by Litte, Jane
He reached onto the bedside table where he’d left her second present, the one she didn’t know about. He lifted her hand from his chest, her arm limp, and laced his fingers through hers. Her fingers were pale, flawless and smooth, while his were roughened with years and lined by use, but they fit and held perfectly. He opened his mouth.
“Yes, I will marry you,” she whispered. His mouth shut with a click. She laughed.
“How did you know I would ask?”
“I knew,” she replied.
“You are mine. You have always been mine, promised to me.”
“I know.”
“Then how did you know I would ask?”
“You always like it better when it’s my idea.”
He smiled into the darkness that had snuck into the room as the fire burnt itself down.
“Will you marry me, Christoph?”
“Yes. Yes, I will.”
Sarabeth Scott is a published author who writes romance fiction that is sometimes silly, sometimes serious, but always sensual. She adores stories rich in emotional conflict and forbidden attraction. Sarabeth lives in the northeastern United States with far too many pets, a dangerous predilection for red wine and dark chocolate, and an ever-increasing collection of blank notebooks.
BRUISED EGO
CHRISTINE D’ABO
The house wasn’t what Lee had been expecting. He slipped the business card into his jacket pocket after confirming yet again that the numbers were the same. Jamming his helmet under his arm, he swung his leg over his BMW and cast a quick look around the neighborhood.
Rick had told him not to worry about a thing when he’d pressed the damp and crinkled card into his hand after the fight. But it was all the things his business partner hadn’t said that still pissed Lee off.
He didn’t need help, despite what Rick thought.
He certainly didn’t need to see a therapist.
Lee had used the boxing ring as his stress reliever of choice for years. The lumps and bruises he bore beneath his shirt and tie helped calm him, gave him the presence of mind to do what he needed to keep his company on top.
So what if things had spiraled out of control recently. Lee’s nightly rounds in the ring hurt no one but himself, and what he did in the privacy of his home afterward was his own business.
“Do this for me.” Rick had squeezed Lee’s shoulder. His thumb biting into the sore spot where Stu had landed a right cross. “I know Diana and I’m certain she can help you find what you’ve been looking for. It’s better than letting yourself get beat to a pulp out there.”
When Lee’s cock had twitched to life as a rush of pain slid down his arm, he knew he couldn’t handle this on his own any longer. It was wrong what he did alone in the dark after a fight with his fist on his cock and a hand pressing against his bruises.
He was wrong.
The card had disappeared quickly into Lee’s pocket without further comment.
Now the crisp fall air chilled the sweat at his temples and along the back of his neck. His breath rose in a swirling cloud, to trail behind him as he strode across the concrete walkway to a worn and pitted backdoor.
Lee hesitated with one glove off and his hand balled into a fist at his side. Shifting his weight, the pulled muscle in his shoulder sent a pleasant ache down his lower back. He waited for the endorphin rush to work its magic on his brain. The fog of lust was better than the blush of embarrassment he endured every time he bumped into a bruise or jammed a finger. The best defense, in Lee’s opinion, was denial.
Fuck it.
He cringed at the force with which he knocked on the door. This woman hadn’t done anything to him. Hell, she didn’t even know who he was if her unimpressed tone on the phone was anything to go by.
Before Lee had a chance to knock a second time he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Straightening, he waited for the snap of what sounded like several locks being unlatched, and then the door was pulled open.
Diana wasn’t quite what he’d expected.
Deep auburn hair crowned her head, pulled up into something that at one time must have resembled a bun. Several strands had escaped to hang loose around her pale face. A tight T-shirt pulled across her breasts, showing off hard nipples unencumbered by a bra.
Diana cocked an eyebrow at him as she braced her hand on her hip and gave him a good once-over.
“You’re late.” Her voice was deep for such a petite woman.
Lee shrugged. “I was held up.”
Dina snorted. “You’re also a terrible liar. Come in. Put your helmet on the table and your boots by the door.”
Lee’s gaze landed on the sway of her denim-encased hips as she walked through the small kitchen, tossing the tea towel she’d been holding into the sink before crossing into the living room.
His helmet and gloves took up most of her tabletop. He kicked off his boots and shrugged off his leather jacket, feeling nearly naked without its comforting weight. But wasn’t that what therapy was about?
“I was expecting an office. Or a home office at least,” he called out. The floor was cold on his socked feet after being trapped in the hot boots. “Would it be better if we do this someplace else?”
“Not unless you’re an exhibitionist.”
Her soft laugh brought a smile to his lips. Diana had taken a spot in the middle of her comfortable-looking couch. The cushions seemed to rise up and cup her shapely ass. She wasn’t the type of woman he’d normally be attracted to, but there was something about the way she held herself that he found appealing. Another twitch from his cock and Lee knew he’d have to be careful or else his therapy would take on a whole different angle.
“So, you’re Rick’s friend?”
“Business partner, actually. Thanks for agreeing to see me on such short notice.” Looking around the room, he realized all the other chairs were covered with books and clothing. “Do you mind if I sit next to you here?”
“No.”
“No problem. Any particular place—?”
