Текст книги "Push"
Автор книги: Olivia R. Keane
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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 15 страниц)
Chapter Nine
Charlie was a bundle of nerves as she pulled up to Ann Taylor on Sunday. This could go one of two ways. If I’m lucky, I’m walking into an episode of “Say Yes to the Dress.” If I’m not I’m heading into Maid of Honor hell and an afternoon that would make an episode of “Bridezillas” pale in comparison. She shuddered at the thought and took another sip of her latte. With Mikki, one could never tell if it would be smooth sailing or the perfect storm. She nursed what was left of her Starbucks and decided it was more likely the latter given that Mikki had chosen a wedding date near Christmas. Visions of tacky plaid bow ties in green and red, poinsettia bouquets, and bridesmaid dresses in red and green velvet danced through her head.
Trying to free her brain from the clutches of the Nightmare Before Christmas that would most likely be Mikki and Aaron’s nuptials, the knocking against the window startled her.
“Are you going to sit in there all day and daydream? Come on, we’ve got a dress to try on. Move it!” Mikki shouted through the passenger window of Charlie’s car.
Damn, Bridezillait is. Charlie blew an errant tendril of hair out of her face and exited the car.
“Keep your panties on, Mikki. I’m early. We have time. They aren’t going to give the dress away. Chill!”
“Whatev!” Mikki dragged her sister by the arm into the store and led her back to the dressing rooms.
Charlotte carefully unzipped the garment bag hanging on the back of the dressing room door and whispered a silent prayer to no one in particular. There had to be some sort of prayer to ward off horrible bridesmaids dresses, didn’t there? She slipped her hand in and much to her shock discovered the softest silk. Charlie carefully removed the beautiful dark cranberry creation.
She quickly did her hair into a braid and slipped into the gown. It had a single twist shoulder strap that lent itself to an enticing, flowing silk gown with gorgeous shirred detail. Remembering Declan’s direction, she quickly snapped a selfie in the dressing room mirror and sent it off to him. He responded almost immediately.
Declan: You look stunning. Dinner at 8?
Charlie: Yes, Master, as your heart desires.
She exited out into the main dressing area to find Mikki.
“Oh, Charlie,” Mikki spoke through soft sobs. “It’s perfect!”
“You really outdid yourself this time, Mik.”
“Well you know I had to find something that would conceal all of your curves.”
“That’s really so thoughtful of you.” Charlotte bit her tongue. She wanted to tell her where she could shove the dress, but decorum dictated she let the bride have her say. She walked back into the dressing room, confident that the only person whose opinion mattered was Declan’s.
As she was placing the dress back into the garment bag, her phone vibrated in her jean pocket. She smiled thinking about what sorts of delicious torture Declan had in store for her later that evening. She was standing there in her bra and panties when Mikki opened the dressing room door. “Oh God!” Mikki shrieked.
***
Charlie’s key’s clattered against the cherry of the sideboard in the hallway, the first noise to break the silence between her and Mikki. They didn’t say a word the entire drive home. Charlie avoided her big sister’s eyes; she avoided them in the dressing room, out on the sidewalk, in the car, and now she still avoided them.
Kicking off her Vans, Charlie kept her back to Mikki, and then left her in the hall as she moved through to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
“Are we not going to talk about it then?” Mikki asked quietly, following Charlie in.
Charlie looked over her shoulder at Mikki, feigning ignorance. “Talk about what, exactly?”
Mikki gave her a look of exasperation. “About the fact that your backside looks like someone took a two by four to it. What the hell happened?”
Charlie couldn’t help it, she burst out in a fit of laughter.
“Charlie! Seriously! What is going on? Did he do this to you?”
The laughter vanished from Charlie’s lips. “Declan paddled me last night. He wanted to. I wanted him to. It was sort of a ‘funishment’.”
“You can’t let him do this to you, Charlie.” Mikki grabbed a bag of peas from the freezer.
“Its fine, Mik. I know what I am doing.”
“I think you don’t and I—”
“Mikki.” Charlie whirled around, her nerves shredded. “Just stop. Okay? Please. I don’t really want to talk about all of this with you.”
Mikki looked like a chubby kid who didn’t get seconds on birthday cake. “But—Fine,” she sighed, tossing the bag of peas at Charlie.
In an effort to maintain diplomacy, Charlie took the bag, setting it on the seat of her kitchen chair and sitting atop them, wincing at the sudden chill against her bottom. “So what was up with you and Aaron this morning? You looked like you were going to skewer his liver and serve it to him for breakfast.”
“I don’t want to talk about it!”
