Master of Solitude (Mountain Masters & Dark Haven Book 8) by Cherise Sinclair
Sawyer stared at her as cold horror streamed into his veins. “You’re talking about a shitload of civilians taking on a violent gang? Putting themselves at risk?” He struggled to control himself and not scorch her ears with a whole new kind of vocabulary. “Who the fu—hell thought of this disaster?”
Because whoever dreamed up this clusterfuck would be the next one targeted by the fucking gang.
Her chin came up. “That would be me.”
Fury spiked inside him so hard and fast his entire world went red. “You?” Gripping her shoulders, he started to shake her…got control…and glared instead. “I broke us apart to keep you safe, and now you’ve strolled right back into the kill zone. Jesus fucking Christ. I should spank you. Will spank you.”
“Spank me? You…you—” Her green eyes snapped with anger, and then her expression went blank.
Oh, damn him, what had he said?
“Gin was right. You deliberately, publicly dumped me.” She yanked loose and walked in a circle, staring at the ground. “You made a show of kissing Candy—which isn’t like you—to make sure everyone in town knew we weren’t together.”
She glowered at him and made another circle.
He had hoped like fuck she wouldn’t get past angry and start to think—but thinking she was. And she was one of the smartest people he knew. Dammit.
“You didn’t want people to know we were together because…” Her hands hit her hips, and her eyes narrowed.
No man would ever want that unforgiving expression directed at him. Sawyer felt his balls shrivel.
“…because the skinheads are out to get you. You worried they might target your girlfriend. Me.” She gave a satisfied nod, even though he hadn’t said a damn word.
Maybe he didn’t…totally…believe she could see auras, but she could sure read him like a book.
He cleared his throat. “Baby, it isn’t safe to be around me. The Hammers would go after you just to hurt me.” Then he remembered why she’d come to the house, and his blood pressure mounted like a volcano about to blow. “But that doesn’t matter, does it?”
His voice rose. “You had to go and set yourself up as a whole separate target. Jesus, are you crazy? I lov—Do you know what it would do to me if they…” He couldn’t even find the words.
Her lips curved. She actually fucking laughed—the brilliantly beautiful sound that brightened the entire world. “You…Sawyer Ware…you love me.”
His head really did explode. “Fuck, yes, I love you!” When Achilles skittered back, he realized he was shouting.
The woman was going to kill him. Stone dead. Nonetheless, he cranked back the volume. “I love you. Now, will you stop being suicidal and go live in Europe for a month?” He hauled in a breath. “Please.”
Suddenly, his arms were filled with a soft, sweet woman, and she was kissing him—and still laughing.
And some dumb fucks said there were no more miracles in the world.
*
A few minutes later, Mallory wasn’t sure how they’d arrived upstairs in Sawyer’s loft. Instantaneous travel through space and time?
With firm hands, he stripped her naked, taking a long kiss between each article of clothing.
“Much better.” Already shirtless, he picked her up and tossed her onto the bed as easily as he would a pillow. With decisive movements, he unzipped his jeans—and his cock sprang free.
Coming down on her, he flattened her into the bed with his weight and took her mouth in a rough, incredibly sexy demand that set her whole body on fire. A second later, he yanked her arms over her head and pinned her wrists with one big hand. “I’m taking you now, nymph. Hard.”
He cupped her pussy. His eyes glinted in satisfaction as he found her already wet, and with no other warning, he shifted over, settled his cock at her entrance, and ruthlessly penetrated her in one hard thrust.
She gasped, her back arching at the wonderful, shocking possession. Oh, she’d missed him.
Pausing, seated as deeply and intimately as possible, he pressed his forehead against hers. “I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you about my concerns.” His lips brushed hers. “I love you so fucking much, Mallory McCabe.”
With his whispered words, she felt the last of her anger die. Oh, they had talking to do—lots of talking—but he was protective right down to his bones. He’d thought the Hammers would hurt her—because of him. Of course, he’d do what he thought necessary to keep her safe.
