by Sienna Snow
He was going to paint me. I knew it.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“No. Tonight I’m Max and you’re Arya. Two people who want to enjoy each other. Do you understand?”
Never before had he wanted me to call him by his name. It was as if he sensed I was ready to move past the wall I created between us.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and answered, “Yes, Max.”
“Good. Now hold very still.”
I held my breath and then gasped at his first touch. Soft wisps of something glided along my neck and down my spine, sending goose bumps over my skin. I squirmed with the tickling sensation.
“You weren’t expecting a feather, were you?”
So that was what it was.
The sensual feel of the downy barbs both surprised and delighted me. My nipples hardened, and the wetness pooling between my legs increased.
“A feather’s gentle caress can quickly awaken the delicate sensors lying under the skin. I want every part of your body awake for the grand finale.” He guided the plume over the curve of my bottom and down the slopes of my knees and calves.
“Max,” I moaned, and my body shuddered.
“You’ll like what comes next even more.”
Max stopped his gentle strokes. A clasp echoed and the essence of eucalyptus, rosemary, and lavender filled the air. The scent of my favorite body oil. His hands settled over my shoulders as he massaged the lingering tension away.
“How did you know what I use?”
Max kissed the back of my head. “I notice everything about you and keep it locked away for future reference.”
“Thank you,” I said. But for what, I wasn’t sure. Maybe it was for noticing unexpected things about me or for continuing to show me tenderness and love even though I kept pushing him away.
“You’re welcome,” he said as he kneaded down my spine.
Max manipulated every tense muscle in my back until I was nearly comatose. He moved lower over my butt and down my thighs, ending at my toes. I was in complete heaven. After what felt like hours, he stopped his ministration and slid off the bed. This time, I heard the sound of glass clinking.
“So tell me, Arya. Is there anything you wanted to know about me that I haven’t told you?”
His question surprised me. Max never freely gave information about himself. I’d always wanted to know about his father but in the past, a giant DO NOT GO THERE sign had been plastered all over that conversation. Would he object now?
Sensing my hesitation, he said, “Ask. I’ll tell you anything.”
“Really?”
He sighed. “I guess I deserve that. I didn’t give you the trust you sought five years ago, but I’m willing to now.”
I lifted up, attempting to take off my mask and verify that he was serious.
Max pushed me gently down. “You’re going to ruin my canvas if you tense up. Relax.”
As I settled, my stomach filled with apprehension. “Tell me what happened with your dad. I know the media version, but I feel like it wasn’t the truth.”
I waited for him to refuse, but he didn’t. “It was common knowledge my father loved my mother very deeply. Their romance was unheard of in the society in which I grew up. Marriages were about connections and business. My parents showed everyone that love was another reason.
“I had an incredible childhood. Carmen and I had everything, financially and emotionally. My mother was the center of our family, and my father was the best dad imaginable.”
I knew a but was coming.
“When my mother was killed in a car crash, something broke inside my father. He changed overnight and left Carmen and me alone to fend for ourselves. Yes, he provided financially, but the man we loved and adored disappeared and was replaced with a cold, money-driven impostor.”
I listened to the hiss of a match flaring to life and then the scent of lavender and vanilla surrounded me. The aroma reminded me of my first experience with wax play while in South Africa. My stomach tensed.
“What’re you doing?”
“Lighting a few candles to enhance the mood.” Max climbed back onto the bed and resumed massaging my feet.
“So, finish your story. I want to understand the man I met in Cape Town.”
“As I said, my father wasn’t the same. His need for money propelled him to make some bad deals. And then rumors surfaced about a federal investigation into his affairs. The day warrants were issued for him and his fellow conspirators, he planned on taking the coward’s way out.”
“But he was murdered. Why doesn’t anyone know he planned suicide?”
“Before my father could go through with his plan, a woman he defrauded of over thirty million dollars took her anger out on him. He’d used her infatuation with him as a way into her finances, and he helped himself to her inheritance.”
“Oh God, that poor woman. At least you weren’t the one who found him.”
“I’d rather have found him than discover what he’d planned for later that evening. On his bed were a shotgun, pills, his will, and a typed letter. He couldn’t even be bothered to handwrite his last words.”
“How’d you keep the authorities from discovering the planned suicide?”
“Lex. I called his father, and within twenty minutes a team of people arrived to search the house for anything that would hint of something other than a case of a lover scorned.”
Max’s fingers tensed on the lower crease of my bottom and he leaned his head into the dip at the base of my spine. “What hurt the most was that he thought he was doing us a favor. In his suicide note, he apologized for forcing us to grow up, but by educating us, we now had the tools to fix his mess and save the company.”
My heart ached for both Max and Carmen. They’d abandoned the futures they’d planned for the sake of the company. Now the lost and cynical twenty-five-year-old I’d met made sense.
My poor Max. “Is that why you walked away from us?” I held my breath, regretting asking him the question.
Max slid up my body and kissed the back of my neck. “In all honesty, yes. I was afraid of what I felt for you and thought if I let you go, I wouldn’t risk becoming like my father.”
