Checklist J, K, L

If he knew how to play it cool, he would. Sadly, that was not a skill Grif had ever learned. Not that he didn’t know how to relax or be lazy, but when he was into something, or someone, he was all in.

Looking back, some of the most pivotal moments in his life had started with him saying, “You know what would be awesome?” And then running enthusiastically with whatever idea had just come to him. It’s how his college friendship with a cinema major—and late night discussions of the tech side of filmmaking—had led to him developing a GoPro compatible hardware accessory and an accompanying bit of sweet software that fixed some common user issues. The package quickly had become a must-have for documentary film makers and vloggers.

He’d sold the hardware to one company, the software to another, and made a stupid amount of money. Now he was a one-man R&D company backed by a venture capital group who threw money at him for the right to have first bid on anything he created. He was also routinely hired by startups to create prototypes of everything from space-age toothbrushes to cameras for them to show investors or put up on Kickstarter.

He started every project by getting excited about what he was about to do. There was nothing like creating something the world had never seen before. Using tech and science to fix a problem, make life easier, make the world a little more cool and interesting.

And now that he knew why Davina—his strong, self-assured minx—had safe worded out of a scene, he was practically bouncing with anticipation. He wanted to fix this. To create a new relationship, a new dynamic that would make her happy.

And what about you? Are you going to tell her you love her? Are you going to try and find your happy?

His inner voice wasn’t wrong—in fact, that inner voice sounded a lot like one of his good friends who was a therapist—but with the will of someone headed headlong into a dangerous situation, he ignored it.

The door to the Conclave opened, and he forced himself not to react. The first few times the door opened he’d whipped around, heart thudding in chest, only to find it was other couples, come to use either the loft or one of the stables to work on their letters.

He ran his fingers over the jewelry and chains he’d laid out on a black velvet cloth. The cloth was on a small table, set precisely beside an inclined St. Andrews’s cross.

Last weekend he’d had to improvise, since he hadn’t known what their letter would be, and in an effort to challenge themselves he hadn’t asked Davina to help him plan the scene. The result had been something good, but not amazing. Last week had been a prototype, that in the best engineering tradition, failed gloriously, resulting in lots of good data he could work with in future planning and design.

Time to plan and map out what he was going to do was one of the reasons he hadn’t wanted to go back to Las Palmas last Saturday after their meeting at the Getty Center.

He’d spent the work week getting little to no work done, but instead thinking about Davina. The revelations about her past as a submissive put a few things in different context.

He’d assumed she liked to plan the scenes with him because she was a switch, and hadn’t been able to completely let go of that need to control and direct. That was probably true, but he now wondered how much of that need was about self-protection—making sure that a scene actually was a scene, and not her getting ignored in a corner.

“Grif.”

Davina. She was here. The gnawing worry that she wouldn’t show up faded.

He took his time lifting the jewelry collar from its place on the velvet cloth. Only then did he turn to face her.

Damn the woman was sexy. So fucking sexy it hurt. And smart and funny and…

Davina wore a form-fitting lace teddy. It hugged every curve, and the open pattern of the lace meant that plenty of skin was visible. She wore soft black slippers, and her hair was back in its normal braid.

One thing that was missing was the glint of gold at her nipples.

“You look gorgeous, Minx.”

“Thank you, Sir.” She deliberately emphasized the last word, but not in a mocking way.

Grif held out his arm, as he had at the museum. She looped hers through his, and he led her over to the small seating area he’d set up with straight backed chairs and a table.

He pulled out her chair and motioned for her to sit. She did so, looking bemused. He took the chair across from her, then very deliberately set the jewelry collar down on the table.

She inhaled audibly when she realized what it was.

“We need to talk about our relationship.”

Davina looked from the collar to him. Emotions flittered across her face, before she smiled. No, that wasn’t a smile. He knew how she smiled. This was cold and fake. A mask. “Of course,” she said amiably.

“Damn it, that’s not what I meant.” He’d practiced what he was going to say, and “we need to talk” hadn’t been part of the script. It sounded like the start of a breakup, which was the last thing he wanted. Why wasn’t he better at this?

Because now she’s here, and every time you see her you start acting like a lovesick, horny teenager.

God, his inner voice could be a dick.

“Rewind. Let me try this again. Last week didn’t work, and after we talked, I know why. But I don’t think we should just go back to doing what we’ve been doing.”

“Why? What we were doing was working.” The fake smile was replaced by a frown. “At least it was working for me.”

“It was…mostly…working for me too. I’m more inclined to top than to sub, but you know I’ll do either.”

