Perception (19 page)

She
briefly stopped on the tattoo on his left side. There, perfectly aligned just
beneath the line of his “V”, was the word “Trust” in plain black bold letters.
Seeing it made her heart pound wildly.

Mercedes
knew all about the tattoo. She knew the meaning because she’d heard people talk
about it at Kink. It was Xander’s motto: Without trust, what was there?
According to him, when he finally trusted someone implicitly, and they trusted
him in return, he would know that was the woman he’d spend the rest of his life
with.

At least
that’s what she heard.

Looking
up at him, Mercedes saw that he was watching her intently. Her breath lodged in
her throat as she realized just what they were doing here. Was this the trust
he was looking for?

She tried
not to read too much into it, choosing to pretend she wasn’t thinking about the
fact that they were about to take this to the next level.

With his
head propped on a pillow, his hands now casually behind his head as though he’d
be able to resist what she was about to do to him.

She
smiled.

He smiled
back.

Without
asking, she leaned down and sucked him into her mouth. It took some work, but
she managed to take him almost all the way to the root, the thick shaft filling
her mouth completely until her gag reflex kicked in. Only then did she pull
back, laving the silky smooth length of him with her tongue.

“Fucking
shit,” Xander groaned, his hips thrusting up, the impact of his large body
jarring her, but she didn’t release him. “Mercedes, baby, I… Oh, fuck yes.”

Not
wanting him to stop her, she began sucking him, taking him deep while she
wrapped her hand around the base of his cock, squeezing firmly, unwilling to
let him come. Not that she expected him to. This was Xander. He had more
self-control than anyone she knew.

“Mmmm,”
he groaned as his hand once again resumed its position in her hair. He didn’t
use force, just a gentle pressure as she sucked and stroked, doing her best to
go slow, but loving the intensifying sounds of his pleasure.

“Come
here,” he groaned loudly and the next thing she knew, Mercedes was turned
around, straddling his head.

Without
questioning him, she continued to focus on sucking him, fearful that he would
distract her to the point she wouldn’t be able to pleasure him the way she wanted.

It didn’t
take but a second for that to happen, and Mercedes found herself grinding
against his mouth, desperately riding his face as he tormented her clit with
his wickedly talented tongue.

“Oh,” she
said, wrapping her lips around his cock to keep from crying out. She did her
absolute best to focus on him, to ignore the absurdly amazing feeling of his
lips on her, his tongue thrusting into her.

As much
as she wanted to maintain control of the situation, it was only a matter of
seconds before she lost.

A
violent, amazing, wonderful orgasm ripped through her, shattering her into a
million tiny fragments as her body locked up, and she totally forgot what she’d
been doing.

He would
admit it had been a power play. One designed to keep him from coming deep in
her throat because the way Mercedes was mastering his cock with her mouth had
been unlike anything he’d ever felt before.

Rather
than give in too soon, he’d redirected his attention to eating her pussy until
she came.

And now
she was resting against him, allowing him a moment to catch his breath and pull
himself together. But he didn’t wait long.

Carefully,
he rolled her off of him and then repositioned them both until he was kneeling
between her thighs, his elbows resting beside her head, his cock tucked against
the warm wet heat of her pussy. He fought the urge to sink into her.

Barely.

“Hi,” she
whispered long seconds later.

“Hey,” he
said with an answering smile, but the smile gently faded and another emotion
bubbled up inside of him. “I need to be inside of you,” he told her.

It was
more of a warning. Or rather, a request of sorts. He didn’t intend to use a
condom, and although they’d had the conversation earlier that day, he wanted to
make sure she was still on board with the idea.

He’d had
an emotional moment when he’d noticed Mercedes studying the tattoo on his side.
He’d had the word “Trust” etched into his skin years ago, a daily reminder of
what he was searching for. When he’d witnessed her looking at it, then up at
him, he knew that she understood.

She was
the
woman. She was the one he trusted. The woman he wanted to spend the rest of his
life with. He had known it for years and years, even if she hadn’t realized it.
But he hadn’t said anything to her minutes ago because he feared he would freak
her out. That and he had hardly been able to swallow past the lump that had
formed in his throat.

Mercedes
reached her hand between them, gripping his cock in her hand and he groaned. “I
need you, too,” she whispered back, the raspy inflection of her voice making
his blood boil.

“Just
like this,” he said, making sure she understood.

She
didn’t hesitate, just shifted so that he was aligned with her slick entrance.

“Yes,”
she said, leaning up and pressing her lips to his, “Just like this.”

Oh, damn.

