The Men with the Golden Cuffs (Masters and Mercenaries #2)(49)

It wasn’t a theory he wanted to think about, but Liam made some sense. “I’ll take that into account. You playing tonight?”

“I was, but then I got depressed. It hurts watching Alex and Eve. I didn’t make it through the whole scene. It’s going on right now.” Liam sighed and stretched. “I feel for the poor bastard. Six years and she’s still punishing him. I don’t think she’s ever going to forgive him for whatever the hell he did to her. And she sure as hell ain’t close to forgiving herself.”

“Shit. Is Serena watching it?” Sometimes Eve and Alex’s scenes could get very rough. Eve usually ended up sobbing, and Alex got close to it. And yet they held on to the ritual as though it was the only thing that connected them anymore. It wasn’t what he would have wanted Serena to see.

“Yes, she’s there, but from what I saw it was quite tender tonight. I think she thought it was lovely.” Liam’s mouth turned down, and his eyes found the floor. “It won’t scare her away, if that’s what you’re worried about. I just know that look in Alex’s eyes. He’s hurting, and it throws me off me game. I wish you buggers would stop the whole relationship thing. It’s depressing to a man. I’m going to end up with Ian as my wingman. He’s a terrible wingman. Half the time he scares the women away.”

Adam snorted. Yeah, he didn’t see Ian helping Liam pick up chicks any time soon. “Well, if you don’t have anything to do, you could always help me analyze the tapes from the CCTV cameras.”

Liam’s eyes narrowed. “What are the CC’s attached to? A women’s gym? Inside a strip club?”

“Library in the suburbs.” Adam didn’t hold much hope that Liam was going to hang around.

“I’m gone.” Liam was out the door before Adam could call him an *.

He turned back to his work. Two people. Fuck. Serena seemed to attract ménages wherever she went.





Serena watched as Alex helped Eve off the St. Andrew’s cross, tucking her beautiful body into a plush white robe that covered the delicate lashes across her back. The new ones, that was. Eve’s back was a mess of scars, some old and white and ragged, and some almost surgical in their precision. She had to wonder if Alex had given her all of them. When the scene had begun, she’d stared at Alex, wondering what kind of a man he was.

“Don’t look at Alex that way. He didn’t leave those marks on her,” Jake had whispered when she’d gasped as Eve had fully disrobed. “And any he gives her today will be faded by tomorrow. Don’t judge until you’ve watched them, Serena.”

And then the scene had started, and Serena understood what he’d meant. Alex was careful, so careful with her. He was a master with the whip. It was a four-foot singletail. He’d snapped the whip a couple of times before he’d started. The snick of the whip had cracked through the air, but when the whip had flicked against Eve’s skin, it had barely left a mark. Alex had stopped every ten strokes and requested an update on where she was. Eve would answer that she was green, meaning she was happy and ready for more. She’d been perfectly calm, her face peaceful with only the occasional grimace. Tears had finally started as she’d taken the fortieth lash, and she’d been crying openly at fifty, but she’d still told him green when Alex had asked.

“Will he give her aftercare now?” Serena asked. Eve shivered in her robe and seemed to be looking for someone. She moved away from the Dom.

Aftercare, she’d researched, was what lifestylers called the time after a scene, when the Dom took care of the sub’s needs. It could be anything from cuddling to first aid. It was a time for the Dom and the sub to come out of their “spaces” and get back to reality, like coming down from a high.

“One of the other subs will make sure her welts are properly tended,” Jake said with a serious expression on his face. “Eve won’t let Alex perform her aftercare.”

But he wanted to hold her. That much was clear. The big Dom’s eyes were sad as Eve was led off by a sweet-faced sub. Eve was still crying, seemingly lost in her own world, and Serena suddenly understood.

“It’s the only way she can cry, isn’t it?” Serena asked, wondering what had happened that would put Eve in this position.

Jake frowned, watching as Alex coiled his whip and put it away. “She doesn’t talk about it, but she had a case go bad. She was FBI and something happened. She won’t talk about the scars around her neck, either. She and Alex had divorced years before, and he’d started working with Ian. Alex brought her on. When she first came here, she was so cold. Then she started doing this, and she got somewhat better. But I don’t want to talk about them tonight.”

“Should we find another scene?” Serena asked, looking around. There was so much she wanted to see. She wanted to watch a fire play scene. She’d read a book by Cherise Sinclair with a fire play scene, and it had sparked her imagination. And puppy play. She really wanted to see that. She wasn’t sure how she could make that sexy, but she was willing to watch.

Jake didn’t move from his place, merely stood staring down at her. “The scenes can wait. I believe I still owe you a little discipline. Spanking chair or my lap?”

“What?” She swallowed. She should have known he wouldn’t forget, but she’d kind of hoped. Her eyes caught on a scene playing out in a corner. She had to stop and stare. Ian Taggart had one of the subs trussed up, and he was showing her the biggest dildo Serena had ever seen. It had to be bigger around than her wrist, and it might have been almost a foot long. “Holy crap. Is that an elephant penis?”