A Promise of Passion

by Maggie Carpenter

  “We all knew this,” Dominic said patiently. “The problem Gustav had, was that you had become the face of Spank Me Now, and he wanted it to do more ads, but he didn’t want to use anyone else.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because the pictures from the shoot we did, they were like magic, and he thought using another model would…again, I don’t know the word…make it less. In French it is saper.”

  “Undermine,” Vivien offered. “I can understand why he’d feel that way. I would have absolutely loved to have done more. Sorry, back to your story.”

  “He asked me if I would draw black and white sketches of you.”

  “Seriously?”

  “He checked the contract and artwork was included in your contract, so I agreed, but I decided to use an alias. Long story made quick-“

  “To make a long story short,” she interrupted, laughing as she did.

  “That too,” he chuckled, “Gustav and I worked out a deal, and it has been profitable for me. Extremely profitable, and I have a surprise for you. As I said, I was going to save all this for tonight, but I will give it to you now.”

  “Give me what?”

  “Don’t go anywhere,” he said kissing her lightly.

  Filled with curiosity, Vivien watched him climb off the bed and hurry from the room, and when he strode back through the door he was carrying an envelope.

  “Here you are,” he smiled, handing it to her.

  “What’s this?”

  “I know you were already paid for your work, but I put away 50% of my fees for the sketches. It seemed only fair.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Open it,” he said solemnly.

  Her heart skipping, she unsealed the envelope and discovered a bank statement naming both of them as account holders. There was a list of large deposits adding up to a significant balance, more than enough to put her solidly back on her feet.

  “NO!”

  “I couldn’t open an account with just your name, but if I opened a separate account I could add you. That money is all yours.”

  “I can’t accept this. It was your art!”

  “But your face, ma chérie, your face, your body, you!”

  “Dominic, I don’t believe it,” she gasped staring at her sudden windfall. “Now I really do feel like I’m dreaming.”

  “Happy dreams,” he said, sitting on the bed next to her. “If you want to go back to work you have something to lean on for a while, and you are still very famous for Spank Me Now all over Europe.”

  “This is the best news,” she sighed. “When will Gustav bring the label over here?”

  “The American distributors are afraid to take it on. They’re worried about the women’s rights movement, and they’ve made him worry about it too.”

  “In my opinion, the women’s rights thing is out of control and should be called, women rights gone wrong,” she declared, then sighing heavily and leaning into him, she added, “how can I ever thank you?”

  “You don’t understand,” he said softly. “Because of you, I have a new source of income. Gustav wants me to do a series of line drawings for a winter line he’s developing. Very high-end with fake fur and fabricated diamonds. I think it’s going to be huge worldwide, so you see, I am the one who is in your debt, not the other way around.”

  “It sounds like a win, win, win!”

  “Now you can nap in peace,” he said softly, taking the bank statement from her hand and gently pushing her back on to the mattress. “I want to do things to you, and help you doze off.”

  “Yes, please,” she whispered. “I would love you to do things to me.”

  “Arms above your head, wrists together,” he murmured, dropping his head down to kiss her neck, “and close your eyes.”

  Feeling the familiar flurry of butterflies, Vivien followed his instructions, then waited, listening intently as he moved around the room. A drawer slid open, then something tickled the inside of her thigh. She tensed, it lightly struck, and she suddenly remembered what he’d taught her.

  The first tickle had been the order to open her legs, and when she hadn’t, he’d followed it with a smack. She quickly spread her feet apart, and moments later the implement began tapping her pussy. It was a divine sensation, like a subtle electric pulse against her clit, and she moaned, then wriggled, then moaned again.

  “Don’t move,” he ordered, his voice husky.

  It wasn’t easy, but she held her body still as he continued the teasing play, then it stopped, and he placed something on her stomach. She guessed it to be a short riding crop, and the thought send a fresh surge of wetness through her sex. When she sensed him leaning over her, she caught her breath. Would he kiss her, draw her nipples into his mouth and suck endlessly, or…?

  “Keep your eyes closed,” he murmured.

  He slipped something over her head. It was a sleep mask, and a warm chill trembled through her body. She loved being blindfolded. It made her feel helpless, and she found it utterly intoxicating, but it also heightened her senses, bringing every detail of his decadent attention into focus.

  “Now I must tie you,” he muttered.

  As he bound her wrists, she guessed the tether to be a sash from one of the hotel’s robes. It was soft and forgiving, and as he stretched her arms up, she realized he was going to secure it to the open slat that ran across the center of the ornate wooden headboard.

  “There,” he murmured, kissing her softly, “blindfolded and bound, just as you should be. Are you comfortable?”

  “Yes, Sir,” she breathed, feeling as though she was falling under a spell.

  Staring down at her, Dominic could see her chest rising and falling, and he knew when he touched inside the soft seam between her legs he would find her hopelessly wet. It would be difficult not to ravage her, but that wasn’t his plan.

  Sitting on the side of the bed he picked the short, fat crop, off her stomach, the one thing he’d brought with him from France. In Europe she had groaned unabashedly from the attention of his dressage whip, but she never had felt the joy his short crop could offer.

