Comforting Touch (Touch #5) (6 page)

I nod jerkily, willing my breathing to even out. "It's more than okay, Master—" Before I can voice his name, he pinches my ass hard enough for me to gasp.

His eyes spark with something I can't decipher. "Good girl. You've pleased me."

Swoon
.

*

Dinner passes in a haze of decadence. Wine, wandering hands, the finest meat, salads, laughter and conversation among the Tops, fine cheeses, pasta, servitude, and teasing drops of juice from berries and fruit.

Rio decides when Dylan and I eat, and every now and then, he feeds us from his hand. In return, we make sure his plate and cup stay filled.

"I believe they're sending out invitations within a week or two," Rio tells Master Hill, who was wondering about Nicholas and Kayla's plans. "Their closest will be invited down to the wedding in Mexico, and the rest to the ceremony at Switch shortly after their return." He holds out his fruit plate to me, and I'm quick to fill it with grapes, sliced pears, and plums.

"Definitely a feast to look forward to." Mistress Judy raises her glass.

They toast to Nicholas and his little one before moving on to the next topic. Entertainment. They want something tantalizing to watch while the kitchen slaves clear the dinner and make room for dessert.

"I'm happy to volunteer one of my slaves." Jeremy orders a male sub to stand up and then turns to Rio. "How about your gorgeous Chelsea?"

The exhibitionist in me gets a thrill at the prospect, but I don’t even know the sub in question, and…dammit, I want Rio!

"A fine idea," Rio replies with a tight smile, "but I'm afraid I need her assistance on a surprise I have for all of you." He begins to rise. "In fact, we'll go prepare that right now. Slave," he addresses Dylan, "you stay here and talk to no one."

"Yes, Dominus."

Rio nods and gestures for me to follow him.

Chapter 6

Keeping my head bowed, I follow Rio into the house.

"We're going to get a cross from the basement." He stops at a door in the foyer, opening it to reveal a staircase. "Have you ever been crucified?"

I open my mouth to answer, but then I remember I'm not supposed to understand everything.

Rio looks back at me and grins.

The bastard's testing me.

"Cross, Dominus?"

He chuckles and descends the stairs. I follow and stop waiting for a reply; it's obviously not coming. Instead, I scan my surroundings, the glossy, black concrete floor, red-painted walls, heavy wooden doors leading to God knows what. One has a barred hatch in the middle with the sign "Cell" above it. Another two have the signs "Dormitory," which I think might be the slave quarters.

How friggin' big is this basement? It feels like it's as big as the house, with hallways and locked doors everywhere. Due to the faint light from sconces along the walls, I can't even see the end of some hallways.

"Since your English isn't good, I suppose I can say whatever I want," Rio muses. "For instance, I told myself earlier not to bid on you today."

What game is he playing?

I narrow my eyes at his back.

"But then you got here, and…" He sighs, slowing down. Then stops and unlocks a door. "Looking like a damn sin."

Heat pools in my gut.

Rather than opening the door, he abandons it and comes to a stop right in front of me. A few steps and he has me backed into the cold wall behind me. So close. Closer, still. Until his armored ribcage brushes against my breasts.

"It would be so easy," he rumbles in a low voice as his hands trail up my arms, "to take you right here, right now." My knees nearly buckle. "I've thought about it many times." And there goes my breath. "I've wondered what that sweet cunt of yours would taste like, how it would feel to fuck it."

"Oh my God," I whimper breathlessly. My mind swims with images of us together. Him owning me, using my body for his pleasure, controlling me…

He lifts my chin. "I assume that reaction was to my close proximity and not my
words
, slave girl. Hmm?"

I can't speak even if I wanted to. He's reduced me to a mess of need, and I'm beyond ready to beg. At this point, I'll take anything. Anything to ease the ache between my legs and snuff out my thoughts. Anything to please him, serve him, and make him want more of me.

He stares at me so intently that my body starts shaking. My vision blurs, as if I'm about to burst.

Maybe I am.

"To hell with it," he mutters, and then his mouth is on mine. A thousand emotions unleash with a snap, pummeling through me as forcefully as he kisses me. For ten years, I've fantasized about this, and nothing comes close to reality. The taste of him, feeling his power, surrendering to it.

Locking my arms around his neck, I kiss him back as hard and deep as I can. He groans and picks me up, allowing me to wrap my legs around him.
Jesus Christ, yes
. He's hard and big under the thin fabric of his costume, and if we continue this much longer, I'm gonna leave a damn spot.

