“Don’t worry, little one,” Sean said softly, rubbing his hands up and down my chilled arms as we stepped over our threshold. “The Vaughns are just down the street. They’ll call if they need anything.”

“But what about her blanket?” I asked. “She can’t sleep without it.”

“I took it with us in the diaper bag I left with them. Everything they need is in there. I planned for this.”

I shifted away from him. “What exactly did you plan?”

His grin was hard-edged. “A Christmas surprise for you.”

I took a step back. “I don’t think I want a surprise.”

“But you love them.” He mirrored my movement, not allowing me an inch of space.

I huffed. “Just because you always spring them on me doesn’t mean I like them.” I took another step away from him, and my back hit the wall. The knowing glint in his deep green eyes told me he’d planned for that.

His fingers curled beneath my chin, tilting my face up to his. “There’s that fire I love so much,” he said. “But what are you hiding underneath it?”

I swallowed. “I’m not hiding anything.”

He shook his head at me with a sound of admonishment. “Hiding and now lying? You know I can’t allow that.”

“You can’t allow it?” I demanded, indignant. “Maybe you’ve forgotten how this relationship works, but I don’t take it well when you tell me what I can and can’t do.”

His grip on my face shifted so he cupped my jaw, holding me more securely. I didn’t have the option of looking away. I’d expected to anger him, maybe even hurt him. But his expression was smooth, implacably calm, and his eyes were hard with determination.

“I haven’t forgotten how our relationship works,” he said evenly. “I haven’t forgotten anything. But I think you have.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked shakily, fearing the answer.

“You’ve forgotten how to submit to me. You’ve forgotten how good it feels.” He leaned in so his lips brushed across mine as he spoke. “I know you haven’t forgotten what my cock feels like.” He pressed his erection against my hip. “But you’ve forgotten what it feels like to be owned. To be marked. To be mine.”

“Sean…”

He pressed two fingers to my lips. “You do not have permission to speak.”

“But—”

“Do you want to use a safe word? That’s the only way this stops. It’s the only way I stop.” Abruptly, his fingers left my lips, and he grasped my pussy roughly. “And I don’t think you want that. I can feel how hot your cunt is through your clothes.” He nipped at the shell of my ear, and I shuddered. “I wonder how wet you are. You might have forgotten, but your body hasn’t. Your body has always known its Master.”

My mind told me to protest, but all that escaped my lips was a low, needy moan.

“Good girl,” he rumbled, the praise rolling over my heated flesh before sinking into me. It awoke a warm glow in my chest that nearly eclipsed the cold that had taken root in my heart.

He crushed his lips to mine. The husband who had tenderly washed me in the bath the night before and the father who had cuddled our daughter so gently was gone. My fierce lover took me without mercy. The monster that lived inside him had been caged for far too long, and he unleashed it upon me with intensity I’d nearly forgotten.

I shuddered and sighed into his harsh grip, loving the way his long fingers tangled in my hair to sharply tug my head back, eliciting little sparks of pain across my scalp as he angled my mouth so he could plunder more deeply. His tongue surged in to tame mine, reminding me how his cock claimed my pussy. This was a kiss of ownership; he’d promised he’d mark me, and I knew this branding kiss was only the beginning.

He growled his approval into my pliant mouth, and his hold on my sex tightened, his palm grinding against my clit. Just as I began to rotate my hips against him, his touch shifted. He chuckled at my desperate whimper, the sound rolling into my mouth and vibrating all the way down to my core. It clenched, greedy to be filled.

His fingers found the button at the front of my slacks, and he deftly freed it. He teased along the upper edge of my panties, and I rocked up into him, silently begging for more. He nipped at my lower lip and pulled away, tearing his mouth from mine. A moment later, my world tilted, and I gasped when my abdomen hit his shoulder. He’d slung me up in a caveman act of possessiveness, and he carried me into our bedroom.

I squirmed, all my doubts and fears returning at the prospect of having him fuck me.

“Sean!” I protested.

A shocked squeak left me when his hand cracked across my ass. He hadn’t doled out punishment in a long time, and it affected me more intensely than I would have expected. The pain flared hotter than I remembered, and my core contracted with need.

“Quiet,” he said gruffly.

The world spun again, and all the air whooshed out of me when my back hit the soft mattress. He was on me in an instant, his weight pinning me, holding me down more effectively than any restraints ever could. His hard cock pressed against me through his jeans, and I tensed.

“I can’t,” I panted, longing and fear twining within me, making my stomach turn with conflicting emotion.

His fierce countenance softened, and he brushed a tender kiss across my lips. “I’m not going to force myself on you,” he promised gently, as though soothing a spooked horse. “But I am going to make you come. Hard. You’re going to be a good girl and accept your pleasure without question. Do you understand?”

I hesitated, and his hand dipped into my pants. Two fingers teased over my clit. I gasped and arched into him. His teeth grazed my neck, and he nipped at me lightly.

It wasn’t enough. I needed more; more ferocity, more force.

