Page 6 of Submit

Pleasure swarmed his veins. “Excellent. Do you know about safe words?”

She nodded. “I’m to use ‘yellow’ if I want to slow down a scene, if I can’t handle something you’re doing, and ‘red’ if I need to stop completely. That’s what I’ve read, mostly.”

“Those are the most important ones, but I may sometimes ask if we’re still green to check in with you, to make sure you’re good, that you want to continue. Remember your safe words and don’t be embarrassed to use them. That’s the only thing you’re responsible for during play. I’ll be responsible for everything else. Everything. You will be in my hands and I will absolutely respect the boundaries we’ve negotiated. You’ll have to trust me in that, to know with utter certainty that I will so you’re able to let go. Do you understand?”

She swallowed—he could see her throat working for a moment before she spoke.

“Yes. I understand.” She paused. “And we’re to play in private? Or at one of those clubs?”

“I do frequent some of the clubs. Does that interest you? There’s a place called The Ring. It’s pretty wild—it’s part of a dance club. Great for those with an exhibitionistic streak. And because it’s also a dance club it often seems easier for someone doing this for the first time. There’s no nudity there, for instance, but there is the crush of a few hundred people watching. Too intense for some. My friend Shaye works there. He can get me in whenever I ask. Shall I ask?”

He could see from her expression—brown eyes wide, the edge of her teeth sinking into her lush lower lip—that her answer would be ‘no’. But he had to offer her the option. Even if what he really wanted was to have her alone in his house, just the two of them and a well-made paddle, a pair of leather handcuffs.

His bed.

No.

He shifted in his chair, his cock aching for her.

She shook her head. “I… I’m not sure that would work for me. It’s all too new. I’ve seen your references, done the background check on you that you asked me to do. I’d planned to give your information to my cousin before we went anywhere. I feel safe enough with you. And… I think I’ll need the sense of privacy, without distractions.”

He smiled at her. “Then I’ll send you my address. Come Friday night.”

She paused before nodding her head, her cheeks pinking, looking for a moment as though she were going to argue. But in the end, she didn’t question that he’d phrased it as a command. It was only a momentary struggle, just enough that he could see she would fight yielding to him. But he expected that from a woman like her. Strong. Inexperienced. Unaware of the extent of her own desires.

He had no doubt he could handle her. He’d trained girls like this before, those who had to hang on so tightly to control, for whatever reason, that letting it go was the ultimate relief. He loved nothing more than to break past that wall of reserve.

The idea of breaking this particular girl, this beautiful woman whose very scent made him want to taste her skin, would be pure pleasure. Hers. His.

Breaking Skye. He knew he would think of nothing else all week.