He pulled his lips away, both of them gasping as he did, eyes meeting and holding for a moment before he slid away and rolled to his side. He pulled Scarlett with him, nestling her against him as he wrapped his arms around her. His hands were over her heart, and he could feel it beating quickly as it recovered from their lovemaking.
Chapter Ten
Hannah’s fingers grazed back and forth over the dark hair sprinkling Drew’s forearm as she tried to understand what had just happened. That hadn’t been just fucking. Where were the rope and spankings and punishments that had been promised? These weren’t the actions of a Dominant controlling a submissive for his pleasure. The way he’d just made love to her—yes, it had felt like love—sent her mind racing. This entire weekend had been anything but what she had expected. She was in disbelief that she had been in Drew’s company for only thirty hours. She couldn’t deny their connection: it felt as if she had known him forever.
“What are you thinking about?” he murmured into her hair. “I can hear your mind going a million miles a minute.”
She didn’t dare tell him what she was really thinking. “Nothing, really. Just relaxing.”
“Please tell me your real name,” he asked softly.
She remained quiet for a moment, unsure of what to say, not wanting to ruin the intimacy of what they had just shared. “I can’t, Drew. You know that.”
“Why? Why can’t you tell me? What harm would it cause?” Frustration was evident in his voice.
“Because I just . . . I can’t. My life outside of this world is my own, and I need to keep it that way.”
He sighed. “Then tell me something that I can know. I want to know who you are, not Scarlett.”
She sighed deeply because she understood what he wanted, and there was even a piece of her that wanted to share everything she was with him. But there was a bigger piece, the piece she needed to keep safe from this world, that drove her decisions.
“Okay, I’ll make a deal with you. I’ll ask you a question that I think is acceptable. If you want, you can ask me the same question back.”
“If that’s what you’re willing to give me, then I’ll take it. Go.”
“Let’s start out with an easy one. How old are you?”
“I’m thirty-four. You?” Drew returned.
“I’m twenty-seven.”
“Huh, I would have guessed twenty-three or twenty-four.”
“I guess I’ll appreciate that in a few years.” She laughed, feeling the mood lighten already. “Okay, what’s your favorite food?”
“Oh jeez. I like so many things. I guess if I have to pick my absolute favorite, I’ll go with the manly answer and say a good steak.”
“So typical!” She squeezed his hand. “Favorite movie?”
“Uh-uh. You didn’t tell me your favorite food,” he countered.
“Oh yeah, sorry. I love pasta. Any kind. I could eat it every day. But then I’d probably weigh an extra fifty pounds, so I treat myself to it once a week. So, favorite movie?”
“I don’t know about that one.” He thought for a moment. “I guess The Godfather?”
“God, Drew, could you be any more of a typical man?” she joked.
“So, then, tell me yours.”
“It’s Pride and Prejudice. But the one with Keira Knightley. There’s about ten versions of that movie by now.”
“Um yeah, speaking of typical choices— ‘Scarlett’?” Drew mused.
“I know, I know. Hmmm, okay, let’s step this up a notch,” she said. “Okay, who was your best friend growing up?”
“That’s easy. Benny. We did everything together. That guy knows more about me than I care to admit. Okay, now you. Who was your best friend?”
“Cathy. We met when I was in third grade. My family had just moved to town and we were seated next to each other. I was terrified. She was so nice to me. The teacher assigned us to do a science project together, and we picked monarch butterflies as our subject. We bonded over chasing them in a field by her house.”
“Are you still friends?”
“Yes, I suppose we are. I don’t see her much but we keep up through Facebook. God, we grew up together, swimming in streams, writing notes, singing silly songs and of course chasing boys.” She laughed at the memories.
“That sounds nice. Where did you grow up?”
“Nope. I get to ask the questions! Not you!” she chastised.
“Okay, okay! Sorry!” He held his hands up in surrender. “Do you want something to drink?”
She sat up and faced him. “That actually sounds great.”
