half naked, their skin glistening with sweat. Screaming. The wailing of g
uitars. An on stage orgy for the entertainment of the masses. Mack strode past, headed for the other side of the stage, the epitome of confident virility. Wide shoulders veed down to a narrow waist, firm hips, a gorgeous ass. He’d given up trying not to check out Mack’s ass. As a straight guy who’d had his dick in that ass several times, he felt that he’d earned the right.

Ramsay played hard, the rhythm taking over his hands, violently rolling, staccato, then a beat that made him want to lay a beating on someone or fuck them until they
pleaded for mercy. Winter stood off to the side, starting to get comfortable moving around her corner of the stage, looking like she was too fucking cool to be there with them. There was no softness about her on stage, no indication that she was anything but all metal, all the time.

The sheen down her spine made him want to lick her there, to hold her still and tease her. Watch Mack tie her and listen to the noise he drew forth.
More than anything he loved to spank her, watching the tough girl melt away under his hands, succumbing to his dominance more easily every time it happened. She fought hard, but when he flicked that switch in her brain, she was his, soul stripped bare.

He smirked.
The Ice Queen had come in her hair. Performing in front of several hundred people.

His come.

Mine
.

The pit was going crazy. There was a
pile-up of people in the front and the security guards at the edge of the stage moved forward to make sure no one was getting crushed. A quick scan of the crowd showed several people mouthing the words along with Mack. That they were liked enough for people to memorize lyrics was fucking mind-blowing.

Saya swayed in front of them all, looking succulent and vulnerable. Innocent, yet as much a front person for the band as Mack. Her command of the stage was more subtle, but no less powerful. Just when he’d thought that he’d gotten his infatuation with her under control, some new facet of her
personality showed itself, amazing him, and making him want her all the more. If anything, their relationship with the other two had made him take her less for granted.

She undulated across the stage, her
bellydance movements now commonplace during their shows. The fans loved it, but Ramsay loved it more because it reminded him of when she danced naked for him when they were alone.

He was hers as much as she was his. He was well and ecstatically ensnared.

As the final crash of music fell to silence and the noise of the crowd rose to fill it, Ramsay stalked to the front of the stage, still not trusting that the guards could protect his lovers like he could.

The Kink Monsters
filed off, headed for the green room. Lawson was waiting outside the door with a man Ramsay didn’t recognize. The bar owner motioned them inside, and Ramsay did a quick mental inventory of the room – they’d picked up the blanket and most of the clothes were stuffed into bags. He’d given them all orders to go on stage without underwear, but he wasn’t sure where they’d ended up...

“Guys, this is Eddie Rheal. H
e’s one of the organizers for Divine Gorgon’s North American tour. He heard about you through the grapevine and came out to see if you were any good.”

Di
vine Gorgon? Why would an organizer for one of the state’s biggest death metal bands be skulking around a dive bar in Felix to listen to them?

“Hey, good to meet y
ou.” The wraith-like man, about twenty years their senior, shook their hands as though it was a pleasantry he was only familiar with in theory. Not a used car salesman of the metal world, then.

“Thanks for coming out.” Mack’s sinister charm slid to the fore, and Ramsay mentally sat back to watch. “You’re not one of the regulars here.”

“No, I actually had to put the address in my GPS to find the place. It’s a shame, because this place reminds me of how things used to be, before Divine Gorgon got big.” He nodded at Luther as he entered the room. “These gentleman know their shit.”

Luther handed him one of the beer
s he’d been carrying, and the guy accepted gratefully.

“Anyway, I didn’t come to fucking sightsee. The opening band that
Divine Gorgon had for their tour backed out at the last minute. Their front man’s wife is newly pregnant and he decided he couldn’t miss that whole thing.” Eddie took a chug of his beer, then checked out the label. Sprawl carried a lot of micro-brewery stock. “The band is recording right now, so they don’t have time to dick around looking for a replacement. They sent me scouting. I’d heard about you from my kids – they saw the fight video, but really liked your sound. When I found out there were a bunch of fan recordings up on YouTube, I watched them, then showed them to the guys. They sent me with an offer.”

Ramsay looked at the others.
Divine Gorgon wasn’t exactly a household name, but they were big enough to get his attention. A tour this soon? It had never crossed his mind, but this was the kind of opportunity they needed if they were going to get anywhere with the band. Every step counted – even fronting for another band. It was exposure.

The other three looked deep in thought.

“When does this tour start? How long does it last?” Saya was the first to jump in. She unclasped her short red cloak and threw it on one of their duffle bags.

“We start off in New York in two weeks. There are about two or three shows a week booked for the next six months, and we have dates all over the States and a few in Canada. All of the details are here.
” Eddie held out a manila envelope and Mack accepted it from him.

“Obviously, the band needs to discuss it before we get back to you.” Winter gave him her mid-level
Ice Queen glower.

Luther went back to the bar to grab a pitcher and Law sent a staff member for chairs. They sat around shooting the shit with the guy for a while. He was decent to talk to, as they
discussed musical influences, concert details and contract information. Ramsay was pleased that he seemed to respect them.

