Chapter Six

By Sunday night, Caleb was exhausted and he figured Jessie was, too. Instead of him going home each night after work, he found himself in her bed with her in his arms.

They’d played since Monday. Tuesday no one had booked the club, so Caleb took his time with Jessie. Then work started on Wednesday, but each night they ended up in her bed together.

Matt had been texting him daily. Caleb’s guilt was building. He was being truthful with Matt when he said he couldn’t see anything Jessie was doing differently outside of the masks that they weren’t already doing.

Well, maybe things like selling toys and having a few different pieces of equipment, but that was really it. But every night they were open, they were busy. The weekends in particular were hectic. Matt was getting impatient, and Caleb worried Matt would come to Lobster Cove if Caleb didn’t give him the results he wanted.

Caleb took his position in the private area. A Dom had asked for permission to gag the sub, and Jessie had granted it. Caleb wanted to be close just in case.

Something about the sub’s expression and body language were off. Yes, the sub was kneeling like many of them did; yet, he couldn’t quite get over the feeling of discord. Maybe because the sub was already gagged.

The sub was tied to the bondage table and the Dom began to work on her. Caleb could appreciate the way the Dom flogged the sub with each stroke, coming down in a different spot before starting over, not hitting anything vital.

The Dom spoke softly and picked up a cane. He swung the cane several times, his muscles budging as he did so. The sub began to tremble within her bounds. The heavy thwack had Caleb flinching. It was then he saw the scarf float from the sub’s hand. And the Dom drew back.

Caleb pushed the buttons on his cell phone and jumped up on the stage. The sub wasn’t just trembling, she was downright shaking. And the Dom wasn’t paying attention or didn’t care based on the sneer on his face.

Before the Dom could bring the cane down, Caleb caught his arm.

“Fuck, let go,” the man yelled.

“Your sub has dropped her scarf.”

“I don’t care.”

“I do.” Caleb pushed the man back a step. Where they hell did these Doms come from? A good Dom never ever continued when their sub safeworded out. End of discussion. He had no patience for those who broke that sacred rule. “You know the rules.”

“Screw the rules, this bitch deserves it.”

“No woman deserves to be beaten.” Caleb pried the cane from the man and tossed it onto the table as Jessie and Ryan mounted the stairs.

“Get this fucking DM off me.”

Jessie looked from him, to the Dom, to the sub, and finally to the scarf laying on the stage. “She’s had enough.”

“I will decide that, not you.”

Jessie huffed out a breath. “Get him off the stage now,” she said in a low voice.

“With pleasure.” Caleb and Ryan forced the Dom off the stage. The entire time he was protesting. Those who had been watching the scene drifted away. The man struggled with him and Ryan, but they held him fast.

Anger shook Jessie to her core. Jessie untied the sub, wincing at the marks on the woman’s body. While Paul had been physical, he’d never gotten to this stage. No, Paul was more into humiliation. He didn’t want his work to show physically.

Jessie first took the sub’s gag off so she could breathe through her tears, gently pushing her long blonde hair out of her face. Then she began undoing the restraints, noticing the burn marks on her fair skin.

“I’m so sorry,” the sub sobbed.

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Jessie was careful as she rubbed the sub’s limbs, red from being tied up. Up close she could see the finger bruises on her hips and welts. Welts from more than just from tonight’s caning. Damn.

“I’ve disappointed my Master.”

“How did you get the bruises?” Jessie kept her voice low as she helped the sub sit up.

“I was bad.” More tears fell, and Jessie knelt down.

“Tell me what happened, please.” Her heart was pounding with fear for this sub.

“I was late two nights ago. I work in Trenton, and there was a horrible accident on the highway.”

Jessie grabbed a couple of paper towels and a blanket. She handed the sub the paper towels and wrapped the blanket around her. The sub would crash soon. “Keep going.”

“Well, I got stuck in the backup, and I was two hours late. I did call and leave a message.” She hiccupped, and her fingers curled around Jessie’s. “But when I got home, Master was angry. He stripped me out of my clothes and gripped me by the hips hard before he tied me over a saw horse. He put a gag in my mouth and started flogging me.”

Jessie sucked in a breath. “What did he flog you with?”

“At first it was just the one we always use—suede forty tails. But then he pulled out the single tail.” A new sob escaped the sub, and Jessie squeezed her hand.

“And the burns?” Jessie’s stomach turned over.

“A cigar.” The girl trembled.

