Salvation

[Veroe]

((Closed for Myself and Wolf Vixen))​

IC: John Gideon

Zoe Pearson had looked alot like Laura.

No, not really. Zoe didn't have the same hair or eye color, but by her picture in the paper she had the same smile, and the same sparkle in her eyes when she smiled. She had the same gentleness in her bearing too. Zoe Pearson was the spitting image of John's wife-his late wife. To John Zoe Pearson was an vivid reminder of the deep gaping black hole in his life without Laura or little Claire, Zoe was a kick in the ass reminder of memories fading at the edges as these last two years had gone by.

He'd been right to kill Zoe's murderer. It didn't matter that the punk hadn't intended to actually kill her when he drew the gun on her and demanded her purse. The peice of shit guns on the street these days had such crappy triggers. But it didn't matter. It didn't matter that he'd been sorry for taking Zoe's life. It didn't matter that he was only fifteen, and had been too desperate and shaking for his next hit of heroin to really defend himself when John found him.

Beating the punk's face in was not justice, but neither was it revenge. Justice and vengeance didn't exist in this world, if Laura and Claire would never be able to recieve either. Unlike Zoe Pearson's murderer Laura and Claire's killer was forever out of John's reach.

Some in the paper said the vigilante in the night was a hero. A hero? Him? What a fucking joke.

Heroes saved the day, saved everyone, and left the bad guys alive. He only ever came when it was already too late. He tracked them down, and he vented his fury his despair upon them, but there was always more of them, and more of his fury and despair to vent upon them. The point was there was no end to it. He'd never be able to kill enough of them.

Zoe was still dead. Laura, little Claire were still gone, and he was still...here.

No, John was no hero, he was a fucking janitor taking out the trash in a junkyard of a city.

Maybe he just needed to end it now? Just take his gun, put it to his head, and it would be over. The only problem with that was if in anyone was up in heaven it was Laura and Claire, and with all the blood and death and misery on his hands John had no business going up there-wouldn't want to go up there if they'd let someone like him in even if it meant he'd never see his wife and daughter again when he died. Hell was being forever seperated from them.

No, he wasn't ready to end it-not yet.

He had no real idea why he came to the fetish club on the corner of thirty-first and Madison. Dressed in his last good T-shirt, the beaten and tattered jacket, the threadbare blue jeans. His face unshaven, the beard covering bruises and cuts from the life of a vigilante. On the stage inside was a woman tied to a pole. Behind her dressed in the typical unimaginative leather pants and mask a man swung a black paddle. The sound of it hitting the meat of her asscheek reverberating down to his bones, her cry of pain searing his blood.

Before he had lost everything John Gideon had been a simple straight-forward man that had followed the old-fashioned code of conduct that stated unequivocably that no one, absolutely no one hurt a woman on purpose.

His fists tightened itching to give that bastard in the mask the ass-kicking he deserved. John was a foot taller, and had more than twenty pounds on him all hard edged muscle. Any man that got his rocks off beating a bound woman wouldn't be much problem in a fair fight.

He approached the stage glaring up at him. Then the man stopped as the girl sobbed and begged for more. He lowered the paddle and stepped in front of the girl raising her chin. John watched as he spoke soft encouragements to her even as she still begged him to resume. He wiped the tears from her face and crossed the stage back behind her raising the paddle again.

He watched transfixed on the girl's face as the paddle struck again. She continued to cry out the tears continued to fall down her cheeks as the man mercilessly beat her ass red, but in her eyes John saw something. Was it peace? Acceptance? Serenity? Absolution? He didn't know. Part of him didn't understand, and another part craved to be in her place.

That shocked him. He needed to get away. To think, to distance himself. Abruptly he turned to be stopped by a woman with a hand on his chest.

He looked down at her, "Who are you?"

 

[Wolf Vixen]

Sapphire Matthews had always been the kind of person to take charge, getting the trait from her mother, a woman who took charge in the house and taught her daughter to do the exact same. Sapphire turned that talent into a business. At first it started off as a kinky escort type of thing, but eventually it grew until she finally owned the first ever fetish club in the city.

Temptations, that was the name of the place and it catered to every kind of fetish and kink you could imagine. She was full owner and the kind of owner you saw on the floor at least once a night. She took care of her business, her partons and even her employees. Sapphire had another business on the side that brought in more money as well. She was a professional Dominatrix.

Many people would come to her, both men and women and for various reasons. Her biggest clients had to be top executives of businesses around the city as well as afar. They would grow tired of always being in charge and wanted to give up that control to someone that didn’t look down upon their kink. Some like breath play and she would give them a simple scene or two where she denied them air for a brief time. Some were into pain and she certainly enjoyed putting them through different kinds of pain, from impact to actual risk play with needles and cutting.

Sapphire had strict rules set in place; she always met with the clients ahead of time to talk with them about what they were expecting. Too many times she had some person come to her for bullshit reasons and she could see right through them upon their conversations. She even had a few come in hoping that she would be their real life Mistress and she would, for a price, but then it never lasted forever.

Her top rule was to never get involved with her clients, this was a business after all and she didn’t need some jealous lover destroying what she worked so hard to put together.

There were other rules for safety, but many times she didn’t even have to bother reminding herself of those because they were etched into her being.

Sapphire had gone to school and actually earned her doctorate in Psychology, which helped her a great deal in her business. She used what she learned and helped each client surpass their troubles in half the time it took them to actually sit on a couch and talk about it. She could only guess that the mixture of a mental session and a kinky session mixed together was the key. People tend to work through their troubles when they don’t have a choice in the matter.

The pro-domme business was good to her and good for her clients. She got to do what she loved, both helping people and sometimes putting them through delicious pain, plus she got to help her clients. In fact she has just let the last one go, having the final scene with him and sending him to live out his life, cured of what ailed him. The one thing she missed though was a lover as she never had sex with any of her clients, another rule she had.

Her free time was spent at the club, making sure the acts were monitored as well as private parties having everything they could possibly need. She had the main club that held a stage for any public acts, seating like you would find at any strip joint in town as well as a bar. While her club served drinks, they did monitor who was drinking and who wasn’t; safety reasons for all in the club. It wouldn’t bode well to have some drunk ass dominant decide he wanted to quite literally beat a submissive when all she was looking for was a little light spanking.

There were private rooms in the back, some single style and others that were like conference rooms that housed every piece of fetish furniture you could imagine. It had taken Sapphire years to save up the money to not only have her own equipment at her studio where she saw clients, but also to furnish this whole club. She was damn proud at how far she had come and glad she could give to the kinky community what other cities refused to open their doors to.

Sapphire usually saw patrons at her club from a few states over who had become regulars there. She could always tell the newbies from the veterans just by the clothing they wore. The veterans always came in anything kinky from leather to just duct tape. She even watched as a few submissives come in wearing nothing but a collar under their jacket. Of course those were the ones that had a leash attached and their Master leading them through the club like they were some prized possession. While she loved the lifestyle and loved how it could help others, even open them up to new experiences, she never could get into the whole leash thing.

Sapphire glanced in the mirror a final time, checking the PVC dress she wore with heels to match, her waist length auburn hair tied up in a high pony tail and her blue eyes the color of, well sapphires. Probably why her mother named her the way she did. Nothing seemed out of place so she headed down the steps from her office to the main club floor, stopping by the private rooms to do a check on security there. She didn’t employ any of the acts or any of the scenes that people would see in the club, but what she did employ was the security, the wait staff and the cleaning staff. Everyone else was patrons of the club itself.

She made her way to the main club as her blue eyes glanced over the scene that was unfolding on the stage. She knew the Dom and even the sub that were on stage, Ricky and Sara. They had been a D/s couple for a number of years and always came as often as they could. This was Sara’s reward for good behavior; at least that was what Ricky had told Sapphire one evening after a truly intense scene on stage. Sara loved having public scenes, but Ricky wouldn’t allow them unless she had been good and apparently she had been good again because there they were, up on stage, a paddle in Ricky’s hand and Sara crying out with each strike.

Sapphire did enjoy watching the pair; they had a good dynamic that can only be found in people that have been together for years. There were times like now that Sapphire really wished she had opted for a more personal relationship, but then she wouldn’t have been able to provide a place like this for couples like Ricky and Sara.

As she made her way to the bar her eyes caught sight of a guy, a newbie, as he was dressed like most of them off the streets, jeans, t-shirt and sometimes a jacket. He came into the club and stopped dead, his eyes locked on the stage before him. Sapphire watched as anger filled him and he started forward with a set determination in his frame.

She stepped up and touched Jason, one of her security personnel, on the arm, “I’ve got this one.” She release his arm and took strides toward the man that might become a problem and quickly. Her eyes stayed locked to him watching his body vibrate with a need for violence. She had seen it so many times before and knew the signs of someone that had nothing to lose.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Ricky stop his paddling of Sara, comforting her as he always did before moving around her and beginning again. Sapphire watched the man in front of her as his demeanor changed and at first she couldn’t understand why, but then as she maneuvered around a table she realized his eyes were on Sara. It was like he connected with her, with what she was going through, but then he jerked like he had been slapped in the face. Sapphire knew he just realized something that he wasn’t fully aware of, he connected with Sara, but he was appalled by it.

He turned and Sapphire was there waiting on him, her hand outstretched to stop him from leaving or doing something they would both regret. His eyes glanced down at her, “Who are you?”

Her own eyes searched over the rugged face in front of her, covered in a beard, but from her trained eye he couldn’t cover the bruising she saw. He was living a rough life and she was curious why. He didn’t appear to be a rough and tumble type of man. She had seen plenty of those in her time. He looked lost and in need, but of what she wondered.

Her voice was calm as she spoke to him, “Sapphire, I’m owner of this club. How about I buy you a drink and you tell me what path led you to my domain.” She knew he was on the verge of bolting at any second and even with her offer he may still leave, but at this point all she could do was hope he would take her up on it. He looked like he needed something and he may very well have come to the right place for it after all.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

That shocked him. He needed to get away. To think, to distance himself. Abruptly he turned to be stopped by a woman with a hand on his chest.

He looked down at her, "Who are you?"

She was maybe five-six, a little on the slim side but a curvy body that wouldn't quit. For some reason beyond him she was the first woman since Laura that he had noticed as anything more than just another face. Dressed in a slick black pvc dress that showcased the length and tone of her legs, the curve of her ass, and the slope of breasts without ever revealing a hint of skin.

“Sapphire," She replied, "I’m owner of this club. How about I buy you a drink and you tell me what path led you to my domain.”

"A drink," He repeated eyes shifting to the bar. John hadn't had a drink in months. At first after he buried Laura and Claire he had sought refuge in the bottle, but it was always an empty solace for the ache of life without them. But it worked atleast for a short time. He nodded, "As long as you're buying, babe."

They crossed over to the bar the sounds of the paddle and the woman's cries pulling his eyes over to the stage again as they walked to it.

He ordered a bottle of beer from the bar and when it came he took a long swallow of it. Putting the bottle down he regarded her, this sapphire. He knew body language, and she had an ease and bearing to her that spoke volumes. If she was daunted at all at talking with a large dangerous looking man she didn't show it.

"So you own this place," He asked her. He turned and gestured to the stage, "That sort of thing the usual goings-on here? An asshole ties up a woman so she's defenseless and beats the hell out of her every night to impress a room full of assholes?"