The idiot.
“I love you, too, Sawyer Ware.” She pressed her lips against his, and then he took such complete control of the kiss—of her—that her mind emptied. As his tongue teased hers, his cock hammered into her, hard and fast.
“You’d best catch up, nymph.” Releasing her wrists, he lifted his torso up far enough to use his hand on her clit. Firm fingers slid over the sensitive nub, and he laughed as the upward jolt of her hips drove his cock in farther.
The feeling of his thick, rigid shaft inside and his merciless fingers teasing her clit sent shudders through her, melted her insides, and a second later, she was climaxing, coming hard, pleasure rushing through her with each spasm.
“Put your arms around me.” Pulling her legs up and around his waist, he surged into her, deep, deeper, and came with a low growl that reverberated through her.
“I missed you.” She kissed his hard shoulder and tasted the salt on his skin.
“Me, too. You have no idea.” Holding her pinned against him, he rolled them over, still embedded inside her. Right where he belonged.
Chapter Twenty-Four
‡
A sound woke Mallory from her drowse, and as she sat up in bed, Sawyer entered the room. Shirtless and in clean jeans, he was toweling his short hair. Although the healing wound on his arm had given her a rough moment when she’d first seen it, now she could look past it and appreciate the way his solid biceps flexed with each movement. His powerful shoulders tapered to a lean waist. Still pumped up from splitting wood, his chest was simply amazing. His jeans hung low enough to see the angled line just above his hipbones.
She’d missed touching him.
“I brought you some water.” He handed her a glass of ice water and set a coffee mug down on the bedside table.
“Thank you.” After drinking half the water, she realized he was studying her, his gaze…dangerous. “What?”
“How much do you trust me, little contractor?” His voice had deepened.
“I trust you.” The answer was easy. Automatic. Anyone seeing his aura would trust him. The clear, rich colors said this person was solid to the core.
“Good to hear.” After setting her glass on the bedside table, he pulled wrist cuffs and rope from the drawer.
She frowned. Although she couldn’t see the contents, the nightstand drawer looked fuller than it had the last time she’d been here.
“Wrists, please.”
At the controlled heat in his eyes, a shiver of excitement ran through her. “What are you planning?”
“A little pleasure, a little pain, a little fun.” His slow smile made her heart skip a beat. “Wrists. Now.”
Her hands were in his before she thought about obeying him.
“You’re such a good girl.”
The approving words pattered over her like a warm spring rain.
He buckled a fleece-lined black leather cuff around each wrist and checked the fit with his usual care. For a moment, he regarded at her silently, his eyes darkening. “You always look incredibly sexy dressed only in my cuffs.”
Her nipples turned to hard peaks. He’d restrained her before, and each time, it was…special. Different. Intensely hot.
He flattened her onto her back and loosely roped her left wrist cuff to one headboard post, and the right wrist cuff to the other post.
After attaching ankle cuffs, he smiled at her. “You’re used to being tied up now, so I’m going to add some new things.”
He selected Apocalyptica’s haunting “Farewell” tune and
“But why—”
He pushed the strip of leather between her teeth and tied it behind her head. “This is why.” He met her stunned gaze with determined blue eyes. “Tonight you have a safe word—and nothing else.”
Sun and stars. She wouldn’t be able to talk. To tell him what she was feeling. The knowledge was frightening, yet her body simmered with heat and need, as if he’d tossed a pine log into her inner fireplace.
“Nod if you understand.”
Her breathing was faster than normal, but she nodded.
“Good. You’ll have lots of time to get used to being silent.” He pulled her downward on the bed, until her butt was near the footboardless mattress edge and between the six-foot-tall bottom bedposts.
After tying a rope to one bedpost at chest height, he lifted her right leg and secured the rope to her ankle cuff. After a second of consideration, he shoved a pillow under her bottom to elevate her hips.
“Better.” He restrained her left ankle in the same way.
