by Madison Faye
Yeah, he was doing the right thing.
* * *
Two weeks later…
Louisa was an idiot. Okay, she wasn’t an idiot, and Marnie was being a complete bitch to her. But the smaller woman was just so… so… nice and affable and sweet and roll over and show her belly to the first person who spoke sternly to her. Yeah, if the trainer had a tail, it would be tucked between her legs every time someone got a little gruff. And Marnie was maybe a touch more than a little gruff with her new trainer.
But dammit, she couldn’t help it. Every time, the perky, sweet blonde jumped onto the treadmill, or did a set of squats, or easily lay down on the bench to lift… Every time Louisa glided seamlessly over to the mats to lift her legs—Louisa’s perfectly shaped, muscular, and toned legs—into the air for V-ups, Marnie saw her own hideous form. Her missing leg, the damn prosthetic attached to the nerves below her knee, and the fat, not as flexible, untoned right leg. Marnie’s perfect legs were gone. And Miss Perfect Body, Perfect Hairstyle, Perfect Smile, Perfect Legs was wasting her time here in some small gym when Louisa could have been out there doing something real with her life. Like competing. Or adventure racing. Or mountain climbing. Bungee jumping. Having sex. Falling… in love. Something Marnie couldn’t do anymore.
Marnie scowled at Louisa’s explanation of the squats she was supposed to be doing and fought back the tears threatening to escape. Dammit, she wasn’t going to cry in front of this perfect woman in the perfect training room with the perfect equipment. No. Her imperfect tears would have to wait until she was back in her apartment. The first-story apartment, with no stairs, no weird slippery steps outside, no gravel walkway, and nothing except shadows for her to trip over. Heaven forbid she fell on her ass again trying to get into a shower. Yeah, this new one was a walk-in with a one-inch lip around the edges and a huge drain. And stupid metal handles on the walls for her to hold on, heaven forbid she get dizzy again or slip.
Marnie’s life was over. Her dreams of competing at the world level were over. Now she got to spend the rest of her life trying to learn how to do half squats, lifting a bar half the weight she used to lift, and clumsily stepping onto a treadmill so she could walk at a pedestrian two miles per hour. All so she could ‘stay in shape’ and not put any more weight on than the thirty pounds she’d already gained—minus the weight she’d lost from her left leg.
“I don’t know if we should push too hard today, Marnie. You worked pretty hard yesterday with those weights.” Perfect Louisa furrowed her brow when Marnie grabbed the dumbbells. The two and a half pound ones. Not the five-pound ones she’d been training with three years ago.
“Would you just back off the mother henning and put me through some real training! Dammit.” Marnie felt bad for the sudden lash-out and the way Louisa’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry.” The tiny woman backed up a few steps, her hand to her throat, flinching when Marnie reached toward her.
“Back away from my trainer.” His low voice behind her startled her, and Marnie’s hands dropped to her sides. Jake’s wide shoulders brushed hers as he slowly strode around her to stand next to the visibly shaken petite woman. “You okay?”
Louisa nodded, then gave a tight smile.
“Take a break, I’ll cover for you.” Jake motioned toward Marnie, and she gave a quick nod before disappearing through a door in the back.
“I’m sorry about that, I’m just really—”
“Lunge position, left leg in front.” He interrupted her, his dark gaze daring her to disobey.
Spreading her legs waist length apart, she took a tentative half-step forward so her half leg with the newly attached Cheetah foot was in front.
“Five lunges with left, take a step with the right and do five with the right.”
Fine, if he wanted to have her do the same useless stuff she’d been doing earlier, she would.
“Stop.”
She paused mid-lunge, the glare of the chrome on her left shining into her eyes.
“You’re not going low enough.”
“What the hell are you talking about? I can’t bend that far with a fake leg. Oh!”
