Three Hard Lessons

by Nikki Sloane

  When our fingertips were pruned and the water became cool, Dominic helped me out of the tub. We toweled off and he gestured to the two robes hanging beside the sink. One was a manly, deep blue, and the other a black and white floral print. Only they weren’t robes.

  “Yukatas,” he said. “Or maybe kimonos. I can never tell the difference.”

  It was clear which one was mine, so I pulled on my bra and underwear, and slipped my arms into the sleeves of the soft fabric. Beneath it on the hook was a thin belt and a wide yellow sash. We had to watch a YouTube video on his iPad to figure out how to put them on properly. Of course the ultra-traditional inn would have WiFi. We had to help each other get dressed, and Dominic couldn’t keep his hands off of me so it took forever.

  “We look like stupid Gaijins,” I laughed when it was done.

  Even with my best effort, Dominic’s was lopsided and looked ready to come undone any second. Not that I was complaining. Our host confirmed it when she delivered our dinner and did a double-take.

  “You need to turn your obi to the back,” she said, alarmed for me. “Wearing it in the front means you are a prostitute.”

  I couldn’t contain my snort of amusement. “Wouldn’t want anyone to mistake me for that.”

  Dominic didn’t seem to find it as amusing as I did.

  We ate the delicious meal at the low table in our kimonos, discussing the process of applying for a temporary visa. I’d gotten so good at using the chopsticks, I was able to snap mine around Dominic’s when he leaned over to steal a bite out of my bowl.

  “Get lost.”

  “Come on, Mrs. Ward.” His playful smile was distracting. “Share with your husband.”

  “Okay, I’ll fake share with my fake husband.” I pushed his chopsticks away. “It’s not my fault you already ate all of yours.”

  I couldn’t stop him, though. His sticks snatched up a hunk of noodles and they disappeared into his mouth a half-second after. I shouldn’t have been surprised. He always got what he wanted.

  “Was that your plan all along?” I asked him abruptly. “Did you bring me here to get me to stay?”

  His blue eyes widened. “No. I was going to ask for another week.”

  “And those three words.”

  His expression went serious. “Yeah. Look, I didn’t think I had a prayer of getting you to stay another week, but I was gonna try.” He set his chopsticks down and they tinged against the bowl. “You don’t seem to hate it like I did when I first got here, but I know it’s not easy for you.” He took a deep breath. “You don’t have to say those three words tonight. You already did.”

  “So, I’m off the hook, huh?”

  He gave a sly smile. “For now.”

  chapter

  TWENTY-TWO

  TEN DAYS LATER

  I’d spent hours at the US Embassy and gotten nowhere. The visa application was supposed to be submitted three months prior to the stay and filed from outside of Japan. My caseworker was fairly certain I was going to have to leave within ninety days of entry to Japan and go through the process properly.

  Three months? No thanks.

  But I was beginning to hate it here. The looks of disdain from strangers when it was clear I didn’t speak Japanese, and the long, lonely hours when Dominic was stuck late at work. I didn’t regret my life-changing decision to stay, but my resentment toward Chase Sports and the stupid contract they held over us grew thick.

  I rode the train back to our apartment, my shoulders sagging in defeat about the visa. Dominic had joked that we could get married. “Hell, we already have rings,” he’d said. The scary thing was I wasn’t sure he was joking. Faced with the prospect of me leaving, he’d do whatever he had to. But it’s not like he was a citizen of Japan, and getting married might only make the visa application process more difficult.

  I texted him that I was in a bad mood and no way was I cooking tonight.

  My pulse jumped and my mood improved in a single heartbeat.

  I spent the hour before he was supposed to get home shaving my legs, putting on makeup . . . doing anything I could to make myself look as fuckable as possible. I wanted him to come in the door, throw me over his shoulder, and slam me down on the bed. To fuck me so hard I’d forget about anything else.

  I pulled on the black lacy garter belt, followed by the silky stockings. I hooked the garters to the lace trim at the top and adjusted the elastic. A quick inspection in the full-length mirror confirmed it. I looked hot. Get ready, Dominic Ward. Maybe tonight I’ll finally give you those words you’ve been wanting to hear.

