Desert Surrender (4 page)

“So beautiful,” he whispered, his fingers tracing her slit. “Something tells me it won"t take much for you to come.”

He parted her lips, stroked his index finger over her clit, and pulled on her ring.

Clarissa soared, her orgasm rolling through her body rapidly. She braced one hand against the bar, the other still holding up the skirt as she bucked against his hand, trying to increase the pressure. “Yes. More please, more.”

He leaned forward and blew on her clit, his hot breath on her wet folds making her shiver. He tugged on the coin, and she came again, feeling as if she could melt right on the spot.

It took her a few moments to realize he was standing now, watching her intently.

“You"re very beautiful.” She dropped her skirt and wrapped her arms around her chest.

“Right. I know better.” What was wrong with her? She never felt this way after sex, never allowed this close contact. Of course they hadn"t really had sex, had they? He still had his clothes on, and he"d seen her half-naked.

“We"ll work on that.” He winked at her, and she smiled back.

“We will?”

“Oh yes. That and much more.” Their gazes locked, breaking only when the door to the room opened.

“There you are. What are you doing in here?”

“Henry, go away.” Heat flooded her as she realized what he would have seen if he"d opened the door just one minute earlier. “What are you doing here anyway?”

“I told your father I"d see you safely home. When you didn"t come back from the restroom, I got worried. Stuart said he saw you come in here.”

“Wonderful.”

Henry crossed the room, stuck out his hand. “Henry Isaacs. Clarissa"s fiancé.”

“Wrong.” She pushed Henry"s hand away before Maddox could take it. “You are not my fiancé.”

“I will be.”

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17

“Wrong again.” She cleared her throat, then stepped away from them. “I"m leaving. Maddox, would you escort me home?”

“That"s my intention, Clarissa.” Henry put his hand on her arm, and she shrugged him off.

“Go away, Henry. I"m not interested in you seeing me home, no matter what you said to my father. I"m a grown woman and can do as I please.”

She looped her arm through Maddox"s, and they started for the door. She wasn"t surprised when Henry didn"t say anything or call out for them to stop. If anything, he was as conscious of appearances as her parents and wouldn"t want to make a scene.

They stopped at the front to pick up her wrap, then stepped up to the taxi queue outside. Maddox opened the door to the first one, then helped her inside. He bent down to lean in when she was seated.

She stared at the card he produced. “What is that?”

“My phone number. Call me tomorrow.”

“What? You"re not coming home with me?”

“No, not tonight. I want you to—”

She shook her head violently. “Are you kidding me? You get me all worked up and then it"s good-bye? I don"t give a crap what you want. I want some sex. Now.”

“You just had an orgasm, if you remember. Tomorrow we can—”

“You know what, screw you.” She gave the driver her address. “It was fun. Good-bye.”

“Clarissa, listen to me—”

“No. You listen to me, you big ass.” She pulled on the door handle. “You"ve got about ten seconds to get away from this door before I slam it, and any body part of yours that is nearby gets caught in the action.”

He moved his fingers from the car door. “As you wish. We"ll talk later.”

She sneered at him. “Doubtful.”

He moved, and she pulled the door shut. Tears stung her eyes as the driver eased into the traffic. Damn men. She hated them. Hated them all and their overwhelming urge to try and tell her what to do. Even one she"d just met. She"d be damned if she"d be bossed around by him or anyone else.

“Maybe I should go back to being a lesbian.” She snorted. “With my luck, though, I"d find another woman who wanted to tell me what to do all the time.”

“What?” The driver glanced back at her.

“Nothing. Just drive.” She"d had such high hopes for tonight. At least she got two good orgasms out of him before she figured out Maddox Perry was a huge jerk. She shifted in her seat, then moaned when she realized the coin key chain was still attached to her clit ring.

“Great. A Las Vegas souvenir, and I didn"t have to make a trip there. Lucky me.”

18

Melinda Barron

Chapter Three

Clarissa slid the key ring over her index finger and let the coin drop down. It twirled slightly, then stilled, and she focused on it, once again questioning her sanity.

