The Devil's Gate

by Rue Volley

  I jerked on my wrists, causing red welts to rise from the hard metal. “I—I submit to you Jack, I beg you, make me come, you own me!”

  He quickened his pace, his growling sounded more animalistic than human in nature. I started to cry out, he pulled one ball, then two, and just as the orgasm completely consumed me he jerked the last one out as I simultaneously screamed his name—as he had rightfully predicted.

  I sat in a daze at the restaurant, watching my ice float in my glass. It would never just be something to chill my drinks again. I reached in and pulled one out. Closing my eyes as I slipped it past my lips and let it rest on my tongue. I remembered the pain, the burning, and the insurmountable pleasure that made me scream his name. He hadn’t taken me fully yet. He left me intact, as he continued to purify me with his fire. But the memory of it lay deep inside of me, waiting to race toward the real act, the one in which I would give him everything I had to offer. Something saved and yet he owned it—already. I think he always had.

  My phone went off and I looked at it. I grinned; it was Jack. He texted me almost every other hour now, as he had for the past two weeks. Simple things like ‘miss you’, ‘can I see you tonight? ‘are you wearing any underwear?’

  I sighed as I read his latest tease. ‘I am trying to focus on this business meeting and I keep tasting you on my tongue.’ I rubbed my neck until it started to turn red. I grinned and typed in my truthful response. ‘I wish you were here between my…’

  I looked up as Avery came running in. I stood up, chewing the ice and swallowing it as she gently slammed into me and the hug that followed felt so good. I had missed her so much, much more than I had guessed that I would. The phone buzzed again, and I lifted it behind her back. ‘You’re making me so hard; I may have to excuse myself.’ I laughed; I couldn’t help it. I loved how he pushed me, how he continually taunted me right outside of the lines. If this was his master plan, then he truly was a master of everything within me. He knew every word to say and when to say it. I typed with one hand. “then do it baby.”

  She let me go and then tilted her head as she looked me over. I sat down and she slid in across from me. Her eyes never leaving my own.

  “Spill it—right this minute.”

  I rubbed my neck and grinned at her. “What?”

  She reached out and grabbed my hand, squeezing it. I bit my lip.

  “Are you serious? Was it Sam?” she whispered to me.

  I narrowed my eyes. “No—oh God, no Avery, not him.” My phone went off again, and she ignored it.

  She leaned back. “Jack?” her voice was louder than it needed to be. I looked around the diner, and she laughed. “I knew it.”

  I leaned forward. “No, I haven’t—yet. We haven’t done that.”

  “That? So what have you done?” I glanced at my phone. ‘are you alone?’ I shook my head like he could see me. No Jack, I’m not. I quickly replied to him. ‘can’t talk, Avery came home.’

  I laughed as I leaned back. “What is it with you? Seriously, it’s like you have sexdar.”

  She smiled and placed her chin on her open hand. Her elbow rested on the table. I looked down and then back up to her, waiting for a reply on my phone, but none came. “What?”

  “You are glowing. So what did he do to you? I want details.”

  I shook my head as the waitress saved me. I grinned. “Cherry pie and a coffee, cream and sugar—lots of sugar and ice, I mean more ice water, please.”

  Avery grinned, and then I nodded to her and handed the waitress my menu. She waved a hand. “Coffee—lots of it, please.”

  The waitress nodded and left us there as Avery continued her interrogation. “So?”

  I leaned up and lowered my voice. “Oh my God. Avery. I just—he is, I can’t even begin to explain it.”

  She tapped my hand. “Oh yes—yes you can and you will. You will explain it in great detail.”

  “Well, he tied me to the bed, well, handcuffs were involved.”

  She squealed. I jumped and she calmed herself down. “Okay—okay. Then what?”

  I tilted my head as I whispered to her. “This isn’t an erotic novel.”

  She nodded to me. “Oh hell yeah it is, girl—go on.”

  I laughed at her. The drinks arrived and again I was saved. I wasn’t sure how much I wanted to share with her, but her excitement about it only egged me on.

