Iron Dominance (11 page)

When she’d quieted and her heart had climbed down from the heavens, she found her hands at her sides, tangled in the quilt.

She heard Theo move behind her and the slither of cloth falling to the floor.

He leaned his whole body on her, his erection hard against her back. “I think you’re wet and open enough now, darling. If it hurts too much, say so.”

She took in a deep breath, then nodded slightly. Trepidation caught hold of her. This was far beyond what she’d gleaned from anatomy books and demonstrations and gossip. He moved the moistened rope of pearls to one side, then placed his hands over her wrists where they rested at her side and held them down.

This time it wasn’t a finger at her entrance. The blunt pressure of his cock strained at her vulva all the way round, evenly—tight and slowly inching inward through her juices. Holding her breath, she concentrated, wanting to remember this…this stinging, almost painful, stretching feeling of delicious fullness. When she thought his cock could go no farther, he waited a few moments, then withdrew to the entrance and back in, only deeper. Again, the hint of pain, and yet—
Oh, that’s good.

His thrusts strengthened bit by bit until they jolted her, sending her body along the bed. He slowed, rocking back, then building in tempo again. She groaned as his cock seemed to swell inside her, his balls slapping against her clit. That expanding ebb and flow of pleasure returned and overwhelmed the last vestiges of pain. She writhed, or tried to, her wrists twisting under the heavy pressure of his hands. Her clit ground against the pearls as she whimpered, wanting, desperate for more of everything her body was feeling. His last thrust slammed against her flesh, holding her down.

Oh. Yes!

He released into her, his ejaculation spurting inside, his cock so far in, so deep, his balls jammed against her. Ecstasy fireballed, reverberating from clit to core and back again. Flattened between the bed and his body, she gasped out her orgasm, her bottom straining to arch, every muscle taut and shaking her into a thousand white-hot pieces.

Chapter Nine

The soft click of a door and the murmur of voices broke through Claire’s dream. The same dream she’d had before, of something buried deep in the earth and footsteps sounding, just off to the side, where she couldn’t see.

Strange, that she’d slept so soundly. Normally, the smallest noise or even change in smell would awaken her. Yet while beside Theo, in his bed, she’d felt so content, so safe, she’d sunk down into a level where nothing disturbed her.

The dream footsteps had merged into the sound of real ones approaching on soft flooring. She lay on her side, covered with a sheet pulled up to her waist. Through her eyelids, she saw a shadow arrive, then loom closer. She tensed until the heavy scent of the shadow told her this was Theo.

Theo: male, glorious, and last night they’d made love. More accurately, he’d possessed her body and done what he’d wanted. Delicious. Remembering
everything
made her feel like wriggling.

The familiar throb returned to her groin.

Lips softly kissed her bruised ones. “Time to wake,” Theo said. “It’s past dawn.” The sheet slipped away as he smoothed his hand down her arm to the dip of her waist.

She rolled over onto her back and smiled up at him. The neck of his silver-gray dressing gown showed a tempting V of bare chest. When in her life had she ever woken up with a man hovering over her, his eyes simmering with lust? She reached with both hands and pulled his head close again, kissing him back, enjoying the yield of skin on skin.

“I could eat you,” she whispered.

“Aah, but that’s my job. We need to get this off you.” Moving the hand on her stomach lower, he tugged at something. A jolt of pleasure ran up from her pussy.

She glanced down and saw the satin corset, his hand tucked into the pearls dipping between her legs. “I’m still wearing—” She blushed.

“Yes.” He grinned. “You are. You dirty woman. But I like it. Come!” He took her legs and pulled her to the side, until she had to sit up or risk falling to the floor on her bottom. “Up, up, up! The bath is filled with hot water. There’s soap and fresh towels, and…I’m going to watch.” He paused and eyed her upper thigh. “Those stitches look ready to come out. That’s a better result than the galvanic treatment usually gives.”

The skin beneath the line of black sutures was pink and clean.

“I heal easily.” Yet it stirred her to unease. Here was another thing that made her different. Nothing could ever change her nature.

