The Ivy Lessons (13 page)

I feel that tug again. It’s so strong. Being with him is intoxicating.

‘Okay,’ I whisper
.

‘
I want to know more about you,’ says Marc. ‘Have you had boyfriends before?’

I feel myself going red.
‘Of course.’

‘Tell me about them.’

‘Nothing big. Just a couple of boys at college
and university
. Nothing serious. Just, you know
. Teenage stuff.
I’ve been working too hard to have time for a social life.’

‘Di
d you have sex with them
?’
Marc
asks.

‘Yes
,’ I say
, going redder
.
‘One of them.’

‘What kind of sex?’

Chapter 28

I blush again.
What kind of sex?
‘I don’t know,’ I say. ‘I suppose the usual kind. How many kinds are there?’

Marc’s lips tilt at the corners. ‘Lots and lots of kinds. You have to understand that with me, I need to do things a certain way.
And I think you need things that way too. I think I can teach you a lot. In fact, I’m sure I can. Things you’ll like.’

‘
And what if I don’t agree to that
?’ I say, returning his quirky smile.

‘
For this to work, y
ou have to accept that I’m the one in charge,’ says Marc. ‘
You need someone who knows what’s best for you, sexually and otherwise
. I know your
needs
. More than you do, probably.’

‘I don’t know,’ I say, thinking back to that afternoon. It was probably the hottest few
minutes of my whole life
. The way he took charge of my body. I’ve never experienced anything l
ike that before
.
I want it again.

‘I need you to make a decision
,’ says
Marc
.
‘You’ll either let me take charge of you in the way I want
, or I guess I’ll just have to leave the university.’

‘We’ve been through this,’ I say. ‘You can’t leave.
It wouldn’t be fair.’

‘That’s our situation, Sophia. I can’t stay here, not being able to touch you, to teach you and to discipline you in the way I want.’

‘Discipline me?’

Marc
turns to me
. ‘
Exactly
right. If I take charge of you
, I need to disc
ipline you. If you step out of line
, you’ll be punished.’

I swallow hard. ‘I’m not sure I like that idea.’

‘If you want hearts and flowers,
walk away right now
,’ says
Marc
. ‘
You’re a
beautiful, innocent you
ng girl who any man would want. If I were you,
I’d run a million mile
s from a man like me.
But I
know I can give you what you need. What you’ve asked for. I know I can
bring out of you so much more. T
each you things you’ll like. Things no man has ever taught you before.’

‘So what do you mean by punishment?’

‘I need to be in
control,’ says
Marc
. ‘That’s who I am. Which means if you step o
ut of line, I have to discipline you
. Maybe I’ll spank you. Maybe I’ll tie you up and fuck you until you can’t bear any more. It really depends how you step out of line.’

Oh my g
od.
I squeeze my knees together. How can I be turned on by what
he just said? It’s so arrogant and cold. But my god, it’s so hot.

‘Come inside. It’s cold out here.
’ Marc strides into the bedroom
.
He pats the mattress beside him and I come and sit down.

H
is nearness is doing things
to me, and I put my head in my hands.
This is too hard. I still don’t really u
nderstand what he wants from me
but
,
by
the sounds of it, it’s
some kinky, spanking type stuff that I am in no way ready for.

My heart beats hard in my chest, and tells me
to run away. Fast.

‘I’m not ready,’ I say, ‘for what you’re talking about.’

He moves closer
.
‘You are ready, Sophia. Tru
st me on that.
I’ll take it slow.’

I look up. ‘Maybe ... if you take things very slowly. Maybe I could ...
try.’

‘How many times have you had sex before?’ he asks.

Must he ask me questions like this? ‘
I haven’t kept count,’ I say. ‘But not a lot. Maybe five or six times. With my boyfriend at university.’

He nods, and looks pleased. ‘
There’s so much I can
teach you
.’ He takes my face in his hands.
‘Sophia,
I’ll never hurt you or let anything happen to you. You’ll be safer with me than anyone, I guarantee that. But I will
test you. I’ll challenge your boundaries
, and help you explore new parts of yourself.’

I want to kiss him so badly. I feel myself leaning forwards, but he holds m
y face firm.

‘I have to have a decision from you, Sophia.
Can you accept what I have to offer?
’

‘I
think I can
,’ I murmur.
‘I think I can try.’
I lie down on the bed, wishing I was wearing something sex
ier than my pyjamas.

Marc
stares at me, and h
is jaw ripples again.
He moves forwards, then stops himself. ‘
You’re sure about
this? You want
me to take charge of you?’

‘Yes,’ I say. ‘I think so
.’

H
e
stands
up
and paces back and forth, watching me.

‘Take off your pyjamas
.’

I slide the pink t-shirt
over my head
and slowly peel off my pyjama bottoms
.
Then I lie back in just my underwear – a white bra and panties.

‘It had to be white, didn’t it?’ he says
.

