by Desiree Holt
“Amada?” Rio prompted.
She wetted her lips. “I confess that even after reading about it I never in a million years thought I’d crave something like this. But I want this. With you. What does that say about me?”
He stroked her cheek. “It says you are a very exciting, sensual woman and one I plan to claim for my own.” Heat danced in his eyes as he studied her face. “Does that frighten you?”
“No. I don’t know why, but… No.”
“Because I believe we are meant to be together. That’s why.” He straightened in his chair. “Would you like to order some dinner?”
She shook her head, a shy smile curving her lips. “My hunger is of a different kind. And I can’t even believe I’m saying that to you.”
He laughed. “Then come. I want you to meet someone. She may answer some of your other reservations too.” He brushed a stray curl from her face. “About age.”
Really? Someone here is going to address that issue?
But Rio didn’t give her a chance to ask questions. He pulled a money clip from his pocket and left some bills on the table, then placed his hand at her back and guided her into a short hallway. He knocked on a heavy carved oak door.
“It’s open.” The feminine voice that answered was soft and musical.
Rio pushed the door open and drew Amber into what she saw at once was a pleasant, welcoming room. Comfortable couches were placed at angles around a large oriental rug. Hanging on the wall over one of the couches was a huge painting of a peregrine falcon poised to take flight. Behind a curved antique desk sat one of the most beautiful women Amber had ever seen. She rose when the two of them entered and walked around the desk to greet them.
Amber stared at her. She was petite, barely more than five feet, her height supplemented by the strappy stiletto heels she wore. A soft, peach blouse draped over nicely rounded breasts and well-tailored white slacks barely disguised lush, generous curves. Her hair was a startling shade of ash gray, held back from her face with an intricate clip. And despite an expert makeup job, Amber noticed the telltale tiny lines of age at the woman’s eyes and mouth.
How old was she, anyway? Molly had told her the owner was older than her husband but she hadn’t mentioned exactly what the woman’s age was. She could have been anywhere from fifty to sixty, yet she still glowed with a youthful vitality. Amber had to stop herself from gaping.
The woman chuckled. “My age surprises you? Not an unusual reaction.” She held out her hand. “I’m Peregrine. Welcome to my club.”
Amber shook the soft, feminine hand. “Thank you. For being so welcoming.”
Peregrine shifted her gaze to Rio. “I think this one’s a winner, amigo.”
“I think so too.” He closed his fingers gently around the nape of her neck. “This is Amber McCloud, a friend of Molly and Nick’s. An unexpected treasure in my life. The only woman I ever expect to be bringing here again.”
“Then, Amber, I’m doubly pleased to meet you. We’ve been hoping the right woman would come along to tame our Latin lover.”
“Oh, well,” Amber began, “we’ve really—”
“Clicked from the moment I laid eyes on her,” Rio finished smoothly. “I think I’ve been waiting all my life for her to come along.”
Amber hoped this wasn’t just a smooth line he was handing her and that she wasn’t setting herself up for another disaster. But he wouldn’t be so obvious about this if that was the case, would he? And he’d have to know Nick would probably cut off his balls.
The thought made her want to giggle and she had to restrain herself.
Whatever Peregrine had been about to reply, she was interrupted when the door opened and one of the most totally alpha males Amber had ever seen walked into the room. He had dark hair that brushed his collar and deep, brooding, dark eyes. He had the lean build of a runner and his body oozed testosterone. But what shocked Amber was the way he swept Peregrine into his arms and kissed her as if there wasn’t another person in the room. One hand clasped the nape of her neck while the other slid smoothly over her ass. He pulled her in to his body and Amber could swear she saw him actually grinding his pelvis against her.
Holy shit!
“I missed you,” he said in a heavy voice when he lifted his mouth from hers.
She laughed. “You’ve only been gone for an hour.”
“Too long. Too long.” Then, as if suddenly realizing they weren’t alone, he looked apologetically at Rio and Amber. “Sorry, but even after ten years of marriage I hate to be separated from my wife. Even for a short while.”
Peregrine smiled. “My husband, Jacob.”
He nodded at them, his arm around his wife, his love and need for her etched on his face.
“I look forward to seeing you both here again. Soon.”
Amber was still in a daze when they said goodbye to the couple and Rio led her out into the hallway. He nodded to the butler, who spoke into a small radio to call for their car. Then he and Amber were outside, the warm Texas night washing over them.
“I’m still having trouble reconciling Peregrine and Jacob as a couple,” she said as they drove through the gate. “She has to be a lot older than he is.”
“No one really knows and they aren’t saying. But it’s obvious that he adores her.”
“How long has she owned the club?”
“A long time. Many years. Jacob was one of the most sought-after Doms until one night after closing when he convinced her to play with him in one of the private rooms.”
“You’re kidding!” Amber had thought she was beyond surprises, but apparently not.
“Not a bit.” He picked up one of her hands. “The quiet gossip is they often stay after the club is closed and use one of the most sophisticated rooms for their play. But people only gossip in whispers, because Jacob is very, very protective of her. So you see, amada, age is not necessarily a factor. Nor is experience. It’s what two people enjoy and how they connect.” He lifted her hand to his mouth. “And I enjoy connecting with you more than I can possibly tell you.”
