Apocalypse Dance

by M. Barnette

  "D ... don't you ... w ... want to go far ... farther?” Nikki asked him. Her teeth were chattering so badly she could barely speak.

  "No,” he told her as he helped the woman off the bike. She was freezing cold. If she got pneumonia from the soaking it was going to be difficult for them to keep traveling. And Colby was another three or four days farther north. He stared out into the darkness at the pounding rain. At higher elevations that hard rain might be falling as snow. If it was they might not be able to reach Colby until spring. That would mean turning around, and returning to Danbridge which wasn't a viable option. Not when the Rangers were already there looking for them.

  He grabbed a mattress that was covered in dust and weather spotting and flipped it over. At least that side would be cleaner, though it still smelled musty to him. Bringing out their sleeping bags, he spread one out on the bed.

  "Get out of your clothes."

  Her dark eyes regarded him in the intense gloom. He knew she couldn't see him. She pulled his jacket off and stood there, unable to see where she should put it down.

  "I'll light a candle,” he told her and did just that, setting it down on a nearby display table, the single wick casting a dim glow over the bed.

  The sodden jacket went over the equally wet seat of the motorcycle. She was struggling with her clothes, shivering so bad she couldn't make her hands work.

  He gripped her shirt and pulled it over her head, feeling the icy cold of her skin, a growing sense of alarm starting to ring through his head. She was too cold, possibly hypothermic, and that sent a bite of panic through him. He had her undressed and down on the bed, his own dripping clothes gone, in the space of a few heartbeats. He drew the other sleeping bag over them like a comforter and held her close.

  The rain hadn't affected him much, the Warrior's Fire keeping him warm. But Nikki was icy.

  He rubbed her skin, trying to restore warmth.

  "C ... cold...” she got out.

  It was a surprise when she grabbed the back of his head and pulled his face down to kiss him with lips that felt like snow from the chill gripping her body.

  "Is that what you want, Nikki?” he asked her quietly, breaking their kiss at the same time.

  "Y ... yes ... Make ... m ... me warm...” she got out through chattering teeth.

  "Anything you want, baby,” he whispered, kissing her, running his hands over her shivering body. She was cold, and she wanted him to warm her. Much as he knew he had to stop this thing between them, he just couldn't. Not yet. Not when she really needed him right now.

  * * * *

  Nikki felt his hands burning on her icy skin, the heat of his body as welcome as his caresses. Shivering, she guided him over her, wanting to feel more of his skin, of his firm body pressed to hers. She wasn't afraid of him. Killer though he was, she didn't fear anything about him because she knew in her heart, to the depths of her soul, he wouldn't hurt her the way Roderik had.

  He was a study in strange contradictions. Dispassionate killer, wildly passionate lover. Gentle to women, kind to children, but ruthless to anyone who stood in his way.

  There was a building heat inside her, low in her belly, the ache starting despite how cold she still was. Firm lips closed over her left nipple in a searing kiss made all the hotter for her having been drenched in icy rain. She gasped, back arching into the touch, her arms wrapping around him, hanging on, forcing Bells to stay where he was, to keep doing what he was doing.

  When no resistance was forthcoming, Nikki smiled. Her shivering abated under his caresses. As he continued to lick and kiss his way over her breasts and throat, driving away the iciness, she moaned quietly, letting him hear her enjoyment. Getting a bit bolder, Nikki started exploring his body with her hands, caressing along his shoulders and upper arms, touching, loving the feel of him, the sound of him as he reacted to her fingers on his erection.

  His mouth wended its slow, torturous way down her body, along her left leg, up her right leg. She was hot and wet, the ache between her thighs so intense when he blew gently across the dark curls at her cleft she whimpered and spread her legs wide, inviting more. A light caress, teasing stiffness, lapped at the cream on her tender lips, slipped into the nest of curls to find petals of a delicate tenderness.

