Read Unconditional Surrender Online

Authors: Desiree Holt

Unconditional Surrender (2 page)

They all nodded.

“Okay. Let’s make some plane reservations. When we get to San Antonio, the ranch chopper will pick us up.”

“Ranch chopper?” Beau’s eyebrows lifted almost to his hairline. “Just exactly how much money do you have, cowboy?”

Slade’s face muscles tightened briefly. “Enough to run the ranch operation and have a little left over. I’m not rolling in it but we do all right. And we use the chopper at roundup.” He pulled his cell from his sweatpants pocket. “So shall we check on flights?”

 

* * * *

 

When they landed at San Antonio International Airport, Slade hustled them out of the door and down a long walkway to the private plane terminal. A gleaming black helo awaited them, a familiar figure leaning against it, arms folded across his chest, white teeth gleaming in a smile contrasting with his sun-darkened skin.

“Glad you’re home, bro,” he said, slapping Slade on the shoulder.

“Me, too.” He turned to his men. “Guys, meet Teobaldo Rivera. Call him Teo. His father, Luis, has been the ranch foreman forever.”

Teo nodded. “Nice to meet you all. Let’s get loaded up. The beer’s chilling in the fridge and the steaks are thawing.”

It was a tight fit for five oversized males, but the flight was short and Slade figured they were just happy to be someplace they could party by this time. They’d have to decide whether to try a munch or just bypass it and go directly to The Edge. The two crowds were totally different so it depended on what each of them was looking for—an introduction and some fancy dancing before they got to the meat of it, or just jumping right in and picking out a willing sub. And whether they wanted her just during R&R or for something more permanent.

For himself, he realised he wasn’t getting any younger. He had finally come to the conclusion he wanted a woman who shared his sexual appetites, was strong enough to weather his long absences and would build a home with him for when he retired from Delta…which, at thirty-eight, he didn’t expect to be all that much longer. He could always stay in the Army and do something else. He’d had plenty of things suggested to him. But in the past few months he’d become weary of the fight and the missions, of the wear and tear on his mind and his body. For the first time he was giving serious thought to the future.

But of course that meant finding the right woman—a daunting task whenever he thought about it. Maybe during these couple of weeks he might just get lucky. That person might be waiting for him right now.

Yeah, right!

By the time he’d finished rattling all the thoughts around in his brain, they were at the ranch and Teo was helping them unload their duffels. In a matter of minutes Slade had shown each of them to their rooms—the large ranch house had four guest rooms plus the master suite—and they were on the back patio, each with a frosty cold beer in hand. The air was still sun-warmed, even though the sun itself was dipping below the horizon, but a soft breeze added a cooling element. The air was redolent with the aromas of hay and horseflesh and cattle, a mixture Slade loved more than any perfume. The ranch was his haven, the place where he could put all the blackness of his missions behind him and feel like a normal person. Any woman he found would have to love it as much as he did.

Beau took a long swallow of his beer and let his gaze travel lazily over the surroundings. “So when do we get to see some human flesh instead of horseflesh or cattle?” He grinned at Slade. “Not that your animals aren’t fine specimens, but I don’t think they’d fit in my bed.”

“Still,” Marc interjected, “you could find a woman to throw a saddle on and use your whip when you need to.”

Trey McIntyre laughed. “He should be so lucky.”

“And speaking of lucky,” Beau said, “I’m asking again. When do you bring on the hot bodies? I’m more than ready to work off some steam.”

Slade looked at each of them—lean, tanned, hardened men—and wondered how much of what they said was real and how much was talk to cover up the same growing need that he was feeling.

“I’m thinking we should just hang out here for a day or so until we get back to what passes for normal for us. Ride the horses. Kick back. Drink some beer. Then we can go into the city and scope things out.” He took another swallow of the cold liquid. “And y’all need to decide if you want to dip your toes in the local BDSM waters at a munch or head straight for The Edge.”

“I’m voting for the club right off,” Marc told him. “I want to work out the kinks with some kink.”

The other men chuckled, adding a scattering of raucous comments.

