Taken (7 page)

“A thing of beauty,” he breathed as he moved behind her, offering her a glass of wine.

She managed to grasp the glass and nodded.

“Women are the most beautiful creatures on the face of the earth. Capturing their individual essence is something I’ve always dreamt of doing.”

His heated breath cascading across the back of her neck gave her goose bumps. “You’ve done an amazing job. Her emotions are raw, pain mixing with a level of pleasure that she’s never known. She’s tentative yet excited.”

“Fascinating and very true. Can you tell by her face how much she longs for more?” Craze ran the pads of his fingers down the length of her spine.

“Yes,” she whispered, her pussy quivering. “You’ve given her a window to her soul.”

“Can you tell how much she longs to beg her ?”

“Yes, I…”

“You worry she’s being forced?” he asked as he moved around her, his look penetrating. “You worry she’s being abused?”

“No.” The word was said easily. “She knows what she wants, what she has to have. There is no question in her mind, only a quiet reverence of the man she calls .”

“Exactly. She’s found a place where she can be herself.” His eyes flashed, the combination hunger and intrigue.

An echo of his words reverberated in her mind, her eyesight becoming a vacuum. The beauty of the piece was incredible. “She’s found a place she can call home.”

He inhaled and kissed the top of her head. “I’ve done my job as an artist. Now I hope to delve into my commitment as a Dom.”

Jess tingled as she took a sip of wine, closing her eyes and listening to the music. The words reverberated into the back of her mind. A place she could be herself. How long had she been searching?

“Why are you here, sunshine? Why did you find me?”

The sensuous tone in his voice was toxic, yet gave her courage. “I wanted to see you.”

“Want?”

“I needed to find you.”

“Interesting. A woman of your stature desiring domination.” He slipped in front of her. “Open your eyes.”

She did so immediately, swallowing hard in an effort to tamp down a moan. “Yes…yes sir?”

“Are you here to submit to me?”

The question hovered. Her eyes were unable to focus, her breathing rapid. “Yes.”

“Do you truly understand what you hunger for, what kind of submission I’m talking about?” Craze touched her face, brushing his fingers across to her chin, cupping as he rubbed his thumb back and forth across the seam of her mouth.

She opened her mouth, darting her tongue to taste his sweet flesh. His smile was her reward. “I do. I don’t know why.”

“You do know why. You’ve always known why.”

Every inch of her skin was alive, on fire.

“Do you realize you’re nothing but my whore?”

Shivering, she nodded, her mask peeling away. Suddenly euphoric, the words tumbled out. “I’m nothing but your slut. I want you to fuck me, use me.”

A full minute ticked by.

Craze took a sip of his drink. He moved away, studying the picture from the side. “She’s the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen. I had to paint her. I wanted to capture the look of innocence as well as the wanton whore hiding just beneath the surface.”

“She is and you can see her desire mixed with raw emotions.”

“The moment I saw your face on the dirty street corner, I knew I had to paint you.”

“Why?”

“Why? I captured the essence of the woman inside, the one who was free to give me all of her. I had to honor that woman, the very one I want nothing more than to own.”

The words were startling. She turned to face him and everything in this moment seemed right, as if she belonged. “I am your whore.” As he took a sip of his drink, she looked back at the picture. How had he captured every aspect of her very being?

****

Craze wasn’t surprised she’d found him. What little he knew about her gave him the impression she would return. Their connection was too great. He was unable to take his eyes off her, the stunning woman standing in a fiery red dress. Then again, he hadn’t been able to take his mind off of her, even masturbating several times to the thought of whipping every inch of her body raw. Shacking her.
Enslaving her.
He sucked in his breath and the wafting scent of her feminine needs as well as her exotic perfume had already driven him to the dark side.
Take her. Fuck her. Whip her.
He shivered. The thought kept his cock rock hard. “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you.” Jess blushed, but a willful moment remained.

He adored the way she hid behind her glass, embarrassed as well as uncertain of what she was doing. Of course the ballsy woman remained. He loved her intelligence and wit, as well as her vulnerability. “You wore the dress for me.”

Jess darted a look. “Yes, I did.”

