Page 1 of Submit

Chapter One

This could not be him.

This man… he could not be the man who would strip her bare, put her on her knees and do unspeakable things to her. Lovely, wicked things she’d only ever imagined in the darkest corners of her mind. He was too perfect for the role, as if he’d stepped out of her fantasies. But she knew the moment he stepped into the café and she caught the first stunning glimpse of his face that he was the man she was there to meet.

When she’d posted her ad on the Bondage.com website her cousin Esme had told her about, she’d imagined finding a man with an air of command. A man who lived by the ‘Safe, Sane and Consensual’ credo. A man who could guide her through this experience with practiced, capable hands. He was all of those things, she knew, from their two weeks of communicating via email.

Confident. Commanding. Intelligent. Kinky. And he came with the best possible references from others who knew him in the kink community. He had it all, on paper. And in person… he was almost too beautiful to be real. Like some fallen angel with his evil-looking goatee, his sharply honed bone structure, the way his dark hair, worn a little too long, fell into his eyes. She watched as he approached, broad shoulders shrugging their way out of his black wool coat. Adam Dunne had an enormous, palpable presence that mirrored his size—she swore she could feel it emanating from him.

Power. That’s what it was. Power and a stark male beauty that made her breath catch.

Pull yourself together. He’s just a man.

Except that he was so much more. She knew it in that very first electric instant.

She took in a breath of the coffee-scented air and forced her fluttering pulse to calm as she pushed her long hair from her cheek.

He stepped closer and as he pulled his coat off, she saw him shiver a bit at the damp San Francisco cold. Perhaps he was human after all.

He was beautifully dressed in a way that seemed almost European to her: black slacks that looked as if they’d been custom-made, a thin, dark wool sweater, a gray scarf looped casually around his neck.

He spoke her name in a low voice that felt like a caress. “Skye.”

Certainty in his voice. She had a feeling this man never doubted himself, that no one ever doubted him. A Dominant through and through. What had she heard this kind of man called in her research on the Internet? A ‘true Dominant’?

He smiled crookedly, just a small quirking at one corner of his mouth. There was a scar on his lush lower lip, which made her want to reach out and touch it, just trace it with her fingertips.

Of course, she would never do such a thing. Definitely not with a man like him.

“You are Skye?”

She curled her fingers around the handle of her tea mug as she looked up into eyes that were a dark, dusky blue framed in thick lashes. “What? Yes. You must be Adam.”

He nodded and took her free hand as he slid into the chair across from hers. He held on a few moments too long, the lambent heat of his touch making her wonder if she wanted him to let go. Making her want to yank her hand back to safety at the same time.

She had never in her life thought herself to be in over her head with any man. Until now.

A waitress came as though summoned and Adam let her hand go.

“I’ll have an espresso, please. Double shot. Very hot.” He smiled at the girl and Skye watched her blush and bite her lip. “Will that be a problem?”

The waitress made a small fluttering motion with one hand, then tucked her short, curling hair behind her ear, a nervous smile on her face. “No, sir. Of course not. I’ll see that it’s hot.”

“Excellent. Bring it right away.”

He turned back to Skye, who had watched the exchange with interest. Interesting the way the waitress had responded. Interesting that some part of her knew she’d probably have responded the same way. His presence demanded it.

She turned her full attention back to him and noticed that he wore thick steel rings in both ears, eight gauges, maybe. And just as with the scar, it made her want to touch them, to run her fingers over the hurting spot where the needle had gone through.

“Do you want something else?” he asked her, making her realize the waitress still hovered at their table. “More tea? A pastry?”

“Oh, no. Thank you.”

Adam dismissed the waitress. It was clearly a dismissal, though done with absolute politeness. How did he manage that?

God, she was too much in her own head. Time to pull herself out and really pay attention.

“It’s good to finally meet you.” He smiled once more. Gorgeous white teeth.

---