by Stacey Lynn
“I’m not playing this game today, Jensen.”
Her back straightened and fire lit in her green eyes.
And hell if it didn’t make my dick go hard in my pants. I bit back a groan, seeing her all fired up and pissed off. I’d seen Haley scared. I’d seen her nervous. I’d seen her throw her head back and laugh with unbridled joy, but never had I seen this side of her.
If asked, I couldn’t deny that seeing her this pissed off made me want to fuck it straight out of her.
Ignoring the impulse, I leaned forward and showed her how serious I was in my expression and my voice. “Go. Sit. Down.”
That fire in her eyes burned brighter. Her jaw clenched and for a moment I thought she’d refuse. I almost wanted her to try to turn away from me, just so I could toss her over my desk and give her the spanking that she wouldn’t only enjoy, but would release all her anger so we could discuss this rationally.
Right before I could reach for her, a bit of that anger receded and her chin dipped in submission.
“Fine,” she mumbled. She moved toward a set of chairs I had set up around a small office-sized conference table.
It was usually where I met with Ron and Amy, my assistant, and was currently covered in case files I was avoiding.
I followed her and took another chair, pushing far enough back, and tried to plaster on a neutral expression, but I didn’t want to hide the hurt. I wanted to quit hiding. I had done nothing wrong in this and she was the one who had explaining to do. I gave her a moment to calm down even though my heart was racing.
“Start at the beginning.”
She didn’t look at me when she spoke. That small distance unsettled me more than her anger. As if she’d already checked out.
“Gabby and I met for coffee this afternoon at Madcup downtown.”
“You and Gabby?”
She shrugged and fiddled with her purse she’d set in her lap—keeping it close to her like she didn’t plan on staying long. My teeth ground together until pain radiated through my jaw.
I forced myself to focus.
“Yeah. She called me, said she had a good time last Friday and wanted to hang out.”
“Gabby’s a good person to know.” She was one of the best, at least in my world. She could tear a man’s balls off with a smile on her face without breaking a nail or a sweat. She was always loyal as all fuck. Plus, since she became Dylan’s slave I had never seen him happier.
“Yeah. Anyway, we were talking about you, and other stuff, and Meredith showed up.” Her lips twisted into something almost like a smile before she finally pulled her eyes to mine. “Meredith’s a bitch.”
As first impressions went, that was pretty spot on. “I imagine Gabby handled her.”
“Yeah. But she was with Courtney, and all of it...the way Meredith looked at me. The way she knew Gabby...”
Leaning forward in my chair, I placed my hand on her knee. “I have never fucked Meredith, Haley. I have never touched her, and I have never wanted to touch her. But I have known her a long time.”
“But your meeting the other night wasn’t business.”
I dragged a hand through my hair. “Meredith and my relationship is complicated. Not in any way sexual,” I assured her. “Our fathers were friends. Good friends. She’s younger than me, but we essentially grew up together.”
“She wants you.”
“She does.” She jolted back at my honesty, but I had nothing to hide.
Haley licked her lips, disappointment clouded her gaze. “She’s beautiful.”
Before I could stop myself I threw my head back and laughed. “Meredith’s a shark, Haley. She’s a piranha and wicked smart. She has an uncanny business sense and she knows she looks good. She’s also someone I used to respect. And yes, she’s pretty. She also wants me to be her Dom, but I’ve always said no.”
Indecision warred in her features. My anger dissipated with every passing moment while I let that sink in. “I’m not that guy that you’re thinking I am right now. One, she’s always been more the annoying little sister. Two, I’ve honestly never wanted to touch her. Three, she’s friends with Courtney and that makes her off limits in my own morality code, and Four...in case you need one more reason why Meredith isn’t and will never be a threat to you...” I waited until she looked me in the eyes and lowered my voice. “There is not a woman I have met, who is more beautiful than you. Who is better suited for me.”
“Courtney?” Her voice wavered.
“She’s irrelevant.” And for the first time in two years, it was true. “She’s my old sub, Haley. There’s nothing there and Courtney’s damaged beyond anything I could ever do to help her. It took meeting you, getting to know you, to finally put that to rest for me.”
I didn’t want to get into the specifics again. Fortunately, she didn’t ask.
Moments passed while her internal debate raged on before it fell from her shoulders like a billowy curtain.
“Okay. I’m sorry then, that I doubted you or assumed the worst. Meredith was just so...”
“Hawkish?”
“Yeah.” She laughed softly. “Intimidating for sure.”
“You have nothing to fear from her. I promise you. Although I’m sorry to say that you’ll see her Saturday, and probably in the future, but I won’t let her hurt you.”
“Gabby mentioned that. Said I wouldn’t be more than a few steps away from you or her or Dylan all night.”
And that was why I loved Gabby.
“You won’t. And Meredith will lose her fight when she sees I’m unavailable.”
“Are you?” she asked, her bottom lip finding its way to her teeth. “Unavailable?”
“The fact you’d ask that after this week kills me.” She opened her mouth but I stopped her. “But I understand. You have a past, you have doubts, and perhaps I haven’t made myself clear.”
