Game On (The Morgan Brothers Book 4) (6 page)

“What’s wrong with my list?” Again, she’d read the situation without him specifically stating he had an issue with what she’d submitted as a part of her application.

“Let’s sit down. I want to make sure your experience here is everything you need it to be. But even more than that, I want to make sure you’re safe. And to be perfectly honest, you wouldn’t be safe with the list you submitted.” For the first time, Nate saw a crack in her resolve.
That’s right, love. There are Doms in this club who would eat you alive.

Jax looked over
to where Kent and Kyle sat watching the large screen and shook his head. Hitting the mute button on the console, he voiced what he suspected was also going through his friends’ minds. “How did we not see this coming? Christ, you gave her a five-year membership to Prairie Winds, but she’s never actually played.” The frown on Kyle’s face told him they were in agreement—they’d all three dropped the ball where Aspen was concerned.

Kent’s growl had both Jax and Kyle turning his way. “I should have known—of the three of us, I’m closest to her. Hell, I’d kick one of our member’s ass if they failed a sub like this.”

“So you’re supposed to be the
be all and know all
for every submissive you come into contact with?” Tobi’s voice from behind them surprised all three men.
Damn it, why didn’t I lock the fucking door? I should have known her inner radar would zero in on something it shouldn’t be aware of. I swear the woman is a damned trouble magnet.

“Kitten, you aren’t supposed to be in here.” Kyle’s voice was the usual mix of affection and annoyance Jax often noticed whenever he dealt with Tobi. The West brothers’ wife wasn’t at all what any of their friends had expected for the two Doms, but she had enchanted them from the moment they met her.

“I’m hungry, and there’s no real food in the house…only ingredients.” Jax coughed to cover his chuckle, but he hadn’t fooled her. She shot him a quick glare before returning her attention to her husbands. “Millie took the kids to play group, and I’m not allowed to cook. I’ll starve before she gets back.” Jax was fighting back his laughter as her voice sounded more and more desperate. No one would describe Tobi West as incompetent in any way—except cooking. And where all things culinary were concerned, the little menace was downright dangerous.

Kent was on his feet in a heartbeat, and Jax didn’t miss the knowing look he gave his brother. Jax knew his friends were convinced their wife was pregnant despite her insistence to the contrary. Personally, he thought the brothers were probably right, and Tobi was simply still in denial. During her first pregnancy, Kent and Kyle had practically smothered her, and Jax knew she wasn’t anxious to repeat the restrictions they’d imposed the first time around.

“Come on, sweetness. I’ll help you find something to eat. How about a nice bowl of fruit and tuna salad wrap?”
Geez, Kent, lay it on a little thicker with the healthy choices why don’t you?
Tobi’s groan was exactly what Jax expected, she wasn’t going to be easily appeased by Kent’s suggestions.

As soon as they’d stepped from the room, Jax looked at Kyle. “How long are you going to let her deny what is obvious to everyone?”

Kyle grinned even as he turned his attention back to the screen in front of him. “Kirk will be here later this afternoon. And if she doesn’t want to cooperate, we’ll bring in Brian.” Kirk Evans and Brian Bennett were both obstetricians—they were also club members. The two men were married to the Prairie Winds office administrator. They’d been the only men who’d ever captured Regi’s interest, but she’d fought the attraction for months before finally realizing how perfect they were for her. Kirk had a much softer approach which made him perfect for the first pitch with Tobi.

“So have the guys started a pool yet?” The men on the Wests’ covert ops team usually had at least one pool going with regards to Tobi. The bets ranged from how long until her next spanking to her delivery date for the twins, and this wasn’t something they’d let go by without some serious cash changing hands.

It took Kyle a few minutes to answer as he tried to focus on Aspen’s answers to Nate’s questions about limits, but he finally returned is attention to Jax. “Of course there’s a pool. Hell, my guess is there’s more than one. The local charities love us.” A large percentage of the winner’s
profits
went to their charity of choice. Those cash donations went a long way to endear the club to the locals.

Jax grinned. “I’ll check and see if there are any good slots left. My favorite group needs new playground equipment.”

Kyle rolled his eyes and laughed. “And we all know you will buy it for them even if you don’t win.” True enough, but it was still damned fun to win.

P
hoenix leaned forward,
riveted to the large window in front of him as he listened to Aspen explain why her hard limit list was practically nonexistent. Jesus, Joseph, and Mary, the woman was either far too naïve or dangerously reckless, and he wasn’t sure which. Either way, she needed guidance—a lot of damned guidance in his opinion. Aspen was a unique contrast between intuitive and inexperience she fascinated him.

“It’s a good thing there are two of us. Jesus, Joseph, and sweet Mother Mary, she’s too fucking brave for her own good.”

Phoenix nodded as he spoke, “You read my mind. Hell, I hope Nate and Taz drop a net over her until this plan comes together. If they turn her loose in the club, it’ll be a feeding frenzy.” He didn’t intend to let that happen. There would be no unsupervised play for this little submissive whether she accepted them as her Masters or not.

