The tensing of her facial muscles gives her away. Those wheels in her head are turning. She’s already thinking about how she can best me at my own game. But what she doesn’t yet understand is that I can’t be bested. I’m Tristan Broussard. I invented this game.

And I have Emma Lia Grant exactly where I want her.

I bent. Gave her the ideal vanilla sex that she wants—or rather the ideal vanilla sex that she thinks she wants. I made it incredible for her. Rocked her fucking world. Orgasm after orgasm after orgasm. I guarantee that her pussy has never quivered so hard.

But my girl is mistaken about what will satisfy her sexually. She is a natural submissive. I saw all of the signs in her last night. She enjoyed handing over the control and had zero qualms about letting me take the reins in bed. Those legs were eager to spread wide for me. Her eyes didn’t hesitate to close so her mind could shut down and her body could simply feel the pleasure I was giving her.

With my guidance, she will become my ultimate submissive. I’m certain about it. I just need her to give in and let me show her the way.

“The chip system no longer exists. It’s being replaced by this—the random-draw method.”

I take the heart-shaped padlock out of the box and hold out my hand for her to give me the key that she’s holding. “This is the only key that unlocks this padlock.”

I push the key’s shaft into the padlock, turn, and the lock immediately pops open. Over a hundred years old and still works like a charm.

“I propose that we drop this one working key into the box with the other ninety-nine non-working keys. Each time that you please me, you take one key from the box. When you pull the working key, your debt with me is cleared whether it’s your first or your last.”

She studies the box of keys. “You’ll really clear a hundred-thousand-dollar debt when I pull the key that fits the padlock?”

“I will… if you agree to be my submissive until the time that you pull the right key.”

She looks up, and her eyes lock with mine. “You get exactly what you want. Maybe not for as long as you like or as many times, but you still get what you want.”

“I always do, baby.” One way or another, I always make it happen.

I will be getting what I want if she agrees, but not without bending for her. Again. It’s a necessity to convince her to stay, but my ability to compromise will come to an end once she’s my submissive.

We will fuck the way I want to fuck.

She will suck my cock the way I tell her to.

She will take every drop of cum that I give her in the place of my choosing.

And she will give me her virgin asshole.

“What do you say, Emma Lia? Are you going to take my deal?”

I’m wearing a stoic mask, pretending that I’m not a desperate man. Pretending that I won’t lose my fucking mind if she says no.

“Conditions.”

That’s not a no. “Name them.”

“I want you to destroy all evidence that incriminates Adam and me.”

That’s an easy one. Once I’m done with Emma Lia, I’ll have no use for the surveillance videos. “I will destroy all evidence after our relationship ends. But not before.”

Her face is tense again. Those wheels in her head are turning hard, coming up with terms that will benefit her. “I want to practice my techniques in your casinos.”

Is she fucking kidding me? “No. You’ve already walked away with a hundred G’s. I’m not letting you take any more of my money.”

“I don’t want to take your money. I just want to do it for practice to help me master my craft. Trust me. I won’t keep any of the winnings. I don’t want to add to the debt I have with you.”

I’m not keen on that one. I want her to be here mastering a different kind of craft. “I’ll have to think about it. Any other conditions?”

“I don’t want my friends or family to ever find out what I am to you or what we’re doing. I need you to play the part for them.”

“Playing the part includes what exactly?”

“You’ll pretend to be my doting boyfriend in front of Nana, Dad, Adam, my best friend Avery, and any other family or friends of mine.”

That one makes me laugh loudly. “I don’t do the boyfriend thing.”

“I’m aware, but I need you to pretend to do the boyfriend thing. I would be so ashamed if my father and brother knew what you were doing to me behind closed doors.”

Conrad and Adam love Emma Lia. I’m certain that they wouldn’t be happy at all about our Dom-sub relationship. “I have a killer poker face. I can pull that one off. Anything else?”

“Anal is still off of the table.”

“Anal was never off of the table, baby.”

“I don’t want to do it.”

“I don’t want to not do it.”

She shakes her head. “You can forget it. I’m not doing that.”

And I’m not bending on that one, but I don’t want to scare her off. “We shouldn’t set any hard rules about it right now. Our relationship is too new for that.” I’m leaving it at that. “Anything else?”