Chapter Five
The thrumming in Amber’s cunt on the drive to Rio’s was so intense she wanted to rub herself against the soft leather seat to find some release. The fabric of her dress, as soft and tissue thin as it was, was still harsh against her swollen, pebbled nipples. She felt as if she was the one who’d been clamped. As if her nipples had been sucked and pulled until they were engorged, then squeezed in the teeth of the jeweled toys. As if the dildo had been vibrating in her pussy and the butt plug lodged in her ass.
What was happening to her?
She seemed to have gone from zero to one hundred in the sexual fast lane. But then, she’d never met a man like Rio Negron or even imagined that the erotic images from the romance novels she read would come to life for her.
And her mind was working furiously. She’d expected to feel uncomfortable at Peregrine, especially when she’d realized she’d be a voyeur of some powerful displays of sexual activity. She hadn’t expected that Rio would quietly bring her to climax in a room full of people and all she’d be able to think about was wanting more.
Rio’s deep voice broke the silence between them. “You’re very quiet. Having second thoughts about what we saw tonight? About what happened?”
She shook her head, even though she didn’t think he’d see it in the dark of the night. “Actually, the opposite. And I’m wondering who this person is living inside my body.”
His laugh was low and devilish. “Perhaps someone hiding in there all this time just waiting to be left free. You think that’s possible?”
“Honestly? I don’t know what to think anymore.”
He reached over and squeezed her hand. “I want you to be very sure before we move forward with this, Amber. You have to know I want a relationship with you. A serious one. And if this type of play isn’t what you want, I can work around it.”
“No.” She said the word so quickly it nearly leaped from her mouth.
“Oh, no, Rio. What startles me is how much it appeals to me.” She paused. “But only with you.”
He gave that soft laugh again. “That’s a very good thing, querida, because I have no intention of sharing you or letting another man put his hands on you. I reserve all those pleasures for myself.”
“Good.” She wriggled against the leather and squeezed her thighs together.
Attuned to her body, Rio dropped his hand to her thigh, inching the fabric up until he touched bare skin. “The performance whetted your appetite, right? Not to mention our own little byplay.”
“Yes.” She almost sighed the word.
His fingers were caressing her with light strokes. “We’re almost home. Then I will satisfy your need in many, many ways.”
* * * * *
“No wine tonight,” Rio told her when they were in his bedroom. “Alcohol is a bad mix with BDSM. It often lures people to do things they later regret. I want a partner who participates fully.”
“Yes. I agree.”
As he talked he was easing her dress over her head, placing her on the bed in a sitting position to remove the ridiculous heels and slowly roll the hose down her legs. When he removed her thong he bunched the fabric and held it to his nose, inhaling deeply.
“The sweetest scent in the world,” he told her.
He dropped the thong casually on his dresser, removed his shirt and tossed it onto a chair. He slipped off his shoes and socks but kept his slacks in place.
“You aren’t getting naked,” she pointed out.
“Not yet,” he agreed. “I am so aroused, amada, that unless I keep some kind of barrier between us I’ll never last through this first session.” He took her hand and placed it on his fly. His cock was thick and hard and swollen behind the material. “That is what you do to me. Almost every minute I’m with you.”
She smiled even as she sat there naked before him, her nipples hardened and her cunt pulsing. “We might have a problem going out in public.”
“Then we will just have to keep each other satisfied, no?” He brushed his mouth over hers. “Now. First things first. In a relationship like this the most important element is trust. Both the Dom and the sub must truth each other completely, no reservations, knowing neither would willingly inflict unnecessary pain on the other. Only to the degree that’s pleasurable. Can you trust me that much, Amber? Even though we’ve known each other such a short time?”
She nodded, tightening her fingers on the fabric of the comforter.
“Good. Because without trust there is nothing. Next. You must have a safe word.”
“Safe word?” She frowned.
“At any time during our play, if we reach a point beyond which you wish to go, all you have to do is use your safe word and I will back off. That’s a promise. So pick a word to use.”
“Just like that? Pick a word? Any word?”
“Your choice.”
“Um, apricot.”
Rio lifted an eyebrow and one corner of his mouth kicked up in a half grin. “Apricot?”
She shrugged. “It was the first word that came to mind.”
“Then apricot it will be. So. Let us begin.”
He opened the drawer in his dresser where she’d found all the items that had excited her, but instead of any of the toys he drew out a long silk scarf.
Amber stared at it. “What’s that for?”
“The best sex is realized through an enhancement of the senses,” he told her. “That’s one reason why BDSM sex is so intense. Every sense is brought into play. And when you remove one of them, it strengthens each of the others.” He folded the scarf into a long strip and pressed it over her eyes, tying it at the back. “Now you will be in a soft world of darkness, dependent on touch and taste and smell and hearing.”
His mouth was soft against hers, a kiss barely there. Then he lifted her and she heard the rustling of the bedcovers as he pulled them back.
