Chapter 16
I let outa sigh as I watch Matthew put on his tie. We spent all morning cuddling in bed. We talked some, but mostly we just soaked up being in each other’s arms. Unfortunately, reality came knocking in the form of Kisten reminding Matthew of some important meetings he has this afternoon at the club.
“Are you sure you have to go?” I cringe at how needy I sound. I know he has to work, but the thought of being away from him for hours and hours feels ominous.
He looks at me through the reflection of the mirror he’s using to adjust his tie. Our eyes meet, and heat crackles between us. “Unfortunately, yes.”
I try really hard to put on a brave face. He’s reassured me multiple times that I’m not actually alone. Slade and Hannah will both be here. I would rather go to the club with Matthew, but he insists that I stay home and rest up.
Once he has his tie just so, he comes to where I’m sitting on the edge of the bed and bends to press his lips to mine. The kiss is brief but full of all the longing and desire he feels for me. “I’ll only be a few hours.”
I chew on my bottom lip, trying to hide the anxiety I’m feeling at being separated. Matthew pulls my abused lip from between my teeth and kisses it gently. “No need to tear up that sexy little lip of yours, sweetheart. I won’t be gone long, and when I get home, we will have dinner together.” His voice is like a loving caress across my frayed nerves.
“Will you have to go back tonight?”
“Yes, but tonight I want you with me.”
He lowers his forehead to mine. Our noses brush a moment before his lips find mine again. He kisses me slow and sweet. Slow and sweet doesn’t last long because when his tongue delves between my lips, I lose control. By the time he pulls away, I’m breathless and can’t remember why I was feeling so anxious.
“I really do need to go,” he murmurs against my lips.
“I know,” I breathe, my lips brushing his.
That’s all it takes for the heat between us to reignite. Matthew grasps both sides of my face in his hands and tips my head back, deepening the kiss. His lips are fierce on mine, and mine are just as hungry. I open for him without prompting, and then he’s really kissing me. Our tongues tangle and dance together as if we’ve spent years learning each other and not just a few short hours.
All thoughts fly out of my head as we lose ourselves to our body’s desires. I bury my hands in his perfectly styled hair, holding him to me. His hands move from my face, down my neck. My heart skips a beat when one of his big hands circles my throat, but the fear is cut short as his other hand cups my breast. His thumb sweeps over my nipple, and I moan at the unexpected pleasure. I never realized how sensitive my breasts are until Matthew’s touch. He swallows down my moans as he teases my nipple with his fingers.
His fingers flex around my throat, and for some reason, the slight restriction of my breath only adds to the inferno growing inside me. I’m ready to beg him for another release like he gave me earlier. A throat clearing from the doorway is like a bucket of ice water dumped over top of my desire. Even though Matthew’s big body is already between me and the door, I bury myself against him further, hiding.
Matthew’s hand runs soothingly down my back. “It’s just Kisten, sweetheart.”
Kisten clears his throat again, and I peek out from behind Matthew at him. He gives me a crooked smile, and I remind myself that Kisten is safe. That I’m safe here. There’s no reason to be scared anymore. “Sorry to interrupt, but if you want to make the meeting, we’ve got to head out.”
Matthew looks down at me and cups my cheek. “I have an idea. Why don’t you go shopping today and buy a few things? Slade can take you to the mall or wherever, and then tonight, when I get home, I’ll take you out to a proper dinner.”
“Like a date?” I cringe at the hopefulness.
He just smiles and kisses the tip of my nose. “Exactly like a date. I’d say we are about ten years late for our first date. Wouldn’t you?”
“Yeah… but…” I chew on my lip as I remember my circumstances and I’m filled with shame. “I can’t afford to go shopping.”
“Listen up, love, because I’m only going to say this once. You’re mine. That means everything that I have is yours.”
“I’ll pay you back,” I say resolutely. Anger flashes through his eyes. I use one of his own distraction techniques and kiss him lightly. “I appreciate everything, Matthew, but I don’t want to feel like a leech. If you don’t want me to pay you back with money, fine, but let me do something else to earn my way. I can cook or clean… or maybe do something at the club.”
“You don’t have to earn your way with me. I want to spoil you. You deserve to be spoiled,” Matthew says stubbornly.
“We will have to agree to disagree about that one, but it doesn’t change the fact that I won’t take advantage of you. I’ve been around those people all my life. I refuse to be that person.”
His brow is furrowed as he not only listens to my words but really hears what I’m saying. He sighs and shakes his head. “You win, but for the record, I’m only caving on this because you need it and not because I want you to pay me back. Everything I do for you is because you’re mine, and there will never be an expectation for repayment. I only want you to be happy.”
My answering smile is so wide my cheeks hurt. I can tell it nearly killed him to concede to my need to pay him back in some way, but he did it. I’m starting to believe that when he says he’ll do anything for me that it’s true. It’s a heady thing having such a powerful man standing at my back at the ready to do whatever it takes to ensure my happiness.
“Thank you, Matty. Feeling useful will make me happy. Promise.”
He presses a tender kiss to my smiling lips. “You’re welcome, love. Now I better go before Daniels gets his panties in a wad and comes back.”
I giggle at the idea that a manly man like Kisten Daniels would be wearing panties. “Hope your meetings go well.”