Yeah right. “Mik …”
Mikki’s dark eyes narrowed unhappily. “Oh shut it! Of course, I want to talk about it! Frick, how do you keep everything in so well? How do you do it?” She pouted. “It’s absolutely impossible for me.”
Charlie grinned and shook her head. “Not for me.”
Mikki stuck her tongue out at Charlie and slumped in the chair across the table from her baby sister. “I’m beat. Today’s been exhausting.”
“Hence the bitchy?”
“What? I’m not bitchy.”
“You’re a teensy bit bitchy.” Charlie held her thumb and index finger apart in the air.
“Well, you’d be too if you had a wedding to plan all by yourself!”
Charlie shifted in her chair, adjusting the Green Giant ice pack, wondering if she needed to check out that boxing class in preparation for kicking one future brother-in-law’s ass. “What happened, Sis?”
“He’s not being helpful at all.” Mikki grimaced, eyeing Charlie sadly. “He keeps saying he wants to be involved, but he’s not.”
“I did notice that he looked bored out of his mind at the bakery this morning.”
“Bored? Oh, he’s fine with tasting the cakes, he just doesn’t want to fork any money over to actually buy one. Says we can’t afford it, and I called him out on it.”
“And what did he say?”
“Oh, some lecture about how marriage lasts a lifetime and I was behaving like a petulant child for wanting to spend a lifetime’s worth of money in one day. He said if I stopped acting like a spoiled brat, he’d stop acting disinterested and distant.”
Aaron was good. Charlie laughed dryly. “Wow, nice job on side-stepping things, huh?”
“Well, you do know all about avoidance,” Mikki grumped.
Charlie snorted. “Okay, put your claws away.”
Mikki groaned. “Oh God, Charlie, I’m sorry. I’m being such a brat today.”
“I find it to be one of your more endearing qualities, that and your ability to hunt down a killer shoe sale.” Charlie shook her head and giggled. “You’re certifiable, do you know that?”
“And you’re crazy.” Mikki stood up. “But, I love you anyway.” She grabbed a bottle of Green Machine from the fridge. “I’ve got to head out to yoga. Maybe you can help me talk some sense into Aaron later.”
“Sure thing, Mik,” Charlie answered.
“Oh, and Charlie? Go to the salon and have them try that updo I was telling you about. Your hair is out of control if it’s down.”
“Um yeah, I’ll get right on that.”
***
Later that evening, Charlie stepped into the bathroom of the restaurant to dab some water on a wine stain. She’d been clumsy with her wine and ended up with a few drops on her blouse. Declan had met her at Tin Angel and they had grabbed a bite to eat.
When she emerged from the ladies’ room, she made her way toward Declan who stood in front of the bank of elevators. He stood there with a casual grace, his hands in his pockets, his charcoal gray suit straining in all the best possible ways, reminding her of his rock hard body. He turned to face her. Damn. She walked toward him trying like hell to remain steady on her heels, savoring the look of pure carnal desire on his face.
She could focus on nothing else as she passed by the long, elegant bar and the ’restaurant’s patrons, but a face in the crowd caught her attention. Charlie stopped in her tracks, suddenly gripped by an all-consuming panic that sucked the sound from the overcrowded space. Her heartbeat ratcheted out of control. An icy pain pushed its way through her, seizing her body.
Charlie steadied herself on the wall beside her, seemingly unable to move forward while the face of the man she recognized turned in her direction as if he sensed her watching him.
Dressed in a tailored suit, he looked like anyone else waiting for a table, but Charlie knew better. After a few seconds, his face twisted into a smile as recognition dawned. He remembered her. After four years of looking over her shoulder, never knowing when she might see him again, she had come to believe she never would. He was a ghost, a memory so excruciating that Charlie had spent years trying to convince herself that he had never existed. Yet here he was, a living nightmare come back to haunt her. Charlie vaguely remembered hearing Declan call her name before he was at her side, taking her by the arm. He came into focus and she tried in vain to mask the fear that plagued her.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his face lined with concern.
“Nothing.” Charlie caught his hand, pulling him into the open elevator.
***
Returning to the warmth of Declan’s new home, Charlie made herself at home at the bar. She filled a lowball glass to the brim with ice and some amber liquor from one of the bottles in Declan’s collection. Charlie sank into the sofa and pressed the cool glass against her forehead, trying to freeze out the frenzied thoughts that had taken over. She wanted to banish them, to forget they ever existed. She wanted to wash them away. Charlie took a gulp from her glass to hasten them on their journey.
She shouldn’t be here, but she couldn’t be alone right now. Charlie needed a distraction, and she knew Declan would provide just that. He sat next to her on the sofa and took the glass from her hand.
