by Tori Carson
André caressed her cheek with the petals. “You don’t need to worry, you need to behave.”
Adriana cooed and turned toward the rose. Her nipples were pebbling as her arousal began building again.
She let out a shocked cry and her eyes flew open as André drew the thorns down her belly. It didn’t hurt, but the sensation was far different.
“There’s a thin line between pain and pleasure.” André’s voice was low and wrapped around her like a warm blanket. “Sometimes they cross and become one.”
She watched him through hooded eyes as he tantalized her with both the soft, silky petals and harsh, prickling thorns. It was true. While she breathed easier when he touched her with white petals, the thorns had her pulse racing.
“Close your eyes,” he ordered.
Without even thinking about it, she obeyed him. From some distant part of her brain, she realized her leg wasn’t hurting anymore. Her total focus was on André and the sensations he was bringing her.
His weight shifted then she felt something brush against her lips.
“Bite.”
Strawberry? She remembered seeing a bowl full of them. Tentatively, she did as he’d commanded. Cool, sweet juice filled her mouth. Adriana struggled to keep her eyes closed. She was dying to see André, to know what he was going to do next.
Something cold circled her nipple and though she wanted to do as he asked, her eyes flew open.
André tsked. “Such a naughty girl. What am I going to do with you?” He sounded more amused than disappointed.
“I’m trying to be good.” She puffed out her bottom lip in a mock pout.
“We’re going to have to work on your self-control, bebe.” He leaned forward, surrounding her nipple with his mouth.
She arched her back, closed her eyes, moaning and enjoying every moment. When he pulled away she whimpered. “I have great self-control. I haven’t jumped you yet, even though you’ve been teasing me for months now.”
André chuckled and she imagined him looking down at her with his one eyebrow raised.
“That’s the first time I’ve ever been called a tease. I’m worried you might have damaged that pretty little head of yours.”
She shook her head. “You’re a total tease. Wearing those skin tight leathers and linen shirts. Looking…” The air rushed from her lungs as he rubbed a strawberry around her clit.
“Looking what, bebe?” he asked with amusement thick in his voice.
“I don’t remember.” Adriana felt André drag the thorns toward her pussy. She completely froze. She didn’t even take a breath. While she trusted André not to hurt her, she knew accidents happened.
As he rolled it over her mound, her heart began to beat faster. Suddenly, the rose was gone and André was pulling her clit into his mouth. She screamed. From the cold strawberry, to the fear of being prickled, to his moist heat was a shock she hadn’t expected.
“Please, André,” she implored him. Bucking her hips, she tried to entice him to fuck her.
He flicked his tongue several times over her clit.
“I’m begging. André, please.” With her fingers dug into the sheets, she writhed and watched him devour her.
He pulled back enough to speak, but was still close enough that his breath tickled her pussy. “Please what, Adriana? Tell me exactly what you want from me.”
She was wound tight and her ‘polite conversation’ filters were gone. “Fuck me, please.” Adriana bit her lip to keep from saying Master. He’d said they were keeping it vanilla so calling him that was out, even if it was the truth. She knew he was her Master, the owner of her body and soul and the only man she wanted between her legs. “Put your cock in my pussy and fuck me.”
André kneeled and nudged her right leg a little farther out. His hands rested on her hips. “As you wish.” He picked up a bottle of lube he’d set on the blanket near the footboard and squirted some in his hand then coated his cock. “Keep your eyes open and on me.”
She felt him then at her opening. He was large and hot. The sheer heat emanating from him surprised her.
“It’s going to hurt for a minute or two, princess. I wish there was another way, but there isn’t.”
He looked truly upset and her heart went out to him. She smiled and winked at him. “I’m pretty tough. It’ll be okay.”
André held her tight as he pushed forward. The pain was sharp, but quick. She tried not to show it, but she knew she’d flinched. Damn it. The last thing she wanted was to make André feel bad.