Xander’s
muscles tensed as soon as the head of his cock breached the scalding entrance
to her pussy. He had a long way to go and for the first time in a very, very
long time, he had to pray he wasn’t about to do what every man feared – come
prematurely.

But she
felt so… fucking perfect. That was the only way to explain it. Mercedes was
perfect. Every inch of her skin was molded to him, her leg was now wrapped
around his hip, her ankle pressing into his ass as she encouraged him to go
deeper.

“I’m
taking my time,” he warned her.

“Don’t
bother,” she urged with a grin. “I’ll be right there with you. And then, after
we’ve slept for a few hours, I’ll wake you while I ride you.”

Lord have
mercy.

Xander’s
hips took on a life of their own, and he thrust forward, his cock tunneling
deeper as Mercedes cried out beneath him.

He
immediately stilled.

“Don’t
stop,” she pleaded. “Please don’t stop.”

Her ankle
pressed harder against his ass and Xander couldn’t resist sliding even deeper.
Wanting to find the position that would send her over as fast as he feared he
would be going, he pushed himself up onto his knees and gripped her ankles,
holding her legs straight up. With her hips elevated off of the bed slightly,
the back of her knees against his ribs and her ankles near his head, he began
shallowly thrusting into her, never retreating fully until he was rocking
faster, the sweet grip of her cunt on his cock making his head spin.

“Harder,”
Mercedes pleaded, her hands clasping onto his thighs as she tried to pull
herself toward him. “Deeper.”

Unable to
speak because he was overwhelmed by more than just physical sensation, Xander
kept his eyes locked with hers as he began to increase his pace. It wasn’t
until he had her practically bent in half, her legs now over her shoulders and
was pounding hard and deep into her that she began chanting his name over and
over. Just the sound of her voice and his name on her lips had him nearing
closer to the release he was beginning to crave like a drug.

“Fuck,
baby,” he growled. “Your pussy’s so damn tight. So fucking perfect.” He
continued to ramble, not quite sure what he was saying, but as that telltale
tingle started in the base of his spine, he couldn’t stop himself.

“Xander!
Oh, yes! Xander, I’m coming!”

And
that’s all it took for him to lose it. Coming hard and fast, the only thing
that kept him upright was the fear of crushing her. He wasn’t sure how many
minutes passed before he had control over his body once again, but by then, he
knew it was too late.

What had
just happened between them, what could be easily classified as an earth moving
experience, had likely just sealed his fate.

Pulling
out of Mercedes, he immediately missed the silky warmth of her body surrounding
him. But he managed to force himself to his feet and over to the bathroom. He
took care of business and then returned with a warm washcloth. Attempting not
to wake her, Xander cleaned between her legs before making the trek once more
to toss the cloth into the hamper.

He
crawled back into bed, pulling her as close as he could and practically
wrapping himself around her. It was then, as his mind began to drift into sleep
that he knew without a doubt that he’d never be able to willingly let her go.

~~*~~*~~

Mercedes
didn’t know what time it was when she came awake suddenly. It didn’t take her
long to acclimate to where she was. She heard Xander’s heavy breathing, the
heat of his body surrounding her, the safety of his arms immediately bringing
her out of her dream.

As she
lay there, she tried to ignore the dream, tried to ignore everything except for
the man spooning behind her.

For the
first time in a very long time, Mercedes didn’t want to flee the bed when a
lover was there. Not that she’d taken a lover in a really long time, but even
though her memories of all the others were blurry, she knew without a doubt
that this was different.

How, she
wasn’t sure.

Aside
from the fact that she still feared she couldn’t be what Xander needed – a
submissive – there was a shameless hope that maybe, just maybe they stood a
chance together.

Not that
she was thinking about forever.

Definitely
not.

Ok, maybe
a little.

Wait.

Forcing
her eyes open, Mercedes glanced out at the Dallas skyline brilliantly lit
against the inky night sky. The view, even from his bed was incredible. She
didn’t have exactly the same view as he did, and as she lay there, trying to be
quiet and listening to him breathe, she tried not to think about how much she never
wanted to leave this place.

She
wasn’t talking about his condo or even his bed. No, Mercedes was talking about
his arms.

Never in
her life had she felt for someone what she was beginning to feel for Xander.
Ok, so maybe it was because they were friends. Great friends. Longtime friends.
She had never been in a relationship that had such a strong foundation as this
one.

Not that
this was a relationship.

Hating
where her mind was drifting to, but not willing to let go of the security of
Xander’s arms around her, Mercedes decided to listen to her body, rather than
her heart.