“I suspect a guided tour of the lower dungeon will add to her hard limits in a big hurry. Seriously, she left on everything but any play involving blood? The damned woman is a tragedy waiting to happen. She needs a paddling that will serve as a reminder of her foolishness for several days.” Mitch had been more understanding until he’d seen her confusion when Nate questioned her list. Phoenix agreed with Mitch’s assessment—lighting up her beautiful ass would go a long way toward teaching her how serious they were about her safety. Hell, he thought his brothers’ women were too cavalier about their safety, but they didn’t hold a candle to the one he intended to claim.

“The tour is a great idea, but I’ve got a feeling the spanking might not turn out to be that much of a punishment.” If he was honest, he wasn’t sure there would be much aside from orgasm denial they’d be able to use as a punishment. “According to the Wests, she negotiated a five-year membership to the club, but she hasn’t ever actually played there. I can’t find any record of her at any other club, but she could have easily used another name.” Or gone to one of the seedier clubs where names weren’t an issue as long as you walked in with cash in your hand. Christ, just thinking about her in one of those clubs made his blood boil.

“Nate doesn’t seem to be making much progress on the limits list. She’s stubborn and too damned smart for her own good.” Phoenix nodded in agreement but didn’t comment. He’d seen how tenacious she could be. During the past year, they’d communicated almost daily, and he’d been convinced he knew Athena inside and out. But now, watching the woman who’d played that role to perfection as she answered intimate questions about her sexual preferences, Phoenix wondered how different his gaming nemesis was from the woman who’d just admitted to being a bit of an exhibitionist.

Mitch groaned. “Christ, it’s killing me to listen to this. I want to drag her out of that damned office, tie her up in the play room and sink as deep as I can get into her heat. My brain is trying to listen, but my dick is shouting too loud for me to hear.”

Yes, indeed. That was a plan Phoenix could definitely get behind. He hadn’t been able to concentrate since she stepped out of her car in the parking lot. There had been a part of him that wasn’t sure she’d actually show up, even as he’d tracked her through town using her cellphone location.
Why the hell hasn’t Uncle Sam given her a secure device?
When they made her theirs, it was something they would change immediately.

“Everything’s in place for tomorrow night. As long as this interview doesn’t tank, we’re good to go.” Phoenix could hardly wait for the scene they’d set up. The entire evening would be a reenactment of the fantasy she’d written—or at least as close as they could make it without tapping into the local theatre department for sets and costumes.
Oh yeah, I can just imagine how that particular conversation would play out.
“I’m anxious to see which one of them show up.” Phoenix nodded toward the small camera set up beside them. The video and audio feeds for the men at Prairie Winds were feeding directly to their control center outside Austin. They could talk to them via a separate audio link, but they’d muted the feed when Tobi walked in the room.

“I’d put my money on Jax. I can’t see Kent or Kyle leaving Tobi if they think she’s pregnant.” When Phoenix raised a brow in question, Mitch grinned. “One of the guys on the team called me about the pool they’ve set up.” His shrug made Phoenix laugh. “Hey, don’t knock it. I actually got a couple of great dates and times; and the after school program I sponsor needs new basketball goals.”

“When I was there I heard about the betting pools.” Phoenix laughed. “Sounds like the local charities love it. Maybe we can get Nate to set up something like that here. There are a lot of worthy organizations in the area.”

Once Nate wrapped up the discussion about the limits list, Phoenix watched him lean back in his chair as he studied Aspen. Nate intimidated most submissives; they found his careful consideration unnerving. But Aspen’s years in the military had obviously exposed her to plenty of Alpha males because so far she hadn’t appeared nervous in his presence.
It will be interesting to see if she is able to remain this distant when Mitch and I are involved.

Aspen had never
been so nervous in her entire life. Even the first few times she’d dodged surface to air fire, she hadn’t been this apprehensive. Of course, she’d spent hundreds of hours in flight simulators training for those circumstances, and she was fairly certain that wasn’t an option for this interview. Yeah, she could just picture how that particular simulator might work, asking all sorts of intimate questions…holy hell.

Nate Ledek now knew more about her sex life than her gynecologist.
Yeah and he’ll likely be seeing more of your pink bits than your doc, too.
Damn, she’d like to smack her inner diva sometimes, the wench had a smart mouth and was as disrespectful as they came. And she liked to highjack Aspen’s mouth every now and then, causing far more trouble than she was worth.

“I’d love to be able to listen in on those conversations you have with yourself. I suspect that is something your Masters will address in short order.” Nate’s voice was pitched lower, and there was something in the tone that brought her back to the moment in short order. She felt as if she’d been yanked back to the present and it took a minute to reorient herself to their conversation.

“Masters? As in more than one?” She hoped her voice hadn’t given her away, but judging from the sly smile on his face it was probably safe to assume it had. After seeing so many of her friends in polyamorous relationships, she’d stopped wondering how she would ever be able to choose between the two men she’d secretly claimed as her own, and started wondering what it would be like to be between them.

Nate didn’t answer, but his slow nod told her everything she needed to know. For a split second, she allowed herself to imagine Phoenix Morgan and Mitch Ames sitting on the other side of the glass. But she quickly pushed the thought aside. They didn’t even know who she was, so why would they be there? Unless they were looking for a woman to share and her namesake had decided to intervene. After all, Athena was the goddess of war and strategy. Laughing at her own nonsense, Aspen refocused on the conversation with Nate.