  He hadn’t pushed about that. Agreeing to stay with him indefinitely had made him so happy, I don’t think he wanted to do a thing to screw that up. He still told me he loved me in the mornings before he left for work.

  On Monday I asked him softly, “Why do you do that? Put your thumb here right when you say it?”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  The pink in his cheeks was so subtle I almost missed it. “Tell me.”

  He exhaled slowly and looked resigned. “I do it so I can tell myself that’s why you’re not saying it back.”

  He put his thumb over my lips like that simple action was what kept me from saying it. My chest felt tight. Every time I didn’t say it, I knew it hurt him, even if only a little. He knew what he was getting, though, I reminded myself. I’d get there. I just had to make sure when it came from my lips, it was the total truth. If it felt like a lie, it would crush us both.

  I locked the door, so I had some warning before it swung open. At seven-thirty, the door thudded when he tried to open it and discovered it locked. I got into position. A curse word was muttered, in Japanese, which I always found hilarious from him. Metal slid into metal, the lock turned, and he pushed open the door.

  “Holy shit.” He dropped the plastic bag on the floor and kicked the door closed behind him.

  I sat on the dining table, my legs spread wide and a hand touching my bare pussy.

  He just stood there, his eyes glazed with lust. Come on, come and get me, Dominic. His gaze drifted down my body, over my naked tits, down the lace and silk that ended in black high heels. The gaze worked its way back up even slower.

  But he stooped down and picked up the plastic bags. “Nice try, devil woman. We’re eating dinner first.” He moved to the kitchen cabinet and pulled down two bowls.

  My mouth dropped open. “The fuck we are.”

  He walked the bowls and plastic bags toward the table and set them down, and began to open cartons. I stood and put my hands on my hips, watching with disbelief as he dumped food into the bowls.

  “Did you get hit in the head by a crane or something? You asked me to wait for you naked, and you want to fucking eat dinner?”

  He chuckled and stuck a set of chopsticks upright in the food, and held the bowl out to me. “I have plans for this evening and you’re going to need the energy.”

  My eyes went narrow but inside I got excited. I loved it when he made plans. I took the bowl from him. “What kind of plans?”

  There was a faint smile on his lips but his expression was intense. Whatever it was, it was big.

  I hurriedly pulled out a chair and sat at the table. Thick anticipation seeped into the room as we ate in almost complete silence, his gaze never leaving my curves. He finished his dinner but his expression announced he was still hungry. He fucked me with his eyes and my stomach clenched. I rose from the table. I took both of our bowls, then sauntered on my heels to deposit them in the sink, hoping he was watching the sway of my ass cheeks as I went.

  “Bring the bottle of vodka back with you,” he said.

  “Don’t you mean truth serum?” I yanked the bottle from the freezer and stalked toward him, unscrewing the cap.

  “Not tonight. Inhibitions reducer.”

  “I don’t need my inhibitions lowered.” I took a long pull on the bottle and came to stand over him while he remained in his chair.

  “It’s not for your inhi
bitions.” The vodka sloshed as he took the bottle and drank.

  Wait, what the hell was he talking about? “If we’re going to do something you’re not comfortable with, maybe no booze.”

  He gave a tight smile. “Even if I got wasted, which I’m not going to do, you’d be fine. I just want to take my edge off.”

  The curiosity in me grew ten-fold. What did he have planned that he was nervous about? The bottle of vodka clunked on the table and his fingertips, chilled from the icy bottle, skimmed over my belly. I flinched at the cold, but melted into him.

  His hands roamed over my skin, traveling behind me. His palms caressed my ass, his fingers digging into the round flesh, kneading me. His tongue skirted the top edge of my garter belt. The slow burn of anticipation ignited.

  “Let’s go in the bedroom,” I whispered, anxious to get started.

