by Lily Harlem
“I do.”
“So let’s get started.” He gripped the top of the outfit and eased it down her shoulders.
She helped the clinging fabric on its way and soon stood naked before him.
He smiled and took her hand, steered her to the cubicle with the free-standing cross.
She stared at the dark, polished wood as they approached. The manacles were made of black leather and had small silver chains. The center of the cross was padded and there was a small soft mat at its base.
“Like this,” he said, moving in behind her. He clasped her right hand and lifted it up to the wrist harness.
His chest was warm and sexy against her back, and he’d pushed his hard-on to her ass, letting her know how much this was turning him on.
She watched as his nimble fingers secured the straps, then once it was tight, she let her arm relax, enjoying the way it was held in position.
He repeated the action with her left wrist then stooped.
She missed the feel of his body.
“Wider,” he said, “much wider.” He eased her feet to the base of the cross.
Cool air swirled over her damp pussy as her thighs parted. The vulnerability of the position became apparent, as did the fact she really was trapped.
She blew out a long, low breath as her ankles were secured. She could do this. This was what she wanted.
“Perfect,” he said, coming to stand in front of her.
There’d be no squirming or struggling. She was securely fastened and her chest lodged against the center of the cross.
“I’ve fantasized about this moment,” he said, stroking his fingers over her belly, dipping into her navel.
“I hope I live up to your expectations, Sir,” she said, watching as he ran his tongue over his bottom lip.
“You already have.” His touch traveled lower and he caressed her pussy lips then stroked over her clit. “Are you turned on?”
“Yes…Sir.”
“Good, because I sure as hell am.” With his free hand, he cupped his cock through his trousers. “But this is all about you. It’s your turn to have attention, my kind of attention.” He circled her entrance and pushed in. “Squeeze my fingers.”
She loved him penetrating her, she didn’t have to be instructed to clench around his touch—it was what she wanted to do anyway. “Mmm…”
“Good girl,” he said, gently pumping in and out. “Now hold that thought, there’ll be more, but first a hit of endorphins. Go with it, don’t fight it like you did before.”
“Okay.”
“Sir.” There was a stern note in the word.
“Okay, Sir.”
“I want you to let each bite of pain go to your pussy, just here…” He smoothed over her G-spot. “And just here.” His thumb flicked over her clit.
Her abdominal muscles tensed and she yanked at the wrist harness. “Ohh…” she said. “Okay…Sir.”
He smiled, pulled out, then moved from her view.
She wondered what he was getting. Would he use a paddle? A flogger? A whip? She had no idea.
Her rear end felt so exposed, hot too. She imagined it would already have a red glow.
“Now take a deep breath and hold it,” he said, “and wait until I tell you to blow it out.”
She did as he’d instructed and her chest swelled.
A sudden, searing sting slammed against her right buttock.
She bit her bottom lip and kept the breath in as the pain shot like fingers of fire over her skin. As that started to fade a deeper, more dense pain traveled through her muscles.
“To your pussy,” he said, “send it there as you blow out the breath.”
She released the air with a puff and tried to focus on her pussy as he’d told her to.
Another burning slap.
It was the paddle, she was sure of it.
“Oh, God.” She gritted her teeth. Was this what it was all about?
“That’s it, perfect.” He smoothed his hand over her heated skin. “You’re doing so well. Now close your eyes and let your mind go blank. There is only me and you and the pain, nothing else exists.”
She shut her eyes and was greeted with a firework display of colors dancing behind her lids.
He hit again.
She jerked. Her pussy was hot and swollen, her nipples tight. She wanted to get away from the pain, but then another strike bore down and she welcomed the new wave of sensation that layered over the other hits.
Something had switched.
She found herself looking forward to the next strike because each hit did indeed blast arousal straight to her cunt. “Oh…”
“That’s it.” He stepped in front of her. He cupped her nape and kissed her.
She kept her eyes closed. She was spinning, giddy. She kissed him back but her mouth felt lazy.
“More?” he asked.
“Mmm…”
He gave it. Hard and fast. Hits that stung and burned, then powered through her body.
She moaned, long low gurgles that came up from her chest. She bucked backward then forward, trapped in a good way, because it meant she was getting what she needed.
A low buzzing noise wended its way into her brain.
The paddling had stopped.
“Let’s see how this works for you,” Kane said.
Imogen opened her eyes and lowered her head.
Kane held a long wand-like piece of kit with a domed white head. It was the head that was vibrating, shivering.
With his free hand, he parted her pussy lips.
A tremble of anticipation went through her. What was this?
“So pretty,” he murmured as he placed the domed head against her clit.
“Oh, fuck…” she gasped, fighting all of her constraints in one frantic jerk. The wand was so intense and the sensation, straight over her clit, so raw.
“You’re feeling it all now,” he said. “Am I right?”
“It’s…so much…” And it was, she was going to come.
“Ah, ah, ah…no orgasm until I say so.”
She shut her eyes and thrust her hips as much as she could. There was no stopping her orgasm, the wand had claimed it. It was there, about to erupt.
Suddenly the sensation was gone.