Her legs were now raised and spread in a wide V position, and her pussy was totally exposed. Her arms were not completely restrained, which was good, wasn’t—
At the head of the bed, he tightened the ropes attached to her wrists, until her arms were drawn into a spread-eagle position.
Taking something else from the bedside table, he sat beside her and ran his hands over her breasts, stroking her gently. “I’m going to do things to you, Mallory. Lots of dirty things.” His big hand caressed her cheek. “And you won’t be able to stop me unless you give three hoots.”
Eyes wide, she nodded. Her heart was thumping along…a little too fast…but not in flight mode. She’d come a long way from the night at Dark Haven. And she’d learned it was amazingly freeing to be tied up and unable to make any decisions.
Still…not being able to talk? A tiny flutter of anxiety ran over her skin.
“Good. I’ll add one more thing to increase your sensitivity.” He set a wide, black satin blindfold over her eyes and tied it behind her head.
She couldn’t see anything. Couldn’t speak. Couldn’t move. “Uuuuuh,” she protested instinctively.
His palm against her cheek was warm. Reassuring. “Easy, nymph. I’m here. I will not leave you for even a second, and I’ll be talking to you as we play.” His dark, quiet voice was measured and sure. “Take a breath and give me a nod when you’re calm.”
Okay, okay. She was all right. As she pulled in a breath, she realized the way he’d removed all her control, from sight to her ability to move, raised the simmering hunger inside her to a boil. After a second, she gave him the nod he was waiting for.
“Aren’t you a sweet little nymph,” he murmured. He nuzzled her cheek below the blindfold, and she felt the rough stubble on his jaw. His fingers played with her breasts, plucking the nipples gently. “I love your breasts. They’re as sweet to look at as they are to taste.”
As he caressed her breasts, he slowly kissed along her jaw, her neck, and down to her chest. When he started to use his teeth and tongue on her nipples, her breasts swelled to a throbbing tightness. He lifted his head, and cool air wafted across her wet skin.
Her nipples gathered into achingly sensitive peaks.
“Beautiful.”
Something brushed over the hard nubs. The backs of his knuckles?
“I’ll be back to do more to these beauties after I torment some other areas. Isn’t it nice that, with the way you’re tied, I have access to everything I’m interested in?”
For the love of cats, the more he talked, the hotter—and more nervous—she got. A whimper escaped her, and he chuckled, low and masculine.
The music changed, grew more ominous. Ordo Rosarious Equilibrio’s “Let Me Show You, All the Secrets of the Torture Garden”.
Something rattled—he was rummaging in the bedside dresser again, and she stiffened. His warm hand stroked down her stomach, then he ran his hands up and down her inner—widely spread—thighs. “I love having your cunt and asshole wide open to me, pet.”
His fingers explored her pussy where she most ached. One lone finger circled her clit with unerring precision, slick and sure, and a sharp stream of pleasure shocked through her.
Enjoying the fuck out of himself, Sawyer smiled. She was soaking wet, and each time he ran his finger around her glistening clit, it engorged further.
When it poked out from beneath its hood, he inserted a finger in her entrance and curved it up to rub her G-spot roughly. Nice and spongy, showing her excitement. Mallory was always responsive, but bondage pushed her right to the edge.
But…he wasn’t going to let her climax. Not for quite a while. In fact, a nice Dom might warn a helpless subbie. So he did. “Just so you know, I’ve got a lot of frustration saved up—and I’m going to take my time. Lots of time.”
When she quivered, her breasts jiggled.
Yeah, very nice.
First, sensation play…which was always more fun when the submissive couldn’t see what was being used. He dipped his fingers in the mug on the bedside stand and found the coconut oil was still hot. Rubbing it between his palms, he ran his hands over her torso and up to her breasts.
She jumped at the unexpected heat of his hands, then relaxed as he massaged her. Shoulders, arms, and…those sweet breasts. Oil-slickened, swollen, sensitive breasts. Oh yeah. And if he took some extra time teasing his favorite bits, she could hardly stop him. Gags were damn useful.
