by Claire Adams
"Are you serious?" Tommy gasped and I had to hold back tears as Ethan hugged my youngest brother.
"I am. The world needs more people like you, who are thinkers and problem solvers, and I don't want my money to just sit idly in some bank account when it could be making a real difference in someone's life. You reminded me of the importance of helping others, and I wouldn't feel right if I didn't pay you back in some small way."
"Thank you so much!" Tommy was crying now, and so was I. Everyone in my family was.
The paparazzi reporters out in the crown blasted Ethan with questions about his new grant program and how patients could qualify for it, and what great designs his company would now be working on thanks to Tommy.
Ethan answered them all with intelligence and charm, but then one reporter from the front shouted out, "You said you had more than one important announcement to make. What is the other one?"
"The second announcement is even more important to me than the first." Ethan cleared his throat and looked rather nervous as Tommy cleared the stage and my family circled around him, hugging and kissing him happily. I was proud of my brother and very happy for him, but I couldn't take my eyes off Ethan and continued to watch his speech, spellbound.
"As everyone knows, I have long been a committed bachelor with a well-deserved reputation as a playboy and womanizer. Some of you have even said that I will never find love. Well, I'm here to tell you tonight, and announce to the whole world, that I am ready to commit to something else. I have found love, and her name is Kayla Brandt."
I wasn't sure I had heard him right over the gasp of the crowd. My ears must have been playing some kind of trick on me, but then I saw Ethan lock eyes with me as he held his hand out to me and beckoned me onto the stage.
"Kayla, I've been a fool and I've treated you like a real jerk. I don't blame you for walking out on me. I don't deserve you, but I'm trying to change that. I want to be a better man — one who deserves to have a woman like you in my life.
“So, this gift I'm making to Tommy and to other patients with muscular dystrophy is only the first of many. I pledge to spend the rest of my days finding positive ways to make a difference in the world and to give away my money for good. Everything you do is about being true and kind in this world, and I want to be the same.
“I'm not entirely unselfish, though. I hope that in doing this that one day I can win your heart again, and when I do, this time I'll cherish it the way I should have from the start, and never let you go again."
I couldn't believe what Ethan was saying, and in front of all these reporters for all the world to hear. Blinking back fresh tears of joy, I choked back a sob and said, "So, does this mean you're willing to commit to me?"
"Yes. A billion times, yes." He didn't hesitate for moment. He got down on one knee and pulled out a jewelry box from his inside jacket pocket. Stretching it out to me, he said, "This isn't an engagement ring, because we've only been dating a month and I know that's too soon to get married, but it's not too soon for me to know that you're the girl I can see myself having a future with. In fact, you're the first and only girl I've ever felt that way about. So, if you'll accept this token of my love, I vow to be committed to you and only you from this moment on."
With trembling hands, I opened the black velvet box and gasped at the contents inside. It was a gold locket on a chain, and as I nodded my head yes vigorously, Ethan slipped the necklace around my neck as the crowd behind the press applauded noisily and the paparazzi went crazy, shouting out at him from below.
Ethan pulled me into his arms and I saw that tears were brimming in his stormy, gray eyes. Then we kissed, long and slow and deep — the kind of kiss that takes your breath away and makes everything around you disappear.
When we finally came apart, gasping for breath, Ethan held his hand up to the crowd and said, "No more questions. If you'll please excuse me, Kayla and I would like to be alone."
We hugged my family goodbye and Ethan assured them that Angela would get them back to the hotel and provide for all their needs. Then he whisked me out of the back door where his Ferrari was waiting.
"Where are we going?" I asked him breathlessly.
Grinning at me lovingly, Ethan said the words I'd been waiting to hear. "Anywhere you want, my love."
"Why don't we go back to your place?" I suggested, but he shook his head.
"I think you mean our place," he corrected.
Smiling happily, I kissed him and said "Okay, let's go home to our place."
