by Linzi Basset
“We’re not in an exclusive relationship, Morgan. In fact, it happens more often than not that a Dom would allow his sub to scene with another Dom, while he does the same.”
“Including sex?” Her cheeks burst alive with a rosy hue.
“Of course.”
“I’m not comfortable with that,” she said with a deep frown drawing her brows together.
“I would never force you into a situation like that, my pet.”
Morgan spun around and marched to the desk to fling open the folder. She picked up the pen and made a note at the bottom of the limit list page. Bruce smiled from where he peeped over her shoulder. He’d be surprised if the words weren’t scripted on the surface of the desk, she’d pressed so hard with the pen.
Sex ONLY with Master Goliath.
The look she awarded him was sharper than the edge of a knife. “And if it was within my power, I would’ve added the same for you.” She bit back the groan as his eyebrow did that slow, sexy drift upward. Amusement glimmered in his eyes.
“Are you hinting at exclusivity, squirt?”
“I … er, no but …”
Fuck that, Morgan! You want him for yourself. Now is the perfect time to be forceful and grasp the opportunity with both hands.
She squared her shoulders, deciding to listen to her inner voice. It was time to face the future. To do all she could to let go of the past; for in him, she believed she’d found her savior. The one who would be able to free her from the shackles that those in her dark past used to keep dragging her under. Instinct told her he played a vital role in her future happiness.
“As a matter of fact, Master Goliath, I am. Demanding it, for that matter.”
Bruce hooked his thumbs in his pants’ pockets and studied her for a long time.
“Hmm.” He reached around her and picked up the limit list and pen. She watched him with trepidation as he ticked off several items on the list. “Those are currently hard limits for you, Morgan. I would only agree to exclusivity with a sub if it was something she had a preference for as well, or willing to try. So, until you’re comfortable to expand your horizons, our agreement will remain as is.”
Morgan yanked the list from his hand. She scanned the items he’d selected.
Ah, shit! I should’ve known. Belatedly she remembered Joanne telling her that Bruce loved anal sex and sharing his sub in a threesome. It had been the one thing she’d feared would happen during her incarceration as a sex slave. Luckily for her, the Sheikh wouldn’t allow anyone to touch her and he chose not to have butt sex. She felt her stomach clench at the thought of Bruce popping her anal cherry, was left stumped at the excited tremor of being sandwiched between him and another man.
Good lord! What’s happening to me?
Her eyes landed on the other two black tick marks. Voyeurism and exhibitionism was a big no for her, especially after being displayed and pawed just to humiliate her for her continued defiance.
“How about two out of four?” Morgan’s eyes widened as her own voice echoed back to her.
“Which two is a no?”
“Voyeurism and exhibitionism. At least for now. It was … over there they …” Her fluttering hands finished the sentence.
“How about a compromise on those two?” Bruce said, keeping his eyes on her.
“What kind of compromise?”
“For starters, no limit on either when we’re alone.”
She nodded. “I can do that.”
“But I want to ease you into becoming comfortable with it in public, so at a later stage, us alone in a room but with a window for viewing members.”
Morgan shifted her weight. If she was honest with herself, she had a feeling that once Bruce gave her his full attention, she’d completely forget where they were and what they were doing, let alone worry about, or realize, others were watching.
“Okay.”
“You do know that punishment usually happens in the dungeon and when other Senior Masters are involved …” Bruce noticed her fingers starting to tremble. “Morgan, look at me.”
She lifted wary eyes to him, suddenly not sure she was doing the right thing.
“This is different, little one. Punishment only happens when deserved, as I explained earlier. Some of it will be public, others not but you’re still in control. If anything is too much or you feel threatened in any way, use your safeword.” He brought her closer with a hand around her waist. “Until you’re ready for full exhibitionism, none of it will happen without your clothes.” His gaze trailed over the dress. “But, I’ll choose your outfits from now on. I want access to all of you and this kind of dress, beautiful as it is, is restrictive.” He smiled as she huffed. “I won’t leave you naked, my pet, don’t worry.” He planted a hard kiss on her lips. “Now, let’s go. I want to see how you react to a spanking.”
“A spanking?” she squealed. She hadn’t anticipated a scene on her first night, least of all getting her ass heated.
He tweaked her nose. “Yes, Ms. Adler, a spanking. My hand, your ass—”
“I know what a damn spanking is,” she cut him short and then gasped as he yanked her against him.
“Care to give me the definition of insolence, sub?”
“Am I supposed to be a walking dictionary as well as your sub?” she countered without thought.
The slow smile that curved Bruce’s lips took her breath away … for a second … until she noticed the devilish look in his eyes.
“I see I’m going to have hours of fun teaching you the correct decorum of a sub.” His eyes darkened, his body suddenly felt and looked bigger. Morgan was hard pressed not to turn tail and run. “I warned you not to elicit punishment with sassiness, which in here is classed as insolence.” He stepped back. He pointed to the floor. “On your knees.”
Before Morgan could comprehend just how the hell she ended in that position while her mind was still protesting, he stepped behind her, caught her long hair in his hands and with swift confidence plaited it.
“Hands.”