The show was apparently over. The man stood infront of the woman undoing the straps that held her to the pole. Once free the woman wrapped her arms around him in a hug. The look she gave him belied the fact of the merciless paddling he had just given to her. She looked up at him with eyes filled with a love and peace, that for some reason stirred him in ways he could not fathom.

He turned back to the beer and to her sitting on the stool beside him. "You want to know why I came here," He shook his head, "I don't know why. You have nothing for me here." He glanced back over his shoulder as the man carefully led the woman off the stage and into the back. "Nothing for me," He repeated lifting the beer for a final drink.

 

[Wolf Vixen]

"A drink," His eyes shifting to the bar and Sapphire could tell there was a history there, but he wasn’t about to spill it to her. He nodded his head, "As long as you're buying, babe,” was his simple reply as he started for the bar. She smirked lightly at his reply as many that came in from the streets and knew nothing of the workings to this club always thought she was some easy prey to hit on, but this man didn’t seem to be the kind to come here just to pick up a woman.

Sapphire joined him at the bar, taking a seat on one of the stools beside him before crossing her legs. She sat in such a way the bar was to her back and her eyes were free to follow the happenings in the main club area. He ordered a beer and when it arrived he took a long pull from it. He didn’t seem the type to try to drown his sorrows, or was that he had already tried and found out it failed miserably?

She watched him with a careful eye as all actions are signs, cries from the soul as to the troubles someone was dealing with. He turned his attention to her, "So you own this place?" She gave him a simple nod of her head in response, before he turned and gestured toward the stage, "That sort of thing the usual goings-on here? An asshole ties up a woman so she's defenseless and beats the hell out of her every night to impress a room full of assholes?"

Sapphire waited as her eyes followed his to watch as Ricky untied Sara and Sara pounced into Ricky's arms, showing him her gratitude for a delightful scene. Sapphire's eyes turned back to this dark man, regarding him as she could see he was battling something deep inside of himself. She was betting it was that appalled feeling he felt earlier. There was something in that scene that spoke volumes to him, yet he would not say what it was and she wasn’t about to pry, at least not yet.

He turned back to her, "You want to know why I came here? I don't know why. You have nothing for me here." She watched his eyes move back over his shoulder again before his voice sounded again, but this time it sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than her, "Nothing for me." As he lifted his beer she leaned closer to him, “You do not know what I have here for you. You only see what you wish to see, but eventually, if you are open to it, I can show you a light, show you what you see here is not what you believe it may be. Freedom is found here, freedom from the troubles that plague you.”

Sapphire straightened herself in the seat. She knew what he was seeing; it is what most people that don’t understand the lifestyle see; a man beating a helpless woman. What they don’t see is the freedom that woman is going through, the release she is living in that moment. Those strikes of that paddle are not to harm, it is to open the mind, the heart, the body, and the soul to being free. Only those that truly understand know what that submissive is going through, only those that live it can understand the healing that pain can bring you.

She motioned to the bartender, who quickly brought her a bottle of water. She twisted the top and took a sip of the cool drink before setting it on her knee, “You came here looking for something, you may not know what it is right this moment, but somewhere inside of you it knows the reason.” She paused a moment, letting her eyes tell her what some may not see, “I am here to help, but it is up to you to want my help.”

She reached out with her hand, placing it softly on his arm he had draped over the bar, “It doesn’t have to stay dark, I can show you the light. You know where to find me, when you are ready.” Her eyes turned from him to run over the patrons of the club.

Sapphire learned long ago you can’t make someone seek help; it has to be their own doing. There were some that came to the club looking for her help and others that got her number from another friend of theirs, but in the end it was those that wished that freedom that sought her out. She hoped that this man would do the same, before it was too late for him.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

He turned back to the beer and to her sitting on the stool beside him. "You want to know why I came here," He shook his head, "I don't know why. You have nothing for me here." He glanced back over his shoulder as the man carefully led the woman off the stage and into the back. "Nothing for me," He repeated lifting the beer for a final drink.

She leaned closer to him. The action gave him an oppurtunity to look down her dress and get a glimpse of the small but firm round breasts trapped in the tight rubber, but he didn't. She had the most striking blue eyes. There was an intelligence behind those vibrant blue pools. John felt she could use them to peirce right through him to to see his heart-wounded as it was now. They kept his gaze bound to them as sure as the woman had been bound to that pole on stage. “You do not know what I have here for you."

"And what is that," He said in a mocking tone.

"You only see what you wish to see," She replied, "But eventually, if you are open to it, I can show you a light, show you what you see here is not what you believe it may be. Freedom is found here, freedom from the troubles that plague you.”

That caught him short and he looked at her wondering if he was that transparent to her. Nothing had worked. Not the bottle, not the wrath and fury vented on whatever punk he found that deserved it, nothing. In the end the pain and emptiness remained within him every minute of every day without an end to it in sight.

"Freedom," He repeated testing the word out loud, but then shook his head, "A little cocky aren't you? You don't even know anything about me."

She had straightened up taking away the oppurtunity for John to catch a glimpse of her cleavage. With a gesture the bartender brought a bottle of water to her. She took a quick drink from it and set it down atop her knee. Half the bottle on the shiny slick surface of her dress. The other half rested on the bare skin of her knee. His breath caught as condensation from the cold bottle slid down and rolled down it raising goose bumps in its wake.

Her words snapped his gaze back up to those brilliant blue ones of hers, “You came here looking for something, you may not know what it is right this moment, but somewhere inside of you it knows the reason.”

There was a long pause before he asked, "And you think you can give me that?"

“I am here to help," She answered softly, "But it is up to you to want my help.”

"You have a pretty high oppinion of yourself," He sneered, "And I'm really not you're type, babe. I'm not the spineless pussies you're used to beating around, and even if I was I'm broke. So I could never afford you." He turned and placed a dollar, his last dollar from his wallet, onto the bartop. He then added to her, "Besides it goes against my principles. Why pay for you tie me up and whip my ass, when I can easily get that ass-kicking for free just by saying the wrong thing to some drunk guy in a bar somewhere and-"

Her hand on his arm made him stop dead in midsentence. She leaned in, those sharp peircing blue eyes delving deep beneath the surface of him. " “It doesn’t have to stay dark, I can show you the light. You know where to find me, when you are ready.”

"You don't know me. Have a good night, babe," He replied a little angry with-well not with her, but himself for her words striking too many chords within him. He strode out of Temptations then. He needed distance, to think over this attraction he felt to what he saw in that woman's eyes. What was it? And why did he believe her when Sapphire had told him she could take him to the same place?

No, he wasn't some weak-willed boot-licking masochist. He had a will of his own, and there was nothing that could fill that empty hole in his soul. Certainly not becoming her slave, her pathetic little whipping boy. He'd search for his own answer on his own like before.

It was three days later when he found himself entering through the doors of Temptations again. John had spoiled a mugging the first day since storming out of this place the first time. There had been three of them. Punk kids that thought the knives they had held made them dangerous, and not really knowing how to even use them properly. John had beaten each of them within an inch of their lives, but one against three was poor odds even when every one of them sucked so bad compared to him. He had taken a nasty scrape over his ribs, a glancing blow, more painful than life-threatening. He had taken his t-shirt and made a bandage over them leaving him bare-chested except for the make-shift bandage. He covered it up by zipping up his jacket now.

A day treating his wounds, and a day with the pain and rage and empty despair. Now here John was searching for something more that would give him what he saw in that woman's eyes. He came back here though, and he didn't know why. This place, she, had nothing for him. He had already decided that.

Still, since he was here anyway.

He looked around but didn't see Sapphire up front. He asked the bartender where she was and was told she was with a client in back. He told John that he could wait for her and she'd come see him.

John settled down for a glass of complimentary water from the tap waiting for Sapphire to come, and maybe just maybe give some asnwers to why he had come back, and what he had seen in the eyes of that woman.

 

[Wolf Vixen]

"You don't know me. Have a good night, babe," he slipped from his stool and left the club, still angry, but this time the anger wasn’t pointed at anyone in the club. Sapphire sighed softly at his parting words, replaying them in her head, "You have a pretty high opinion of yourself. And I'm really not you're type, babe. I'm not the spineless pussies you're used to beating around, and even if I was I'm broke. So I could never afford you. Besides it goes against my principles. Why pay for you tie me up and whip my ass, when I can easily get that ass-kicking for free just by saying the wrong thing to some drunk guy in a bar somewhere…."

He showed his hand, at least part of it. She knew he was clueless about the lifestyle, that was obvious from his anger at Ricky and his comments confirmed it. Some never understood it, especially if you were standing outside looking in. Those that actually come in with an open mind, usually find something completely different than what they first thought. Then it is so hard to try and go back to being that person standing outside. It is like some door is opened, a door you don’t even know you have and yet behind that thick wood is a whole new life and a new understanding. But just opening the door doesn’t give you the insight into what is in the room; you have to actually walk inside. This man, he has only peeked through the peephole in the door, making an opinion about what he thinks he saw inside.

Sapphire knew she would be seeing him again; it was just a matter of time. Reaching behind her on the bar she slipped the dollar he left into her hand before sliding it down into the dress to nestle it beside her breast. Slowly standing, she started to make her rounds around the club once again to check on everything.

Finding herself up in her office once again, she took a seat down at her desk and started to go over the paperwork for both businesses. She certainly made sure that Uncle Sam got his part, after all, that is how she stayed in business, plus having a few in the top positions of the city board as previous clients helped too. As she pulled out one of the invoices for the club she paused, letting her thoughts take her again as she replayed the evening in her mind. That man, something about him called to her. She knew lost when she saw it and he was most certainly that. There was something else that lingered with that though and the more she thought on it the more she had to lean toward internal pain of some kind. People were never that angry at everything without a reason behind it and that reason usually was established inside.

Sapphire glanced back at the invoice, taking herself from her thoughts. When he was ready for her help he would come back, until then there was no point in relishing in it further. She jotted down the invoice in her books and moved on to the next one, pushing the image and the thoughts of that man to the back of her head.

The next few days and nights were like any other for her. She actually took the days to relax now that she didn’t have any clients and the nights were spent at the club. On the third night she started to get dressed for the night at the club. She already had word from a contact that there would be a woman coming into the club looking for some training. Seems this woman had a rough home life and while it brought out the submissive inside, that submissive wasn’t shown the proper form of respect. She had some issues and it seemed to bleed over into her personal life. Sapphire had seen this so many times before, some girl or woman coming into their own and someone taking advantage of them. It sickened her to no end and she wished she could find these women before they needed her help. But she wasn’t some super hero; she was stuck with fixing the aftermath of these situations.

Slipping on the black mini skirt and blood red, low cut top, Sapphire decided to wear her hair down. Sometimes meeting new clients it was better to look normal to them. Wearing leather or PVC might give them the wrong idea, especially after some form of abuse.

She slipped on her knee high boots with 5 inch stiletto heels and took a final look at herself in the mirror. Sapphire loved her long hair and with it being down it brushed across the waistband of the skirt. The blood red silk top was tucked neatly into the skirt and it made her appear like she was going for a job interview; that is if the job called for a skirt that covered only half her thigh. It was a good thing she had decided on the black bra and thong tonight because she would probably inadvertently be showing them off, especially if she bent over.

Sapphire made sure the dollar bill was tucked beside her left breast before headed down to the club to meet Linda, the woman that was going to be her newest client. She had been carrying that dollar bill on her every night, waiting for the dark brooding man to appear again.

