Soft Limits: A Deviations Novel (Deviations Series Book 6) Page 9

  “Yes, sir.” He paused a moment, watching Nikki move, noting the stiffness in the boy’s shoulders had diminished some. He also noted a little smugly that Nikki had fallen easily into using ‘sir’ again as soon as the boy felt safe. He crossed to the house phone and called security.

  “Good evening, sir. You’re settled in?”

  “Yes, Pat, thank you. We’ll be working, but I expect it to be an early evening.” Especially since he wouldn’t be fucking anyone.

  Dammit.

  “Very good, sir. We’ve got eyes. Enjoy your evening.”

  Bradford hung up the phone and turned around to find that Nikki had walked over to the cross and was standing in front of it. Bradford smiled.

  Oh-ho. And so it begins.

  “No, pup. Over here, please.” He pointed to the cuffs that hung at the other end of the room.

  “Oh, but—”

  “ ‘Yes sir,’ will do. Thank you.”

  “Yes, sir.” Nikki’s disappointment was adorable. Truly.

  “What are your words, boy?”

  “Nickel and dime, sir.”

  Bradford lowered the cuffs to Nikki’s shoulder height and secured a wrist into each one. The cuffs he’d requested be set up for him were very wide, six inches or so, and lined with a thick layer of synthetic fur. They covered most of Nikki’s forearms.

  “ ‘Nickel and dime.’ It is my responsibility to keep you safe, boy, but you have to help me do that. If your fingers begin to fall asleep or the cuffs begin to bind and are uncomfortable, you are to tell me immediately. You may respectfully interrupt me at any point or use your soft word if you can’t manage that. Am I clear?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “If your arms become fatigued or begin to ache, you should let me know as well.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Stand arm’s length from the wall, hands flat against it, shoulder height, feet wide apart.” Bradford moved to the chest. He took off his jacket, hung it up, and kicked off his shoes and socks. He pulled open a drawer, removing a three-row pinwheel, a leather blindfold, a small padded leather paddle, and a short-handled feather teaser. He stuck everything into various pockets except for the blindfold.

  “Good boy. I’m going to cover your eyes,” he said, moving in behind Nikki. “It will be easier on you than keeping them closed for our session, and by denying one of your senses, the others become more acute.” He placed the blindfold over Nikki’s eyes and tied it on; then he reached around and spread the leather out for maximum coverage. “Can you see, boy? I don’t want any light peeking in.”

  “No, sir.”

  “Remember to use your words if you need them. I’m right here. If you can’t feel me, you will be able to hear me. You will not be alone. You are safe.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  Nikki didn’t seem nervous about the lack of vision, so Bradford jumped right in, running the feather teaser over the boy’s shoulders. “All you need to do, boy, is listen, feel, and breathe. That’s all I will require of you tonight.” He was using his most soothing voice, low and smooth, speaking slowly, musically. “Listen. Feel. Breathe.” He kept up his work with the tickler, first one shoulder, then the other. “Repeat that, boy.”

  “Listen, feel, and breathe, sir.”

  “I’m not hearing you breathe.” He grinned. Sometimes the most difficult part was the breathing.

  Nikki took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

  “That’s it, boy. How does this feel?”

  “Soft, sir. Tickles a little.”

  “Feel,” Bradford said softly. “Listen.”

  Nikki nodded.

  “Submission can be a very complicated thing, Nikki. But it can also be this simple. I asked you what you wanted, you told me you wanted to be restrained. But I’m your Dom, so the how and the where are up to me. How long is up to me. What happens next is up to me, mostly—we agreed on no pain and no intimate play this evening, but within our stated limits the rest is up to my imagination. You have given up control to me, to use you as I please.”

  This was good for him too. It had been a long time since he’d broken it down and gone back to basics, pulling out the sensual tools and paying attention to the simple details. Bradford worked the teaser over Nikki’s shoulders again and again in relentless circles, smiling as the boy’s skin began to visibly warm. “Breathe.”