  “He won’t—I mean, he did with his tongue but he hasn’t…” I stopped; I couldn’t say it. She leaned back and nodded to me.

  “Oh, when he does, it will be epic—like movie epic, fireworks, screaming obscenities and howling, lots of howling.” She pointed at me like I knew.

  I paused, and she reached out to touch my hand again. “Are you scared, hun?”

  “No—it isn’t that. I just, what if I suck at it and he is like—what was the big deal?”

  She laughed. “Are you shitting me? You are the catch of the century. A virgin at twenty-three? That’s like the holy grail.”

  I laughed as her voice carried and a man looked over at us and grinned at me. She eyed him and then whispered to me. “See? Seriously, to a man, that…” she pointed down. “Is a serious conquest. To take it is a tremendous thing—freakin’ monumental, like discovering a new civilization big.”

  I took a sip of my coffee and studied her face. I set it down and smiled at her as I sighed.

  “I missed you so much, Avery. Did you have fun?”

  She pointed at me. “Don’t deflect.” I laughed. “No—seriously, you have been gone forever, tell me about your trip!”

  “Oh—let me tell you. I met this Italian, boom!” she slammed her hand on the table and rattled the silverware. The man glanced at us again and Avery noticed him. She smiled and let her flirtatious nature soak him in. The attraction was immediate. I cleared my throat, and she looked back at me.

  “I mean, he wasn’t all batshit crazy like Jack Landon, but…” she stopped, realizing that what she said may have been rude. She touched my hand, “Oh babes—I didn’t mean it like that.”

  I sighed and looked up at her. “Oh no, he probably is.”

  “Really?”

  I looked at the cherry pie as it arrived. I had been eating it on and off since Jack—well you know. Maybe it was dirty wishful thinking.

  “Well, we all have our things.”

  She laughed as one eyebrow went up. “Yeah, well, BDSM is definitely different.” She sipped her coffee and set it back down. “It’s not every day that you meet a man who wants to tie you down and lick you.” She looked up at me. “Do you call him master?”

  I snorted as I dropped my fork on the table. It bounced, hit the floor, and slid. The man across the room picked up his fork and brought it to me, holding it out as an offering, but looking at Avery. She smiled up at him as I snatched the fork. He glanced at me and then his eyes went back to her.

  That is exactly what confused me. I was invisible in this city, for the most part. Men did not notice me—no one but Jack, and I guess Sam, but Sam and I had a history, and it may have been an echo of that. Other than the two of them, I never had a man race over to offer help falsely to my friend so that they could meet me.

  “No—I don’t call him master, even when he smacks my ass with a spiked glove on.”

  The man let his eyes move to me as I stared up at him. He grinned and Avery laughed.

  “Thank you for the fork.”

  He nodded. She leaned up toward him. “And now your noble job is done.”

  He stepped back and walked to his table as Avery looked back to me. “Naughty minx.”

  I smiled as I sipped my coffee again. Perhaps I was, I mean, to accept this game with Jack; I had to be, right?

  I lay on my bed and stared at the book in my hand. I had checked out a book on, well, BDSM play from the library. It was very clinical, but as I read on, I saw things, I started to understand Jack a little better. His words, his game. The game I seemed to be caught up in and addicted to.

 
Jack had never forced me to do anything, but his manipulation was very clear. I enjoyed it, every moment of it. I would have never guessed that I wanted to be told what to do, how could I? You have no idea what you really want until the situation arises and you find yourself in the middle of it. I accepted it, but it was still coming as a shock to me.

  I let my eyes float over a ball gag and touched my lips as my phone went off and I dropped the book, smacking myself in the head with it. I pushed it off and rubbed between my eyes as I grabbed my phone.

  “Yes?”

  “You sound upset, are you?”

  I lowered my hand and blinked as I heard Jack on the other end of the line.

  “You know, this talking on the phone thing is so nineties, early nineties, not even late.”