  Nikki screamed at the jolt of near climax that shocked through her. She was so hot, wanting and wanton. Sitting up, she pushed him over on his back, a handful of his braids firmly gripped in her hand, and straddled his face. Hearing his soft murmur of enjoyment at the pull on his hair, she lowered herself and felt a second white-heat shock as he thrust his tongue deeply into her folds to find the entrance of her sex.

  Gasping, Nikki bucked her hips, riding his mouth, his hands on her hips aiding her balance rather than rejecting her desires.

  "Jason, pleasure me."

  He laughed softly. “Yes, Mistress."

  Her breath caught and his tongue sank as deeply as he could thrust into her body before sliding out, lapping at her clit and darting into her yielding cunt. He repeated the lick and thrust until Nikki was writhing on his face, hands locked in his braids. She felt herself teetering at the brink, body shuddering.

  Hands grabbed her hips, pulling her down tightly to his mouth, his thrusting tongue dancing inside her, driving her over the edge, a scream torn from her lips.

  Spent, warmed by her orgasm, Nikki eased the tightness of her grip in his hair, becoming aware in the languid after glow that his tongue was still busy.

  A shudder passed through her and she moved away, sitting down on the bed to look at him.

  "You really do like that, don't you?” she asked him softly.

  He smiled, eyes bright with amusement and passion. “What do you think?” he countered turning onto his side and sliding a finger where his tongue had been.

  Nikki gasped, but swatted his hand away. “And you don't mind me taking control like that?"

  He sat up, the stiff rod between his thighs showing a glistening bead of arousal; his own desire pulsed through the flesh with each beat of his heart. Nikki smiled. There'd been a shop they'd passed. She remembered despite the shivering that had wracked her.

  Naughty Nat's.

  A sex toy shop.

  "Feel like going for a little walk?” she asked him.

  * * * *

  "A walk? Where to?” The woman was up to something, he could see it in her eyes.

  "There's a store back that way.” She pointed out the front doors and he raised an eyebrow, prompting her to add, “Naughty Nat's."

  Bells couldn't help himself, he grinned. “Sounds fun if there's anything left of the stuff."

  She was reaching for her wet clothes as he rolled off the bed. “We can walk along under the eaves of the stores. That way we won't get wet."

  "Sounds like a plan."

  Man, did it ever sound like plan, and he wondered exactly what she was going to do.

  The excitement was killing him. And so was buttoning the fly of his dry pants over an erection as stiff as granite.

  They walked down the shopping plaza, staying under the overhang to keep dry. He had his arm around her waist, protectively. He smiled as Nikki slid her arm around him, leaning into his body. The shops were looted, but from the windows he could see there were a lot of things remaining inside. Once the sun rose it might be a good idea to search through the wreckage and see if they could find anything of use.

  "I wish we had a flashlight,” Nikki sighed as they paused at the door to the sex toy store.

  Bells pulled a candle out of his pocket and struck a match, lighting it as he stepped across the mound of broken glass where the shop window had been. He helped Nikki inside and paused. “What are you looking for specifically?"

  "I'll let you know when I find it,” she replied enigmatically, a little smile twitching the corners of her mouth. She took the candle from him. “You wait here, I'll be back."

  His cock jumped and he swallowed, mouth gone dry at the thought of what she might be looking fo
r inside. It excited him, not being allowed to go with her sent a flash of slow burning heat through his body. “Yes, mistress,” he replied. His eyes glittered with anticipation and he knew she could see that eagerness. He didn't care. He was eager, and his passion for her was only growing with each and every thing she did to him. With him.

  "Good boy,” she said as she walked cautiously away, careful of the debris littering the floor.

  She moved off with the candle, and he watched her progress through the store intently, watching what she was doing.

  "Hey, turn around. I don't want you to know what I'm getting and I know you can see."

  He laughed. “Damn. You're going to kill me with the suspense."

  "Suspense is good for you,” she replied lightly. “Now turn around."

