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  A headache started to pulse behind my brows.

  When I didn’t answer, she sighed. “I know you think I’m terribly unfair about classes and money, but she’d never fit in here. It’s just not money—”

  “She’s not white.”

  I said it loud enough that Penelope heard and the music clattered to a halt, a horrified expression on her face. I stood up and strode out of the room. Penelope stared at me and Mom followed.

  Fortunately, she was the only one.

  “Surely you’re not implying that I…” She made a face like I’d shoved a lemon in her mouth. Then, lowering her voice, she added in a hushed tone, “I certainly have no issue with her being…being…ethnic.”

  “She’s mixed, Mom,” I said, turning to face her. Crossing my arms over my chest, I gave her a hard look. “I believe one of the PC terms is biracial. Her mom's black. Her dad is white. She’s from a nice, middle class family out of Iowa. As she pointed out, she wasn’t plucked from one of the zoos here in New York.”

  “I hardly implied she was!”

  She looked so offended that I almost laughed.

  Jabbing a finger at her, I said, “If I’d had a white woman there with me, you wouldn’t have felt the need to point out that I could find exotic sex anywhere. Yeah, I get that we don’t come from the same world…although…you know what? For all I know, my parents were middle class and maybe they are from Iowa. Or Detroit. For all I know, my real mother was some hooker from Harlem.”

  “Dominic!” She jerked her head back, covering her mouth. She looked like I’d slapped her.

  Guilt and misery flooded me and I swore. “Fuck…Mom. I’m sorry. I…I don’t want to hurt you, but I want to know more about where I came from and every time you throw class up at me, it reminds me about how little I do know. But that’s not what this is about.”

  “Then what is it?” she asked, her voice stiff.

  “It’s about the fact that you don’t even see what you are,” I said softly. I looked at her and shrugged. “But I can’t really blame you. I didn’t see it either. I didn’t see what I was. Aleena had to point it out. Just because someone isn't wearing a white hood doesn't mean they aren't racist.”

  “I’m not a racist.” Jacqueline St. James-Snow drew her shoulders back and glared down her nose at me, which was saying something since I towered over her.

  “Yeah?” I cocked an eyebrow. “Okay. If Penelope was black, would you be so eager to push her at me?”

  Her gaze fell away. Almost immediately, her eyes came back and she gave me a polite smile. “Of course. I’ve chosen not to see color.”

  “You don’t see color, huh? That’s a load of bullshit. If you don’t see color, sounds to me like you’ve chosen not to see people of color. But what do I know…I’m just your rich white son. People like us? We’ll never have to deal with people looking past us or through us simply because we’re not white enough. Guess we’re lucky.”

  I pushed past her.

  “Dominic, wait.”

  I shook my head. “It’s late. I’m tired.” I paused, though, and looked back at her. “I do love you, you know. You’re my mother and you have always been there, even when I wasn’t an easy kid. But I need to know who I am. I’m going to find my birth mother.”

  She staggered and fell back.

  I held out a hand, guilt swamping me.

  “Please go,” she whispered.

  Slowly, I lowered my hand to my side, clenching it into a fist. Moving back out into the hall, I saw Penelope.

  She had been standing there, listening the entire time.

  Her face was pale, eyes dark.

  I simply nodded at her. I didn't think anything else was necessary.

  Chapter 13

  Dominic

  If I were smart, I would have gone to the club.

  I was burning inside and the need to empty all the anger, all the frustration was riding me hard.

  But I didn’t go to the club.

  I went home.

  Aleena was curled up on the couch in the living room—on my couch where I’d first fucked her—watching TV.

  She had a glass of wine in her hand when I came inside and she looked over at me, her features curiously blank.

  She didn’t immediately say anything as I walked behind the couch and put my keys down, my wallet, my cell phone. I hadn’t seen her since that morning and it had only been for a few minutes.

  I hadn’t touched her in several days and my body was screaming for hers. Not for sex, not for release, but for her.

