Rex
Married life turned out to be far more comfortable than Rex could have imagined. His wife was every bit as intelligent and quick-witted as she’d seemed and even more adventurous than he had initially realized. If there was something he wanted to try with her, he only had to say so—or lead the way—and she would rise to the challenge.
He still worried over Lucas, but when he checked in with Barnes, it appeared Lucas had returned home for one night before subsequently disappearing again. Barnes did not know where he had gone but said Lucas had paid him full up for the rest of the month. However, Rex did not find that reassuring; it rather set him on edge.
He’s a member of the Society, Mary’s voice whispered in his mind. In debt…
No. Rex did not believe it. He would not believe it. Lucas was impetuous, irresponsible, self-involved, and a scoundrel, but he was not a traitor. If he were being blackmailed or leveraged with his debts, he would have told Rex. He would have. However, Rex could not entirely dismiss Lucas’ odd demeanor or parting words. They lingered in the back of Rex’s mind, rising whenever he had a moment of quiet contemplation.
Fortunately, there were not too many of those. After the first few days of solitude, since he and Mary were still residing in London, they were expected to return to the social scene. It began with a dinner at her family’s house, where Thomas Hood spent the evening glaring at him, Arabella and Mary were constantly whispering, and Walter refused to meet his eyes. At least the Viscount and Viscountess seemed happy with him as Mary was clearly very happy with her position as his wife.
As she should be… the little minx. Rex had taken great pleasure in introducing her to the delights of the bedroom, and she had responded with equal interest and ingenuity, and—once her initial soreness had subsided—was eager to indulge wherever and whenever he wished. While she did not like the crop, and Rex had not even tried the cane, they both found great enjoyment in having him spank her before and during their passionate interludes.
For himself, Rex was so satisfied, he had no thoughts of other women. Far from familiarity breeding contempt, the more time he spent with Mary, the more he was enthralled.
Which was why he was so tense when the evening of Lady Greywood’s soiree arrived. There was nothing to be done, though. Their next meeting with Evie Stuart was only two days away, and Rex wanted to make sure there were no clandestine activities happening other than those which were supposed to be.
It took less than a quarter of an hour for Rex to confirm the temptations of the Society no longer appealed. Far from wanting to join in the activities, he was too busy hanging at Mary’s side and enjoying her reactions to the various scenes being played out. Her wide-eyed curiosity and pleasure in watching were more than enough for him. While he still felt responsible for the Society and its members, he did not desire anyone but his wife.
“There you are, Rex,” Lady Greywood said, swanning up with a gracious smile. “I was not sure you would be here this evening. And Lady Hartford, I am so glad you could join us.” The expression on her face was open and welcoming, entirely without surprise, unlike some of those who had clearly been astonished by Mary’s presence and even more amazed when Rex neglected to quit her side.
Dressed in a long, silky, grey robe, their hostess was completely dishabille but comported herself as if she was in a ball gown, and Mary responded in kind. Despite the activities of the Society, some social niceties were too ingrained to be ignored, and the regular ballroom social patter encompassed them all for a few moments. After the initial greetings, Rex seized his chance.
“Have you seen Devon this evening?” he asked, pretending nonchalance, though his heart sank when Lady Greywood shook her head.
“No, but he has not been around much this year,” she said. A loud cry from a room just across the hall punctuated her response, and all three of them looked that way instinctively before turning back to each other. Lady Greywood’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “Ah, Captain Jones is a very enthusiastic addition to the Society. I believe he is enjoying himself very much this evening.”
“Perhaps we should go see what he is up to,” Rex suggested, offering his free arm to Lady Greywood. The three of them decamped, moving to the room where the cry had come from.
Mary
On Rex’s arm, Mary did her best not to cling, not that she was afraid, exactly, but perhaps a trifle overwhelmed. If the little she had seen at the masquerade before Rex had discovered her had been enlightening, tonight was a feast for the senses. With no one trying to hide their identities, they were also not hiding their reactions as they were whipped, flogged, stroked, and pleasured.
Mary felt her knees grow a little weak at the scene that met her eyes upon entering the room. A handsome man, stripped to the waist, stood before a woman tied with her hands over her head to a thick post in the center of the room. Her back was to him, shoulders and bottom striped with bright pink welts, and he was already lifting the whip again. As Rex led her and Lady Greywood around the post, Mary was shocked to see some kind of clips adorning the woman’s nipples, dark red from their confinement, and a chain connecting them that wrapped round the post.
When the whip came crashing down, the woman jerked and screamed as her movement cause the short chain to pull tightly against the post, tugging at her clamped nipples. Mary’s own little buds ached with sympathy and perhaps, a bit of envy. Her inner muscles clenched at the little sobbing noise the woman made, yet the expression of ecstasy on her face was as clear as her agony. Was that how Mary looked when Rex was tormenting her?