“Let me see all of you. Turn around.”

She did so without hesitation, spinning slowly.

Her actions were beguiling and his dick pushed hard against his pants. Breathing in her sweet scent, his lust grew exponentially. “Amazing.” He took a gulp of his wine, savoring the flavor, as he thought about everything he longed to do to her, with her. His kink was heightened. His dark side had bridged the surface and there was no way he could ever return to the vanilla world in its entirety. She’d opened his personal Pandora’s Box. He was no longer a man, merely a Dom ready to begin her training. One day he’s be her . “Do you like what you see?”

“The artist or the man?” The lilt in her voice suggested playfulness.

Craze swallowed, visions and intense needs sweeping through every cell. “They are very much the same.

“A man who hides behind his own mask, terrified the world is going to see a tortured yet brilliant soul. The very instant you open the window the man inside, you’re never going back. Are you?” Jess locked eyes.

The moment remained. He lifted one eyebrow along with his glass. “I suppose I’m more transparent than I believed.”

“We are two of a kind.”

“That we are. I’m asking if you like or appreciate both the man as well as the world he created.”

Jess lifted her own glass. “Very much so.”

“Very good to hear because I’m going to show you more of the man you seem intrigued with. Follow me.” He didn’t wait, knowing without a doubt she’d follow. No other woman had been here. No other woman had been allowed to see the real man, the one he’d hidden from everyone his entire life. As he walked down the long hallway, his thoughts remained unsettling. Letting his beast out wasn’t something he’d ever believed could happen, or should happen for that matter. Few could understand the complex nature of his makeup. Fewer still could ever tolerate what he required.

Jess remained quiet as she followed. Her breathing was shallow.

He opened the set of double doors and as he pushed both to the side, he heard her slight gasp. A tingle of raw excitement surged through him.

“These are yours?” she asked as she walked inside.

Glancing around the room, Craze had never really looked at the number of paintings he finished over the years. Painting was his respite, his ability to break free from the tentacles tying him to a life he sometimes loathed. “Yes.” He realized he was nervous as she studied his art, the true window to his soul. When she turned to face him, her eyes shining, he was vindicated.

“They’re amazing, absolutely incredible. This is what you do for a living?” A smile curled across her lips, she walked through the various canvases, her look full of astonishment.

Craze chuckled. “No. Quite frankly, I don’t think they’re good enough except for over my fireplace mantel.”

“You’re wrong.” Her smile broadened as she glanced at him. “They’re amazing, so rich in detail. They depict strangled emotions, a deep seeded yearning for something we all have but so terrified and conflicted we refuse to reach out.” She lifted her arm, her finger hovering over the face of a woman shackled to a cross.

“I don’t think the majority of people would appreciate.” Her words were stilling.

“You’re wrong. They’re a very telling statement as to the intimate yet locked away aspect we all endure.”

Endure.
The word was intriguing and very much the way he grasped life. He endured his position of leadership, going through every day as required. “Painting frees me.”

She nodded, sipped her wine and looked away. “Are they women you’ve been with?”

Craze moved behind her, placing his hand on her hip. “No other woman has ever been here, nor has any lover or girlfriend known the man inside.”

“You say the words as if a submissive is very different, as if the dark and light side of you will never co-exist.”

The very thought had entered his mind over the last two days. Could he enjoy a romantic and very vanilla relationship with someone he longed to shackle and enslave? The answer was daunting. “I’m never attempted. In truth, I’ve never found anyone I wanted to share this side of my world with. Until now.”

Jess shuddered. “Why me?”

“Because there’s a spark about you, an amazing ability to allow me to be myself.”

She shot him a look. “That’s only part of the reason.”

How was she able to see past his bullshit? The question he knew the answer to instinctively. “Because you’re the woman I want to own. I’ve already told you that.”

“What does ownership mean to you? Owning a woman must be complicated.” She continued to sip her wine, her eyes darting back and forth. When he didn’t answer right away, she moved to another picture.

Complicated. He could see the sheen of perspiration covering her face. Excitement bristled every cell, heightening his intense desires, and he kept his distance. “Everything. I want to own every part of a woman. Her heart. Her body. Her will. Her very soul. There are always complications, my dear.”

