Bound: The Mastered Series (9 page)

“Ronin—”

“Listen to me.”

That tone immediately had her mouth snapping shut.

“What were you thinking when you were standing in the pool?” He eased back to look into her eyes. “Truth.”

“That for all my bold talk I’m not brave enough to strip my clothes off in front of you and dive naked into the deep end of the pool.”

“Why?” His eyes darkened. “Do I scare you?”

“
I
scare me. I’m not a casual nudist.”

“And yet . . .” His fingers traced the seam of her capris up the inside of her thigh. “You tore off your pants and threw them at me the first night we met. Seeing those purple bikini panties? Every professional thought vanished from my head.”

She buried her face in his neck. “I don’t know what possessed me to do that. I’ve never done anything like that before in my life. I was just so . . . mad at you.”

“I’ve been told I have that effect on people,” he said dryly. “But most people throw punches at me, not clothing.”

“Did you think I was crazy? Or just easy?”

“Neither. I thought you were fiery and sexy. You were real, Amery. Because of who I am . . . I receive deference, not defiance. Your response intrigued me.” His lips brushed her ear. “You intrigue me. The proper girl who balks at casual nudity, yet I sense your desire to be bold. You can see yourself as the woman who strips bare to skinny-dip because it makes you feel rebellious. You want that rebel to break free.”

How had he read her so easily?

“Am I wrong?”

“No. I want to be freed from the moral shackles that’ve weighed me down my entire life. Not in a
Girls Gone Wild
way, but like you said, to show myself that I can let go and not feel guilty about it.”

“I’ll help you to let go.”

Her belly flipped. “How?”

“You have to trust me to find out.”

But I don’t really know you.

That realization didn’t bother her as much as the thought of saying no to him. Amery inhaled a deep breath and said, “Okay.”

“Hang on.” Ronin stood and deposited her on the chair. He scooted the ottoman closer to her and sat on it. He claimed her mouth in a sensual kiss. While his tongue tangled and teased, he began to unbutton her blouse.

She lifted her hands to touch him.

He took her hands and peered into her face so deeply she swore his gaze had brushed her soul. He kissed the tips of her fingers. “I touch. You let me.”

“But how is sitting here doing nothing teaching me to be bold?”

“Bold is not only an action. Bold is an attitude. Bold is a state of mind.” Ronin rubbed her knuckles across his jaw. “Sometimes the boldest choice is to let go. It takes more courage to trust someone else to give you what you need than it does to just rely on getting it yourself.”

“I never thought of it that way.”

Ronin smiled. “Which is the perfect time for me to point out I don’t want you to think. I want you to feel.”

Amery had the oddest feeling of . . . surrender? Or was it power?

“I see it in your eyes, Amery. Let me show you how bold you can be.” He kissed her again, his mouth coaxing hers to respond.

And respond she did. She stopped worrying where her hands should be and concentrated on the placement of
his
hands. Of the dexterity in his fingers as the rough tips brushed her skin. She let his pace—sometimes fast, sometimes slow—roll over her. Feed her. Soothe her. Incite her.

Then his callused hands were sliding beneath her collar. He pushed the shirt off her shoulders and down her arms until the fabric caught in the bend in her elbows. Rather than tugging it free, he murmured, “Perfect,” and pressed an openmouthed kiss to the center of her chest. “Lean back and rest on your hands.”

In this wanton position, she couldn’t help arching her spine, offering him total access to whatever he wanted.

Ronin’s fingers danced over her. Following the edges of her collarbones, the cords in her neck. The curve of her shoulders. “Your skin tone is amazing. So pure.”

Not pure
, her anti-goddess side chimed in,
pasty white
.

For once she told that voice to shut up.

He twisted the front clasp of her bra and the cups separated. Although her eyes were closed, she felt his greedy gaze on her breasts as he slid her bra down to meet her shirt.

She tried to slide her palms out, but there wasn’t any give in her shirt and she couldn’t move.

Not a terrifying thought; an exhilarating one,
the new goddess inside her purred.