  “Do you remember this?” he purred, sliding the leather tongue up her torso and between her breasts.

  “Is it a crop, Sir?”

  “Oui, just like the one you held in your mouth, and are going to again now.”

  As the cold, hard, rolled leather slipped between her teeth, she flashed back to the moment in Paris when she had been shackled and at his mercy. It was a divine memory, and she could feel herself sinking in her submissive state, something she had desperately missed.

  “Sir,” she moaned, the word garbled by the crop.

  “Oui?”

  “Thank you.”

  Dominic felt his heart swell. When her life had been tragically turned upside-down, it wasn’t just her lifestyle that had been ripped from her, but the rug had been pulled out from under her just-uncovered submissive soul.

  Whispering his tongue across her stomach, he circled it around her breasts before lowering his lips to her nipples and languidly sucking each in turn. Her soft moans sent his fingers into her velvet slit, and sending them inside her soaked channel, he searched out the deeply buried magic spot, that could generate so much pleasure. Listening to her whimpering moans, he felt his cock surge to life, but ignoring his need he continued to mouth her breasts and tease her pussy, his attention growing more vigorous as the minutes ticked.

  “Are you close?” he purred, taking his lips to her neck.

  “Yes, yes, I am,” she managed, doing her best to answer him through the leather stick in her mouth.

  Straightening up, but continuing to play between her legs, he gently removed the crop, then flicked the leather flap across her nipples, delivering it with just enough force to leave a spicy tingle in its wake. She gasped, then moaned, as he lowered his lips to warmly suck away the pain. He could feel her nearing the edge, and vigorously plunging his finger in and out of her drenched passage, he sent her rock
eting skyward. Her cries of euphoria filled the room, and as her body convulsed under him, he thought he would spontaneously combust inside his trousers.

  “Dominic,” she mumbled, “please will you hold me?”

  Freeing her wrists and removing her blindfold, he took her in his arms, and tenderly cradling her, he closed his eyes, amazed at the depth of caring that was filling his heart.

  I will never allow us to be separated for such a length of time again. I knew I missed you very badly, but I didn’t know just how much until now.

  “What about you?” she whispered, still slightly breathless.

  “Don’t worry about me,” he purred. “You rest now. I’ll wake you when it’s time to go to your hair appointment.”

  “Thank you,” she mumbled, “for everything.”

  When he was sure she was sleeping he slipped off the bed, and walking quietly back into the living room he opened up his laptop to finish the last of his emails. He’d give her the rest of the news over dinner. They would have a great deal to celebrate, but that was assuming she was ready to return to the world, and he didn’t want to make that assumption, but he fervently prayed that she would.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  While Vivien was at the salon, Dominic took the opportunity to lie on the bed and massage himself to a much-needed climax. As the tingles from the gratifying orgasm left his limbs, he felt a wave of fatigue swept through his body and let out a heavy breath. The combination of the long flight, the enormous relief of their reunion, and jumping through hoops to make her world right again, had taken its toll. Unable to keep his eyes open he allowed them to close, and there was no thought as he drifted away. His dreamless sleep continued until he felt soft lips kissing his cheek, and opening his eyes he found Vivien perched on the side of the bed.

  “Vivien,” he murmured, trying to focus, “how was your hairdresser? I must look at you.”

  “Do you like it?”

  Letting out a long yawn, he rubbed his hands over his eyes, then raised his gaze to study her. The stylist had trimmed her hair to shoulder length, and rather than cutting short, feathery layers, she had left it longer, and it was falling in gentle waves that framed her face. The once blonde highlights were now auburn, giving her a more dramatic look, and the color highlighted her almond-shaped blue/grey eyes. The ultimate affect was stunning.

  “You look amazing,” he muttered, “I love it. You look…”

  “What?” she pressed, knowing he was scrutinizing her with a painter’s eye.

  “The only word that I can think of is deeper. So beautiful, and so deep.”

  “Deep?”

  “Oui! You have more behind your eyes. I must paint you. I must.”

  “What do you think of the highlights? My hair became so dark this winter, the stylist was worried that blonde wouldn’t work.”

  “I agree,” he nodded. “Everything, the cut, the…les notions…I don’t know the English word, perhaps scattering is right, anyway the presence of the dark red, it is dramatic, very dramatic. It is a new you, Vivien.”

  “I am a new me,” she said solemnly. “This last year has changed me.”

  “You have grown into yourself,” he said warmly, “and it is splendid. The camera will love you even more.”

  “The camera,” she sighed.

  “You miss the work,” he said softly, a statement more than a question.

  “I do, and I miss being with you. When I think about Paris and London, sometimes it feels like yesterday, and other times it feels as if it was another life.”

  “Are you ready to return and make a new life?”

  “I want to,” she said hesitantly. “I’m worried about leaving my family though. I don’t know if it’s too soon.”

  “You think they still need you?”

  “I’m not sure. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t.”

  “Let’s go to your farm tomorrow. Call the bed and breakfast and-“

  “No!” she interrupted. “I want you to stay at the house.”

  “I don’t want to be, what is it you say, under your feet,” he frowned.

