Camellia (15 page)

"Yes, Mistress?"

"You didn't call me Mistress earlier. You've lost a strike."

Danny's face instantly tightened. "Sorry, Mistress. Can I get it back?"

Danny's willingness to work for what she wanted was a pleasant surprise. "You may. Get to five without removing your hands from the bed and you'll earn it again."

The next time the end of the crop landed against Danny's unmarked cheek, it was without warning. Lucy watched intently as Danny gasped and released a barely audible, "Three." Her hands fisted in the sheets, and for a brief moment her bare feet came apart, but she quickly recovered. Lucy wrapped a lock of Danny's long hair around her hand, and Danny leaned into her touch.

"You have the most beautiful hair, Danielle," Lucy complimented her.

"Thank you, Mistress." The titled was whispered and sounded almost loving. On a hunch, Lucy dragged the tip of the crop against Danny's center and gave the most tender part of her a gentle tap. It wasn't enough to cause her pain, but Lucy knew the warmth that Danny now felt rushing to those swollen lips.

Danny jumped, just generally startled or genuinely shocked at being touched in such an intimate way, Lucy didn't know which. Watching Danny recover herself enough to arch her back and offer herself up to Lucy for another strike was beautifully gratifying.

The fourth time the crop smacked across her bottom, Lucy smoothed Danny's hair away from her face as Danny counted it out loud. "This next one," Lucy told her soothingly, "will be harder. You've been enjoying this, I can tell, but we don't want you to be bored. Correct?"

Danny licked her lips and gave a little pant. "Yes, Mistress."

With a smile, Lucy gave her the promised hit. The pain was more than Danny had experienced at her hand, but less than Lucy was sure she could endure. Patience, like tranquility, could be learned, and Lucy saw no reason to rush this experience for either of them. For Danny it was an introduction, a lesson in the balance that Lucy had built her life around. For Lucy it was an experience to treasure, being Danny's first, if not only, teacher in BDSM.

"Five," Danny ground out, sounding strained. Lucy released her hair and moved her hand down Danny's back, stroking down the length of Danny's spine and imagining how it would feel without the cloth between them.

"You've done well. Five strikes without removing your hands from the sheet. You've earned the tenth strike back."

Six, seven, and eight came much the same way, but by nine, Danny was barely able to stay on the bed. She squirmed with each new touch, though Lucy doubted she even realized what she was doing. It was a subconscious movement, a show of her anticipation as the crop was raised above her each time and of her pleasure as the tip was brought down against her. "Nine!" Danny groaned, arching under Lucy's hand.

"Do you want to stop?" Lucy asked her, knowing the answer but delighting in the way Danny turned to practically glare up at Lucy.

"No, Mistress," Danny neatly bit out.

Lucy gave her a bright smile and one final strike against her right cheek. The strike rocked Danny forward and she moaned a soft "Ten," as she stretched her arms out in front of her. Lucy smoothed her hand over Danny's warm bottom soothingly.

"Well done, Danielle. You may get up, if you like. I suggest that you sleep on your belly tonight, however," Lucy told her, a grin slipping in as Danny pressed the curve of her bum against Lucy's hand.

"Mmm, what if I don't want to get up, Mistress?" Danny asked, tilting her head at Lucy so she could see Danny's wide, dizzy grin. "What if I want to do something else instead?"

Well. Lucy wasn't entirely shocked. Danny was a beautiful, sensual woman who clearly loved the touch of the crop. That it had turned her on was almost a given. But to be propositioned, if that was what this was … that was surprising.

"What did you have in mind?" Lucy asked.

"Well, we're here on this big bed in this nice hotel room, all alone, and you've already got your hands on me," Danny coaxed. "You could put them somewhere else, Mistress."

Ah, so it
was
a come-on. But Danny was deliberately still using the term "mistress" as opposed to Lucy's name, so this could simply be construed as her wanting to continue the scene. She felt good now, it was obvious. Danny reveled in the attention, in the care Lucy paid to her body. Danny wasn't ready for it to be over, but Lucy wasn't ready to give any more of herself yet.

