by Tawny Taylor
Now, this was better.
She glanced at Drako. Were those flames flickering in his eyes? Deep blue ones, like the uber hot flames on a gas stove. The toy’s vibrations hummed along her nerves, making her heartbeat race, pound in her ears. It would be so easy to surrender to the pleasure, let it carry her away, but she couldn’t. She had to focus on Drako, on breaking down the walls he’d erected around his heart.
She pulled the toy out just before orgasm had her in its tight grip. Gasping for breath, she set it aside.
“This isn’t what you want, Rin. Why are you doing this?”
“Because it’s what we both need.” She took his face in her hands, ran her thumb along his bottom lip. This was the face she loved, the man she loved. She had to do everything she could to help him, to save him.
“No. I don’t believe that.”
“It’s too soon for you to agree with me.” She kissed him, softly, patiently, exploring his warm, delicious mouth and letting him do the same. It was the kind of kiss she’d remember a long time, full of raw emotion. Sweet and tender. Provocative and sensual.
“Release me and let me show you true pleasure,” he murmured into her mouth.
“Are you uncomfortable?”
“No.”
“In pain?”
“No.”
“Can you say the safe word if you needed to?”
“Yes, the word is ‘Red,’ but I’m not going to use it.”
“Very well.” She released his face, strolled around him, this time stopping at his side. She played with his cock and balls, using her hands to bring him to the verge of orgasm and then she commanded, “Come, Drako.”
He clamped his jaw. “No.”
She turned on the anal stimulator again.
He fought even harder against the second orgasm. He cussed, he begged, he pleaded, he yanked his arms and jerked his body from side to side. But nothing worked. He lost the battle within minutes.
“Say it,” Rin demanded, her heart in her throat. “Say ‘Red.’ ”
“No, dammit.”
He was a lot more determined than she’d expected.
“Then you’ll come for me again.” Instead of turning off the vibrator, she turned it up a notch, increasing the level of stimulation to his prostate. He shook and growled, like a caged beast, the sensation sending him racing toward yet another orgasm.
“Say the word, Drako. Say ‘Red’ and I’ll stop.”
“No! That damn thing isn’t going to control me. You’re not. Nobody, nothing is. It can’t. I can’t . . .”
“Can’t what?”
Drako shook his head, and a droplet of sweat fell from his forehead. He jerked as a second orgasm raged through his body. Rin stood by his side, waiting for him to say the word she knew he had the strength to say but not the will. She didn’t shut off the toy. She didn’t give him a moment’s relief because she knew it would set him back. He didn’t fight the third orgasm much at all. When the fourth had him in its grip, he mumbled, “Red.”
With tears in her eyes, Rin removed the toy and unfastened the cuffs at Drako’s wrists and ankles.
He sank to the floor, and she sat next to him, pulled him to her. It wasn’t an erotic embrace. It was more the meeting of bodies and souls. Skin to skin, yes, but so much more. Heart to heart, spirit to spirit. “I had no idea,” he said softly, his voice breathy as he struggled to catch his breath. “No clue how to let go. I was afraid.” Looking up, into her eyes, he smiled. “You did it. You broke me. You took it all away.”
“And now I can give it all back, and it’ll mean something to you.” Rin didn’t know how long they sat on the floor and held each other. She was far too content to stay that way. The world could go on without them and she wouldn’t care.
“Yes, you’re right. It will.”
This was what she’d been waiting for, longing for. She lifted her head and realized she’d been crying. Her face was damp with hot, salty tears.
“I can trust you. No, I . . . need you.” Drako placed his hands on either side of her face and kissed each eyelid, each cheek, her forehead, the tip of her nose, and finally her mouth. As their lips brushed against each other’s, he whispered, “Thank you for helping me accept the truth.”
A little sob slipped between her lips. “Will you make love to me now?”
