Free Bonds of Trust by Lynda Aicher

and release her ankles, tenderly stroking and rubbing her feet and legs to restart the circulation.
    The second she was free, Cali curled to her side and tried to process all she was feeling. All that had happened. She blinked hard, forcing back the sudden threat of tears. Where were they coming from?
    His chest pressed against her back before his arm circled her, tugging her against him. He tucked his arm under her head then forced her to relax against it until she was completely encompassed within his warmth. She felt almost cocooned in safety.
    Which only pushed the tears closer to the surface.
    “It’s okay,” he murmured against her ear, his leg lifting to drape over hers. “The crash is normal. You’ve experienced a lot. Don’t be ashamed of the tears. Of what you feel. I’ve got you.”
    Yeah, he did. And that scared her even more than every act she’d committed since entering The Den. She wanted nothing more than to lay there protected in his arms. To fall asleep and wake up with him still surrounding her.
    But this was a Scene.
    That was it.
    A short time of mutual interaction. Nothing more.
    “I have to go,” Cali mumbled as she pushed against his hold, struggling to sit. To get away.
    He let her go and pushed up on an elbow to watch as she scrambled around the room for her clothing.
    “There’s a bathroom over there,” he said, pointing to a door.
    She gratefully took his offered escape and rushed to the safety of the small room. The second the door closed, she collapsed against it and dropped to the floor, burying her head in her hands. Oh God, what had she been thinking? She wasn’t built for this. Nothing in her background had prepared her for how she would feel after. She’d been so focused on the event, she’d never stopped to think of the aftermath.
    It wasn’t shame she was feeling. No. She’d done nothing to feel shameful about. In fact, the entire Scene had been more intimate and normal than she’d anticipated.
    What she felt was longing. For everything she couldn’t have with that man in the room behind her. Jake.
    After so many years of being physically starved for that emotional connection with a man, her body and mind were screaming to stay there with him. To let him touch her. Protect her.
    She had to get out of there before she lost it completely.
    Pushing to her feet, she quickly redressed. A passing glance in the mirror over the sink made her cringe and halt. Her hair was a mess, her face flushed, her lips red and swollen, her eyes dark and hungry. She looked like she’d been thoroughly fucked.
    And she had.
    Crap . Doing what she could with her fingers, she tamed her hair down and then dampened a washcloth to press over her heated cheeks and neck. Calling it good, she braced herself to reenter the room.
    To face Jake.
    She’d act cool. Normal.
    As if the entire evening hadn’t rocked her world and left her floundering at the bottom of an emotional hole she had no idea how to get out of.
    * * *
    Jake got dressed, his clothes feeling itchy and uncomfortable as he waited. It took every ounce of willpower to keep still. He didn’t pace over a sub—a woman he’d met only hours ago. He was always concerned that they were fine after a Scene, that they’d gotten what they desired, but he definitely didn’t worry about them.
    Worrying meant attachment.
    Cali had come to the club seeking a Dom, searching for an experience, and he’d given her that. Simple as that.
    Fuck . It wasn’t that simple and he knew it.
    Everything about her was different. Something he’d sensed when he’d met her. Even Seth had picked up on it.
    Shit . Seth.
    Realization smacked him hard between the eyes. Jake had been set up by his business partner. It all made sense now.
    Anger rode front and center on his emotions. That asshole. Seth had been way too cagy, dodging Jake’s questions and practically pushing the second interview with Cali on Jake. That bastard had done it on purpose.
    If Seth was