Defending it All: Dark Romantic Suspense (Punishment Pit Book 5) Read online

  Her pupils flared but her words were submissive. “Yes, sir. Never again.”

  “Would you like to know what happens if it does?”

  Her smile was naughty. “I’d rather skip to the post-punishment make-up session, if you don’t mind.”

  He felt the blood rushing from his brain to his growing cock. “That can be arranged, Miss O’Sullivan.”

  Chapter Two

  Brianna

  “Good morning, ladies. The usual?” Their Monday morning waitress was already pouring their coffee.

  Brianna was busy downing her large ice water and heard Tiffany answer for them. “You know it. Thanks, Shirley.”

  Her thirst quenched, Brianna was finally ready to talk. “At least you didn’t embarrass me in class this morning, Tiff.”

  Her best friend’s grin hinted at the fun topics the women were about to discuss. Brianna had always treasured these breakfasts with her best friend, but those in these last few weeks, since their lives had been turned upside down by the men in their lives, had proven to be particularly enlightening. Bri couldn’t wait to hear all of the highlights from Tiffany’s weekend at Master Lukus’s.

  “Yeah, well, I’m not nearly as exhausted this week as I have been the last few Mondays.”

  “Well, damn. That’s disappointing. I was looking forward to all of the juicy details of your weekend with that sex god you call a boyfriend.”

  “Oh, I have details. I’m just not so sure I’m gonna share them. They’re, well, juicy.”

  Even after having lived with her for years, Bri was surprised Tiffany blushed at the thought of the intimate things she was experiencing with Lukus. “Fine,” she said. “I have a few juicy details of my own. You’ll never guess what Markus surprised me with when we got home from having brunch with my parents yesterday afternoon.”

  “Let me guess. More jewelry. I think that man loves to give you jewelry more than you like to receive it.”

  Brianna chuckled. “Not this time. Better.”

  “Better? Than diamonds?”

  “It’s more like wood and leather.” Brianna could feel the heat rushing to her face as she remembered how she’d spent much of last evening.

  Tiff’s eyes were twinkling. “He got a few new punishment instruments for his pain-slut of a wife? Only you would think punishment devices are a better gift than diamonds. That’s just plain wrong.”

  “Don’t you dare tell me you don’t get juiced up at the thought of Lukus smacking your ass with a heavy wooden paddle.” Bri didn’t wait for an answer. She knew Tiff too well. “Anyway, it was way more than just punishment devices.”

  She caught Tiffany wiggling in her seat to get comfortable and wondered if she had a sore bottom like Brianna had. Tiff pushed for answers. “I’ll bite. What did he buy you made of wood and leather if not something to punish you?”

  “How about an entire room devoted to punishing me? He hired a contractor to turn some of our basement into a real dungeon. I’m not sure how to feel about the fact that we now have a real stockade, St. Andrew’s Cross, and even a particularly evil-looking spanking bench just a story below our kitchen island. He went all out. The whole room feels like a real dungeon. There are scary punishment devices hanging all along the walls and laid out on a table in the corner. We spent two hours in there yesterday, and I still don’t think he showed me everything.”

  Brianna could feel the involuntary contracting of her vagina, remnants of her husband’s hard fucking still making her pussy lips tender. Her snug sports bra reminded her it was her nipples that took the brunt of his attention last night.

  Tiffany was pensive. “That’s so cool you guys have a dungeon at your house and don’t need to go down to The Punishment Pit for all the fun stuff. I’m not sure how I feel that, after all this time, Lukus has never taken me down to either the stage or the backstage dungeon to play—not even when the club is closed. At first, I was relieved, but I’m starting to wonder why he hasn’t taken me down—to play, at least.”

  Shirley was back already with their veggie omelets. Bri waited until she left before commenting. “That kind of surprises me, too. Why do you think that is?”

  “I think in the beginning he knew it would freak me out. He’s been so good about taking things slow, I guess he just doesn’t think I’m ready yet.”

  “Well, are you?”

