Jake gave Allie a stiff smile. “Dek and I are partners in a private business.”
“Oh? What kind of business?”
“A private one,” Jake responded flatly, the hard edge indicating the conversation was closed.
Allie lifted her eyebrows and glanced at Cali. “Okay.” She took a drink of her wine and Jake watched her brow furrow behind the glass as she gave Dek a sidelong perusal. Clearly, she did not intend to let the subject drop forever.
Thankfully, or not, Edith arrived at that moment to drag them over to meet some more people. Like they hadn’t been paraded around enough already. “You have to meet Lacey and Paul,” she chattered. “This is their engagement party, after all. They are such a lovely, young couple. So in love. Have you ever been in love, Deklan?”
The man in question choked on his beer. Jake helped him out, giving a few hard swats to the Dek’s back that earned him yet another death glare.
Jake positioned himself so he could continue to watch Cali. She’d turned away from them and pretended to listen to the nosy brunette. She gave an absent nod, but her eyes kept straying his way. Quick, circumspect glances that showed where her attention really was.
On him.
Right where he wanted it. He didn’t question why that please him so much. Not now. Not when one night with Ms. Reynolds was far from enough. No, he wouldn’t let her run again.
Excusing himself from the current conversation, Jake followed Cali as she moved to the buffet table and began consolidating food and cleaning away empty dishes. He brushed against her, an innocent glide of his arm along her back as he passed by on the way to the garbage can. She stilled for a second before continuing at her task.
Oh yes, the attraction was there. But then, he’d known that. The contact was a reminder to Cali.
He dropped his empty bottle into the recycle bin and turned to her. “Do you need some help?”
“No, thank you.” She kept her voice polite and her head down. “Please, go and enjoy yourself.”
“What if I’m not enjoying myself?”
She stopped and closed her eyes before straightening to look at him. Her smile was stiff, her eyes shuttered. “Then maybe you should leave.”
Jake leaned over, grabbed a stack of piled trash and spoke low. “Like you did on Friday?”
She winced and gave a quick scan around. “Don’t,” she said sharply. “This is my life. Please—” Her lips thinned and she appeared to struggle with the next words. “Please don’t mess with it.”
He tossed the trash in the garbage before giving her his full attention. “I have no intention of messing with your life.” He shoved his hands in his pockets to keep them from reaching out to her. To comfort her—a foreign thought in itself. “I only want to give you what you need.”
Her eyes searched his face, her tongue sweeping out to wet her lips. “I don’t need anything from you.”
Jake let his grin show. She really was an awful liar.
Cali looked around again then shoved past him to another table and efficiently collected empty plates and cups. Her hands stilled when he added a dirty napkin to her pile. “Why are you here? Are you following me?”
He chuckled. “No. I’m not following you. Deklan really does live here. He’s the third business partner in the club. The only one you hadn’t met. I was visiting when the lovely Edith insisted we join this little soiree.” He grabbed half of the collected trash and followed her over to the garbage, tossing his pile into the bin. “Are you running from me?”
“W-what?” she stammered as she grabbed a clean napkin and wiped off her hands. “Why would I do that?”
“Why indeed?” he answered, managing to inflect question and not the rising frustration he was feeling. “I’ll see you next weekend. Right, Cali?”
Her eyes widened, the shock and desire displayed before the doubt and recriminations pushed them out.
He stepped closer and pitched his voice low. Intimate. “No shame. You promised.”
She closed her eyes and shook her head. But she didn’t back away.
“Look at me.”
She complied immediately. Beautiful.
“When you come back, ask for me.” He had her full attention and she didn’t reject his assumption. “I’ll ensure you get what you want. Just like last time.” He turned and took a step away. “And Cali.” He waited until she met his gaze. “I know you want it.”
Her eyelids dropped in lust, or anger—he wasn’t certain, but he didn’t wait to find out. He strode across the courtyard to Deklan’s condo. There was no need to make polite small talk anymore. He’d achieved his goal, for better or worse.
Cali Reynolds would once again be his.
Chapter Eleven
She was crazy. Absolutely certifiable. She had to be, since she was waiting there. Again. What was she thinking, coming back to The Den?
Two weeks of bitter internal debate and more than a few pro and con lists later—ones where the cons heavily outweighed the pros—she found herself back where her body wanted to be, even if her mind said she shouldn’t.
