Unrestrained (20 page)

Nodding, pleased with the decision, she returned to work in a better frame of mind. She could do this. She could handle the type of relationship she was cultivating with Dale and keep her life in perspective.

Balanced.

W
hen she arrived at the office the next morning, she came down the hall on brisk heels, her mind already on the things she needed to do. Since she’d be meeting with the board at lunch, she was wearing her pearls and dark suit, anticipating her usual power struggles with Mel and the other handful of members who wished she would retire from the board and tend to her gardening. Maybe Mel would be better due to their last interaction, and the others would fall in line behind him. She didn’t put a lot of stock in it improving Larry’s behavior, however.

Ellen was at her desk as usual, but she had an odd expression on her face. When Athena entered her reception area, she rose, looking flustered. “Ah, Mrs. Summers. You have a visitor this morning . . .”

As she glanced past Ellen, she was startled to see Dale. He’d risen when Ellen had and now stood squarely facing her. He was wearing his boots and a dark T-shirt tucked into belted jeans. It seemed to be his preferred fashion statement, one she personally felt worked on him anywhere. The mere sight of him made everything flip-flop, like she was sitting naked on his bed again, doing his bidding, doing any unspeakable, incredible thing he demanded.

The fact those blue-green eyes were cool, direct—a Master’s eyes—didn’t mitigate that feeling in the slightest. His body language broadcast it as well. Surely he wouldn’t act inappropriately at her place of business. Or would he? As her pulse ramped up, she told herself not to be ridiculous. She was in control of this situation. They weren’t Master-sub at the moment, no matter that his very presence made her feel like they were.

“Dale,” she said, summoning the appropriate smile, which of course felt inordinately fake. “What an unexpected pleasure. Did you—”

“We need to talk about this.” He lifted a thick envelope that displayed her bank’s logo.

Though his tone was blandly courteous, he didn’t smile. Before she could think of another polite response, or invite him into her office, he’d taken a step forward, closed his fingers on her elbow and was directing her there. Just like that, he’d taken control of the situation. Catching the bemused expression on Ellen’s face, she managed to speak with a calmness she didn’t feel. “Hold my calls, Ellen.”

“Yes ma’am.”

Once inside her office, he released her elbow, but only to close her door. She moved to her desk, pivoted to stand behind her chair and face him. In hindsight, she wasn’t sure why she’d chosen to put such a barricade between them, but he recognized it as a shield, his gaze narrowing upon her. “Come out here, in front of me.”

His tone had sharpened like a knife, the eyes even cooler now. She lifted her chin. “What if I say no? You didn’t strike me as the type of man intimidated by a businesswoman.”

“Does anything about me suggest I’m intimidated, Athena?”

Not a damn thing.

He bared his teeth in a smile, her expression apparently giving him the answer to the question. “If you refuse to come out from behind the desk, I have two possible responses. One, I leave and we’re done, because if you say no and mean it, that says you’re not ready for what you claim to want from me.”

Her reaction to his walking out the door was strong enough to make her put tented fingers on the back of the chair to brace herself. Images of everything going back to exactly what they were like before their first meeting at her house flipped through her mind like one of those cartoon books, the ones where the characters moved at the pace of the riffled pages. Every page a slight movement, so the frames helped the character move forward . . . or backward.

She’d always thought the painstaking work of the artists, their passion, had to be akin to monks illuminating manuscripts, one perfect letter at a time. Did they ever recognize that connection themselves, or was it just tedious? Maybe the monks had felt the same way. Maybe they hadn’t seen it the way those who admired it did. As a complex process, step by step, to create something amazing.

“And behind door number two?” she said, noting her voice had a strained note to it. His gaze caressed her face, even as his expression remained uncompromising.

“I come behind that desk and get you. Whatever you imagine, I promise you will
not
like that option. You’re not going to yank my chain and not get bitten.”

She didn’t know what he meant, but for some reason she didn’t want to ask him to clarify. “I’m not afraid of you.”

“Yeah, you are. Not in the way you mean, though. You know I’d never do anything to truly harm you, and I’d break the fucking arm of anyone who did.” The different tone sent a ripple through her. “You’re afraid of what I’m doing to you, who you become when you’re with me. Come out from behind the desk. Now.”

