Haunted

by Ella Ardent

  “Then it’s time to punish you,” he said, feeling her breath catch again. He wished he’d been better prepared for this scene, but he’d talk to Rex in the morning.

  He was going to need some toys.

  He got out of the bed, then reached back to drag her to the edge of the bed. Of course, there was an upholstered ottoman before the fireplace. He carried Caitlyn to it and laid her upon it on her stomach. He stoked up the fire, wanting her to feel the heat of it on her skin. He also wanted to see her better, and he stood for a moment, admiring the view of her in the golden firelight, trussed to perfection.

  He wished he had his phone to take a picture, but it had been locked away with his modern clothes when they had arrived. He walked around her, stepping deliberately so that she’d hear his footsteps. He let her worry about his plans for a moment, watching how her breathing accelerated. He drew off one glove, held the cuff, and then snapped it hard against her butt.

  She yelped, as much from surprise as anything else.

  He crouched down before her and seized her ponytail. “Must I gag you?”

  Her mouth worked for a moment. “No, Master.” She swallowed. “Unless you want to, Master.”

  Zach ran his hand over her mouth again and she parted her lips, grazing the edge of his gloved finger with her teeth.

  “I’ll be good, Master.”

  “Maybe we’ll both enjoy if you’re bad,” he murmured, sensing her surprise. “I have a feeling I’m going to like punishing you, Caitlyn.”

  She smiled, quickly and mischievously. “I’m yours to command, Master.”

  “Yes. Yes, you are, although you’re only beginning to understand what that means.” He held his thumb over her mouth for a moment. “Let’s count the blows together. I’m going to spank you pink, and I’ll need to know how many strokes that takes.”

  She swallowed again. “Yes, Master. That would be one.”

  Zach smiled. The glove wasn’t going to be good enough. “Don’t move,” he said, as if she could, and strode back to his own room. He got his belt from his trousers and returned to Caitlyn. He paused on the threshold for a moment, just savoring the sight of her.

  This might be his only chance to have her.

  If this would be the fuel for his fantasies, Zach was going to make it count.

  He folded the belt in his grip so that only the tip would snap against her skin. It would warm her up quickly and wouldn’t break the skin. It would flick, hard, and make a satisfying noise. He cracked it across her ass, right below the curve of her butt where it would make the strongest impression.

  Caitlyn nearly came off the ottoman. She moaned before she could stop herself, then whispered shakily. “Two.”

  “Arch your back,” Zach commanded. “Lift your ass for each blow. Show me that you want it.” She did as instructed, so sweet and submissive that he wanted to bang her immediately.

  But no. They’d both enjoy this scene more if he made it last. Zach set to work, the leather belt in one hand and the glove in the other, mixing the weight and the location of his blows and working her up steadily.

  There was a method to a good spanking and Zach knew it. The pain could build into pleasure, if the punishment was orchestrated with care. To his delight, Caitlyn was more responsive than he’d expected.

  She might have been born to be disciplined by him.

  Or he might have been destined to own her.

  He mixed the blows, hard and soft, sharp and gentle, caressing her with his gloved hand at intervals and even kissing her skin when she least expected it. Caitlyn’s skin grew pinker and pinker, and he knew it was more sensitized with every blow. She surrendered the natural desire to anticipate whether he would administer pain or pleasure, softening and becoming more compliant with every blow. She capitulated completely to his whim, moaning a little with her count no matter what he did.

  It was perfect. Zach worked her butt up to a rosy glow, then rolled her over, slamming her butt hard into the ottoman. She arched her back then wriggled a little, driving her ass against the ottoman in a need for more sensation. She was hungry for it, hungry for him, but he’d push them both a little bit more.

  Her nipples were taut beads, and he slapped them with the leather glove, making her jump. He spanked her belly and the inside of her thighs with the leather glove until she was panting and her skin was bright pink. Her count was over fifty and her cheeks were flushed, her lips parted.