“Please,” I moaned, pressing my breasts up against his chest. My nipples were painfully hard against the inside of my bra, craving stimulation. I wanted him to bite them, to pinch them. For a mindless moment, I even wanted the pretty silver clamps that used to torment me so sweetly.

“I need a coherent answer,” he said, his deep voice lilting with cocky amusement. “You’re going to accept the pleasure I give you. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I whispered, unable to think of protesting when he continued to tease and caress me.

“We’ll have to work on your respect,” he commented. “But I haven’t earned that. Not in a while. That changes now. You’ll be screaming my name and begging your Master to relent before I’m finished with you.”

I whimpered and writhed beneath him, craving what he promised. I didn’t want to resist, and he wasn’t giving me the option to do so. When he overwhelmed me like this, I forgot how to deny him. I forgot all the reasons why I should.

Suddenly, his hands fisted in my blouse, and the buttons ripped free as he easily parted the material with one jerk of his powerful arms. Before I could gasp in a shocked breath at the sudden rush of cool air on my skin, he reached beneath me and unhooked my bra, pulling it free. His chest pressed down on mine, and I groaned as my peaked nipples rubbed against the soft fabric of his cotton shirt. I brought up both hands to touch him, to trace the hard lines of his perfect body, but he grabbed my right wrist. I knew what was coming next, so I indulged in the few brief seconds I’d be able to touch him with my free hand as he secured my right arm above my head with the restraints that were installed in our headboard. We hadn’t used them in a long time, but Sean had obviously prepared this scene for me.

I barely had time to caress his rippling abs before he managed to restrain my left wrist as well, securing my upper body in place.

He kissed his way down my body, pressing his lips between my breasts before tracing a hot line around my navel with his tongue. I whined when he reached my panties, but his mouth left me. His hands hooked into my jeans and underwear, and he roughly pulled both down my legs, taking off my shoes along with them. When I was completely bare, he secured my ankles to the posts at the bottom of the bed so I was stretched out before him. He stood back and admired me for a moment, studying the slick evidence of my arousal at my core before his eyes roved upward to study the way my breasts moved with my sharp breaths.

A slow, lazy smile ticked up one corner of his lips. I recognized the almost cruelly satisfied glint in his dark eyes, and I shivered. The contrast of him standing fully dressed over my naked form was undeniably erotic. I felt small, vulnerable.

And scared.

“Sean, I don’t know about—”

“I don’t want to gag you, but I will if you continue to disobey me,” he interrupted me sharply. “I’ve already warned you that a safe word is your only way out.” He waited for several long seconds, allowing me time to stop him with a simple, powerful word.

I pressed my lips together, saying nothing. He nodded in satisfaction.

“Good girl,” he praised me again and brushed his thumb over my clit in reward.

Pleasure lit up my system as my body came alive. It was even sweeter than I remembered, and I hadn’t thought that possible.

Why had I denied myself this bliss for so long? Why had I denied us?

His weight settled over me once again, and his thumb traced the curve of my cheek as he studied me intently, his deep green gaze peering into my soul.

“I can see you thinking,” he said. “I’m going to turn off that clever brain of yours. Don’t think. Don’t worry.” He leaned in so his warm breath tickled my ear. “Just submit.”

I let out a wordless moan of need, wanting nothing more than to do as he commanded. It would be so sweet to completely let go, to be freed from all my concerns…

His fingers closed around my neck, squeezing gently. My breath hitched, and I stared up at him, wide-eyed, as my mind went completely blank.

“That’s better,” he said with approval. “I want you just like this. Sweet. Submissive. You’re the most breathtaking thing I’ve ever seen, especially when you’re like this. When you’re completely mine.”

I barely noticed that he reached into his pocket, but suddenly darkness closed over me as he secured a black cloth over my eyes.

I let out a shuddering sigh and relaxed into the warm darkness.

“Very good,” he praised. His fingers traced the line of my lips, leaving something warm and wet behind. A sweet scent surrounded me, and my lips began to tingle. I gasped, and my flesh cooled as air rushed into my mouth. It was immediately warmed by his tongue, but the tingling sensation didn’t abate. If anything, it intensified.

“I thought the peppermint gel was rather festive,” he murmured against my hyper sensitized lips. “You always taste sweet, but there’s more to this than the flavor. I know you can feel it on your lips. I can. What do you think it’ll feel like on your pussy?”

I whimpered in wordless desire. I was beyond coherent speech, silenced by more than his order for me not to speak. My rational mind was receding, giving way to unrelenting pleasure. The soft cuffs around my wrists and ankles freed me even as they held me fast, and the darkness that enfolded me kept me completely focused on the sensations he was inflicting upon me. My lips tingled, and my pussy burned for his touch. I ground my hips against his thigh, loving the roughness of his jeans against my bare flesh. He allowed me to stimulate myself, and more fragrant gel touched my hard nipples.

He rubbed it in, his fingers teasing across my stiff peaks before pinching and rolling them, working the peppermint into my flesh. I gasped and jerked against my bonds as the sensitive buds began to tingle. He blew cool air over them, and the chill went deeper than I would have thought possible, the cold so intense it almost burned. It heated my insides, sending scorching lines of pleasure shooting directly from my breasts to my clit. My inner muscles fluttered, aching to be filled.

