“Blake, please,” I moaned, rocking back into him.
“Promise me.”
“Yes. I promise.”
He straightened and his palm made sharp contact in the same place, the sting sizzling under the sensation of his cock ruthlessly powering into me. He withdrew again. I pressed back into him, the need to orgasm with him inside me destroying my inhibitions. He answered my plea, steadily pumping into me, and when his hand made contact with my ass again, I clenched around him uncontrollably, crushing his cock with the walls of my pussy.
“More,” I cried.
He picked up the pace, never breaking the connection and shattering me with every measured slap. My body shuddered, every muscle tensing beyond my will as he brought me to the very edge. I moaned into the couch, my fingernails clawing at the expensive fabric, and I came with a scream that the bouncer very likely heard. Blake ground out his own release, emptying himself into me with a shuddery sigh, his breath gusting on my neck as he bent over me. He stilled, then circled my waist and turned me to face him, meeting me with a gentle breathy kiss.
“That was different,” I murmured, boneless and punch—well, slap-drunk.
“You liked it,” he said.
I moaned and tightened my legs around him.
He smirked. “For being such a bossy little minx, you make a great submissive.”
My eyes went wide. “I would hardly describe myself as submissive.”
He laughed. “You say that like it’s a dirty word.”
“It is to me. I don’t—”
“Wait, before you start, let me just ask you this. Do you want me to do that again sometime?”
I blinked, suddenly embarrassed that he was going to make me admit it. Getting spanked in the heat of the moment felt very different from negotiating it face to face. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
“Good, because I plan to.” His face left no doubt that he was serious, his voice harder than it had been. My skin prickled, hot and anxious anew.
I wanted to argue, to tell him to fuck off and get lost, but I was getting turned on by the very thought of it.
“You’re making me want things I’m not sure I want.”
“You’re allowed to want different things in bed than you do in your normal everyday life. And I promise not to spank you in public.” His face softened with a smile as he moved down my body. “Unless you’re a very bad girl.” He took my nipple in his mouth and took the hardened tip between his teeth.
Oh, I love that. I tightened at the sensation and panted softly. “I’ll be good,” I promised deliriously.
He chuckled softly. “I highly doubt it.”
“Am I that bad?”
His eyes darkened, the slight curve of his lip softening an otherwise dangerous countenance. “You might want to get comfortable with the idea of punishment.”
Blake gave my nipple another hard suck and rolled the other between his fingertips, twisting the flesh just enough to inflict the perfect measure of pain.
I gasped, but he didn’t relent. “How do I know this isn’t just the next phase of you dominating every part of my life? First the apartment, now this…” I breathed, barely able to string the thought together.
“That’s a compelling idea, but I hardly think you’d let me get away with it.” He moved higher, brushing his lips along my collarbone. Suckling my neck, he continued to taunt my nipples.
I bowed my chest into his palm, and a satisfied smile spread across his face as he pulled away and stood. He was still hard, a thrilling show of his stamina. I scowled when he tucked himself back into his pants.
“Don’t pout. Let me take you home,” he said, the promise of more twinkling in his eyes.
Less than twenty minutes later, we barreled through the doors of the condo. I had Blake flat beneath me on the crimson bedspread of the guest bed in a matter of seconds, exactly where I’d wanted him for days. After his earlier punishments and our little conversation on being his submissive, I was still wild with lust for him. Frenzied, I removed his shirt, licking and nipping at the skin leading to his pants, tugging him free. He sat up and stripped me out of my dress. Naked and filled with longing, I let my hands roam over his fevered skin while he traced the contours of my torso with his mouth, worshiping me inch by inch. His soft breath warmed my oversensitive skin and piqued my craving.
“Erica, God, your body is amazing,” he whispered, his voice low.
I could almost taste his fervor, the determination to possess me in every way. He slid his hands from my shoulders to my wrists, binding them in his one hand behind me. I bit my lip and moaned, pleasuring myself with the little movement he allowed me by rubbing myself on his cock, back and forth over my clit until I quickened with need.
He tightened his hold around my wrists, and an irrational fear sliced through me. I stilled, my breasts jutting out shamelessly toward him. My heartbeat was frantic as I warred with instincts that would never let me give any man this much control.
“Blake, I don’t know,” I said, my voice quivering with a confusing mix of fear and desire as he held me captive.
He silenced me with a tender kiss. “I’m going to take care of you, baby.”
His voice left no doubt, and his face was calm and reassuring, more controlled than I could ever hope to be under the circumstances. I looked into his eyes and my heart ached for what I felt for this man.
“I’ll never hurt you.” He traced my lips with the pad of his thumb.
I trusted Blake with my body. With him, I had never felt safer, or more vulnerable.
The tension in my muscles that had me on edge, ready to fight, released.
Ready to give myself to whatever he had planned, I kissed him back. My heart raced, anticipation overtaking the fear.
