Striking a Balance (Thalia Book 2) (The Thalia Series)

by Jennifer Bene

  Chapter Three

  Three Months After the Auction

  Thalia stretched in the kitchen thinking about James’ hands on her the night before. He’d been working long hours all week and it was finally the weekend. Which meant there was plenty of time for play – as the warm welts along her back and ass attested to. She smiled to herself remembering how he had wound her up with the flogger, waiting until she was begging for his attention before he touched her. And then, like always, she had come under his touch.

  Over and over and over.

  James was good to her. Really good to her. It had taken some convincing but he had even caved in to having a coffee maker in the house. It had required more convincing to get the one she wanted since it was the type that sounded like a small jet plane every morning as it ground fresh beans to make a pot. She laughed to herself as it turned on, the smell of fresh coffee beans filling the kitchen to her delight. The miserable whirring that accompanied it would surely wake him up, so she had to hurry if she wanted to drink a cup. As soon as she could pour herself some coffee, she did, grabbing the creamer from the fridge. James catering to her mild addiction to coffee was just one of the many things he’d done to make her happy in their first few months together.

  She’d gone for a life raft and ended up safe on a ship. Looking around at his beautiful flat, it was more like she’d ended up on a luxury yacht.

  She heard James mumbling about the coffee pot as he walked into the kitchen and she sat her mug down on the counter and slid into a kneel. Much more gracefully than she’d been able to manage a few months before. His hand moved into her hair and his nails traced over her scalp as he stepped past her to the pantry.

  “Finish making your coffee, pet, but would you make me tea as well?” His voice was always lower in the morning, but regardless his English accent always made her a little giddy inside.

  “Yes, Master.” She said as she stood again. He brought bread to the counter and sliced off toast for them both while she put water on for tea. She lifted her coffee, but he was suddenly behind her. His hips pressed her forward against the counter and his hand pushed her mug back to the counter. “Let me say good morning before you drink that.”

  “Yes, Master.” She smiled as his lips moved over her neck, and then he touched her chin and leaned her back so he could kiss her. Heat washed over her as his fingers wound in her hair to hold her head back, and he groaned a little against her mouth. Then his fingers tweaked a nipple and he nipped her bottom lip to end the kiss.

  “Good morning.” He smiled as he stepped back from her.

  “Good morning, Master. May I have my coffee now?” She felt her lips curve into a smile. Every morning he was home with her they played this game. Him wanting to touch her before she had coffee. Sometimes teasing her until she gave up the coffee completely just to go back to bed with him.

  He gave a slightly sour expression as he put the toast in the oven. “If you must.” Then that wicked smile crossed his face, “I’ll just have to wash your mouth out when you’re done.”

  She held the mug between her hands and took a long, slow drink, moaning softly at how good it tasted just to draw his attention. “Totally worth it, Master.” Thalia knew she was teasing him, and he liked her smart mouth up to a point. It always depended on his mood when he’d cut it off, and how he would.

  She bit her cheek against the urge to smile over her coffee cup, and James arched an eyebrow at her. “I think you want me to wash your mouth out.” His voice was playful, and heat blossomed between her thighs in anticipation.

  “I’m sure you’ll think of something better than coffee for me to have in my mouth, Master.” She took another drink to hide her grin, her stomach fluttering with her brazen comment as he took the toast out of the oven. She sat her mug down when the kettle finished heating and she began steeping a small pot of tea for him. She was about to reach for her mug again when she heard him make a tsk’ing sound.

  “On your knees, Thalia.” His voice had the edge of command in it. The one that always made her want to be able to spy on him at work, to see how others reacted to that tone in his voice. For her, it always made her pulse pick up, and her pussy wet. It made her feel a delicious, nervous energy at the unknown of what he’d do next. And as she slid to her knees again she was wholly aware of just how wet he made her.

  She was about to turn her face towards him when he placed one of his silken ties over her eyes and tied it firmly at the back of her head. Slips of light snuck around the edges, but his deft fingers adjusted it until she couldn’t see enough to make anything out.

  “I thought last night would have you somewhat tamer this morning, pet.” His voice floated behind her and slightly to the right. It was always dizzying to lose her sight, it left her a little unsure of where she was in the room. His touch surprised her and her body arched forward as his warm fingertips traced over the faint welts she knew were scattered down her backside. It sent a shiver through her. His voice was sharper when he continued. “And yet, you wake me up with that damn coffee pot and then tease me?”

  He spanked her hard across the welts and she yelped. It had surprised her more than it hurt, but the heat that suffused her skin made her even wetter. She bit her lip and then said, “I’m sorry, Master.”

  “Oh, pet...” his hand was in her hair and he tightened it until she moaned. “Your mouth often gets you into trouble, but right now it will be what gets you out of it as well.” He bent her head back a little. “Hands behind your back. Release them and you won’t be happy with the consequences. Understand?”