“It’s okay.” Jessie fought to keep her anger out of her voice. The Dom was such an asshole. “I want you to listen to me.” She waited until the sub’s gaze met hers. “This is not your fault. No real Dom beats their sub just because of a traffic accident. You had no control over that.”

“But—”

Jessie shook her head. “No buts. A good Dom understands. You were not at fault.” The sub nodded, but Jessie knew she was still blaming herself. It would take a while.

Pulling her phone out, she pushed the buttons, and within a minute, Yvonne had left the bar and was at her side.

Together they helped the sub stand. “Yvonne will take you to a private room and sit with you.”

The sub nodded through her tears.

Jessie leaned over to Yvonne. “Sit with her, and don’t leave her alone.”

Yvonne nodded.

“I’ll have Amy bring you some lotion and more warm blankets.” Jessie helped Yvonne get the young sub off the stage and then watched as they walked away.

She then marched over to the men. “My office. Now.” Her voice was low and tight as she turned and stomped away.

The three followed and once they were in her office with the door closed, Jessie ripped her mask off. “What the fuck were you doing, Ron?”

“She’s my sub, Jessie.” Caleb and Ryan released Ron’s arms, but the guys were still tense. Jessie didn’t blame them. Ron stripped his mask off.

“Submissive, not whipping post. Damn it, she’s got bruises, welts, burns, and she safeworded.”

“She knows better than to safeword. She deserves to be punished.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it.” Jessie wanted to slap Ron for being such an idiot and ass. “You know the rules. You’re banned from the club.”

Ron took a step forward, and both Caleb and Ryan grabbed his arms. “You were always a prick, Ron,” Caleb said, taking his mask off with his other hand.

“Well, if it isn’t Caleb Drake.” Ron’s lip turned up. “I can’t believe you’re here, and he’s your DM.” Ron’s gaze came back to her.

“Yes.” Jessie took a deep breath. Her heart was hurting for the sub. “And who my DMs are doesn’t matter.”

“Ah, but it does.” Ron shook the two men off and rubbed his hands together.

Her stomach clenched. What was Ron up to?

“If I remember right, you two were pretty tight during high school. Did he ever tell you why he left?”

“This isn’t about Caleb.” And it wasn’t. Part of her wondered why she was listening to Ron. Maybe because she wanted to know more about why Caleb had left.

“He got Susie Winston knocked up and beat her until she lost the baby. His dad tried to stop him, but had a heart attack instead. Caleb skipped town before any charges could be brought against him.”

Jessie looked at Caleb, but he wasn’t looking at her. He was staring at Ron. She bit her lower lip. She remembered hearing about it. Jessie had also known Caleb was innocent.

After Caleb had left town, Jessie had talked with her mother about what had happened. Her mother agreed with her that Caleb would never hurt a woman, any woman. But he’d left town so he wouldn’t have to deal with the rumors and innuendoes.

She’d seen none of that since Caleb came back, in fact, several of the old timers told her they liked that Caleb had finally come home. He was a good man. And she trusted Caleb.

“Caleb wasn’t responsible,” Jessie said.

The second the words left her mouth, Caleb’s gaze was on her face, and she saw the relief there. And she wondered why? Did he really think she’d believe Ron?

“You are such a push-over, Jessie. You always were.” Ron waved his hands in the air.

“That’s where you’re wrong.” She stiffened her spine. “You’re blackballed, Ron, from here and every other club I have contacts with. Everyone will know what you did tonight.”

“You can’t do that. I just got a little carried away.”

“Really.” She put her hands on her hips and stared him down. “You signed the agreement with my club, and it will stand up in a court of law, if you want to take it that far.” Ron opened his mouth, but she put her hand up. “While I was untying your sub, Ron, we had a nice little chat. I know exactly what you did to her a couple of nights ago.”

“She’s lying.”

“You’re the one lying. You’re nothing but a bully and an abuser. I’d take her word over yours any day. Besides, I saw the burns on her breasts and the bruises. You’re done here. Get him the hell out of my club.”

“Our pleasure,” both Ryan and Caleb said before they marched Ron out of her office.

Jessie sank down onto her desk chair and picked up the phone. Rusty would know who to call. Word was going out tonight about Ron. This was different than the Miss Peacock incident and much more heinous.

God, what was wrong with some Doms. The lifestyle wasn’t about abuse. It was about pleasure and love.

