His Demands (20 page)

She dragged her body up rom the bed.
Kaela scanned the room. Broden had left no indication of where he’d gone, but
she suspected the beach. Walking usually helped her. Glancing at the clock, she
wasn’t surprised it was past noon. She only hoped he would come back soon so
they could talk.

Finding a robe on the back of the
bathroom door, she pressed the dense material to her face, inhaling his tangy
scent. Her heart ached just trying to put the pieces together, thinking about
the words they’d whispered to each other after moments of passion.

She managed to find the kitchen and
a coffee pot. There was no evidence he’d even walked into the kitchen. There
was no indication of where he was at all. Shaking her head, Kaela hit brew and
walked toward the door leading to the back deck. The sun was waning with clouds
rolling in. As she walked out onto the deck, she could smell a storm on the
horizon. Shivering, she folded her arms and looked up and down the shoreline.
There was no sign of him. She could see his car still in the driveway so he
hadn’t gone far.

Kaela tried to figure out what to do
and for a few minutes she was simply full of sadness. She had several thoughts
but knew it was going to take her breaking down her last wall, utterly and
completely trusting Broden. The single time he’d attempted to tie her down
she’d nearly freaked and then never told him why. The time spent with the
Master Dom, the very interesting friend of Angela’s, had helped her understand
the difference in a Dom and a sadist. No one in her life had been able to
explain to her or cared to try. She’d never told anyone the details of her
brutal beating, preferring to keep that part of her life private. Suffering
alone had taken its toll.

The Master had been good enough to
give her books and articles to read and before she’d left for Hilton Head,
she’d poured over them. Both she and Broden were experiencing grief as well as
trust issues. For them to have a chance, they both needed to be open and
honest. She had a feeling this day would be the telling.
Or
the ending.
She needed time for her own personal reflection and a
decision. If she wanted to keep the man she’d fallen in love with in her life,
she was going to have to give him the ultimate gift. The challenge she only
hoped wasn’t too great.

****

Broden was tired of being an
asshole. He was over running from his demons and from the woman he’d fallen so
desperately in love with. As he polished off his beer, the one he’d been
nursing for well over an hour, he glanced out at the ocean and knew what he
wanted for the first time in his life. He’d been sitting in the same spot at
his favorite little bar right on the water for almost three hours, watching the
waves lapping at the sand and trying to figure out what to do. The late
afternoon sun reminded him just how long he’d been gone. Either Kaela had left
him cold, which by all means she had the right to do given his ridiculous
behavior, or she was waiting until he returned to put him in his place.

Right now he preferred the latter.
He was tired of playing the wounded coward routine. Tossing a twenty on top of
the bar he walked outside, standing just long enough by the shoreline to garner
the last bit of strength. Broden chuckled. For all his bravado and the bullshit
he gave in the office, he was really a simple man who wasn’t certain of himself
or the future. The very concept he hadn’t known Samantha had asthma bothered
the hell out of him, but the woman had been very private about her life before
him and even when they were together, preferring to live alone. She’d had her
work and her set of friends and when they shared times together, mostly
involving BDSM, they talked little. As he thought about his past and about
Samantha, he realized he knew nothing about her really.

Even after her death and the way his
hometown and her family had acted, he knew almost nothing about her family
except how devout they were to their religion. And for Kaela to have found out
more than he knew was…interesting. Broden inhaled the scent of the sea and
glanced at the sun, making a promise to forgive
himself
,
just like Kaela had asked.

He began the mile or so
walk
back to the house, his hands in his pockets and his
heart on his sleeve. One thing he knew very clearly, he wasn’t going to let
Kaela go without a fight.
If she’d have him back.

When he walked up the stairs to the
back deck, his realized he was happier than he’d been in years. The moment he
opened the door he heard music and there was an incredible scent coming from
two directions, mixing together in a sensuous way. As he waked further inside,
he could tell the sexy woman had been busy.
“Kaela?”

Broden glanced around the living
room. From the candles lit on the mantle and coffee table to the wafting of
what had to be spaghetti sauce coming from the kitchen, his cock was tingling.
He walked toward the kitchen. As he walked inside he stopped short. There was
evidence of cooking, but what drew his attention immediately was a silver foil
bag flanked by two wine glasses and an open bottle of red wine. Propped up
against the bottle was a note.

Slowly he walked toward the island
and for some reason his heart was racing. He could tell this wasn’t goodbye but
he was still shaking. As he pulled out the crisp linen paper he titled his head
and was shivering.

You
gave me the ability to trust again and for that I’ll forever be grateful.

You
allowed me to enjoy the woman I knew was buried deep inside.

You
gave me the greatest gift you could ever give a damaged woman.

Now
it’s time to give you what you once called the greatest gift.

If you’ll accept…

Kaela

Broden shuddered, his heart racing.
As he glared at the bag, a nagging feeling churning in his stomach, he listened
for any sounds of her. There was nothing but the waves crashing against the
shoreline and the subtle yet powerful guitar strains. As he peeled back the
layers of tissue paper, much like she’d peeled back his horrendous mask, he
exhaled seeing the contents of the bag.

The rope was knotted, tan in color
and the moment he lifted the piece out of the bag, he knew what her gift was.
Moaning softly, he held the rope in his hands, brushing his thumb back and
forth across the twists and knots. Very carefully he laid down the rope and
yanked off the cork out of the wine bottle. Pouring two glasses of wine, he
gathered both glasses and the rope in his hands and walked out of the kitchen
to find her.