“Thank you, sweetheart. I’ll let Slade know that you’re going to need to do some shopping today. Hannah is in charge of all the household tasks. You can ask her if there’s anything she needs help with around here.”
I enjoy a nice shower after Matthew leaves. I’m still a little tender in a few places, but miraculously I feel almost good as new. I quickly realize there’s no way I can rub the salve on my back by myself. I do the best I can, but I know I’ve missed a lot of the worst spots on my upper back.
“Damn it,” I grumble to myself. I should’ve thought about that before I showered. Heck, I should have thought about that before leaving the clinic. There’s always been someone there to help me. Oh, well. Matthew can help me later. I change my focus to my tangled hair. Several minutes later, my hair is smooth and ready to be dried. I look through the cabinets and can’t find a hairdryer, so I decide to braid it instead.
I’m startled by a soft knock on the door. “Excuse me, Rose?” Hannah’s smoky, smooth voice floats through the door.
“Yes?”
The door cracks open, and Hannah peeks through. “Sorry to interrupt, but I just wanted to check and see if you need help with the salve after your shower.”
I feel a brief moment of embarrassment, but Hannah’s kind smile sets me at ease. “I would appreciate it.”
“It’s no trouble.”
We are both silent as she gently works the salve into my skin. When she’s done, she sets the cream aside and washes her hands.
“Thank you, Hannah. I really appreciate your help. Matthew said that I should speak with you about helping out with the chores or cooking.”
Hannah’s eyes grow wide. “That’s not necessary. You’re Matthew’s… guest.”
Something about the way she pauses before saying the word guest makes me think she was going to say something else and changed her mind. “I know it’s not necessary,” I say, rolling my eyes. “Matthew made that clear to me, but I insist on pulling my own weight. Besides, I’ll go crazy just sitting around waiting for him to come home.”
Hannah mulls it over for a while then nods. “Okay, I’ll find something to keep you busy. Now, let’s get your hair dry and get you dressed. We’re going shopping!” She has way more enthusiasm than I have for shopping.
She produces a blow dryer from the linen closet and directs me to a stool. “I can do it,” I say, reaching for the blow dryer.
Hannah tsks. “Let me. I love styling hair. I could even cut it if you want?”
I run my fingers through my long blonde hair and chew my lip. Do I want my hair cut? I can’t even remember the last time it was trimmed. “Um… maybe another time?”
She nods. “Yeah, we should definitely get permission from Matthew before we make any big changes.”
I bristle just a bit at her insinuating that I have to have permission for something as silly as a haircut, but then I wonder if that’s something all dominants would expect of their submissives. I mean, I know we haven’t discussed it, not really, but I want to be Matthew’s in all ways.
Hannah methodically dries my hair in sections, running the hairbrush through it over and over, following it with the dryer. The repetitive motion is relaxing. I don’t ever take so much care in drying my own hair. I turn the dryer up to high and get it done as fast as possible. When she’s finished, my hair hangs around my face in a shining golden curtain. I run my fingers through it, and my jaw drops at how soft and silky it feels.
“Wow! Thank you. I almost don’t recognize my own hair.”
Hannah blushes. “You’re welcome. If you want, I’d be happy to fix your hair before your dinner tonight. I can twist it up, or maybe put a few curls in it and give it a sexy beach look.”
I smile. “I would love that. I basically live in braids, ponytails, or I just let it do what it wants.”
A loud knock sounds on the door causing me to jump. Hannah rests her hand on my shoulder in reassurance. Slade’s voice booms through the door, and the tension leaks out of me. “Ladies, it’s time to go.”
“It gets better,” Hannah says quietly to me before telling Slade we are almost done.
Slade grumbles something about being called Master and pain in the ass women. Hannah has a Cheshire Cat grin on her face as she grabs a pretty white summer dress from the countertop. I quickly pull the dress on which fits surprisingly well.
“Oh good, it fits. The shoes might be a bit big, though.” Hannah kneels down and holds up a pretty gold sandal to my foot. I let her slide first one then the other on and look down to admire the shoes. They are a little big but are the nicest pair of shoes I’ve ever worn.
Hannah stands with a smile. “Let’s go shopping!”
“You’re way more enthusiastic about spending Matthew’s money than I am. I don’t have any idea where to even start.”
“Good thing I know exactly what you need.”
Hannah practically skips from the room with me dutifully following after. She walks right up to where Slade is standing and kneels at his feet. Slade grimaces like the show of submission physically hurts him. Hannah either doesn’t notice or ignores it. With reluctance, Slade sifts his fingers through Hannah’s hair.
“You’re killin’ me, little girl,” Slade murmurs to Hannah. I feel like an intruder in a very private moment.
“I’m sorry, Master,” Hannah answers.
Slade shakes his head, looking down at her with affection. “If only that were true.”
I can’t help but wonder about their relationship. After last night, I got the impression that Slade didn’t like Hannah very much, but looking at him now, I’d say he very much likes her. More than likes. In fact, he’s looking down at her the same way that Matthew looks at me.
The moment passes, and Slade offers Hannah a hand to help her to her feet. She stands with a contented sigh. Without a word, Slade leads us to the elevator. In the parking garage, Slade’s relaxed demeanor shifts and is replaced with the man I first met last night. He helps first Hannah, then me into the back of a big black SUV. Within moments we are out of the parking garage and into the bright light of the day heading towards my very first shopping spree.