“We agreed to start slowly with the Dom stuff. Give me time to ease into the role of submissive. Does that agreement still stand?”

“Yes. If that’s what you want.” I just hope like fuck that I have time to ease into it. This entire conversation is null if she lucks out and pulls that key sooner rather than later.

“I was completely misled by Claudia. I’m not sure that I understand what you do and don’t want. I’ll need you to clarify those things.”

“Absolutely.” She doesn’t have to worry about that. I’m going to be giving her clear orders.

“Will it always be Dom-sub? Or will you want it to be vanilla sometimes?”

Going into it last night, I thought that the vanilla sex would fall flat. But I actually enjoyed it with Emma Lia. I sort of fucking loved it. Which shocks the shit out of me.

Do I think that I could take a trained submissive and have plain missionary sex? No fucking way. But I would be okay with doing vanilla again with Emma Lia if I were in the mood for it. “I don’t know. I might want vanilla again sometime.”

“What if I want vanilla?”

She needs to get one thing straight right now. “Subs don’t get what they want unless it’s what I want.”

“What if I asked for a night like last night?”

Hmm… I normally wouldn’t consider a submissive’s request, but I do see a way to play this to my advantage. “If you asked me for vanilla, I would give it to you, but there’d be no key pull in exchange for it.”

“You said that I could pull a key every time I pleased you.”

“True, but giving you vanilla would be more to please you than me. It isn’t worthy of a key pull that could clear your entire debt.”

Every time she pulls a key, the odds shift in her favor. Despite my longing to fuck her morning, noon, and night, I must be very selective with how often she pulls a key if I want to keep her around for long.

“So vanilla sex is a freebie for you?” The disbelief that I hear in her voice is amusing.

“No, I’m pretty sure that I’ve already prepaid for everything you’re going to give me so nothing I get from you is a freebie.”

She crosses her arms and her mouth becomes a hard line, slightly turning down on the edges. “I don’t think that’s one bit fair.”

I reach out and grasp her arm, pulling her until the front of her body presses against mine. “Think about how wet your pussy got. How hard I made you come. What’s not fair about that?”

She lifts her chin, and our eyes make full-on contact. I see defiance brewing behind those blue orbs. “Think about how stiff your cock got. How hard I made you come. How pleased you were afterward.”

“Oh, I’m thinking about it.”

I lower my mouth to hers, but I don’t initiate a kiss. Instead, I rub my lips against hers. Teasing her. Making her remember last night too.

“Vanilla is worthy of a key pull,” she whispers against my mouth.

I shake my head. “Nope. Can’t do it.” I’m not bending on this one for her.

“Then I guess I won’t be asking for vanilla.”

I can’t stop my smile. “Does this mean that you’re taking my deal?”

She nods, saying nothing.

The Dom inside me steps forward. Front and center. “Say it.”

“I’m taking your deal.”

“Those aren’t the words, and you know it.” I fist the nape of her hair and tilt her head to the side, exposing the most vulnerable part of her neck. I choose to lick instead of bite. I could still scare her away if I’m too rough, too soon. “You know what I want to hear from you.”

Her breathing is rapid and her muscles are tense. Submitting is hard for her right now, but it’ll come easier once she gets a taste for it.

“I am your submissive,” she whispers.

I pull harder on her hair, and she winces. “Still not right, Emma Lia.”

She clears her throat and swallows hard. “I am your submissive… Sir.”

Victory. Triumph. Success.

Mastery.

“Yes, you are, mon bebelle.” Mon bebelle. Cajun French, meaning my doll.

Emma Lia’s soft gasp tells me that she’s surprised to hear the term of endearment. Honestly, I don’t think that I’m any less shocked than she to hear it although it rolled off of my own tongue.

I didn’t plan to say it. It just happened. But I like it. It feels natural.

I’ve never given my submissive a pet name. I see those as extensions of devotion, tenderness, warmth—emotions that I’ve never felt for any of my subs. But Emma Lia isn’t like the others. And I don’t want her to be.

She and I are standing on the razor-thin edge between pleasure and pain. She wants to move in one direction. I want to move in the opposite. One of us must overpower the other. And I already know who will come out on top.

I’m ready to jump and take this erotic plunge with this woman.

Emma Lia. Mon bebelle.