by Raven Dark
Rock had shut the vibrator off.
Ella laid there, chest heaving, breathing ragged, the tension seeping out of her body like water from a sponge. If all the orgasms were like this, she could tolerate them. They’d wear her out, but she’d handle it.
“Annabella.” She looked at the ceiling until he took her chin. “Why are you being punished?”
“Be…because I didn’t call you about not wearing the plug. I broke the rules.”
“Good girl. How many times is that?”
“One, Sir.”
He pressed the button on the remote. The vibrator started up again so suddenly she yelped and her hips thrust up in spasm. Ella threw her arms up, gripping the headboard. Her back bowed and Rock’s hands pressed on her thighs, keeping them open for her and pinning her hips while wave after wave washed over her.
Every muscle in her body clenched, hands flexing around the headboard as she whimpered. The crest came again and she cried out.
Again, the vibrator stopped. Again, Rock asked her why she was being punished. Swollen and over-stimulated, every movement against her pussy sent her into spasms. Each time he asked, she told him and he turned the machine back on, and on, and on, until she counted to five.
White spots danced in front of her eyes as she came down yet again, gulping in air. “This is nuts, sir.”
“You’re halfway through, girl. You’re handling this just fine. See, I told you. Such a sweet sub.” His hands ran up and down her legs, soothing. His praise was a salve against the pain of the distance she’d felt between them.
“I don’t think I can take anymore, though.”
“Yes, you can. How’s your back? Sore?”
“A little.”
He nodded and climbed off the bed. “Get up, stretch it out.”
“No, Sir, I’m okay. I want to finish.”
“Did you just say no to me, Annabella?”
She sighed and pulled herself up from the bed. Right, total submission. “Sorry, Sir.”
“You will be when you have to come one more time for that.”
Her head snapped up. “What? Oh…” Her heart hammered and she dropped her hands.
“The stretching is for your benefit.” He crossed his arms. “Part of you may still get annoyed with being cared for, but that’s too bad. Mistress E isn’t here now.”
Ella wanted to argue, but she bit her cheek.
After a few minutes of stretching, he stopped her.
“Feel better?”
“Yes.” It was true, the pinch that came with too much movement had all but dissipated. A little more moving around and she’d be good as new. “Ready for more torture, Sir.”
A grin spread over his lips and he ran his finger over her bottom lip. “Mouthy. Go get a drink of water. I don’t want you dehydrated.”
The amused light in his eyes sent a mixture of irritation and warmth through her. He looked like the old Rock again. She nodded and crossed the room. At the door, a vibrating started between her legs, taking her by surprise. Ella gave a cry and stumbled against the door frame, gripping it to keep from falling on her knees.
“Rock…”
“Who?”
She slapped her other hand to the other side of the doorframe and ground her teeth against a scream. Rock’s hand slid over her shoulder, stabilizing her. The other slid between her legs, rubbing her clit.
“It’s too much. Please, I can’t…”
“You can, and you will.” His mouth brushed her ear and he rubbed himself against her ass, his cock like steel through his slacks. “Girl, this is why I wish I didn’t have to punish you. If the situation were different, I’d fuck your ass nice and slow right now while that thing brings you over the edge.”
Ella rocked against his fingers unable to stop herself, letting out a long, tortured moan. Her muscles contracted and she thrashed. When she came again, the vibrating stopped.
She went and got her water.
Only four to go. Except he added one. Jesus.
When she lay across the bed once more and Rock turned the plug on the seventh time, he settled his fingers over her clit, pressing, rubbing, soft, then hard, always changing the pressure. Just enough to keep the ripples of too-intense pleasure coming.
“Ah! Sir, it’s too much!” Tears leaked from her eyes and ran down her temples. “Please, no more…I don’t want anymore.”
“Safeword?”
She panted, shaking her head. “No…no, Sir.”
He gave her more.
When he turned it off the tenth time, he took her face in his hands. Ella wept trying to turn her face away, hating that he saw her tears. She never cried in scene. Shame scalded her.