He goes to the balcony and closes the curtains, then takes off his jeans
and t-shirt. He’s wearing
boxe
r
-briefs, and I see a hard
outline
pushing
against
the fabric. It’s huge.

‘Are you ready for your first lesson, Sophia?’ he says,
coming to the foot of the bed.
H
e grabs both my ankles
and flips me onto my stomach. Then he
spreads my legs open, and I feel the flat of his palm moving back and forth
between them
.

‘
Oh
,’ I murmur into the pillow. ‘Don’t stop. Please don’t stop.’

‘I’ll stop if and when I feel like it,’
Marc
whispers
back. ‘
You’ll do what you’re told, and feel what I want you to feel.
I’m in charge.
’

A shiver passes through
me
. Why
is this so sexy?
I can’t resist being carried along with the tide.

His hand carries on moving
, and I feel heat building. Then he stops s
uddenly
.

‘Please don’t stop,’ I murmur.

He slaps me between the legs, and I jump.

Ow.

‘That’s a warning,’ he says. ‘Tell me what to do again, and I’ll teach you a real lesson.

Oh god.

He puts his hand back again and begins to rub.

Oh god, oh god.

‘I don’t want you to come yet. That’s an order. Not until I’m inside you.’

I feel the heat building, and I can’t help myself.

‘Oh
Marc
,’ I say out loud. ‘Oh, that feels so good.’

The world turns into coloured spots, and a wave of pleasure flows over me from my navel to my legs.

I feel myself sink deeper into the bed. I hear
Marc
’s footsteps, and then feel a duvet laid over my body.

Marc
whispers in my ear. ‘I told you not to come.
And
Monday morning
, I’m going
to punish you.’

Oh good god. I’m not ready for anything like that. I’m really not.

‘Trust me, Sophia,’ says
Marc
, strokin
g my hair.
’

I hear him stepping into his clothes, and I murmu
r, ‘You’re not staying?’

‘I can’t stay here,’
Marc
whispers, pressing the duvet
around my body. ‘People can’t see me leave here in the morning
. If we’re going to go down this road,
I have to protect you, which means
no one can know. We’re going to have to keep it a secret
, at least for now.
’

‘I wish you could stay.’

‘So do I
. Monday.’

‘But ...’ I realise it was Friday when I went to bed, and now technically it’s Saturday morning. ‘That’s two days away.’

‘Monday,’ he replies.
With that, he’s gone.

Chapter 29

I wake the next morning from the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had, but with a sad feeling as I feel the cold sheets beside me. Did it really happen? Did
Marc
Blackwell
really come up to my room last night?

I smell his cologne against my duvet, and know tha
t it’s true. He really did knock
at my door in the middle of t
he night, and he really
did say on Monday
he was going to punish me.

My stomach turns over as I think about that.
He says he’ll take care of me, but punishment isn’t taking care of someone. When he talked about spanking me or tying me up, I admit it felt ... exciting. Okay, mo
re than exciting.
But to do anything like that for real ... I just don’t know.

I check my watch. It’s noon and it’s Saturday. Noon
! I don’t think I’ve ever slept in so long my whole life. I’m used to working most days of the week, and when I’m not, I’m
taking care of Samuel or cleaning
.

I sit bolt upright. I should be getting the train back home to see Dad and Samuel. I pick up my phone and dial Dad’s number.

He picks up straight away. ‘Hello love. How are you?’

‘I’m about to come down to visit,’ I say. ‘But I’m running a bit late -’

‘Don’t be silly.’ He cuts me off. ‘This is your first weekend at college. Get settled in. Get used to your new room. Spend time with the other pupils. I wouldn’t dream of you coming home.’

‘Okay,’ I say. ‘Thanks Dad.’

What do students do on Saturday? I have no idea, but I need to do something to take my mind off
Marc
.

I send
Jen
a text:
I’ve just had a
window into your life, Saturday
with nothing to do!

xx

She texts back straight away:
You’ve only just woken up? Welcome to my world! MISS YOU BABES!! xxxx

I smile
, and head towards the cafeteria
, but there’s something going on in the campus main square. Students are dressed in bright coloured wig
s, painted like clowns and handcuffing
themselves together.

I see Tanya among them, and she comes running up to me. ‘Sophia! We were just about to come and get you.’

I see Tom behind her wearing a bright blue fright wig. ‘Fetching, don’t you think?’ he says.

‘Very,’ I laugh, with a yawn. ‘Sorry. I just woke up.
’

‘We’ve got one for you,’ says Tanya, running to a cardboard box and returning with a bright red wig.

‘What’s this all about?’ I ask.

‘Student Rag week,’ says Tom. ‘Raising and Giving. Which means we all dress up like arses, and roam the streets asking for money. Tied to each other.’

I smile. ‘Sounds like fun.’ And a great way to distract myself from
Marc
.

Tanya waves the wig at me ‘A new hairstyle for you.’