Pure Bliss

  Hope took Noah’s hand and let him help her out of the truck. “Trev used to play football? Nate said something about ESPN.”

  It took all James had not to groan a little. Hope was going to need an education in way more than BDSM. “Baby, you don’t want much TV, do you? Trev was the quarterback for the San Antonio Bandits. He was considered the best QB in the last decade but…”

  “He got involved with drugs.” Hope’s eyes trailed toward the house.

  “So you have heard the story?”

  Hope’s whole body seemed to sag a little. “More times than you know.”

  “We don’t have to play here if you don’t want to.” Why was this so hard? He was smooth as glass with women, but now he felt like an idiot. He had no idea how to handle Hope, not really. He thought she would be submissive when it came to sex, but she damn straight wasn’t out of bed. She was prickly and too smart. He thought she saw straight through him, but she was opaque, something he could almost understand, but her truth was elusive.

  She turned her face up, her hand skimming his cheek. “You like Trev, right? It doesn’t bother you that he had a problem?”

  James was deeply confused. “No. I think the world of him. And if you want to judge him for his past…”

  She put a hand on his lips, stopping him from talking. “I think what he’s managed to do is amazing. I admire him greatly.”

  Thank god. For a minute he thought he’d been wrong about her. Hope had always seemed like a woman who wouldn’t judge those around her for their pasts. “I do, too. I trust him. Hell, he’s my partner.”

  She went on her tiptoes. She hesitated for the briefest of moments before brushing her lips across his. “I would love to play with you, but you’ll have to be patient. Everything I know comes from eavesdropping on Jen and Rachel and Callie.”

  “Hey, I taught you a little something.” Noah had taken a step back, his face closed off.

  Hope laughed a little. “Sweetie, you threw me against a wall. I did learn to call you Sir, and that sex can be way more than I thought it was, but I didn’t get a lesson in being a sub. That’s what it’s called, right?”

  She was interested. That was all he could ask for. “Yes, baby. There’s a Dominant partner and a submissive partner. The Dominant partner is responsible for the submissive’s safety and pleasure. Noah is way out of the game if he thinks that taking care of you includes screwing you against a wall where everyone in town can hear you.”

  “She needed it.” Noah stepped up now, his face flushed. “You weren’t there at the beginning. You don’t know. She was panicking, and I couldn’t get her to talk.”

  So Noah thought fucking her would solve all her problems?

  Hope stepped between the two of them. “Stop. You two need to stop, or I’ll walk out of here.”

  She meant it. It was right there in the stubborn way she held her jaw. She put herself right between him and Noah, her petite, five-foot-three-inch body tiny compared to theirs. She had a hand on both of their chests as though she could actually stop them if they decided to throw down.

  “I don’t want to fight.” Noah sighed, and his hand went over hers as though keeping it over his heart.

  Fuck. It was obvious that his brother was in deep. But James couldn’t let it go. He knew damn well he should, but the thought of not knowing what it felt like to sink into Hope McLean’s softness, to hear her calling out his name the way she’d called Noah’s, wouldn’t let him go.

  “We’re not going to fight,” James promised. “But we are going to have a serious discussion about topping from the bottom.”

  Hope’s lips curved up. “See, that sounds like fun.”

  “Oh, she’s going to get in so much trouble,” a new voice said.

  James looked up and noticed that at some point, Bo had walked out onto the porch. The guesthouse already had a new coat of paint and now boasted a cozy porch swing. James had seen Bo and Trev sitting there in the late afternoon after work was done for the day. They would sit and swing with Beth in between them, each man holding her hand or touching her hair.

  “Trev is still dealing with the new guys. He asked me to show you around.” Bo tilted his blond head toward the door. “Unless you’re going to fight first.”

  Hope dropped her hands and walked up the steps. “No fighting. But it is weird that we get a guide.”

  Bo laughed. “Oh, honey, you haven’t seen weird yet. Look, I love my partner, and I’ve gotten used to play, but these fellas take all this stuff very seriously.”

  “Protocol,” Noah said.

