Siren in Bloom

Chapter Seventeen

Leo looked out over the dungeon. A sense of peace had settled over him. He could do it. He could share Shelley with his brother because it was what she needed.

And also because she’d threatened to kick his ass if he didn’t. It totally made his decision easier.

“Is he here yet?” Shelley asked, her eyes trailing around the large space.

“I don’t see him. Don’t worry, baby, he’ll be here. He’s not going to miss a chance to beat your ass after the stunt you pulled today.” He felt unreasonably cheerful. He still had a whole fuckload of problems to deal with. Someone was trying to kill his girl. Holder was hiding something. Logan was going to walk. Yeah, his life was complicated, but he was getting some tonight.

“That is so comforting, Leo.” Shelley frowned up at him. She was dressed in exactly what Wolf had left for her—very little. Her breasts were pressed together in a black leather corset that offered them up like a tempting fruit. Her hot ass was covered in a barely there thong, and those curvy legs flowed down into a pair of four-inch stilettos she hadn’t stopped complaining about since the minute she’d forced her feet into them.

Yes. Despite the shit storm they were in, his world felt pretty fucking perfect. Even his sense of humor was coming back. “It wasn’t meant to be comforting, baby. It was meant to let you know just how much trouble that hot ass is in. Damn, you look fine tonight. Did I mention how fine you look?”

She bit back a smile and went up on her tiptoes. Those ridiculously high heels put her closer to his height. “You might have mentioned it a time or two.” She pouted a little and batted those lashes at him. “Do we really have to do this public punishment thing? Wouldn’t it be more intimate to just go back to our place and make love? I can make both my Masters very happy. I can prove what a sweet sub I can be.”

Brat thought she could get out of her punishment? He brushed his lips to hers, reveling in the fact that he could fucking kiss her all he wanted. “Oh, baby, that sounds perfect. You can prove to me what a sweet sub you are right after you prove to me how red your ass can get.”

She pulled back, but there was a laugh on her lips. “Fine. I suppose I deserve it.”

“Richly,” Leo replied. His brother walked through the doors, his massive shoulders barely clearing the frame. California-king bed. That was what he was going to have to order.

Shelley’s face lit up as she noticed Wolf. She waved a hand. “Wolf!”

His brother looked up, but the grim expression on his face didn’t change. Logan walked behind him. Both men had changed into leathers, but neither looked particularly happy to be in the dungeon. Shelley tottered over to Wolf and tried to throw herself into his arms. Wolf caught her, but there wasn’t passion in his hold.

What the fuck was going on?

If Shelley noticed, she didn’t give it away. She was chattering happily about the fact that she’d forced Leo to sit through two hours of HGTV while Wolf had been gone.

Wolf’s eyes grew round as he looked at Leo. “Dude, why were you getting punished?”

“Next time it’s your turn,” Leo said with a shake of his head.

Shelley’s nose wrinkled sweetly. “It wasn’t so bad. And I’m going to completely redo the condo. I have swatches coming on Monday.”

“Don’t ask. I think it’s the decorating equivalent of a crop. It’s meant to beat us into submission.” Leo watched Wolf very carefully. Something was going on. He hadn’t really suspected anything when Wolf had called earlier and told him he would be a little longer than he’d expected. He’d claimed traffic and that he was putting together a little surprise for tonight. He’d expected that his brother was buying toys for their little sub.

Now he was wondering.

He put a hand on Shelley’s gloriously round backside that was going to be horrifically abused in oh so many ways in a mere half an hour. “Baby, give me a minute with Wolf, okay?”

“So you two can talk about how to torture me?” she asked. Both he and Wolf stared at her. She finally sighed. “Fine. But only because you gave me Dom eyes.”

Wolf glanced at Logan, who he seemed to have some sort of silent shorthand with.

“I’ll make sure she doesn’t get in trouble.” Logan walked after her.

Leo wasted no time. “Is there something you need to tell me?”