He rejected you, Clarissa. What are you doing here? He also gave me a fantastic orgasm and
made my fingers itch to touch him. Maybe I’m just a glutton for punishment and want to see
what he’ll do next. Or maybe…

“Can I get you a drink?” Clarissa lifted her gaze to the pretty cocktail waitress standing next to her. The blonde smiled, her blue eyes twinkling.

“Why not? How about a”—she paused in the act of ordering her usual gin and tonic, her mind going back to Maddox—“a butter baby. I don"t want just a shot. I want a full-size drink.”

“Excellent. I"ll be right back.” She bounced off, and Clarissa wondered briefly if she had springs in her shoes. Being happy and chipper probably meant she got better tips from the gamblers, but being on her feet for so long was tough. Not that this waitress showed any fatigue. She"d stopped at another table, laughing at something someone said.

The place was packed, and Clarissa thanked whatever forces governed the Moonglow reservations desk. She"d been able to walk in and find a room without a reservation. Even the clerk had seemed shocked when she"d announced a suite had come open at the last minute. When she"d quoted the price, Clarissa hadn"t blinked, simply handed her a gold card.

She"d been very impressed with the casino upon first inspection. The building itself was in the shape of a crescent, with fountains shaped like stars in the center.

Inside, everything was sleek and clean, decorated in black and glass. The furniture was all in black, sitting on beautiful cream-colored carpet. The walls were all mirrors. The outside wall of her room was full glass, leading to a balcony that gave a great view of the Las Vegas strip. Definitely prime real estate, proving her Internet search of Maddox Desert Surrender

19

Perry provided good information. He was loaded, which meant he wouldn"t be after her for her money. If he deigned to be after her at all, that is.

Clarissa glanced around the bar, wondering if she should go upstairs, collect her unpacked luggage, and get back on a plane to New York. After all, Maddox didn"t know she was coming, and she wasn"t sure of the reception she would get. She hadn"t exactly been pleasant to him last weekend.

She thought back to their encounter, to her mind-blowing orgasm and the ensuing interruption from Henry, then the horrible incident at the taxi stand. Then she"d come home to find a box of books all dealing with the subject of BDSM. There had been a handwritten note inside, telling her to call when ready.

There was no doubt the books had been sent before she"d called him an ass.
Not
just an ass, Clarissa, a big ass
. She stared at the coin, running her tongue over her lower lip. If she went to his office to say hello, he would probably tell her he didn"t need the aggravation and for her to pack up and go home. That idea was humiliating, even if she did deserve it.

“Here you go. Four dollars, please.” The waitress set down a tall glass full of light brown liquid, and Clarissa opened her purse, handed the woman a ten.

“Keep the change.”

The waitress"s eyes brightened even more. “Thanks. Been lucky, have you?”

Not yet
. “I just arrived, actually.”
Do you happen to know if your boss is in a good mood
today?

“Well, I hear the slots are paying out heavy today, and somebody hit it big at the wheel. Have a good time, and let me know if you need anything else.”

The blonde winked at her and bounced off to another table. Clarissa had no doubt she told customers that same information every day in an effort to get them to gamble.

From the bells and whistles filtering into the bar from the casino, there was no doubt the practiced ploy worked. Maybe she should find a slot machine, sit down, and play a little to calm her nerves. Or some blackjack might work too. She"d never been much for roulette after her disastrous try in Monte Carlo.

She took a sip from her drink and made an appreciative moan low in her throat.

Or maybe she"d just sit here and have a few more of these until she worked up the courage to go to Maddox"s office and apologize for her behavior.

What would he say? From the little she knew about him, it seemed he would accept her apology and then maybe take her over his knee and spank her. That could be fun. Lots of fun. Maybe he"d fuck her this time. She hoped so, because she"d dreamed of little else all week while she"d been reading the books he"d sent her.

Well, that wasn"t exactly true. She"d dreamed of lots of things, involving ropes and clamps, paddles and whips. They"d always ended in fucking, her bent over while he pounded into her. He always held a leash attached to a collar wrapped around her neck, holding it tight. Of course he"d used that same leash to whip her before he fucked her.

