by Juniper Bell
We held our picnic on a concrete bench in a sweltering park a few blocks away from the office. Dog walkers and stroller-pushers, listless from the heat, wandered by now and then, but otherwise we were alone. The humid heat pressed on us like a steam iron. My hair stuck to my cheeks as I bit into my upscale sandwich.
Ethan didn’t comment on the slabs of free-range chicken that had probably been hand-raised and read bedtime stories before being slaughtered and inserted into a sandwich. He did remove the unruly mound of bean sprouts and toss it to a nearby pigeon. The pigeon pecked at the stuff, clucked scornfully and waddled the other direction.
I couldn’t help giggling at Ethan’s wounded expression. “I wouldn’t take it personally,” I told him. “He’s a New York pigeon. He’s used to eating dog crap.”
He chuckled. “Have you lived here your whole life, Dana?”
The sheer ordinariness of the question unnerved me. “Well, except for that semester abroad in Paris, and the year I spent in Fiji with the Peace Corps. I’m joking,” I added, when he didn’t laugh.
“Oh. Well, I’m certainly familiar with your sense of humor, but I confess I don’t understand the joke. You could have done those things.”
I let out a spurt of laughter that startled the pigeon. “I had other things to do.”
“Like what?”
“Like dodge my father’s fists after a drinking binge.”
“Ah.” Ethan didn’t show sympathy or disapproval or anything else. He chewed on his stack of multi-grain goodness. “And your mother?”
“No clue. My father always said she ran away, but for all I know he has her body dismembered in a freezer somewhere.”
That earned me a sharp taste of Blue Fury.
“I’m kidding. I have a dark sense of humor. My father’s not that bad. And my stepmother would have gone for poison instead.”
A crack of laughter from Ethan. “You really are something, you know that? You fascinate me.”
I filled my mouth with sandwich so I didn’t have to answer that. I was very much afraid the fascination was mutual. We settled into a munching, digesting kind of silence. He had one ankle crossed over the opposite knee, and occasionally his bent leg would brush against mine. Every time it happened, a little jolt of awareness zinged straight to my groin. Did he know it was happening? Was he doing it deliberately?
“Your knee keeps touching me.”
“Does it?” He didn’t move away.
“That’s against the rules.”
“So sorry.” But he didn’t look sorry. He looked entirely unconcerned, even though he moved his knee away. “One of these days we must write these rules down. For instance, is all physical contact forbidden while Simon is away, or only that of a sexual nature?”
Lord, why did he have to say “sexual” with that spark in his eyes and that slant of his eyebrow? It wasn’t fair, damn it.
“Another example. I’ve been longing to tell you how delicious you look today and how the shadow of your nipples through the fabric of your blouse keeps drawing my eyes. But is verbal praise also off-limits, since I’d be unable to keep it G-rated, I’m afraid?”
“You can’t see my nipples through my blouse!” I looked down to make sure.
“Oh, yes, I can. I know what they’re doing right now. They’re just beginning to stir to life. You’re probably feeling a pleasant prickling as they become engorged. I’ve realized something about you, you know. The sound of my voice has a powerful effect on you.”
So right he was. I tried to block out his voice. Might as well try to stop the Hudson River.
“In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if I could bring you to orgasm just with my voice. I wouldn’t have to touch you at all. All I’d have to do is tell you what I wanted to do to you. I’d tell you how much I want to bend you over this bench and take you in the open air. Or how much I’d like to tie you to that birch tree over there, open your blouse and bring you to orgasm with my fist up your cunt. Sure, someone might see. For instance, those three fellows playing Frisbee over there. It’s entirely possible they’d start to notice when I tied your hands behind the tree and ripped off your blouse. Maybe they’d even come running to your rescue.”
His gravelly voice hypnotized me so I could practically picture the scene. My body melted into a shivery puddle of craving.
“And then, of course, I’d have no choice but to invite them to join us, either as witnesses or participants. They look like red-blooded, able-bodied, clean-cut gentlemen, nothing to fear. I’d have to convince them you were willing. More than willing. Eager. I’d have to show them how wet you already were, just from having your breasts exposed. You like being exposed, don’t you?”