“I have another room to show you when we get further into our play,” he said, his voice rasping with desire. “But I am going to ease you into this. Train you to properly understand and be aroused by it.”
“I think I already am.” Her voice was a little unsteady.
“Then this should enhance your pleasure even more.” His fingers lightly stroked her cheek, then he moved away.
Amber lay there in a state of high anticipation, trying to identify the sounds in the room. She heard the opening and closing of another drawer, then a scratching sound, and in a matter of seconds the scent of vanilla drifted on the air. Candles! And vanilla was one of her very favorite scents.
Then Rio was back at her side, lifting her hips and sliding pillows beneath them so she was arched upward. He placed another pillow beneath her head to ease the strain on her body. Then smooth leather caressed her thigh.
“Thigh cuffs,” Rio explained. “I’m going to lock one around each thigh. They are lined with soft silk so they won’t bruise your beautiful skin. Just concentrate on the feel of them around your body. And visualize.”
An image came to her at once in her darkness of wide strips of leather locked around each thigh. She had no idea what they were for but she was more than willing to find out.
Next he lifted one hand.
“Matching wrist cuffs.” He fastened one, then the other. “Now I’m going to lock the wrist cuffs to the ones on your thighs so your arms will be immobilized. Does that frighten you?”
She shook her head. “No. No, it doesn’t.”
“Good.” His voice was low and rough, evidence of his own arousal.
When he had her arms restrained he took her ankles and spread them wide apart. “Now ankle cuffs, so I can lock them to the corners of the bed. With your body raised to me I will have unrestricted access to your pussy. Your delicious pussy.”
Her imagination ran wild as he fastened her ankles in place. She felt completely exposed and so aroused by it she was afraid she’d come before he even touched her. When he ran one finger lightly the length of her slit she jerked in response.
Rio placed a soft kiss at the top of her mound, his chuckle vibrating through her.
“Remember, cariña. I control your climax. In this room I am the Master and you come only when I give my permission. Will you remember that?”
Amber wetted her lips. His touch and the aroma of the vanilla were already transporting her to a different place.
“Yes. I’ll remember.”
“And in this room you will address me as Sir. Can you remember that also?”
A tiny thrill zinged through her. “Yes. Sir.”
“Very good.”
The mattress dipped as he settled himself between her thighs and very lightly began to stroke her clit. Amber trembled at the touch, knowing she was getting wetter by the minute and already feeling the clutch of an orgasm waking deep in her belly. She gritted her teeth, determined to force it back until Rio gave his permission.
But he didn’t make it easy, rubbing the sensitive nub of flesh one minute, the next stroking down to her opening and rimming it with the tip of one finger. Then back to her clit, rasping it and flicking at it before moving the length of her pussy again. The touch was so light it was barely there, and because of that was even more arousing. She clenched her inner muscles to stop the tremors racing through them and bit down on her lip. She wanted to tell him to stop but she also wanted him to continue.
This was a test, she realized. A test of how well she obeyed him. Whether she trusted him enough to control everything about her in the bedroom, most especially her orgasms. Amber was going to do her best obey but the more he touched her the more difficult it became. Especially when he began describing his actions to her.
“Such a pretty little cunt,” he crooned. “All pink and wet and hot. With a clit that vibrates at the slightest touch. I love the way your body reacts when I just brush my finger over that little button or touch the sweet opening of your pussy. Like this.”
Amber moaned, reaching for every bi
t of control she could. And she was doing fine until Rio placed his mouth over her clit and sucked it. Hard. Then nipped it with his teeth. And that was her undoing. She had absolutely no control as the climax raced through her body and broke free. She jerked and shuddered, helplessly restrained by the cuffs and Rio’s hands at her hips. She wanted him inside her. His tongue. His fingers. His cock. But the walls of her pussy contracted hungrily on empty space as she cried out her release.
Then she was still, but tears leaked out from beneath the silk scarf because she knew she had failed her first real test. Had disappointed him. Would he understand her failure and give her another chance? A sharp pain stabbed her heart at the thought that once again a man would find her unworthy.
But unexpectedly she felt his mouth on hers, his tongue tracing her lips before pressing against the seam so she opened and welcomed him inside. Her sobs became sighs of hopeful relief. Perhaps he cared enough about her to give her another chance. She put every bit of emotion she could into the kiss, feeling bereft when he finally broke it.
His fingers brushed at the tears on her cheeks.
“Don’t cry, Amber, mi amada. I knew you were already aroused by the things you saw and did at Peregrine.” He stroked her cheek with the pad of his thumb. “Next time we’ll plan better. But,” he licked her lips, “you know what that means.”
She shook her head.
“Disobedience means punishment. I will go easy on you this first time. Like restraining your orgasm, adapting to the pain is all part of the training process. But I cannot let my beautiful subbie get away without at least ten strokes of the flogger. Tonight I will ask you if that’s all right. After this, it is always at my discretion. Understood?”
”Yes. I want to be punished.” And amazingly she did. She recalled the excited reaction of the woman being flogged at Peregrine and the intensity of her climax.