Charlotte’s heart was pounding as she led Mike to her bedroom, and it hadn’t been from the red light he’d almost missed getting them back to her house. No, not at all. Instead, it had everything to do with the man himself. Somewhere along the line, he’d come to mean a lot more to her than just her sub or a temporary distraction.

When they’d sat down and negotiated their contract, she’d made it very clear she was giving him an opportunity to explore his sexual submissiveness. They wouldn’t be “dating,” although they’d spend non-play time together. She’d told Mike she intended to use that time to further educate him and would eventually be letting him go at the end of their contract—or maybe after the end of a second, renewed contract.

But, now, the thought of an end date for this—whatever this was growing between them—was becoming unbearable. Maybe it was because they’d known each other for a while before taking that step into a D/s relationship. While before her birthday she wouldn’t have classified them as friends, he’d been more than just an acquaintance to her. Hell, she didn’t know what they’d been before this, but now, for the first time since college, she wanted something more than a simple D/s relationship with no deep emotional attachments involved.

Stopping at the end of her bed, she faced him. “Strip, Michael. I want to see all of you.” Especially that erection bulging in his pants. “Then stand in a presenting position.”

Charlotte’s gaze roamed his body as he removed each article of clothing. Once he was gloriously naked and his clothes were neatly folded on the hope chest at the foot of her bed, he stood before her. His hands were behind his back, clasping the opposite forearms, and his feet were shoulder width apart. Moving forward, Charlotte ran her hands up his chest and down his upper arms. They skimmed over his abdomen, and his cock responded to her touch by twitching and bobbing as if beckoning her to wrap her hands around him. Going up on her toes, she placed several kisses along his jaw. Lust flared in his eyes as he silently watched her, his breathing and the pulse in his neck increasing.

Stepping back, Charlotte picked up a lighter from her dresser and set several candles around the room aflame. She then stood before him and held her arms out. “Undress me, Michael.”

From his surprised expression, one would think he’d just won the lottery. Instead of walking behind her to undo the zipper that ran down her back, he slowly reached around her and found the small pull tab. Inch by inch, he lowered it, garnering a smile from her. He wasn’t rushing, and that pleased her. It was as if he were unwrapping a Christmas present, savoring every moment.

Once the zipper stopped at her lower back, he peeled the two halves of the stretchy material from her shoulders and down her arms. She hadn’t been wearing a bra—her perky 34B breasts allowed her to get away without one when she felt like it—and Mike’s breath hitched as he uncovered her. Charlotte had banished any and all ill-conceived self-doubts about her body after her first year in the lifestyle. Men and women came in all shapes and sizes. What one person loved in people they were attracted to differed from the next. Just because a woman’s breasts were too small or ass was too big, based on the fashion industry’s and Hollywood’s unrealistic dimensions for what women should look like, didn’t mean every man out there felt the same way. The first step in gaining the confidence to walk around half or completely naked in a club, was to love and be comfortable in your own body.

When Charlotte had been training under another Domme, Mistress Petra had instructed her apprentice to write a list of what she considered her physical flaws. Then without revealing that list to anyone, Petra had taken Charlotte around a club, randomly approaching Doms and subs and asking them what they thought Charlotte’s best physical features were—what was the first thing they noticed and found attractive about her. To the Domme-in-training’s surprise, what she’d thought were her worst features were what others had claimed to be her best. Since then, she’d learned to love every inch of her body and appreciate others no matter what size or shape they were. As the cliché goes, beauty is only skin deep. But what glows brighter than any physical beauty is what’s in a person’s heart. It was one of the reasons most Doms despised hearing any submissive put themselves down for any self-perceived flaws.

Dropping to his knees, Mike unzipped one of her boots and then the other. Using his shoulders for support, she lifted her right foot, allowing him to remove the boot before switching to the other one. Grabbing the material that was now bunched at her waist, he slowly drew it down her body.

“Jesus,” he whispered when he caught sight of her unadorned pussy. Taking a deep breath, he inhaled her scent and groaned. “So damn beautiful.” His voice was so low, she’d almost missed the compliment.

Leaning on his shoulders again, she stepped out of the catsuit. “Please fold that and place it next to your clothing, Michael.”

“Yes, Mistress.”

He neatly folded the garment and set it on the hope chest before turning back to her again. His heated gaze warmed her skin. Her nipples pebbled, and her pussy wept. She closed the distance between them. Taking his hands, she brought them to her breasts. “Touch them, Michael. Use your hands and your mouth.”

Surprising her, he dropped to his knees. Without her heels on, she was much shorter than he was and kneeling brought his mouth almost to the same height as her chest. Her lover cupped the small orbs, feeling their weight. He massaged her flesh before leaning forward and taking one stiff peak into his mouth. An electric current shot through Charlotte, causing her to gasp as all her nerves, from head to toe, seemed to rejoice at once. Her head fell back, and she moaned as she delved her hands into Mike’s hair, holding him to her. His tongue flicked over her nipple before he sucked on it. She felt the suction all the way in her core. Switching over to the other breast, Mike gave it the same attention, spiking her desire.

With a pop, he released the suction on her tit and lifted his gaze to her face. His eyes were filled with lust . . . and something more—something Charlotte couldn’t bring herself to analyze at the moment. “Mistress. please, I want . . . no, I need to make you cum. I need to watch you shatter more than I need my next breath. Please tell me how to do that.”

Charlotte’s heart swelled. This was what she loved about D/s relationships—the power exchange—the give and take—but this time it felt like so much more. What she felt for Mike was far beyond anything she’d ever felt for a man. She was in deep but had to give him time. It was possible the awe and curiosity he was experiencing as a first-time sub would fade, and he’d be all too willing to end the contract when the time came. But she’d deal with that later. For now, she’d show him how much she wanted him. Cupping Mike’s cheek, she smiled. “Stand, my beautiful sub.”