“Talk to me please,” Declan said.
Charlie stared past him, giving him nothing. Sharing all of her past with Declan wasn’t something she was ready to do. “There’s nothing to talk about.”
“That’s bullshit and we both know it. You looked like you’d witnessed a crime earlier.”
“I was remembering one.” Charlie regretted those words the moment she spoke them.
Her body tensed with a new sort of fear. Declan would never look at her in the same light again once he knew the truth.
Silent, he waited for Charlie to continue. She picked the glass up from the table and forced the rest of the drink down, praying for the relief it promised. How could I possibly explain how naïve I’d been? How could I explain that the man I spotted tonight took my submission and turned it into something ugly and painful?
“I’m broken. I’m no good for you, for anyone.”
“Stop.” The authoritative sting in his voice gave Charlie some pause.
“Stop, what?”
“You aren’t broken, Charlotte.”
Charlie swallowed hard, wishing she could believe him. “I’m just stating the obvious. It makes zero sense for you to want to be with someone … like me. Anyway, you should be dating a political princess or some model, not me.”
“How many times do I need to state this? I’m only interested in you.”
“It’s crazy. Look at me. I’m a mess.”
“I do. Every moment I can get, actually. You’ve been driving me crazy lately. I can barely sleep at night.”
“And now?”
“Now I have you. No wedding whacko sister. No guy-crazy coworkers. And you’re trying to come up with every reason to scare me off. If you think this changes anything, you’re quite mistaken.”
Charlie looked away, helplessly fighting the onslaught of fresh tears. When Declan pulled her onto his lap, she went willingly, wanting to feel him close again. He wrapped her in a tight embrace, cocooning her in arms, close to his chest.
“You’re an incredible woman.”
“How can you say that?”
“For starters, because it’s the truth. Charlotte, one horrible experience doesn’t define who you are. If it did, I doubt you’d want to be with me either.”
“But, I do.” Charlie’s hand slid over his shirt to feel his heart’s slow, steady rhythm. Suddenly her feelings for Declan began to overwhelm the powerful memories from her past.
He lifted her hand and brushed his lips across her fingertips. Inch by inch, he caressed her with a quiet tenderness until the numbness melted and gave way to a warmth simmering below the surface.
His smell, his taste, his hunger—Charlie craved them all. She was ravenous for him. Declan shifted her so she straddled him, melding their bodies together. A hushed whimper escaped her lips at the contact and fervency of his movements. Then he stopped.
“What’s wrong?” She asked.
“I’m wound too tight right now.” He swallowed hard, the notch in his throat bobbing with the action.
Charlie wanted to kiss him there, but first she needed to figure out what was going on. “And I don’t care. I want you.” She wanted him more than ever. She shifted, unable to ignore the growing ache between her thighs.
“God, I want you too, I just don’t want to lose control. I’m afraid I will hurt you.”
“I’m not going to break. I promise.”
She trailed her fingers down Declan’s chest following the path of buttons that disappeared under the band of his pants. She reached for the clasp, but before Charlie could release him, Declan caught her wrists, holding them steady while he breathed hard.
“I want to feel you lose control, Declan.” Her body pulsed. She wanted nothing more than for him to take her the way he wanted to, the way she needed him to.
***
It felt very late or perhaps very early when Charlie opened her eyes. It was still dark and she curled up under the duvet, all restraints gone. The music Declan had playing was off, and he was not in bed next to her. She tried to stretch but found all her muscles stiff. Charlie’s head even hurt a bit as she sat up. The cozy comforter fell away and she glanced around at Declan’s now shadow-filled bedroom. How long have I been sleeping?
It took her a moment to realize Declan was in the room with her. He was sitting in a leather chair, a glass of what she presumed to be scotch cradled in the palm of his right hand as he watched her. There was enough light in the room for Charlie to discern that he was wearing an unbuttoned dark shirt, the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, and the sides hanging open to reveal that sexy smattering of dark chest hair. His legs were clad in dark rinse jeans and his feet bare.
She reached for the comforter but thought better of it. He’d already seen her naked on several occasions and he would certainly not approve of her hiding her body from view, not after all their intimate moments together. “How long have I been asleep, Master?”
“Not long, my pet. Perhaps an hour or two.” He took a drink from his glass. “Did you nap well?”
“Yes, Master.” She wasn’t about to admit that she was sore. She wanted to play some more.
“We’ll take a shower later.”
Charlie raised an eyebrow. “We?” I could go for that. She could feel his gaze drop to her chest, and her nipples hardened instantly. Declan smirked when she gasped. He took another slow sip from his drink before setting it aside and rising from his chair.
