Terror once again takes the lead.
* * *
Mason
Ismile, settling into my oversize couch, amused when the woman who used to snuggle up to me like a newborn kitten takes a seat as far away from me as possible. I contemplate joking that she sit on the floor in the foyer so she doesn’t risk getting too close but decide against it.
She’s far too on edge to appreciate the dark humor.
I drink in the sight of her, hungry for her cute face and giving body. For two weeks, I’ve wondered if she’d show, and now I have my answer.
Parts of my list were designed to scare her. I didn’t take it easy in that department. I wanted her to understand what she was getting into.
Okay, maybe it was a bit diabolical to include the woman in the dog cage, but I didn’t want her to harbor any delusions. While caging her isn’t something I desire, I’m not exactly for the faint of heart. And who knows, maybe it intrigued her. The fact that it was the first thing she brought up was certainly telling.
I mean, not right this minute, but then again, you never can tell. The discovery of what perversity lurks under the guise of civility is part of the excitement. Although it’s anyone’s guess if she’ll go through with tonight.
But she came. It’s a start, and I’ll take it.
Of course I watched her at the front door. She was adorable, fussing away, all agitated. I’ll admit I laughed as she stood on my stoop and let the time run past. Oh, I’m sure she has an explanation all rationalized out—clearly she’d planned on punctuality—but I learned long ago, in this game there are very few accidents.
Across from me she sits, all prim, clutching her handbag, knees locked tightly together, her feet at an angle and tucked under the chair like a proper church lady. She’s wearing a pretty pink-and-white dress that conveniently covers her from neck to toe.
If we progress as planned, she’ll lose that modesty soon enough.
Posture perfect, she stares at me. The expectation is clear in the tilt of her lips as she waits for me to speak, soothe her, remind her of the man she’s known.
As much as I want to scoop her into my arms and comfort her, I’m not going to do that. She’s had plenty of that guy, and tonight is about showing her the other side. Both are a part of me, but she needs to come to terms with the part I kept hidden.
Comfort will come later.
I lace my fingers over my stomach and stretch, kicking a foot over one ankle.
A delicate arch of her blond eyebrow.
I say nothing.
A shift in the chair.
All pleasant, I smile and continue to wait her out.
It hardly takes any time at all.
Blue eyes narrow before she throws up her hands. “Well, aren’t you going to get on with it?”
“With what?” I ask in a slow, precise tone.
A hard, exasperated breath sends a wayward curl flying. “You know, with this whole domination thing!”
I laugh. Jesus, I’ve missed her like wildfire. Of course, I’ve already started my whole “domination thing,” she just doesn’t have enough experience to realize it.
I shrug. “You need a chance to unwind.”
She digs her nails into her purse. “There’s no way I can unwind with you staring at me like a bug under a microscope and an implied threat hanging over my head.”
This is a new, interesting side to her. She showed it the last time I saw her, but I wasn’t sure if maybe it was a fluke.
“I see. You’d like to get your punishment over with, is that it?” The question is delivered so mildly I could have been inquiring about today’s weather.