Chapter 6
JESSICA
My fingers drift up and down the soft leather, my head spinning as I study the beautiful purple color. So far, everything this Alpha has done to me has felt exquisite. Would this be any different?
I turn my glance over at the smaller flogger hanging from my wrist restraint. It’s so short compared to the other one. How could it be effective? I know he called it a genital flogger, but that doesn’t mean anything to me.
The Alpha’s eyes darken even more until I’m unable to tell the difference between his iris and pupil. Alec would get that way at times, but very rarely. Only when he was about to go into a rut. Is that what’s happening now?
Fear and elation war in my chest as my breath comes out in raspy pants. This Alpha seems so in control, so commanding. The very opposite of Alec in a rut. My ex would run off, keeping himself locked away during those times, presumably to keep me safe.
Am I not safe now?
I glance around the room as best as I can, noting the Alphas with the reflective stripe. Just like he and Kessily told me to do. They would keep me safe. They have to.
“I can smell your unease. Do you wish to call red? Is this too much for you?” His tone is matter of fact, not taunting as I thought it would be. Like he actually cares about my well-being and safety.
It shouldn’t make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. This is a one-time thing. A one-night stand. At least it would be if we were having sex. Somehow, with that off the table, I find I’m able to enjoy our interactions a bit more.
There’s less pressure, less anxiety to perform well. Especially for an Alpha who’s clearly skilled and experienced. But then, if he’s about to rut, does all that go out the window? Will I lose my virginity after all?
“Do we need a monitor over here to make sure you’re okay?”
The Alpha steps back, his brow furrowing enough to move his mask a bit. “Do you feel unsafe with me?”
“Well, no. Not yet anyway.”
“Explain.”
“Your eyes. I- I mean. Aren’t you… you know.”
“Am I what?” His question comes out in a growl, rippling over my skin.
“About to go into a-” I pause and look around before lowering my voice. “A rut?”
His body goes still as he tilts his head.
For a moment, he looks like a dog trying to figure out a command.
Only, he is far more massive than any dog I’ve been around.
With slow, measured steps, he walks back over to me and rests his hands against the X, leaning in until he’s close enough to kiss me.
“What makes you think I’m close to going into a rut? ”
“Your eyes. They are, well, they were , nearly black for a moment there.”
Again, he chuckles, but this time, there’s no humor in it. It washes against my skin, nonetheless, making my body quiver in need.
“No need to worry about that. I was aroused, is all. Haven’t you seen an Alpha aroused before?”
My heart stops for a moment as my brain replays everything between Alec and I in fast, disjointed clips. He got hard. That much I know. I’d given him oral plenty of times. Granted, he never wanted to finish in my mouth.
He had to have been aroused. And yet, his eyes never did that thing. Not unless he was going to rut. But then… is that not what happened? I look back at the stranger before me, searching his gaze as I try to make sense of everything.
They’re no longer dark as pitch black. Now, I can easily tell the difference between the brown of his iris and the black of his pupil. Did I just imagine it?
Irritation floods down my spine as I shake my head, dispelling the painful memories. “Well, of course I have.” How dare this stranger make me question the love Alec and I shared. “His eyes never did that, but I know he was aroused.”
“And how did you know he was aroused?” The conversational tone of his voice turns irritation into aggravation.
“I just know.”
“Please enlighten me. I really want to know how you know.” There’s a hint of a chuckle there, as if he’s making fun of me, but behind the mask, his gaze looks deadly serious.
“He got hard, okay? Is that what you wanted to hear?”
His lips turn down into a frown. “And his eyes never changed color? Are you sure he was an Alpha? ”
“I’m not an idiot,” I screech, the pain welling up inside me, slamming into me full force.
“Hey now,” he soothes. “I never said you were. Obviously, you have a lot of experience. I apologize. It’s not as if I’ve fucked any Alphas, but the several I know have the same response to arousal. Perhaps the Alpha you knew was different.”
“Perhaps.” The emotions leech out of me until I sag against the X. “His eyes did change. But he said it was because he was approaching his rut. He’d leave for a few days until it went away. Then he’d come back home. That’s why I was worried.”
