Surrender: A Little Harmless Military Romance (8 page)

"And she isn't interested."

"No, she likes Dupree over there and she wants his attention."

"We don't need help with that," Addy countered.

"What better way to grab the attention of a man than to be seen with one of the owners of a very infamous club?"

Amanda glanced at Addy, waiting for her to counter. She also wondered if her friend knew that Walton was doing this all for Addy. The calculating look in Addy’s eyes told Amanda that she was definitely listening to the club owner.

"I have my own table up here and everyone watches it. Why don't you ladies come with me? Dupree will be over there the minute he sees me with you."

Amanda wasn't so sure, but there was something alluring about the man that made her want to follow him anywhere. "Okay."

He took her hand and then pulled Addy closer with his free hand. "Come along with me, Addison."

Amanda followed him along, wondering if this was actually going to work. She settled in her chair. Walton waited for Addy to sit, then he took his own seat. He had pretty manners, and she was enough of a girl to be impressed by them. Granted, she liked being her own woman, but she didn’t mind a little attention from a man now and then.

“So, Amanda, you and Addison own a flower shop?”

She nodded but Addy interrupted her. “Don’t use that tone, Walton”

“Do you notice she uses my last name?”

Amanda had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Addy was acting so out of character.

“Yes.”

“I think it’s a way for her to keep me at a distance. Can I let you in on a secret?”

Amanda looked at her friend, who was pretending to ignore them.

She smiled at him. “Sure.”

He leaned closer to whisper in her ear. “I am a very patient man.”

She couldn’t stop the bubble of laughter. “Oh my, I think she might be in trouble.”

He sat back and smiled at her. Before he could respond, another deep voice, ripe with New Orleans and filled with irritation, interrupted them.

“Well, isn’t this cozy?”

She turned and found a very angry Malachai Dupree standing beside their table.

Mal had been grabbing a bottle of water when he saw Amanda. He’d shaken his head, trying to figure out if he was delirious from too many hours of paperwork. But of course, he wasn't. She was there, walking along as if she came to a BDSM club every day. What the hell was she wearing? It was black, tight, and barely there. He noticed that Addy was with her, and they were following Walton to his table.

Now he was at the table, and he had to figure out a way to get her out of there. Of course, it was going to be hard to do since Walton had taken an interest in her. He was known for his tenacity when it came to subs, and many of them clamored to be his.

“Dupree, why don’t you join us?” he said conversationally. “We were just getting acquainted.”

“Amanda, I would like to speak with you privately.”

She glanced up at him. “I don’t think I want to speak privately with you.”

For a moment, he couldn’t believe she had just said that to him. “Yes, you do.”

“I think the lady said no,” Walton said, even though he hadn’t risen. There was enough of a threat in his voice to gain the attention of the nearby patrons.

“Well, since you seem to be speaking for her, ask her what her father would think if she were in a place like this?”

“And just how are you going to do that?” Amanda asked.

“He called me tonight, so I have his number.”

Her eyes widened. “What?”

“I had a long chat with old Frank, so you might want to tread lightly here. Talk, now.”

He waited for her to stand, and he was mildly surprised that Walton didn’t object. He was known for being very territorial when it came to subs, but he smiled. “You let one of the bouncers know if you need help.”

She shot Mal a nasty look but started to walk. Shit, the dress she was wearing was barely there. It stopped just a few inches below that wonderfully full ass. God, she was either wearing a thong or nothing. Just the thought had his cock twitching and his hands itching to touch.

“Down the hallway.”

He waited for her to obey his order. When she did, he had to remind himself it had nothing to do with sexual play. It was just a means to an end for her. She was trying to get him the hell out of there so she could do what she wanted. The hell with that.

Once they passed by most of the people and they had some privacy, he grabbed her arm and stopped her.

“Just what the hell are you doing here?”

“Addy wanted to come, and she knows Walton, so he got us in.”

“You aren’t supposed to be here,” he said more for himself. He was trying to convince himself that she shouldn’t, but now that she was, he couldn’t get the idea of spanking her for being so bad out of his head.

Shit.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Mal took a step closer, enjoying the scent of her. Amanda didn’t wear perfume, but he could smell the soap she used and that basic primal aroma that always called to him.

“I think you need to watch yourself, Amanda. You’re a little out of your depth here.”

She blinked up at him, those luminous green eyes shining with arousal he knew she didn’t understand. She wasn’t a virgin, of course. She’d been married almost a year before her husband had been KIA. But being a sub was something different, something he knew she didn’t comprehend.

“I think you don’t know me that well, Malachai.”

Damn, he loved the way she talked. She was a military brat who’d lived in five different countries, but that deep Georgia accent clung to every one of her words, drawing out his name. He could only imagine the way it would sound when she moaned.

Shaking his head, he tried to step away. At least he told his feet to move, but another part of his anatomy seemed to be controlling his actions.

She reached up and brushed her fingers over his jaw. He growled and she smiled.

“I’m not a little girl.”

“No, but you don’t know what goes on here or what a Dom will expect from you.”

She cocked her head, the silky strands of her chestnut hair sliding over her bare shoulder. “The question is, are you Dom enough to show me?”

