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  Chapter Three

  Kelly closed her eyes, wondering if he was just going to leave the hood and gag in place. At the moment she was so weak and spent she almost didn’t care. Almost. She leaned into Tanner’s chest as he carried her out of the performance area. He stopped for a moment then moved forward again. She heard the soft click of a door opening and closing. In another moment he deposited her on a soft padded surface, sitting her upright, bracing her with one arm.

  She leaned into him as he unfastened the ball gag and eased it from her mouth. Then he unzipped the hood and slipped it over her head, tossing it to the side. She blinked her eyes, focusing and realizing she was seated on a thickly padded bench in one of the private rooms.

  “I’m a mess,” she mumbled.

  “We’ll fix that. Not to worry.” His voice was soft and soothing, such a contrast to the uncompromising hardness of his appearance.

  Moving her head so it rested against his shoulder, he pulled wet wipes from a bowl next to her and carefully cleaned her face. She was embarrassed to realize her nose had been running, the mucous mixing with her tears.

  “It’s okay,” he soothed. “You did very well, sub. Reulas said you were the perfect one for this and he was right. Whoever trained you did it well.”

  Kelly’s mind took a brief trip back in time remembering the Dom who had taught her so well, taking her from that first discovery of who and what she was to the point where she became one of the most sought after subs at whatever club she visited.

  “I had planned to use the violet wand before the single tail whip,” he told her. “The low voltage electricity it emits ramps up the effect of both vibrators I used. But you’re so damn responsive I was afraid I’d push you over the edge too soon, no matter how you tried to hold on.”

  “Thank you.”

  He brushed her hair back from her face. “My pleasure.” Lifting her from the table he carried her to a large armchair in one corner, pausing on the way to pull a bottle of water from the minifridge and grab a quilt from the rack where it was stored. In a moment he had them both in the chair. With great tenderness he wrapped the quilt around her and settled her on his lap.

  “Drink,” he ordered, uncapping the bottle and holding it to her lips. They sat like that for a long time, her muscles easing, the water rehydrating her body, Tanner stroking her hair, her back, her shoulders. Never saying a word, so she didn’t either. But finally she had to ask him the question poking at the back of her brain.

  “Why didn’t you use the rest of the cards? I accepted them with no problem.”

  He cupped her chin and turned her head so she faced him. “Don’t repeat this to anyone.” A corner of his mouth almost kicked up in a hint of a smile. “But it stopped being just a performance to me halfway through it.”

  She frowned. “I don’t understand.”

  “I’m not sure I do, either.” He looked away, staring across the room at the wall. “One of the important things you learn in Delta Force is complete control of yourself. The missions we get sent on require it. Otherwise we could get ourselves and our team members killed. For me the only way to do that was to lock away my emotions completely.”

  “That must have been very difficult to do.”

  He shrugged. “Not so much, But it meant relationships were a no-go. Being able to come to different dungeons around the world to play has been a great stress reliever.”

  “I sense a ‘but’ in there,” she prompted.

  “But tonight, when Reulas introduced us, something hit me like an exploding IED. I never believed in instant chemistry before, but Jesus, Kelly. I looked at you and you nearly took me down to my knees.”

  She burrowed into his chest, unwilling to look at him while she made her own confession. “I, um, had the same reaction. Club Fantasy is like a second home to me. I can play without worrying about messy relationships. Maybe because no one ever aroused my emotions the way you did. Do,” she amended.

  Tanner’s body tensed. He was silent for so long she was afraid she’d made a misstep here. Did he just plan to tell her how he felt and move on?

  “Listen,” she said, “if you —”

  He touched a finger to her lips. “Ssh. It’s okay. It’s just a shock to me to have someone say that to me. I’ve made sure to let every woman I’ve ever been with know the score. It’s all about the physical. The sex. Nothing more.”

  And this?” she prompted.

  “I don’t know, Kelly. It’s so foreign to me. I know that right now I’m hard as a spike. I want to fuck you but not with toys or anything. Just you and me, my cock in your pussy. But I know you must be sore and wrung out.”

