“I do not give you permission to leave.”
His grip tightened until the crystal and metal bit into his palm. He considered unlocking the door and leaving anyway before giving an imperceptible shake of his head. He still had to get her agreement to stop Gaith’s punishment. If that meant he had to abase himself, so be it.
The decision made, he walked back to the desk. Still, he couldn’t help the tension in his shoulders, or the shudder in the pit of his stomach. His gaze went to the window behind Riana, its shutters thrown wide.
“What is rule number one?”
His gaze shifted from the unshuttered window, and its implication, to the icy-green gaze of the woman behind the desk. Displeasure radiated from her slim form.
Was it her intention that someone see his humiliation?
He swallowed, a mixture of apprehension, fury and lust swirling in his blood. “Whenever we are private I am to be naked.”
She again lifted that brow. The question it asked was explicit—why was he still wearing clothes?
The turbulent mixture of emotions caused a faint tremor in his fingers as they went to the fastenings of his clothes. That small, betraying motion stiffened his resolve as nothing else could. Defiant, his gaze fixed on hers, he stripped both the harness and tunic over his head and tossed them to the floor. His boots and breeches followed. Completely naked, he stood in front of her and gave a mocking half bow.
“Mistress, I bow to your wishes.”
“I begin to think I am too lenient. I gave you only three rules to remember. After forgiving your lapse on rule one, how do you repay me? You flaunt your defiance of the other two rules. Perhaps you need a reminder?” There was an underlying note of real anger in the soft tones as she massaged the spot between her breasts. As much as he ached to test her, to see how far he could push her before her control broke, Darias knew he’d have to make amends or he’d have no chance of getting her to intercede on Gaith’s behalf.
His cock jerked in disappointment. He hid a grimace. What was it about the blasted woman? She’d loosed something in him that embarrassed him just to think of it. The orders, the rules, the—heat crawled up his neck—bare-butt spankings, he resented them with a fury that burned his gut, even as they aroused a need that scorched through each and every nerve ending. He was a warrior, leader of one of the most prosperous country-states on the world. He was born to rule, to dominate everything and everyone within his sphere of power.
Except Riana.
With an ease that was almost humiliating, she commanded his obedience and punished disobedience with a swiftness and thoroughness that brought a reluctant respect. Resentment burned to ashes under the fire that heated his blood and pooled in his groin every time she compelled his obedience or laid him across her lap.
Or when she fucked him, breaking every Nexarian rule or tradition there was.
He couldn’t understand what had happened to him. Nothing was the same since he captured her.
Slowly, he clasped his hands behind his neck and widened his stance.
He had to make her listen.
“Mistress, may I speak?” His heart pounded and his cock throbbed when she trailed the slender tip of one finger from her full bottom lip, over the rounded curve of that stubborn chin, to the deep cleft between her breasts.
She came around the corner of the desk until she was standing beside him.
Darias kept his eyes glued on the sunlit patch of garden outside the huge double window.
She reached out and cupped his balls.
His penis jumped and a bead of fluid glistened on the bulbous tip.
“Your body doesn’t lie. It knows who its Mistress is.” She tightened her grip.
Darias grunted.
“Unlike your mind.”
Her same hand caught the bead of come before it could fall to the floor. Unable to help himself, he followed that glistening drop as she brought it to her lips. The tip of her tongue came out and tasted it.
He groaned, wanting to draw that finger into his mouth. Nibble on it. Suck on it. Until her feminine cream ran down her thighs.
“You may speak.”
He blinked, unable to switch chelans that fast. He reran her words through his head. Struggling for control, he cleared his throat.
“Um, Bryta intends to punish Gaith in the Great Hall tonight. I ask that you intervene and get her to change her mind.”
“Why should I do that?” She traced idle circles on his flank, making it nigh impossible to catch a thought and hold it.
“Because the blame is mine.”
The slow, sensual caress paused for the barest moment before continuing. “And why is that?”
