Divine Solace (Nature of Desire 8)

"Stop it. Tell me."

"If you say it."

"I won't." Gen studiously scraped together the crumbs on the plate, then sighed as Chloe wet her finger and pressed them against the pile of crumbs, popping the finger in her mouth.

"Oh, fine. Pussywhisperer." Gen said it fast, mashing the words together.

"Close enough. Noah has this weird inner focus thing. All the Mistresses--as well as the subs they've had him play with--say he touches a woman like he's listening to something inside of her, figuring out what works uniquely for her. It's not just about him getting to touch a woman's naughty bits, which is of course where most guys screw up. You know how they are."

"Like babies with new toys," Gen said dryly. "They gurgle, drool and grope, forgetting that what they're squeezing is actually attached to sensitive nerve endings."

"Exactly. Brendan says Noah recognizes a woman's body is an orchestra and when he touches her, he finds the perfect soundtrack for her."

It was an entirely accurate description. In those five moments at her sink, Noah had let her body lead him, her gyrations and tiny jerks guiding his fingers. No. Deeper than that. He'd understood her unique emotional grid and matched it to what she needed physically. And he'd used that to take her to that amazing orgasm. The man was scary good. Just thinking about it made her warmer.

Chloe was watching her face. "Okay, if I didn't have my own maestro to have and to hold forever, I'd be feeling pretty damn jealous. He really did tile your floor."

"No, not like that. He did some things."

"Noah is very good at doing things."

Gen found herself grinning at her coworker. She flicked Chloe's arm. "You twit." But she felt comfortable enough now to ask more questions. "What do you mean, temporary ownership?"

"There are times a Dom and sub might hook up exclusively for a while. It's similar to being in a vanilla relationship, seeing where it takes you, but they might put in place more structured stipulations that keep it from being as uncharted as a relationship. I do

n't know if Lyda and Noah have any of that, but I do know they've been together as an exclusive item for a few months. At first she'd play with him with other Mistresses, but over time, she's even eased back from that."

Which matched what Noah had told her. Not that she'd doubted his honesty, or was in deep enough with him to trigger her trust issues, but it was always good to hear a corroborated story.

"When Noah first came here from New Orleans, Tyler was watching over him. Not in a sex way, of course, but you could tell Noah reported to him."

Gen's brow furrowed. "Are subs controlled by a Dom at all times?"

"No." An uncomfortable look crossed Chloe's face, and she glanced toward Marguerite. Their boss was off the phone and working on her laptop. Marguerite wasn't a big talker, but when she wasn't on the phone, she didn't miss a word of their conversations, even if it appeared she was otherwise occupied. Sometimes she'd insert a comment while Gen and Chloe chatted. It was another familiar ritual.

"I'm wondering if she should talk to Lyda about him, M. I'm not sure what's okay to say or not."

Marguerite lifted her attention from her keyboard, her pale-blue eyes meeting Chloe's with her unblinking regard. Gen looked between them. "What am I missing?"

"It's hard to explain." Chloe collected residual strawberry preserves off the rim of the open jar with a spoon and tasted it. "Most submissives go to work, watch TV at night, whatever. They let the sub side come out in the club or maybe in other structured ways with their significant others, like me and Brendan, but they're still really sort of like everyone else. They run their own lives. Then there are those like Noah. He's...fully subservient. I don't know if that's the right term to use or not."

"It's accurate, to a point," Marguerite said. "Noah is very independent in some ways, Gen. I'm sure you've experienced his self-determined side."

Gen had a hard time not flushing at that. Marguerite didn't miss the reaction, but she didn't remark on it, thankfully. "In other ways," she continued, "Noah requires protection. He has no use for money. Everything that belongs to him is in that duffle he carries. I expect he has a couple sets of clothes so that, when and if a Domme releases him, he can take his leave with more than the clothes on his back. However, whatever his Domme chooses to purchase for him he views as her property. Much like himself. Even if she's buying those items with the money he turns over to her."

"Wait. You mean Lyda..."

"Whatever money he earns, he gives to her," Marguerite confirmed. "Noah makes very few demands, but he's adamant about that. He doesn't want anyone paying for his upkeep. When he doesn't have a Master or Mistress, I expect he uses his money for food or to give himself a place to stay. Someone's extra room, or a place that accepts cash. He thinks about what his Master or Mistress may need from him and acquires the appropriate skills, but when it comes to the structure most of us have--bank accounts, bills--he doesn't do those things."

"So he's like a homeless person, in a sense." Gen was seeing him in an uncomfortable new light.

Marguerite lifted a shoulder. "It's tempting to define someone on your own terms rather than understanding who and what they are. Noah's free will is a very elusive thing. It tends to be like a chameleon, adapting to whoever has possession of him."

She'd fought so hard for her independence, to own her own home, car--to regain control of her life. She couldn't understand someone who turned their back on such things. It sent up all sorts of red flags. But those protective instincts she'd felt around him were also back in an unexpectedly strong way. "Can't that be dangerous to him?"

Marguerite's blue gaze flickered, telling her she'd said something her boss had hoped she'd understand. Gen didn't claim to comprehend any of it, but Marguerite's approbation was always enough to steady her in any situation. "Yes, it can. Certain submissives are so immersed in their orientation that it defines everything about them. It makes them a prize to a certain kind of sexual Dominant. Unfortunately there are good and bad ones. Once Noah commits to a Dom, he is everything that Master or Mistress desires him to be, because that challenge fulfills his soul. Even that doesn't fully describe it, because there are many things about Noah that are unclassifiable. He is a special young man."

"M's hitting the nail on the head," Chloe agreed. "He's incredible, and yet a little scary as well. If he was part of one of those cultures with arranged marriages, he'd accept the choice given him without question, and serve his wife with utter devotion. Even if she was a hideous bitch."