Llewelyn snorted. “Private business. Right.” He took another bite of his blue wrap. “Listen, I understand—really, I do. I mean, if it ever got out, our mistresses would be shunned—never received in polite society again. And you just met me so I don’t blame you for being closed mouthed. I’m just trying to let you know you’re not alone. I mean, you oughta see my lady’s secret stash of male-dom porn—it’s amazing.”
“So you’re saying Lady Sha’rak likes it when you boss her around?” Saber raised an eyebrow at him.
“I never said anything like that,” Llewelyn said quickly. “All I’m saying is…I’m not always on the receiving end of the rod. That’s all.” He raised his eyebrows at Saber who nodded thoughtfully.
“I see.”
“No, you don’t.” Llewelyn gave him a disgusted look. “Why, I bet your lady has never once used the rod on you, has she?”
“She doesn’t beat me, if that’s what you mean.”
“You know damn well that’s not what I mean.” Llewelyn got a distant look in his eyes. “My lady first took the rod to me when I was eighteen and she was seventeen.” He shrugged. “Well, she’d had me for a year by that time. I suppose she was ready and it didn’t matter if I was or not. Not that any man is ever really ready for…” He trailed off, shaking his head.
“Where were you before you came to Lady Sha’rak?” Saber asked.
“In a training house in the heart of the city—Handor House, actually.” Llewelyn sounded proud. “She picked me out herself—I was a birthday present to her from the Old Mistress, who was long since passed into the depths of the abyss.”
“And were you glad to be picked?” Saber was genuinely interested. What would it be like to be raised to be a slave? To know your fate was entirely in the hands of another?
“I was when I saw her eyes,” Llewelyn said thoughtfully. “I could tell she was no Lady Pope’nose, even back then.” He smiled fondly. “Ah, that’s twenty cycles ago now. And here we are, still playing the same games.”
“Games like…secret domination,” Saber said, raising an eyebrow. “You said she had a stash of male-dom porn. Does she happen to have anything else? Anything about the Hoard Wars that you know of?”
Llewelyn frowned. “You and your lady both seem very interested in that period of history. Why?”
Saber shrugged. “Lady R’awr is a collector. She was hoping to find some pieces to study while we’re here. If I can point her in the right direction, she’ll be very happy with me, if you know what I mean.” He raised his eyebrows significantly.
“Of course, I get it.” Llewelyn nudged his elbow and grinned. “It’s always good to have your lady in your debt. Well, I don’t know about the Hoard Wars, but I do know my lady has other Kindred documents she uses for sensation play sometimes. Those damn Kindred are so dominant and protective of their women—it’s exactly what she likes.”
“I see. Thank you, I’ll tell my lady.” Saber took a final bite of his wrap.
“Fine. Just don’t tell her who you got the information from.” Llewelyn finished his own wrap as well. “Better go—I’ll need to give Manda her massage as soon as that bitch Lady P goes out the door.”
“Of course.” Saber nodded at him. “Good night and thank you.”
“My pleasure.” Llewelyn winked. “We closet Doms have to stick together, right?”
“Right,” Saber murmured. But inside he was already considering everything the body-slave had said and wondering how exactly he could put it to good use…
* * * * *
The quiet rapping at her door made Lissa jump even though she knew it was probably just Saber. She had taken a quick bath in the marble basin and was already in bed, snuggled under the covers.
Actually, she’d been planning to pretend to sleep when he came in, but she called out, “Yes?” before she thought about it.
“It’s just me.” Saber’s deep voice was muffled. “May I come in, Mistress?”
Hearing him call her that gave Lissa a strange feeling. She knew Saber was only keeping up their cover story but she couldn’t help remembering how he had knelt before her and begged her to punish him. She could still feel his hot mouth sucking and lapping her tender nipples, making sure every trace of the elixirs that coated them was gone… Goddess! Her face felt hot just remembering it.
“Mistress Lissa?” Saber asked again and she realized she was taking too long to answer. Looking down, she took stock of herself. She had on a virginal white gown that covered her completely and the silky, royal blue comforter spread over the massive bed was pulled up to her neck. It should be safe enough to let him come in.