Wolf’s normally open face was a closed and locked book. “No. Everything is fine. Look, I got you and Shelley a little gift is all. I think you’ll both like it a lot.”

“Do you want to tell me what it is?” Leo wasn’t convinced.

Wolf shook his head. “It’s a surprise, but one I’ve been planning for a while. Just go with it, brother. Now, there is something else I need to talk to you about. It’s about Logan. He’s planning on leaving for New York.”

“I know.” Responsibility weighed on him. He owed it to his brother. “I’m going to do everything I can to keep him here, Wolf. I have a few days.”

He wasn’t sure what he would do if Logan couldn’t see he had a problem, but he was going to try.

“I set something up for tonight. Look, I know you’re the shrink, but I know Logan. He thinks because he’s out of the situation that he’s fine, but he’s wrong. I know what happened. Jack Barnes and his partner are setting up a scene that is very similar to what happened to Logan. If he can stand there and be fine, then I’ll eat my words, but I don’t think so.”

Leo took a long breath. Wolf was playing a dangerous game.

“You know this could blow up in your face.”

Wolf’s shoulders moved up and down in a negligent shrug. “I know. But it’s important. Sometimes we do things just because they’re the right things to do. I think you should be with him, though.” He glanced down at his watch. “I think Jack and Sam are going to start in a couple of minutes. I thought it was best to get this out of the way early in the night. I know you and Shelley will want some time after her punishment.”

“Yes, I’m sure Shelley will need a little attention after what we do to her. I would rather not have to play shrink when I could be playing Dom.” He glanced over to where Shelley was talking to Logan. She kept her backside to the wall as though trying to make sure no one could see it. He was going to have to work on that. He was proud of that ass. He wanted to show it off.

“Come on then,” Wolf said.

Leo put a hand out to stop him. He still didn’t like the look on his brother’s face. “Is there something else? Talk to me, Wolf. If you found out something about this situation with Holder, I want to know.”

“No way. Leo, you have to know that whatever happens, I’ll protect her. I’ll help you in any way I can.” Wolf stared over at her. “I’ll be here for you.”

Leo stopped, his brother’s words snagging him. “You better fucking help. You got me in this situation. Do you have any idea how much trouble she’s going to be?”

He meant it as a friendly jab, a way to point out their camaraderie. He’d thought about nothing else during the whole torturous time Shelley had forced him to sit through endless shows about people buying homes and installing toilets. And they said he was a sadist. But while he’d sat there, he’d really thought about what it meant to be in this sort of relationship. It meant he was never alone. It meant no matter what happened, his brother would be around to take care of Shelley. It meant there was another human being in the world who knew what it meant to love her. It suddenly didn’t sound so terrible.

“You can handle her, brother.” Wolf glanced down at his phone. “Jack’s ready. Let’s move.”

Leo put a hand out. “I don’t think we’re done here. Do you want to explain why you keep using singular nouns? For two days, all I’ve heard is how we’re going to take care of her and now you keep using the word ‘you.’ I’m not an idiot, Wolf. If you have something to say, say it.”

“I will. And you aren’t going to be upset. It’s fine. It’s all part of the plan, but if we don’t get moving, we’ll miss this scene and then Logan is going to have to wait until I can set up another one.”

Leo wasn’t anywhere close to satisfied with that, but Wolf was right. He was interested to see what his brother had cooked up. He walked behind Wolf, noting that while Wolf smiled down at Shelley and acknowledged her, he didn’t reach for her hand. He said something to Logan and then moved forward with his friend.

Shelley stared at his back. “What’s wrong? Did I do something?”

“No, baby. He’s in his Dom space. He’s getting ready for the scene, and he has something he needs to do with Logan.” He kissed her, trying to reassure her. It was all a lie. He was pretty sure his brother was twelve kinds of fucked up, but now wasn’t the time to push him. They would get through Logan’s shit, punish their sub, and then Leo would kick Wolf’s ass if he needed to.

“I don’t like his Dom space.” Shelley held Leo’s hand as she walked along beside him.

