by Belle Ami
“I don’t know if I can.”
The black arrows that defined her brows knit together in displeasure. A frustrated cry rose from her. “Get off me! You’re useless to me!” Before he knew what hit him she raised her hand and slapped him across the face with a force that surprised him. A tidal wave of anger surged through him driving out all reasonable perspective. Her eyes blazed, and again she slapped him. He felt dizzy, disoriented, disassociated. Without thinking he grabbed the cat-o-nine tailed crop, flipped her over, and began whipping her ass. The room exploded with the sound of his panting, the slap of leather on her white skin, and her gasping cries of satisfaction as each stroke hit its mark. Welts rose blood red on her lily white skin. He felt his cock throb as it engorged with the blood of erection. His hard on being painful, demanded satisfaction.
He lifted her rear into the air, holding her firmly in his grasp as he prepared to mount her. She scrambled to get away, her fingers tearing at the sheet. “No,” she cried, “I don’t want you.”
“Oh, I think you do. I think you want it hard and deep. It’s going to hurt, I promise, just the way you like it.” His breath caught in his throat at the prospect. “Now that you’ve misbehaved, I’ll have no trouble giving you a proper thrashing. I’m going to fuck you in a way you’ll remember forever. Before I’m done, you’ll be walking on a leash like a pet.”
He held her forearms in a vice grip, pinned to the bed. His cock was so stiff, it ached with desire seeking fulfillment. With a will of its own the head of his cock prodded against her forcing its way in. She stiffened in anticipation as he rammed himself into her cunt. He cried out nearly coming as he burrowed into her tight passageway. It felt as if he was tearing her apart. Her cries of, “Hurt me!” urged him to inflict pain. He pounded to break her to his will. Inside, she was still dry and unyielding. He hammered her thrusting in and out. He felt her wince in pain from his size and aggression. Growling with pleasure he continued his assault until he finally felt her vagina yield to his powerful dominance; accommodating him, filling and flush with aroused secretion. He banged in and out of her. She mewled like a kitten, relaxing into submission as she absorbed his thrusts. Her dark tresses spilled down her back tempting him. He grabbed a handful and wound it around his hand, yanking her head back, bringing a moan to her lips.
He sizzled with stimulation, pounding against her. He drilled her until her cries told him she was close to orgasm. Then he stuck his middle finger down to his palm into her anal passage; her vagina shrank and shook in response. He fucked her with both his finger and his cock as she shuddered out of control.
“More, more… yes… yes… La petite mort. J’arrive!” She cried in abandonment.
He felt her quiver and shake in orgasmic release. “Oh, god, don’t stop!” she begged.
He pulled out of her leaving her only half fulfilled, she whimpered in protest.
He turned her over and lay beside her. His leg wrapped around hers, pulling her legs apart, opening her to his gaze. “Now I’m going to show you that there can be pleasure without pain.”
Her eyes grew wide as he bent to kiss her. It was a kiss of bliss; filled with passion and desire. He ached to please her. Finally, he pulled his lips from her and moistened his fingers with saliva. Kissing her again, his tongue pressed deep into her mouth; he pressed his fingers to her clitoris expertly caressing her swollen jewel. His tongue was relentless as were his fingers; she was a prisoner to his insistence. Her hips tried to move, but he allowed her no quarter. When his own need was equal to hers, he slipped his cock into her. “That’s it, pretty baby; your pussy is so hot, so wet, and so delicious.”
This time her arms embraced him. He fucked her with a penetrating rhythm; her pelvis rising to meet him in natural response. She closed her eyes as she relaxed, allowing him deeper penetration. His ragged breath forced him to pull his tongue from her; he watched as her lips unconsciously formed a smile of pure joy.
“It feels good doesn’t it? Wrap your legs around me, and let me take you all the way to heaven.
She did as she was told. He could feel her heartbeat flutter like wings against his chest. He fucked her steadily, each thrust aimed at her fulfillment. Her gasps of delight spurred his rhythmic penetration. He pulled in and out of her stroking her clitoris. It seemed an eternity that he watched her color heighten, beads of perspiration form on her brow. He felt as if he could fuck her forever.
