ROAR (69 page)

“Happy bonus, I’m sure, but Kris and I talked about this recently. It wasn’t your body that night—okay, not entirely that, anyway. The real clincher was the vulnerability you conveyed to him that evening with your silent plea to which he could not help but respond as any Dominant would.” Gunnar grinned.

“Kristoffer told me pretty much the same thing, but I thought he was just being a gentleman.”

Gunnar laughed. “I’m glad to hear you see him behaving like a gentleman. FarFar, Aunt Claire, and I all tried our best. In all seriousness, though, he’s not a man controlled by his hormones, but rather by a need to guide, protect, and nurture the woman he loves. He never breaks a vow, and that’s what has kept him stuck for so long, because with Tori in that state, deciding when she’d died wasn’t cut and dried.”

Still wasn’t, perhaps, although he seemed to have accepted the fact Tori died the night of the accident.

“But that night at the academy you threw him the lifeline he needed. Watch over him, as he will you.”

She reached across the car and squeezed his arm. “I’ll take good care of him and do everything in my power to make him happy, Gunnar. You can count on that.”

He glanced quickly at her and smiled before turning his attention once more to the straight stretch of road. “You’re my sister now, Shortcake. If you or Kris ever lack for
anything
—material or emotional—you call me, because I know he’s not one to reach out half the times he should. I wouldn’t have half the money I do if not for his savvy investments, and family takes care of family. But it’s a good thing you two figured out a way to be together so I don’t have to butt in anymore.”

“Anymore?” When had he before?

He grinned. “Some night when you two have nothing better to do or talk about, ask Kris to fill you in. Just know, Shortcake, he was as clueless about it as you are.”

She grinned, shaking her head. “I’m honored to be welcomed into the Larson family too. If I wasn’t strapped into this seatbelt, I’d kiss you right now.”

He smiled. “I’ll take a rain check after the ceremony tonight.” His gaze on the road, he sobered. “I’ve loved your man like a brother for a long time. But I’m not losing my brother, I’m gaining a sister.”

His welcoming her to the family left a warm spot in her heart for him. “I’m happy to call you brother, too. All I can say, though, is you two must have been something growing up. But you know what they say.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“God made you cousins because He knew neither set of parents could handle you both as siblings!” Gunnar’s laugh was long and hearty.

How had Pamela been lucky enough to cross paths with these two? Well, she owed Heidi a debt of gratitude for starting the ball rolling by pointing her in Gunnar’s direction. She would have to find a way to repay her someday.

*     *     *

Kristoffer, dressed in black tails, surveyed the dungeon. The lighting would be provided primarily by candlelight. Once Gunnar had come in, and he knew Sprite was preparing upstairs, the three of them, including Patrick, had set about lighting the seven white tapers on each black floor stand of the same number. Seven for luck. Three stands lined either side of the white runner she’d walk down and the last one was behind Gunnar.

Grant had gone upstairs to check on her, although Sprite had insisted she could do everything herself. When the candles had been lit, Patrick headed to the kitchen to give Kristoffer’s check to the caterers so they could be sent on their way before the ceremony started. Only the five main parties would be here. The tattoo artist wouldn’t even arrive to set up until after the collaring and reception were over.

Gunnar had given them a guest suite in his mansion to enjoy on this special night. From what the artist had told him, Sprite would be tender given the position of the tattoo. Avoiding lying on her back tonight would prove interesting, but Sprite’s agreeing to alter her ink in a permanent way was important and symbolic.

Patrick turned up the dimmers on the wall sconces, casting a little more light and drama to the setting. Kristoffer walked over to the silver tray that held the single long-stemmed white rose with unsnipped thorns and carried it to the room where Sprite would await the signal to join him.

Gunnar rang a bell signaling Kristoffer and the attendants to take their places, not unlike the positions at a wedding. Grant, also dressed in black with her blonde hair in a ponytail high at the back of her head, took her place at the sound system. At Gunnar’s signal, she began the song Kristoffer had chosen.

