Callie felt conspicuous as they left the store and Max tucked her into the backseat of his car. It was silly. No one knew what she had on underneath her skirt. The underwear was perfectly respectable…except for the sly little gap that made her pussy accessible.
Max gave the driver instructions, although Callie didn’t much pay attention to where they were going. Then Max turned his attention to her and pulled her onto his lap so that she sat sideways across him.
The flat of his palm rested on her knee and he pushed higher, taking the filmy material of her skirt with him. She sucked in her breath and cast a nervous glance in the driver’s direction, but the privacy glass was up. He couldn’t see back here, could he?
She promptly forgot all about her concerns when Max’s fingers dipped past the slit in her underwear and found her damp heat.
She’d just had the orgasm to end all orgasms and yet when he touched her, her body leapt to instant and aching awareness.
“You’re playful today, dolcezza. And very, very naughty. I’ll have to come up with a suitable punishment for your wanton behavior.”
Her eyes widened and she stared incredulously at him. “Punishment? You ought to be thanking me. What guy wouldn’t like for a woman to fuck his brains out during a lingerie show? Why on earth would you punish me?”
He smiled. “Because it suits me?”
Ah, the answer to everything in Max’s world. Because it suited him. She should have remembered that his punishments had little to do with actual infractions and more to do with his whims. Not that she minded.
Still, she turned her bottom lip down into a pouty sulk, because she also knew he loved it when she pouted.
He leaned up, caught her bottom lip between his teeth and sucked it into his mouth. “Such a pretty pout. I’ll have to punish you for that too.”
She rolled her eyes but squeezed them shut when he slid two fingers into her pussy. He continued to play as they rolled down the avenue. Forgotten was her complaint that she’d freeze in her current apparel. She was flushed from head to toe as he worked his magic. He was patient. Very exacting. Working her to the point of orgasm and then stopping until she came down from the verge.
Then he’d begin again until she was crazy with wanting. His thumb stroked gently over her clit as his fingers explored her swollen tissues. He added a third finger and she arched, knowing that if he didn’t stop at this precise point, she’d come.
Only he did.
He laughed softly at her expression. She could only imagine how frustrated she looked. She wanted to pounce on him and fuck his brains out all over again, and she couldn’t care less whether the driver saw and heard.
“Would you like to come?”
“Yes!” she hissed.
Slowly he withdrew his fingers, and then he licked each one, sucking her moisture from the tips, all the while staring at her.
“I want you hungry. I want you on edge. I plan to keep you there all afternoon. Then I’m going to take you home and spank that pretty ass of yours until you’re begging me to take you. Then and only then am I going to fuck you. It won’t be easy, dolcezza. I’m going to own you. It won’t be a nice, easy taking. You’ll have no doubt as to my possession. I’m going to fuck that sultry mouth of yours. I’m going to fuck you here.” He slid his fingers between her legs again and opened her as he ran a finger around her entrance. “And I’m going to fuck that delectable ass of yours and then I’m going to come all over you. Then I think I’ll spank you all over again.”
She quivered from head to toe. Heat rushed over her skin until she felt faint. She wavered in his grasp, bobbling like a tipsy party girl. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t respond to the vivid images bombarding her brain.
Suddenly there was nothing more she wanted to do than to go home and allow him to do as he pleased. And damn the man, but he knew it. The satisfied, predatory smile on his face spoke volumes. He knew precisely what he was doing to her and he loved every minute.
She sagged against him and tucked her head underneath his chin as she stared out the window at passing traffic. “You are an evil, evil man, Max Wilder. Damn if I don’t love you anyway.”
He chuckled. “You love me because I’m evil, and you are my match, dolcezza. You are every bit as evil as I am. I love that about you.”
She raised her head and stared back at him, all teasing gone. “I’m just happy that you love me.”
He stared at her a long moment before sliding his hand over her cheek and then upward into her hair. He gathered the strands tight into his fist and pulled her toward his mouth to take her in a savage, demanding kiss.
For several seconds, she could barely breathe as he ravaged her lips, took possession of her mouth and tasted every inch of it.
As he pulled away, his eyes darkened with intensity. “Never doubt my love for you, Callie.”