It was a clear case of desire trumping logic.
No excuses.
She simply couldn’t stop thinking about the way Jake had made her feel. Of how much she wanted to feel that again. With him.
The music thumped hard and loud through the large main room. People were crammed into every corner, her small space next to the bar a coveted spot she’d scored only because the bouncer had escorted her there and told her to stay.
“Can I get you something, sweetheart?”
Cali turned to the bartender and gave a polite smile. “Just water, please.” She was afraid she’d immediately slam anything stronger, and liquor was something she didn’t need. Wanted, but didn’t need right now.
She thanked him when he set the glass on the bar then shifted her attention back to the room. She smoothed her hand down the side of her short dress, resisting the urge to give the hem a tug. Even in her sexiest, most revealing outfit, she felt seriously overdressed. And this was the room where nudity
wasn’t
allowed.
“You came.”
The statement was purred into her ear a half second before his warmth melted into her back. His arm moved possessively around her stomach and pulled her tight to his length. All of the stiffness and doubt drained from her as she relaxed within his strength. “Yes.”
Jake.
She knew it instinctively without turning to see him. His voice—low and commanding. His touch—strong and confident. His scent—clean and masculine. They were all programmed into her system. She didn’t try to mask her reaction. She was too committed now to act coy or disinterested.
The courtyard incident had shown her just how much she had to lose. Her being here was anything but a game. She definitely wasn’t going to pretend otherwise.
“Are we playing tonight, Cali?”
She swayed against him in time to the music, her ass rubbing his hardening erection. “Yes.”
Instantly she was flipped around, her front crushed against the solid wall of man who held her. She gasped in surprise before his fingers found her nipple and squeezed. Hard. This time she gasped in shock, her reflexes jerking her away from him, but his other arm held her tightly in place.
“I lead.” His steel eyes met hers. “Agreed?”
She stopped resisting as the pain shooting from her nipple morphed into an ache for more. “Yes, Jake.”
God, yes
. A small part of her railed against that answer. The part of her that was used to controlling everything. Of
having
to control everything. Women were supposed to want independence, not submission.
But Cali wanted more than anything to submit once again to this man. Master Jake.
“Come with me,” he said as he released her nipple. The blood rushed into the abused tip, making it throb, causing the other nipple to feel neglected. “Tonight you belong to me.”
And that was exactly what she both wanted and feared.
* * *
Jake didn’t mess with warm-ups tonight. He led Cali straight to the third-floor room he’d had on permanent reserve for the last two weeks.
The door to the private room had barely closed behind him before he had her pressed to it, his mouth crushing hers. She tasted so good, a flavor he now craved after years of denial. Her hands gripped his shoulders, her mouth opening wider as her tongue engaged his. He pushed his fingers through the curls of her hair and held her head still.
She moaned, turning soft and compliant against him. He yanked his lips from hers and stepped back while he still could. He took her hand and hauled her to the center of the room. Her small gasp let him know she’d examined the space.
She hesitated, her steps faltering slightly.
He faced her. “Rules, Cali.”
Her bottom lip was tucked between her teeth, but she nodded.
“Safe words. Tell them to me.”
She swallowed. “Red—stop, yellow—wait, green—go.”
“You’ll use them if needed.”
“Yes,” she whispered and looked down. Her hand flexed in his, the small twitch another giveaway to the nerves she tried to hide.
The two weeks he’d waited had only increased his longing to have her. Add to that the repeated digs both Seth and Deklan were giving him over his decision to leave, and his frustration was like a tangible, unreachable itch under his skin. It was like Cali had known the perfect way to get to him.
And no one got to him.
Tonight she would get what she wanted. His way.
Anticipation flooded his system, but he pulled it back. Banked it behind the hardened wall that gave him distance. The Dom had to be in full control tonight.
“Remove your clothes, Cali. And place them on the desk.” He pointed to a small bureau positioned next to the door before he stepped back, crossed his arms and waited.
She scanned the room and he watched her eyes track to the spanking bench on the right, the cross against the far wall, the swing hanging from the ceiling, then over to the open doors of the armoire displaying the array of whips, paddles, floggers and other equipment. Her cheeks paled then flushed. And still, she’d not moved to follow his order.