I whined and rubbed my pussy against him more insistently, desperate for more.

“That’s my greedy girl,” he said with warm approval. “I love when you’re hot and wet and needy. I love controlling your pleasure. Every part of you belongs to me: your body, your mind. All of you. Tell me you’re mine.”

“I’m yours,” I promised, the truth tumbling from my lips.

“Sir,” he corrected me. A harsh sting bloomed across my breasts as he delivered twin stinging blows.

The hit of pain drove any shreds of resistance from my mind. “I’m yours, Sir,” I moaned, my back arching as I welcomed more of his discipline.

But he didn’t strike me again. Instead, his hot tongue teased my nipples in reward, his teeth lightly scraping against the sensitive buds as the peppermint tingled and tormented me.

Mercifully, he finally touched my sex. His fingers glided along my pussy lips, the slick gel making his path silky soft. My flesh instantly heated, and when he circled my needy clit, I almost came undone.

“You can come for me,” he told me. “I want you to. I’m not going to stop when you do. We’re nowhere near finished. I won’t be done with you for a long time, but you can come as many times as you want. You have my permission.” He circled my clit again, and the heat of the mint began to work its way through my tender flesh. “Come for me.”

I cried out, and an orgasm ripped through my body. He’d barely touched my pussy, and yet the pleasure was intense enough to wrack my entire system. I squirmed against my restraints as he continued to stimulate me, rubbing the warm gel into my slick lips.

I shuddered and gasped for breath, and he took advantage of my sated, limp state. He released the bonds around my ankles and lifted my legs so my thighs rested on his shoulders. Even though I couldn’t see him, the position was familiar to me. I expected to feel his hot tongue on my pussy at any moment, but I shrieked in surprise when something cold and hard pressed against my asshole.

As he gently applied pressure, I registered that the anal plug was coated in lubricant, but it didn’t tingle and burn like the merciless minty substance that covered my other sensitive areas. Sean would never truly hurt me.

But that didn’t mean he was going to show me any mercy. I whined as he began to work the toy inside me, applying steady pressure as it stretched and filled me. His thumb came down on my clit, circling my sensitive bud until my inner muscles relaxed to accommodate the intrusion.

“You’ve always been so good for me when I fill your ass,” he said with low approval. “I want you to come for me again. Now, little sub.”

I shattered on a scream, compelled by his command and the pleasure that claimed all my senses. As my entire body tensed with ecstasy, my inner muscles eased, granting him the entrance he demanded. The plug slipped into place, anchored deep inside me. Just as I began to come down from my high and become accustomed to the intrusion, the toy buzzed to life. I cried out as a shock of dark pleasure rippled through me.

“Sean!”

“Mmm,” his approving rumble vibrated against my tingling pussy lips. “I love when you scream my name. But I want more. You’re going to acknowledge that I’m your Master.” He drew one of my lower lips into his hot mouth, then the other, sucking gently and setting my nerve endings alight. “You know it’s true. You’ve admitted that you’re mine, that I own your body. I control your pleasure. Don’t deny me. Not anymore. Never again. I won’t fucking allow it. You’ve been hiding from me. From us. But you need to submit as badly as I need to dominate every inch of you. Tell me who I am. Tell me I’m your Master.”

With every word, my body tightened, desire coiling at my core as heat suffused me.

“Yes,” I whispered my agreement.

“Louder,” he ordered. “And address me properly.”

“You’re my Master,” I said, more clearly. “I love you so much.” All worries and thoughts of resistance had been thoroughly obliterated.

“I love you too, little one. Come for me one more time.”

“I can’t,” I protested. My body was wrung-out, weak. And my clit throbbed almost painfully from the relentless pleasure.

“You can and you will. Your Master gave you an order. Come for me.”

My whimper turned to a scream as his hot tongue thrust into my tight channel. The plug continued to vibrate inside me, giving me more forbidden pleasure as his mouth tormented me with ruthless pleasure. His low growl added to the vibrations. It would have been enough to send me over the edge, but his thumb pressed down on my clit at the same time.

“Master!” I cried out his name as I came apart, ecstasy ripping through my system, sending me flying high. Bliss rushed to my head, overwhelming me completely.

I wasn’t aware that I’d fallen into the dark pleasure until Sean roused me with a gentle kiss. My eyes fluttered open, and I realized he’d removed the blindfold and freed me from my restraints, as well as removing the torturous plug. A swell of emotion hit me with the force of a speeding train, and I gasped in a deep breath. When I released it, a harsh sob escaped me.

Then Sean’s arms were around me, and I clung to him. I couldn’t untangle what I was feeling or even put a name to it. All the pain and fear and strain I’d been carrying for months burst out of me, no longer held in by the iron walls I’d encased them in. Sean had ripped those walls down and exposed my soul. For the first time in months, I simply felt. And I felt everything. It didn’t hurt, exactly. It almost felt good to finally release it.

I buried my face in Sean’s chest and surrendered to emotion, trusting that he would take care of me.