“Contracts can be broken. Especially when they’re not framed in a way that allows frequent re-evaluations.” Or in the case of one of the parties being a fucking asshole who only cared about himself.
When he hesitated still, I lowered my head enough that he had to make eye contact.
“Bear, you’re not in trouble. If you want out of this situation, I have a safe place for you to go for as long as it takes for you to feel like you can move on.”
The flickering spark in his big blue eyes could only be one thing: hope.
“I want out,” he said quickly, then widened his eyes as if he hadn’t expected to say it. He squeezed his cat tightly, took in a shuddering breath and looked me in the eye. “I’m s-so unhappy; I don’t want to be here anymore.”
“Then I’m not leaving this house without you, Bear. I promise.”
The single tear of pure relief that rolled down his cheek somehow triggered the answer to what had been wrong when he opened the door.
I was used to seeing submissives who had tears in their eyes, their lips swollen and cheeks red after being used by their Dominant. None of that was new. The wrongness of how Bear had looked like came from the lack of the usual happy euphoria of those submissives. He’d been miserable. He had just been used, and he hadn’t enjoyed it even a little bit.
Bear
My hands were shaking when I went to open the door again. It was only Master Luke’s hand on the small of my back that made me feel like everything might be all right.
It wasn’t until I lifted my eyes enough to check if Master Carl was still on the couch that I realized I was still holding Tonya. I stumbled in my steps but corrected myself quickly.
Master Luke stepped past me when we got to the living room area.
Suddenly I didn’t know what to do. I was to kneel by the table when Master Carl was on the couch, but I was leaving, right? I was getting away. So, did I honor the contract or…?
“Bear, you can sit wherever you want,” Master Luke said quietly.
I could sense him staring at Master Carl and then felt Master Carl’s gaze pierce me. I shivered, but with the support from Tonya, I could make it into the other armchair.
Part of me wanted to sit closer to Master Luke. He felt safe. Comforting somehow.
“I think you know what I’m about to say,” Master Luke’s voice was calm and collected, but I sensed he wasn’t as calm as he appeared. It took me a moment to understand that he was upset onmybehalf.
I listened to them talk, letting the words wash over me. I was suddenly more tired than I could remember ever feeling, completely exhausted. I was getting out.
I smiled, then quickly schooled my expression and hid my face in Tonya’s fur.
Master Carl cussed under his breath, and I felt it like a hit.
“All right,” he spat out. “Say your piece, then.”
“I can call Allen and have him come over, or I can have him meet you tomorrow, whichever way you want to deal with this,orI can explain to you what I have figured out and what I’m going to do next. Either way, Bear will not stay here for another night.” Master Luke’s voice was firm, almost hard and cold, but even.
Master Carl chuckled; it sounded bitter. “Fine, out with it.” I could see him gesturing, lowered as my eyes were.
“You done fucked up,” Master Luke said.
I let out a squeak of laughter, then shrank back into the chair and almost squeezed the literal stuffing out of Tonya.
“Even if I hadn’t seen or heard anything else, even if it was just a clearly distressed and unhappy submissiveandthat threefuckingmonth contract, Carl, I would be taking Bear somewhere else.” With each word, Master Luke’s voice became colder and angrier.
I would’ve been afraid of him in that moment, hadn’t I known it wasn’t aimed at me.
“It’s about the contract?” Master Carl asked as if it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “It’s a standard contract, Luke!”
“For a newbie sub it’s anything but. You know better than this, Carl. If you’re entering into an arrangement with someone who is as new as Bear is, you make a month’s contract and you better be ready to revise it weekly if it seems like one or both of you aren’t happy with it.” Master Luke was all but growling now, and I was sure if I’d dared to look at him, his dark hazel eyes would’ve been shining with electricity like Thor or something.
“I have been Dominating little brats like him for over a decade, Luke—”
