Threshold

by Treva Harte

  She didn't need to suppress anything now. Whether her current life was real or fantasy, she wouldn't hurt anyone by pursuing him. Of course she hadn't had to chase him—he had come to her.

  “I do like to deal with someone face to face. Especially for this.” Harry had his hands in his pockets, looking as if he was prepared to negotiate for as long as it took to nail the agreement down.

  “Very well.” Lilli hesitated. Whatever she'd expected once she sent that telegram, this wasn't it. He didn't seem ready to rush into her arms—or into bed. “What do you want then? To shake hands on the deal?”

  He had big hands. Strong, large hands. Of course what people said about big hands probably wasn't true, but if every part of his body was as big—Lilli's mouth went dry.

  She wasn't married. Even if this wasn't a dream and she was married, it was to someone who was about to divorce her. Or said she was dead.

  Her employer laughed.

  “So we have a deal. In that case, why don't we be less formal than a handshake, Mrs. Dayton?” he suggested. He bent, as if to kiss her hand. Instead he turned his face and nuzzled his lips against her wrist.

  She felt the prickle of his mustache. Then the wet sweep of his tongue against the pulse in her wrist. Lilli shut her eyes, breathless for a moment. All she was aware of now was him—and her own responses.

  “Do you always conduct business this way, Harry?” Her voice was huskier than she wanted it to be.

  “No. But this isn't business. This is exquisite…pleasure.” He straightened, his breath fanning her hair when he spoke against her ear. “A pleasure I have been dreaming of since we first met, Lilli.”

  Oh, God. Yes. She had dreamed of this, too. One male hand spanned her waist, then began to creep upward, stopping to trace the lace in her bodice. For just a moment Lilli felt excited, frightened, almost virginal. He was powerful. He was experienced. This man could take her. Anywhere. Any way.

  No. She was going to change things. Do things. She wasn't a young girl, unaware of the possibilities.

  She could take him.

  She opened her eyes again, moved her head forward to lick the pulse at his throat. His breath caught for a moment, just the way hers had for him. Lilli stopped herself from completing the gesture.

  “I. Don't. Think. So.”

  Lilli couldn't believe the words came from her, sounding cool and calm and controlled. She was lava about to erupt. She wanted to get her hands on that starched collar and rip it open. She wanted to let her fingers run down his chest and then move to his stomach and groin and cock…

  She just wanted.

  “Why not?” He looked stunned for a half second. Lilli knew it took a lot to stun this man. It took even more to have him show it.

  “You aren't in charge here. I am.” Lilli touched her hair, made sure it wasn't tumbled down. No, everything was in order. “That's why you leered at me during the entire interview last week, wasn't it?”

  “I didn't leer!” Harry straightened up, affronted.

  “You peered then. You kept looking as if you were imagining me without my clothes.”

  “I'll grant you that. I didn't see you blushing or saying you wouldn't take the job. Or my other offer.”

  “I didn't see you upset over my reactions, either. After all, I am an almost-forty-year-old woman.” Lilli forced the last few words out but Harry's face didn't change with her confession. She continued again, with more confidence, “A woman who is older than you by a bit, one who is in charge of your daughter's reputation and gave you impeccable references as to her character and morals.”

  “I'm thirty-five. Old enough to know how to get exactly what I look for. I wouldn't have interviewed you unless you had those references. Each one agreed exactly with what you had told me.”

  Lilli ignored the interruption. “But when I didn't faint at your lee—I mean, peering—you became even more interested. Don't deny it. You aren't looking for some innocent you have to woo and persuade. Or someone less innocent who would cheat or blackmail you.”

  “I wouldn't settle for either.”

  “Precisely. What I am appeals to you. I may not be your social equal now, since I haven't your money, but I'm not someone inconsequential. My late husband used to have influence in the same way you do now. I understand all your…expectations. However, I'm also not a woman who is part of your set and whom you'd be forced to marry if you ruin. In short, I fit your requirements exactly.”

  He nodded, looking faintly amused again. Amused, but interested. “A nice summation. I can afford the best and you're what I want, Mrs. Dayton. The very best.”