  But just sex wouldn’t be enough.

  I needed more this time and I wasn’t sure she could give me that.

  “How was your dinner?” she asked softly, her eyes still on the screen. She’d muted the volume, but still stared at the images flickering across the TV as though they held the answer to life and death.

  Crossing to the floor, I sat down in front of her on the coffee table.

  Her eyes finally met mine.

  “Not good.” I thought it through a moment and then said it again. “Not good at all.”

  I thought about mentioning that my mom had invited Penelope, but decided not to. What was the point?

  Her fingers brushed against mine and that light touch was almost too much. I almost grabbed her, almost hauled her off the couch and into my lap. But I didn’t.

  “I think…” I said slowly. “I think I should go.”

  “Go?” Aleena said. “But you just got here.”

  “Yeah.” I slid my eyes over her, let my gaze linger on her breasts, then the juncture of her thighs. “And I’m already thinking about how I want to tie you up, how I want to make you beg. I want to feed you my cock and I want to make you plead. I want things you’re not ready for, Aleena, but if I don’t do something soon, I’m going to explode.”

  Her mouth fell open and I watched as her breasts rose and fell raggedly. Her skin was flushed. Her bra must've been unlined because her nipples were stabbing into her shirt.

  I wanted to pinch them until she was panting and squirming.

  “Then do it.”

  I jerked my head up at her soft, unsteady suggestion.

  “You’re not ready,” I told her. My hands curled into fists, chest tightening as I remembered what had happened when we'd had 'make-up' sex. I'd gone too far, hadn't understood the difference between what I usually did and what I should have done.

  “Maybe that’s my decision.” She swallowed and then, after taking a moment to empty her glass of wine, she eased forward and reached out, laying her hands on my thighs.

  Fuck.

  My cock almost burst through my trousers when she went to her knees in front of me.

  “Maybe I’m not ready for everything. But you can teach me. I can learn. That’s what I want.”

  I shoved my hand into her hair, tangled it and twisted until her mouth fell open with a pained sigh. “I’m in the mood to make you beg me. I’m in the mood to put bruises and marks on you, Aleena.”

  “You want to…” She bit her bottom lip, her eyes on my face. I don't know what she saw there, but something shifted. “You don't want to actually hurt me.”

  “No.” I brushed my thumb across the place she'd bitten. I couldn’t hurt her. Not for real. That was one thing I found intolerable—sickening even. But I couldn’t think about that, either. Not now. Not with her. “I could never hurt you.”

  “Then do what you want. Mark me. Bruise me. Make me beg.” She pushed up onto her knees and sank her teeth into my lip, sending a sharp pain through me.

  Pain that immediately went to my already hard cock. It brought out the monster in me.

  “Make me submit, Dominic.”

  Staring into her pale eyes, I felt the siren’s call of her words.

  Mark me.

  Bruise me.

  I wanted it so badly that it hurt. “Are you certain you know what you’re asking for?”

  “No.” The words were soft, almost ragged, her eyes direct.
“But I sure as hell want to learn.”

  I dragged my hand down the front of her shirt, the other still tangled in her hair. I cranked that wrist, holding her head at an angle that had to be uncomfortable. Lowering my mouth to her neck, I raked my teeth across the exposed arch.

  I used the other to drag her shirt up.

  I sought out one hard, pebbled nipple and I pinched it, squeezing until she whimpered.

  “That’s the noise I plan on hearing from you. Over and over. I want to hear you whimpering. Begging. Moaning.”

  I plucked her nipple again and felt her roll her hips toward me.

  “And I won’t let you come. Not for a long, long time.”

  Lifting my head, I stared into her clouded eyes. My whole body was thrumming. I'd never needed anything this badly before.

  “When I do, you will be all but ready to die, just for that release.” I had to be sure. I couldn't do this if she wasn't, no matter how much I wanted it. “Are you certain?”

  She breathed out my name and then demanded, “Will you just do it already?”