  “For a real punishment, no way. But for some fun…” Tiffany eventually looked up from her coffee cup where she’d been lost in thought. “I’m worried.”

  “About?”

  “That he’s gonna get bored. Let’s face it. I’m forcing him to be more vanilla than he’s been… well, ever.”

  “Maybe he’s ready for vanilla, Tiff.”

  “Maybe.”

  “And I think our fun on Friday night was pretty far from vanilla. I still can’t believe we did what we did in the limo,” Bri said.

  The two friends blushed a deeper shade of pink as they remembered the incredible scene they’d shared Friday night.

  They started eating in silence, each lost in thought until both of their phones beeped with the sound of an incoming text. They each peeked at their phones to check out the message and looked up to share a heated grin.

  Brianna suggested, “I think we’d better erase that text before our men see it.”

  “Good idea. I hope Kennedy isn’t planning on sending frequent naughty texts like that leading up to the bachelorette party on Friday. We’d better tell her to knock it off. I’m happy the men have agreed to let us go.”

  “I know. I’m looking forward to it. We haven’t gone out with the girls in months.”

  Tiffany looked concerned. “I’m not as worried about Lukus’s reaction to me going out with the girls. I’m way more freaked out about how he’s going to take it when I tell him I need to go to Michigan for a weekend alone next month. I’ve thought about it a lot, but I’ve decided I’m not ready to invite him to come with me to Liam’s wedding.”

  “Wow, that surprises me, Tiff. The way your mom has been bugging you to settle down, I’d think you’d be happy to take a serious boyfriend home to meet the family,” Bri said.

  “That’s just it. I never take anyone home, so they’ll treat him like we’re going to get married or something and, well, who the hell knows what’s going to happen with Lukus. I still pinch myself every day when I realize how lucky I am to have found him, but he’s not exactly the marrying kind, you know?”

  “No Tiff, I don’t know. Look at Markus and me. Hell, look at Derek and Rachel. I can totally see Lukus settling down with you.” She didn’t miss the longing on her best friend’s face—the hope that Bri was right.

  Tiffany sighed. “Even if he can be that person for me, it doesn’t stop how much my dad and brothers are going to hate him. They won’t like any guy who puts his hands on me, but worse, you know as well as I do that the second they find out about him, they’re going to run him through a criminal background check like they do for every guy I’ve ever dated. It will take them a matter of minutes to find out about his arrest and the lawsuit. That will lead them to The Punishment Pit, and what he does for a living, and… game over. As much as not taking him may hurt his feelings, taking him would be worse.”

  Brianna would have loved to dispute Tiff’s logic, but she suspected her best friend was right.

  Bri had spent more than a little time at the O’Sullivan family’s large bed and breakfast—the one they’d run for the last fifteen years, ever since Tiffany’s father retired from the Detroit police department. Over the years of visiting the intimate hotel, nestled into the dunes on the Michigan coast of Lake Michigan, Bri had gotten to know Tiffany’s conservative parents and brothers pretty well. They were all wonderful people, but Tiff had to move to Chicago, three hours away, to get a little breathing room from the extremely protective men in her immediate family.

  Tiff must have been watching her reaction. “I see you agree with me.”

  “Shit. Fine, you might
want to wait a little longer until you know more about the future, but if things work out with Lukus, you’re going to have to face them. The wedding is still over a month away. Don’t worry about it yet.”

  “You’re right. I have plenty of other things to worry about before then.”

  “That’s my Tiff. You didn’t come by your nickname of Worrywart for nothing.”

  Tiff snatched the check that Shirley had just brought to their table. “Keep it up and I’m not going to buy you breakfast, even though it’s my turn this week.”

  “Worrywart.” The women shared a good-natured smile. “Come on. It’s past time for my mid-morning nap.”

  Markus

  “I have Mr. Mitchell on the phone holding for you, Mr. Lambert.”

  Markus looked up to see his assistant poking her head in his office. He glanced down at the bottom of his computer screen to see the Instant Messenger flashing and looked up again apologetically. “Sorry, Laurie. I was so focused, I missed seeing your IM again.”