“You may enter,” she said, trying to sound like an imperious mistress, although she thought it was more likely she sounded ridiculous.
“Thank you.” The heavy door swung open silently and Saber entered. He gave her a quick look and then shut the door. He was holding a covered bowl in his hand but he stopped by the foot of the bed. “May I approach?”
“Oh, Saber…” Lissa didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. It was all so bizarre. “Of course you can approach,” she said. “And stop calling me Mistress now—we’re alone in here and you checked the rooms earlier for listening devices.”
“True.” Saber came over and sat carefully on the side of the bed. “I brought you some more fruit.” He indicated the bowl. “Thought you might still be hungry.”
“Oh, thank you!” Lissa struggled out from under the heavy comforter and sat up eagerly. In fact, her stomach was growling since she’d barely had any dinner at all but she had been resigned to waiting until breakfast the next morning. Really, it was very thoughtful of him to remember how little she’d eaten and guess she might be hungry.
“Here you are, I’m not sure what it’s called but I tasted some and it seems fine.” The fruit Saber revealed was pale pink with dark blue spots and slightly larger than the bung clusters she’d had at dinner. It was juicy with a sweet-tart flavor that burst on her tongue when she took a bite. “Mmm, delicious!” she murmured, going for another bite.
“Careful, you’re dripping.” Saber cupped her cheek and wiped a tiny trickle of juice from her chin with his thumb.
Immediately, Lissa froze. His hand on her skin felt so warm, so right. Suddenly her heart was racing and she could barely swallow the bite of fruit. For a long moment Saber’s eyes held hers and she was reminded of the way he had looked at her while he sucked her nipples.
“Um, thank you,” she murmured at last, pulling away and looking down at the half eaten fruit in her hand. “I should…maybe I should go get a napkin.”
“I’ll get you one.” But instead of going he just sat there, looking at her. Then he put his thumb in his mouth and sucked away the droplets of juice he had captured from her chin. “It is delicious,” he murmured, his voice deep and soft. “Lissa, about what happened tonight…”
Lissa’s heart was knocking against her ribs as though it was trying to get out. She couldn’t get into this with him right now. She just couldn’t. “I…um, don’t worry about the napkin. I’ll get it myself.” She was about to hop out of bed and run for the bathroom when Saber put a hand on her arm.
“No, you stay. I’ll be right back.” He left and returned a moment later with a soft facecloth which he handed her silently.
“Thank you.” She blotted her chin with it though she didn’t really need to and then put it neatly on her lap. Her appetite had deserted her and she didn’t want to eat any more of the fruit, no matter how delicious it was. But it seemed rude to let it go to waste after Saber had gone to the trouble to bring it to her.
“So I found out something interesting about our hostess tonight.” Saber’s voice was lighter and the smoldering light had gone from his hazel eyes. Lissa wasn’t sure if she was glad or sorry about that.
“What—something about Lady Sha’rak?” She raised her eyebrows and nibbled more of the succulent fruit.
“Un-huh.” Saber nodded. “Llewelyn told me.
”
“Well, what did he say?” Lissa demanded. Now that they were talking about something besides what had happened earlier, a little of the awkwardness between them had disappeared and she felt much more comfortable.
Saber raised his eyebrows and leaned forward confidentially. “Apparently, Ambassador Sha’rak is secretly submissive. Or at least, she’s not as totally dominant as she’s led us to believe.”
“What?” Lissa shook her head, uncomprehending. “When you say submissive, you mean she likes to—”
“Submit sexually. To give up control of her body to someone else—in this case Llewelyn, if he’s telling the truth.”
“Oh my,” Lissa murmured faintly. She had heard of such things before—mostly from the human girls on the Mother Ship. In fact Lauren, the girl who was joined to a Scourge, was apparently in some kind of long term relationship with him that centered around exactly that. Kat and the others were always teasing her about it, though Lissa had never found it very funny.
“Are you all right?” Saber had a worried frown on his face.