  The corner of his mouth lifted into a coy smile. “You don’t get to dictate how tonight’s gonna go. I’ve got a word for you that I hope you like. Obey.”

  The air left my body in a shuddering hiss. He was right, I did like the word, but I didn’t want him clued in on that just yet. We could have some fun before he discovered it. I sank down on his lap, tugging the already loosened knot of his tie free. “Oh, really? You want me to obey you . . . Sir?”

  He tried to hide it, but the words made an impact. His hands were below my garters and clenched on the bare flesh of my hips. The silk of his tie threaded around his collar, slipped quietly along the fabric as I pulled it free. Undressing him slower than I ever had, even though my mind was screaming to tear his clothes off.

  I leaned in and dropped my head so my lips were just by his ear and used the sexiest voice I had. “What happens if I don’t obey?”

  “You’re going to want to try very hard, because you’ll like the reward. Now sit back up on the table right here like you were when I came in.”

  I hadn’t finished unbuttoning his shirt, but I abandoned the task and did what he told me. I wasn’t sure who I was obeying right then, him or my lust. I seated myself and spread my legs wide. He slid his chair forward a few inches. Hands smoothed over my knees, running up my legs until they reached the elastic garter straps.

  He hooked one under a finger and pulled it back, letting it snap harmlessly against my skin, but I jumped. The reminder of what he could do with a rubber band flashed through my mind and made my face warm.

  He glanced at his watch before leaning in so his head was between my thighs, hovering just out of reach of pleasing me.

  “Are we on a schedule?” I teased.

  “Maybe I want to see how fast I can make this body come.”

  No time at all. A single command and I was sure I’d be a quivering mess. I swallowed a breath as his lips grazed me. I moaned when his tongue got into the mix. He stroked and swirled the tip over me, coaxing an orgasm to come close.

  His mouth only stopped long enough to speak, and then resumed fucking me. “Can you obey, Payton? Can you be a good girl and do exactly what I tell you?”

  I stared down at the top of his head and watched his tongue slide inside me. I groaned in satisfaction. “Yes, Sir.”

  He rewarded me with a frenzied flutter right on my clit, and I gasped. The need for release was ramping up big time—

  There was a sharp knock on the front door and I jolted off of Dominic’s mouth. He wiped his mouth with a hand, and as it fell away, it revealed a sinful smile beneath. Like he expected this knock.

  “I forgot to mention we have company tonight,” he said. His eyes were dark and focused. “Go answer the door.”

  I blinked back the fog of my impending orgasm and swayed. “What?” I was essentially naked. And, company?

  “Are you going to do what I said?” he challenged, although it sounded like he was holding his breath.

  It had to be Akira. Dominic knew hardly anyone else here, and last time he’d made plans like this, he’d been nervous. I climbed down from the table and onto my shaky legs, and marched to the door. I was excited to meet the man who had offered to help train Dominic, and the idea of another session tonight was unbelievably arousing.

  I pulled the door open and gazed out into the hallway, my mouth forming the introduction to him, but my brain went blank.

  Not a man. A woman.

  chapter

  TWENTY-THREE

  The young woman looked regal and elegant. She was petite, waif-thin, and Japanese. Her long, black hair was pulled back into a high ponytail that trailed down her back. Her almond-shaped and shocked eyes blinked at my nakedness, and her gaze dropped immediately to the floor.

  I took a hesitant step backward, stunned, and in my confusion I didn’t notice him until he set a hand on her shoulder. There was no doubt in my mind who he was. He stood with perfect posture which made him seem impressively tall even though he was probably the same height as me without the heels.

  Akira was older. Late forties, or maybe even fifty. Handsome, but serious and intimidating. His black hair was long, falling past his ears. This man had presence . . . and command. It forced me to stare at his feet, like it would be rude to look at him without permission. His black suit seemed to match his eyes, and the fabric looked expensive.

  What the hell was going on?

  Dominic’s hand settled in the small of my back and I jumped at his touch. He bowed respectfully and Akira did the same back. It seemed like there were introductions, and then the couple entered the apartment, shut the door, and removed their shoes.