  He laughed and then went on as he always had.

  “I love hearing you breathe.”

  I sighed; it was things just like that which had sucked me into his gravity well.

  “I just dropped a book on my face.”

  He paused. “Now why would you do that?”

  “Well…” I stopped, should I tell him what I’m reading? Why not. “I was looking at a ball gag and I...”

  He interrupted me. “Abigail, are you reading about sex?”

  I paused and bit my lip. “No—not about sex, about being tied up and stuff.”

  He laughed again. “And stuff.”

  I rolled my eyes. “You know what I mean.”

  “Oh, trust me, I know a lot of things, I just have yet to show you, don’t let that book ruin the surprise.”

  I placed my fingers on my lip and let that sink in. I knew that he did. I wanted more; I wanted him to show me everything.

  “When do I get to see you?” he said in a low tone.

  “I—well, I have an interview tomorrow.”

  “Where?”

  “Oh—just a business downtown, um—marketing and promotion. That’s what I studied.”

  “Have you set your terms?”

  I sat up against my headboard and played with a strand of my hair. “My terms? It’s an interview.”

  “When is it and where?”

  I looked out my window. “Tomorrow at eleven thirty, the Ford building.”

  “Okay, get some sleep my love.”

  I grinned. “I will, hey—how about lunch tomorrow? I should be done by one.”

  He breathed into the phone, and I wished that I could feel it on the base of my back again.

  “I would love to—and more.”

  I sighed. “Good, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

  “Goodnight, Christmas.”

  “Goodnight, Jack.”

  I pressed the button and dropped my phone on the bed. I reached out and touched the cover of the book and sighed. I could read about this all night, but it wouldn’t be the same. I need Jack to show me, as much as he can and however he wants to.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  THE VAMPIRE CHECKLIST

  I stood in front of my mirror and turned from side to side. I inspected the gray pencil skirt that hugged my hips and the high heels that Avery had offered to me. I stopped turning and eyed her in the mirror behind me. She grinned. My interview had been delayed with Ford and at first it made me nervous. But to be honest, it was almost a blessing in disguise as it allowed me to reconnect with Jack and of course, build my friendship with Sam. I had also skipped buying my own outfit for it and fell back on Avery once again. The truth was that I could never buy anything that I would feel comfortable with when it came to something as important as this. I just didn’t feel fashion savvy at all.

  “You look hot.”

  I turned to her as I adjusted the short matching jacket that fit snuggly against me. “I don’t need hot, I need professional, you know, professional and ‘I got this, so hire me like now’.”

  She laughed as she adjusted my collar. She had picked out the tightest stuff in her closet, and I didn’t want to sound rude, but I wasn’t trying to get a date.

  “This does say hire me now, damn it and you have a killer body—show it off.”

  I laughed at her as I pushed my hair back and started to brush it. She took the hairbrush from me and started to brush it herself. Taking the upper hand as usual. It was fine, it calmed my nerves.

  “This whole job thing is twenty percent talent and eighty percent razzle dazzle.”

  I sighed as she pulled my hair back tight and started to pin it up.

  “Thanks, four years and massive student loans got me plenty of razzle dazzle, in fact, I think it says that on my diploma.”

  She grinned as she placed one more bobby pin in my hair and then rubbed my shoulders. She leaned so that I could see her in the mirror beside me.

  “Well, you got the studying part down, Abi, but you have to sparkle them with your charm and witty banter. It also doesn’t hurt to show off some vroom vroom.”

  She smiled as she popped me on the butt and I yelled out as I laughed and rolled my eyes.

  “Fine. I mean, I guess I look good. Thank you, Avery. I appreciate the help, I do.”

  She hugged me. “Of course!”

  “I’m seeing Jack after the interview anyway, so this skirt could come in handy, and the heels.” I looked down and turned my foot to inspect the high black heel. It was gorgeous and nothing I would ever buy for myself, but surprisingly, I really liked them on.