“No, you don’t have my permission to sit.”
Lee snapped his head back around and stared at Diana. “What?”
Diana caught a piece of her hair and coiled it around her finger. “Did Rick explain who I am or what I do . . . specifically?”
“He said . . .” Lee frowned, suddenly wishing he hadn’t left the business card in his jacket. “He told me you could help. I just assumed you were some sort of therapist.”
“Not exactly.”
The muscles in her forearms danced beneath her skin as she continued to twirl her hair. Lee couldn’t help but wonder what those long fingers and strong hands would feel like pressing against the deep purple bruises on his chest and sides.
Grinding his teeth, he quickly counted down from ten in his head. “I think there has been some sort of mistake. I won’t take up any more of your time.”
He only got halfway to the kitchen when he heard her chuckle. “Well, you’re clearly not a submissive.”
That stopped him short. “What the fuck, lady?”
“I guess Rick is right to a certain degree. What I do could be considered therapy for some people, though I doubt you’ll get many psychologists advertising my skill set.”
Turning back, Lee took another step toward her. “You said submissive.”
It was her turn to shrug. “I’m a professional dom.”
Lee couldn’t help but blink, looking at the woman closer than he had before. The person he saw lazing on the cushions didn’t match the mental image of what he thought a dominatrix would be. No leather or chains. No tattoos or piercings—that he could see. Her well-worn jeans, soft cotton T-shirt, and fuzzy blue socks held the promise of comfort, not pain.
Diana’s lips curled up into a small smile. “I’m off duty.”
What the hell had Rick gotten him into? “So you hurt people and they pay you?”
“Yes.”
“Do you fuck them?”
The crude question d
idn’t seem to faze her. “I’m not a prostitute. What I do isn’t about sex. The people who come here are looking for my help. For some it’s to be tied up and hurt. For others it’s to have their control taken away so they don’t have to think. A sexual release isn’t always the goal.”
When she’d finished speaking, Lee found himself step closer once more. He stopped when he reached his original position, only a foot away from the couch.
Licking his suddenly dry lips, he forced himself to look into her eyes. “What is the goal?”
“I could tell you,” she said, tucking the strand of hair she’d been teasing behind her ear. “However, it will make more sense if I show you.”
Lee’s heartbeat pounded in the hollow of his throat as the blood rushed through his body. “How?”
Diana shifted forward until she leaned with her elbows on her knees. “Take off your shirt. Drop it to the floor.”
This was it. Diana had given him a choice and it was up to him to take the next step. There was nothing stopping him from walking out the door, getting back on his bike, and going out to a bar to pick a fight. Hell, he had some pretty choice bruising from last night. He could go home and get himself off at least twice before the exhaustion kicked in to drag him off to oblivion.
But if he stayed, there was a chance he could learn how to fix this need he had. There must be a way to make it better. Anything to get rid of this burning desire to hurt.
Lee’s gaze locked on Diana as he grabbed the hem of his T-shirt and pulled it off. He needed to know if she could see the twisted darkness bleeding through the bruises coloring his skin.
When she didn’t react for several long minutes, he began to feel uncomfortable. Exposed. It took effort not to fold his arms across his chest, to hide the evidence of last night’s fight. He knew exactly what he looked like. Lee had gotten up before the alarm this morning and stood in the harsh light of the bathroom, pressing one fist into the largest of the bruises and jerking off while he watched in the mirror.
Twisted, sick, wrong.
“Beautiful,” she said in a hushed voice.
Lee couldn’t find his voice. She got to her feet and walked over to him. Having her so close, he realized the top of her head barely reached his chin. Not that she needed height to scrape her nails across the black and purple mark on his shoulder.
She didn’t press, but her light caress sent a powerful shiver through his body. Diana continued her examination of him, mapping every blemish on the canvas of his skin with her gentle fingertips.
“Rick said you’re a boxer? You do that for fun?”
“Yes.”
“Do you win?”
“Sometimes.”
“Do you lose on purpose?”
“Never.”
“How about letting your opponent land a blow or two? Ever drop your guard a little?”
Lee shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “No.”
The word had barely left his lips when she pressed the heel of her hand against a sensitive patch over his kidney. Lee moaned. His cock jerked in response to the unexpected assault. Gasping, he twisted around and glared at her. Diana didn’t shrink away, instead lifting her eyebrow again.
“I said you were a terrible liar.”
“How can you tell?”
She pressed once more against the spot and rose onto her toes until her mouth brushed his ear. “That wasn’t a moan of pain.”
Long fingers raked his stomach, pulling at the light dusting of hair trailing below his waistband. Sucking in a deep breath, Lee held it and watched Diana pull his belt open, leaving the ends to dangle at his waist.
“I thought you said this wasn’t about sex?” Fuck, he sounded desperate even to his own ears.
“Not for me. Clearly it is for you. Before I can help you, I need to see exactly how far this goes, learn what it is you need, or think you need, from me.”
Before she was done with her little speech, Diana had finished working open his pants. Somehow he stopped himself from jerking back when she pressed the tips of her nails down and gently clawed the tip of his cock.
