Two more trucks came up the long, winding drive. The first pulled up behind Beth’s. Kari bounced out, long brown hair blowing in the slight breeze. “Nolan, Dan says you built this. It’s gorgeous.”

He built it? “Well”—Beth set her hands on her hips and waggled her head at him, trying to remember his exact tone—“next time, I will hear about these projects from you, not Kari.”

God, she loved the sound of his deep laugh.

As he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her against his solid body, Beth smiled at the other two couples. Although the subs were in shorts, all the Doms were in jeans. Dan wore a tight black T-shirt. Cullen’s brown and gold tropical shirt hung open, displaying his broad chest.

“Come on in.” Nolan waved everyone into his house.

The inside was as lovely as the outside, with high ceilings and gleaming hardwood floors. Recessed niches in the creamy stucco walls held dark red vases with flowers. They went through the foyer, past a wide staircase with wrought iron railings, and into the great room. Colorful hand painted tiles framed the arched windows and wide doorways. More tiles accented a big stone fireplace on the far wall.

A hand-loomed rug defined the sitting area, and everyone took seats on the tan leather sofa and chairs. Nolan rested a hip on a bright tapestry draped over the arm of Beth’s chair.

“Everyone, this is Deborah,” Cullen said, his hand on the shoulder of a tall, muscular brunette. Beth remembered seeing her at the Shadowlands. She also was new to the club and not especially friendly. Cullen pointed to the others. “Deb, this is Daniel, Kari, Nolan, and Beth.” Turning back to Nolan, he said, “Okay, Nolan, give them the bad news.”

Bad news? What…

“Relax, little rabbit,” Nolan murmured, tugging her hair lightly. He said to everyone, “None of you subs have participated here before, but your Doms have, although it’s been over a year since I held a party.”

“And it’s about time you started again,” Cullen said. He propped his long legs up on the coffee table.

“Subs, here are the rules: you do not need to keep your eyes lowered, but you may not speak unless asked a question. You may kneel to get permission to speak. Any Dom here may touch you or punish you with a spanking, but nothing more intense without your master’s permission. No penetration without permission of your master. Your safe word is red, and that means everything stops. You may use yellow if you’re having a problem, and that word may or may not be honored.”

Beth glanced around the room. The Doms were leaning back, legs outstretched, totally at ease. Deborah knelt at Cullen’s feet, looking bored. Kari sat beside Dan on the couch, her hands clenched in her lap, the knuckles white.

Sir had said Kari hadn’t been in the scene very long. Well, that made two of them. Beth shivered. She’d only had real Doms for a short period, and apparently there was an awful lot she didn’t know about this stuff.

Nolan tugged on Beth’s hair again and pointed to the left. “There’s a powder room over there where you can change. Go now.”

“Big,” Beth murmured as they entered. The soft pink room was the size of her studio apartment. Wrought iron scrollwork decorated the mirror over the long counters. There were even showers.

“Dan said Nolan comes from a large family and wants one of his own. I guess he designed this place for that”—Kari played with the buttons on her shirt—“and for stuff like this.”

Without speaking even once, Deborah stripped casually and left the changing room.

“Why does this feel scarier than the club?” Kari asked, unbuttoning her blouse slowly.

“Because the guys are all friends and are used to playing together”—Beth bit her lip—“and we’re the toys about to be played with.”

Kari giggled. “What a way to put it. But, oh, so true.” She folded her blouse neatly, setting it on a shelf against the dark blue wall.

Beth screwed up her courage and pulled her top off. “I hate naked,” she muttered.

Kari put the rest of her clothes away before frowning at Beth. “Finish up, girl, or I’ll leave you in here. And Master Nolan doesn’t look like a patient Dom.”

“Now that was mean,” Beth grumbled. But just the thought of annoying Sir was enough to make her strip quickly. Stuffing her clothes onto a shelf, she followed the lushly curved woman toward the door. “I feel like a stick,” she grumbled.

Kari turned and whispered, “And I always feel fat. Ever notice how women never like their bodies?” Their eyes met in a moment of perfect understanding, and Beth realized she was going to have another friend.

