The courtyard was quite small, but the proprietors had still managed to fill it with pots of brightly colored flowers, their scent hanging delicately in the warm air.
As she relaxed, her mind drifted back to the night before and the incredible flying episode she’d had. She would have laughed if anyone had told her before that it was possible to reach such a euphoric state through forced orgasms. It wasn’t just the orgasms, of course. It had been the combination of Adam’s dominance over her, her earlier punishment and the fact that she had been helplessly restrained that had culminated to give her the flight of her life.
She thought back to their chat that morning. How refreshing to have a man ask how she felt about the things they were doing, and actually care about her answers.
“You’re quiet.” Adam’s voice broke into her thoughts and she looked across at him and smiled.
“Am I?”
He nodded, studying her closely. “You okay?”
“Yes. I was just thinking about last night.”
He raised his eyebrows, which resulted in little flutters rippling through her body.
“Any regrets?”
“God, no. None at all. Like I said this morning, I feel like I’ve finally discovered my true sexuality and I’ve got you to thank for that. I wouldn’t change a single thing.” She meant it. She just wished she could find more meaningful words to convey the depths of her feelings without them sounding contrived.
“Good. Here’s to us, then.” He picked up his wine glass and clinked it softly with hers before taking a sip. He smiled, his dimples winking at her, and her heart flipped. How could she ever have thought she hated this man?
“What?” he asked, as if reading her thoughts.
“If I tell you, promise you won’t laugh. Or punish me. Well, actually, if you choose to punish me that, of course, would be entirely up to you,” she murmured over her wine glass.
He laughed, sat back in his chair and folded his arms. “You have my word I won’t laugh.”
“Well… That first day, when I found out I had to work for you, I was mortified. I’d fancied you from afar, but I also knew you could be very difficult and demanding to work for. I was really scared of you,” she said, taking another sip of her wine. “And then, when I fucked up with that message from Lord Granville, you were so angry.”
Adam frowned. “I’m sorry about that. I overreacted and took my frustrations out on you.”
“You’ve already apologized, but to be honest, you didn’t need to. You see, I deserved it. I screwed up. And that’s why I didn’t want to work for you. I knew I wasn’t good enough.”
Adam reached across the table and took her hand. “Oh, Rachel. How can you say that? Of course you’re good enough. I think you’re a very efficient, if slightly scatty PA and I have the added benefit of being able to spank you if you do screw up.” His eyes creased at the corners as he smiled at the thought.
“When you threatened to put me over your knee, I couldn’t believe it.” She giggled at how shocked and aroused she’d been. If she’d known then what it would lead to, she wouldn’t have believed it.
Adam grinned and squeezed her hand. “You weren’t meant to have heard that.”
Rachel laughed. “Well, it certainly left me with conflicting feelings about you. I went home that night and told my flatmate, Mandy, how much I hated you. It was that night I joined the BDSM site.”
“So you hated me, eh?”
“God, yeah. I was going to tell you the next day where to stick your bloody job. And then you confused me again by being nice to me. You even took me out to lunch.”
“And a very enjoyable lunch it was, too,” said Adam, with a wicked smile.
“Especially when you started talking about vanilla ice cream and trying new things,” giggled Rachel, blushing as she recalled how turned on she’d been by the innuendos.
At that moment their food arrived and they waited politely as the waitress placed their plates down in front of them.
The food was lovely and they chatted idly as they ate.
“Oh. You’ll never guess what.” Rachel put her fork down as she suddenly remembered her news.
Adam raised his eyebrows questioningly and waited for Rachel to continue.
“You know my flatmate Mandy? Well, it turns out she’s a Domme.”
“Well, from what you’ve told me, she did seem to know an awful lot about BDSM.”
Rachel laughed. “Yeah, I can’t say I was that surprised. Anyway, she’s met someone, a submissive called Dawn, and she seems completely besotted with her.”
“That’s nice,” said Adam, and continued eating.
Rachel watched him and waited for just the right moment before telling him the second part of her news. Just as he popped another forkful of pasta into his mouth, she said, “Oh and you’ll never guess who her brother is?”
Adam shook his head, unable to answer because of having his mouth full.
