Ronin placed a kiss on her skin, as he always did. “I’m going to start tying you now.”
And as always, her pulse leaped when she heard the whisper of friction as he uncoiled the rope.
Relax. Breathe.
He knotted and twisted the ropes, starting at her ankles and working his way forward, until her entire body was covered. She felt as if he’d spun a spider’s web around her. Although it’d taken him a while to bind her, she hadn’t drifted into the floaty headspace yet.
Ronin had left her head and neck free from restraint. She understood he expected her to stay in position just by his will alone. His fingers tightened and tested the configuration. When the ropes abraded her flesh, his caresses eased some of the sting.
Some, not all.
If there wasn’t any pain and fear with this bondage, would she still participate?
The word no sprang into her head, unbidden.
Sweet baby Jesus. What kind of woman liked—no, craved—the way this man trussed her up every chance he got?
Then Ronin’s clipped voice burrowed into her ear. “Will gagging you keep you from giving voice to those negative thoughts in your head?”
He’d immediately sensed her internal war with herself. His intuitiveness would freak her out if she wasn’t so grateful for it and the verbal reminder on why she trusted him. “Please don’t gag me.”
“Who is holding you prisoner right now? Your thoughts?”
“No.”
“Then who?”
“You are.”
“By choice?”
“Yes, by choice,” she repeated, once out loud and then again to herself, almost as self-affirmation.
He added more pressure to the binding across her shoulders. “That’s right. Every thought, every breath, every heartbeat, every pulse of blood, every whisper, every sigh, every gasp of pain, every moment belongs to me. I’m pushing you to the place where negative thoughts don’t have any hold on you and you are exactly as you were meant to be. So you will let me do this. To you. For you.” He paused. “And for me.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Lose yourself in what I give you.” His warm, soft lips brushed the sensitive skin beneath her ear. “Remind yourself what your surrender means to me.”
Everything.
Tears stung her eyes. “Thank you.”
He murmured in Japanese and retreated.
She half expected his touches to become reverent, but if anything, his hands became harsher. The web of constriction more pronounced. He crafted a shell around her, even as she became the shell. Curled up and bound, she felt safe. Protected. Tethered to the table and to him.
His pleasure in her submission sent her soaring.
Amery knew the moment when he stood back and admired his handiwork. The glow of his pride flowed over her as he studied the beauty of her body reformed by his ropes. His scrutiny lasted anywhere from a minute to what seemed like forever. Then he’d untie her. Check for rope burns and thoroughly inspect her reddened flesh for other marks. He’d deal with any abrasions with tender touches, whisper-soft kisses, and on rare occasions, first aid ointment. After that he’d wrap himself around her until she settled back into normalcy from the bondage high.
But that wasn’t the game plan that night.
She was still floating in that happy place when a familiar buzz yanked her out of subspace.
“Very sweet and thoughtful of you to offer up your toy for my use. But the better choice is for me to use it on you.”
What? No. What the hell was he thinking?
Before she opened her mouth to protest, he placed the buzzing head of her massager directly on her clit.
Amery gasped, trying to shift her hips away, but he’d locked her down completely.
“How fast does this get you off?”
Now she wished he had gagged her so she wouldn’t have to answer.
“I’m waiting.”
Shit. “Two minutes.” Tops. Sometimes it took under a minute. Not that she’d admit it to him. Ever.
“Where’s the fun in that? Or the challenge? I like taking my time. As you well know. Slow and steady wins the race.”
“Are you seriously spouting lines from the freakin’ ‘Tortoise and the Hare’ at me?”
“I thought it appropriate, given the circumstances. Given the fact that you also have a rabbit vibrator in your collection of toys. Would you prefer me to use it instead?”
“Don’t you dare torture me with my own vibrators, Ronin Black.”
“Or what?” When he nestled the buzzing vibrator head at the top of her cleft, her soft tissues got all tingly. “You’re short on options. The way I see it, you’ve got two choices. You can stay here and take it.” He dragged his mouth across her skin, employing those openmouthed kisses that made her buck and moan. “Or you can stay here and take it.”
Cocky bastard.
“So what’ll it be?”
“I can take it.”
Ronin began drawing buzzing circles around her clit. “You sure?”
“If you’d hold it there longer than three seconds, I guess you’d find out.”
His chuckle tickled her ear. “Acting a bit bossy for a woman wearing my ropes.”
“You’re acting a bit threatened by a vibrating piece of silicone and plastic.”
While he held her vibrator directly over her clitoris, his mouth found all the hot spots down her neck and across her shoulders that made her writhe and moan. Then he sucked and tongued them unremittingly.
“Ronin.”
“Stop thinking. Let go. Give it to me.”
Give it to me. Bound by him, he reminded her that her pleasure belonged to him.
Then the man bombarded her senses until bam! she was slammed into that white void. Mouth gasping, pu**y throbbing. Coming so hard she felt it in her teeth, her toenails—even her earlobes prickled.
She’d stretch out and purr like a contented cat . . . if she could move. It wasn’t lost on her that if Ronin could reach her clit with the vibrator, then he’d tied her up so he could f**k her. He didn’t always bind her with sex in mind. But whenever he did, she relearned the meaning of the word unravel.
“I timed you,” he said. “Three minutes. Next time I make you come it will take longer. But there’s a catch.” His deep voice sent a hot curl of want straight to her core. “Come out of that shell and beg me to f**k you, turtle girl.”
Yes. Please, please, please.
No. Show some restraint. He’ll reduce you to a whore.