She closed her eyes, swaying back and forth to the music. “True enough.”

He wanted this moment to last and was terrified to scare her away, but he couldn’t hold back any longer. After taking a gulp of his wine, he set his glass down and advanced. He took her hand, leading her away from the picture and to another, gently taking the crystal from her hand. He kept his eyes on her as he eased it to the table. Gingerly he brushed the hair back from her face, wrapping his hand around her golden locks. “What do you see?”

She breathed in and out, her chest heaving. When she spoke, her voice was husky. “Ecstasy.”

Craze glanced at the piece. The gothic rendering had taken him months to finish. Everything about the painting was stark, light and dark fusing into a world of gray. The woman was outside, tied to a tree, her arms and legs splayed. Wolves remained in the shadows, waiting for a feast. A man stood behind her, dressed in black, his face masked. In his hand he held a bullwhip. Red, the only color appearing on the piece, was from the bloody marks crisscrossing nearly every inch of her naked body. “Power.”

“Freedom,” she whispered.

“And so it begins.”

Jess slumped against his chest, her hand flitting over her mouth.

Pulling her back by her hair, he turned her around, forcing her back into a deep arc. “The things I will show you will remain in your mind forever.” There was no asking if she wanted this. There was no need.

She nodded once and placed her hand on his chest.

“Yes. You know exactly what I mean.” Taking both of her hands, he eased backwards out of the room. As he walked to the playroom, one he’d known in his heart he would never share, his adrenaline skyrocketed. This was exactly where he needed to be and the woman he simply had to dominate. He flipped on the light and the warm glow highlighted the various pieces, apparatuses he’d acquired over the last few years.

“The paintings,” Jess whispered.

“Yes, my inspiration.”

“These are…”

“Implements of pain as well as pleasure. I’ve taken a lot of time researching my craft. Now you need to understand the rules.” Craze kept his voice even.

“Rules?” Her expression was on of defiance.

He grabbed her around the neck, wrenching her until she was forced to look at him. “There are always rules. You’ve already learned what happens if you break them.”

“Yes sir.” Her hand trembled in front of her, but she remained rebellious, her body wriggling in his grasp.

A moment of raw adrenaline swept through his system. He exhaled, allowing his hot breath to cascade across her face and neck. Reaching inside her dress, he squeezed her breast roughly, pulling on her nipple. He kept his grip on her neck, digging his nails into her skin.
Control. Keep control.

“Oh!” She panted, her eyes opening wide. While there was fear, her body shifted forward.

“You want more, don’t you, sunshine? You need more?” He chuckled darkly and tugged the dress down past her shoulders. “Discipline. Obedience. These are two words you’re going to come to crave.”

Jess mewed as the dress was stripped from her body. “Please sir. I can do it. I can…I…” Her words trailed off as she fiddled with the front clasp of her bra, lowering her head as she peeled off the satin covering.

He drank her in, every inch of her delicious frame, her creamy skin. His paintings paled in comparison to the woman standing in front of him. There was no possibility he could adequately emulate her beauty. “Leave on your stilettos.”

“Yes sir.” When she was naked she walked closer, lifting her head high.

“Eyes lowered. Stay where you are.” Craze had no total understanding of what he was doing, nor had he realize the magnitude of his actions. This was a defining moment. He’d never be able to enjoy vanilla sex again. He rubbed his hand up and down every inch of her body, paying special attention to her pussy, the area under her full breasts. “Bend over and open your ass cheeks for me.”

She sniffed as she narrowed her eyes, her breath skipping.

“The belt awaits any infraction.”

“Yes sir.” The words were said with a hint of arrogance, but she acquiesced, bending over her slender hands parting her ass cheeks.

“Legs wider.”

A single whimper escaped her lips as she obeyed the command.

Craze was so turned on, his cock aching to the point he was having difficulty seeing clearly. He placed two fingers into his mouth, sucking on the long digits, and settled behind her. He kept his fingers in his mouth, sucking as he used a single finger of his other hand, trailing a line down her spine. The touch was kinetic, the effect simultaneous. They were both wet with need.