  “Underfoot,” she smiled. “You couldn’t possibly be underfoot, and I know Will and my mother would love to have you there. They told me they wanted you to stay. I just wasn’t sure how things would be when we saw each other. That came out wrong,” she said hastily, “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry. I had the same worries, but look, we are better than ever,” he grinned. “Okay, I will stay, but I don’t wish to offend your mother so you must put me in a different room.”

  “My mother won’t care, but I will if you want. It won’t matter though. She takes sleeping pills, and my brother lives in his own cabin behind the house, so we’ll have plenty of privacy when the sun goes down.”

  “That is good to know,” he winked. “Then it is settled. I am looking forward to seeing your farm and all the animals. Now, after that long nap I must shower.”

  “Dominic,” she said, lowering her voice, “will you do something for me?”

  “But of course, anything.”

  “I, uh, I’m not sure how to ask this,” she said, dropping her eyes as a warmth moved across her face, flaming her cheeks.

  “You are blushing, ma cherie. What is it?”

  “After your shower…would you…uh…put me over your knee?”

  “You want me to spank you?”

  “I don’t know why, but yes. Not too hard, but…”

  Sitting up he brought his arms around her, and closing his eyes he pulled her against him.

  “More than you know, I understand,” he said, gently reassuring her. “Wait for me in just a T-shirt. Do you have one?”

  “Yes,” she whispered.

  “When you hear the shower turn off, bend over the side of the bed.”

  He held her until she broke away, then placing his finger under her chin he tilted up her head, kissed her softly, then rising from the bed he headed into the bathroom.

  Vivien slowly undressed, her butterflies fluttering through her stomach, and moving across to her bag she pulled out her thin, aqua, v-necked cotton T-shirt, and pulled it over her head.

  “Why do I want to be spanked?” she muttered. “Why do I need it like I need to breathe?”

  Moving across to the closet, she stared at herself in the full-length mirror and broke into a smile. She looked almost like herself again, but Dominic was right. The haircut and auburn touches gave her a more intense appearance, and her eyes appeared, as he had so accurately termed it, deeper.

  Running her fingers through her hair, her smile widened as the smooth glossy strands fell into place as if by magic. It was an excellent cut. It had been so long since she’d enjoyed looking at her reflection she had to fight an unexpected surge of emotion. For many months there had been dark circles around her eyes, and while they were still visible, they were fading. The sleepless nights were over, and as she’d predicted just a few short hours before, Dominic had come to her rescue once again.

  Pulling out her cosmetic bag she realized she hadn’t bought anything new since her return from Europe, and decided to ask Dominic if they could stop at the local mall on their way to dinner so she could pick up some essentials. The thought of the brief shopping trip elevated her mood even more, but moments later, when she heard the shower stop, her focus quickly shifted.

  Hurrying to the side of the bed she hastily straightened the covers, though why she wasn’t sure, then grabbed a pillow for her head, and had just settled over the mattress when the bathroom door opened. Looking over her shoulder, she saw Dominic stepping towards her. He had a towel tied around his waist, his hair was still wet and mussed, and droplets of water were sparkling on his chest hairs. He looked like a sex God, and a shiver rippled down her spine. He didn’t smile or speak, but ambled over to her and sat on the edge of the bed.

  “Up and over,” he said firmly.

  His voice had that ultra-seductive tone that used to make her knees weak, and barely b
reathing, she shifted her body over his lap and buried her face into the pillow.

  “Your derriere is as spankable as it ever was,” he murmured as he smoothed his hand across her naked cheeks. “I know you need this. It is in your nature to need this, and tonight at dinner you will enjoy the meal even more because you will be sitting carefully.”

  Lifting his hand he let it drop with a solid smack, then carried it to the opposite side, pausing to watch the rise of his pink handprint on her white skin.

  “It has been too long since your bottom was red and hot, but you know that.”

  “Yes, Sir,” she replied, wriggling as his hand resumed its work, slapping in a steady rhythm, moving from cheek to cheek.

  “Never mind, I am here now, and I will make sure you get what you need.”

  Increasing the force of the smacks, he began landing three at a time, then moved his palm to warm her sit spot.

  “OW, ooh, Sir, that…ooh, that stings.”

  “Of course,” he said casually, “you must have the hot sting or there is no point. You would be disappointed.”

  “Ooh, Sir, you can stop now,” she bleated, squirming against his hold.

  “No, no, you do not tell me this,” he scolded, lifting his leg to rest behind her knees. “If you talk this way I must fetch my crop.”

  “Sorry, sorry,” she said quickly. “I’ll behave.”

  “After dinner, when we come back, I think perhaps this is when my crop shall make its appearance. I think you need just a brief visit.”

  Vivien dropped her head back into the pillow, and let out a low moan. She’d forgotten how it felt, the deep sense of vulnerability, the heat his hand carried, how each slap had its own fiery kiss, and as the spanking progressed, so did the burning sting. His accent was thickening as he continued, and it seemed to underscore what he was doing, but even as the prickling pain coursed through her skin, she was filled with gratitude, and a warm flood of moisture was flowing between her legs.

  “You are a lovely red,” he declared, pausing his hand. “Six more on each cheek, slowly, so you will remember it is me who says when I will stop, oui?”