  Nikki took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. His shoulders were relaxed now, his weight braced against the wall. Bradford lifted the teaser away and blew air gently across Nikki’s skin, earning a sigh.

  “Good boy.” He went right back to running the teaser across Nikki’s shoulders again, drawing circles, figure eights, spinning the tool in his fingers and keeping constant contact with Nikki’s skin.

  “Feel.”

  “Feels good, sir.”

  “The same?”

  “No. No, it’s different, now. It’s more…intense, and I can even feel some of the individual feathers now.”

  “Your skin is becoming more sensitive.”

  “Just feels good, sir.”

  “Good boy.” He didn’t let up. When Nikki’s skin was starting to blush hard in the couple of places he had gone over the most, he put away the teaser and pulled out the pinwheel.

  Gingerly, so as not to startle the boy, He set the pinwheel down on the far right side of one shoulder, and applying minimal pressure, he began to roll it across toward the other side.

  Nikki shivered and his skin broke out in goose bumps. Bradford eased up a little, but he didn’t stop. “Breathe.”

  Nikki took a deep breath, and Bradford pointed the pinwheel toward a particularly pink patch of skin.

  “Oh.” Nikki gasped. That was lovely enough, but the boy’s gasp was followed by a soft moan, and he felt pride swell in his chest.

  “Beautiful, my boy.”

  “Sir, what is that?”

  “Do you like it?”

  “Yes, sir. Makes me tingle.”

  “It’s called a Wartenberg wheel, or a pinwheel. I’ll show it to you later.” He increased the pressure and rolled the wheel over the same spot on the other shoulder. He continued, slowly but firmly rolling the pinwheel over Nikki’s sensitive skin, which only grew more sensitive by the moment. He stopped speaking, letting Nikki’s breathing be organic, letting the boy begin to float. Nikki’s responses grew along with his sensitivity until his moans became more intense and nearly continuous.

  At that point he stopped and put the pinwheel aside, turning back to the teaser. He drew the feathers over one of Nikki’s shoulders, and the boy shivered and moaned loudly, shrinking away slightly from the touch.

  So goddamn beautiful.

  He did it again on the other shoulder and this time Nikki whimpered.

  “Sir!”

  “Too much, boy?” He tossed the teaser aside with the pinwheel. Nikki had done good work, and Bradford didn’t want to push the boy beyond the limits of their agreement.

  “It…stings, sir. Like needles. Hurts.”

  “Do you like it?”

  “Sir.”

  “I’ve put it away, boy. It’s only a question.”

  “I…I think? It was just so intense.”

  “Well, we drew a line at pain tonight, boy. But perhaps we can explore that sensation another time.”

  Nikki nodded. The zing of the feathers on sensitive skin jarred him enough to speak but now that moment was past, the boy was back to that lovely space he’d been in before his evil little experiment.

  Bradford admired his work: the very pink skin around the boy’s shoulders that would stay tender through the night, standing out in contrast to the paleness of the skin on the rest of his torso and lower back.

  Concerned the boy was too floaty to know whether his fingers were asleep, Bradford gently removed the cuffs one at a time, leaving Nikki’s hands braced on the wall.

  At first he thought Nikki hadn’t noticed, but then the boy rallied. “Sir…”

 
“Still with me, boy?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Bradford questioned that and removed the blindfold. Nikki’s skin was covered in a lovely light sweat, particularly around his brow and hairline, and Bradford dropped the damp blindfold on the floor with the other tools he’d used.

  “Tell me how you feel.”

  “I’m fine, sir.”

  “That’s not what I asked, boy. Tell me exactly how you feel. I want details.”

  “I, um. I feel…light, like my feet aren’t quite on the floor. My shoulders are hot, tender, super sensitive. I can feel your breath on them.”

  He wasn’t standing that close. The boy really was sensitive.

  “How are your hands?”

  “My…”

  “Move your arms, boy. Wiggle your fingers.”