She saw Linda sitting at the bar and as she approached she watched the young woman turn to her. Sapphire gave her a soft smile seeing a young woman who wasn’t so sure about coming here. The woman was in her mid 20’s, a good ten years younger than Sapphire, with black hair and beautiful hazel eyes. She moved up to her, holding out her hand, “Linda I presume, I’m Sapphire; it is good to meet you.” The young woman took Sapphire’s hand and Sapphire could tell she was scared of what was to come, which usually came with the territory. New people and abused people usually has the same apprehensions about the lifestyle.

“Come, let’s find a place to talk a bit,” she released Linda’s hand and turned toward the back rooms. As Linda moved with her, she moved a hand to the young woman’s lower back, showing her which way to head, “Randy has told me a lot about you. Do not worry; Randy is putting you in good hands with me.”

Randy was a friend and also someone who seemed to find the ones that needed help. As far as money went, Randy probably spent a small fortune with Sapphire, but then she always did give him a good discount too.

The woman found a back room, one of the single ones with a set of chairs. It was probably one of the most intimate rooms Sapphire had in the club. She motioned to one of the chairs, “Have a seat, care for something to drink?” Linda shook her head, looking nervous at being there. Sapphire took a seat beside her, “Even though Randy has told me a lot about you, please Linda I want to hear it from your own lips. What are you hoping to accomplish?”

Sapphire found out about Linda and what she was hoping to accomplish in that time. She wanted to be a good submissive for a dominant, but she did have some issues that related to the abuse she received at the hands of her step-father. Sapphire explained to Linda what she would do to help her overcome these issues, along with explaining the rules to her and what was expected of her before, during and after each session. By the time Sapphire was done speaking with Linda, Linda seemed more at ease which certainly made Sapphire happy. She hated when someone like Linda got the wrong idea about the lifestyle and about what her ‘training’ would entail.

Sapphire walked Linda from the back room to the main club, “You are more than welcome to stay and just observe if you would like. It might bring up some things you haven’t thought of. If you wish to stay I will put a word in to security to keep an eye out for you, that way you won’t have to worry speaking with anyone here at the club.” Linda seemed to like that idea very much as she nodded and headed off into the main club.

Sapphire watched her a moment before moving over toward Patrick, her head of security, “Linda, the woman just with me, keep an eye on her and make sure no one bugs her. She’s been through a lot and I don’t want it happening here.” Patrick nodded before pressing on the button on his shirt and relaying the orders to the other security personnel in the club. Sapphire smiled to him before her eyes moved around the club falling on the dark brooding man she had been almost waiting to see.

Sapphire moved over toward him sitting at the bar, “You return, does that mean you have come seeking the light,” she asked, but before he could answer, “Follow me,” she turned from him and headed back the way she had just come from. She didn’t wait for an answer and certainly didn’t look behind her to see if he was following her. He had come back looking for something and if he wanted to know what it was then he would most certainly follow her.

She took him back to the same room she was in with Linda, taking him past all the other rooms, which some were in use for various scenes that were taking place. If Sapphire could walk through her club without hearing some smack, some cry and sometimes even a scream it was a very dull night.

As she entered the room she moved over to the chair she had been sitting in, taking the seat again and crossing her legs as she relaxed back in the chair. The moment she saw him start to enter the room she motioned to the chair beside her as she reached into her top and removed his dollar, “I believe you forgot this on your last visit,” she offered him the dollar, but nothing more, waiting for him to come to terms what he was there for.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

John settled down for a glass of complimentary water from the tap waiting for Sapphire to come, and maybe just maybe give some asnwers to why he had come back, and what he had seen in the eyes of that woman.

“It doesn’t have to stay dark, I can show you the light. You know where to find me, when you are ready.”

He had dismissed those words when he first heard them, but they had stayed with him these past three days. Why? They were nothing more than canned philosophical self-serving nonsense. So why did those words haunt him still. The eyes of that woman he had watched getting her ass royally beaten haunted him too. Laura's special smile and Claire's carefree laugh haunted him too, as well as the sharp grunt they had made as their killer's bullets slammed into their bodies and stole them from him forever. He was a veritable haunted house unable to burn himself down to excercise these ghosts of memory, no matter how often he struck the match.

It was a saturday, and it was not long after the sun went down that people started streaming in. They removed coats and revealed the most eye-brow raising costumes on them and they strolled about like they were in their favorite t-shirt and jeans. John was beginning to feel a little out of place just sitting at the bar and drinking a glass of water.

As the evening wore on people got up on the stage for shows. The first was a short slight man who named himself Eric who took his slave, a large bull of a man and used him to perform a tutorial on trapping people in intricate webs of rope he called shibari. The second was a tall amazon warrior of a woman called Madelyn that looked like she could wrestle even the hardiest of tough-guys to the mat in seconds and three women dressed as puppies she had sing the ABC's in doggy woofs and howls as she smacked their asses with a rolled up newspaper. It was comical.

John only shook his head wondering what crazy thing he'd witness next here. None of these even hinted at what he saw in that woman's eyes, or what Sapphire had promised him. Why did he come back here? This place had nothing for him.

“It doesn’t have to stay dark, I can show you the light. You know where to find me, when you are ready.”

Those words and the memory of that look in that woman's eyes kept him on his barstool though, and not really knowing why pissed him off. He could feel his anger building like pressure rising in a volcanoe's magma chamber. All it would take was one small word or gesture to have him erupt.

Then he caught sight of her leading another woman out from the back room areas. She wore more conservative clothes compared to the shiny slick dress she had worn before, if conservative was an adjective to use to describe this outfit. Red top, cut so low, it made a tantalising burlesque show of her cleavage with each step and motion she made, and a black skirt that framed the sexy shape and tone of her legs and hips without being smutty about it. She also wore her hair down giving her an almost-girl-next-door look until one noticed the look in her peircing blue eyes that yelled at the top of their lungs that Sapphire was not a woman to trifle with.

She came and sat down on the bar stool beside him like she had the other night. “You return," she said, "Does that mean you have come seeking the light?"

"I..."

Before he could even finish one word in reply she rose and turned back to the backrooms of the club. "Follow me."

"...Hey," He called after her watching that sexy ass sway under the tight fabric of the mini-skirt as she power-sashayed away from him.

Before he even thought about it he was already up and coming up after her. He didn't like her treating him like an obedient puppy on a leash, but he followed after her anyway. The back areas of Temptations was a long hallway with closed numbered doors lining it. The rooms weren't soundproofed and he heard noises like the crack of whips and cries of pain, a harsh male voice shouting vulgar language to someone before being muffled with the gurgling sound of something being pulled in and out of his mouth. Temptations was a den of sin and debauchery, and he was walking through its heart now.

Why was he even here?

“It doesn’t have to stay dark, I can show you the light. You know where to find me, when you are ready.”

She took him to a rather innocuous looking room with chairs, at home in any hotel across america, and completely out of place here. She sat in a chair acting as if it were her throne and gestured for him to take the chair beside her. When he did, he was going to say some smartass comment but stopped short when she raised her hand to reach under the bustline of her top and pulled out a crinkled dollar bill. Not just any dollar bill, but his dollar bill. Had she saved it there in her bra this whole time?

“I believe you forgot this on your last visit,” She said holding out for him.

"I left that to pay you back for atleast some of the beer you bought me," He nodded, "Though it was also a shot at what you do for a living...comparing it with prostitutes...in that I'll say I'm sorry."

He leaned back in his chair and looked her in the eyes, "You promised to show me...what was it you called it...freedom? Why? What's in it for you? More to the point, What's in it for me?" He leaned for ward resting his head in his hands. "I don't know why I'm drawn here, Sapphire. I'm not the type-your type, your arm would fall off lash in hand beating me for something before I apologized for anything, before I begged you to stop, and not because I like it just because I'm that pig-headed. I'm not a masochist-"

The image of the look in the woman's eyes flashed in his mind cutting him off.

He raised up and he winced clutching the wound over his ribs. The motion might've popped one of the hasty stitches he had given himself. "Why did I come back here? There's nothing for me here. I have nothing for you, but pain and not the kind you think is fun."

 

[Wolf Vixen]

As she held out the dollar bill to him he stated, "I left that to pay you back for atleast some of the beer you bought me. Though it was also a shot at what you do for a living...comparing it with prostitutes...in that I'll say I'm sorry."

Sapphire nodded as acceptance for his apology. It wasn’t the first time she had heard that word, prostitute, and it wouldn’t be the last. Many that didn’t understand what she did, always labeled it under prostitution of some kind, when in fact she had never once slept with any client. That was one of her strict rules when it came to having clients. Sex, she found elsewhere, though lately not at all, but that was another matter for another day.

As he leaned back in his chair and looked her in the eyes, "You promised to show me...what was it you called it...freedom? Why? What's in it for you? More to the point, What's in it for me?" She waited as she watched him leaned forward resting his head in his hands, "I don't know why I'm drawn here, Sapphire. I'm not the type-your type, your arm would fall off lash in hand beating me for something before I apologized for anything, before I begged you to stop, and not because I like it just because I'm that pig-headed. I'm not a masochist-"

She smiled to herself wondering for a brief moment if he really understood the term. So many people took that term as someone who enjoyed pain just cause it is pain and that couldn’t be further from the truth. If that was the case then his problems would have been solved by getting the shit beat out of him, which appeared to be what he had been up to since the last time she saw him.

When he raised his head up, stretching his body back before wincing and clutching his side she knew that there was more than just an ass beating that happened. Her keen eyes searched over his features before moving down to his attire. She realized the shirt was gone and the jacket was zipped up, clear signs that he was hiding something, possibly bruised ribs or a wound of some kind. Her eyes moved back up to his as he made a very familiar statement to her, "Why did I come back here? There's nothing for me here. I have nothing for you, but pain and not the kind you think is fun."

Sapphire laughed softly as she stood up from the chair, “You do have a lot to learn and I will admit I am glad you returned. But before I start to answer your questions I have two for you; your name and what would you like to drink at no cost to you?” She stepped over to the door where she had an intercom built in to every room; she pressed the button and ordered drinks for them. Turning back to him she moved to stand directly in front of him, her eyes took in the sight of him as she was hit with the same feeling that he was dealing with a lot of internal turmoil. She leaned forward, putting a hand on each arm of the chair he sat in, “You wish to know what is in it for me? To put it simply,” she lowered herself to her knees in front of him as her hand moved from the arms of the chair to his jacket, “to help you overcome what troubles you.”

As he started to say something she raised her hand to stop him from talking, “Before you even begin, I will ask you to open your mind, forget everything you think you know about me and this place, much less what is done here. I do not need to know your specific troubles; they will come out in time, when you are ready. I simply see a man who is haunted, I see a man who saw something he wished he himself could find; that is all I need to know for now.” Her hand moved back to his jacket and she started to unzip it, “As for what you will get from it all, you will find the peace you have been searching for. You believe that getting into fights help to cleanse you and it doesn’t.” Her eyes slipped over his chest, taking note how nice it would be without all the bruises and marks from all the battles he had been in. They continued down to the shirt wrapped around him like a bandage.

Sapphire’s eyes moved back up to him as one of the waitresses brought in the drinks and set them on the table by the chair. Sapphire didn’t take her eyes off of his as she asked for the medical kit to be brought to her. She felt the waitress leave as her fingers brushed down over the middle of his chest, “You will have to be open with me if you wish to find that peace.” Her fingers brushed over the makeshift bandage, moving to where it was tied, “I wish to help you, I wish to show you what you can’t see right now. You think my hand would fall off from lashing you because you are stubborn. What if I told you I could have you so far from that stubbornness that you would be begging for me to continue, begging from release and not just the physical kind? You wouldn’t believe me because you aren’t open to what I can show you.” Sapphire untied the bandage and was slowly pulling it free of the wound as the waitress came back in and set the medical kit beside the chair on the floor.

