by Keta Kendric
The scent of spring and fresh linens welcomed me as a wall of glass opening the living room to the city captured my attention and held it. My gaze was drawn to high ceilings and a balcony bedroom that sat above the living room. The front wall of the elevated bedroom was all glass, the type of glass that fogged with the flip of a switch.
My gaze fell and settled on the floor. Part of the sparkling blue waters of the pool on the large balcony transitioned into the living room floor. Atop the wavy obsidian water below the floor sat a large, snow-white chaise that pointed towards the view.
The sun’s rays rained into the space, bursting with the revitalizing energy I thought the garage had stolen. I could already picture myself, lying on the chaise, hypnotized by the city’s iridescent landscape.
The living room was dressed in designer furniture from Restoration Hardware. Like his house in the hills, a professional decorator had graced this space. The penthouse was a three-bedroom, twenty-five hundred square foot, two-story dream apartment.
Each piece, from the large white-leather couch to the wooden end tables had been timelessly and classically updated to warm the space with a modern appeal. I admired every beautiful part of his apartment as it captured my full attention. It was love at first sight.
The splendor. The elegance. It led me to ponder Ansel’s net worth. What type of work did he do besides sell guns for his motorcycle club? Was gun running that lucrative a business? He lived a millionaire’s life, and he wasn’t new to it either. Living this way was normal for him.
He handed me my bag and gestured his hand towards the balcony bedroom. A wide grin brightened my face, and I didn’t walk; I ran up the stairs, my worn-out flats slapping against each step.
A winded sigh escaped as I surveyed my new room. Not only was the front wall that looked over the living room all glass, but the opposite side opened to the city. From the bedside table, I picked up the smaller of the two remotes and stood in anxious anticipation as the thick white floor-to-ceiling drapes slid apart. The sun’s magic opened the space, making it bloom with new life as a different angle of the city view presented itself.
The loving embrace of hope tightened around me, chipping away a few more of my anxieties. In this beautiful space, I allowed myself to believe I was safe and protected from my family.
A smile bent my lips when a recurring thought surfaced. Who’s going to protect me from Ansel? The penthouse, although more secure, was smaller than Ansel’s house in the hills, meaning it left me less space to avoid him. This was going to be an interesting arrangement for the next few weeks.
6
Ansel
I’d filled the last few days with work and a solid plan of protection for Regina. Surprisingly, I’d done so without cornering her. She and I had settled into the new place as we continued to feel each other out.
Starving, the delicious aroma of Gigi’s cooking sent me in the direction of the kitchen.
A girlish ranting sounded as rapid Spanish filled my ears upon my approach. Gigi greeted with her usual bright smile, and a shy wave was flashed from Regina.
“Thanks, Gigi,” I voiced with appreciation as I leaned down to let her peck me on the cheek.
My gaze remained on Regina the entire time. I hadn’t missed the way Gigi and Regina had been giggling together over the last few days. It had become clear that Regina had a certain magnetism about her that drew people in, and I wasn’t immune.
It had surprised me yesterday when I’d walked in on them firing off rapid Spanish at each other. As exotically beautiful as she was, Regina’s caramel complexion with its silky bronze tint should have reminded me of her Hispanic roots.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, boss,” Gigi stated as she smiled at me and winked at Regina. Gigi cooked breakfast and lunch in the mornings and returned to cook dinner in the evenings. I took my seat behind a steaming pan of the Tex-Mex Lasagna she’d left on the table.
“Gigi is going to teach you how to cook?” I questioned Regina, in Spanish. Was I trying to impress her? Fucking right I was. The surprise in her gaze at hearing me speak Spanish wasn’t missed.
“You speak Spanish?” she questioned. Her open-mouth smile showed her surprise.
“Yes, I speak Spanish. Not well, but enough to get by,” I stated in the best broken Spanish I could muster to confirm my answer.
Her smile grew wider at my words, and it was hard to miss the intrigue that filled her gaze. I wasn’t ashamed of where I’d come from, but I was determined to be more than just some redneck, gun-running biker from Florida.
However, I believed Regina already knew as much. She knew that if I didn’t know something, I wasn’t too proud to admit it or too lazy to figure it out. Our MC dealt with people, some who spoke varying languages. I found it helpful to know if people were plotting my murder in their native tongue.
She finally answered my question. “When I mentioned not knowing how to cook, Gigi agreed to teach me.”
She picked up her fork, preparing to eat, avoiding my gaze as she adjusted her plate a third time.
“Ansel,” she called in a soothing tone brimming with seductive undertones I didn’t think she was aware of.
“Yes.”
“Do you think it would be okay for me to start working again? Not now, but when it’s safe. Do you think it will ever be safe enough?”
The pleading in her gaze wasn’t lost on me. She was ready to get back to the business of being a doctor, but her family still had her shaken.
“Let’s give it a month,” I suggested, hoping I could offer her more. “For now, I’d like to keep eyes on you when you go out. Either one of my friends, or me, will be with you until we are sure there is no threat. I think you should also consider changing at least your last name. It will make it that much more difficult for anyone to track you down.”
