Nicole Edwards - Perception

For once, Mercedes looked entirely at peace.

“You decided to join me?” she asked sweetly, not opening her eyes.

“Not tonight,” he informed her, pushing away from the wall. Rather than join her in the tub, he decided for a quick shower. And then they’d play a little before bed.

Hoping to give her a few more minutes to relax, he took his time in the shower, glancing over at her through the glass walls. Xander liked the fact that she was watching him. In fact, she never seemed to look away, unabashedly watching as he soaped up.

“Are you making me get out?” she asked, smiling.

“It’s time. I was hoping to show you something before bed.”

That seemed to catch her interest.

“What are you going to show me?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” he teased.

God, he loved the way she seemed so comfortable in his bathroom, relaxing in his tub, sharing the space with him. It just felt… natural.

Reaching down, he waited for her to take his hand. Once she’d hit the button to release the water from the tub, she took his proffered hand, and he assisted her to her feet. Taking the handheld shower sprayer that was attached to the tub, he turned on the warm water and rinsed her thoroughly.

The water sluiced over her generous curves and he watched as every glorious inch of her was uncovered. As usual, he found himself intrigued by the intricate magnolia flower tattoo on her shoulder that wrapped around her upper arm all the way to her elbow. It was feminine and so damn sensual. As was the other one on her hip that contained a pair of cuffs, a collar, and a flogger hidden in the brilliantly colored flowers.

Once he was sure he’d washed all of the soap from her creamy skin, Xander turned off the water, took her hand and helped her out of the bath onto the plush rug sitting in front of the tub. From there, he retrieved a towel and proceeded to dry her completely. When he was satisfied, he took his terry cloth robe from the back of the door and wrapped it around her.

Mercedes smiled up at him, and Xander’s heart skipped a beat. He was beginning to crave those smiles.

Taking her hand in his, Xander led her down the hall to another room on the second floor. There were two additional bedrooms, but this one he’d had converted.

Into his own personal dungeon.

Keeping his eye on Mercedes, he watched for her reaction.

She already knew about the dungeon, but he’d never actually shown it to her. Mainly because she had never asked, and he’d never had a reason to.

Until tonight.

Mercedes had been essentially boneless after her bath. But as she allowed Xander to lead her to his dungeon, she knew her stress was about to come back tenfold.

It wasn’t that she’d thought she wouldn’t visit his dungeon at least once during the five days she’d be there, but honestly, she’d been hoping for longer – preferably a month – to acclimate to her new temporary life before he ventured this direction. Although that wasn’t part of the deal.

Apparently Xander had other ideas.

Xander flipped on the lights in a rather impressive room and allowed her to step inside before he put his hands on her shoulders and eased the robe down and off of her, leaving her very, very naked. As naked as he was.

An involuntary shiver wracked her body, and it had nothing to do with being cold. In fact, the air was comfortable, and her body was warming nicely just from the idea of what was to come, yet there was a little bit of hesitancy that was lingering in the forefront of her mind.

Her fight or flight instinct was kicking in as well, warning her that she might soon regret what she’d signed on for.

Then again, he’d openly punished her in front of a large group of people at Devotion, and she’d found out just how much she could enjoy that type of submission.

Even if she was still confused by it.

All of that aside, if she really thought about it, this place had some positive things going for it. One, it was nice. Not seedy or dirty, just immaculately clean and well designed. And two, they did not have an audience which meant she’d be able to maintain a little of her dignity while he did whatever he had planned for her.

Mercedes would openly admit that she was impressed with Xander’s setup. He’d gone all out by incorporating the necessary equipment for all of his kinks, including a rather intricate suspension rig that would rival any she’d seen in any club – it was equipped with a narrow padded platform that appeared to act as a bed with a number of straps to secure his submissives. He also had a medical setup in one corner – for those extremely kinky play scenes. Another corner had a St. Andrew’s cross. And the final section had a rather plain looking bench – probably used for regular whipping – if there was such a thing.

