by Dakota Trace
“Well, don’t let Ethan see it. He’ll try to steal it from you. He’s…”
“Steal what?” Ethan stepped through a doorway on the right, looking immaculate in his linen trousers and salmon colored button down shirt with a slim leather belt around his waist with his dreads flowing over his shoulders.
“Her car. You got to see it, Ethan. It’s a….”
Eyes widening, and feeling just a bit mischievous, Sabella elbowed Davis, who gave a startled grunt. “Don’t tell him! He can’t have Thea.”
Cocking his head, a puzzled expression crossed Ethan’s face. “Now you’ve roused my curiosity.”
When he moved to pass her, Sabella darted in front of him and shook her finger at him. “No stealing my car. I restored her with my dad and Lauren during high school, and I won’t give her up.”
He blinked at her slowly, before lifting her entire body with an ease she hadn’t expected to place her on the other side of him. “You’ll find when I want something, Ms. Johnston, I’m willing to move the earth and the moon to get it.” He opened the door and gazed outside for several long moments. A low whistle escaped him. “And damned if I don’t covet your car.” He turned back to her. “I don’t suppose I can convince you to sell it to me?”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Sell Thea? Are you out of your mind, Dr. Tremaine? She’s my baby.”
“I figured you’d say that.” He gave a drawn out sigh, before his face lit up. “How about letting me drive her sometime?”
Behind her Davis groaned. “Don’t do it. He drives like a madman.”
Ethan had the audacity to look offended. “I do not. Just because I don’t keep my speed at precisely three miles an hour under the posted speed limit does not make me a mad man.”
Davis leaned forward. “No, he only goes thirty miles an hour over it.”
Ethan shook his head. “How many times to do I have to tell you, Davis? It was only once and how was I supposed to know kilometers were different than miles per hour?” He gave Sabella a pleading look. “I grew up in Japan. Lived in Japan for over thirty-five years…” He glared at Davis. “Learned to drive in Japan.”
“Likely story,” Davis taunted.
Ethan gave a put out sigh, and shook his head. “Would you excuse me a moment while I strangle my partner?”
The calm demeanor with which Ethan delivered his threat, set off a round of giggles in her. “I…I…suppose not. Where would you like me to wait, Sir?” Then she dropped down in a perfect curtsy.
Ethan, who’d obviously been ready to thump on his partner, froze mid-stride as she straightened. That’s when she realized what she’d done. She’d only been goofing around, but between the honorary title and her little curtsy, she’d definitely sent a message she hadn’t intended. The tension grew between them, until he finally spoke. “Please wait for me in the training room. It’s the second door down on the right, Sabella.”
The command sent her fleeing down the hall. What had she just done?
Chapter Seven
“Are you okay? You look like you just got pole-axed.” Davis’s question jerked Ethan out of his sudden urge to toss Sabella over the nearest flat surface and warm her behind. It was going to be a long training session if he had to battle his naturally dominant urges. He turned to watch her disappear into the training room.
“I’m fine.” Or I will be once I figure out how to put my dick on a leash. He took a couple deep breaths. “She’s going to be handful to train.”
“I have a feeling you’ll be just the man to do it.” Davis rolled his shoulders. “So why don’t you go see how she handles the first lesson, and I’ll go and try to conquer our receipts payable accounts?” He moved back towards the door. “I’ll be down in the club office, yell if you need me.”
Ethan nodded. “I will.” As soon as Davis left, he walked into the kitchen to splash cold water on his wrists and the back of his neck, in hopes of cooling himself down. He had to get into the right frame of mind before entering the practice room. This was different…no, Sabella was different, and he’d be damned if he’d let her act of kindness be ruined by his lust.
Taking a few deep breaths to center himself, he finally pushed away from the kitchen sink. There was much to do and so little time. First of all he had to give his lovely new submissive a crash course in the ritual, which he always did without fail each and every time he indulged in his passion for the kinbaku. Then would come the very first lesson — familiarizing her to his touch. Drying his hands on the tea towel, he gazed out of the kitchen window towards the huge barn which housed New Beginnings. Eventually he’d take her down to the main floor and bind her for the members to see. It would be good preparation for the large numbers of people who would be attending the Kinkfest.