  She nodded, clasping her hands behind her back. It pulled her shoulders back and lifted her breasts, which he didn’t ignore. His palm cupped her breast and squeezed firmly, ending by pinching each nipple until she knew they stood erect in the cool air of the kitchen. “Open your mouth, pet.” The head of his cock touched her lips and she slid her mouth around him, reveling in the way his breath caught and he let out a soft groan as she slid him deeper. His fist tightened in her hair and she moaned but he didn’t direct her. He did it as a recognition that he liked what she was doing. He had learned quickly how much she liked having him pull her hair. The harder the better. She slid back and then let him deeper into her mouth, swallowing as he hit the back so he could dip into her throat. His groan above her filled her with a warm flush of satisfaction, and she grew even wetter.

  Thalia had always enjoyed a blow job. Where else in the bedroom did she have so much control over someone so much stronger than her? Each flick of her tongue, each movement drew out such a powerful response. The feel of his velvety hard cock in her mouth, the way his body tensed and relaxed in waves only to lock up until the tension would snap, and his release would spill into her mouth and throat for her to swallow. An instant acknowledgment of her skill and his satisfaction.

  His hips thrust against her suddenly and she heard him groan her name on an exhale, his hand twisting in her hair. She dug her nails into her hands to fight the urge to touch him, so she could push him over the edge with her hands. Instead she sucked him a little harder and let him push himself into her throat, holding her breath as he thrust again. Each swallowing constriction of her throat pushing him closer. She moaned as he slid back and cursed above her as he came in hard pulses in her mouth, his fist tightening in her hair to hold her still. Each swallow came with a soft moan from her and he let out small groans until his hand relaxed in her hair. She trailed her tongue along him as he slid from her mouth. She licked her bottom lip and knew her lips were swollen and wet. He was silent except for his breathing, and then he chuckled and pulled her up gently.

  “Now I remember why I let you get the damn coffee pot.” His thumb swiped her chin free of saliva and she could tell by his voice that he was smiling.

  “Yes, Master.” She smiled a little and he made her gasp as he picked her up suddenly. Her head spun in the void of the blindfold and then the cool top of the island in the kitchen was against her shoulders an
d arms. Her hands were still behind her, and it lifted the small of her back off the counter. He didn’t tell her she could release them, and she wasn’t going to ask for something so small.

  “Spread your knees, pet.” His voice came from between her legs and she almost moaned in anticipation as she obeyed.

  His hands trailed down her thighs, pushing them farther apart. He started placing gentle, nipping kisses on the inside of her thigh, trailing closer and closer to her core.

  Then his touch disappeared.

  She floated in the darkness of the blindfold and bit her lip against the urge to complain. She couldn’t hear him moving around the kitchen and the idea that he was just standing there staring at her exposed pussy still inspired a blush to rush up her chest no matter how often he’d done it.

  Minutes passed and she let out a little whine, her hips lifting slightly as she adjusted her arms underneath her. She was wet, she could feel the air cool between her thighs, and her anxiety was making her skin tingle in anticipation of his touch.

  Her mind was totally focused on when and where he’d finally touch her again.

  When it eventually came, his touch was feather light, starting at her belly button and trailing down between her legs, brushing over her pussy. It may as well have been a bucket of water over her as loud as she gasped. Her hips lifted to his touch but he didn’t increase the pressure. After his third trailing touch like that she arched off the island and groaned, “Master, please! I’m sorry!”

  “Sorry about?” His voice held a little laughter in it and she wanted to scream in frustration.

  “I’m sorry about waking you up with the coffee maker, and teasing you when I drank it! Please, Master!” She begged, her hips lifting again as his hand rested over her pussy, pressing gently against her.

  “Please what, pet?” Now she knew he was smiling, she could hear it in his voice. His rhythmic pressure on her clit was making her pant softly.

  “Please make me come, Master.” He laughed quietly and thrust two fingers inside her, immediately curving them around her pubic bone to press against the bundle of nerves inside her. She arched off the counter and he pressed her hips back down with his other hand. She moaned and squirmed under his hands as the absence of sight and spending so long waiting for his touch made her incredibly sensitive. His warm mouth surrounded her clit, his tongue flicking until she was crying out. He held her down against the island with more force as she edged closer and closer. She gasped in a breath and bit down on her lip, trying to focus enough to ask for permission. He relented on her clit for a moment so she could think enough to shout, “May I please come, Master?!”

  He left little nipping kisses down her thigh, dragging out her ecstasy until she whimpered and he spoke. “Come for me, pet.” His mouth found her clit again and he thrust his fingers inside her and she came hard, arching up against the pressure of his hand on her hip. Her pussy clenched against his thrusting fingers as he dragged out her orgasm until she was quaking. His fingers slid from her only to be replaced by his mouth as he lapped at her, his own quiet moan between her thighs making her squirm.

  “Thank you, Master...” She breathed, as she tried to slow her heart rate down. His hand grabbed her behind her neck and pulled her up towards him where he kissed her hard. She tasted herself on him, moaning as she dug her nails into her palms to keep her hands behind her back and not thrust them into his hair to hold him to her. With a tug he pulled the tie off and she blinked against the light to find James smiling broadly at her.