"I want you on me like a leech tonight," he says, breathing heavily. In between words, he kisses, nibbles, and sucks at my flesh. "Worship, obey, and serve me. The correct answer is 'Yes, Master.'"

Not Master
Rio
? In the communities I've been involved in, it's what Doms usually make subs call them—title and name—unless there's ownership involved—
Who cares! Answer him, fool!

"Yes, Master." I moan as he presses his cock against my pussy. "
Yesss
."

Rio curses and stills our movements. Forehead to forehead, the only sound our panting.

"Fuck, you tempt me," he breathes out.

I search his eyes, looking for things that are probably only there in my dreams.

All I want is a chance.

I swallow my nerves and exhale shakily. "Please don’t avoid me after this. Don't write me off."

He's holding back, I can tell. Maybe it has to do with me, maybe it doesn’t, but there's certainly something.

His gaze softens, and he kisses the spot between my eyebrows before releasing me. "It's not about me writing
you
off. But if you wish to talk after tonight, we'll arrange something. Okay?"

"Yes…" What do I call him now? It's getting a bit confusing.

Rio notices. He smirks faintly and taps my nose. "Dominus, my foreign slave."

Pity
. "Yes, Dominus."

*

That was only the beginning of what turns into one of the most erotic play parties I've attended. The tasks we perform turn it into a real competition with lots of fun and playfulness, but every act is laden with sex, dominance, and submission.

After the first four tasks have been completed, I've lost count of the number of orgasms I've heard and seen.

None for me and Dylan so far, though
.

"One more before I present my surprise," Rio declares.

"I could use some rest." Mistress Judy laughs, having just won the last round in which the goal was to represent as many fetishes in one scene as possible. To everyone's amazement, she and her two sub boys managed to include sixteen fetishes in a single oral scene. Among them were kitten play, CBT, orgasm control, dollification, and edging.

Rio, Dylan, and I finished in second place with twelve fetishes. And Dylan got a mouthful of Rio's cock. Lucky bastard. Hopefully I can be the one to please our Dominus next time.

"Soon, dear Judy." Rio winks at her then turns to Dylan and me. The three of us huddle together, and Rio explains the next contest. "Time for you to prove your worth, Chelsea. I'm going to tie Dylan up, and I need you to assist me with the rope." As the last word leaves his mouth, the kitchen slaves exit the house with unmarked paper boxes.

They place the boxes around the waterhole and remove the lids, revealing bundles of rope that are so tangled that it looks as if it's gonna take an eternity to sort them out.

My faked confusion at the language delays us a few seconds, but my mind is already busy weeding out the serious competition from the easy. Dante is obviously going to be difficult to beat, as is Gretchen. A few others are also experienced in rope bondage, but, then again, I doubt
anyone
is used to untangling clusterfucks like this. If anything, riggers and rope enthusiasts take care of their rope.

Still, eager to please Rio, I hurry over to the water and grab one of the boxes.

I kneel down where Rio is positioning Dylan on one of the couches. Nearest to us, Elysia is only getting the three-ply jute more tangled, which happens when you don’t let the rope untwist itself. Though, it doesn’t take a bondage fan to figure that one out.

Spotting four knotted ends, I conclude it's two pieces of rope, and I work as quickly as I can to untangle one before I tackle the other. Each Top has a sub positioned for a hogtie; they're on their stomachs, knees bent, ankles crossing in the air, and arms resting along their sides, waiting to be tied behind their backs.

"Rio, one might wonder what beef you have with rope." Dante sends him a mock-glare that a few laugh at. "Talk about waste."

"Collateral damage," Rio chuckles, "and well worth it." He gives me a smoldering glance before he smacks Dylan's butt. "Especially when I have these two slaves to play with."

In the end, I manage to untangle the mess first, and I learn that Rio is skilled with rope, too. Which obviously leads to more fantasies about him. We win that round, though all I can think of is being restrained by him.

Then it's time for Rio's surprise I'm so curious about. The cross we carried up from the basement earlier isn't X-shaped like a St. Andrew's cross. It's…well, it's of the Christian variety, and Rio did joke about crucifixion earlier.

"Simon, I need your help," Rio tells Master Hill, and the two check the hooks the cross is fastened to on the wall of the house near the door. Next, Rio summons a scared-looking Miranda.

