Masquerade By The Master

by Lili Valente

  He’s right—his is the face in my erotic dreams. His are the hands I imagine touching me when I’m alone in my bed with nothing but the ceiling fan whirring overhead and my vibrator buzzing between my legs

  But tonight, all of that is going to change. Tonight Edward can have me in every wicked way he wants, and I’ll give as good as I get. I will ride him all night long, sex him out of my system, and wake up tomorrow a free woman, no longer haunted by the ghosts of Things That Were Never Meant to Be.

  I feel good. Great, even.

  As the car pulls down the paved driveway to where the gothic Castle of Sin looms on a hill, surrounded by the stone walls that enclose its pleasure gardens, I’m not the least bit nervous. The well-dressed people lining up for entrance don’t scare me, either. I’m older, dressed as well as any of these wealthy women, and I’ve got two years of experience as a submissive under my belt. I’m not going to embarrass myself or run away. I’m going to prove that I belong here.

  I am confidence personified…right up to the moment strong hands grab me from behind, lifting me off the path and tugging me back into the dark.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Edward

  From my hiding place behind a stand of bayberry bushes near the castle walls, I spy Ivy the moment she gets out of the car. She’s even more beautiful than I remember, her red-brown hair falling in wild curls around her shoulders, her lips stained pink, and her full hips swaying back and forth in that incredible dress.

  She’s a goddamned heart attack waiting to happen.

  The second I lay eyes on her, I know I won’t be able to wait until we’re alone in the garden. I need to touch her. Now. Six years without her skin against mine is too long for me to exercise restraint.

  As she passes by my hiding place, I step out, wrapping an arm around her waist, lifting her off the ground as my free hand covers her mouth.

  She stiffens and sucks in a surprised breath, but relaxes when I whisper “Don’t worry, it’s me,” and draw her deeper into the shadows behind the bushes.

  The curve of her ass presses against where I’m already hard, and we both moan, the twin sounds of need making me smile into her curls.

  “That answers my first question,” I murmur, flattening my hand low on her stomach, blood catching fire as the sweet, familiar, too-long-without-her smell of Ivy floods my head.

  “And what is that, you sneaky bastard? You almost gave me a heart attack!”

  “And that answers my second,” I say, trying not to be too disappointed. She has every right to be angry with me, after all. “I understand if you hate me, princess. But I hope you’ll give me a chance to make amends.”

  “I don’t hate you.” Her breath hitches as my hand slides even lower, hovering above the apex of her thighs. “I don’t feel anything for you anymore, Edward. I’m just here for a good time.”

  “Me, too,” I lie as I sweep her hair from her neck and press my lips lightly to her throat. “And I’m glad you don’t hate me. I enjoy not being hated.”

  I don’t mention anything about love or regret or how much I want this to be about more than fun. I knew when I wrote that letter that tonight wasn’t going to be easy.

  But then, the best things never are.

  She swallows, her muscles working beneath my lips. “Me, too. But before this goes any further, I need to make one thing clear: we keep this casual, okay? I’m a busy person, and I’m not interested in more than one night and an easy goodbye. If you’re looking for a steady date, or hoping to rekindle old flames, I’m not your girl.”

  My chest tightens at her words. She’s always been the girl for me. I’d just needed her to become her own girl first. She was so damned young, even for a twenty-year-old. I had to give her time. I needed her to gain experience, confidence, and the strength to tell me to go to hell when I try to take things too far.

  Because I always take things too far, and I’m afraid tonight won’t be an exception. I know I should keep heavy stuff off the table until I’ve proven to Ivy that I deserve another chance, but my heart is already pounding out that fierce, possessive rhythm it beats whenever this woman is around.

  She’s mine. She belongs here with her body warm and soft in my arms and her breath coming faster simply because we’re standing this close.

  “Did you hear me, Ed?”

  “Watch it, Prescott,” I warn, but there’s a smile in my voice as I curl my fingers, pressing lightly against her clit through her sexy-as-sin dress. “You know I hate nicknames. Call me Ed again, and I’m going to spank you.”

