He hugged her to him and she hugged back, savoring the closeness, the intimacy that was still new and shiny.“You won’t lose me, Sandra. Believe that.”“Okay,” she whispered.Even as she agreed, she whispered a prayer that things would work out and that nothing ever happened to him. She couldn’t survive it again. Once had nearly destroyed her. If something ever happened to Derrick, she wouldn’t survive this time.She reclined onto the sofa, taking the glass of wine he offered her. She sipped, her stomach churning with nervousness. It was silly to be so anxious to meet James, her husband’s replacement, but she was. She’d likely never come into contact with him after this meeting since she had nothing to do with the day-to-day operations of Derrick’s business. Sophia would be more affected by James coming on board since she would have to work for him.She knew Sophia wouldn’t take it well. She hoped that by meeting James and offering him her acceptance, it would smooth over whatever obj
Derrick was silent for a long moment and then he heaved out his breath, his shoulders drooping slightly. He turned away from her, directing his gaze toward the fireplace. His hold loosened on her and she shifted away, just so she could better see him.“That was part of it,” he admitted. “I was jealous as hell. The first time I met you. Do you remember? Clement brought you to the company Christmas party and there you were. So beautiful it made my teeth ache. You were adorably shy, reserved. And you clung to Clement’s side the entire night. I couldn’t look at you without resenting the fact that he’d found you first.”Her eyes widened in surprise. “I had no idea.”“No. It shames me that I treated you so curtly in the beginning. I actually hoped that things wouldn’t work out between you and Clement because I wanted you for myself. I had planned to swoop in and claim you the minute things ended between you and him. But it became very clear that he had no intention of letting you go. I damn
“Story of my life,” Derrick murmured. “I was too late the first time. Fate gave me another chance and I don’t intend to fuck it up.”Sympathy shone in James’s eyes. “So you had a thing for her when she was married. And to your best friend. That had to suck.”“You could say that.”A thoughtful look crossed James’s face. “I’m fairly new to the area as you know. When we first met, it was through business trips to Houston. But now that I’m here, I haven’t really had time to scope it out. Any clubs here? You know anything about the places in this area?”“Yeah. There’s one good one. Very exclusive. It’s called The House. Owned and managed by Damon Roche. Wealthy son of a bitch and he caters to an upscale clientele. He’s backed off in recent months. He’s married and has a daughter who occupies most of his time, but he still keeps a hand in the operations. I can give you his contact information and put in a word for you. He does an extensive background check on prospective members, but it’s a
“Son of a bitch,” James swore. “No wonder she’s so wary around men. Can’t say I blame her. I’ll be careful with her. I don’t want her to fear me. It sickens me that any woman would have reason to fear men as she does.”“In that we agree,” Derrick said. “Clement couldn’t give Sandra what she needed. Dominance. And she loved him too much to ask it of him. But he knew. And now that she’s taken that step and wants what I can give her, I’ll do whatever it takes to make her happy again.”“I wish you luck,” James said sincerely. “She’s a good woman. You’re a lucky son of a bitch.”“I know,” Derrick said quietly.They both fell silent when Sandra reentered the room carrying the silver tray with the hors d’oeuvres she’d prepared earlier.She was a dream in the kitchen. When she and Clement had entertained in their home she’d always prepared all the food despite Clement telling her he’d have it catered. She’d always laughed and told him there was no need and that she enjoyed cooking. Derrick lo
“Monday morning,” Derrick said. “When she comes into work.”Sandra frowned but held silent.“What is it, honey? You obviously want to say something,” Derrick gently encouraged.“It’s not for me to decide,” she began.“Say what you want to say,” he directed.She drew in a breath. “I just thought that perhaps something like this should be said outside of work. It’ll be a shock. And we’re friends. I mean, you’re more than just her employer. I think you owe it to her to tell her some place more intimate.”“What did you have in mind?” Derrick asked slowly.She glanced nervously up at him and he wanted to pull her into his arms and reassure her. She had nothing to fear from him. No disapproval. There was nothing she could do that would earn his censure.“You could invite her here,” Sandra said. “We could tell her together. It may be easier than at work. It would also give her time to come to terms before she has to go to work. Time to deal with it so she has it together by the time she has
“And then I’m going to fuck your mouth, Sandra. But I won’t cum. Not yet. When I’m close, I’ll flog you again until your ass is burning and you’re on fire with the need for relief. And then I’m going to fuck that ass. I’m going to take you hard and rough, to the very limits of what you can withstand. I won’t be gentle. Not tonight. I’m going to take you as roughly as you can stand. And then I’m going to cum all over your ass. I’ll mark it with my cum just like I marked you with the crop. And then I’ll fuck you some more, filling your ass until it spills down the insides of your gorgeous thighs. Think you can handle that, honey? Are you ready to be completely and utterly dominated? Taken over and used purely for my pleasure?”The words were silky in her ears, sending her into a dreamlike haze. She could barely form a coherent response, so aroused was she by his statements. It was everything she’d fantasized about, only now it was real and in the here and now and not in her darkest drea
This was the first step in claiming her destiny. Of becoming the woman she’d always wanted to be. Of claiming the man she’d always wanted. Her past melted away. Thoughts of Clement fled. She loved him—would always love him—and this was no betrayal of her marriage.Peace enveloped her in its tender embrace. Surrounding her, filling her heart. Much as Derrick had in only a few short days. How could she have never known?Because she’d never opened her eyes fully. She’d never looked at him, truly looked. And now that she’d finally seen him, she recognized him as the missing piece of her soul.“Arms up,” Derrick ordered.She arranged her arms over her head, supporting herself on her forearms but holding her hands up for him to coil the rope around her wrists.He wrapped the soft rope around one wrist and then stretched the rope to the post at the corner. Then he took another piece and repeated the process on the other side so both wrists were bound, the rope pulled tight so there was no gi
She closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of his movements. And then she heard the sharp smack of leather. Her eyes jerked open. The noise had jarred her from her dreamlike state, but there was no pain. It took her a moment to realize that he hadn’t struck her. Not yet.She flinched when he touched the leather flap to her spine near the base of her skull and slowly slid it down her back to her buttocks where the plug split her cheeks. She held her breath, anticipating, waiting. But nothing happened.“Breathe, Sandra. Don’t hold it in. I’ll make you wait even longer if you don’t relax.”She blew out her breath, sagging as she tried to force herself to comply with his order. And then pain blew over her skin like a blowtorch. She jumped, unable to prevent her reaction to the shock of that first blow. Her eyes widened in surprise. That had hurt!It was instinctive to immediately say her safe word, to retreat behind the safety that word gave her. But she bit her lip, determined to stick