  “Yes, sir.” Nikki did as requested. “They are fine, sir.”

  “Good boy. Do you feel safe?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Do you trust me?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Do you wish to please me, boy?”

  “Yes, sir. I do.”

  “Good boy. Come.” Bradford took Nikki by the hand and led him across the room to the cross. “I have a reward in mind for you, for your good work with the pinwheel and for your earnest submission to my will this evening.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Step up to the cross, arms up. Your shoulders may ache a little as you raise them. Breathe and use your words if you need them.”

  Nikki followed Bradford’s order, settling against the cross easily, and raising his arms up the length of the cross. If the raw skin on his shoulders was bothering the boy at all, he didn’t complain.

  “Very nice.” He quickly bound Nikki’s hands in place. “You will tell me if any of the bonds are too tight.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  He locked the ankle cuffs as well. “The cross is your reward, boy. There is no doubt in my mind that there is a reason you are drawn to it, and I intend to help you begin to learn why.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  He took a deep breath as he walked a slow circle around the cross. “Give me your words again.”

  “Nickel and dime, sir.”

  “You will use them if you need them.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  He stopped and held up the paddle where Nikki could see it. “This paddle is soft and thuddy, it won’t hurt the first few times, but the effect will be cumulative. I’m going to use it on your ass, boy, until I’ve had enough or until you use your words. Understand?”

  Nikki’s eyes were on the paddle. “Yes, sir.”

  “Relax, boy. Trust me. You’re in the right space for this.”

  “I trust you, sir.”

  He felt his own shoulders relaxing with the first couple of taps to Nikki’s ass. He’d spent so much time reassuring and focusing on Nikki, he didn’t realize he’d grown so tense. Bradford paced behind Nikki and then added two more, the thump of the soft paddle satisfying his senses.

  “Okay, boy?”

  “Yes, sir. Fine, sir.”

  He nodded. He’d fix that.

  He started in with the paddle again, varying the location and intensity of the strokes but keeping his rhythm constant. Thump after thump, he laid into Nikki’s ass until it was pink and hot and the little gasps and grunts he’d been getting from Nikki turned to sighs and groans.

  There wasn’t a muscle in Nikki’s body that wasn’t relaxed or anything about the boy’s posture that would lead Bradford to believe he was anywhere near his safe word.

  Time for the rest of the boy’s reward.

  “You have done beautifully tonight, boy.” He let up on the intensity of the strokes, but not the frequency. “I asked you to trust and you have. I asked you to believe that I would keep you safe, and you did. You have let me bind you, use you, even hit you, and all because it pleases me. You didn’t question or express reservation.” He slowed his arm, the taps barely touching the boy. “You have earned your time on the cross, and you have satisfied my every request.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  He stepped away, putting the paddle and the other instruments he’d used aside to be cleaned, essentially just wasting time and letting Nikki breathe while the boy returned to the room. Nikki had done very well, but it was time to see just how successful their evening had been.

  “Nikki?”

  “Yes, sir.” Nikki’s voice was soft, his tone compliant.

  “I’m going to undo your cuffs now.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  He took his time, removing each of Nikki’s restraints and admiring his work. Nikki’s shoulders were still warm and pink, and now his ass had a lovely blush to match. Just gorgeous. So pretty he almost didn’t miss the blowjob he’d originally planned.

  Almost.

  Dammit.

  Nikki lowered his hands to his side but otherwise waited for Bradford’s instructions.

  “Kneel, boy.”

  He held out a hand to assist the boy on the way down and Nikki placed a hand in his palm as invited, but really didn’t need the help. “Thank you, sir.”

  “You’re welcome, boy.”

  When Nikki didn’t let go of his hand, he bent and gently put the boy’s hand down himself. He got a little whimper, but Nikki didn’t move.

  “Tell me who you are.”

  “Nikki, sir.”

  “Yes, boy. Usually. Who are you right now?”

  “I’m yours, sir.”