  He dropped to his knees at her feet and closed his mouth over her delicious snatch. She jumped and moaned from the depths of her being, straining to spread her thighs wider apart. He ate her with deliberation, flicking his tongue over her clitoris and sucking gently. He grazed it with his teeth and she nearly went into orbit.

  “Master!” she whispered, such desperation in her tone that Zach nearly came on the spot. “Master, please!”

  “Are you helpless?”

  She fought her bonds with vigor, shuddering that she was so securely bound. “Yes, Master.”

  “You are not allowed to come,” he commanded, then touched his erection against her slick heat. She was so wet that he had to grit his teeth and muster his control. He teased her, rubbing himself against her clitoris, sliding his cock between the lips of her labia. He gripped her butt tightly and drove them both wild.

  “Master!” Caitlyn whispered when he was buried inside her. “Master!” She writhed. She begged. She rubbed her hips against him, as if to suck him inside of her. She was almost incoherent in her need.

  Zach gripped her ass and squeezed, then lifted her butt off the ottoman to hold her against him. Her weight was on her shoulders, her mouth so soft and luscious that he was tempted to slide his cock into her mouth first.

  Later. He couldn’t wait any longer this time.

  Zach stared at Caitlyn with pride, striving to memorize the look of the black rope bound around her pink body. He loved how he had marked her already. She wouldn’t be able to sit down the next day without wincing. She wouldn’t be able to forget that she was owned. “How many strikes were there?” he demanded.

  “Forty-six, Master.” She was wonderfully breathless, flushed and radiant. There was a patina of perspiration on her rosy skin. He could feel the warmth of her even though the gloves.

  “And how many will there be next time?”

  “As many as you want, Master.”

  “And why are you being punished?”

  “Because I want Zach, Master. Because I am bad.” She tipped her hips up, rubbing her labia against him and moaned.

  Zach couldn’t resist temptation any longer. He eased into her then drove deep in a single smooth gesture. Caitlyn gasped and shuddered. He leaned his weight upon her, crushing her against the ottoman as he caught his breath. She was so tight. So hot. So welcoming.

  He worked her with little thrusts as he spoke, knowing his cock was rubbing against her clitoris. She wriggled beneath him, proof that he was pushing her even higher. She was so sweet that he knew he’d never get enough of her.

  But there were commands to be given, commands that would increase his hold over her. He gripped the back of her head and whispered into her ear, those little thrusts making him crazy, too. “Tomorrow morning, you will have your corset tightened more than today. You won’t even be able to take a deep breath when it’s right.”

  “Yes, Master.”

  “Tomorrow night, you will wait for your punishment right here, on your knees, in your corset, stockings and boots, with your hair bound like this. You will blindfold yourself at midnight and await my pleasure.”

  “Yes, Master.”

  He gritted his teeth, needing all his strength to hold back, and ground himself against her clitoris. She gasped and moaned, her breath in his ear.

  One last instruction to make it right.

  “You are forbidden to come tomorrow,” he whispered roughly. “No matter what happens. No matter what anyone does to you.” He eased his hand between them, capturing her clitoris again. “You co
me only with me.”

  “Yes, Master.” Caitlyn was shaking with the effort to control herself and he knew she wouldn’t last much longer. Neither would he, and he wanted this scene to be a success.

  Later, she could fuck up and be punished.

  Tonight had to be just right. He rolled that tight bead and felt her shake. He nuzzled her ear and loved how she moaned. He continued those short thrusts, driving a little deeper each time, waiting until she started to thrash beneath him. It was the best sensation ever.

  “Master,” she whimpered and he felt the trembling start deep inside her. She wouldn’t be able to control her orgasm any longer, and he wasn’t entirely sure he could control his. It was just so hot to have her like this.

  “Now!” Zach commanded and pinched her clitoris hard. Caitlyn shouted as the release claimed her, tipping her head back and coming in a long shaking rush. She tightened around him convulsively and he lost his own control, coming and coming and coming until he was sure she had milked him dry.