Enjoying a scene was one thing. Letting another person see Lucy with her guard completely down, sharing the intimacies of her pleasure, the closeness that came from those kinds of touches … Lucy had never been good at dissociating herself from sex. A scene she could enjoy on an intellectual level, relishing the power and responsibility of her position, feeling pride in what she could do for her submissive. Sex had to be emotional as well as physical for Lucy if she were going to honestly enjoy it, though, and she was too experienced to make the mistakes of her youth again.

Clearly she'd been silent for too long, because now Danny was chewing on her lower lip and rolling away from Lucy, onto her side. "It's fine, I shouldn't have asked, I'm sorry—"

"Don't be sorry for telling me what you want," Lucy said quickly, cutting off that line of self-recrimination before it could poison what they'd just done together. "Honest communication is the most important thing between people in a scene, Danielle."
There, call her by her full name, let her know that this isn't over, make her feel secure.
Lucy lifted her crop again, let it trail beneath the hem of Danny's shorts. "You enjoyed this."

"Yes, Mistress." Danny's pupils were so wide they swallowed the ochre of her irises. "Did you?"

"Very much so," Lucy assured her. "You were so good for me, Danielle. I think you deserve a final reward." She smiled at Danny. "I want you to touch yourself for me, Danielle. I want you to get yourself off in front of me. But," she interjected as Danny started to tug off her shirt, "I want you to leave your clothes on." She ignored Danny's whine of frustration. "Lay down on your back and keep your eyes on me. No closing them, or this…" She slid the crop's leather tab down to Danny's ankle, then lifted it away entirely. "Stops. No speaking, no begging, no words. Keep your hands on yourself and your eyes on me. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Mistress." Danny sounded breathy, almost faint with desire as she quickly resettled on her back, wincing slightly as her ass came into contact with the mattress.

"Begin, Danielle." Lucy met Danny's eyes for a moment before she lifted the crop to the base of Danny's throat and stroked a long, slow line down the center of her body. Both of Danny's hands were tucked inside her shorts, moving desperately, and Lucy could smell the heady scent of sex in the air. Danny had to be
dripping
, judging from the sounds her body made as she fucked herself with her fingers. She was so wet, so eager, perfectly submissive and full of desire, and Lucy …

Lucy shifted up onto her knees so she couldn't feel the wet spot forming between her own legs as easily, and rubbed the crop against one of Danny's nipples. She circled the hard bump with the sleek leather, and barely kept in a smile when she heard Danny's cut-off cry. "Fu—!" Good girl. No words. Lucy glanced up and saw Danny's eyes still fixed on her, even if they were now a little glassy.

Very
good girl.

No words didn't mean that Danny didn't make noise. Her sounds were inarticulate and honest as she chased her pleasure, moans and little catches of breath that clearly coincided with the brush of the crop against bare skin. What would it be like to mark Danny, to really take her, to bare her body and watch the lines appear at Lucy's whim? To embellish her tattoos, accentuate her curves? The idea was intoxicating.

Lucy couldn't afford to be intoxicated. She needed to draw things to a close before she was tempted to ask for things she feared being rejected for.

Lucy traced a sinuous curving line down Danny's body with the crop, circling over her ribs, down across her quivering abdomen until she touched the V where Danny's arms drew together beneath her shorts. Danny's breaths got shorter. Lucy glanced at Danny's face, saw her biting her lip again and said, "Now, now, none of that, Danielle. Are you close?" She didn't need to ask, but she wanted to see how Danny responded.

"Mm
hmm
!" That, plus the vigorous nodding, made things more than clear.

"You just need a little push, don't you?" Lucy asked, and she turned the crop so that the tip pointed down, then slowly slid it inside Danny's shorts, following the V all the way down until she knew she was hovering right above Danny's clit. Danny's wrists brushed the leather tab as she worked herself, confined within the cloth, everything so close that it all melded together, and suddenly Danny planted her feet on the bed and arched her back, crying out "
Ah-ah-ah
," as she orgasmed.