20

Melinda Barron

Clarissa shifted on her seat, her pussy tingling as she thought of the wonderfully nasty things she wanted Maddox to do to her, of the amazing orgasms those things would produce. She took another, longer, drink from her glass, then gasped slightly when the chair next to her was pulled out and a man sat down.

Her eyes widened as she focused on Maddox"s face, his expression unreadable.

“Surprise.” She laughed softly. “I—”

He held up a finger, shaking it back and forth. “You will remain silent until I address you.”

A week ago she would have told him to go to hell. Today, with the words from the books he"d sent still swirling in her mind and her clit pulsing at the sight of him, she clamped her mouth shut.

“Nicole.” He signaled for the waitress, who bounced over. “A club soda, please, and a deck of cards.”

“Yes, Mr. Perry.”

Clarissa watched her leave, then turned to Maddox. “How did you know I was…”

She closed her mouth again when he lifted an eyebrow at her. “Sorry.”

He nodded, then lifted her hand from the table. The key chain dangled down from her finger, and she swallowed hard as he looked first at it, then at her.

“I believe this belongs somewhere else.” Clarissa almost came on the spot as he fingered the coin. “Did your pussy grow tired of it?”

“No, I just…” Just what? She couldn"t think of an appropriate response, so she repeated the first thing she"d meant to ask him. “How did you know I was here? Did you just come to the bar and see me?”

“No, the staff told me.”

A feeling of dread snaked through her. He"d told his employees to be on the lookout for her? Maybe the suite had been waiting for her. Maybe he"d expected her to come. She wasn"t exactly sure how she felt about that.

“We keep a few suites open, for high rollers. When an unknown woman comes in without a reservation, lays down a gold card, and doesn"t bat an eye at the price of the room, the staff becomes a little suspicious. They think you"re either a whale that no one knows about or someone using a stolen credit card that just hasn"t been reported yet.

Either way, they contacted me.”

“They"re well trained.”

“Very.” He nodded as Nicole put down his drink and cards, then left after bestowing another wink on Clarissa.

“She"s very perky.”

“Yes, she is.” He unwrapped the cards, pulled them from the cardboard, and shuffled them between his fingers. She watched them carefully, wishing those fingers were on her clit, making her come as he"d done last weekend. “Go to the bathroom and put the coin on your clit ring, and don"t waste any time. We have things to do.”

Desert Surrender

21

She gave him a seductive smile. “Shouldn"t we go up to my room? Or your office?”

“Do as you"re told.” The dark tone of his voice made her body tingle, and she stood. “And Clarissa? Don"t come.”

She looked down to where he continued to move the cards between his hands.

“Are you kidding me? One tug on my ring to attach the coin, and I might just shoot off into the atmosphere like a rocket.”

“Don"t. Come. Now go.” He nodded his head in the direction of the far wall, and Clarissa didn"t hesitate. If she stood there much longer, she thought the look in his eyes might make her climax on the spot.

She found the bathrooms easily, grateful they were mostly empty. She took the stall against the wall, leaning against it as she locked the door. Her body pulsed with energy, and she wanted nothing more than to reach under the skirt of her sundress, tug her ring, and let her orgasm take over. She was determined, though, to do as he asked.

She waited a few minutes, hoping the danger would pass.

When the sensations of impending climax subsided, she bent at the waist, spread her legs slightly, and found her clit ring. She wasn"t wearing panties; she never did unless she wore pants. Her fingers fumbled with the hoop a few times, and the tingly feeling started to grow. She finally pushed the key chain onto the slave ring and wound it around, letting the coin fall into her folds.

She stood still, afraid if she moved, the feeling of the coin in her pussy, the slight pull on her ring, would make her come instantly. That was not what he wanted, although it would thrill her to death. What had the books said? A good sub only climaxes when her master allows it. And that"s what she wanted, right? To play submissive to his Dominant? That"s why she was here.