A blush passed over his face, but he wisely didn’t challenge her use of the word “beautiful.” When he got to his feet, she took his hand and led him around to the side of the bed. She climbed onto the mattress, pulling him with her until he was draped across half her body. His cock was hard and heavy against her hip. She stared into his eyes. “I want you, Michael. Kiss me.”

He slowly lowered his head until their lips met. At first, it was a gentle kiss, but as seconds passed, she encouraged him to be bolder. Opening her mouth, she nibbled on his lip. His tongue darted out and dueled with hers. Taking his hand, Charlotte trailed it down her torso and hissed when his finger brushed against her clit. She felt the tension in his hand and knew he was waiting for her to tell him what she wanted. Using her own finger, she pushed his into her slit and moaned as her body yielded to him. Her finger joined his inside her and set the pace she craved.

Breaking the kiss, Charlotte brushed her lips across his jaw. “I want your mouth on my pussy, sweet Michael. “

Lifting his head, his gaze met hers. “I want that too, Mistress.”

She removed her finger from her core and brought it up to his mouth. “Taste.”

Opening wide, he wrapped his lips around the digit and sucked it into his mouth. His tongue swirled around it, licking her juices. He moaned as his eyelids fluttered shut. When he shifted lower on the bed, she pulled her finger from his mouth and pointed to the side of her neck. “Kiss me here.”

He followed her order, placing a soft, sweet kiss on her skin.

Charlotte lowered her hand and pointed to the top swell of her breast. “And here.”

Again, Mike did as he was told, but this time he added a little lick of his tongue. Meanwhile his finger continued to fuck her pussy at a leisurely pace. Charlotte clenched her walls around him, trying to maintain her self-restraint. But for the first time in God knew how many years, she was very close to losing control. She’d always heard sex with the right person took it to a whole new level—one that changed all the rules—and right now, with this man, she had a feeling that was about to happen.

“And here.” Her finger was now between her breasts.

Slowly, she mapped out a trail down her torso as Mike followed her verbal breadcrumbs. When her hand reached her mound, she spread her first two fingers, making a “V” just above her clit. “And here.”

He placed a light kiss on her clit, followed by a lick, and Charlotte almost catapulted off the bed. “Oh, yes! Michael, eat me!”

Instead of attacking her with his mouth as she expected, Mike took his time, licking and sucking on her clit, driving her higher and higher. His finger continued to plunge in and out of her vagina. Charlotte’s hips undulated under his touch. Her breathing and moaning increased with every pass of his tongue. She was getting close, but she needed more—more than just her own pleasure. Grabbing his hair, she pulled his mouth off her. His gaze cut to her face as she clenched her thighs together, stilling his hand. “Get a condom from the nightstand drawer, Michael, and give it to me. The first time you make me cum, I want you to go over the edge with me.”

Desire raged in his eyes. Sitting up, he opened the top drawer of her nightstand. She saw his shoulders relax when he realized it was a new, unopened box. She’d actually gotten it the day after her birthday—it had been a very long time since she’d invited a man into her private sanctuary, preferring to play in the club. Her home was where she could sit back, kick off her shoes, remove her bra, and be a homebody with a pint of mint chocolate chip Häagen-Dazs. She had no desire to be a twenty-four-hour Dominant. There was too much stress and responsibility involved. Instead, she’d preferred to keep her three lives—a Domme, a parole officer, and an occasional introvert—separate. But with Mike, she found those three worlds merging, and she no longer tried to stop them.

Handing her a condom, Mike knelt between her legs as she sat up and ripped open the small foil package. She placed the latex disk on the tip of his full erection and slowly unrolled it down to the root of his cock. He twitched in her hands and groaned loudly at her touch. Lying back down, Charlotte set her feet flat on the mattress, and crooked her finger at Mike. Reaching down, she spread her labia apart. “I want you inside me.”

Grabbing his cock, Mike tilted it toward her slit as he held himself above her with a hand next to her shoulder. His eyes never left hers as the tip of his shaft speared into her, one excruciatingly slow inch at a time. Her walls quivered and stretched as they accepted him. When he was buried to the hilt, she wrapped her legs around his waist. Her feet dug into his ass every time he thrust deep. The friction was quickly bringing her back to the peak of the sexual mountain she’d climbed just moments before. Charlotte wedged her hand between their bodies. The heel of her hand pressed down on her clit while she V-ed her fingers again on either side of his cock, extending the grip her vagina had on him. Her legs around him urged him to pump faster.

“God, woman, I’m not going to last long. You feel so fucking incredible,” he said with a gasp, and Charlotte was too close to nirvana to reprimand him for not using her title.

“I’m not going to last either.” Her walls closed tightly around him. Her mind had gone blank to everything but the pleasure he was giving her. When she knew the inevitable was near, she scored his back with her fingernails. “Cum with me, Michael. Oh, God, yes! Cum with me now!”

Her lover made one final thrust, and his body stilled as his orgasm overtook him. His release set off her own, and they both screamed each other’s name. Though Mike’s eyelids had slammed shut at the moment of impact, Charlotte had forced hers to stay open. He gave her everything he had, and she did the same in return.

As their climaxes faded, the tension in his muscles began to ease. He collapsed on top of her, and she willingly took his weight, even as she felt him rest most of it on his forearms which were on either side of her head. She reveled in the cocoon of his body as their lungs heaved for oxygen.

Charlotte couldn’t remember a time she’d orgasmed as hard as she just had, and she had a feeling it wasn’t going to be an isolated occurrence with Mike. He was still inside her, and she wanted him to stay there as long as possible—it was where he belonged.