Lucy imagined the feel of Danny's pussy, tight and pulsing around her fingers, how incredible it would feel against Lucy's own hand, whether Danny tasted as sweet as Lucy thought, how warm, how good …
Bloody hell
. She pulled the crop back and put it aside, then scooted up to Danny's head and stroked her hair gently. They both needed to come down together, after an experience like that.

"That was lovely, Danielle," Lucy praised her, knowing that Danny would be sensitive right now, maybe a little emotional. "So beautiful. Your pleasure is so beautiful." She kissed her on the forehead, then added, "Feel free to use your words again."

"Oh, god," Danny groaned. "That was so fucking … oh my god, I haven't come like that in so long."

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Lucy said, reminding herself that it was only natural to feel a hint of prurient curiosity when Danny referred to sex with other partners.

"Did you enjoy it?" Danny asked, her bitten lip red and luscious, her whole body flushed with exertion. She glowed under the dim lights, positively glowed, and Lucy smiled at her.

"I said so, didn't I? I enjoy giving my submissives the pleasure they've earned, and you were very good for the whole scene. Delightful, I promise." Lucy kissed her again, then sat up. "Now, I'm sure you'd like a shower before bed. I'll just take care of my toilette first, if you don't mind."

"No problem," Danny said with a grin, stretching her arms above her head. Her hands were glistening and damp, Lucy couldn't look at them without wanting to paint Danny's body with them. Well, at least Danny seemed to be coming out of the scene well. "Or you could just shower with me."

"I'm afraid I have to decline," Lucy replied. Danny's grin dimmed, but this had to be clear. "We'll need a good night's rest to be ready for tomorrow," she continued, offering an explanation even though her rational mind didn't think it was necessary. She didn't like seeing Danny look distressed. "I'll be out soon." Lucy headed into the bathroom and shut the door behind her, then leaned her back against it and exhaled long and slow. That had affected her far more than she'd thought it would.

She'd have to be careful, or Danny might become someone Lucy wouldn't be able to keep from wanting for herself.

Danny woke up from her unexpectedly deep sleep wrapped in warmth that had nothing to do with the blankets. She opened her eyes and looked at her bedmate, who was currently using Danny like a body pillow, and sighed. Weird that Lucy seemed to feel more comfortable touching Danny when she was asleep than when she was awake.

Don't be bitchy
, she scolded herself. What did she have to complain about, really? Danny flexed her butt and suppressed a moan. It was sore today, but the ache was a nice one. Really nice. Really, really fucking nice. The kind of thing that Danny wanted more of, honestly. She'd wanted more last night, and Lucy …

Lucy gave her more. Kind of. Danny had gotten off, and she'd been desperate for that, so turned on after those ten strikes with the crop that she thought she might spontaneously combust if she didn't do something. And then Lucy had played things out and made Danny get herself off, all while staring at Lucy, all while feeling that firm, whippy crop caressing her body, and it was perfect.

It made Danny want more, and she hadn't been shy about asking. But then Lucy turned her down, and then a half hour later they were in bed and Lucy was asleep and Danny was left to wonder what, if anything, Lucy had really gotten out of that. Was she just playing? Was none of this serious to her?

Why should it be serious? You're working a job, you're not girlfriends.
That dropped Lucy into the category of a one-night stand:  fun, exciting, but not someone where you went back for seconds or thirds.

The thought made Danny's stomach curdle. It wasn't just the BDSM stuff, and it wasn't just the sex, although that—yeah, she could go for a lot more of that. It was
Lucy.
Lucy the prim and proper goddess, Lucy who looked like something out of a fashion magazine, Lucy who taught barely curious hipsters about the difference between white and green tea. Lucy who smiled unexpectedly and hummed her ABCs while brushing her teeth and who wrapped Danny up like a present in the night, as though she couldn't bear to be a bed's width away from her.