Claimed (5 page)

“Twenty?” I taunted daringly. “Alexander,” I winked, “I only really need ten.”

The sound of his laughter followed me up the stairs.

Alexander:

She might not have needed twenty minutes, but I did. I dialled Jean-Luc’s number. I had information to give my head of security. Plus, I had some yelling to do. Honestly, he could have told Ellie I was concerned for her safety.

“His last name is Bectell,” I started. “Lucien Bectell.”

Jean-Luc hissed. “Then I know him by reputation,” he replied. “And we are in trouble. He’s former French secret service. He’s trained with the Bedouin in Algeria, with the Tuareg in Mali. He’s ruthless and he’s competent.”

And he was trying to kill me.
I was so glad Ellie was upstairs, safe where I could keep an eye on her. Though I would have to pay the price for my high-handed actions. I had a feeling we weren’t done with that particular conversation.

“He must have associates,” I said. “At the very minimum, he’ll need someone that can pull information for him. Find that person.”

“I need Ellie then,” Jean-Luc rumbled. “If she’s ever emailed either Bectell or his sources, then we can start there. Her laptop might have something useful on it. I’ll come around now.”

“No, tomorrow morning,” I replied. “I’m going to pretend that someone isn’t after us for one night, Jean-Luc. I’m going to sleep with the woman that I haven’t been able to get out of my mind ever since I met her.”

His silence made his disapproval clear, but I didn’t care. I needed to carve out moments of normalcy where I could. I hadn’t wanted to be rich, I hadn’t wanted to be the financier of the scum of the world, but I had to infiltrate their operations to put an end to them. I walked on the path I did, but it wasn’t without regret or a longing that things could be different.

“Fine,” he said finally. “Go be with your girl then.”

I exhaled. I had to make something else crystal clear. I knew Jean-Luc well. Some of his concerns about Ellie’s trustworthiness would have been allayed by the fact that she had volunteered information about Lucien, but he also would be suspicious about her past association with Bectell. He wasn’t going to like my next words. “She’s part of the team, Jean-Luc.”

He laughed. “That was obvious a long time ago,” he replied, surprising me. “I’ve had a team of people keep an eye on her for the last eighteen months because of that. I’ll see you in the morning.”

I wasn’t startled by his revelation; I’d have been shocked if he hadn’t been watching Ellie. Jean-Luc kept everyone under surveillance. His paranoia had kept me alive for many years and I couldn’t complain about it too much. I just hoped Ellie hadn’t found out, otherwise I’d have to grovel some more. “Bring breakfast,” I said. “She likes pastries.”

***

Ellie:

He hadn’t told me what to wear and where to wait, so I chose a turquoise blue bustier and matching thong once I got out of the shower. From the last time around, I remembered that Alexander liked to lead me into the playroom. I therefore made my way to his bedroom and knelt like a good little submissive at the entrance, my eyes downcast, my entire body throbbing with a hot, surging anticipation.

Of all the revelations about myself, this had been the most startling one. After Dylan, I should have hated the idea of ceding control in the bedroom; I should have flinched away in fear of the spanking bench or the paddle or the crops.

But so much of my fear had been of the man wielding the whip, not of the whip itself. I’d had an inkling of that when Madame Lorraine’s trainers had put me through my paces, but it had really sunk in when Alexander and I had played. Because I trusted that he wouldn’t hurt me, I could let go of all my fear, all my inhibitions and I could just feel.

San Francisco had no shortage of BDSM clubs. The idea of exploring my desires in one of them had occurred to me, but somehow, I hadn’t acted on that urge. I had had no shortage of lust in my life and it had rarely served me well. Things like liking and loving and trust were harder to find, and much more important to hold on to.

And the memory remained of wandering through a night market in Bangkok with Alexander, eating street food and drinking beer. On a night when he could have had access to every inch of my body, he’d chosen to get to know me.

So I’d waited for anyone that measured up, and no one had. It was an impossible standard for any man – love had made me blind to the charms of other men. Alexander was the one I wanted.