“If that’s what you want.” Slade nodded. “But I still say let’s take a day or so to let the effects of the back-to-back missions wear off so we can at least appear civilised. Stretch out our muscles. Don’t worry about anything. Then we’ll be ready to meet some women. Okay?”

The others nodded in silent agreement.

“I guess you’re right,” Trey said grudgingly. “We don’t want to come on like animals.” Then he grinned. “Although the last woman I was with—””

“Please.” Beau held up a hand. “Spare us the details.”

The others laughed again.

“Okay, then.” Slade unwound his tall body from the lounge chair. “I think we could all use a shower. Then I’ll throw some steaks on the grill. I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve been waiting a long time for a decent meal. See you in an hour.”

Chapter Two

 

 

 

“Want to join us, Kari? We’re going out for a celebratory drink.”

Kari Malone lifted her gaze from her desk to see Sasha Crew’s petite form in her doorway. She couldn’t think of anyone who appeared less like an assistant district attorney than this woman. She pushed her own thick auburn hair away from her face and rotated her stiff shoulders. The last day of a trial and the interminable wait for a verdict was always a strain.

“I don’t think so,” she answered. “Thanks, anyway.”

“Oh, come on. We got a guilty verdict after a lot of hard work. I think it was your closing argument that was the final nail in the coffin. You need to take a little time to unwind.”

“I will. I promise. Right now I need to finish up some paperwork here. Then I just want to soak in a tub and sip a chilled glass of wine.”

“Maybe you could have that glass of wine with us? Okay, okay.” She laughed and held up her hands at the look on Kari’s face. “But we’ll be at Malone’s if you change your mind.”

Kari watched the woman walk away, wondering what she’d think if she knew what Kari
really
planned to do to celebrate. People in the district attorney’s office saw her as a tightly controlled, focused woman in her business suits and sensible heels, with minimal makeup, her hair tamed into a tight French twist. But tonight, after that promised bath and some careful preparations, she’d be freewheeling Kari in a bustier and tight pants, hair hanging loose beneath her shoulders as she trolled the men in The Edge seeking a suitable Dom.

Five years ago, when visiting her friend Nina in Chicago after attending a conference, she’d discovered a mindboggling piece of information. Nina had revealed in a shockingly frank discussion that she was very much into the BDSM lifestyle. But as much as she was stunned, Kari also found herself curious to explore the darker side of eroticism. It didn’t take much for Nina to convince her to visit the private club she belonged to. Although she’d half expected to be turned off by whatever she saw, Kari actually found herself fascinated—and aroused—by the scenes being played out in public.

She’d been surprised when a man had approached her but, in the instant they’d touched, something powerful had passed between them. It wasn’t just his looks, which in themselves were enough to attract any woman—a tall, muscular, lean body…a warrior’s body. Thick hair the colour of melted chocolate and hazel eyes with flecks of brown in them. A square-jawed angular face with high cheekbones and a tan that she somehow didn’t think came from hanging out at a beach.

When he’d sat down beside her on the small couch in the lounge, she’d been able to feel the electric field surrounding him. And when he’d spoken to her, his deep voice had vibrated throughout her body. As if in a trance she’d agreed to spend an hour with him in one of the private rooms, where he’d skilfully introduced her to the world of D/s play. He’d been very caring, conscious of her welfare and careful to explain everything to her.

“Any time you want to stop, just use your safe word,” he’d reminded her again and again.

She was certainly aware that they’d indulged in the most basic level of play. But what she’d taken home with her was how much both the concept and the acts had aroused her, how sensual it had all been.

And how the submission and a low level of pain had combined to give her greater pleasure than she’d ever known.

She’d returned home but the memory of that evening had stayed with her. So many nights he’d invaded her dreams, the hero of her most erotic fantasies. Often she’d wake with a throbbing in her cunt and her nipples and a hunger she couldn’t seem to abate. None of the men she’d dated appealed to her any longer. Besides, bringing up submission to them—to men not involved in the lifestyle—would look like weakness to them, something that, in her position, she couldn’t afford. Not only that, it would feed into their arrogance and what resulted would be nothing like she’d shared with the stranger in Chicago.

