by Anthology
“That’s five, when we get home.” Blake whispered in her ear as he embraced her. He knew she was aware of what he meant. Five strikes of the cane.
“What did I do?” Susan pushed him back a little and stared into Blake’s eyes, a note of panic edging her expression. “I didn’t do anything. There were no spilling drinks and I’m not attracted to him. I was just talking to Mr. Perkins. His firm has a position for a Paralegal and he thought he might be able to interest me in the job. I said no of course, but that was it. I didn’t do anything, really.”
She seemed frantic as she spoke, the words spilling from her in a rush. What an interesting response he’d just invoked. A response he needed to get to the bottom of.
“I would never punish you for talking to anyone, Sugar. But I do for lying to me and for not trusting me.”
Susan bit her bottom lip nervously. “I am telling you the truth. I’m not interested in him.”
Blake decided to put her out of her misery and clear up the confusion she was experiencing. The last thing the party needed was a frantic Susan Dean on the rampage, spilling drinks, tripping over. God, what was wrong. What had he said to make her revert to a panic stricken nervous wreck?
“I would have helped you sort out the calls from your ex-husband.” He stated emphatically. Hoping the statement cleared up any confusion in her mind. It didn’t, however, clear up the concerns running through his.
“Oh, that.” Susan gave him a sheepish look. “I took care of it myself. Well, along with the assistance of my big-mouthed brother.”
Susan glanced around the room as if looking for John, presumably so she could give him a death stare.
“You should have come to me. I’m your Dom, I help you sort out problems. You should know that.” Blake reminded her in a gentle tone. If Susan was on edge for any reason he didn’t want to upset her.
“I did know that but I chose to do it myself.” Susan looked at him with a steely determination. “I’m also choosing to decline on the punishment. As arousing as I find being disciplined I also enjoy making my own choices. Maybe that makes me not submissive enough for you. I assume you’ll find someone else now that I’ve said no. After all, apparently it is a word that subs should never say. Well, for some Doms that is.” A wave of sadness swept over her face. “I also think I’ll go home now. Enjoy the rest of your night.”
What the fuck?
Blake tried to grab her arm to stop her from leaving but she disappeared into the crowd, making her way to the exit. As he entered the foyer of the Sydney Town Hall, where the ball was being held, Blake noticed he wasn’t the only man looking for Susan tonight. She was not far from the exit firmly in the grip of a man who had no right to be touching her.
“Let me go, Grant. I have no interest in talking to you, getting back together with you or hearing about how the only woman you’ve ever loved left you for another man.” Susan snapped the words at her ex-husband as Blake approached. “All I can say is karma’s a bitch isn’t it. Now…Let. Me. Go.”
The look on her ex’s face set off alarm bells for Blake and he quickened his step. The twisted, contorted expression of anger her ex displayed was about to be unleashed on Susan and, whether she like it or not, Blake was about to intervene.
“You’re the bitch, Susan. Stop denying that you still love me and come home where you belong.” Grant’s words were snapped out with equal force as he tightened his grip on her. “I know you’ve been behaving like a whore down here, because I’ve seen you with him. How many others have there been since you moved back to the city? I won’t have my wife sleeping her way around Sydney like a tramp. Look at how you’re dressed tonight. You look like a fucking slut.”
Blake heard the words and wanted to knock the guys lights out then and there. Initially, however, just like his lovely mother had taught him as a child, he’d use his words.
“Firstly, she is no longer your wife and secondly, I’d apologize for calling my woman a slut or I’ll knock your damn teeth out.” Blake moved in close and towered over Grant. The little weasel immediately let go of Susan, allowing Blake to pull her into his side and enclose her with a protective arm. She was trembling as she came to rest against him, not a condition he wanted her in unless she was trembling with arousal at his hand.
“I apologize for the remark but it was said in the heat of the moment. And in case you aren’t aware, Susan is still my wife, the divorce isn’t final. She can call off proceedings if she chooses to.” Blake noted the apology was directed to him not Susan. He turned his attention to the woman nestled in his arms.
“Do you want to continue this conversation with Grant, Sugar?” He lifted her chin so she was looking directly into his eyes. “I’m happy to stay with you if there are things you need to say. I won’t let him insult or hurt you anymore than he already has.”
Blake flashed a hard stare toward the man standing in front of them, only to see Grant sneer in return. “Of course she wants to talk to me, don’t you…Sugar?”
If Susan hadn’t reached forward and slapped Grant in the face after his patronizing remark, then Blake would have used his fist to provide a lesson in attitude adjustment. As it was Grant stepped back and glared at them both with hatred flaring in his eyes.
“I’d like to go home please, Blake. I have nothing else to say to my ex-husband except I’ll see him in court where the divorce and property settlement will be finalized.”
As they left Blake glanced over his shoulder to check they weren’t being followed. Grant stood watching them leave. The look on his face hadn’t changed and Blake had a feeling it wouldn’t be the last encounter they’d have with him. Clearly the man didn’t like being told no.