“That’s it. Just you and me out here. No one knows what we’re doing but us.” Ronin’s hands cupped her breasts. He circled his thumb across her areola, almost brushing her nipple but not quite. His hands squeezed and plumped her flesh. Her breasts weren’t large, but they’d always been sensitive. Former lovers hadn’t paid much attention to her chest, and she’d assumed men preferred a big rack.

But Ronin worshipped her, first with his hands. Then with his mouth. Light flicks of his tongue. Soft sucks increasing in intensity until she swore he’d sucked her whole breast into the wet heat.

He said, “I want to hear you if you like how I’m touching you.”

Amery opened her eyes and met his gaze. “You think I’m being quiet because we’re outside and I’m afraid someone will hear me?”

“Are you?” he asked, and blew a stream of air over the damp tip.

“No. I’m just in shock because no man has ever given so much attention to my”—
just say the word, don’t be PC
—“tits before.”

Ronin said, “Pity, because these tits are perfection. Soft, creamy white flesh, big pink nipples. And they’re so responsive.” Keeping his eyes on hers, he bit down just shy of the point of pain. “Can you come just from nipple play?”

“I—I don’t know. I’ve never tried it.”

He continued to pluck the rigid points while he moved his mouth and face across the upper swells. “Would I find your cunt wet if I slipped my hand into your pants right now?”

“Yes.”

“I want to make you come. But I want to do it my way, Amery. You still feeling bold?”

“Yes.”

“Say,
Make me come, Ronin. I don’t care how you do it
.”

Amery repeated, “Make me come, Ronin. I don’t care how you do it, but make me come now.”

She felt him smile against her chest at her added plea. “Close your eyes. No matter what, keep them closed. Arch your back and spread your legs.”

Ronin’s voice had become velvet coercion—soft and sexy wrapped around a steely command.

He curled his hands around her face and he kissed her with the single-minded concentration that left her breathless. Helpless. Delirious. He eased back on the kiss, and one hand fell away as the other stroked her cheekbone.

He said, “Hold still,” and a second later something landed directly on her nipple. Molten at first and she almost cried out from the quick pain, but then it was gone, leaving warmth in its wake. Then his mouth was on hers again, for a long, slow kiss.

She whimpered when he pulled away and whimpered louder when a splash of heat seared her other nipple. That spark of pain lasted longer and was immediately followed by another one on the top of her left breast.

Before Amery could open her eyes, Ronin was there again, his fingers on her jaw, holding her in place as he kissed her stupid.

“So bold,” he murmured in her ear after he broke the kiss. “A little more and I promise I’ll make you come.”

More spikes of fierce pain. More intoxicating kisses. Just when she thought she couldn’t take any more, and considered jumping into the pool to ease the fiery heat spreading across her skin, a breeze wafted over her, cooling her off. Along with that came Ronin’s scent; she let that male musk soothe her senses, even as her heart picked up speed whenever that scent came closer. And beneath that she caught a whiff of citronella. Her mind cleared enough to realize Ronin was dripping candle wax on her.

Ronin didn’t kiss her after the next pinpricks heated her flesh. His hand moved between her legs to rub the seam of her capris against her clit.

“Oh god.”

Then his assault was relentless. Hot wax spattered on her chest, running down the valley of her cleavage—hot enough to steal her breath. Then Ronin’s hungry mouth was licking and biting her neck, turning her skin into a mass of gooseflesh. She swore the man had three hands and two mouths with the way he touched her and teased her.

“My bold Amery,” he whispered against her throat. “Are you ready to come?”

“Yes, please.” She canted her hips up, wanting his hand on the zipper of her pants, wanting his fingers testing her wetness and pushing deep inside her.

“Look at yourself.”

Amery opened her eyes and looked at her chest. Spots of wax dotted her skin. Her nipples were completely coated. A few rivulets ran down the plane of her belly. Seeing what it looked like, knowing she’d let him do that to her, caused her face to flame.