He clenched his buttocks together when her touch feathered the crease separating his haunches. “He was following my orders.”
The tips of her nails dug into his lower spine. “And? What orders was he following?”
His hands flexed once, the only sign of pain he allowed himself. “I’m sure Bryta has already told you.”
Silence.
He reminded himself that he needed her cooperation. “I told him to hack into the computer system and upload a stealth program.”
Darias could feel the weight of her displeasure in the air. She was furious. Riana didn’t have to say a word. He braced himself for punishment. How severe would it be this time?
To his surprise, she walked around and sat in the chair behind the desk. Swinging the chair to the side, she indicated a point about a meter in front of her. Darias obeyed her silent command to stand there. The window was on his right side. The bright sunlight highlighted his raging erection. He did his best to ignore it.
“And what would you have me do?”
He couldn’t tell her thoughts by her voice. “Allow me to take punishment in Gaith’s place.”
She leaned back in the chair and crossed one leg over the other. Sunlight glinted off the leather of her boot as she swung one foot with idle contemplation.
“Present yourself.”
Darias couldn’t believe his ears. Surely she wasn’t really asking that of him?
“Now.”
She was.
Jaw locked, a wave of heat stinging his neck and face, Darias turned slowly, his hands moving to clench the cheeks of his ass. Just as slowly, he bent over, making the dark, tight ring clearly visible to her.
“Move your legs farther apart and lean down more.”
When he had power back, public punishment would be the least of her worries, he vowed, even as he obeyed.
“More. Until your chest touches your legs.”
Oh yes, he was going to enjoy making her pay for this humiliation.
Bent over like he was, legs spread widely apart, his hands holding open the cheeks of his ass, Darias couldn’t ever remember feeling so vulnerable. Not when she first punished him in the garden. Not even when she first bared his ass over a chair. He was excruciatingly aware that from her position in the chair everything was visible to Riana. His anus, his balls, the pulsing head of his cock as it leaked a steady stream of pre-come.
He stayed that way for what seemed like forever.
“You may take Gaith’s punishment.”
Chapter Eleven
By the time she entered her chamber that evening, Riana was weary to the bone. Her talk with Bryta had been enlightening. Far from coming to accept the reversal of roles for the men, Darias had stepped up the campaign to undermine and erode the women’s grasps on both the businesses and estates. If she had not thought to link her ship’s computer to Nexar’s, in all likelihood Darias would have succeeded. As it was, there was much work ahead of them to repair the damage.
Bryta hadn’t wanted to stop Gaith’s public punishment.
Riana sighed. For such a gentle woman, she had a streak of stubborn that rivaled her own. Only reluctantly had she conceded that Darias bore more blame than her mate.
She straightened her slumping shoulders when she caught the familiar sight of Darias standing
by the glass doors then realized he hadn’t heard her enter. She took the opportunity to study him. One hand rested beside his head as he stared out the open door into the garden. There was a pensive look to the strong, masculine features. As she watched, he closed his eyes for a moment. She thought she saw a flash of pain on his face but couldn’t be sure in the subdued lighting.
She wanted to cross the space separating them and wrap her arms around him and lay her head against his broad back and tell him she understood his actions. But she couldn’t. The lines between them had been drawn the moment he put those thrice-cursted manacles on her wrists. She’d lose not only the hard-wrought respect she’d wrested from the warriors, but of the women as well. More importantly, Darias would see it as a weakness, a sign that women were inferior to males.
Sometimes she just wanted to get in the Midnight Mischief and fly away. Away from Nexar, away from the Void. Just…away.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. The women needed her and, without being overly arrogant, so did Nexar. She had to see this through. Lifting one slender hand, she rubbed the hollow spot in the middle of her chest that seemed to creep up on her every now and then.
She shifted the long, thin case she held in her other hand and closed the door with an audible snick.
