At His Mercy (Masters Club 1)

Yet, somehow Master Cameron intuited her unspoken protest. He brought his hand to her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb, his tone suddenly gentle. “You’ve been through a lot this evening, Jess. You need some time to process and regroup.”

Unable to help herself, Jess leaned into his touch. She half expected him to pull away, but his hand lingered at her cheek, a tender expression in his eyes that made her heart leap.

“Oh,” she breathed, unable to keep the longing from her voice.

As if that word had broken whatever lovely spell he’d briefly fallen into, Master Cameron dropped his hand abruptly, and took a step back. “Cleo will be back in a moment to see you out.”

Jess took a second to recalibrate. Was she assigning too much import to his gentle touch? Had she only imagined that sweet, tender look in his eyes?

“Yes, Sir,” she replied, dismissing her silly romantic notions.

Mistress Dominique appeared beside them. She held a cell phone in her hand. “Shall I schedule you in for Sunday morning with Master Hayden, our physician? The exam will be conducted here on the premises.”

“Yes. That works for me, Ma’am.”

Mistress Dominique tapped on her cell screen a moment. Looking up, she replied, “Done. Ten o’clock.”

As if in afterthought, she added, “Be advised, Jess. As with everything at the Masters Club, the exam will be about more than just your physical health. Hayden Pierce is a physician, yes. But first and foremost, he’s a Dom. Think of the exam as an extension of your audition. Be prepared to submit, not only to the exam, but to whatever else might be required of you in the process.”

Jess’s stomach swooped unpleasantly as she took in this information. Images of evil doctors with sharp objects loomed uncomfortably in her mind. But no way did she want to back down now. She was determined to see this through, and find out what came next.

“Yes, Mistress,” she said aloud.

Mistress Dominique produced a business card from the sleeve of her cell phone wallet and handed it to Jess. “Here’s our driver’s contact information. Just text him when you need him for club business. If he’s available, he’ll take you wherever you need to go. I’ll let him know you’ll be needing a ride Sunday morning.”

“Thank you, Mistress,” Jess replied.

The four Doms left the room. A moment later, Cleo reappeared. She took one look at Jess’s face and held out her arms. “You did it! Congratulations, Jess. I’m so happy for you.”

The petite woman pulled Jess into her arms. It felt strange—two naked women embracing—but it also felt nice. Cleo’s happiness for her was clearly sincere, and it made Jess feel good. She’d never really had girlfriends—not the kind you could tell absolutely anything to. She’d always had to be careful about what she shared about BDSM with her vanilla friends. She’d never made much of a connection at those BDSM groups with their munches and organized play parties. But she’d felt an instant connection with Cleo and was looking forward to knowing her better. It wouldn’t hurt to have a highly trained Masters Club slave to show her the ropes, not to mention the whips and chains.

“Thanks,” she said, grinning as they disengaged. “I can’t quite believe this is happening. It doesn’t even feel real yet.”

“Oh, it will, trust me,” Cleo said. “It’ll really hit home your first day of training.”

“Do I get to pick my mentor?” Jess wondered aloud, instantly thinking of Master Cameron.

“No, of course not,” Cleo replied, as if that were a crazy question. “You’ll be assigned a mentor. But don’t worry. They’re all good. Whoever you get, they’ll whip you into shape, trust me.”

Jess made a show of rubbing her bottom, which was still sore from the caning. “Ouch,” she said. “That sounds ominous.”

Cleo laughed. “Ominously delicious, for girls like us.”

Jess looked around the room, wishing she’d thought to bring her gear bag, in which she always kept a change of clothes. As Cleo picked up the corset, Jess said, “I wish I’d brought regular clothes to wear home. I was so excited to come here, I didn’t even think about it.”

“About that,” Cleo replied. “It’s fine if you want to change into civvies before you leave the club, but make sure you wait until you’re in one of the sub changing rooms. The main one is located just off the garage. There are lockers in there where you can leave your stuff. There’s also a small changing room just off the front hall. Be advised, you are never, ever to wear vanilla clothes while in a Masters Club facility. When you arrive, you need to go straight into the changing room before any Master sees you. When you step over that threshold, you’re property of this place. Even the pleasure subs are considered property. And, as such, you must always present yourself properly.”