  “You make my day, pet.” He kissed her again, biting gently at her lower lip as his hands cupped her face.

  She couldn’t help but smile back at him, “Ditto, Master. May I release my hands?”

  “Yes, pet.” She unclasped them and immediately pushed them into his hair, pulling him back to her mouth. Her hips moved to the edge of the island and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He let her kiss him for a moment until her hips began to grind against him.

  He was grinning when he grabbed her shoulders and shoved her back down to the island hard. She moaned as he pressed her down, her hips lifting against him above her. His hips dropped against her as he took a breath. “Stop, pet. We’re having breakfast, and then I need to work a little. We can play more later.”

  She pouted a bit, but she relaxed against the island with a sigh. James pulled her back up and tilted her head back by her hair. He arched his eyebrow at her and his fist tightened in her hair sharply as he waited for her response. “Yes, Master” she said and then he kissed her hard, and when he pulled back they were both smiling again.

  “Drink your coffee.” His voice had a satisfied growl to it that made her stomach flutter. She dumped out her cold coffee and remade her own cup, and made him a fresh pot. As she finished making his tea, he made toast for them both and set two plates on the kitchen island. They each took their breakfasts into his office and he settled in at his desk while she knelt on the pillow on the floor next to him. The level of comfort they’d developed with their morning routines was something she would have never imagined in her life. She wouldn’t have wanted it with any of her exes, and with Marcus? She fought back the urge to physically shudder – it wouldn’t have been possible to be like this with him. Playful and smiling and laughing? Never.

  Thalia grabbed the book she’d been reading and leaned her head against his thigh as his laptop whirred to life above her. His hand casually moved through her hair as she let herself get wrapped up in the story between bites of toast and sips of coffee. James spent over an hour typing above her and making various phone calls, one of them in French.

  She just stared up at him as he spoke in another language, him smiling down at her when he noticed her staring before continuing. She remembered how she’d been surprised that the guard’s brother, Anthony, had called him Dr. Hawkins. One of the first questions she’d asked had been about it. He had laughed and said that he wasn’t a medical doctor, he just had a Ph. D. in business economics. He was an executive at a company based in London, but he traveled often. When he’d first taken her from Marcus she had thought her life would be trapped in a house forever, but it wasn’t true at all. He always took her with him. She’d already seen Paris, Dubai, Morocco, and Barcelona. He would dress her in beautiful clothes for the trip, and then hungrily strip her whenever they got to their hotel.

  That was usually her favorite part of the trip.

  He also liked to take her out to eat, to go shopping, and to the movies. While their earliest outings had been fraught with her own confusion on how to act, she was getting a little better. As long as he was with her.

  A heavy sigh came out of his mouth as James glared at the laptop in front of him, his jaw clenched tight above her. He was clearly irritated for a minute and then it faded and he just looked exhausted. He’d been playing with her hair the entire time he was reading the screen, and his fingers worked deeper into her tresses. Then he tightened his grip and tilted her head up to look at him, his green eyes scanning her face. Whatever he found must have made his decision for him, because he spoke. “I have something to share with you, Thalia.”

  “Yes, Master?” She knew when he used her name it was serious and she felt a little nauseous.

  “I want you to know I won’t be angry with you no matter how you respond.” He unplugged the power cord from the thin laptop and handed it down to her. “Read the email.”

  She could feel her brow furrow as she took the warm laptop and rested it on her knees. The email on the screen was scrolled back to the top:

  From: Marcus Williams

  To: James Hawkins

  James -

  I already told you, there are no more girls. I haven’t taken another one since Thalia, and none of the clients wanted Anthony’s feed activated again. I understand you never saw his methods, but if you had you probably wouldn’t judge me as harshly as you have. He’s furious with me right now for not training another girl, and I don’t care.

  I’
m telling you, I don’t care, about him or any of it.

  I spent years perfecting my methods and I was proud of what I could do with a girl. Proud that it took me less than a month to make her a pliant little slave. Now? I don’t care if the business falls apart. It IS falling apart. That’s what you wanted, right? Now you have it. Just give me Thalia back, or sell her back to me. I’ll pay you twice what you paid for her, and I’ll never take another girl. Three months with her and a nice profit – a smart businessman like yourself wouldn’t pass that up.

  I promise you it will be different when she’s back with me. I’ll never let Anthony near her, I’ll buy a new place wherever she wants to live. We’ll have rules, and a safe word. All of that. I swear it.

  You made a lot of good points in the conversation last year about my methods in acquiring and training the girls. I wasn’t ready to hear it, but I’ve thought about it. About why she would have chosen you over me... after everything I showed her.

  It doesn’t matter now. I’ll treat her well. I will. And I know you thought we should have been up front with the fact that the girls didn’t come to us to enter the lifestyle voluntarily. Maybe we should have. But if I hadn’t taken Thalia, neither of us would have found her. You wouldn’t have her now.