Rolling
onto her back and then over to her side so that she was facing Xander, she
discreetly – or what she hoped was discreetly – wrapped her leg over his hip,
gently urging him to roll over too.

He did.

He didn’t
say anything either, but his breathing had quieted, so she figured he must be
awake.

Fine,
she’d do this his way.

Rather
than jump on him immediately, which she had to admit was a damn fine plan,
Mercedes began stroking him slowly until his cock was thick and hard, pulsing
against her palm. Then and only then did she climb over him, slowly lowering
herself onto him until she was completely impaled by his impressive erection.

Before
she could move, Xander’s hands slid up to her hips. He didn’t rush her, and he
didn’t open his eyes either. Instead, he just pulled her down onto him, her
breasts crushed against his chest while he filled her completely.

Their
mouths met, their tongues began a lazy slide back and forth, back and forth as
he began to pump his hips, driving himself deep inside of her.

And in
her mind, that moment would go down as the first time she had truly made love.

Never
once did Xander rush, never once did he break the kiss either. The friction
intensified, but his pace never did. Slow and steady, until Mercedes could take
no more. Her body began to tingle, that gentle pulse that started between her
legs and radiated outward, through her core, her arms, her legs, her fingers
and toes.

She was
fully engulfed by the man and the orgasm that rippled through her wasn’t earth
shattering like before, but it was, without a doubt, the most amazing orgasm
she’d ever had. It consumed her entire body. And Xander, being the Dom that he
was, had controlled every movement, every single satisfying movement.

And only
when she settled, did he increase the pace, pumping his hips faster until
another orgasm was building, faster, hotter, this one like a tsunami rather
than the gentle rolling waves like the first. It was then, as he claimed her
body, sent her soaring one more time that he came hard and fast inside of her.

It wasn’t
long before Mercedes gave herself over to sleep, knowing that this man had
forever changed her.

But in
ways he probably hadn’t expected.

Day
1… Officially

Thursday

The
following morning, Xander found himself in his office, a cup of coffee in hand
as he stared at his computer screen just as the sun was beginning to filter
light through the thin layer of clouds overhead. He’d been up for at least two
hours, having left Mercedes to sleep in a little longer.

He knew
she was usually an early riser, but he hoped she’d stay in bed. And unless she
had snuck out of his condo without him knowing – which was damn near impossible
– he figured she was still asleep. Considering it was only six, he hoped that
was the case.

Right on
time, his phone rang and he snatched it up, even though he knew Mercedes
couldn’t hear it.

“Morning,”
he greeted.

“Why is
it you’re always up so early?” his mother asked.

“Me? What
about you?”

“It’s not
early for me.”

His
mother was definitely a morning person. Maybe that’s where he got it from, he
didn’t know. But, this was the same way they began pretty much every
conversation they’d had for the last few months.

“How’s
Dad?” he asked, getting right to the point.

“He’s
doing better,” Stella told him.

“Ok,
spill it, Mom,” he ordered when she hesitated.

There was
a long sigh and then his mother’s voice once again filled his ear. “He’s fine,
really. We went to the emergency room, and they x-rayed him thoroughly. No
broken bones, but he’ll be sore for a few days.”

“What
happened?” Xander asked as he leaned back in his chair, unable to disguise the
worry in his voice.

“It was
silly, really. I don’t think he’d want me to tell you.”

Xander’s
mind immediately went in the wrong direction, and he sat up straight. “Ok, you
know what. Never mind. Forget I asked.”

Stella
laughed, her soft, elegant tone drifting back. “Not that. Oh, dear.”

Xander
could imagine her blushing to the roots of her short, dark hair.

How had
she known what he was thinking?

“But,
regardless,” she said with another laugh. “He’s fine. Just being a man, soaking
up the attention for a little while.”

Xander
knew his father and he understood what his mother was saying. So, maybe it was
true that they both generally allowed Stella to dote on them more than
necessary. Xander knew it made her feel better, which was why both him and his
father had never told her that she was a little overbearing, especially when
someone was hurt.

“Do I
need to come up there?” he asked seriously.

“No, I
don’t think it’s necessary. But if it’ll make you feel better, we’ll never tell
you not to.”

Xander
grinned. That was his mother. That was her way of saying she wouldn’t mind him
visiting. It had been at least three months since he’d seen his folks. They
were always travelling, and in order to make sure they didn’t have to change
their plans, he would make time to fly to wherever they were, allowing his
mother the opportunity to give him a guided tour of whatever city they were
invading at the moment.