  Her voice was insistent, a sharp order. Smiling broadly, he did as she asked, turning his back to her, staring out into the rainy night. The nagging urge for a cigarette hit him and he sighed, not because he wanted it, but because he had none. At least smoking would have killed some time and given him something to do while the woman strolling through Naughty Nat's selected some toys. It would also have kept him from thinking on the things he was hoping she'd get.

  Whatever she brought he'd put to use however she wanted. He smiled, because their little power exchange was so enjoyable for him. He could be Billy-badass whenever it was required, and let her be ‘Mistress Nikki’ the rest of the time. It suited him just fine.

  "Oh, now this is interesting,” he heard her comment right before he heard the rustle of plastic shopping bags.

  He almost turned around to look but stopped himself in time. “I'm glad you're having fun."

  "I hope you're still hard."

  That made him laugh softly. “Oh yeah. Definitely."

  * * * *

  Nikki couldn't help but smile at the reply as she stuffed a few more things into the already bulging shopping bag. There was so much scattered around, so many possibilities. But she took what she wanted for the night and made her way back to her lover, blowing out the candle once she was beside him.

  "Okay, let's go."

  He didn't reply, he just put an arm around her. They went back to the furniture store, guided by the single light of the candle they'd left burning.

  "Strip,” she ordered.

  "Anything you want, Mistress Nikki."

  She stared at him. “How serious are you about that?"

  Blue eyes gazed at her as he tossed his shirt aside. “How serious are you about domming me?"

  Her heart slammed into high gear. In answer she pulled a riding crop out of the bag.

  He actually smiled. “Pretty serious."

  Laying the crop down on the bed, Nikki stripped her own clothes off, watching the man do the same thing. She wanted to make him beg for release the way he'd made her beg.

  "We're going to play a game,” she told him. “It's called Mistress and her boy. Do you want to play?"

  In answer he knelt naked at her feet and bowed his head. “Yes, Mistress, this animal wishes to play your game."

  Nikki stared. She swallowed hard, fighting a memory of Roderik. She reached down to cup his chin in her hand. “You aren't an animal, you're my boy. Understood?"

  "Yes, Mistress, your boy understands.” His face was calm, serious, but there was an amused glitter in his gaze.

  "You really like this, don't you?"

  "Yes, Mistress."

  "Good. Get on the bed."

  She watched as he rose gracefully to his feet, turned a burning look on her and crawled onto the bed giving her a nice view of his ass.

  "Would Mistress like me face up or face down?"

  Nikki had the impression that her lover had played this game quite a bit. From the way he was acting the part she suspected he'd played it a great deal more than she had. It reassured her to know he had no reservations.

  "Face down,” she told him as she rummaged in the bag looking for the package she wanted.

  Compliant to her wish, he lay down, but he had his head turned to watch what she was doing.

  Tearing open the package, she took out the fuzzy handcuffs and got onto the bed, reaching for one of his hands.

  She saw a flicker of something in his gaze and blinked. Had that been a hint of ... nervousness or fear? Nikki hesitated but he offered his wrist to her, his expression calm once more, making her think she'd imagined what she'd seen. “You're sure?"

  "Yes, Mistress."

  Opening the cuff, she locked it around his left wrist, then fastened the other end around the bars of the headboard. A second cuff fastened his right wrist and she regarded her handiwork with a satisfied nod.

  She picked up the riding crop and trailed it down his back, following the line of his spine. Her heart poundedand her mouth had gone dry. She remembered how painful a swat from the crop could be, or how it could leave bloody welts behind when wielded in anger the way Roderik had employed it. But this was part of the dominance game. Part of the sadomasochism that Roderik had used to subjugate her and the other women.

  But the man on the bed wasn't Roderik.

  "It's okay, Nikki. You can't really hurt me.” Bells's tone was reassuring. Encouraging.

  She gave him an experimental swat, the crop leaving a bright mark on his golden skin.

  He gasped, shuddering under the kiss of the braided leather.

  Surprised, she laid the crop on his ass a second time and heard a repeat of the soft cry he'd given before.

  "You ... want this, don't you?"