Westlife’s “It’s You” spoke what was in his heart better than he ever could. Sprite truly had lit up his life and made it a different place. He’d instructed her to listen to the words as she walked toward him. After he heard the cue—“Baby, it’s you”—Patrick handed Kristoffer the bell to ring.

His heart pounded and then seconds later, Sprite entered the room from the back dressed in a long, flowing gown, her chest bare above the top of her dress. Her alabaster skin begged for his hands, his lips, but he reined in his libido. They hadn’t made love since last night, but would tonight—gingerly, depending on how comfortable she was after being inked.

Her hair was swept up in an incredibly sexy style that reminded him of someone, but he quickly banished thoughts of anyone but his precious Sprite from his mind.

She carried the single white rose in her hands, the bud resting between her breasts and against her heart, as she walked toward him. The soft skirt of the dress swirled as she appeared to float toward him, barefoot and in complete submission.

The song ended just as she reached his side. Having eyes for no one else, Kristoffer and Sprite faced one another. He took her right hand in his, looking deeply into her eyes for any sign of reluctance or uncertainty. All he saw was love and acceptance. He smiled at her, overwhelmed that someone so beautiful, so precious, had chosen to submit to him and to wear his collar.

Gunnar began the ceremony. “Welcome, friends. We have gathered this evening to unite Kristoffer Roar Larson and Pamela Darlene Jeffrey in a bond no one—not human or superhuman—can shatter. The power they will exchange before us will bind them together as surely as any rope or chain ever could. Roar and Sprite, as they will be referred to in this ceremony, have come together to pledge themselves to love, cherish, and support one another for all eternity as Dominant and collared submissive.

“Roar and Sprite, tonight, we celebrate how the paths of two lonely people crossed when you met, and now you will be joined forever as you continue your journey side by side. It is this locking together of once-separate hearts, minds, bodies, and souls that brings phenomenal strength to each of you and binds you to one destiny that defies time, space, and death.”

Gunnar addressed him first. “Roar, do you give your collar to your submissive, fully understanding the scope of the responsibility you are undertaking to her?”

“I do.”

He then turned toward Pamela. “Sprite, do you accept Roar’s collar of your own free will, fully understanding the commitment and promises you are about to enter into?”

“I do,” she replied, her voice and commitment never wavering.

“Roar and Sprite, before me and these witnesses, do you both swear that the commitment you are about to enter into is absolute and will last for the rest of your lives and beyond?”

Simultaneously, they answered, “We do.”

“Roar informed me earlier that the two of you have prepared individual vows to exchange at this time,” Gunnar said. He nodded toward Grant who brought a pillow around and placed it between the two of them.

Kristoffer cleared his throat and recited the words he’d practiced on the drive out here until they were imprinted on his brain.

“Sprite, tonight I come to you as I am—the Dominant who has chosen you above all women to wear my collar and accept my pledge of loyalty, faithfulness, and trust. My promise is to protect and cherish you as I nurture and guide you, share all that I am and have, and bind myself to you for the rest of our lives and, indeed, into eternity.”

Sprite handed the rose to Grant and knelt before Roar, looking up at him in love and trust. Her tremulous smile nearly made him tear up again.

“Master Roar, I kneel before you of my own free will, with clarity of mind, heart, and conscience. I surrender my life to you, submitting to your will in all things we have agreed will be under your authority,” she said with a grin.

Forever the brat—and soon to be
his
brat forever.

*     *     *

Pamela’s emotions almost overpowered her as the moment he would place his collar around her neck drew closer.

But she hadn’t finished with her vows yet. “I vow to honor you with my every thought, word, and action. To stay with you, support you, and fulfill your needs and desires as you so allow. Sir, I gladly accept your guidance and love and, to my utmost ability, will devote myself to making you pleased with me in every way.” Her voice cracked, but when he reached out to cup her cheek in reassurance, she grew stronger. She leaned into his hand, feeling cherished as his thumb brushed her cheekbone.

“I am yours, Master Roar.”

Patrick presented to Roar a box that bore the now-familiar insignia of the jeweler in Big Sur. The region would always hold a special place in her heart, because it was where they had first admitted they were falling in love with each other. He opened the lid to reveal a choker lying on white satin. The round, pea-sized Big Sur jade beads had a stunning teardrop-shaped pendant in the front.

