Shoot the Moon

Excerpt

Shoot the Moon
Jacqueline Grey © 2020
All Rights Reserved

“We’re going to Harte.”

Ash said this as if Adam would know what the hell he was talking about.

“Where?”

Ash waved the question away with a flick of his wrist and an expression that clearly said it didn’t matter. “You’ll know when we get there. Now, come on.” He linked their arms and half dragged Adam out the door.

On the taxi ride to wherever they were going, Adam tried to get more details, but all Ash would tell him was that Harte was a local nightclub.

“You didn’t let me get dressed.”

“Why do you think I lent you that shirt to begin with? You look fantastic. Trust me.”

The crowd outside the club wrapped around the side of the building and back again. Thankfully, it wasn’t too cold out, or they would have frozen solid before getting inside.

“Is this place always so crowded?” Adam asked as they took their place at the end of the line.

“Packed like sardines,” Ash confirmed. “Best place in the city for good drinks and dancing.”

A man in skintight leather pants and what Adam guessed was a harness walked by. “Varied crowd,” he said.

Ash spotted the man and did that wrist-flick thing again. “He’s headed around back for the upper floors.”

“The upper floors?”

“Yeah, the nightclub is only on the first floor. It’s got three dance floors, each with their own bar, and a backroom, which was most likely meant to be a bathroom but is usually otherwise occupied. Upstairs is the kinky stuff. From what I hear, Harte has the best dungeon in the city, and he’s known to be top-notch on safety. It’s pretty well-known despite being members only up there. The entrance to the second floor is in the back, though, because there’s a difference between exhibitionism and indecent exposure.”

“Huh.” Adam had never been to a kink club. Granted, they didn’t have plans to head upstairs, but this was the closest he’d ever been to one.

Eventually, they made it inside. With the beat of the music and the press of sweaty bodies grinding around him, it was easy for Adam to be distracted from thoughts of the upper floors. It wasn’t long before he’d lost Ash to the throng as well. His friend tended to sidle toward the nearest hot guy before passing him up for the next one on the dance floor. It gave him more exercise than the dancing itself. When he wanted a break, he’d pop up next to Adam as if finding someone in a crowd was the simplest thing to do.

Tonight, Ash’s method fit Adam’s mood. He scanned the floor for someone to dance with. It didn’t take him long to find what he was searching for.

The man was dancing alone and, apparently, without a care in the world. He seemed lost to the music, his body moving with enviable grace and confidence. He was lean with boyish good looks and the kind of face that would still look thirty when he was fifty-five. His light-brown hair was just long enough to be spiky, and though his clothes were casual, he dressed stylishly.

When the dancer turned his head, he caught Adam staring. A jolt ran through Adam, but he couldn’t look away. Even from a distance, the man’s pale eyes had him trapped, and Adam found himself moving through the crowd as if pulled by an invisible string. When he was close enough, he reached for a seductively swaying hip. The touch of a hand on the back of his neck encouraged him to move even closer.

They moved together for a while, sliding their bodies against each other but in no hurry to make it anything more than dancing. They simply let the pleasure of touch build on itself. The feel of his partner’s body against his was electric.

Adam was about to ask if they should find the “bathroom” when the man asked, “Care to go upstairs?”

Adam hesitated. “Isn’t it members only?” He figured that was a simple way to change the subject without having to turn the guy down.

“I can bring a guest if I want to.”

There went his easiest excuse. His reluctance must have shown on his face because the man asked, “Not your thing?”

“Not really,” Adam admitted.

“Ah” was the only reply, but Adam heard the disappointment in the word.

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

Truthfully, Adam had never given kink much thought. He’d heard about it, read a little online, but he’d never considered putting what he’d read into practice.

They kept dancing, but the mood had changed. Adam felt it in the air, and he didn’t like it.

“I wouldn’t need a…safeword or anything, would I?”

The man’s smile was like a warm spring day. “That would depend on how involved you want to get. If you just want to check it out, you’ll be fine without one. Say the word at any time, and we will leave.”

Adam drew in a breath, steeling himself. “Okay. Lead on.”

The smile widened into a grin. Taking Adam’s hand, the man led him through the crowd. There was a door at the back of the club framed by a pair of imposing bouncers, but the guards didn’t hesitate to let them through. Adam and his escort climbed a flight of stairs and entered a completely different universe.

Leather was everywhere. Leather and skin. What Ash had said about indecent exposure was right. There was more bare skin here than Adam had ever imagined seeing in his life.

Once his mind made it past the wardrobe, he took in the rest of the details of the room and what the people in it were doing. A sharp slap yanked his attention to a large stage where a man was tied to what appeared to be a giant X. Another man stood behind him with a whip of some kind. It was short with a bunch of tails. As Adam watched, the second man raised his arm and brought the instrument down on the already-rosy ass in front of him. The recipient of the lashes moaned in pleasure.

“This is what you’re into?” Adam asked.

“Among other things.”

“Doesn’t that hurt?”

“It can be a pleasurable kind of pain.”

“I can’t see how.”