“We’ll work on him.” He squeezed her hand as they began to walk up the stairs that would take them to the playroom. What was this scene Wolf had planned out with Jack and Sam?

Leo had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as they rounded the corner. They walked past the gyno lab where Kitten was being rewarded for her earlier good deeds by having a TENS unit attached to her pink parts. Chase worked over the sub. Ben was nowhere to be seen.

“Eight o’clock tomorrow?” Chase asked as he dialed the unit up to a place that had Kitten purring.

Leo stopped briefly. “Yes. In the conference room. Did Holder send the files he has?”

Chase nodded. “Ben is poring over them now. He wasn’t in a place to be here tonight.”

“I’m sorry, man. I didn’t know he had real feelings for her.” That guilt weighed heavily. Shelley leaned into him as though offering him support. Sweet sub. He put an arm around Shelley to let her to know he would take whatever comfort she had to give.

Chase’s face was grave even as he attached electrodes to Kitten’s nipples. A Dom’s work was never done. “He didn’t want you to know. He didn’t tell you. He knew you would have walked away from her, but he also knew she was more into you. This is why I stay free of the whole commitment thing. But I would appreciate your help with him. This has stirred the whole mess up, and Ben needs some fucking closure.”

“I promise,” Leo said. “We’ll find out what happened. It’s past time.”

Ada had been a shadow over his life for far too long. But now, with Shelley here, he felt ready to face the situation. Chase gave him a salute, and Leo turned to the crowd that was gathering at the office.

Damn it. Of course. Logan had been taken into his boss’s office and held there for hours. He’d been beaten to a bloody pulp, tied down, and forced to endure anything they gave him. He’d been made to feel small and helpless and it had changed his worldview.

And Wolf was going to force him to watch it happen to someone else.

This was possibly going to be a huge mistake.

But Jack was already at work. His male sub, Sam, was tied down to the top of the desk. They used the office play space to enact little fantasies about bosses and secretaries, but this was something different. Though the crowd didn’t find anything wrong with it, Logan Green would think of it as his own personal nightmare.

Sam was dressed in khaki pants and no shirt. Jack was in black. He had a crop in his hand and, at first glance, it appeared he was brutally beating his sub. Anyone with a skilled eye could see that Jack was pulling his strikes and some of them actually landed on the desk behind Sam. Sam covered the sound of the crop hitting wood by screaming. Another tell. Sam never screamed. Sam was a bit of a pain slut. He genuinely enjoyed being spanked and whipped by an experienced hand. But now Sam seemed to be in agony.

“Tell me what I want to know!” Jack screamed at the blond man on the desk.

“I don’t know anything,” Sam cried. “Please. Please. I don’t know anything.”

“Are they doing some sort of spy torture scene?” Shelley asked.

Leo looked over the tops of the heads in front of him, looking for Logan. One of two things was going to happen, both of them potentially harmful. Logan would crack or his protective shell would harden further. His brother really needed to leave the fucking therapy to him. Janine slid in behind Shelley.

“Do you know what’s going on, Leo? This is an odd scene. There really should have been an announcement that an intense scene was being played out. I would ask Julian to stop it, but Jack isn’t actually hitting him most of the time. Is this for Sam’s benefit?” Janine asked.

And then he heard it. A roar filled the playroom. It was a sound of primal rage that nearly shook the walls. Logan charged the small play area, ignoring the boundaries, pushing past everyone in front of him.

“Leave him alone!” Logan screamed, his face a mottled red. He leapt, trying to get his hands on Jack, but at least Wolf had done one thing right. He’d stayed closed enough to catch Logan before he killed someone. Wolf’s arm went around Logan’s waist, and he hauled him back. Jack dropped the crop and held his hands up.

“It’s all right, deputy. My sub is fine. It was just a scene.” Jack’s hands worked on the bindings that held Sam down.

“You’re a fucking asshole. Let him go!” Logan didn’t seem to know where he was.