“Bloody hell, Rex.” The familiar voice made Mary blink. She had not even realized her cousin was in the room. Wincing, Walter looked at her, then away, color rising in his cheeks. The man beside him, arm wrapped around him, chuckled and winked at her—in a friendly manner, not at all flirtatious. Mary mustered a smile for him, despite her embarrassment.
“Get used to it, Hood,” Rex said, clearly amused. He had released Lady Greywood’s arm, and she was already circulating among the guests, watching this Captain Jones and his willing victim. Rex shifted to stand behind Mary, his arms moving around her. Mary’s blush deepened as she squirmed, and Walter groaned, averting his eyes.
Another little scream from the center of the room only distracted them a little.
“Come, love, if it disturbs you so,” the man beside Walter murmured in his ear. He winked at Mary again, as if to say it was not her fault, before leading Walter out of the room.
Guilt suffused her, though Walter’s lover had not seemed to mind. She twisted slightly in Rex’s arms, so she could look over her shoulder.
“I did not mean to chase them away.”
“It is fine,” Rex reassured her, amused. “I made the decision to come in here and to stay. Walter will become used to your presence, or he will have to move rooms when you are about. As you could see, Roger did not mind. Now, watch. Captain Jones is very good with the whip.”
Yes, he was, and the tableau was highly arousing. Still, now that she remembered there were others in the audience, Mary could not help but cast her eyes around the room, and her eyes widened when she saw another face she recognized. Hearing her gasp, Rex’s arms tightened around her again, perhaps in concern before he realized where she was looking. Elijah was not looking back at her, though. He was watching the Captain and his woman intently, arms crossed over his chest, more as though he was taking in the Captain’s technique than as if he was enjoying the display for itself.
Jerking her gaze away from him, she returned to watching the Captain whipping the increasingly aroused woman. By the time he dropped the whip and moved behind her, jerking her hips back so he could ride her from behind, causing the chain to stretch her nipples even more harshly, her body was straining, and her mouth dropped into a pleasured ‘o’ when he drove into her.
Mary panted with her, hyperaware of the arm Rex had around her body, his fingers gently caressing her side. When the woman began to keen, her back arching, clearly in the throes of orgasm, Mary could not stop the shudder that went through her body, imagining herself in such a position, with Rex pumping into her from behind.
The Captain surged, fingers gripping the woman’s hips tightly, and she cried out again before slumping forward, panting for breath. Though there was no applause, a general air of appreciation hung about the room.
“Come,” Rex whispered in Mary’s ear, his breath flowing across her sensitive skin and heating her blood. “We should find our own room.”
Rex
Leading his submissively docile but highly aroused wife from the room, Rex headed toward the back of the house, where Lady Greywood would have more private areas set up for those couples who did not wish to be on display the way Captain Jones and Lady Grant had been.
Passing several couples, he ground to a halt when Rupert Collins stepped out in front of him. Rex had so rarely seen the other man without the Earl of Carlisle beside him, it was odd for him to be alone.
“Collins.” He nodded, about to step around the man, but Collins held up his hand in a plea, stopping Rex. Tightening his hold on Mary, Rex inwardly sighed but stayed his progress. Hopefully, this would only take a moment. “Is Carlisle all right?”
“What? Oh yes, he is fine… I… have you seen the Earl of Devon?”
“No.” The question, coming from Collins, surprised Rex so much, he answered without thinking. The two men did not get along, as far as he knew, because Lucas had a tendency to flirt with, well… everyone, and Collins was possessive of Carlisle. “Why?”
Collins’ eyes darted between him and Mary, who was starting to come out of her dreamy haze. Feeling like growling, Rex gestured, indicating Collins should hurry up and say whatever he needed to say.
“I… I thought you should know. I saw him talking to Julian Mitchell yesterday.” The words came out in a rush, then Collins nodded and hurried past Rex, who was now frowning fiercely.
Lucas and Mitchell? Why the devil would they need to speak? And where had Collins seen them? Rex had no idea where Lucas was, but…
Mary was stirring beside him.
“Michael?” she murmured, awareness returning to her eyes, which had been hazed with erotic anticipation. Before she could ask anything else, Rex bent his head down to catch her lips. Later, he would find Collins and question him more. Right now, he was going to finish what he and Mary had started. Collins, Mitchell, Lucas… they would all keep until later.
“Come, petal.” He drew her onward, his cock already recovering from the brief interruption. Running his hand up to the back of her neck, he toyed with the little curls that had escaped from the knot of her hair and felt her shiver in response. Like him, she easily fell back into her aroused mindset. “Let us find somewhere we can be alone.”
Having an audience had never bothered him, though it did not particularly titillate him, either, but with Mary… he did not want to share, and she did not seem disappointed over his search for privacy.
It took only two tries to find an empty room. None of the doors were allowed to be locked during a Society event, especially not after the contretemps with Mitchell, but a closed door meant the occupants did not welcome additional participants or viewers. Someone might peek in, for safety’s sake and to ensure everything was as it should be, but they would do no more than that.
Closing the door behind him, Rex led Mary over to the chaise on the far side of the room.
