Breaking Free

Chapter Eleven

Master Nolan did up a good barbeque, Beth thought, looking down at the grilled steak, baked potato, sweet corn, and salad that he had piled on her plate. And he said he cooked badly. Then again, most guys probably considered grilling as the end to a good hunt, not as cooking.

Once served, the men had settled into chairs near the barbecue, talking comfortably about sports. Beth sighed. Men and their sports.

Kari and Deborah were already seated at their Dom’s feet and looking bored. Beth caught Kari’s gaze and jerked her head toward the other table on the patio.

Kari brightened then frowned, her eyes sliding up at Dan. Permission would have to be obtained, obviously. Hmm.

Beth set her plate on the ground and walked over to Sir. Stopping in midsentence, he raised his eyebrows.

Keeping her face solemn, she knelt on the concrete. “Please, My Liege. Could the subs eat together and indulge in girl-talk? Please, Sire?”

Sir choked on a laugh.

“Damn, Nolan, how’d you accomplish that?” Dan asked. “I can barely get Kari to say master.”

Sir crooked a finger at Beth. When she rose, he pulled her between his knees, his hands massaging her tender bottom as he studied her face. “You’re a dangerous little sub, aren’t you?” he murmured for her ears only. He glanced at Kari. “Sweet and stubborn, the both of you. I can see why you get along.

“All right with you, guys?” Nolan asked. Dan grinned down at Kari and nodded. When Cullen looked at Deborah, she shook her head no.

“Just the two of you then,” Nolan said.

“Really?” Beth asked. “You don’t mind?”

Sir smiled, and his warm gaze made her feel…cherished. “How could I say no when you asked so nicely? Go ahead, sugar.”

Kari and Beth took their food over to the table. As they talked, Beth discovered Kari and Dan hadn’t been together very long, and he’d just moved into her house last week. Hearing how a normal couple-normal BDSM couple not in a full master-slave relationship-lived was an eye-opener. Dan helped out in the kitchen and with the housework.

Kari giggled, telling how after changing the bed linens, Dan had slipped into the master role, stripping Kari naked so he could enjoy her on the clean sheets.

At the thought of Nolan doing that, Beth had barely managed to hide her envy.

After everyone was finished eating, Nolan handed out more drinks and led the way to the second-floor balcony. Back to protocol, the men took chairs, and their subs had blankets at their feet.

The men talked idly, breaking into laughter every now and then. Cullen’s mood had bounced back to normal, and his bellow of laughter probably scared every bird in the neighborhood. But the voice Beth listened for was Sir’s. The sound of his rough voice was…comforting, like there was safety wherever he was. Well, some safety…he certainly had an awful lot of sneaky tricks up his sleeve. She shifted uncomfortably on her blanket. Her bare pussy was sensitive, her abused clit even more so. She glanced up at him with a wry smile, and he caught her gaze. His dark eyes softened as he set his scarred hand on her head and stroked her hair.

Something tugged inside her, a kind of happy recognition, like when she’d been five and wandered too far and walked and walked, and then turned a corner and saw home.

She was happy, she realized. In fact, she’d felt happier today than in…in years. Oh, she got contentment and satisfaction from her work, and pleasure in her growing friendship with Jessica, but being with Nolan was different.

She could really care about him.

And that was just way too risky, but right now, she couldn’t find it in herself to worry. Not with his fingers sliding through her hair, and the scent of him on her skin.

Across the lake, small fireworks flashed in the darkness, a prelude to the big city show. “Not much longer,” Nolan said. “Come here, sugar. Let’s see how good you are at setting off a different kind of fireworks.” He set her on her knees, facing him. With a finger under her chin, he smiled into her eyes and traced a finger over her lips. “I want that soft mouth of yours around my cock.”

She blinked, a little confounded by the bluntness of his request…no, his command. Just like that? With everyone else watching? She tried to turn and look at the others, but his hands prevented it. “Look only at me, sugar. You may begin now.”

Definitely an order, though he hadn’t raised his voice. He never did, she realized. Never had to. Not with that powerful, gravelly voice. Even as she leaned forward to unbutton his jeans, shivers were running through her, and she’d become wet.

She released the last button, and his cock sprang out, thick and long. Her hands stroked over him, the satiny soft skin already tight over the rigid shaft beneath. This time it was her turn to torture him. To please him…

She licked over the round tip, tasted the drop of precum, and swirled her tongue around him. Her first Dom might not have taught her everything about BDSM, but he’d taught her plenty about how to please a man with her mouth. She moved down his cock, taking her time, tracing the big veins with her tongue, setting her teeth ever so lightly at the underside at the base, hearing his slight inhalation. She laved his heavy balls, pulling each one into her mouth to suck gently, tonguing between them before working her way back up his cock. And then, she slid him, hard and fast into her mouth, feeling his jerk of pleasure.

