Master Brett nodded. “Nice to meet you, Avery.” He jerked a thumb toward the sandy haired man seated next to him. “Master Dan.”
“Avery.” After a slow, appreciative perusal that drew a delicate shudder of awareness, Dan pinned her with dark brown eyes. “When you’re ready for a tour, let me know. I’ll be happy to show you around.”
“I… thank you.” Sydney took her arm and nudged her toward the bar before she could come across as a bigger idiot. Avery wasn’t used to drawing men’s attention. Shaking her head, she slid onto the barstool and muttered, “Why does every man in this state have to be so…”
Sydney smirked. “Sexy? Overpowering? Panty melting?”
Avery nodded. “Yes, exactly.” Sydney hopped onto the stool next to her, wincing before shifting her hips. Concerned, Avery reached over and touched her arm. “What’s wrong?”
“Well…”
A deep, amused drawl interrupted Sydney’s hesitation. “She took off this afternoon without telling anyone and got lost, again, which earned her another trip over Caden’s lap,” Connor, her soon-to-be brother-in-law answered as he strolled over from behind the bar.
Sydney scowled at him. “I was only going out to the new calf barn and took a wrong turn on the path. I would have found my way if you and Caden hadn’t gotten yourselves into a tizzy.”
Connor’s lips tilted at the corners, his blue eyes lighting as he nudged his hat back and looked at Caden’s girl with fondness. “Admit it, sweetie. You like the way big brother takes you in hand.” He winked at Avery. “Welcome to the club, Avery. What can I get you?”
Avery was still struggling with the image of Sydney draped over her fiancé’s lap while she let him spank her hard enough to still feel the discomfort hours later to answer Connor right away. Her own butt clenched as she recalled Grayson’s reference to such discipline and the heat spreading through her body had nothing to do with the warm temperature of the room. Sheesh. Either her stressful plight had rendered her more desperate than she thought, or her past sexual encounters were more pitiful than she recalled to produce such a reaction to the memory of that suggestive threat.
“Uh, I’m not much of a drinker. A light beer?” Before she’d started seeing Darren, Avery’s social life consisted of gaming with on-line friends and going to an occasional movie with a co-worker or one of the few people she’d kept in touch with since college. Geeky computer nerds didn’t do the bar scene.
“Coming up,” he replied without commenting on her lack of social skills.
Attaining such easy acceptance from a man as eye-catching as the scruffy bearded rancher thawed the last of the outside coldness Avery still shivered with. Her eyes shifted to the dance floor and the unabashed gyrations of the closely held bodies. Her own nipples tingled as a man scooped his partner’s breast free of her demi bra and dipped his head to suckle the pert nipple, all the while grinding his hips against hers. She switched her gaze to her friend’s knowing look. “How long did it take you to get comfortable with all this?”
“Honestly? Not long. I was so desperate for both Caden and a diversion from my troubles, I latched onto this,” Sydney waved her arm, “quicker than most, I imagine. Let’s have a drink and then, if Caden is still busy, I’ll show you around some more.”
“No need, Syd. I’ll give our guest a tour.”
Avery closed her eyes against the immediate effect of heated awareness that deep voice wrought, the same one that drew her here with his selfless concern and an offer of help. Her body tingled from head to toe as she swiveled on the stool and looked up into Grayson’s penetrating, vivid gray/green eyes, another toothpick nestled on one side of his mouth. Connor set her beer down as Grayson held out his hand. Unable to refuse, she snatched up the cold bottle and placed her other hand in his, praying he didn’t notice the way her fingers shook.
Chapter 5
A surge of anticipation had shot through Grayson the moment he gazed down from th
e loft and spotted Avery looking like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car as she took in what appeared to be her first glimpse of what BDSM offered; his concentration and interest in the scene with Leslie taking a nosedive. He’d spent the last ten days struggling to remember where, if anywhere, they’d met before. The way she continued to avoid direct eye contact with him whenever he saw her set off alarm bells, her evasive answers to his simple questions among other signs she was either hiding something or uncomfortable around him. He wasn’t used to a woman preoccupying his mind unless he was in a scene with a willing, needy sub. The urge to get to the bottom of her reticence toward him rivaled the growing interest to strip her of that loose clothing and familiarize himself with the lush curves they failed to hide.
Eyes the color of his favorite aged whiskey widened behind her glasses as she turned toward him, pink blossoming on her cheeks as he held out his hand, waiting for her to reply. The urge to order her to come with him almost overrode his common sense. She was not only new to town but appeared naïve about this entire venue. Attempting to run roughshod over her wouldn’t do to gain her trust.
“I... are you sure you don’t mind?” she asked, her gaze skittering away from him as she scanned the room.
Taking a wild guess at who she was searching for, he replied, “I’ve finished the scene with Leslie and sent her off happy. Does that help?”
A small frown drew her brows together. “I just don’t want to step on any toes.”
“Trust us, sweetie, you won’t be. Subs know we’re here to play, nothing else,” Connor drawled, a small grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Go with Master Grayson, he can explain anything you’re unsure of.”
Sydney nodded in agreement. “Caden and I can catch up to you when he’s done monitoring. Have fun.” She waved a hand to shoo Avery on.
Grayson tightened his grip around her smaller, softer palm as Avery took his hand. He almost smiled when her knuckles whitened around the beer bottle as she slid off the stool.
“Okay, thanks,” she said.
“Most of the bondage equipment is upstairs, but back here we have a few spanking benches.” Grayson tugged her toward the space opposite of the dance floor. They passed an as yet unconverted stall currently under construction. Pointing, he explained, “We plan to tile that in and turn it into a large shower with several nozzles.”
Stumbling to a halt, Avery jostled against him, eyes rounding behind the dark frames as she peered into the space. He could almost see the wheels turning in her head with the possibilities. “You think people will use it? I mean…” She flicked a look around. “It’s so… open.”
“Most members don’t come here to hide behind closed doors, sugar. This,” he nudged her toward the first bench after receiving a nod of welcome from Greg, “is a regular spanking bench. You can see how Master Greg has restrained Cassie.”