Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Nineteen
Gregorio shrugged. “Security cameras, Milady.”
Her heart thundering at double time, she swung around to look at Damien. “It was a joke,” she swore, silently imploring him to understand. “Since Gregorio is a switch… I’m babbling.”
“Go on.”
“I was telling him about my frustrations over the last few days.” She dropped her gaze. “Sorry if I was out of line.”
“You’re an adult, Milady. You can discuss anything you want with anyone you wish. I’d like it if you would come to me.”
“After lunch, I tried.”
“So you’re complaining to Gregorio you’re sexually frustrated because I wouldn’t get you off upstairs?”
“God.No.” Exasperated, she stood and took a step toward him. “It’s about me. My confusion.”
“Fears?”
“Yes.”
“I’m glad you talked to Gregorio. And I want you to know that I’m available to listen, too. I may be a caveman, but if you whack me up the side of the head, you can get my attention.” He took the final step that would bring them within inches of each other then he took hold of her upper arms with the reassuring gentleness that could only come from such strength. “I have broad shoulders, Milady. To help carry whatever troubles you have.”
“That’s what I told her.”
“You…” He addressed Gregorio over his shoulder. “I thought we had a one o’clock meeting?”
“I’m here, Boss.”
Damien jerked his head toward the back stairs.
“Oh. Right. I’ll be waiting in your office.” He picked up his coffee cup then headed up.
“To be fair,” she said when they were alone, “Gregorio did tell me to talk to you.”
“I believe him. And you. As long as you’re here as my sub, you scene with no man but me. I was clear about that.”
“You were.”
“If that’s not acceptable, we can discuss it. But you’re not free to scene with others without first seeking permission.”
“Were you listening, Damien? It was a joke.” Her voice was higher pitched than normal, and she closed her eyes to get hold of her fraying temper. When she did, she hit them both with the raw truth. “I don’t want to be with anyone but you.”
“Good.” He loosened his grip and made tiny circles with his fingers. “I appreciate you saying so.” He dragged her onto her toes. “We have a lot to talk about tonight.”
“Yes,” she agreed. “We do.”
He eased her toward him, and his thick cock pressed against her.
“What about the security cameras?” she reminded him.
“There’s no volume unless I turn it up.”
“But we are providing a peep show for Gregorio.”
“If he knows what’s fucking good for him, he won’t be watching.”
“Still…”
“Come here.”
He led her into the powder room.
“A clandestine meeting, Damien?”
He spun her around so fast her breath whooshed out. She desperately pushed her hands flat against the wall as he lifted her skirt and blasted her with five hot slaps on her rear. Then he yanked aside her thong and masturbated her until she screamed out an orgasm and collapsed in a sobbing heap.
It hadn’t taken him thirty seconds to give her the relief she’d all-but begged for.
His motions now tender, he turned her back to him and held her tight against his chest. In his arms, she shook. Damien didn’t let her go until she found the wherewithal to push him away.
“I needed that,” she admitted.
“I know.” He took a washcloth from a drawer and daubed her face. “Better, Milady?”
“Much.” She offered a half smile. “Thank you.” But she was lying. And she wondered if he knew it.
“This isn’t finished.”
She nodded.
Then, more conflicted than ever, she followed him from the room.
The restless energy that had been churning all day worsened during the afternoon. The scene with Damien should have soothed her, but it didn’t. In fact, it contributed to her cauldron of angst.
She craved his touch, didn’t want their temporary relationship to end, couldn’t figure out a way for it to last. The more often they scened, the deeper she cared for him. The more they shared, the more she ached to share.
Trying to work was impossible, and being separated from him and Gregorio by only a glass partition was torture.
Unable to concentrate, restless, she went into the suite and grabbed her coat from the closet. “I’m going for a walk,” she told Damien.
“Would you like me to go with you?”
“No problem,” Gregorio said, pushing back his chair. “We can finish up at a more convenient time.”
“Thanks, but I’d rather be alone.”
“I don’t like this.” Damien folded his arms across his chest.
“I’ll stay close.”
“Take your phone.”
Since arguing might get her confined to the house, she nodded.
Even though she walked for less than an hour, her toes had turned numb in her boots, and her fingers were frozen even though she’d kept them in her pockets.