"What the hell is going on?" Dylan whispers to me.

I shake my head, at a loss. Fuck if I know.

"Can anyone tell me the corporal punishment for slaves in Ancient Rome?" Rio asks casually as he and Master Hill suspend Miranda on the cross.

Dante smirks. "Crucifixion."

"Indeed." Rio's own smirk is sinister.

They construct a quick harness drawn between Miranda's biceps, chest, and shoulders, and the same between her thighs and midsection. Lastly, they shackle her wrists and ankles.

"Miranda's done something very wrong, and she's being punished for it." Rio faces his guests. "Nicholas and I are both in charge of her at the moment, and some of you know what she's done."

I catch Dante's nod, to which Gretchen and I seek each other out and frown, confused.

"For the rest of the night, she will serve as entertainment." Rio waves a hand at the note Master Hill is attaching to the cross. "Anyone who's up to torture a little thief, please feel free to step up at any time during the evening. As you will see on this list, torture includes degradation, pain—do not break her skin—mild face-slapping, humiliation, needle play, forced orgasms, and electro-play."

"Jesus," I mumble, horrified for Miranda. What the fuck could she have done to deserve a punishment so severe? They keep calling her thief, and I'm getting worried it's not a game at all.

While Master Hill sets up a bunch of toys and implements on a small table next to the cross, Rio asks what color she is, and I'm stunned to hear her say "Green." I know we all have our kinks, but Miranda doesn't appear to be a pain slut or a fan of being called nasty things. For Christ's sake, she's shaking and tearing up already.

Jealousy or not, subs stick together, dammit.

"What a treat." Jeremy rubs his hands together, looking more sadistic than Kayla could ever accuse Dante of being. "This will be fun."

Rio offers Miranda a disinterested glance. "By all means. I, personally, wouldn’t touch her with a ten-foot pole if I had a choice. She should count herself lucky Nicholas and I bother with her at all."

"This is killing my mood," Dylan mutters for only me to hear.

"Mmhmm," I agree.

*

Dylan and I spoke too quickly.

With a vibrator attached to Miranda's pussy, her cries of pleasure put us right back in party mode. Granted, that pleasure will be short-lived; after three or four orgasms, it's gonna be hell for her, but it's enough to relax every slave at the party for now.

The Masters and Mistresses use this time to distract us thoroughly. More tasks, more sex, more laughter, more wine, more good-natured ribbing between the Tops.

I return to worshipping Rio every chance I get.

While he sits back and talks to a couple Doms and Dommes, I slide off the low sofa and make my way between his legs. I rub his calves and kiss his thighs, gaining approval when Rio shifts his costume higher and exposes himself more.
God
. He has the sexiest thighs, muscular and strong. I'm caged by him, and a shiver of pure bliss runs down my spine as I realize I want this spot so badly. I want my place to be at Rio's feet. Permanently.

It might still be only a crush, but I want to try. Already, I'm certain it'd be too damn easy to fall head over heels for him.

Pretty stupid even to try if you know he's into open relationships, huh?

Shut up.

Rio sighs contentedly as Dylan starts massaging his shoulders, Rio's armor having been taken off hours ago. And I want to elicit sounds like that from him too, so I lower my head again and kiss the inside of his thighs. His cock begins to tent the fabric of his Roman tunic, even more so when I inch close enough to smell his arousal.

My mouth waters, and I look up at him with the question written all over my face.

His jaw clenches at the same time as the corners of his mouth curve up. I feel his fingers brushing down my cheek, chin, and throat. His eyes follow every movement those long digits make. Then he reveals his cock and retrieves a condom, rolling it on with one hand.

I knew this would happen; it's a play party, and safety comes first. Dylan got the same treatment, of course. Still, I can't help but feel a small pang of disappointment. I would've loved to taste him without the damn rubber.

"I'm not so sure," I hear him murmur. He offers a subtle nod to me, and I lower my head to take him in.
Finally
. I close my eyes and lavish him with my tongue, gentle grazes with my teeth, and eager sucks. He groans quietly and caresses my cheek. "Chelsea?"

I flick my gaze to his as I swipe my tongue along the underside of his hard cock.

"Fuck." His lips part with a labored breath before he schools his features again. "Domina Judy thinks you're avoiding her question as part of your character's inability to understand the language."

I frown and slow down, sliding Mistress Judy a glance. She asked me a question?