  Don't worry. You haven't asked, but I'll get what I want too, Mr. Nelson. A relationship based on what I say for a change. A powerful man who will have to listen to me. That ought to be enough. I'll make that enough.

  She looked at his broad shoulders and strong thighs. A very powerful man. She'd like that, too.

  “Then we're agreed. I'll give you excellent value for your money, Mr. Nelson.” Lilli licked her lips, slowly, watching his eyes follow her tongue. “I can take care of everything you desire. You simply have to do what I say.”

  “I do what you say?”

  “You do exactly what I say. When I say. If I tell you to kiss me, you do. If I tell you to stop, you stop. No arguments. When I say strip, strip. When I say suck my nipples or my clit, you will.” Lilli threw her shoulders back, knowing Harry watched her breasts when she moved. “That's my deal. Take it or leave it. Take me or leave me.”

  Had she gone too far? He was hard and he wasn't concealing his erection this time. But his eyes narrowed as he considered her words.

  Mason always liked to be in charge. Always. Damn that thought. Damn Harry, too, if he was the same way. If he rejected her, he was a fool. She could make them both very happy. She was sure she could. But what if he said—

  “All right.” His smile was almost feral. “So long as that part of the deal is subject to renegotiation later.”

  “Perhaps. Let's see how well you perform your duties before we consider anything else.” She felt dizzy. Dizzy and ready to claw at his clothes, to get at that cock. Her cock.

  He bowed his head. If he was mocking her, he hid the mockery well. Right then he looked obedient and ready. She looked at the bulge in his pants. Very ready.

  “Very well, ma'am. What do you wish me to do?”

  Which was why she found herself dressed in just her underclothes, putting the finishing touches on the neat bow that tied Harry's wrists. Her work didn't interfere with him sucking hard on her clit as she straddled him. Hmmm. Her Edwardian underclothing, with the split drawers, had some advantages. Lilli fastened her teeth hard into her underlip to keep from moaning while he pulled gently on her. He was damned clever with his mouth…as if he'd had a great deal of practice making women lose control that way.

  Instead of losing control, Lilli delicately stroked her labia against that mustache. Each tickling movement increased the delightful sensations he was giving her.

  Damn, that felt good! Had she ever been on top quite this way with—

  No. Never. Not that she was going to think about him ever again.

  “Enjoying yourself, ma'am?” Harry whispered the words against her wet, aroused flesh. The vibrations felt good, too. Almost too good.

  Lilli edged herself away, sliding down his body, wanting the pulsing sexual tingle but not the ultimate sensation. Not yet. She rocked back on her heels to look at and savor that hard male body under hers.

  “So far, Harry.” She felt his cock surging hard against the crack between her buttocks. He was enjoying himself, too. Lilli clenched her butt cheeks, just for the pleasure of feeling that hardness twitch against her tightened ass. “So long as you do what I say.”

  Delicious. His cock was already showing how strongly he wanted what they were going to do. The hard shaft jumped yet again, just from her look. His lungs were already sucking air, as if he were running. She looked down at his face. His
gray eyes stared into hers. They sparked the low heat boiling in her into something more intense.

  “We're not having intercourse this time,” Lilli warned. “We're doing things according to my rules, my way.” After all, she didn't have anything to protect herself from someone who hired mistresses on a whim. AIDS might not exist yet, but that left syphilis and gonorrhea and God knows what else. Damn it, where did a nice woman find contraception in this era?

  Besides, she needed to keep her distance this way because she needed additional protection. Protection from this stranger who might just be able to seduce her completely. What would she do if she fell in love with Harry? With someone who might be only an imaginary lover? With someone who seemed only too real?

  His eyes narrowed and he half-smiled.

  “Understood.”

  Abruptly he turned his head away, as if he didn't want her to see him exposed this way. She stared at the suddenly vulnerable neck. He was powerful, but she could be as well. She would show him how strong she could be. Her rules. Her way.

  Her turn.