The slap came again, and the submissive’s head fell back. His eyes were closed, lips parted in an expression of bliss. Adam couldn’t imagine how the apparent torture could produce such obvious enjoyment.

“The only way to truly understand is to experience it.” Hot breath tickled his ear with the words. “And the only way to do that is to be curious enough to give it a try. It’s not easy to trust someone completely. I admire the men who are able to do so.” His guide’s attention had turned back to the sub as he finished speaking.

“I take it you’re usually the one holding the whip?” Adam asked.

“Flogger,” the man corrected, his eyes glued to the couple on the stage. “And yes.”

Adam didn’t know what to say, so he resumed his visual exploration. Various tables and booths surrounded a bar to his left. The seats were filled with men watching the demonstration. One man in particular caught Adam’s eye. He wore leather from head to toe while another man knelt at his feet in nothing but a black G-string and a dog collar.

“That doesn’t appeal to you?”

Adam hurried to change his expression as he answered. “Not really.”

“Why?”

Adam scowled at him, offended by the question, but his host seemed truly curious. Maybe they were both trying to understand a perception not their own.

“It looks like he’s the guy’s pet”—Adam gestured to the submissive—“a dog, not even human.”

“He is quite human, and I assure you he is treated as such. Better even. Some Doms like subs who are trained for puppy play and the like, but Dillon is not among them. You might even say both Dom and sub worship each other in that relationship.”

“Sorry,” Adam said. “I didn’t know he was your friend.”

“I did ask for your opinion.”

“Are you into that?”

“Puppy play? No.”

“I meant the whole collared, half-dressed, and kneeling thing.”

The charming smile returned. “Sometimes. You have to admit, Michael looks beautiful like that.”

Adam looked again. “I don’t know. I can’t get past the dog collar.”

“Not all collars look like that.” He glanced around the room for what Adam assumed to be an example. “See the man in the white T-shirt?” He nodded in the direction of his gaze, but the man wasn’t difficult to find, as he was one of the few not wearing black. “The chain around his neck is a collar.”

Adam’s brows furrowed. “But it looks like a necklace.”

“It’s supposed to. When he goes into work or out on the street, it appears to most people as ordinary jewelry, but people in this community recognize it for what it is. More importantly, the man who put it there and the submissive wearing it know what it means.”

“You make it sound like a wedding ring.”

“It can be. Just like a wedding band is a symbol of a commitment between two people, a collar is a commitment. The vows may differ, but the promise is as strong and as binding. Maybe even more so.”

“Oh.” Adam hadn’t heard those details before. He still didn’t like the dog collar, but he tried to picture the man wearing it in a new light.

“Would you like to see more of the place?”

“There’s more?”

Amusement dancing in his eyes, Adam’s new acquaintance said, “Much more.” With that, he grabbed Adam’s hand and led him deeper into the club where Adam saw more of the BDSM scene than he could have ever imagined.

Harte’s dance club filled the entire first floor of the building, but the rest of the club was spread out over three floors with space for any scene a person could devise. There was a small schoolroom, a doctor’s office, a small library, and even a playground, though the swings were not the type found in someone’s backyard. There were private playrooms for those who didn’t want an audience and public alcoves for those who did. Toys, furniture, and props were supplied in every room, and signs indicated that if you needed something specific, all you had to do was ask. The place was a wonderland for kinky adults and, his host informed him, absolutely exclusive. Like Ash had said, the safety of the patrons was the highest priority.

After a whirlwind tour, Adam and his guide finally paused in one of the simpler playrooms. It had a cabinet, which Adam assumed was fully stocked with toys, lube, condoms, and props, but what caught his attention was the big X standing against the far wall. It was the same as the one the submissive on the stage had been strapped to.

“That’s called a Saint Andrew’s Cross.”

“Why?”

The question was answered with a shrug. “Does it matter? Most people don’t come here for history lessons.”

“I suppose we’re in the wrong room for that.”

The tease went over well, and Adam was gifted with a smile. “Yes, that was the floor above us.”

Adam made his way over to the cross to get a closer look. There were attachment points on each of the X’s limbs where cuffs could be connected, but the cuffs were missing.

“Would you like to try it?”

Adam froze, suddenly nervous.

“I wouldn’t tie you to the posts, but if you’re interested in trying something, I have an idea I think you might like.”

“Oh?” Despite his nerves, Adam wanted to hear what the man had to say.

“Let me ask you first, are you clean?”

Offended, Adam whirled to face him, then realized it was a completely reasonable question. No one had asked him so bluntly before.

“Yes,” he said. “I’m always safe, and I get tested regularly.”

“As do I. Now, if you’re interested in doing anything, turn to face the cross again.”

Adam hesitated. He didn’t know what the Dominant had in mind and wasn’t into giving over control to a complete stranger.

“I won’t tie you up, and if you want to stop at any time, all you have to do is say so.”

“You didn’t make any promises about pain,” Adam pointed out.

The Dom smirked. “Why? Would you like some?”

“No! I mean…that guy with the flogger…”

“You’re right. My apologies. I promise I will not use any toy on you that would be painful.”

