The Shepherd (The Game 6)

It would appear my slave was an eloquent little shit.

I sighed and pressed my lips to his forehead. “I’m not sure I could be as understanding and encouraging as you are.”

He shrugged slightly. “If he’s important to you, he must be a good man. And if you’ve been on a collision course for God knows how long, it can’t be stopped. I can either bow out or get with the program. I choose the latter.”

I furrowed my brow. “That doesn’t sound great. I’m not choosing anything whatsoever unless you’re one hundred percent on board and comfortable.”

“That’s a problem, because I don’t think any new relationship should feel that secure.” He gave me an easy smile, as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “It’s okay to be unsure and anxious. I’ve woken up next to you every morning this week, worrying that everything could fall apart—but what if I didn’t? What if I hadn’t a single worry?”

I was at a complete loss for words and could only look at him.

Somewhere in the background, I heard a door open and close, and it was followed by voices I recognized.

“We’ll talk more about this later.” I grabbed his jaw and kissed him swiftly but hard, and I had a feeling Archie was going to keep turning my world upside down for a long time. His perspective wasn’t merely invigorating; it knocked the air out of my lungs and replaced it with something much easier to breathe.

Lucian and Cam appeared in the wide doorway, and I rose to my feet to get started—at long last.

“Hey, you two.” From my duffel, I dug out a thin rattan cane that would keep Archie on his toes. “Everything good?”

“Not a single complaint.” Lucian smiled. “We thought we’d get some TPE training in before we act as seat fillers to Kingsley and Tate’s interrogation scene with a new play partner. What about you?”

Oh. That was news to me. Good for them.

Since Cam remained silent, I presumed he was on speech restrictions. I’d introduce Archie to that soon too.

“TPE training here too,” I said and wove my fingers into Archie’s hair. I tugged back his head, making him look up at me. “This is Lucian and his pet Cameron. They share a similar dynamic to ours. You may greet them.”

Archie glanced toward my friends with a polite smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet Sir’s friends. My name is Archie.”

No, the pleasure was all mine. Christ, he was beautiful—not to mention perfectly cut out for this lifestyle. He loved his submissive nature, and it showed.

“Nice to meet you too, Archie.” With an absent snap of his fingers and a brief gesture at the floor, Lucian directed Cam to stay behind and kneel while Lucian himself walked toward us. “Good to see you back in the high-protocol saddle, my friend. It’s been far too long.”

He’d get no arguments from me.

“I wouldn’t mind adding some TPE to the event calendar.” I threw that out there. Lucian and I had hosted several high-protocol evenings in the past, from demos on kneeling positions to poker nights for Masters with their slaves as currency in one way or another. I’d won a full-day cleaning service from a Master with two slaves. My house had never been so spotless. Shame they’d moved to Texas.

“The sooner, the better.” Lucian nodded. Then he clapped me on the back. “We won’t disturb—but again, it’s good to have you back, Greer.”

It would take me the better part of an hour to understand the meaning of Lucian’s words, and by then, Archie was kneeling on a cushion to take some pressure off his knees. Good to have me back…? But the more I worked with Archie, the more I got it.

It was easy to be a Sadist in our community. All the founding members except Macklin were one. Many of our events were geared toward the fetish, and we attracted masochists and brats from all over the place.

Sadism, however, wasn’t the lifestyle kink that flowed in my bloodstream.

Being a high-protocol Master was what centered me. It kept me focused. It made me stronger and more assertive. Archie made me feel stronger. His submission surged through me and forced me to rise to the occasion.

Laying out structure for our morning routine took a while, but it was a solid start, one I didn’t want to rush through. Our mornings would look different depending on if we had work or it was a weekend, if we had Kyla—which was obviously most of the time—or if she was with Lydia, and if Archie and I were even in the same town. Just because he and I didn’t live together didn’t mean he wouldn’t have tasks to perform for me in the morning.

I wanted a good morning text.

I wanted my breakfast prepared beforehand.