Ronin tipped her chin up. “Are you embarrassed?”

“I don’t know. It looks like . . .”

“Like I came on your chest. Like I marked you.”

She nodded.

“My way of letting you know I intend to mark you this way sometime.”

Be bold
. Amery cocked her head. “And if you had? If my hands were free I’d swipe my finger across that big spot above my nipple and lick it.”

Ronin snarled and seized her mouth, one hand on the back of her head as he angled her backward, his other hand diving between her thighs, the heel of his hand grinding side to side, rubbing the seam directly over her clit.

The ferocious kiss ended abruptly. She kept her eyes closed as his teeth enclosed her nipple and bit down until the wax cracked and fell away. Then he suckled the tip strongly.

Amery was off balance. Entirely at Ronin’s mercy. She couldn’t move; she couldn’t control anything except accepting that she had no control.

Ronin moved his mouth to her other breast. The wax pulled at the tender tip as he removed it with his mouth. Then he groaned and his focus was on her nipple.

The grinding rub of his hand, his sucking mouth, his labored breathing, and the intense attention he lavished on her coalesced into that perfect moment. The orgasm hit her from all sides, setting off a throbbing in her nipples, clenching in her pussy. Even him pulling a fistful of her hair added to the erotic sensations bombarding her.

She couldn’t quit gasping until that moment when the pulses ended, the roaring in her ears faded to a dull whoosh, and her body quit trembling violently.

Stu-fucking-pendous. She’d never come like that. Not in twenty-eight years. She never knew she could come that powerfully. She’d begun to believe the awe-inspiring orgasm claims women made were a myth.

Not a myth with Ronin Black. He’d made her come that hard without his mouth or his cock, or even his fingers directly on her pussy.

The man had ninja sex skills too.

“I like that smile,” he said with amusement.

“You put it there.”

Ronin teased her lips and dragged his fingertips across her lower belly. “So I did. Hang tight for a second.” He brought her upright and disappeared into the tiki hut bar.

Amery watched his movements as he crossed the deck of the pool. He grabbed something off the counter and turned around.

That’s when she noticed the bulge in his pants. A big bulge. She kept her eyes on it as he settled across from her. Then she met his eyes.

“Yes, my cock is doing a steel post impression right now. That’s how you affect me.” He followed her jawline from side to side with the tips of his fingers.

“Do you want me to do something about that?”

“No. It’ll pass.” He kissed her again. “We’ll test your boldness with that another night.”

She laughed, mostly because this sexual teasing felt right between them. “Okay.”

He bent forward and breathed on her chest, a hot wash of air that made her skin tingle. His touch as he peeled the wax away wasn’t clinical, but highly sensual. His fingers stroking her skin and his soft mouth placing a tender kiss in the spot before moving to the next dot.

Amery closed her eyes, turned upside down by this man. Maybe part of her worried this was a practiced routine with him, but if he’d wanted something in return, he would’ve taken her up on her offer to alleviate his hard-on.

Then he said, “Done.” He kissed her again while he slipped her bra back into place and as he adjusted her shirt and rebuttoned it. He rested his forehead to hers. “You know I want you to stay tonight, right?”

“I do. And you know I would if you asked me. But I understand that’s not in the cards.” She didn’t push—for some reason he was sending her home. If he wanted her to know why, he’d tell her.

Maybe this Zen thing was contagious.

“I’ll walk you down to your car.”

He’d do it regardless of whether she argued with him, so she didn’t bother.

Ronin rose to his feet and helped her up. “You’ll be in class tomorrow night.”

Not exactly a question. “I imagine.” She cocked her head and looked at him. “Unless Sensei says otherwise?”

“No. You will be in class tomorrow night,” he repeated. But he said nothing about what happened after class.

Amery took one last look around the garden before they got on the elevator.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be here again. Sooner, rather than later.”

That was enough for her, for now.

GOING
through the security checkpoint at the dojo still seemed weird even after Ronin had explained the reason for it. Molly had seemed more nervous for the second class than for the first.