  She brushed her fingers along his cheek. “Not too sore for that. If that’s all we do.”

  “I ragged on Reulas for calling this place Club Fantasy, but straight sex is a fantasy for me. Just now. You and me.” He studied her face. “Are you sure?”

  “I am.” At least she hoped she was. Already her body was responding to his touch and he’d barely touched her at all.

  “I want to kiss you. Kissing’s always a fantasy to me, too, because it’s so personal.”

  She shifted on his lap, brought his head down to hers and pressed her mouth to his. His lips were firm and warm and when she opened hers his tongue swept inside, a living flame heating her flesh. He drank from her as she did from him, tongues tangling in an erotic dance. Unbelievably her pussy was getting wet again, the core of her rocketing to life with need.

  He tore his mouth from hers, trailing his tongue along the line of her jaw and nibbling the lobe of her ear with his teeth. He threaded his fingers through her hair, holding her in place while he kissed his way down her throat, to the hollow where her pulse beat, to the upper swell of her breasts just visible in the gap of the quilt.

  “If you’re absolutely sure,” he said again, “let’s ditch this quilt.”

  Kelly shrugged out of it, trying not to wince as certain muscles protested.

  “Stop.” Tanner stilled her hands. “You’re hurting. This won’t work.”

  She smiled at him. “I’m fine. I promise I wouldn’t lie to you. Okay?”

  * * * *

  Tanner wanted so badly to believe her. He was still struggling with the force of the impact she had on him. With the stewpot she’d made out of his emotions. But damn! He wanted to get his cock inside her in the worst way.

  One thing about Reulas. He had every one of his private rooms set up so no matter where you wanted to fuck or play whatever you needed was right at hand. Securing Kelly with one arm he pushed the lever that turned the chair into a lounger. Then he reached into the drawer of the little table beside it to pull out a handful of condoms.

  “Aren’t you optimistic,” she laughed.

  “One can hope. Anyway, we have the room for as long as we want it. But if we only fuck once, I’ll die a happy man.”

  “I think I can take care of that for you with no problem.”

  Sliding to her knees she unzipped his fly and freed his thick, swollen cock, holding it in both hands while she took a long look at it. Then she slowly lowered her head and took the thick breadth of him into her mouth. Strange, he thought very briefly. Here they were in a club with every instrument of pleasure imaginable, every opportunity for the kinkiest of sex, and the thing that seemed to be turning them both on right now was straight, vanilla sex. How funny was that?

  Then she closed her lips around him and sucked hard, squeezing her tongue around his abundant length, and every thought flew out of his head.

  “Shit, Kelly.” He slid his fingers through her hair to hold her head in place. “You have the sweetest mouth this side of heaven. Suck me hard, baby. Real hard.”

  She did just that. Sliding one hand between his thighs she cupped the sac holding his balls and gently squeezed. Heat jolted through him. Tanner groaned and tightened his grip on her head. He wasn’t going to last like this, as much as he loved it. Roughly he pulled her head away.

  She lo
oked up at him, frowning. “What’s wrong?”

  He gave a rough laugh. “What’s wrong is I’m about ten seconds away from the top of my head blowing off. Straddle me, sub, so I can see if that sweet pussy is still wet enough for me.”

  He helped her to rise and positioned her so her thighs bracketed his. Slid one hand between her thighs to her cunt and smiled when he found it still dripping. Damn. He just might have found the woman of his dreams. Then he had to stop thinking because he was so close to the edge he was ready to topple over. Sheathing himself with one of the condoms he lifted her with his muscular arms and brought her down right on his dick.

  He closed his eyes at the intense sensations that raced through him when her snug pussy closed around him, grasping it with her wet heat. Holy shit! He gritted his teeth, reaching for whatever control he had. The performance had him so ramped up anyway he hoped he lasted long enough to give Kelly one more orgasm. The image of her naked body, butt plug and vibrators in place, back and ass crisscrossed with beautiful red stripes from the whip was a jolt to his system. He had to do something to move this along because his famous discipline had gone to shit.