“Stop,” I murmured. This was going into an area we’d never touched. Other men had had no place in our games so far.
As soon as I told him to stop, he did. And as soon as he did, I wanted him to start again. After all, what was the harm? He was going there in imagination only.
“Well…” I cleared my throat. “Would you let them touch my breasts?”
“I’d give them a chance, see how they behaved. Not just anyone gets to touch my Dana. Our Dana, I should say.”
I winced at the reminder of the absent Simon. But I was too caught up in Ethan’s hypothetical scenario to be bothered for long.
“Our Dana’s luscious nipples deserve nothing other than sweet tender care. Long, lingering suckles. Perhaps a man to each nipple, and one to jerk himself off as he watches. That should get you started, I’d say. You’d be making those adorable little whimpering sounds. But perhaps I’d begin to sense that you want more, that you need the grip of cold metal on your flesh.”
The image made my belly clench with need. My nipples were as hard as the bench we sat on. I thought I would suffocate if this went on much longer. I turned a pleading look on him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of nipple clamps.
This was way over the line, totally against our rules, but I banished that thought from my mind. I nodded, biting my lip. I didn’t care who watched as he reached inside my blouse and fastened the silver clips to my nipples. The sweet pain of it made me sag against him and sigh. Exquisite relief flooded me. I leaned against him as if he were a boulder. When I looked down, the clips were clearly visible through my blouse. But I didn’t care. Ethan would take care of me.
He played with the clips, his hand down my blouse. God, the zings and jitters each movement of his fingers brought to life. In a cartoon, you’d see big yellow lightning bursts of “Zow” and “Yikes” around my boobs. My entire awareness seemed to come from my nipples. I barely saw the worn grassy paths around us, the busy pigeons. Even the sweaty men playing Frisbee blurred to a pleasant backdrop to our fantasy. I smelled a hint of ozone in the air. I imagined what a good drenching would do to the view of my clamped breasts. And that made me even more aroused.
I rocked from one hip to the other, trying for contact with the cement under my ass. It kind of worked. I was able to get a little friction going through my underpants. Lucky I was wearing some. Plenty of my workdays involved no underwear at all. Today’s pair, made from pink rayon and purchased at my local K-Mart, felt nice and silky against the hard grain of the bench.
But of course it wasn’t enough. I moaned in frustration.
“You need something against your hot little clit, don’t you, luv?” Ethan’s conversational tone drew me back to the present. “If the Frisbee players were a bit closer, we could ask them for help. My receptionist is in need of some release, I’d tell them. You’re each welcome to take your turn, as long as you follow one simple guideline. For the privilege of touching my valued employee, you will each owe her an orgasm. And sorry, no penetration, that job belongs to me. Lift yourself up.”
His sudden command broke through my haze. I pressed my hands against the warm cement. Was my arousal or the ninety degrees in the shade heating it up? When I lifted my hips a few inches off the seat, air rushed across my privates. And then a
buzzing noise caught my attention. Ethan put something on the bench under me, then placed his hand on my shoulder to guide me back down.
Heaven awaited my pussy in the form of a little vibrating toy that seemed to latch itself to my clit like a heat-seeking missile.
“Jesus Christ.” I nearly screamed. Pigeons flapped around me in a flurry, drawing the attention of the Frisbee-playing men. They looked over. What did they see? Ethan with his hand on my shoulder, me with my head arched back, breasts pushed out, knees a little too wide for propriety. At least his hand wasn’t inside my blouse anymore.
But truthfully, I didn’t care what they saw. That little toy was busy tormenting my clit and sending shockwaves of pleasure up my belly and into my nipples, where the clips seemed to answer back by increasing their grip. Vibrations flooded my senses. Ethan sat calmly next to me, a rock in my storm.
