Knights of the Boardroom (6 page)

Well, damn. That sure hadn’t been the reaction she’d been expecting. She wasn’t sure
what
she’d expected, but she was fairly certain his simple statement was low-balling the reaction she should have gotten. A part of her felt like a sullen five-year-old who’d been spoiling for a fight and denied the privilege. Yeah, her inner kindergartener was a whiny little thing who seemed to becoming acutely aware of the fact she might not be in charge for the next month.

Cressi had been dealing with that particular
demon child
long enough to know that she could throw fits that often registered on the Richter scale despite
adult
Cressi’s
best attempts to rein her in. Sighing, she scooted forward to the front edge of the chair and nodded as she quickly signed her name. “I trust you. I wouldn’t have signed this contract if I didn’t. Words just seem to jump out of my mouth sometimes, it’s like my brain goes on break and my mouth takes advantage of the opportunity to sneak in the chance to say things it shouldn’t.”

The tension she’d felt a moment earlier seemed to slide to the back of her mind when Cressi realized this time his smile was genuine. It had been a long time since she’d trusted someone enough to take a chance and in the end, it was only a month—how difficult could it be to meet a couple of days a week with men who could show her all the ins and outs of Dominance and submission.

Cressi was self-aware enough to know there wasn’t anyway she’d ever be able to attract the attention of men like Lawton or Brodie, but at least this way she’d be guaranteed some sexual instruction for a month. Unless she didn’t live up to their expectations—that thought sent a cold chill down her spine and for just a moment she was close to panic. Would they call Tristan and complain about being assigned someone so inexperienced? How would she ever face Tristan Harris again if that happened? In one of the chat groups she’d joined, she watched a conversation play out between several submissives bragging about how their extensive sexual experience prior to visiting kink clubs had given them a huge advantage. They’d openly criticized subs with less experience who tried to compete for the favored Doms in the city’s various clubs.

Cressi had rarely participated in any of the discussion groups, preferring to simply follow the conversations hoping to pick up any small bit of information about The Knight’s Club but she hadn’t once even seen it referred to by anyone except those wishing they could score an invitation. When one of the members had accused her of lurking, Cressi had deleted her profile and been grateful she’d not only used a nondescript screen moniker, but she’d created the account under an assumed name as well. Of course no alias was one hundred percent safe from discovery, and she could only hope the men who’d tried to engage her weren’t hackers—because a couple of them seemed way too intense for her peace of mind.

Pushing the memory of her discomfort to the back of her mind, Cressi started to stand, but Tristan raised a brow and she quickly settled back onto her chair. He slid a small stack of papers across the desk to her and held his hand out taking the contract she still held. “You need to read over all of these. Read them carefully because, just as you are responsible for the content of this contract, you will also be held accountable for what’s contained in these documents as well.” He promised to answer any questions she might have and assured her he’d call her tomorrow to verify the men’s agreement. “Since this contract is only for one month, you will all need to make yourselves available to each other as much as possible. If you don’t, I’m concerned you may feel shortchanged at the end of this trial period. Ordinarily I wouldn’t even consider such restrictive time constraints because they will be far more limiting than you realize.”

Cressi wasn’t sure she understood what he meant and her expression must have told him as much. “I know you have saved for a long time for this opportunity, you had hoped to get a month long membership so that’s what I’ve offered you. Even though you aren’t actually spending the money, your mind is going to weigh the sacrifices you’ve made against your experience over the next month and I don’t want you to feel as if all the things you’ve given up were set aside in vain.”

