Playing His Way

by Erika Wilde

  And Stephanie wanted that. To be the first and the last woman to love Mac unconditionally. She had no idea how he would react to this offering or if it would change anything between them, but she figured she only had everything to gain and nothing to lose.

  * * *

  “How much longer before you pull your head out of your ass?” Dean asked as he strolled into Mac’s office, clearly a man on a mission. “You’ve been a prick to be around since you stupidly broke things off with Stephanie, and quite frankly, I’m getting tired of your mood swings. You’ve been worse than a woman with PMS.”

  Mac glared at his friend, who, at the moment, he wanted to punch in the face. “Jesus, could you insult me any more than you just did?”

  Dean blinked at him, nonplussed. “Oh, yeah. That was me being nice. But I’m getting tired of you moping around the office—”

  “I don’t fucking mope,” Mac cut him off irritably.

  Dean smirked. “Oh, yeah, you do. Just ask Gail or Rick—”

  “Whatever.” Mac didn’t want to hear it and deliberately ignored Dean as he returned to answering an email on his laptop.

  His friend didn’t take the hint and dropped into one of the chairs in front of Mac’s desk. “So, let’s talk this out.”

  What. The. Fuck? “What are you now?” Mac snapped. “My goddamn shrink?”

  “No, I’m your best friend, and when it comes right down to it, I’ve never seen you so fucking miserable, and I really want to help you pull your head out of your ass about this whole Stephanie thing since you don’t seem capable of doing it yourself.”

  Frustrated by his friend’s persistence, Mac slammed down the top of his computer and decided to give Dean his attention so he could get this idiotic conversation over with. “And how do you propose to do that?”

  Dean rolled his eyes to look at the ceiling. “Jesus. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we’re going to talk about your fucking emotions.”

  Mac laughed. He couldn’t help it, and it actually felt good to release some tension after being wound so tight. “Please, go on. I’m intrigued by how this is all going to go down, because you are the last person I know who’s in touch with his emotions.”

  A slow smile eased up the corners of Dean’s mouth. “That was before my wife taught me that it doesn’t make me a pussy to show certain feelings. Now I’m actually pretty good at it. And trust me when I say, the whole expressing your feelings with your woman thing is a game changer.”

  Mac shook his head. “Who the fuck are you and what did you do with my business partner?”

  Dean ignored his sarcastic remark. “Jillian told me you had a major freak-out moment the evening you went to see Jase and Kendall at the hospital and saw Stephanie holding the baby.”

  “When did Jillian tell you this?” he asked.

  Dean shrugged. “She went out with the girls last night, and after Raina and Paige went home, Stephanie told her everything that happened between the two of you, including you being chivalrous enough to decide that Stephanie needed kids in her life, and since you’re swimmer free because of your vasectomy, you took it upon yourself to end a good thing.”

  Hearing it from someone else’s perspective made him see the situation in a completely different light. “It’s true,” he said.

  Dean rubbed a hand along his jaw, his expression thoughtful. “So, the fact that something like that would even register on your radar as being a concern when it comes to a woman tells me that you’re more involved with Stephanie than just being fuck buddies?”

  He exhaled a deep breath. “It wasn’t supposed to be anything more than that, but yeah, I kinda fell for her over the past month.”

  “Kinda?”

  “Okay, I fell for her a lot,” he amended, but Dean raised a brow, forcing Mac to dig a little deeper and admit what he’d been trying to deny for the past week. “Okay, fine, you asshole. I fell in love with her, all right?”

  Dean grinned triumphantly. “See, now, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

  Mac scowled at his friend. “It’s not like it changes anything. In truth, the emotional involvement made what was supposed to be just a physical affair more complicated. And then throw in the fact that she’s young and could change her mind about wanting kids in the future, and I did what I thought was best, even though she told me she doesn’t need babies to make her happy.”

  “God, you’re such a dumb ass,” Dean said with a shake of his head.

  “I know,” Mac agreed quietly, because he’d been thinking the same thing since watching her walk away from him at the hospital.