She worked him for a minute using only her lips and tongue until his thigh muscles tensed. Suction then suck and slide. She added her hands at the base, taking a narrow grip, sliding her hands up and down in counterpoint to her mouth. She set up a forceful, driving rhythm and heard him groan, felt him swell under her hands.

Then his hands were on her shoulders, easing her back. “Stop, you little minx. I want to finish inside you.” As she lifted her head, he handed her an opened condom, and she sheathed him, enjoying the small task. She took her time, making sure it was on thoroughly, and feeling for any wrinkles until he groaned again and yanked her right off the ground.

He made her straddle his knees and then pulled her forward. His kiss was hard and demanding, and his hand in her hair kept her from moving. Knowing she was his right now, and he could take his pleasure in any way he wanted, made her hot inside.

His free hand roamed down her body as he kissed her. He played with her breasts, pinching the nipples to spikes. Spreading his legs apart slightly made room for his hand to slide under her. With no warning, he pushed a finger right into her. She gasped at the shock of his entrance, but his hand gripped her hair as he kept her in place. Her tissues were swollen from the play earlier and from her increasing arousal now.

Even as he deepened his kiss, his finger moved in and out of her vagina, and his thumb slid over her clit. His strokes were rough, as demanding as his mouth, and she tightened immediately, clenching around him.

He drew back, chuckling, then picked her up and set her on her feet. “Hands on the rail, sugar, and stay still.” She leaned over and grabbed the hip-high, wrought iron railing. He yanked her hips back toward him, stretching her out, only her hands holding her up. He gently kicked her feet farther apart, opening her. Her breath quickened, and she checked her grip on the railing, expecting him to thrust into her.

Instead, he leaned over, resting his chest against her back. His arm flexed around her hip as he moved his right hand down to cup her mound. His fingers slid through her folds, spreading her wetness over her exquisitely sensitive clit, sending shudders through her body. She was startled when his left hand massaged her buttock. His fingers trailed down her crack and plunged into her vagina. Now both of his hands worked her, front and back.

Her knees started to tremble as increasing need burned through her. One of his fingers withdrew to circle her opening as his other finger circled her clit, never pressing hard enough. The throbbing increased until she couldn’t think, just feel.

Her hips moved, thrusting forward uncontrollably.

“I said, ‘Don’t move.’” With a tsking sound, he stepped away from her, and a whimper broke from her lips. The stinging slap against her tender bottom made her jump and yelp.

Chuckling, he secured her hips with firm hands, holding her immobile. She felt his cock press against her, the head sliding just a little way in. And then he drove into her so hard and fast he raised her onto her tiptoes.

“Uhhh!” Her breath exploded out, pushed out by his entry, his size. His balls slapped against her pussy as he yanked her back against him, setting up the same forceful, driving rhythm with which she’d teased him earlier.

Oh, God. Her hands gripped the rail as he hammered into her, never slowing. Each thrust stretched her; each thrust increased her pleasure. He leaned over her back and captured a breast in one hand, and her pussy with the other. His fingers circled her clit, his thumb following the same movements on her nipple, and electricity zinged back and forth between her breasts and her clit until her hips jerked uncontrollably against his hand. Her vagina clenched around his shaft.

He slowed, moving his cock inside her in small circles, the head pressing into different places until he seemed to hit something different, and she rocked up on her toes as a surge of intense pleasure made her gasp.

“There, huh?” he growled and started thrusting again, only each time he hit that area, over and over. His fingers rubbed against her engorged clit in the same rhythm, inside, outside, and everything coiled inside her, tighter and tighter. Her legs stiffened, her butt arching up toward him, and she went totally still, afraid to move and lose that edge of ultimate pleasure where every stroke thrilled through her and yet pushed her inevitably over the cliff.

She screamed as the orgasm erupted through her in mind-shattering shudders. He didn’t stop moving, his cock still striking that place inside her, and she came again before the first had finished. Her muscles went weak, and her hands fell from the railing.

He wrapped his arm across her hips, and his hand cupped her breast, holding her on her feet. Holding her for his pleasure. His strength kept her immobile as he thrust into her, ever deeper, until he growled his release, and the jerking inside her set off little explosions in her vagina, making her body clench and shudder.

He held her against him for a minute, his breathing fast, and she could feel his heartbeat where his wide chest pressed against her back. “Who needs fireworks when I have you?” he murmured into her ear. His teeth closed on the long muscle down the back of her neck, and she quivered uncontrollably.