“I think—” she started.
He stepped forward and cupped the back of her neck, cutting off her words. He held her gaze, the green depths dark and frantic with need-laced fear. “Trust me. You did before.”
His breath stuck in his chest as the feelings flowed across her face. A quick shuffle of emotions he would have missed if his attention was not glued to her. He let his thumb caress the soft skin of her cheek and she pushed against his palm, seeking more.
“Yes, Jake,” she finally said. “I trust you.”
He exhaled, the relief an unexpected sensation. “Good.” He stepped back. “Now, your clothes, Cali. And no more hesitations.”
Chapter Twelve
Cali stared at the floor, the polished gleam of the hardwood highlighting the intricate patterns made by the grain. Nature’s art displayed at her feet.
The stupidity of her thoughts forced a smile across her lips. She really was losing it. The entire scenario had her feeling disjointed. As if the normal part of her, the part that was her for most of her life, was suddenly gone. In her place was this woman standing before a Dom in a BDSM club, waiting to get spanked or whipped or whatever this virtual stranger wanted to do to her.
And both her body and her mind ached for it.
Yes, the frank display of equipment initially startled her. There wasn’t a bed in this room. Not even a couch. And that made it real. This Scene was going to be very different from last time. She might be a little naïve, but she wasn’t stupid. He was out to prove something, only she wasn’t exactly sure what that was.
Yet, she still wanted it. Wanted Jake to lead her.
Control her.
Taking a deep breath, Cali raised her arms and pulled down the side zipper on her dress. The material loosened before she caught it and slid the dress down her legs. She resisted the urge to hide behind the garment as she folded it then moved to set it on the dresser he’d indicated. The dress hadn’t allowed for a bra, so all that remained were her skimpy lace underwear and heels.
She peered at him over her shoulder. “Everything?”
“Everything.”
Taking another fortifying breath, she slipped out of her shoes and slid her panties off. She willed herself not to blush. After all, he’d seen everything before. But this felt so much more exposed. She was clearly the vulnerable one here.
Exhaling, she pulled her shoulders back and moved to stand before him. Keeping her eyes on him, she slowly lowered herself to her knees and clasped her hands behind her back before she let her gaze fall to the floor.
His inhalation echoed through the room and made her flush with warmth. She hid her smile of pleasure behind the fall of her hair. If he thought he could throw her off by playing the hard-core Dom role, then she could reciprocate. She hadn’t spent hours researching this topic for nothing.
She might be the submissive, but she still had power. Pleasing him gave her that.
His fingers trailed through her hair as he moved around to stand behind her and straddle her legs. “That is beautiful, Cali.”
The caress of her name matched the subtle stroke of his finger along her jaw line, a line of heat following the touch and melting through her. Her breathing deepened and she fixated on that. On each breath as it pushed air through her lungs.
His deep voice was pitched low and washed over her from his position above and behind her, forcing her to focus on his words. “You will do exactly as I say tonight. No speaking unless I ask a direct question. Your orgasms are mine. You will not come unless I say you can.” His hand fisted in her hair, yanking her head back.
A startled gasp escaped as she stared up at him.
“Do you understand?”
His features were cut and hard on his face. His neck muscles stood out in tension as he waited for her answer. It was the reverence and passion she saw in his eyes that enabled her to answer.
“Yes, sir.” The soft reply was barely over a whisper but seemed to rock the otherwise quiet room.
She caught the slight flare of his nostrils before he released her hair and stepped away. She let her head drop forward as she held her breath and tried to slow her racing heart. His boots thumped across the wood to the armoire. She closed her eyes and focus inward, but he was back before she could catalogue her thoughts.
“Stand.”
She responded, rising swiftly if not smoothly to her feet before she even realized what she was doing. His pleased smile stifled her mental objection and warmed her.
“This way,” he said, pivoting to stride to the spanking bench. “You responded to the sight of this last time. Tonight, we’ll see how you respond to the act.”
Cali swallowed, her throat seemingly starved for moisture. Unable to rub her damp palms against the material of her dress, she kept them clenched behind her and walked to the bench. The piece of equipment was mounted on a platform that raised it about three feet off the ground. It took only a quick calculation to realize the added height provided better access. For the Dom.
