Reluctant Substitute (excerpt)

Title : Reluctant Substitute

Release date : Available now (purchase links under "Books" heading)

EXCERPT ...

“I’m about to take you somewhere, and I don’t want you to freak out…but it’s where I keep the supplies we need to dress your abrasions.”

My brows drew together in thought. What am I possibly going to freak out over?

“Follow me,” he instructed, and I slid off the top of the top of the stool, and followed him back in the direction of his bedroom.

But he didn’t enter the bedroom. Instead, he kept going, and we passed two more doors, before he came to a halt, and placed his hand on the doorknob. He looked at me over his shoulder.

“Don’t freak out,” he reminded me sternly, before he turned the knob.

When he pushed the door open, I followed him through the doorway.

“Oh…my…God,” I whispered, frozen to the spot I stepped in, just inside the doorway.

As I took a look around, my eyes widened in more shock than they did when I first stepped in the studio at Provocative Desires. But it had exactly the same effect. My heart was palpitating, beating hard behind my ribs, and my stomach tightened with anxiety.

No wonder he was afraid I was going to freak out.

The whole huge room was differing shades of purple---from the gentle pale suede effect painted on the walls with a solid thick satin band a third of the way up from the floor---all the way around the entire room---to the darker shade of satin-look, total block out, heavy curtains covering the two sets of large windows along one side, to the deep purple, plush pile carpeting covering the floor. A few huge mirrors adorned two separate sections on one wall, and one section along the wall opposite the covered windows. Jesus Christ.

Apart from a shiny, gold cross---that had some sort of scalloped type edge that reminded me of inverted Lego that was fastened to the wall between the two sections of mirrors---all the other items displayed in various positions around the large room were a combination of black, and purple.

I was never going to look at my favorite color quite the same again. Every time I wear my favorite silk blouse, I’m going to think of this damned room.

I breathed in a shaky breath when I examined the large bed set off to one side, while my jaw dropped in awe. The two pillows, along with the sheet adorning the mattress, were a shiny tinge of pale purple.

What the hell is that? Is it plastic? Vinyl, maybe? Despite my curiosity, there was no way in hell I was going to ask Jaxon. The entire structure appeared to be made out of some type of fabricated steel reinforcement---like something I’d seen on a construction site.

It had the look of a four poster bed, but instead of tall, turned wooden posts, it was two small steel tubing poles with a smaller solid rod zig-zag pattern between them, joining them together to make a column. All four posts, the canopy around the top, and the square base surrounding the mattress, were all made from the same tubing, with the identical solid rod zig-zagged pattern in between.

But what really caught my eye was the large round, wheel-type shape attached at the foot end of the unusual bed. The round circumference breached the size of the bed at the top, bottom, and both sides. It reminded me of a chocolate wheel I’d seen at fairs as a child, and more recently, at a casino I visited.

The wheel had seven steel struts made in the same manner as the rest of the frame, originating from the middle to the outside of the circle. Four of the struts had thick, black straps attached through the zig-zag pattern. One of the struts---that I guessed was the top of the structure---had a large padded oval shape attached.

What the hell is that for? A head? I gulped, instantly knowing in my gut, that’s exactly what it was for---to cradle someone’s head. Holy fuck. That means the other straps are for securing arms, and legs.

Once that realization materialized in my head, I quickly averted my gaze away from the bed, while I struggled to understand what sorts of things could happen to a woman while being strapped to that daunting wheel.

What would it feel like to be restrained to it? What would Jaxon do to someone that was fastened to it? I gasped internally, my mouth parting absently as confusion ran rife through my head, while heat began to creep up through my cheeks with the direction my thoughts were taking.

On the side wall, I saw some---no---I saw a lot of things, hanging on little metal hooks attached to a long strip of silver plate about an inch thick that was fastened to the wall.

My brain managed to tell my feet to move, and I curiously walked over to take a closer look. From where I stood near the doorway, I couldn’t quite see what they were. Scooting around the other items scattered around the room, I tried to give each, and every intimidating piece of equipment a wide berth, but that was almost impossible---there were just too many of them. The room didn’t appear to be---or give the impression of---being crowded, but there were multiple items located around the room.

I carefully wove my way around them, trying to resist the temptation of touching them, to not reach out to see what they felt like underneath my palm. I consciously tucked my hands in the side pockets on the robe I was still wearing, to further confine my temptation.

I wasn’t focused on where Jaxon was in the large room, or what he was doing. I was focused on trying to identify what the items were that were hanging on the wall, lost in my own little world. As I got closer, I held my breath.

Oh, fuck. I identified canes, crops, chains, straps, holy shit…are they cat-o-nine tails?

My jaw dropped open, and I walked slowly along the length of the articles that stretched a good three quarters of the way along the long wall. What the hell are they? Some items in the section I was approaching looked like ping pong paddles. But they were varying shapes, and sizes, some with raised letters on their surface, others with cut out sections. Oh, my God! It suddenly hit me that’s exactly what they were…paddles.

I recalled something Lexi told me, that Serenity had told her, about being spanked with a paddle with the word “mine” on it, and the word imprinted on her ass cheek after a particularly hard whack. It apparently wasn’t permanent, but it had been very readable while it had lasted.

I didn’t know how I’d feel about being spanked with one of the one’s I was looking at hanging on the wall. What in the hell---why are you even thinking about how you’d feel about it? I gasped aloud in shock, sucking in a startled breath.

I wandered aimlessly passed the final items, stopping dead in my tracks near the end, while I tried to work out the mixed emotions, and thoughts, that were flowing though my brain.

The sensible part of me told me to get the hell out of the room, but the curious part wanted to stay, and investigate a little more. I glanced over at the final few items along the wall. Curiosity fought a hard battle, and ultimately won out when I reached out to touch the two silver oblong spring things attached to each other with a small, silver chain. They sort of looked like over-fat tweezer type things, but with two flatter ends, not pointy ones. I jumped a mile, and immediately let go of them, when Jaxon startled me from behind.

“They’re clover clamps,” he explained.

My brows drew together in puzzlement.

“For your nipples,” he expanded with a grin. “They can also be used elsewhere,” he said rather suggestively, and the heat that rushed through my face told him I got the right idea. “Would you like to try them?” he asked idly.

I turned around to face him, my eyes widening, and my brow raising in surprise.

“Um---no,” I stuttered. “Not at the moment.”

He chuckled sexily, and raised one brow.

“Hmm…does that mean you may want to try them in the future?” he grinned playfully.

My jaw dropped. I needed a filter on my mouth…or I needed to think about what I was saying, before I said it. I shook my head slightly in answer.

“Pity---you have the perfect nipples for them.”

© Copyright Carol Delmornay 2017

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