This time you’ll come from ecstasy, not pain Helene. “Stay with me, baby. Open those baby blue eyes, and watch us come together. A man wanting to please a woman, there is nothing better.”
Her dilated pupils filled her irises; her lips parted as she fought to breathe. Feverishly, like a machine, his piston sank in and pulled out of her. Soon he would bathe in her honey. Then, like a locomotive building up steam the velocity of his pounding increased.
“Come with me, now!” He groaned grabbing her ass, grinding himself into her pussy. Then, in ecstasy, his semen burst from him; a volcano blowing its cone.
Quivering in rapture, she shook beneath him in spasms that rocked both of their bodies. “Ohh… y-e-e-s-s…I can’t stop…it feels so good!”
“That’s it, baby. You’re good, so good.” Burst after burst of his life force emptied into the condom.
Spent he collapsed on top of her, drained. He felt her kisses, her fingers through his hair, her satisfied breath on his face.
“I’ve never had that happen before... before... the only way...I could, was with pain. I can’t quite believe it.”
He pulled her into his arms. “There’s nothing wrong with mixing pain and pleasure. It’s fun, but it’s not the only way. You have to know that there can be another way. Let’s sleep for an hour. You’re not to move.” Tightly, he held her, afraid she would disappear.
When he woke she wasn’t in the bed. God, she didn’t leave, did she? Then he heard her in the bathroom and relief flooded him. He got up and quickly dressed. Fetching his wallet he pulled out a check. When she exited the bathroom, he saw that she was dressed. He couldn’t help notice the bloom of roses on her cheeks. She ran to him, hugging him, pressing her lips into his.
After returning her enthusiastic affection he pulled away. He was afraid that her body against his would end with them back in bed. Her innocence was irresistible to him. She could easily become an obsession to him. “Listen, I’m starving. Why don’t I order us up some room service? Then, at least, I’ll know that I’ve fed you.”
She nodded, “God, I thought you’d never wake up. I’m so hungry I opened a jar of peanuts from the snack bar. You don’t mind do you?”
“Peanuts! Are you kidding, what kind of nourishment is that? You sit, young lady, while I order.”
After a sumptuous meal of cheeseburgers, fries, and thick, velvety shakes, Helene curled up in his lap like a contented cat. They talked for hours until it was late and time for her to go. She had classes in the morning. The busses would stop running soon stranding her.
“There will be no bus,” he insisted. “I’ll call down and have a town car take you home.”
“Il n’est pas important.”
“It is to me!”
When the phone in the suite rang announcing that the driver was ready to take her, Miles hung up and turned to her. He loaded the heavy backpack onto her shoulders. Then his hands lifted her face to his and he kissed her. When he released her, he pressed a piece of paper into her hand.
“What’s this?” She asked.
“Look and see.”
When she opened it and looked, her eyes opened in amazement. “$25,000, I don’t understand?” She whispered in confusion.
“Listen carefully to me Helene. This is for your new life; one that I hope will be a good and successful one. It’s for tuition, rent, and keeping you well fed.” Her hands flew to her mouth as tears escaped from her eyes. “I don’t know what to say.”
/> “No need to say anything. Next year, you will contact my assistant Karin,” he handed her a business card, “forward your grades to her, and if you maintain a B or better you will receive another $25,000. This will continue every year you are in college until such a time as you graduate with your MBA, Ph.D, or medical degree. Should you need more let Karin know. There is one stipulation; however.”
Her eyes clouded with worry. “And what is that?”
“You must quit working for Samantha, and you’re never to sell your body again. If I find out that you did, everything stops, all of it. If Samantha gives you any problem, let Karin know and I will handle it. I am giving you the gift of freedom Helene, the freedom to become something special. It’s a gift, just like the one that someone long ago gave to me. So, what’s it going to be? Can you live within my parameters?” He waited as she considered. Silently, he willed her, Make the right choice Helene.
She rushed to him, her head nodding yes, her arms encircling his neck. “Will I see you again?”
