When I walk back into the room, I find Thea on the bed with her head in her hands. When she hears me enter, she looks up and there is pain and anger all over her face. I close the door behind me and take a step toward her, wondering who could have hurt her in the short time I was away.

When I move closer, she stands up from the bed and glares at me with so much hate. It’s then I realize her pain has been caused by me. Somehow from the time I left to the time I came back, I’ve done this to her.

“Tell me what happened and I’ll make it right. I’ll fix whatever is wrong.” I stretch my arms out, palms up, but her expression changes to disgust when she looks at my hands.

“Don’t come near me.” She crosses her arms and raises her chin in challenge.

“What do you think will happen if I do?” I ask, taking a step forward. I want to see just how far she will take this.

“I don’t want you to touch me.” She refuses to look at me when she speaks.

“All right. Let’s say for a second I don’t touch you. Will you tell me what’s wrong then? Or is this one of those woman things where you say fine when you’re really not?”

Her eyes snap back to mine, and I can’t help but smile at the look she gives me. If she could shoot fire out of her eyes, I’d be a pile of ashes.

“We don’t have time for you to explain to me why you’re definitely not angry right this second.” I walk over to the closet and grab the first gown in the front. It’s a metallic gold that will shine off every curve. “I told you to get ready, but obviously you were too busy being not angry to do it.”

I walk over to the bed and lay the dress down on it. I look up and give her a wink, but she rolls her eyes at me.

“Put the dress on, angel.”

“Why do I have to put on something so fancy for dinner?” Her eyes rake over my body and I ache to pull her close again, to press every curve against me, but instead I wait. “Why are you wearing a tuxedo?”

“You’re going to accompany me to a charity gala. It’s black tie, so we have to dress formal,” I answer, leaning against the post on the bed, watching her every move.

“You don’t have anyone else you can take?” She sounds bitter, and I don’t fucking like it.

“There’s no one I’d rather be with than you. So either you put the dress on, or I do it for you.” My words are final, and there is no room for talking back. I let them hang in the air and allow her to weigh her decision.

For a moment, I think she’s going to fight me on it. But something clicks in her mind and she goes from pissed off to devious. My cock shouldn’t get hard at the thought of what she might do next, but I don’t seem to have any control over him.

“What are you going to do, spank me?”

She throws my own words back at me, and though she means them to be a weapon, I see the desire in her eyes.

“If that’s the way you want it,” I say, pushing from the bedpost and walking over in front of her. “You don’t have to get mad at me to get what you want.”

My words are heavy between us as I inch closer to her. The hurt and anger in her violet eyes fall away and I watch as she nervously licks her lips. I grasp her waist and slowly bring her body against mine.

“How about I spank you just because I want to, and if you like it, it can be our little secret.” Her cheeks flush with color, and I lean down, trailing my lips across her cheek and to her ear. “I’ll never tell anyone just how wet it gets you.”

I move my hand from her waist to the front of her jean shorts and I unbutton them. My lips brush down her neck and back to her ear as I slowly push them off her ass and let them fall to the floor. Then I reach for the edge of her shirt and glide it up her stomach and over her breasts. I look into her eyes as she raises her arms, and I pull off her shirt, tossing it on the floor with her shorts.

Reaching around her back, I unclasp her bra and then slowly drag it down her arms, revealing her round tits with hard rosy nipples. The blush from her cheek travels down to her chest, and I see her arms twitch to cover herself. But before she can do that or change her mind, I sit down on the bed and pull her over my lap in one quick motion.

I sit at an angle so the upper half of her body is over one of my legs and resting on the bed. Her pussy is pressed right against my cock, and I stare down at the pale blue cotton that’s covering her ass. Her rounded cheeks are lily white, and I tug her panties up her ass so I can have more of them to spank.

“You don’t have any idea how beautiful you are, do you, Thea?” I run one large palm from the base of her neck all the way down her spine. I take my time, touching her soft skin and memorizing each dip and peak. “You are truly magnificent.”

I feel the shaky breath leave her lungs as I rub her ass cheek, then use both hands to squeeze them. Her delicate skin begins to turn a light shade of pink from this simple touch. My cock is aching to rub against it, too, begging for a release I have no intention of giving it.

“Spread your legs.” My voice is deep, and I’m a dog on a leash rushing against my restraints. I don’t know if I’ll be able to hold myself back.