She cried out at the loss. “Kane. Sir…” Oh, God, she’d just been about to…
He licked her bottom lip, tracing the outline. “It’s not time yet.”
“It is…” she wailed.
He didn’t reply, and before she could complain, the paddle connected with her sore ass.
“Ahh…” she cried, her clit throbbing and the pressure in her pussy screaming for release.
“Take it,” he said, his voice calm, an exact contrast to the yelling in her head.
“Please…” she begged, clenching her fists so tight her nails dug into her palms. “Please, Kane…Sir…”
“Oh good, the begging has started.” He hit her again, a deft shot that took in both her buttocks on the underside.
“Ahhh.”
The vibrations were suddenly back, her clit receiving heavenly stimulation.
“Oh, yes…” she said, pushing onto her toes. “That’s it…”
Gone.
“No…” she yelped. “Please.”
He hit her again.
Her pussy was so wet, the slickness was coating her folds.
She braced for more of the paddle. Took several hard thwacks and grunted each time the burn shot to her cunt.
The paddle suddenly landed on the floor with a clatter. Kane dropped to his knees in front of her, holding the wand.
“Please, Sir. I need to come…”
“I know.” He touched the buzzing tip to her clit.
“More.” It felt so good. She couldn’t bear it if he moved it this time.
“Pardon?”
“More, Sir.” She was floating, it was only the cross holding her down. Her mind spun, her body felt electrified. She was balancing on a precipice; she wa
nted to topple over, swirl into blissful climax and let it consume her. Never before had she felt so desperate to come, so focused on it. Now it was all that mattered. All she could think about.
He pressed the wand more firmly over her clit.
She tensed her internal muscles as the pressure built with a ferocity that was almost frightening. She was on a short, swift climb to one hell of an orgasm.
He moved the wand.
“No…” she wailed, battling the cross. “It’s too much. I need to…”
“So safe word.” He held her hips still. “If it’s too much.”
“Will that…get me…a climax?” She was breathless.
“No, it will get you unfastened and dressed.”
She groaned; that wasn’t what she needed.
“Sweet Imogen,” he said, kissing her mound. “Rest now and I’ll give you what you want.”
She opened her eyes. His shoulders were so wide and his biceps so thick and taut. The spotlight above highlighted the three stars on his torso and caught in his dark hair like sunshine would.
“Yes, oh yes, Sir…that, please…”
He leaned forward, tongue out, and licked over her clit.
Her knees shook; a rattle went up her spine and ended in her teeth. This was it, what she needed.
She stared unblinking as Kane pressed his mouth to her pussy for the first time. He looked beautiful, his concentration alone enough to nearly tip her over the edge.
He released her hips and with his right hand pushed three long fingers into her pussy.
She was trapped, held hostage by the cross. She took what he gave.
“I’m…please…” she said, some part of her mind remembering she needed permission to let pleasure overflow. “Can I…Sir…?”
“Come,” he said, his voice muffled because he was between her legs. “You may come now.”
Her mouth fell open, her body stiffened, preparing for the onslaught of a wild orgasm. She held her breath, clenched her stomach. It was there…his tongue was wickedly good. He was finger-fucking her…
“Oh…oh…” she managed. “Argh…it’s here…”
Her body seemed to explode and implode at the same time. Savage spasms racked her pussy and her clit pulsed against Kane’s tongue. The cross creaked as her limbs fought it. Being so spread open, so available was as erotic as it was scary as Kane rode through her orgasm with her.
She clenched her ass cheeks, the sting of the paddle making itself known and firing new darts of pleasure over her skin.
On and on the bliss continued to ravage her and so did he. She’d never come so hard or had every sense so stimulated. It was new, scary, it was a high she’d never thought she’d reach.
“Kane,” she sobbed.
“Baby.” He lifted his mouth from her, rested his cheek on her belly and stroked her stinging ass with his free hand. “You did so well.”
She was too out of breath to reply. He pussy was still clenching and releasing around his fingers.
“So perfect,” he murmured, kissing her navel. “My perfect one.”
She shut her eyes and let her head fall back—it suddenly seemed too heavy for her neck. A low gurgle of satisfaction rumbled up from her chest. She’d never felt so alive, her body so sated. He’d been right, everything else had faded away, it was only pain and pleasure and him. And being trapped as she’d climaxed, there’d been no escape from the ecstasy, it had been so concentrated.
He kissed his way up her body, only stopping when the cross got in his way. He kept his fingers lodged high, something for the aftershocks to tremble around.
Imogen remained out of breath for a minute or so. She shut her eyes and was happy to enjoy the aftermath and his touch. Every sense was heightened, her sex-smell strong, her flesh tingling.
“Breathe,” he whispered against her ear and finally pulling his fingers from her. “That’s it, calm now…”
She concentrated on slowing her breaths.
Fiddling at her wrists told her she was being unshackled. She experienced a moment of sadness at that. Her time on the cross was over.
But it had been so good, so new.
She felt dreamy, almost out of her body, yet never so in it. As Kane released her final limb, her right ankle, her spine sagged.
“Hey, hey…” he said, scooping her up as though she was a damsel in distress. “I’ve got you.”