The bathroom was on a scale with his bedroom—large and luxurious. Two bronze sculptures of flamingos guarded a huge round bathtub with gold feet. Half the tub sat embedded into a raised tiled area coming out from the wall. She’d never seen anything like it.

At first, Theo sprawled on a red divan, watching with hooded eyes as she stripped off the corset, bracelets, and choker. Feeling suddenly shy, she stepped into the steaming water.

Though the heat made her gasp, she quickly lowered herself. The bubbles in the water clung to the sides of her breasts.

A thought struck her. “Who filled this?”

“Kirsten. She takes care of my room. You’ll meet her eventually. Why?”

She sank deeper, head back; water lapped at her ears, muffling sound. “She didn’t see…anything?”

“Like your half-naked body?” he drawled, then rose from the couch and walked over. She felt like some water creature eyeing a predator. “I threw the sheet over you.”

Efficiently, he shed his dressing gown. His erection stood out as proudly as the one on the sculpture on the stairs, the muscles of his stomach and chest rippling as he moved. That telltale arrow of hair led the eye to his groin. Trying not to stare and only partly succeeding, she moved to one side, sending water sloshing. Every movement of Theo’s signaled determination—she had a suspicion no wasn’t going to work at the moment.

With the water around his thighs, he looked like some god risen from the depths of a sea.

Seeing his gaze drift lower, she looked down to see her exposed breasts shining with moisture and bubbles. “Um. I thought I was getting clean?”

“You look very clean to me. Come here.” He beckoned, then sat on the edge of the tub. His cock was straight and thick, and almost long enough to touch his belly button—she’d had that inside her last night?

Any thought of not going to him vanished. She waded over on her knees, sliding across the porcelain. She couldn’t help looking at him, at his cock. Last night, buried under the avalanche of her awakening feelings, she’d barely had time to study his body.

“Put your mouth here,” he said, rough-voiced. He wrapped his fist around his erection.

She stared at those gray eyes, at the desire and
command
in them. He knew she wouldn’t refuse. Not when he said it like that. She licked her lips.
What will it taste like
? The end of it was just the right size to slide into her mouth. She put out her hand. The bulbous head smelled fresh and felt soft, with an exciting underlying hardness. He’d bathed already, she realized.

He watched as she put her mouth to the head, then hesitantly engulfed more of him. Her saliva made his cock slide sweetly. It sent a shiver through her, desire flaring between her thighs as she recalled the feel of him, how he’d filled her. When her lips met his hand and she licked at him, swirling her tongue around his cock, he groaned.

“Slow,” he croaked. “Seeing your mouth wrapped round me—”

He released his cock and held her head, guiding her movements, then reached down. The unexpected pinch of fingers and thumbs on her nipples shocked her. She couldn’t move; the world became nothing more than her mouth with him inside, her nipples, and what lay between her thighs.

Theo chuckled. She blinked up at him. “You’d better let that go before you bite me.”

His cock glided from her mouth, leaving it strangely empty and her lips swollen. Salty precum had leaked onto her tongue. He joined her in the water, then moved her so she faced away.

“Sit on me.”

Oh, now that appealed to her. He wedged her feet half under and behind his so she couldn’t slip in the water. With his hands guiding her, the tip of him probed at her entrance, then pressed on in, sliding slowly, like an airship docking into its moorings, so far up inside, her throat closed over again.

“Ah-unhh.” She clamped her eyes shut. Squeezed, down there, tight. If she died right then and there, she’d be happy.

“You’re easily pleased,” he whispered. “Now stay there. Don’t move.” He nibbled at her ear while playing gently with the areolae yet never quite…
touching
them. “Stop wriggling,” he commanded, biting her lobe, hard.

Oh
. Even his bite sent electricity through her, lighting her up everywhere that counted.

Impaled, she panted. How could he make her feel like this? Aching, until it took over her every thought, until all she wanted was to move? The loss of control, the presence of someone who could make her do what he desired, it intoxicated her as nothing else ever had.

“Now?” she begged, gasping as he twitched inside her, and her flesh answered.

“No.” He stroked her neck. “Today, this will be all we do. Day after tomorrow, we’re going on a picnic, where I intend to make love to you, and you are going to let me do whatever I wish.”