Chapter Thirty-Four
Ethan
You see them everywhere: these lovesick guys who are completely wrapped around the finger of some woman. I used to pity them and thank God that I wasn't one of them as I went home every weekend with a different hot model.
My own father had been the most pitiful of them all, mooning over my mother when she left him and taking her back the moment she returned without a moment's hesitation. He spent all his time bending over backwards to make her happy, doing every little thing she ever wanted. I used to think guys like that were just sad; now I saw the truth, and it was just the opposite of what I'd always believed.
Men who were fortunate enough to find a woman they loved with all their heart, who loved them back, were the lucky ones. Jerks like me who turned their backs on love and spent their lonely lives wandering around, looking for companionship in empty, one-night stands were the tragic ones.
I had never known what true happiness was until I found Kayla Brandt and fell in love with her. Just seeing her smile was worth more than a thousand one-night stands, and hearing her laugh was the most wonderful sound in the world.
When she and I made love, the orgasms I had were more powerful and more pleasurable than the paltry ones I used to crave from women I'd pick up in bars, and the feeling I was left with after they were gone was one of profound emptiness. With Kayla, I would awake the next morning still holding her in my arms, feeling our heartbeats pulse as one, and I knew what it was like to truly be happy.
She had brought meaning to a life I hadn't even known was empty and given me a purpose I didn't even know I'd been searching for. Loving Kayla was my true reason for being and words couldn't express I grateful and happy I was to have her in my life.
Admitting this to the whole world live on stage in front of all the news cameras and microphones was something I thought I would have been terrified to do. Never, in my wildest nightmares would I ever have committed such an act; but now, I had done that exact thing and nothing had ever felt more right.
We rushed straight home and didn't even make it through the front door before we started kissing. The moment the door leading from my garage to the interior of my mansion closed behind us, I slammed Kayla against it in a passionate embrace as we kissed with starving mouths, eager to devour each other.
"Make love to me right here, right now," Kayla panted. There was a narrow table against the wall by the door leading out to the garage with a flower vase on it. She shoved it off the table and it hit the floor with a noisy crash. Then she hopped up on the table, eager for me to fuck her.
She reached out for me, anxious to take my clothes off, but I caught her hands in mine and held them fast.
"I committed to you today, but now I want you to commit to me," I said in a voice that was husky with desire.
"You have that," she said simply as if it were obvious. "I don't want to be with anyone but you."
"That's not the kind of commitment I meant, although that's good, too," I said, and she looked at me quizzically. "Now that we are in an official, monogamous relationship, I want an even deeper kind of intimacy. I want you to commit to being my sex slave."
Her eyes flew open wide and then narrowed into intelligent slits. "Isn't that what I've been doing every time I let you spank me during sex?"
"Yes, but no. Sadism and masochism can often times be a part of BDSM game play and corporal punishment is a great way to implement it, but agreeing to be my sex slave is much mo
re than just allowing me to spank you."
"How much more?" Her eyes were glistening and her nipples puckered visibly beneath her dress.
I could see she was intrigued, but still smart enough to find out exactly what she was getting into before she agreed, and it made me grin.
"It would mean that were willing to submit to me as your master whenever we were playing sex games, and that I would have complete control over you. If I were to tell you to do something, you would obey without any hesitation, and you would ask my permission for all other things. If I forbade you to do something, you wouldn't do it, without argument. Failure to obey me in all things could result in punishment."
"Like the spankings I like so much?" she asked, licking her lips subconsciously.
"Yes, but since punishment is supposed to be a deterrent to bad behavior, punishments for you would probably involve something else that you didn't like and I would save the spankings for reward time."
"Reward time?" She arched her left brow at me.
"Yes. Punishment for bad behavior is only one half of the master/slave agreement. The other half is rewards for good behavior. When a sex slave pleases her master, it is common for her to receive a reward for her good behavior, such as sexual pleasure, orgasms, and in your case, perhaps the masochism you crave."