I stood up and pulled her to her feet. Before she found balance on her heels, I pressed my hands to her cheeks and pulled her to me, moaning as her lips hit mine.
Delicious. Heaven sent. She was beautiful and perfect and everything I wanted. I kissed her to show her how much I desired her. I kissed her to show her what she meant to me. I kissed her because when Haley was within touching distance, I didn’t want to do anything else except claim her.
But I was still pissed she hadn’t been able to trust me before bursting into my office.
And she still had a lesson to learn.
I pulled back, my thumbs grazing her flushed cheekbones. Her eyes fluttered open at the gentle caress.
Languid. Relaxed...aroused.
I took a moment to drink in her expression knowing it would turn hotter.
Leaning forward, I bit her earlobe before whispering in her ear. “Do you still have the plug I gave you?”
She gasped. “Yes.”
“Good. Then we have a change of plans tonight. We’re not doing dinner.”
She tensed in my grasp but I held her still, rolling my hips into her stomach, pressing my hard cock against her. “I’m going to be at your house at six. I want your door unlocked, and I want you kneeling at your bedside the way I like to see you. Prepare yourself with your plug, because tonight, I’m taking your ass.”
A shiver racked her whole body and a breathy moan escaped her lips.
“Don’t doubt me, Haley,” I said, pulling back. “You’re not Courtney and I’m not Timothy. I will never be anything less than honest with you.”
“Okay.”
She hesitated before nodding and I let her go, forcing my expression to go dominant.
“Now go. And I’ll see you later.”
Haley
“So fucking good, Haley. So tight.” He continued to thrust slowly into my ass. What was a sting of pain changed into a delectab
le satisfaction.
My hands were cuffed to my ankles on the bed, my cheek pressed into the pillow. With one hand on my hip, one on my shoulder, Jensen’s body surrounded mine. Every shift of his hips made his chest brush against my back, the tickling sensation of his chest hair igniting sparks down my spine. Fingertips dug into my skin.
His hard, strong length moved in and out of me. What I’d always needed, never thought I could ask for. He was giving it to me perfectly.
Oh my God. This was bliss. It was pain and pleasure mixed together until it grew to combustible pressure—like he was splitting me in two. Jensen was so good at doing that part, he’d have no problems putting me back together when he was done.
My fingers curled into fists and I moaned. “Hurry,” I whimpered, unable to shift.
I had already come twice, he’d seen to me before, stretching and preparing me, making me as relaxed as possible.
I wasn’t relaxed now. I was strung tight, coiled, and ready to snap. Wetness dripped down my thighs, my clit pulsed with the need for friction. He was withholding it until he was good and ready.
His lips stayed by my ear, whispering encouragement and praise. “Feels so good, so hot, so tight...pretty girl...more...close.”
His whispered grunts made me shiver, made me pull on my bindings. I so badly wanted to touch him.
“Get there,” he groaned again, his pace becoming more frantic.
“Touch me, sir.” I gasped. I was unable to move, unable to shift and take what I needed. “Please, please...”
I begged. I pleaded. I whimpered until his hand left my hip.
“This was what you wanted?” His fingertips brushed against my swollen pussy.
“Yes,” I cried, pulling on my bindings.
I couldn’t see. I couldn’t breathe. Everything inside me tightened and pulled until my vision clouded.
“Jensen!” I shouted, as his hips hit harder against my ass, his balls slapping my cunt.
I couldn’t take anymore and my fingers dug into my palms as I was lost to the sensations, swept away in a ripe tide of ecstasy.
He thrust into me, once...twice... His pleased words kept me tethered while I shattered beneath him.
“Fuck, Haley,” Jensen groaned one last time, seating himself deep inside my ass.
He pulsed inside, emptying himself.
My heartbeat pounded in my ears.
“You okay?” he finally asked, but I couldn’t answer.
My mouth was dry, my vision cloudy...
“Haley?” he asked, his hands on my back, his weight leaving my body.
It’d been so good...so much pleasure. My eyes closed. My pulse continued to speed and his hands went to my back. The last thing I heard before I drifted away was the quick release of bindings, the gentle caress of his hands moving to my hips.
“So fantastic, pretty girl, you’ll be okay. Take your time...”
I didn’t speak. I was already gone...drifting away in the tide until I was pulled under.
Chapter Seventeen
Jensen
I quickly undid her bindings at her ankles and wrapped her in my arms, pulling her under the covers of her bed, even while she passed out.
I needed to get her orange juice and water. She needed sugar and warmth but I didn’t want to leave her while she was in subspace.
It wasn’t always normal for a sub to hit the euphoric plateau where their body took over, where the adrenaline and endorphins released into their body took them completely into another realm, but it happened. And it was always beautiful.
With Haley, I was enraptured by the blissed-out look on her face, her already soft and willowy features even more at peace.
“You’re okay,” I whispered, laying her on her side and running my hands along the length of her. Wherever I could touch her, I did, unable to stop myself. I massaged her wrists and hands, loosening the tension.