  Lilli swallowed. “I'm going to lick you now. Everywhere. And we're both going to like it. You can beg if you want.”

  He hadn't expected the wait to be so long, to be so uncertain of the answer. To be unsure of what answer he'd wanted. While he'd waited for her to decide what she'd do, all during that interminable week, he'd reminded himself she wasn't suitable to be his mistress. He liked women of a different social class. He liked younger, compliant women. After all, he was a man who knew how to get the better of any deal. He mastered others for his own desires. Lilli shouldn't be right for him. She was older than any of his previous women, even if she was still beautiful. She was better educated than any of them—hell, better educated than he was—and she knew it. He puzzled over why he wanted her so badly even while he fantasized over her.

  You can beg if you want.

  He never dreamed he lusted after her because his body knew she could dominate him for her own pleasure.

  And for his. Damn it. For his. God, she could make him forget the vows he made to himself after he married. He had to be careful. He'd escaped that trap and didn't need another. That thought should have cooled him down, but just then Lilli's teeth fastened onto one nipple and delicately rested on his skin, not quite closing down. His nipples hardened, and he knew he was close to begging her to—

  She bit. Hard.

  He cursed at the pain.

  His cock jerked against her ass, begging for more.

  She laughed and he wanted to curse again. He wanted to weep. He just wasn't sure if the tears would be from frustration or joy. Whatever the hell she did, he wanted her to do more. Harder, sharper, fiercer. Just more.

  She cocked her head at him, inquiringly, as if she heard his thoughts. She ran her finger down his chest, toying with muscles that knotted at her touch. Her hand slid between the two of them to tease at his balls, squeezing, scratching, stroking. His wrists hurt from straining against his bonds. But even that slight pain felt good.

  He knew he was doing exactly what she wanted, even while he fought to contain himself. She wanted him to fight her before he gave in. Damn it, his body was turning into her plaything. Even while he panted his refusal to groan out loud, part of him wanted his body to be her toy—to be stroked and teased and incited into submission. Eventually she would make him moan and, finally, beg. They both knew he would. But would she tease him into coming—or would she let him stay in unsatisfied longing forever? He almost didn't care. Whatever she wanted, however she wanted him, she was already more exciting than any woman he'd had in years. In forever.

  Harry shut his eyes. Ha. As if that gesture could hide how much he wanted her to keep going. As if he couldn't see her even with his eyes shut, her hair beginning to tumble to her shoulders, eyes gleaming and her fingers poised to tickle or prod, to incite and tease. As if his cock wasn't full and stretched, demanding more. He moaned as she gave his sac almost too hard a tug. Almost.

  “What do you want, Harry? If you ask me nicely, I may give it to you.” Her voice purred against his ear.

  “Masturbate me.”

  “Wrong answer, Harry. I said to ask. Just for that, you must pay penance.” The voice disappeared from his ear and then her pussy slipped against his lips again.

  Penance? She had no idea how good she tasted. With every slurping sound he made, his cock surged and pulsed. When she ground her clit against his tongue, he laughed, letting the vibrations excite her. She was wet. Dripping for him.

  If this was punishment, let him be punished often.

  “Anything. Anything you want will be fine, Mrs. Dayton,” he whispered, paying special attention to that swollen clitoris, worshiping it with his tongue.

  “Right answer, Harry. Very right.” Her body shifted, even as he continued to use his mouth on her.

  When her mouth covered his cock, he gratefully moaned against her flesh. She knew exactly what he craved—long, deep swallows that sucked his aching penis down, short, shallow sips that stroked devilishly against his sensitive cock head. He shuddered, fighting his climax.

  No. He wasn't going to make this so easy. Not for her. Not for him. He fought to concentrate on servicing her instead. But the two sensations, tasting her, her tasting him, were too much, too good…

  He groaned at last, loudly. She broke free and laughed.

  “Go on, damn it!” he gasped.

  “Ask nicely, Harry.”

  “Please, then. Please.”