His response didn’t take the form of words, but a kiss. A soul-shattering kiss, at that. He caressed her neck, shoulders, upper arms before dragging his hands to her breasts. She responded with a full body shudder and a tiny whimper. She’d never wanted a man this badly before, never needed one this badly either. Did it matter anymore that today had started out as an exercise to manipulate Drako? No, not at all. Because somehow it had turned into something far more essential. She was sure her husband’s heart was finally hers.
He gently coaxed her onto her back and she drew her legs apart, allowing him to settle his hips between them. He entered her slowly, the ecstasy so delicious she arched her back and moaned into their joined mouths. He lowered his upper body onto hers, and she slid her hands around his sides to his back. His weight felt so good, so right, resting on top of her. This was heaven.
Their bodies worked in harmony, moving to the same rhythm, coming together and then shifting apart. Rin kissed every inch of Drako she could reach, touched every bit of skin she could too, knowing he was hers, all hers and only hers at last. Never would she share this man with anyone again.
And he did the same. Sprinkled kisses over her face, neck, shoulders. He kissed her fingertips, her eyelashes, her hair. He touched her with such gentleness while looking down upon her with wonder, reverence.
But even though his lovemaking wasn’t what she’d expected—it wasn’t the hard, feral possession she thought it would be—that didn’t make this moment any less perfect.
So he wasn’t fucking her with the harsh abandon he might once have Andi and his other submissives. So what? It might have been her wish once, to be what they were to him, the receptacle for all the pent-up energy he kept so carefully contained. She was more to him now than they had ever been, the sanctuary of his soul.
And he was her hero, and the man who had earned the title Master of My Heart.
They brought each other to the crest of passion. With kisses and touches and whispered promises. Their lives and hearts were forever bound, the threads of their souls woven into one.
When the first wave of tingling heat crashed over her, Rin dug her fingertips into Drako’s shoulders. She felt him come with her, his cock thickening at the same moment, his cum filling her as her pussy spasmed, pulling it deeper. She laughed and cried, clinging to Drako’s slick, hard body, wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling his cock deeper inside. He laughed too, trailed fingertips down the side of her face, kissed the corners of her mouth.
“Rin, you are my world,” he said, rolling onto his side and taking her with him. And she believed him. “You don’t know how fucking scared I was when I found out you’d been kidnapped, when I thought I’d lost you. I was a wreck. Couldn’t think. Couldn’t do a goddamn thing. My brothers . . . I don’t know what I would’ve done without them. But I’m so glad you’re back and safe. And I don’t want to let you out of my sight again, but I don’t want to cage you either.” As she settled her head in the crook of his arm, she smiled into his eyes. They were open now, the shield that had once been there completely obliterated. “Thank you for waiting, for being so fucking patient with me. I was such an idiot.”
“No, you were never an idiot. You were doing what you thought was best for both of us. Not only do I respect you for that, but I love you for it. You’re always thinking about what’s best for people.”
She waited, hoping he’d say the words she longed to hear. He didn’t. He kissed her. But in that kiss was all the unfettered emotion he couldn’t communicate in words.
He loved her.
She loved him.
Their story was almost complete. There was only one small
hurdle to their happy ending. But how could she bring it up now, when they’d just shared such a magical, intimate moment? She didn’t want to ruin this or to destroy the trust she’d worked so hard to gain.
She was terrified that if he learned why she’d brought him there tonight, he’d think it was all an act.
God help her. God help him! She couldn’t do it. Not now, now while the memory of that beautiful moment, when Drako had finally surrendered, was still so fresh in their minds. And with the imprint of that change so new on their hearts.
“Are you hungry?” He brushed her hair from her face, uncovering her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“Absolutely nothing’s wrong.” She gave him a reassuring smile. “I’m not exactly overwhelmed, because this is what I’ve wanted for a long time. I’m just really, really happy.”
“Good.” He brushed a thumb over her lower lip, kissed it, then sat up. “I need to eat something.”
As if on cue, her stomach rumbled. “Me too.”