Again, her hands were behind her back without thought. She whimpered as he pulled on the braid but yielded to the pressure and tilted her head.
“Oh shit! What are you doing?” she protested as she felt him tie her wrists together using her hair.
Bruce noticed the tremor in her body and the wild look in her eyes. He frowned but realized immediately it was a flashback to being tied down by her captors. His large palm stroking her back, gentled her fear.
“Easy, Morgan. It’s me, Master Goliath.” He leaned down to place a tender kiss on her shoulder and another on her upturned cheek. “Do you trust me, little one?”
His voice was low, deep and sounded like a melody of tender notes. It reached past the fear clogging her mind to dissolve the visions that flashed before her eyes. She inhaled his scent; clean and rich, spicy notes of sandalwood. She felt a calm descend upon her. Her shoulders relaxed, she offered him a tentative smile.
“Yes, Master Goliath, I do.”
“Always remember that, my pet. I’ll never hurt you or do anything you aren’t comfortable with.” He studied her, still on his haunches next to her. “You indicated light bondage but if you’d rather—”
“No, I just had an unexpected flashback. I honestly didn’t think …” She swallowed hard. “I usually don’t have them when I’m awake.”
“But you do in your sleep? Do you still have nightmares? After all this time?” His large hands gently stroked up and down her arms. His heart filled with warmth when she leaned into him.
“For the first two months, every night and then it stopped, until a month or so ago. I thought I was over it, that I finally managed to put it behind me.” Her voice thickened, knowing what had triggered the dreams. She had been naïve to believe she was rid of that ruthless bastard.
“Shh, relax, little one and let me take care of you. Show you the difference between consensual pleasure and pain to what you remember in your dreams.” A soft kiss against her temp
le settled her mind. “But we will continue with therapy to resolve your fears. Deal?”
“Yes, Sir,” she breathed against his lips. She needed his reassurance, no matter that she knew therapy might help her deal with the nightmares but couldn’t save her from the reality which was the conduit to her recurring dreams.
This time, Bruce accepted the invitation. He brushed his lips back and forth against hers, gently coaxing and testing her reaction. When she pressed eagerly against him, he deepened the kiss, licking the tantalizing fullness of her lower lip before he sought entry inside. She granted it with a soft sigh. Never had he felt such delight at a trusting gesture. Morgan Adler intrigued him—had done so from the first time he’d laid eyes on her. She excited the hell out of him. She moaned into his mouth as he gently brushed his tongue over the soft part of her palate, enticing hers to engage in a sensual dance of eroticism. He forced back the need to devour her mouth and retreated, ending with soft nibbles on her lips.
He tugged on the braid binding her hands together. “I chose your hair to set your mind at ease. Feel the silky strands caress your skin,” he said into her ear, brushing his fingers over her wrists where they were bound. “How does it feel?”
Morgan didn’t answer immediately. She allowed her senses to hone in on the soft caress and only now felt the slight pressure around her wrists. Whether it was her imagination, she didn’t know but it was as if she could feel a warmth penetrate her skin where the hair surrounded her arms.
“Warm … and reassuring.” Her cheeks dimpled as she smiled with relief.
“I’m glad. I want you to know that you always have the right to talk to me, even if I tell you to be quiet, especially if something makes you feel uncomfortable or scares you; say the word yellow and I’ll listen. In fact, I demand that you do. I’ll generally know when you’re distraught during a scene but remember our earlier discussion about communication. I’m not a mind reader and—”
“Well, that’s a matter of opinion,” she snipped.
Bruce chuckled. His friends always referred to him during an interrogation because of his perception and that he could read people so well. They jokingly referred to him as the mind ghost at times.
“Whether or not I might have an idea of what’s going on in your mind is beside the point. What’s important and crucial in any BDSM activity, is communication. You have to talk to me, tell me if something bothers you. For both our sakes.”
“And you’ll do the same?”
Morgan has had only two serious relationships in her thirty-four years and both had failed because of the men at the time not being fully invested in their relationship. Then the third man, the biggest mistake … because of him, she had developed a cynical approach to love and happy ever after, worse; of humanity. She yearned for someone who could trust and talk to her as comfortably as she would to him, who needed to be with her and longed for her presence when she wasn’t around. In this case, in and outside of the club. Something she immediately pursued.
“Outside the club as well?”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way. One thing you’ll soon realize is that I’m not a martyr, nor do I make a prison of my thoughts or feelings.” His eyes darkened. “Just tread carefully, Morgan. I demanded a full time, live in arrangement for a reason.”
She exhaled slowly, and her eyes were caught in the shining, quick flares in the depths of his, like a flock of birds flying on sunlit days, relaxed, purposeful, at ease. “Which is?”
“There’s something between us, and I’m not referring to just chemistry, which we have in bounds, but a much deeper connection. I felt it from the very beginning. I’m not a youngster anymore and I’ve been searching for that spark for a long time. I want to see where it’ll take us, perhaps build on a future together. So, little one, if you’re only after a short-term fling, I suggest that you don’t arrive on my doorstep.” His eyes darkened. “Because once you step inside my house, that’s it. I’ll view it as your commitment to offer me what I’m asking for.”