  “What motel is he taking you to?” I blushed as I looked up at her. “No motel, lunch.”

  She nodded; she didn’t believe me at all. “Oh yeah.”

  My eyebrow rose. “Seriously? Just lunch.”

  “Did he say lunch or you?”

  I paused and bit my lip. “I did.”

  “Oh, okay.”

  I turned to face her as she sat down on the edge of my bed and picked up one of my random fashion magazines. She fingered through it as she leaned in to inspect something that caught her eye.

  “See?” she held it up to me and I saw the jacket that matched the one she had me put on.

  I shook my head. “What did you mean?”

  She sighed. “About what?” She flipped a couple more pages and stopped as she stared at it.

  “You asked, who said lunch.”

  Her eyes shined as she lowered the magazine. “Well, if he had said lunch then I would assume that he was going to eat you.”

  “Oh my God, Avery. Stop.” I turned back and fidgeted with the jacket some more.

  “What? It’s true. Like he eats lunch.”

  She laid back on the bed and held the magazine up above her. “Have you ever seen him eat anything?”

  I looked down and then turned back to her, placing a hand on my hip. “No.”

  She laughed. “See? Mystery solved.”

  “What mystery?”

  She sat up and winked at me. “You’re dating a vampire.”

  I started laughing and it echoed in the room. She nodded to me like she had solved the puzzle of the century. “He’s not a vampire, holy crap, Avery.”

  I walked out of my bedroom and into the living room; I decided that coffee was needed and made a beeline for the kitchen. I loaded the Keurig coffee maker and waited for the machine to make that beautiful gurgling sound. I placed a cup down as Avery joined me and sat down on one of the high chairs at the island. I put some sugar in the cup, followed by cream and waited. I knew it wasn’t over. I turned, taking a drink as she eyed me.

  “What?”

  She placed her chin in her hands as her elbows rested on the table top. “So romantic, I mean when do you think he will turn you?”

  I sighed as I walked up and sat down across from her. “Again—not a vampire.”

  She sighed and looked all dreamy. I pointed at her. “You need to stop reading those damn paranormal romance books; they got you all whacked in the head.”

  She stood up and walked to the counter, making herself a cup. I sipped on mine some more, giggling under my breath about her assumption. She walked back and sat down, cup
ping her coffee in between her hands as she stared at it. Then she looked up at me.

  “In all seriousness, is this like serious stuff or what?”

  I set my cup down and tilted my head. “Serious in what way?”

  She turned her cup a few times, delaying, which is not like her. I leaned down. “Avery?”

  She looked up at me and grinned. “I love you, Abi. I mean, you are my best friend, and I hate to sound selfish, but damn it, I am! I just need to know now, do I have to start shopping for a roommate or what?”

  I stared into her eyes and reached my hand out to her. She took it as she sighed.

  “I’m sorry, I think I fell in some feels today. My bad.”

  I laughed and squeezed her hand. “I really, really, like him, but there is no talk of moving in or anything like that at all, Avery. Nothing. For crap’s sake, we haven’t even…” I paused.

  She bit her lip. “Aunt Flow is here; you have to excuse me. Seriously, I’m being ridiculous. Of course, I want you to be happy, and I will squeee my ass off if he is the one for you but…” she stopped as I studied her expression.

  “What?”

  She took a breath. “I just want you to be careful, that’s all, Abi. I know you. You are the sweetest girl that I have ever known. Hands down. I will tell you something, if that vampire hurts you, I am going to rip his nuts off and store them in my closet with all of those silly dresses that my mom buys for me.”

  I snorted as she held my hand. “Avery,” I whispered. She laughed. “I know I am all batshit crazy with the emotions right now, but I mean it. I’ll kill him if he hurts you, baby girl.”

  She reached over and grabbed the pad of paper and a pen. I watched her scribble something on it, and she grinned.

  “Okay so, the vampire checklist.”

  I laughed as I took another drink of my coffee. The caffeine was kicking in and I needed it. I had my interview in just a couple of hours.