“I think
I should come visit,” he told her firmly, knowing ultimately that she wouldn’t
put up a fight.

“Fine. If
you insist.”

Xander
laughed out loud. “I insist, Mother.”

“Good.
Then that’s settled. I’ll let you know when we move on and where we’re going.
But for the next few days, I’m going to make him stay right where we are. At
least until I know for sure he’s not going to hurt himself again.”

“Is he
around?”

“Of
course.”

“Can I
talk to him?”

There was
some shuffling on the phone and then his father’s gruff tone sounded in his
ear.

“What did
she tell you?”

“That the
two of you were hanging from the rafters and had just moved on to swinging from
the ceiling fan. Something about hot, monkey sex, Dad. It wasn’t a good visual,
and I absolutely have no interest in talking about it,” Xander said deadpan.

“Oh, dear
Lord,” Stan Boone groaned. “Why in the world would she tell you something like
that?”

Xander
laughed again. “Please, Dad. Do
not
go into detail. I really don’t want
to know.”

“Good,
then I won’t. When are you coming to see us?”

That was
his father. Always right to the point and never ashamed to let him know that he
preferred him to come visit. That sealed Xander’s plans, so he answered with,
“Give me a couple of days. I’ll let you know when I can head out.”

“What are
you working on? Buying up the other half of downtown?”

“I’m
trying,” he chuckled as he shook his mouse to make the monitor come online.

“Seriously.
Did you hear anything more on the Milton building?”

“Not yet.
Mercedes is putting in an offer for me. I’m hoping we’ll know something more by
the end of the week.”

“That’s a
smart move, son.” Stan wasn’t into real estate by trade; however, he was
interested in everything that Xander did, so through the years, he’d made a
point to know the ins and outs of the real estate market.

“I
thought so,” he answered easily.

“Are you
going to
X-hale
tonight?”

Shit. Was
it the third Thursday of the month already? Xander pulled up the calendar on
his computer. Yep. It was. “Yeah, I’m going over there.”

“Tell
Shane hello for us,” Stan told him. “One of these days, maybe we’ll be back
down there. You can take me again.”

Xander was
pretty sure he heard something in his dad’s voice, something very much like
longing. But he didn’t question him, rather saying, “I’d like that, Dad.”

Going to
X-hale
– the cigar bar Xander purchased and renamed roughly four years ago – was a
monthly thing, something both he and Shane looked forward to. For the year
before his mother and father headed out on the road, Xander would invite his
father as well. Not that he went often, but the few times he did, Xander knew
the man had enjoyed himself.

“Look, Dad.
I’ve got a conference call in a few. Tell Mom I love her and that I’ll see you
both in a couple of days.”

“Will
do,” Stan answered. “And try not to think about your mother and me on those
rafters, will you?”

Xander
laughed, just as his father had probably intended, as the call disconnected.
Leave it to his father to try and torment him. The man was always trying to
come up with something.

~~*~~*~~

Mercedes
was dressed and downstairs just in time to see Xander walking into his kitchen.
She was carrying her shoes and heading for the coffee pot, hoping she didn’t
look as harried as she felt.

Snatching
a cup from the cabinet, she dropped her shoes on the floor and grabbed the
coffee pot. God, even one cup would go a long way to improving her morning. As
it was, she wasn’t sure she could function without at least a little caffeine.

“I can’t
believe you didn’t wake me up,” she chastised him when he came up behind her.

“You
looked so peaceful. If I had my way, you’d still be in my bed,” he mumbled
close to her ear, pulling her hair back from her neck and placing a kiss to the
sensitive spot that made her shiver.

“I have a
meeting,” she told him, pulling away to glance at her cell phone. “Shit. I’m
actually late.”

“Where’s
your meeting?” Xander took her coffee cup from her hand and placed it on the
counter before turning to the refrigerator to retrieve the creamer.

“Not far
from here,” she informed him. “I’m meeting a client.” Fidgeting with her shoes,
Mercedes finally managed to get the damn things on, and when she turned back to
Xander, he was holding out her coffee mug.

Mug.

Not cup.

He’d
transferred her coffee from a cup to a mug, and he was sending her on her way.

“Be
careful. Call me later.”

Mercedes
stopped. She stared up at Xander. “You’re sending me on my way, just like
that?”

“Just
like what?” he laughed. “You’ve got a job to do, M. I wouldn’t dream of getting
in the way of that.”

Yes, she
did have a job to do. But for some reason, she’d expected him to be… demanding
or something. Insisting that she stay and do something. Hell, she didn’t know.