She nodded. “True. You and I don’t see things as black and white. Only Dom or only sub.”

“And I still believe that, I do, but I want…Davina, I’d like you to be my sub.”

One eyebrow rose.

“I know you are the submissive partner, but I want…I want us to try more. I’m not talking about high protocol or anything like that. Just being a little bit more…structured…than we have been.”

“You’re not happy with what we had?” Davina folded her arms, her body language screaming defensive. “Why didn’t you say anything in the two years we’ve been bonded?”

“Of course I was happy.”

Unless you count the fact that I’m madly in love with you and don’t even know your last name.

“Hearing you call me Master, just come out and say it like that, it…It was something I didn’t know I needed until I heard it. And seeing you submit that way…Well, I’m not even sure how to describe it except it was like when you make a tweak to something and suddenly the output is four times as good as it was before, and you didn’t even know the output could be that good.”

Davina smiled and this time it was real. “That is a terrible analogy.”

aware of that,” he

touch his arm. “You know I liked what we did, liked being in that head space again, liked letting go so much. But

know me. Do you think I’d ever put you in a corner or something stupid like that? And you’re at

nets,”

good sign. “I mean, I wouldn’t

“Standards,” she agreed solemnly.

to have some guidelines,” he continued. “Because I don’t want to lose this.” He gestured back and

don’t want to lose

now on, Friday nights

drinks, people watching, planning,”

Friday night

“Date,” she repeated softly.

Damn it.

on you, it means for the

decide when it goes

to make his chest feel light with

but then

or physically—I

have to trust me to read

bondage, something I

“Trust me.”

enough to let him really lead. She was leaning towards him, a good sign, but she

he continued. “You’re sadistically creative, and I don’t

out a

do it that weekend. We still get to collaborate, but I decide when’s the right

tongue touched her top lip and she nodded once. “That

“So you agree?”

out, trailing her fingers along the jewelry

BDSM that’s unique to us, something that combines everything we both

are complicated. It might not

enough to

closed her eyes and

her breasts rising and falling in an uneven rhythm as he made his way to the back of

the collar, then reached over her head, letting it lay against her chest before drawing it up, snug against her neck. Once it was

lay his palms on the tops of

“Good, Master.”

stood

thin straps of her lingerie off her shoulders so they dangled on her upper arms. “From now on, you only wear things you’re okay having me rip or cut off you.

Master. Wait, you like ripping things off me? I

man forgets about getting his woman naked. Now it’s time to play. Come with

* * *

as her Master finished strapping her to

lace teddy. For a moment the fabric pulled painfully tight around her chest, then

better, Master?”

feeling to strike her after using the word—fear, worry, something. There was

of something dangerous and worrying. They’d discussed, openly and honestly, what they both wanted and needed. She was wearing the collar, which meant he was her Master, until the collar came off. She hadn’t yet found her

liking the view.” He ripped the straps from the teddy, allowing it to fall off her body. “I don’t want you worried that I won’t still flog you,

kind of you to reassure me, Master.” Davina twisted to look at him over

tails of a deerskin flogger.

one another, pull a piece of that dynamic they’d developed in

the flogger against his lower

flat on the floor, cuffs around her ankles tethered to the legs of the cross with short chains. She could shuffle her feet, shift her weight, but not close her legs. He could have added more bonds, could have strapped her so tightly to

pressing her hips back, her ass out. It was an invitation for him to flog her, punish her, play with her. More than that, it was a confirmation of his right to do those things, because she had chosen to give him this power

blade, mid-back, lower back, and her ass. He then repeated that

going to

the multiple strands, it was a single, thumping feeling, with maybe a few outlying snaps and pinches where the

and sighed happily. Oh yes, she needed

Needed him.

of the flogger seemed to brand those words, that thought, into her soul.

strikes, he’d hold the handle of the flogger in his dominant right hand, catch the tails with his left, then snap it

now, he’d use just his right hand, moving his forearm and wrist to create a figure eight pattern, catching her ass twice in each pass—once at the beginning,

was starting to heat. Her

and call this barbaric, or abuse, but turn around and go get

wouldn’t know how much she needed

rocking her hips forward and back, in

a sexual partner, but as a…as a friend. A companion. But only here, only on these all too rare, precious weekends. They had to keep their relationship confined inside Las Palmas. It was too dangerous to do anything else. It might end

is nothing

slow and steady. She needed this. He needed to do this

Thwack, thwack, thwack.

than an emotional release, it

wasn’t always a good thing. Some revelations were too hard to

date, you deliberately