“Okay,” she agreed without argument. If only she’d agree this easily to the other question I’d asked her.
She still hadn’t given me an answer and my patience regarding her being my sub was gone. Every dark, twisted, and nasty fantasy I could think of had been played out in my head. Regina had my devil stirring, and I was ready to unleash him. But, I forced myself to maintain control, knowing I needed to be careful. From the moment I’d met her, I knew Regina wasn’t used to anyone like me.
“Doc,” I called, breaking into her statement about how much she liked the penthouse and the pool.
She’d talked us through dinner, and we sat in front of empty plates. It didn’t surprise me that things like swimming, golf, and tennis had been part of her physical education program at the private schools she’d attended when she was younger.
Her gaze rose as her words stopped. “Yes,” she answered.
“Would you accompany me to the living room and sit with me for a moment before you run from me and retreat to your room.”
My words froze her for a moment before a smile danced across her lush lips.
“Sure,” she answered, but a twinge of uncertainty lingered in her tone.
I reached across the table and took her dishes before turning and depositing them into the sink. When I finished, I turned and waited, my eyes glued to her.
“Oh,” she said, realizing I was waiting for her to make the first move.
Following her into the living room, I noticed she took quiet, catlike steps that were similar to her personality. I didn’t need to see her angry to know she had sharp claws.
She wore dark jeans and a navy T-shirt today. This clothing situation would need to be rectified because I needed her in something other than jeans.
When she stepped into the living room, she didn’t take her seat until after I’d taken mine. Like the first day we’d met, she put about a mile of space between us that wasn’t going to be there long.
“It’s time to address the elephant in the room, Doc.”
My body leaned in before I scooted closer, ensuring I didn’t leave her room to run. Once I had her trapped between me and the thick arm
of the couch, I proceeded.
“I need you to be my submissive, Doc. Have you made a decision?”
Her chest rose on a deep breath before she placed her hands on her lap and lifted her gaze to meet mine.
“I’ve thought about it, and I’ve decided to decline your request. I don’t want to be your sub.”
My face pinched into a tight frown, my brain replaying her words for me to listen to again.
“Humm,” buzzed past my lips. This was a fucking first. My frown turned into a squint of confusion as I absorbed the devastating blow she’d delivered.
She’d soaked my fucking ego in gas and called it a bitch before she tossed a fucking flare at it. Regina was the first woman I’d asked to be my submissive and the only one who’d turned me down. She said no, echoed through my brain, knocking around in my head like sucker punches.
I sat staring into the open space of my living room, processing her rejection, awed by it.
My paused silence made her nervous. Good.
She fidgeted, rubbing her hands up and down her legs while snatching quick glances at me.
I was done talking. I was done asking. I didn’t say a damn thing more. My apartment had never been so silent.
I reached onto the coffee table and picked up the remote. The low tunes of Joe spilled from the speakers and stirred the silence with a relaxing harmony, singing a question I wanted Regina to answer. I wanted to know what turned her on, and I intended to find out. I’d turned the music on for her peace of mind because my mind was all out of peace.
I stood, marched my ass to my closet, and retrieved the doctor. I’d hoped I wouldn’t have to introduce her to him this soon, but Regina was determined to make things hard for herself. Eventually, she’d learn that I didn’t like the word no, especially when it came from her mouth.
Her wide eyes froze as her fingers dug deeper into her arms that she’d folded across her chest. Her right leg bounced, the pace increasing as I grew closer.
The big black lacquered paddle in my hand had her full attention. Her eyes darted back and forth between it and me. The name Dr. Pepper was painted in white letters across the thick black handle. I’d had it made especially for Regina.
Without uttering a word, I positioned myself in the middle of the couch and sat the paddle against my thigh and away from her line of sight. Regina’s gaze fell to my approaching hand as I reached toward hers. She jumped when my hand wrapped around her wrist and closed as I tightened my grip, feeling the light tremble of her warm skin.
“What…what are you doing?” she questioned. Her eyes glistened with surprise, but there was also curiosity staring back at me.
Remaining in the center of the couch, I urged Regina along, tugging her closer. Tension surfaced in her body, but she poured little effort into resisting me.
“Ansel, what are you doing?” she questioned again, her voice elevating an octave as her wide eyes punctuated the question.
“I’m about to punish you for telling me no. Then, I’m going to convince you to change your answer,” I stated matter-of-factly.
My words caused her plush lips to fall apart as I continued to inch her closer.
“You can’t punish me for saying no,” she replied.
“The hell I can’t.”
7
Regina
Was he about to hit me with that paddle? Why was he positioning me like this?
Dazed by his actions, I was too bemused to protest his advances.
Ansel backed into the couch before laying me across his lap on my belly. When my mind formed a concise thought, I attempted to resist, but it was useless.
My chest and stomach were pressed into his muscular thighs as my legs and feet flapped against the couch. I lost one of my black flip-flops in my struggle as I gazed back at him over my right shoulder. What was he about to do? He’d taken me over his knees like I was a child he needed to discipline.
“Ansel, what are you doing? You can’t do this to me. I’m a grown woman, not some…”
Confusion clouded my brain like murky waters and kept me from spitting out my words.