Leo pressed through the crowd, pulling Shelley in his wake. He wasn’t about to leave his own uncollared sub walking around unattended, but he had a job to do. When they reached the front of the crowd, he ordered her to stay right there and climbed up on the slightly raised area.

Sam was sitting up. “It didn’t hurt. Jack was just playing. We were just playing. I wasn’t even thinking my safe word.”

But Logan was far gone. Wolf had a brutal hold on him, but he was still fighting, still trying to get at some assailant who now only existed in his mind.

“Logan!” Leo stood right in front of the deputy. His tone was calm but loud and firm. “Logan, you’re in Dallas, Texas, in a club called…The Club.” Why had Julian been so lazy when naming his freaking club? “You’re safe. Sam is safe. This was a scene. This has nothing to do with what happened to you.”

Logan stopped and seemed to focus on Leo. He stilled. “What?”

“You’re in Texas. Not Bliss. This is a scene, not reality. Jack barely hit his sub. What you just saw was a bunch of smoke and mirrors.”

Logan looked over to where Sam stood holding up his hands. “He barely hit me, man. And he would never hit me enough to do anything more than redden up my skin. The one time he cut me when he was using a whip, he felt so guilty I had to force him back into play. I trust that man with my everything. He’s goddamn half of my soul.”

Logan went still, and then he slumped forward. If it hadn’t been for Wolf’s arms around him, he would have fallen to the ground. A low wail came from the young man’s throat, and he wept openly.

Wolf went to the ground with him. “It’s okay, man. It’s okay. You’re safe.”

“Janine? Please?” Leo looked to his ex-wife.

Janine started moving the crowd away. “Please, follow me to the doctor’s office. I hear a very naughty kitten might finally be forced to use her safe word.”

The crowd shuffled off, and Leo was left with Wolf and Logan and Shelley, who was crying, too, now. He knew her heart wouldn’t allow her anything less. And she could help.

“Come here, baby.” Despite Logan’s happy-go-lucky demeanor, Leo really felt the young man had the core of a Dom. He’d tried to protect the people around him. He’d looked out for those weaker than him. And he’d been surrounded by women growing up. When he looked for comfort, he would look for a female. He nodded toward Logan, and Shelley seemed to understand. She dropped to her knees and offered the crying man a hug.

Logan pulled away from Wolf as fast as he could. What he couldn’t take from Wolf, he had no problem accepting from someone soft and sweet. Logan held her, but the way he would hold a mother or a sister. He buried his face in her shoulder and sobbed. Shelley played her part beautifully because it was natural for her to reach out and comfort someone in pain, even someone she didn’t know well. She smoothed back Logan’s hair and promised him it would all be okay.

Wolf got to his feet. Leo pulled him out of hearing reach.

“That could have gone very badly,” Leo scolded.

Wolf’s eyes turned down. “I didn’t know what else to do. He was leaving for New York in a few days.”

“And he still might. He might not trust anyone in this club ever again.”

Wolf turned to Logan, who was starting to calm. “Logan, I did this. I set it up. I knew what it would do to you. I did it. I did it behind Leo’s back because I knew he wouldn’t agree with me. And I timed it so Leo couldn’t stop it. Leo didn’t do this. I did this. So if you hate someone, hate me.”

Logan looked up, his head still resting on Shelley’s breasts. “How about I hate that fucker who did this to me instead? I’m not stupid. And I may be stubborn, but I’m not an asshole. You wouldn’t have done this if you didn’t care. And it wouldn’t have worked if I wasn’t in trouble.”

“You need to stay here. You need to work this out,” Wolf said, practically pleading.

Logan nodded. “I know I do. I wanted to kill that man. I don’t really know him, but I was going to kill him. I could feel my hands wrapping around his throat. I wanted to watch as I squeezed the life out of him. God, Leo, can you fix me? Can you make the images go away? I can’t not think about it. I can’t meet a new person and not wonder if they would hurt me if they could. I don’t want to live like this. Can you fix me?”

