TheOneandOnly Page 11

  “We’re back to confusing. It hurt and I didn’t care for it, but I liked your touch afterward.” She was looking at their hands and wouldn’t meet his gaze. “When you were talking to me, telling me to relax, it was a disjointed moment. It was like we were a team and working through something together even though you were the one doing it.”

  “We are a team, Michelle, and we are working together. D/s is about teamwork. You can’t have Dominance without submission or the other way around. By submitting to me, you’re allowing me to guide you on a journey. If you stray from the path, I need to reel you back in. You seemed aroused by it. Am I wrong?”

  She shook her head. “No, you’re right. I was.”

  “An erotic spanking is much more pleasurable. I think you’d like it.” He sure as hell would. “Come on. Let’s get you set up so you can get that paper written.” The look on her face told him that was the last thing she’d expected him to say. He smiled to himself, knowing she’d be mulling it over the whole time she completed her homework. Anticipation was such a sweet tool. He took her hand and led her into his home office.

  “Why don’t you take the desktop and I’ll use my laptop over here on the couch?” He knew if he sat at the desk, she’d be thinking about him as her boss and that would bring up all her insecurities about the club. Since he planned on having some fucking-hot sex with her just as soon as she finished her work, that was the last thing he wanted.

  “It’s booted up and ready to go. Just wiggle the mouse.”

  “Sean, I don’t want to keep you from doing your work. I can go back to my place and do it. You’re probably tired of me invading your space.” She was standing by the desk, running her fingers over the wood surface.

  He could be reading her body language wrong, but it didn’t look like she wanted to leave. “If you’d rather go to your apartment, I’ll take you. But I like being with you. I like having you in my house. This place has felt more like a home today than it has since I moved in and it’s because of you.”

  Michelle sat down and began booting up the programs she’d need. “You’ve made me feel comfortable here and I fell in love with your kitchen. I think the smell of cooking makes a house smell like a home. That’s probably the difference between today and the other times you’ve brought women home.”

  “I don’t bring women home. Other than family, the only woman I’ve had here was my personal trainer and believe me, there wasn’t any chemistry on either end.”

  “Then she was blind.” Michelle turned her attention to the computer and began typing.

  Sean brought up his website and began updating the calendar. He was having a very difficult time keeping his mind on work. More often than not, he was staring at Michelle instead of the computer screen. She would type a mile minute for a few moments and then tap her fingernails on the desk. After fifteen minutes or so, she went to her purse and pulled out her phone.

  She attached earbuds and put one in her ear. “I have to have music. I can’t think without it.” She grinned at him.

  He smiled, hearing faint music coming from the unattached bud dangling down behind the desk. He remembered in college he’d had rock blaring every time he worked too. Nowadays he was more of a jazz fan, but he could listen to just about anything.

  “Sean, what do you enjoy?” Michelle asked, a beautiful pink blush dusting her cheeks.

  “Bringing you pleasure. Watching you come for me…oh Michelle, I can’t describe how gratifying that was. I know that wasn’t the answer you were looking for, but it boils down to that. I want to know every way possible to send you flying. I love shibari. I wish I had the equipment here at the house for suspension. I know I could send you into rope space the first time out.”

  Michelle left the desk and came over and sat beside him. She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “Your eyes sparkle when you’re happy. I like that.”

  Sean cupped the nape of her neck and kissed her soundly. When they broke apart, he rested his forehead on hers. “You make me happy, Michelle. Thank you.”

  She gave him another peck on the cheek then returned to the desk and started typing again. After a few moments she looked up at him. “Are the protocols important to you?”

  “At the club, yes. Just like society has a set of rules we follow for the protection of everyone, the club needs to have a set of standard practices. There are too many dominant males in close confines to not have strict guidelines in place. Outside the club, it would depend on you. Submission is a mindset. If following certain protocols helps you get in the mindset, then yes, they are important.”

  “Dana refers to Brian as Master even in everyday conversation. I don’t think I could do that.”

  “When I first met them, they were in a D/s relationship and she referred to him as her husband or Brian. About three years ago, they progressed to a Master/slave arrangement and that’s when she started calling him Master consistently. It works for them. I’m not opposed to it, but I don’t have any specific desire for that type of arrangement either.” He had yet to see one last.

  “One author I’ve read has the Doms demand the submissives crawl. Her books are on the fringe of what I can read. I like the characters, but the sex scenes don’t do much for me. The girls all need high levels of pain, even those without any experience in BDSM.”

  “Crawling could be used a couple of different ways. Some subs are highly aroused by humiliation. For others it doesn’t matter what task they’re given—simply fulfilling a command, any command from their Dom, makes them horny. They could be told to mop the floors and it would serve the same purpose.” Sean liked that she was asking questions and talking to him about her concerns.

  “Pain is subjective,” he continued. “It depends on the sub’s level of arousal and their tolerance. No two people are the same. I was reading your body language to tell me how much you could take. If I’d walked up to you cold and pinched anywhere on your body with the same force I pinched your nipple, you’d probably deck me. And with good reason—it would hurt. I’m not talking about deliciously hurt either. It worked at that point in time, because you were highly aroused and you trusted me.”