“I don’t…” Lissa cleared her throat. “I guess I don’t understand why anyone would want to do that. I mean, I know it’s common here but the slaves…they don’t have any choice but to, uh, submit. But why would someone who didn’t have to give up control and let someone else, uh, do whatever it is they do, of their own free will?”
“Maybe for love,” Saber said softly. “I got the distinct impression that the relationship between Llewelyn and Lady Sha’rak is much more complicated and considerably deeper than they want anyone to know.”
“So she submits to him because she loves him?” The concept still seemed foreign to Lissa.
Saber nodded. “As far as I can tell. But apparently he submits to her too, on occasion.”
“What a strange relationship.” Lissa frowned. “But why would Llewelyn tell you all this?”
Saber looked slightly uncomfortable. “He seems to think you and I have the same kind of, ah, arrangement that he and his mistress do.”
“What?” Lissa felt her cheeks get hot. “He thinks I let you, um, dominate me?” She didn’t know whether to feel embarrassed or indignant. “But I’m the one who’s supposed to be dominating you,” she pointed out.
“I know.” Saber looked like he was trying not to laugh. “You look upset. Do you want to dominate me?”
“You know I don’t,” Lissa said at once. “When you knelt at my feet tonight and begged me to punish you, I—” She stopped abruptly, biting her lip.
“You what?” Saber prompted gently.
“I…” Lissa took a deep breath. “It was hard,” she whispered at last, putting the bowl of fruit on the large, ornately carved stand by the side of the bed. “I…I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“I know.” He was looking into her eyes again and somehow she found she couldn’t turn away. “But it was worth it, Lissa. Worth the pain to taste you that way.”
“Oh…” Lissa didn’t know what to say to that, how to react. “Saber—” she began.
“I know we’re only doing what we have to do in order to complete our mission and get the lost scrolls,” he continued, still looking at her. “But even though we have to go our separate ways when this is over, I intend to enjoy it while it lasts. And Lissa…” He raised her hand and pressed a gentle kiss into her palm. “I’d rather have pain from you than pleasure from anyone else,” he murmured.
For a long moment, Lissa was speechless. “Saber,” she began at last but he only shook his head.
“Anyway, the point of all this is that I think we ought to check Lady Sha’rak’s house, er, floor, very carefully. It’s possible she might have the scrolls.” He put Lissa’s hand down gently. “Llewelyn seems to think she’s partial to Kindred documents because of the dynamic between Kindred males and their brides.”
“I see.” Lissa looked down at the hand he had been holding and tried not to wish he was still touching her. “Well then, we’ll see if we can get some time away from her tomorrow to search. Maybe I can pretend to be sick and we can search around after she goes out for the day.”
“A very good idea.” Saber smiled and she couldn’t help thinking how handsome he was, which made her want to blush again. “Well…” He stretched his arms over his head, giving her an excellent view of the muscles in his broad, bare chest flexing. “I guess we’d better get some sleep. Where’s my place?”
“Oh, um…I’m not sure.” Lissa bit her lip. Of course the bed was big enough to share but the idea of Saber lying so close beside her all night made her feel so nervous she felt sure she would never get to sleep.
“Look at this.” Saber, who had been scrutinizing the room, suddenly reached down and pulled a large brass handle attached to the side of the bed. Lissa had seen it earlier and assumed it was some kind of decoration but to her surprise, when Saber pulled, a whole other, much smaller bed came out. It wasn’t nearly as fancy as the vast sleeping platform she was lying on, being little more than a mattress nestled inside the drawer, but it was long enough for Saber’s tall frame, though a little narrow for his shoulders.
“Are you sure you want to sleep there?” she asked uncertainly as he tried it out.
“Sure. It’s obviously meant for a body-slave. He lies here, close to his mistress, so he can hear her if she needs anything in the night.” Saber looked up at her. “I could use a pillow, though.”
“Oh, of course—here.” Lissa gave him several of the large, fluffy head bolsters that adorned the huge bed. “Better?”