Darias’ shoulders stiffened before he turned to face her. Tension carved grooves around the sensuous lines of his mouth. “I am ready for punishment in the Great Hall.”
Until that moment, Riana had fully intended to punish Darias before all, warm his ass and then make him cry and plead for fulfillment before both the women and the warriors. Now that the time was at hand, she at last admitted the truth to herself.
She couldn’t do that to him.
It would abase him in the eyes of his warriors. And in the eyes of the women.
Never again would they see the man who had been Supreme Chief, who had ruled with honor according Nexarian tradition and by their rules. Sure, she disagreed and downright hated some of those traditions and rules, but they had governed Nexar for over a millennium.
Punishing him in the Great Hall would strip all dignity from him.
She kept her expression contained, not allowing even the slightest hint of her turmoil to show as she considered her course.
He had to pay for his actions and the punishment could not be a light one. The offense was too serious and too many knew of it.
So what…?
Just that quick, the perfect solution came to her. She turned it over in her mind, considering all aspects. Yes, it would work. A knot that she hadn’t been aware of until that moment relaxed in her stomach.
“Remove your clothes.”
Surprise flashed across his face. He started to speak then stopped. She could see the wariness in his eyes as he tried to guess what she meant to do. She let him wonder. Piece by piece, his clothes dropped to the floor until he stood before her splendidly naked.
“Do you mean to make me walk naked to the Great Hall?” The words sounded torn out of him.
“We’re not going to the Great Hall.”
Tension seeped out of the massive shoulders.
“We’re going into the garden.”
The tension returned. “Punishment will be private then?”
“Not quite.” He opened his mouth, but she forestalled him. “No more questions.” She crossed to the bed and laid the case on it and opened it. When she turned, she held a paddle, about half a meter long and the width of his palm. She motioned for Darias to go into the garden. He headed for the alcove without further direction.
Even though the night was warm, almost hot, chill bumps lined his skin. It was amazing the way she could almost see into his mind, hear his thoughts. She didn’t have the slightest doubt what was going through his mind right this minute. He was wondering if anyone was watching him walk naked to his punishment. For a Nexarian, that was the ultimate humiliation. As a race, they repressed their sexuality, only letting themselves explore the more adventurous aspects of sex during punishment. It was even more restrictive for a warrior. Warriors were forbidden to embrace their sexuality. All their energies were directed toward work and fighting, not the weakening emotions of passion.
How would he handle what she intended to do next?
Was she pushing him too hard? Would he break his oath to obey her?
Stilling the flutters in the pit of her stomach with a surreptitious deep breath, Riana could only wait and see.
Her bond on Darias was mental, not physical.
Would that bond hold?
Affecting a confident air, she stopped in front of the Punishment Stone. Unlike the first night she’d punished him, tonight the moon was full. She smoothed a hand over the warm stone. “Lights.” Immediately, a muted glow radiated from the stone, supplementing the moon’s brilliance.
“You Nexarians are amazing. Somehow, you’ve crafted a stone that is malleable, able to take whatever shape is needed. Yet, you created it as an instrument of punishment instead of pleasure.” She shook her head, knowing that the light of the moon and the artificial light of the alcove found the red highlights in her long hair and turned it into a waterfall of liquid fire.
Now that she was here, her doubts fled. She felt confident and in control.
“Tonight, that suits my purpose.” Adjusting first the wristcuffs and then the ankle cuffs, she patted the seat of the smooth, white rock.
Lips a tight line, Darias started to slide onto the stone. Riana quickly corrected him.
“No. Not on the Punishment Stone, over it.”
He went still then licked his lips. “Over it?”
“Yes.”
When he was lying facedown over the end, she fastened the wristcuffs so his arms were pulled taut over his head. Next she moved his legs so they were spread far apart, feet planted firmly on the grass, and then cuffed his ankles.
“What of the privacy shield?”
