Lyon on a Leash (2 page)

She’d called and given the auction organizers in New York a heads-up over the cancelled flight. She hated missing the opening socials. It would have been great to start the interview process early. At least they expected her today. Madame Chertier, the host sponsor, had been very sympathetic and understanding. Of course, no one uttered the word refund. Not that Vera wanted a refund. No, what she wanted was to choose between the two men who’d captured her attention in the auction program and bring him home. She just had to get there and claim him before someone else did.

“Welcome aboard.” The flight attendant interrupted her musings as Vera stowed her carry-on luggage in a first-class cubby.

“Thanks.” Vera nodded as she slid into her seat next to the window. Pushing strands of hair behind her ear, she exhaled. It took a few moments for her racing heart to settle. She suspected most of her anxiety was over spending the next five days in New York with her new submissive rather than the strenuous trek across the airport.

A man living in her home was going to be a huge step for her. It had taken months of reflection and breaking down inner walls to accept that she was okay with someone else living in her space. Since graduating from college, she’d lived alone and enjoyed the solitude. Lately, the quiet had grown too loud. She’d grown bored of her own company, a first for her. Therein lay the kernel for the decision to shake up her life, to make changes.

To get a man.

Plus, there was the added benefit of thwarting her boss, Gerard Brinks, one of the senior partners of the law firm. With a man on her arm, perhaps he’d back off and find someone else to aggravate. A heavy weight eased from her shoulders at that prospect.

“Can I get you something to drink?”

Vera glanced at the flight attendant’s bare hands and shook her head. “No. No thank you.” She tried to offer a smile but it was strangled in disappointment. Exhaling, she thought of the sandwich she had made that morning and hoped it would be enough to hold her during the two-plus-hour flight. Settling back, she closed her eyes and awaited take-off.

Once the free-to-move-about the cabin announcement went off, she searched through her briefcase, and realized she’d left the auction program behind. Disappointed she couldn’t read either man’s profile for the fiftieth time, she slouched in her seat and tried to recall everything about both men.

She tapped her foot to the soothing jazz on her iPod, blocking out all the sounds from the verbose man sitting next to her as he talked to someone across the aisle. Thoughts of how nice it would be sharing meals at dinner, working out together, hearing another voice, or just having another person around to ease the stifling silence, filled her. The mental visuals buoyed her spirits. It had taken thirty years, but she was now prepared to enter the next phase of her life’s journey and share it with someone. Her career was secure. She had just purchased and furnished a large home in a golf community, her bills were manageable, and her retirement plans were in place. Emotionally, she could afford a serious relationship.

Not long after takeoff, the flight attendant appeared and leaned down, her voice low. “For lunch we’re serving Caesar salads with cold grilled seasoned salmon or a hot dish of grilled chicken Alfredo.” She looked at the man seated next to Vera. “What would you like, sir?”

Vera’s stomach growled. Salmon was one of her favorites.

“Can I see them?” the man asked.

The flight attendant’s smile slipped a little, but she nodded and turned toward the front. Vera was happy he’d asked. At least this way she could see how the food was handled, since the attendant didn’t wear food serving gloves. It was a quirk, a phobia of hers. She simply could not eat from strangers who didn’t wear protective gear. Perhaps it was an echo from her Nana telling not to take things from folks she didn’t know. Maybe it had come from something else. Regardless of the origins of her peculiarity, it was her reality. It was damned inconvenient at times, like now. She wanted that salmon.

The attendant returned with both dishes wrapped in plastic on a small tray. Extending her arm, she allowed them both to look at the meals.

“I’ll take the chicken,” the man said.

Unplugging one ear, Vera smiled at the woman. “I’ll have the salad. Would you bring it still wrapped in plastic, please?”

The flight attendant started and then blinked at her. “Uh…yes. No problem. Anything else?”

“A bottle of water if you have it, otherwise, a can of unopened seltzer water,” Vera said smoothly, ignoring the wide-eye stare of the man next to her.

“Okay,” the flight attendant said slowly. She glanced at the man sitting next to Vera.

He threw up his hands. “Oh, I’m good.” Then he picked up his glass from the first round of drinks. “Just one more of these and I’m good to go.” The attendant smiled and walked off to take more orders.

Warmth crawled up Vera’s face. Without fanfare, she replaced the plug in her ear, closing out the outside chatter.

The flight landed smoothly at JFK and a car was waiting for her. Unfortunately, her luggage was not. Vibrating with anger because of the additional delay, Vera waited in line to give her hotel information to the clerk so they could forward her suitcase as soon as it landed.

The limo driver hovered nearby, holding on to her carry-on and briefcase.

“On behalf of our airline, I apologize for this inconvenience.” The clerk’s tie was skewed and his face still bore traces of red from the tongue lashings he had been receiving from previous passengers.

The half-hearted smile he gave her telegraphed a plea to take it easy on him. A wave of empathy rolled over her. She couldn’t help but think he was on the verge of going postal. It was clear he expected her to be loud and coarse as the couple who’d just cussed him out over something he had nothing to do with. The next person who decided to berate his intelligence for working for such a sorry company would no doubt feel his wrath.

She refused to be that person.

Instead she smiled and looked at his name tag. “Thank you, Mr. Jacobs.” She took the ticket he gave her and wrote down her information. With a smile, she handed it back to him before striding toward the driver.

“To your hotel, ma’am?”

Vera glanced at her watch. Damn, the auction would be starting soon. The need to see the men in the flesh drove her decision. She had waited long enough, had thought of them long enough. It was time to meet them and make a choice. She refused to entertain the idea that they might no longer be available. For her peace of mind, they had to be.

“No. I’m late for my appointment.” She showed him the front of the invitation, which had the address imprinted in red.

