What He Craves (7 page)

An Excerpt From: DARKEST
DESIRE

Copyright © TAWNY TAYLOR, 2012

All Rights Reserved,
Kensington Publishing Corp.

Beautiful.

Exquisite.

Thoroughly, utterly, intoxicatingly sexy.

And as deadly as a cottonmouth.

That was Malek Alexandre, summed up in twelve concise words.

A spectator at the private bondage club, standing in the
shadows at the back of an open dungeon, Lei Mitchell moved aside to let a slave
wearing a black thong and dog collar pass. Her gaze never left Malek. Not for a
second.

This was an opportunity she couldn’t deny herself.

For once she was free to just . . . enjoy. Without fearing
she’d be caught by Malek, one of his brothers, or her sister, Rin.

Lei’s hungry gaze wandered up and down his body at leisure
now, taking in the full glory of his heavily muscled form. He was wearing a
simple outfit—black, snug-fitting knitted shirt and tailored trousers, no
leather for this man—but still Lei could make out the rippling bulges and clean
lines defining each muscle as he lifted his arm and flicked his wrist. The
leather tails of his flogger sailed through the air toward their target, and
Lei’s breath caught in her throat.

Malek was not just any dom. He was
the dom.
The one
who made her blood pound hard and hot through her veins. If only submitting to
him wouldn’t mean her destruction.

Warm and tingly all over, even though her insides ached a
little at knowing she would never—could never—know the pleasure of submitting
to her master, Lei stood in that dark corner, just out of his sight, and
watched as Malek trained a submissive. The sub, a male, clearly enjoyed every
stroke of the lash, as evidenced by the look of utter rapture on his face . . .
and the large bulge pressing against the only garment he was wearing, the snug
black G-string. Like Malek, the sub was lean, firmly muscled, bronzed,
attractive. He was also delightfully responsive. She wouldn’t mind taking him
back to her private suite sometime.

Since being rescued from a nightmarish life as a sex slave,
Lei had come to this private bondage club to exorcise her demons. One of her
previous owners had trained her to dominate him. As it turned out, his kink had
become her salvation. Now she was the one in control. She was the one holding
the whip, tying the knots, instead of receiving the blows or being bound and
forced to fuck.

Free now from that horrendous life, she couldn’t seem to
stop herself from seeking out opportunities to dominate men. She wasn’t sure
why. She received no sexual fulfillment from it. She received no emotional
fulfillment either. She was still the empty shell of a girl she’d been the day
her sister had bought her out of hell.

But now she was an empty shell with a compulsion.

And a fascination with a certain dom.

As Malek released his submissive from his restraints, in
preparation for a change in position, Lei tried to walk away.

But she couldn’t. Her feet simply wouldn’t move.

Her body was tight. Hot. Her heart was pounding. It was as
if she were lowering to her knees before Malek, waiting breathlessly for his
next command.

Malek ran his fingertip down the sub’s spine.

A tiny shudder of pleasure quaked through Lei’s body. Her
pussy clamped tight against an aching emptiness. She licked her dry lips and
curled her fingers into fists.

What would he do next?

The submissive settled on his knees on the floor, butt
lifted high, rather than resting on his heels. He tipped his head down.
Waiting. Patiently.

Lei had been forced into that position too many times to
count. She’d never voluntarily kneeled before a man. She couldn’t now. But that
didn’t stop her from imagining herself in the submissive’s place at this
moment. If she closed her eyes, she could feel Malek’s gaze sweeping up and
down her body. Her skin burning. Her nerves prickling.

It was anxiety and anticipation both. A touch of fear
coupled with the expectation of good things, wonderful things. Of unimaginable
pleasure. And glorious pain.

If only . . . if only . . .

“Is that a smile I see?” Malek’s voice was unexpectedly
light, playful. His tone both put her at ease and made her that much tighter.

“No,” the submissive answered.

“No,
Master,
” Lei whispered to herself as she opened
her eyes. Such a show of defiance surely deserved a punishment. She didn’t want
to miss this.

What would Malek do?

A chill skittered up her spine.

Malek’s brow lifted, but he said nothing.

Ah, he was going to let his submissive wait, wonder.

She unclenched her hands and dragged her sweaty palms down
the sides of her legs. A huge lump congealed in her throat. She swallowed hard
and squeezed her thighs together. The burning in her pussy was becoming
intolerable.

Malek used the tip of his whip to lift his submissive’s
chin. “I asked you a question, and I expect a proper answer. So I’ll ask again,
is that a smile I see?”

The submissive’s lips twitched. “Maybe.”

This was a submissive who liked to push his luck. Lei had
scened with more than enough to know the type. They craved the punishment and
weren’t by nature submissive. They merely took on the role so they would be in
a position to get what they wanted. Depending upon the submissive, and the dom,
that could be a few lashes, being humiliated in public, or perhaps being
paddled to within an inch of their limits.

But what he probably wasn’t expecting was what Malek did,
even if they had discussed the possibility ahead of time.

Malek walked away.

The submissive’s eyes widened. His mouth formed an “O” of
shock; then his lips clamped shut.

Damn. Lei couldn’t help but smile at the submissive’s
reaction. She’d put money on him thinking twice about playing Malek like that
again. Or maybe he’d make a different choice in a dom, if that was his game.
Either way, it was something to watch.

