Chapter Ten

Enflamed

Tucker

How had he lived without this in his life? As he plowed into her amazing body, relishing her enveloping heat, Tucker could barely recall.

His many years of celibacy had passed without event, and he supposed during that time, he'd convinced himself that he was happy. In many ways, he had been. Nature had inspired peace in his soul, as did his simple, rustic life. After he'd been torn from the military, the idea of that solitude had been all he'd wanted, so he certainly hadn't been unhappy. He'd returned to the city when he'd needed to but spent the majority of his time out there in the woods, enjoying all that nature had to offer. But nothing he'd experienced living in the forest could compare to the passion he felt with Ella now.

"Fuck." He hissed the word through his teeth and forced himself to slide from her warmth. Having given his word not to erupt into her appealing cunt, he was determined to stand by the vow. The last thing either of them needed was an unwanted pregnancy, but God, it was unbearable to leave her body.

"Sir?" Breathless, she turned to meet his gaze. "What's wrong?"

Time protracted as he stood there watching her wonderful face. A part of him couldn't believe he was lucky enough to have her there at all, let alone naked over his bed. After all the shitty things Tucker had done in his life, he'd never expected to stumble across such ecstasy again.

I definitely don't deserve it.

"Nothing's wrong," he answered as he pulled her against his body, wrapping his arms around her soft form. "I'm just keeping my promise."

"Oh." She sounded disappointed. "Thanks." Her hand rose to his hair, running her fingertips through it as she melded her body against his. "But I need more of you, please."

"Okay, little girl." His arm tightened around her waist, holding her in place as he went on. "But one question first… who told you to let go of the bed?"

"I…" Her breaths sped up as she acknowledged her mistake. "No one, sir."

"That's right." His already eager cock bobbed impatiently between her legs, threatening to delve back into her wetness, whatever his view. It had already tasted how sweet she was, and it wanted more. "No one."

She inhaled, twisting in her grip to see if he was serious. "Am I in trouble?"

He couldn't resist the way his lips curled. "Always."

"Shit." She looked to be suppressing a smirk as she turned away. "Sorry, sir."

"Get those hands back in place." His growl was lighthearted as he wrestled her hand from his hair and onto the wood, but it was only when he spotted the silk tie still secured to the post that he grinned. "Looks like you're going to need some help with obedience."

"No, I'll be good," she started, but Tucker wasn't listening to her explanations.

"It's not a problem." Lifting her hand to his lips, he kissed her skin before he placed it back by his tie.

His mouth grazed the top of her arm as he guided her right hand to the end of the bedstead and into the waiting loop of the fabric. It only took a few seconds to fasten her delicate wrist into place. By the time she realized what was happening, he was already focused on her left wrist.

"Tucker!" Her frantic tone sent a fresh bolt of excitement racing through his body, culminating in his frantic cock. "I don't want to be tied again."

"And I didn't ask you to move your hands." He was having fun, he realized, his delight at her dismay only intensifying the urgency of his need. He was going to climax, and after so much time waiting for the pleasure, he was going to relish every second, but that didn't mean he couldn't have some fun with her first. "You made that choice, little girl and now you get to deal with the consequences."

"Fuck." She stamped her foot into the ground, but he knew her well enough by then to know her protest was only halfhearted. "All right, sir. We'll play it your way."

"Of course." Checking the tie on her left hand, he chuckled. "Always my way, little girl. What other way is there?"

***

Ella

Anticipation rushed through her as she tugged on the silk binds at her wrists. She was bound again—wrapped in his ties but no freer than she had been when she'd first come to the cabin.

How?Energy raced along her spine as his lips caressed the back of her neck. How had she wound up back in this position?

"Oh God."

Her heart sprinted as her gaze shot between her wrists. She'd loved the feeling of him inside her and wanted more of him, but she hadn't expected new bondage. Since he'd untied her from the bed, she thought they'd found some common ground and had put the matter of ropes and ties behind them.

Obviously not.

Fleetingly, she accepted how foolish her assumption had been. However good the carnality was, she was still his hostage. She was still unable to leave without his say-so. Hell, she had to pee in a bucket!

I'm his prisoner.

She had to remember that.

"You'll find it easier to keep your arms down now." His laughter was more of a sneer as he traced his fingers over her shoulder.

She should have loathed his condescending tone, should have lifted her heel and kicked the fucker hard in the shin.

So, why wasn't she?

"I see that." She heaved in her breath as his hand moved over her body, straining to see where it would eventually settle. "What's next, sir?"

"A little more submission." His fingers hesitated at her middle, his palm splaying and sliding around and down between her legs. Running his digits along the thin line of hair covering her sex, he dipped one between her lips.

"I like that, sir." She groaned, throwing her head back as he slowly circled her clit with his fingertips.

"Me, too," he snarled, nibbling her neck when his fingers retreated.

She moaned at the loss, wondering what was coming next and realizing that whatever it was, she couldn't do a damn thing about it. The thought was debilitating and scintillating in equal measure.

"But that's not what I mean." His palm slid around to her ass. Squeezing her right cheek, he lifted his hand and brought it back down on her pert behind.

"Ouch." She shot him a glower as she tried to pull away from her restraints. "What was that for?"

"Misbehaving." His free hand rose to the middle of her back and pushed her gently toward the bed.

She yielded without a fight, although every fiber of her being told her to resist. Somehow, her desire for pleasure seemed to outweigh all other endeavors. In the immediacy, it was more pivotal than even her freedom.