There is only a moment of hesitation before she does as I ask. She presses her thick thigh harder between my legs, and I groan out loud. She moves her other thigh as far away from me as she can while still remaining on my lap.

“Perfect,” I say, looking down at the dewy wet spot she’s already created against her panties. “Stay still, angel.”

The first smack to her ass is soft but warms her skin into a dark shade of pink. She doesn’t cry out but instinctively raises her ass just a bit more for me to do it again. I place my hand on her back and I can feel her breathing pick up, but this time there are no nerves, only want.

I give her two more, one on each cheek, and lick my lips. I don’t know if I can stop myself if I keep going.

She wiggles against me, and I have to grit my teeth to keep from leaning down and biting her ass. I want to push her thighs apart and taste the sweet honey between her pussy lips.

“More?” I ask as my hand trails over her cheeks and to her panty-covered pussy. Wet cotton greets my eager fingertips, and I rub her there. When she moans and nods, I bring the fingers to my upper lip and rub them there. I want the smell of her cunt on me while I do this. It will be the only thing to give me some relief.

I don’t count each spank as I go from cheek to cheek. But the longer I do it, the more her hips move against me. Rising up as I come down, trying to rub her pussy against me to get her off. Her face is turned toward me, and I see the sweat around her hair. Her hands are gripping the bedspread and I can’t stand it any longer. The sight of her so turned on and on the edge of climax is enough to put me six feet under.

After one final smack, I grab the edge of her underwear and rip it off her, throwing the scraps on the ground. I plunge two fingers inside her soaking wet cunt as my thumb goes to her clit and rubs her in fast circles.

“Salvatore!” she screams as she arches up and then falls back to the bed.

I work her hard and fast, her pussy clenching me as her orgasm is like a tidal wave and takes her over the edge. There is no stopping the pleasure that’s hitting her, and she shouts in both pleasure and fear as it drowns her.

I’m a man with many sins on my shoulders, so there was never any stopping this. Stopping me. I’m on my knees on the floor behind her, spreading her legs and replacing my fingers with my mouth before she can finish her climax.

The taste of her sweet peachy cunt as she pushes back against my face is heaven on earth. My tongue is working her pussy from behind, and I grip her thighs with my hands, wanting her to sit down on me. I want to smother myself in her pleasure and have her juices run down my chin.

Her body tenses and she tries to pull away from my mouth as another climax approaches. But I growl against her and hold her tighter, imprisoning her in passion.

“Don’t you dare take your pussy away from my mouth. You’re under the mistaken impression it belongs to you. But that’s not the case anymore.”

I bite the inside of her thigh, and she shouts my name again as the next orgasm hits her.

I love her clit, licking it in long slow strokes. It slows down the frenzy that had taken over her body and allows her to relax against the bed. As I get the last few tastes of her pussy, I force myself to sit back and stand up.

I reach over and grab the dress I tossed on the bed, then kneel back down at her feet and slide them into it. I wiggle it up her thighs and over her ass before I make her stand up while facing away from me so I can pull the strapless gown up her body. When I get it around her chest, I reach round to her front and cup each breast before putting them into it. I kiss her bare shoulder as I zip it up and then hold her back to my front. I wrap my arms around her waist and bury my nose in her hair, breathing in her strawberry scent.

“Can you manage your own shoes, or do you need me to do those, too?” I ask, kissing down her neck.

There’s a shyness to her voice as she shakes her head and then answers me. “I think I can manage.”

“Let me dote on you a little longer,” I say as I turn her around in my arms and then sit her down on the bed.

I walk over to the closet and reach down to grab the shoes that go with the outfit. When I get back to the bed, I kneel down in front of her and pick up one delicate foot. I kiss the top of it before sliding the shoe on, then give the second the same treatment.

When I look up, I see that the look of anger and frustration from earlier is gone, and now in its place are questions and confusion.

“Later, angel. We’re running late,” I say, reading her mind.

She opens her mouth to say something but then closes it.

I stand up and hold out my hand, waiting for her to put hers in it. There is only a second of hesitation before she slips her small palm in mine. I wrap my fingers around hers and pull her from the bed, wrapping my arm around her waist.

I hold her close as we leave the room and then the house. She doesn’t say a word the entire ride, but I can practically hear the questions forming in her head.

Just before the limo comes to a stop, I lean over and kiss the spot just under her ear. “Patience,” I whisper as I nibble on her earlobe.