“He fixed me.” A quiet, deeply authoritative voice broke through the quiet. Julian Lodge was still in his business suit. He hadn’t changed for the evening, which told Leo that he’d had a busy Saturday. Julian got to one knee in front of Logan. “I know where you are. I’ve been held down and tortured against my will. I was forced to watch as someone hurt the woman I loved. It was only through my partner’s quick thinking that Danielle and I survived. And for almost a year after, I sat in Leo’s office once a week and we talked. And eventually it went away. I still think about it, but I’m in control now. Leo can help you take back that power if you allow him to. It’s your choice.”

Julian stood back up and held a hand out. Logan couldn’t possibly know how far Julian had come that he would reach out, telling his own story. The deeply guarded man now knew when to open the gates to his soul.

Logan took his hand, and Julian helped him up. “I want to stay, Mr. Lodge.”

“Then you are welcome. Men like you are always welcome at The Club. Shelley, dear, thank you for being the sweet soul you are. Perhaps your Masters will take that into account this evening. Logan, let’s have a drink. One or two should do. We can talk a bit.”

Logan nodded back at Wolf. “I’ll see you later, man. Guess we won’t be headed to New York.”

Julian turned back. “Everything is set for your scene with Shelley. Hurry along, you two. You don’t want to keep that crowd waiting.”

Wolf helped Shelley to her feet. He seemed to be ready to take a step back, but he suddenly hauled her into his arms and wrapped himself around her.

“You were great with him. Thank you.” Wolf breathed her in, seeming to try to lose himself in her scent.

“You’re welcome, but all I did was hold him.” Shelley held Wolf, too. She went on her tiptoes and pressed kisses along his shoulder.

“Sometimes that’s all you need, love.” Wolf stepped back with an audible breath. He calmed himself and looked to Leo. “Shall we begin?”

Leo eyed his brother. He had the worst feeling that Wolf wasn’t done with pulling crazy stunts. “Sure.”

He took Shelley’s hand and followed his brother out of the playroom and down to the dungeon.

Shelley took a deep breath as Leo helped her on to the dungeon’s raised stage. She loved the heels. They were gorgeous. They were also torture devices. They were part of her punishment, and just like everything in BDSM, there were good and bad points. Good point—they were stunning and designer and she kind of wanted to kiss them. Bad point—they made her never want to walk again.

She rather thought her men were about to make her never want to sit again.

There was a spanking bench in the center of the stage and a plethora of devices meant to beat on a poor, did-it-all-for-love sub’s ass. All of it would have been perfectly doable, except for one thing.

Wolf had barely looked at her. She wasn’t sure what was going on with him, but she was starting to feel brutally self-conscious. Leo kept eating her up with his eyes, and the man had his hands on her all the time. It made it easy to forget that she was half naked. But Wolf was making her remember. He wasn’t the same man who had awakened her this morning by rolling her over and fucking into her before her eyes were even opened.

He was distant and that hurt.

“Find your position, baby,” Leo whispered in her ear. “You’ll get through this, and then we’ll figure out what’s got baby brother’s panties in a wad.”

She couldn’t help but smile. There was her Leo. The man she’d fallen in love with was funny and sarcastic and always had a quip. His blue eyes stared down, promising he would take care of it. How much easier this was than her marriage, where she had felt so alone. Even though Wolf seemed far away, Leo was close, promising to bring his brother back to her.

Yes, this was what she wanted, and she was willing to fight for it.

She dropped to her knees and spread her legs wide, her palms up on her thighs. She lowered her head submissively, and suddenly she wasn’t afraid of that spanking bench. Neither man had brought her anything but pleasure. The little bites of pain had merely enhanced her sexual fulfillment. She enjoyed the feel of their hands on her ass, the rope around her flesh. It meant she was performing for her men, bringing them what they needed.