When she’d obviously drifted into a warm glow, he plucked an ice cube from her glass of ice water and ran it in a circle around one nipple.
The color in her face went bright red, and the ropes slapped the bedposts as her arms jerked. “Mmrk.”
Good thing—for her—he couldn’t decipher what she’d called him. Suppressing a laugh, he moved to her other breast.
As he’d warned her…he mercilessly took his time.
Hot and cold gave way to alternating soft fur and sharp claws until she was tensing more and more in anticipation of what he would do next.
Gripping her long, sleek hair, he pulled, tilting her head back and increasing her sense of being helpless. The color in her cheeks deepened, and when he brushed his lips over the side of her neck, he could feel the hammering of her pulse.
More.
He picked up a silky makeup brush…and a strip of sandpaper. This time, he’d start at her feet and work his way up.
Between each slow circuit of sensual toys, he teased her pussy, keeping her aroused and needy—but never letting her get off.
He fucking loved the combination of sensual torture and edging.
Her skin reddened. Her nipples jutted into long peaks.
Smiling, he picked up the next toy. Long and thin, it looked like a marriage between anal beads and a thin dildo. Even better, a button on the wide end turned it into a vibrator. He covered it with a condom, lubed it, and took the time to tease her rim with the slick tip. With his other hand, he played with her clit.
When she was squirming and heading toward an orgasm, he firmly slid the ball-studded shaft into her anus.
Her whole body went rigid. “Mmmph!”
Maybe he did have a bit of sadist in him. Watching her wiggle as she struggled with the sensation of having her ass penetrated was almost as much fun as seeing how the plug increased her arousal.
He was harder than a rock, but, hell, he could keep this up forever.
He’d shoved something up her butt. Mallory couldn’t believe what he’d done. Damn him. Every time she moved, the thing sent odd zips of pleasure through her—and she couldn’t seem to stop wiggling.
Her whole body shivered with excitement. Her skin had grown so sensitive, she could feel the heat of his body as he bent over her.
“Let’s try something new.” His voice was steady. Firm. In control.
Oh, no. She couldn’t see his face, but knew his j
His fingers stroked around her pussy again, as he’d been doing since they started, keeping her so aroused, her center throbbed with need. “Some women—even ones who don’t like being flogged—enjoy increased sensation on their pussy. Let’s see if you’re one of them.”
What did he mean? She made a questioning sound and got no answer. What did he mean?
On her pussy, he tapped her labia lightly with his fingers, tiny slaps that were like hot little explosions. The slaps grew harder, imparting a slight sting.
Then, one finger tapped the top of her clit in almost the same way, making her jump and suck in air.
Oh no, he wouldn’t.
Thankfully, he stopped.
She pulled in a slow breath of relief as he kissed up her stomach and licked over her breasts. Down below, her pussy was tingling, as if shocked awake. Her breasts throbbed in time with her heart as he sucked each nipple, biting very, very lightly.
The toy with the sharp claws lightly scraped down her belly, followed by the gentle warmth of his palm as if to smooth out the edgy sensation.
Her heart was thumping fast, and her body was damp with sweat and need. Every inch of skin was awake and aroused, her entire lower half a molten lake of need. Her clit thrummed.
Moving down, he slapped her wet folds again, lightly, harder, a soft smack, smack, smack. His fingers circled her entrance, setting off a desperate hunger for something inside. For his cock.
With a finger, he circled her swollen clit long enough to get her right to the edge of orgasm…then he stopped and slapped her labia again.
Smack, smack, smack.
Her pussy lips swelled, thick and sensitive and burning. He moved to tap her clit with one finger, and each time she jumped at the alarming sensation.
Somehow, somehow, she grew even more aroused.
He kissed her breasts, his hands warm as he pushed them together for his mouth and massaged the slick skin roughly. Gently. He bit her shoulder, teeth digging in just short of pain, before kissing the stinging spot. He suckled her breasts.