The Claiming by Tara Sue Me Page A

women.
    â€œStand up and undress,” Cole said. “I have a tank top I’m going to put on you to cover your back.”
    Everything was quiet. Sasha assumed the other guys were preparing Julie and Abby the same way Cole was preparing her. She heard a small yelp from Julie and then Daniel saying, “I knew they’d look good on you.”
    â€œUse your safe word at any time.” Cole’s voice was thick in her ear. “Unfortunately for you, you didn’t pull anything out of the box. Fortunately, for me, I get to pick. But first . . .”
    Something covered her ears and all she could hear was rain. Had he put headphones on her? She shook her head. That’s what it felt like. Because she couldn’t hear, for a minute she panicked thinking Cole couldn’t hear, either.
    â€œYellow,” she said.
    The headphones came off. “Sasha, are you okay? What’s wrong?” His gentle voice was back, tinged with worry.
    â€œI panicked, Sir. Thinking you couldn’t hear me. Which makes no sense because I said yellow. It’s okay. I’m fine to continue.”
    â€œAre you sure?”
    â€œDefinitely, Sir.”
    He ran his hands over her, and her body relaxed into his touch. “Are you okay for me to put the headphones back on or should I leave them off?”
    â€œI’d like to wear them, please, Sir.”
    He pressed a kiss against her shoulder. “My strong, fierce, Sasha.”
    It was almost as if her body hummed with pleasure at his compliment, and this time when he put the headphones on, she felt only calm. She had no idea what to expect or what or who was going to touch her. The waiting about drove her wild.
    When something finally touched her shoulder, she jumped. It wasn’t a paddle or a flogger or a cane or anything that she’d anticipated. It was soft. It came again, longer this time, and she knew what it was.
    A paintbrush. He was painting her. Or more to the point, painting
on
her.
    It was the simplest thing, but it made her crazy. What was he painting her with? What color was it? She couldn’t tell anything because he switched brushes frequently. Some were very fine and seemed as if he was writing. But others were wider and covered more area.
    She moved once, and he smacked her backside in a sharp reminder to be still. She wondered if Abby and Julie were also being painted and, if so, what they looked like. The rhythmic cadence of rainfall combined with the gentle sweeps of the brushes and she felt herself start to drift. She swayed and two arms came around her and carried her somewhere soft so she could lie down.
    She jerked awake to complete quiet and blackness. In fact, the silence was so vast it was deafening. She tried to lift her hand to her eyes to see if the blindfold was still on, but her hands were tied down. Where was she? And, more to the point, where was everyone else?
    She repeated to herself that Cole wouldn’t leave her unattended. She knew he was nearby watching. If she focused, she might be able to sense him. Taking a deep breath, she tried to hear something, anything, but it was pointless.
    Just when she thought she’d go crazy at the absolute nothingness, there was movement around her head and her ears were uncovered. Everything seemed so loud until she heard the voice she wanted to hear the most.
    â€œBack with us, little one? You were the last to wake up. Too bad you were all such naughty submissives; we had something really special planned for after the game.” His voice was calm and gentle and any remaining tension in her body fled at its sound. “Let’s get you up so you can see my masterpiece. Though I’ll admit, painting was fun and not really a punishment. Even if my game was boring.”
    He had her unbound within seconds and since she was still blindfolded, he kept hold of her hand as she stood. They walked a few steps forward before he pulled them to a