"Like he'll buy that pack of lies." Jason stepped to the door and then turned back. "Call me. I know you two have a lot to discuss, but please call me."

Lori nodded.

In an instant he was gone and the apartment was silent.

Lori wrung her hands in her lap. "I'm so sorry."

"You've said that. If you keep harping, I'm going to develop a complex." Margaret stood and left the room. Moments later Lori heard the shower running.

Lori leaned back on the couch and stared at the ceiling. What the f.u.c.k was she supposed to do now?

She had no idea what Jude knew about Margaret. He could have spoken to Carlton, or any other member of the club for that matter, since she'd seen him. Would he leave her alone if he found out she was in a relationship, that she hadn't been simply enacting a scene with a stranger last night?

No. If he wanted Lori back, he would fight for her. That's the kind of man he was. No way would he bow out and leave things be. She knew him well enough to make that judgment. No matter what he ascertained from someone else, if he was back, he'd hunt her down and make every attempt to win her over.

Lori took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her entire body tingled thinking about him. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to remember the feel of his hands on her body for the first time in two years. She'd never entertained memories of him since he'd left. To do so would have driven her mad.

And now...now he consumed her thoughts. "s.h.i.t." She ran her hands through her hair and then trailed them down her body, grazing over her nipples before gripping her thighs.

Her heart rate sped and she pictured Jude gazing intently into her eyes. She pictured his hands on her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, pinching her nipples until they stood out stiff and sore. She loved the way he could bring her close to o.r.g.a.s.m from the simple stimulation to her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

Her breathing increased and her nipples rubbed against her sweatshirt. She hadn't worn a bra when she was with him. Almost never. With the possible exception of certain clothes she wore outside the house, Jude preferred her b.r.e.a.s.t.s to be bare, always available to him.

Even when they were out of the house, he would pull her against him in the car and reach under her shirt to fondle her t.i.ts until she squirmed with need. He'd insist she remain still with her hands at her sides while he worked her into a state of arousal. He knew exactly how to time his attention to her chest just right so that the moment they arrived at their destination, she was a ball of need.

Lori squeezed her hands into tight fists and let them fall to her sides, remembering how he would step from the car as though nothing had happened and demand she follow him so fast she could barely make her legs cooperate with the command. Like jelly, she would wobble at his side, her p.u.s.s.y pleading silently to no avail for release.

Lori wanted to rub her p.u.s.s.y, let her fingers delve between her legs and press into the nub that now felt constricted beyond belief. But she couldn't do it. Even masturbating to the memory of Jude felt like a betrayal of his orders. Orders that were old and in no way effective.

And yet, here she sat for so long her hands hurt from gripping them into fists. But she didn't dare touch herself. As though the demands of a long-lost Dom still ruled her every waking moment.

She had no idea how long she waited. She couldn't move. She didn't even know what she would do if she stood. She was frozen in time. Waiting...for what?

Finally Margaret returned from her shower.

Lori jerked her head to see over her shoulder. Her neck ached from sitting there so long, stiff from lack of movement.

Margaret walked by without a word and headed for the kitchen. Seconds later she padded back down the hall with another bottle of water.

What the f.u.c.k was Lori supposed to do now?

She stood, wiped her hands on her jeans and headed for the master bath on resistant legs. Facing Margaret head-on was the only respectable way she could handle this. She leaned against the counter and twisted her hands while she waited for Margaret to dry her hair.

Margaret finally set the dryer down and met Lori's gaze.

"I never meant for this to happen."

"I know." Margaret sighed. She put on the clothes she'd set next to the sink and reached for her comb. Her gorgeous black hair shone.

Finally she turned to Lori. She paused as though thinking about her next words.

Lori decided to spare her the confrontation. "I need some time."

Margaret nodded and glanced down.

They stood in silence for long moments.

"I'm in love with you," Margaret said.

"I know." Lori squeezed her hands into fists. d.a.m.n Jude for putting her in this position. She'd been going along fine without him. One night and he'd shaken her to the core and made her doubt her position. f.u.c.k him.

Margaret opened her drawer under the sink and began removing things. She stuffed them into her toiletry kit. "I'm going to go stay with some friends. You need to sort this out."

"Yes." Lori's throat closed. Tears formed in her eyes. She was hurting the most important person in her life. And she had no choice. Now that Jude was in town, she had to find out what the h.e.l.l he wanted from her. And she had to decide if she could risk her heart on him. She swallowed a mixture of aggravation and sorrow.

When Margaret paused to look at her, Lori stepped closer. She tentatively wrapped her arms around Margaret's middle and held on for life.

Margaret returned the hug but not with the same amount of intensity she normally would have used. Before Jude. "I have to go." She released Lori and scrambled from the room.

