Surrender to Me (11 page)

“Are you mad?”

“You have no idea.”

“I know you’re protective, but Martin is taking things slow with me. He won’t hurt me.”

“I’m not worried about you.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I mean, I worry about you, but I know you’re strong and can take of yourself. Martin isn’t used to a woman like you.”

“A woman like me?” She finished her martini and motioned for another. “What is that supposed to mean? Is there something wrong with me?”

“You’re not like the women Martin associates with. You’re not—”

“Don’t you say her name.” Ari had had enough of Gracie. She sipped her new drink. Her head felt foggy, but in a good way.

“I wasn’t going to,” he said. “I’m not saying that you and Martin can’t work, but it will take some effort for both of you. You’re not submissive by nature. He is dominant to the core. He may have patience for you in Connecticut, but inside this club all the rules change.”

“So I’m told.” She drained the second drink. “In a matter of minutes I managed to piss him off.”

“He has never dated anyone outside of our circle. You’re going to have to help him, and you’ll have to allow him certain liberties.”

“Like what? Training new subs?”

“No, he would never do that to you. When he commits he doesn’t stray.”

Ari wanted to believe that, but there were so many things about his world she didn’t understand. “What liberties?”

“When you’re with him, especially in here, you have to let him be a Dom. It’s who he is. It’s what we expect of him.”

The bartender brought her another martini.

“That will be the last one for Ms. Covington,” Hunter said.

“Yes, Sir,” the pretty, blonde bartender said.

“Is every employee in here a sub?” Ari took a sip from her fresh drink.

“Ari, slow down,” her cousin warned her. “I’ll help you understand Martin, but you have to be certain he is who you want. He is a complicated man with a long and different past. He isn’t your ex-husband.”

“I’m not looking for Josh. I don’t want to be the one with all of the control this time. I don’t want to make every decision.” Her head spun as the alcohol rushed through her body. Her words came out faster than she wanted them to. “I want Martin. All of him.”

“Are you sure? If you can’t be his sub here, you can’t be his sub anyplace else.”

She wanted to be sure. “I like him.” She felt sappy and on the verge of tears.
Damn alcohol.
“No one has ever made me feel so alive, Hunter. The thrill I get when I’m with him is exhilarating and new.”

He smiled.

“I’m not talking about the sex,” she said. “Well, maybe I am, because it is awesome.”

“Welcome to my world.” He laughed. “Now maybe you can understand what I’m doing here.”

“Why don’t you have a permanent sub? You hang around here all the time.”

“Haven’t found her yet, but I’m sure I will. Martin is good at the whole matchmaking thing.”

“He has a new girl in his office right now. Maybe she’s the one?”

“Maybe.” Hunter shrugged as he finished his beer. “We don’t know anything about her yet.”

“What are you two talking about?” Martin asked as he approached the bar.

“You!” Ari jumped up and stumbled toward him. “I missed you.” She placed a loud, wet kiss on his lips.

Martin steadied her. “Hunter, I wasn’t gone that long. How did this happen?”

“My cousin is a little stressed,” Hunter said. “She needed to unwind.”

“Stressed?” Martin repeated. Ari saw the concern in his stunning eyes when he studied hers.

“Don’t listen to him. He needs a girlfriend. Can you find him one?” she asked.

“Martin isn’t a dating service.” Hunter laughed. “But how did things go with the girl in your office?”

“Nadia,” Martin said as he helped Ari back into her seat. “I’m not convinced she’s really a submissive. She’s fallen on some hard times and she thinks this is the life she wants. I told her she can hang out here to get a feel for things, but not to go off on her own. Alex is going to keep an eye on her.”

“I hope things work out for her.” Hunter got up from the stool.

“You’re leaving?” Ari asked.

“Yes, I have emails to answer and cases to look over tonight. I have to get home.” He kissed her head. “Be careful.”

She nodded.

“Martin,” Hunter said. “Take care of my cousin. She’s special.”

“I know.” Martin smiled at Ari. “She’s in good hands. I promise.”