  Chapter 14

  Aleena

  The first time I’d seen the bed, I’d thought something was weird about it.

  I hadn’t been able to figure it out for a while and when I finally had, it was because I’d seen Dominic and another woman…using a similar bed.

  Now I was bound to this bed, my face away from him.

  I was naked.

  I could feel him staring at me.

  So far, he hadn’t touched me other than to secure my bound wrists to the hoop on the bedpost.

  I was terrified.

  I was aroused.

  “Dominic—”

  Something came down on my ass and I twisted, crying out in shock. Shocked pain, followed by heat, flooded through me.

  What the hell—

  Something soft stroked across the side of my breast. “It’s a whip. A cat o nine tails, or a cat,” Dominic murmured in my ear. “This one is soft, just a few strips of leather mixed in the fur. I’ve got one that’s all leather. I can make it hurt…I can make it whisper soft.”

  “You…” I swallowed. “You said you didn’t do pain, Domin…sir.”

  “There’s pain and there’s pain, Aleena.” He bit down on my earlobe. “What you felt, did it hurt?”

  My ass stung. But at the same time, I wanted more. There was something deep inside me that craved what he gave me. “It hurt, but...”

  “You want more,” he finished for me. He stood and put his hand on my shoulder, pressing me back down onto the bed. He trailed the soft strips across my ass.

  My eyes closed. “Yes.”

  “Now, I want you to be silent. If you talk, I won’t let you come at all tonight.”

  I almost told him he was crazy, but I had the feeling he was serious.

  Mentally, I braced myself. I wouldn’t talk.

  I hoped.

  He brought the cat down again and I made a strangled sound, but it wasn't an actual word, so I really hoped it didn't count.

  Again. Twice more, and my skin was on fire.

  “I think your ass has had enough.”

  I almost breathed a sigh of relief, but then he spoke again.

  “Let's try something new.”

  He grabbed my hips and flipped me over. I gasped as my ass came in contact with the silk sheets.

  “Remember, no talking.” The leather and fur ghosted over my breasts and my body tightened. “The only word you're allowed to say is your safe word.”

  No chance of that.

  Then he brought the cat down on my breast.

  Fuck. I shivered. It hadn't been hard, but definitely more intense than my ass.

  He did the other breast this time.

  My nipples puckered.

  Left, then right.

  Heat gathered in my pussy.

  Again. And again.

  My nipples were throbbing, riding that border between pleasure and pain.

  “Spread your legs.”

  I did and then I almost screamed because this time, the cat reached between my legs, smacking against my lower lips. My mouth opened, but nothing came out but air because he was bringing the cat down again.

  And…well, maybe it didn’t matter if I made any noise or not now, because it slapped against my clitoris and I came.

  I came hard and I came fast, everything going white.

  But I didn’t make a noise.

  When it ended, Dominic was supporting me with one arm around my waist, his lips against my brow. Although his words were stern, I heard a smug smile in them. “I guess I wasn’t clear. I thought you were told not to come.”

  He cupped my chin and drew my face around until I was looking at him. He raised his eyebrow and I opened my mouth to argue. Then, catching myself, I pressed my lips together and glared at him. My heart raced and I wanted to laugh when he grinned at me. Some of the shadows had faded from his face already. Even without the amazing orgasm, the pain I'd felt would've been worth it.

  If my arms had been free, I would have grabbed onto him and held on tight.

  But he stroked my face and murmured, “You can answer the question, Aleena. But only that.”

  “I don’t recall you telling me I couldn’t come, sir. And if you didn’t want me to come, then you shouldn’t have made me.” I said it all very fast.

  He chuckled, his eyes shining. Slowly, his arm fell away. “Okay, sweet. This time…don’t come. And don’t make a noise.”

  ***

  I wasn’t sure how much more I could take.

  Time had lost all meaning and I was now keeping track by how many climaxes he’d denied me.

  Five.

  Five times he’d brought me to edge and then taken me away.