  “Oh, Master,” she whispered, still trembling beneath him. She kissed his shoulder sweetly, panting and hot. It was fabulous to be inside her like this, in front of the fire, feeling the bonds he’d knotted around her and her soft skin beneath him.

  Zach trailed his fingertips over her mouth and she nibbled at them, so playful that he smiled. “Do you like to be silenced, Caitlyn?”

  “I don’t know, Master.”

  He ran his thumb over her mouth, pressing it against her lips, then kissed her cheek. “What is your strongest fantasy, Caitlyn?”

  “To be Zach’s sex toy,” she whispered, her words sending a thrill though him. “To be completely under his control.”

  “That’s a very naughty thing for you to want,” he whispered, unable to keep from caressing her.

  “I know, Master,” Caitlyn confessed and pouted a little.

  “It seems that you haven’t been disciplined enough to have learned your lesson,” he said, kissing below her ear.

  “I haven’t, Master.” She shivered from head to toe, and sighed contentment. “I’m sorry.”

  “I’ll just have to discipline you again, Caitlyn.” Zach smiled when she ran her tongue over her lips, capitulating and obviously enjoying it.

  It was going to be a helluva week. He surveyed Caitlyn, thinking, and knew just what he’d do to her next.

  The night was young—and as for the next day, well, this was The Phoenix. Any place managed by Rex had to have a store.

  Chapter Three

  Caitlyn was exhausted when her lover laid her in the four-poster bed and changed her bonds yet again. He’d washed her with care after their first scene, then caressed her so that the heat began to build again. He’d untied her ankles and bent her over that ottoman, tying her down before taking her from behind, his leather glove shoved into her mouth as a gag. She’d liked being gagged a lot, as it made her feel more powerless even than the blindfold. That time, though, she hadn’t been allowed to come.

  She was still humming with need when he laid her on her back on the bed and she winced a little at the press of the sheets against her skin. She’d liked being spanked, too. She’d liked the way her skin had gotten hot all over and become so sensitive.

  It figured that Zach knew how to control her reaction.

  It figured that Zach was so good at this. Now that she knew he was into the same naughty games, Caitlyn found it easy to believe that he had perfected them.

  He untied her arms and set her free, his hand sliding over her in a long caress once more. Caitlyn could have spit out the leather glove but she waited for him to remove it, knowing that would please him. She wanted to please him. She needed to please him, if he was going to let her come again tonight. She didn’t know how she’d stand it if he didn’t. She could feel his strength stretched out alongside her and knew he’d braced himself on one elbow, and he was looking down at her.

  For the first time, she wished she could see him. She’d never seen Zach naked. He looked awesome in jeans and a T-shirt, all lean muscle, and she wanted to see him now. He’d be smiling at her, satisfied. Caitlyn arched her back and lifted her hands over her head, displaying herself to him.

  “Naughty Caitlyn,” he whispered. “Haven’t you been tied up tightly enough tonight?”

  She shook her head.

  That hand slid up to her chin and he removed the glove. She felt it land on the mattress, then his gloved finger was sliding back and forth over her mouth. “Did you like being gagged?”

  “Yes, Master. I felt more powerless.”

  “What would make it better?”

  “If the gag was tighter, Master, and silenced me more.” She felt his cock against her hip, hard again, and knew he liked her reply. His fingertip was tracing light circles over her skin, that tantalizing touch making her want him again.

  “If you could barely moan?”

  Caitlyn licked her lips, a lump rising in her throat at that idea. “Yes, Master.”

  “What else?”

  “Captivity,” she whispered, only able to confess to her darkest fantasy because of the blindfold. Her heart stopped in the silence that followed her confession, and she feared she’d said too much.

  Then he touched his lips to her cheek, almost reverently. “I think that can be arranged, Caitlyn. In fact, it might be the perfect solution for someone as naughty as you.”

