EMMALINE
James stepped into our bedroom as I was getting dressed. I looked up at him with a smile, but it quickly fell from my face at the slight scowl that was settled over his features. “James, what’s wrong?” I asked him.
He shoved his hands into the pockets of his slacks. “I need your help with something,” he told me as I pulled my shirt over my head.
I adjusted my shirt. “I’ll help in whatever way I can,” I assured him, meaning it. “What’s going on?”
He sighed. “I need your help at my club,” he told me. My eyebrows shot up to my forehead in surprise. I hadn’t been expecting that. “Gemma called me last night and informed me that knife play is still being done despite her issuing my order twice now, so I’m going to take things into my own hands. I want your help because I want to make my club safe and enjoyable for everyone.” He frowned. “It still bothers me that for the entire three years that you were being forced into being a submissive, you never received aftercare. Shit doesn’t sit right with me. So, I want your input from a submissive’s view; I want the submissives there to enjoy what’s happening as much as the doms are.”
I instantly nodded my head as a smile slipped onto my lips. “James, you have no idea how much this means to me,” I told him honestly. His eyes locked on mine in surprise. “There’s so many men and women there that are being used and not being properly taken care of.” I walked towards him. He removed his hands from his pockets, and I grabbed them in my own. “Seriously, thank you. The submissives there deserve so much more.”
He brushed his lips to the top of my head. I closed my eyes, enjoying how sweet of a man he was with me. “I know, little one.” He nodded his head in the direction of the bathroom. “Grab a hair-tie. I want your collar visible while we’re there,” he ordered.
A blush stained my cheeks at his possessive order, but I quickly followed his command, going to grab an elastic from the bathroom. I pulled my hair up into a bun. It was messy, but it worked, and I knew James didn’t care as long as my hair was up to reveal his claim on me.
And I didn’t mind one bit. I loved being claimed by him.
I quickly walked back out of the bathroom and grabbed a pair of plain, black flats from the closet, slipping them onto my feet. After grabbing a simple sweater, I walked back out and instantly placed my hand in James’s outstretched one. He brought my hand up to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to my knuckles, making my heart skip a beat in my chest before he led me out of the room. “Jaxon,” he called when he closed our bedroom door behind us, “you’re with us. If I have to leave her side, you stick to her like fucking glue,” he ordered. “And you warn any dominant who fucking looks at her who she’s collared by.”
My cheeks flamed at his words. Jaxon nodded once, not seeming fazed at all. “Understood.”
~*~*~
James held me close to his side as we moved through the club. Eyes were naturally drawn to us. James exuded power and dominance without even trying. It was in the way he carried himself. He commanded an audience without even having to open his mouth.
He acted as if he didn’t even notice the attention as he led me through the main room to the back hallway of the club. A chill ran down my spine as he pushed open the door to the office that he had killed William in.
Somehow knowing what was going through my mind, James gripped my chin and tilted my head back, forcing my eyes to connect with his. “What did I promise you?” he asked me.
I drew in a deep breath, his blue eyes calming my anxiety. “That you’ll never hurt me.” I strongly replied, knowing it was true. I didn’t think this man was capable of ever intentionally hurting me.
He brushed his thumb over my bottom lip. “Good girl,” he praised. My heart swelled in my chest. “Always remember my promise to you, little one,” he ordered. He placed his hand on my lower back and gently nudged me into the office. “Jaxon, stand guard outside of this door,” James ordered before he stepped inside, closing the door back behind him.
I took a seat in one of the chairs in the office. James took a seat at the desk and turned to face me. “Alright, little one, I need complete honesty and open opinions on this,” he told me in all seriousness. “I always stayed out of the affairs of this club, but that was obviously a mistake. I’m trying to make changes to make it safer for everyone involved.” He tapped his fingers on the armrest of the chair he was sitting in. “So, I need you to tell me things that need to be changed for the submissives.”
“Food,” I instantly replied. James’s expression didn’t change. “They need access to snacks, water, and meals if they’re going to be here all day,” I told him.
He clenched his jaw. “You weren’t getting fed?” he angrily demanded. I winced. “No wonder you were so fucking skinny when I took you from here,” he growled in displeasure.
“James,” I softly warned, trying to bring his temper back under control, “we’re here to make changes now so that this doesn’t happen to other submissives,” I reminded him. “Eating should not be a privilege. It needs to be mandatory.”
He softly growled. “That will be changing immediately,” he snapped. “Don’t worry about that, little one.” He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath, forcing his tense body to relax somewhat. “This discussion is going to be hard as fuck to get through,” he grumbled. “It pisses me off so much when I’m reminded of how long you suffered.”
I leaned forward and grabbed his hand in mine. He locked his eyes on my face. I gently squeezed his hand, trying to offer some type of comfort. “You saved me, James. Just focus on that,” I softly coaxed.
He flipped his hand over and linked our fingers together and used his foot to roll my chair closer to his. I squeaked in shock. He flashed me a grin.
“Alright, little one. What else do you want to see changed?” he asked me.
“Stop taking submissives off the street,” I blurted. “I know they’re homeless, and I know some of them are actually grateful for it – like me – but many others aren’t, and they hate it here, James.” He frowned. “You’re running a sex trade,” I softly spoke, suddenly afraid that I was speaking way out of line. He stayed silent though, his eyes trained on my face, listening and taking in what I had to say. I swallowed thickly. “It’s not fair to them.”
He nodded once. “That’s done.” My eyes widened in surprise. “Little one, the moment I realized what had been happening to you – that you had a better chance of taking care of yourself on the streets than you did in here, I ordered an end to all of it.”
Tears burned in my eyes at his words. “Sorry,” I whispered. I pressed the tips of my fingers to my eyes, trying to hold them in. “I didn’t expect that answer.”
James slid his fingers into my hair and pulled my head forward, pressing his lips to my forehead. “The second day you were with me, Gemma gave any submissives who didn’t want to be there the option to leave,” he informed me.
I leaned back in my seat once I had a handle on my emotions again. His answer – knowing he’d given those subs that option – had resonated deep within my soul.
My dom might have thought he was a monster, but I knew better. He cared where it truly mattered, and it was one of the things I loved most about him.
“I know you’ve got some other stipulations you wish to put in place,” he told me. “You were here for too long to not have more.”
“I know some dominants collar submissives they grow attached to.” James nodded, knowing that as well. “I want the dominant to sign a contract with you that legally binds them to properly take care of their submissive, and I also want a chance to talk to the submissive – make sure they’re okay with being collared and that they aren’t being forced or doing it because they feel they have to.”
“That’s actually a really good idea,” he mused.
“Really?” I asked, surprised that he thought so.