If I’d had any doubts about her before, which I hadn’t until she’d practically accused me of being a liar and a cheat, they dissipated into the sex-scented air as soon as she let me put the tip of my dick inside her, inside the only place she’d never taken a man.
I had marked her.
Claimed her.
I had the urge to show everyone that this confident and innocent, sexual creature belonged to me. She was mine. She’d given herself fully to me.
But she owned me.
There was nothing I wouldn’t do for her.
Pressing my lips to her temple, I slid my fingertips to the side of her throat. My teeth marks peppered her skin at her neck and the side of one breast. My fingerprints showed on her shoulder, her back, her neck. I had gotten carried away, lost in rapture to the feel of her and yet every time I grew frantic, she responded perfectly.
As her pulse slowed and her body cooled, I brushed her dark hair off her shoulder.
“You doing okay?” I whispered. Her body shifted against mine. “Gotta wake up so I can take care of you.”
Her lips twitched and her long lashes fluttered, eyes opening. “I slept?”
“Subspace,” I explained, running my hand from her shoulder, down her side to her hip. I rested it there, the warmth of her skin seeping into mine. The softness of her flesh was such a contrast to my hardened skin. “You better now? You did so well.”
So much better than anything I could have imagined—and I’d imagined a lot.
“Wow.” Her voice was dry and I moved back from her, rolling her to her back so I could see her. “That was...wow.”
“Yeah.” I grinned, ran my thumb across her bottom lip, keeping my hand on her throat. She was calmer. Relaxed. Steady pulse.
I needed that confirmation more than I thought I did. “I need to get you some orange juice, get some sugar back in you. Do you have some?”
Her brows furrowed. “I think? I might, I don’t really remember.”
“I’ll go check. Stay here and rest, I’ll take care of you when I get back, okay?”
“Like I could move even if I wanted to.”
I barked out a laugh, pressing my lips to the top of her head before I slid out of her bed, not bothering to get dressed. I wanted to bathe her, wash away the tension from being bound.
I hurried down the stairs to her kitchen, rummaged through her fridge and frowned when all I could find was a bottle of grapefruit juice. It’d work well enough.
I filled a glass with juice and two others with water before carrying them back to her room with a package of Oreos tucked under my arm.
I grinned at her, pleased that she’d stayed in bed. She looked well fucked with mussed hair, flushed skin and her eyes still dazed from exertion. She sat up, pillows at her back against her headboard. Her eyes dropped to the Oreos and she laughed.
God. She was stunning.
“Cookies, too?”
“I aim to please,” I said, setting the glasses on the bed.
Her green eyes liquefied. “Yeah, you do.”
I pressed my lips to her forehead, handing her the juice. “Drink this, you need the sugar. Subspace can work like a diabetic on a crash.”
“Thank you, for tonight and taking care of me.”
Like I wanted to do anything else. She was magnificent when she surrendered to me.
“Trust me, Haley. The pleasure was all mine.”
I kissed her again, unable to keep any part of my body away from hers, before I pulled away and went to her bathroom and turned on the tub. It wasn’t large, it wasn’t even a decent-sized soaking tub. We’d be cramped, but I’d make it work.
Digging through her cupboards I didn’t find any bubble wash so I dumped a large amount of soapy, lavender-scented body wash in the tub and hoped that’d make it relaxing enough.
“Ready for your ba
th?” I asked when I went back to her room. She was crunching on a cookie, her lips twisted.
She held one out. “This is a nasty combination.”
“Come on.” I laughed at her expression and scooped her into my arms. She was tall and lean, but light in my arms as she wrapped her arms around my neck and dropped her head to my shoulder. Like she belonged there.
Like she needed to be wrapped around me as much as I wanted to be wrapped up in her.
We sat in the tub, her back to my chest, her legs inside of my bent ones while I massaged her shoulders.
The lights were dimmed, and the scent of the soap was relaxing.
I leaned back, wrapped my arms around her chest and pulled her against me.
I ran my hands up and down her arms. She relaxed beneath me and I started talking. Explaining. I had done it earlier, I’d told her about Courtney, but I didn’t want any secrets between us. No hint of anything that could be misconstrued.
She’d been completely forthcoming with me.
“Meredith and I grew up together, Haley.” She tensed in my arms but I pulled her tight against my back. “Let me get this out, okay? There’s no way to avoid Meredith, our lives are too tightly entwined.” She murmured an okay and once her shoulders relaxed, I continued. “Her dad and my dad were great friends. We grew up together and her dad’s office brings all of their business to my firm. Meredith is poised to take over. She’s smart, really smart, and I won’t deny that she wants me. But she’ll never have me and she hates that there’s something out there she can’t conquer.”
“She’s friends with Courtney.”
I laughed. “Meredith’s only loyalty is to herself. But I met Courtney through her and liked her. She was sweet and kind, timid in a way that made me think she was afraid of her own shadow. I introduced her to bondage play when we started dating. I wanted that connection to her, and for a long time, I’ve carried that weight...that with what she ended up doing...had I not introduced her to that life, would she have still jumped over the edge?”
“You can’t blame yourself. Our decisions are our own.”