He lifted the choker out and held it in front of her. “By accepting my collar, which is to be worn every day as long as you live, know that I, as your Dominant, vow to do everything within my power to remain worthy of both you and your submission. I promise to respect and be sensitive to your needs and desires, to work with you to keep our relationship strong and vibrant, and to love, hold, honor, and support you. I will acknowledge my responsibility for the safekeeping of the profound trust you have placed in me with your surrender.”

He drew a shaky breath. Seeing how nervous he was, she smiled at him. “Sprite, I accept the deeper responsibility that comes with the placing of this collar around your neck. I vow to never violate, or even
threaten
to violate, the trust you have granted me. I acknowledge and accept with all my heart the gift of your submission and surrender to me.”

He lifted the collar to his lips and placed a kiss on the pendant and another on the barrel-shaped clasp. She was grateful he hadn’t chosen one with a padlock. No one at the hospital would suspect this was anything other than a special necklace.

“Sprite, are you ready to accept this collar in the spirit in which it is offered?”

“Most definitely, Master Roar.”

As he walked around behind her, her body began to shake with profound emotion. She blinked back tears. “As long as I remain true to you and my vows, this collar is never to be removed without my permission. Hold your head high as you accept my collar, Sprite,” he commanded. She stretched to her full height as the cold beads were laid on her collarbone.

“My beloved Sprite, this collar—and any collar I choose to place around your neck from this day forward—will forever be a symbol to the two of us, those present here tonight, our BDSM community at large, as well as the universe, that you have agreed to be mine. But by wearing this collar, I expect you to continue to be the authentic person you are and to continue to grow into the person you wish to become. I will move heaven and earth to deepen your roots, honor your boundaries, stretch your limits, and give you wings to take flight—each at the appropriate time.”

As he closed the clasp, sealing her to him forever, Roar’s fingers brushed the back of her neck causing goose bumps to break out on her arms. He ran his warm hand over the back of her collar before squeezing her shoulder reassuringly. A sense of belonging came over her.

“Sir, I accept your collar as the outward and visible sign of your love and protection for me.”

He returned to stand before her. “Look at me, Sprite.” Tears streamed down her face as she met his gaze once more, but she smiled as he wiped them away. “We remain equals in a sense. I can’t do this without you; you can’t do this without me. Our separate halves are now one, dovetailing like the yin and the yang.”

She felt whole, yet unique in her own identity, like the ancient Chinese symbol he referred to. Interconnected to give each other what they needed, but formed in such a way that the two must become one to be complete.

Roar took her hands and helped her to her feet. “We have both consented to this exchange of power and have agreed to follow the vows we spoke earlier, but unless we communicate to one another what we want and need, we won’t be able to succeed. Before we move on, is there anything else you want to express at this time?”

Empowered to share, she searched for the words she wanted to speak. After a moment, she began, “Sir, it is my deepest joy to become yours in such a beautiful way, an honor I will never take for granted. Yes, I have given you authority over me and trust you to guide me on the path that is right for the two of us as we continue this journey together. Master Roar, know that you are the center of my universe, the light of my life, and the love of my heart. I place my entire being—body, mind, and spirit—into your care now and forever.”

Roar seemed nonplussed by her declaration a moment before he smiled and bent to kiss her lips.

“Ahem.” Gunnar smiled. “Not so fast. There’s more.” He resumed his officiant mantle. “The two of you have been joined for the sole purpose of loving, caring and supporting each other in the fullness of time. To symbolically show you are willing to shed blood for each other, Roar has asked me to conclude this evening with the White Rose Ceremony.”

Gunnar nodded to Patrick, who lifted the cloth-covered tray revealing a full-blown, long-stemmed red rose along with two lancets. She smiled, remembering their discussion about the risk of fungal infections if they’d used the thorns of the roses. As always, he bowed to her authority in her area of expertise. She hoped he’d scrubbed his hands as thoroughly as she’d instructed him to.