his hand, resisting his control, then surrendered and laid her cheek on his thigh. He squeezed her lightly in reward, then offered his opinion on the sale of several ranches in the area that had been snapped up by developers.
“I’m not worried,” he told the Dom who’d raised the problem. “Avalon is financially secure. Security is tight and I’ll endeavor to keep it that way. If necessary, if the developers begin encroaching on the club’s privacy, I have first refusal on the fifty acres of land surrounding us. The idea of creating Avalon out here away from the city was to make confidentiality a priority. I intend to maintain that level of privacy.”
“And if whoever promised you first refusal reneges? Sells to the developers for a higher price instead?”
Braun chuckled darkly. “Well then, me and my father are going to go a round or two. The land belongs to the company he and I own jointly; it’s all written in a contract, so don’t concern yourself with that, Rob. Besides, that kind of expansion could take fifteen, twenty years based on my calculations of current developments and expansions. We could all be vanilla by then.”
Laughter rang out, not the first time tonight, and Braun basked in the camaraderie radiating throughout the room. Couples and trios were beginning to split off the main pack gathered around the pit and the bar, disappearing down the walkway into the play areas beyond.
Gently, he stroked his fingertips along the exposed side of his subbie’s neck. Leaning forward, he murmured, “This is good, Bodie. You’re doing very well. Just try to relax a bit more for me, okay? When you’re ready, we’ll take a walk. Let that busy brain of yours have a rest.”
She surprised him earlier by filling in her limits list more thoughtfully. She’d paid more attention to the activities on the paper and answered according to her physical reactions to his explanations. As a result, he now had something to work on.
She just had to let the nerves go first.
It took another twenty minutes of petting and stroking before she began to squirm. He was familiar with the way she fidgeted and grinned to himself. Hurdle number one tackled.
Five more minutes passed, his amusement growing along with Bodie’s wiggling, before he heard her whisper, “Yellow.”
“I’m sorry, little one, I didn’t quite catch that.”
Jaw clenched, she lifted her head, blue eyes alive with exactly what he’d wanted to see—need in its purest form. “Yellow, Sir.”
“Who’s my clever girl?” Braun stood and offered his hand to her. She took it after a second’s hesitation and let him draw her shakily onto unsteady feet. She didn’t want to relinquish her grip on him as a few eyes glanced their way. “Follow me, little one. Don’t get lost in the crowd.”
She hissed quietly as the blood rushed back into her feet; an unpleasant sensation, he knew, which was why he led her carefully, slowly, from the pit and toward the walkway. “We’re going to your office?” she asked hopefully.
“Not tonight, Bodie. Tonight, we’re going to play in barn two where I can close the curtains if I desire and we can still be part of the scene.” He offered her no negotiation. “There are rules in here, for everyone’s safety. The monitor on duty this evening is Travis. He’s not a Master but he’s a skilled and experienced Dominant.”
He felt her fingers slip into his waistband but didn’t admonish her. Making sure she felt safe, letting her experience the second barn without fear, was his goal for tonight. The scene he had in mind could be classed as tame; he didn’t give a shit.
They strolled steadily down the walkway, Bodie shooting his office a wistful look he didn’t miss as they passed, before she began to lag behind. Steps turned into shuffles, and she drew back from him as they approached the heavy swing doors into barn two. “Stay with me, little one.”
He pushed through the doors, all but dragging his wide-eyed subbie behind him. “Welcome to Avalon, Bodie.”
Her sharp intake of breath was lost in the snap of a flogger connecting with flesh. She winced, bravely steeled herself, and sidled up to hide behind him. “This...this is all consensual?”
Braun tried to see everything as a novice would for the first time. Through her eyes. Submissives—male and female alike—were strapped down, tied up, suspended from rigging, and shackled to giant wooden X’s. The spanking horses were popular tonight, several bare bottoms upturned awaiting the next kiss