A tear slipped past my eyes. “I’m sorry, Max.”
“Shhh, I’m the one who should be sorry. I let you go, but I won’t make the same mistake again.” His words squeezed my heart, but trusting the feelings scared me.
Max slapped my ass, jarring me out of my melancholy. “No more serious talk. It’s time for art class to begin.”
“Are you going to paint me?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.” Max moved something from the side table and straddled my lower back.
My curiosity was piqued.
“Ready?”
“Yesss…” Intense heat flared down my shoulders and spine before I finished my response. “Fuck!” I called out, arching up.
Shit. He meant canvas for wax, not paint.
Max forced me down. “Breathe through it and stay still.”
“Max, I’m not sure I can do this.” Why hadn’t I remembered the pain?
“Yes, you can. You loved it in the past, and you’ll love it again.” He blew on the soft wax, and as the liquid fire solidified, it left a tingle of pleasure in its wake. He rubbed my uncoated skin. “Now that the initial shock is over, we can really play.”
My stomach leaped at his words, my body eagerly awaiting the white-hot burn. Max gently grazed his fingers down my side and followed them with a trail of wax. This time, the heated bite left a sensual sting urging me to rub my thighs together against the arousal I felt.
“Don’t move an inch. We still have a ways to go.”
Oh, God.
I waited for each splash, never knowing where he’d pour. The anticipation became addictive. The shock and pleasure of each tip of the candle had my muscles melting. He covered every bit of my back from the soles of my feet to my shoulders and arms. Under the heat
ed touch, I surrendered to the intoxicating spell Max wove.
“Stay with me for a little bit longer, love. I’m almost done.”
I fell out of the trance. The weight of the wax laid heavily on my body, pushing me into the soft bed.
“Now to make sure my masterpiece is preserved.”
The next thing I knew, sharp metal grazed my skin, and I jumped in surprise. Was that a knife?
“It’s okay, relax. I’m scoring the thinner areas to help with removal. The massage oil on your body will clean you up quickly. I won’t hurt you.”
I believed him and relaxed back into the mattress. He extracted each piece of wax from my skin with meticulous precision. Some areas slid off with little effort, others with a suction pop.
A few moments later, the bed dipped and the room glowed as Max slid the eye mask off my head. My vision cleared and focused enough to find him sitting on the side of the bed.
His brilliant eyes gazed at me with deep unsaid emotion. I tucked my feet underneath me and he took my outstretched hand.
“Let’s go to bed, baby,” he whispered as he slipped both of us under the covers and gathered me close.
I snuggled into his arms, but waited for the smallest sign he wanted to make love.
“Don’t you want to—”
He silenced me with a kiss. “No, I need to hold you tonight.”
I closed my eyes and accepted his comfort.
I woke to an empty bed and the sound of Max talking in the living room of the suite. I stretched and smiled. The tension from the ball was all but erased. Who knew a little wax play could work wonders for stressed muscles?
I lifted my head and peeked at the clock on the bedside table.
Two thirty a.m.
Who was Max calling at this time of night? Most likely someone in Europe or Asia.
Next to the clock sat a rectangle object I hadn’t seen earlier in the evening. It resembled a large book.
I grasped the object. It was the wax design Max had scraped from my back with the knife. The purple wax held the golden design of a sleeping phoenix resting on a dragon’s back.
Wow.
Underneath the drawing were the words: My Arya.
He’d taken our discussion about being a phoenix to heart and created this beautiful piece of art. The dragon had the same shape and design as the tattoo on his right shoulder.
I traced the outline of the reptile.
I rolled to my side and placed the wax back on the table. Then I moved off the bed toward the closet. I tensed at my nudity, but relaxed just as fast. After the wax we’d both fallen asleep in the dark.
I studied my shredded dress, and shook my head. In seconds, a twenty-thousand-dollar gown had been transformed to rags. I should send him a bill for the cost.
I rummaged through the closet until I found my camisole and robe. I slipped both on as I entered the living room.
Max watched me cross the threshold, and his eyes ate me up. He wore nothing but his pajama bottoms. They hung low on his hips, accentuating his amazing abs and athletic body.
I knew I’d better stop staring, or I would jump him while he was discussing business.
I sauntered toward the balcony door, glancing back one last time. Max lifted a brow and gestured at the tent forming in the front of his pants. I gave him a smile and stepped into the warm Miami night.
The salty breeze rising from the sea tickled my face as I sat on the deck chair. I gazed out toward the dark ocean. Lightning struck in the far distance, hinting at an impending storm, but the thought of sitting under a tepid shower pleased me.
What would it be like to make love with Max out here on the balcony? I closed my eyes and imagined his fingers trailing from my cheek, over my lips, and down my neck.
A sigh escaped my mouth. If only privacy wasn’t an issue.
“What’s put that blissful expression on your face?” Max perched on the end of the chair.
“You.” I kept my eyes closed and licked my lips.
The wood beneath me creaked and then Max’s lips touched mine. First, his kiss was feather soft, but soon he coaxed my mouth open and deepened the embrace.
Just like I had imagined. Perfect.
