by I. T. Lucas
“Succeeded in doing what?”
“Ugh, you’re infuriating. I get it that you’re not interested. You can go home.” She pointed at the door.
“I don’t want to go home. I came because I wanted to be with you.”
Calypso shook her head. “Well, I don’t want to be with you. I don’t want to be with anybody. Men are all jerks and are good only for one thing that I can do without. I’m taking a vow of celibacy.”
What happened next was totally unexpected.
Brundar felt laughter bubble up from deep in his belly, and once he let it out, it just kept coming in wave after wave until there were tears in his eyes and a stitch in his side.
If Calypso had been pissed at him before, now she looked ready to do him harm. Shoving on his chest, she sent him toppling down on his ass. “It’s not funny!”
Brundar laughed even harder.
The idea of Calypso taking a vow of celibacy was just ludicrous. She wouldn't last more than a week.
“I’m sorry—” he croaked between peals of laughter, “—it has been so long since I laughed, I forgot how it felt—” He tried to breathe in to stop. “It’s bad… It hurts…” He pressed a hand to his middle.
Calypso’s lips quivered with an effort to stifle her own laughter. “Good. I want you to suffer.”
It took a few forceful inhales and exhales before Brundar regained his composure. “Please forgive me. I meant no disrespect.” He pushed up and sat on the couch next to Calypso. “When I got your text, I was in the middle of a situation. But that’s not an excuse. I could’ve texted you later that night or this morning. I’m not adept at social interactions.”
Calypso’s rigid posture relaxed a fraction. “This is not about social etiquette. I’m allowing for your no-nonsense military style. This is about caring and showing it. But I guess you don’t. Not enough, anyway.”
Damnation.
Brundar cared a lot. More than he should. Except, telling her that might appease her in the short term, but later, when he would be forced to sever the inexplicable bond between them, it would cause her more grief.
“I’m not adept at interpersonal relationships either. Whatever expectations you may have, forget them and save yourself a shitload of disappointment.” He had done his best to avoid saying anything that would’ve sounded as rejection, going for self-deprecating and noncommittal. The less she thought of him, the better.
Calypso sighed, her shoulders slumping. “You’re right. You are who you are, and I can either take it or leave it. I told myself a long time ago that I shouldn't try changing anyone because it’s a waste of time and energy. The only one I can change is me.”
“Smart.” Especially for a woman so young. She was a quick learner.
She shrugged. “If I were smart, I would’ve stayed away from the complicated and the brooding and gone after the simple and upbeat. A nice guy who would treat me right and call me ten times a day to tell me he loves me.”
Her words cut deep. Brundar wished he could be that guy she’d described, but even if she were an immortal female, and he loved her dearly, he would’ve never called her ten times a day to tell her that. Or even once. That just wasn’t who he was.
With a frown, Brundar tried to imagine the guy she’d described. Was it anyone he knew? Was it the same man who had visited her last night?
Had she had sex with him?
Anger and jealousy washing over him like a tsunami, Brundar took a deep sniff. If she had, he would smell it.
Thank the merciful Fates, there was no lingering scent of sex. Not even his and Calypso’s from several nights ago. Still, he had to know who it was. “Who did you invite over here?”
“I already told you. It’s none of your business. Don’t play the part of a possessive boyfriend when you keep telling me you’re not mine.” She waved a hand in the air. “You spend your nights in that dungeon, doing God knows what with God knows who, and I can’t even invite anyone for coffee?” She huffed. “Please. Give me a break.”
“I haven’t been with anyone but you since I helped you leave your husband.”
She pinned him with a hard stare. “And I’m supposed to believe that? You are the co-owner of a kink club. It’s your job to play.” She waved her hand again.
Brundar didn’t take offense easily, but being accused of providing sexual services was too much. “I’m not whoring myself out, Calypso. That is not part of my job.”
“So what do you do down there all night?”
He itched to repay her in kind and tell her it was none of her business, but that was before he’d scented her distress. Calypso was putting on a brave face, masking her hurt with anger, but her eyes were shining with unshed tears.
“I instruct, I demonstrate, and I monitor. I don’t participate in sexual acts unless I want to. And ever since I brought you here, I haven’t wanted to play with anyone else.”
“Really?”
At first, her doubting his veracity angered him, but on second thought he realized Calypso needed reassurance.
“I can’t promise you much, but I can promise you exclusivity as long as we are together, and I demand the same from you. No more inviting men to your apartment without letting me know who and why.”
Calypso nodded. “I can live with that.” She smirked. “It was Donnie. He walked me home, and I invited him for a cup of coffee.”
As if that was supposed to ease his mind. Donnie was a good looking human, with exactly the kind of mellow personality she’d described as desirable in a male.
“Why did you invite him up?”
“What do you mean, why?” Calypso lifted her hands in exasperation. “That’s part of the social interactions you don’t get. He was kind enough to walk me home, and the least I could do was to offer him a cup of coffee. Besides, you have nothing to get jealous about. Donnie is not interested in me. He has his eyes on Fran. All we talked about was him mustering the nerve to approach her.”