“Okay, sit tight. I’ll be back.” Drew jumped up from the bed and left the room. Relief surged through her. Not because he was gone, but because he seemed to be content with this getting-to-know-you game. As quickly as the relief came, it left again. She was developing feelings for Drew. It mattered to her what he thought and how he felt. And she knew from his actions and his questions that he was feeling something for her too. I mean, he brought me on a date. Something he hadn’t done for years. But it was also obvious that his business was his life. Although she had to question how much of it had been forced upon him by his father.
While these thoughts swirled in her mind, she got up and opened a few drawers on the dresser until she came across one filled with T-shirts. She grabbed one and pulled it over her head. It fell halfway down her thighs and looked more like a dress, but it was soft and comfy and, best of all, it smelled like Drew.
“Cute.” He was standing in the doorway, holding the bottle of wine from earlier and their glasses.
“I hope you don’t mind. I didn’t want to put that dress back on. Lovely as it is.”
“Not at all. I like seeing you in my shirt. It’s kind of sexy, actually.” He grinned wickedly as he walked toward her.
“Oh no you don’t, mister!” She threw a hand up. “I need a break!”
He stopped in front of her. “I was just going to kiss you.” And with that, he bent down and brushed his lips against hers.
“Oh.”
“Yes, well, not that I wouldn’t ravish you again if you’d let me.” He winked at her, then walked past her to set the glasses and wine down on the dresser. He opened the top drawer and pulled out a pair of boxers, slipping them on. Pouring them each a glass of wine, he handed her one and then sat back on the bed.
“Okay, next question.”
“Ugh! Really?” she moaned, hoping he had moved on from this subject.
“I’m just getting started. I’ll take whatever pieces of you that you’re willing to share, even if it has to be like this.”
“Okay, okay.” She sat on the bed across from him, pulling her legs into a cross-legged position. “When did you lose your virginity?”
He cocked his head. “Oh, going for the good stuff now, eh? You know you have to answer the same question, right?”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s okay, it’s not very exciting. It was very standard. I was seventeen, and it was to my high school boyfriend after senior prom.”
“Oh, that’s romantic, not standard.” Drew smiled, examining her a little wistfully, as if imagining a younger version of herself. “Okay, I’m afraid mine probably won’t surprise you. Or maybe it will. I was seventeen too, and it was with my sister’s nanny, Lisa.”
“Oh, you have a sister? Where was she tonight?” Hannah was more surprised at the revelation of a sister then at how he’d lost his virginity.
“Yes. Well, no. Not anymore.” Drew’s eyes filled with sadness. “I had a sister. Ben and I. A younger sister. Her name was Elizabeth. We called her Lizzie. She died when she was sixteen.”
Hannah’s hand flew to her mouth as she gasped in surprise. “Drew, I’m so sorry. I wouldn’t have asked if I had known.”
He shrugged. “How could you have known? It was a long time ago now. Almost fifteen years.” He stopped and shook his head. “Wow, when I say it out loud, it’s hard to believe how long ago it was.”
“Is it okay
—I mean; can I ask how? If it’s not too hard for you to talk about it?” she asked somberly.
“She was coming home from a dance with some of her friends and their car was hit by a drunk driver. My sister was in the front passenger seat. She and her friend, Mindy, who was driving, were both killed. There were two more girls in the back of the car that ended up okay. Of course, the fucking drunk that hit them didn’t have a scratch on him.” He shook his head in disgust.
She got up, took his wineglass from his hand, and placed it down with hers as well. She climbed back up on the bed and, not knowing what else to do but needing to do something, took him in her arms and held him. She hugged him hard, wanting him to feel something other than the pain of the memory he’d just shared.
“I’m so sorry. I have a brother and a sister and I can’t imagine how I would feel if I lost either of them.”
He kissed the top of her head, holding her back before whispering, “Thank you.”
Instead of pulling apart, they both lay down on the bed, her back to his front, his arms wrapped around her, holding her close.
“So, you want to ask me anymore of these fun questions?” Drew joked weakly.