When Ansel’s hand wrapped around that big black paddle and lifted it, my ragged breaths burned my chest with my efforts to break free, but it was too late. Then…
Thwack!
First, I inhaled a deep breath of shock before my mouth flew wide open and my eyes slammed shut. The thick black wood had collided with my ass, making a sharp pain shoot into me. The sound the paddle produced seemed to bounce around like an echo traveling through the room.
My voice had decided to hide inside my body, preventing me from yelling out for help. My delayed scream never surfaced as my shock at the situation led to my failing to fight my way off Ansel’s lap. With one firm arm across my body, he controlled me like I was merely a piece of paper that flapped in the wind.
“Doc, this is Dr. Pepper. I got him made for you. I’d hoped that I wouldn’t have to introduce the two of you until later, but you’ve made me burn through all my patience. Now, I have to teach you discipline.”
What in the hell was Ansel talking about?
Thwack!
The second hard lick knocked tears from my eyes, and I found my voice. My scream got lodged in my throat and sounded more like a moan than a cry for help.
“Please don’t do this,” I begged despite the nervous tremble in my body. My brain was on overload, processing what was happening and how a simple conversation had landed me in this awful position.
“Why are you doing this to me? Don’t!” I yelled, but the third heavy lick came down harder on a different spot on my ass.
The loud impact sounded off inside the open space of the living room and over the music. My struggle was useless against Ansel’s strong hold. The peppery aches on my ass cheeks had me begging.
“Ansel. Please!”
“It’s about time you begged me for more,” he stated.
I didn’t have to see his face to know that there was a devious smirk there. Wait, I wasn’t begging for more. I was begging to be released from this wicked madness he’d drawn me into. Did he think I was enjoying this?
“Let me go, Ansel! This is insanity.”
“Don’t worry, Doc. Soon, you’re not going to want me to stop.”
What? Was he crazy? My ass was on fire. He’d called that thing Dr. Pepper because it lived up to its name, peppering my ass with prickly aches that settled in and sparked back out. I continued to struggle to get up, but Ansel was too strong and down came another hard lick.
Thwack!
This time I didn’t struggle as much and took it since my attempts to get away from this crazy man were useless. I’d escaped my family and ended up in the hands of a man that had plans to torture me to death.
Thwack! Thwack!
The loud licks echoed throughout the living room. I didn’t even move this time, my body absorbing the pain and what the hell?
“I’ve wanted to get my hand on this ass since the first day,” I vaguely heard him over the sudden clouds of lust that were taking over my mind.
Two more quick licks from Dr. Pepper and my pussy flooded as a moan came from deep in my throat and escaped my lips. The pain had somehow shot sparks of pleasure straight to my clit, causing me to squirm in Ansel’s lap. The realization that I wasn’t squirming to get away from him scared me. Lust hung heavy in the air, blanketing my body and warming me up for more.
Another hard lick and I accepted that he’d been right. I wanted him to keep hitting me because each lick had my pussy convulsing in pleasure, and the stimulating sensations enticed me to squirm even harder.
Thwack!
My moans came louder this time, making me close my heavy eyes to the delicious sensations he’d sparked within me.
“There is no enjoyment in life without the rough touch of fear or the biting grip of pain.” His voice barely registered over the gratifying stir that had taken over my body.
Three of the hardest licks yet landed on my sore
ass, and I became engulfed in a shot of pleasure so strong I forgot who the hell I was.
“Oh God! Mmm.” My head dropped into the couch as the orgasm shot through my starved body and left me meowing like a kitten in heat. I’d never experienced anything like this. My morning shower had been destroyed, my pussy drenched. I needed to change my underwear, take another shower, and wash my clothes.
I remained in place across Ansel’s lap since I was too stunned, and my body was too relaxed to move. He’d left me a panty-soaked puddle of nerves and anxious energy. My breath heaved as I was useless to do anything but lay there.
Ansel’s heavy hand turned delicate as he started to rub my ass with soothing strokes. He glided with gentle ease across my jean-covered bottom, easing my mind as much as my ache. The stinging had already started to be lulled into a gentle ache, but I didn’t care. The pain had been well worth the outcome. I hadn’t come that hard in a long time. Who was I kidding? I’d never come that hard.
The aftermath of the orgasm was still coursing through me, making my body shiver with a satisfying throb I savored. When I found the strength to lift my neck, I peered back at Ansel.
He lowered his arrogant face closer to mine. “Fuck what you’ve heard. It’s not all about torture, Doc.”
I’d learned my lesson about assuming.
He helped me up from his lap, but instead of sitting next to him, I slid down in front of him, preparing to return the favor. He stopped me by gripping my hand and pulling me back to the couch.
“It doesn’t work like that, Doc. I’ll have to teach you how to ask and how to obey. This counts as the only freebie you’ll get. Are you ready to cross the fence you’ve been straddling?”
What in the heck was he luring me into? I shifted in my seat to ease the sting on my buttocks. Each shift reminded me of the sensational way he’d just made me fall apart. My nipples were still hard and aching, and he noticed. A satisfied smile shone in his eyes but didn’t meet his lips.