  Bo pointed. “See, they use all sorts of big words, but it all comes down to the fact that they really like spanking a pretty ass and they’re control freaks. So come on in. The dungeon’s wide open.”

  God, he was going to have to talk to Trev about his partner’s sarcasm. James followed Bo up the steps with Noah following behind him.

  “Do you even remember how to behave in a dungeon?” James asked. Noah had been vanilla for years. He couldn’t see it any other way. Ally wouldn’t have allowed him to top her. No way.

  “I’ve gone to a dungeon at least twice a week for the last three years. I probably know more than you now.”

  He stopped his brother before they got to the hall that led to the dungeon. He was completely floored by the admission. “You cheated?”

  He shouldn’t be shocked. He knew he shouldn’t. From what little he’d heard, Ally had given Noah hell and had several lovers. Still. He was shocked. His brother had always been adamant. When they were dating a girl, Noah never even looked at another woman. The thought of Noah cheating hurt.

  Noah shook his head. “No. I haven’t touched another woman with my cock until earlier today. And I only did that because I care about Hope. Hell, man, I think I’m falling for her. I took vows. Just because Ally didn’t honor hers didn’t give me a free pass to let mine go. About two years in, I knew how fucked up my marriage was. I found a club. I became friends with the owner, and he let me work a couple of nights a week as a Dom. I never got off. I took care of subs. It was the only thing that made me feel needed.”

  How hard had it been for Noah? James forced the question away. That wasn’t his problem. Noah had made his bed. But James couldn’t help the fact that his heart hurt a little at the thought of Noah all alone in the city. Noah’s words really penetrated, leaving James with another question. “You knew two years in but it was another three before you came home.”

  “Yeah,” Noah admitted, his voice low.

  Noah couldn’t have been too lonely if he was willing to spend three years in hell. If he had been willing to stay away until the money had finally dried up. “I’m letting you watch because Hope wants it, but you better obey the rules, brother.”

  Noah’s face shut down, but he followed James down the hall.

  Hope’s eyes were wide, and there was a little bit of fear in her stance when James entered the McNamara dungeon. Trev had done a damn fine job turning what used to be an office and spare bedroom into a Dom’s little pleasure palace. The Berber carpet had been replaced with gleaming hardwoods and the walls painted a decadent, rich red. There was a large St. Andrews Cross adorning the wall. It accompanied a spanking bench, a padded sawhorse, and in the middle of it all, a huge bed.

  The fact that everything came in singles told James a lot. Beth was the sub. Bo was not. He’d wondered because Bo tended to defer to Trev’s authority, but it seemed he probably topped Beth in the bedroom.

  Hope would have had two Masters if Noah hadn’t been such an asshole.

  He had to get that out of his head. Noah was talking to Hope, and here James was thinking about how mad he was at his brother.

  “Don’t let this place fool you, Hope. There’s nothing but pleasure for you here,” Noah was saying, his voice soothing her.

  And that was James’s damn job. He hadn’t even kissed her yet, and his brother was already pushing him out. James took Hope’s hand and gently pulled her to him.
He sighed as he put his arms around her and smoothed back her hair. “I think you’re going to like this, baby, but if you’re scared, we can go back to the house and sit and have a nice dinner and then we’ll go to bed and I’ll treat you like a lady.”

  She shivered. “Don’t. I’m a woman, and I would rather be treated that way.”

  What the hell had he done? She tried to pull away, but he had the worst feeling that if he didn’t take control she would and everything would be over. He hardened his voice. “I’ll treat you like a sub. Now calm down, Hope. In this room, you obey me or you say no and this is over. Bo, does Trev keep paraphernalia for guests?”

  Bo’s face went blank. “Are you talking about toys?”

  He’d been trying to be discreet. “Yeah. Sometimes Doms keep a small supply of toys for visitors.”

  Bo grinned and opened a panel. The custom-made door slid open. “Beth got cheeky. She’s been having fun with this room.”

  He heard Hope gasp at the wall of perversion Bo had uncovered. There was a neat assortment of floggers, whips, paddles, spreader bars, and restraints of all types. There were handcuffs and long lengths of rope. There was a whole row of various types of lube.