“I’d like to try something with you before we shower. Are you up for it?”
She watched him cross over to the closet and placed his hand on whatever hid underneath the blanket in front of it. Charlie swallowed hard. It could be my best wet dream come to life or my worst nightmare. She reminded herself that Declan promised he wouldn’t hurt her. “Yes, Master.”
He glanced back at her over his shoulder. “Good girl.”
Whatever the blanket concealed, it was something on wheels. He moved it easily to the end of the bed so it was perpendicular between the footboard and the seating area. He pressed his foot on something, as though he was locking brakes into place.
“Charlotte, get up and put your heels back on.”
She quickly swung her legs out of bed and stood. She was a bit wobbly, like a newborn deer. Charlie grabbed hold of the nightstand until she steadied herself. She shook the cobwebs clear from her head, located her shoes and slipped her still stocking clad feet into them. Charlie stood before Declan in her stockings, garter, and heels.
“Come here, Charlotte.”
Her heels clicked loudly on the teak floor. When she reached his side, Declan leaned in and kissed her softly, almost chastely on the lips. He then turned her to face the contraption and slowly pulled the blanket away revealing what looked like an odd sort of bench. It looked like a miniature version of a pommel horse, although there were no handles on top. The end closest to his bed had a cuff attached on either side. She now noticed small handles in front of the cuffs.
Declan led her forward until she stood with her hips pressing against the bench. “Lie down on your stomach, Charlotte.”
For a slip of time, her safe word was on her lips. But his promise reverberated in her thoughts, and she had remembered that so far he had only done what he promised. He had not hurt her in any way, and instead awakened dormant, secreted away desires. She took a deep breath and bent forward, his hand still firmly holding her arm.
The bench was padded, the material covering it was soft like suede. It was wide enough that her whole body could lie on top of it.
Charlie turned her head to rest her cheek on the butter like padding, watching Declan as he placed her hands on the handles and secured her wrists. It was much like bending face-first over a table.
“Are you okay, Charlotte?”
“Yes, Master.”
Declan studied her for a moment. Charlie got a nice view of his waist and his bulging erection straining against the confines of his jeans. She licked her lips, wondering when she would get a chance to wrap her lips, tongue, and hands around that lovely specimen of masculinity again. She was contemplating how deep she could take him in when her front end suddenly dipped down. She cried out in shock, gripping the handles tightly.
“Are you still okay, Charlotte?”
She took a deep breath. “Yes, Master. Just a bit startled.”
“You’re doing great.”
Charlie found herself staring at the floor, aware that her ass was sticking up in the air. Now she knew why he wanted her to put her shoes back on. They gave her enough height in the back that she could still stand on her feet while her body reclined forward, bent at the waist. It was not uncomfortable, it was just different.
Declan moved over to the armoire, pulled the key ring out of the lock, and squatted down. He unlocked the trunk and removed a long bar with cuffs at each end. Still squatting within her limited line of vision, he turned back to her. His mouth was tight and his eyes dark.
“Charlotte, this is a spreader bar. Are you familiar with what it is for?”
She gulped, closed her eyes momentarily, and then answered, “Yes. Master.”
“Good. The bench is my invention. I think you will enjoy it.”
He nodded and then stood, disappearing behind her. “Spread your legs.”
Charlie did as best she could, and then she felt him secure the bar to her left ankle. Charlie attempted to slow her breathing so she could remain calm, but it was of no use. She found all this restraint highly arousing, and it made her nervous.
“This bar is adjustable.” He tugged a bit on the bar, adjusting the width, the cold metal pressing against the back of her left ankle. He moved Charlie’s foot out a little more and closed the cuff around it. “Is that too uncomfortable?”
“No, Master.”
“Tell me if it is, Charlotte. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“It feels fine, Master.”
“Good.”
Charlie turned her head, watching him move toward the nightstand on the far side of the bed. He switched on the light. Declan disappeared behind her, and she heard the click of another lamp being lit, and then his iPod came to life. The strains of Hugo crooning Hurt Makes It Beautiful filled the room.
Charlie held her breath as Declan moved behind her once again. She wasn’t sure what to expect. Is he going to spank me? Whip me? Fuck me? All of the above? She certainly didn’t expect him to do absolutely nothing. But that was what he was doing. He was sitting in his chair watching her. How long is he going to leave me like this? Charlie was displayed for before him like a pretty beautiful present. He seemed to be waiting until just the right moment to unwrap from her remove her heeled soles, and undo the champagne satin straps connected to her garter belt. Every step would lead him closer to her freshly waxed pussy spread open wide. Maybe part of the arousal was not knowing what to expect and or when he would pounce?
