Page 39 of Sinister Devotion

Her breaths come in quicker, faster, and match the rhythm of me fingering her pussy. I pull away from her, dropping down to take her shorts off as she pulls her shirt off. Claire sits down on the bed while I spread her legs to taste her essence. The flavor of her pleasure settles over my tongue as I slide it between her folds.

This time, my fingers reach up to tease and pinch her nipples. I press even harder than my mouth which draws a muted yelp followed by the moan of her climax. She embraces the pain, leans into it and grinds her hips against her face.

I stand up, fully erect, and grab the clamps. I clip one to her nipple. It's the pair with the least amount of pressure. They're bigger to cover more flesh instead of the smaller, tighter ones that focus solely on the nipple.

"How does that feel, Claire?" I ask her.

Her deep inhale of pleasure and pain sets me on fire to consume every ounce of her. She licks her lips, telling me, "I can feel the sharpness from my clit to my nipples, and down to my toes. I want to feel you everywhere, inside and out. Fuck me, Julian. Fuck me now."

The minute she says the words, I strip out of my pants and slide myself into her wetness. Claire's walls clench around me as I lose myself in the push and pull of our rhythm together. This space is going to smell of us, our passion, our climax.

I pump in and out of Claire, losing myself in the idea of nights to come in this room. The future we'll share together as we learn and explore what brings us to unimaginable heights that excite me like nothing I've ever felt before. The steady thrum of my pulse against my eardrums makes me feel like we're in our own little bubble.

My hands, my mouth, they trace the lines of Claire's neck. My body moves in sync with hers. We're in our own space and time as she drags her nails down my back. The stinging sensation unleashes my primitive urges to speed up my pace. The sounds of her welcoming sheath of wetness makes it easy for me to dip in and out until I'm plowing inside of her at a more furious pace.

She pants and grunts with every push and pull of me inside of her pussy. Her climax coats my shaft. The sight of her slickness covering me as I dole out pleasure brings me over the edge of ecstasy. Claire follows me over that cliff as I remove the clamp and bring her to one more orgasm with my own chasing hers.

There's no end in sight to the pleasure I feel inside of Claire, or the hope I have with her by my side. We stay in the dungeon until sleep finds us. This time, passion soothes the raging beast that keeps me awake at night. There aren't any screams or terrors. It's just me in the comfort of having Claire in my arms without the dangers of our past weighing over us.

17

CLAIRE

The weekend flies with Julian keeping things normal between us. Friday night was the only night we slept together. It was proof that the terrors don't come every night, but we still enjoy sleeping separately. He doesn't completely shuck his routine, and after breaking it up, we're back to normal when Sunday rolls around.

I'm in the library of the manor, researching different types of non-profit organizations, their business models, and best practices. Business fundamentals and a few other textbooks from Julian's college career litter the space. It makes me laugh how outdated some of these books are but I try not to do the math on how much older he is than me.

When he pokes his head inside, the smile on his face is contagious.

"You've been in here all morning. Is there anything I can help with?" he asks.

"Actually, I'm thinking about this break I'm taking. I want to enroll in a few classes in the fall."

"Do you want an actual degree or just a few classes?"

I shrug, "How useful is a degree in business these days? I'm not asking you as Julian, the man who's been taking care of me and wants the best for me. I’m asking Julian, the CEO of Nuvola Scura, who manages a multi-billion-dollar corporation."

He folds his arms over his chest, leaning against a bookcase. "You're associated with the Blackwell name, but we're not the most popular family among the elite. Feared mostly. I'd say no one expects you to get a degree, but it would look better if you had one. It's pretty much unspoken that you'll work for my company. College is great for the connections you make, networking, friendships, experiences. But on the job experience holds a bit more weight than a degree for me, unless you're a doctor, lawyer, engineer, someone who juggles people's lives and livelihoods. I'm giving you the experience most undergrads have to wait to get until after they graduate."

"So, should I get a degree, or not?"

"Claire, get a degree in any field you want. Or don't. If I'm being honest, the fact that I'm even pursuing this relationship with you is forcing me to disregard what other people think. I want you to start doing the same. Do what you want because it's what you want, not because of what it looks like. Don't go to school because I tell you to. It will be a waste of time and money if it's not what you want to do. Money we can replace. Time we never get back."

"I'll give it some thought. Did you enjoy college?"

The warring emotions on his face tell me it's not the best memory for him as he replies. "It was a great time for me to get away from my father, but Derek and Edward were forced to fend for themselves for a while. It's weird being a man, growing up, and needing help but everyone simply expects you to know things, to land on your feet."

"What happened?" I ask him, curiosity tugging at the opportunity to get a memory of my Dad from someone who knew him.

"Edward aged out of foster care and your Dad met Sue-Ellen. They struggled together for a bit. I would come back and forth between here and Princeton until I couldn't stand how much life was destroying the guys that saved my life. Your Dad saved my family. I went to work with my father over the summer and consulted for his election campaign to target a younger demographic. Some of his donors saw me and took a chance to see what I could do to help their corporations."

"Wow, that's how Nuvola Scura came about?"

"Yeah, at least, that's what my experiences led to. The way my father and I are connected is sickening because he's done so much to me and then done so much for me. So, I simply hate him and tolerate his presence. I just know the kind of animal he is and I don't like him around people I care about."

"You care about Fiona?" I ask him, remembering her incident with Charleston.

Julian scoffs. "We're colleagues more than friends, but I do care enough about any woman in his presence that he's the slightest bit angry at because it always ends badly. Charleston has this approach to life that nothing can happen to him. Nothing will be done to correct his bad behavior."

---