Sleepless: (Billionaire Bound: Part 2) A Dark New Adult Romance (3 page)

“Now, now… I never said I wouldn’t encourage this process. After all, what good is self-control if you have it only so long as I’m not touching you, sweet Bethany? Ah, but you’re so hot down here already. Remembering last night, hm? This lovely body of yours shuddering every few minutes as your slit was so relentlessly assaulted, given absolute leave to release whenever you wanted. You loved that, didn’t you? Nothing to stop you from that moment of utter pleasure, that moment where you didn’t have to concern yourself with anything except the sensation of the vibrator and your collar around your throat. Good girl, that you haven’t taken it off…”

There was a temptation to simply lean back into his chest and give into the desire to release, Beth admitted. She had been eating the entire time he had been talking, barely able to taste the cinnamon and nutmeg with the speed of her chewing. Undoubtedly, he would make her day completely worth the pain of the nipple clamps and the embarrassing jingle that filled the air whenever she moved, but… but she wanted to prove to him that she could do it. That she could control herself long enough to not give into that desire, to be able to hold onto her arousal and need for as long as he told her to. That was the point of this test, right? For her to gain
control
…

Beth startled herself out of her thoughts when her knife and fork sought for the next bite of pancakes and were met with nothing. She looked down, blinked, and then broke into a syrupy grin when she saw the plate was empty in front of her. Ciaran’s finger had stilled on her clit, seemingly as surprised by her success as she was, but she ignored that as she leaned back, resting her head on his chest and pulling her feet up onto the chair.

Her hand groped under the edge of the apron, brushing his fingers a moment, and then she found the bottom of the vibrator. Beth grabbed it and then moaned loudly as she started to thrust it in and out of her slit, gasping and bucking her hips. It didn’t take long—God, she had wanted it—and after barely a minute, she squealed and arched, releasing against the toy. She lowered her feet to the floor, trembling and shutting her eyes.

“No clamps today, Master,” she whispered, nuzzling against his chest.

Ciaran chuckled. “Good girl.”

Having freed her of her impending punishment involving nipple clamps, Ciaran opted to give her a break this day; that had been, as it turned out, his intention before he saw her cooking naked in the kitchen. Instead, Beth learned about a small town nearby, and how he wanted to take her out for a nice lunch—and possibly dinner, depending on how long they were gone—and for clothing a bit more… appropriate. She had figured he would be a little less than impressed with her selection of jeans and wash-faded shirts, even with the few things she had bought for herself before leaving. Not that he had actually seen those yet with how seldom she was actually dressed in this cabin. There was a part of her that didn’t want to give up the day for more practical things, even if it would give them both a chance to actually get to know one another outside of a bedroom. Or a kitchen, as it were.

The town, she was told, was mostly a tourist trap; not particularly campy in nature, and yet, having traveled a lot for work and being originally from Ireland, Ciaran knew those sorts of picturesque towns only too well. Still, they tended to have good shopping outlets, and superb dining since that was how they made the majority of their income. There was a movie theater, but Ciaran didn’t have any interest in sitting in a dark room, silent, for two hours with the smell of burnt popcorn. Bethany had to admit that he could probably think of things far more interesting to do in a dark room, silent, for two hours. That he
had
done that. Multiple times.

So she finished up her orange juice and then went to take a proper shower upstairs, washing away this morning and the night before, when honestly she had been far too exhausted to do anything but collapse into bed when he had finally let her down. That was, by and large, why she had been naked when she had woken up. There were pangs of disappointment every few minutes, though, when she thought maybe he would come in and join her in the shower, but he never did. Then again, Beth reminded herself idly, he really did seem disinclined to show her what he looked like beneath his perfectly pressed suits, which he never took off unless she was blindfolded.

Most of the toiletries she had brought with her to the cabin were pretty much useless, when the bathroom was stockpiled with the nicest-feeling shampoo, conditioner, and soap she had ever used. She had experienced that her first night here, and it had left her hair looking nicer than it ever had in her life and her skin feeling like velvet. So much of her would mourn having to leave things like this behind when she had to go back to the real world. It went without saying that even for his generosity, and even for the possibility of Ciaran coming around once in a while when he was in town,
this
wasn’t the real world. This was an elaborate, erotic fantasy that was completely impossible and completely wonderful. An itch she’d never known she needed to scratch, coming up sweet as apple pie in Wisconsin.