****

A few minutes later, Caleb returned to Jessie’s office to find her on the phone. She motioned him in, her face tight and her eyes gleaming with anger. He sank down onto the chair, trying to quell his nerves as he waited for her to finish.

“Thanks, Rusty.” She nodded. “Yeah, talk to you later.” She dropped the receiver onto the cradle and stared at him. “What a night.”

“About what Ron said,” he started. He wanted to explain to her. No, needed to explain it.

“I know what Ron said wasn’t true.” Her voice was calm not a trace of anger.

He could only stare at her. Why wasn’t she upset?

“You’ve worked for me for several months, and we’ve played together. I’ve learned about you Caleb, about the man you’ve become.”

“When I left Lobster Cove I wasn’t in a very good place, mentally.”

“What eighteen-year-old is?” She waved her hand in the air. “Heck, I wanted to leave and never come back. I wanted to be my own woman away from my mother’s judgment on my submissiveness. But Mom wouldn’t let me.”

“What did she do?” Lacey Michaels had been a hard woman, but she also loved her daughter.

“She locked me in one of the cages.”

“What the fuck.” Caleb shot out of his chair. She locked her daughter in a cage. A cage!

“Easy, Caleb.” Jessie jumped to her feet, touching his arm. “In a way I understand now. She didn’t want her baby girl to leave.”

“But to lock you in a cage.” He brought his hand up and cradled her cheek in his palm.

“It was only for a few hours until both of us calmed down. Then we started talking. She never really understood why I was submissive.”

“And after you talked?” He was still trying to wrap his mind around Lacy locking her daughter up in a cage. Her mom wouldn’t have taken it well that Jessie was a submissive. But he was glad to see it hadn’t ruined their relationship.

“She got that I didn’t mind running the business, or parts of it, but in the bedroom I didn’t want control. I wanted someone who would take care of me rather than expect me to do it.”

“Makes sense.” He brushed a thumb over her cheek. “I want...” A knock on the door interrupted him.

“Yes,” Jessie called. The door opened and Becky peeked around the frame.

“Ryan wanted to let you know things are under control. It’s pretty subdued out there, and he thought you might want to make an appearance.”

“Thanks.” The door closed and she sighed. “Time for appearances. We’ll talk more about this later.” She slipped from his hold, and he already missed her.

****

Caleb glanced at the clock. Four in the morning. He should be tired, but he was too wired. He was in Jessie’s bed with her in his arms. Jessie tilted her head and looked up at him. “So, tell me about what made you leave Lobster Cove.”

“Aren’t you tired?”

“I’m too keyed up to sleep.”

“It’s not a pretty bedtime story.”

“Please, Caleb. I need to understand.”

He tightened his arms around her. “I don’t know how much you remember about my dad.”

“I know he was abusive, and he died.”

“Yeah, well, part of the story Ron mentioned yesterday is true.” Her gaze locked with his. “My dad got Susie Winston pregnant.”

As he said the words, a weight started to lift from his chest. Maybe it was time to talk about it.

“Susie was eighteen.” Jessie’s voice was soft and quiet.

“Dad was furious when she turned up telling him she was pregnant, and he started to beat her.”

“Oh, Caleb.” Her fingers touched his cheek, and he couldn’t help but rub against her soft skin.

“I walked in on them when Dad was beating the crap out her. I was so angry, but first I had to get Susie some help. I took her to the hospital. They tried to detain me, but I left anyway.” He remembered the security guards at the hospital, trying to stop him from leaving before they got the full story. The hands grabbing at him, but he had pushed them all aside.

“Why did you leave the hospital?”

“Because I knew what it looked like, but I also knew my father.” He turned his head and kissed her fingers. “By the time I made it back to the house, the sheriff was there. Together we went inside.”

Memories of the darkness threatened to overwhelm him. His father had closed the house up, curtains pulled, no light, no noise. The smell of alcohol still made him sick to this day.

“And?”

“Dad was slumped in his chair. He laughed and said Susie deserved what she got for getting pregnant.” Anger surged through his bloodstream. “I told him no woman deserves to be beaten. My father stood, and then he fell back into his chair with a grunt. He was dead from a massive heart attack.”

“Oh, Caleb.” She snuggled closer to him, offering him comfort. But he had to wonder once she heard the whole story if she wouldn’t run.

“The sheriff kept everything under wraps because Susie and her parents asked him to. Susie lost the baby but was going to be okay. I left town the next morning.”

“I’d heard the rumors, but I knew you wouldn’t do something like that.”

“Yeah, well for a while I blamed myself.”