I heard his footsteps approach; out of the corner of my eye, I saw his shoes walk towards me. My heart started to beat faster. My body yearned for his touch. I had wanted him since the first time I’d laid eyes on him. And finally, we didn’t have any secrets between us. Finally, we were free to just be who we were.

He chuckled softly as he came up to me. “The girl downstairs threatened to knee me in the groin,” he said, his hand stroking my hair before wrapping its length around his palm and tugging downwards. “Yet I find you upstairs, looking so sweet and submissive and I wonder, who is the real Ellie?”

“How do you plan on finding out?” I met his eyes and saw the same desire I felt reflected there. Yet by the amusement I heard, his arousal was firmly held in check for the moment.

He smiled. “Oh, I have my ways,” he replied. “Up with you, bright star. Come on.”

I rose to my feet, trying to be graceful for him. He took my hand in his and led me into the playroom. “I think I’ll have to teach you what happens when you tell me when to fuck you.”

What happens?
I wanted to ask, but I held my tongue. I was sure I was going to find out in a few moments.

***

He indicated a chair. “Sit,” he ordered. “Let’s talk for a second. Anything you want to do today? Don’t want to do?”

I shook my head. “I’m open to anything,” I said. I winked at him. “Do your worst.”

He laughed. “I’m not going to do anything too extreme,” he replied. “It’s been a while for us, hasn’t it?” His hand brushed my cheek. “Right now, all I want to do is rip off that corset and feast on your breasts. Drag those panties down and bury my mouth in your pussy. I want to hear you moan and I want to hear you scream out my name.” His hands curved down to pull my breasts out of the corset and he cupped the globes. “So beautiful.”

My breathing quickened. My legs parted. I had been ready before; I was on fire now.

“Same safe words fine? Red, yellow, green?”

“Yes Sir.”

“Good. Stand up.” His voice changed. It got harder and smoother, and every syllable sounded like sex.

I obeyed. A small tremor passed through me.

“That’s a lovely corset.” His eyes raked over my body, checking out each and every curve. I saw the heated approval in his gaze, and my own body warmed. I had been afraid that he’d prefer the skinnier version of me. From his expression, I had nothing to worry about. “But I think that it’s only going to get in my way. Let’s take it off. Turn around for me.”

I shuffled into position. He walked up to me and his hands ran up my back, all the way from my curvy buttocks up my spine and to my bared shoulders. He pushed my hair forward and I felt his fingers graze at the ties in the back.

I giggled. “It unzips in the front,” I offered helpfully. “Sir,” I added for good measure.

He chuckled. “That was a smooth move,” he mocked himself. “Turn back around, Ellie.” I did and his hand tipped my face up. His lips met mine in a passionate kiss. I moaned into his mouth, and as much as I wanted to entwine my hands around his waist and pull him closer, I kept them at my sides. I obeyed by choice and without fear, but I still needed to follow the rules.

The zipper was pulled down, and the corset fell off my body. My breasts bounced free and he groaned as they came into view. “Oh god Ellie, you are so beautiful,” he rasped as his dark head lowered on to one rosy-tipped nipple. His lips and tongue sucked and his teeth nibbled and grazed, while his large palm closed around the other breast, squeezing the flesh until I gasped in mingled pain and pleasure.

“Quiet,” he ordered, though I saw those dimples flash into view as he grinned. He knew exactly how hard keeping quiet would be. I smiled to myself. Alexander could be very wicked when he wanted.

He pulled his hands off me and I whimpered in protest. A hard tweak of my nipple greeted that noise. “What did I say, Ellie?” he asked smoothly.

“Sorry Sir,” I whispered.

He stepped away. “Turn around and bend over that table,
cherie
. I think you need a spanking to remind you who is in charge here.”

I did as he asked and positioned myself over the bench, which resembled a narrow and padded picnic table more than anything else. My knees rested on the lower padded portion and my stomach lay against the leather-covered middle. My breasts hung free towards the floor.

As I was doing this, he’d walked away to the wall of toys. I heard his barely audible
‘hmm’
of consideration as he surveyed its contents.