That was good. Donnie’s face was no longer in danger of getting beaten into a pulp. Except, Calypso hadn’t clarified about her interest, or lack thereof, in the bouncer.
But inept as Brundar was at interacting with people, especially women, he knew it would be a mistake to ask her directly. Instead, he could keep her talking about the guy and sniff for arousal. Her body couldn’t lie.
“Donnie is handsome. Why would he fear approaching Fran?”
Calypso shrugged. “She is a little snooty to him, barely acknowledging he exists. Donnie believes Fran thinks of him as all brawn and no brain. A dumb muscleman.”
No arousal.
Brundar allowed himself to relax. “I can ask her for him.”
Calypso shook her head. “Don’t. He needs to do it himself.”
“What if she says no?”
“So it’s a no, and he can move on. Dealing with rejection is part of life. Getting turned down is not as bad as never trying.”
“Come here.” Brundar leaned and scooped Calypso into his arms, positioning her in his lap. “The lady is both smart and beautiful. A killer combination.”
CHAPTER 25: CALLIE
Hot and cold. Cold and hot. Brundar was a man of extremes.
It was so satisfying to have seen him getting jealous over Donnie.
As much as he pretended that their relationship was nothing more than a string of exclusive hookups, Brundar wasn’t fooling Callie.
He had feelings for her. The problem was his attitude toward those feelings. He regarded them as a curse or a disease and not something wonderful between two people that was rare and special and should have been cherished.
Callie couldn’t change him or who he was, but she could change his mind about that—give it her best and hope it would be enough.
She wanted to touch his face, caress his clean-shaven cheeks, run her fingers through his hair. But, of course, she did none of that, keeping her hands tucked between her thighs as a reminder. “This was our second fight. I would say it’s an achieve
ment.”
Brundar’s left brow arched. “You consider an argument a good thing?”
“Sure, I do. Getting a rise from someone as stoic as you means that you care.”
Brundar kissed the top of her head. “I think you have things turned around. Both times you got mad at me.”
“True. But you took the effort to engage with me. I guess you don’t do that with others. You walk away.”
“That is correct.” Brundar seemed to ponder her observation. “I wonder why that is?”
The guy didn’t understand the most basic elements of human interaction.
“Because you don’t care what others think or feel toward you. Well, maybe other than respect. I think that is important to you. But with me, you want more than my respect.”
“You bet, I do. I want your moans, and your whimpers, and your screams.” His thumb brushed over her puckered nipple, stoking the simmer of desire his words had started.
“So what are you saying? That I make a lot of noise?” Callie teased.
“Music to my ears.” He brushed his knuckles over her other nipple.
He was teasing her back, not with his words but with his hands. To touch her over her shirt and bra instead of her naked skin was like letting her smell something delicious but not allow her to taste it. This was so like him, expressing himself through touch and not speech, probably because he was so good with the first and so inadequate with the latter.
Days without him created so much pent-up need, Callie felt like crawling out of her skin. Touching herself, which was the only relief she’d gotten for the past few days, had been pleasant at best, but she needed Brundar to take her higher. To make her wild and wanton the way he’d done before.
Sex with him was so intense that everything else seemed devoid of color and flavor in comparison.
It scared her.
What were the chances of her ever finding another man who could so perfectly satisfy her? Who could bring her to such heights of ecstasy?
As inexperienced as she was, Callie figured out that a precise match like theirs was rare. Given the huge spectrum of shades and variations, a perfect alignment was nearly impossible. She was just a slightly darker shade of vanilla, while Brundar was on the lighter shade of kink, and they were both flexible enough to stretch a little and meet where they were both comfortable.
Unless she was reading him wrong and he was holding back to accommodate her.
“Am I enough, Brundar? Tell me the truth. Are you holding back on what you want, what you need?”
He shook his head. “Not in the way you think.”
“Please explain, because I’m having an insecure moment here.”
Dipping his head, he kissed her forehead. “I told you what I need, and I didn’t omit anything. You agreed to it. Why would you think I would want more?”
That was true. The only thing Brundar listed as an absolute must was bondage. The blindfold was probably part of that. But he admitted that something was lacking.
“What are you holding back?”
He chuckled. “I have incredible stamina. If I had my way, you would need a transfusion by the time I was done with you.”
“Is that a challenge?”
“No, sweetling. I know when you had enough.”
“But what about you? I hate thinking that you’re left unsatisfied.”
“Who said anything about not being satisfied? The fact that I can go on doesn't mean I’m unsatisfied.”
Callie tilted her head back to have a better look at Brundar’s face, wondering how was it possible to want more but at the same time feel satisfied.
Was it like eating chocolate?
She was an unrepentant chocoholic. One or two squares were never enough, and she would keep coming back for more until there was nothing left. But there was a price to pay for the overindulgence, and not only in extra pounds. The nausea and upset stomach were an unpleasant reminder that she should’ve stopped at no more than one-third of a pack. Except, she usually smartened up only after the fact, not while obsessively devouring one piece after another.