Once he was certain he’d leashed his libido, he walked down the hall towards the practice room. Entering the room, he took a deep breath, inhaling the familiar scents of jasmine, sandalwood and just the faintest essence of lilies. Doubling as his dojo for his daily practice of Hojōjutsu, it was a place of comfort as well as one where he could focus on nothing but his submissive and the training of her body to his ropes. The pads in the room were also a plus for him. Some of the positions in traditional kinbaku could be stressful on the knees and other joints.
Sliding the door shut behind him, he closed off his private domain from the rest of the house. It was one of the few rooms reflecting his mother’s heritage, aside from his master bedroom. As he turned back around, he took in Sabella as she stood next to the rice paper banners with his mother’s family name written on it — the Japanese characters a stark contrast to the creamy paper. She was tracing her fingers over the letters. The sun from the skylight poured over her as if embracing her in its arms. The small potbelly stove between the two banners held the incense burner and a variety of red and white candles. Standing to the side of it, she was in the correct position to begin his personal pre-bondage ritual. But first there were a few things they had to go over.
“While I don’t embrace all of my mother’s culture, I do have some rituals I do adhere to, Sabella. And at the moment you’re standing in the middle of the most important one.” Once he was closer, he stepped up behind her, drawing in her unique scent but also that of previous burnings of jasmine. “But before we go further, I need to know your safeword. Amongst everything in the BDSM scene, it’s what I hold sacred above all else. Your submission will mean nothing to me if it’s not freely given. Do you understand?”
She looked over her left shoulder, exposing the slender column of her neck to him. He wanted to trace his fingers over the delicately pounding pulse, to monitor her excitement by how fast it beat against his thumb, or even better his lips. “Of course.” She swayed towards him before catching her balance. “It’s Dobby.”
He leaned forward a bit to inhale her scent. “Do you not like Harry Potter books?”
“I love all of them actually, but it’s hard to think about sex when you’re thinking of a little house elf who’s ready to take on the world.”
“Very true.” Unable to resist, he brushed his fingers over her skin. “So Dobby is your safeword. Do you have a slowdown word?”
Her eyes drifted shut but she kept her head up. “No, I don’t.”
Exhaling softly, he gave her a choice. “How about matsu? Could you remember that if you need me to slow down?”
“Mat…su.” She drew out the word, before giving a small nod. “Yes, I think so.”
He wanted to growl at the sound of his native tongue coming from her but resisted. “Good. Now limits, even though this isn’t a true scene. But I do need to know if there is anything that’ll cause you distress when it comes to bondage.”
She licked her lips, before opening her eyes. “I’m pretty open to almost everything when it comes to bondage. I just ask you be careful with my right knee.”
He arched a brow at her. “An old injury?”
“Yeah, I blew it out during a skiing trip with m
y dad a couple of years ago. Came down a slope and managed to catch the one lone tree on the course. I had to have replacement surgery afterwards, but it still can give me fits if I put too much strain on it.”
“Good to know. There are several positions we can use that won’t strain but instead support your knee.” He filed the information away for future reference. He wasn’t planning on suspending her today. No, today he only wanted her to understand the ritual he used, and how his hands would feel on her body. “Okay, we’ve got that out the way, now I want to guide you through your part of the pre-ritual before a kinbaku session. Do you have any questions before we start?”
She started to shake her head, before pausing. “Actually I have one. How am I to address you during these scenes?”
“The Sir you used earlier is fine, or you can call me Dom Ethan. Either will work for me.” He cupped her cheek. “I won’t force you to call me Master. I’m not that way, but don’t be surprised when we visit my club if you hear other submissives call me Master. I assure you it’s an honorary title and nothing more. I don’t have a submissive at the moment and…” He gave her a soft smile. “…I only have one submissive at a time.”