Blake banded an arm around my hips, lifting them slightly before we connected, and I slid carefully onto the scorching heat of his erection. He took my hardened nipple into his mouth, flicking the tip with his tongue and his teeth like he had in the club. The dual sensations overwhelmed me, but also held me captive. I couldn’t release any of the energy that coursed through me by touching him or hastening our movements. Instead, it lingered inside me, built up like a ball of fire dying for oxygen, waiting to explode and enflame everything around me.
He arched his pelvis, pumping into me over and over and rendering my own undulations unnecessary. He circled my clit with his thumb, taking control of every movement with expert skill until I idled perilously on the brink of rapture. My muscles tensed against the bonds of his strong warm hands bending me to his will.
“You can feel everything now, can’t you, baby?”
As he said the words, an acute awareness of everywhere our bodies met shot through me. His big cock rooting inside me, his fingers, playing the notes of my desire like a song he knew so well. I trembled, losing my mind with every passing moment.
“Yes… you feel amazing.”
“You were right, Erica. I’m going to make you want things you never knew you wanted.”
He left my clit to leverage my hips again, shoving himself deeper. A small, helpless cry escaped me as I felt myself unraveling around him.
“You’re going to want me to hold you down and fuck you hard. To take control of your body.”
“Blake, please… oh, God.”
“You want it right now, don’t you?”
“Yes. Now. All of you.” I spasmed uncontrollably around him, his words spurring my gnawing hunger.
He released me then and flipped me to my back, covering my body with his own. He lunged into me with powerful thrusts that carried us up the bed and drove me straight into a heart-pounding orgasm that shot through me like lightning, a blinding white heat. I sobbed his name and raked my fingers down his back, steeling myself at his shoulder as the fire in me exploded around us.
“Blake!”
“You have me, Erica,” he said, desire thick in his voice as he pinned my hips to the bed with the force of his last growling thrust.
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We lay there for several minutes, tangled in each other, tied together by the experience, while relief and waves of sheer bliss rushed over me. I sifted a hand through the damp strands of his hair as he traced my face with his fingertips. His eyes never left mine, transfixed with an almost reverent intensity.
Physically and emotionally, I’d never felt more connected to another person. No one could ever make me feel this way. So stripped, so raw.
The reeling in my mind slowed as he pressed petal-soft kisses on my swollen lips, whispering adorations in my ear until I fell asleep in his arms.
I awoke a few hours later. The day was dawning and Blake’s arms had me firmly tucked next to him, preventing any remote thoughts I might have had about escaping. I turned slightly to look at him, but when I moved, his arm tightened around my waist. His face was relaxed and peaceful. I smiled. I was right where I wanted to be. I draped my arm over his, holding him closer to me as I tried to fall back to sleep.
Suddenly Blake’s phone rang from his pants on the floor. After a few rings he stirred and rolled off the bed to retrieve it.
“What’s wrong?” he said.
An odd way to start a conversation.
“Where are you?” he continued, pressing the phone to his shoulder as he reached for his clothes on the floor. “Okay, I’ll be there in ten.”
He ended the call and finished dressing, seemingly forgetting that I was there.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
He paused and looked over to me, his face lined with concern. What the hell could be going so wrong that he had to walk out on us this very second?
“I’m sorry. I have to take care of something. I shouldn’t be too long.”
“Can I come with you?”
“No, just pack up. I’ll drive you back to Boston when I get back.”
“I can’t leave. I have a meeting tomorrow,” I said, glancing at the clock. “Today actually.”
“With who?”
“I’m having brunch with Isaac Perry.”
“Reschedule it,” he ordered without hesitation. “I’m getting you out of here.”
“Blake, what the fuck is going on?” I crossed my arms defensively, a little insecure that I was still completely naked while he wasn’t.
He sighed heavily. “I can’t explain right now.”
“Forget it. I’m staying here. I’ll meet you back in Boston when I’m done today.” I marched over to my bags, wrapped in our sheet.
“Trust me, we’re getting out of here,” he said. His jaw was set in that familiar uncompromising line. “I’ll explain everything when I get back, I promise.”
I gauged his expression, wishing I could believe him. He bridged the distance between us and made my decision for me with a kiss that had me wishing we had ten more minutes together.
“I’ll be back soon,” he said, and then rushed out the door.
Showered and dutifully packed, I cursed myself for letting Blake talk me into blowing off my meeting. I eventually fell asleep again waiting for him. Hours later, he sat next to me on the bed, nudging me awake.
“Time to go, baby,” he said, his voice quiet and tender.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, shaking off the cobwebs.
“Come on, let’s talk in the car.” He stood and grabbed my packed bags. I did a quick inventory of all my things and followed him out.
I bid a silent farewell as we headed north out of the city, realizing I hadn’t had a chance to say goodbye to Alli. I’d call later, much later when she and Heath had a chance to sleep off what was undoubtedly a late night for them.
“Are you going to enlighten me?” I finally asked.
Blake tightened his grip on the wheel.
“Who called you earlier?”
“Alli.”
I frowned, curious why she even had Blake’s number. My mind juggled the possibilities, but there just wasn’t enough to go on.
“Why would she be calling you?”
