How hard my body shook when Cole made me come confirmed I had chosen the right man to be my friend with benefits. Dom with benefits. Whatever we were calling it.

He leads me by the hand into the dining room, pulls me down, and carefully eases me into a wooden chair. I still feel the warmth between my legs from the fire that had erupted between them moments ago.

Cole whistles while he works in the kitchen. I hear a drawer slide open, and a couple of glasses clink. Plates rattle, and he sets two on the table along with silverware. I hear a bottle of wine pop, and the smell of the grapes are strong as he pours it. When he opens the oven, the smell of salmon wafts toward me.

“Dinner is served, Little Rose,” he says, and I can hear him slide two pieces of the fish onto our plates. “Baked salmon with asparagus. Normally I like mine a little medium rare, but this fish had some extra time in the oven so it’s more like medium well. Guess that was bound to happen, though.”

With nothing to focus my eyes on, I shift my posture in the seat, and turn my head in the direction of his voice. “Thank you, Sir,” I say, reminding myself that this is a Dom-sub situation. “It smells delicious.”

“This is what you get when you’re a good girl and come nice and hard for me,” Cole growls, and then takes me by surprise when he plants a firm kiss on my lips, sending a chill reverberating over my entire body. He lets me go, then I hear the legs of his chair pull out and Cole sits next to me.

“So, how does this work? How am I supposed to eat with no hands?”

“I feed you. What do you want?”

I giggle. “Okay. Wow, interesting. So you’re like my servant right now.”

He laughs. “Sure. Whatever you want to call it. I like taking care of you Rose.”

“Okay. First, some wine.”

He puts a hand on my chin and slowly guides the glass to my lips. I lean my head back and take a couple of healthy gulps, coating my throat. It’s a full red and the slightest of burns feel good on my throat going down.

“Thanks,” I say, and I think back to my previous sexual experience for some reason. I snort.

“What is it?” Cole asks.

“Oh, nothing. Can I have a piece of salmon please? I’m starving. Mmm that wine is delicious though.”

I hear the fork scraping against the plate. “Open,” Cole says.

I open my mouth like I’m at the dentist and I’m doing everything but saying ‘ahh.’

Cole places the tender fish on my tongue. I close my mouth, the fork slides out, and I chew.

“Delicious! You can cook. Wow.”

“My mom taught me a few tricks,” he says.

I chew and I hear him drinking and eating. “Rose, you’re thinking of something,” he says. “I can tell. Why don’t you tell me what it is?”

“How do you know?”

“You look tense. Your body language. I need to make sure you are comfortable with me. If you’re not comfortable, I’m not either, that’s how this works.”

“More wine, please,” I say, and Cole indulges me.

I take a deep breath. “Okay. You want to know what I’m thinking? I’ll tell you. As best I can. I’m just a little worried you’ll think I’m crazy. I don’t exactly go around sharing my inner-most thoughts with every person I meet on the street. But I trust you for some reason.”

“You can trust me. Go on.”

“Well, I’m sittin here naked, tied up. And first, I’m thinking about the other time a guy went down on me. We were pretty drunk, and he went down on me for five minutes but I really couldn’t feel anything. And then after that...I’m not sure you want to hear me talking about other guys. Is this okay?”

“It’s fine. Go on.”

“Well, after he went down on me for five minutes he was like ‘okay! My turn!’ Like we were checking each other for ticks or something like that.”

He laughs. “You’re funny, you know that?”

“Sure, people have told me I’m funny looking.”

“So did you do it?”

I hesitate. Should I be talking about other guys with my Dom? Screw it.

“I did. But he could barely get it up. After ten minutes I just got up and left. And the whole thing kind of soured me on sex in general for a little while. And now, here we are, and you just gave me the most earth shattering orgasm I’ve had in my life, and now you are spoon feeding me to top it off. I just...I guess I don’t understand ‘the lifestyle’ or whatever you guys call it.”

“Open,” he commands, and he gives me another forkful of salmon. I chew and swallow. “That’s honestly a pretty funny story. Thanks for sharing. I think we all have weird sexual experiences when we start out. It’s not necessarily fun unless you trust the person you are with. It can’t just be anyone, a connection is important.”

I smile and arch an eyebrow. “So, you’re saying I’m not actually that random.”

I hear him take a deep breath. “Rose, the balls you had to walk into my office and ask me to hook up with you. It was inappropriate, but I had to tip my hat to you. You’ve got some pair.”

“Of balls? Or puppies?” I giggle, swaying my chest a little back and forth.

He laughs hard. “Balls. Puppies. Whatever you want to call it.”

I lick my lips. I love the sound of Cole’s voice and especially his laugh. His low timbre reverberates through me and my body tingles. How does he do this to me?

As if reading my mind, he brings the wine glass to my lips and I take another pull. A buzz pulses through me, and I’m honestly not sure if it’s from my post-orgasmic bliss, Cole’s simple presence, or the actual alcohol.