She heard a note of panic that she knew he wished wasn’t there. Good. Perhaps before the night was over he’d realize she was up to any challenge he threw out.
“Not tonight. Tonight your punishment remains open to all who wish to see or hear.” She canted her head to one side, a bit of her anger from this afternoon resurfacing. “What do you think? Will the women stand in their gardens in hopes of a glimpse of your punishment? Will they bring their men with them? Or will the garden, itself,” she swept her hand in a circle, “protect you?” Only she knew that everyone was within shouting distance of the Great Hall, waiting for her to bring Darias down. Let them wait and let Darias wonder.
He didn’t answer.
She fought to subdue her anger. Rage would not rule her. She would not injure Darias this time. Picking up the stim paddle, she calibrated the controls on the handle. Darias thought he knew what to expect, but this stim was different in one very important aspect from the paddle she’d used on him in bed play. That stim paddle was designed for pain-pleasure. This paddle was designed for those who gained their pleasure from pain. It stimulated the pain nerve endings alone.
She finished fiddling with the controls and double-checked her settings. Satisfied that it was on a level where she could use enough force to heat his backside without bruising it while still keeping the neuro-pain below an intolerable threshold.
“You asked to take Gaith’s punishment and Bryta agreed to leave the manner of that punishment up to me. This is what I choose.” She stood behind him and slightly to one side. Riana took a moment to admire the picture he made with the taut, muscled buttocks bared for her pleasure. The internal light from the stone backlit his heavy sac. Shaking off the need that swelled to life at the sight, she made her voice brisk. “I will give you ten strokes of the stim paddle on this setting before giving you ten more on one-quarter setting higher.” Still within safety margins, but the results were sure to stay with Darias for days.
That was all the warning Darias got. At the first stroke, he gritted his teeth to hold back a startled yelp. Krel, this
was much worse than the previous play with the stim paddle. This burned like fire without the mitigating rush of pleasure to follow. By the fifth stroke, he was panting in an effort to contain the pain. By the eighth, his palms were biting into the smooth stone of the armrests.
Ten. He only had to get through two more. He could do it. He was a warrior.
Then it was over. His breath caught in his chest at the sharp jolt of pain when she laid one hand on the curve of his ass. Just as quickly, she removed it.
“You may rest.”
Neck muscles aching from strain, he let his forehead dropped to illuminated stone as he breathed in through his nose in measured breaths. He squeezed his eyes and then blinked rapidly. Getting his ass beat was bad enough, but the dispassionate tones Riana was using cut far deeper, inside where it didn’t show.
Always before, under the commands, under the anger, he could sense her arousal, her enjoyment of his response to her. Not tonight.
And he didn’t like it.
The sharp crack of the paddle hitting his ass caught him off guard.
“Shevet!” The curse hissed from between his teeth. Pain radiated up his spine and down to his toes. Four more strokes in rapid succession had him biting down on his lip, determined not to make another sound. That satisfaction he would not give her.
The last five strokes followed in short order. Somewhere, in the haze of pain, he realized that unlike the first ten, these strokes had not been delivered in an even-spaced, deliberate manner.
In silence, she unfastened the cuffs and went inside.
Darias was much slower to follow. Every movement was reflected in renewed fire in his ass. When he entered the chamber, the lights were off and Riana was in bed. Darias stretched out on his stomach on top of the covers. Part of him expected Riana to move next to him, cup his ass in her palm and soothe him even as she aroused him. She didn’t. He fisted his hands in the bedding to keep from touching her.
Hours later, she slipped from bed and left the chamber.
For the first time since Riana arrived in Nexar, Darias once again felt totally alone.
* * * * *
“Darias, Nexar needs the Far Islands. They have a viable, expanding economy and are eager for new trade partners. Furthermore, unlike Trinearia, they are not looking for an excuse to invade. You know as just as well as I do, if not better, that if Trinearia senses just how bad the situation is here, they will declare war.”
SurrendersMischief Page 15