Hold My Hand

Paloma Beck

Aubrey has been
hurt in the past, discouraged and degraded by a heartless father.
Still, William sees something in her that won't allow him to walk
away. Instantly drawn to her but intuitive enough to take it
slowly, he courts her. Then he bargains, persuades and seduces
until he ensnares Aubrey with his commanding nature. Despite the
fight she puts up in accepting William's lifestyle, the bonds he
places on Aubrey give her a freedom she desperately needs. And
together, they heal old wounds and find their perfect
love.

This
contemporary BDSM-lite Romance contains explicit sex
scenes,

including consensual adult spanking.

Paloma Beck

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 Paloma Beck

The right of Paloma
Beck to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted
by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act
1988.

The story contained
within this book is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the
product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual
persons is entirely coincidental.

All rights
reserved. No part of this book may be copied, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the
written permission of the author. The only exception is for a
reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

Edited
by
Perk It Up Editing

Cover
Art
by
Erin Dameron-Hill Graphics

Trademark Notices

Diet Coke, Coca Cola
Company

Amazing Grace, John
Newton, published in 1779

Dedication

For Ducky. You Are
Perfect. To Me.

And for Bill, who
made me laugh when life wasn’t so funny.

Acknowledgements

An
author doesn’t write a book in isolation
. I’d be remiss not to acknowledge those who supported
me in my writing. First, to my book club whose friendships have
colored my world. To Tyra Berger, for her proofreading talents and
even more than that, for her intuitive suggestions that made the
story stronger. To Natasha Knight, for beta reading when I needed
new eyes to look at my characters and their story. To Joelle
Casteel whose insights grounded my characters with authentic
behavior.

A person
doesn’t live in isolation
. I’ve
been blessed with a supportive family. To my parents, especially my
father who taught me a love for reading through his example. To my
sisters Elaine and Linda who instilled in me a belief that I could
do anything. To my husband Michael for allowing me the freedom to
pursue my dream. And finally, love to my boys, for your indulgence
every moment I spent writing instead of mothering. You are my
reason.

Paloma Beck

http://PalomaBeck.weebly.com

He whispered, hold my
hand.

Late for work, I took
the corner to the coffee shop at a quick pace, too focused on my
phone call with my sister to notice the man walking out of the
coffee shop before I ran into him. The coffee he held in his hand
spilled down the front of his starched dress shirt but left me
completely untouched. I stuttered out an apology, blushing
furiously, offering to get him a new coffee, napkins, anything to
make this dreadful scene end.
You clumsy, stupid girl.

I knew him. He came into the
coffee shop –where I made his coffee- nearly every day. This moment
though was the first time I’d actually spoken to him beyond the
serving basics, but it was so not the first time I’d seen him. I’d
noticed him coming in and out of the coffee shop where I worked for
months. Sometimes he’d stay and read, always a classic novel that I
too had read in college. Mostly he just ordered his coffee –tall,
decaf, black– and be on his way. Even then, though, he always
watched me pour it, knowing I too was watching him through my
downcast eyes. I felt it even then that he was all knowing though
we’d never spoken. He’d only nodded his head at me as I handed him
his cup each day.

Today was different. His
kind eyes held a hint of irritation but also interest. We were
going to talk about something other than his coffee. I hoped my
voice wouldn’t fail me.

“Dinner.” It was just one
word but he needed to say no more. I understood and nodded my
agreement.

“Yes sir.” My answer
provided me with the first smile I’d seen on William’s face. It was
more a grin, a cat-catches-the-canary kind of grin that froze me in
place. Had I been more intuitive then, I would’ve known of the
things to come.

“Very good. Tonight. I’ll
come here to meet you at seven.”

He walked away from me then
with nothing more said. I froze, realizing that I’d agreed to have
dinner with this man I hardly knew and wasn’t certain I even liked.
To be honest, he frightened me a bit. To be even more honest, he
excited me a lot, the kind of excitement I’d never known. He
incited that warming feeling in my belly I was unaccustomed to
before him. He was dangerous and a girl like me should stay away
from a man like him. Nevertheless, I didn’t and now I couldn’t go
back on my word.

I turned to watch him get
into a dark vehicle. A large man closed his door behind him and
went around the driver’s door. Once he was seated, the car pulled
away. He had a personal driver. Who was this man?

My workday dragged on as I
tried hard to dismiss all thoughts of what was to come tonight. I’d
never gone out on a date with a man. In college, I preferred my
studies and the few times I did go out, I wouldn’t exactly call
those boys ‘men’. They certainly were nothing like William. Since
graduating, working at the coffee shop and writing my first novel
consumed my time. Truthfully, I’d never been very interested in
dating. I’d left behind one terrible man –my father– and didn’t
need to have a man in my life. Oh, they attracted me; don’t get me
wrong. I read tempting historical romances all the time but men
weren’t something I wanted in my life. I’m not sure men like that
–the kind of man I wanted- existed in this time so I lived a quiet,
solitary life that kept me happy enough.

*****

That night, true to his
word, William entered the coffee shop at exactly seven. His car
waited outside. He was dressed impeccably as always and instantly
commanded the space as he entered. My breath stuttered as I looked
my fill before instinctively lowering my lashes. I was grateful I’d
gone home to put on a skirt. It was simple and not nearly as
elegant as the clothes he wore. I could never match his caliber but
at least I no longer bore the stained jeans of my workday.