Max took hold of my wrists, pulled me underneath him, and continued feasting. My clit throbbed, and my pussy flooded with arousal.
His hand moved between my thighs to my naked pussy. “You left off one piece of clothing.”
“Any objection?” I murmured against his lips.
He let go of my hands and propelled my hips toward his cotton-covered erection. My eyes opened and I stared into blazing green. Slowly, he untied the knot on my robe and worked the silk belt out. “You’re so wet, I can feel it through my pants.”
My cheeks heated. The desire on his face and his words increased the need searing through me. I grazed my palm over his shirtless chest to the tattoo that ran from the back of his neck to the top of his shoulder. “Are you the dragon to my phoenix?”
“From the first moment we met.” He gathered my hands. “Hold them together.” Then he tied the silk belt around my wrists with a bow. “You’re mine, Arya.”
I climbed onto his lap. “Yours,” I murmured and brought my bound arms around his neck.
Max picked me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried me through the balcony doors to the bedroom.
“I’m going to make love to you now, Phoenix,” he said, laying me down onto the bed.
I heard the challenge in his voice. We’d never used scene names before, and it surprised me that he wanted to use them now. But there was no point in fighting something that felt right.
I leaned up. “Yes, make love to me, my dragon.”
And he did.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
The following morning I came out of the shower to find Max packed and ready to leave.
“Where’re you going? I thought our plan was to spend the weekend exploring Key West.”
Max took hold of my robe’s collar and drew me toward him. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were disappointed. I still get the feeling you want to keep our relationship quiet.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond. I’d woken with the plan to tell Max everything. After what we shared last night, I couldn’t deny I wanted more from this relationship. “I—”
Max kissed me, cutting off my words. “Don’t say anything you don’t mean.”
I stepped back from him, holding my robe closed but keeping quiet. I couldn’t talk to him about the past like this. Fuck. I finally built up the courage to tell him and now he was leaving.
“There’s an emergency with an acquisition overseas. I’ll fly out to Japan today and then be in China for at least a week.”
I bit my lip, trying desperately to keep it from trembling. I hated feeling this way.
He walked over to his bags, picked up his briefcase, and glanced at his watch. “I have to get to the airport. I ordered breakfast. It’s waiting for you in the dining area. You can always call me if you need me.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be okay,” I said, my voice quivering. God, what was wrong with me? I’d become that senseless, needy girl again.
“It may be morning before I can call you.”
“You don’t need to do that. We can talk whenever you get a chance.”
Hurt passed in his eyes and a stab of guilt went through me.
No, I didn’t mean it like that. Say something Arya.
But Max got there first. “After last night, I thought we were past this stupid game we’ve been playing.” He cupped the back of his neck and blew out a rough breath. “Fine. If that’s how you want it, I won’t call.”
Max touched the button for the elevator. He turned back one last time before stepping in, and as the door closed, he said, “I love you Arya. I’ll see you in a few weeks.”
Tears burned the back of my eyes as I thought of what we’d shared the night before and how stupid I was to let him think I didn’t care. We’
d spent the night as a couple in love, not as a Dom with his submissive acting out a scene.
I sat on the bed that still smelled of the vanilla and lavender wax and curled my knees into my chest.
I crawled onto Milla’s couch, tucking my feet under me. I grabbed the remote and a blanket. After a hellacious week of meetings, planning, and programming, a fun girls’ night in would do the trick for both of us. I hadn’t heard from Max, and Milla was on the outs with both her Dom and Lex. What a fine pair we made.
“Make sure to bring the wine,” I called out.
“Like I’d forget. I have two more bottles ready once we finish this one.” Milla walked in with a tray loaded with popcorn, brownies, cake, four shots of Amarula, two glasses, and a bottle of wine.
“God bless you.” I plucked a brownie from the tray and popped it into my mouth. The rich chocolate taste hit the spot.
“It feels like forever since we’ve had time to be girls and hang out.” Milla set the food on the coffee table and reclined on the cushion next to me.
“You’re right. Plus with our nonexistent love lives, we’ve got each other for company.”
“Who needs stupid boys, anyway?” She handed me a shot and lifted her glass in a toast.
“Amen to that. Here’s to best friends.” We both drank down the smooth, creamy liquid and giggled.
“Hey, you never told me how the Carson Ball went. Did Max introduce you to any big investors? By the way, the pictures of you two in the magazines were awesome. Too bad you won’t openly date him.”
“I’m going to ignore that comment and answer your question. Overall, the ball was fun, and the evening ended well.” My mind drifted to the wax play and the incredible sex that came later.
“With the spaced-out look on your face, I’d say it ended better than well. But I’m asking about the actual ball.”
“It was fun, with a few exceptions. Walter being one of them and then right before we left, Jacob arrived.”
“Oh shit.” She bobbed on the sofa and clutched her wineglass. “Tell me you caused a scene.”
“As much as I know how you’d love that, I was the pillar of the cold, unemotional ice queen. I handled Jacob as I usually do. But there was something he said that rubbed me the wrong way. So much that I called James to have someone keep an eye on him.” I paused.