“Is this...what it’s like? The lifestyle? I don’t understand,” I admit. “Like, what exactly are we doing here? Shit...is it okay if I ask that? Is that like, against the rules. I’ve read a few D/s books, aren’t we supposed to take it seriously?”

I hear him refilling our wine glasses.

“You really are a curious girl, aren’t you?” He swallows a pull. I’ve become so finely attuned to my sense of hearing with a blindfold on. Although I admit, I’m longing to see Cole in all of his shirtless glory.

“Yes. I mean, I’m just curious what BDSM really involves. I feel like it gets talked about so much. But what does it actually mean in reality? Does it mean that you kneel in front of me and give me orgasms for days, then tie me up and feed me? If so, count me in,” I smile. “But this doesn’t feel like I thought it would.”

“What did you think it would feel like?”

“I don’t know. I thought you would be, like, just using me as your sexual fucktoy and stuff,” I laugh. “I didn’t know it would be about giving me pleasure too.”

“A good Dom takes care of his sub how he sees fit.”

“And how, exactly, do you see fit to take care of me?” I lean forward on the table as best I can with my arms behind my back, popping my boobs out to tease him.

“Right now, I’m making sure you’ve got plenty of food. And that you’re well rested. You’ve got a long night ahead of you,” he growls. He opens my mouth with his hand, and puts a large forkful of fish in my mouth, then closes it. He nibbles on my ear while I chew. “I’m loading you up so you’ll be able to last a while tomorrow while you’re chained to my bed.”

“Oh,” I say after I swallow. “Alrighty then.”

“Do you want some time tonight, to write in your journal? I know that’s important to you.”

“Whatever pleases you, Sir,” I say.

“It would please me. I love how smart you are and I want you to take some notes tonight while you are here this weekend. You know, since I’m your little experiment.”

A pit forms in my stomach. I don’t like thinking of him like that. On the other hand, as much as I like just shooting the shit with Cole, we’re here for a reason. Because I want him to show me the ropes.

Literally.

“What happens if I disobey you?” I ask, and my voice catches a little.

“Why would you do that?”

“I don’t know,” I shrug. “Just curious.”

“That’s not an option,” he says, and a chill runs over me.

We finish eating the salmon and the asparagus. It’s damn delicious, and he even throws in a side of mashed potatoes that I didn’t see coming to round out the meal.

We chat for a while after the meal. He even releases my binding behind my back, so I’m free to drink wine on my own. He says I’ve been a good little girl so far, and I’ve earned it. I lean back and enjoy our time, weird as it is, blindfolded with my professor.

I giggle again, and he asks me what I am thinking.

“You know, I’m wondering what everyone would think if they saw us like this. You, my professor, and me, the innocent ‘virgin’ prude that all my classmates know me as. I just wonder what they’d think.”

“Rose,” he says, and puts his hand on my forearm. “I’m going to give you an unsolicited piece of advice. Most people--eighty percent, I’d say--are totally full of shit. They make fun of other people for living their lives, and meanwhile, everyone’s into some weird shit, I guarantee you that. Not saying that what we’re doing is weird, I’m just saying, people throw stones from glass houses. Do you know how much porn was watched last year on the internet?”

“A lot, I’d guess,” I say, and I take another swig of my wine. We’re on the second bottle, and I feel really fucking good. Cole’s voice is like butter to me, and I’m getting hornier by the second just listening to him talk. How the hell did I get so lucky? It makes no sense to me.

“Last year, people watched fourteen billion hours of porn. And that’s only in the United States. People have proclivities, they just like to pretend they are better than other people, and pass judgment. But behind closed doors, we’re all the same. Don’t let anyone judge you, Rose. My God, I mean, you’re perfect. The guy who ends up with you--damn if he didn’t hit the lottery. Fuck, Rose. You’re making me hard right now just sitting there. You realize how hot you are, right?”

I start to take deep breaths. My heart speeds up. “Professor...Cole...Sir,” I whisper. “Fuck, I don’t know what to call you. Can I please ask a favor.” My breath catches.

“Yes, you can.”

“Can I please see you?” I say, and there is begging in my voice. “I want to see your eyes. Your lashes. God Cole. I want to experience all of you. In living color.”

“You really want to see me,” he growls. “Well tell me first, what do you imagine I look like. I want to hear it from you. I want to hear what’s going into that little notebook of yours when you write about me.”

“Can I touch you while I tell you?” I ask.

“Yes.”

I push my chair back and stand up. “First, I love your hair. God, this stuff is so thick,” I say, and run my hand through it. “You definitely weren’t short changed by the hair Gods.”

He laughs. “You’re too kind.”

“I’m just being honest.” My breast accidentally brushes against his arm and it sends tingles through my whole body. “But I also love your jaw. It’s like, a model jaw. It makes no sense to me that you are a professor with a jaw like that.” I run my hand over him. “Why did you decide to become one anyway?”