Blake wondered whether Grant was the reason for Susan’s not being able to say no to a Dom statement, but he assumed there was more to her outburst at the ball than that. After all, from what he knew about the marriage it had been purely a vanilla arrangement and Susan made the statement in relation to Doms.
As Blake hailed a cab to take them to the Marriott Hotel on Sydney Harbor he glanced at Susan. He hated seeing her this way. She stood silently next to him looking deflated and uncertain as she fidgeted with the small clutch purse in her hand. He kissed the top of her head and pulled her closer to his side.
“Don’t look so worried, Sugar.”
“I don’t know what to do. I just want…I don’t know what I want.” She responded with all the uncertainty etched into her expression.
“We’ll sort it out together. When we get back to the hotel you can tell me what’s been happening and we’ll figure out a plan about what to do next.” Susan sighed and nodded at his reply. Then returned to the silent, thoughtful state she’d been in since leaving the ball.
Once they were back at the hotel, Susan’s demeanor didn’t change. If anything she became more withdrawn as she sat on the sofa next to him.
“Staying silent won’t make anything different. It’s time to talk, Susan. We have a lot to discuss and it requires a joint effort. I can’t do it alone.” He waited for a response that never came. “Okay, this is what we’ll do. I’ll ask the questions and you will answer me truthfully. Do you understand?”
Susan nodded despondently.
“How long has Grant been calling you?” Blake decided to tackle the most recent problem first, then, if things went well, he’d move onto the next topic, Ghost Doms of the past.
“About five weeks now, but the last two weeks the calls became more frequent. He’s insisting I withdraw the divorce petition and return home.” Susan adjusted her position on the sofa and turned to look at Blake. “I don’t want to do either of those things but he won’t take no for an answer.”
Blake nodded his understanding of her response. Her ex would take no for an answer once he got a protection order in place. The red marks on Susan’s arms, the tirade of verbal abuse Grant had directed her way, and the fact he stalked her, even after she’d made every attempt to tell him to leave her alone, now fit the
bill for a judge to act. The order would be in place by Monday morning.
“What did you mean when you said you didn’t care that the only woman he’d ever loved left him?”
Before responding Susan let out a deep sigh. She bit her bottom lip and as her gaze lifted to meet his, her eyes glistened with moisture. He hated the discussion was causing her emotional pain or discomfort but it was something that needed to be done. Something Susan needed to verbalize in order to let go and move on.
“He told everyone at home that the only woman he’d ever loved was his mistress. Not me, I was just the woman he married, who bore him two sons to carry on his family name. I was the woman foolish enough to believe he loved her.” Susan shook her head slowly. “What an idiot I was. You’d think I would have learnt after the first time not to do it again. Grant’s the second man to tell me he loved me, only to discard me. Well, I won’t be making a mistake like that again. I’d rather be alone than hand a man the power to hurt me like that once more.”
Now he was getting somewhere. He assumed the fact she was holding herself back stemmed from being hurt, but he’d also placed that blame on her ex-husband. Now it seemed there were two men to have treated her badly. Before he asked the next question he knew what the answer would be─ her last Dom.
“Who was the first man to discard you?” Blake spoke the words gently.
Another loud sigh and a period of silence followed the question. Susan stared at her hands as she answered, not even attempting to meet his gaze this time.
“My Dom. He trained me, collared me, and said he loved me. I lived with him as his sub. The first year was good. Then he said he wanted to train another sub. He said there was no emotional attachment, not like he had with me. I believed him. Eventually he told me that our arrangement wasn’t working out. That I disagreed with him too much, that I disobeyed him and said no too often. He told me I obviously wasn’t a sub because I felt the need to express my opinion on a regular basis.”
And there it was, an explanation or at least part of one regarding her guarded behavior and unwillingness to fully submit.
“So the saying no statement stems from him, not Grant.” Blake asked. Susan nodded her response to him. “Subs are allowed to say no, Sugar. They are allowed to have opinions, be individuals, and express themselves. I don’t need you to be compliant one-hundred-percent of the time. It’s impracticable. I want a woman that stands beside me, not behind me.”
Susan stared at him with a confused look on her face. “I don’t understand. I thought that Doms wanted total control, to make their subs obey their every word.”
“That might be the case with control freaks, but it’s not the case with me, or with most of the Doms I know. I want you to feel comfortable submitting to me. You grant me the gift of your submission, in return I care for and protect you. I take care of the things that trouble you, that you need help overcoming or sorting out. I don’t want to take control from you, I want to assist you to be the best woman and submissive you can be. Does that make sense?”
For the first time since they’d arrived home, Susan sought out his touch. Shimmying closer to him on the sofa she nestled into his side. Blake breathed a sigh of relief. He had her back in his arms and hopefully she wouldn’t get frightened and walk away again.
“Why didn’t I meet you when I was younger? I might not have married Grant and be the insecure mess I am now.” Susan stated sadly.
