Chapter 2
Two
Savannah
Sitting in my driveway in the large black SUV, I watched the snowflakes dance through the night sky, increasing in their volume and speed. Soon it wouldn’t be a matter of if Bram stayed since the roads wouldn’t be safe and visibility sucked. “Thank you for driving me home.”
“You’re welcome.”
Bram exited first, rounding the front to assist me out.
He held out his hands so I had stability.
I may have needed it on a regular night since it was a large step down, but placing my palms in his gave me a jolt, like a spark of chemistry.
We carefully navigated up the steps to the front door and I was thankful for his lack of pressure in regards to the next step.
Either I invited him in… or we parted forever.
Way to be dramatic, Savvy.
“May I have your phone number, little elf? I’d love to get to know you better,” he said quietly as I glanced back and forth between his gorgeous eyes and the keypad lock.
“Sure, Bram.” I told him my digits, and he sent off a text so I’d have his number as well. Though I wasn’t sure I’d ever get the nerve to reach out. No matter what happened next.
“Have a good night, Savannah. I need to go before the roads get any worse,” Bram stated though his demeanor showed hesitation.
The ball was in my court now. He had said that if I gave my consent, even without saying that word, that I let him lead.
But I had to be the one to initiate it, otherwise he seemed to be too much of a gentleman to be overbearing.
Which obviously flustered me. Confident, not cocky and assertive without being pushy.
It was the exact combination of traits I looked for in a partner.
Before I could say anything, he leaned down, kissed my cheek and turned to leave.
“Bram,” I whispered low enough that I wondered if I’d actually said his name out loud or if it was just in my head.
He paused, so at the very least I’d croaked out some sort of noise. Turning back toward me, Bram rested his palm against the top of my door, his body touching mine.
“Yes, sweetheart?”
“The roads are already bad. You should stay.”
“I can make it home just fine. I’m used to driving in feet of snow. But I appreciate your concern.” Reaching forward, he ran his thumb across my lip. “Unless you have another reason for wanting me here, I’m going to call it a night.”
“No one has made me feel desired within moments of meeting them. Has made me feel like I’m the only woman on the planet without being a total jerk. I know you said no overthinking, no strings, no expectations–”
“Shhh, little elf. I didn’t say those things without being open to the possibility of more. What I meant is that for tonight... Let me worship every single inch of you without you having to think about your hangups, your insecurities, what tomorrow might bring…”
“I’ve been alone for a while. My Daddy…uhh, fuck, scratch that. My Dom….” I was flustered now, in a bad way.
Great, Savvy! Blurt out to the hot Viking that you have desires and such for things in the bedroom that many people probably don’t understand.
“Savannah.” His tone dropped lower than I thought it could. If I could just record him saying my name, I might be able to use that to get myself off for the rest of my life.
“You’re right. You have to go home,” I said, dismissing the connection entirely. It was my biggest defense mechanism. “The roads are slick and visibility is getting worse.”
“It’s okay to step outside of your comfort zone once in a while.” Bram pressed his remote starter, the engine cutting off and the doors locking. “I’ll stay. But, if you change your mind, tell me. I will sleep on your couch and when the roads clear, I’ll be on my way.”
“Okay.”
He didn’t acknowledge anything about my oversharing.
I hit the code on my keypad, stepping into the foyer of my cottage.
It was even more magical than usual because despite my insistence to be a grumpy grinch, Lexa, Daphnee and Deanna forced holiday cheer into my house.
Forced might have been a bit dramatic. Regardless, my normally quaint fairytale-themed cottage sparkled more than usual.
Bram took off his coat and boots before assisting me out of mine. I attempted to thwart my brain from wondering if he didn’t understand what I’d meant regarding a Daddy Dom.
“Both of those roles you mentioned take time to build up that level of trust, little elf. I heard you, but your eyes filled with tears when you said it. I don’t want tonight to bring you any heartache.”
Ah, so he’d been crafting a reply. That made sense. I nodded, acknowledging his very smart reasoning. “But you’ve heard of those roles? Or like, you know what they are?”