She obeyed. She wasn’t sure what to do, if she should lean her hips casually on the front of her desk like a cat pretending she’d meant to fall off a railing, when she’d really lost her footing and ended up where she hadn’t expected. He took the decision from her, surprising her by closing his hands over hers in a gentle way. Her slim fingers looked small inside his grip. She’d missed that. Roy had been a big man, and she’d always liked the difference in their sizes, the way it could make her feel so feminine.

Dale rubbed his thumbs over her palms. “How were things this week? And I’m not looking for a rundown of your itinerary. Was it a good kind of crazy? Like a teenage girl waiting for roses?”

She flushed, but he squeezed her hands. “Answer me, Athena.”

“Yes.”

“But it wasn’t all good, was it? There was something bugging you, eating at your gut.”

When she didn’t say anything, he sighed. “The first day, maybe you felt like you were at a carnival, thrilled with how unpredictable things are. But after that, it started to feel like it does when it’s getting late and the carnival is packing up. The fantasy is over, so where does that leave you? You did this thing with the trust, the check, and then you felt way better. Glowing.”

He was right. Startled, she ran it over in her head, feeling him watching her, waiting on her, waiting for it to make sense. She pressed her lips together. “I don’t understand.”

“Yeah, you do.” He tapped the top of her hand with a thumb. “When you acted as a Mistress for Roy, I bet you were like a sponge, absorbing every impression. You learned from other Dommes, from their subs, from Roy’s own responses. You have great intuition, and the fact you’re a successful businesswoman tells me you’re good at reading people. It’s really not so hard to understand both sides of the coin once you’re born into at least one side of it. So what were you doing, Athena? Put yourself in a Mistress’s shoes and evaluate what you did.”

The shift brought a click, like a key turning a lock. The moment it did, she wished she could close the door, but she couldn’t, because he’d made her open it, face it.

She’d been holding on to control. Taking it back from him, afraid to let him hold the reins. Damn it. It was pitifully obvious. How could she be so stupid?

“Hey. Look at me.”

It was too difficult, but he put a hand on her face, guided it to obey his direction. “If you give yourself shit for it, you’ll have an even bigger punishment coming than you already do.”

Her stomach fluttered at that, but she couldn’t suppress the self-castigation. “I’m sorry, Dale.”

His lips twisted. “You have to do everything exactly right, or you’ve fallen short, haven’t you, Ms. Perfectionist? Failed yourself, failed me.”

She pulled away, moved to the window. She resisted the desire to cross her arms, assume a defensive posture. “You’re right. I’m new to this. It’s not an excuse, but—”

“Stop talking.”

She closed her mouth, startled by the mild command, when his expression wasn’t mild at all. Those blue-green eyes had gone laser sharp. As he stepped up beside her, she quelled an absurd urge to hide behind her desk again, but the implied threat in his proximity wasn’t entirely unwelcome, given that her fingers were curling against her sides, wanting to touch him.

“You put yourself together so well, Athena.” His gaze coursed over her, from the light flush in her cheeks to the tips of her polished heels. “Nice outfit, appropriate for an office setting. The skirt a little snug, enough to show you have a good ass, but not flaunting it. The blouse exposing those delicate collarbones, reminding a man you’re a woman. And more, reminding him he’s a man, and all those differences between you. Proper and enticing, all at once. Don’t even need that hint of lace you can see at this angle.”

She started to glance down, but he intercepted her, fingers catching her chin. “Your body belongs to me, girl,” he said. “And you don’t have permission to look at it right now.”

When he released her chin, she kept her eyes fixed on his, her head up. He nodded in approval, slid his knuckle down her sternum, then over, inside the collar, teasing the lace under the silk. Her nerves tingled at the heat of the direct touch. “You didn’t fail me, Athena. Or yourself. By the time I leave this office, you’ll understand that. And you’ll feel much better about everything. In a real way this time. Even though the carnival packed up, you’ll know there’s something even better in that empty field. Do you want to trust that I’m right?”

“Yes. I want to trust you.” She wanted to trust him with everything she was. She wanted to say yes, she
did
trust him, but of course he’d just proven that she didn’t.