He puts his hand on my hip. Fuck. So close to my pussy. Well, not that close. God I want him to do what he did to me again, now. This man.

“It doesn’t matter.” I feel him shrug, dismissive. “I don’t like talking about it all that much. Probably just a random choice.”

“Really? Just a random thing? Okay. Well, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I get it. There are things about me I don’t like to talk about either.”

He grunts. “Alright. Fuck. I’m a dick if I don’t tell you. But, fuck, Rose, we are really getting to know each other. I’m okay with it though. Sit,” he says, and pats his lap. I sit down, and he’s only got boxers on. I can feel his sizeable cock through the cotton cloth.

“You know, when I was young, my aunt got cancer, and died early. My mom was all broken up about it, so I wanted to be a cancer researcher when I was little, and the idea stuck. Plus, I wanted to get out of this damn small town.”

I lean my forehead against his. “Yeah, I feel that. I wouldn’t mind getting the hell out of Blackwell, too. So you’re a cancer researcher now? Is that what you do when you’re not teaching?”

He sighs. “No. When I was at Harvard, they didn’t let me into med school. I had to choose psychology as a backup. I’ve always felt like a bit of a failure because of that.”

“A failure? But you went to Harvard.”

He runs a hand up and down my back. It feels soothing. I lean my body on his shoulder. “There’s always a bigger fish, I guess. Anyways. I think you were telling me what you love most about me before we got off track. But now I’m kind of curious...what about you? What made you want to be a sex therapist?”

I sigh. “It’s a little ridiculous. I fully admit it. But, well, you wouldn’t know it from the outside looking in at my parents. I mean, they seem like the perfect professor couple. But ever since I was little, I’ve noticed something is off with them. I don’t know what, exactly. But they aren’t very affectionate toward each other. I always thought it was normal until I got older and saw a few of my friends’ parents who were actually really into each other making out and stuff. I just don’t know what their deal is. It’s weird--I would never ask them about it because they’re my parents, but I want to make sure other couples have kick ass sex lives and be happy.”

“I see,” Cole growls. “Freud would have a field day with you, you know. I admire that, though. For such a dirty girl, you are quite a sweetheart.”

I shrug and lean my tits into him. “It’s why I want you to show me what it’s like to be happy sexually. So far, you’re doing a damn good job of it.”

“So you really want to learn more about what it is to be a good sub? Do you think that’s the key to a happy relationship or something?”

“I just want to experiment. Now can I pretty please take this blindfold off? Sir.” I smile, and move my lips teasingly close to Cole’s.

“You’ve been such a good girl, so I’ll allow it. After you finish telling me what you like about me. You really have some undiagnosed ADD, don’t you.”

I giggle. “Oh, it’s been diagnosed. But let’s see. I like your chest. It’s so muscular, and you’ve got just enough hair on it for me to know I’m dealing with a man and not a boy. But not too much.” I run my hand along his chest, fingering circles around his nipples.

“I like your abs. I think I could literally wash clothes on here.” I trace the outline of his eight pack.

He stays silent as I let my hand drop lower. “I love your ‘V’. The way your abs cave into your hips.” I run my hand on both sides of his obliques, and they are just as hard as I remember.

“I also love this trail of a few hairs that starts below your belly button.” I stand up, because the angle is getting awkward for me to feel him. I run my hand under the waistband of his boxer shorts until I just barely touch the base of his cock.

“The trails leads me to my favorite part of you.” I wrap my hand around it, underneath his boxers. “This.”

“So you just like me for my cock, is what you’re telling me?” he grunts, and I need this damn blindfold off so I can see the smirk on his face. His lips. I forgot to tell him how beautiful his lips are.

“You’ve got me so damn wet, Cole. Will you please just let me see you. Sir.”

“God you are fucking adorable when you beg. Do it some more.”

“I’ve had such a fun time with you tonight. I love how you make me feel and what you can do to me. I need to pinch myself to remind myself that this is real. This is really happening. As crazy as all this is, you’re my professor, I want you so bad, and we’re really doing this.”

“On your knees.”

I drop to my knees on the floor. His legs are spread, and I’ve got my arms draped over them. “Like this?”

“Good. Now take off my boxers.”

“Okay.” I do as he says, and with a little help from him I pull them down so they fall to the floor. “Now what?”

I know I have the use of my arms and I can just reach up and take my blindfold off. But at the same time, I can’t. It’s like he’s got a spell over me. I need his approval first.

He runs his hand over my hair and pushes some strands behind my ears. He pulls the blindfold off and he’s staring down at me, his blue eyes sparkling.

“Now, little Rose, I’m going to show you how a good girl takes her man’s cock. Are you ready for this?”

“Yes,” I whimper, and grab hold of his dick.