  She turns, meeting my gaze over her shoulder. “Is that a promise?”

  My cock swells thicker at the challenge. No doubt about it, Ivy is all grown up and hot as fucking hell.

  “If you want it to be.” I shift my hips forward until my erection is nestled between the cheeks of her ass.

  “Oh, I do. I want the full package, Mulligan, no holding back,” she says, voice breathy. “I want what you promised in your letter.”

  “And you’re going to get it. Anything you want tonight. Anything you need. I’ll redden your ass, tie you up, and show everyone how sexy you are when you come on my mouth.” She shivers, giving me all the encouragement I need to add, “And then I’ll take you—right there in the grass because I won’t be able to wait to get back to our room.”

  “No sex where other people might see,” she says. “That’s my hard limit. I don’t go that far in public.”

  I nudge her clit with my finger again, humming beneath my breath. “Does that include no fucking you with my tongue? I’ll confess I’m attached to the idea of devouring you while you’re naked in the moonlight.”

  “Oral is okay.” Her eyelids flutter as I increase the pressure between her legs. “But nothing else. It’s too…”

  I draw her dress up, fisting the heavy fabric in my hands, baring her thighs by slow degrees. “Too?”

  “Dangerous,” she says, shivering again. “We shouldn’t both be out of control. One of us needs to keep their head on straight.”

  “I won’t be out of control.” I reach her panties and run my finger over the satin, loving the heat I can feel coming off of her sex. Fuck, she’s already so hot for me, and I intend to make her even hotter. “Even when I’m balls deep in you, I’m going to be in control. In control of your pleasure and your pain and this beautiful pussy.” I pull the crotch of her thong to one side and slide a finger through her wetness. “Damn, sweetness. Is all of this for me?”

  “No, it’s for the other guy who’s got his hand in my panties,” she says, making me smile again. “What about you, Edward? Any hard limits?”

  “Only one.” I press two fingers inside her, penetrating her swollen flesh, my balls aching as she gasps and widens her stance, giving my hand room to move between her legs. I can’t wait to be inside her, to be thrusting more than my fingers deep into this woman who drives me wild like no other.

  But first I need her consent to play. “Once we step through the gates, I’ll be in charge. I call the shots; I name the games. And from the moment we start a scene until we finish, you will call me sir or Master and make it your mission in life to please me. Do you understand?”

  “I know how to play, sir,” she says, giving me a taste of how incredible it will be to have her submission. “These days I understand what Dominance means, but I don’t go inside without a safe word.”

  “Name it.” I lean back against the wall, and Ivy leans back with me, propping one foot on the stones, granting me even greater access to the paradise between her thighs, access I take advantage of as I drive in deeper, harder.

  “My safe word is ‘marionette.’” Her breath comes fast as she shifts her hips, meeting my thrusts. “And I’m serious. This is sex. Nothing more. We’re not picking up where we left off.”

  “I understand.” I silently amend that understanding is something fluid and subject to change.

  “And that means no hurt feelings or—” Her words cut off as I t
humb her clit, rubbing her until she moans. “Oh God, that feels good.”

  “And there’s so much more,” I promise. “I’m going to make you come until you think you can’t take any more. Then I’m going to make you come again. And again. Until you beg me to stop. But I won’t stop, because I intend to have no fucking mercy when it comes to your pleasure tonight.”

  She reaches back, fingers tangling in my hair. “Jesus, Edward. I’m going to come right now.”

  “Not yet, beautiful.” I glance down to see her right breast peeking out of the plunging neckline of her dress, and I bite my lip. Her nipple is bare to the cool air, and I want to suck it into my mouth more than I’ve wanted anything in years.

  But suffering is good for the soul, and delaying satisfaction makes the payoff that much sweeter.

  “Any more conditions?” I ask.

  “Conditions,” she echoes, her nails digging into my scalp. “I can’t remember. I can’t think of anything but how much I want you. Can I come, Edward? Please? I need to so badly.”