It didn’t take Bethany too long to finish showering, although she needed a bit longer to dry her hair properly so that it wasn’t soaked and clinging to her cheeks. She took as much care as she could to do her makeup, remembering all the tips Kylie had given her; those tips, previously, had made her feel like a two-dollar hooker, but as she looked into the mirror now with mascara and eyeliner and blush, she had to admit it did make quite the difference. And she wanted to be… presentable, at the very least, standing by Ciaran in front of people he wasn’t paying a lot of money to chauffeur her around.

Dressing proved more of a challenge. Jeans definitely weren’t what he was looking for. She had brought a nice black skirt, though, so she supposed she could wear that… And there was a lovely emerald-green top she had bought just before leaving, with a twisted knot just below her cleavage. She wouldn’t be able to wear her collar with that shirt on, though. The thought pained Bethany more than she would have expected, even as she sighed and put the collar on the nightstand by her bed, reverently.

A simple pair of black ballet flats completed the look, since she didn’t trust herself not to embarrass the both of them if she tried to walk around in heels. With that done, Bethany grabbed her purse off the dresser and headed downstairs to where Ciaran was already waiting. He wasn’t nearly as formal as he usually was, even if that only meant he was wearing a more relaxed-fit blazer and no tie. That was almost sad, when she loved seeing the Eldredge knot he wore all the time.

She smiled at him as she descended the stairs, feeling butterflies of uncertainty in her stomach as he appraised her in silence for a moment. This was probably where he actually noticed how she wasn’t at all thin, she thought to herself in dismay… But after a moment he smiled at her and drew near; Ciaran’s arm hooked around her waist, and he kissed her forehead. “You look lovely, Bethany.”

“Thank you,” she breathed, brushing back a curl that had escaped a pin. “So, uhm, how far away is this town?”

“Not far. Twenty or thirty minutes. We’ll be taking the Mercedes.” He stepped away from her, either completely unaware of how she froze at the name or simply used to her reaction.

“You have a Mercedes?” She gaped, staring at the back of his slick red head before quickly moving to follow after him. Beth didn’t know anything about cars, but even she knew that the car waiting for them as they left the cabin was gorgeous. Sleek and black—and without a roof. A convertible, so that the shiny leather interior was only too obvious. Ciaran only chuckled at her words, opening the passenger door for her so that she could get in.

She took the offer, taking a deep breath as she sat down and stared at all the gadgets. He was in the driver’s seat a moment later—and obviously took great pleasure in taking off at a speed that pushed her into her seat. Beth laughed in delight and smiled at him; he grinned back at her, slowing down to something more reasonable as they turned onto the dirt path that would lead out to the main road.

As promised, it didn’t take them long to get to the town he was taking her to. Ciaran put up the top to the Mercedes and moved around to the passenger side to help her out of the car. Looking around, it was fairly busy for it only being a Friday, with people perusing the quaint little shops and enjoying the benches made out of slabs of stone. There were a few fountains around the place, and as Beth climbed out of the car, the obvious smell of Italian food drifting from somewhere she couldn’t quite identify. She could identify, however, the way many pairs of eyes were upon them. No, that wasn’t quite right; from the moment the Mercedes had pulled up, many pairs of eyes had been upon Ciaran as he adjusted his blazer.

Eyes turned to her secondarily. Bethany didn’t have to really watch to be able to feel the disbelief that filled their gazes as they saw how Ciaran’s arm went around her waist, and she took a deep breath to ignore them. Her fingers nervously tugged at the edge of her skirt as she got out of the car, smiling at him lightly; his gray eyes were blazing down at her, almost unaware of the fact that there was anyone else around. Beth clung to that as she looked at him, reminding herself that of all the girls he could have, and there were so many of them, he had chosen her. He had invited her to his cabin; he had devoted all of his attention to her this week. It didn’t matter what anyone else thought as long as she remembered that. Ciaran could have chosen anyone, but it was her who was nestled against his side.

Before it was time to get something to eat for lunch, they went into a few stores, where Ciaran pointedly bought her more expensive things than she would have ever bought herself. Of course, that wasn’t the only reason why she wouldn’t have bought them for herself, as he helped her select a pair of rather high strappy heels—surprisingly comfortable, but she was still rather sure she’d fall over in them—and a gorgeous diamond necklace that clung to her like her collar did. She couldn’t help but blush a little bit as she tried it on, all the while asking if he was sure about buying something like this for her. He never hesitated.

Lunch ended up being at a gorgeous French bistro, sitting on an outdoor patio next to an ivy-covered archway. Everywhere they went, Beth and Ciaran were still getting skeptical glances from everyone, particularly attractive, thin women who looked at her like she had to be his sister. He couldn’t be actually into a girl like her, of course. Despite what she kept chanting in her head to keep her composure, she knew that it wasn’t because she had actually wanted a salad that she ordered it. Ciaran did insist on ordering dessert for the two of them, though, and they shared raspberry brûlée that was absolutely divine. It was easier to ignore the glances of the people around them when she was talking to him, actually… learning about him outside of how he enjoyed tying her up and spanking her.