“No, don’t turn away from me.”
“I’m not supposed to cry, Sir. I don’t want you to see.” She sniffed.
“Why? Because I’ll think you’re weak? Because I’ll judge you? Think less of you?” He wiped away her tears, his expression oddly sad. “That’s why you didn’t call me, isn’t it, girl? You were afraid I’d think less of you.”
Ella squeezed her eyes shut. His words pulled up something inside her, bared everything she’d tried to hide from him. Her fears, her insecurities, her shame. He exposed them, putting them where he could see them so she wouldn’t have to hide them anymore. Wouldn’t have to feel guilty. She nodded, lip quivering. Tears spilled down her face and wiped them away, and the showed her the remote.
“One more. One more and it’s over.”
She nodded, sniffing. “I’m sorry, Sir. I’m so sorry.”
“I know you are, girl.”
He pressed the button.
* * * * *
A short time later, Rock couldn’t help a stab of relief when Annabella invited him to shower with her. She still wanted him, even after what he’d done.
More than once in the scene, worry had pricked at him with how far he’d pushed. A voice, one that sounded remarkably like his school therapist, told him he was pushing too hard. Memories of those years with his father drifted up, but as always, when he tried to get at the half-formed images triggering his doubts after punishment, they skittered out of his grasp. They left an ugly taste in his mouth, like swallowing darkness.
Undressing while Annabella washed, his mind rolled over the scene. Had he done the right thing? Or had part of him learned some subconscious wrong from his father and that part now reared up, urging him to punish her for something she didn’t deserve?
Was he more like his father than he wanted to admit, acting out something he’d seen time and time again, some dark need to pay her back for disrespecting him?
Disrespect. The word itself made his fists tighten, and he twisted away from an image in his mind he couldn’t see. A memory he’d forgotten.
“You coming, Sir?”
Rock shook himself. “Yeah, girl.” He pulled the curtain aside and stepped in with her. A smile tugged at his mouth when she turned to face him. Water ran off those amazing, plump breasts, between her legs, and moisture slicked her sweet face.
Annabella winced as she washed between her legs.
“Sore?” Empathy and regret pulled over him as he pressed against her and ran his hand slowly between her legs feeling her swollen lips.
“Oh, yeah. You know you’re kind of a hard ass, right?” But she was smiling, which soothed some of the guilt trying to rise up in him.
“Turn around, girl,” he whispered gently.
Annabella obeyed and bent forward when he put his hand on her lower back. She leaned with her hands on the wall while he worked ointment over her back, the healing medicine making his nose twitch. The ointment would heat the skin, a pleasant sensation that sank all the way to the bones and would take away the twinge in her back. He let the water rinse the access away, then rinsed his hands. He needed to touch her, couldn’t stop putting his hands on her.
From behind, Rock ran his fingers over her puffed labia and bit back a curse. Eleven times. Too much. He’d pushed too hard. The need to hold her, to take car
e of her, take away her pain nearly sent him to his knees.
“Owie. I suppose it’s what I deserve after what I’ve done.”
Rock’s father’s voice scraped across his mind. Look what you’ve done to me. I’ll show you want happens when a woman disrespects me. He bit his cheek to hide his confusion at the half-formed memory.
“Shut up and come here.” He turned her to face him and slid his arms around her, nuzzling her warm, soft neck. “Did I hurt you too much?”
She shook her head. “No, Sir.”
“You’re sure? You’d tell me if I was an ass, right?”
She scrunched her brows. Probably picking up on the worry in his voice. Damn. “Are you okay, Sir?”
“Yeah, I just want to make sure I didn’t go too far.”
She ran her hands up his chest. “You didn’t. I messed up. I violated the rules and I disrespected you. If you didn’t punish me, I’d be worried.”
No one disrespects me. Rock closed his eyes, willing himself not to shake. I am not my father.
“So you know I trust you, right?”