His hands snaked around her waist, and she tensed, waiting for him to force her down into something that would snap her prosthetic off or tear her quad. But he just held her, his deep, even breaths caressing the back of her neck. The tingle started in her tummy and went all the way down into her core, shooting through every part of her body. Need. Desire. Something she hadn’t felt in far too long. She shivered as he tightened his grip on her hips, his chest brushing against her upper back.
“Okay, little girl, we’re going to try things my way now. Your reply is one of two: Yes, sir, or Thank you, I’ll go find another place to train. Understand?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, Daddy.” Why’d she call him that? She was flirting with him, and not doing a very good job of it. In the past, she’d just pouted a little, maybe batted her eyelashes, bent over at the waist for a good, long hamstring stretch… The guys usually got the message quick. But this time… Daddy? Gawd, she’d lost her game.
His low chuckle sent another jolt of lust through her chest. “That will work also.” He pulled her against his chest, and she couldn’t help but melt against him as he wrapped his strong arms around her midsection. “Daddy’s going to train you harder than you’ve ever been pushed, and you’re going obey every step of the way. You know why?”
“Because you’re punishing me for being mean to your trainer?”
“No, because we both know what you need right now, and it isn’t any more coddling. You need to get your ass training again, ready to compete.”
“How?” Rage built within her and she tried to pull away from his heated grip, but he wouldn’t let her go.
“The Paralympics are in six months in Tokyo. You’re going to work harder than you ever have before. You’re going to say how high when I tell you to jump. How low when I tell you to squat. How fast when I tell you to run. And when I ask are you really sure you want to live in hell for the next six months and have Satan himself training you?” He turned her gently, so she could see the fiery gaze in his eyes.
It was her chance at being whole again, at competing, to attempt the dream she’d lost so long ago. Did she want to work with the man who’d saved her life? The man who made her body feel alive—even the parts that weren’t real anymore? The male who didn’t seem to mind her joke when she called him Daddy, making her hormones go even further into overdrive. The devil himself, in workout pants and a muscle tee with piercing blue eyes and a jaw that begged to be licked. Daddy, sir, personal trainer for the woman who’d lost it all? Hell, yeah. She couldn’t stop the slow grin that started in the creases of her lips and pulled all the way up to her eyes and the middle of her forehead.
“I’m all yours, Daddy.”
“Five lunges on each side.” He gripped her hips again, and gently pressed her down lower than she’d imagined she could go with that thing attached. “This low. Keep going. I’m not going to let go.”
The tears finally trickled out of her eyes as she took over the lunges, the exhilaration of finally pushing herself filling her. When she fumbled and almost tripped, he gently held her in place until she was able to muscle her way back to an upright straight position.
“Keep going, baby girl. I won’t let you fall.”
* * *
Jake stayed close from that point. Every step. Every slip. Every moan and grunt and plea for mercy just made him push harder. And she loved him for it. Jake was the first person to not treat her like an invalid. Every session carefully executed to push her too—but not past her limit. Always finishing with a massage and partner stretching.
She grew stronger and more flexible every day for the next two months, and finally her heart grew ready for the next step. To take their banter and chemistry to the next level.
Marnie was ready to be intimate with this man. She just hoped he wouldn’t reject her. But would that be worse than him sleepin
g with her out of pity?
Well, he’d pushed her pretty hard, and her emotions were back in control. She’d even become friends with the timid, soft-spoken Louisa. Marnie was strong enough now. Yeah, it might hurt if he turned her down. But she owed him her honesty after all they’d been through. And if she were being perfectly honest with herself, she wanted him. All of him. The big, strong daddy dom who worked hard and played even harder. Tonight, she would invite him over for dinner.
After they were finished with their final session, and she was catching her breath from the grueling training, she stretched as he cleaned off the last pieces of equipment and turned off the lights in the far corner. They were the last in the building. It was now or never.
“So, I’d like you to come over to my place for dinner and sex.” She just put it out there. Why play games? He’d either say no or he’d get a weird look on his face while trying to figure out a good way to let her down gently.