"What if I don't want to do the things you've commanded me to do, or I don't like the game?"
"We've established safe words during the BDSM games we already played with the spankings and the rules will be the same. All you have to do is say the words ‘red light’ and the game will stop; but I promise you will find it just as enjoyable to be my sex slave as you've found the games we've played so far.
“I won't ever command you to do something dangerous or anything that won't ultimately result in your sexual pleasure. Sometimes it might be something embarrassing, uncomfortable, or even slightly painful, but the rewards will be well worth it. Do this with me, and I will take you to pleasures unlike anything you've felt so far."
"All right," she said in a voice so soft it was barely a whisper. "I'll be your sex slave, master."
"Good girl." I grinned at her and caressed her beautiful face as I kissed her lips. "Now, take off your clothes for me. I like my sex slaves to be naked."
She stripped for me, right there in the hallway by the garage, slowly and sensuously. She made a show out of caressing her body as her naked flesh was revealed, leaving the garments strewn across the hall.
When she was completely naked, I smiled at her. "Good girl, but you made a mess earlier when you broke that flower vase. Pick up those reeds and carry them upstairs to our bedroom. Stop at the kitchen along the way and grab a glass full of ice cubes. I'll be waiting for you upstairs."
"The kitchen? What if the cook sees me or the maid is still in there?" She blushed, and I shook my finger at her admonishingly.
In a stern voice, I said, "You promised complete obedience. Now do it. I'll be upstairs, so don't keep me waiting too long."
"Yes, sir," she said with a naughty grin and bent to pick up the willowy reeds that were lying on the ground amongst the flowers. Seeing her bent over like that, with her naked ass up in the air, instantly made me hard, but I forced myself to turn and walk away. I had things to prepare upstairs.
We were committed to each other now, in every way possible, and I wanted to make things perfect for her. I no longer had to be afraid of rejection: she was mine and I was hers. This was the beginning of a whole new world for me and I couldn't wait to get started.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Kayla
At first, I had been thrilled and excited to be Ethan's sex slave, but now, as I crept through the mansion, completely naked, I was having second thoughts.
The chef and the maid were always in the kitchen this time of the afternoon. What would they think when I strolled in completely naked carrying a pile of willow reeds? I would be mortified, but I had sworn to obey and Ethan had promised the rewards would be worth it.
Taking a deep breath for courage, I pushed open the kitchen door and waltzed in only to find it was completely empty. A note on the counter had Ethan's distinctive handwriting. It read, Tell the staff to take the rest of the weekend off.
So, he had known all the while the house would be empty and let me worry for nothing. I wanted to kill him, but I was too relieved. I filled a tall glass with ice from the refrigerator and carried everything upstairs.
Ethan was standing in the center of the room with his shirt off and his muscles rippling. He looked stern, powerful, and sexy as hell. I felt weak and small as I stood before him, completely naked and vulnerable — and incredibly aroused.
"Get on your knees," he commanded, and at once, I obeyed.
"Yes, master," I said meekly as I held up the reeds and the glass to him. "Here are the items you wanted me to fetch for you."
He snatched them from my hands without so much as a thank you and began to pace around me in a slow circle, analyzing me as I knelt before him.
"Lay on the bed, with your body in the center and your head hanging over the side," he said thoughtfully, and I did as I'd been told. He hovered over my head and stripped off his clothes so he was now just as naked as I was. His marvelous crotch was positioned right in front of my face, and he instructed, "Lick my cock."
I opened my mouth and prepared to take him into it, when suddenly, I felt the sharp sting of a willow branch striking my thigh like a whip. "No, don't suck it. Listen to the commands I'm giving you. I said, ‘lick my cock.’"
Understanding now what he wanted, I extended my tongue and lapped along the length of his hard dick, licking him slowly and sensuously. His groan of pleasure let me know I was doing it right, and knowing that I had pleased him sent a ripple of delight in my pussy.