  His chest went tight and he had to physically pace away from Nikki. He doesn’t understand what he is saying. He reminded himself. Not yet.

  He wanted those words to be their truth. Eventually. But right now…

  He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, willing himself back to center. It was a shame that the rest of his body was not as adept at following his orders as his subs tended to be.

  “You are my sub, boy.”

  “Yes, sir. I am your sub.”

  “And I?”

  “You are my Dom, sir.”

  “I am. How do those truths make you feel? Take your time.”

  Nikki was quiet for a moment, but it didn’t take him long to express himself clearly. “Safe. Cared for. Wanted.”

  He nodded, not surprised by the boy’s choice of words. “Well done, boy. There’s a lovely oatmeal-scented lotion in the first aid cabinet. Retrieve that and two bottles of water, please, and then come sit with me.”

  The lotion was completely unnecessary from a first aid perspective, but he liked it for aftercare. The scent was soothing, and Nikki would appreciate the touches. He turned and moved to a divan in the far corner and took a seat in the center, patting his knees as Nikki did as he’d asked and made his way over as well.

  “Across my knees, boy.”

  Nikki stretched out over his lap, pillowing his head on his arms at one end of the divan. He pretended not to notice that the boy was half-hard, but he certainly did. It was interesting that Nikki was so intimidated by the prospect of physical intimacy and yet didn’t seem to be the least bit body-shy. Perhaps that promise really was enough for him. If so, that level of trust would take the pair of them very far.

  He squeezed some lotion into his palm and spread it across both hands, warming it as it distributed through his fingers. By the time he laid his slippery hands on Nikki’s back, the lotion was very warm.

  “Mm.” Nikki hummed happily as Bradford worked the lotion into his shoulders.

  “This time after a scene, after we’ve gone wherever we need to for the evening, this is our time to relax and recover. You’ll feel yourself returning from what we call subspace, and what’s important is that you should feel free to talk about anything that comes to mind. It might be related to our scene, or it might not. Or you might find you don’t wish to speak at all and that’s fine, too. I’ve known subs to take hours, overnight, a day or even more to feel completely restored. Just take your time and know I’m here. There is no
wrong way.”

  He was reminded of a scene that he and Tobias’s former boy, Phantom, had indulged in together a couple of months ago. He’d had to clear his calendar for a full day to recover with Phan and then took a second day to continue taking care of the boy. They’d both needed something that night, and though he didn’t often care to go as far as Phan was capable, when he had that particular itch to scratch, he knew precisely who to call.

  He continued working lotion into Nikki’s skin, moving down the sub’s back and over that lovely pink ass. The boy blushed beautifully. All that pale skin was just begging for some color. He took his time; he never watched a clock when he worked a scene, and Nikki was welcome to as much of his time as needed.

  Though Bradford couldn’t be sure what to infer from the boy’s silence.

  He was just finishing off his water when Nikki stretched out, long and lean, in his lap. “Oh, that felt so good, sir.”

  “The lotion?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And everything else?”

  “Amazing. Just incredible. Thank you, sir.”

  He nodded approvingly. “You may sit up if you wish, boy.”

  Nikki did just that, standing in fact and stretching tall before taking a seat beside him again. He handed the boy a bottle of water, and Nikki drank half of it down in one gulp.

  “You heard everything I said about talking if you like?”

  “Yes, sir. But I have so much swirling around in my head, I can’t pin any of it down yet.”

  “That’s quite all right. Let’s plan to talk tomorrow. We can agree on a time in the morning.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “At this point, then, our scene is over, and that’s the end of our agreement for the evening. If we decide together to do this again, if one of us invites the other, then we would negotiate a new agreement.”

  “If one of us…I can ask you?”

  “Of course you may.” And wouldn’t that be a miraculous evening?

  “Huh.” Nikki looked thoughtful. “And I still have to call you ‘sir’ when we leave here.”

  “Always. And keep your eyes respectfully low as well.”