“All right. Does your office door lock?”

She nodded. His lips firmed into a line. “Yes sir,” she corrected herself. Just like that, the environment shifted from any uncertainty about their roles to a clear line between Master and sub. There was a relief to it, even though it scared her, too, given she was right in the heart of a place that was all about her being in control. Dale had obviously intended to confront her here for that very reason.

“How much can your assistant hear through the walls?”

“They’re not soundproof, but the walls are well insulated. Conversation sounds like a distant murmur when the door is closed.” Her heart was moving up in her chest, closing in on the pulse in her throat. She needed to tell him they couldn’t . . . not here. But she couldn’t seem to say anything. A war was going on in her stomach. That uneasy, uncertain feeling she’d experienced before she decided to send the check was back now, but it was competing with her response to what he was implying. She didn’t know how to resolve it, or feel right about it, so she did nothing. He’d put her in a position of waiting to see what he would do. How
he
would resolve it.

She was giving him control.

She was amazed at how that cold ball became a little less painful at the realization. It wasn’t gone, but something was on the right track. That feeling intensified when he settled his hand at the base of her throat, collaring her.

“Do you know where I’m going with this, girl?”

“I—I think so. Maybe . . . no.”

His lips twitched, his thumb sliding along her jaw. “Send your assistant out to get an order of fresh beignets. Does she lock the outer office when she’s not at her desk, even if you’re here?”

“Yes. There are files that—”

The pressure of his fingers increased, his gaze steady on hers.

“Yes sir.”

“Good.” He leaned in, and her lips parted. His gaze flickered, as if he’d felt the soft exhalation of her breath on his skin, and a shiver went through her. Her hands were still tense balls at her sides. “How long do you think that will take her?”

“About twenty-five minutes.” She glanced at the clock. “More, if there’s still a morning crowd.”

“So a half hour. That will be sufficient.” Releasing her, he reached back, pulled his wallet from his jeans pocket and removed a twenty from it.

“Oh, I can—”

“No. You won’t. Not ever with me.” When he so chose, he had a gaze like a tiger’s glittering in the dark. His fingers closed over hers, transferring the bill to her palm. “Go do what I told you to do.”

She was surprised her quivering legs obeyed her, but they did. She moved toward the door, having the presence of mind to take a few steadying breaths, something that would hopefully make her cheeks a shade less than scarlet, before she opened it and stepped out into the admin’s area. “Ellen, I need you to . . .”

As she relayed Dale’s instructions as if they were her own, she put the money on the edge of Ellen’s desk, not trusting herself to hand it over. Ellen would certainly feel the tremor in her fingers. Athena had a lot of practice at staying cool under fire, though, and it stood her well now. Except for the speculation she could tell Ellen was entertaining, having wisely deduced this was Athena’s Wednesday lunch date, her assistant didn’t show any surprise at the request or her boss’s expression.

“It may take a few minutes. You know this is their busy time of morning.”

“No problem. Mr. Rousseau and I will be working out the details of the trust for his shelter, so he should be here for the next half hour at least.”

Ellen nodded, already rising to gather up her purse and the money. She did offer Athena a playful look of female conspiracy, mouthing
wow
. It didn’t take any brain cells to know Ellen was reacting to Dale’s appearance, and of course
wow
fit. He wasn’t a pretty man, but he had the rugged looks and confident, powerful bearing that would turn any woman’s head. Plus, there was that dominant, purely sexual quality to him that drew female attention, whether the woman in question recognized it for what it was or not.

“You want me to lock my door like I usually do?”

“Yes, go ahead and do that. I’d like to get this done without interruption, and you know Larry might decide to ambush me before the meeting to dry run some of his usual power plays.”

Ellen rolled her eyes. “Yes ma’am.” And then she was gone, making sure the button lock was in place before she drew the heavy wooden door closed behind her.

Athena pivoted, came back into her office. She emulated Ellen’s actions, pushing in the button lock and closing the door. Now it was just the two of them. Dale was standing at the window, looking down on the New Orleans business district. But he turned as the door closed, with that look that made her knees even weaker and her mind scatter.