“What about the other stuff?” The D/s.
“We’ll go slow. We’ll take time to rebuild the trust you have in yourself. I love your control. I crave it, like I still crave water. I realized how much over the last few weeks. But I don’t have to have it right now if it’s going to come between us. Or, if you prefer, we can try something positive, like taking control of getting me better. The rest can come later, if and when you’re ready.”
He stood up and looked at her, then turned and walked down the stairs and disappeared around the corner of the house without a word. She sighed.
~ ~ ~
“Give him time.”
She whipped her head around to see Anders leaning against the front door frame. She wasn’t sure how much he’d heard. “Uh, yeah, the last few years have really messed with his mind. We have a few things to work out…” she trailed off. Was she as red as she suspected she was?
He grinned. “Honey, I know exactly what you have to work out. That case was huge and anyone in the same hemisphere knew why Dan had been picked for the job. Josh, too, though we didn’t know him real well before it started. We all know the Dom stuff wasn’t a mask they just put on, and it’s worried all of us for a long time how they were going to deal with it after the case was over. We also knew he’d been keeping in touch with you, and a few of us had bets that you’d end up with him, though none of us predicted all of this.”
“And your bet was…” Flaming red cheeks or not, she needed to know where his friends stood.
“Let’s just say that seeing the two of you here together—well, I’m counting my winnings now.”
She flashed him a wistful smile. “Well, we’re not together. You haven’t won the bet yet.”
“Are you kidding? This man has been eaten up from the inside since the moment you went missing. I doubt he’s spent more than a few hours sleeping in the last week. He’s been angry and combative and confrontational. He told his boss to go to hell and refused to show up for the debriefing. Then he disappeared to come find you, with all of us tagging along. He probably doesn’t have a job when he gets back, so I hope you do.” He winked to show he was teasing. “Just give him time.”
“I wouldn’t count on my job,” she chuckled ruefully. She put her chin in her hand. “Anders?” A germ of an idea was forming. “What would happen if I went for a long walk by myself right now?”
His brow wrinkled in confusion. “You’re not strong enough yet. You’d probably get a few hundred feet down the road and collapse. You’ve hardly had any real food.”
“Good. Let’s hope you’re right. The IV is done. Please take it out.” She held out her hand and Anders removed it. She pushed herself to her feet and once the world stopped spinning, she headed down the stairs. Anders’ understanding laugh from behind gave her just a little more courage, and she went off in search of Dan.
Chapter 36
Laura had been in fantastic shape while a prisoner, thanks to Dan’s workouts, but a week without food and four days without water had taken its toll.
She headed off in the direction she’d seen him go. She’d have to time things just right, to avoid having him find her too soon. Since he wasn’t in the back yard, the only direction he could have gone was the footpath that led into the woods, so she crossed her fingers and entered the cool, dark forest.
She realized she wasn’t going to have to do any acting pretty soon. She stopped to catch her breath and lean against a tree until the world ceased its spinning. She had a sudden vision of the warm bread waiting for her in the kitchen and the thought almost made her turn around and head back, but she pushed it down and kept going as soon as she could stand upright again.
“Dan?” she called out. Her voice was weaker than she had hoped. He might be here and not hear her unless she could get her voice to carry. “Dan! Where are you?” That was better.
She’d started to slide down the tree to the forest floor when he appeared on the path, his eyes flashing anger.
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
“We weren’t done talking.” She leaned against the tree to stay upright.
“So you decided it would be a good idea to come looking for me? In the forest? How did you know where I’d gone?” he demanded.
She shrugged. “It seemed logical.”
“Goddammit, Laura! You could have been stranded out here! Did Anders tell you that you could do this?”
“I don’t need permission from him. He’s not my master.”
Dan turned away from her with his fists clenched. She watched him breathe. When he turned back around, his voice was quiet. “Neither am I. I never want to be called master again. Don’t you understand? That word will never hold the same meaning for me ever again!” His eyes were brimming with tears.
“Then how about ‘Sir’?” she asked simply.
He stared at her for a moment, then suddenly and fiercely pulled her into his arms. “Goddammit, Laura,” he wept, “I do not deserve you.” He held her close as the breeze gently rocked the trees overhead. “But,” he finally whispered, “if you’re that determined to try, then so will I.” He took her head in his hands and kissed her hard on the lips. She reached up to tangle her hands in his hair and kissed him back, her tongue probing his lips until he relented and they shared a long deep kiss that had been years in the making.
When they reluctantly pulled apart, he clasped her gently against his chest. He felt her legs start to buckle from exhaustion. Still holding her, he eased them both down to the ground. She nestled into his arms.
“All right. You can call me Sir.” He played with a curl of her hair. “Laura, you need to know it’s not going to be easy when we get back. I’ll have to spend a lot of time testifying for the next couple of years. The government will want you to testify, too, and they’ll pressure you hard. The press had already gotten hold of the story when we left—it was too good to stay under wraps––and they’re going to have a field day with my actions. There’s going to be a lot people saying ugly things about me and speculating about why you’d stay with me after what I did to you. They won’t be kind, to either of us.”