This was the hard part. “No, honey, you won’t. We’re not right for each other. Besides, the way I feel about you is a danger to both of us. Believe me; what I’m doing is for the best. You’re so young, and have so much life to live.”
Again, she nodded affirmatively trusting him.
“Now, you go and make a great life. Follow your dreams.”
Tears slipped down her cheeks. She brushed them away. For a moment her arms enfolded him as she pressed her cheek against his. “Thank you, I will remember this for the rest of my life.”
Then heaving the heavy backpack with her, she walked to the door, opened it, and with a last grateful look at him she walked out. Pouring a brandy he stepped out to the terrace. A few minutes later he watched as she exited the hotel. The driver held the door, but before she got in the back seat, she looked up to where his suite would be. Seeing him she blew a kiss before getting in. He raised his glass in salute as the driver shut the door. He sipped contentedly as he watched the town car disappear.
It was exactly the kind of intervention that Miles enjoyed. Anonymously changing one individual life for the better. He would never see Helene again, she was far too young and unsophisticated to prosper in the world that he inhabited, but he had altered her life forever and it pleased him immeasurably. No one knew better than Miles what it meant to come from dysfunction and poverty and have to fight your way to the top. He had a feeling that Helene would not disappoint him.
Chapter 3
FOUR DAYS LATER
The sun rose, a red-hot ember burning through the clouds that lay on the horizon like dying ashes. The coolness of the hardwood floors felt good beneath Adelia’s bare feet as she left her bedroom. The walls in the hallway were covered with photographs of Adelia, from infancy and childhood, most featuring her astride airborne horses, clearing massive jumps where horse and rider seemed to fly in defiance of gravity.
Adelia opened the two doors that led to her parents’ bedroom suite. The warm-yellow walls welcomed her into a room of traditional elegance. Above the fieldstone fireplace hung a large portrait of the Lindstroms, taken years before. In the painting, a strikingly beautiful Faye, her black hair swept up in a chignon, her youthful good looks arresting, held in her arms a baby Adelia, with wavy black hair and laughing eyes. The child was the spitting image of her mother, except for the color of her eyes. Faye’s green eyes were flecked with gold, while the baby’s were blue, like her father’s.
Behind the mother and child stood the father, with his hands protectively resting on his wife’s shoulders. The tall, high-cheekboned, fair-haired young man’s expression exhibited intelligence and curiosity. The mother and child sat in a rocking chair on the large wraparound veranda of a Spanish California mission-style ranch house. Horses grazed inside a fenced pasture in the background. The photo portrayed a successful life and marriage, where love and family were valued foremost. In fact, the photo had been photoshopped to combine two separate events into one. The photo of mother, child, and father from twenty-seven years before had been superimposed onto a more recent shot of the family’s ranch, which had been acquired in the last few years. With creative artistry, time had been toyed with, and the past and present had been forever joined as one.
The bedroom was profoundly quiet, except for the sound of Adelia’s breathing and the slight whisper of her bare feet. Adelia hesitated momentarily and stared at the portrait above the fireplace, hoping to draw strength from it. Then she turned and drew a deep, mournful breath before she entered a large walk-in closet. Within the closet, everything was impeccably organized, by color and season, for work or casual wear. Adelia began to sort through dresses and suits until she found what she was looking for: a simple, black silk dress, which she pressed to her nose and smelled, hoping to find the scent of her mother permanently imprinted into the fabric. Maybe, she thought, with Faye’s dress wrapped around me, I’ll find a way to make it through this horrible day.
By the time Adelia emerged from the house wearing Faye’s dress, Lucas was leading two horses from the stable to the pasture for turnout. The sun had risen, and the air shimmered with heat. Adelia was immediately aware of beads of moisture gathering beneath her dress and slipping into the sheer fabric of lingerie and silk. Today was sure to break all temperature records.
“Lucas,” she called. “I have to leave now. I just want you to know that I know how you feel. I understand…I just…Look, I know if you could bear to see them buried…to go to the funeral, you would come. Dad always called you the strong arm, the enforcer, but I guess he just didn’t see how sentimental you really are. You’ve been my pillar of strength through this nightmare; I certainly can be yours today.”