Paddles. Crops. Whips. Even canes.
What was he going to pick?
Each one, even the cane, sent a little tremble of pure lust pulsing through my veins.

I saw him walk back towards me, and I felt a flat implement run over my skin.
Paddle,
I guessed, and from the texture, probably a leather covered one. “Do you think you deserve to be spanked?” he asked, sounding amused.

“If you desire it, Sir,” I replied softly, staring at the wall ahead, my ass sticking up in the air, with the thong serving as tiny and inadequate cover.

The paddle caressed my curves again. “Good answer,” he praised me. “Are you ready to be punished, Ellie?”

“Yes Sir,” I replied instantly.

“Good,” he said again, moving in front of me. A pair of nipple clamps dangled from his fingers, with a thick silver chain connecting them.

I inhaled deeply as he pinched my nipples to erect nubs before closing the steel tips over them. “Too much?” he asked.

The initial sharp bite of pain from the clamps faded to a background throb. When the chain swung to and fro, the weight of it pulled at my nipples, sending a fresh surge of wetness to my pussy. It wasn’t too much at all. It was perfect. “No Sir,” I said clearly.

“Well,” he teased, “we are just getting started, after all. Now, let’s tie your hands together. I don’t want you flailing around and hurting yourself while I paddle you.”

Once upon a time, I would have had to quell a surge of panic at these words. Once upon a time, I would have had to remind myself that I had nothing to fear from Alexander. But today, there was none of that. Today, there was only anticipation.

His sure hands started to wind the black cotton rope around my elbows, pulling them together. “Too tight?” he checked in.

“For the moment, it’s fine,” I assured him and he continued, coiling the rope around my elbows, my forearms and then finishing at my wrists. The movement felt meditative, and I would have almost fallen asleep, if it wasn’t for his fingers touching me and teasing me.

As he worked, he found a thousand ways to stroke my skin, moving the fabric of the panties aside to play with my folds. Each touch sent a shiver of desire through my body.

“Now,
cherie
,” he said. “Before I start your spanking, there is this.”

This
was
a drizzle of lube over my asshole, followed by something pushing at that puckered, tightly clenched hole. It wasn’t very thick, and I was about to open my mouth and say something teasing about needing more preparation for his girth when the object in my anal passage started to vibrate.

I squealed in surprise. The feeling of the vibrator in my ass was so strange, so foreign yet so naughty. “Oh,” I said, my voice high. “This feels so good. Thank you, Sir.”

His hands caressed my face. “You astonish me every single day, Ellie,” he said, his voice suddenly serious. “I’m so turned on right now, watching you respond, hearing your little whimpers of need. But,” he smiled wickedly, “before I lose all control and fuck you senseless, let’s spank you with the paddle that your body so obviously wants. Ten strokes. Count them out for me.”

The vibrator was still buzzing in my ass, but as the paddle smoothed over my skin, I heard another sound, a deeper, more intense buzzing, one that I recognized. This was the Hitachi, and I greeted it with the same emotions I always did – anticipation mixed with a healthy dread for its overpowering vibrations.

The paddle was pain and the Hitachi was pleasure.
Or was it the other way around?
I couldn’t tell.

The first stroke was much harder than I’d been prepared for. I hissed out, but bit out the count for him. “One.”

“Too hard?” His voice was amused. “Do you want me to go easy on you, Ellie?”

My lips curved into a reluctant grin. But my heart warmed. I had a safe word – if I couldn’t take the paddle for any reason, all I needed to do was use it. Beyond that, however, he wasn’t treating me with kid gloves. He wasn’t treating me as if I was fragile and breakable, and I really, really appreciated that.

The stroke hurt, but I could take it. “No Sir,” I retorted.

I tensed, waiting for the second slap of the paddle, but instead, the Hitachi buzzed to life and the powerful head pressed against the drenched crotch of my panties. “At this point,” he mused, “these panties are just in the way.” His fingers pushed them down past my hips to my knees. Then, the paddle swung again at the base of my ass cheeks.