  “So pain for pain’s sake wouldn’t have added to the experience?” Michelle seemed more comfortable opening up to him.

  “Arousal is key. So is a slow buildup.” Sean saw her nod, then go back to her paper.

  “Sean, I hate to ask, but would you read this over? I’ve been a bit distracted and I want to make sure this proposal makes sense before I submit it.”

  “Since I’m to blame for distracting you, it’s the least I can do. Are you any good with websites? I can’t figure out how to update the calendar. Every time I try to add an event, it cuts off the description or runs it into the next field. We just switched to this design and I’m finding it very frustrating.”

  “Let me look at it. I have some experience with web design. As long as I’ve seen the coding before, I can probably manipulate it.”

  After they traded places, Sean read her paper. He wasn’t only impressed with her writing ability, but he learned a few things as well. It was basically a proposal for improving supply acquisition for a local company. “It looks great. You left out a word and I put in a comma in the third paragraph, but other than that, it’s perfect. I highlighted the changes so you could accept or decline them. You said you were going for a business degree, but what’s your area of emphasis?”

  “I’m majoring in supply-line management and minoring in social-media marketing. I fixed your calendar issue. Do you have plans for making your website more interactive? I also noticed you aren’t using many tags. Do you have a limited number available? You’d get a lot more hits if you used more tags. You should review your stats and switch up the lowest five with a few alternatives to maximize your search potential.”

  Sean stared at Michelle for a few moments then finally asked, “What are you doing next Sunday?”

  “Um, what I do every Sunday—sleep, followed by hom
ework. What have you got in mind?”

  “Marriage. Damn girl, you’re a bases-loaded home run. Stunning, sexy, smart and submissive. Fuckin’ a. Oh and you can cook. Maybe we should drive to Atlantic City tonight. If we wait ‘til Sunday, someone might steal you away from me.”

  She smiled and shook her head at him. “We should probably wait until next month to see if Stella’s prediction comes true or not. It’s a lot easier to fire an employee than divorce a wife.”

  “Fuck Stella.”

  “Do that and I’ll quit you for sure.”

  “Submit your paper. You and I have an appointment in the bedroom, subbie.”

  Michelle was already squirming in her seat. The more time she spent with Sean, the more time she wanted to spend with him. He was easy to talk to, even with embarrassing subjects. She accepted his changes and turned in the paper. It was obvious he was kidding about getting married, yet for the first time in her life she could imagine spending her life with someone.

  Nah, it was just a serious case of lust. Stella was probably right—in a month the newness would wear off and it would go the way of all her past romantic relationships. Sean wouldn’t fire her. He was too much of a gentleman for that, but his attention would wane and their time together would come to a halt. Michelle decided to enjoy it while it lasted.

  She closed the programs and walked toward him as he set his laptop aside. He pulled her onto the couch beside him and kissed her gently at first, then deepened the kiss. His experience was intimidating. She feared he would compare her to all those who came before her. Yet when he looked at her, Michelle felt like she was the only woman in the world. If she continued to think about it, she’d go crazy.

  Sean ran his hand down the side of her face. “Go to the restroom, remove your clothes and then present for me in the bedroom.”

  Her tummy clenched and her heart raced. He knew what he was asking of her. They’d discussed kneeling and yet he was still asking her to do it. No, he was commanding her to do it. There was no request in that sentence. “Okay.” He kissed her forehead before she left the couch and started down the hallway.

  He’d said he was jealous seeing Dana kneel for Brian, yet women kneeled before Sean every night at the club. Why would he be jealous? And why was she doing this? Because she was already excited and she wanted to please him. She beamed every time he smiled. Once in the restroom, she took care of business, then undressed. She tried not to think about anything but pleasing Sean.

  During the time they’d spent together, she’d noticed he had two smiles. His polite, high-wattage smile that could melt a woman at twenty paces and the special one he reserved for her. His special smile touched her heart and made her want to cry. It was that one she wanted to see again and again. She pulled her hair out of the ponytail and ran her hands through it.

  Michelle took a deep breath and walked into the bedroom. Sean, wearing only his faded jeans, was standing by the bed, pointing to a pillow he’d laid on the floor. She turned her head so her hair would cover a good portion of her face and kept her gaze on the pillow. As she dropped to her knees, her stomach bottomed out. She didn’t know what to do with her hands and opted to keep them at her sides.

  “Thank you, Michelle. Why was it so hard for you to assume this position? You look so beautiful.” He bent over and his hands caressed her face, tilting her chin toward him. “I want to see your eyes. Don’t hide them from me.”

  Her breathing faltered as he continued to touch her. “I don’t want to be one of many.”

  “You’re the one and only, Michelle.” He put his finger over her lips. “Sshh. When you kneel for me, it is a rare and special gift. You’re offering yourself to me. The women at the club aren’t giving me something—they’re wanting something from me. By kneeling, they’re tacking on a ‘please’ to their request. That’s why I’m jealous of Brian when Dana kneels before him. She is offering herself to him just as you’re doing now for me. There’s a big difference, Michelle.”

  She smiled at him and knew her heart was in her eyes. He always knew exactly what to say to make her feel better. He’d turned something degrading into an intimacy shared only between them. “Thank you, Sean.”

