A fter I'd freshened up, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do next. I stepped out of the bathroom and found Cade stretched out on the bed, his shoes and socks gone. At least that answered one of my questions. I'd already taken off my shoes and the carpet was soft and thick beneath my feet as I walked further into the bedroom .

Cade folded his hands behind his head. “Lovely room isn't it ?”

I nodded, looking around. After all this time with Cade in these fancy hotels, I'd never feel the same about staying in some three-star place .

“Let me see what you wore for me .”

I reached behind me and lowered the zipper. Without taking my eyes off Cade, I slowly let my dress slide off. Remembering what he'd told me during our first lesson together, I ran my hands over my breasts and then down to my hips, warming as Cade's eyes followed the movements. I waited for him to tell me what to do next .

Instead of giving me instructions, he climbed off the bed and stripped down to a pair of tight, dark gray boxer briefs. He walked over to where I stood at the foot of the bed and looked down at me .

“Turn around .”

I did and found myself face to face with the mirror. It framed us perfectly, almost looking like a picture. Cade's eyes met mine in our reflection. He ran his hand down my arm and then back up again, his touch feather light against my skin .

“Watch,” he said and pressed his lips against the hollow under my ear .

Out of all of the instructions he'd given me, this one seemed deceptively easy to follow. My stomach tightened as Cade's hands slid around my waist, his palms burning against my bare skin. When they moved to cup my breasts, I shivered. Even through the thin lace, my body responded to his touch .

“Your breasts are absolutely exquisite,” Cade murmured in my ear as he ran his thumbs over my nipples. They hardened instantly. “Every man has his preference, but believe me when I say yours are perfect .”

He pressed an open-mouthed kiss on the side of my neck and I moaned, my eyes closing. They flew open again as he tweaked my nipples, sending a little jolt of pain through me .

“Watch,” he repeated firmly. His fingers found the front clasps on my bra without fumbling. He made short work of them and slipped his hands under the loose fabric to palm my bare breasts. “I want you to look at yourself and see how beautiful you are .”

I swallowed hard as I watched our reflections in the mirror. It was different, seeing myself being touched in the mirror rather than just looking down at my body. In a way, it was almost like watching someone else, like it wasn't me .

Cade let my bra fall off of my shoulders and onto the floor. His fingers rolled my nipples and I moaned. I watched a pleased smile flicker across his face. “Do you want me to pull on them?” His voice practically dripped sex. “Do you want me to make these pretty little nipples of yours stand out, make them sensitive to the slightest touch ?”

“Yes.” The word was little more than a whisper, but I cried out when he did what I wanted. His fingers twisted my nipples, tugging on them until I was squirming against him. Each pull was just the right combination of pain and pleasure and I started to feel that familiar pressure building up inside of me. The moment he touched my clit, I was going to come .

“I'd love to see how you'd react with nipple clamps,” Cade said. “I bet I could make you come from just those. The sharp little teeth bite into your flesh, and then, when they're taken off, all the blood rushes back and it's like thousands of tiny little pinpricks .”

I made a sound. I wasn't entirely sure I'd like that, but when Cade said it, I was game for pretty much anything. He'd proven time and again that he could make me see stars .

One of Cade's hands settled between my breasts while the other dropped lower, sliding down my stomach and over my panties. I parted my legs as his fingers ran along the lace .

“You're soaked.” He pressed his fingers hard against me and I moaned. “So aroused .”

He released me long enough to slide my panties off, pausing only to press his lips against my left cheek. I wondered if he was thinking about how red he'd made my ass when he'd spanked it. The color had faded by the time I'd gotten home, but I'd been pretty sure it had at least been a deep pink when he'd finished .

“Do you see yourself?” Cade asked as he took his place behind me again. “Do you truly see yourself?” He ran his fingers through my hair and then moved his hand between my legs again. “Too many people are ashamed of the human body, of the way it's made.” He ran his finger between my lips, brushing against my clit and making my hips jerk. “Look down .”

I dropped my eyes to where his fingers were spreading me apart. My face flushed. I knew what things looked like down there, at least in a general sense, but I'd never had this view .

“See the beauty in yourself.” His middle finger made circles over my exposed clit and I moaned. “Every part of you is beautiful.” When he slid his finger inside me, my knees almost buckled and I came .

He kept steady, even strokes as waves of pleasure washed over me. Just as I was starting to come down, he added a second finger, sending new tremors through me. He twisted and scissored his fingers, stretching me for what was coming next. Then, suddenly, his fingers were gone and he was taking a step backwards .

I wanted to turn toward him, but he hadn't told me to do that yet and I had a feeling he had something very specific in mind for tonight. In the mirror, I watched him climb onto the bed, pull off his underwear, and rolled on a condom. How he managed to do any of it with that much grace, I didn't know. Practice, I supposed .

“You can look away to get on the bed,” he instructed .

I walked toward him, feeling a rush of power as his eyes were drawn to my breasts. He really hadn't been lying when he'd said he liked them. When I reached him, he held out a hand to stop me from getting any closer .

“Turn around .”

Not really a surprise there. I wondered if he'd specifically requested a room with a mirror across from the bed. I did as I was told .

“On your hands and knees .”

A flare of arousal went through me. I'd been honest when I'd told Cade that Ronald and I hadn't just had sex in the missionary position, but I hadn't given him details. The truth was, there really hadn't been much variety. Him on top, me on top. That was pretty much it. Secretly, I'd always wanted to try other ways, the kinds of positions with names like reverse cowgirl and doggy-style. I just hadn't known how to bring any of it up without sounding like some kind of slut .

