Sweet Persuasion (31 page)

He was making it real. Fear raced up her spine. Fear and uncertainty. He was changing the rules and the parameters. How could he expect her to embrace his reality and then turn away? God, she didn’t need it to be more real between her and Damon. If anything she needed the protection that fantasy and escapism offered. There was no chance of her losing her way when things weren’t in reach.

But to expect her to interact with him as if they had a chance, as if things were normal . . . it was the height of cruelty.

Her head spun as panic and distress tightened every muscle. She couldn’t attend as his date, some woman he had a relationship with. No, if she attended, it would be as his slave. There would be no breaching the walls of her carefully constructed fantasy.

CHAPTER 29

D
amon returned to the living room after taking several moments to collect himself. He’d been distracted the entire time he was entertaining his guests because he’d been worried about Serena. There were only so many times he could excuse himself to use his cell phone before it went from an inconvenience to outright rudeness.

When he’d heard her drive up, his relief had made him weak in the knees. That pissed him off almost as much as her thoughtlessness. And then he’d seen her pale face and enormous blue eyes, seen the fatigue lurking in the shadows. She’d said the words every man dreaded hearing. She’d been thinking.

He’d worried about her first day outside the fantasy they’d built in the week they’d been together, and rightly so. She’d already started pulling away, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

He tuned in to the conversation as two of the waiters he’d hired for the evening made rounds with trays of hors d’oeuvres and wine. The piano music, usually something he enjoyed, tinkled like broken glass on his nerves.

Part of him wanted to punish Serena for the worry she’d caused him. For a moment he’d considered telling her to undress and come to him nude with only the jewelry he’d given her adorning her skin. None of his guests would be shocked or surprised.

But he wouldn’t embarrass her, had sworn that he’d never do anything to purposely humiliate her, and he damn sure wasn’t into retaliation.

No, he’d deal with her punishment later. If she balked, if she said no, then it would end sooner than expected but the result would be the same whether now or three weeks from now. He couldn’t keep her forever, and the haunted look on her face when she came to his door further drove that point home.

A chuckle echoed over the room, and Damon looked up to see the source of his guest’s amusement. He stiffened when he saw Serena standing in the doorway, not a stitch of clothing on her gorgeous body.

She stared defiantly at him, her eyes glittering with challenge. Not responding to the obvious bait, he set his glass of wine aside and ignored her for a moment while he finished the conversation he was involved in.

He kept tabs on her from the corner of his eye. She stood quietly, but the longer she stood, the more ill at ease she became. When he was convinced she was about to turn and walk back out, he started across the room, his pace unhurried, his expression purposely unreadable.

“Serena,” he said as he came abreast of her. “So glad you could make it. Everyone has been eager to meet you.”

She glanced sharply up at him then twisted her hands nervously in front of her. An impulse decision she was already regretting, by the looks of things. He’d already tried to make things easy for her. He wouldn’t do anything more.

“Come,” he said, taking her arm. As they walked toward the people gathered, he leaned down to whisper close to her ear. “That’s two punishments I owe you now. One for your inconsid eration and one for your blatant disobedience.”

Conversation ceased as everyone looked openly at him and Serena. Warm smiles framed his friends’ faces, but it was for a fraud. They were glad for him when they shouldn’t be. They thought he’d finally found a woman willing to commit herself wholly to him.

He introduced her around, and Serena’s growing confusion was a tangible thing. Her brow creased, and it was obvious the smile she’d pasted on her lips was dangling precariously.

“Congratulations, Damon,” Robbie offered as they approached one of his oldest friends. “Your woman is quite beautiful. You’re lucky to own her.”

Serena glanced back and forth between Robbie and Damon, her lips pursed. Then her gaze settled on the woman standing quietly by Robbie’s side, and Damon saw the instant that understanding flashed.

She tensed and color swept up her neck and into her cheeks. Her mouth tightened and tears crowded her eyes. Damon didn’t give her an opportunity to do much with the realization. Instead, he ushered her onward. She wasn’t going to be thrilled when they came to the next person in line to be introduced. They already were acquainted. But she’d made her choice, and she’d have to live with the consequences.

As they walked toward the window where two men stood, one turned, and he felt Serena go rigid beside him.

“Micah,” Damon said calmly. “I’d like you to meet Serena. I understand the two of you are already acquainted. Serena, you know Micah Hudson. He’s a good friend of mine.”

Micah flashed a smile at Serena and raised an eyebrow as his gaze swept over Serena’s naked body.

Damon bent low so that his lips were a mere centimeter from her ear. His hand curled tightly around her arm even as his finger brushed across the band.

“I would have spared you this discomfort,” he murmured. “You brought this on yourself by thinking to embarrass me in front of my guests. No one will blink an eye over your nudity. Every man here with the exception of Micah is accompanied by his slave. So you see, Serena mine, you’ve only succeeded in shaming yourself.”

She trembled in his grip but nodded once in acknowledgment of his words. She gave Micah a quivery smile even as her chin jutted upward as she gathered her tattered pride around her.