He walked over to her and knelt in front of her, his gaze holding something she almost couldn’t recognize. Tilting her chin so she could meet his gaze fully, he leaned in closer. “I thought you’d never ask.” A slow grin spread across his face. “But if I’m coming over, there’s something you should know first. I play in the bedroom as hard as I do in real life. I’m in charge in the bedroom, and my lover will submit to me. I’ll give you the greatest pleasure you’ve ever had, but you need to submit to it, to me.”
“You mean like spankings and dirty talk, kinky stuff like that?” She licked her lips, hoping she didn’t come across too pushy.
“Among other things. You’ll also call me Daddy. You up for it?”
“Hell, yeah. Let me go shower first.”
His hand grabbed her wrist, stopping her from getting up. “Hurry. Daddy doesn’t like to wait.”
“Maybe I’ll take an extra-long shower and condition my hair.” She grinned, loving the way his eyes darkened with lust.
“You’re going to have a tough time sitting on the recumbent bike tomorrow if you keep it up.”
“I already have a tough time on that thing. May as well make things interesting. Daddy.” She winked and rushed to the locker room before she did something completely crazy like ask him to have sex with her right there in the center.
Chapter Three
He shouldn’t be doing this. This was a bad idea. Like worst idea in the history of bad ideas. Marnie was sending all the right signals, and man, he wanted her. But what if he pushed too hard—especially with the things he really liked? Hot, steamy sex? Great. Spanking her ass until it was marked with his handprints and hot and red, while making her blush from his dirty talk? Hell, yeah. But the real thing calling to him right now? The thing he most wanted to come from her soft, full, pink lips? The word ‘Daddy’?
He didn’t know why it turned him on so much. It wasn’t like she was a doe-eyed nineteen-year-old wanting a father figure to fix all her problems. No. She was strong, resilient, smart, feisty. She called people out when they were wrong—hell, she did it when they were right, it didn’t matter. She was tough. Tough enough to get past the kind of accident that would have made lesser men curl up into a ball and weep for years. But not Marnie. His girl was already chomping at the bit for the next hard session.
When she’d started her first bit of flirting with him, after seeing his reaction to her calling him Daddy, she’d kicked things up a notch. She was always bending at the waist at just the right angle, so he could appreciate her toned thighs and hips, and that ass. He was salivating at the thought of smacking those firm globes.
And when she called him Daddy and begged to suck his cock, later, he would enjoy it more than he should.
If he’d read her correctly.
If she was interested in what he had to offer.
If she didn’t freak out and run the hell out of his apartment after slapping his face.
Shit. This could be the biggest mistake he’d ever made.
* * *
Okay, he if didn’t move soon, and get that look off his face—like he was trying to figure out how to bring about world peace—she’d have to either take matters into her own hands or assume he’d changed his mind.
Yeah, it would sting a bit, but it would be better than a pity date and bad sex. How someone that tall, with all that lean muscle and all that stern ‘I’m in charge’ attitude could possibly be bad in bed, she didn’t know. But… “Listen, if you’ve changed your mind, it’s okay. I may have made you feel awkward. Like you had to say yes. But you don’t have to follow through out of pity or something. If I misread your signals, I can call a cab and head back to my apartment.”
“Have I told you how much I love watching your mouth move?” He was towering over her, his blue eyes blazing with something, his firm body closing in on hers. He stroked her mouth with his finger and she parted her lips for him, her need filling every inch of her. She wanted him so badly it was killing her.
“So, what do you love about my mouth?”
“The soft pink hue, the way it curves up into the most beautiful smile. The adorable way you pout when you aren’t quite ready for a workout to be over, but your body didn’t get the message, so you have to lie back on the mat and recover. The soft moans you make when I touch exactly the right spot on your back during a massage.”
“That it?”