Kaela stood quietly at the window in
his bedroom, dressed in a slip of a gown. Candles were lit, placed in various
locations and the scent of vanilla and cinnamon was intoxicating. She remained
unmoving as he entered, her hand palming the glass.

He stood admiring her beauty, her
frailty and in that moment he could see her strength, so much more than his
own. Broden took another step forward.

“Joseph was the love of my life.
During the early months we were together he was so wonderful, showering me with
love and attention. He took me out and spent money on lavish dinners and
clothing, jewels and trinkets of all kinds. He gave me love and we made love.
I’d never been so close to a man. Joseph was the one who introduced me to
domination and submission. We went to a few BDSM clubs and simply enjoyed
sharing with others, trying out a few harmless things. He never pushed, never
told me I had to do anything. Over time I trusted him in telling him I’d always
wanted to be controlled and owned and as I learned more about the lifestyle I
felt even freer to share with him.”

When she took a breath he inched
closer but remained quiet.

“We began trying little things, some
spanking and simply tying my hands. I enjoyed being controlled. We even talked
about him collaring me. Things began to get more intense. We went to the club
almost every weekend and he wanted to share me. I didn’t think much of it at
first but then things got very odd with him, possessive. I thought he was
simply being a Dom like man, usurping authority so I said nothing. A couple of
months went by and Joseph started to change, his moods getting darker.”

Broden placed the rope on the bed,
his heart racing. As he flanked her side he offered a glass of wine, still
remaining quiet.

Smiling, Kaela darted a glance and
wrapped her hand around the glass. She took a sip before continuing. “A few
things happened with him and the spankings became more severe, his moods
angrier and one night after we’d been out and drinking, we went home and he
wanted to tie me up and whip me. He’d bought this new whip and he told me and
wanted to try it out. What I didn’t realize until after he’d tied me up was
that he was
angry,
enraged another Dom had asked him
to use me for a night. The man wanted to trade off and
he
…”
Kaela’s voice trialed off, her hand shaking as she brought
the glass to her lips.

Longing to reach out to her, he
leaned against the window, turning slightly but allowing her distance.

“I know what you must be thinking. I
love being spanked even today. It wasn’t the aspect of spanking. See, I agreed
to being tied completely and for a few minutes I enjoyed the sensations and the
control but then something changed.” Her voice skipped as she moaned.

He wrapped his arm around her
instinctively, pulling her close. “It’s okay.”

She shook her head and while she
didn’t push away, she tensed. “Yes, it is.”

“You don’t have to finish.”

Inhaling deeply, she took another
sip of wine and turned to face him, cupping his face with one hand. “Yes, I do.
I can separate then and now, but that took me until finding you and the way
you’ve been with me.”

Broden shook his head. “Any man who
hurts should be castrated.”

 
Blushing, Kaela smiled. “Thank you. Trust me,
I feel the same way. Joseph was full of rage and lost it. I only realized later
how damaged of a man he really was.” Her voice caught. She breathed in and out
several times before continuing. “He…he um took the whip and beat me until I
was unconscious. I couldn’t get him to stop and I had no idea why he did what
he did.” Sobbing quietly, she blinked rapidly.

“Oh my God.
Oh my God!”
Broden snapped. “What…what happened?” Wiping her tears, he had no idea what to
do to help her.

“He left me alone and if it hadn’t
been for a neighbor who heard the commotion and called the police, I might…I
might have died. Joseph was arrested and spent some time in jail, all of about
one month for assault. No one understands the BDSM community so they shied
away. I wasn’t permanently damaged but…” Kaela looked out the window.

Broden sighed and glanced toward the
rope, his heart swelling. “I need to say
somethinfg
.
I need you to listen to me.”

She smiled shyly and nodded, keeping
her face toward the window.

“I love you and I want to spend the
rest of my life with you. I will do everything in my power to allow the gift
you’ve given me to be nurtured, but with love and trust, not with pain. I don’t
need to be your Master. I need to be your husband. Will you marry me?” He hadn’t
planned on asking her and had no idea if this was the right time. What he did
know was this was the right woman.

Kaela snapped her head in his
direction, her eyes full of shock. She took a step back and gasped.

And he thought for certain she was horrified.
“Kaela, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to pressure you and
I
…”

“Sssshhh…” Placing her fingers
across his mouth, she shook her head and inched closer. “Did anyone ever tell
you that you talk too much?”

“One very feisty
woman who works for me, yes.”

“Hmmm… I think I like her.” Kaela
brushed her lips across his, darting her tongue inside his mouth. “What about
the contract, the demand you made?”

He could see tension ease from her
face. “Hmmm… Good point. Well, my Vice President will have to work that out
with me in spades.”

“And your fiancé?”

Broden eased his arm around her
waist, caressing her back. The electricity between then sparked and he was
breathless, his cock aching for her, the woman he so loved.

Purring, she took a step back,
sipped her wine and handed him the glass. Giving him a nod, she walked toward
the bed.

His entire body was shaking from
anticipation and while his negotiation skills might have been a bit rusty, he
was never going to be the same man again.

Kaela picked up the rope, fingering
the woven strands before looking at him. Placing the twists knots in a
strategic position, she glanced in his direction, the look full of submission.
“Yes. The answer is yes.” She removed her silk teddy, tossing the material
before lying down on the bed, spreading her arms and legs wide.

For the first time in his life, he
was happy, truly happy. Every step slow and methodical, he walked toward the
bed, gazing down at the love of his life as he removed his clothes. “Do you
trust me?”