STORY EXCERPT

As he rounded the house, just as he had this morning, the sun was momentarily in his eyes. He shaded his face with his hand and saw her, sitting back in her preferred chair, eyes closed, as if asleep.

As he approached her though, her eyes opened and she stared at him as he mounted the steps up to the deck.

He took a few strides forward and then stopped.

She had to crane her neck to look up at him and as she did, she saw his dark, troubled eyes gazing down at her.

He swallowed hard and then spoke. “Treasure, I’m sorry. I jumped to conclusions. I know you wouldn’t cheat on me.” He took another step forward and bent down to rub his lips against hers. “I love you, sweetheart. So much that I was consumed with jealousy when I saw your arms around him. He hurt you so much. I just wanted to kill him for what he did to you.” He kissed her again. “Forgive me?”

Tears pooled in her dark eyes as she stood to face him.

“You didn’t trust me,” she choked out.

He gathered her into his strong arms.

“Oh, honey. I’m sorry. I should have known you wouldn’t do anything to hurt me. I’m a jealous idiot and I don’t deserve you.”

He kissed the top of her head, then lifted her chin so that he could kiss her properly. He slid his tongue past her trembling lips and it meshed with hers, tasting and exploring her mouth. She melted into his kiss, but as they both came up for air, she spoke again.

“I have to put this right. I need to tell you what Sean was doing here.”

He shook his head.

“No. You don’t. It doesn’t matter. I trust that it was nothing untoward so let’s just forget it. OK?”

It was her turn to shake her head.

“Sean has a problem and I’m not sure how to deal with it, so I need some advice.”

Swallowing back the bile that threatened at the thought of helping the man that had kidnapped his wife just five months ago, he looked at her quizzically.

“How can we help him? Isn’t he under his family’s wing now? I heard he’s doing OK working in the fishing store and living upstairs with his cousin.”

Alyssa stepped back, out of Aiden’s arms.

“I’ll get supper started and we can talk over our steaks. You go shower and change, you look hot and dusty. I’ll put the potatoes on and start the meat off.”

Knowing how stubborn she could be when she wanted to, he did as he was bid and mounted the stairs to their bedroom. He could hear her down in the kitchen, as she assembled supper. Stripping his work clothes he stepped into the shower. The hot water did a lot to restore his senses and he had time to consider Alyssa’s words as he towelled off.

He donned shorts and T-shirt and ran his fingers through his shoulder-length dark hair. Pushing his feet into his old flip-flops, he made his way back down to the deck, where Alyssa was cooking the steaks on the barbeque.

A thin, gray smoke was escaping from the closed lid of the gas barbeque, emitting the tangy aroma of the marinade that she’d steeped the meat in. As he stepped out onto the wooden deck, she lifted the lid and he could see the potatoes wrapped in foil and two heads of corn, also wrapped in foil.

His mouth watered. He was hungry. Alyssa was also hungry. Neither had eaten lunch, as both had been too upset by their earlier argument.

Alyssa took two plates from the warmer on the side of the barbeque and placed a juicy steak on to each. She added a baked potato and corn to both plates and placed one on each side of the table. Switching off the gas, she made for her seat and Aiden took his place opposite her.

They started to eat.

Eating their meal in silence wasn’t normal. They usually chatted about their work and any gossip that they had picked up over the course of the day. Tonight, however, they ate quickly, and when they finished, Alyssa stood to clear the plates. Dusk had fallen by now, so as she took them inside she switched on the lounge and kitchen lights. She loaded the dishwasher with the dirty plates and silverware.

Aiden followed her in and stood watching her, as he leant on the door jamb. He hated that they were at odds with each other and knew he had to do something to break the silence.

As she wiped her hands and switched on the kettle, he finally spoke.

“Sweetheart, I can’t pretend that I am happy about helping Sean, but if you think we can, then I suppose we should try.”

She made the drinks and passed him his coffee. He moved aside as she walked into the lounge and sat in her usual corner of the sofa. She placed her tea on the end table and turned to him.

“Well, if you’re serious, I’ll tell you what he told me this morning. But”—she hesitated—“what I tell you must stay between us for now. He told me in confidence and I wouldn’t want to break that confidence.”