The understanding brought another flush of arousal. She bit her lip to hold back the sound that wanted to escape. He couldn’t see that her stomach was tied in knots or that her heart thundered in her chest. No, she wouldn’t let him know exactly how terrified and excited she was.
But he could see her tight, pointed nipples. He stepped close and rubbed his palms over the aching nubs. He bent and sucked first one then the other into his hot mouth—a quick, teasing action that made her legs weak and her nipples impossibly hard.
“I’ll take care of these soon,” Jake said, stepping back and positioning her until she was kneeling on the thick pad of the bench. “Lay forward and grab the handles below.”
This was it. Her mind tried to rebel one last time before she stretched out on the thin padded bench extended before her. Jake adjusted her, spreading her legs, scooting her bottom back until her ass hung off the end and she felt completely exposed. He strapped the padded cuffs attached to the bars around her wrists and ankles, trapping her to the bench.
Locking her in place—for him.
Her legs quivered, a quick flash of heated desire that shocked her with its intensity from something so simple. Did that make her a freak? She turned her head to the side and tried to quiet her nerves, to focus on how the leather bench was cool and smooth against her front. And how the soft fur lining of the cuffs felt too kind for their purpose.
“One more thing, Cali,” Jake said, kneeling beside her. He smoothed her hair away from her face so she could see. In his hand was a set of nipple clamps attached with a chain like she’d seen on the woman on the St. Andrew’s Cross.
She inhaled, the distinctive smell of the leather bench rushing up to distract her from the increasing tangle of fear and anticipation warring within her.
The bench she lay on was just wide enough to support her torso but thin enough that her breasts hung over each edge, making her nipples easily accessible to Jake. He reached for her breast and she closed her eyes. She bit her tongue and resisted flinching when his fingers plucked at the tip. He played with it for a moment, urging the flesh to pucker and bud even tighter until she felt a moan rising in her throat.
The metal was warmed from his hands and the bite instantaneous. She hissed and tensed at the sudden pressure and shot of pain radiating from her nipple. Her hand jerked in an attempt to remove the offending object, but it was halted by the cuff. She could do nothing but focus on the strange pinch and ache that was both painful and enticing.
She cried out when his fingers tugged on the other nipple. She’d been so intent on the new pain she hadn’t realized he’d moved. Soon, both clamps were in place and she groaned at the sheer unaccustomed ache spiraling from her nipples. She press her forehead into the leather padding on the bench, all of her attention forced to her breasts, making her forget about her earlier discomfort at being exposed.
“Beautiful,” Jake said in her ear. He tugged on the connecting chain, which pulled on both nipples and made her groan again. “And this is only the start.”
Cali blinked her eyes open and panted in an attempt to catch her breath. The throbbing eased some, but the rest of her body was completely sensitized. The air brushed against her open pussy, reminding her she was spread open to him and wet.
More than that, she realized she was aching for more. The lower half of her body felt neglected and ignored. She wiggled on the bench, swaying her bottom into the air.
Jake chuckled, a low, sensuous rumble before the sharp slap of his hand bit against her ass. The smack of skin against skin masked her cry of surprise.
“You’ll wait for me, Cali.” Another slap on the other cheek, and the stinging burn fired across her skin, merging to spread down her ass toward her pussy. “Hold still.”
Cali complied. Rationally she knew she should be fighting this. Resisting, using her safe word, running the hell away. But the other her was marveling in the burn as the pain blended with excitement and warmed her entire body.
“I’m going to spank you now.” His hand caressed her ass where he’d just hit her. “I want you to count them. Out loud.”
Count? Right. She licked her lips and forced out a, “Yes, sir.”
“Jake.”
“What?” Her mind tried to process what he meant.
“Yes, Jake,” he said.
Her thoughts were too jumbled to understand the difference, but she repeated his command. “Yes, Jake.”
She swore she heard him growl, but then all her focus went to the sharp smack of his hand against her tender flesh. “One,” she remembered to say, even as his hand hit her again. Her eyes were closed now and she huffed out the next number. He alternated cheeks, hitting first one then the other in a consistent rhythm that had her anticipating when and where the next strike would come.
Her muscles relaxed, her death grip on the handles eased and slowly she floated into the act, giving herself to Jake.