Her pussy got soft and warm at the thought of the spanking that was coming. And the sex. She doubted they would deny her cock, and if they tried, she intended to beg sweetly until they gave in. For the first time in her life, she felt powerful. She made the choices. She decided her fate, and it was to be their woman.

“Sub, do you understand the violation you’re being punished for?” Wolf asked, his voice ringing out.

“Yes, Sir.” She gave him the words Leo had taught her to use.

“And do you cede control here and now to your Masters?” Leo asked.

“I do. I cede control to my Masters.” She kept her head down. They would call for public punishment, and Julian was supposed to agree. She didn’t know who would give the go-ahead now, though she’d seen Chase hauling a happy Kitten with him toward the front of the stage. With Julian out and Leo involved in the scene, it was probably up to Chase to speak for The Club.

“Do you cede control to your true Master?” Wolf asked.

That was off script. And she’d already answered the question. “Yes, Sir. I do.”

Wolf wasn’t done. “I have a gift for this submissive and for her true Master. Leo, will you accept this, in the spirit in which it is given?”

Shelley let her head come up. No one had said anything about gifts, and Wolf’s voice had taken on a grave tone that worried her. He was trying to hand Leo a box. It was a brilliant blue that would typically have her jumping up and down, but now she just wanted to know what the hell was happening.

Leo took the box, his eyes wary. “That depends on what spirit we’re talking about, brother.”

“In a spirit of brotherly consideration,” Wolf replied.

Leo opened the box, pushing aside the white bow and opening the lid. His brows lifted. “It’s a collar. It’s quite nice. There’s only one problem.”

He turned the box to her. In it was a lovely, heart-shaped silver locket. There was a space for a single key. That key lay next to the locket.

“Leo, she’s meant for you,” Wolf said, his voice heavy. “You’ve loved her for years. I would never take her from my brother. I came to Dallas to bring you together. My work here is done. I wish you both all the happiness in the world.”

“I am begging you to rethink this right fucking now, Wolf,” Leo said, but the words seemed really far away.

He’d come to Dallas to bring her together with Leo? He’d written to her for a month, sending her his secret fantasies and making her fall in love with him so she could be with Leo? Her heart started pounding. Vaguely she heard them talking.

“Leo, I did this for you.”

“Well, unfucking do it because she’s about to blow, and you do not want to see that, brother. I have no idea what caused this, but she’s about to make us both look like idiots, and I don’t know how to stop it because if what you’re saying is true, she has every right to be pissed as shit with you.”

Wolf had courted her, made her believe in him, made her love him, and all he’d wanted from her was to pass her off to his brother? No wonder he didn’t want to touch her.

But it didn’t make a lick of sense. When he’d made love to her, he’d been all in. He’d been there with her. Had that been a lie, too? Tears pricked at her eyes. Had she been played? She loved Leo, but damn, she loved Wolf, too. She needed them both, and one of them was either lying to her for god only knew what reason or he’d played her for a fool. Wolf had seemed so surprised when he’d found out about her prior relationship with Leo. Had that been spectacular acting on his part?

She knew what she should do. She should simply nod and take what they gave her and get through the next few moments with the dignity of a lady.

Being a lady had gotten her nothing. It had gotten her a marriage to fucking Bryce drug-dealing son-of-a-bitch Hughes. Being a woman had gotten her Leo. She’d thought it had gotten her Wolf. If she was wrong, then she would go out as she’d begun.

She’d been through one hellacious marriage where she’d been ruled by fear. She wouldn’t live her life like that again. Not for one second.

She pushed herself off the ground, forcing her legs to hold her.

“Shelley?” Wolf sounded utterly shocked. “Find your position!”

But she wasn’t listening to his orders anymore. She wanted answers, and she didn’t care if she had to get them in front of an audience. She grabbed the package out of Leo’s hands. “What does this mean?”

Wolf looked at Leo. “Are you going to control your sub?”

Leo, it seemed, really did have all the brains in the family. He took a step back. “I am going to take cover, brother. Would you like to explain what this is about? Maybe we should go back to my office and talk about this.”