“I won’t,” she said softly. “Not now.”
“Not ever.”
She nodded.
Max glanced ahead and then carefully arranged her skirt so that she was covered. “We’re here.”
She slid off his lap onto the seat and finished arranging her clothing so that she was presentable. “Where’s here?”
He smiled. “You’ll see.”
The driver opened the door and Max stepped out. He reached back to take Callie’s hand and helped her onto the sidewalk. She blinked to try and clear the cobwebs that were muddying her mind. That was also Max’s fault. Her brain had gone to mush and now all she could think about was what was to come later.
Max pulled her into his side as a brisk wind kicked up. He hurried them toward a jewelry store two doors up. Callie recognized the name. Very exclusive. Very expensive.
It wasn’t that she wasn’t used to being around money. Her parents had money. It was just that Callie didn’t. Not that she couldn’t, but from the time she’d been old enough to understand that her parents were wealthy, she’d always been determined to pay her own way. Much to her parents’ dismay.
With three fathers all dying to spoil their only little girl, Callie had put a kink in their plans by refusing to let them pay for anything.
These kinds of places made her nervous. Not that she hadn’t been in them. But they made her feel like a fraud.
They went inside, and an older gentleman in an expensive suit immediately came forward to greet Max.
“Good to see you, Mr. Wilder.”
Max took his outstretched hand and shook it briefly. “And you, Winston. Do you have them ready for me?”
Winston nodded and motioned for Max and Callie to follow him into a small room off the main showroom.
“Please, have a seat.” He gestured toward two plush armchairs in front of a highly polished executive desk. He then walked around to sit behind the desk and he opened one of the drawers.
He drew out a velvet case, much larger than Callie would have imagined. She raised an inquisitive brow in Max’s direction. He only smiled and directed Winston to open the box.
Winston complied and turned the box around, pushing it in Max’s direction.
Inside were two intricately designed bracelets. Although they were much wider than a typical bracelet. They looked more like cuffs.
Max pulled one of the pieces of jewelry out of the box and held it up. He looked at it from side to side and then made a sound of approval before picking up the second one.
“Put your arms out, dolcezza.”
She did so without hesitation. Max first clasped one around her left wrist and then placed the other one on her right wrist. The cool metal closed around her flesh and to her surprise, he took out a tiny key, inserted it into the clasp and locked it.
“I considered gold, but platinum looks more beautiful on you,” he said. “It suits you.”
He raised both hands to view the jewelry on her wrists. Satisfaction lit his eyes and then he glanced at her. “Do you like them?”
She carefully pulled her hands away from Max so she could study the intricate designs on the bands. Along the bottom of the left cuff was inscribed: Two halves of a whole. She glanced at the right cuff to see inscribed: We are one.
And on the inside in flowery script: Max and Callie.
Tears shimmered in her vision and she lifted her gaze to Max. “They’re beautiful.”
Max raised his hand dismissively, and Winston hurried out of the office, leaving Max and Callie alone. Max returned his attention to her and gathered her hands in his.
“You’ll wear these as long as we’re together. You’ll not take them off. Ever. We’ll both have a key, but know that you voluntarily taking them off will mean that you no longer want to be with me. In my eyes these are more binding than a wedding ring. They signal my possession. My ownership and your acceptance of that. Do you understand?”
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak around the knot in her throat.
He raised her hands to his mouth and pressed a kiss across her knuckles. “I love you, Callie. This more than anything else is a symbol of that love.”
She smiled brilliantly, until her cheeks ached with the effort. “I love them, Max. I’ll wear them always.”
His eyes lit up and his smile was as broad as hers. The joy in his expression made her heart clench, and a giddy thrill rushed down her spine. He loved her. She made him happy. It was almost too much for her to contemplate.
“Are you hungry? It’s getting late in the afternoon and I have yet to feed you. I’m neglecting my dolcezza.”
“Starving,” she admitted. “Being naughty is hard work!”
His laughter filled the room and he stood, pulling her up next to him. He caught her against him and tipped her chin up to receive his kiss. “You are so perfect for me, Callie.” He squeezed her one last time and then ushered her from the office and out to the waiting car.