He held his cock perfectly still, but leaned down to rest on his forearms. She immediately wrapped her arms around his chest and nuzzled his neck. “Stop worrying. I’m fine.” Tentatively, she rocked her hips, driving him in a little farther.
André kissed her hard and long, their tongues dueling. “You’re sure you’re okay?” He wiped the hair from her eyes.
She playfully bit his bottom lip and gave it a shake. “No, I’m on fire here and you’re refusing to give me relief. You’re a very cruel man and I’m wondering why I love you.”
Adriana was pleased that saying those three words no longer made him uncomfortable. He seemed to take them in stride.
“Cruel? Here I thought I was being nice. Just wait until I have you completely in my clutches. Then you’ll really be in trouble.”
The look he gave her, like she was his moon and stars, sent her heart tripping. “Bring it on,” she whispered as he started to move. A battle raged inside her head. She was determined to keep her gaze on him, but as he stoked the fire she was losing conscious thought and switching over to pure instinct.
Each stroke brought her closer. He kept the pace steady and soon she was clawing his back, trying to hang on.
“Stay with me, princess.” He slowed his thrusts.
“No, I was so close!” Her eyes found his once more.
“I’ve waited too long for this to end quickly, Adriana.”
He was killing her both with arousal and emotion. Every time she got close, he’d slow down or lighten the contact with her clit. Tears were rolling down her cheeks and her breath was coming in pants. “Master, please. I’m begging.”
His teeth were grazing down her neck. “You belong to me.”
“Yes,” she gasped as he bit her shoulder. “All yours.”
“Who? Adriana, who do you belong to?” He was surging harder and faster into her.
“You.” As her orgasm ripped through her, she shouted his name, “André!”
“That’s right, Adriana, you’re mine.” He tipped his head back as he released inside her.
The sensations seemed to go on forever. Exhausted, she collapsed onto the bed, her arms falling to her sides as aftershocks continued to rock through her. Eventually, she realized he was still buried deep and throbbing. She never wanted it to end.
As André pulled out and lay on her right side, she groaned.
He brushed her bangs from her face and she turned toward him. She had to see him and know this time it was real, that he wasn’t another fantasy she’d made up to stay sane.
“I love you, Adriana.”
She watched as the color drained from his face and she knew he’d never meant to utter those words. While she would cherish them always, she had to let him off the hook. “Of course you do. What’s not to love?” She winked and pretended it was no big deal. “I’m the best friend with benefits a man could have.”
Slowly, his smile and color came back. “Exactly. I’m a lucky man to have a friend like you around to bust my chops at every turn.”
Chapter Eight
They’d fallen into a comfortable routine, making love at least two or three times a day and filling the rest of their time working side by side on their laptops. André treasured every moment. She brought him a soul-deep peace that he’d never felt before. It was almost laughable that he’d found it with Adriana. The woman was constantly giving him trouble, but he wouldn’t change a single thing.
“Hello”—sh
e waved her hand in front of his face—“where’d ya go?” Adriana was sitting with him on the couch. “I was talking to you.”
“I heard every word you said. You need to run by your apartment and grab some things before we head to the club.” He grabbed her hand and gave her palm a kiss.
“Yes, I also said the man in the moon needs more cheese and we’ll need to pick that up too, but you ignored me,” she teased him.
“Very funny. I have an important event to plan and you’re talking about cheese. Of course I ignored you.” He loved her sense of humor. She made him smile all the time. He went to sleep each night with sore cheeks and it was always her fault.
“Now what are you planning? You need to learn to fly by the seat of your pants and just live in the moment every once in a while.”
Her eyes were sparkling with mischief and he wished he had a camera. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I need to not overthink this.” He bent down and pulled out a box from his briefcase then handed it to her. “I don’t know that I’ve earned this yet, but it comes from my heart and I’ll work hard to be worthy.”
Her jaw dropped open and she stared down at the case he’d pushed into her hands. “A collar? Why? What does this mean?”