Maybe he wasn’t so damn smart. “I’m not having a session with him. I want to know why there’s only one key. Is he planning on being a brilliant lock picker for the rest of our lives?”

Wolf’s jaw squared. “You know you belong with Leo.”

She did. And she knew she belonged with him, too. “I know that you’re playing with me. You tell me something, Wolf Meyer. Did you sign a contract to top me with the sole purpose of passing me off to someone else?”

He paled a bit. “That makes it sound worse than it is. I know you love Leo.”

“I love you, too. You made me love you. You wrote me letters. You spent hours on the phone with me. You told me you wanted me.”

Wolf’s face fell. “I did this for you.”

What the hell was going on? She felt a sob building in her chest. She knew she should be happy she still had Leo, but damn she wanted more. She wanted it all, and she’d thought for just a moment that she’d had it. She’d thought when Leo had made love to her this afternoon that everything was settled, but now half of her heart was walking away.

She threw the beautiful, gorgeous, would-have-been-perfect-if-it-had-two-keys necklace at Wolf. “You can go to hell. You say you did this for me? For me? I love you.” She hated the fact that she sniffled and that tears were starting to course down her cheeks. “I love you. I wanted a life with you and Leo and you promised me that last night. But it was a fucking lie. You’re just like all the rest. You can say you’re different, but you lie with the best of them, Wolf Meyer.”

“I didn’t lie.” He tried to take a step forward, but she discovered she could move in those heels when she wanted to.

“You did. You made love to me. You shared me with Leo and promised with your body that you would be there. You signed a fucking contract!” That was the worst bit of all. She’d played by his rules, and he’d still burned her. Rage flowed. “You sat down and negotiated that contract with me and I thought you meant it.”

“I did.” The words puffed from his mouth, and his eyes tilted up in horror.

“No. That fucking necklace tells me you didn’t. It tells me you were pimping for your brother. Did you think I would just accept this? Did you think I would shrug and walk away and the next goddamn family reunion you could bring your girlfriend and I would be okay?”

Leo shook his head. “I take no responsibility for this.”

“You stay out of it, Leo. I love you. I’m still talking to you. Keep it that way.” She turned back to Wolf. “I know I’m being a brat. I know I’m being a bad sub, but damn it, you told me that discipline meant getting what I wanted. This is not what I want. I won’t accept less. If you think you can have some fucking happy family after this, you’re wrong. So here’s my advice to you, Wolf Meyer. You better fucking choose again. I don’t know what happened between this morning and tonight, but you better forget it and you better take that fucking necklace back and get something more suitable or the rest of your life is going to be hell. I do not accept this. Gucci, Wolf.”

Her safe word seemed to hit him with the force of a Mack truck. “I haven’t even touched you. How can you say your safe word when I haven’t hurt you?”

“Haven’t hurt me? You hurt my soul, Wolf.” She deflated like a balloon that had lost its air. Her heart ached. She was standing in front of a dungeon full of people who probably thought she was the biggest brat in the world. She’d wanted to belong here, and now she’d more than likely ruined all of her chances.

And Leo. Leo probably thought she was a horrible sub. Tears blurred the whole word. She cried and turned away. Leo caught her.

“It’s all right, Shell. It’s all right, baby. No matter what happens, we’re fine. I love you. That’s all that matters.” He kissed her forehead. “Go on. Go back to the condo. Chase will escort you up there. I’ll figure this out.”

He was her whole world in that moment. He held her and balanced her and gave her strength. Protocol didn’t matter. The Master-sub relationship didn’t matter. He was her man. He was going to take care of her.

“I love you, Leo,” she whispered.

“I love you, too. It’s going to be all right,” he promised.

Chase was at the edge of the stage, clearly ready to take her in hand. Chase held a hand out and helped her off the stage. She could feel a hundred eyes on her.

“Shelley,” Wolf said.

But she turned because she was done with him. For now. She walked away as fast as her heels would take her.