All in all, Mercedes liked it. The floors and walls were an inky black, the lights were blue which offered a seductive, eerie glow to the room.

“I’m going to go easy on you tonight,” he told her.

She would’ve believed him too if it weren’t for the wicked glint in his eyes and the smirk on his sexy lips.

“Let’s play, shall we?” he said, taking her hand and leading her toward the suspension rig.

Another shiver raced down her spine.

“Are you cold?” he asked, pulling her against him.

Mercedes pressed up against his equally naked body, relishing the heat of him as he wrapped his arms around her.

“No,” she said honestly. She wasn’t cold, but she would definitely take whatever warmth he was willing to share with her.

“Good.”

After pressing a kiss to her forehead, Xander led her to the suspended bed. Stopping in front of it, he let her go and then worked the rigs until the bed lowered just a little, making it easier for her to sit on the edge. She did so without argument, knowing it wasn’t going to do her any good tonight.

The next thing Mercedes knew, she was expertly secured. Her wrists were attached to cuffs above her head. Her feet rested on brackets that protruded from the end of the bed and her ankles were cuffed in padded leather. The position of her feet left her legs spread wide.

Completely exposed.

Once again.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” Xander said gruffly, the desire in his tone apparent.

Mercedes watched him closely. Not because she was scared, but because she just wanted to watch him. The way he moved, the way he appeared so comfortable in his own skin.

He moved over to a setup on the wall, grabbing items left and right, opening packages before finally returning to the foot of the makeshift bed and standing between her thighs.

“Does your housekeeper clean this room too?” she asked, her anxiety getting the best of her.

Xander grinned, his eyes lighting with his amusement. “Yes, she does.”

She heard a cap being opened, and she knew what he was going to do. The position he had her in left her ass slightly hanging over the edge.

“Has she ever asked you about it?” Her voice wavered with the question, her nervousness ringing loudly in the room.

Xander chuckled low and deep. “No, we haven’t sat down to discuss it.”

Just like the last time he’d played with her ass, Xander pulled on a latex glove before coating his fingers with lube, making her body clench accordingly. She knew what he was preparing her for, and there was absolutely no fear.

In fact, Mercedes was anxious for him to do what he’d promised the other night at the club. She’d known then that he was going to prepare her, and she was grateful for that. Anal sex wasn’t on her list of things she usually engaged in – ok, so it was on her list of things she never did, at least not with another person.

But that didn’t mean she wasn’t anticipating it.

Her body burned hot, almost immediately when he pressed his finger against her anus, teasing her slowly.

“You’ve never taken another man here?” he asked, obviously wanting her to clarify for him again what she’d said at Devotion.

“No, Sir.” Her words vibrated with… oh, good grief. She wasn’t sure if it was nerves or anticipation that filled her more.

The look he shot her was fully of passion and… possessiveness, maybe?

“Do you know how much I want to slide my cock right here?”

Mercedes shook her head no as he teased her with the tip of his fingers.

“I’ve dreamed about it, pet.”

She watched as he reached for the butt plug he’d opened a moment before. As though he was tormenting her, which he kind of was, he coated the end generously with lube before he returned his fingers to her anus. This time he slid one finger inside of her slowly.

Mercedes closed her eyes as the initial bite of pain came and went. It wasn’t long before he began fucking her with slow, deliberate thrusts of his finger in her ass. Her pussy was wet, her entire body in tune with the strange intrusion.

“So tight. I can’t wait to slide my cock in your ass and fuck you hard. Do you want that, M?”

“Yes, Sir,” she answered immediately, too turned on to be appalled by her behavior.

This man knew her too well, knew just how to play her body to make her crazy with lust. It was as though he’d paid attention to her through the years.

And maybe he had.

Either way, Mercedes wanted this.

This she could handle. Play time. In a dungeon. It wasn’t about romance and emotion; this was about pure, unadulterated fucking. Something that would keep her from getting too attached to this man.