She was grateful her hair covered her ears. As it was, the wind had seemed to gnaw on the lobes.
Frustratingly, the physical exercise had done little to relieve her tension.
When she entered the main kitchen, Damien was standing in front of the stove, whisking something in a pan. “Right on time,” he said.
“Security cameras?” she guessed. “That’s how you knew I was on my way back. You were watching me?”
“You were always in my sight.”
“I don’t know whether to be relieved or freaked out.”
“Grateful,” he suggested. “If you’d had any troubles, I’d have found you. And I knew when to have the hot chocolate ready.”
“Hot chocolate?” She stamped the snow off her feet, hung up her coat then wandered across the room. “With milk?”
“Of course.”
She glanced around. “Where’s the little packages?”
“I’m insulted,” he said.
“Why?”
“It’s homemade. Milk, cocoa powder, sugar, a pinch of salt.”
“No packages?” she asked again.
“No packages,” he confirmed.
“Homemade?” she repeated.
“With whole milk.”
Little things like this were why she was falling for him. “I’m salivating.”
“Have a seat at the table. I’ll bring you a mug.”
“Is Gregorio gone?”
“Yes. You’re alone with me.” He filled two mugs.
Catrina took a chair. “You didn’t have to do this,” she said as he slid a yellow ceramic mug in front of her. Gratefully, she wrapped her cold hands around it and lifted it close to her face. “But I’m glad you did. It smells divine.” She breathed in the rich, chocolate scent. “Thank you.”
“A Dom takes care of his sub, always.”
She looked up at him. He’d remained standing.
“It’s a responsibility I take seriously.”
When she didn’t respond, he added, “One I’m honored to have.”
Again, he’d taught her a lesson. Being a Dominant was about more than meeting someone’s physical needs. Emotions and feelings could create a ball of complication that took time and energy to work through. And he not only seemed to feel obligated, but also compelled to untangle the mess. No relationship with a man, ever, had coaxed her to commit to that type of energy.
“More than that, it’s how a man takes care of his woman.”
Breath left her lungs. Until now, until him, that hadn’t been her experience with any man in her life, even her own father.
Because she was flustered, she settled and changed the subject. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your afternoon’s work,” she said.
He took a chair, turned it backward and straddled it as he faced her. “The schedule can be rearranged. Whatever is bothering you needs to be discussed.”
She took a drink of her chocolate. “It’s amazing.” Rich and creamy, warming her from the inside.
“Talk to me,” he encouraged her.
“I’m sure Gregorio filled you in.”
“Not at all. This is between us, Milady. Gregorio is loyal to a fault. To you, as well as me.”
“I don’t know what to say,” she admitted, repeatedly tracing the handle, stalling. “This…” She waved a hand. “Our time together has been so much more than I could have imagined. Thank you for it. You’re right. I’ll be a much better Domme. I guess part of me isn’t ready for it to be over.”
“We’re not done yet.”
“I know.” That frightened her the most. It was already becoming difficult to imagine life without him. And she was determined to be self-sufficient.
“I intend to have you in the dungeon tonight.”
“And we’ll have tomorrow night.”
When the Den was hosting an event.
And Saturday, she was leaving.
With a vice squeezing her heart, she told herself to enjoy the moment rather than living in the future.
“Would you like to go for an early dinner?”
“Do we have any leftovers? I think the hot chocolate has spoiled my appetite.” Either that, or her emotions had her stomach in knots.
“We can start our play earlier that way,” he said. “If you’re hungry afterward, we can go out to dinner then.”
The way he lowered his eyelids slightly as he looked at her and reached across to tuck the hair behind her ears made her thought process scramble.
Common sense urged her to run away, but a stronger compulsion forced her to stay.
Upstairs, in their private space, he warmed up food while she set the table.
They worked in tandem, already having learned to anticipate the other’s needs.
Generally the conversation flowed, but not now. He seemed to be giving her long spaces in case she wanted to fill the silence. Since she really didn’t know how to say what was on her mind, she remained silent and picked at her food, using the hot chocolate as an excuse to not eat.