  “I take back everything I said about Trev,” Noah said, his eyes wide. “He’s a perfect addition.”

  “He’s a complete pervert is what he is. You want it, he probably has it in various colors, shapes, and sizes. Oh, and he told me to tell you that he has a whole training set of plugs still in their boxes,” Bo explained.

  James was deeply grateful for his partner’s years of formal training. James’s training had been rather informal. He’d gone to clubs with Stef, Max, and Rye over the years. Stef had taught him a lot, allowing James and Noah to practice on his own submissives before he’d finally settled down with Jennifer. But Trev had actually been a full-time Dom for several years.

  “What does he mean by ‘plug’?” Hope had turned her face up to his, looking at him like he would protect her.

  She didn’t realize she needed protection from him. His cock tightened at the soft, sweet look on her face. “Anal plugs, baby.”

  “He keeps boxes of anal plugs for guests?” Hope asked.

  Bo shrugged. “Apparently it’s the BDSM equivalent of a party favor.”

  Hope shuddered a little. “I think I might prefer the little things you blow on and they make noise.”

  Oh, she would be blowing on something, and James was definitely going to make a little noise. “Thank you, Bo. We can take it from here.”

  Bo smiled. “You’re going to be all right, Hope. If you have any questions later, you just talk to Beth. She’s going to be really excited about having another girl around the place.”

  He gave them a little salute and then shut the door behind him.

  “Clothes off, Hope.”

  Begin as you mean to go. He was in control. He was in charge.

  And she was practically shaking she was so nervous. He sighed and hauled her close. He hadn’t kissed her. He needed to get his head in this damn game. He softened as he looked down at her. “Do you know how long I’ve wanted to kiss you, baby? That one taste wasn’t enough. I want to kiss you again and again.”

  Her anxiety seemed to flee in favor of an awed wonder. “You really want to kiss me, James?”

  He thought about rubbing his rock-hard cock all over her so she couldn’t doubt it, but decided on a sweeter approach. Words. Women liked words. “I wanted to kiss you the first time I saw you. You were sitting with Logan and you turned your face up to me, and all I could see were big eyes and the softest lips. I love how the bottom one plumps out when you’re thinking. I always want to suck at it and kiss you until you can’t breathe.”

  She leaned into him a little. “James, are you serious? Because I couldn’t handle it if you weren’t.”

  Serious? He was seriously in trouble, but he couldn’t find the will to back out. He had used all the words he was going to for now. He leaned forward and kissed her the way he’d wanted to that first day. She’d been sitting on the bench next to Logan, the afternoon sun hitting her hair. Logan had been talking about some game he was playing online, but James had been watching Hope wondering where Logan had found her.

  James pressed his lips to hers and tilted her head back. She opened underneath him, her mouth ceding control to him. His tongue surged in. That first day had scared the crap out of him because she wasn’t his type, but he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her.

  Now he knew. All the other women hadn’t been his type. He only had one type. Hope.

  Her arms wound around his neck, and she clung to him. Her soft tongue played against his.

  If he didn’t take control soon, he would do exactly what Noah had done. He would toss up her skirts and throw her against the first surface he could find and sink his cock in. He wouldn’t even have to dispense with her panties. They were probably being studied by the Farley boys at this very minute. He broke off the kiss.

  “I want you, Hope. I want you so bad it hurts, but we do this my way. Now take off your clothes.” His voice was breathless, but she seemed to respond properly this time.

  Her face flushed, and her hands went to the buttons of her shirt. Her voice was shaky as she spoke. “I don’t see what the two of you have against these clothes.”

  “She’s damn sarcastic, James. I already spanked her once today for that mouth of hers.” Noah leaned against the wall, staying as far away as he possibly could.

  “Is that right?” James wished he’d seen that. “Did Noah spank you?”

  Her shirt hung open, leaving a tantalizing line of skin on display. He could see the curves of her breasts against the cups of her plain white bra.

  “Yes.” The word came out on a breathy little sigh.