“Mmm…” she mumbled, resting her head onto his bare chest and hooking her arms around his neck.
“You need to rest,” he said. “That was a hardcore first session.”
She agreed but didn’t have the energy to speak.
He carried her to the sofa, sat then draped the soft blanket over her naked body.
His flesh was so warm and comforting. The smell of his skin and his stubbled chin as he pressed butterfly kisses to her head was all so perfect.
She let the dozy state overtake her. The flesh on her buttocks hurt but not in a bad way, in a lovely warm way. Her pussy was swollen and wet, her clit still tender.
“You did so well,” he murmured. “My beautiful, Imogen. I always knew you would. You’re made for this, made for me…” He kissed her again, on the top of her head, then smoothed her hair.
Imogen nestled closer, she needed only him. He was her universe as she slipped between awake and asleep, conscious and not. He was her everything in that moment, an anchor, a savior.
“I’ve dreamed of this, having you in my arms, sated, sexy, sleepy,” he said.
His voice sounded as if he were speaking underwater. Muffled and distant. Imogen was happy to be lulled by it and sank deeper into her dazed state.
“I feel like the luckiest man alive.” He rubbed her shoulders over the blanket and held her tighter. “You’re the ultimate prize,” he whispered, “more than wealth, more than anything, I want you.” He paused. “And I’m never going to let you go.”
Chapter Fourteen
Imogen had remained in the sleepy, almost drugged state for the rest of the evening. Kane had taken her back to the hotel and, after assisting her with a quick shower, he’d laid her on her stomach and applied soothing cream to her sore buttocks.
She’d taken the collar off just before she’d fallen into slumber, needing to be absolutely naked at his side.
But it was morning now, and as she poured tea from the breakfast trolley that had just been delivered to the suite, she’d never felt more awake. It was as though she’d had an injection of energy. She was excited about the future and ready for adventure. She also had a wonderfully sweet ache in her chest whenever she looked at Kane.
“How is your derrière,my dear?” he asked with a cheeky, bad-boy grin that didn’t match how smart and important he looked in his Savile Row suit.
She rubbed her palm over the top of the toweling robe, caressing her right buttock. “Tender.”
He adjusted the knot of his tie and knocked it slightly off center. “Is tender a problem?”
“I guess that depends on how much sitting down I have to do today.”
“You can spend the day in bed, in the bath, lounging outside on the balcony in the sunshine or in the spa. You don’t have to do anything.”
“But I want to.” She walked up to him and reached for his tie, straightened it.
He stared at her with a burning intensity in his eyes. “What do you want to do?”
“See the sights?” She drifted her hands over his lapels and brushed at an imaginary piece of fluff. “I haven’t been here before, to New York. There’s so much to see, other than sex clubs, that is.”
“I can’t argue with that.” He reached for her hand and pressed his lips over her knuckles. “And once I’ve finished with these meetings I’m planning on rectifying that.”
“Oh?”
“Yes. We’re going to dinner with Taylor and Marie tonight in one of the most exclusive restaurants in the city.”
“Yes, of course, and how wonderful.” She’d forgotten about that.
&
nbsp; “I hope you’ll enjoy it, and afterwards I have a surprise for you.”
“That sounds exciting.”
“It will be.”
“Does it involve getting naked?” She cocked her eyebrows and smiled. “My ass going red again?”
He chuckled. “My oh my, you’re a nymphomaniac now. One bite of the apple and you want it all.”
Imogen shrugged with grin still in place. “I just wondered. Not sure if my ass could take it two nights in a row.”
“I have other plans for you and your sweet little ass tonight.” He glanced at his watch. “But…”
“And what would that be?”
“But right now I have to go.” He swept his lips over hers. “I’ll be back here at six and we’ll leave at seven.”
“Okay, but what—?”
“I’ll miss you.” He stepped across the room and picked up his phone. “In fact, I’m missing you already.”
She hugged her arms around herself and watched him head to the elevator. She was melting inside. Her heart was beating for him, every single thing he said, did, she fell more in love. There was no denying it now. She had to face up to the facts.
Kane Ward wasn’t the man she’d thought would light up her life—she never would have presumed to have a chance with him. But it seemed he’d chosen her to be his and she wasn’t going to complain. Not when she felt like this, so on top of the world. Not when love had been absent from her life for so long and now it had raced into her world like a runaway train.
Imogen ate then showered and before long found herself heading down Fifth Avenue toward the Public Library. It was somewhere she’d wanted to go for a long time. Libraries always made her feel both in awe and inspired. So many words, so many thoughts all in one place and all tangible and within reach. And this one, in New York, she’d seen it in movies and documentaries. The beautiful building was as much a draw as the books.
She wandered past the huge stone lions that guarded the entrance, up the wide stone steps and through the enormous pillars into the lobby. Instantly, the hustle and bustle of the street faded and cool air surrounded her. It had been hot outside, noisy too, but in here it was as though a cloak of calm had been thrown over her shoulders and the lighting became muted, less harsh for her eyes.
A small rectangular brochure sat on a long, polished reception desk. Behind it, two women, heads bowed as though concentrating on computer screens, sat quietly side by side.