  Dean chuckled. “Didn’t see that coming.”

  “I didn’t want to end things, but it felt like it was the right thing to do. The last thing I want is a woman I care a lot about—okay, fucking love,” he amended when Dean arched a brow, “to resent me for what I couldn’t give her.” And the other thing that was harder to admit out loud was that he feared somewhere down the road years from now she’d change her mind and he’d lose her. But he was beginning to think it was a risk he was willing to take if it meant having Stephanie in his life.

  “The way I see things, you have two choices,” Dean said, the amusement in his eyes warning Mac that another wisecrack was coming. “You can trust that she’s a woman who knows her own mind and she’s not just saying what she thinks you want to hear because she wants your money or your big dick, or you could just leave things the way they are and lose the best fucking thing that’s ever happened to you . . . besides me, of course.” The bastard smirked.

  The latter was what had Mac’s stomach in knots since the last time he’d seen her. The realization that he would never touch her again, that he’d have to live the rest of his life alone because she was the only woman he wanted to spend forever with, was what kept him up at night.

  If there was one thing he’d learned about Stephanie, it was that she was a strong, independent, and decisive woman, which was one of the many things that drew her to him and made her stand out. She was honest and truthful and if he didn’t go after her and make her his, losing her would end up being his biggest regret.

  Dean, having imparted his words of wisdom, left Mac’s office. Soon after, a text came through on his cell phone, and his heart raced when he saw it was from Stephanie.

  You still haven’t seen the Fifty Shades room and I need your approval so I can give you the keys and have you sign off on the project. Can you meet me there tonight at six?

  He didn’t hesitate with his reply. Yes. I’ll be there.

  This was his chance, he realized. To tell Stephanie how he felt about her and to let her know he wanted a relationship with her to work. The rest would be up to her.

  Chapter Eleven

  Mac arrived at The Players Club right on time at six and headed straight up to the fantasy rooms. Since it was a Tuesday night, the place was quiet, and as he approached the suite to meet with Stephanie, his heart beat harder and harder in his chest—part anticipation, part fear. She was here to hand over the keys to the final room and for him to sign off on the project, but he hoped to God that he’d be able to persuade her to give him another chance, even after what an idiot he’d been the night at the hospital. He’d do whatever it took to prove he was worthy of her.

  The door to the Fifty Shades room was cracked open a few inches, and when he heard the light strains of classical music, he assumed Stephanie was inside waiting for him. He inhaled a deep, fortifying breath and slowly pushed the door open . . . and was shocked and humbled by what he saw.

  He didn’t even give a shit what the room design looked like, not when the woman who owned his heart was kneeling on the floor in a submissive pose—shoulders straight, palms up on her thighs, and her gaze cast downward. Her beautiful blonde hair was loose and fell around her bare shoulders in soft waves to her breasts, and the only thing she wore was a pair of black lace panties.

  She literally took his breath away. The implications of what she was offering weren’
t lost on him—she was giving him her whole self, any way he wanted—and he honestly wondered what he’d done to deserve someone like her. Someone who was strong and confident and who continually challenged him, yet had the ability to surrender it all to him, trusting that he’d give her what she needed, too. It was a heady, powerful feeling that made him want to fall to his knees on the floor in front of her, to show her that they could also be equals—except in the bedroom, that was clearly not what she wanted from him. Thank God.

  He closed and locked the door, and still she didn’t move or look up at him, so he took a quick moment to glance around the room she’d so meticulously designed. It was everything she’d described to him, and so much more than he could have imagined. Luxurious, tasteful, yet undeniably erotic. The red room was aptly named, since the décor was dominantly red, and mostly leather furnishings. Then there were the pain elements . . . a spanking bench, ceiling-mounted hoists, a few other torture device pieces, and an entire wall of every kind of bondage and discipline toys a sadist could want.