The counting kept her focused, the stinging pain kept her there. But even as the burn built with each slap of Jake’s hand, the heat spread downward along her pussy in a completely unexpected way until she found herself lifting her ass to meet his hand. Her breathing was labored, each number becoming more forced and breathy as she continued to count.
“That’s it,” Jake said, pausing to caress her burning cheeks. The light touch ignited flames across her sensitive nerve endings. “What number are we on?”
God
. She couldn’t think. Her brain fuddled to remember, but her mind could only process how she felt. On the strange blend of pleasure and pain that flew from her nipples to her ass to her now wet and needy pussy.
“Cali.” Jake’s sharp command drew her back. He’d asked a question. She was supposed to answer.
“Sixteen,” she mumbled, hoping it was right.
“Wrong.” The censure in his voice was emphasized by the hard thrust of his fingers in her aching sex.
She gasped—the intrusion was sudden and felt so incredibly good. But then it was gone. Like his mouth on her nipples, it was only a tease. The whimper that left her mouth was a sound she couldn’t remember ever making before. She pushed her bottom back as far as her bonds would let her, a silent plea for more.
After a moment of nothing, no words or touch from Jake, Cali angled her head to look at him over her shoulder. His hard gaze caressed her as completely and thoroughly as if he’d run his hands over her. Her body tingled and ached until she gave in and said the words now screaming in her mind. “Please, Jake. Please, touch me.”
A scowl marred the smooth lines of his forehead before he answered. “You owe me ten more for losing count.”
A shudder wracked her body. She had no idea if it was in anticipation or fear. “I...I don’t know if I can,” she finally managed to say.
Then he was there. Tight against her legs, his big palms rubbing over her flaming skin. “You can.” One hand moved between her legs to tease her clitoris. The touch, as light as it was, shot sharp waves of pleasure through her body, making her hands clench and her toes curl. She strained against her bonds, tense and ready to come.
And he was gone.
She collapsed against the bench, every muscle weak from unfulfilled release. Never, in all her fantasies, did she ever expect this intense and complete loss of logical thought. Right then, she could only feel and would do anything to reach the end. Anything to please Jake and find that shattering fulfillment he dangled so elusively before her.
“Are you ready, Cali?”
No. Yes.
God
. She closed her eyes and whispered, “Yes, Jake.”
She stiffened once again in expectation of the coming strike. He surprised her when he crouched next to her, pushing her tousled hair off her face. Her eyes flew open and her lips parted in a silent gasp. Then his mouth was on hers. All hot, probing and commanding as he controlled the kiss the way he controlled her body.
His tongue battled with her own, and she leaned toward him as much as the restraints would allow. She wanted to touch him. To feel his skin beneath her hands and against her body. He withdrew and she tried to follow until she was unbalanced and tilting precariously on the bench.
“Stop.” His hand on her back halted her movement and he repositioned her until she was safe from sliding off the edge. The leather was slick and sticky beneath her, which she only now noticed. Like the cool air brushing over her heated skin and the musky scent of sex and arousal hanging heavy around them.
Jake stepped behind her. “Ten more.”
Crack.
The pain seemed to ricochet through her an instant before the sound rang in her ears.
Crack.
The heat raced over her skin and fired down to her aching, wanting pussy.
Crack.
She squirmed on the bench, unsure if she was trying to get away or get closer.
“Let go, Cali.” Jake’s word came to her in a fog, distant yet clear. “Don’t fight it. Let it take you.”
Let it take her.
“Stop resisting. You’re thinking too much. Let go. Feel.”
Thinking? She
couldn’t
think—that was the problem.
Crack.
Damn
. Her body was alight with sensation. Every nerve ending, from her throbbing nipples to her aching ass, quivered.
Crack.
It hurt
. She couldn’t do it. She bit her lip to hold back the whimper.
Crack. Crack.
She cried out, the release of sound like a valve on a tea kettle. Her body flew, her mind blanked and she floated.
Crack.
She drifted, the pain obliterated in the quiet plane of her mind.
Crack.
The nipple clamps were suddenly removed and she arched against the instant throb in each tip as the blood rushed into the swollen buds. Before she could think—
Crack.
A hard smack directly to her tender, exposed pussy. Fire—hot, threatening, inviting, chased her to the edge until she panted in desperate need.