The Alpha’s head jerks for a moment as he leans back. “That’s not… How often did he have these ruts?”
“I mean, just the normal amount? About once a month?”
“Right. Once a month. And I’m assuming that’s how often you went into heat then? Kinda selfish to just leave you like that.”
“Oh,” I cry out, shaking my head. “No. I’m on suppressants. Please don’t think ill of Ale- the Alpha. He was just protecting me from his savage lusts. You know how Alphas can be.”
The man in front of me rubs his hand across the beard on his chin, bringing my awareness back to his lips. How I wish we could stop talking about Alec and have him pleasure me again. As it is, it’s the only thing keeping those errant thoughts at bay.
“Yes,” he finally murmurs. “I know how Alphas can be. Rest assured; you are in no danger from me. But if you’d rather feel safer, I can release you and let you go back to your friend.”
Do I want that? Do I want to be safe? Part of me longs to run back to Kessily and just sit at the bar all night. Besides, if I go over the drink maximum, I’ll not be allowed to play. Right? That would be an easy out.
But then, I’ve never been a coward. It would be a shame to start now. Tossing my head back, I shoot him a grin, pushing my bravado to the forefront. If he thinks it’s an act, he doesn’t let it show. After a moment or two, he answers in kind, smiling back at me.
Only, his is far more feral than Alec’s ever was. Again, that tingle of apprehension flows down my spine. Instead of turning into nervous sweats or quivering limbs, however, it morphs into an infernal heat between my thighs and butterflies squirming about in my stomach.
“Do your worst.”
“Oh, you poor, na?ve little omega. Don’t bait a sadist like that. A less honorable man would take you up on your offer. As it stands, I’m here to give you a taste of the forbidden. That’s it.”
I shouldn’t feel bereft at his words. I shouldn’t want the promise of forever. I shouldn’t want this stranger to hurt me until the pain goes away. But I do. God help me. But I do.
When he walks back around the X where I’m unable to see him, my breath quickens, expanding my chest and deflating it just as quickly. My vision swims as my brain screams for oxygen. But I can’t stop. I can’t seem to slow it down.
I stand before the precipice of the unknown. Soon, this stranger, this Alpha, my temporary Master, is going to shove me off. My nails dig into the wood as my senses heighten.
The surrounding noises seem to fade as I focus on his footsteps. Too far. They’re so far away. Did he leave me? Does he not even want to do this? Before my mind can race too far into the future, the first lash hits my skin.
A loud yelp erupts from my lips, but not from pain. The sensation catches me by surprise. It’s far nicer than his hand was, and I certainly didn’t expect that. For some reason, I anticipated agony.
Instead, pleasure rushes through my limbs, sending relief flooding my soul until I hang there, allowing my Master to strike me with the leather. The whole time, I keep my gaze trained on the smaller flogger, waiting for the additional pleasure he promised.
My thighs ache and burn as I rock back and forth, desperate for more—more sensation, more arousal, more everything. But he doesn’t change up his rhythm. Over and over, he strikes my flesh. Right shoulder, left ass cheek. Left shoulder, right ass cheek.
He lulls me into this odd state of being, this liminal space between consciousness and wakefulness. The only other time I felt anything like this was when I was going under for surgery.
It’s this flipping of my stomach, an ache deep in my gut as the world threatens to tip over and spill at my feet. I want it to end and never stop. It’s this odd dichotomy that threatens to fracture me at the seams, all while keeping me held together.
“Now then, little slave,” he growls in my ear, sending shards of pleasure bursting through my body. “Ready for a taste of my paddle?”
He grazes what feels like the edge of the wood down my spine, allowing me to feel the unyielding curves before doing the same to my ass. He teases me, touching me all over until I yield .
“Yes, Master. Please,” I beg, my senses overwhelmed.
I’m beyond overstimulated. The only thing keeping me grounded is the short flogger in front of me. It’s my touchstone, my focus point. Straining against the restraints, I glide my fingers over the soft falls, smiling as the sensations travel up my arm.