That wasn’t completely reassuring, but Adam was feeling reckless. “What do I have to do?”

“Turn back to the cross.”

Adam did, and suddenly, there was heat at his back and a voice low in his ear. “I want you to line up your ankles with the posts and hold here with your hands.” His arms were guided into place. “I’m not going to bind you, but you’re not allowed to move. Make all the noise you want—beg if you’d like. I do enjoy that—but no moving. Can you do that?”

“What are you going to do?”

“Touch you,” the man said simply.

“That’s it?”

“Oh, I think that will be enough.” As if to demonstrate, he skimmed his fingertips down Adam’s neck, and a shiver ran through him. “I don’t need anything more than my hands, wouldn’t you say?” He caressed Adam’s thighs and kneaded his ass through his jeans. “Maybe, a little of my tongue too?” he added, licking along the outer shell of Adam’s ear.

Adam felt warm. “Okay. I can do that.”

“And if you’re a good boy and keep still, I’m going to fuck your brains out as well.”

Adam’s body responded eagerly to that, and he nodded.

“Good.” The warmth at Adam’s back disappeared as the man stepped back. “Now, take off your clothes.”

Adam moved from the cross and unbuttoned his pants. “What about you?”

“I will when I’m ready,” the Dominant said, heading to the cabinet and pulling out a bottle of lube and some condoms. He set them on a small table and dragged it closer to the cross. When he caught sight of Adam, he raised an eyebrow. Adam realized he’d stopped moving and resumed undressing.

“You know, this is my first time getting naked in a club—or outside of a bedroom, for that matter.”

“Are you nervous?”

“A little.”

“That’s normal. If at any time things become uncomfortable, all you have to do is say so, and we’ll stop.”

“I know.” Adam folded his clothes semi-neatly and set them aside before hooking his thumbs in his underwear and adding them to the pile. He stood naked, fighting hard not to cover himself. The Dominant pointed to the cross, and Adam moved back into position in front of it. It was less embarrassing to face the wall, but with his legs spread so wide, he was aware of how easy it was to access the most private parts of his body.

“What do you get out of this?” he asked, his nerves making him talkative.

“Having you at my mercy,” came the reply. “It’s quite a high. Intense and intimate.” He kissed Adam’s shoulder. “You’re beautiful.”

Warmth rushed through Adam at the compliment, and he turned to say something in reply, but was stopped midturn and made to face forward again.

“Uh-uh. No moving, remember? You’re mine now.”

Declaration made, the touching began. At first, it was gentle brushings that tingled and tickled. Featherlight, they were soothing, and Adam relaxed into the experience. Soon, the contact grew firmer as if his skin was being thoroughly explored. His arms, legs, back, and belly all received the attention of someone who wanted to learn every inch of him and what he liked best. Soft moans escaped him as the exploration continued, but they were nothing compared to the noises he made when the caresses reached his nipples. The sensitive nubs were teased with flicks and pinches, rubbed gently or barely at all. Adam had never met a man so creative with a person’s nipples using his hands alone. His hips rocked, adding enthusiasm to the mix, but a sharp tap on his butt startled him, and he stilled.

“No moving,” he was reminded.

The sting faded, but Adam was now focused, working hard to keep still as the man worked magic with his hands. He stroked him everywhere except the two places he wanted most.

“Please.” The plea came out as a whisper even before he’d thought to voice it. He vibrated with his efforts, yet that focus was the only thing keeping him standing.

Oh, that sound was beautiful. Jesse kissed the boy’s shoulder. Then he stepped back to admire the full picture of what stood before him. The young man trembled with effort, which only made Jesse want him more. His gaze traveled down smooth, creamy skin to a pert and clenching ass. His mouth watered at the sight.

He knelt and took hold of the perfect globes of Adam’s ass, kneading the flesh and spreading them wide. The tight rosebud between them begged for attention, and he could not resist a moment longer. He teased at first, swirling his tongue around the inviting entrance before pressing inside. The boy wasn’t the only one to moan as Jesse rimmed his new lover and happily nipped and licked to a litany of wordless begging. Finally, he traded tongue for a finger, and the body in front of him went taut.

“Please. More.”

The plea went straight to Jesse’s cock, and he worked swiftly, soon using two fingers, then three. Unable to wait any longer, he grabbed a condom and the lube from the table.

The young man quivered with desire and exertion. Jesse impaled him in one smooth thrust, pressing him against the cross with his body. He took a moment to bask in the pleasure of the tightness enveloping his cock, and the muscles clamped around him gradually relaxed.

“Remember,” he said, his voice husky with need, “don’t move, even now.” Then he began to fuck in earnest. Deep thrusts worked the boy against the cross. His lover arched his back to give him better access, and he gratefully took advantage of the new position. Jesse rode hard, driving the boy to the edge of his pleasure and happy to make him struggle to hold on.

“Come when you like,” he said, and the young man did, groaning with his head thrown back in bliss before collapsing against the cross. Jesse held him in place with his own body, waiting for him to recover. He grinned as he waited. He hadn’t enjoyed a fuck like this in a long time.