At five foot nine, Adelia was tall, but when Lucas covered the distance between them in a single stride, he towered over her. He was a man who never showed weakness, yet he collapsed into her arms.
“I’m sorry, Delie. I just can’t see them like that. I can’t say good-bye.”
“I know; it’s OK. Better you stay here anyway. With an arsonist on the loose, a fire could happen anywhere. You need to be here with the horses, just in case.”
“I hope this heat wave will convince people that we are facing global warming on a scale that we haven’t witnessed before. Your dad and I spent our entire professional lives warning the world of this.”
“Well, if this dangerous heat doesn’t convince people, I don’t know what will. I’ll see you when I get back.”
Reluctantly, Lucas disengaged himself from her. Composing himself, he put his arm around her shoulders and walked her to the waiting limousine.
Chapter 4
David Weiss stood at a distance from the crowd at the funeral. The case was virtually closed—or would be when he received the report that would certainly point to an unfortunate accident: a failure of brakes on a practically new Porsche hybrid SUV. It was sure to be an enormous lawsuit with an outrageous payday for the girl. From what he understood, it didn’t really matter; she didn’t need the money, she was loaded.
If you asked him why he was standing there, sweating his balls off, he probably wouldn’t be able to tell you. Maybe it was the girl: something about the way she had frozen like a deer in headlights when he had broken the news of the crash and her parents’ deaths. There were no tears, just silence as she stared at him as if he had spoken in another language. After several seconds, when the meaning of his words had finally sunk in, she had invited him into the house. He had followed her into the kitchen, where she made him a cup of coffee with shaking hands. She’d sat quietly, trying to subdue the tremor in her hands while he related the details of the accident. Only when he had finished telling her everything he knew did she ask, “Are you sure it was an accident?”
“Why? Do you think someone might want to harm your parents?”
“No, not really. It’s just that my father was so meticulous about everythi
ng. He is… was a scientist.”
In the end, she had admitted that it was too far-fetched even to consider foul play.
So why was he there? Something didn’t add up. He watched the girl and the group of mourners file away from the grave site. As she walked to the waiting limousine, her eyes caught sight of him, and she changed direction, walking to where he stood. Her face was flushed, but tearless.
“Detective Weiss, what are you doing here?”
“Just paying my respects.”
“Will you come back to the house? I’d be pleased if you did.”
“Sure, I’ll come.” The words were out of his mouth before he could consider what he was saying. He should have begged off. It was too late now.
When he got to the house, it was filled with people. From overhearing bits and pieces of different conversations, he gathered that most of the mourners were Lars Lindstrom’s colleagues: scientists, professors, and environmentalists—a regular brain trust. A smattering of publishing people were there for both Faye and Lars, and there were a couple of movie-business brass. It was certainly not an ordinary crowd of mourners.
Adelia sat on the sofa, flanked by what looked like a couple of old spinsters, maiden aunts of her father who had flown in from Norway. The two black crows, with their pure-white hair, intercepted anyone who approached to offer condolences. The old biddies were doing an excellent job of keeping a distance between Adelia and the others.
Among the environmental group stood Lucas, in deep conversation; he stood out because he was the only male not dressed in a dark suit. David had met him the day of the accident. Adelia had remained composed, while this tall, spare man had broken down in despair. Innumerable times Adelia had told him that Lucas was like family—her parents’ best friend and her godfather. Lucas Jackson and Lars Lindstrom had been inseparable since college. After Lars had attained his PhD and Lucas his engineering degree, their continuing friendship led to a lifetime of collaboration on ecological projects. Adelia had intimated that Lucas was a bit of a fanatic when it came to saving the planet. So much so that it had precluded his ever getting married and having a family of his own. For the last few years Lucas lived in an apartment contiguous to the stables and managed the ranch. For all intents and purposes, Lucas had been and was an integral part of the Lindstrom family. David had found it odd that Lucas did not attend the funeral, but Adelia had explained that the loss had affected him so deeply that he couldn’t have withstood seeing his best friends laid to rest.