“Luke!”
Just as she had predicted, Adam almost choked on his food. She waited until he had finally swallowed and was able to speak again. “Luke Grayson?”
“Yep. Mandy is madly in love with his little sister.”
Adam grinned. “Well, well, it’s a small world, isn’t it? The day he found out she was a submissive he went mad.”
“Yes, I heard. I would have loved to have seen that.”
“You should bring them to the club,” he said, as he finished off the last of his pasta.
“Actually, they’re coming tonight.”
“Good. I’ll look forward to meeting Mandy at last. Now, eat up because I’m getting a sudden urge to tie you up.” His eyes had suddenly darkened and her body responded with a strong shudder.
“Don’t you ever get enough?” she challenged, with a playful smile.
“Not when it comes to you, Rachel. I’ll never get enough of you. I won’t be happy until I’ve got you permanently tied to my bedpost.” His voice was deep and hushed as he replied.
He must have seen the look of alarm on her face, because he quickly added, “Metaphorically speaking, of course.”
“Of course,” she whispered, not quite sure what to make of that.
After leaving the restaurant, they strolled down Hampstead High Street, hand in hand. They stopped to look in the shop windows and laughed at the lads driving up and down the street hoping to get noticed in their expensive sports cars.
Then they headed away from the shops and restaurants and strolled down the hill toward the Heath. When they reached it, they continued past the ponds, nodded at the dog walkers and admired the natural beauty of the place, just like any other normal couple out walking. But then Adam reminded her that they weren’t like any other normal couple, when he told her to walk in front of him because he wanted to watch her arse as she walked. She rolled her eyes and gave her behind an extra sexy wriggle.
“Go left here,” Adam said from behind after a couple of minutes of walking in single file.
Rachel looked in the direction he was telling her to go, and thought he’d made a mistake. There was no path that way, just a section of woodland with lots of trees and a thick growth of bushes.
“I said turn left.” Adam’s voice made it clear that he knew perfectly well where they were going, so she sighed and started making her way through the woodland, careful to avoid the thorny undergrowth.
As she walked farther into the woodland, the air seemed to become stiller and quieter, the trees absorbing some of the distant sounds of London. The only way she knew that Adam was still behind her was from the sound of his feet stepping on twigs. It was a bit creepy.
Then, suddenly, a hand grabbed her from behind and pulled her against a lean, hard body. A big hand covered her mouth, and Adam growled in her ear, “Don’t make a sound, okay?”
She nodded, not sure whether to kill him for giving her such a fright or beg him to take her right then.
As Adam removed his hand from her mouth, he pushed her gently onto her knees. He stood right behind her, holding her down by the shoulder to keep her in place.
“Do you remember I told you about the time I tied a woman to a tree?”
He couldn’t be serious?
“Yes, Sir,” she replied, automatically reverting back to submissive mode.
“Well, I think I fancy trying it again.”
“Adam! We’re in the middle of Hampstead Heath, for God’s sake. What if someone sees us?”
He laughed softly. “No one can see us from the path and, unless you make a lot of noise, there’s no reason for anyone to come in here.”
Oh crap, he really was going to tie her to a bloody tree. Her blood heated as her breathing became ragged. He was serious.
“Get up,” he growled and tugged gently on her hair.
She staggered back onto her feet, her balance helped by Adam’s firm grip.
“Close your eyes,” he said, his voice thankfully hushed enough that no one nearby would hear. She closed them.
“Now, we’re going to play a little game of mental BDSM.”
“Huh?”
“Believe it or not, I hadn’t actually planned this, so I haven’t got rope, a blindfold or a flogger. We’re going to improvise.”
“Improvise, Sir?”
Adam chuckled and his warm breath tickled her ear. “You’re going to imagine that you’re wearing a blindfold. You’ll keep your eyes shut until I tell you to open them. I’m then going to place you against this tree, facing the trunk, and you’re going to put your arms around it and imagine that you’re tied to it. Okay?”
“Yes, Sir. It sure puts a new meaning to tree hugging.” She couldn’t help the nervous giggle lurking in her throat. This was just too bizarre.