  “That’s okay. I sit too much, anyway. I don’t mind getting up to come tell you. In fact, you should get up and get some exercise too. You’ve been here for hours and haven’t taken a break.”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  “You know, I do have your mother’s phone number. Don’t make me use it.” Laurie winked.

  Markus was happy to see his assistant was finally starting to loosen up a bit, yet she still insisted on calling him Mr. Lambert. She turned and left as he picked up the phone.

  “Hey, what’s up?” Markus was still distracted by the law case he’d been poring over all morning.

  “I’m seriously understaffed,” Lukus told him.

  “And that’s my problem why?”

  “Because I’m afraid it’s your case that’s drawing the short straw right now, that’s why.”

  That had Markus’s full attention. “I told you I’d fucking pay you if you need me to. It’s bullshit that just because you’re doing this one pro bono, it gets the short end of the stick.”

  “It has nothing to do with money, asshole. Derek is still at the hospital with Rachel so Dylan is still solo. I just talked to him and nothing new has been happening. Just a lot of activity every night at that warehouse location. I think I’m gonna have to get on a fucking plane because I can tell the kid is getting antsy. He’s going to blow his cover talking to the wrong people.”

  Markus wanted to probe more into the investigation but was distracted. “Wait. Go back. What about Rachel and the hospital?”

  “Shit. He didn’t text you? I should have let you know. Rach started having some cramping and light bleeding on Saturday. They went to the hospital. She’s on complete bed rest. So far, the baby is fine, but it looks like she may have a high-risk pregnancy. Derek is losing his shit over it. I don’t blame him,” Lukus said.

  “Neither do I. I’d freak if Bri were in the hospital for any reason, but having their baby in trouble too? Shit. What can I do?”

  “The same thing I can do. Jack shit. It’s frustrating as hell.”

  Markus closed his eyes as they talked. “Fine. I’ll back off pressing you to hurry for now, but you need to get someone out there to help junior.” He could hear some of the security crew in the background.

  Lukus lowered his voice. “Listen, I don’t want to send just anyone out there. Who the hell knows how we are going to end up playing things with this fucker. I’d rather not get my normal guys involved. They may ask questions I’m not sure I want to answer, but more importantly, if things go down bad, I’d rather keep the list short on who knows. You know what I mean?”

  Markus should have felt guilty for the surge of anger, but there was no way he was going to feel guilty for wanting Jake Davenport to pay for all he’d done to terrorize his wife and her best friend. “Fine. Yes. Now what?”

  “Now we give it another day or two and if nothing breaks, and Derek still can’t go help his brother, then I’ll get on a damn plane myself. You’ll have to watch out for Tiff while I’m gone though.”

  “She’s not a puppy you need to have a sitter for,” Markus said.

  “No. She’s a thousand times more important to me than a damn puppy ever could be. And there’s a prick out there who would hurt her without giving it a second thought. And anyway. That’s what best friends do for each other. They take care of each other’s shit.”

  Lukus had inadvertently hit on a topic that Markus had spent time thinking about on his long commute in to and out of the city. Now might be a good time to discuss it. “Now that you mention it… fuck. I’m aware how this is gonna sound, so let me be clear: this is not an invitation to fuck my wife, you got it?”

  He could hear Lukus’s gruff laughter. “You already made your preference that I keep my dick out of your wife pretty clear. I hadn’t planned on it.”

  “Will you shut up? I wasn’t done.”

  As Markus wondered if he should be having this conversation over the phone, Lukus prodded him to continue. “So? You have my attention. Now what?”

  “I’ve just been thinking we don’t know how this case with the prick is going to go down. While we don’t have plans for anything to go wrong, I’d feel better if you know I’m gonna count on you to watch out for Brianna if anything were to ever happen to me. The deeper we explore her submissive needs, the more I realize she’s always going to need a strong hand to guide her and keep her out of trouble. She is a beautiful, smart woman, but I can see now that if anything were to ever happen to me… I’d just feel better knowing that I expect you to step in and look after her.”