He nodded, opened the door, and waited until she slid in the back seat. Once the door closed, Vera’s head hit the back of the buttery-soft leather seat. Her eyelids lowered shut as she inhaled and swallowed hard.

“Well, I’m here.” She pulled out her phone. Strange that at this point in her life, there were only two people, Marguerite, her mentor, and Amy, her secretary, who merited a phone call regarding her safe arrival.

Marguerite answered on the first ring. “You in New York yet?” Her Southern accent was more pronounced, which meant she was anxious.

“Yes, ma’am. Flight was late and they lost my luggage but I’m headed to Park Avenue now. I just hope I’m not too late. You know there were only two and a possible who might meet my needs.”

“You’re cutting it close. Good thing you already know who you want to bid on. Right now, they’re still socializing, checking out the merchandise, so to speak. Even though they started this party last night, the bidding will be starting soon.”

Vera’s stomach tensed. “I hope so.” She released a sigh as the driver navigated the heavy traffic. Without looking down, she pulled the single sheet of paper from her coat pocket where she’d stuffed it that morning. It was another rejection slip from another agent, the fifth this month. Her heart sank. So far her quest to write the next blockbuster had been derailed by a lot of “not interesteds”. This rejection was from an agent she had met at a small writing conference. The woman had seemed impressed with her pitch. With a long sigh, she crumpled the paper in her fist and re-stuffed it in her pocket.

“Are you scared? Nervous?” Marguerite asked, a discernible edge to her voice.

Ignoring her mentor’s tone, she responded. “Hmmm, scared? Not really. Nervous? Yeah. But not of meeting these guys. The program packet gave so much information, I feel like I know them already. I’m more concerned about the after. After I win him and we talk. I’ve never been in a D/s relationship, per se, and I don’t want to mess this up.”

“Then why now? Those guys paid to be involved in this auction. They’re looking for Dommes to serve. Why not meet someone in Atlanta through a munch or something, and build from that?”

Vera closed her eyes. They’d had this discussion a few times before.
This is my script for my life. I make my own decisions
. She rehearsed those lines a couple more times before speaking. “I don’t want to deal with anyone local, I told you that. Last time, Brinks buddied up to Greg, the guy I dated for a few months, a few weeks later he stopped calling and wouldn’t tell me why. I’m not going through that again. Plus, I need someone who understands the lifestyle and wants this as much as I do. I don’t have time to teach what a twenty-four-seven connection is. The men I’ve chosen have experience in long-term relationships.”

“Well, since
you
don’t have any experience, it’s a good idea to bid on a man who does. Otherwise, you know what happens when the blind lead the blind.”

Vera snorted. “Fell into a ditch. Got it. But I do have some experience. I’m not coming into this cold. You taught me yourself and from everything I’ve heard you’re the best in the business.” The tone of this conversation had to change. It needed to become more positive or she’d be in a funk before she arrived at the auction.

“True, but that was professional services. Being a part-time Dominatrix in college and law school doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be a good Domme to a sub.”

Vera sucked in a breath, unable to respond. It wasn’t as if those doubts didn’t plague her daily, but she didn’t need to hear it right before she made such an important decision. Marguerite needed to work on her timing.

“But I have confidence that you’ll be fine. You’ll learn as you go along, like anything else. Like you said, you’re not coming into this cold. You already understand that although some men prefer a female-lead relationship that makes them no less a man. That’s half the battle right there.” She paused. “There’s going to be a lot of eye candy, so don’t get distracted.”

Grabbing the positive note, Vera shook off the gloom of her possible failure as a Mistress, and chuckled. “Look who’s talking. All of your men are eye candy.”

“Yes, among other things, but that’s what I wanted. That’s not the case with you. You need a specific type of man. He’s there. Stay focused and don’t let anyone talk you out of him. There may be some barracudas in that bunch. Just remember to put them in their place and they’ll respect you.”

Vera chuckled again. Marguerite couldn’t make up her mind. One minute she was against Vera using the auction to find her man, the next she was handing out tips on how to work the thing. “Yes, Mama Bear. I have no problems digging into my bag of ‘say-what?’ tricks to set the record straight. I hope it doesn’t come to that. I’m tired. I need to get some rest soon.” She rubbed the back of her neck and twisted it from side to side.

“Tough flight?”

Vera thought of the flight attendant’s condescending attitude when she’d served Vera’s plastic-wrapped salad and unopened bottle of water, and chuckled. “Not really. Just ready to get past this part. I want to secure my submissive and get settled. I have to spend at least three days here, four max, going through Madame Chertier’s getting-better-acquainted deal—”

“Ooh, great. That’s important. It’s a crash counseling deal where you’ll learn more about the fella and he’ll learn about you. There’s some dungeon time, but most importantly, it throws the two of you together in a way you won’t be able to do at home. Don’t discount this time together, Vera. It’ll start the relationship on the best foot. I did it with Reeves and James, and we’re still together today, still solid.”

“I got that. That’s why I paid for the extra service. But I want to get started on my manuscript and with everything going on, I don’t think I can focus here.”

“Oh, stop being a pussy. You can focus there as well as anywhere. You’re nervous, that’s all. I wish I could be there with you, but Drina’s baby is due any day.”

Vera pressed her lips tightly together as she silently counted to ten. As much as she loved Marguerite, the woman had tunnel vision. For some reason she thought that the only point of view was her own and that got old real fast. But before the dust settled on this book called her life, Vera was determined to write and publish a novel.

Semi-relaxed, she ignored the comment regarding her manuscript and responded to the tail end of the sentence. “No, no I understand. You have to be there for the birth of the twins. Drina would kill me if I even acted like I wanted to bring you here.” More importantly, this was something Vera needed to do on her own.

Marguerite laughed. It was a light, tinkling sound that had lured many steely eyed men to their knees over the years.