“Of course I remember Micah,” she said quietly.

“Serena, I must say you look lovely tonight,” Micah said. “Damon is a lucky bastard.”

“I like to think so,” Damon said in a low voice.

He glanced sideways at Serena to see that she still held herself stiffly, her expression shuttered. She wasn’t going to give an inch, but then neither was he. Better to confront the issue here and now because he wasn’t going to waste the next three weeks building a dream with borrowed nails.

He straightened and looked at Micah. “Since you’re the only one here tonight without a slave, I’d appreciate it if you would assist in the discipline of mine.”

“What?” Serena spit out.

He turned and pinned her with his stare. “Care to make it three, Serena mine?”

Her lips clamped shut, but he could see her itching to say it, to blurt it out, to end it here and now. And so he waited. Expecting it.

To his surprise, her shoulders lost some of their rigidity. She closed her eyes and lowered her head.

“Serena?” Micah asked.

She slowly raised her head to look at him.

“Are you okay with this?” Micah asked gently. “All of this, I mean?”

Damon didn’t take exception to the question or to Micah infringing on his relationship with Serena. Micah loved women. Period. He was protective of them, flirted endlessly with them, but at the end of the day, he’d take on just about anyone who was taking advantage of a woman. And right now, it was a question that Damon very much wanted the answer to himself.

“I hurt Damon,” she said in a clear voice. “I was thoughtless when he’s been nothing but considerate. And then when confronted by my actions, in my anger I tried to embarrass him. I accept his punishment.”

“Even not knowing what it is?” Micah persisted.

“He won’t hurt me,” she said. The utter conviction in her voice carried across the room, and there were several nods of approval from his friends.

Micah glanced back up at Damon, evidently satisfied that Serena was acting of her own volition and didn’t need saving. Damon’s lips twitched with amusement.

“Would you have fought me if she’d said she was here against her will?” he asked Micah.

“Damn straight,” Micah said with a chuckle. “If only so I could be the hero and carry her off into the sunset.”

Damon turned formally to Serena and stared at her without emotion or inflection. “You’ve earned two punishments. One I will administer now in the presence of the people you’ve tried to offend. The other, which is for your lack of consideration for me, will be administered in private.”

She faced him calmly and nodded her acceptance, but he could see her body trembling and the whiteness of her knuckles as she curled her fingers into tight fists.

“Follow me,” he ordered as he started for the center of the room.

He motioned for Robbie to press the button that would drop the restraints from the ceiling. Serena’s eyes widened when she saw the two individually suspended cuffs slowly descend.

When they were low enough, he took Serena’s wrists and secured each, checking to make sure they didn’t bite too harshly into her skin. Then he nodded at Robbie, who raised the cuffs until her arms were stretched over her head.

From one of the cabinets near the television, Damon took out a spreader bar with ankle cuffs. He secured her legs on either side, spreading her so that her heels left the floor. She was now completely vulnerable and helpless.

He couldn’t help the surge of arousal even as the reason for her punishment weighed heavily on him. It would do no good to linger too long on his darker thoughts when such an enjoyable experience awaited him.

Serena was beautiful in bondage. Her absolute submission, her acceptance of his authority over her humbled him and made him hope again. Even as he cursed her for inspiring that hope.

Gathering her long, unbound hair in his hands, he carefully placed the strands over her shoulder so they were away from her back. Then he walked around to face her, his hands at his belt buckle.

“Your punishment is one lash for every one of my guests you disrespected. That makes a dozen. For each of those people I get one for me in turn. That makes twenty-four total. I won’t go lightly. You will give me pleasure and receive none in return. Is there anything you wish to say before we start?”

CHAPTER 30

Serena knew it was the word Damon expected to hear. Did he want her to say it? Did he want to push her until she had no choice but to give up and call it quits?

No, there was something else in his eyes. He tried hard to hide it, but she could see it, a glimmer of . . . hope? He didn’t want her to quit, but neither would he force this on her.

She locked gazes with him, hoping her eyes said more than words ever could. She shook her head wordlessly and braced herself for the pain and embarrassment of what lay ahead. It was hers. It belonged to her and she would own it with grace and humility.

He undid his belt and pulled it from his pants. In plain view, he carefully doubled it over and handed it to Micah, who once again looked questioningly at Serena.

She briefly closed her eyes but then reopened them and nodded at Micah so he would know that she accepted this. Micah took the belt from Damon and circled behind her.

“You will look at me and only me,” Damon said.

Her arms already ached from the strain, and her toes were numb from the awkwardness of being stretched so that her weight rested on the balls of her feet.

Again she nodded, just hoping he would get on with it. But she should have known better. Damon was nothing if not patient and exacting.

The first lash startled her. Her entire body jerked, and she cried out as pain burst over her back.

Strong fingers dug into her chin and forced it from her chest where it had fallen.

Her gaze found Damon, his stare hard and penetrating. “At me, Serena mine. Look at me. At all times.”