Drako helped her up and then they helped each other into their clothes, sneaking in a touch here, a kiss there. It was a way to hold onto that intimacy a little longer, the magic. Once they had all their clothes on, they joined hands and headed out of the dungeon into what had become a cool, damp night.
“What do you want to eat?” Drako asked after he’d escorted Rin to the car, opened her door, strolled around to the driver’s side, and folded his bulky form behind the steering wheel.
“I don’t know. But what I would love is to take it home where we can relax and enjoy it, maybe watch a movie.”
“Sounds perfect. How does Italian sound? There’s a great place a few miles from here.”
Visions of rich cream sauces played through her mind. “Yes.”
After a few minutes, at a red light, Drako glanced at her. “You said your sister taught you?”
“Hmmm?” Having been lost in her thoughts for a few minutes, she wasn’t sure what Drako was talking about.
“You handled that whip like a pro. How long have you been practicing?”
She fingered her cheek, which was burning. “Well, not very long, just since we, er, escaped. But we made good use of the time. I couldn’t tell you how many hours we spent working together. I learned that one of my sister’s owners taught her to be a domme. He had a lot of play parties, and evidently she was very popular with his friends. She didn’t mind it so much because she was in control. Imagine that. Some guy bought a sex slave to be his domme.” Rin stared at his profile as she talked. “She’s still dealing with some of the stuff that happened when she was being sold to one owner after another. But I can tell D/s is going to be a big part of her future. It’s the only way she feels safe in interacting with men anymore.”
“Time will help.”
She looked down at her hand, played with her ring. “I know. But I won’t stop worrying until I see her happy. I mean, genuinely over-the-moon happy. Like I am.”
He touched her cheek, coaxing her gaze back up to his face. “I’ve never met anyone like you, Rin. You give so much.”
She laid a hand over his, sandwiching it between her face and palm. “I’ve never met anyone like you either. You’ll do anything in the name of duty. You’re dedicated, loyal.”
“And stubborn, an ass,” he added, laughter making his eyes glitter brightly. He returned his hand to the steering wheel, using the other one to hit the turn signal.
“Hey, I’m not perfect either. We’re both flawed. But maybe that’s why we fit so well together.”
“Maybe.” After he navigated a right turn, he glanced at her. “Rin, I want our marriage to be different. I want to be open, honest, about everything. I want to make a new start, hold nothing back. Our marriage won’t be just one of name only. Not anymore.” She was so happy, she didn’t know what to say. “Most important, I want you to feel you can tell me anything, ask me anything.”
It had worked. Just like Lei had said. That unbelievable experience in the dungeon had changed their relationship, and Rin was beyond happy. She hated the idea of risking that happiness already, when it was still so fresh, so new. She’d waited a long time to hear these words. What if he pulled back again? Built up those walls around his heart, this time out of even stronger stuff. Would anything knock them down?
When Drako pulled the car up to a red light, Rin shifted nervously in her seat.
Drako, being the perceptive man he was, looked at her. “What’s wrong?”
This was it, her chance to try to get to the truth. It was her only hope to save him from being arrested, imprisoned. “I don’t know how to bring this up.”
“What?” A horn sounded from the car behind them, and Drako reacted, punching the accelerator. The car lurched forward. But instead of moving along with traffic, Drako turned into a gas station driveway and parked next to the air pump. Once he had the car shifted out of gear, he twisted to look her way. “Is it about what happened in the dungeon?”
“No.”
His eyes narrowed. “What is it?”
Rin dragged the back of her hand across her face, smearing tears over her cheeks. “I wish this wasn’t necessary.”
Drako’s eyes narrowed even more.
“I wasn’t exactly honest with you.” Rin took a few deep breaths, let them out. “Lei and are weren’t kidnapped by Campioni. Another man did. He told me things about you.”
“What things?”
“He said your name isn’t really Drako, and you aren’t a jeweler. He said you’d stolen something very dangerous, and you’re in danger now because of it.”
Something flared in Drako’s eyes. Rin waited for him to deny what the man had said. She prayed it had been a lie and Drako would tell her everything was going to be okay, that she had nothing to worry about.