  After that, the battle to see who came first wasn't silent. She moaned against him, kneading his balls tighter and faster. The ropes strained against his legs and arms as he thrust up harder with his cock, then his tongue. The bed creaked wildly as their rhythm sped up.

  “You can come now, Harry!” Her voice was high, wild. She shuddered against him.

  Damn it, he had to obey her orders in this as in everything. He couldn't hold back anymore. He didn't want to hold back. The surge of heat sped up from his hard, drawn up balls, through his cock and then the rest of his convulsing body. It was as if everything in him—blood, soul, heart—spilled out with the rush of sperm. She squeezed him, milked him ruthlessly and he moaned in defeat and ecstasy.

  Then he realized he wasn't alone in his defeat. Dimly, he heard her own broken cry as she came.

  Harry's face was lax with pleasure as she untied him, gently rubbing where his struggles had left marks. Lilli smiled. He hadn't been a docile prisoner. Neither of them had wanted him to be.

  He didn't move, even after he was untied. He looked as if he might have fallen off to sleep. Lilli sniffed. Men! They never changed.

  She turned to her washbasin, poured a pitcher of the cool water and wrung out a washcloth. She wiped herself carefully, enjoying the feel of the cloth against her still sensitive cunt. When she was done, she turned to him.

  His eyes opened as she gently washed away the sperm streaking his belly and thighs.

  “You are amazing.” He no longer sounded sleepy. He didn't sound happy, either.

  “Of course.”

  “Can you continue to do this?”

  “Far more easily than you, sir.” She gestured to his flaccid cock. At her words, it began to stir. Lilli paused, briefly distracted.

  “No doubt you're right, Mrs. Dayton. But I didn't mean that.”

  “What do you mean, then? I need our terms spelled out clearly, Harry.”

  “I—” He paused, then sat up, no longer drowsy and sated. “This isn't easy to explain.”

  “I doubt that. You have been quite clear about what you expect so far.”

  “Very well. Meet me downstairs. I don't want anyone to wonder why we've been gone so long.”

  Lilli looked at the cock that was already half-erect and fought a sudden urge to lick it again. She struggled to keep her voice cool as ever. “Are you sure you want that?”

  Harry didn't mean them to be public lovers. Only part of her was glad of his discretion.

>   He leaned over, kissed her deeply. Tongue to tongue. He held her taste in his mouth and she knew he was finding that as erotic as she did. Lilli caught herself digging her nails into his shoulders.

  He pulled back and smiled.

  “I want you.”

  “Well, then—” To hell with discretion.

  “Downstairs. In fifteen minutes.”

  “Stupid!”

  Anabelle's voice was cross. Lilli paused at the entrance to the hall. Did she really want to have yet another scene with little Miss Adolescent? Maybe she was lucky no one else in the early 1900s knew about teenage rebellion.

  Lilli sighed. She wanted to go find Harry. She was still hot and flustered and randy. She didn't want to deal with sulks and bad manners. She ought to quietly sneak away and let Anabelle take her bad humor out on someone else.

  She heard a half-stifled sob. Maybe Anabelle wasn't just angry.

  Inwardly cursing, she walked further into the hallway and said, “What's wrong?”

  “My hair. It's stupid. I look wrong. Dowdy.”

  Lilli stared. Anabelle was dressed in her crisp tennis outfit and would have looked quite ready for the courts except for her pout. But her comb was in her hand though her hair was already pulled back with a neat bow to hold it.

  “You look perfectly appropriate for—oh.” For seeing David Bradshawe.

  “I don't want to look appropriate.” Anabelle sniffed. “My hair needs to go up. More like yours.” She paused and then the confession dragged itself out. “I wish I had your hair.”

  “Silly.” Lilli untied the bow and carefully combed Anabelle's dark hair out. She probably ought to tell Anabelle to keep her mind on tennis rather than her hair. Or that she didn't approve of trying to dazzle David Bradshawe. Instead she said, “Your hair is beautiful. There was a time when I longed for rich brown hair like yours. “

  “Really? Why?”

  “I have no idea. I suppose it's because when you're unsure of yourself, you think changing how you look will make everything better.”