  He slipped one hand between them, found her already sore and swollen clit and rubbed it with his thumb. Again and again, pinching and stroking, while her inner muscles gripped him and her breathing quickened. Her hot liquid drenched him with a sudden rush.

  “I’m ready.” Her voice was breathy and strained.

  “Yes, you are, darlin’.” Gripping her hips he lifted her up and brought her down again. “Ride me, now.”

  She balanced her hands on his shoulders and did just that, rocking back and forth and up and down. The slide of her pussy against his cock like the glide of smooth silk. Up and down, again and again. And somehow, as if their bodies were completely in tune, they arrived at the orgasm together and crashed into rocket-filled space. Long minutes passed while they rode out the shattering spasms. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly against him. Her breasts pressed to his chest, her nipples like hot, hard points. Her cunt milked him over and over as he spurted into the latex.

  And then it was done. She collapsed against him, her breathing as raspy as his. He held her tightly, smoothing the damp hair from her forehead, brushing light kisses on her damp skin. Kisses? He didn’t kiss. Jesus, he really had fallen into an alternate universe. But hadn’t he known that from the moment he laid eyes on her?

  He finally lifted her from him so he could dispose of the condom, easing himself slowly from her silken grasp. When he returned to the chair, settling her on his lap again, he held the cards they hadn’t used that night. She looked at them and then at him, a smile curving her swollen lips, swollen from sucking his cock.

  “I hate to tell you this, but I don’t think I’m up to the rest of the deal tonight.”

  He chuffed a laugh. “Darlin’, neither am I. And I never thought I’d say that.” He adjusted her on his lap so they could look at the cards together. “But tomorrow night? Now that’s another story.”

  She gave a breathy chuckle. “So just to be sure. You want to meet me back here tomorrow night? For another performance?”

  “Hell, no.” When her body tightened he brushed a kiss on her cheek. A kiss! Shit! He really was falling hard. “This is going to be completely private.” He turned over the first card. “St. Andrew’s Cross and the paddle.” The next card. “Me fucking you in the ass.” And the next one. “Wax play. I could draw some really erotic designs on that luscious body of yours. And I’d sure like to feel my cock in your mouth again, maybe with a dildo in that pretty little pussy, making you want to come but you won’t until I do. Until you suck me off good.”

  “You think we’ll get to all that in one night? I don’t know if I’ll survive.”

  “Well, see, that’s the nice thing about this place. Reulas has given me a guest pass with no expiration. We might even try a second deck of cards.” He gave her a serious look. “Think you can handle that? Reulas says you usually only play one night on the weekend.”

  “I think for you I might make an exception.”

  “Good. That’s good.” He tilted her face up to his. “You have anything you need to get home for? Pets that have to be fed? Family members looking for you?”

  She shook her head. “No pets. And all my family lives in other places.”

  “Okay, then. I’ve got a nice suite with a great spa tub at that new hotel downtown. Right now I’d like to take you there and spend the rest of the night and tomorrow pampering the hell out of you.” He stroked her cheek. “Get you in shape for tomorrow night.”

  She looked at him hard, questions in her eyes. “Tanner, how did this happen? We came in here two independent individuals and something just exploded between us.”

  “Shocked the shit out of me, too. But you know what? Maybe it’s an unexpected gift and we should try to appreciate it.”

  She grinned. “As long as it comes with a new deck of cards.”

  He brushed his mouth over hers. “I guess anything can happen in Club Fantasy.”

  *The End*

  About the Author

  Known the world over as the oldest living author of erotic romance, and referred to by USA Today as the Nora Roberts of erotic romance, Desiree Holt

  is three times a finalist for an EPIC E-Book Award (and a winner in 2014), a nominee for a Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Award, winner of the first 5 Heart Sweetheart of the Year Award at The Romance Studio as well as twice a CAPA Award winner for best BDSM book of the year, and winner of the Holt Medallion for Excellence in Romance Literature. She has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning and in The Village Voice, The Daily Beast, USA Today, The (London) Daily Mail, The New Delhi Times and numerous other national and international publications.

  “Desiree Holt is the most amazing erotica author of our time and each story is more fulfilling then the last.” (Romance Junkies)

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