“Why? There was nothing you could have done.”

Caleb couldn’t lie in bed anymore. He set Jessie from him, rose, and began pacing the room. “My life hasn’t been easy.”

Jessie pulled the sheet over herself and stared at him. “My life with my mother wasn’t always easy. But I don’t blame myself for her death as I think you do for your father’s.”

“Jessie, my dad was a mean son of a bitch.” Caleb ran his hands through his hair. Why did he feel compelled to tell her this? Maybe because he was falling for her.

Every nerve in his body froze. He was falling for Jessie? Why did that surprise him? He’d enjoyed her company when they were younger and now...now she was a beautiful woman.

The guilt ate at him for not telling her the truth of why he was there. He would have to go back to Chicago eventually, but did he? Hell, Matt was already threatening to come to Lobster Cove if Caleb didn’t find out why the club was so popular.

But Caleb was falling for Jessie. Maybe he could find something to give Matt and then stay. Movement caught his eye as Jessie climbed out of bed.

“What did your father do to you, Caleb?” Her tone was quiet but probing.

“You need to understand something, Jessie. For years I thought I was a submissive.”

She burst out laughing.

That was the last thing he expected. “You’re laughing.”

“I can’t help it,” she gasped out. Then she sobered. “You’re nothing but a Dominant.”

“My father beat me. And I let him.”

Her eyes grew wide, and then she hugged him. “And why did you let him?” Her words were soft, and her hands caressed his back. “Because you knew if he beat on you he couldn’t hurt anyone else. Your dominant side made you protect those weaker than you. And you never acted submissive in public.”

“I couldn't. Dad expected me to be a tough guy just like him.” With those words, his entire view of the situation shifted. “Damn it, Jessie, when I left Lobster Cove, I was a submissive in some of the dingiest clubs, allowing Dommes to use me as they wanted.”

“And you hated every second of it.” She guided him back over to the bed, and then climbed onto the mattress before pulling him down to her. With a slight tumble, he found himself wrapped in a cocoon of Jessie.

Caleb opened his mouth to speak, but stopped. Jessie was right, he did hate every second of it. A weight lifted from his soul. “How did you guess?”

“Submissives like to be submissive. Some are like me, just submissive in the bedroom. Others are in life. You know this, because you’ve trained as a Dominant.”

“Yes, but—” He stopped, and then grinned. “Intellectually I knew it, but in my heart I ignored it.”

“And because you’ve seen the dark side and have been a submissive, you know how to be a better Dominant than any man I’ve ever known.” She brushed a lock of hair away from his forehead. “Well, except Rusty. He would go toe to toe with my mom.”

“Rusty’s a good man.”

“He is, but is more into men than women, which is such a shame. He would have made a good match for my mom.”

“How did I get so lucky?” Caleb tightened his arms around her.

“I don’t know.” Jessie placed a kiss on his nose. “Tell me about when you realized you weren’t a submissive.”

Caleb’s muscles tensed. This was another talk he didn’t want to have, but they had to have it sooner or later.

“I was checking out a new club in Chicago. I was really just observing, knowing I was unhappy with my life. And I was watching this one scene when a guy walked up to me and began talking.” Caleb allowed the memory to come, and he welcomed it. It was time for him to face his demons.

“The man asked me if I was willing to scene with him. When I replied no, he tried to force the issue. That was when Matt stepped in.”

“Matt?”

“Yeah. Matt was part-owner of the club. You’d like him.” At least he thought she would. Matt was a good guy; a bit ruthless in business, but otherwise good people. “Anyway, he told the guy that no meant no and to lay off.”

“Sounds like a good man.”

“Matt started talking to me, and by the end of the night, we’d become friends. Over the next few months, Matt taught me about the club, how it worked, and about being a Dominant. Matt saw that I wasn’t really submissive.”

“I like him already.”

Well, that wouldn’t last long, especially if she found out about him and Matt spying on her. “It took time, but Matt gave me back my self-respect. I started working for him, and that’s it.”

“Why do I think there’s more to that story?” She yawned after her question.

“Later.” He pulled her down until she was resting on his chest. “Go to sleep. We can talk more tomorrow.”

“At least it’s Monday.”

“Yes and we can play.” He stared at her until Jessie was asleep, then he closed his eyes. Maybe it was time for him to sell out to Matt and go his own way. He didn’t want to think about Matt or Chicago right now. He didn’t have much time left, and what he did have, he wanted to cherish.