Lori didn't move. She stood rooted to the bathroom tile, listening to Margaret as she quickly packed a bag. Margaret paused in the bathroom door before she left. "I love you. I hope you figure things out. I want the best for you."

And then she left.

Jason pulled up to the rear of Emergence and stepped from the car before he saw the man leaning casually against the back wall. He paused for a moment as he shut the car door, his gaze landing on a larger, tanner, balder Jude than the one he remembered.

He ambled slowly toward the man who used to be his closest friend.

"Is she okay?"

Oh, so right to the chase.

Jason unlocked the back door and stepped inside, Jude on his heels. "What do you think?" he asked without turning around.

"I didn't mean for it to go down like that... Last night, I mean."

"Really?" Jason turned on him as he entered his office. "And how exactly did you intend for it to 'go down'? Did you think she'd be sitting at the bar, waiting for you to return to her side? Perhaps wearing your collar?" He circled his desk and tapped on the surface with one hand. "Or maybe you thought she'd be with another Dom or married with a kid and one on the way. What the f.u.c.k were you thinking, Jude?" His voice rose as he finished the line of questions.

Jude slumped into the chair Carlton had been sitting in the first time Jason entered the office this morning. Where was Carlton now? For his sake, he hoped the man was out to lunch or running errands.

Jude swallowed. "I didn't think. It was stupid and irresponsible of me."

Jason plopped onto his chair. "Ya think?"

"How bad is it?"

"The damage to Lori's relationship with Margaret? Not sure yet. But that's the only thing you should be concerning yourself with right now. Anything else isn't yours to worry about." Jason leaped up as anger coursed through his body. He rounded the desk and got into Jude's personal s.p.a.ce.

What he wanted to do was slap him, but he was too big of a man for that sort of behavior. "What the f.u.c.k is wrong with you, man? Who do you think you are? Do you know what you did to that woman? You broke her spirit, ruined her for other men. f.u.c.ked with her mind until she was a shredded sh.e.l.l of her former self. She's finally whole again and she's been in a committed relationship for over a year."

He stepped away and paced back and forth to keep his hands from acting of their own accord. "Lori isn't yours anymore. She's moved on. I helped her for months to pull herself together. She's. Not. Yours. Don't toy with her."

Jason shook his head, nowhere near done. "How dare you show up here at my club after two years? The only excuse I ever came up with in my mind for your stupidity was that you had contracted some incurable disease and selfishly left to avoid some misguided notion that you didn't want Lori to watch you die a slow death."

Jason stepped up to his old friend and leaned into his face. "Here you are, and you aren't f.u.c.king dead. That really p.i.s.ses me off."

Jude hadn't said a word. He'd let Jason rant until he was exhausted and had said his piece. He wasn't an a.s.s about it. He maintained eye contact the entire time, which infuriated Jason more.

"I'm sorry." Jude was tired. His eyes were bloodshot, and dark circles surrounded them. The man looked like he hadn't slept in weeks.

Jason found it hard to care. "That's it? You're f.u.c.king sorry?" He flung his hands up in the air in exasperation.

"Yes. Unfortunately that's all I'm at liberty to disclose."

"At liberty to disclose? What sort of highfalutin jargon is that?" He turned and punched a hole in the drywall, thankful he'd missed a two-by-four.

"It's all I've got, man." Jude dipped his head.

"Well, it's not good enough." Jason flexed his sore fingers. "You were my friend. Forget what you did to Lori. I thought you and I were friends. You were the head Dom at my club. You nearly ran this place. I'd have given my right arm for you. What the f.u.c.k are you doing back here?"

"I'm going to retire soon. I came back to finish my last year with the Army National Guard unit."

"Retire? You're what? Thirty-eight?"

"Yep. That's twenty years in the military." Jude stood, his hands hanging loose at his side. "I wish there was something else I could say."

"Well, if there isn't, then there's no reason to continue this conversation." Jason pointed at the door. "Get out. Get the f.u.c.k out and don't come back here. Stay away from Lori. Stay away from Emergence. Whatever rock you crawled out from under, go back there. Leave."

Jude nodded. He didn't say another word. He lifted his head and walked out the door.

Jason stood rooted to his spot as he listened to the back door to the building open and slam shut. He shook as he lowered his arm finally. "f.u.c.k."

Carlton saw the car pull out of the back parking lot as he pulled in. He eased into his spot, gripping the steering wheel and taking deep breaths before he exited the car.

When he entered, he found Jason standing in the middle of his office, wincing and flexing his hand. A quick glance behind the man told him why. "You okay?" He grinned. It wasn't funny, but he'd never seen Jason angry enough to punch anything. He knew the man would never harm another human being, but he was surprised to find he'd at least gotten p.i.s.sed enough to hit something inanimate.

"Did you do that before he left or after?"

"Before." Jason shook out his fingers. "It took every bit of willpower I could muster to avoid punching the b.a.s.t.a.r.d in the face."