She cocked her head. “And why’s that, Sir?”
“Because I prefer to give all my attention to one submissive rather than divide my attention between several.” He stepped back. “Now, as I mentioned I have a certain way I do things. Not only is it steeped in my heritage, but it’s also the way I trained under my own nawashi. It not only gives my submissive a routine to depend upon, it also helps center both of us before we embark upon the pleasurable task of binding you with ropes. Are you ready to learn?”
“Yes, Sir.”
He nodded, offering her his hand. “Good, let’s begin.”
* * * *
Sabella stared around the room while she finished lighting the last candle as her Dom had requested. Around the room, several other candles flickered and a gentle trail of smoke drifted from the incense on top of the potbelly stove at the far end of the room. In the background, the soft rhythmic sounds of tribal drums thumped from the hidden speakers. When he’d first asked her to turn on the music, she’d expected to hear something of Asian descent, but this music was more Native American or perhaps African with its drums and flutes. It was a very relaxing sound, but despite it, she found herself wound tightly, her skin tingling in the anticipation of his touch. But so far he’d stayed on the far side of the room, merely watching her, and instructing when need be. Once she was done, she assumed the nadu position as he requested. Sinking to her knees, she parted her thighs wide, kept her shoulders back, all the while placing her hands palm up on her knees and keeping her eyes lowered submissively but head held high.
“You have excellent form, Sabella. Your previous Doms taught you well.” Ethan crouched down next to her, rubbing his thumb over her cheek. She watched in fascination as he retrieved a leather thong from his pocket and tied back his dreadlocks. “Now that you’ve assured the correct setting for our session, it’s time for the next step.” He stood and disappeared from view. After hearing a rustle behind her, she nearly jumped out of her skin as he knelt down, the heat of his thighs pressing against the outside of hers, his chest pressed to her back. A sigh of relief escaped her as she realized he still wore the linen pants. “I need to align our centers, now. To do this I like to employ a technique called synchronized breathing. And I normally do this shirtless. It’s easier to feel and see the rhythm of your breathing. Remove your shirt, sub.”
Sabella stiffened in surprise, not expecting any nudity, but then again she wouldn’t be naked, would she? She’d still have her bra on. With trembling fingers, she tugged at the bottom off her tee and pulled it up. She calmed as his fingers assisted hers in guiding it over her head. She released it without so much as a whimper, curious to see what was next. But he didn’t throw it as she’d expected. No, instead he neatly folded it and laid it just next to his thigh.
“Good girl.” He spoke softly. “Now, I’m going to pull you against me so we can feel skin against skin. I’m not playing a trick on you.”
Then he guided her in leaning against him. She gasped at the press of his warm skin against her back. She hadn’t realized how warm his body actually was. His cologne teased her nose as she turned her head and found her cheek pressed against his collarbone.
He shifted closer. “Now, we’re going to begin kokyo-ho.” He wrapped his arms around her. “Shhh, it’s merely breathing. I need you to concentrate on matching your breathing to mine. Feel my chest rise and fall, pattern your breathing after mine. Can you do that?”
Overloaded with unfamiliar sensations, she struggled at first with her focus, but he didn’t get impatient with her like Louis would’ve, or any of her other Doms.
“Shh, don’t struggle so, Sabella. We’ll get there. Just relax and your body will get the message soon.” He spoke the soothing words directly into her ear, causing goose bumps to run down her arms. “You’re new to this. Close your eyes if need be, listen to the way air leaves and returns to my body. To breathe is to live — to live is to breathe. It’s natural.”
Letting her eyes drift shut, she finally found his rhythm and when she did, she was nearly overwhelmed by the closeness she felt to him. She hadn’t expected this, but darned if she was scared enough to flee from the unexpected intimacy. It was scary, but wasn’t. He was only holding her and doing nothing more. Not even the feel of his erection pressed against the swell of her bottom could distract from the bond she felt forming between them.