On some levels, Cressi knew Tristan was right, but on others she wasn’t altogether sure there wasn’t an insult buried somewhere in his words. As she thought back over what he’d said, she felt herself frown. “Cressida, I assure you I have nothing but respect for you. It takes an incredible amount of courage to admit your sex life isn’t working out and it takes even more moxie to actively seek out a solution.” She tried to completely blank her facial expression, keeping it devoid of any reaction, but when he quickly cut off what he was saying, Cressi worried she hadn’t succeeded. This wasn’t a conversation she wanted to have with Tristan Harris—or anyone else for that matter. He watched her—no, he studied her with an intensity that she found quite unnerving. He finally seemed satisfied and tapped on of the two small appointment cards he’d set atop of the papers he’d placed in front of her, “Don’t miss the spa appointment I’ve made for you”

“Wait—spa appointment? When did you do that?
Why
did you do that? I can’t afford to go to a spa.”
At least not one you’d pick out. Damn, you have more money than God and I can only imagine what sort of place you’d choose. Cripes, Cressi—why don’t you just throw a conniption fit right here in the man’s office?
“I’m sorry. I know you are trying to help, but really if there is an outline of requirements in there somewhere I can just hit the drugstore and take care of everything myself.”

“Cressida, I can see you think I’m being presumptuous, but you’ve just signed a contract giving me the right to not only make the appointment, but to insist that you keep it. Until you hear otherwise, you are my responsibility and I assure you that is something I take very seriously. I know you are very competent legal aide, but if I had to make a guess, I’d say you only read the contract for legal points and not the finer points of becoming a submissive.
Those
were the implications of
care and protection
and might have been a good place to start asking questions—that’s something you should consider in the future.” There was a teasing quality to his tone and Cressi narrowed her eyes at him, but he seemed unfazed by her pique.

“I’d advise you to consider the various ways those terms are likely to be interpreted by a Dominant, because I assure you the scope of the way that goal can be achieved can be staggering. Many women discover they feel an enormous sense of security knowing their well-being is their Dom’s number one concern.”

“And others?” Cressi wanted to kick herself for asking, especially since her voice sounded breathy even to her own ears. There wasn’t any reason to give the man a legitimate reason to doubt her commitment, if there was one thing she’d learned working for Lawton and Brodie, it was they could smell fear a mile away and she assumed Tristan was just as intuitive.

He surprised her by simply shrugging, and she saw something that looked too much like sorrow and regret flash in his eyes before it was gone. The look of vulnerability had been so fleeting, she quickly convinced herself it hadn’t been there at all. “Cressida, you’re a very bright young woman, I’m sure I don’t have to tell you this lifestyle isn’t for everyone. Some women want the perks of a D/s relationship without any of the responsibilities. They want to be pampered and protected, but only on their terms—it doesn’t work that way. Anyone
pretending
to be submissive when all they really want is to be manipulative is going to be sorely disappointed.”

Tristan paused for several seconds, seeming to weigh his next words carefully. “You’re a successful, independent woman, but I’m going to encourage you to let that go during this next month and give this a chance. I believe you’ll find a tremendous amount of joy in submission if you are just brave enough to embrace it.” He paused again and then Cressi had the impression he was looking at something over her shoulder as he spoke—his words were haunting as though he was apologizing to someone she couldn’t see, “It’s important for you to remember, a good Dom will
always
keep his word—even when that means punishing you when he doesn’t want to, even when it has the potential to cost him in unimaginable ways.” Cressi could practically feel the sadness radiating from the man sitting in front of her. Evidently her first impression of that fleeting look of regret had been correct and now she wondered what ghost from his past had just waltzed through his thoughts. She wasn’t sure he had intended to speak the last part out loud, but those words had given her an unguarded glimpse into the burden Doms evidently felt at times in their relationships.

Taking a deep breath, Cressi nodded and gave him a small smile. Darned her soft heart—here she’d been all ready to battle him about the damned spa but now she felt like a heel for dredging up what was obviously a very painful memory for a man who was trying to help her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

“Stop.” His sharp command effectively halted her apology but his expression softened and it was easy to see he wasn’t angry with her. “Poppet, don’t ever apologize for being sincere. One of the most fulfilling parts of my job is watching women like yourself become more comfortable in their own skin. A big part of that is knowing you are not responsible for everything that occurs around you. Apologize only when you have done something you genuinely wish you hadn’t or something you should have known would hurt someone else. While it is true that our conversation brought back a painful memory for me, that’s my issue—not yours. You didn’t cause it, nor could you have possibly known to avoid it.”