“Tell you what. You take four hard swats from me, and I’ll give you the relief you long for.”
That sounds simply divine to me. “Deal,” I manage to croak out.
Is it my imagination, or do my words sound slurred? I try to shake my head but find I’m unable to move. All I want to do is lie there and feel this Alpha break me apart.
My breaths are slow and even, as if on the cusp of sleep. But I’m very much awake. Before I can fully drift off, his hand is there, hard against my ass. It should hurt or sting like it did earlier, but it doesn’t. All I feel is a shaft of warmth sliding over my skin, pulling me down even further.
“Is that how you answer me, slave?” The Alpha’s voice in my ear brings me back from the brink.
He’s asking a question. I know he is. I just have to piece everything together. My brain works far too slowly for my liking, but he gives me time to process. And there, as if a flashlight goes on, illuminating the thought I’m supposed to have, I understand what he’s asking.
“Sorry, Master. Deal, Master.”
His chuckle washes over my skin as he trails his fingers up my spine. I lean into his touch, a soft moan hovering at the back of my throat. He feels like heaven against me.
“How are you, little slave?” I blink up at the man in front of me. How did he get there? He was behind me. Right? He peers down into my eyes and smiles. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were in subspace right now.”
“Sure, Master,” I grin, no doubt looking goofy and stupid. “Spank me already so I can get off.”
He slides the edge of the paddle under my chin and tips my face up to his. “Only because I choose to. Not because you demand it.”
As he walks away, I rest my head against my arm and sigh. I honestly can’t remember the last time I was so relaxed, so languid. All those thoughts flee the moment he connects the paddle with my ass.
“Count them out for me, slave. And end each number with Master. Oh, and make sure to thank me for them, too.”
“W- what?” I shake my head, desperate to regain my sanity.
“Do I need to start again?”
“O-one, Master. Th- thank you, Master,” I manage to bark out.
From behind me, his laughter flits over my skin, wrapping me up into a warm cocoon. “That’s a good little slave.”
He smacks the other cheek, driving me up onto my tiptoes. “T- two, Master. Thank you, Master,” I squeak, gripping the wood under my hands.
It’s not that it hurts exactly, but the sensation is far stronger than the flogger. The bastard lulled me into a false sense of expectation. Still though, I can’t find it within me to hate how it makes me feel. I wish I could.
He strikes the first cheek again, a little stronger than the last. It steals my breath and propels me forward. The moment the wood lifts from my skin, his hand is there, soothing the sting .
“Have you forgotten your count already?”
I resist the urge to rub my ass into his caress. “No, Master. Three, Master. Thank you, Master.”
“Good fucking slave,” he groans, gripping my ass. “Last one.”
He strikes the opposite cheek, forcing a squeal past my lips. “Four, Master. Thank you, Master.”
Again, he soothes the sting with his touch, rubbing me until my body relaxes. “There now. Not so bad.”
“No, Master. But pleasure now. Yes?”
“You incorrigible minx,” he chuckles. “Yes. I suppose you earned it.”
Reaching over my shoulder, he grabs the small flogger and runs it over my shoulder as he drags it backward. I shudder as the light touch rocks me to my core. Even now, I feel my arousal dripping down my thighs as my need ramps up with every little bit of sensation he bestows upon me.
I never thought of myself as kinky, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe I just needed someone to show me. My gasp stills in my throat as the Alpha walks to the other side and brings his face close to mine.
His eyes are jet black, and yet, he maintains so much control. It’s evident in the jump at his jaw, his rigid stance, and the pure dominance wafting off of him. It’s like his own personal cologne—dark, heady, and utterly addictive.
Reaching between my thighs, he grazes my clit, making me jump as a moan drifts past my lips. “What’s that about you not liking kinky stuff? You’re soaking wet, my dear little slave. Your clit is so hard. Admit it, you like it rough.”
When I don’t say a word, he pinches my clit. Not hard enough to cause pain, but enough for my knees to threaten to buckle .
“M- maybe,” I cry out, not wishing to reveal just what he’s doing to me.
But then, he already knows. God help me, but this stranger already fucking knows.