“If you open your eyes or move at all, the punishment will be severe. Do you understand?” His voice didn’t hold the same note of humor that hers had, and she felt a rumbling from somewhere deep inside her as his words registered.
“Yes, Sir. I understand.”
With her eyes still closed, Adam maneuvered her until she stood flush with a tree.
“Turn your head to the right and put your arms around the tree.” His voice held that commandeering tone that he used at Boundaries and not complying didn’t enter her head at that point. She immediately obeyed and was rewarded with a kiss on the back of her neck.
“Good girl. Now, imagine your wrists being wrapped in rope. Then think about your wrists being bound together with the rope, so that you’re completely restrained against the tree.”
She let her mind go and did as he’d said. She could almost feel the rope, leaving her mercilessly trapped against the rough bark.
“Can you feel it, Rachel?”
“Yes, Sir.” She could feel it. And it felt so sexy. Distant voices, a dog barking and birds singing all reminded her that she was outdoors, in the middle of Hampstead Heath, where anyone could find them. Her excitement grew.
“Spread your legs. Good. Now, don’t move.”
She heard him move away then she heard twigs breaking. The rush of blood in her ears drowned out some of the surrounding sounds and she couldn’t quite make out what he was doing. Then everything went completely silent.
She waited for him to return, for the sound of his footsteps on the rustling foliage, but there was only silence. After a few minutes, it became disconcerting. She knew she could move if she really wanted to. After all, she wasn’t really tied to the tree but, even so, Adam wouldn’t leave her alone. Would he?
Maybe he was testing her? Suddenly she knew that that was exactly what he was doing. She relaxed again, safe in the knowledge that he’d be watching her from close by, and once again imagined the ropes that bound and restrained her to the tree.
“Good girl.” His voice made her jump and she thanked God that she’d remained put. Then her skirt was lifted up and tucked into the waistband, exposing her bare arse. Warm air tickled her naked thighs and buttocks and she groaned slightly and clung tighter to the tree.
Suddenly, without warning, something whipped her arse and it took all her strength not to scream from both the shock and the pain. Where the hell had he found a flogger? Another strike, on the backs of her thighs, made her yelp, and another, followed by another in quick succession. Then Adam’s hands gently rubbed the hurt away.
“Do you like my new flogger, Rachel?” he whispered in her ear.
“Er… Yes, Sir. But I thought you said you hadn’t brought anything?”
He chuckled softly. “I just made it. It’s amazing what you can do with a few twigs.”
Blimey!
So that’s what he’d been doing. The sting had lessoned now and she relaxed back into her imaginary bondage. Then she heard movement again and she stiffened as she awaited the next stroke. But instead of the sharp sting, the thin tips of wood gently stroked her exposed skin. It was pleasant—a bit scratchy, but very sexy.
“Are you wet, Rachel?”
“Yes, Sir.” She didn’t need to feel herself in order to know she would be very wet.
“Spread your legs more.” His finger ran along the crack of her bottom and moved down, following the crack until it reached her slit. The finger slid easily in through her opening and she groaned as he inserted a second finger.
“Do you want to come, Rachel?”
“Oh, yes, please, Sir.”
His fingers slid out and rubbed her clit.
Oh, yes!
“How badly do you want to come?”
“Very badly, Sir.”
“What will you do for an orgasm?” She knew from his tone that he wasn’t going to make it easy.
Bastard.
“Anything, Sir.”
“Anything?”
Oh no.
What was he playing at? Her need grew as his fingers fucked her pussy.
“Yes, damn it. Anything.
Sir,
” she hissed, and tried to lean onto his fingers.
“Okay, sweet thing. Imagine I’m untying you and releasing you from the tree now.” His voice was husky, making her need stronger.
She did as he’d said and imagined herself free from her captivity.
“Are your eyes still closed?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Good. Now, turn around so you’re leaning back against the tree,” he commanded.
Oh. My. God.
He was going to fuck her right here, out in the open. Keeping her eyes shut, she turned slowly around, feeling her way with her hands on the trunk. When she felt the tree behind her, she removed her hands and stepped back to lean against it.
“Good girl. You may come whenever you want.”