Instinct overrode everything, and she took a step to go after her, but the chain swayed, the clamps bit, and the plug pulsed a stark reminder. She was still part of the game, and quite naked beneath the blanket.
“In second place…” Devil’s voice rang out. “Emily.”
She jerked in surprise, wincing when all of her attachments did too. Had she heard right? She glanced around—maybe there was another Emily.
No one else stepped forward, and Master Dev’s gaze settled on her. She hadn’t expected to place. Had never even considered it.
On legs still shaky, with the clamps tugging with every movement, she moved forward to accept her prize.
“Your choice for the remainder of the evening, Emily?”
Her voice was quiet, but it carried. “Master Alec.”
“There’s a shocker,” someone drawled, dry and amused.
Another voice commented, “The surprise is that he let her play at all.”
Laughter rippled through the crowd as bodies shifted, revealing Alec standing near the patio.
Not caring who laughed or what pinched, she started toward him. He met her halfway and drew her into a hug—firm, enveloping, everything she now knew she needed.
She melted into him, burying her face against his chest. In long, slow, soothing sweeps, his hand stroked her back.
“I missed you,” she whispered.
“I was never far away,” he murmured.
They stood that way for several long heartbeats, the noise of the club fading around them.
“We should get those clamps off you.”
“Yes, please.” She leaned away, just enough to look up at him. “I need to tell you something first. The maze… it helped me realize you’re what I need.”
“I was counting on it,” he said gently.
Confusion flickered. “I don’t understand.”
“My patience was wearing thin, waiting for you to figure it out. The game in the maze tonight was the perfect way to nudge you along.”
Her jaw went slack. “How?”
“I chose every dom. Every station. Every sensation. I was in the security office watching the whole time, and directing.”
“You told Master Marcus to use that monster plug?”
“It was medium, Em. But yes, it was hand selected by me.”
She looked down at the rubber-tipped tweezers pinching her nipples. “Mateo’s nasty clamps, too?”
He touched a pinched tip, whisper soft. “They’re beginners’ clamps, baby.”
“Why?”
His gaze rose to hers. “I wanted you to experience what you thought you were missing and to decide, once and for all, that it was me all along.”
“You were so possessive when you thought Rhys was going to kiss me. Didn’t it bother you seeing me with the others?”
“As your dom, guiding you is part of my job. Even when it’s killing me. Especially with Mateo and Natalie who went off script.” His jaw tightened. “I wanted to strangle them.”