“Goodnight.” Hunter waved as he made his way toward the elevators.

Martin took a seat next to Ari, pulling his stool close to her.

“Hi.” She giggled. “Want a drink?”

“Seems like you’ve had enough for both of us.”

“I don’t understand the rules,” she blurted out.

“I know, and that’s my fault.” He stroked her hair. “I shouldn’t have treated you like my sub in here. It wasn’t fair to you. I just didn’t like the way Nico looked at you.”

“I don’t like Nico.” Ari remembered the bad vibe she’d picked up from Nico that first night she met him. “He’s unsettling to me.”

“He won’t bother you anymore. If he does, I’ll ban him from this club.”

“Are you jealous?”

“I don’t have to be jealous, kitten.” He brushed his lips against hers. “But I don’t like anyone challenging me, especially not here.”

“I don’t know if I can do the submission thing in public.” She didn’t want to disappoint him but the unknown frightened her.

“This club isn’t public. We’re all here for the same reason. It’s a safe environment to practice our lifestyle. No one will judge you for your choices.”

She ran her finger along the rim of her glass.

“I won’t rush you.” He tilted her chin so she had to look into his intense eyes. “If you can only be my attorney in here then I’ll accept that. I promised you I would never push you further than I thought you could handle.”

She stared at him for a few moments, taking in his words. He meant what he said. When she allowed herself to get lost in him she felt as if anything was possible. “I need time but I want to find a way to compromise.”

“I’ll be patient with you.” He kissed her. “Will you come home with me tonight? After having you in my bed in Connecticut, I don’t think I could sleep without you.”

“I don’t want to wake up alone either.”

He stood and extended his hand for her. “Let me take you to dinner so we can celebrate the deal you closed this afternoon, and then we’ll stop by your place so you can get what you need. We’ll be in New York for a few days and I’d like you to stay with me. Would you be willing to do that?”

“You’re asking.”

“I’m getting better at that.” He took her briefcase off the bar. “I can try just as much as you can.”

“You don’t have to be so good at it.” She smiled. “I’m quite fond of Master M too.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, counselor.” He took her hand and led her toward the elevator.

Once they stepped inside, she ran her hands along his chest and said, “Do you think we could skip dinner?”

“I think that’s a brilliant idea.” He nipped at her bottom lip before pulling her into a long, hard kiss.

Chapter 11

Martin paced his penthouse floor as he waited for Arianna to arrive. They had been back in New York for three days and had yet to discuss the rules of the club. He could keep her out of there altogether, but that didn’t seem feasible. Not only was she his attorney, but they were in a relationship and the club was a big part of his life. Keeping her out of it wasn’t realistic. She didn’t have to act the role of his submissive while they were there but then he’d always have Nico or someone like him challenging his authority and choices. He had established
Master M’s
so people in his community could come and practice their lifestyle without any judgment. People looked up to him and sought his advice. If he brought a non-submissive into their circle without any intentions of training her properly, what would the others think?

He had fallen hard and fast for his gorgeous attorney. He liked her sassy attitude at times, and part of her appeal to him may have been that she couldn’t totally submit to him. The way she tested his limits unlocked feelings and desires he never knew he possessed. Arianna was new territory for him. He needed to find a way to incorporate her into his existing life without losing what they were building. For the first time in his life, BDSM wasn’t his main focus. It was merely a part to a whole.

Arianna opened the door to the penthouse, dropped her briefcase in the foyer, and looked up at him.

“Hey.” Her bright smile told him she was happy to see him. “I thought I’d beat you here.”

“I just came from the office. Those contracts you left on my desk all look great. How did your meeting go?”

“Boring but necessary. Everything is in order.”

“Perfect.” He motioned for her to come toward him. “Now maybe we can enjoy the weekend?”

“What are your plans for me?” She hugged him.

“I have several.” He smirked. “One involves showing you the one room in this place you haven’t seen yet.”

“Really?” She looked up at him. “The playroom.”

He tugged at the band that secured her hair and let her locks fall over her shoulders and back. “I left something for you on the bed. If you agree to come into my playroom, I’d like you to wear what I’ve provided.”