Bram paused with my coat still half-folded over his arm, his eyes lifting to mine with a slow, assessing sweep that made my stomach swoop lower.
“I’ve more than heard of them,” he said, voice dipping into something low and certain. “I’ve filled those roles in the past, more than once.”
My mouth went dry. No way. It was one thing for Viking Daddy to have the hots for me, hot in a way that could roast a chestnut without a flame, but to actually understand what I meant without explanation? I was dreaming. I had to be.
“But,” he added, hanging my coat gently on the hook by the door, “I don’t take them on lightly. And I never step into them without a willing partner who trusts me fully.”
He turned back toward me, his gaze softening. “I do understand what you’re saying and what you meant. Deeply.”
Warmth bloomed across my chest, confusing and comforting all at once. I fidgeted with the cuff of my sweater, the knit catching on my thumb. “I didn’t want you thinking I was complicated or anything. Needy. Clingy.”
“You are complicated.” Bram stepped closer, one deliberate footfall on the hardwood. “Beautifully so.” His hand hovered for a moment, then settled on my forearm. “And none of what you shared tonight scared me. If anything, little elf, it intrigued me.”
The warmth of his palm seeped through the wool of my sleeve, sending a shiver down my spine.
He had a way of making me feel for the first time like I could open up to someone else.
I’d told my friends, but no one else. “He left,” I blurted out.
“Moved across the world. Dropped our entire dynamic and relationship at the same time. Not that I expected him to continue long distance but just for a little while, so I didn’t crash… ”
“I know what it looks like when someone has been left without closure. Without care. Without the proper way to transition out of an intense dynamic.” His thumb traced a small, grounding stroke along my arm.
“It sucks so much. I found comfort in a group of other submissives who are either without partners or are in new relationships or recently broken up. Really, just any stage. Anyhow, they are worth their weight in gold. I would have just kept crying forever without them. They made my cottage look like it belonged in a holiday snow globe that was just shaken.”
Bram laughed, a good hearty laugh like he was delighted by that idea. It also broke up the seriousness of the moment. “I’m happy you have such good support, Savannah. And I know how much courage it takes to admit that you need some.”
He said my name like it was something to savor.
I swallowed hard, the heat behind my eyes prickling dangerously. “It’s hard for me to admit a lot of things.”
“This situation and your circumstances now weren’t your failure,” Bram said instantly, a quiet strength threading through every syllable. “It was his.”
A shaky exhale left my lips. What happened to a sexy holiday romp with no strings attached? But somehow, I needed this too. Needed to be told things I’d desperately needed to hear months ago.
“You’re right. He wasn’t a very good Daddy at the end, if I’m being honest. But the thought of being alone again, even with some not great behavior, had me accepting things that I shouldn’t.”
Bram gave my arm a gentle squeeze. His fingers were rougher than I expected, calloused, warm. I wondered what sort of career he had where he worked with his hands.
“I hate that he had you feeling that way. Listen closely. I’m not stepping into any roles tonight, sweetheart. But I do want you to check your brain at the doorway to your room. At least the overthinking part. The part that will start second guessing every interaction. None of that.”
My cottage glowed around us—soft gold from the garland and the twinkling tree—but he looked like the warmest thing in the room.
The type of man who could cradle your heart in his hands and crush your body against a doorframe in the same breath.
I said a silent prayer, hoping he meant what he’d said earlier about handling me like a doll.
“So,” Bram murmured, tilting his head just enough to meet my gaze fully. “Before we go any further, tell me if you have any hard limits. Soft limits. Anything that I should know before—”
“Before you toss me over your shoulder and go hunting for my bedroom?” I cut in, trying at humor but sounding breathless instead.
His eyes darkened in that slow, deliberate way that made warmth spiral low in my belly. “I was going to say before I touch you,” he corrected softly. “But now that I know exactly what sort of naughty thoughts you’re having…”
“Don’t tease me,” I interjected again.
His husky tone shot straight to my core, giving me even more inappropriate thoughts.