“Don't close your eyes,” Cade instructed. “I want you to watch yourself the entire time I'm fucking you. I want you to see how amazing your body is, the way your face changes with ecstasy when you come. You need to see all of it .”

I nodded .

Cade ran his hand down my spine and I arched up into his touch. A finger slid down my crack toward my pussy and I shuddered. I needed him inside me so badly it almost hurt .

“I don't know if it was the idiots who bypassed you for Adelle when you were younger, or someone else who made you feel like you were less than what you are, but tonight, you are going to see yourself the way I see you .”

I moaned as the head of his cock nudged at my entrance. I started to close my eyes, then remembered my instructions .

His hands slid up over my hips and over my ribs, moving down beneath me to cup my breasts. He looked into the mirror, our eyes meeting. “See what I see, Aubree .”

I watched his body curl more tightly around mine and his hips moved, pushing the first inch or so of his cock inside me. I shivered with pleasure. I wondered if I'd ever feel the same way when it was another man's body on mine ...

Cade straightened and put his hands on my waist. His hips snapped forward and I keened. He'd stretched me enough that there was no pain, only the intense sensation of being filled so completely that it was as if we'd been made to fit together .

“Look at yourself,” Cade ordered as he slowly drew back. “What do you see ?”

I watched this time as he thrust back into me. The way my breasts swayed. How my lips parted. The blush across my skin that was more arousal than embarrassment .

“Do you see?” he asked .

My gaze slid up to him, watching the way his muscles flexed as he began to set a steady rhythm, each stroke reaching the very end of me. His strong jaw, those amazing lips, his eyes. How his dark curls fell across his forehead. I saw beauty, but it was all him .

He reached down and grabbed me by the shoulders, pulling me onto my knees. One of his arms wrapped across my shoulders, above my breasts, holding me so that my back was flush against his chest. His free hand splayed across my stomach .

“Your body is amazing, Aubree.” Cade's lips were against my ear. His knees pushed at mine, somehow managing to spread my legs while still keeping his balance. “Look at our bodies together .”

My eyes fell to where I could see his thick shaft buried inside me. I whimpered as he thrust up into me. The hand on my stomach slid down until it found my clit. My body jerked as his fingers brushed against the throbbing bundle of nerves and I moaned as the motion pushed Cade deeper .

“I love the way your body responds to me .”

My stomach clenched and my heart thudded in my chest .

“How can you not see it?” His fingers were moving in time with his thrusts now, driving me closer and closer to the edge. “Every inch of you is any man's dream. Soft skin.” He pressed his lips against the side of my throat. “Firm breasts. A tight, hot pussy. A body that quivers with the slightest touch .”

His touch, I wanted to say. I didn't want to be any man's dream, only his. I didn't want any other man touching me .

“See yourself how I see you, Aubree Gamble.” He was starting to breathe harder, every stroke coming faster. “See the exquisite sexual creature you are and… come .”

He bit down on my earlobe and I cried out, my body tightening around his. Wave after wave of pleasure washed over me, spurred on by Cade's hand between my legs and his voice in my ear, telling me how gorgeous I was when I came, how much he loved watching me come .

At the height of my orgasm, there, for just a split second, I caught a glimpse of what he was talking about. Tears burned in my eyes and I reached behind me, putting my hands on his thighs. My nails dug in, the only release for the enormity of what I was feeling. I felt his muscles tense, then he groaned my name. His arms tightened around me and his cock pulsed inside me, sending new ripples of pleasure through me .

He sat back on the bed and pulled me onto his lap, holding me as we caught our breath. “Don't let anyone tell you that you don't deserve everything you want .”

A pain went through me. Would he still say that, I wondered, if he knew he was what I wanted ?

He shifted me off of his lap, hissing as he slid out of me. He tossed the condom into the trash and then rolled back to face me. “Why don't you go ahead and grab a shower ?”

I nodded and climbed off the bed. Getting away from him seemed like a good idea. My mind was buzzing with too many thoughts and my entire body was sticky with sweat and other things. I'd think more clearly once I was clean .

I sighed as the hot water beat down on me, washing everything away. I took my time, shampooing my hair and scrubbing myself clean. I tried not to think about anything. I didn't want to read too much into what Cade had said tonight, but as the events kept popping up for replays, I couldn't quite quash the hope that maybe Cade meant some of those things in ways that went beyond the physical. Maybe this weekend was his way of telling me I was different from his other clients. I was special .

I pulled on the thick, fluffy hotel robe without bothering to put anything on underneath. I stepped out into the bedroom, wondering if Cade and I were finally going to talk about how things were changing between us .

The bed was empty. I frowned. Had he decided to use the other bathroom because I'd taken too long in the shower? I walked over to the bedroom door and looked across the hall into the other room .

I couldn't see details, but I could see the lump in the middle of the bed where Cade was sleeping .

In the other bedroom .

Alone.

Fighting back new tears, I walked back to the bed. I turned off the light and crawled under the covers. I pulled them tight around me and told myself it was all for the best. I really didn't want to get involved with someone like Cade anyway. I wanted all the things he didn't believe in, including love. At least, this way, I didn't make a fool of myself and end our contract before we were through .

The thoughts were little comfort as I fell into a restless sleep .