  He returned his attention to Stephanie and slowly walked toward her, noticing the way her breathing changed as he neared and recognizing it as excitement. But for as much as his own body responded to her acquiescence and the scene she’d set up for him, he wasn’t about to assume anything.

  Standing in front of her, he reached down and tucked his fingers beneath her chin and tipped her head back so that she was looking up at him. Her lips parted, and her beautiful blue eyes were filled with the kind of emotion that had the ability to knock him flat on his ass. It made him hopeful, despite not knowing her true motivations for this evening. Was it all about sex for her? Or was she offering him more?

  “Stephanie . . . ” His voice was gruff with his own mix of emotions. “I need you to tell me what’s going on.”

  She swallowed hard, the briefest flicker of uncertainty chasing across her expression before that wonderful determination kicked in. “I designed this room for the dominant man you are and for the woman I’ve become with you. The one who craves every dirty, sinful thing you do to me,” she said, the honesty in her eyes making his heart almost hurt from the intensity of it. “I never knew how good it could be, how amazing it could feel to let go and give myself so completely to a man. To you,” she specified. “I want this, Brent. I need this. I need you. However you want me, I’m yours.”

  For tonight or forever, he wasn’t sure. But by the end of this scene, there would be no doubt in her mind who she belonged to. Him, and only him. He’d never again make the mistake of pushing her out of his life, when she was becoming the very air that he breathed. She was his greatest weakness, and surprisingly, he was okay with that.

  Now that she’d established her desires, he slipped right into dominant mode. “Are you sure about that?” he asked, keeping his features stern. “Because I won’t be gentle. I will test your limits, inflict pain, and make you beg me to fuck you.”

  The flush of arousal swept across her cheeks. “Yes, please.”

  The scene had just begun, and his dick was already hard as stone. “Your safe word is red,” he reminded her as he released her chin and held his hand out to her. “Stand up.”

  Trusting him, she placed her fingers against his palm, and he helped her to her feet. He allowed himself a few extra seconds to take in her firm breasts and the nipples that were already furled tight, then led her over to the large, king-size, four-poster bed in the room that was covered in a red satin fitted sheet.

  “Bend over so your upper body is lying on the mattress, but keep your feet flat on the floor,” he ordered. “And your arms straight and out to the sides above your head.”

  She didn’t hesitate to do as he requested, positioning herself precisely how he asked with her head turned to the side and her cascade of blonde hair an erotic contrast against the crimson cover. He pressed a hand between her shoulder blades to straighten her spine and, slowly, firmly, ran his palm down the curve of her back. A soft moan escaped her at the luxurious exertion of pressure along her muscles that was meant to relax her, which was good since things were going to get intense very soon.

  Reaching her panties, he slipped his thumbs beneath the waistband on either side of her hips. “You won’t be needing these,” he murmured, and pushed them down her legs until they were around her ankles. He would have kept them there because it looked so fucking hot and sexy, but he had other plans for her.

  While he removed his shoes, socks, tie, and shirt, he made Stephanie kick the scrap of lace to the side, then resume her submissive position as he retrieved two separate coils of soft red rope before returning to her. While the classical music played in the background, he secured first one wrist to the top bedpost, then the other one to the opposite side. He made sure her arms were stretched tight and there was no slack in the cord, then went back to the wall of toys and BDSM equipment to select his next device.

  With the steel rod in hand, he crouched behind Stephanie. He locked her ankles in the spreader bar that forced her legs a good three feet apart, giving him unimpeded access to her pussy and ass, because he intended to play with both. A first for the two of them, and hopefully not the last once he showed her how much pleasure it would give her.

  He straightened, his cock aching at the beautiful sight of her bound to the bed and his to do with as he pleased. He ran his fingers from the small of her back down to her upturned bottom and followed the crease until he encountered the soft, wet heat of her pussy. She was already slick and drenched with need, and he pushed one finger, then two, deep inside of her, rubbing the tips against that sweet spot each time he withdrew, which had her legs shaking.