Amery took her aside before they joined their classmates. “Mol, what’s going on?”

“I feel like such a klutz in this class. Everyone else got the basics last week. I know we’re moving on to more advanced things, and what if I can’t do them?”

This constant reassurance was exhausting, and frustrating for Amery, because it never seemed to stick with Molly. Still, she wouldn’t give up on her. “What if you can do every technique on the first try and everyone in class is jealous of you?” she countered.

Molly bit her lip. “I never thought of that.”

“We’re here to learn. You’re wrong if you think this stuff comes easily for everyone else.”

Sandan Zach clapped his hands. “Okay, ladies, let’s get lined up and warmed up.” He checked out Amery’s attire. She couldn’t help giving him a little wave that she was in the proper uniform tonight. She wasn’t sure, but he might’ve rolled his eyes.

She’d forgotten to ask Ronin why he required this class to wear uniforms. Made more sense if they wore street clothes to learn the defensive techniques since they wouldn’t always be in nonrestrictive clothing in the real world.

Amery and Molly ended up in the back of the class again. The warm-up consisted of kickboxing moves, focused on keeping a defensive stance while throwing punches. A few push-ups, jumping jacks—which surprised her because they were old school—side stretches, and a minute of running in place.

Before they could catch their breath, Sandan Zach said, “Everyone grab a partner, not the same partner you had last week. We’ll drill what we learned last class.”

Amery didn’t have to look at Molly to feel her panic. Luckily the young woman in front of her, around Molly’s age, snagged Molly for her partner. Amery watched as her classmates partnered up. With the odd number of students, she was left without a partner.

Then she sensed him behind her. How could she be so attuned to him in such a short amount of time? Yet she felt his power—the strength of his presence and how strongly he was drawn to her. Amery allowed a deep cleansing breath, but her lungs were filled with his scent.

As she waited for him to speak, she glanced at her classmates, who were unaffected by his appearance. Only Sandan Zach noticed. He bowed quickly to the man behind her and returned his focus to his other students.

Did that mean he was washing his hands of her?

“Face me,” Sensei said curtly.

When Amery turned around, she swallowed a stab of longing. The man before her was not the man who’d dripped candle wax on her breasts and scraped it off with his teeth while giving her an explosive orgasm that caused her sex to clench in remembrance. He wore black gi pants and a black tunic-like top. Red lettering in Japanese and red embroidery started at the knot of his black belt and stopped at the fringed ends.

His voice was so low she strained to hear it. “Get into position and show me what you learned last week.”

Fuck me
. That bossy tone of his did it for her in a bad way. As soon as she assumed the position, he shook his head.

“Defensive stance. I can knock you over with little effort.” Master Black put two fingers in the center of her chest and pushed.

Amery tumbled back a step. The movement hadn’t hurt anything but her pride. “Why’d you do that?”

“To show you that type of balance has no place here. Again.”

She resituated herself. This time he pushed his shoulder into hers and knocked her back a step.

“You are still fighting the form.”

“I’ve been practicing yoga for eight years. The concept of balance is pretty ingrained.”

“Watch me.” Master Black moved into a squat position. “Push me.”

She did and he immediately lost his balance.

“Watch how a small adjustment changes this into a defensive stance.” He dropped into a semi-squat but turned his right foot in, keeping his shoulders in line. “Now try and push me over.”

Amery placed her hand on his chest and shoved him. He didn’t budge. “Oh. Now I get it.”

“Face forward.”

As soon as she was in position, Master Black slipped in behind her. When his hands curled around her hips, she jumped.

“Relax. Concentrate.”

His heat and strength overwhelmed her. Amery wanted to turn her head and rest her face in the curve of his neck. Feel his pulse against her lips to see if he was as deeply affected by the touch of their bodies as she was.

“Stop.”

I can’t
.

Master Black retreated.

Okay. So he wasn’t bothered by being in such close proximity to her.

His voice, so even toned and precise, melted into her ear. “Here you are the student. I am the teacher. That is all we are. Understand?”