She closed her eyes and focused on breathing as the seductive soundtrack changed selections. Hugo’s pain addiction bled into a Florence and the Machine’s Bedroom Hymns. Slowly she inhaled, and slowly exhaled, pushing her breath out like she was in a yoga class. Charlie was able to shift her upper body a little, but all that did was serve to turn her on more as her breasts rubbed with a delicious friction against the padding of Declan’s kinky pommel horse. So much for trying to relax. Flexing her wrists, she adjusted her grip on the handles and waited.
Charlie lost herself in the song. She hummed softly, singing the lyrics in her head when Declan stroked his hands across her butt cheeks. She jerked, but there was nowhere to go.
“You know this song?”
“Yes, Master. It’s one of my favorites.”
Declan didn’t respond. Instead, his hands slid up to her waist and down over her hips. They circled under her cheeks, and up around again, barely grazing the tops of her thighs.
She moaned when he trailed one finger down the cleft between her cheeks.
“Beautiful, beautiful Charlotte.” His mouth was hot as he kissed each cheek.
Charlotte blushed. No one had ever done that before. The song had changed again, but it was something she didn’t recognize. But it didn’t matter because at that moment, Declan had chosen to lick her pussy from top to bottom, and she came hard. Because Declan restrained her so much, she felt her body shaking all the way to her core.
She was gasping for breath as he latched onto her clit and slid two fingers inside her. She came again a moment later. He stroked her through the orgasm and then removed his fingers. His tongue replaced his thick digits. She could feel him lapping up her juices as they flowed from her. His fingers toyed with her pussy, holding her lips apart, occasionally rubbing her clit. Charlie came three more times like that.
Suddenly, he was gone. No word, no warning. She whimpered, relieved yet still wanting more. Charlie had just taken a deep breath when she felt him step up behind her, the front of his naked thighs brushing the back of hers. Her exhale came out as a shaky squeak.
“Shh, shh, shh,” Declan commanded, rubbing the tip of his cock against her pussy in small circles. She bit her lip, unsure she could handle much more, but not wanting to utter her safe word. Her jaw relaxed, but the rest of her body remained tense as he rubbed his cock back and forth through her swollen folds, coating it with her juices. He growled when her pussy contracted against him.
Charlie thought she would die from all his teasing, when suddenly Declan grabbed her braid and tugged, her head wrenching back toward him, as he pushed into her with just the thick head of his cock. He withdrew all the way and then slowly penetrated her again. He slid in a little more, stroking an inch back and forth.
“That’s it, Charlotte. Good girl. You should see how lovely this looks. How easily you take me in.”
Charlie struggled to swallow. Oh, I could imagine, but right now I want him to slam into me, to fuck me hard so I can come undone around him. I want him to shatter me.
He tortured her instead, sliding in another inch at a time, pushing in and out of her at an excruciating pace until he was fully inside her. Her restraints heightened even the smallest movement. Just when she thought she would pass out from the aching desire pooling inside her, his thrusts became harder. Declan’s hands freed her hair and gripped her hips, his fingers digging into her flesh.
“Yes!” Charlie moaned. She needed the hard, rough edge of him. The sound of his cock sinking into her arousal. The feel of him driving so deeply it was as though he was trying to climb inside her body.
Charlie cried out as Declan smacked her ass with his open palm. She choked back tears as he repeated it on the other cheek. Declan continued talking to her, but his words were so hushed, the music drowned them out. She concentrated on the music and relaxed beneath his body, enjoying the pressure he was creating inside and out. She tripped on a couple of small quakes of pleasure, and then suddenly Declan stiffened and came hard inside her. She sobbed at her own failed release. She couldn’t do anything but lie still and sob.
Declan removed the spreader bar, opened the cuffs on her wrists, and helped her stand. Her legs wobbled; and he picked her up and carried her to the ottoman next to his chair. Declan gently placed her on her back, her legs and arms limply falling open on either side of the bench. She stared at him through bleary eyes as he smiled down at her. He was straddling the ottoman and slowly sliding inside her. His hands rested on her thighs, keeping them still as he stroked methodically, hitting that perfect spot over and over. In moments, she was breaking into a million pieces and shaking uncontrollably beneath him.
Declan whispered in her ear. “You belong to me, my sweet Charlotte.”
Charlie sighed contentedly. She floated on the edge of bliss. He brought her to this place. This beautiful place of erotic sedation. Euphoria. How she craved this place.