Sapphire’s hands moved, taking the bandage with her before moving to push his jacket from his shoulders. “Did you know that the mind is the most important part of your body? Think about it for a moment, people have used it to crush others or build others up to feel like they could take on the world. The mind is what makes everything else sense what is happening to it. With the right stimulation to the mind one could make your body feel the most glorious pleasure or the most hideous pain.” As she continued to talk to him, she kept her eyes locked with his while pushing his jacket down his arms before pulling it out of the way. It was only then she let her eyes move back down to his wound to take an assessment of the damage, “Cutting it close weren’t you?” Sapphire’s eyes moved back to him, “Be honest with me, do you wish to end your life?”

It was a simple question for most people, but with someone like him it was always a hard question to answer. As she let him think on it a bit she turned to the medical kit and started to pull out what she needed. She turned her eyes back to him and waited for his answer before she turned her attention to the wound in his side. Sapphire hated seeing people get this far down before seeking help, but she was grateful that something made him come to her club to seek her out, even if he didn’t realize it at the moment it happened.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

He raised up and he winced clutching the wound over his ribs. The motion might've popped one of the hasty stitches he had given himself. "Why did I come back here? There's nothing for me here. I have nothing for you, but pain and not the kind you think is fun."

“You do have a lot to learn and I will admit I am glad you returned." She laughed softly, "But before I start to answer your questions I have two for you;"

"Shoot," He shrugged.

"Your name and what would you like to drink at no cost to you?” She rose and walked over to an intercomm set in the wall.

"My name,",John asked biting his lip uncertainly. Part of him wanted to not give her anything, to prove her wrong-that no one and nothing could possibly ever help him or take the pain he was in away, and the other part wanted to hand it over and give her the burden. He was a man used to being decisive, these two competing directions made him feel like the rope in a tug-of-war battle.

"John..." He said before adding instead of Gideon, "...Smith...John Smith." He didn't know why he had lied to her. Giving her his whole true name wouldn't have hurt him, but he just couldn't do it. He could've at least given a more believable fake name than John Smith.

Quickly he tried to shift her attention to the second question. One much easier. "I'll take a beer," He told her, "Don't care what kind as long as its cold."

Pressing the button on the intercomm she ordered their drinks. Then turned to stand directly before him. Looking at him, through him. Again he was of two minds from that. Part of him wanted her to see inside him the other like a wounded and cornered animal wanted to lash out at anyone that got too close like she was now.

She leaned down hands on the arms of his chair. Her fingers brushed against his hands as she lowered her eyes to look into his. Her eyes were a brilliant and striking blue like a calm ocean surface hiding the depths beneath that could crush a man.

“You wish to know what is in it for me? To put it simply,” she lowered herself to her knees in front of him as her hand moved from the arms of the chair to his jacket, “to help you overcome what troubles you.”

"I-"

She cut him off. “Before you even begin, I will ask you to open your mind, forget everything you think you know about me and this place, much less what is done here. I do not need to know your specific troubles; they will come out in time, when you are ready." He looked down and saw her fingers take the zipper of his jacket. He looked back up to see confirmation in her eyes. Yes she had surmised that he was hiding something from her under it. "I simply see a man who is haunted, I see a man who saw something he wished he himself could find; that is all I need to know for now.”

The sound of the zipper lowering made him tense up. Even so he made no move to stop her as the zipper lowered to reveal his T-shirt bandaged ribs. His eyes never left that ocean of deep blue that was Sapphire's eyes.

“As for what you will get from it all, you will find the peace you have been searching for," She continued, "You believe that getting into fights help to cleanse you and it doesn’t.”

"That's assuming I can get cleansed at all, babe," He bit out as she looked over his bare chest. Her eyes poured over the cuts, scrapes, bruises, the scars of a life lived in violence and retribution. "You spend enough time deep in the shit, you eventually get a stain all the way down to the bone, and you'll never be free of it."

He tensed again as the door opened and a waitress walked in with his beer. Sapphire asked her to bring the club's medical kit to her. Her eyes never left his to look upon the waitress. He jumped in his seat as he felt her fingers trace a line down the center of his chest. “You will have to be open with me if you wish to find that peace.” Her fingers brushed over the makeshift bandage, moving to where it was tied, “I wish to help you, I wish to show you what you can’t see right now."

All he was seeing was her eyes. He was lost in them.

"You think my hand would fall off from lashing you because you are stubborn," She told him, "What if I told you I could have you so far from that stubbornness that you would be begging for me to continue, begging from release and not just the physical kind?"

"That's a pretty tall order, babe," He told her though he wanted to find out if she could...the look on that woman's face flashed in his mind once more. When her hands began to pull at his makeshift bandage he jumped again. "Don't."

"You wouldn’t believe me because you aren’t open to what I can show you.” He hadn't noticed the waitress' return with the medical kit. Hell all this time and he had completely forgotten his bottle of beer.

“Did you know that the mind is the most important part of your body," She asked removing the bandage. "Think about it for a moment, people have used it to crush others or build others up to feel like they could take on the world. The mind is what makes everything else sense what is happening to it." She removed the jacket next leaving his torso bare to her inspection. "With the right stimulation to the mind one could make your body feel the most glorious pleasure or the most hideous pain.”

He watched her eyes break away from the contact with his down to the hastily stitched graze he had gotten from the mugger a couple days before. He waited watching her reaction expecting the pity he could rail against, but instead she said simply, “Cutting it close weren’t you?” Sapphire’s eyes moved back to him, “Be honest with me, do you wish to end your life?”

He thought on it for a minute as she opened up the medical kit, and pulled out the instruments within. He swallowed before answering with the truth, "Sometimes. Other times I think ending it is a mercy I don't deserve."

 

[Wolf Vixen]

His response didn’t shock her in the least. "Sometimes. Other times I think ending it is a mercy I don't deserve," he stated before she took out the cleaning wipes she had, preparing to fix the stitched up wound in his side. Sapphire had heard it before; someone believing that what they do will stay with them forever and while that can be true, that doesn’t mean it has to haunt you. Acceptance of those things you cannot change will not leave a dark stain on your bones or your soul that you can never remove. Yes it is a reminder, but it doesn’t have to be a painful one.

Her fingers brushed around the wound, taking an assessment of the stitch job he must have done himself, “At least that was a truly honest answer….John.” She glanced up to him a moment with a soft smile, “And if you keep trying to repair the damage then you will succeed regardless if you are ready or not.”

Grasping one of the cleaning wipes Sapphire lowered her eyes and went to work cleaning around the wound. The more she cleaned the more she truly realized how much he needed more. “And if I asked you to come with me, to let me clean you up, would that go against your stubbornness to allow me something so small?” Her eyes moved back up to his as she reached for a new wipe, “I only wish to help you John, nothing more. If my tending to your wound, cleaning you up, getting you fresh clothes, and a warm meal helps you with your battles, then it is the least I can do.”

Her eyes dropped once more to the wound, "This might sting a bit," she slowly moved the new wipe around the area, closer to the wound this time, trying to clean it up the best that she could. She wished she was at her home where she had more supplies, but if he wouldn’t go with her then this would be the best that she could do for him. Her fingers brushed over the newly cleaned area, softly prodding of the flesh around his stitches, “These will have to come out. I can tell that you enjoy your scars, like badges, but allow me to make this one the smallest found on your flesh.”

She moved back just a bit, letting her fingers brush down lower until they touched his pants. Slowly removing her hand from him she reached over for her glass of white wine. Sapphire looked back to him before taking a long sip of the wine. She knew he may wish to be stubborn about this, but she also hoped that for once he would decide this was a fight he didn’t need.

John Smith, which was a highly unlikely name, would be a challenge as he would fight her at every step of the way, even after he accepts her offer; she already knew this and was expecting it. Sapphire had ways of showing just a little of what someone sought after, but with him that little would be all he would be able to handle. Trying to take him to the place he wanted to go would take time and she was more than willing to give him the time it needed.

There was something about this man that seemed to speak to her. At first she thought it might have been the anger or the surprised look upon his face when he realized there was something there he searched for. There was darkness inside of him, a darkness he believed would stay with him through this life and possibly into the afterlife…hell he may even believe it would follow him to the next life. Her eyes roamed over his rugged features before slowly moving down his body, trying to figure out what it was about him that spoke to her. She took notice of the ropes of muscles that seemed to wrap over one another, making his chest massive. His arms were certainly the size of her thighs easily, with what appeared to be a tattoo, though she was unsure exactly of what it was. His body, from what she could see, was already littered with scars, some smaller cuts that would heal on their own and bruises. He quite literally abused himself looking for trouble. He was standing on the edge of the abyss deciding whether or not to jump.

Sapphire took another sip of her wine before setting the glass on the table. Her eyes turned to meet his own as she leaned close once again, “So what shall it be John, will I be stitching you up here in this chair or will you come with me where you will be more comfortable? I can promise you this much, if you come with me, you will have the strength to go out and add to your collection of bruises and scars tomorrow, if that is what you wish.” She waited to see what his decision would be, completely forgetting her own search on why she was drawn to him.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Sometimes. Other times I think ending it is a mercy I don't deserve."

“At least that was a truly honest answer….John.” She said looking up at him fingers brushing over the area around the gash in his ribs, “And if you keep trying to repair the damage then you will succeed regardless if you are ready or not.”

"You should see the other guys, babe," He said affecting a cocky air.

Instead of falling for the obvious deflection she took a wipe from the medical bag and began to cleanse the area around the wound. The cool surface was soothing on his skin. “And if I asked you to come with me, to let me clean you up, would that go against your stubbornness to allow me something so small?”

"Depends on where." He shrugged and then added something to push her on the defensive, "Or are you trying to sweep me off to your place, babe. If that's the case I can assure you what I have to allow you is anything but small."

“I only wish to help you John, nothing more." She said retrieving another towelette from the bag. "If my tending to your wound, cleaning you up, getting you fresh clothes, and a warm meal helps you with your battles, then it is the least I can do.”

John grit his teeth. She hadn't taken his bait, and now she was laying down her own. How long had it been since he had a warm shower, food that hadn't come from a combo menu, and the feel of clean clothes? He couldn't remember the last time for any of those.

Her eyes lowered to his cut. "This might sting a bit." And she proceded to run the wipe over it.

He face tightened but he gave her no sounds or signs like it stung like hell. He didn't know why he was fighting her, only that he couldn't let her win so easily.

“These will have to come out," She said prodding the slap-dash job of stitching it up he had done with a fingernail. "I can tell that you enjoy your scars, like badges, but allow me to make this one the smallest found on your flesh.”

"I'm not proud of them," He snapped out angrily at her, "They're nothing more than scars to me. Fix it up and move on." That was a lie of course, well not entirely a lie. He wasn't proud of them, that was true. They were...penance....yet there was a certain pride to bearing such suffering especially the self-afflicted kind. Picking fights with punks was a form of self-afflicted punishment so it was true, but complicated as only the worst of lies were. The most terrible of lies were the ones that had some truth to them afterall.