She studied him, releasing a soft groan as he gently massaged her neck, relieving the tension from the position she was in.
“And are you?” She blinked at the intense expression on his face while joy exploded inside her soul. “Asking?” she dared to pose the question.
“Yes, Morgan, on my knees as it were,” he said with a twitch of his lips.
“I guess you and I have the same yearning then.” She hesitated and then decided to open herself to him, just as he had to her … so unexpectedly but she had no doubt he was sincere. “That’s why I came here. I had to know if what I felt, and the reason why I couldn’t stay here, was more than just chemistry. I …” She smiled briefly. “That moment in the chopper … I think my soul found yours there already. I’ve made too many mistakes in my life, have experienced … ugly things and …” She sought out his eyes. “Could you look past that?”
Bruce smiled tenderly. “There’s nothing to look past. You had no choice in what happened to you. I admire you for how you tried to protect and offer the others someone to lean on. No, Morgan, you have nothing in your life to be ashamed about.”
He got up and slowly circled her. “I’ve had many dreams of you in this position, although you were usually naked in them. You’re a beautiful woman but a fucking gorgeous submissive.” He took a step closer and stared down at her. “Do you know why you’re in this position?”
The tautness of his muscled body, the confident line of his shoulders, and the way he tilted back his head, just so, to look at her in an aristocratic way, warned her that he had switched to the powerful Dom.
“I guess it was because I was somewhat evasive in the answer I supplied to a question,” she said tongue-in-cheek.
“I suppose that’s one way of putting it.” He laughed. This time it had a wicked sound to it and she eyed him warily. His voice deepened. “It’s best you learn very early on that I won’t stand for a disrespectful and cheeky attitude, especially when it’s unfounded.”
“But I—”
“But nothing. The moment you signed that agreement you became my submissive, yielding me the power to dominate you. I will give you some leeway while you get used to the dynamic but since you already have knowledge of the lifestyle, you will not use ignorance as an excuse.” He tightened the knot around her wrists. “From this point on, I want your silence. You only speak when I ask you a question. Understood?”
“Yes,” she snapped in a surly voice, annoyed that he was berating her while she was still on a cloud of elation about what the future held in store for them.
Crack!
“Oww!” She lifted accusing eyes to his towering figure from the limited view her slightly tilted head offered. Her ass stung from the sharp slap he’d planted there with his huge hand.
“Yes, who?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Don’t forget again, sub. If there’s one thing I won’t stand for, it’s deliberate disrespect, whether we’re alone or in public.”
She watched him circle her.
“Spread your legs.”
She shuffled her legs a little apart. Bruce pushed his boot between her knees and forced them wider.
“Instead of a spanking with my hand, which I promise would’ve been a very pleasant experience for you, I’m going to introduce your cute little behind to my belt.”
Morgan’s eyes widened as she watched him pull the belt out of his leathers. Her breath caught in her throat when he brushed his palm over her nipples. They immediately turned hard under the feathered caress.
“And maybe these beauties as well.”
“You—” She swallowed the words at his warning look.
How damn fair is that? How the heck can he expect me not to say anything?
“If you feel you have something of importance to say, you always ask for permission to speak, otherwise I don’t want to hear a peep out of you.”
Morgan pressed her lips together. Now, she’d be damned if she did say
anything. Imagine that, having to ask for permission to speak! I guess if what I say isn’t deemed as important by him, I’d be shut up anyway. Or worse, punished!
She could hear herself huff irritably in her mind. Her fingers curled into fists. She tried to yank softly at the braided cuff holding her wrists together, to no avail. The knot he’d tied was more than effective.
“Unfortunately, the dress is in my way.”
“I don’t think … may I speak?” she quickly changed direction at his warning glance.
“Make it quick.”
“I don’t think I’m … I wasn’t prepared for a scene this soon, especially naked.”
Morgan closed her eyes as he went onto his haunches behind her and pulled up the hem of her dress.
“I’m a man of action, my pet, and the sooner we start initiating you, the better. I won’t remove it completely but I need to see your skin to know how your body is reacting to the strikes.”
He tucked it into the top of the bodice, baring her from the waist down, with only a small triangle of dark green lace as cover.
“Beautiful thong, my pet, leaving these scrumptious little cheeks naked … quite appropriate for what I intend.”
I’m never wearing a freaking thong again!
Her breath caught in her throat as she felt the hard edge of the belt trail over both cheeks. Suddenly the pressure on her neck eased as Bruce untied the braid. His fingers were gentle as he eased the crick at the back of her nape.
“I don’t want you to be in pain or uncomfortable. This will be much better.”
He guided her hands behind her head and swiftly tied her wrists with the braid.
“This will be your introduction, so you’ll feel only a slight sting. Try not to tense your muscles in expectation of the strike, it’ll intensify the pain. Relax and lean into each strike, allow it to penetrate through bone and muscle to settle in a delicious, hot and heavy throb in your lions.”
Morgan had heard and witnessed in the clubs how pain intensified arousal. She’d been very skeptical about it and still couldn’t comprehend such a thing happening to her.