“I think I’m afraid to. God knows what kind of stone I’ll kick over next if I do!”
“I’m tough. Go ahead and fire away. Besides, it’s my only means of learning more about you.”
“Always an ulterior motive with you.” She laughed. “I was actually just wondering if we had to go back to the estate. Will it be noticed if we don’t return soon?”
Behind her, Drew shrugged. “I suppose they’ll notice eventually. Do you want to go back?”
She sighed deeply, responding wistfully, “I wish I could stay here forever.”
His entire body tightened at her confession. “Then stay.”
She laughed nervously, not sure where he was going with this. “Yes, I’ll just stay here in your little castle and you can take care of me forever.”
He released her and sat up. She sat up as well and turned toward him, looking him in the eye.
“Well, maybe not forever, but for right now, I’d like you to stay.”
“Drew, what are talking about?” Her heart raced.
He stroked her face lovingly. “Scarlett, do you think I’ve ever brought a sub out of the compound, let alone to my house?” He looked down, shaking his head before continuing. “I don’t know what it is. You make me feel something I haven’t felt in a long time. Right now, the thought of saying good-bye to you in a few hours already feels wrong. So I’m asking you to stay. I’d like more.”
She looked at him, wide-eyed, surprised at his revelation even though she’d suspected he was feeling just as much, if not more, than she was. “Drew, I . . .” She wrung her hands nervously, staring at the diamonds on her wrist.
“I’m scaring you,” he stated and then laughed. “I’m scaring myself! I don’t say shit like this to anyone.”
“It’s just that, this isn’t my life. Do you understand that? This isn’t me. You don’t know me. Not really. I’m just being who you want me to be.”
“I don’t believe that. You can’t tell me that what we just shared wasn’t you.”
“That was just sex.” She knew she was lying as she said the words, but she said them anyway. No matter what she might be starting to feel for Drew, she had to consider what—who was waiting for her back in the real world, and that was more important than anything she might want.
He scoffed. “That wasn’t just sex. And I’m not just talking about the sex. There was a lot more going on there than just sex and you’re lying to yourself if you try to pretend otherwise.”
“It doesn’t matter. This is all I have to give.”
He looked at her angrily. “What do you mean it doesn’t matter? It doesn’t matter that what we have might be something more? Something worth exploring?”
Sadness filled her eyes. “This isn’t my life. My life is . . . Well, my life is complicated. And this”—she gestured between them— “this is just a means to an end for me.”
Drew’s eyes were blazing now. “So, it’s back to the money again? Is that all this is to you? A job? The money?”
She flinched. Tears began to form and fall from the corners of her eyes. “I’m sorry. I am, really. Of course this weekend has been amazing. You’ve been amazing. So much more than I thought it could be. But yes, this is my job. And yes, I need the money.” She wiped the tears off her cheeks before continuing. “This is just the way it has to be for me.”
Drew stood abruptly, watching as tears slid down Scarlett’s cheeks, but unable to contain his anger. “Dammit, it doesn’t have to be this way! I’ll give you whatever fucking money you need. Just choose me.”
He watched in disbelief as she just shook her head slowly, tears streaming down her cheeks now. “I can’t. There are reasons that are much bigger than me. I just can’t. I’m sorry.”
He loomed above her, fury, hurt and confusion ripping through him and then resignation as he spoke. “No. You won’t. Because you choose not to. You could. If you wanted to.”
He stormed across the room and grabbed his glass of wine on the dresser, draining it in one long gulp before throwing it across the room, smashing it into a hundred pieces against the wall. Scarlett yelped in surprise, then curled into a ball on the bed.
With long, hard strides, he returned to the bed, grabbing her roughly by the hair and yanking her face up to his. “Then if this is just about the money, I might as well get what I paid for. Get up off this bed. Now!”
Hannah looked at him, eyes wide in fear and disbelief. Her one moment of hesitation had Drew pulling her off the bed by her hair, so she pushed herself up and off the bed before he pulled it clean off her head. When she was standing, he grabbed the neckline of her shirt and ripped it off her in two pieces.
