Bunny and the Beast(Divine Creek Ranch 22)(35)

The pretty Asian girl held out her hand to shake. “I’m Shae, and this is Robert. You’re my new hero.”

“Since then, I’ve heard from several people tonight that he’s a sadist. My radar must be off because, when I saw him, my first instinct was to hug him and do something that would make him smile.”

Robert grinned as he looked over her shoulder. “I think you did. He’s with Joseph and Randall in the VIP section, and he’s actually laughing and smiling.” Robert’s face grew serious as he said, “I think he needed that. His last sub, a little masochist—”

“Bitch,” Shae muttered under her breath.

Robert looked around as he shushed her. “His last sub safeworded here in the club and then broke it off with him publicly.”

Bunny’s eyes rounded. “What did he do to her, to make her do that?”

Mona’s eyes got big, but she didn’t say anything as Shae picked up the story. “It wasn’t what he did. She said he didn’t do enough and there was no point in fooling themselves. She basically called him out for not satisfying her.”

“Not satisfying her?” Bunny asked, trying to school her expression. “But he’s a sadist. Isn’t he supposed to be into giving pain?”

Robert said, “Trust me, he is. Those of us who have been on the receiving end of his whip will testify to that. But her needs surpassed his limits.”

Shae leaned in. “She wanted harder play than he could give her.”

“Harder?” Bunny said, her jaw dropping as she reached back to rub the welt she could still feel through her panties. “Did she expect him to draw blood?”

The wide-eyed looks confirmed her suspicion as Bunny imagined just that, and suddenly she frowned, wondering how he must’ve felt to be publicly told he wasn’t good enough. She didn’t curb the urge to look behind her to where the men were sitting. Not surprisingly, they noticed her watching them, and Joseph smiled at her. She’d felt so out of sorts since making the acquaintance of many of the Doms in attendance that night, wondering if they expected her to be intimidated by them. Some of them definitely gave off a scary vibe, but not the men on the dais across the room. She might never want to be on the receiving end of Samson’s lash again, but he didn’t fool her for a second. He had a heart, and she could imagine how he’d been hurt. Just then, Joseph frowned at her, and she sighed inwardly, wondering what she’d done now.

Turning back to the group, she gasped when she discovered another person had joined them, explaining the silence, as it was a Dom she’d encountered earlier. And lucky her, she couldn’t remember his name, but the interest was clear in his rapacious gaze.

“Little sub,” he said, smiling coldly as he lifted her hand from where it lay on the couch, “play with me.”

Not a question. A demand.

“No, thank you,” she said as she tugged at her hand ineffectually. Oh boy, she was going to give that jerk hell if he didn’t—

Mona held up a hand to stop her from whatever she was about to do. “Mr. Hunter, Sir,” Mona said respectfully. “Bunny is Joseph’s guest in the club, as I mentioned earlier when you introduced yourself. Only he can release her to—”

“Shut up, slut. I know the rules,” he ground out quietly, still gripping Bunny’s hand. His hands were soft on the palms and fingertips, cool and slightly clammy. “She’s coming with me, and we’ll check in with her Master before we play. Mind your own business.”

Mona paid no attention to him and was half out of her seat, craning her neck, trying to get Randall’s attention. Bunny tried to turn her head to wave to Joseph, but Master Hunter grasped her by the knot of hair pinned up on the back of her head and lifted her out of her seat. A knifing pain shot through her neck as he twisted her hair, and the odd angle tweaked her neck. She cried out, unable to turn without further pain.

“Red. Oh God, red,” she whispered as the pain increased. “Let me go, please. Red.”

Hunter scowled at her. “You can’t safeword. We haven’t even agreed to the scene yet.”

Robert got up from his seat beside Shae and put his hand on Master Hunter’s wrist. “She said ‘red,’ Sir. Release her. Can’t you see you’re harming her?”

Master Hunter tightened his grip, and his agitation vibrated up his arm to her head, and she finally screamed. “Red!”

She was seeing white spots when Joseph’s voice registered over the rush filling her ears. “What the devil is going on here, Hunter? Release her before I break your damned arm.”