The warm feeling only lasted long enough to leave the powder room. Between the air-conditioning and the gazes of the three men, Beth felt chilled to the bone. Resisting the urge to cover her private areas, she followed Kari across the room. Yeah, this naked stuff really sucked.

Master Nolan was lounging in the chair she’d vacated. He looked her over slowly, making her feel beautiful and sexy without saying a word. His lips curved up in a way that said he liked seeing her, naked and in his home—her insides turned liquid. She halted in front of him, expecting another command. Instead, he grasped her hips and pulled her between his legs, trapping her, while his hands ran over her bare skin. Cupping her bottom, he nuzzled her stomach. “You smell good, little sub. Like lemonade and strawberries.”

He nipped her hip hard enough to make her yelp, then rose to his feet. “Cullen, you two make yourselves at home. The dungeon room’s down there.” Nolan pointed to a hallway running past the stairs. “Dan, our set-up is outside.” Taking Beth’s hand, he strolled to the back of the great room, through French doors, and onto a covered lanai. The outdoor room opened to a wide, screened patio. On the right was a dining area with built-in barbecue, table and chairs, and a hacienda-style fountain.

To the left, an Olympic-sized pool sparkled in the sun. Maroon lounge chairs lent color to the area, but Beth couldn’t help but visualize how much better it would look with big pots of bright flowers. Just outside the screen by the pool, clusters of palms and palmettos really needed some ferns to transition from tall to short.

Straight ahead, an immense, heartbreakingly ugly yard of weeds led down to a small lake. Dropping Nolan’s hand, she took a few steps forward. Much of the hardscape had been put in already. A beautiful stone walkway led from the house, under arching trees, and down to a small dock. Beth could hear Kari and Dan commenting on the lake but couldn’t get her mind to focus on anything besides what she would plant if the place were hers.

“Don’t start digging yet, sugar.” Nolan tugged lightly on her hair. “I’ll take you for a walk later. I’d like something on the order of what you did for Z. That wild look. Think you’re up to the challenge?”

Starting from scratch in a setting this beautiful… She wanted this job so badly she was liable to start drooling like a dog. “Yes. I could do this.” She smiled slowly. “I can make it absolutely gorgeous.”

“Good. After supper, you can drag me around and tell me where you want to start.” His confidence in her was like a heady drug, and her smile grew. First she’d start by leveling—

“Beth…” With an exasperated sound, he tangled his fingers in her hair, pulled her head back, and kissed her plans right out of her head. “Later. I need to torture you a little first.”

He pulled her to a pair of heavy teak tables close to the pool. Chairs around the tables held covered trays and bowls of water. When she saw chains embedded into the table legs and top, a tickle of anxiety chased down her spine. Just how extreme did BDSM parties get?

Sir held out his hand. “Wrists, please.”

With a tiny quiver, she gave him her wrists. He buckled well-padded cuffs on, then set her on the edge of the smoothly finished table. Her breathing increased as he pushed her flat, leaving her legs dangling over the end. She turned her head and saw Dan chaining Kari on the other table. The Dom was so big and muscular he made his well-endowed sub appear fragile.

Beth looked up at Nolan. That was pretty much how Master Nolan made her feel, and she liked that…most of the time.

Silently Sir chained her hands over her head and then spread her legs wide. He took a warm washcloth from the bowl of water, laying it on her pussy.

“Master?” The word seemed to come easier and easier.

He sat down beside her and curved a hand over her breast. “Have you ever shaved down there, Beth?”

Shave? She shook her head.

“Was there a reason?”

“Not really. I wasn’t ready with the first Dom, and Master Chris didn’t care, and then I…the last one…” Her mouth tightened. Kyler had cared only about how she presented herself in public. And how she screamed.

“You know, sugar, I get the impression your last so-called Dom was more of a sadist than a Dom. Am I right?”

“He started in BDSM, but, well… Yes. That’s right.”

“He got a name?” Master Nolan asked softly, running a finger down her cheek.

“I…no.” She didn’t want any chance of him finding her or Sir looking him up either, for that matter.