With a soft laugh, he pulled out of her, making her moan, then set her like a doll back onto her blanket as he went to dispose of the condom. Beside her, she could hear the other couples-the rhythmic sounds of sex, the murmur of voices.

When he came back, he turned the chair sideways and lifted her into his arms, cuddling her against him. From there, with her head resting on his chest, she listened to his heartbeat and watched fireworks light up the sky.

Where the fuck was she? Kyler pounded on Elizabeth’s apartment door again so hard his ring bit into his knuckle. No answer. No lights were on inside.

All the work he’d done this morning to finish up his caseload would be wasted if she didn’t show up.

He walked across the asphalt in front of the building to the parking area. The first look shot panic through him. Her truck was gone. But then he saw her trailer, and his muscles loosened. She hadn’t run.

Hell, he wasn’t thinking clearly. This was a holiday after all. She’d probably gone on a date. With another man. Anger burned through him like spilled acid. “Fucking bitch.” He slammed his fist on the wood of the trailer. Splinters dug into his hand, the pain snapping him back to reality.

Turning, he took deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down. Sweat beaded on his face and poured down the middle of his back as he walked away from the trailer. His anticipation had been so high, but really, this didn’t change the plan he’d devised this morning.

Last week, his strategy had been to sedate her with valium and take her home right away. But now, his wait had been too long, and his anticipation had grown too high. He felt twitchy, off-center. He needed the release that only she could give him as he watched the look on her face when the whip struck, listened to her screams. Spilled her blood.

In the sky above the city, fireworks rose into the sky, the distant booms setting the air to throbbing. Damn her, where was she?

As the subs dressed, Nolan waited for Beth by the front door. The sound of giggling drifted from the powder room, and he grinned. Dan’s Kari was not only sweet, but she had a wicked sense of humor.

And Beth… God, he loved hearing her laugh. He wanted to hear it more.

A minute later, she appeared. Seeing him, she walked over and looked up at him, obviously feeling a bit awkward now. “I had fun today, Master.”

He smiled at the sound of his title from her lips. The foyer lights seemed too bright for what he wanted to ask, so he stepped outside. The humid night air wrapped around him pleasantly. He was hoping to have something-someone-else wrapped around him soon. “I did too. And I’d like to continue. Spend the night here with me.”

She actually took a step away from him. “Sir…”

He leaned a shoulder against the doorframe, an empty hole forming in his chest. Having her in his arms had been the happiest he’d been in a long time, and he’d thought she felt the same way. To see her retreat from him now was like a fist in the gut. He couldn’t keep the growl from entering his voice. “Do you really think I’d pound on you the way the bastard did?”

“No. No, my husband is a-”

“You mean your ex-husband, don’t you?” Yeah, he’d figured she’d been married to the guy.

“Ah…yes.” But her eyes flickered. She continued, “You’re nothing like…”

He lost the rest of what she was saying as ice slivered up his spine and jabbed shards into his brain. “He’s not an ex. You’re still married to him,” he said slowly. All the time he’d spent with her, been inside her, and… “You’re a married woman, and I’ve been fucking you.” He deliberately chose the coarse word.

The color drained from her face, leaving her golden freckles a muddy gray. “No, I-I…” She held her hands out to him.

“And you’re lying.” Just like his wife had lied to him. I wouldn’t cheat on you. Nolan. How can you say that? As fury roared through him, he pressed his shoulder against the wall, knowing if he moved, the anger would erupt into shouting. His family tended to yell when upset, but he couldn’t. Not now. To see her cringe from him at this point would be the last straw. He closed his eyes and sucked in a bitter breath as his carefully laid framework crumbled. Nothing can stand if not built on solid ground.

When he opened his eyes, she hadn’t moved. What did she want from him? A noise came from behind him, and he glanced around. The others had entered the foyer and, from the look on their faces, they’d heard. “Cullen, would you see Beth to her car, please?”

Cullen hesitated. “Ah…are you-”

“Now, please.”

Cullen’s face tightened. “Sure, buddy. I’ll do that.”

“Thank you.” Nolan stepped out of the doorway, keeping his face calm despite the fire roaring inside him, burning half-formed dreams into ash. “Thank you all for coming. I’m glad we could spend the evening together.”

Kari took Dan’s hand, glanced at Beth, and murmured, “Thank you for having us over, Nolan.”

Cullen moved finally. He squeezed Nolan’s shoulder, then gave Beth a small push to get her moving and jerked his head at Deborah to follow.

Once in the yard, Beth looked at Nolan over her shoulder, her lower lip trembling.

His return look kept her silent. “Goodbye, Beth.”