by A.B. Runnels
Mercy in Leather follows Noah Bennett, a young, chubby, sharp-tongued receptionist at the exclusive Blackwoods Private Lounge, a luxury BDSM club where power is curated, consent is sacred, and secrets are expensive. Noah knows how to keep his head down, smile for dangerous men, and pretend he is less affected than he really is. Then Elliot Carrington walks into Blackwoods. Rich, beautiful, predatory, and used to getting whatever he wants, Elliot begins circling Noah with unsettling fascination. At first, Noah tells himself it is only flirtation gone too far. But when Elliot violates the safety of the club and leaves another submissive traumatized in an aftercare room, Noah becomes more than an employee. He becomes a witness. Arthur Blackwood, the older, powerful owner of the lounge, has spent years building his world on control, rules, and absolute protection. But Noah tests every boundary Arthur has ever trusted. He is younger, softer, bratty, vulnerable, and far too tempting. When Elliot’s obsession turns toward Noah, Arthur brings him to Mercy, his sprawling houseboat mansion on the California water, determined to keep him safe. But protection is not the same as possession. As the threat outside Mercy grows darker, the tension inside becomes harder to deny. Noah is drawn to Arthur’s dominance, his restraint, his terrifying tenderness. Arthur wants Noah in ways that feel dangerous even to himself — not just beneath him, not just protected by him, but beside him, choosing him. Together, they must navigate desire, trauma, consent, power, and the difference between surrender and control. Because Elliot is still watching. Still reaching. Still waiting for a way back in. And Mercy may be a refuge, but it is not untouchable. Mercy in Leather is a dark gay BDSM romance thriller about chosen surrender, protective obsession, found safety, and the terrifying vulnerability of being wanted exactly as you are.
