Part 1 (1/2)

Bound to be Tested.

Becca Jameson.

The whip never leaves a mark. Love...that's another story.

Emergence, Book 3.

Lori Polluck has reshaped her kink from bottom to top.

In the two years since her Dom disappeared without a trace, she's transformed herself from perfect submissive to successful Domme. Her relations.h.i.+p with her submissive, Margaret, is...comfortable. Life is good. Until her past strides into Emergence, commandeers her scene, and turns her heart inside out.

Jude Cavanaugh can't change his past, but he can definitely take charge of his future.

A mission he can never reveal took him away from Lori, he thought for good. But a twist of fate has brought him back to his life, his town, his club. He plans to reclaim it all-including his woman. Sure, she's with someone else. Sure, she's switched in every possible way. But the instant they touch, it's clear Lori is still his to control. And she doesn't like it one d.a.m.ned bit.

The road ahead will be rocky. Especially since Lori will just have to take it on faith that he won't skip out again. But when nightmares turn real, they'll both need to show ultimate trust to survive.

Warning: This book contains intense bondage scenes. Man on woman as well as woman on woman action will t.i.tillate the mind. Be prepared for public nudity, vibrators, a seriously huge d.i.l.d.o, restraints, a ring gag, spreader bars, lube action, and a steaming-hot wax scene...

Dedication.

Special thanks to my editor, Christa, for all her help on this project! It wouldn't have come together so smoothly without you! Especially the lube...and the wax...

Chapter One.

”Kneel here, pet.” Lori stopped in the center of the mat and tugged the leash in her hand.

Margaret flinched subtly as she did her Domme's bidding. Only Lori would notice. Margaret was an amazing submissive, rarely balking at anything. She could perform most tasks perfectly without reprimand.

But this was new territory tonight. Lori had intentionally not mentioned a word about the scene they would be enacting for anyone who wanted to watch at Emergence.

”Keep your head down.” Lori tapped Margaret's neck and circled her sub, inspecting her from every angle.

Margaret's hair fell forward, curtaining her face.

”Sit up straighter. Shoulders back. Don't worry about everyone else. Focus on pleasing me.” She leaned in toward Margaret's ear. ”I'm the only one who matters in this room.”

”Yes, Mistress,” Margaret whispered. She kneeled in the position she'd been taught, knees spread, chin down, hands clasping her wrists behind her back.

”What's your safe word?”

”Snake.”

Lori smiled. Margaret hated snakes. It was the perfect word for anything unpleasant. Though Lori hoped she knew her sub well enough never to hear that word uttered from her lips in fear. They'd been together for over a year. Never had Margaret had to safe out.

Lori took a moment to admire Margaret's beauty. She knew others agreed the woman was stunning. Margaret was model perfect. Tall and slender with glorious, thick black hair that hung in waves down her back. Her alabaster skin was flawless. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s weren't large, but full enough for a woman of her frame. In this position they stood pert, her nipples high and pebbled. She could have been chilled from her nudity, but Lori knew better.

Lori watched Margaret breathe. She waited for her nerves to calm as her breaths became shallow and her chest rose less frequently.

People gathered. That had been the goal. It was Friday night, late. Maybe even the early hours of Sat.u.r.day by now. The time didn't matter to Lori.

She circled again, slower, knowing how Margaret would react each time Lori pa.s.sed by her gaze wearing her favorite tall black leather boots. The heels were high, but they didn't make a sound with her steps across the mat.

Lori paused behind Margaret. She'd planned this for two weeks. A public s.h.i.+bari scene. The six-foot-square, black mat had been laid in the center of the floor, directly beneath a system of hooks and pulleys hanging from the ceiling.

It wasn't uncommon for someone to reserve the spot for a scene. Margaret had witnessed others in this predicament before. Nevertheless, Lori's sub would be a ball of nerves wondering what Lori had planned.

Lori stepped close to Margaret's back, straddling her spread legs. She grasped Margaret's hair and tugged her head backward until Margaret faced the ceiling, her long neck exposed.

Margaret's mouth opened, but she didn't speak. Instead she closed her lips tight, her eyes wide.

Lori divided her hair into three sections and braided it in a long line down her back. She loved handling the woman's gorgeous locks, so unlike her own red curls. ”I want to be able to see your face, pet.” She let that last word drag out. She only used it when her sub was collared, like this evening. It put Margaret in her place and reminded her who was in charge.

When Lori finished, wrapping a band around the ends of Margaret's hair, she nudged her head back toward the mat.

The room was intentionally cool, and when Lori topped, she appreciated the movement of air. No matter what the temperature was outside, Emergence was never too warm inside. Lori stepped over Margaret's spread legs and came back to the front, watching the goose b.u.mps rise on Margaret's skin as a vent overhead came to life. The pink disks of her nipples pebbled harder and Lori couldn't resist pinching them both at once.

Margaret swayed forward but didn't break her position. The woman had the most sensitive nipples of anyone Lori knew. Just a flick could make her moan and squirm. It amazed Lori how well she handled the treatment under the current circ.u.mstances.

Lori leaned down, bending at the waist, and took one pink tip into her mouth, laving it first with her tongue and then biting firmly.

A soft moan escaped Margaret's lips, probably not loud enough for any ears except Lori's.

She left the other nipple alone, knowing how frustrating that would be for her pet. Popping free of the disk, she left it wet and stepped away.

Timing was the most important factor in this scene. Too much time spent tormenting her submissive would not keep Margaret on the edge of need. Too little and the woman would come faster than Lori intended.

And o.r.g.a.s.m was a.s.suredly the goal tonight. Margaret was a s.e.xual being. She could tolerate a lot of things, including a certain degree of pain, but in the end the woman needed release.

As she headed toward her bag of toys, Lori adjusted the front of her bustier. It extended just over her nipples. She wasn't the one on display this evening, but she loved how the tight leather made her feel. The matching skirt barely covered her a.s.s, and she glanced down to ensure it hadn't twisted. It was her confident outfit. And one thing she could use this evening was confidence.

Margaret might have been biting her cheek in suspense, but it was Lori who was faced with the task of making sure her sub both loved the scene and came screaming in the end.

Lori grabbed the soft black rope from her bag and sauntered toward her subject. Margaret was about to become a piece of art.

They'd experimented with s.h.i.+bari at home but never at the club. Unbeknownst to Margaret, Lori had borrowed another sub to practice on earlier in the week. It had taken Lori over an hour to get the knots the way she wanted them.

Lori approached Margaret from the front, holding the long length of rope in loops as though she were going to la.s.so someone. She lifted it to her pet's nose. ”Remember this?”

Margaret inhaled deeply. ”Yes, Mistress.”

”I'm going to tie you now. I expect you to follow my instructions. Understood?”

”Yes, Mistress.” Her voice was barely a whisper. She glanced from side to side, a subtle tip of her head.