She didn't act in surprise, not in anger or hurt either-damn it was she totally unflappable. What she did was lower her hand to the crotch of his pants. It wasn't on the tent his cock had made there but off to the side, close enough that he automatically began to think not with the thinking, calculating, angry brain, but the one straining the denim of the blue-jeans now. He had seen a television show where a man could do much the same sort of trick on an angry dog just by tapping its neck.

He watched her take her time drinking from her glass of wine, the motion her neck made as she swallowed. For the first time in two years he wanted a woman since Laura. He wanted Sapphire and that scared the brain upstairs that was trying to force the one in his pants back out of the driver's seat even now. It was hard. The lower brain had been neglected for far too long and fought for control with a desperation and a need that was so very enticing, looking at Sapphire now.

“So what shall it be John," She said not even backing off an inch from her original line of attack. Damn it. "Will I be stitching you up here in this chair or will you come with me where you will be more comfortable?"

His hands tightened. Damn it he wanted her angry at him, to start a fight, a scene, anything so he could storm off and....why? Why, was he trying to push her away like this? She was getting close to him, and had the potential to get even closer. That was the answer.

She continued, "I can promise you this much, if you come with me, you will have the strength to go out and add to your collection of bruises and scars tomorrow, if that is what you wish.”

His hands tightened on the arms of the chair. "I don't want to add any more to my collection." He looked at her for a long long time, into the sparkling blue eyes. What did he want from her? For her to leave him alone? To fuck her? For her to hurt him because he deserved it? To wrap her up in his arms and shed the tears that had gone dry in the last two years? He didn't know. He didn't know.

In the end it all came down to whether or not he was willing to see what it was he thought he saw in that woman's eyes the other night. And whether or not he thought Sapphire could take him there.

"Fine," he told her quietly, "Where do you want me?"

 

[Wolf Vixen]

His hands tightened on the arms of the chair, "I don't want to add any more to my collection."

As he looked upon her she wondered why he was so angry, especially when she called it like she saw it. Was it that he was trying to upset her? Obviously from his previous remarks and pot shots he was trying to take he wanted her mad at him. The question was why? Sapphire knew the answer, but at same time she had hoped that he was past the petty display. After all if you wanted to walk away from something why not just get up and do just that? Why do you have to have a reason for it? Does it make a person’s conscious not eat at them if they can blame someone else for their failures? Sadly in her line of work she had learned that human nature usually wasn’t the smartest apple on the block.

"Fine," he stated quietly, "Where do you want me?"

Sapphire wanted to smile, but knew better, knew that something as simple as a smile would set him off and give him just the reason he needed to walk out of the door. But what he didn’t realize was that even after he found an excuse for tonight, something would always bring him back to her. Eventually he would run out of excuses to leave.

Her eyes never left his as she spoke, “I had hoped to take you to my place where I am more equipped to handle wounds such as this one, but if you do not wish to go there then I can at least offer you my couch in my office where you will be more comfortable.” He had bluntly stated that he wasn’t proud of his scars and yet in a way he was since he was littered with them. A man didn’t go out every night, looking for fights, stitching injuries hastily unless he wanted to remember them for one reason or another. But even a man like that wouldn’t chop off his hand just to gain the pain he was looking for and trying to remove the stitches and re-stitch him was going to be enough pain, being comfortable while it happened was the only sensible choice.

Sapphire turned back to the medical kit and removed a roll of gauze. Scooting backwards on her knees she held out her empty hand, “If you would be so kind as to stand, I would like to protect it as best as possible until I am able to work on it.” She waited for him to make up his mind to stand and in doing so put her in a position to notice other aspects to this man. In her line of work she had seen many men hard before and while she admitted it was a lovely sight, none ever gained a reaction from her as seeing John’s pants straining as they were. Her eyes moved up to the wound while her fingers went to work to wrap the gauze around his midsection. She pushed at the ache that she felt building, figuring it had been months since she had any real relationship and that was probably contributing to her reaction.

Once the bandaged was in place she raised to her feet before him, “Shall it be my place or the office?” She wasn’t giving him room to maneuver around her question. She had given him an offer and he had accepted it; to her that part of this negotiation was settled, but the actual location was still under question. She had to admit she was rather curious as to what this man would look like once he was completely cleaned up and looking like he was actually living for once instead of just surviving.

It would also give her the opportunity to watch and make mental notes about what it is that bothered him. What was he making himself pay for and what was causing him to seek the freedom that he saw in another? Sapphire was good at her job, but she wasn’t a psychic and eventually questions would have to be answered if she was to train him and give him what he sought after when he stepped through her door.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Fine," he told her quietly, "Where do you want me?"

John didn't know what irked him more about her reaction to that: the fact that he saw the beginnings of a smile form on her face or that she had the presence of mind to stop it dead in its tracks. She always had the upper hand on him, always the one in control of the situation, damn it.

And those damned eyes of hers, they swallowed him up like he was sinking and drowning within the ocean of her blue eyes. I had hoped to take you to my place where I am more equipped to handle wounds such as this one," she told him, "But if you do not wish to go there then I can at least offer you my couch in my office where you will be more comfortable.”

"Well you can't really do anything with me in this chair," He said glancing over to the door, anywhere but those damned bottomless eyes.

Sapphire took the oppurtunity to look down to the first aid kit and retrieve its roll of gauze. She moved on her knees back a bit giving what he could see of her cleavage a sexy and enticing wiggle that drew his eyes back to her like iron filings to a magnet-damn it even the littlest thing she did pushed him back on his heels. And that triple-damned traitor in his pants was absolutely loving it. It loved looking at her, hell it loved hearing the sound of her voice as if it was her hand wrapped around it stroking...like that was gonna happen....

John knew enough about her job to know she was paid to spank people and scold them like a mother would a petulant four-year-old; that was it. Even if he had the money to pay her what she'd be worth-which he didn't-she wouldn't take it, not for what that stupid-ass traitor in his pants wanted anyway. But that damned fool was growing long and hard and expectant under its denim prison with the merest anticipation of coming out to play with her. The damned thing always got him in trouble, Laura had always said so.

She held out a hand for him. “If you would be so kind as to stand, I would like to protect it as best as possible until I am able to work on it.”

For a long moment he thought about crossing his arms and just sitting in the chair like a spoiled brat, but in her gaze he sensed that she had the patience of a mountain. Finally he growled rising up to his feet. That put her face to face with the traitor trying to rip through the denim over his crotch in a lunge for her like a dog straining at the leash. He wouldn't feel embarrassed about it being so obvious to her. It was her fault for being so damned sexy anyway.

Rather than being put off by it Sapphire looked. In fact her gaze lingered there and he feel his heartbeat pounding in his ears as those deep blue eyes traced over his hard-on. Eventually she gazed upward to the wound on his side. Reaching up she began applying the bandage to it.

Once complete she raised up to face him asking, “Shall it be my place or the office?”

Damn, she wasn't giving him an inch to wiggle there except for... "You'd actually feel comfortable inviting a big, dangerous-looking total stranger to you, like me, into your home?"

There now, now he was the one on the attack. She had been knocking him back on his heels from the first moment he met her. Now he would start returning the favor.

 

[Wolf Vixen]

"You'd actually feel comfortable inviting a big, dangerous-looking total stranger to you, like me, into your home?"

He raised a good question and the look in his eyes told Sapphire that he was hoping it would take her off guard, to make her actually think about it before answering. She didn’t need to think on it at all though. Taking a step closer to him she wanted to show him that she wasn’t afraid of him, yet the moment she took the step she felt the brush of his hardness against her thigh making her breath catch for a moment. Not only was her breath affected by this but also the rest of her body as it began to tingle, building the ache between her legs. Sapphire wanted to step back away from the feel of his hardness, cutting off the reaction in her body, but for the life of her she couldn’t. Her eyes looked into his, seeing the obvious reaction in him as well, at least before he gained control of it and hid it away.

Her voice, having been found again, was a tad on the husky side as she spoke, “If you really wanted to harm me John, you would have waited for me to leave at night and attacked then; you wouldn’t have come in the first night, nor returned to me now. Taking you to my home is just as dangerous as leaving here at night to go home.” Sapphire paused a moment before she continued, “But if you will feel more comfortable I can certainly go and gather rope from the other room and bind you so you cannot do me harm.”

The idea of having him bound certainly brought her imagination into play. Before now she was determined to keep this just like any other business transaction, just like any other client she had before; but something about him was pushing those boundaries she set up a long time ago. It made her curious as to what it was about this burly man that seemed to call out to her like no other had before. Sapphire gained pleasure knowing she was helping others. Rarely did she gain it from any scenes that she may have had with her clients, but with John, images of his body bound by rope, completely at her disposal caused more reactions to sweep through her small frame.

Her eyes roamed over his face, taking in his rugged though dirty features, resting a moment on his lips as she wondered for the first time in a very long time how soft they would feel pressed to her own. As her eyes started to move back up to his own her tongue brushed lightly over her lips, “What shall it be John? Will you be good or do you wish me to bind you before taking you to my home?”

Her hands began to itch being this close to him; an obvious sign she wanted to touch him, more than what she had, up to this point at least. The feel of his hardness pressed to her thigh gave her mind mental images of the size of him, much less the start of thoughts of what he would feel like. She knew she needed to cut this tie, cut the reactions that were springing up inside of her. Her number one rule was never to get involved with a client and although he wasn’t paying her, much less agreed to accept what she offered to him, she still didn’t need to get involved with him.

That thought finally broke through the haze of sensations that scorched through her body, making her take a small step back, “If you are ready, my car is out back. I will just need to leave word on where to reach me should anything happen here.” She turned slightly; bending over to gather up the medical kit before truly realizing the position she put herself in. Sapphire was better than this, smarter than this and yet when she was around this man, it seemed that her mind left and her body and desires took over. The more time she spent with him, the more he was affecting her, but she wasn’t about to turn her back on him and leave him out in the cold when it was so obvious that he needed something she could provide for him.

Standing back up, she glanced at him over her shoulder. Her blue eyes moved down to his bare chest before continuing to the bulge that strained his jeans, “Don’t forget your jacket. I wouldn’t want you to catch cold.” She gave him a soft smile, knowing full well a cold was the least of his worries. Turning from him again she started for the door, “Welcome to stay here or meet me at the bar, although this room is a lot closer to the backdoor.” With that she moved from the room and headed down the hall back toward the main area of the club.

She took this time to evaluate what was happening with her body in regards to him, much less how her thoughts were being processed as he challenged her over and over again. She could tell John had been through a lot, hell the scars that littered his body could tell that story all on their own. But it was the scars that were hidden that interested Sapphire the most. She knew he wouldn’t want pity, not many people did, but he did need an outlet, at least a better one than he had been using up to this point. She just hoped that in the long run he would give her the chance to show him there can be freedom.

As she got to the bar she handed off the medical kit while telling them of her plan. She didn’t like leaving the club early, but every once in awhile there would be something that came up and tonight it was John. Her managers always did their jobs and technically she didn’t really need to be here as often as she was, but this was her baby and she was going to be available as often as she could.

Sapphire found herself taking a bit longer than she needed to; she wanted to believe it was to make sure everything was in order, when in fact it was a break from John and the connection they seem to have, at least physically. Taking a deep breath she turned repeating in her head to meet John, take him to her place and fix his wound. Sure the added things of shower, food and clothes were in there, but she tried not to linger on them too long before her mind decided to conjure images of him naked, in the shower. Sapphire tried to keep those images tucked far back in her mind. As it were her body was betraying her rules already, she didn’t need her mind doing the same; not like it wasn't trying.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"You'd actually feel comfortable inviting a big, dangerous-looking total stranger to you, like me, into your home?"