  “Payton,” Dominic said. “This is Master Akira, and her name is Yuriko.”

  It was disorienting to be the only one without clothes on. Sure, both men had seen me naked, and she was a woman, but the confusion over the situation left me feeling scattered. What was she here for?

  I bowed to them, feeling like an idiot. Why hadn’t I learned to do that properly? They returned the bow, their faces unchanged. Yuriko’s gaze wandered up my body almost like she was curious.

  “What’s going on?” I tried to stay calm.

  “He’s training her to be his submissive and he needs our help.” Dominic flushed. “Your help, actually.”

  “My help? With what?”

  “He wants to push her soft limits. It’ll be her final test before she becomes his.”

  I stood still as Akira peeled off his suitcoat and passed it to Yuriko, and Dominic showed her the tiny closet where we stored everything. Her jacket came off as well, revealing a slender body under a black wrap dress.

  “Do either of them speak English?” I asked.

  “No.” A smile lurked under Dominic’s lips. He’d be the only one in the room who could understand everything being said.

  “What are her soft limits?”

  Akira spoke and discussion broke out between the men. It left me to examine her closer. She looked about my age, maybe a little older. It was tough to say. Her skin was flawless porcelain. Her dark eyes examined me right back, like she was fascinated. Then Akira said something to her, and her attention snapped back to him. Her soft, innocent face went tense. As if whatever the plan was for this evening, she was just learning about it now.

  I wasn’t in the same boat as her. I knew even less.

  Dominic said something and gestured to the table, and after a brief glance, Akira nodded. Abruptly Dominic was backing me toward it.

  “What was all that about?” I asked.

  My ass was cold on the tabletop as he sat me there. His face was a mixture of excitement and something else. Anxiety?

  “She’s never been with another woman before, but she wants to.”

  “That doesn’t sound like a limit.”

  “It’s not. We’ll get to that in a second.” Dominic’s hands slipped around my waist. “Do you think she’s beautiful?”

  “Well, yeah.”

  “What would you say,” his voice dropped to a hush, “if I told her she was allowed to touch you?”

  I put my hands on his forearms and slowly ran them up until
I could lace my fingers together behind his neck. This woman didn’t seem to be able to take her eyes off of me. She wanted me. My pulse thumped steady and fast at the idea.

  “Would you like that?” His voice was so fucking sexy when he whispered.

  I nodded.

  “What if I told her she could go down on you while we watched? Would you like that?”

  I swallowed hard. I could barely breathe. “Yes.”

  “What if I told you . . . that you couldn’t come during?”

  It was like a needle dragging on a record. “What?”

  “When he says go, she has ten minutes to try to make you come. If she fails, she’s going to allow him to play with her virgin ass.” He brushed his lips over mine. “He’s hoping to push her limit, so I’m telling you not to come. Can you obey?”

  Jesus, I was on fire already. It escaped my lips on a whisper. “Yes, Sir.”

  Dominic’s kiss was aggressive and controlling. It lingered on my lips even after he was gone. He sat down on the chair at my side and uttered a short phrase in Japanese. Akira approached first, his gaze brushing over me, but there was nothing in his eyes to give me a clue what was going on behind them. He went to the other side of the table and sat opposite Dominic, then spoke.

  Yuriko strolled up to the table like she had tons of time, assessing me. Maybe figuring out where to start.

  “Did he tell—” I said to Dominic, hushed.

  “No, not yet.”

  Yuriko stood a foot away from the edge of the table, just outside of my parted legs. Her long, delicate fingers skimmed along my thigh, over the sheer silk that covered my skin. A shy smile from her made my breath catch.

  “Can I touch her?” I blurted out.

  Dominic repeated my question to Akira.

  “Hai.” One of the few Japanese words I understood. Yes.

  She knew it was coming from Dominic’s translation, but she still seemed bashful when I set my hand on her hip and urged her to come closer. I wanted to get this started as soon as possible. The quicker I made it through those ten minutes, the quicker I would get to my reward.