"ahhh!" an unbearable storm of sensation exploded inside her, and she came hard, bucking uncontrollably against his thrusts.

before she had recovered, he picked her up off his knees and turned her into his embrace, handling her as if she weighed nothing.

"shhh," he murmured, his cheek pressed to her hair. he kissed her wet cheeks and took her mouth so gently and sweetly that she started crying again. not speaking, he just held her, stroking her with the same hand that had spanked her and then given her an incredible orgasm.

exhaustion claimed her. her muscles went limp. he held her firmly against his chest, and there was a strange security in his powerful arms.

she finally pulled in a shuddering breath. "sir?"

he kissed the top of her head. "learn to think before you speak, little sub. not every dom is as easygoing as i am."

she stiffened. easygoing?

he chuckled and stroked her hair. "of course, some subs mouth off just to get punished. amazing how much fun a good spanking can be, isn't it? i sure don't remember that being covered in my college classes."

a gulping laugh broke from her, and she took a breath as the world returned to normal. "um, sir? what do you do for a living? you never said."

"neither did you."

well, they were definitely better acquainted today. "i'm a biology teacher. high school."

"lucky kids. i'm a cop. a detective, actually. want to see my handcuffs?"

she shook her head no and then rubbed her cheek over the springy hair on his chest. "no wonder you intimidated buck so easily."

a growl rumbled through him. "he's lucky he got off so lightly."

"sir?"

"um-hmm?"

his arms never loosened, she was still snuggled up against him, held so firmly she couldn't move. the fact she found that reassuring was a little frightening. "when buck grabbed me, you told him it was my choice whether to leave or not. but you didn't give me a choice now. you grabbed me...and spanked me."

"ah." he rubbed his chin on the top of her head. "your wannabe dom lost his temper and tried to make you do something you didn't want. you didn't have a safe word arranged, did you?"

"well, no. but-"

"now i could be mistaken, but on your first night, we talked about what you might enjoy. did i mention spanking? punishment?"

"but i didn't say yes."

"ah, sweetie, what i heard was that you didn't say no." his fingers cupped her cheek, raised her face to look at him. his brown eyes seemed to bore right into her. "i felt your body's response. first in the bar and again here. was i mistaken?"

heat flooded her cheeks. "no," she whispered. he'd barely touched her down below and she'd climaxed. hard.

"brave girl." his voice was warm, lazy, as comforting as his hands stroking her shoulders. "one other thing. did i lose my temper?"

"well." he'd been...displeased, definitely. but his voice and actions had been carefully controlled, she realized with surprise. her lesson had been very deliberate. "no, sir."

"ah." he ran his fingers down her arm to her hand, massaged her palm. "being under someone's control and punished... some people find that very erotic, especially if you're already aroused." he lifted her hand, sucked on a finger, and the feeling of his mouth anywhere on her body made her womb clench. "you are one of those people who find it erotic, kari. if you didn't, you'd have used your safe word."

she stayed silent. nothing in her life was ever going to be quite the same again, was it? what she'd found out about herself these two evenings... she had some hard thinking to do. soon.

when she didn't answer, he hugged her tightly, then set her on her feet. he steadied her as her knees wobbled. when his hands rubbed across her still-stinging bottom, she hissed.

he actually chuckled, the jerk. "you won't forget again, now will you? because i could grow fond of seeing your pretty ass turn red under my hand."

"no, sir, i won't forget."

"very good." his eyes roamed over her body. from the heavy-lidded stare, the flush on his skin, and the thick wedge of flesh bulging under his leathers, she could tell he had enjoyed punishing her.

he moved a little closer. he was close, very close. his vest hung open, exposing a hard six-pack of abdominal muscles. "i could easily... no, i better not. use the bathroom and take a quick shower." he grinned. "you need it now, i'm afraid. i'll pick out your clothes."

her mouth opened, closed quickly, and she just nodded.

pleased, he pressed a quick kiss to each breast, making her breath catch. "go."

chapter ten

dan listened to the shower as he opened the armoire door and surveyed his choices. z kept a nice variety of fetish wear in each room. he eyed a french corset and then shook his head. she wasn't ready for that one-not yet-although those breasts would look sensational pushed up and overflowing. his cock twitched in agreement.

maybe a maid's outfit? no. she was a modest woman, and he'd pushed her hard. he could relent with the clothing. a bit.

he pulled a dress out, soft and clinging, with a halter top that tied behind the neck. anything that tied was fun. and the midthigh length was long enough to give her a sense of security. he grinned. that wouldn't last.

perhaps he should keep her up here? but no. she'd come to the shadowlands for an introduction to the lifestyle, so she really should see some of the regulars play. considering how she'd reacted so far, it might be interesting.

she was so sweet.

he smiled, remembering her wide-eyed look when he told her to suck him, the tears on her cheeks after her spanking. sweet. innocent. some men liked battling with sarcastic, angry subs. he wasn't one of them. although he appreciated her courage and sparking temper, her modesty and nurturing nature drew him even more.

her responses were so compelling, so honest, that he found himself wanting to wring more from her. but he needed to control himself to keep from pushing her too fast and far. she wouldn't stop with this visit. she might retreat after this, but her true nature was submissive. now that she'd discovered the depth of passion inside her, vanilla sex would be even more tasteless to her.

she stepped out of the shower, rosy pink from the heat, her shoulders a confection above the blue towel. yum. crossing the room, he bent his head to nibble the curve where her neck met her shoulder. he tilted her head back and kissed the softness of her neck. "you taste wonderful and smell divine."

"thank you," she said. she'd obviously recovered her composure in the shower, and her little shivers were gone completely.

back in control, was she? hmmm.

"i found something you'll like," he said, stripping the towel from her. "it slides right over your head."

kari paused at the top of the stairs. the noise from the bar washed over her, bringing back a semblance of reality.

why was she still here? she'd achieved her goal, to see what this bdsm stuff was all about. now she really wanted to think about what had happened, what she'd done-what he'd done-for a while. a long while. she needed to be away from here to do that.

time to go home. her body was satisfied. oh yes, more satisfied than ever in her life.

she turned to look at master dan and caught her breath when the soft material of the dress rubbed against her tender nipples.

no bra. no panties. she would have horrified the nuns. then again, considering the other clothing in the armoire, she should be grateful this dress covered her fully. she'd seen a sheer lacy gown in there with the breasts and groin cut out. good grief.

yes, she appreciated this dress. this amount of indecency was enough for her. and master dan had refused to allow her underwear. she'd never gone-what did they call it?-commando before, and the cold air touching her nether regions made her feel very naked down there.

a little excited too, but she'd die before admitting that.

"i think i'll go home now," she said as he moved closer and tucked a firm arm around her waist.

he tilted his head and studied her silently. unexpectedly, his fingers stroked across her breasts, and she sucked in a breath at the tingling, inside and out.

"no, little sub, your body isn't ready to leave yet." he held out his hand. "take my hand."

it was an order, and her fingers were in his grip before she thought about saying no.

his eyes softened, and when he smiled approval, she had to smile back. he was right, darn him. the part of her that knew better, that followed the rules, wanted to leave. all the rest of her wanted to stay, to have his arm around her waist, to do what he ordered her to do.

he led her downstairs to the bar. boy, things had livened up. men and women nodded at him, greeted him by name. not all of them, though. where there were couples, only one would speak. the dominant one, whether man or woman. a few people were at the bar; others occupied the couches, occasionally with a man or woman at their feet. an older woman in an evening gown sat at a table with a male sub kneeling beside her.