  “Not yet.” I find her nipple and roll the bud between my fingers, loving the soft, hungry sound she makes in response. “Wait for me. Wait until I give you permission.”

  She moans and arches closer to my hands. “I’m trying, but the way you touch me… God, Edward, it’s like no one else. You feel so insanely good.”

  “You too, princess,” I say, heart squeezing tight in my chest. “I can’t wait to make you scream.”

  “Yes,” she murmurs. “Oh, yes, please. Please!”

  “Then come for me, baby. Come on my hand. Let me feel you get off.”

  Her head falls back, her pussy locking down around my fingers as she calls my name in a choked voice.

  “Fuck, yes, Ivy,” I murmur into her hair, my cock throbbing against her ass. “Just like that. I love watching you come. You’re the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.”

  She gasps, pulling in a deep breath as her body continues to grip my fingers. I slow my strokes, waiting until I feel her relax against me before I slide my hand from between her legs.

  I hold her for a long moment, counting the beats of her heart as the pulse at her neck slows, before I lower her dress and turn her gently in my arms.

  She tilts her head back, looking slightly dazed. “Well, that was a hell of a greeting.”

  I smile. “Sorry. I couldn’t help myself. Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”

  The heat glittering in her eyes cools. “Thank you. But you don’t have to flatter me, remember.”

  “It’s not flattery, it’s the truth. You’re beautiful. Completely stunning from head to toe. Even prettier than that night on the beach.”

  Her lips press together in a thin line. “I have one more condition. No talking about the past, or dredging up the past, or analyzing the past. Tonight, we live in the here and now.”

  “I like it when you’re stern with me.” I cup her bottom through her dress, squeezing lightly. “Like a sexy schoolmarm.”

  “I’m serious, Edward,” she says, frown still firmly in place.

  “I realize that, Prescott.” I incline my head. “I accept your final condition, though I have to confess you’re making me wonder what sort of submissive you are. Do the Masters at your playroom let you boss them around like this?”

  “Of course not.” Her lips curve. “But they’re experienced, accustomed to topping a woman who knows what she wants and how she wants it.”

  I grin, and my cock pulses against her hip, silently assuring her that it’s up for the challenge of topping her anywhere, anytime. “Are you saying you doubt I’ve got what it takes to earn your submission, sweetheart?”

  She shrugs. “I don’t know, Mulligan. For all I know you’ve gone soft in your old age. You’re pushing forty now, right?”

  “I’m thirty-two, and you know that perfectly well, brat,” I say pleasantly, swatting her lightly on the bottom. “And I haven’t gone soft. Quite the opposite, in fact.”

  “So it seems,” she murmurs, rocking her hips closer to my aching length. “Would you like me to do something about that before we go in?”

  “No, thank you.” I brush a curl from her cheek. “A thoughtful offer, but I’m a patient man. And I need to make you come a few more times before I fuck your pretty mouth.”

  Her eyes darken. “All right. You’re calling the shots.”

  “That I am.” I thread my fingers through hers. “Your safe word is marionette, your hard limit is public intercourse, and you insist I refrain from talking about the past or falling helplessly in love with you. Is that all I need to remember?”

  She smiles, a wry grin that makes me think the past isn’t as far from her thoughts as she would like me to believe. “That’s it, sir.”

  “Then after you, madam.” I gesture toward the path.

  She brushes her hair over her shoulder and adjusts her mask, hesitating a moment before she adds in a softer voice, “Thank you, by the way. For everything you did for me.”

  “You are so very welcome. It was truly my pleasure.” I bring a hand to her cheek, fingers brushing the satin mask, hoping there will come a time when there is no need for rules or disguises.

  That there will come a day when Ivy is mine, the way she was meant to be.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Ivy

  Remain calm. You must remain calm.

  If you freak out the way you did last time, you will never forgive yourself. Just relax, get a drink in your hand, and try to forget that you’re about to do things in front of hundreds of people that you’ve only done in the dark.