“Outside?” she asked, frowning. Whatever he wished? “No tying me up?”

“Perhaps.”

“No,” she said firmly.

Just as firmly, he tweaked her nipples and bit her neck. She almost came.

“Saying no is not allowed. Not yet. Wait and see.” He put a hand under her bottom, one finger slithering wetly between their bodies to the entrance to her anus.

“Hey!” she muttered, squirming, but he held an arm under her breasts and gently wormed the finger inside.

“Saying no might have consequences. Like your little ass here being next on the menu.”

She said nothing, absorbing the strange new sensation, head lowered, eyelids half-closed. It was different—odd, yet nice. Her nerves registered his cock, then his finger. She couldn’t seem to stop feeling them both. Now one, now the other.
Mmm
. Her clitoris twitched, engorging.

Theo kissed her neck and then pulled finger and cock out of her as he pushed her up and off his lap. The sudden change made her whimper. He stood. “I’ll find your clothes.”

While she washed off the bubbles and toweled dry, Theo brought in a set of clothes and laid it out on the chair. In the time she had to herself as she dressed, she questioned what had come over her. Why did she let this man command her? Inkline had done that, and she’d hated him for it. With Theo, it was entirely different. As if her needs were his own, he made sure she reveled in everything they did. Except for when he simply did what he wanted. She smiled. Like he just had. Which strangely pleased her even more.

The plans she’d made of merely pretending to Theo that he had the upper hand had faded away. She didn’t want that anymore. She wanted this, the relationship they had.

They breakfasted at a table set up before the large window in the bedroom, with morning light slanting in across the dishes and glinting off the silver cutlery.

“There’s one requirement that I have to insist upon. I agree with Dankyo that you must write out for us exactly what you know about frankenstructs and the PME. The smallest detail may be important.”

She slowly spread butter across a piece of toast. “I can do that.” She smiled. “In triplicate if you like.”

“Good.” Theo put his hand atop hers on the table and squeezed. His touch and mellow baritone distracted her, and it was a moment before she registered the next words.

“There’s nothing more I want you to do today except rest, and tomorrow you can go to visit June. Maybe I’ll see about showing you around the estate.”

“Oh.” She swallowed a mouthful of toast, then looked up anxiously. “Is she okay?”

“Yes.” He patted her hand. “Dr. Eastway looked at her. No ill effects.”

“I’d rather go to her today.” Funny, how attached she’d become to the lady. She didn’t even know what her real job was here.

“No. You caused quite a ruckus last night.” He dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. “I want to make sure everyone knows your place on the estate before I let you loose on them.”

She cocked her head. “My place?” She supposed some might resent her. Were there others like Dankyo, who would hate her?

“Yes.” He studied her, waggled his head. “Your place. Simple. Under me.”

“Oh! Now that’s—”

“True?”

Heat slowly crept up her neck to her cheeks. In a way, it was true, she guessed.
Oh, heavens
. It appalled her and thrilled her all at once. But saying it out loud.
No.

“Can’t say it to me yet? Never mind. I’ll have you doing it soon.” His eyes danced; then he leaned across the table and kissed her hard and slow until her head spun.

Resting, doing nothing more than sitting about, left too much time for thinking. Theo went missing soon after breakfast.

To occupy herself, she did sit-ups and watched the men and women walking about outside. She thought about examining every inch of Theo’s room—the closed drawers and locked cupboards tempted her. Opening most of them would be easy. Making sure Theo never knew she’d done it wasn’t so easy.

Oh, but it was so, so tempting.

After chewing on her lip awhile, she left them alone.

By the time he returned late that night, she’d done two hundred and fifty push-ups and three hundred sit-ups as well as fifty of every other exercise she could remember. She’d gone through the katas of Judo, Kendo, and Karate.

The first thing Theo did on his return was sniff the air.

“What have you been doing? Bath. Now.”

Horrified at his expression, she scurried to obey.

When he entered the bathroom, she was under the water with just her eyes and the top of her head above the water.

He eyed her. “Are you pretending to be a crocodile or a seal? Because I think I like mermaid better. Perhaps I should check if you’ve grown a tail?”