Free Sodom and Detroit by Ann Mayburn

felt slightly nauseous
at the idea of trusting not just one but two strangers with her
feelings.
    “Do you think I should?” she asked in a whisper and
wrung her hands together.
    Carla scrunched her eyebrows. “Maeve, what are you
scared about?”
    “What if he doesn’t like me?” She realized how lame
that sounded, but it was the truth. Carla watched her without
judgment, and she continued. “What if the sheik gets jealous and
freaks out on me? What if he calls me names and never wants to see
me again?”
    “He is asking you to have this other man join you
because he wants it. I highly doubt he wants to waste his
fantasy time with you just to get angry. Why would that be one of
your first thoughts?”
    “Let’s just say I haven’t had the best luck with men
and fidelity. I was briefly engaged once, and he cheated on me.”
Carla’s lips softened in sympathy, and Maeve continued, “And I…I
had a boyfriend in high school and college that I thought was the
love of my life. He couldn’t handle a long-distance relationship,
and he accused me of cheating on him, which I didn’t. It’s left me
a little gun-shy about doing anything that would make someone think
that of me again.”
    Carla surprised her by coming over and giving her a
hug. “Your ex-fiancé was an asshole, and I’m glad you found out the
truth about him before you got married. As far as you and your
first love, you were both so young and inexperienced in
relationships.” Maeve sighed and nodded as Carla squeezed her
shoulder. “Listen, that is the past, and both you and that young
man were different people then. Do you think you would have handled
the situation the same if it were to happen to you now?”
    “Hell no.” She would have jumped on an airplane and
flew over to Rafe to tell him off in person. Something she should
have done twelve years ago instead of listening to her mother and
dumping him cold turkey.
    With a soft laugh, Carla returned to her
workstation. “I bet he’d say the same. Your mystery man offered
this opportunity to you. He’s not testing you. He’s trying to
fulfill a fantasy with you. He trusts you enough to willingly
submit to any fantasy you might wish. Show him a little bit of
trust and do the same.”
    Maeve chewed this over and let out a strained
breath. “Okay. But if this goes badly, I’m blaming you.”
    Carla shook her head with a grin as she gathered up
the wires. With one last deep breath to try to calm her racing
pulse, Maeve swept her long hair from behind her back and settled
onto the soft silk.
    Carla’s soft fingers smoothed Maeve’s hair off her
forehead. “And if you have the time of your life, you owe me
chocolate.”
    Smiling, Maeve closed her eyes as the soothing
melody of a strings-dominated classical piece spun through the
speakers by her head. She wasn’t even aware of the pod closing,
only the anticipation of what was about to come tightening her body
and making her feel more alive than she had in years.
* * *
    Luke shifted on his bay gelding, straightening the
black mask covering the upper portion of his face. “Highwaymen, are
we?”
    Angel smiled at him, looking good enough to eat in
his tight black pants and billowy white shirt. The collar hung
open, displaying a portion of his dark chest. Luke shifted again as
blood rushed to his cock. Everything about Angel turned him on, and
he wished for a moment that they were alone in this fantasy.
    Angel’s gaze turned to the wheel-rutted road and
stroked a hand down the creamy neck of his horse. “Yes, and the
Lady Maeve is our target.”
    The leaves in the trees overhead whispered in the
breeze, and Luke took a moment to admire the fantasy. The
simulation captured a beautiful summer day perfectly, from the
smell of the air to the warmth of the sun on his back. Luke cracked
his neck to try to get rid of some of his tension. “Do you think
she’ll come?”
    Angel shrugged, trying to hide his worry. Luke could
read him like a book after