As soon as she rounded the last bend though, something off to the right caught her eye. A flash of movement. She turned her head, taking her eyes off Grant, and almost tripped over her feet when she saw two men underneath a nearby tree. One of the men was shirtless and pressed up against the bark; his partner’s forearm was pressed over his wrists, holding his arms taut above his head. Charli’s gaze tracked down and she couldn’t help but gasp when she saw where the man’s other hand was. The fly of shirtless guy’s pants was spread wide and the man’s fist was wrapped around his partner’s shaft in what looked to be a painfully tight grip.

The man against the tree shifted his gaze, catching sight of her. Their eyes locked.

Charli stopped, feet frozen in place. Not sure what to do. Was the guy being attacked? She couldn’t imagine any man wanting to be gripped that tightly. Did he need help? But then he smiled at her—a lazy, drunk-on-pleasure smile, one that stirred something unfamiliar within Charli. His partner released his grip on the man’s cock in an instant and smacked him audibly across the cheek.

Charli let out a little yelp.

“Eyes on me.” Or at least that’s what she thought she heard the man say after the slap.

She moved forward, not sure what she was going to do, but unable to stand there and watch someone get hurt. But the man against the tree shook his head at her and winked, then apologized to the guy who’d just hit him and lowered his head.

She halted her step. This was some kind of game.

A game he didn’t want her interfering with.

She backed away, moving onto the path again and trying to get her legs to work correctly beneath her. She had no idea what was going on. How had Grant passed right by this couple and not seen what was happening? What if someone on a family vacation passed by with their kids?

She wrapped her arms around herself, somehow both hot and cold at the same time. Her body’s odd reaction to seeing the couple was something she’d rather not think too hard on. She started walking up the path at a much faster pace than before. Now she was going to have to admit to Grant that she’d snuck onto the property. She didn’t know what was allowed at his resort, but she couldn’t imagine public sex was okay. He had a right to know what was going on.

She scanned the path in front of her and sighed. Of course, she’d lost sight of her cowboy during the diversion. Some stalker she was. Not sure what else to do, she made her way up to the main house and considered her options. The place had a number of doors and she had no idea which Grant had gone into or if they were locked or alarmed. And really, she no longer remembered why it had sounded like such a good idea to follow him in the first place. Maybe it was time to tuck tail and run.

“Do you need some help?”

The soft female voice startled Charli. She spun around to find a stunning blonde smiling back at her—a stunning blonde wearing what looked to be a red latex catsuit. “Uh…”

She tilted her head, assessing her. “You new here?”

“Yes.” The word tumbled out automatically. “I’m a friend of Grant’s.”

“Oh, wow, that’s great,” she said with genuine warmth. “Just a friend or a trainee?”

“Huh?”

She laughed. “Sorry. You don’t have to answer that if you don’t want to. We’re all just a little curious about our tight-lipped boss.” She stuck out her hand. “I’m Kelsey, by the way. Or Lady K as most everyone knows me around here these days.”

Pieces started to slide into place in Charli’s brain. “Nice to meet you. I’m Charli.”

“Are you only new here or are you new to this altogether?”

Oh, shit. “Altogether.”

“Well, come on in, Charli. Boss man shouldn’t have left you alone if you’re brand-new. It’s easy to get overwhelmed around here.” She pulled open the nearest door. “I’m supposed to be assisting Colby with one of his training sessions. Feel free to come and watch. Or participate if the spirit moves you.”

She walked through the door, her hips swaying on top of crazy-high-heeled boots with the ease of a pendulum. Charli followed her in, feeling like a schlub in comparison. How were some girls born with that vixen gene? Charli had no interest in other women, but even she couldn’t help but be drawn in by Kelsey’s magnetic sexuality.

Kelsey walked forward with long strides that belied her petite size. “So what side of the sandbox do you play in?”

Charli frowned. “I’m, um, not sure yet.”

Kelsey gave her a quick grin over her shoulder. “Oh, I know how that is. Sometimes you just have to give each role a shot and see what lights you up.”

“Right.”

The halls were quiet and decorated with deep maroons and dark wood. There were no windows but soft glowing sconces lit their way, giving the whole place a somehow comforting womblike vibe. Kelsey turned a corner and crooked a thumb toward the door on the left. “Here we are. Keep quiet when we go in. I’m a little late, so things have probably already gotten started. This is an open session, so if you want to join in at any time, go for it.”

Charli nodded, scared about what she was walking into but too damn curious to turn around and hustle back home. “Thanks.”

Kelsey turned the knob with nimble fingers and pushed the door open without a sound. On the other side was a small room. Charli peered over Kelsey’s shoulder, her lips parting when she saw the space was filled with half-dressed men and women on their knees. She pressed her fingers over her mouth, barely managing to choke down a gasp of surprise and avoid alerting everyone to her presence. Having a notion of what the place could be and actually seeing it were two different things. A ripple of nerves went through her.

Kelsey stepped inside, and Charli didn’t know what else to do but go in with her. Hell, at the very least, this was a whole lot more interesting than what was going on at her empty cabin. The man at the front of the room—the only person standing—nailed the two of them with his gaze. “Ah, I told you all we’d have a special treat. Lady K has generously offered to help tonight.”