"Touch yourself," Ethan suddenly commanded, startling me. "Touch yourself with your fingers while you lick my cock."
I did as I'd been told and began to delicate massage my clitoris while I lapped over the head of his throbbing cock. The effect was far more arousing than I would have thought, and soon I was panting with pleasure.
"Good girl, now suck on my cock and stick your fingers inside your cunt. I want to see you fuck yourself while you fuck me with your mouth."
Obeying was incredibly arousing. I sucked his cock harder as my own fingers slid in and out of my hot, wet tunnel, making me writhe on the bed with pleasure. He would command me to move faster or slower. If I responded too slowly, I would feel the punishing flick of the reed whipping against my body, if I obeyed quickly, then I would be reward with the caress of his hand on my cheek and the coveted words, "Good girl."
"Now, stop and fetch me the rope I have in my top dresser drawer," Ethan ordered abruptly.
I hated to stop sucking him, but reluctantly I obeyed and got up from the bed to retrieve the rope. When I handed it to him, he ordered me to kneel on the bed and grip the headboard, where he used the rope to bind my wrists to the wooden rails of the beautifully carved, oak bed.
Then, he produced a vibrator from dresser. He took a length of rope and tied it around my waist and under my thighs. Then, with a series of intricate knots, he secured the vibrator to rest against my pussy.
"Don't come until I tell you to," Ethan commanded, and he turned the vibrator on to its lowest setting. The toy hummed to life, making me gasp with pleasure. It felt wonderfully good, but I knew I could resist coming.
Then, he plucked two ice cubes from the glass I had brought earlier and applied them to my nipples. The burning cold increased my arousal, and I began to pant loudly.
"Don't come yet," he warned as he saw my arousal mounting. I gripped the headboard with sweaty palms, trying to resist, but it was getting harder. Ragged gasps escaped my throat as I struggled in my bonds, wanting to rip away the vibrator before it brought me orgasm, but I was helpless to move.
Ethan set down the ice and began to toy with my nipples, pinching and pulling them in just the ways he knew I liked best.
/>
"I'm going to come," I cried out, but he didn't stop the stimulation. Instead, he turned up the setting on the vibrator, making it even harder for me to resist and gripped my ass, squeezing my butt cheeks erotically.
He knelt behind me, and I could feel his rock-hard dick poised right against my pussy, which was now pulsing with pleasure and dripping wet with the juices of my arousal.
"Don't come until I fuck you," Ethan insisted. I bit my lip, trying to obey.
"Yes, master," I said, and mercifully, he turned off the vibrator.
Pulling away the ropes that had bound the toy to my crotch, he caressed my naked body and said, "Good girl. You've learned to obey me well. Let's see if you can keep it up."
I was still kneeling on the bed with my wrists tied to the headboard, and he was now kneeling behind me, rubbing his strong hands all over my flesh. Suddenly, he plunged his dick into my ready pussy from behind, entering me with one, powerful thrust.
I moved my hips back to meet him, and he gave my nipples a painful punishing pinch that made me cry out in pain.
"Did I give you permission to move like that, naughty girl?" he growled.
"Sorry, master," I whimpered and kept myself still while he fucked me slowly and deeply from behind. His left hand wrapped around my waist to massage my clitoris, while his right hand gripped my tits and fondled my nipples. The stimulation felt incredible and was swiftly driving me towards orgasm.
"I'm going to come," I moaned, and he slapped me on the ass, hard, making me gasp aloud in pain.
"Not until I say you can." His voice was a menacing growl.
Not being permitted to orgasm made the pleasure he was giving me all the more intense as every nerve cell in my body vibrated from it. It made me want to explode with pleasure. I never knew sex could be so intense and I wanted it to last forever, even as I prayed that it would finally come to an end and he would let me orgasm.
I could feel the climax building uncontrollably inside me and knew I wouldn't be able to hold it back much longer.