“What else did he say?”
“He said there’s going to be a raid, that the thing you’d stolen belonged to the United States government and they were coming to get it back, before it landed in the wrong hands.”
“The government?”
She nodded. “The FBI.” Drako hadn’t denied anything yet. Why hadn’t he? “He said he was telling me because he’s worried about your safety.”
A deep crease appeared between Drako’s brows. “Did this man tell you his name?”
“He said he’s your uncle.”
The crease became even deeper. “My uncle?”
“He looked a lot like you. His name was Bob Zacharias.”
Drako’s lips thinned. His fingers curled tighter around the steering wheel. “That’s impossible. My uncles are both dead. He lied.”
She wanted to believe that. But after what she’d learned about her sister, and knowing she tended to believe what she wanted, rather than the truth, she asked, “Why?”
Staring straight ahead, Drako shrugged. His indifference, however, wasn’t convincing. “To manipulate you into helping him. What did he want you to do?”
“Convince you to tell me where the thing you’d stolen is being hidden.”
Chewing on his lower lip, Drako shook his head. “If he was really my uncle, he’d know I wouldn’t tell you that. I can’t tell anyone.”
“Then it’s true? You’re not Drako Alexandre? You’re Kane Zacharias? And you did steal something, whatever it is?” Rin’s heart was thumping so hard in her chest, she felt her breastbone being bruised from the inside. “Are you in danger?”
“That depends.”
“On what?”
Drako’s gaze snapped to hers. His stare was hard, sharp, almost intrusive. “On a lot of things. How much of what you told me earlier is true?”
“Most of it. I got a call from Lei and went to the coffee shop to pick her up. I was drugged, taken to a house. Lei was there, and she knew all about you. Agent Zacharias showed me some things, a video from ten years ago, your military records. He asked us to help him find out where you’re hiding the weapon or whatever it is. I didn’t tell him I would. And then we escaped.”
&
nbsp; Drako’s eyes widened. “Oh, shit. He didn’t want you to find out where we’re hiding anything.”
“What?”
“Oram knows we won’t tell anyone, not even our wives. He just wanted you to get me away from my brothers long enough . . .” He jerked the car’s shifter into gear and slammed his foot on the gas pedal. “We need to get home now.”
“Why? He said the raid was going to happen tomorrow. He’s waiting for me to tell him where the—”
“No, he’s not.” Driving like he was trying to win the Indy 500, he crammed his hand into his pants pocket and pulled out his phone. He handed it to Rin. “I need to keep my eyes on the road. Call Malek and Talen and warn them Oram’s on his way.”
“Okay.” With one hand, she scrolled through Drako’s saved phone numbers while she held on for life with the other. She found one of the brothers, hit the button to put the call through, and waited, hoping Malek would answer. “Drako, is everything going to be all right?”
“I wish I could say yes, but I don’t know.” Drako zigged and zagged through traffic.
One ring, two, three, four. The call went through to voice mail. Rin hung up and tried Talen’s number. “Would it have been better if I’d told you about Agent Zacharias sooner?” she asked.
“It’s not your fault. If I’d opened up to you earlier, you wouldn’t have been afraid to tell me what happened. It doesn’t matter whose fault it is, anyway. We’ve just got to deal with what comes, as it comes.”
20
Rin rode the entire way home with her eyes squeezed shut. She hadn’t prayed in eons, but that didn’t stop her now. She prayed up a blue streak, making all sorts of promises to the Almighty if he’d give what was beginning to look like a desperate situation a good ending. At the very least, she prayed the people she loved—her sister, Drako and his brothers—would be kept safe.
Supposedly, the big raid was going to happen tomorrow, so even though Drako thought they might be raiding today, she held out hope that he was wrong. That hope was shattered when the car turned onto their street and Rin saw all the black SWAT trucks. The road was completely blocked off by police cars, angled across the width to keep any vehicles from coming in or leaving.