He nodded and settled on the sofa next to her, drawing her close.

ADULT EXCERPT

“Now, Treasure, I have you exactly as I have imagined you for so long. So, let’s go over the rules…and don’t you dare roll your eyes. Because if I see you even start to do that I will punish you in ways you have never even dreamed of.”

As she was just about to do exactly that, she blushed, causing him to grin even more.

“I thought so. I will allow you that one, just this once. And now…the rules. Your safe words are, as always, yellow and red. Yellow if you want a pause or if you are unhappy with anything I am doing and red stops everything at once. And I sincerely hope that you never have to use red with me!” He paused. “But, don’t ever, and I mean ever, refrain from using it just in case it upsets me. We’ve discussed this and as your Dom I should be able to judge when you have had enough. But I am human. There is always the possibility that I could get something wrong and not realise. You never ignore that. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Master. I understand.”

“Good. Now, the first thing I am going to do is blindfold you. I want you to feel, not see. I want you to lose yourself in the moment.”

He swiftly wrapped his favourite black blindfold around her head, brushing her nipples against his chest as he reached up. She gasped as he deliberately moved to cause friction to her turgid buds.

The room became silent and she strained her ears to hear where he was and what he might be doing.

She jumped as warmth from his mouth surrounded her left nipple. He sucked hard, causing a zing straight down to her clit. He suckled for a few moments, making the nipple distend. As she started to moan in pleasure, a cold metal object was slipped onto the rosy tip and tightened. Her intake of breath had him chuckling.

“Very pretty, Treasure.”

He suckled the right nipple, pulling it out with his lips until he felt it ready to accept the cold clamp, the twin of the one on her left.

Tightening them both, until he was satisfied that they were tight, but not too tight, he stepped back.

“Oh, sweetheart, they look beautiful. Can you visualise your gorgeous tits clamped in pretty jewels to match your collar? The light in here shows them perfectly.”

The bite of the clamps was starting to send bolts of lightning down to her clit. She groaned out loud as he leaned in and licked each nipple. The sensation was exquisite and she almost came at the feather-light touch of his tongue.

Again he chuckled as he stood upright.

She could hear him open one of the drawers in the unit they had chosen to house their toy collection. Then she heard him open the door of the small fridge in the corner, bought to house the bottles of water that they knew would be needed, especially during the summer months. However, it wasn’t too hot yet so she was puzzled as to why he would need any so soon.

Her puzzlement soon changed to surprise as she felt the icy cold touch, of what could only be an ice cube, against her nipple. It was quickly followed by the hot, wet warmth of his mouth. As he repeated this on her other, jewel-clad nipple, she started to pulse as a strong orgasm rode over her in crashing waves. Her body slumped against the restraints and he swiftly checked that her circulation was still good, before whispering in her ear.

“That’s my Treasure. Let go, sweetheart. God, you look so beautiful when you come for me. And those tits…wow…I can’t describe what it does to me to see them so prettily adorned.”

She panted as her orgasm finally abated and she came down to earth.

The ice made a small thud as it hit the ground in front of her and she felt him move away.

As she waited, she wondered what he had taken from the drawer. Her imagination went into overdrive as she recalled the toys they’d placed in there yesterday.

Would he use the flogger? If so, would it be the softer one or the one with more bite? One part of her mind wanted the softer of the two, but another part wanted the feeling of the hard one on her smooth skin.

A light touch on her stomach brought her back to the moment.

The softer one!

With small strokes, he used the soft flogger, first dragging the leather across her skin, then using light flicks up and down her torso. Moving down, he started at her delicate ankles, up over her shins to her thighs, keeping a steady rhythm, building an amazing feeling of warmth, with a hint of pain behind it. Over her smooth pussy, and up across her rounded stomach, she braced herself as the soft leather headed upward.

As he reached her breasts, she lost herself in the feeling. Pain, yes, but the warmth and pleasure that edged this, sent her into a world of her own.

Her whole being was immersed in feeling. There was no room, no cross, no clamps, she just felt. And the feeling was like she had never had in her life before.