He had wanted her to start playing defense to take a moment to regroup but instead of fazing her she looked up into his eyes with those deep dark blues of hers and stepped forward. The action pressed her thigh against the tent in his jeans, and made his palms itch to grab hold of her and pull her even tighter against it.

No, this was disrespectful to Laura. She had only been buried for...for...Jesus...how long has it been?

“If you really wanted to harm me John, you would have waited for me to leave at night and attacked then; you wouldn’t have come in the first night, nor returned to me now," She said to him, "Taking you to my home is just as dangerous as leaving here at night to go home.” She paused a moment before adding, “But if you will feel more comfortable I can certainly go and gather rope from the other room and bind you so you cannot do me harm.”

Damn it, how did she perform this verbal judo on him. Taking his offensive and flipping it over so he was on the defensive again. Damn it.

“What shall it be John," She asked, "Will you be good or do you wish me to bind you before taking you to my home?”

He shook his head. He wasn't one of the pussies that paid her to tie them up and beat them around.

“If you are ready, my car is out back. I will just need to leave word on where to reach me should anything happen here.” With that she turned to bend down giving him an exquisite veiw of her sexy ass in that tight skirt. Maybe going home with her wasn't such a bad idea afterall.

No, what was he thinking? He was still true to Laura.

She gathered the medical bag and raised back up glancing back at him over his shoulder. “Don’t forget your jacket. I wouldn’t want you to catch cold," she told him, “Welcome to stay here or meet me at the bar, although this room is a lot closer to the backdoor.”

He watched her leave, that sexy ass waving good bye to him under that skirt the whole way. He looked away down to his jacket. He hadn't realized it was so worn and dirty before. Bending down he picked it off the floor and pulled the jacket back on. He looked back to the door.

What was he doing here? Despite how attracted he was to Sapphire John had no reason to go, did he? The image of what he had seen in that woman's eyes flashed through his mind again. Damn it, why did that look continue to haunt him? Why did he believe Sapphire when she said she could show him it? He wasn't that guy? He wasn't some masochistic pussy who got off on women abusing him? He was a man. When he got off he liked needed, to be the one in the driver's seat. He wasn't Sapphire's type, but it beat sleeping on the street.

John left the room and walked back down the hall. He came to her at the bar. He looked at her and into those blue eyes that could drown him. He had every intention of thanking her for the bandage and apologizing for the waste of her time he had been to her, but instead the words came out differently. "Your place tonight. Just to clean up and sleep on your couch for the night. In the morning I'll be out of your hair for good."

 

[Wolf Vixen]

When her mind cleared a bit she noticed John standing there. Sapphire wondered how long he had been standing there and why it took her a moment, when she turned around, to even realize it. Did he throw her off of her center that badly?

"Your place tonight. Just to clean up and sleep on your couch for the night. In the morning I'll be out of your hair for good,” he stated matter-of-factly.

She just nodded to him, “If that is what you wish.” She started to move past him, “We should be on our way.” As Sapphire moved through the main room again she began to wonder what demons he was fighting against in his mind. One moment he seemed to come to her arms wide open for what she offered to him that first night and other times he seemed like he slammed a steel wall in place to keep her out. She knew he was denying himself that freedom, but why…what would it cost him to try?

She led him down the hallway to the backdoor. Pushing it open, she waited for him to exit the building before allowing the door to close behind them. Checking to make sure it had closed securely; Sapphire glanced to him, “The red Mustang.” She started for the crimson car in the parking lot. There weren’t many cars in this back lot, mostly employees, but they ranged from Toyota to even Harley. She moved to her car, slipping the keys from the waistband of her skirt. Sapphire learned a long time ago it was easier to have her keys hidden on her than in her desk drawer in her office. That way she could put the club and her studio keys on the same ring and have them on her at all times.

She unlocked the door and slipped inside; releasing the lock on the passenger door to allow John inside with her. Starting the car, she glanced over to him, “Anything in particular you care to eat John?” She wanted to keep the questions at a minimum because she felt like he was on an edge of something in his mind and if she pushed too hard he may just walk away; his ego getting the better of what he truly needed. She backed the car up and started off for her place, knowing it wouldn’t take too long to get there and yet she so badly wanted to ask him what was burning in her mind; what had happened to this him to cause him to fall so far?

Sapphire glanced over to him on the drive, trying to determine ways of knocking down that steel wall she felt, but then that was only half the battle as she needed to find a way to keep it down too. She finally broke through the silence that seemed to fill the car on the drive, “If I may be so bold John, what did you do for a living?” She had a feeling he was just getting by, after all he had a dollar on him, his clothes appeared to be years old and severely worn, let alone the dirt that seemed to cake onto his skin in some areas. If she had to guess she would have said he was living on the streets. Sapphire wanted to know why someone would choose that, but she dared not ask him that…just yet.

“If you ever have need for work, I do have a few projects that a man like you should handle with ease. A suggestion to keep in mind, should you need it.”

What the hell was happening to her? Sure she helped people, but never before had she ever invited someone to her home, nor offered them a job. Sure she had work to do, but then that is what other companies are for, not some man who just happened to pick her club to visit one night. She raised her hand to brush back the hair that was tickling her forehead; at least that is what she told herself as her fingertips brushed her skin. She started to slow the car down before turning onto a single lane road that disappeared into the darkness ahead of them. Her eyes glanced to him again as her own mind spun with questions, both about him and this reaction that she was having because of him. Her eyes moved back to the road as they came up on a two story country house.

This was probably why she never invited anyone over. Her home reminded her of the house she grew up in and the one thing that seemed off from the rest of her life. The outside appeared as normal as any other home in the area and inside it did as well, but she did have one room set up where she tested out new equipment and toys that she had custom made. It didn’t do her any good to have something made, put directly into her studio or club and then it didn’t work as intended. At least having it here, she had time to test everything out before moving it to where it was intended to be housed.

She pulled up in front of the house in the circular drive and turned the car off. She opened her door and slipped from the car before heading to the front door. She half expected to get the door open and turn to find him gone; having lost his nerve. As she unlocked the door, opened it and stepped inside she did turn toward him, “Before you come inside I want to make one thing clear.” Sapphire paused as thoughts of things she wanted to do but really shouldn’t be thinking floated in her mind. She pushed at them as she continued, “I do have a guess room, so no need for you to sleep on my couch.” She gave him a soft smile, hoping to ease some of the tension that seemed to be building between them tonight.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Your place tonight. Just to clean up and sleep on your couch for the night. In the morning I'll be out of your hair for good."

He had stood there admiring her with her back to him at the bar. Damn it, this would be so much simpler if she wasn't so damned sexy, and he didn't want her so much. When she did turn to see him Sapphire looked startled before gaining control of herself again within moments.

“If that is what you wish.” She replied making her way past him back down the hallway, “We should be on our way.”

"Whatever you say, babe." He followed after her down the hall and through the back door into a small carlot out behind the Temptations club.

“The red Mustang.” She told him heading for the car.

John whistled when he saw it. A 67 Cherry Red Shelby fastback. It was worth quite a bit, but Sapphire clearly knew her cars. "Nice," He told her appreciatively. Even her taste in cars he found sexy as hell. He slid into the passenger seat envious of her as she got behind the wheel.

She pulled out of the parking lot, and pulled out on the street. “Anything in particular you care to eat John?”

"A cheeseburger or pizza would be great," He said trying to keep his eyes on the roads she was taking-he didn't like not knowing exactly where he was at all times-but invariably he found his eyes straying over to her as she confidently drove this expensive, classic car through traffic. It transfixed him watching her drive something so fast, so powerful, enjoying every moment of her total control over it. It was arousing as hell. He continued, "But whatever you have in the fridge tonight will work just as well, babe."

That drove on through streets empty and filled leaving the city and getting to the city's limits. buildings were growing more and more scarce while trees and wilderness became thicker and more commonplace out of his car window, but his eyes kept straying left to watch her driving again.

Eventually she broke the silence, “If I may be so bold John," she asked, "what did you do for a living?”

"If I tell you I was a cop, Sapphire," He told her looking down to his hands, "Will that change you letting me sleep in your house? If it matters I was never in the vice squad, but that may not matter much to you now in light of that. I'd imagine Vice cops were all up your ass and in your hair running your club in town." John lowered his head into his eyes, "But I haven't been a cop for a few years now....now I don't know what I am."

“If you ever have need for work, I do have a few projects that a man like you should handle with ease," She said.

He was about to remind her that he didn't need her pity when she added, "A suggestion to keep in mind, should you need it.”

She turned in to a house veiled behind a tall stand of trees in a circular driveway leading to a house that looked modestly sized and well-maintained. Controlled even here. Part of him was annoyed by the sight, the other relieved by the constancy to her character.

She pulled the mustang to a stop and slipped out of the car. John followed after her. “Before you come inside I want to make one thing clear," She told him at the foot of the front porch steps', “I do have a guest room, so no need for you to sleep on my couch.”

"A warm bed," He said dreamily before snapping back to reality and glowering, "I don't want your pity. I'll take it, but I'll do your odd jobs to earn my keep, understand?"

 

[Wolf Vixen]

"I don't want your pity. I'll take it, but I'll do your odd jobs to earn my keep, understand?"

Sapphire turned from him and moved into the house without answering him. She moved past the open living room into the kitchen that opened into the dining room. She also had a small office on this first floor, but other than that it was a quite simple design. Upstairs she had a few bedrooms and bathrooms and then she had a full basement that was fully furnished for any gatherings she may decide to have here, which so far were none. Maybe this year she could put something together since the businesses were doing well.

When she reached the kitchen she opened the drawer near the phone and dug around inside of it a moment, producing a menu she was looking for. As she heard him move into the kitchen she finally answered his question, “I do not pity you John; I simply want to help you.” Her eyes turned to him, “I don’t pity anyone in regards to their decisions or what life has given to them. It is up to them to pity their selves, not me.” She turned back to the menu, “What do you want on your cheeseburger? I’m betting everything.” Sapphire showed John in that small bit of time the frustration and anger she had been feeling every time he made some statement about what he believe she thought about him. She normally didn’t let people get to her like that, but something about him and those kinds of comments to her was starting to wear on her. She picked up the phone, trying to distract herself from her thoughts. Placing the order and hanging up she turned to him, “Should be here in 20 minutes. Would you like to eat first before I fix that wound of yours?”

She stepped over to him, her eyes looking over him again; he certainly could use a good shower, but even what she saw seemed to pull reactions from her. At first she thought that maybe it was that side of her that always could pick up on pain, but the more time she spends in his presence the more she realizes that it is more than that. “If you wish to help me out, doing some work for me, I will happily pay you or you can use that money to rent my room. It is your choice John, but the offer is there. There are no strings attached to it. I have work that needs done and I will pay you to do it.” Sapphire could use his strength for some work and his expertise as a cop in other areas. She reached up, brushing the edges of the jacket between her fingers as well as feeling his skin brush over the other side of her fingers. She felt her body tighten but pushed the sensation away as she slowly started to push his jacket from his shoulders. “I am curious though, you use the word babe quite often. Are you hoping I will take it as some endearment or maybe some insult?”