“Much.” He smiled up at her. “Just try not to step on me if you get up in the middle of the night.”
“Of course I won’t step on you,” Lissa exclaimed indignantly.
“You’d better not!” Saber grinned and sat up. “I’ll just go have a wash and get changed. Do you want anything before I go, Mistress?”
“Stop calling me that!” Lissa found herself smiling back, despite herself. “It still sounds so strange.”
“But it feels so right, doesn’t it?” Saber winked at her. “Admit it—you like bossing me around.”
“I do not!” Lissa protested. She knew Saber was teasing her, as he used to when they were younger, but she couldn’t help rising to the bait.
“All right then, whatever you say.” Saber was still laughing as he walked into the bathroom.
Lissa stared at his broad back until the door shut between them. Then she took another long look at the small slave bed and sighed. Well, there was no point thinking of it now. Trust Saber to be a perfect gentleman and not complain about sleeping on the tiny, thin mattress instead of sleeping beside her on the vast, cushy bed.
Feeling guilty, she called softly for the lights to extinguish. Then she lay back down and tried to get comfortable. If only she could invite Saber to share the bed with her. But who knew what kind of trouble that would lead to…
“Lissa, are you awake?”
Saber’s soft, deep voice came from beside and slightly below her. Lissa opened her eyes but found she couldn’t see anything in the velvety darkness.
“Lights dim,” she murmured and a very faint golden glow, like the light of a single candle, came from the corners of the room. “I’m awake.” She rolled over and looked down at him. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. I was just worried about you.” In the faint light, his eyes looked more gold than hazel.
“Worried about me? Why?” Lissa looked at him uncertainly.
“I’ve been thinking about those elixirs—the burning blossom one especially,” Saber murmured. “I’m just wondering if I got it all off.”
“Oh, you mean earlier when you, um, sucked me? My nipples, I mean?” Lissa’s heart was suddenly racing but she tried to keep her voice steady.
“Mm-hmm.” Saber nodded. “I just wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself if I missed some—you know, if you touched yourself and then rubbed your eyes or something like that. It could be bad.”
Lissa sh
uddered at the thought of getting the burning blossom elixir in her eyes. It would likely make her go blind. “That would be bad,” she admitted. “Maybe…maybe you should come up here and check me. Just to be sure.” The minute the words were out of her mouth she couldn’t believe she had spoken them. But she had no wish to call them back. No wish at all.
“All right.” Saber sat up and Lissa held the covers open for him, inviting him in. He climbed into bed beside her and took her in his arms at once.
“I guess I’d better take a look and make sure you’re okay,” he murmured, his deep voice thick with some emotion Lissa was afraid to name, even to herself.
“I guess so,” she whispered, her pulse racing.
The virginal white gown she was wearing had a row of tiny round buttons almost up to her chin. Saber deftly unfastened them, flicking each one open until there was a narrow trail of bare skin from Lissa’s throat all the way down to her navel.
He looked at her. “Can I?”
“Please.” Lissa could barely get the word out. Her blood was thrumming in her veins and her body felt heavy and tense at the same time. Goddess, what was he going to do?
Saber peeled back the sides of her white gown, baring her breasts completely in the dim light. “Beautiful,” he breathed and Lissa felt like a goddess, lying there almost naked before him. “So perfect,” he whispered and cupped her right breast, the one that had been painted with the burning elixir.
“Is…is it all right?” Lissa asked breathlessly.
“I think so.” Saber thumbed the small pink nub gently and she gasped, feeling her nipple harden at his touch. “Although maybe…maybe I should suck it again. Just to be sure.”
“I think you should,” Lissa heard herself saying. “Please, Saber, suck them…suck my nipples again and make me feel good.”
“As my lady commands,” he murmured. Leaning down, he sucked one ripe, pink point into his mouth and began to bathe it with his tongue.
Lissa writhed helplessly under his tender ministrations. She could feel her pussy getting hot and wet again as he sucked and licked her nipple. Could feel herself wanting him, wanting his mouth and hands in places she’d never dreamed she would want to be touched and tasted before.