“Close your eyes,” he murmured, setting her to stand in front of the chaise. With a deep breath, she followed his order, and Rex circled around her, his fingers lightly touching her exposed skin. The gown she was wearing was soft, the amber color appealing against her hair and skin, and—most importantly—it was easily removed. Wearing nothing underneath, Rex could see her nipples puckering, pressing against the fabric. Dropping his hand, he rubbed the little buds through the material, and she whimpered. “What did you like most about what you saw? No, do not open your eyes. Just tell me.”
The blush in her cheeks deepened. Reaching down to readjust his cock, he moved the hard length to a more comfortable position while he continued to tease them both. Passing close by her, he breathed across the back of her neck, and she moaned before answering him.
“Wondering what it felt like.” Her voice was a husky whisper. “Imagining us in their place.”
“Did you want the audience?” he asked, gut tightening. If it was what she desired, he would arrange it, but he would not like it.
“No… I do not think so,” she answered, and his tension relaxed. Standing before her, Rex curved his finger under her breasts and around each nipple. Mary arched her back, thrusting her chest out toward him, silently begging for more. He gave each nipple a harsh pinch, holding tightly enough, she went up on her toes, and he kept his hold rather than releasing them quickly. Her lips parted, panting for breath. “Yes… that… and…”
“The whip?”
She shuddered. “Maybe?”
Rex had to smile. He was no hardened sadist, and despite her enjoyment of a bite of pain, Mary’s threshold for it was not particularly high by the Society standards. They suited each other admirably in that way.
“I think I liked watching and imagining more than I would enjoy the reality of the whip,” she admitted, her eyes opening to meet his, a hint of worry in them as if she thought he would be disappointed. Rex smiled, tightening his hold on her nipples, then releasing them.
“I prefer using my hand,” he said, pulling her in and bowing her back for a passionate kiss.
Mary
Her breasts were crushed against his body while his lips devoured hers, nipples throbbing from the sharp hold Michael had used. Mary kissed him back fiercely, her kindled passion flaring with need. Running his hands down her arms, Michael pressed them behind her back, taking complete control of her body. With an easy flick of his fingers, he undid the buttons on the bodice of her dress and released her wrists long enough for the dress to fall from her curves, letting it pool around her on the floor.
Although used to being naked before him, Mary was aware of the people moving through the halls beyond the door, the occasional cries that were audible even through the walls, reminding her that they were not alone, and someone could walk in at any moment. The possibility made her anxious but excited, especially knowing no one would think twice about anything they saw.
Unwinding his cravat from around his throat, Michael looped it around her wrists, and Mary’s breathing came faster as her helplessness increased. Heat pooled between her thighs in anticipation. While she loved him holding her in place, binding her hands allowed him to do so many other devious things to her.
“On the chaise,” he murmured, using his hands to direct her where he wanted her—facing the back of the chaise, where he used the ends of the cravat to tie her wrists to the ornate decoration there. With her back to him, Mary could not see what he was doing without craning her neck over her shoulder.
With her knees well apart to help her balance on the chaise, bottom high in the air, she knew he could see every part of her—her creamy cheeks, the wet lips of her pussy, and the little crinkled hole he was so intent on exploring. Fingers traced the center of her bottom, over that little hole before dipping between her swollen folds to tease her clit.
Gasping, Mary tilted her hips back, seeking more contact, but Rex pulled his hand away… then brought it down on her right buttock with a short, crisp swat. The sting flared and faded, but his hand was already delivering a similar blow to the opposite side of her bottom—back and forth, heating her cheeks, occasionally pausing to tease her clitoris before returning to the erotic spanking. This was not punishment but pleasure, the sting melding with her growing passion, feeding the fiery ecstasy flickering along her senses.
“Michael… please…” Mary begged, not because she wanted him to stop the spanking, so much as she wanted him inside her. A flurry of short, sharp swats followed her plea, leaving her gasping and writhing, her senses humming for more.
Then he was there, sliding into her from behind, his hands gripping her hips as he thrust in hard and deep, filling her completely. Mary cried out in pleasure, her body rejoicing at the sensation, clamping down around him in eager anticipation. His hands slid up her sides to her breasts, fingers once more closing around her nipples in a harsh pinch while his cock dragged out of her, then shoved in.
Using her breasts for leverage, the tugging on her nipples approximated what she had seen in the other room, making the tiny buds tingle and spark. Rex rolled them between his fingers, tormenting the sensitive nubbins, while he rode her with slow, smooth strokes that filled her over and over.
Moaning, Mary pushed back against him, her body aquiver with the burgeoning rapture, her pussy fluttering with the first ripples of her oncoming climax. Moving harder, faster, Rex’s hands on her breasts grew rougher. Mary cried out as the pleasure and pain crashed against each other, a complex chorus of conflicting sensations that amplified each other until she did not know where one began and the other left off.
“Michael!” she cried out in abject passion, body throbbing and clenching around him. She heard him groan her name before thrusting fully into her pussy, his cock pulsing with his own orgasm only a few moments behind hers.