He sighed, not really having an answer for that. He knew what he wanted it to mean, but then there was the issue of her family. It always came down to that. “It means I want you as my submissive, not just until your leg heals, but for as long as you’ll have me. But, Adriana, nothing else has changed. This is all I can offer you.” God, he hoped she understood what he meant. He’d never repeated the mistake of using the ‘L’ word, but it still hung in the air between them.
Tears were forming in her eyes and his stomach knotted. Had he hurt her? Was he being selfish? He just didn’t know anymore.
Adriana scowled at him. “You mean I’ll have to be content with incredible sex and the best friend a woman’s ever had?” She shook her head. “Damn, you drive a hard bargain, but I accept your terms.”
He sat there staring at her. Wait… What? “Is that a yes?”
She laughed and kissed his cheek. “Yes, Master. I would love to be your subbie.”
André closed her laptop and set it on the seat beside him, giving her room to open the box.
Gently lifting the lid, Adriana gazed down at the collar he’d had made especially for her. Over the past month, he’d learned she preferred white gold over yellow and sapphires were her favorite gemstone. She was a girlie girl, who liked delicate filigree more than solid pieces. All in all, he thought the jeweler had done a wonderful job creating a unique necklace, perfectly in sync with her tastes. Its style would be acceptable to wear out in public, but be immediately recognizable for what it was to those in the lifestyle.
Tears were trickling down her cheek. He jumped up and returned with tissues.
“Thank you. Oh, my God, thank you. It’s stunning.” Her hands were shaking as she tried to remove it from the box.
“Let me help, princess.” He unclasped the collar and held it out before her.
She turned her back to him and lifted her hair. “It looks a little bit like a crown. It’s so dainty. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
André slid it around her neck and refastened it. “Does it feel all right? It’s not too tight?”
“It’s perfect.” She wrapped her arms around him. “When did you get this?”
He pulled her onto his lap, not liking even that little distance between them. “I met with the jeweler a few times while you were at physical therapy. He just finished it today.”
She stared at him for a moment then looked down at the empty box and shook her head. “And here I thought you were disgusted with me for being such a wimp.” She grabbed another tissue as the tears continued to flow.
“What? How did you get that impression?” He hugged her tighter. “Oh, bebe, nothing could be further from the truth.”
“I don’t know. You always look so angry and you never stay. No matter how hard I work, you always leave.” She sniffled before leaning back against his shoulder.
“It tears me apart to see you in pain and to know I had a hand in it.” He’d had no idea she felt like that. “I’m not angry with you, Adriana. Never you.”
She chuckled and kissed his cheek. “My vanilla friends think Doms get off on hurting their subbies.”
“Fucking idiots. They have no idea what the lifestyle is really like. I never want to see you hurt or injured. Knowing that I played a part in this”—he touched her brace—“kills me.”
“No. You didn’t do anything wrong. You had no idea what the trolls were doing.” She shrugged. “To be honest, I doubt they thought I’d break a leg. I think they just wanted to scare me away from you.”
“Don’t talk about them, bebe. I see red every time I think about what they did. Last I heard from Nick, they were talking about a plea deal.” No matter what happened, justice would never be served. Adriana would live the rest of her life with a rod through her leg because of those girls.
“Shh, it doesn’t matter. We’re here, they’re not. It’s all good.” She had her hand on his chin, directing his gaze.
He let go of the breath he was holding. His anger wouldn’t help her. She needed him to focus on her, not revenge or the inadequacies of the judicial system.
André felt a burst of pride that Adriana had accepted his collar. He ran his finger along the rounded edges of the filigree. “Thank you. I’m honored.”
A fresh round of tears showed in her eyes. “Yeah, well, somebody has to take care of you.”
“I thought I was taking care of you.” He certainly wanted to.
“We’ll take care of each other. Isn’t that what D/s is about? Meeting each other’s needs, wants and desires?”