“I wouldn’t dream of it, little elf. Go on.”
“Um. Okay. Yes. Limits.” My brain chose that moment to turn into static, all jumbled sparks and heat and nerves. “I don’t do anything degrading. Or cruel. I don’t like harsh humiliation. And I need aftercare, even if it’s just lighter stuff. Water, chocolate, cuddles.”
“Very good,” he said immediately, processing as if he was taking mental notes and filing them away with care. “Anything else, Savannah?”
“I—” My voice cracked; I hated that it cracked. I took a few deep breaths to clear my lungs and my brain. “I don’t want to be ignored or be made to feel like I’m bothering someone by needing something.”
Bram’s jaw flexed, his expression softening into something that looked dangerously close to protective. “That’s not a limit, beautiful girl. That’s a wound. One I won’t touch and delve into unless you specifically ask me to.”
“A wound. Oof. Of course it is. I’m talking about it instead of my limits.” I sighed, shaking my head as if I could clear all my previous wounds. “I can’t think of any at the moment aside from what I already shared.”
Bram tucked a piece of my hair behind my ear, a smirk on his lips. “I’m listening to you and I’ve got it. Tell me your preferences, little elf.”
Nodding, I rattled them off. I was actually going to let him handle me tonight, even with my insecurities popping up.
“I like being picked up, at least I think I do. I always see that stuff in movies, but I’m not a tiny strand of tinsel you can wrap around your finger.
No, I’m like the entire Christmas tree and it’s too heavy to carry by yourself. ”
Bram’s eyes locked onto mine, dark and unyielding.
“Don’t you dare talk like that around me,” he growled, his voice low and edged with steel, like a warning forged in ice and fire.
“Say one more disparaging remark about your body and I’ll make sure your ass glow’s brighter than Rudolph’s nose before I fuck you. ”
A flush crept up my chest, bringing heat to my face. “Understood. Though you might want to do that regardless. I also like praise. Maybe a lot of praise,” I said, returning to the focus of the conversation.
His lips curved into a smile. “Keep going, little elf.”
“I enjoy being guided, directed, but not controlled, in the bedroom.” And out of it, I silently added in my thoughts. Not that anything would happen after our night together.
Stepping in until his body shaded the golden garland light behind him, he pressed his mouth to my ear. “I can absolutely give you that tonight.”
I blinked quickly, the room tilting warm and soft at the edges. “I remembered a hard limit. Nothing intense or really rough. No deep dynamic stuff. I don’t want to spiral tomorrow alone when you’re gone if I can help it.”
“Thank you for trusting me. I’ll do my best to give you ease and not intensity. Warmth. Most preferably to your gorgeous ass. Maybe a little delicious distraction?”
Heat rushed through me so fast I had to steady myself on the console table. “Bram. Listen, this is one night.” But even as I said it, it seemed hollow to my ears. It started casual but after confessing so much to him it seemed like maybe it could be the start of something more.
“Savannah,” he murmured, voice like a caress. “Try not to ‘what if’ yourself into a tizzy. You’ve already told me more than enough. Every word shows me how careful I need to be with you tonight.”
I licked my lips, my knees nearly buckling. “So… what happens now?”
“Now?” His fingers trailed down, a whisper of touch along my collarbone. “Now I unwrap my sassy little Christmas present until she’s naked and writhing underneath me.”
Bram wrapped his arm around my waist and before I could protest or overthink, he hoisted me over his shoulder like I was a sack of toys, just like I’d thought about earlier at the party, rather than a tall, plus-sized holiday snack.
All I knew was that I was in serious trouble, because as I watched the rug in my hallway fly by my eyes, I realized something I should have thought about before.
I didn’t do hookups because I had the bad habit of believing that any man who had sex with me before dating me only wanted my body and not my heart.
Bram didn’t fit the mold, not with his soft yet commanding way, especially not if he understood dynamics and such.
Shit. He was going to make me fall in love, I knew it.
Somehow I needed to hold onto my heart without giving it to him.
But with every step closer to my bedroom, my resolve shattered more and more.