“I’ll stand at your side and defend you as long as I have to.”
He squeezed her tight. “You might be the only one who does that.”
“That’s okay. We’ll make it through.”
They sat in contented silence.
She had to know something. “Dan?”
“Hmm?”
“The, um, brand. Why did you pick the design that you did?”
She felt him smile from behind her.
“Uh, well, hubris, on my part.”
“Huh?”
She felt his hand slip down her butt until his fingertips traced the faint outline through her pants.
“The figure has no beginning and no end. It’s continuous. An eternal interconnectedness—of us, I had hoped. And the circle around it is an ancient binding symbol of protection.”
“You bound me to you for my protection?” she turned and looked up at him.
He smiled wanly. “Yeah, well, you see how good that turned out.”
“We’re here together, safe. I think it worked just fine. I do want to be bound to you for an eternity.”
This seemed like a fine time for another kiss, even deeper and longer than the first. When they broke apart, they were both flushed. He peered closely into her face, his blue eyes penetrating into her very soul.
“You’re exhausted, aren’t you?”
She quirked up the side of her mouth and reluctantly nodded.
“Been out of bed a little too long?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Let’s head back. I smelled homemade bread as I left, and I bet you’d like some.”
Her stomach growled in response and he laughed as he helped her to stand. He paused to consider something.
“Hmm. Maybe there is a little bit of me that can handle disciplining you when you disobey an order.” Without warning, he hoisted
her into a fireman’s carry over his left shoulder and with his right hand, he applied a solid “whack!” to her backside.
“Hey! I didn’t disobey you!” she protested, even as the sting caused a delicious bloom of heat to spread between her legs.
“Did you disobey Anders?”
“He’s not my Ma-my Sir.”
“No, but I am, and I told you to obey him. Right?”
She was glad he couldn’t see her face right then, which she knew was bright red. “Um, well, I kind of forgot about that…”
“And did you not just ask me to be in charge of your health and wellbeing?”
“Um, yeah…”
Smack!
“Yessir! I did!” The second sting threatened to ignite another ember in her core.
“Good. So I’m going to carry you back to the house like this, and you’re going back to bed. I’ll feed you myself and give you drinks all day.”
“I’m not a little girl! I can feed myself.” She pouted, her face buried between his shoulders.
Smack!
“Ow!” She squirmed, trying to ease the awful itching need that was beginning to flame up.
“Any calorie that you spend feeding yourself is a calorie less to put on weight. So yes, I’m going to feed you. And you can protest all the way back to the house, and all the way home tomorrow, and it won’t do you a bit of good.”
She struggled out of principle as he set off down the path, and he responded by giving her bottom a smack every thirty seconds or so. She dutifully wiggled and squealed each time, but anyone walking behind them would have seen the broad smile that radiated from her face like a ray of sunshine after a storm.
~ ~ ~
The small hall was hushed as the audience waited for the encore to be played. It was always the same piece, played by this woman who was new to the life of a professional piano player, but whose passion for music was clear the moment her fingers touched the keys. True, most of the audience had come to see her out of a sense of morbid fascination, not a love of music. This woman had been all over the news for a while before disappearing and then reemerging to share her gift with the world. But even those who came out of curiosity left feeling they had been treated to something intimate and special.
She placed the battered book of music on the piano and opened it to the Nocturne in A Minor. No one understood why she used this book long past the time when she knew the piece by heart, but it was part of the ritual. She gently dropped her fingers to the keys, and the notes sang out soft and clear. 123 123 123 123… There was always an anxiety and a sadness to this piece, and no one but she knew why, though all who were present felt it keenly. As the last notes died away, the applause was thunderous. She stood up and bowed, and the stage manager walked out and presented her with a single red rose. She accepted it with a smile and then, as she always did, searched the front row until she found the beaming faces of a man and a woman who were almost always at her concerts, and nodded to them as they applauded furiously.
Sophie Kisker
Sophie Kisker has been composing stories of domination and submission as long as she can remember. Her stories are almost always dark, and sometimes uncomfortable, but they always have a happy ending. She is a true believer that romantic love and a riding crop make a great combination.
During the day, Sophie is busy with job and family, but in the evening, her laptop comes out, her imagination gets going, and she morphs into a recluse who would be happy living in a cave – as long as it had wireless internet and an espresso machine.
You can find out more about Sophie on Facebook or her blog (www.sophiekisker.com), or contact her at [email protected].
Other titles by Sophie Kisker:
Finding Home: An Erotic Tale of Slavery, Love, and War
Odyssey: Book 1
Sanctuary: Book 2
Refining Fire: Book 3
The Punishment Tour (also found in the anthology Twist with the title The Penitents)
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
About Sophie Kisker
Ebook Offer
Blushing Books Newsletter
About Blushing Books
A Captive of Fear and Desire Page 24