She was watching him intently…searching his face for something.
He felt inadequate under her scrutiny. She deserved someone she could build a life with, but being the selfish bastard that he was, he couldn’t give her up. Instead of answering, he kissed her hard. Since this was all he had to offer her, he put everything he had into it.
Once he pulled back, she touched her mouth with her tips of her fingers. “Wow. Now that I’m wet and panting, what are you going to do with me?”
He laughed and checked his watch. “If you want to go to the club tonight, we need to get moving. Otherwise, I could take you into the bedroom and have my wicked way with you.”
“You’ve got to be anxious being away for so long.” She gave him a wink. “Besides, I know the owner. I bet if I ask him very nicely, he might be able to find a quiet place where we can sneak away and be as wicked as you’d like.”
“What if I don’t want a quiet place? What if I want to tie you and fuck you on the stage in front of everyone?” He watched as her eyes dilated and her breathing shallowed.
“Oh my. I’d say the idea has merit.” She kept her expression speculative for a second or two then dissolved into giggles.
He hugged her tight and kissed her passionately. Could she be any more perfect? He doubted it.
* * * *
After carrying her up the three flights of stairs, he placed her gently on the couch then sat beside her. “Top floor, eh?”
“It’s the best. There’s no one above you to make noise. Fewer bugs, too.” She flashed him a megawatt smile.
“Less air, too.” Damn, he needed to hit the gym. He’d seriously slacked off since Adriana had moved in with him. He didn’t like to spend any time away from her.
“You didn’t have to carry me. I could have hopped.”
He gave her his most intimidating stare, but she just laughed at him. He touched the tip of her nose with the pad of his index finger. “Brat!”
A loud knock on the door startled him. “Are you expecting someone?”
“No.” She shook her head. “Maybe it’s my neighbor or landlady.”
André went to the door and opened it. A man and a woman looked as surprised at seeing h
im as he was to see them.
“Mom? Dad? What are you doing here?” Adriana looked from André to her parents.
Her mom brushed past him headed toward Adriana.
“Who are you?” The man, her father apparently, stood with his arms crossed over his chest glaring at André.
Oh fuck! This just got messy. “André Devereaux, sir, it’s nice to meet you.” He held out his hand and tried to smile.
The women were talking fast, mostly in Italian. Her mom was sitting on the coffee table facing Adriana. Their arms were waving around and André felt a little ill.
“Momma, Papa, I’d like you to meet my Master, André Devereaux.” Adriana had a hand on her collar and the other pointing at André.
The noise level in the apartment went from chaos to silent in a heartbeat. André stared at Adriana not quite believing he’d heard her correctly.
“I know that name.” Her father scrutinized his face. “Where do I know you from?”
“Papa, he’s the owner of DiscipliNation. Master, I’d like to introduce my parents, Master Carlo Parma and his slave, Constance. They own and operate Dom’s Place.” Adriana sent him a ‘please don’t make a scene’ look.
Carlo shot him a deadly glare. “I don’t return your e-mails and you go after my daughter. What the fuck is this? You try to use my daughter as a way to steal our members?”
His head was spinning. Adriana’s parents own a kink club? And she never thought to mention it? What the fuck is going on here?
“Papa, come here, please.” She patted the cushion beside her. “It wasn’t like that. Master had no idea.”
André looked fondly at the door. It was still open. He could just leave. And why the hell did she keep saying Master. Unless they were in a scene, she always just used his name. What the fuck game is she playing?
Her father sat beside her and André stood off to the side until Adriana reached for him. She was pale and her hand was shaking. He immediately went to her side and took her hand in the two of his as he sat on the armrest.
“Momma, Papa, I knew you would react like this.” She shook her head as if she were trying to get her thoughts together. “I felt smothered at Dom’s Place. Gio, Andy, the whole lot of them were constantly in my business. I couldn’t be myself.” She looked up at André. “I heard about DiscipliNation and I went to a munch. We met there.”