It had not escaped Sapphire’s notice that he was pushing her at times, almost like he wanted her upset at him. Again she supposed it was a defense mechanism for him and one she wasn’t going to give in to. He had already got a peek at her being upset at something, but she fought to keep those emotions under control. It did no good for her to take everything people said to her to heart. Many tried to find ways to justify their own actions, lashing out at her in the process. In some ways it was part of the healing process, but she didn’t gather that from John, more like he was looking for any opportunity to say ‘see I told you so’.

As his jacket slipped down his arms, she ran her fingers over his arms even as she kept a hold of the jacket. She watched him, his reactions to everything she was doing. As she passed his elbows she curved her fingers a bit more, letting her nails run over his forearms, again watching his reactions to such a small move and yet one that would speak volumes to her. As his jacket lowered, she stepped closer to him like she was going to pull it off behind him and yet when his arms moved she took a risk and tightened her hold on the jacket, using it to trap his wrists behind him. Sapphire whispered to him, “What if I told you that freedom can be found being bound and helpless to another’s whim?” She gave him a soft smile before releasing her hold on the jacket, just enough to slip it the rest of the way off before stepping back from him to lay it on the center isle counter. “There is so much I could show you John, you just have to be willing to keep your mind open. In fact the easier way to show you is to simply stop thinking and just feel. Once you stop letting your mind decide things that others have taught you, once you have decided to learn the truth for yourself through your own experience; that is when you will find the doorway to that freedom you seek. Some things are meant to be felt, not shoved away into the deepest darkest hole inside.”

Sapphire started around him, “Let me get you something to drink before dinner arrives.” She knew what she was doing to him; she was beating down that steel wall he liked to put up around himself. Keeping him on his toes about what she would say or do next is a good way to keep that wall down. Stepping to the refrigerator she opened it to pull out two beers and turned to hand him one, “Welcome to have a seat at the bar here or in the dining room. Make yourself at home for we have a little time to wait.” She twisted off her own top to her beer and for the first time wondered if she was flirting with danger. Here was someone that needed her help and yet she could feel the reactions in her own body when it came to this man. Something spoke to her about him, made her crave him and yet she fought it as best as she could with every step she took with him.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"I don't want your pity. I'll take it, but I'll do your odd jobs to earn my keep, understand?"

Without rising to take the bait of that, Sapphire turned and entered her home at that. John followed her inside. The livingroom was nicely and meticulously neat and orderly. Was she a neat freak? John didn't know if that would be a good thing or not.

Sapphire had crossed into the kitchen and rummaged through one of her drawers for a delivery menu. It was then she replied to his earlier statement. “I do not pity you John; I simply want to help you.”

"Good," He asserted, "Because if this was only about you feeling sorry for m-"

She looked up at him saying, “I don’t pity anyone in regards to their decisions or what life has given to them. It is up to them to pity their selves, not me.”

"That's me alright," He said rolling his eyes, "The very picture of self-pity."

Again she didn't rise to the bait on that one either. She merely changed angles of attack lifting up the delivery menu and asking, “What do you want on your cheeseburger? I’m betting everything.” There was a tinge of anger and frustration behind the words.

He nodded, "Yeah, everything." Wondering if he had finally pushed her too far.

Using her phone she made the order. “Should be here in 20 minutes," She told him, "Would you like to eat first before I fix that wound of yours?”

He nodded again, "The burger first."

Crossing her arms Sapphire walked over to him, those damn eyes cutting right through him again. “If you wish to help me out, doing some work for me, I will happily pay you or you can use that money to rent my room."

"I don't intend to make this a permanent arrangement, babe," He said looking away-anything to avoid meeting those eyes-they tended to ensnare him like a spider's web.

"It is your choice John, but the offer is there," She replied reaching out to run her fingers over his jacket and the skin underneath rose goosebumps as her fingertips traced over it, "There are no strings attached to it. I have work that needs done and I will pay you to do it.”

He shook his head too proud to accept her charity. Charity was not something he wanted, it was more than he deserved really anyway. "I'll be fine, but thanks for the offer, babe."

“I am curious though, you use the word babe quite often." Slowly, sensually. " Are you hoping I will take it as some endearment or maybe some insult?”

"Just calling it as I see it," He told her with a shrug. The truth was he had been hoping to offend her. Most women in her line of work would've been irritated by the mysogynistic term. And after enough times, would've...what thrown him out on his ass or beaten that ass black and blue. The truth was he did not know why exactly he called her babe, only that he felt the need to keep her at a distance, even though she seemed as thick-skinned on it until that undertone of frustration earlier.

Not that he had much chance to analyze it for as she pulled the jacket off his shoulder and down his arms. Her fingertips tracing over the rise and falls of his tricep and biceps making him feel it all the way down to his groin. Then her nails grazed over his skin making his balls engage like bullets loading into the firing chamber of a gun, ready to fire. Shivers ran over his body. His eyes had drifted shut and when she stopped the jacket at his wrists behind him they shot open. He looked into those deep blue pools of her eyes gazing back up at him.

"Sapphire," He said his voice hoarse with an emotion he could not easily identify. He wanted to bend down and kiss her, the way he had only ever reserved for Laura before. He wanted thrash and break free of her restraints and turn and run. "Let go."

“There is so much I could show you John," She replied, "You just have to be willing to keep your mind open."

He swallowed hard and cleared his throat. She was getting too close. This was starting to feel real here.

"In fact the easier way to show you is to simply stop thinking and just feel," She told him, "Once you stop letting your mind decide things that others have taught you, once you have decided to learn the truth for yourself through your own experience; that is when you will find the doorway to that freedom you seek."

He shook his head. She was luring him into this, like a spider with a fly in that proverbial parlor. Jesus, this wasn't him. He wasn't the type to be the kind of person Sapphire was used to. He was a man, damn it. He couldn't face this. John needed to go, get some distance, shove this into a corner, and not deal with it ever again.

"Some things are meant to be felt, not shoved away into the deepest darkest hole inside.”

She broke away stepping around him to the fridge. “Let me get you something to drink before dinner arrives.”

"A beer...no...something stronger, got any hard liqour." He took off the jacket and angrily threw it over the back of a chair. However he obviously needed a clearer head around her. "Forget that, I'll just take the beer."

“Welcome to have a seat at the bar here or in the dining room." She said handing him a bottle of beer. "Make yourself at home for we have a little time to wait.”

He pulled out a barstool and sat down before popping the cap off. He glowered at the bottle. If she tried something like that again he wouldn't just stand there like a stone.

Something about her made him believe her, but he was too hardheaded to do the sensible thing and cooperate. No, he couldn't give up without a fight.

 

[Wolf Vixen]

Sapphire’s eyes watched him for a moment, her thoughts turning back to her offer and his denial of it. She leaned her hip against the counter and took another pull from her own bottle. She didn’t let his reactions to what she had done escape her. The look of desire as his eyes closed, the look of fear when they shot open. What was he afraid of? Was he really going to fight himself on this, on what he wanted deep down? She already knew that answer, but she was hoping that once he was here he would have let his guard down some…apparently not.

She wanted to push and yet was afraid if she pushed him too much she may not get the chance to at least fix that haphazardly thrown together wound of his. She stepped away from the counter, toward him as she set her own bottle down on the bar top. She drew in closer to him, feeling his knee brush the tops of her thighs. Her hand slipped down the bottle and over the edge of the bar to the underside of it. She reached for the hidden light switch that turned on the overhead lights that hung over the bar. She could tell from his demeanor he was upset, probably at her or himself…either way he was on edge as it was.

Her eyes started to move from his down his chest, dipping lower still until they moved over to the bandaged wound in his side. She felt her body heat rising, her breath getting slightly heavier than it had been moments before. She was walking a dangerous line and she knew it, but she couldn’t let him leave in the state he was in, it just wouldn’t be right of her. Her fingers dropped from the light switch to his knee as her other hand moved to the chair back behind him. Her eyes slowly moved up to his as her fingers started to travel over his thigh, moving toward the bandage wrapped around his mid-section, “I think now’s a good a time as any to take a better look at this.” Her voice was low, almost sensual as she moved even closer to him. Her fingers moved so slowly over his thigh, up over the front of his hip to the bandage. Her eyes never dropping from his as her fingers brushed over the gauze.

The doorbell rang, breaking her from the spell and stopping her from leaning even closer to him and those lips of his. Without a word she turned and headed for the door, trying to get a breather before she found herself doing something she shouldn’t. Opening the door she smiled and accepted the bag of food. Giving the delivery guy a tip she closed the door and took a deep breath, bringing with it the smell of the burger and fries she had ordered. Taking control of herself once more she moved back into the kitchen with the bag, setting it on the bar top before moving to get them some plates, “Saved by the bell…for now.” She turned back to him offering him a plate and yet keeping her distance from him for a few more minutes. Sapphire didn’t know what the hell was happening, but it wasn’t going to stop her from trying to help him in any way she could.

“After we get you fixed up again, you are more than welcome to take a shower and crash out here if you wish. If not,” she shrugged her shoulders as she placed her plate down on the counter, “that is totally up to you.” Sapphire hoped he would stay. Part of her knowing the path to helping him is to learn more about him and yet part of her just hoped he stayed for other reasons…ones she was trying to push to the back of her mind even as she reached for her food in the bag.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Some things are meant to be felt, not shoved away into the deepest darkest hole inside.”

Something about her made him believe her, but he was too hardheaded to do the sensible thing and cooperate. No, he couldn't give up without a fight.

She was watching him those sparkling blue eyes never leaving him, and leaning against the counter. She brought her bottle of beer up to her lips and took a drink from it. John watched her swallow. The roll of her throat as she drank, even this he found sexy.

She put the bottle down and approached him. Leaning in Sapphire brushing her skirt across his knee. His breath caught in his throat as she came perilously close against him. She smelled feintly of gardenia's, seducing him by scent alone. She turned on the barlights at the switch behind him and then pulled away as he was leaning in to get a deeper whiff of her.

Once she had put about a foot of distance between them her eyes lowered from his trailing down the muscles of his chest and abdomen like fingers over his skin. They centered on the bandage she had applied to his side. “I think now’s a good a time as any to take a better look at this.” She said low, sensually, lifting her hand and placing it atop his knee.

John's eyes were locked, trapped, ensnared with hers. John leaned in. Lips parting to meet hers in a kiss, and then the doorbell rang. He blinked shaking his head as Sapphire rose to answer it. That was close, again he had been taken under her spell.

She returned with laying the bag before him. “Saved by the bell…for now.”

John opened it and pulled out the cheeseburger and fries, "I haven't had a warm cheeseburger in years."

She put a plate for him on the counter. “After we get you fixed up again, you are more than welcome to take a shower and crash out here if you wish. If not,” She said with a shrug, “That is totally up to you.”

"I'll take a shower after the burger," He told her. He needed one, a cold one, after being around her.

 

[Wolf Vixen]

As Sapphire pulled her own burger from the bag she had to smile to John, it wasn’t every day you got to watch someone actually enjoy something so small as a warm cheeseburger, but he was. It did tell her a lot about him, that his life had been so off the rails to normal that even a warm cheeseburger was something to behold. It made her curious how it came to be that he was an officer of the law and now seem to live on the streets. Did he take up a life of crime? She already knew that answer just by looking at him. Yes he was dangerous, yet not to her; she had nothing to fear from him. So it had to be something else, something that made him turn his back on the law he swore to uphold.