Then Nina had come to San Antonio for a weekend with a reciprocal pass to The Edge—an exclusive bondage club in San Antonio—along with an invitation to bring one guest. That had been the beginning of Kari truly embracing the lifestyle. It gave her such pleasure, both sexual and emotional, to submit to a strong man and release the tight control she kept of necessity in her job. By now she had connected with a few Doms that she played with on a regular basis. The sexual attraction was there but nothing like the emotional zing she’d felt with the man in Chicago, though she knew the chances of seeing him again were slim to none.

She’d even visited Nina a few times and gone to her club with her, hoping he’d be there. Disappointment had hindered her enjoyment with anyone else.

Sometimes she’d daydream about running into him somewhere accidentally. An airport. A restaurant. It was a long shot. She knew it. Still, she could hope.

She wondered what he did for a living. If he…

Stop it, Kari. Enough, already
.

Signing off on her computer she closed everything down, gathered her purse and took the elevator down to the parking garage. The bath and glass of wine were looking more and more appealing, as was an evening at The Edge. Maybe this would be the night she’d find someone who could wipe the stranger from her memory.

 

* * * *

 

“You were right about riding the horses,” Beau said, reining in his mount next to Slade’s. “The exercise has been good for them and for us.”

All the men were experienced riders. Besides Slade, Trey had grown up in ranching country, only his was in Wyoming. The others had picked up experience along the way for various reasons. They’d all taken a short, late evening ride after dinner the night before, and today they’d spent part of the morning following the trails on the ranch. Along the way they’d passed some fenced pasture with gates where cattle munched on fresh hay and the alfalfa Slade grew. In one section, three of Slade’s hands were slowly moving part of the herd to another area.

“What’s going on there?” Marc had asked.

“Don’t want them overgrazing that one section,” Slade told him. “We need time for it to grow back for next spring. Pretty soon we’ll move all of them to an area about two miles from here to winter over.”

Teo had packed thick sandwiches and beer for them in their saddlebags and they’d stopped for lunch at the little creek running by a stand of trees. Now they were heading back to the ranch to give themselves time to clean up and eat before driving into the city.

“Working on the ranch or even just riding always helps clear out my mind,” Slade said to Beau. “No matter how dark it is inside my brain and soul after some of our missions, a few hours on horseback seems to let in the sunshine.”

“You’re right.” Beau inhaled the scent-laden air and let his breath out slowly. “I ought to take you up on your invitation to visit more often. This place is great.”

“You know you’re welcome any time, buddy.”

“I’m looking forward to going to The Edge tonight. I’m ready for some action.”

Slade definitely was, too. It had been a long, dry stretch for him, what with all the back-to-back missions. He’d tried to find women who could excite him at places in some of the foreign cities where they’d been, but, despite their experience and sexual expertise, they’d left him wanting. He’d finally stopped searching, instead spending the nights in his hotel rooms dreaming about a woman he’d never have. His fantasies were so real, so erotic, he often woke up gripping his cock, working it until he finally found some relief.

Even The Edge, his ‘home’ club in San Antonio, hadn’t provided what he really wanted. Of course, truth be told, the women he played with at The Edge had also left him wanting for a long time. It seemed he went there less and less frequently. It wasn’t that he’d lost his appetite for the kind of sex he loved. No, it was the image of a woman who haunted him and prevented him from fully enjoying his playtime.

Sometimes he actually regretted the trip he’d taken to Chicago and the guest pass he’d used at the club there. What good did it do to meet a woman you connected with so suddenly and so intensely if you never saw her again? One would think with his mental discipline he could just put her out of his mind and move on, but no amount of effort on his part had made that happen.

He swallowed a sigh. Maybe tonight he could go in with a different attitude and find someone who really excited him. Someone who could replace the phantom image that haunted him constantly. Lord knew he was definitely ready for it.

 

* * * * 

 

Kari sank into the scented bathwater up to her neck, hair piled on her head out of the way, bubbles teasing at her chin. The heated water soothed her tired muscles and gave her the opportunity to relax for the first time that day. She was really looking forward to the evening. Hopefully one of her favourite Doms would be there and she could indulge in a session intense enough to wipe away the tension of a week in the courtroom.

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