When the kitchen was clean, he said, “Would you still like to meet downstairs? I’m happy to take you out, maybe to a movie? A nightclub? Bowling?”
She blinked. “Bowling?”
“Seeing if you were paying attention.”
“My average is ninety-nine,” she said with a laugh. “So I only go with girlfriends and mainly for the beer.”
“We could stay up here if you prefer, talk.”
Suddenly that was the last thing she wanted to do “No.” She shook her head. “I’d prefer to play, if you would.”
“Ten minutes? Be naked, waiting on your knees in the third room on the left.”
She frowned. “That’s the one with the St. Andrew’s cross.”
“It is. You ever been on one?”
“Of course not.”
“Sublime experience. You’ll enjoy it.”
The idea of being spread wide and attached to the wooden structure shaped like an X sent a jolt through her. And if it hadn’t, the look on his face would have.
“Ticktock, Milady.”
She didn’t need to be told a second time.
Walking through the Den all by herself seemed strange. Without dozens of people around, the rooms appeared extra-large, and her footsteps echoed hollowly.
She descended the stairs and made her way to the room he’d indicated.
As she stood in front of the apparatus, anxiousness drifted away, leaving her oddly content.
When she’d arrived almost two weeks ago, his orders had made her nerves taut. Now they comforted her.
After taking off her clothes and folding them she knelt.
Then she listened for sounds of Damien’s approach.
Moments later, probably because of the home’s emptiness, the sound of his solid footfall reached her.
Drawing a breath, Catrina spread her knees apart and put her hands behind her neck. As he entered, she lowered her gaze to the floor.
“Damn it, Milady.” He balled his fist and cleared his throat. “You’ve pleased me.”
“Thank you, Damien.”
“At times like these, playing is difficult. I’d rather fuck you.”
Blinking at his honesty, she looked up. “That would be okay with me.”
“I want this for you. But I promise you, I’ll take you completely.”
Yes.
“Onto the cross.”
The structure seemed more imposing than it did when she affixed subs to it. “Which direction?” With her question, nerves unexpectedly skittered through her as she wondered what he had planned. So much for feeling settled.
“Facing me.”
She’d been afraid of that.
He made quick work of securing her wrists and ankles.
“I’m going to introduce you to the crop.”
“Good thing you tied me up before you said that.”
“Scared?” he asked, his voice terrifyingly soft.
“Should I be?”
“Yes.”
Her stomach dropped.
“You always have your safe word.”
Along with trust in him. Since they’d been together, he’d asked for a lot, but never too much.
Damien made a show of rolling back his cuffs.
Though she wanted to look away, she was transfixed, and she tracked his every motion as he crossed to the wall and selected a crop with a large flapper. “Looks painful.”
“Potentially, yes.”
“Could we trade it in for a flogger?”
“Have you ever used one of these on a sub’s testicles?”
“At his request. One time.”
“Then you should know what it feels like. How it can feel like a feather and how it can sear and how to mix it up for maximum effect.”
His words meant he planned to use the crop on her most delicate places.
Still across the room from her, he tested the length, sending it whistling through the air.
She gasped.
“I’ll start very softly. Then I’ll increase the intensity a slight bit, but on sensitive areas, I’ll be exceedingly controlled.”
Instinctively, she tightened her entire body.
“You’ll be able to take more than you might think.”
She scowled at the implement. “I’m not so sure about that.”
“Part of you is curious. Which is why you haven’t safe worded.”
“Doesn’t mean I won’t.”
“Fair statement.” He nodded in acknowledgment. “Shall we start with your pussy?”
Catrina licked her lower lip.
“Milady?” He laid the crop’s length against his calf. “Look at me. Not it. At me.”
His request was surprisingly difficult.
“When you’re ready, tell me to proceed.”
Being honest with him—with herself—instead of hiding behind a shield of bravado was one of the gutsiest things she’d ever done. “I’m nervous.”
“How can I help?”
“Kiss me?” Her words stunned her. She’d never made this kind of request for intimacy during a scene before.
His smile and murmur of pleasure came instantaneously.
Closing the distance between them, he wrapped his hand in her hair, then he tugged to angle her head back.