She needed to pull herself together. “Yes, Sensei.”

“Return to position.”

The position she wanted to be in? Naked, on her hands and knees on the mat. Ronin would have one hand fisted in her hair, holding her head upright as he fucked her from behind. His lean hips powering into her. His fingers digging into her skin, holding her in place for his sexual blitz on all her senses.

Amery could feel the give of the mat beneath her knees. She could hear the slap of his groin against the flesh of her ass as he thrust into her. Would Ronin come in silence? Would he roar?

Rough-skinned hands latched on to her chin, forcing her head up to meet his gaze. The dark pools of his eyes held no amusement. “Were my expectations unclear?”

“No, Master Black.”

“Resume the position.”

She moved her feet and threw her shoulders back. He pushed her, but she didn’t wobble as easily.

“Better. Now find the stance again.”

Amery shook it off and found the place between balance and aggression. He couldn’t knock her over, but he came up behind her and put her in a headlock. Her hands went up to claw at his arm.

“Remember the training,” he suggested as he calmly tried to choke the life out of her.

Fuck, fuck, fuck
bounced in her brain.
Think, Amery
. She kicked out behind her and connected with his knee. That caused him to loosen the hold.

But he didn’t let go, which meant she still didn’t have it right.

She reached behind her and cupped his groin. His cock was completely hard. In class.

“Let go,” he said in that deadly quiet, yet demanding tone.

Feeling bold, she managed to rasp out, “Maybe you should show me how you get out of this hold.”

In hindsight, she probably deserved to get thrown on her ass.

One second she’d had a loose hold on his groin; the next he’d twisted her arm behind her back, knocked her to her knees, and placed his elbow on the base of her neck while pushing her face into the mat.

Ninja skills: 1.

Amery: 0.

The position didn’t hurt anything but her pride. Although the man had her pinned down—when had he grown an additional pair of arms?—he still had the flexibility to put his mouth on her ear. “Smart responses will always get you in trouble. A challenge will always get answered. Understand?”

“Yes, Sensei.”

He released her and said, “Stand.”

Amery didn’t bother to look around and see if anyone was watching them. Being dumb enough to taunt Master Black was humiliating enough.

Then the man wrapped his arm around her neck again. “Free yourself.”

She raised her arms and grabbed two handfuls of his hair. Before she could pull hard, he let her go.

“That wouldn’t work if I were a bald man.”

She faced him. “Isn’t self-defense all about adapting? I would’ve tried another move on a bald guy.”

“Show me.”

Dammit. She’d fallen right into that one.

His muscled arm snaked around her throat. This time she reached for his ears, intending to tear them off his head, but he dodged her. Same thing when she attempted to scratch his face or gouge at his eyes.

“Think.”

“There isn’t an automatic response for me yet, like there is for you,” she choked out. “This is only the second class. I don’t think I’ve even learned some of the maneuvers you expect me to know.”

“Then next class you’d better pay closer attention because there will be a test afterward.”

Yippee.

Master Black dropped his arm and stood in front of her, blocking her from the room. “I will push you, Amery, because I have a personal interest in your safety.”

Sandan Zach clapped his hands and said, “Everyone line up.”

Sensei offered her a bow and disappeared around the corner.

And she still found it really hard to concentrate for the remainder of class even when he wasn’t in the room.

•   •   •

AFTER
class, Molly was quieter than usual. Amery should’ve let it go, but that wasn’t her way. “Something wrong?”

Molly whirled on her. “How is it fair that you get Sensei Black’s personal attention?
I
was the one who was traumatized after being attacked by a homeless thug, not you. I’m the one who needs to know how to defend myself. But this class is just like everything else in my life.”

“What do you mean like everything else in your life?”

“Forget it.”

Count to ten.
“No, Molly, you started it. Tell me.”

“You won’t understand. You’re so pretty that everyone is drawn to you. And it’s stupid for me to be jealous of the attention you’re getting from Master Black, because even if you weren’t there, he wouldn’t be focusing that attention on me. I don’t shine like you do. I’m just a bland blob that everyone overlooks.”