  “My collar looks perfect around your neck. I’m so glad you haven’t removed it.” He wrapped his hand around her neck.

  From anyone else that type of hold would be threatening and frightening, yet with Sean it was erotic. He was very strong and he could snap her neck or choke her—so why did it send heat pooling to her pussy instead of fear to her gut? It seemed impossible to trust someone as implicitly as she trusted Sean in such a short period of time, but she did. She’d felt drawn to him since the first time he’d come into the diner all those months ago.

  “It is very comfortable. I forget I have it on.”

  “Wearing it means you belong to me. Your body knows you do and accepted the collar as a physical representation of that commitment. It feels natural and right like another extension of yourself. Your mind, however, is too busy overthinking things to admit it yet. It will come around given enough time.”

  “You know, I’m falling for you.”

  Sean laughed. “You say that like it’s a bad thing. Don’t worry, I’ll catch my girl. You won’t get hurt.” He ran his hand down her shoulder then took a fistful of hair and pulled, tipping her head up to face him. “I want to Master your body and your heart.”

  He lightened his grip and caressed away the sting. “At the club we use respectful titles—Master Sean, Master Steven. They don’t mean much more than Ms. Jarrett or Mr. Jameson. And yet when Dana looks at Brian and calls him Master there is such love and depth to the word it creates a yearning in me. I want that type of relationship. Not Master/slave, but one that stretches beyond the bedroom. I want a woman who I can rely on to stand by me if the going gets tough. I want to forge a bond that can’t be broken. I want that with you. No one else, Michelle—just you. You aren’t one of many. You are the one and only.”

  Oh God, she was going to cry. “I want that too, Sean.” And she did, more than anything. She told herself not to get too comfortable. Just because everything about Sean screamed he was “the one” didn’t mean he was. She was a firm believer in the old adage that if something seemed too good to be true, it was. But that didn’t stop her from wanting it. One day at a time, just take it one day at a time and don’t get too far ahead of yourself.

  “Soon, you’ll call me Master and give me the key to your heart. From that day forward, I’ll be the luckiest man alive. Until then, I’ll just keep beating down your defenses, one swat at a time.”

  He’d granted her that special smile, the one that turned her knees to Jell-O and her heart to mush. “You may be at it a while,” she teased. “My defenses are made from the strongest alloy known to mankind. It’s called skepticism and it’s been honed over years of false promises and shitty role models. My mom’s longest marriage was measured in months and it ended with a trip to the hospital.”

  Sean’s eyes narrowed and his jaw tightened. “Males who abuse women aren’t men at all. They’re vermin. Some find our lifestyle attractive and we have to be very careful who we allow around our subs. We do background checks and if there are any allegations of domestic abuse their membership request is declined. Some still manage to fall through the cracks, which is why we have monitors stationed in the garden, privacy areas and dungeon at all times.”

  “I know you’ll keep me safe, Sean.”

  He chuckled. “Hmm, trying to butter me up before I beat your ass? Good try, subbie, but I’ve been attracted to that fanny of yours for too long now. Come here.” After offering her his hand to help her stand, he stepped back and sat on the edge of the bed.

  He guided her to stand sideways between his legs then rest her torso on the bed. “Put your hands out straight and link your fingers.”

  Once she complied, he laid a pillow over her hands and wrists. The added weight gave her a sense of feeling restrained. Her heart was beating
fast and she was aware of his every movement.

  “Good girl.” He swung his calf over hers, locking her between his legs. His left arm rested along her spine with his hand placed at her tailbone.

  She felt completely at his mercy. Her breath was coming in pants and he hadn’t even touched her yet. Okay—she had to admit she was, in fact, a submissive. There was no denying how aroused she became every time she put herself into Sean’s capable hands.

  His hand trailed down her thighs and stroked the lips of her pussy. Moving upward, he skimmed his fingers across her cheeks. “Have you been taken here before?” He rested his thumb at the entrance to her ass.

  Michelle drew her head off the bed the slightest bit. “No,” she moaned, feeling his cock twitch against his soft jeans and her tummy.

  “Virgin territory?” he murmured as continued to apply pressure there and stroke her pussy with his fingers.

  His touch felt good—naughty, but good. “Yes, but I suspect not for long.” She settled back onto the bed and relaxed.

  “Smart girl. You know I’m obsessed with your ass. I’ve always considered myself a breast man and I love your tits. But for months now, I’ve been staring at your ass. Your uniform at the diner didn’t hug your form. The only saving grace was that the apron ties pulled the material tight, showing off your fantastic butt. It launched more than one fantasy.”

  Sean’s hands were squeezing her cheeks, a deep muscle massage that sent any resistance she might have had right out the window.

  “Don’t worry, baby. We’ll go slowly and make sure you’re prepared. I won’t hurt my girl.”

  “Thank you.” She’d been curious, but never dreamed she’d find someone she trusted enough to try it with. Sean’s experience, Michelle was finding, was a double-edged blessing. Knowing he knew how to keep her safe was very comforting. Maybe if she kept that in mind, she could temper her feelings of self-doubt.