Once they were done eating, though, they headed into an expensive-looking clothing store, where he nonchalantly led her into the lingerie section.

Beth flushed. “Uhm, Ciaran, I’m really not…”

He paused and drew closer to her, murmuring into her ear, “Sweet Bethany, as often as you are naked in my presence, I would greatly enjoy seeing you in some of these things.” She shivered as he kissed just below her ear, nuzzling aside her black curls to do so. “Just look around, see if there’s anything you like—damn.” Ciaran drew back as there was a sudden soft hum against her back, and she blinked in surprise and confusion, until he was removing a cell phone from his inside pocket. Beth let out a breath, and he glowered at the ID of whoever was calling. “I have to take this, Bethany. Just look around and pick a few things out, I’ll be back before too long.”

“Okay,” she answered hesitantly as he turned away and headed toward the door to the store so he could answer his phone outside. Beth stared at his back as he left her alone before taking a deep breath and turning back around. She drifted to a nearby rack displaying lacy red bras and started to thumb through the sizes; she didn’t have to look up to know that even more people were staring at her now, forcing herself to ignore them. She knew she wanted to make Ciaran happy. She had for a while now, and if he wanted her to wear these sorts of things, then… she would. Even if she was acutely uncomfortable standing in this lingerie department with other women around.

Her brow furrowed after a minute, though, and she looked up; it took a second, but she quickly identified one of the employees by a nametag. Beth grabbed one of the red bras and approached her with a smile. “Excuse me, do you have this in a thirty-eight double D?”

The employee turned from where she had been hanging up other bras and almost blanched as she looked at Beth. Her eyes lashed downward over her hips and stomach, and Beth shifted uncomfortably, moving the bra toward her to get her attention to shift to it. “Sorry, we don’t. Our bra sizes in this section only go up to thirty-sixes. We do have a plus-size section over there in that corner, though.”

Beth’s throat tightened. “Right. Thanks.” She turned away and put the bra back on the rack before heading toward the section that the woman had mentioned. Hopefully there would be something at least vaguely attractive over there, although she knew pretty well by now how plus-size sections went in stores not geared toward them. Still, running her fingers through her curls, she made herself start searching for something Ciaran might like…

“Excuse me?” Beth looked up with a blink when there was a high-pitched voice from behind her, and she turned around to see who was speaking. She was greeted by a vibrant smile from a slender young woman who had the largest wealth of bright red curls she had ever seen. “I don’t mean to bother you, but I was just wondering… who is that man you came in here with?”

Bethany forced a smile to her face, even though she knew it was cracked and alarming as she stared at the attractive woman. It took her a minute to answer, though. What
was
Ciaran to her? A… friend, an investor? Her Dom? “He’s a friend of mine. A good friend. He’s taking me on a bit of a shopping spree.”

A brow lifted at her, and in a manner she was only too damn familiar with, the redhead’s eyes swept downward over her emerald top and black skirt. “Oh, really? I would’ve thought he’d be your… brother, or cousin or something.”

“Nope, he’s not related to me in any way,” she answered, clenching her jaw as she stared at the woman.

“Oh, well… Would you mind introducing me to him? I mean, if you’re just friends. And everyone saw you two pull up in that Mercedes—God, I’d love to meet a guy like him, you know?”

Beth was pretty sure she was going to slap the woman, and she turned away quickly. “You know, I don’t really think he’d be all that interested in you. Sorry. Besides, we’re kind of on a schedule.”

“Oh, is he gay?”

Her nails turned into daggers and she swung around to face the redhead. “Because that’s the only way a guy like him would ever be seen with me, right? Because what would a sexy, rich guy like that be doing with me?” The woman stepped back, startled. “Well, guess what, all of you who would like to
get to know
him, you can’t. Because he invited me to his private cabin for the week. Me, not some stick-thin, typical pretty girl,
me
.”

“Okay, God, chill out—” the woman tried to interrupt her, glancing around for how Beth had raised her voice so pretty much everyone in the lingerie section could hear her.

“No, I am sick of being treated as less than girls like you just because I don’t weigh one hundred and ten pounds! I matter just as much as any of you do despite the fact that I’m not Hollywood’s definition of beautiful, and all of you are plastic clones who think that you’re better than me because you’re skinny. And he brought me in here because he thinks I’m sexy, and he wants me to wear sexy things, and God knows he could have any of you if he wanted you.”