  There was silence at the other end of the phone for long enough that Markus started to worry Lukus hadn’t heard him. He heard a door slamming at the other end of the phone before Lukus answered. “All right, you’d better not be planning to go all vigilante on me when I get the lowdown on Davenport.”

  “It isn’t just about that prick. It isn’t just for the next week or two. I’m talking about, well, shit. I guess I’m talking about forever. You know. Kind of like I’d ask someone to be a godfather for my kid. I’d feel better knowing you’ve got my back with my wife. I’m not talking financially. She’s set there. I’m talking about… well, fuck. You’re the only one who knows how much danger she would be in if she started trolling for another Dom. I need to know that will never happen. Do you understand what I’m saying here?”

  “Yeah. You’re asking me to fuck your wife if something happens to you.”

  Markus was about to let him have it when he heard the laughing at the other end of the phone.

  “Loosen up, man,” Lukus said, then. “I’m just yanking your chain. I get it. And of course you can count on me—on one condition.”

  “Anything.”

  “You do the same for Tiff. I have a lot more enemies than you do. I don’t lie awake at night worried about it or anything, but I’ll feel better knowing you’d do the same for me.”

  “I’ve got news for you. I’ve been unofficially looking out for Tiff for years. Of course, I’ll step it up for you, man.”

  The long seconds slipped by in silence before Markus abruptly cut the call short. “Enough of this depressing shit. We both have work to do. Later.”

  Lukus

  Lukus looked down on a sleeping Rachel. She looked so young and vulnerable, curled up in a small ball in the massive bed. Of course, the fact she was sucking on a binkie and swaddled in a diaper and little else might have had something to do with it. He glanced up at his friend standing nearby, and couldn’t say the same.

  “You look like total shit, man.” Lukus talked softly, careful not to wake the sleeping patient.

  “Fuck you. You go through what we’ve gone through the last five days and see how you look.”

  “Lighten up, will ya. I’m just worried about you. What can I do to help?” Lukus asked.

  Derek leaned down to kiss his wife lightly on the forehead, tucking the sheet around her to keep her from catching a chill before waving Lukus to step out
of their bedroom and follow him. He headed to the small bar in the corner of his living room.

  “You’re already doing what you can to help. You’ve given me the time I needed to stay with Rach. She hated the hospital, but as shitty as that was, I liked it better when she was there. Having her home here…” he took a shot of something Lukus couldn’t identify before finishing his thought, “…makes me so nervous. It’s all on me now. What if I fuck it up and she or the baby get hurt?”

  Lukus plopped into Derek’s favorite chair, exactly the way Derek did when he was at Lukus’s loft. It drew a smirk from his friend that lightened the mood. “You worry too much. Women have babies all the time. I don’t know shit about it, but do you have a good doctor?”

  Derek ran his fingers through his longer-than-normal hair. “Yeah. She’s the OBGYN that delivered all of our nieces and nephews. She’s good.”

  “So, trust her. She wouldn’t have sent Rachel home if it wasn’t safe,” Lukus said.

  “I guess. It’s gonna be a long six months if she has to stay on bed rest the whole time.”

  “When will you find out more?”

  Derek answered, “Friday. Shit, that’s tomorrow already. This week has dragged by and flown at the same time. Weird.”

  Lukus knew what he meant. This week had been so busy with Derek out from both Titan Securities and The Pit. Worse yet, with Derek unable to travel, Dylan had been winging it out in California, and that was the main reason Lukus had come to talk. He needed more information on his newest employee.

  “Do you have some time to talk through this Jake case with me? I’ve had Dylan out there, but he never should have been out there this long alone. I’ve talked to him a couple times today and I’m getting worried about him. Have you spoken to him?”

  Derek looked guilty. “Fuck, man. I feel bad that I’ve dropped so many balls that you have to pick up and run with. I know he has like no training. I should have been checking in with him, but I haven’t, at all. Bring me up to speed.”