The Training of Toby (Masters of the Mansion Book 2) by Suzanne Steele Page A

make-up was the same as he had seen it before—Cleopatra black eyeliner with blood red lipstick. She wore a straight, black, pencil skirt with a high slit up one thigh and paired it with a ruffled, white, satin blouse unbuttoned enough to show her perfect breasts pushed up in a black bra. For shoes, she chose black, stiletto heels rather than the thigh-high boots he saw her wearing during his training.
    She sat in the chair and just eyed him, saying nothing. He scrambled from the bed and knelt beside her. She was gentle with him as she pulled his head over and laid it to rest on her lap.
    “I have some things I need to discuss with you.”
    Toby could feel his heart beginning to race. What if she didn’t want him anymore?
    “Don’t worry, pet. I have no intentions of getting rid of you.”
    He breathed a sigh of relief and listened as she continued. He didn’t know how it was possible that she always seemed to be able to read his mind; he was just glad that she did.
    “Being a sub doesn’t mean you don’t have choices, Toby. It actually means you hold all the power in the relationship. At any time, you can request a different Mistress, one more suited to your needs.”
    “But I don’t want a different Mistress,” he blurted out.
    “Silence! Stay quiet until I finish.”
    He made sure she felt his head nod in obedience and then he listened as she continued. “I am a Mistress, but I’m also a slave. I’m Master William’s slave.”
    Suddenly, it all made sense to Toby. She lifted his chin with one of her French manicured nails and looked him in the eye. “Still want me for your Mistress?”
    One single tear ran down his cheek as he nodded in acceptance. When he looked into her eyes, she looked as if she could feel the tug of her heartstrings towards him. He was a young man whose life she held in her hands and he had gladly given it to her.
    “I’m not going to lie to you. I come with baggage. Disconnecting from my Master is not an option. The bond is just too deep. He has owned me since I was eighteen and he will own me until the day I die. You have the option of being trained by another…”
    Toby frantically shook his head in denial.
    She wiped the tear from his face and spoke, “You’ve chosen a hard thing, slave.” She breathed in deeply, as if releasing the tension she felt for him. He instinctively knew that this had been a hard conversation for her to initiate. He wondered if she’d been concerned that he would ask for another Mistress after she revealed her relationship with Master William. In the end, though Toby was glad she had given him a choice in the matter, he didn’t want a different Mistress.
    “There’s always your safeword…”
    With that, she stood and walked out of the room. He listened as the sound of her heels became more distant and he breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness she had chosen to keep him. If having Mistress meant dealing with Master William, then that’s what he’d have to do. He pushed away thoughts of hating the man. He had come here of his own volition and it wasn’t fair to expect that Mistress wouldn’t have had a life and obligations before she met him. Of course she had a life! There was the other option she presented; he could ask for a different Mistress but, for some inexplicable reason, Toby already felt a bond with Mistress Diamond. If keeping her as his Mistress meant accepting the accompanying baggage of a sadistic Master, then he would just have to grin and bear it. He couldn’t tolerate the thought of being without her. The only question now was, how much hell was Master William going to subject him to just to prove his ownership of Mistress Diamond? From what Toby had already seen, it’s pretty clear the Doms and Masters stop at nothing, publically staking their claims to leave no doubts as to whom their slaves belong. Toby could only hope he wouldn’t be subjected to an unnecessary amount of sadism from Master William. From what he had