He heard the defiance in her voice, and he knew what she wanted—what she thought she wanted. Settling a hand against the wall on either side of her head, he leaned even closer. Her breath caught, and he could see her pulse flutter in her neck.

“Is that a dare, Amanda? Because there is one thing you should never do and that is taunt a Dom.”

She looked down for a moment, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. His breath seemed to clog in his throat as he thought that maybe he had convinced her she was wrong. Part of him was happy, but a bigger part of him, the one that dreamed of her every night, thought of her every day, was crushed.

She slowly raised her gaze to his and one side of her mouth curved.

“Yeah, Mal, I think I am taunting you.” Her tongue darted out over her lips, and her eyes shone with challenge. “Whatcha gonna do about it?”

For a moment he stared at her, trying to convince himself again that she wasn’t for him. He knew that. Everyone knew that. She was too innocent for this. When she sighed and started to look down, he grabbed her chin.

“We do this, you have to agree to what I want or I walk away. I won’t force you, but if you’re going to try this out, I’ll help you.”

She nodded.

“Okay, let’s go.”

He grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the club and into the night. If he was going to have this one taste of heaven, he would make sure that what they did was private.

And he would walk away in the morning.

After a quick call to Addy to let her know that she was going home with Mal, Amanda allowed Mal to lead her to his car. Her body was throbbing when they got to her apartment. Every inch of her skin was sensitive to the touch. Even the flimsy outfit she’d worn felt constricting. She was still amazed that he’d risen to the challenge. She had hoped, prayed, that if she ever had the nerve, he would. There was still part of her that thought he just did it to get her out of the club. Now, though, she knew that he was attracted to her. If there was one thing she had learned from the horrible experiment of her marriage, it was never to second-guess anything. Life was too short to worry about regrets.

Amanda pulled her keys out of her purse, but Mal took them from her and unlocked the door, waiting for her to enter.

She looked at him. “I can unlock my own door.”

He said nothing, but waited patiently as she stepped over the threshold. She didn’t like the way he was looking at her. It was distant and…cold. It was as if she were with a totally different person than the Mal she had grown to love.

Whoa, back up, she ordered herself. She wasn’t in love with the man. Lust, that was okay, but love wasn’t something she could handle at the moment.

She needed something to be on even ground again. The feeling that he had all the control didn’t go over well with her.

“If you’re just dropping me off, I’m going to go back to the club. I don’t need someone telling me what to do.”

He flipped the deadbolt on the door and then turned around and looked at her.

“I think you’re done flaunting yourself at the club for the night.”

She did not like that tone. Okay, she did a bit. It lit a fire that roared over her. She always liked commanding men, but she had never experienced this. No man had ordered her around like this. There was still a small part of her that wanted to oppose it. She was a woman who knew her own worth, who was independent and didn’t need a man. But dammit, he had her body yearning to be touched with just that one touch.

“I don’t think I asked your opinion.”

His nostrils flared, and she felt herself shiver. Oh God, now
that
was sexy. He might look calm, but she could feel the power within him, shimmering just beneath the surface.

“You will learn to mind that tongue of yours, Amanda. You wanted this, and now you’re going to get a taste.”

She opened her mouth to disagree, but he held up his hand.

"Before you tell me how it's going to go, there are things you have to understand about tonight. When we start,
I
am in control. Of when you can talk, what you can do, and just how much I will spank that ass of yours for pulling a stunt like this."

Her nipples hardened further. Oh lord, that was sexy.

"If you can't give that to me, we better stop right now.”

He waited for her to answer, and she could feel the weight of his question. She knew he was asking for more. She had to understand what they were getting into, and Mal being the kind of guy he was, wanted to make sure she understood what was going on.

She nodded.

“We aren't going to go full force with the submission tonight, but I want to give you a taste of it, let you know exactly what you are getting into. You will not speak unless I ask a question or you give me your safe word. Do you have one?"

She shook her head.

"Well, pick one."

His words lashed out at her, and she didn't like that he was getting so pissed at her. But then there was something in those chocolate eyes of his that had her stopping. He was doing everything he could to control himself, and for a Dom, that had to be a problem. A pretty big problem.

"Flowers."

He nodded in understanding. "You use it if I push you too far, if I hurt you beyond what you can handle. Part of the pain will be…arousing. Every sub has their limits, though. Like I said, we will keep it light tonight, but I want the understanding between us from the start that I will stop if you say that word. I will never push you past that point. But understand that you shouldn't let it loose unless you are willing to stop." He stepped closer and cupped her face with his hand. She could smell him, the scent of the night lying heavily on his clothes, but there was something else there, something that she would recognize until the day she died. Deep, dark, musky. The natural scent of Mal made her stomach muscles quiver. It was as if she had caught the scent of his arousal and her body just took over.

He brushed his thumb over her mouth then slipped it between her lips. "Suck, baby."

She did as he directed, not closing her eyes. She knew without him ordering her that he wanted her to be looking at him.

"I can't wait to slip my cock between those pretty lips. You like that idea, don’tcha, Amanda."

She nodded as he pulled his hand away.

"I like those shoes you have on." He was talking as if they were having a regular conversation. He turned and walked to the kitchenette area. He grabbed a chair and dragged it back over to where she was standing. He turned it and straddled it backwards, leaning his chest against it.