Beck And Call (30 page)

“Hot and tight.”

“Oh, God,” she moaned as he applied exquisite

pressure on the nerves he’d discovered during their

weekend together.

It was her G-spot, he had told her. With the right

amount of pressure applied inside and out, a woman’s

orgasm, if she’d been thoroughly aroused, would be

mind-blowing. He’d demonstrated it repeatedly until

she couldn’t walk on her own.

Now, his fingers stroked her insides as his thumb

circled on her clit and just above it. His lips caught a

breast and she felt her entire body surrender. It didn’t

matter that she wasn’t tied up, blindfolded, or gagged.

He commanded her body completely. He would give her

pleasure, give her carefully applied pain, and protect

her throughout.

“Master,” she whimpered.

His lips covered hers and she couldn’t talk. Couldn’t

think. Could only feel.

One of his hands left her body and in a few seconds

she could hear his zipper. Her hands reached for him.

“Let me help,” she panted.

“I’ve got it, sweetheart,” he chuckled.

His fingers and thumb pinched her clit and wrung a

cry from her throat. Pulling his hand from her, he

tugged her hips to the edge of the desk. And drove

straight into her slick folds.

“Yes!”

Serena’s exulted cry was more a whisper than a

shout, but she didn’t know. She wouldn’t have cared.

She had the man she had wanted for years and the

Master who had taken her body and made it his.

Keith’s hips pistoned his cock in and out of her. His

hands gripped her hips to hold her still. This was wild.

This was hot. This was sheer animalistic possession.

And she reveled in it. A thumb went to her clit and

pressed hard.

“Yes, yes, yes,” she panted. “Master, please. I need…

I need…”

“Come when you’re ready. Come, sweet. Come for

me,” he grunted.

His head moved down and he latched onto a breast.

Hard. Moaning, she threaded her fingers in his hair

and held him to her.

As his hips increased their speed and urgency, his

tongue and teeth devoured her breasts. And the animal

inside her roared to life.

And she came. Again. And again. And felt him

surge into her.

“Oh,” she sighed as he held her close.

“Oh, sweetheart,” he breathed. “Mine. Just mine.”

He stepped back, still holding her, and carefully sat

down in the leather chair. He was still inside her as her

legs wrapped around her waist. He didn’t lean back but

focused on stroking her hair and nuzzling her neck.

“Keith? Master?” she frowned. “What do I call you?”

“Master when we’re alone. Keith in public,” he

replied, a gleam in his eyes. “Or you could call me

husband
.” He saw the surprise in her eyes. “Oh,

sweetheart, I put you through so much, didn’t I?” He

pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’m sorry, Serena. I’ll

make it up to you.” His hands framed her face. “I swear,

I never imagined Mark would come after you. I would

have kept you in the playroom for a year before I let

that bastard come near you. I would have done

anything…”

Two fingers gently covered his mouth.

“I know, darling,” she whispered. “And you were

there for me. Claire kept saying she talked to you on

the phone, but I thought she was confused about which

phone. And the way you had the guards with me

constantly and…” She closed her eyes and rested her

head on his shoulder. “And you were the one who

insisted I bring Debbie to you so she could tell you what

had been done to her. I know you didn’t have any idea

what would happen, but you knew what you were going

to do to Duncan and any other man involved. Didn’t

you?”

“Yes,” he answered. His hands stroked her back. “I

wanted to come to you. I wanted to call you. As your

boss. As your master. I thought you would want time to

heal, to think. Each time you called, your message was

so short I wasn’t sure if you were about to end things.”

“I was afraid I’d start crying and beg you to come to

me,” she told him, closing her eyes and snuggling

closer. “I couldn’t understand why you didn’t call or

come see me. Wasn’t what happened big enough to—”

“It was,” he nodded, arms tightening around her.

“But you had enough to deal with last week without

suddenly finding out I was your Dom and,” he sighed,

glancing at the three stacks of files on the credenza.

“I’ve been a little busy myself. The fall-out has been

interesting.”

“The company?”

“Actually doing better,” he smiled, lips twisting

slightly. “Much to my family’s chagrin.”

“How’s Penny?”

He sighed and rested his cheek on the top of her

head.

“She finally realized just what kind of man Mark is

and ended the engagement. Her father’s in control of

her trust fund and cut her off.”

“What?” Serena gasped. “Why?”

“That,” he sighed, “is the sixty-four thousand dollar

question. We’re not sure what the connection is between

Mark, Duncan, Hester, and my father and uncle.”

Serena pulled her head back slightly so she could

see his expression.

“You think your family was trying to ruin you?”

“Maybe not completely, but enough to drive me to

sell the company to the family holdings. Their

professional and personal reputations have taken some

knocks lately.”

“Your brothers?”

“Possibly,” he conceded.

“I’d heard that Kevin didn’t like your success,” she

said slowly. “And after what happened last year with

Grant Franklin, he really was pissed you took Grant’s

side.” She frowned. “But what would Penny…” her eyes

widened. “Did her trust have shares or something they

needed?”

He stared at her.

“Shit,” he muttered. “Mental note to self—go over

everything during the day with Serena. Not one of us

ever thought of them needing her shares. That’s got to

be why he cut her off.”

“But she’s over twenty-one, right? Doesn’t she have

full access? Or at least to all the interest or something?”