  She made a desperate sound and wriggled her hips, pushing back against his hand as much as she could to take more of him. Greedy little thing, he thought with a pleased smirk as he withdrew his fingers completely, then lightly slapped his hand against her sensitive clit. She cried out in shock, and he rubbed her wet, swollen flesh before doing it a second time.

  Her entire body jerked at the contact, her arms pulling at the ropes restraining her. “Oh, God, Brent,” she groaned wildly. “I need to come. Please let me come.”

  “Not yet,” he said, leaving her for a moment to check out the items in the nearby armoire. Finding the toy he was looking for, he removed the packaging and brought it back to the bed, along with the remote control that came with it.

  Standing at the side of the mattress, he pushed the brand-new steel anal plug between her lips and into her mouth. “Suck on it like it’s my cock,” he told her. “Make it nice and wet for me.”

  Her lashes fluttered shut as she did as he ordered, his dick throbbing at how eager she was. It was almost more than he could take. He withdrew the toy, and standing behind her, he held her hip with one hand and dragged the tip of the device through her slick juices for good measure, then positioned it at the pucker of flesh that immediately resisted his efforts to push it into her ass.

  She sucked in a startled breath at the invasion and instinctively attempted to jerk away, but between the ropes around her wrists and the spreader bar, she couldn’t move anywhere that he couldn’t control her or pin her down.

  “Brent, no . . . ”

  He immediately stopped advancing. Quick and rough, he was leaning over her from behind, his bare chest against her back. His free hand curled around her throat, and he turned her head and tipped it back so that she was forced to look at his face. He’d expected to see fear in her eyes after her panicked reaction, but all he saw was the glazed look of need in her eyes.

  “Are you using your safe word?” he demanded.

  She shook her head in the negative, reassuring him that she’d just had a gut reaction to something that was new and foreign to her, so he continued on with the scene.

  “We’ve already had this discussion,” he said, his voice dark and assertive, just how he knew she liked it. “You don’t get to fucking tell me no. Do you understand?”

  “I’m sorry,” she murmured o
bediently. “I’ve just never . . . ”

  “I know,” he said, gentler now as he kissed her cheek to calm her. “Just relax, sweetness. I promise it’ll feel so fucking good once it’s in.”

  He felt her exhale a deep breath. “I trust you.”

  Coming from her, those words meant everything to him, and he’d never abuse that trust. He continued inserting the plug, and once it was properly in place, he grabbed the remote and pressed the button that activated the vibrating part of the toy.

  She gasped at first, then moaned long and low. Her body shuddered, and her thighs began to quiver, and within a few minutes she was panting and begging for him to let her come. He denied her request, and as he increased the speed of the vibrations in her ass, he watched her try to hold off her orgasm for him, because that’s what he’d demanded.

  God, she was fucking magnificent, and all his.

  Knowing she needed some kind of distraction, he rubbed his palm over her soft bottom, then smacked it hard, the sting of his swat diverting her attention from her body’s need to release the tension building inside her. Each time she came close to the edge of climaxing, he did it again, and again. He could have chosen any paddle to dole out the discipline, but the feeling of her bare ass against his palm was far more satisfying. The heat, the connection, the intimacy of it only intensified the physical and emotional bond between them.

  When she started to sob and claw at the sheet, he knew she wasn’t going to last much longer. And fuck, neither was he. He was hard and throbbing, his leaking cock wetting the fabric of his slacks. There was no doubt in his mind that it was only going to take a few hard, deep strokes inside of her to get them both off.

  He let the anal plug continue to vibrate as he ripped open the front of his pants and freed his cock. The head of his shaft glided easily through her slippery folds, and he notched the sensitive tip to the entrance to her body, then drove into her from behind, sliding balls deep. A possessive growl rumbled up in his throat as he savored the tight feel of her for a few seconds, along with the vibrations pulsating along his stiff length before he started to fuck her. It was hard and fast and it didn’t take long before she was screaming her release and clamping down tight around his cock, and he was following her right over the steep cliff that dropped off into pure bliss.