“When you were younger I wasn’t the Dom I am now. It’s all about timing. We were destined to meet under these circumstances and at this time.” Blake stroked his hand over her hair. “We’re right for each other now, not then. The lives we’ve both led until now have made us that way.”
When she lifted her head and met his gaze he noticed her tears which he brushed away with the pad of his thumb before leaning in to place a gentle kiss on her forehead.
“Tell me why you became so anxious when you thought I was going to punish you for talking to Perkins.” Blake decided they may as well get everything out on the table. The discussion had her upset in any case so proceeding couldn’t make it any worse.
“Grant’s a jealous man. He used to accuse me of being attracted to men, trying to seduce them. It became so bad that I didn’t go to social events or even school functions in case he thought I was flirting. I started to wear baggy clothes to cover myself up because he told me he didn’t want me looking like a whore. You know, like if I wore anything fitted that showed my shape.” Susan glanced down at the dress she wore. “Like this. He would have made me change because, well he said it tonight. I look like a slut.”
Blake tried not to show his rising anger in case Susan mistook it as being directed at her. Hindsight was a wonderful thing and had he known earlier in the even what he knew about Grant now he would have flattened the guy to the ground. Some men didn’t deserve women in their lives and that prick was one of them.
“You look beautiful, never doubt that, Sugar.” Blake kissed her and pulled her onto his lap, enclosing her in his arms. “His words were an attempt to control you, to beat you down and make you unsure of yourself. It was his way of keeping you in place because he knew he couldn’t keep you satisfied as a woman.
Susan nodded as if in agreement but Blake wasn’t sure his words had really sunk in. It would take a lot more time for her to relinquish some of the abusive mind games Grant had clearly inflicted on her. With his love and support he believed she could do it.
“I have one final question and I want you to know that no matter what your answer is I will still help you sort out the situation with Grant.” Blake drew in a deep breath and held her tight against his chest. “I know you’ve been hurt, that you’re holding parts of yourself back from me. You haven’t submitted to me emotionally and I understand why now. But what I want to know is, do you think that, in time, you’ll be able to…that you’ll want to. Effectively, Sugar, what I’m asking is, where does all of this leave us?”
7
Susan soaked in the comfort she always felt when Blake held her in his arms. Where did all this leave them? She wanted it to leave them happily ever after, but wasn’t sure that state existed in real life, at least, not in her life.
Do I take the risk again and hope it works out or do I say no now and walk away?
Uncertainty threatened to overwhelm her. Her emotions rose up like a tidal wave as she thought about leaving Blake. With him she felt safe, loved, and free. He made her laugh, aroused her like no man had ever done before, and dominated her like none before. If what he said were true, if she could say no, give her opinion, stand beside him, then she could be free to be everything she wanted herself to be. Life would no longer hold her captive, a prisoner to what others could take from her and what they thought she should be.
If she believed what he said were true.
Life is full of risks, Susan.
“That leaves us here with me firmly planted on your lap and in your arms, Blake Daniels.” She tilted her head up to see him staring down at her lovingly. “They say the third times a charm, we just have to prove the saying to be true.”
“That’s my girl.” Blake took her mouth in a passionate kiss, flaring her senses and eradicating the uncertainty that plagued her.
This was where she needed to be, embraced in the arms of the Dom who cared for her. A man who would never take anything from her that she couldn’t give. A lover, whose desire was to pleasure her with a little discipline thrown in along the way. She was Blake’s girl. Now all she needed to do was allow herself to let Blake be hers, without letting doubt hold her back.
Easier said than done, Susan.
She broke away from the kiss and gazed into his eyes.
“I want to be everything you need, Sir. I promise to do my best to please you but I know there will be times when─”
“We’ll take it one day at a time, Sugar. Remember, I’m a patient man.” A devilish grin spread over his face. “I am impatient about one thing though.”
“Do I get to undress you as well, Sir?” Susan slipped from his lap and stood just out of his reach.
“Let me admire you while I think about it. Turn around for me, nice and slow.” Susan turned in a slow circle, allowing Blake to see the lingerie she wore. Not only had he picked her dress for the evening, he’d also chosen what went underneath it. Susan wore sheer black stockings attached to a vintage style red satin and black lace garter belt. It hugged her hips and sat high enough at the back to expose the cheeks of her ass. A red satin G-string nestled between the fleshy globes and covered her mons snugly.
Blake groaned as she turned around to show him the exposed flesh of her butt.
“That’s a perfect ass for spanking, Sugar. I wonder can I get those cheeks the same color as that satin by the end of tonight.”
He rose from the sofa and walked over to her, but she stepped away as he approached, keeping herself out of reach.
His gaze moved up her body and came to rest on the red satin demi bra she wore. The lowered cups allowed the swell of her breast to be exposed. She stepped back as Blake stretched out his hand to touch the plump offerings before him.
“So, we’re going to play a game are we, Sugar? Would you like me to catch you or are you just trying to tempt me beyond my control to see what I’ll do?” he folded his arms in front of his chest and stared at her with lust filled eyes.