He shook himself and looked at her. Taking strength from the adoration in her eyes. This woman who believed in him, knew he was a good man. He rubbed her arms.
“Yes. Still, you need to work on making your trust stronger than your fears. Which we will, together.”
“Together. I like the sound of that. I hate the thought of you ever being disappointed in me.”
Her words tugged at his heart. Love swelled for her. Yes, it was love. He loved her, perhaps he always had. He needed to say it, but it was too soon. He wouldn’t believe she could accept forever with him until she knew everything. About his past, his father.
“Me neither. But it’s over, and now that this whole mess is dealt with…” He brushed her waterlogged hair back from her face with both hands. “I see no need to speak of it again, do you?”
Ella put her arms around him, squeezing him close, head on his chest. “Thank you, Sir.”
“For what?”
“For forgiving me. For understanding, for being willing to work on my fear instead of giving up.”
“Of course.” He tipped her chin up and searched her face.
“What is it, Sir?”
He traced her mouth with his thumb. “Are you sure you want me to be your Dom knowing what kind of a past I have? And knowing what my father is?”
Ella ran her hands through his hair. “Yes. I already told you, you aren’t your father. I’ll say that everyday for the rest of your life if I have to.”
He laughed softly. He bet she would. Even so, would she accept it if she knew how bad it really was?
She looked at his chest for a moment, then into his eyes. “And…after today, hearing you get off on the phone, knowing you were in the Moss’s office, if Scalder weren’t still sniffing around for a scandal I’d want to try something more public with you.”
“Oh?” His cock jumped, wild heat leaping through him.
“Yeah. That was hot, you know.” She bent her head, trailing kisses along his chest.
He pulled her head back refusing to let himself lose focus. “And the other thing? I was a criminal, Annabella.”
He was dropping protocol, but he didn’t want the gravity of what he was asking her to be clouded with the rules of a scene.
“I know, and I don’t care. You aren’t now.”
“Annabella—”
“Rock,” An emphasis on his name let him know she saw the significance of what he was doing. “You’ve shown me how easily you can forgive me for my mistakes. Now you just need to forgive yourself for yours.”
“And Scalder? He’ll milk it, you know. Take everything you have if we let him.”
She shrugged and the positive light in her eyes sent his love for her soaring. “So we won’t let him.”
He tangled his fingers in her hair and tugged her head back lightly. She let out a soft groan. “You’re fucking incredible, you know that?”
“Yes, Sir.”
Once they’d both finished washing, Rock shut off the shower and carried her to his bed. He held her close, running his hands through her still damp hair, wishing he could stay wrapped in her forever.
Her breathing evened out and Annabella moved against him. A soft, pained noise left her. Rock held her tighter and swallowed down the taste of darkness.
I am not my father.
CHAPTER 15: MIDNIGHT RENDEZVOUS
“Well, this is disturbing.” Ella waited for Rock to join her on his couch with their coffee and then pointed to the laptop screen in front of her. Since the day she’d met Scalder at The Rib House, they’d been trying to hunt up the three property owners from Kranton whom the land developer had paid off. They’d had no luck finding the first two at all. Ella didn’t like what she found on the third one.
Rock handed her a hot mug of coffee then leaned forward and read aloud from the news paper article in the Kranton Gazette she’d brought up. It had been published three years ago.
“Bob Trent, a local building owner is in the hospital today after being diagnosed with a rare lung cancer. The illness came on suddenly with no warning, family members say. He announced his early retirement from real estate as a result of his worsening condition.” Rock turned to Ella. “Annabella, you can’t be telling me you think Scalder did something to cause his cancer. How would he have?”
She brought up another page. “Look at this. Trent had been in the paper a bunch of times for how much he did for the community. One of the articles mentioned how incredibly healthy he was. He’s fifty five here, four years ago and he was the picture of vitality. A year later, right after Scalder bought out the Miller Road Condominium…” She flicked the first article about his cancer up. “…this.”