  "Yes, Mistress, yes!” he groaned, hands gripping the short length of chain.

  The crop popped sharply, leaving another pink line on his skin, wrenching a louder cry from him, his body shuddering.

  Nikki dropped the crop, and reached out to cup the hot mark with her hand, tracing the heated line, feeling him quiver under her touch.

  No, Bells wasn't anything like Roderik. Nothing like him at all.

  She kissed the fiery line she'd raised on his skin, some of the heat in the welt already fading, his body erasing the slight damage she'd done him. Nikki stopped what she was doing to regard the stripe on his ass. She could see it fading as she watched. The mark almost gone now. He healed amazingly fast.

  "Mistress?"

  "Yes?"

  "Why did you stop?"

  "Because I don't want to hurt you, Jason."

  He twisted himself in the confines of the handcuffs to regard her with eyes that burned with passion, “Do I look hurt, Mistress?'

  Shaking her head, Nikki picked up the crop and smacked him with it hard enough to leave a bright red welt. This time the groan was sharper, his breathing gone harsh, a shudder dancing through his muscles.

  But, much as part of her cried out to beat him the way Roderik had beaten her, as much as that damaged part of her psyche wanted to see a man hurt and crying the way she'd been hurt, she couldn't bring herself to actually do him any serious damage.

  Instead she trailed the tip of the crop along the crack of his ass, considering other options.

  Leaving the crop laying across his back, she pulled another package out of the bag. This one contained a bottle of lube advertised on the label as being super slick and long lasting.

  Well, she was going to find out just how slick it was. She opened the cap and poured a few drops out onto her finger, feeling the cool slickness between finger and thumb she smiled and nodded with satisfaction. It would do nicely.

  Another package came out of the bag. A box with several different sized sexual aids.

  She leaned down and kissed the fading welt, slipping the slicked finger into the crack of his ass.

  * * * *

  Spreading his thighs, he tensed them a bit to lift his ass toward her probing finger. He knew what she was considering, and though he was a little disappointed that she hadn't used the crop a bit longer—he really did enjoy the kiss of pain during sex—he wasn't going to ask her to do anything that made her unhappy. And he got the impression
that not wanting to hurt a lover was what had stopped her. For him the pain was minimal, not much worse than having his hair pulled, or her gentle love bites. It faded away so fast he barely got to enjoy the sensation.

  It also drew his mind away from the cuffs holding him to the bed.

  But he wouldn't pressure her into it. That was his kink and he could do without it if she wasn't prepared to go down that road with him. There were so many other ways to experience pleasure under a woman's control that the lack of the rougher ones would make little difference.

  A finger, slick with lube, found the tight ring of his ass and pressed delicately at the opening. He closed his eyes, and relaxed, enjoying the sensation, relishing her hesitancy. She was worried about hurting him, or upsetting him with something she thought of doing.

  "It's okay, Mistress. When I said you could do anything, I meant it."

  He felt the finger pressing harder, slide in, testing for any negative reaction. The scent of her arousal was mixed with a tinge of fear.

  "Nikki?"

  "Jason?” He could hear the tension in her voice.

  "Let me out of the cuffs. Just for a few minutes, okay?"

  "Okay."

  He was quickly freed. “Come here,” he turned around and grabbed the box of toys she'd just opened and the bottle of lubricant she had out. “There is nothing in this box you can put inside me that is going to hurt,” he told her. “Not even this one,” he said as he picked up a rather large butt plug and held it up for her inspection.

  A blush colored her cheeks, “I ... I've never done this before. I just..."

  "I know. You're curious, and scared,” he leaned closer and kissed her.

  "Tell you what,” he pulled her into his arms and held her close, “how about we leave off the game for now and just have a bit of fun?"

  She nodded.

  Grabbing the bag, he brought it closer and peered inside. “Whoa, now that's impressive,” he remarked as he pulled out a strap on dildo. “Any particular reason you picked this up?” He grinned. “Or can I guess?"