He
stepped close, placing his hands on her hips as he pulled her against him.
“Trust me, if I could keep you tied to my bed, you’d be there right now. And
I’d be buried so deep inside of you, you’d never be able to let me go.”

Mercedes’s
sucked in air. When he talked to her like that… It did strange things to her.

“Well,”
she said on a breath. “I better go.”

“Yes, you
better.” Xander pressed his lips to hers. He didn’t linger, didn’t tease. Just
quick and sweet. “By the way, it’s Thursday,” he told her as though she didn’t
already know what day it was.

“And?”

“And I’m
going to
X-hale
tonight.”

He looked
disappointed, but Mercedes knew he enjoyed going to the cigar bar. It was one
of the highlights of his month and had been for years. So much so that he’d
acquired, redesigned and renamed one of his own a few years back – What had
previously been known as
Smoke
became a much more refined establishment
appropriately named
X-hale
. According to Shane, the name had been
Xander’s ego hard at work.

“Ok.” At
the moment, Mercedes didn’t have any plans for the night, but she wasn’t going
to tell him that. If she did, she feared he might just change his plans for
her. And that was the last thing she wanted. “I’ll call you later to find out
what time you’ll be home.”

Xander
nodded, but he didn’t say anything.

It was
Mercedes’s turn to assure him, even though every second that passed made her
that much later. “I’ll be here tonight. Just like I promised.”

Xander’s
eyes softened, and she realized that was exactly what he’d been worried about.

Breaking
the eye contact, she held up her coffee mug in salute. “Thanks for this. I’ve
gotta go, but I promise, I’ll call you later.”

“I’m
holding you to that.”

Of course
he was.

Several
minutes later, Mercedes was walking through the parking garage. On the way down
from Xander’s condo, she had called her client, informing her that she was a
few minutes behind. She didn’t make a habit of running late for anything and
she still wasn’t sure how she’d managed to be so careless that morning.

Because
you slept like the dead after Xander rocked your world.

Ok, so
there was that.

Once
inside her Lexus SUV, Mercedes placed her coffee in the cup holder, staring
down at it for a moment. Xander had prepared that for her. Just like…

No way.
Do not go there.

It was a
simple task, one anyone would’ve done. She was not going to read any more into
it. Just because they’d had phenomenal, top-of-the-head-exploding sex last
night did not mean they were a couple.

This was
still a deal. One that would only last a few more days.

Mercedes’s
phone rang. Thank God.

Hitting
the button on the steering wheel to activate the Bluetooth, she greeted the
caller. The number that came up on the navigation screen was unfamiliar.

“Mercedes?”

“This is
she,” she told the female caller.

“This is
Samantha McCoy.”

“Hello,
Samantha,” she answered in return, trying to hide the confusion in her voice.

Oh, God.

If Sam
were calling to discuss her desire to learn about submissives, she just might
run her car into a wall.

“Please
call me Sam. I just wanted to call to see if you had plans tonight.”

Tonight?
Right. The boys – including Logan – would all be at the cigar bar. “I, uh –”

Sam
interrupted. “Some of us are going to go out to a… you know… a toy shop.” Sam
paused, and Mercedes smiled. The woman was nervous.

She
didn’t encourage Sam to continue because she had no idea what the woman was
requesting.

“We
wanted to see if you wanted to go with us.”

Wow. That
was a surprise.

“An
invitation to a sex shop?” Mercedes said with a laugh. “I have to admit, I
don’t get those types of invitations much. At least not from a woman.”

Sam
laughed, some of her anxiety seeming to fade away. “Yeah, well, me either. But,
we figured since the boys get their night out, we’d do something that would…
benefit them too.”

Mercedes
liked the idea of a girl’s night out without men. She hadn’t been able to spend
a lot of time with Clarissa, her closest friend, because Clarissa’s schedule
was even more bogged down than Mercedes’s. But tonight, she certainly didn’t
have anything to do because Xander would be gone, and she feared if she sat at
home, she’d only find ways to pick apart everything that had happened over the
course of the last two days.

“Sure,
I’d love to go,” she told Sam now.

“Perfect,”
Sam said enthusiastically, just short of a squeal.

Mercedes
listened while Sam gave her the details: time, place, what they’d be doing
before in case she wanted to join them for drinks. When Sam finished with the
instructions, they said their good-byes just as Mercedes was pulling into the
parking lot of her destination.

A group
of girls at a sex shop.

Why the
hell not. It could be fun.

And it
would be her chance to set the other women straight. After all, they were
probably still under the impression that she was a sub.