“Of course, I wouldn’t let them just fumble their way around. I’d tell them how much you enjoy a finger up your ass. In fact, maybe I’d offer them a butt plug to play with. Maybe one of those thicker ones we’ve been using lately. Your ass has been opening up nicely, by the way. I’ve been meaning to compliment you on it. It’s gotten to the point that I sincerely regret not being able to offer you to my clients. You’d be surprised how much a beautiful girl eager for an ass-reaming can sway a reluctant customer.”
Wetness soaked my panties. I wiggled back and forth on the wicked little vibrator.
“You think I don’t know that you want others to see your talent and your beauty? Secretly, you do, don’t you? You’d like to walk into one of our client meetings in nothing but nipple clips and stockings, wouldn’t you?”
I moaned.
“You’d love to sit on my lap and let me finger you to orgasm while the others try to hold back their jealous lust. I’d splay you open, one hand to your pussy, the other pinching your nipples until you came so hard, I’d have to restrain you from hitting the table and knocking everyone’s coffee into their laps. Oh yes, you little wanton animal. I know how much you want these things.”
My breath came in sharp wheezing gasps.
“Don’t come. Don’t come. Not unless you reset the terms.”
The devil.
“Tell me you want me to fuck you blind. It’s the truth, isn’t it?”
The bastard.
“As soon as you let go of that ridiculous deal, I’ll let you come. You know it makes no sense. You know there’s something between us.”
His hot breath against my cheek made me crazy. He ran his hands down my chest to my crotch. If I didn’t come soon, I’d explode on that bench and give some pigeons a heart attack. “Tell me I can fuck you whenever, wherever I want. Starting now.”
I surrendered. “Ye-es.”
“Good girl.” He reached inside my blouse and squeezed on the clip. Ravenous need stampeded through me. “Now come. The men are watching, so make me proud.”
As if I had any choice. His fingers pinched my nipples just like the vibrator rocking my clit. I bucked once, twice, my entire body convulsing with ecstasy. Giant, blinding waves washed across my vision. Grateful and greedy, I welcomed the racking orgasm with a wide-open soul and an unashamed body. I gave myself over to it and let it sweep me into a world of freedom and joy. Only Ethan’s hand on my nipple kept me connected with the mundane world. His touch helped me fly, like a kite on a string. When the mad spasms finished, his hand reeled me back to safety. I rested there for long moments.
I opened my eyes. A Frisbee lay on the grass. A red-faced, sweat-slicked man loomed over us. Had he come for the Frisbee or something else? Had Ethan’s hypnotic fantasy pulled him across the park to us? I glanced down at myself. I looked proper, more or less. The buzzing of the vibrator had stopped. Ethan’s arm was draped across my shoulder. I probably looked like I’d just woken up from a nap.
Or not, all flushed and flustered as I was. But they could think what they wanted. I didn’t care.
Ethan bent down and flipped the Frisbee to him. He nodded his thanks and ran back to his buddies.
In silence we packed up our picnic and walked out of the park. We ran across the street. Ethan took my arm to pull me out of the way of a kamikaze taxicab. I guess he forgot I was a native and could take care of myself. But I had to admit, it felt good to have a strong man automatically reach out a hand on my behalf. Not something I’d ever experienced before I’d met Simon and Ethan.
We walked the few blocks to the office, neither one of us saying a word. I usually had a quip for every occasion, but nothing popped up. We’d crossed a line and were now in new territory. Our old “deal” was toast. The boundaries I’d set up had been totally trampled. He could now do whatever he wanted to me, whenever he wanted.
Chapter Six
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Ethan navigate the crowded sidewalk. For such a powerful man, his movements were surprisingly quick and agile. Maybe he’d learned that from his military training. I wondered what he’d been like as a boy, as a young man. Did he always have that intensity about him, that need for dominance and control? Even now, with his arm at my elbow, steering me through the jostling lunchtime mob, he seemed in absolute command of everything around him.
Especially me.
Through the lobby. A nod to the security guard. A punch of the elevator button. A tense wait. Ding. I started to tremble. Something was about to happen, but I didn’t know what. I couldn’t think ahead. I existed on a knife’s edge of anticipation. Would it be now? Now?
The elevator opened. A bicycle messenger wearing an iPod tried to get in, but he backed off after one look from Ethan.