After about an
hour, he took his leave, and Law and Luther split to help their staff close up for the night.

“Well that was fucking wicked
.” Mack grinned, his cool façade having dissolved as soon as the band was alone.

Saya smiled back.
“Even if we decide not to do it, it’s a huge compliment. He saw us on YouTube and came hunting for us. I mean, they could have just called, but he came in person.”

“He probably wanted to see if we were any good
,” Winter said. “It wouldn’t do for him to call and make us an offer then find out you two were lip synching or something.” She pulled Saya in for a kiss and the two of them got lost in each other almost immediately.

“Decide not to do it?” Mack asked, going back to what Saya had said. “Considering what the offer is, we’d be idiots not to accept. Your uncle will give you the time off work to go, won’t he, Ramsay? Cross would never deny Winter this kind of opportunity, and my work is portable.”

Saya broke away from Winter’s lips and groaned at the interruption she, herself, had just imposed on their activities. “We have other things to think about too now. We just sent the authorities looking for Bronwyn. If she doesn’t cooperate, we’re going to end up getting temporary custody of Spider. He just started in preschool and I’m not about to drag him all over hell’s half acre already. He needs some stability.”

Winter frowned.
“So ask Emma if she and Donny will watch him for a few months. We can’t miss out on this kind of opportunity because Ramsay’s sister is a crappy parent.” Winter had let go of Saya, anger making the lines of her body stiff. She grabbed the t-shirt she’d discarded earlier in the evening and pulled it on.

“He’s our responsibility
,” Ramsay objected. “We’re not going to pawn him off on some other family member. The poor kid is screwed up enough already – he doesn’t need us abandoning him, too. He doesn’t understand the concept of ‘a while.’ Even when we have a gig and we’re gone for a few hours, he starts to panic.”

Winter turned away and stuffed some things into her bag. “This was exactly what I talked to you guys about. If you weren’t serious about getting this band off the ground, you should never have answered the fucking ad. Passing up an opportunity like this is like career suicide. We’ve been handed a good break on a silver platter and you’re going insist we turn it down?”

“Maybe you can find another drummer and backup singer, just for the tour,” Saya whispered. Tears had come and she wiped them away impatiently, although the thickness of her voice left no question about how she was feeling. Ramsay went to her and put an arm around her, but she pushed him away when he tried to hug her. “Or Ramsay can go with you and I’ll stay back with Spider.”

Ramsay was torn. On the one hand, there were no guarantees they’d ever get another chance like this. It was his life’s work, more than fixing cars had ever been
, but to leave Saya behind to clean up the mess Bronwyn had made of her life wasn’t fair. To leave Saya behind, at all, was like plunging his own hand into his chest and ripping out his heart. As much as he’d grown to care for Mack and Winter, his first loyalty was to Saya. Forever.

Then there was Spider. The boy needed
a parent and however it had happened, for now, that was him.

Mack gnawed on his lip.
“You’re not a backup singer. Without you, I don’t think we can go forward, Saya. This band is just as much about you as it is about the rest of us now.”

“I can’t see any way to make this work. I just can’t go right now.” A pall was cast over Ramsay’s hopes and plans for the future. He was going to have to let them go. Holding them back wasn’t fair.
“Take Saya. I’ll stay behind and get things settled with Spider. You can replace me easily enough. I’m sure there are dozens of good drummers that’ll jump at the chance to go with you and make a name for themselves. I’m sorry I can’t drop everything and go, but the little guy deserves better than to have me take off on him.”

“I can’t go without you, Master!” Saya was sobbing and came to him
to bury her face in his chest. Warm tears mixed with his dried sweat and trickled down his stomach to the damp waistband of his jeans. He was itchy and uncomfortable, and just wanted a shower.

He stroked Saya’s hair. “They need you, princess. I’ll come see you guys play sometimes, when I can book time off and get a sitter for Spider. Maybe if he settles in, I could come out for a weekend. We’ll see. And if he goes back to my sister...”
His throat seized up thinking about it. “If Bronwyn takes him back, I’ll meet up with the three of you and we can give the new drummer the boot.”

Winter screamed in rage and spun, throwing a beer bottle against the far wall. It smashed into a trillion glistening shards. “This wasn’t supposed to get this fucking complicated!”

“What?” Ramsay let go of Saya and went to her cautiously, not interested in getting a bottle flung at his head. “You can still go. I’m not standing in the way of that. I’m sure Saya will see that you need her. I trust you and Mack to take care of her when I’m not around.” The last words sounded strangled, even to his own ears. He did trust them to take care of her, but the prospect of losing them all for half a year was like the longest and bleakest fucking hallway he’d ever looked down. There’d be plenty of time to bond with Spider, when he had no submissives to distract him, but it would be a lonely time. “We can Skype.”

“It’s not Saya I’m worried about, dipshit.
I
don’t want to be away from you for that long.”

The two of them stared at each other silently for a moment, then she came to him, wrapping her arms around him like he was floating debris after a shipwreck. His breath caught i
n his throat. Now she came to him with this?