Damien gifted her with the gentlest of kisses. Then he pulled away, allowed her to catch her breath, then leaned in again. Over the course of a minute or more, he played with her, teasing, taking more, offering everything she could possibly want.
Forgetting her fear, she kissed him back, meeting the thrust of his tongue.
“Now open your mouth.”
When she did, he plundered the depths.
His kiss lasted forever, and with her surrender, she said the things she couldn’t out loud.
Eventually, when she was breathless, her thoughts scattered, he pulled back.
“Will you…” She couldn’t bear to be apart. “Will you fuck me after we’re done?”
“You can count on it, Milady. I’ve desired you all day.”
After pressing her lips together bravely, she nodded. “I’m ready.”
He ran his palm over the crown of her head. “You thrill me. Again and again.”
For his words of approval, she’d do anything.
After trailing his finger between her breasts, he moved away.
She arched her back.
His kiss had given her confidence, so much so that she was no longer shrinking in her bondage. Rather, she was anticipating the scene.
Very slowly, Damien approached. “Eyes on me.”
He trailed the leather flapper down her chest, between her breasts, then lower, over the slight swell of her stomach.
She tensed right before he landed the first tap.
When it was over, she exhaled. “That wasn’t what I expected.”
“Milady, perhaps one of these days, you’ll trust me.”
“I…” Exhaling, she admitted, “I kind of liked it.”
“That was my intention.” He grinned. “This little demonstration is meant to arouse you.”
“Do it again?”
Again and again, he did so, leaving her turned on, her entire body relaxed.
“Still doing okay?”
“Amazing.”
He brushed her nipples with the flapper until they each hardened. As he continued, he used more pressure.
She gasped. “Oh, Sir!”
“You like that, too?”
“Very much.” If she’d had any idea that having a crop used on her body could be like this…
“Ready for more?”
“I don’t know. Am I?”
He eased his fingers across her chest, tightening her nipples, and igniting a response. “Tell me if you’re not.”
But she was.
The strikes came faster, and he mixed it up, cropping her breasts, her belly, her pussy, her inner thighs.
She understood how it could be used differently to cause anguish, even damage, but in the hand of a master—like him—the toy was the ultimate seduction.
“Let go,” he instructed.
“I’m totally relaxed.”
“Almost,” he allowed. “But not quite.”
His crop seemed to be everywhere at once, licking, biting, caressing.
Surrendering, she closed her eyes and allowed her head to tip back.
From far away, his voice reached her, but she couldn’t make out the words.
Catrina’s body burned with the fire he stoked.
“That’s it, Milady.”
He blazed her pussy, and in response, she became damper.
“You’re getting closer. I smell your heat. If you can, give me your climax.”
That couldn’t be possible, yet she didn’t have the energy to argue with him.
Relentlessly, he used the flapper on her swollen breasts and nipples.
Her body jerked, and she screamed.
Her Dominant was ceaseless, dragging sensation from deeper than it had ever been before. “Damien? Damien!”
“Take it.” He continued to crop her inner thighs and pussy.
“I…” She couldn’t get there.
“What do you want?”
An orgasm. You.
She arched forward when he blazed a path up her inner thighs, the squared-off end of the flapper nipping at her swollen clit. “Damn it.”
“Tell me,” he encouraged.
His voice came from a long way off.
The whole time, he continued to work her body. There wasn’t an inch of her skin that didn’t zing with fever.
He went back to the gentle tapping on her pussy. After the recent blazes, this was maddeningly soft.
When she didn’t respond, he used the leather to brutally lick her labia.
Coming apart, she writhed.
The louder her cries, the harder his spanks. She yelled, tugged at her bonds, twisted her body. “I want to come! For the love of God… Damien!”
The crop crashed to the floor.
Thankfully, he slid his fingers inside her to press against her G-spot. “That’s it.” He forced the orgasm from her, and she sobbed, desperate, frantic, grateful.
“Now, Milady, the fucking.”
After undressing, he rolled a condom down his shaft. “On your tiptoes.”
With her fully secured to the cross, helpless to him, he drove his cock up inside her.
If she’d had any doubt before now, it was erased.
Damien had dominated her.
Thoroughly.
Completely.
Leaving her shattered.
And he still wasn’t finished with her…