“I’m sure Alli didn’t tell you this, for obvious reasons, but Heath has something of a drug problem. I thought he was clean, but he’s relapsed.”
I blew out my breath, absorbing the shock of this news. My mind sped up, connecting all the dots. Everything added up. His strung out look the other morning, the late nights, and an undercurrent of distrust that I couldn’t shake when I was around him.
“What kind of drugs?”
“Cocaine mostly.”
“Alli,” I whispered, covering my mouth with a shaky hand. How she could be with him under these circumstances? This was serious. What if Alli were involved with drugs now too, because of him? This would explain her being out of touch, and the weight loss that, though subtle, was still noticeable to me.
“Alli’s not using with him,” he said, as if reading my mind.
I frowned. “How do you know?”
“I believe her. After years of dealing with Heath, my bullshit meter is pretty well honed. She’s clean.”
I nodded, relieved and feeling suddenly sorry for Blake. How long had he been dealing with this? Cleaning up Heath’s messes?
“What happened tonight?”
“He got into a fight at the club. They called the cops, and they found drugs on him. Same old story.”
“So now what?”
“They’ve kept him overnight. I already arranged to have him bailed out, then I’ll have to get him into rehab so he can avoid jail time again.”
Again? “Where will he go?”
“I’m thinking about getting him out of New York. Coke, models, and clubs. You can’t have one without the other two apparently, and he just can’t shake the club scene.”
I tried to digest everything, fitting the pieces together like a puzzle. I hated that I’d been in the dark for so long. How long had Alli known and kept this from me? First Sophia and now this. In a matter of weeks there were so many secrets between us. Maybe she wasn’t blatantly lying to me, but she was keeping the truth from me, which felt like the same thing.
“Is that how you met Sophia?” I asked, hesitant to suggest her involvement, but unable to resist.
He was silent a long moment. “I met her through Heath, yes.”
I stared at him, watching him decide whether to share more.
“I guess you could say she was in his entourage, or he was in hers. I don’t know. We started seeing each other off and on, until she hooked up with Heath while I was away.”
“She slept with him?”
“Neither of them would admit to it. I didn’t even realize either of them had a problem until I crashed one of their parties at the condo. They were all over each other. I decided not to ask and just assumed the worst.”
“What did you do?”
“I sent them off to rehab. Threatened to cut them both off until they got clean. When Sophia ended the program, I broke it off with her. She didn’t take it well, but I agreed to help her start fresh.”
“That’s why you invested in her business.”
A fleeting look of surprise crossed his face. He was probably willing to do anything to keep her clean, knowing the breakup would send her into a tailspin. Did he love her?
“Yes, but the relationship ends there.” He took his eyes off the road for a moment to meet mine.
“I believe you,” I said. As much as I enjoyed looking into his eyes, I wanted them on the road right now.
“Good.”
“What’s Alli supposed to do now?”
“She can stay at the condo as long as she needs to, obviously.”
“But, their relationship? I mean…” I’d never seen Alli like this, so in love. But could I really support a relationship with Heath when he had so many issues? Serious issues. Billionaire brother or not, he was trouble, and the thought of her being tied to him in any way was disconcerting.
“She needs to figure it out, but I don’t want you involved,” Blake said, a note of resolve in his voice.
I frowned. “What does that mean exactly?
”
“That means I don’t want you anywhere near Heath or his circle of friends until he’s been clean for a very long time. And that includes Alli.”
“Are you telling me I can’t see her?” I bristled at the suggestion.
“If Alli decides to stay with him, that’s her choice, but I won’t have you anywhere near it.”
My anger bubbled to the surface and I stewed, trying to come up with a way to win the argument. I needed my coffee.
I pouted on the far edge of my seat, trying to gain as much distance from him as the car would allow.
“Breakfast?” he asked.
I stared out the window, refusing to answer him.
After a few tense minutes, he exited the highway and parked in front of a quaint diner down the road. He powered off the car, stepped out, and circled to open my door for me.
When I stepped out, he caged me with his arms, leaning me into the car and bringing our bodies too close for how angry I was with him.
“I need you to understand,” he said.
“Understand what? Your sick need to control everything and everyone around you?”
“Have you ever known someone with an addiction?”
I tightened my arms around my chest and looked past him to the highway and the cars speeding by. He was going to try to convince me that controlling my life was somehow acceptable, I knew it. “No,” I admitted.
“Good. I don’t want you to.”
“You can’t tell me who to have in my life. You said you weren’t interested in dominating me that way.”
“I never said that, and secondly, this is different.”
“Great.” I shivered, chilled by the idea that deep down Blake really wanted to, maybe needed to, control me—an expectation that seemed to root itself further into our relationship with every passing second.
“Erica, stop.”
“Stop what? I’ve never had to answer to anyone, and I’m sure as hell not answering to you. So stick that in your fucking dominant pipe and smoke it.”
I moved to leave but he didn’t budge, trapping me.
“Erica…”
“Don’t Erica me—”
He groaned and shoved his hands through his hair, giving us the smallest separation. I glared at him, but when I met his eyes, they were tired, storming with emotion, pleading with me without words.
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