  Oh, and that you’ll be doing them with Edward, who is even more insanely sexy than he used to be, and who is probably going to break your heart into a thousand tiny, jagged pieces all over again because your self-control is absolute shit when you’re with this man.

  “Fuck me,” I mutter, fighting to breathe past the knot of anxiety in my throat.

  “What was that?” Edward tucks my hand more firmly into the curve of his arm as we move down the walkway, toward the castle on the hill.

  “Fun,” I say, forcing a smile. “This is going to be fun.”

  He chuckles, making me think he knows exactly what I said and exactly how nervous I am—he always could read me like no one else—but before I can come up with a more clever response than “shut up, asshole,” we’ve reached the end of the line of couples waiting to enter the Venus Ball.

  My tongue slips out to wet my lips as I shift to my left, peeking past the man in front of me to catch a glimpse of the castle gates and the grounds beyond. Past two enormous men in red masks checking invitations, I see what must be acres of gardens, illuminated by lanterns and torchlight. Paved pathways wind through the carefully manicured bushes, flowers, and ornamental trees. The stones shine like freshly polished shoes, and the cool air is perfumed with night flowers. I catch the scent of jasmine and something softer—tuberose or phlox—on the breeze, and the tension stitched between my ribs loosens.

  A little.

  If all else fails, I can distract myself with botany. Thanks to Gram—the only truly sweet soul in my family full of professed saints—I know the names of almost every common North American flower and plant. Helping her in the garden was my favorite escape as a child, and gardens have felt like safe havens ever since.

  Maybe not after tonight…

  I push the thought away, concentrating on drawing smooth breaths, making each exhalation longer than the inhalation. It’s a technique I learned in graduate school, a way to trick the parasympathetic nervous system into chilling the hell out before I had to get up in front of a class of two hundred freshmen to teach Digital Marketing 101. I’ve never been a fan of public speaking. Maybe it was all those years of sitting with my ankles crossed in the front row while my father boomed about hellfire from the pulpit and cameras rolled on his loyal family that bred distaste for being the center of attention.

  Or maybe it’s just a coincidence. Public speaking is
one of the most common phobias. Public fucking would probably be pretty high on that list, too, if more people attended functions like these.

  “Almost there, Prescott,” Edward whispers for my ears only. “If you’re turning back, turn back now.”

  I lift my chin. “Not a chance. But if you’re having second thoughts, I understand.”

  “My only thoughts involve you, this dress on the ground, and my mouth on every inch of you,” he says, sending a bolt of heat knifing through my belly.

  He’s already made me come harder than I have in years and we haven’t made it inside the damned party yet. No matter how little I enjoy the thought of taking it all off in front of strangers—I’ve never removed more than my coat outside of a private room at my club—no amount of “naked in public” anxiety can make me turn back before I’ve gotten more of Edward. More of his hands and his mouth and that long, hard, ridiculously perfect cock.

  “Shall we start with the restraint wall near the castle?” Edward asks, his hand warm at the small of my back as the line shuffles forward.

  The restraint wall… Jesus, am I going to be tied up right next to one of these other women? How is that not going to be awkward as hell?

  “I’ve never played in the public space at my club,” I confess, deciding that giving him a heads-up isn’t admitting weakness. Only two couples separate us from the gates, and despite the chill in the spring air my palms are starting to sweat. “I’ve always paid for a private room.”

  “I know,” Edward says calmly.

  I frown behind my mask. “How do you know? Just how closely have you been watching me?”

  “Very closely.” He pats my hip, as if confessing he’s been stalking me isn’t weird at all. “I wanted to make sure you were safe. I know your father has his share of enemies. I wanted to make sure you weren’t caught in the crossfire.”

  I relax, outrage fading. “When you put it that way, it’s hard to stay angry at you for being a creepy spy.”

  He turns to me with a smile. “Well, what if I told you that I paid your friend, Master Hansen, a visit? And that I promised to cut off his hands if he touches you again?”