Amery was shocked and a little pissed off by this conversation. “Why did you ask me to attend this class with you?”

“Because I didn’t want to go by myself.”

“So by having me there as your crutch, you don’t have to mingle with other students, you don’t have to step out of your comfort zone. That’s what this all boils down to, Molly.”

“No, it boils down to I’m a freak who’s having a hard time making friends here. Then it seems I’ve been on the outside looking in my whole life.”

And whose fault is that?
Amery didn’t voice that, but she certainly thought it. She’d been raised that way and she’d overcome it. Molly could overcome it too. But she wasn’t even trying. “You can change that.”

“I don’t know how.”

“Getting ticked off at me isn’t the way to do it.”

“So how did you meet people after you moved to Denver?”

“I made sure I was open to it. I introduced myself to my neighbors. I’ve tried to get to know some of the people who live on this block, whether they’re working at the coffee shop or they own the business across the street. I’ve had smoothies with a couple women in my yoga class. I’m sure there are people in your master’s program who’d love to hang out with you. Do you know anyone in your apartment complex?”

“I’ve met a few people.” Molly sighed. “When I act bold it doesn’t feel right.”

I know how that goes
. “Take it one step at a time. Tell yourself you’re going to connect with one person each week who is out of your normal realm.”

“Okay.”

She pulled up to Molly’s apartment building.

Molly faced her. “Thanks, Amery. And sorry for . . .”

“No worries. It gets easier. But, sweetie, you’ve gotta try.”

“I will. I promise.”

•   •   •

AN
hour later Amery stood at the front window in her living room, watching the rare summer rain. She’d opened the windows to let the scent of warm, wet concrete fill the room. The curtains billowed in the damp breeze and droplets spattered against the floor.

There was something so cleansing about rain. Something soothing.

Her phone buzzed on the coffee table. Tempting to ignore it and wallow in the fresh air, letting the rain wash away her troubles for one night.

But she picked it up and felt that little twist in her stomach when she saw Ronin’s name. She answered, “Yes?”

“I’m in back, soaked to the bone. I’ve been beating on the door for five minutes. Will you please let me in?”

She’d been so lost in thought she hadn’t heard him. Ironic that most of her thoughts had been about him.

After ending the call, she made her way down the spiral staircase. She swung open the heavy door and momentarily lost the ability to breathe.

The streetlamp bathed Ronin in a silvery glow. Water dripped off the ends of his hair and ran in rivulets down the planes and angles of his face. Droplets sparkled like liquid diamonds and flowed down his black leather coat.

He stared at her, equally mesmerized. In that moment she knew what would happen if she let him in. But he didn’t push. Didn’t speak. He left the decision up to her.

Was she ready to be Ronin Black’s lover?

And the answer came quickly in a mental shout.
Yes
.

Amery stepped aside.

He scaled the step and stood before her.

A cold blast of air gusted in as she closed the door, sending a shiver through her.

Her shivers intensified when she looked at him. Larger than life but so deadly still. A predator poised to pounce.

“If you get the coat dried off, the leather will probably be fine.” She continued to babble. “You can use my blow-dryer on the lining so it doesn’t get moldy. There are towels in the bathroom upstairs—”

“Amery.”

Just the way he said her name shut her up immediately.

He stepped forward, full of grace and purpose.

She stayed frozen, letting him come to her. Watching the rise and fall of his chest. His strong jaw was set, as was his mouth. When he got close enough she could see his face, the searing heat in his eyes had her backing up a step. Then another.

“Stop.”

She stopped.

“Yes or no.”

Still giving her a choice. Amery barely whispered, “Yes,” and Ronin was on her, his hands on her cheeks, holding her head steady for the onslaught of his kiss.

Her mouth opened to welcome him. She tugged him closer, desperate for body to body contact, craving his passion. But he continued kissing her, holding her head hostage while the rest of her body clamored for more.