Her breath audibly snagged. “Y-Yes, Sir.”
“Now, you’ll lie down for your punishment like a good girl. Your lesson is going to be five swats on your spread pussy. My discipline will continue when I fuck the rest of your lesson into you.”
Her breath caught again, though she said nothing else. With measured movements, she moved into place. The sound of her limbs sliding against the sheets, eager and acquiescent, made his cock swell more. The damn thing was at a parallel angle to the floor. He tried his best to ignore the torment while he considered the choices on the rack but gave up the effort when his gaze settled on a riding crop that had a custom feature. The leather tongue at the end of the rod had been slit and inset with a handful of longer leather strips, turning the instrument into a mini flogger too. With a swift flick, he tested the toy on his thigh. The swatter delivered a good sting, though the sensation came in two waves, drawing out the heat of the impact. Interesting—and intoxicating. He’d make her scream and squirm.
“Perfect,” he murmured, turning back to the bed—and the dream of a woman who lay there. With her golden hair spread against the satin and her body bare except for the blindfold, she was an image of trembling readiness. He was ready, too. No turning back. He would claim her. Consume her. Conquer her. And when he was done, he’d never go through the agony of letting her go again.
With that resolve, he paced to the side of the bed. Attached to a leather tether was one of the padded wrist cuffs he’d requested. With rapid flicks, he opened the buckle.
“Arm.” He said it with steady calm, knowing the directive would be heeded. Sure enough, though goose bumps sprouted on her skin, she extended her wrist for the bondage.
After he cinched her other wrist, he moved to the end of the bed. When he clutched one of her ankles and dragged it out toward its own cuff, she broke into a whimper. He went still.
“Problem, sugar?”
Her throat undulated. “No, Sir.” Her murmur carried an edge of fear, though he looked at her nipples turn darker and tighter. Telltale dew drops appeared on the well-trimmed mound between her legs. Two streams of such different intent, flowing through her body. So mesmerizing. So fascinating. And arousing as hell. Nevertheless, he didn’t move his hand from its firm grip around her ankle.
“Do you still trust me, beautiful?”
“Y-Yes, Sir.”
“You know we have to do this.” His tone was gentle but his hold commanding as he fastened her ankle inside its cuff. “You know what I need to do here.” The clink of the second buckle coincided with another rush of shimmering cream to her pouting pussy lips. “You know this is necessary. I can’t fuck you if I can’t keep you safe. If I don’t know you won’t disappear again. If I’m not sure—”
You won’t die again.
He banished the terror with a determined grunt. She wasn’t going to die. She was here, buckled down for him, so wet and ready for him. Yes. Yes.
As he ran his hand up her thigh, he confirmed it. “You want me to fuck you, don’t you, Sage?”
She wriggled again and moaned. “Oh please…yes!”
Her mouth stayed parted after that, pulling in deep gulps to fill her chest, pumping in frenetic proof of her mounting need. Her fingers pulled at the leather tethers above the wrist restraints. Her legs shook as she tested the limits of the ankle cuffs. Her hips flexed and her ass bunched, joining in an effort to thrust her sex higher to him. Fuck, she was beautiful. A mixture of such striking textures. While her muscles flexed in taut frustration, the tender petals of her core bade him closer…closer still…
He mounted the bed, into the V between her legs. He rose high on his knees, using the vantage point to drag his stare over every inch of her again. Wherever his gaze touched, he let the crop follow. It wasn’t long before he dragged the leather fronds over the erect ridge of flesh nestled in the center of her sex. She gasped and threw back her head as he swiped her pussy again. More goose bumps dotted her thighs and arms.
“Now,” he stated, “I want you to tell me how much you want me again—and how you’ll gladly pay the price for my cock.”
Her entire frame succumbed to another shiver. But she wet her lips and stammered, “Yes, Sir. I do want your hard cock. And I will pay the price for it.”
“Good girl.” He gave her the praise just before whapping her rosy folds. She yelped from the spank but bit it short the next second, her chin set with the resignation that more were to follow.
“Again.” He slid the crop along the inside of her left thigh. “Say it again.”
“I want you, Sir.”
“Perfect.” He brought the flogger down on her mound more gently the second time, making her twist her hips with breathtaking abandon. “You have three more swats to go, sugar. After I give each one, I want you to tell me exactly what you want.”
He flung the flogger down again.
“Ohhh! Y-Yes! Please, Sir. I want your cock.”
Thwack.
“You want what?”
“You! Your cock!”
Thwack.
“Ooohhhh!”
Garrett didn’t let her come down from the adrenaline. He landed the fifth strike in the middle of her sob, yanking her cry into a scream and coaxing new juices all over her reddened, sensitive blossom. To make the sight more incredible, the insides of her thighs quivered, shimmering with her aroused perspiration.
Holy hell. She was spectacular. His cock reared. He couldn’t wait to detonate with her. His body already felt like a state fair fireworks finale. For the first time since he was a teenager, he didn’t know if he could contain his orgasm long enough to get inside her. On a ragged breath, he grinded his jaw. He had to make it.
She gasped, and he marveled at the sight of her pulse beating in her neck. He tossed the crop aside in order to lean over and slide two fingers along that hammering artery. Her heartbeat sped up. Heat surged through him. Goddamn. This was what pure power felt like. No wonder the high could corrupt men. But he didn’t feel corrupted. He was floored. Humbled. Grateful.
“Mine,” he whispered. “You’re mine, Sage, and I’m never letting you go again.” He moved his whole hand across her neck, stroking the cream of her perfect skin, savoring the strength of her strong, aroused pulse. “Say it, Sage. Tell me you belong to me…forever.”
Her lips parted.
But no sound came out.
Her throat constricted, as if choking off a sob. “I…love you,” she finally rasped. “So much…so much…”
As her voice curled through him, her body dissolved beneath him. Turned into blackness…just like the long, empty months he’d just been through without her…
“No.” His head reared back as the sound grated out of him. “No!” he roared.
He reached for her. Ripped the blindfold off, seeking the brilliant life in her huge green eyes.
But they weren’t green.
They were black. And viscous.
Their sockets began to writhe. Worms, taking over her lifeless body…fading back into the mud of a dark velvet jungle…
* * *
He jerked back to consciousness. Back to reality. To the revelation it brought, slicing straight into his gut, searing with nauseating force.
I’m not a fucking Dominant.
And I’m the Prince of Persia. He dragged a bleary stare up at Zeke and belched.
“Lovely,” Z drawled.
“Thanks, Your Highness.”
“Huh?”
“Nothing.” His head throbbed, but strong instinct dictated it was only the start. The throbbing music in the air only made shit worse. Katy Perry crooned about the pitfalls of playing with dark magic. Well, no fucking shit. “Damn. Why are they blasting that crap so early?”
“It’s almost lunch time,” Z replied. “And it’s only the radio.”
He didn’t know what to give back but a stunned grunt.