RockYourSoul by Sara Brooks Page B

take her up
in her arms, based on her reaction to the equipment at the warehouse, he wanted
to watch her closely. Gauge her reactions and anticipate her needs a bit
better. She was definitely more at ease than before, judging by the way she
kept her hands folded neatly behind her back.
    That was, until she came to stand in front of one of the
pieces.
    She paused, her fingers brushing over the metal arm of the
item. Her delicate touch was in contradiction to the harsh and unforgiving
surface of the steel. Even with the distance between them, he noticed the flash
of interest he immediately wanted to exploit.
    He stood beside her in a matter of seconds, pressing his
body against hers as he dropped the duffel at his feet. She gasped, spinning
around to face him. Though there was no mistaking her interest in the item,
there was also an emotion that worried him.
    “What is it, Beth?” He combed his fingers through her hair.
Her eyes fluttered closed for a moment as she swallowed.
    “Ethan had a piece of equipment similar to this.” Ryan’s
stomach turned over as his hold on her firmed. He pushed against her arm to
spin them both out of sight of the piece, but she resisted. Her gaze stayed
trained on the item as she continued. “He would tie me onto it in the middle of
the club. As if he was presenting me as some kind of sacrificial offering with
my ass as the prize. He would just stand there beside me while whoever felt
like it was allowed to take their turn.
    “Most of them were pretty forgettable and I could shut them
completely away. But there was this one guy. This one jerkoff who called
himself Murdock. If I tried to distance myself from what was happening, he would
slap me so hard my vision would blur. He said it was because he wanted to make
damn sure I was right in the moment. That I knew exactly who he was and that he
was the one in charge.”
    The way her voice trembled caused his gut to clench. “Beth,
stop.”
    She set a hand on his forearm, squeezing tightly. “It’s all
right. You need to know this kind of thing. I got past all of this awhile ago.
I knew coming to you would dredge all these emotions and feelings to the
surface again.”
    She was right, as much as it pained him to admit and watch
her go through it. He needed to know more of what she faced at the hands of the
bastard so he could tailor their scenes to be the most effective to the hurdles
she faced.
    “Go on,” he urged even though it tore his gut apart to listen
to the tremble in her voice.
    “One night, more than likely in anticipation of Ethan’s
generosity, he brought along something he prized to share with me. Just with
me, he’d said, because I was special. I’d earned it for not behaving as I was
supposed to. After Ethan tied me down, Murdock placed a gag in my mouth. He
said I hadn’t earned the right to scream. I wasn’t supposed to make a sound
while he beat me. I didn’t either.” She shivered, but Ryan knew it wasn’t from
the chill in the air.
    “I was screaming in my head for him to stop, but I barely
even breathed for fear of upsetting Ethan’s best friend. I knew they would both
come after me tenfold if I disappointed either of them. I kept telling myself
that if I could just get through the night, I would be okay. Needless to say,
after the first session with Murdock’s cane, I couldn’t sit for a week.
Thankfully the station had recently elevated the soundboards, so I could stand
while I worked.”
    Though he’d already thought about marking her pretty tan
skin, he hadn’t intended to do anything remotely close to the horror she’d
described. “He intended to. He didn’t want you to forget and always be reminded
of what was done.”
    “Oh I remember all right. Murdock repeated the session every
week for two months straight. Just as the bruises started to fade, he’d come
along and lay down a new pattern. I’m surprised I have any feeling at all in my
ass and thighs because of that damn cane. Ethan just