  He rolled on top of her then and bound her wrists together above her head, lashing them to the headboard with ferocious efficiency. He was moving faster and more decisively and Caitlyn hoped that meant he was going to drill her again. Her puss was thrumming with need and the feel of his hard cock against her stomach made her squirm beneath him.

  He froze. “Are you trying to set the agenda, Caitlyn?”

  “No, Master.” His tone was hard enough to make her fear the repercussions. It was a wonderful sensation to be both afraid and very aroused.

  “Good, because that would be very, very naughty.”

  “Yes, Master.”

  His weight left her then, though his hand closed around her ankle. He tied her right ankle to the pillar at the bottom of the bed, leaving her on her back and stretching her taut. It wasn’t a surprise when he bound the other ankle to the other pillar, leaving her wide to his view. She could feel him looking at her and squirmed a little.

  “Are you helpless?” he whispered, his voice too far away. Caitlyn thrashed in her bonds, struggling to free herself.

  It was impossible to do so.

  Her breath hitched and her heart raced. God, she was going to make a puddle on the bed, and surely that would be very naughty.

  “Open and waiting for me,” he whispered. “You’ll learn to always be that way.”

  “Yes, Master.”

  He chuckled and cast the sheet over her, then she felt the weight of the coverlet fall over her, too. He tucked her in, his protective care making her smile.

  Zach took care of his possessions. She’d noticed that before.

  She heard him poke the fire, then he crossed the floor. She listened, expectant, but heard only the crackle of the fire and the soft click of a closing door.

  He was gone.

  And she was tied up!

  Zach couldn’t leave her like this!

  But he had done just that. Fear rose in Caitlyn and she struggled to remain just the way he’d left her.

  She hoped for a few moments that he would come back, but he didn’t. The house creaked a little in the wind, the fire crackled on the hearth and the rain beat against the window panes. Her puss hummed, desperate for the release he’d denied her, but there was nothing she could do about it when she was like this.

  Helpless.

  Did he mean to let Hunt find her like this in the morning?

  Caitlyn panicked at the thought. She struggled and squirmed but she was absolutely helpless. Caitlyn fought her bonds hard, knowing all the while that it was futile. There was nothing she could do to save herself.

  Zach
had ensured that she was powerless.

  In a way, it was a relief. She wasn’t responsible. She couldn’t change her situation. She was Zach’s captive and his toy, by her own choice.

  And he did take care of his possessions.

  Really, the captivity and the endless scene was what she had wanted all along. She’d told him that, hadn’t she? Caitlyn should just enjoy every moment of it, while it lasted.

  She was forbidden to come. In hindsight, it made perfect sense that he had left her in anguish. Zach was teaching her a lesson and as much as she wanted to learn it, she was itching with need.

  It probably wouldn’t be the first time Hunt had found a guest tied up, not at The Phoenix.

  Maybe she should surprise Zach the next day.

  Caitlyn smiled in the darkness, feeling very naughty indeed.

  * * *

  Once in his room, Zach dressed quickly and let himself into the corridor. It was lit with gas lanterns on the wall, their flames turned down very low. He felt as if he’d stepped into a ghost movie.

  He had to find Rex.

  He headed down the stairs, walking as quietly as possible so he didn’t disturb the other guests. At the bottom of the stairs, he tried to choose a direction in the darkened house.

  That was when he heard the moan.

  He followed the sound, easing open a door at the back end of the corridor. He found himself in a service room. There were shelves lined with preserves on the back wall, a sturdy table in the middle of the room and a large sink on the wall on the left. A doorway on the right led to a much larger room that might have been a kitchen.

  Naked and bound on the table was the maid, Hunt, her wet puss practically dripping onto the polished wood surface. There was a lot of heavy rope knotted around her, though she still wore her uniform. The sight of her little black boots sent a tingle through Zach, especially with the rope trussing her ankles together. She made a sound at the sight of him, and Fletcher glanced over his shoulder. His shirt was untucked and his hair tousled, but he bowed immediately. “Sir?”