He stepped right to me
where I stood near the counter talking to Gabby. She worked the
night shift and was the closest person I had to a friend. “Aubrey,
you look lovely.” Taking me by surprise, he used his forefinger to
raise my chin and force my gaze to meet his. “I’ve never seen you
in a dress. It serves you well.”

My mouth suddenly dry,
I swallowed down the lump of panic rising in my stomach as my heart
rate accelerated. “Thank you.” Something to his touch caused me to
come undone as if William were too much, too great for me. After
all, I’m just Aubrey, no one special.

“Shall we go?” William
offered his arm to me and I was willingly captured. My random
thoughts fluttered away. My body pulled flush against his side as
we walked out of the shop and into the warm evening air.

“Ma’am,” his driver gave a
slight nod of the head as he opened the door and gestured for me to
enter. I did so without a sound. To say I was overwhelmed was an
understatement.

“
Do you care for
steak? You eat meat, my sweet Aubrey?” He referred to me as
his
- clearly, this was just how he spoke. Still my heart
thundered and I was sure he could hear it. It made no difference
because he must already know what he did to me.

“Yes sir.” My answer brought
about that grin again, an amazing smile that both warmed and
terrified me because the fleeting thought that I’d do anything for
that smile rushed through me. I was caged by him like a bird with
clipped wings. I could flutter but I couldn’t escape though I’m not
certain I’d want to even if I could.

“Wonderful,” he answered
with a twitch on his lips and a glint in his eyes, “My close friend
owns a restaurant just a few blocks away. I’ve reserved us a
table.”

“That sounds nice.” I’m
nearly certain that’s what I said though with my head spinning, I
couldn’t be positive. The heady scent of William surrounded me as I
sat in his car so close to this man I hardly knew. It was warm and
delicious, the scent so masculine, a dense musk causing a haze to
fill every fiber of air I breathed. I allowed silent minutes to
tick by, wishing he’d say something and, at the same time, scared
of what he might say.

When I looked at him, he was
smiling at me with one side of his mouth quirked up and his
eyebrows drawn down over his eyes as if he was puzzling me out. I
felt the same way. I wanted to know him, who he was and what he
wanted with me. I wanted a closer look into this man I’d allowed
myself to fantasize over for months.

The restaurant wasn’t far
and we were there before the silence became awkward. As we got out
of the car, William told Baylor, his driver, not to wait for us.
Baylor smiled at me, nodded his head and returned to the car. I
couldn’t imagine life with a driver and wondered what William’s
life must be like. It must be so different from mine and again I
couldn’t grasp why he’d asked me to dinner.

We were seated immediately
as we buzzed past a line of people waiting. Our table was small, in
a corner and I noticed right away how private the space was. No one
passed us but a single waiter who came to turn down the linen and
flip our glasses. There was too much silence but I had no fitting
words to offer. I wasn’t used to being with a man, or on a date. In
fact, the scene was so surreal that I nearly felt as if I were
watching myself through a photographer’s lens. This couldn’t be
me.

“I’m pleased you agreed to
dinner.” His words washed over me.

“I don’t understand why.”
The words escaped my lips and there was no way for me to harness
them before William let out a hearty laugh. He was amused by me, by
my insecurity, and I blushed, the scarlet red of uncertainty stole
across my cheeks.

“Aubrey, you underestimate
yourself. And I plan to teach you otherwise.”

“You plan to teach me?” He
threw me with his assertion and I looked towards him though I still
had trouble making eye contact.

“My sweet Aubrey,” his hand
cupped my jaw, his thumb stroked my cheek and his mouth so close
that I felt the words more than heard them, “I’ve watched you for a
very long time now. And in this time, I’ve come to discover just as
I first suspected. We are perfect for one another.”

I gasped and he just smiled.
Then he chuckled before placing a warm kiss on the tender spot
beneath my ear where his words had been only moments before.
Suddenly there was nothing but us, nothing but a warmth in my
stomach that I didn’t understand. I shivered and chuckled. Then in
a reprieve, he moved back as the waiter arrived with wine.

I observed him, again from
under lowered lashes as the waiter poured some into William’s glass
and waited for him to taste it. When William nodded, the waiter
filled his glass and then began to fill mine.

“No thank you. I don’t
drink.” I’d been speaking – I was sure because I could hear the
words but the waiter looked only to William who shook his head. The
waiter filled my glass and left. The bottle was on the table and
sat between us as another example of our different lifestyles. It
gave me something to look at, a distraction of sorts, as
hummingbirds took flight in my stomach.

“
You’ll enjoy this. I
promise you.” William sipped from his glass but I still didn’t pick
mine up. He watched me, evaluating me, assessing me. I was a bug
under a microscope and I began to squirm. I had never liked to be
in the spotlight. Attention had never been gracious with me.
You worthless
tramp.

“Don’t fidget. It’s
unbecoming.” William stated a fact and I obeyed. My squirming
ceased and he smiled. I’d earned his smile. Relieved, I returned
the smile with one of my own.

William reached across to my
wine glass and brought it towards me. “Taste and see,” he said
softly again close to my ear.