"But you never told me I couldn't move my hands." Petulance echoed in her tone as she tugged futilely at the ties. Her pulse accelerated its pace as once more she concluded what should have been obvious.

She wasn't going anywhere.

"But I never told you that you could." His mocking tone conveyed how much he was loving every moment of her powerlessness, and God damn her, but for some reason, she seemed to be responding. Her nipples stiffened into tight beads as her breasts ached for more of his attention.

For the umpteenth time, the idea that there must be something wrong with her flashed through her mind. What sort of person enjoyed being bound and treated that way? Perhaps there wasn't a psychologist capable of helping her after all.

"That's not fair." She stamped her foot against the floor again, instantly regretting the tremor it created in her sensitive breasts.

"Unfair?" His fingertips skimmed over her ass. "I can show you unfair, little girl."

Another smack landed on the cheek, temporarily robbing her of breath.

Fuck!

Her muscles tensed at the strike, which was followed quickly by another three swats that left her hopping from one foot to the next in a pathetic attempt to avoid his palm.

"Stop that!" She couldn't manage another round of Tucker's so-called punishment. She'd done nothing to deserve the treatment, but yet again, he'd carried on, regardless. How was she supposed to know that she shouldn't move her hands? He'd never told her so. She inhaled at the injustice. There seemed to be no meritocracy in Tucker's world. "You never said anything about another spanking!"

"Oh, this isn't a proper spanking." He struck her ass again, this time catching her cheeks right in the middle.

The swat was easier to bear somehow, giving her hope as his palm lowered and clipped the edge of her sex. She panted at the strange hurt, aware of the grunt escaping her throat. Brows knitting, she couldn't decide if the impact had provoked pleasure as well as pain. Her pussy was so wet by now that all stimulus seemed amazing.

"I've always thought a spanking involved taking a woman over my knee, but this little girl, this is only a punishment."

"For what?" Her question was almost lost in the three fresh strikes he landed, each delivered directly to her sex. Her lips parted at the power of the strikes, yet she couldn't say she disliked them. On the contrary, the heat growing there only fueled her perverse fire, and if she wasn't mistaken, her arousal would be evident on his palm.

God help me.

Biting down on her lip, she supposed she should be ashamed to find the spanking so arousing, but as though the cloud of passion thickened around her, the thought was lost. There was no audience there to judge, and who cared what he thought of her? He was the one who'd put her in this terrible situation. This was all on him. As if her hips sought to prove the point, they pushed back in his direction, begging for more.

"You can't punish me for moving my hands!" Her tone was husky, demonstrating her appreciation of his blasted punishment. "There were no rules."

"Don't be silly, little girl." Glee radiated in his voice. "There are always rules."

Tucker pushed her nearest ankle wider and guided both of her feet away from the bed. She shuffled backward, her breaths coming faster as she complied. The movement meant she had to hinge at the hips and forced her ass out for his undivided attention.

Wasn't that what I wanted?

She'd sought more of his swats but wondered how long she could maintain the pose before her lower back started to complain.

"I told you right from the beginning that I'm in charge." His voice rang out from behind her.

"Right." She hoped he wouldn't make her pay for her sarcasm-laced voice.

Who am I kidding?She hiked in a breath, her lips twitching. Of course, he'll make me pay.

"I suggest you take your punishment."

Multiple blows rained down on her backside, stealing her breath. She noticed the way he seemed to cover every inch of her exposed behind, his palm finally pausing over her pussy. Her throat dried at the power of the strikes. They hurt like hell, but she had to admit, each swat elicited something better. Her clit tingled at the impacts, pleading for the same attention as her need pooled as arousal between her thighs. Before she knew it, breathy groans were coming from her mouth.

I want this. Somehow, it still came as a surprise to her. I don't understand why, but I do.

"Good girl."

She clenched at his praise, knowing she shouldn't like it, yet all too aware that she did. Whatever this new stimulation was, it revolved around the way his belittling of her turned her on.

I'm a freak.

She didn't have a retort to the judgment, but as his palm peppered her pussy, she was left in little doubt. It was true. She enjoyed having her sex spanked and liked the binds, even though she'd never sought them. She dreaded to think how she'd reconcile the experience, but Ella was reveling in the degrading spanking.

I don't deserve this. She blew out a breath. But I want more of it.

"Oh!" She arched her back, confused and desperate for more. "Why is this so good?"

"It shouldn't be ‘good,' little girl."

It sounded as though he was suppressing laughter.

Bastard.

She gritted her teeth at the humiliation, knowing it would likely only amplify her need. He got to treat her this way, and her passionate response meant she couldn't even honestly rebuke him.

"It's supposed to hurt, remember?" One finger slid between her wet lips as he swatted her, taunting her with the promise of more pleasure to come, and even though she might try to deny it, they both knew the possibility was enough to earn her compliance.

"It does, sir." She attempted to grasp the wooden bedstead, but the blasted binds he'd used put strain on her wrists as she tried. "And this position is the worst. My back is killing me."

"Excellent." He picked up the pace as his palm swatted her, each smack faster and harder than the last.

Her eyes fluttered closed as she suffered through the onslaught. If Ella didn't know better, much more of this might topple her into another amazing orgasm. She certainly hoped so. She could almost lose herself to the perverse rhythm, but his voice held her back from the edge.

"I want it to hurt."