Perfect Limit: Sypricon Masters, #2

By Sara Brookes

a 2013 EPIC Finalist, Short Story category

 

As a child, Rayna Donaghy was abandoned and left for dead. As an adult, Rayna lives with the reminder no one wants her. The only place she feels safe is Tawse. The unique BDSM club on Sypricon offers sensual delights and gorgeous Masters who are always willing to please--no matter how scarred her skin, her psyche or her heart.

 

Burke is mesmerized by the stubborn woman under his command. However, when he reaches his limit of her self-loathing, he is determined to prove just how gorgeous, and loveable, she truly is. Even if he needs to push every hard limit she has. As their passion--and love--flares hotter than Sypricon's twin suns, Burke lays Rayna bare in order to show her being perfect is simply a matter of perception.

 

Warning: Contains a stern lesson in just how perfect a submissive really is that involves a crowd, an inventive impulse toy and one collaring ceremony that will have you wanting a Dom of your own. The line starts over there.

 

Perfect Limit is an erotic romance short story previously published in 2011 & is intended for mature audiences.
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Silver Phoenix Labs
• Release date: Nov 11, 2014
• ISBN: 9781502215680

Book preview

Table of Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Sneak Previews

No Restraint

Excerpt

Midnight’s Ghost

Chapter One

Shift of Command

Chapter One

Ragged Edge

Chapter One

About the Author

Other Titles by Sara Brookes

Connect with Sara

Chapter One

Wind spiraled dust off in the distance, a vortex of rust colored sand reaching for the stars. Rayna Donaghy pulled up her shirt collar as she trudged along a deserted street in a town so small it hadn’t earned a name. Sypricon’s historically violent storms had unleashed their wrath a few days prior, blanketing everything with grit.

Two children darted past, twirling around in the sand storm. Laughing. Giggling. Young and carefree. Rayna’s childhood was marred with pain and anguish thanks to an endless stream of clinics and infirmary beds. Of faceless figures expressing their disappointment because her body had rejected the latest experiment.

She’d never been able to live up to their high standards. Their obsessive expectations.

Twenty years later, the thought of what she’d been through left her sickened.

Raised by two perfect parents in a tidy house surrounded by an immaculate white picket fence nestled in the heartland of the Federation of States on Earth, most would have believed Rayna had it all. They lived under the illusion she had the textbook life even though a horrible truth lay beneath perfection. The flawless parents everyone held in such high regard had done everything in their power to let Rayna know she was damaged.

Weak.

Flawed.

Broken.

More than likely, those reasons were why she made a living battling fires. The power of the flames were both breathtaking and destructive. Today, she’d seen the power of it, and led an ace team of pilots over a fire to help save a Sypris harvesting facility. She’d always felt compelled to assist others. Give them the same chance she’d been given so very long ago when everyone else turned a cold shoulder.

As soon as she’d turned eighteen, Rayna had taken the first transport off Earth. Unable to settle in one place, the drive to flee perfection eventually brought her to Sypricon. The enigmatic mystery of a barely settled planet with its superheated core, dry desolate deserts, and vicious windstorms, caught her interest. The planet was battered and worn, but made no concession for those who turned their noses up in disgust.

Joyous schoolchildren behind Rayna, the tension in her neck eased as she stepped up to the double-door entrance of the club. The utilitarian façade blended with the rest of the buildings that formed the sole settlement on Sypricon. Only a few hundred pioneers lived permanently on the mining planet where most things remained simple.

Except at Tawse.

On the other side of the fetish club’s threshold, another world existed. And worth every credit chip she socked away to be able to afford the membership fee. The atmosphere was raw and potent on most nights. Flogging. Caning. Bondage. Discipline. Sadomasochism. Fucking machines. Multiple partners. Interests were as varied as the member docket. No sin was out of bounds.

Tawse wasn’t flawless. And, to Rayna, that made the club perfect.

As the doors closed behind her, Rayna’s eyes adjusted to the dim lighting. The simply outfitted space, filled to bursting this evening, showed its age with the battered floor and scarred walls. Several areas had been cordoned off by ropes, so members could use the area for their scenes. Large pockets of space had been left purposefully empty so crowds could gather.

She elbowed her way through the sea of people. Drawn deeper into the club, the musky scent of sex hung in the air. So thick she could taste it. Pulsing erotic energy flowed all around her, touching the craving deep inside her core. The euphoria clouded her mind, erasing her exhaustion.

Yeah, this is exactly what I need.

She headed for the long, waist-high bar where those not currently involved in some kind of scene could share one of the house specialty drinks.

Something burning? Bales Christenson, Tawse’s inscrutable bartender wrinkled his nose. Little was known about the man other than he’d fought in the Earth Wars. But the mystery was one of his more fascinating qualities. From what Rayna knew, Bales had worked at the club since its inception. That kind of unwavering loyalty was admirable. Day after day, he was the silent sentry who kept a close eye on all the members.

That would be me. Rayna leaned forward. Think I would bleed ash if you cut me open at this point. Despite the fact she’d taken two passes through the sanitizer, the scent must have permeated her skin.

She was surprised Bales scented her over the other strong aromas. Then again, he worked in this environment day in and day out. He probably didn’t notice the heavy fragrance of sex anymore.

Bales handed a bottle of clear liquid to a Dom. The well-built man disappeared into the crowd. Denton? Locke? Vaughn? Damn. She knew all the House Doms thanks to her association with Burke, but the name of the man escaped her. A sure sign her exhaustion was creeping back. Maybe coming to the club hadn’t been such a great idea after all.

Well, you are certainly smoking hot, Deputy Brigade Manager Donaghy. She cringed. She came to Tawse to escape her rank in the Stellar Fire Brigade. His gaze narrowed. Your house take care of the fire at the quarry?

She nodded, tucking a few loose strands of her jet-black hair behind her ear. Word travelled fast on the barren planet. Especially when disaster struck. Shame it happened in the first place. However, Sypricon was the only planet in five galaxies where sypris, a powerful element used to provide much needed energy, grew. Yeah. Got there as soon as the alarm sounded. But by the time we arrived, it was already fully involved.

Lose anyone?

No, none of my guys. Rayna swallowed past the knot in her throat. Sypris was a volatile element. Fires weren’t uncommon during the harvesting process. This had been the fourth blaze in as many months at this facility alone. She’d lost count of how many at the other sites. But there was a DOS. Cotton lost a blast-crane operator. Planetary Marshals are there now working the investigation.

A death on scene will bring them in. Bales drummed his fingers against the counter. So, fire is extinguished and here you are.

Law’s their business. Fires are mine. She didn’t need the reminder she’d just spent countless hours staring at her flight controls. While Bales’ questions didn’t normally annoy her, tonight she wasn’t in the mood. Her gaze wandered from the inquisitive man. Who’s on tap tonight?

Looks like Merc is putting the finishing touches on his sub.

The enthusiastic Dom wasn’t someone she wanted to scene with, but he did put on one hell of a show. Merc would find every weakness a sub tried to keep hidden. Once he uncovered them, he’d exploit each one to the fullest. The result was some of the most delightful scenes Rayna had ever seen.

Certainly explained the heightened state of awareness in the club.

Worth a closer look?

This is Merc, Bales countered. He puts on some of the best displays here. Maybe even gives Burke a run for his credits. At least, before Burke started hiding in the shadows with you. Bales pushed a sealed narrow bottle of ishke across the counter. A house