Sapphire let her mind think on it as they ate their dinner. She didn’t want to interrupt him while he enjoyed this small thing that she could offer him. She finished up her own burger and turned up her beer bottle to finish it off. When she placed it down on the counter she realized that he was watching her. It wasn’t the eyes of a police officer; she had seen those kinds of eyes before. He watched her almost like a predator, but one that wasn’t so sure of its prey. He was curious and yet there was something in the depths of his eyes, like a hidden flame threatening to turn into an inferno at any given moment.

Sapphire pulled herself from her thoughts as he finished up. She offered him a smile, “Would you like another beer before we work on fixing you up?” She turned from him and reached into the fridge for another cold one, “Better yet you might want it anyway.” Turning back to him she offered it to him, “After all, stitches aren’t the easiest thing to take…at least not twice on the same wound.”

She moved around the counter once more, coming close to him, “Are you ready for this? I have a room that you will have to excuse. It has a few pieces of equipment that I am testing out for the club as well as my studio, but it also has the one piece of equipment that will make this the easiest on you and me.” Smiling softly to him again she wanted to ease any tension he may be feeling, “This way,” she stated as she turned and headed from the kitchen.

As she led him back to the stairs and up to the second floor she couldn’t stop her mind was thinking about him and that shower. Her tongue flicked over her lips as she climbed the stairs as images of him with water dripping from him seem to bombard her mind. She tried pushing them back, but the closer she got to the second floor the more they pounded at her. She could tell he was a good looking man underneath the dirt and grime of the city; even his scars told stories that she was curious to know about. Sapphire moved gracefully down the hall to the room that she tested everything in. She was hoping the sight alone wouldn’t make him want to run, but then again she would understand if he did. She just knew that the medical table she had would be perfect for fixing his wound.

Stepping into the room that housed a few pieces of bondage equipment, the medical table and had another table lined with floggers, canes and even a few paddles, she found herself holding her breath to see if he bolted from her home. Stepping to the medical table that was in a somewhat reclined position she turned waiting to see his reaction to what was held in the room; maybe that would give her some clue into his psyche.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

John opened it and pulled out the cheeseburger and fries, "I haven't had a warm cheeseburger in years."

Sapphire pulled out of the bag her own cheeseburger as John pulled his free of its wrapper. She watched him as he began to scarf down in only the bites of someone who knew true hunger for a long time could. They ate on in silence. It was pretty good, real good. John devouring both the burgers and fries as she and those eyes watched him.

John tried to ignore her as he ate, but she was making it damned difficult. Just sitting there watching him eat and looking sexy as hell doing it. He wondered if she knew what she did to him without even trying. Of course she knew. Sapphire seemed to never be out of control, and damned if that wasn't the most arousing thing he found in her.

It wasn't right. It wasn't staying true to Laura. What kind of husband was he? Laura wasn't even dead two years and here he was being led astray from her memory by a pair of sexy eyes and a pretty face.

Eventually the food was eaten and John had his first full stomach in a long long time. She smiled at him, “Would you like another beer before we work on fixing you up?”

He shook his head placing his empty beer bottle onto the counter, "I'm good."

“Better yet you might want it anyway,” She said, “After all, stitches aren’t the easiest thing to take…at least not twice on the same wound.”

"Alright," He relented, "Who am I turn down a second beer?" John took the new bottle she offered.

“Are you ready for this? I have a room that you will have to excuse. It has a few pieces of equipment that I am testing out for the club as well as my studio," She said coming around the counter to face him, "But it also has the one piece of equipment that will make this the easiest on you and me.”

He got up. "I'll have to see it to decide, Sapphire. Take me to it."

“This way,” she stated as she turned and headed from the kitchen.

He followed after her through the house upstairs and the second floor. It was once a bedroom but now it was a medieval torture chamber meets suburban housing development. "Taking your work home with you, babe," I asked running a hand over a particularly viscious looking whip, "Who do you test these on here?" I wondered why the thought of her bringing someone else here would spark his anger. He had no claim on Sapphire. They had just met. There was no reason for such possessive feelings for her.

"You want me to lie on the doctor's table?" He asked nodding to it.

 

[Wolf Vixen]

"Who do you test these on here," he asked, but she notice a spark in his eyes that she couldn’t quite put her finger on. She started to respond when he spoke again, "You want me to lie on the doctor's table?"

Sapphire nodded and as he made his way to the table she laughed softly as a thought occurred to her, “Actually I don’t test them out on anyone. Are you volunteering John? Would you like to be the one they are tested on here?” Even as the question slipped her lips she was surprised that she even asked it. Her clients she never brought here, she always saw them at her studio or met with them at the club. Thinking on it some more she had never invited anyone to her home before, not until John.

She turned from him, not wanting him to see the realization in her eyes. Moving to a cabinet she opened it to find what she needed to redo the stitches in his side. Pulling out the items she moved back to the medical table and started to lay them out. Raising her finger she moved to a closed door and pulled out one of those small medical tables on wheels. Bringing it next to where he was, she transferred the items to it before going back to the cabinet, “Why did you leave law enforcement?” Sapphire knew that it was a personal question, but she was just looking to get to know him better and small talk always seemed to grant her doors that otherwise was secure.

She made her way back over to the small table and placed the rest of the items on the top. She glanced to him for a moment before her eyes slowly moved down toward the wound. She took her time glancing over him, taking in the sight of his chest as well as the muscles that were hidden there. Her eyes moved over the wound and she quickly looked back to the table, seeing if she had everything she needed for this.

Sapphire glanced to him again with a soft smile, “Welcome to put the beer on here too,” moving the smaller table closer to him, “Please keep talking, about anything, it will take your mind from what I am doing and,” she leaned a little closer and lowered her voice, “I like the sound of your voice.” She leaned back and turned to the small table where she found the gloves she was looking for. Slipping them on she pick up what appeared to be a set of tweezers and a pair of small scissors. She glanced back up to him, waiting for him to start talking about something before she looked back to his wound and started to remove the old stitches.

She nodded as she listened to him, turning back and forth between his wound and the small table. Once all the stitches were removed she got the antiseptic wipes off the table and turned back to him. She started toward the wound but stopped short as her eyes moved up to his. She locked eyes with him even resting one of her gloved hands on his chest before she touched the wipe to the wound and then cleaned all around it. Her fingers were brushing over his chest as she finished, “There, halfway there.” Sapphire gave him another soft smile as she pulled her eyes from him, but left her hand on his chest for a moment more before finally pulling it from him. She worked on opening the sterile sutures she had, preparing them before she turned back to him.

She started to lean down, but realized she forgot to put her hair up. Standing back up she set the sutures back on the table and pulled off the gloves. She moved over to the table full of floggers and pulled out a drawer where she held a few items she always tended to forget when she came in there to test out equipment. Pulling a rubber band from the drawer, she pulled her hands through her hair and started to tie it up into a semi bun; just enough to get it out of her face and out of the way of her work.

Turning back to him she paused looking him over before moving back to the small table, “I would like to know more about you John, if you would allow me the honor.” Pulling the gloves back on she picked up the sutures and turned toward him. She leaned forward, her fingers touching his side, close to the wound as she positioned the suture at the other side. She glanced up to him, “I know this won’t be pleasant, but I will be as gentle as I can. Tell me more about yourself, please.” Sapphire waited for him to start before she even began the first of many insertion of the needle into one side of the wound and out the other side of the wound.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Taking your work home with you, babe," John asked running a hand over a particularly viscious looking whip. It was a rough kangaroo hide, tough enough to make an animal-or a man-to think twice about misbehaving. He looked back over his shoulder at her gauging her intent here.

She had brought him here alone to her home as close to the middle of nowhere as you could get within the city's limits, and then led him up here to her homemade torture dungeon. Did she truly only want to help him reapply those stitches or did she intend to take him where he was alone and attempt to abuse him. Somehow despite just meeting her he doubted that possibility.

It didn't matter he was twice as big as her and stronger, and a whole order of ornerier than any of the whipped pussies she was used to. If she did try to tie him up to make him her lapdog Sapphire would find this dog had a nasty bite. Not that she would, no, she wasn't the ball-busting/manhating type of dominatrix. However he could be wrong...it wouldn't be the first time the universe reminded him of that possibility.

"Who do you test these on here?" He wondered why the thought of her bringing someone else here would spark his anger. He had no claim on Sapphire. They had just met. There was no reason for such possessive feelings for her.

“Actually I don’t test them out on anyone," She replied, "Are you volunteering John? Would you like to be the one they are tested on here?”

"What," He said eyes widening in shock at how less than revolted he was at the image of her testing some of those. Damn it, he wasn't that guy. He was the dog with the nasty bite, god damn it. He shook his head each word a whiplash to whatever part of him that liked the idea of being her slave, "Hell no."

Before she could pry any further he shifted the conversation to much safer waters. "You want me to lie on the doctor's table?" He asked nodding to it.

She nodded her agreement and he stepped over to it not trusting himself to say anything more. He lay down atop it warily. Meanwhile Sapphire had crossed over to a cabinet where she pulling out a needle and thread, wipes, gauze, etc.

Then pulling a rolling table over she asked, “Why did you leave law enforcement?” She bent down to peer at the wound.

He looked away, was that what this was-an interrogation? He knew that game, played it himself many times himself. "Who said I left enforcing the law? I only left the force." That was true, from a certain point of view.

“Welcome to put the beer on here too," She said putting the items on the table.

"I'll hang on to it," He told her challengingly, "I may need it as an anasthetic."

“Please keep talking," She said ignoring the challenge, "About anything, it will take your mind from what I am doing and,” She leaned in so he could feel her breath over his skin like a teasing caress. Her voice lowered, getting a sexy low tone to it. “I like the sound of your voice.”

He looked away from her then, "I like the sound of yours too, Sapphire." He took a drink from his beer and decided on avoiding any troubling topics. "You want me to talk, huh? How about them Yankees? The last game I saw..."

He continued on speaking on nothing at all revealing of himself making small grunts and groans through gritted stubborn teeth as she removed the hasty stitches he had put on himself and wiped it clean. He bit back a louder groan as she used those antiseptic wipes. "...That stings." The hand on his chest stilled him even gave him a sense of stability as she began to use the wipes more thoroughly. Odd that, he was stronger and larger than her, but here he was being comforted by her strength.

The fingers brushed over his chest now. “There," she said smiling up at him softly, "Halfway there.”

Her hand lingered there over his hammering heart in his chest. Dammit, that traitor in his pants was starting to take notice again, fucking sellout.

She left him then to put her hair up in something of a bun. It gave her a sexy librarian in that top and skirt. She returned saying, “I would like to know more about you John, if you would allow me the honor.”

"It would only be a waste of your time, Sapphire," He said ducking anything about his past. Images of Laura and Claire as the coroner took their bodies away to the morgue. The Crimescene boys taping off their home. He shook himself, "You won't ever see me again after tomorrow morning."

“I know this won’t be pleasant, but I will be as gentle as I can," She said positioning the suture to the gash on his side.

"Don't worry," He told her fingers tightening on the edge of the table and the neck of the beer bottle, "You'd be surprised at what I can endure, babe."

"Tell me more about yourself, please.” She prodded.

He shook his head, "There's nothing to tell really. I'm just another hard-luck case on the city's streets." A deflection, and a rather weak one, but it was the best he could come up with with her so close to him. She and that damned traitor was making it difficult to think.

He looked over to the tables with whips, and chains, and clamps, and all manner of intimidating things. Maybe some turn about would be some fair play here. "How about you, Sapphire," He asked, "How did you come by being a pro dominatrix?"