“No, there’s also this.” He dipped in and kissed her, taking her mouth with his. His tongue darted in and out, commanding she yield to him, and damn, she yielded all right. She parted her lips and thrust her own tongue to explore every inch of his glorious mouth. It was heaven. The perfect moment that when it ended left her breathless and disappointed. She’d wanted it to go on forever.
“Have you ever been spanked?” His deep blue eyes searched hers.
“No; well, once, but it was just a quick slap and he apologized so profusely I thought he was about to cry.”
“Do you want me to spank you?”
“How exactly would it happen?”
“Well…” His gaze darkened. “I’ll sit down on this couch here, pull you over my knee, and pull up your skirt.” He paused to let her catch her breath. It had suddenly gotten so warm in there.
“Then?”
“Then I call you a naughty little girl who needs her daddy to punish her. I’ll spank you hard and fast, and stroke between your legs to find you so very wet, won’t I?”
She nodded.
His hand snaked around to slap her on the ass and she exclaimed in surprise.
“Daddy doesn’t like it when you nod. Use your words, baby girl.”
“This is all play?” She met his gaze squarely and he answered affirmatively. “It ends when we go back into the real world?”
“Absolutely. And any time you want to stop, you just say a special word, like red.”
“I’m going to use Olympics.”
His laughter filled the room and she grinned back as the energy eased, the tension dissipating. “Okay, that’s a great idea. I’m pretty sure Olympics won’t work its way into role play. You sure you want to do this with me?”
“Hell, yeah. Daddy.”
“Good. Cuz Daddy’s going to spank you for using bad language now.”
“You read my mind. Spank me, Daddy. I said a really bad word.”
He towered over her and the joking laughter left as the stern demeanor replaced it, and his jaw jutted out. “Come here, naughty girl. You’re in very big trouble.”
* * *
Jake beckoned her with the crook of his finger and watched as she strode forward to the couch. “Sit.”
She obeyed quickly, taking a seat on the leather couch, her eyes wide and her pupils dilated. She licked her lips. Those soft mesmerizing lips were exquisite. He couldn’t wait to see just how exquisite the rest of her was.
“Before we began with your punishment, I’m going to get a taste of you. Do you want Daddy to lick your sexy pussy, make you scream with ecstasy?”
She shivered and nodded, audib
ly gasping when he flicked her inner thigh.
“What did I say about nodding, baby girl?” he admonished.
“Oh, yeah.” She grinned. “I’ll try harder. Daddy.”
“Good girl. Now spread your legs for me. Show Daddy those pretty panties. I bet you’re already wet. If I stroke the gusset of your panties, will I find them soaked with your desire?”
“Y-yes, Daddy. Very wet. Very aroused. For you.” She spread her legs as far as she could, and revealed white cotton panties with a dark, wet spot in the center. Right where he planned to explore.
He knelt in front of her and inhaled her scent, rubbing his nose against the damp panties. He couldn’t get enough of her. He licked her from back to front, loving the way she mewled and squirmed. He pressed her back against the couch and gripped her upper thighs. She moaned when he pulled the cotton aside to dart his tongue onto the closely trimmed hair above her clit.
“Oh, God.”
“No, just Daddy or Sir.” He pulled the panties completely to the side and engulfed her whole clit into his mouth. Her taste sent his senses soaring and he became frenzied with desire. Had to have her. Had to pummel into her. Take her hard. So deep, so fucking hard. His thoughts drove him crazy, but he held back. First, he needed to give his woman the greatest pleasure she had ever known. He licked her plump lips, and sucked her swollen clit into his mouth, grazing it lightly with his teeth.
She came undone. Screaming her climax as she held his scalp tightly in her fists. Yeah, next time, he’d think about cuffing her. Then again, there was nothing quite as amazing as a woman in the throes of passion, so lost to the world that she yanked out some of his hair. So, maybe that made him a sadist and a masochist, he thought, grinning as he watched her finally come back down from her orgasm.
“That was a, a, amazing,” She was still breathless.