“I’ll have to check on that,” he nodded.

“So what is she doing in the meantime?”

“I gave her a job. As the company’s special events

coordinator, she’s very busy setting things up for our

newest division. I also pissed her off a bit. I figured

since she took my side someone might come after her, so

she’s had a bodyguard full-time. Neither she nor Ben

have looked very happy.”

“You have been busy,” she observed. “A new

division?”

“You’ve opened my eyes to many things,” he told

her. “So I thought, since you can’t stay my assistant

once people know about us, that you might like to head

up a section devoted to philanthropy. Raising money

for hospices, computers for schools, and…”

With a gasp of happiness, Serena kissed him hard.

“Yes.” She studied his face. “I’m figuring your

family isn’t one we’ll have to spend much time with, is

it?”

“No,” he shook his head. “I told you my parents

divorced when I was young. I didn’t understand any of

what was happening. All I knew for certain was that my

mother wasn’t there anymore. Over the next fifteen

years, I had three stepmothers who were all under

thirty when they married my father.” He grimaced. “I

didn’t think much about relationships between men

and women. That may have made me a dominant, to

keep women submissive, but…” he shrugged.

“I’m not complaining,” she told him, tilting her head

to look at him. Now seemed like a good time to tell him

about how she felt about his family. He didn’t seem very

fond of most of them, but she didn’t know many people

who liked wholesale criticism of their family. “I don’t

think I’ve met your father. I talked with him on the

phone a couple times. He was rather abrupt and

patronizing. Your mother came in once. I liked her. She

seemed much too sweet to have married your father.

I’ve met Penny on her way to see Mark, but no one

else.”

“That’s because when I was twenty-two, I found out

just what my father had done to my mother during

their marriage and when they divorced. I …” he broke

off and closed his eyes. His arms tightened around her

even as she held him close.

“How old were you when they divorced?” she

whispered.

“Seven. That age when your parents are perfect.

Until you suddenly don’t see your mother anymore and

hear terrible things about her.”

“You’re close with her now?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “I’d never understood why Mom

had just disappeared. No one even mentioned her. My

father acted as if she had never existed.” He worked his

jaw and swallowed. “I tracked her down after I earned

my MBA. I was horrible to her. I yelled and accused her

of being a terrible mother and…” Keith clenched his

jaw. Serena’s heart broke for the little boy who’d felt so

alone for so long. “She lost her temper and told me

everything. My father had threatened her with all sorts

of things if she ever tried to contact me.” He met

Serena’s steady supportive gaze. “He’d only married

her so that their children would be part of her family.

After I was born, Mom had several miscarriages. That

didn’t fit in with his plan, so he divorced her. Her

brothers were more concerned about maintaining their

business ties with my father. I did little besides drink

for about three months. On my twenty-third birthday,

my father and older brothers made bets as to how fast I

could drink myself to death. I lost my temper and

attacked my father.” Serena gasped and he nodded.

“Yep. And, about the only thing I’m sorry about is that

I didn’t kill him.”

“Keith!”

His hands ran soothingly up and down her back.

“Shh, don’t worry. It is difficult to do more than sit

on anyone when you’ve finished off a bottle of vodka all

by yourself.” He shuddered. “I haven’t had more than

one drink a week since. I promised myself I wouldn’t

stand for any woman around me to be treated the way

my mother had.” He gave her a wry look. “Yes, I know it

might not fit with the domination streak in me.”

“But it explains why you don’t like sadomasochism.

And why you reacted the way you did when I told you

about Debbie,” she said quietly, thinking over

everything he’d told her. “Have you seen or talked to

your father since?”

“Oh, yeah, but he stays out of my reach as do my

brothers,” he grinned. “And I’m not going to ever leave

you alone with him. He’s convinced he’s God’s gift to

women and would be all over you.”

“He can try,” she shook her head. “But I already

know that his son is God’s gift to me.”

“Mmm, good answer,” he told her. “Any other

questions?”

“Tons,” she nodded. “I just don’t know which to ask

first.”

“Then let me ask one,” he said, pulling her dress up

her arms and securing it. Standing, he set her down

gently on the chair. He picked up a small velvet box

from the corner of the desk and dropped to one knee

before her. “Serena, I have found in you everything I

ever dreamt a woman should be. Someone I could spend

the rest of my life with.” One hand covered hers as they

rested on her lap. “Serena, will you marry me? Will you

wear my ring as well as my collar?”

She pulled one hand free and touched the diamond

and pearl choker.

“The rest of our lives,” she whispered, tears filling

her eyes. It was real. Keith was Master and she had

everything she’d thought she’d never have. She had the

man of her dreams. A lover who was devoted to her

sexual and sensual pleasure. A husband who would

protect and defend her. “I was going to resign,” she

whispered. “I was so sure you wouldn’t want me and—”

“Shh, sweetheart.” His fingers tightened on her

hand. “I can’t imagine not having you with me.” He

rested his head on her lap. “Serena, I hardly slept last

Sunday after you left my apartment. God knows, I

didn’t sleep more than an hour or so once Claire called

and told me you’d been attacked. I…”

Serena held her breath. She could feel moisture on

her hand. Was he crying? For her? Because of what had

happened to her?

“Keith? I do have one question for you.”