She bit her lip before nodding her agreement.

“I’ve also been doing some thinking.” He took her hand and led her into the living room.

“About the club?”

“You’re very perceptive.” He took a small blue box from the coffee table before sitting on the couch. He patted for her to sit next to him. “I want you to know you are more than a submissive to me. When I realized I had feelings for you, I resolved that I could abandon my lifestyle if there was a possibility for us.”

“You’ve told me this already, Martin. I believe you. I’m the one who asked you to show me your lifestyle.” She moved into his lap, cuddling against his chest. “You didn’t force me into anything.”

Her unprovoked closeness made him feel comforted and secure. He’d never been in a relationship where a woman took it upon herself to sit in his lap and hold him. If that was where the evening was meant to end up, the command always came from him. He’d missed out on so much, but then again, would he have wanted such intimacy with anyone other than the beautiful woman in his arms?

“If following certain orders in my club is a hard limit with you then I’ll respect that. I’ve thought a lot about it.” He wrapped his fingers around the end of her hair. “You have to understand that the people in my club like to feel confident that they aren’t being judged or that anyone will expose them if they choose to do things anonymously.”

“I wouldn’t judge anyone.” She looked up at him. “You can trust me. I would never hurt you or your friends.”

“I do trust you.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “But others don’t know you like I do. We have to decide what your role is when you’re there.”

“I’ve thought about this too.”

“You have?” Her admission didn’t surprise him. She analyzed and obsessed over all of her decisions. Even when they didn’t discuss what was on her mind, he could see when she was deep in thought.

“Hunter said if I can’t be your sub at the club then I can’t be your sub anyplace else.”

“That’s not true.” Hunter may have thought he was helping but Martin wanted her to be comfortable. The dynamic between him and Arianna was different than other couples in their circle. “We can keep that part of our relationship discreet. If we only ever play here or in Connecticut I can live with that. But we have to set boundaries, because I can’t have another Dom defying me when it comes to you.”

“Do you want me to stay away from the club?”

“Not entirely, but it might be best if you don’t hang out there on a regular basis.” He hated having to tell her that but he needed to protect her. He also needed her to feel confident in her decisions. It was his job as a Dom to guide her and help her become more secure in her submissive choices. He couldn’t expect her to be the perfect sub in a matter of weeks.

“What if I want to be there with you? What if I could follow the rules?”

“What are you saying?” He’d hoped they could come up with a compromise but he wanted her thoughts on the subject before he proposed his idea.

“I still don’t think I could do some of the things the other submissives do in public. It’s not in my nature.”

He laughed.

“I’m serious.”

“That fact that it isn’t in your nature is what makes you so intriguing to me and that confuses the hell out of me.” For two decades, he’d only known one way.
His way.

“I never would have believed I would have fallen for a man who dominates me, but here we are.”

“What should we do about it? Are we ready to take this to the next level?” He stroked her cheek. “We can have boundaries even when we compromise. We never go any further than you can handle.”

“When you say things like that and reassure me that this all stops when I say, it makes me want to submit to you. Does that make sense?”

“More than you know. You’re learning to put all of your trust in me. You’re accepting I’m here for you. I’ll only do what’s right for you.”

“You really mean that.”

“You’re not the only one who has fallen hard. I’m ready to walk away from it all. I’d be happy in Connecticut. Just the two of us.”

“I don’t want you to give anything up, Martin. I’ll try to be more submissive in your club. I won’t talk to Doms, no matter how infuriating I find some of them, and I’ll follow your lead. It’s the best I can offer right now.”

“It’s more than I hoped for and more than I could have asked.” He placed the blue box he’d been holding in her hand. “I bought this in anticipation that we’d come to some sort of agreement.”

“What is it?”

“Open it, kitten.”

She tugged at the silver ribbon and then lifted the lid from the box. She looked down at the contents before taking the jewelry out. “It’s beautiful.” She ran her finger over the diamond encrusted heart-shaped padlock charm that dangled from the platinum bracelet.