Cressi was shocked by his candor and all she could manage was a quick nod. He smiled and she let out a breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding. She’d been reading about D/s relationships for a long time and the importance of open, honest communication was a recurring theme, and thinking back on that now, it seemed reasonable it should work both ways. But in Cressi’s experience, the more a group preached the importance of communication, the less likely they were to actually follow through.

Tristan’s voice broke through her musings, “Let’s return to the subject at hand, shall we? Now, pay close attention to
both
cards. You only need to show up at both appointments and tell the receptionists your name—everything else has been taken care of,
including the fees
.” When she started to speak she was sure she heard him growl. “The second appointment is at the medical clinic the club frequently sends prospective members to, the staff knows exactly what we’ll require of them and they will forward a copy the report to me.” Again she opened her mouth to speak and he simply raised a hand to silence her. “This is a non-negotiable rule at The Knight’s Club, Cressida. No one is accepted for membership without a clean bill of health, and members who are not in committed, exclusive relationships must submit to quarterly blood tests and have the results forwarded to the club—so you are not being singled out. Your Doms will also be getting tested and they will show you copies of those reports.”

Her head was spinning, this was far more complicated than she’d anticipated. It had obviously been very naïve of her to assume she’d simply get some sort of card she would present at the door. Cressi had envisioned herself wearing something skimpy but not too revealing and meandering around the club’s main room to check out the action. When she looked down at the cards and noted the times, she flinched, “I can’t go to these appointments—they’re during work hours. I—well, I can’t ask my bosses to let me off work for this, it wouldn’t be fair to them.” There wasn’t any way she would admit to this man that two of his best friends were the only Doms she was interested in working with. Just thinking about admitting her lack of sexual experience to Law or Brodie almost sent her running back to D.C. where she could spend years hiding from her desires and become the spinster her father had predicted she’d become.

Admit it, the only reason you agreed to this arrangement is because you want them to be impressed with what a wonderful sub you are and claim you for their own.
Sure it was a grown up version of a childish dream tantamount to princes riding in on white steeds to rescue the fair maiden…but it was the truth nonetheless. Good Lord, even thinking about it sounded corny, she couldn’t even imagine how awful it would sound if she was forced to voice it to a man as cultured as Tristan Harris. Right now her focus needed to remain on exploring her own desires—there was no reason to dream about an outcome so remote it was almost laughable. But Cressi
was
holding out hope that she would finally know one way or another if the reality of a D/s relationship was as hot as her fantasies.

Lawton stared utterly speechless at the email he’d just received. Tristan had forwarded a copy of Cressida’s medical report, and after all the usual statements verifying she was clean and protected from pregnancy, the physician who’d examined her had made a handwritten notation Law wouldn’t have believed if he didn’t know Dr. Phillips personally. The Domme knew the importance of the information she’d uncovered during her interview with Cressida so she’d made a cryptic note requesting Tristan pass it along. His friend had highlighted the note and written “If you two want out of this I can find someone else.”
What the hell?

He’d no sooner picked up the phone to call Brodie when the door of his office burst open and the man he’d been ready to call stormed in. “Did you see this?” Brodie was waving a crumbled up piece of paper, his eyes wide with the same disbelief Law was feeling, but there was also something else in his friend’s expression. “I can’t fucking believe it. How does a woman as amazing as Cressida Walker manage to stay a virgin this long? This just proves what I’ve been telling you for years—Washington D.C. is full of idiots, although I will admit, even I have underestimated their capacity for stupidity. Hell, I thought there was a lot more sucking and fucking going on down there than this indicates, who knew? After all, we are the only country I know of who brought impeachment proceedings against their leader for a blowjob.” Law watched as Brodie continued pacing and waving the crinkled paper in his hand, “And what the fuck is Tristan thinking? I’m telling you—the man has a royal scepter up his ass sometimes.
Pun intended.
I’m starting to wonder if he isn’t losing all the American crass we’ve spent years pounding in to him.”