“It arouses you. But is it the pain that’s the turn on, or something else? I think we should find out.”
Lee closed his eyes and tried to calm the storm raging inside him. “If you do discover what it is, can you make it go away? Make me stop wanting this?”
Diana paused in her exploration of his half-clothed body. He felt the cool touch of her fingers on his chin and opened his eyes to look down at her.
“Why do you want to stop?”
Lee stepped away, stumbling over his feet in an attempt to put as much space between them as possible. He didn’t stop until the wall was at his back, and then he turned, leaning against the door frame. He pressed his forehead hard against the wood molding, willing the sudden panic to go away.
“Lee?”
He waved his hand, hoping Diana would understand. He needed space. Just for a minute. Why would she think he wanted this? It was sick and twisted, miles away from normal. He needed normal and routine and control if he was going to survive. Rick and everyone else at the company needed his head in the game if they were going to get through the next nine months and avoid the takeover threat.
“Lee, come here.” The steel in her voice made it clear that she expected him to follow the command unconditionally. Unlike before, he was under no compulsion to comply.
“You were right about one thing. I’m not a submissive.” He rolled his head, peeking out from under the arm he had braced high. “I give too many commands to follow someone else’s.”
Diana frowned before nodding. “How about following a friendly suggestion then? Come back over here and get down on your knees. I’ll just look and we can talk if that’s what you want.”
“I thought you said you weren’t a therapist?”
“I do a pretty solid impersonation.” She re-tucked her hair behind her ear and bit her bottom lip. “Please.”
He couldn’t help it. Between the bizarreness of the situation he found himself in and the uncertain pleading of the dominatrix, Lee started to laugh. The muscles in his stomach tightened and tears pooled in the corners of his eyes. “Christ, I’m losing it.”
The sound of a clock ticking somewhere in the room helped him focus and regain a hold on his fragile control. Only when he knew he wasn’t about to bolt, did he straighten and chose to return to his spot in the room. Like a moth to a flame. Without any further prompting from the tiny woman, he dropped to his knees and sat back on his heels.
“See, that wasn’t so bad. Now, I want you to tell me what it is you do at your company.” Diana set her hand lightly on his shoulder, the one with the worst bruise.
Lee found it suddenly difficult to breathe. It was an effort not to push up and into her hold. He wanted the bright sparks of pain worming through his tender muscles, and knew the pleasure her touch would bring.
“I’m the co-CEO. I look after our product innovation and engineering teams.” Invisible hands squeezed his chest as the rising tension threatened to overwhelm him.
“How long have you been doing this? Being in charge?”
“Ten years.”
“How long have you boxed?”
A slight pressure now as she pressed her thumb firmly against his skin. It wasn’t much, but it helped him focus. “Rick introduced me to it three years ago. I go four or five times a week when I’m able.”
“Tell me about it. What is it about boxing that you like?”
Lee curled his fingers into his palms, nails biting into the skin. He didn’t know if he was trying to hold himself back from speaking the truth, or if he was angry that this woman had so easily pulled these thoughts from him.
“At first it was only for the exercise. I got an adrenaline high every time I stepped out into the ring and I got hooked fast. It didn’t matter if I won or not. I got off on doing something physical rather than sitting behind my desk all day. I only needed to focus on the other g
uy and his weaknesses.”
“I bet you got laid a lot.” Diana moved her free hand, running her nails through his hair. “Bet you went out and fucked some fight groupie the first chance you had. Maybe even in the locker room or out in an alley. You had her screaming your name, came in her cunt, and walked away without another look. Didn’t you?”
Memories of moaning and sweating, teeth nipping at soft breasts and the slide of his cock into wet pussies . . . he was rock hard in an instant. “Yes.”
“When did it stop being enough, Lee?”
He groaned at the sound of his name coming from her in a husky whisper. It was the first time since the madness had begun that she’d said it. Needing to hear her say it again, he didn’t hold back the impulse and pushed himself up into her touch. Instead of the feeling of increased pressure, Lee gasped when Diana took a step away.
“I asked you a question. I didn’t give you permission to move and certainly didn’t tell you to get your rocks off.”
“Sorry,” he whispered.
The slap to the back of his head was hard enough to send his chin jerking toward his chest. Everything stopped in that moment—the thoughts swirling in his brain, the tension in his chest, his pounding heart.
Lee let everything go.
Another gentle brush of her fingers along the top of his shoulder. “Answer the question.”
“We’ve had some problems with the company. One of our major competitors is threatening us with a hostile takeover. It started about two years ago and we’ve been fighting them off ever since. The boxing was still there, but the sex . . . changed.”
“How?”
A rush of embarrassment heated his face. His hands trembled. “I can’t.”
“I asked you how.”
Lee shook his head. “I can’t.”
“I’m not the one who thinks he has a problem.” Diana sighed. “You can’t expect me to help you when you’re not willing to help yourself.”
“It’s just . . . wrong. I’m fucked up and broken and you can’t understand what I’m going through. I should just get the hell out of here and forget everything.”