  Well, his brother had gotten further with her than James had thought. “Did it scare you?”

  She was here, so he was betting on a no.

  “I liked it.”

  And he liked honesty. He touched the half-moon at the top of her breastbone and then let his finger trail down. He toyed with the front clasp of her bra. “Did it get you hot?”

  She nodded. “It did.”

  “Thank you, baby. It means a lot to me that you’re honest. That’s what this is all about.”

  A cloud passed over her face, but she turned her eyes down and shrugged out of her shirt. James flicked the clasp of her bra open and pushed the straps off.

  Hope might be petite, but she had curves. Pretty curves. Curves that made his dick throb. She had perfectly perky nipples. They tightened under his gaze. Her skin was a lovely shade of cream with dustings of freckles here and there. Later he would explore every inch of her, kissing each little spot and marking her as his. But for now he wanted to see more.

  “Get rid of the skirt, baby.”

  She took a deep breath before pushing the skirt off her hips.

  “God, Hope, you’re beautiful.” James couldn’t take his eyes off her. She was damn near perfect. Her hourglass figure was made for a man’s hands. While she was short, she wasn’t tiny. She had hips he wanted to grip and shapely legs that would look good wrapped around his waist. “Turn around.”

  She turned on shaky feet.

  Her ass was glorious. Round and juicy. Yeah, he would be using one of those plugs on her. James pulled her hair out of her ponytail, and soft brown hair fell like a waterfall over her shoulders. She was beautiful, and she hid it behind dowdy clothes and a boring hairdo. But it wouldn’t matter now. She could wear whatever the hell she wanted. He would see her like this. He would see her with soft skin and sexy curves and those dark eyes that kicked him in the gut. She could gain or lose weight. She could wear sexy clothes or a potato sack. She could get old and gray, and he would see her like this.

  “Face me.”

  Hope turned back. She was biting that sexy lower lip of hers. She pushed her glasses up. Damn, he even thought those were cute. “Do you really think I’m okay, James?”
>
  “Hope, I think you’re gorgeous. Look what you’re doing to me.” His cock was just about to push through his jeans. She smiled, a shy little thing that made him understand something about Hope. She didn’t think she was beautiful. He would use every tool he had to make sure Hope came out of this experience knowing that she was the sexiest woman in the world. He pointed to his brother. “Noah’s not any better. Look at that damn thing in his jeans. Though he’s not going to get a damn bit of relief for his.”

  He didn’t want to remind her that Noah was even here, but she needed to know how beautiful she was.

  Noah grinned and pointed toward his erection like a game show hostess showing off a brand-new car. He was dippy and stupid and dumb-ass, and James felt his heart twist because Noah was acting like the brother he remembered. Noah had been a goofball. A brilliant mind with a goofy, funny soul. Hope was bringing him back.

  Again. Not his problem. This wasn’t about Noah. This was about him and Hope. And it was time to get started. “Eyes on me, Hope.”

  She turned obediently, but he could see that his play had worked. She was far more confident than before.

  “I want you to take my clothes off, baby.”

  Her breath hitched.

  “Your reply should be a ‘yes, James.’”

  “Yes, James.” No hesitation now. She moved forward, and her hands were on his shirt. She smoothed it down before moving to the pearl snaps. Carefully, she unsnapped the buttons one by one. It was torture. He could feel those small hands moving down his torso. She pulled the shirt free of his jeans. “Can I touch you? I don’t know how this works.”

  “This is for fun, baby. It’s a way of life for Trev and Beth and Bo, but this is just fun for us. If you’re not tied up and we haven’t agreed on a scene, then you can touch me all you want.”

  She closed her eyes and placed both hands on his chest. He was pretty sure she could feel his heart pounding. He held still, letting her explore him. She ran her palms over his pecs and down to his abs, those small fingers making him shake on the inside.

  “You’re killing me, baby. Finish what you started. Undress me.”

  “I wouldn’t want to kill you.” The shy girl seemed to be gone, and a playful siren was in her place. Yeah, she was going to give him hell, and he would enjoy every minute.