While Lei continued to study Malek’s behavior as he prowled
around the open dungeon, he turned. His gaze swept the crowd of onlookers
gathered around the perimeter of the room. It snapped to her.

Their eyes met.

The air seeped from her lungs.

Her face burned.

He smiled, and she swore her heart skipped a beat. Maybe
two.

Dangerous. That’s what that man was.

Her body had never reacted this way to any man before,
especially since . . . being rescued. She met his smile with a tiny nod, then
forced herself to walk through the throng toward the back hall, toward her
private suite, her haven. Her sanctuary.

* * * * *

Please turn the page for a special sneak preview of At His
Mercy, available now!

At His Mercy (An
erotic romance novella)

by

Tawny Taylor

Copyright ©2012 Tawny
Taylor All Rights Reserved

Sometimes freedom can only be gained through captivity…

Elena Caine has secrets. The kind that could devastate her
life if they’re revealed. And now a selfish bastard is dragging the skeletons
out of her closet. She’s being blackmailed. There’s no way out. Then the
quietly seductive Dom Kyler Pierce decides to blackmail her too. As Kyler and
Elena face their common enemy, overpowering sexual heat sizzles between them.
They want each other. Need each other. But happiness may be beyond their reach.
For this determined Dom and reluctant submissive to have any chance at love,
Elena must learn the most essential lesson of Dominance and submission—to trust
her Dom. Especially when she is on her knees…and her world is tumbling down
around her.

(Previously published as Blackmailed)

Length: Long novella, approx. 30,000 words

SAMPLE

“Will you tell me why you’re so angry?”

He looked away.

Her nerves crawling, she watched his throat work as he
swallowed. Nothing.

“You won’t give me a chance to explain?”

“I don’t know if I can believe anything you say.”

Where did that leave her? This man, whose eyes were cold as
icicles, held her job in the palm of his hand. Her job, the medical insurance
that paid for her brother’s treatment. Her entire future. She couldn’t get any
more desperate than that. “What will it take to prove to you that I can be
believed? I stayed. Right? You didn’t lock me in. You won the bet, and I didn’t
leave, even though I wanted to.”

“Yeah, well, that could also be because you didn’t want your
pretty little ass hauled to jail.”

“I’m not sure that would be any worse,” she said, frankly.
“I mean, you’re throwing these threats around, acting one way one second,
totally different the next. It’s confusing. Scary.”

Her eyes were burning, darn it. Her nose.
Don’t cry.
He’ll think you’re trying to manipulate him.

She blinked several times.

His eyes narrowed, his gaze becoming even chillier.
Sub-arctic. “There you go with the waterworks again. I see now. Whenever you
get backed into a corner, you throw the switch, the tears start to flow, and
you’re off the hook.” He crowded her, grabbed her chin, and glared into her
eyes. “It doesn’t work with me anymore. I know the truth about you now. I know
you’re fucking Matt Becker, and you’re itching for a promotion—from the whore
of a sales manager to the whore of a vice president.”

She felt sick. Was that really what he believed? “No, I’m
not sleeping with Matt. You’re wrong.”

“Funny.” He dragged his thumb over her lower lip. He walked
her backward, until her back hit the wall. He thrust his arms forward, caging
her head between them. “But if you’d just come to me, I’d have fucked you. You
could’ve had your vice president. In fact…” He dropped his head and kissed her
roughly. His tongue thrust into her mouth, in complete domination.

Instantly, her body was on fire. Yes, this was what she’d
wanted last night. Pulses of liquid heat pounded down her torso to the juncture
of her thighs. Despite her confusion, she kissed him back, letting the searing
heat of the kiss burn away everything.

Insanity! This was complete craziness. But she couldn’t help
reacting to his kisses. She’d been waiting, ready. She moaned, stroking his
tongue with hers. Exploring the sweet depth of his mouth.

He bent his elbows, crushing his hard body against hers.
Wedged a knee between her trembling thighs.

Crazy!

She moaned, rocking her hips back and forth, desperate to
rub away the ache building between her legs.

He suckled her tongue and she slid her hands up his stomach,
whimpering.

Her head was swimming. Her body melting. Her brain
short-circuiting. She was falling, sliding down the wall, unable to remain
standing another second. Her pussy rested on his knee, a support. Oh, the
sensation. The glory of that hard leg against her soft, swollen tissues.

Insanity!

He caught her up into his arms and carried her to the bed,
laid her on it and then climbed over her. More of those amazing
nuclear-reactor-hot kisses. He gave her more, and she accepted him, eagerly.
His hands started at the sides of her face but—much to her joy—didn’t remain
there for long. Down her neck they traveled, to her shoulders, lower. He cupped
her breasts and she arched her back, pushing her breasts into his hands.

I need to stop this. Right now. Stop. Now.

She tried to turn her head, but he caught her face in his
hands again, kissing her until she couldn’t move, didn’t want to move. Wanted
nothing less than his hands on her naked body, his cock buried deep inside her
wet pussy.

She’d be sorry for this later, no doubt about it. But for
the first time in years, she just wanted to forget about shoulds and
should-nots and let go, follow her impulses instead of her head.

* * * * *