Rock glanced at the article again. The picture of Bob Trent showed a man with much the same look of her father. An old and withered man ravaged by his disease. “This could be just a coincidence.” He gave her a serious look.
“But what if it isn’t? What would it mean?”
He rested his chin on his chest then nodded. “It would depend on what Scalder did to make him sick, but probably criminal negligence causing bodily harm. If, you’re right.”
Ella stood and walked a few steps from the table then turned to him. “Do you really want to take the chance I’m not? Rock, this isn’t just about my father’s business. If we don’t find something on Scalder in three days he’ll make what happened to you in prison public. You know what will happen. I told you about those kids. They could have been you.”
When he lifted his head, empathy flickered in his dark eyes. He scowled and she wondered how much of the worry was for himself and how much was for the kids.
“We have to try. We have to talk to Trent.”
Rock nodded and stood. “Come here.” His voice was so soft it was almost inaudible. Ella went to him and he slipped his hands into hers. “You’re incredible, you know.”
“Yep.”
He kissed her long on the mouth. Then he grabbed his coat from the couch and swung the leather jacket on. “Let’s go.”
* * * * *
Bob Trent struggled to sit up in his hospital bed in the cancer wing in Camden, one city over from Kranton. He’d spent the last two out of three years since Scalder’s buyout in that bed and Ella couldn’t help wondering how long it would be before her father found himself in the same situation. Rock set his hand on the small of her back and she drew on his strength.
“Sorry to bother you, Mr. Trent.” She went to the head of his bed. Rock stood at her side. “We have some questions we want to ask you.”
“Who’s we? I don’t get many visitors these days.” He smiled at them both. “Pull up chairs.”
Rock dragged two chairs over and sat on one while Ella lowered herself into the other. She introduced herself and Rock then told him about her father’s company and Scalder’s attempts to buy him out. Bob’s eyes widened. Then he looked away.
Ella tapp
ed the metal bar of his gurney. “We need you to tell us about what happened in Kranton, Mr. Trent.”
All the color left his face. Trent shook his head and leaned back against the pillows, his eyes fixed on the ceiling. “I’m tired. Please leave.”
Desperation coiled in Ella’s gut. “Not just yet, sir. What happened when he bought Miller Road? How did you get sick?”
“What makes you think my cancer had anything to do with the buyout?” But he lifted his head a little too fast and his voice wavered.
Beside her, Rock leaned forward. “Sir, if you’re worried Scalder will make trouble for you if you talk to us, we’re not going to let that happen. We can help you, but only if you tell us what happened.”
A broken laugh turned into a cough. “Mr. McCarthy, you don’t understand. If you’re a lawyer with any experience then you know the type of person Scalder is. He’s slipperier than a pig in butter. He’s real friendly with a lot of the right people. Charges have a way of mysteriously getting dropped or becoming a lot weaker when he goes to court.”
Rock stood up and leaned on the gurney bar. “I know what kind of man he is, Mr. Trent. I’ve dealt with much worse criminals than him.”
There was a darkness in his voice that sent a shiver through Ella. For a moment as he scowled down at the old man, he looked almost dangerous. What sort of horrible monsters had he faced across a court room?
Trent took a sharp breath, staring between the two of them. Hope blossomed in Ella’s chest, until his face clouded over and he let his head drop to the pillow again.
“I’ve had enough visiting, please leave.”
Rock dropped his head. “Mr. Trent, give us the chance to help you.”
Ella licked her lips. They couldn’t give up this soon. “Mr. Trent, if Scalder’s actions hadn’t made you sick, you’d tell us so. Please, just—”
One of Trent’s aged, weathered hands slapped the call button. “Nurse. Nurse.” He gave Rock and Ella hard looks. Rock dropped his hands from the gurney and Ella did the same.
“Nurse.” Trent looked at the woman who entered. “These two need to leave. Now.”
Rock touched Ella’s arm. She let him lead her out before the nurse could do more than glare.