Her body lunged forward with the motion, causing her to cry out in pain as she crashed into him. He snatched her shoulders and, shoving her down onto the bed, held her there with one strong arm.
“Drew, what are you doing? Please stop,” she urged, desperation in her voice.
“You don’t get to tell me to stop, Scarlett,” he hissed in her ear as he bent down to remove his boxers. “I paid for you. I’ll do whatever the fuck I want to you. Understood?”
Hannah lay speechless, bewildered, tears running down her face. How had they gotten to this moment so quickly? Drew loomed over her in anger, his actions about to lead him to a place she knew they wouldn’t be able to come back from. She did the only thing she could think of to save herself, to save him.
“Ghost. Ghost. Ghost . . .”
It was barely a whisper, but from the look of shock that erupted across his face, it had the impact of a scream. He froze, then jumped back as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on him, raising a hand to cover his mouth. “Fuck.”
She curled up into a sitting position as he looked at her, wide-eyed, his face contorted as if in pain. He took a step toward her again, reaching out, but she flinched back. He stopped, staggering as if he’d been struck.
“Scarlett . . .” He scrubbed a hand through his hair, his eyes blinking rapidly. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Please, forgive me.”
Before she could respond, he turned and fled the room, bounding down the stairs. She broke out in sobs as a door slammed below, then pulled a blanket from the bed up and around her body.
When Drew didn’t return after a half hour, Hannah got up off the bed and went into the bathroom. She looked at her reflection in the mirror; her face was red and puffy from crying and the outline of the bite mark on her shoulder stood out angrily. She pulled out the pins holding her hair up, letting it fall around her shoulders. She turned the shower on as hot as it would go and stepped in, letting the water run over her.
She scrubbed every inch of her skin, trying to wash away the confusion flowing through her. When she stepped out of the shower, she was surprised to see a clean T-shirt and a pair of sweat
s sitting on the counter. Drew must have come in while she was showering.
She dried herself off quickly, the towel catching on the diamond choker around her neck. She worked to loosen the snag, and then placing the towel down, she removed the necklace and the bracelet, freeing herself of Drew’s invisible hold. She walked into the bedroom and placed them both on the dresser.
After pulling on the sweats and T-shirt and running a brush through her hair, she tentatively made her way downstairs to find Drew. Her heart was hammering in her chest. Would she find the gentle man who’d worshipped her body earlier, or the monster she’d unleashed with her refusals? Walking into the kitchen, she was startled to find a stranger sitting at the counter, reading a newspaper.
“E-excuse me?” Hannah stammered. “Who are you?”
The man stood up immediately, closing the paper as he did. He was tall and lean, probably in his forties, with close-cropped hair. He was dressed casually in dark jeans and a light grey, button-down shirt. He nodded at her. “Scarlett, I presume?”
“Yes.”
“I’m James.” He walked up to her while extending his hand in greeting. “Mr. Sapphire asked that I return you to the estate.”
She shook his hand absently, confusion still settled on her face. “I’m sorry. Is Drew—I mean, Mr. Sapphire here? I need to speak to him.”
James shook his head. “I’m sorry, miss. He’s gone.”
“Gone?” she repeated.
“Yes, miss.” James shifted his feet uncomfortably, clearing his throat before continuing. “Do you have anything you need before we leave?”
She thought about the dress and the shoes. She definitely didn’t want or need those again. She saw the clutch still sitting on the counter and, grabbing it, said, “No, let’s go.”
Her heart felt like lead in her chest. She couldn’t believe he’d just left. Without a single word to her. How had this happened? She’d done nothing wrong. She was his submissive. She’d acted as such. But had she? Should she have allowed herself to be taken out of the comfort and the protection that the estate provided her? In doing so, had she allowed Drew to believe that their relationship was something other than what it was meant to be? What was she supposed to do now? So many questions she had no answers for.
The Winning Bid: The Auction Series, Book 1 Page 13