One of the two men kneeling turned his head to see Kelsey and broke out into a wide, awed smile. Kelsey’s expression turned icy in an instant—from Snow White to evil queen in zero point five seconds. “Sub, I didn’t give you permission to look at me.”

The words were like the snap of a whip. The man instantly lowered his head as if he’d been struck. “So sorry, mistress. Forgive me. I was overwhelmed by your beauty.”

She sniffed, a haughty tilt to her chin. “Flattery will get you nowhere. Master Colby must’ve not gotten to that part of your lesson yet.”

The man at the front—Colby presumably—sent Kelsey a conspiratorial smile. “We’ve only started working on proper kneeling techniques. But I’ll be sure Antoine earns your forgiveness later, Lady K.” Colby looked to Charli as if noticing her for the first time, then back to Kelsey. “Have you brought us another trainee?”

“She’s new and just observing tonight, trying to figure out her inclination,” Kelsey said, her tone softening from the harsh one she used with the man.

Colby’s dark eyebrows lowered, thunderclouds crossing his features, and he shook his head. “No observers for my trainings. Participate or leave.”

Charli’s throat seemed to shrivel, and she couldn’t get a response out. Kelsey must’ve recognized the panicked look because she put a hand on Charli’s elbow and leaned next to her ear. “Don’t freak out. Nothing major happens in this session—it’s all manners. Stay and see how you feel. Might help you with your decision.”

More because her legs wanted to give out from under her than anything else, Charli let Kelsey guide her down into a kneel. So this is why Grant had been so guarded about the resort. Grant—the cowboy military guy turned vineyard owner—ran some sort of kinky S and M club? She couldn’t even wrap her mind around the thought.

And if he ran it, did that mean he was into it, too?

Charli was dragged from her thoughts as Colby walked over to one of the younger women in the front—a dark-haired beauty who looked to be pulled from the pages of an old-fashioned pinup calendar. He cupped her chin and titled her face toward him. “Stella, would you please show the group what a nice stand and kneel you have?”

The girl kept her eyes down. “Yes, sir.”

With one fluid movement, Stella rocked forward, tucked her toes under, and rose to a stand. It was a simple sequence of actions, but even Charli couldn’t deny the utter elegance it conveyed—like a silk curtain lifting with a gust of wind.

Colby gazed down at her with pride. “Lovely, Stella.” He looked to the group. “You see that, subs? None of this putting one leg up first or pushing yourself up with your hands. Unless you have some injury stopping you, your master or mistress deserves that kind of grace from you.” He put a hand on Stella’s shoulder. “Down.”

“Yes, sir.” As if the rewind button had been hit, Stella reversed her movements and rocked down into a kneel with the same fluidity. She ducked her head and placed her palms on her thighs. Beautiful. Subservient.

The idea should have rankled Charli. She’d spent her whole life making sure men saw her as an equal, showing no weakness, no softness. But there was such feminine beauty to Stella, Charli couldn’t help but feel a tug of envy. What must it be like to draw that kind of rapt attention, to get that dripping-with-lust gaze from a man? Something low and deep within her stirred at the notion.

Colby crossed his arms over his broad chest, looking like a drill sergeant. “Now I want to see all of you follow Stella’s example. Up.”

The group instantly sprung to life, each person trying to emulate the graceful act. Charli hesitated for a moment but then snapped to it when she realized not following would only bring attention to herself. She attempted the movement, but her hand landed onto the floor when she overcorrected on her balance. She rose to her feet with the elegance of an offensive lineman suffering a concussion. Terrific.

“Down,” Colby barked.

Everyone scrambled back to the floor. Some smoothly, some not so much.

Kelsey shook her head, tsking. “Pitiful.”

Charli felt the heat of shame rising up from her chest. Shit, what had she gotten herself into? And why should she even care if she was a pretty kneeler or not?

Charli stared down at her hands, wondering how she could sneak out with anyone noticing. She needed to get out of here—stat. This was way out of her zip code. But right when she started to turn her head to venture a peek at the door, a heavy hand landed on her shoulder. “You seem to be lost, Ms. Beaumonde.”

EIGHT

The voice behind Charli held barely restrained violence. She closed her eyes, wishing she could fall through the floor or wake up. This all had to be some bizarre nightmare, right? Dancing orangutans would twirl through the room anytime now. But of course when she opened her eyes again, Grant’s hand was still on her shoulder. And she was still in the middle of some odd How to Be a Sex Slave class.

His breath was a hot tickle against her ear. “You have three seconds to stand up and come with me before I embarrass you and let everyone know you’re an intruder here.”

Her jaw clenched, but when she caught Kelsey’s curious gaze, Charli tamped down her smart-ass reply. She didn’t want to make Kelsey look bad. Plus, the thought of being exposed as an outsider suddenly seemed too much to stomach. She was in that role way too often in her life already. She rose to her feet—at least a little more smoothly than she had the first time.

Grant seemed huge next to her all of a sudden, as if being in this place somehow made him even taller. He grasped her upper arm and none too gently led her from the room. After shutting the door, he tugged her again like she was some disobedient puppy and guided her down the hallway. “Not a word until I get you behind a closed door.”