Maybe for Brundar sex was the same. The fact that he could go on didn’t mean he should.
“Okay.”
“Okay what?”
“Okay, sir?”
Brundar chuckled. “And you were accusing me of unclear communication. Okay as in, I understand? Or okay as in, take me to bed right now?”
“Both. I accept your explanation, and I want you to take me to bed.”
“I will. But first, there is the small matter of your punishment.”
Callie felt herself melt into a puddle. Except, she needed a cause to make the game fun to play. “Punishment for what?”
“Let me see.” Brundar looked up as if he was concentrating on recounting her misdeeds. “First, you didn’t believe me when I told you that I haven’t been with anyone but you since we got together. Just for that, you deserve a thorough spanking. Then you suggested I was whoring myself out to club members. That’s a strapping offense, but you’re too green for that.”
Callie shivered, and not in a pleasant way. “You mean like with a belt?”
“Yes.”
“I will never be ready for that.” What could be sexy about that much pain? Not that she would know. No one had ever done that to her, and Callie was adamant about keeping it that way.
“Never say never.”
She smiled, thinking he was teasing, but Brundar seemed serious. Her smile turned into a frown. She would’ve dismissed his remark as nonsense, but the thing was, he seldom made claims about things he wasn’t an expert on.
“Why would you say that?”
“I’ve seen it before. Some start easy and never venture into darker places, while others get the taste and want to experience more. I always try to guess which camp a new member will end up belonging to, but I miss more often than I get it right. Each person is different.”
“Which camp do you think I belong to?”
“The second one. But as I said, I’m often wrong.”
Callie looked away, embarrassed even though she was sure he was mistaken. Pain wasn’t her thing. She liked the feeling she got from submitting, and a little spanking was the perfect catalyst to help her get there; bondage was too, but that was as far as she was willing to go. “I’m curious to hear what makes you think that.”
“Mostly because you’re gutsy. You don’t back away from trying new things even when you’re scared.”
True, but she was also a reasonable woman. Callie’s willingness to stretch her comfort zone in the name of experimentation didn’t mean she would abandon it for just any thrill.
If Brundar stayed around for long enough, they might find out who was right. It saddened her to think that he might not.
Callie’s arousal dissipated along with her good mood.
“What’s going on in your head?”
As usual, Brundar didn’t miss the slightest change in her. Which was weird given how obtuse he was about almost everything else.
“I just thought that you need to stick around for a while to find out if you’re right about me.”
CHAPTER 26: BRUNDAR
Brundar felt trapped.
What could he say to her?
Even though he wanted it more than anything, he knew he wasn’t going to stick around. And he wasn’t about to lie to Calypso either.
Which left him with only one choice. Change the subject and make it about the present, not the future.
“Enough stalling, sweetling. Right now we have some business to attend to.” Hands on her waist, he flipped her around, so she was sprawled over his lap, bottom up. He grabbed one of the decorative pillows and put it under her cheek. “Comfortable?”
“I am, but not for long.” She wiggled her cute little ass.
Reaching under her, he popped her jeans button, then pulled her pants and panties down to her mid thighs.
Calypso’s arousal, which had taken a nosedive during their talk,
was back and climbing with each passing moment.
“Do you want to hold my hands?” she asked.
“I’m not going to restrain you. Not unless you want me to. But I want you to close your eyes and not open them under any circumstances. Can you do that for me?”
“Yes, sir.” She sounded so happy that he was making a concession and trusting her to follow his rules without enforcing them by tying her up and putting a blindfold over her eyes.
Brundar was well aware that he was taking a risk.
His fangs had already elongated just in response to Calypso's scent of excitement and the sight of her perfect globes. In a few moments, they would reach full length, and his eyes would start glowing. If she disobeyed him and opened her eyes, he would have no choice but to thrall her, and that would end their playtime.
He never engaged with a woman who was drunk or high, and a thrall reduced mental capacity just as much if not more. He wanted Calypso to participate while fully cognizant.
His palm resting on her beautiful ass, he reiterated, “I’m trusting you to follow the rules. If you break them, this playtime will end immediately. Do you understand?”
“I do. I promise not to look and to keep my hands right here.” She tucked them under the pillow.
“Good girl.” He caressed her butt cheeks. They were so small that he covered both with one hand.
His first smack was more of a love tap. Calypso felt so good draped over his knees, her trust in him tasting so sweet, that he wanted this to last. Getting into an easy rhythm, Brundar tapped her butt cheeks, caressing and kneading after every two or three taps.
It wasn’t what she’d expected, but she wasn’t complaining. He was stoking the embers of her desire slowly, enjoying the closeness. She seemed to be enjoying it too.
To mix things up a little, he surprised her by delving his finger between her moist folds. Unprepared for the new sensation, she sucked in a breath and arched up, seeking more. He reached with his other hand and pressed the heel against her sensitive nub, then pushed inside her, first with one finger, then with two.