  I was no longer bound to the hoop at the end of the bed that let him twist and turn me. There was no moving this time.

  I was tied spread-eagle and facedown, with some sort of wedge under my hips.

  And…

  I bit my lip to keep from moaning as he pushed a large dildo inside me.

  It was larger than he was.

  I knew this because he’d told me. Had even given me specific measurements.

  “I’ll have to go slow,” he said, kneeling behind me. He’d slicked it with lube and I knew that because he’d told me. He at least was telling me everything he was doing, so it didn't catch me off guard. “If I don’t, I’ll hurt you and I don’t want that.”

  Slow was torture.

  I felt every excruciating nuance and when he had it nestled completely inside me, he brought the flat of his hand down on my ass and I had to bite my lip to keep from screaming. My arms were actually shaking and I was pretty sure my fingernails were cutting into my palms.

  “Now I want you to ride the cock, Aleena.”

  Confused, I froze. How was I supposed to...?

  He stretched out next to me, his back against the headboard. He used one hand to push my hair away. “Ride it,” he said again.

  Slowly, I moved my hips. It didn't really move without any leverage.

  “That’s it.” The words were almost a growl.

  It was awkward and slow and under his watchful gaze, I felt…embarrassed. But as his eyes slid over me, I didn't see anything but pure lust.

  The dildo shifted, pressing against a spot inside me. I unwittingly whimpered.

  My gaze flew to his.

  He responded with a hard slap on my ass, that made me press my lips down even harder, but said nothing.

  Then he reached for the zipper on his trousers.

  I watched mesmerized as he pulled himself free and started to stroke himself. I almost forgot to move, but his eyes narrowed and I moved my hips again.

  The fat, swollen head of his cock disappeared inside his fist, only to reappear a moment later.

  “Do you like watching me do this?” he asked.

  I nodded, and then something happened. I twisted slightly to get a better view and the edge of the dildo presse
d against the bed, giving me unexpected leverage. My eyes widened as it moved inside me. Oh, fuck.

  “That’s good. I like watching you fuck that dildo. I’m thinking I’d like to see you take my cock in your mouth while you ride it.”

  I swallowed, remembering the weight of him on my tongue.

  “Not tonight, darling.” His lips crooked up in a smile. “Someday, I think I’d like to see you take my cock in your ass too.”

  I shivered.

  Now his eyes went dark, locked on my face. “Have you ever thought about that, Aleena? Having a man’s dick in your ass?”

  I shook my head as heat tripped up and down my spine. My asshole twitched. I was going to explode. Jerking on the bonds that held me in place, I twisted around the dildo. Watching him touch himself, hearing him talk, I didn't care what he said. I needed to come.

  He laughed softly, reading it on my face. “You’ll think about it now, won’t you?”

  Hell, yes.

  He moved then and I barely had time to process it as he pulled the dildo from me, the move so abrupt and savage, it left me reeling…and empty.

  Then he filled me.

  His long, hard body crushed me into the bed. His teeth sank into my neck as he wedged his hand between me and the mattress, his fingers unerringly seeking out my clit as he pounded his cock into me from behind. I could barely breathe and every nerve in my body was on fire. My eyes were squeezed shut, tears rolling down my cheeks as I fought against the impending inferno.

  “You can come now, Aleena. My good, beautiful girl…come now.”

  He pinched my clitoris, bit me again and I came in an explosion of pure pleasure. When I felt him throb inside me, I couldn't stop myself from calling out his name.

  It didn't hit us until a few minutes later, when our breathing finally slowed and our pulses returned to normal, that he hadn’t worn a condom.

  We came out of the shower thirty minutes later, clean but not having spoken. We went into the kitchen first and he poured us each a glass of wine before we went into the living room. I sat next to him on the couch and we each took a drink.

  “So...that happened.” He set down his glass and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me against him.

  I felt a stab of guilt even though I'd been tied up at the time. Literally. “I’m sorry. I know how you feel…”