Inside. Doors closing. Elevator rising. A held breath. And then everything exploded. Ethan whirled me against the paneled wall. Shoved up my skirt, yanked my panties aside with one hand and buried his cock inside me.
No words. Nothing but animal growls in my ear. I answered with harsh grunts of my own. The mossy scent of his arousal mixed with the stale smell of worn carpet. We were two beasts fucking in the nearest spot in the jungle. Two animals with no purpose other than this rutting, this pushing and straining and ramming and…oh God, everything pent up inside me burst apart. Wedged between him and the wall, I shattered. Ethan spent himself inside me, grinding out his release with nuclear force, and I gratefully received him…
I felt dismantled, undone. Maybe he did too. His hands shook as he fastened his jeans and straightened my skirt. The upward motion of the elevator slowed. Had my entire world been rearranged between the lobby and the fifth floor? It hardly seemed possible, but then again, our building had ancient elevators. For the first time, I didn’t mind that inchworm-speed climb.
The elevator stopped and the doors took their usual two centuries to open. It gave us time to finish putting ourselves back together. At least on the outside. Good thing, too, because there was Brian the package delivery guy, popping up like an overeager Jack in the Box. The big smile on his face slipped as he looked from one to the other of us.
God, was it that obvious?
I pushed past him and hurried down the hall to our offices. I didn’t care what Brian thought of me. But I had to do some serious thinking.
“Dana.” Ethan’s quiet command brought me up short. “Come back here.”
I thought about disobeying. But it turned out I didn’t have it in me. I walked back to him as Brian gawked behind him. When I reached Ethan, he put his hands to my shoulders and shifted me to one side. I glared up at him, not appreciating being moved this way and that like a coat rack. I was about to object to his manhandling when he stunned me speechless by reaching inside my blouse.
My jaw dropped. He pulled down the upper edges of my bra, and that’s when I remembered, with a deep throb that flirted with pain, that I still wore the nipple clips. He undid them, one by one, as gently as possible. Glancing Brian’s direction, I realized Ethan’s body blocked his line of sight. Unless he had x-ray vision, he had no idea my boss was tending to my nipples. I winced as the tension rel
eased, tension that had become part of my world over the past hour or so.
My unpredictable boss pocketed the clips and tenderly drew my bra back where it belonged. I twinkled up at him in gratitude. Why had I ever called Ethan a twisted bastard? He’d made sure Brian couldn’t see me before he displayed his obvious control over me.
Then he ruined the whole thing. “There’s a fresh outfit for you in my office,” he called as I headed back down the hall.
I went head-to-toe pink from mortification. Why did he have to say that in front of Brian? Was he trying to prove he was in charge of me, to the extent of overseeing my wardrobe? No surprise that he’d have an outfit for me. Ethan enjoyed visual stimulation, especially in the form of corsets and black vinyl. But that was supposed to be private. Didn’t we have rules about that?
Did we have any rules anymore?
I stomped through the office door. My first stop was the bathroom, where I got a traumatizing look at what my adventure with Ethan had done to my appearance. I looked like a freakin’ porn star. My hair was all wild around my head, like black diesel smoke. I generally wore little makeup, but you’d never have known it from the look of my lips. Swollen and parted, they looked like I’d just blown a hockey team. And I hadn’t put my lips on a man’s cock in days. That puffiness was purely from my own arousal.
My blouse was buttoned wrong, which allowed the edge of my bra to peek out. And my nipples shone through, plum-sized reminders of my deviancy. My nipples loved to be clamped. Even though they were sore right now and needed some recovery time, I couldn’t wait for the next time Ethan applied that lovely torture to them. What did that say about me?
A sense of shame accompanied me into Ethan’s office. What was wrong with me? Why hadn’t I been able to resist Ethan and stick to our deal? I couldn’t fool myself that he’d broken our agreement. Oh no. I’d done it out of my own free will.
My head sagged and my feet dragged as I made my way into Ethan’s office. What kinky outfit would be waiting for me? Would it expose my breasts, give access to my pussy? Would it be made of leather or lace?