Jason stomped across the room and sat at his desk. He spread his fingers wide on the surface and breathed deeply.

Carlton waited a moment before he continued, "Did you at least learn anything?"

"Not a d.a.m.n thing. That jacka.s.s sat there in that chair..." he nodded to the one Carlton had vacated earlier, "...and listened to me scream and yell at him for ten minutes. He didn't so much as flinch. And when I finished, he had nothing to say for himself. Infuriating man."

"Jeez." What the h.e.l.l was Jude all about? "I a.s.sumed the man had died."

Jason laughed so hard, Carlton jumped. "That's exactly what I told him. Without the body bag, I don't want to see his rat face in my club."

"Okay then. Duly noted." Carlton stepped back. What else could he do? "Did you check on the women? Are they okay?"

"Yes." Jason shuffled papers in front of him, not looking up, his hands shaking, though he tried his d.a.m.nedest to hide it.

Carlton swallowed. He would have liked a bit more information than that, but now wasn't the time to harp on the issue. "Okay. I'll leave you alone. Yell if you need me."

When he reached the door, Jason called out, "f.u.c.k no, they aren't okay. Did I just tell you yes?"

Carlton spun around to see Jason's expression, but Jason was already clicking the mouse of his computer, not glancing in Carlton's direction.

Evidently, if Carlton wanted more details, he was going to have to go check on the women himself.

Jude sat outside Lori's apartment in his truck, watching her front door as though on surveillance. If anyone saw him they would surely call the police. He felt like a pervert.

Getting her address had been fun. There was no way he could have asked Jason for it, considering how angry the man was. So, Jude had used Google. Search engines gave out way too much information on people. It unnerved him.

It wasn't that he intended to confront her. Jason had made it clear she was off limits. He just wanted to see her. He wanted to know she was okay. At least that's what he told himself.

"If you hurt her, you're going to have to answer to me."

Jude jerked in his seat at the sound of the voice outside his open window. He turned to find the gorgeous submissive from Friday night standing tall at his side, her weight on one leg, a suitcase next to her.

She narrowed her gaze at him. "What do you want anyway?"

He opened his mouth, but the truth was he had no answer. He'd found himself tongue-tied a lot lately. "I don't know."

She stepped closer, her face inches from his. "Look..." she glanced around, "...I'm not stupid. I know you love her. And I know she once loved you too. I can't tell you how she feels now. I don't think she can either. But if you're back from the great beyond and intend to stay, don't torment her. Man up. Come to the f.u.c.king door and tell her what you have to say."

He swallowed around the lump in his throat. "That doesn't seem prudent."

"Why? Because Jason told you to stay the f.u.c.k away from her?" She tipped her head to one side and leaned closer as though this were a great big secret and she didn't want the neighbors to hear. "Don't look at me like that. I'm sure you met with him. No, he didn't tell us, but I'm an astute woman. And I know what he would have said to you."

"You're right."

She c.o.c.ked a hip. "Okay then. Listen, I've been with Lori for a year. I'm not happy about this, but I'm not stupid. Let me make a suggestion. You have clearly lost your words for the time being. How about you go back to wherever you're staying and think long and hard about what you're about to do. If it seems there's no other option than to face Lori head-on, then do it. But don't come in half-c.o.c.ked without a clear intention. You owe her that much."

Jude stared at her, unable to respond.

"That's what I thought." She shook her head. "Consider people's feelings for a moment. I love Lori too. She's my Domme. If you f.u.c.k with her, I will hunt you down."

Margaret turned and walked away. She pulled her suitcase toward a car and loaded it in the trunk. Another bag was slung over her shoulder, and she tossed it in the backseat before she entered the vehicle. Without glancing back, she drove away.

Holy f.u.c.k. Had she left Lori? It sure looked that way. Maybe she hadn't moved out entirely, but obviously they'd exchanged words. He turned his gaze toward the front of the apartment. Lori was in there.

But Margaret was right. Dammit. Jude slammed the steering wheel. He'd done that a lot lately. Soon his palms would be bruised. He couldn't just charge into Lori's life without a plan. He needed to think. Get his s.h.i.t together. Figure out what he was going to say. If she'd been with Margaret for a year, then she was going to be hurting. Stepping into her world today would be cruel.

He started the engine and pulled away from the curb. He needed to think and he needed to do it with a clear head. No more drinking himself to sleep at night to visions of Lori sucking him off at his feet.

He'd been crazy to come back here. But he was here now, and Lori was under his skin. He had no idea what he'd hoped to accomplish coming back to town. He'd learned some details, though, that might be influencing him. She wasn't married. She wasn't with another Dom. She wasn't even with a man. He knew she'd experimented with women in the past, before his time, but he hadn't expected to find her living with one. And he certainly hadn't entertained the idea of her being a Domme.