“That’s right, experience the energies binding us. It’s an extension of assurance as you entrust your very breath to me.”
She nodded slowly, giving more over to him until nothing else mattered but breathing and merely being an extension of him. They sat there for however long before he finally deemed them ready for the next step.
“Good, now staying relaxed, I want you to accustom yourself to my touch, Sabella. As a nawashi I’ll be touching you everywhere as I use the rope to bind you.”
Even with his warning, she still jumped when his hands drifted up and over her chest as he used the leverage of his arms to guide hers above her head. Her nipples tightened against the silk and lace of her bra.
“Shh, don’t tense up. There’s nothing sexual about this touch.” He ran his hands back down her arms and when she jerked again as his fingers tickled, he gave a small sigh. “Do I need to tie you up, little one?”
“I’m sorry, Sir. It tickles.” She wasn’t about to tell him how arousing it was to feel his hands against her body. Even if the man does have a boner.
A low rumble escaped his chest. “Good to know for future reference...” His touch moved down her sides to stroke the outside of her thighs. As they moved over to the inside seam of her jeans, inches from her mound, she trembled. “…but something tells me you find this just as arousing as I do.” His hands left her and she wanted to cry out in protest.
“I…Sir…” She gasped as his hands returned with a length of rope. Pulled taut between his hands, he dragged the length of the hemp across her chest and down her stomach. The coarse fibers rubbing against her skin distracted her. The coil in her womb tightened in response. She could only pray he didn’t smell her arousal. It was bad enough he’d guessed…
“There’s nothing wrong with finding this arousing.” His breath tickled her ear. “A true nawa jujun experiences both harmony and desire at the hands of her nawashi.” The rope slipped lower over her hips, but was now dulled by the thick denim of her jeans. She needed to feel the rope against skin, not just the pressure through her jeans.
“Please…” her plea came out choked as the rope moved down her thighs.
“Please what, Sabella?” He was now cradling her in his arms as they were extended as far as they could go.
“I…need…the rope…Sir.” She squirmed in his embrace as the rope moved back up to her waist before returning to its downward motion, teasing her mercile
ssly with the possibilities. This is what she’d been looking for when she’d asked to be bound.
“You have it, little one,” he soothed. “I’m not taking it away.”
“I need it against my skin. Can I take off my jeans…please?” If she hadn’t been out of her mind with need, she’d have been appalled by her request. But obviously Ethan wasn’t, because he lifted his arms enough she could maneuver.
“Go ahead.”
Her hand eagerly reached for the fastening on her jeans.
Chapter Eight
Holding his arms and the rope away from his little submissive’s body, Ethan hissed as she wiggled free of the denim. He hadn’t been totally surprised when she’d asked for their removal. After experiencing how Sabella reacted to the rope against her stomach, he realized he’d found himself a true nawa jujun — a rope bottom. But it didn’t stop his cock from aching for release from his pants.
After she kicked free of her jeans, she settled back against him in her original position, her pantie-clad bottom resting against his groin as she knelt with her legs widespread. He only hoped his control was what he thought it was.
“Shall we continue?” He prayed she would misinterpret the roughness in his voice as anything but desire.
“Y..es…Sir.”
He was happy to hear that her voice wasn’t very steady either. This was affecting them both more than either one had probably expected. Lowering his arms, he pressed the hemp against her skin, just hard enough to make an impression, but not hard enough to scrape her delicate skin raw. As he rubbed the rope across her thighs, a low moan passed her parted lips.
“Oh…yes.” She lifted her hands behind her head, searching for him or something to cling to, as she experienced the feel of rope against her skin.
“It’s okay, little one. Hang on to me.” He released one end of the rope and guided one of her arms to loop around his neck. She lifted her other arm without his assistance. The move arched her back and her breasts stood out in clear relief. He smoothed the rope lower towards her knees before slowly drawing it back up towards her chest. The need to see the hemp criss-crossing over her tempting mounds was urgent, but was she ready for the next step?