Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

LANDON

W ithout saying a word, Landon scooped Clarissa up into his arms and strode into the crowd, which parted like the Red Sea for them. He headed for the empty private playroom he'd reserved earlier, hoping he'd have a chance to use it. Thankfully, a passing male submissive offered to open the door for him so Landon wouldn't have to juggle the woman in his arms. The door closed shut behind them as he set a shivering and still crying Clarissa down on the burgundy sheets atop the king-size bed. Grabbing a clean blanket from a nearby stack, he wrapped it around her naked body. Next, he retrieved a cool bottle of water and a few individually wrapped pieces of dark chocolate that were kept in the small refrigerator in the room.

As he sat beside Clarissa, someone knocked and opened the door just wide enough to slide Landon's toy bag into the room before shutting it again—probably Mitch or a Dungeon Master. After twisting off the top of the water bottle, he held it to his sub's quivering lips and put his other arm around her, pulling her close. "Drink, sweetheart."

Between her sobs, she barely took a sip.

"More," he ordered, ensuring she didn't wind up gulping the water and choking on it.

It took a few minutes, but her crying finally ebbed after she drank half the bottle and then nibbled on a piece of chocolate, which brought her blood sugar up.

"I-I'm so sorry, Land?—"

" Shh , baby. It's okay." Some strands of her hair, wet from her tears, were stuck to her pale forehead and reddened cheeks. He brushed them back with his knuckles.

Clarissa buried her face into her hands and yelled hoarsely, "No, it's not! You must hate me. I took that bitch's word for it over yours. All these years! I'm such an idiot! How?—"

If he let her, she would continue to beat herself up over everything. He pulled her hands away from her face and cupped her chin. "Clarissa, hush. I could never hate you—I still love you. I always have and always will. None of this was your fault. It took a private investigator years to finally uncover the source of the original photos. I never thought it would take that long, but Ivy did a good job of covering her tracks. I don't know how much of the video you paid attention to toward the end, but I told her the investigator even found the guy who altered the photos for her. He was some poor schmuck she'd gone to high school with, and for some stupid reason, he was in love with her for years. She's been stringing him along, convincing him the hoax would advance her career, and when she hit it big, they could be together. The guy's a bit of a nerd—very socially inept—and an expert with computers and Photoshop. She'd been using him all this time, and he believed she was in love with him. Same thing with that guy, Frank. What they see in her, I have no idea."

When he'd told Ian and Devon about the video and the proof he had that the photos had been altered, they'd given him shit about not coming to them sooner. Their computer hacker could've gotten the evidence back when it all had originally happened. However, he hadn't been thinking straight at the time, and several directing jobs had kept him on the West Coast and in Canada, on and off for over twenty months. The private investigator he'd eventually thought to hire worked in L.A. and knew the ins and outs of Hollywood. While it had been easier for the man to find out that the images had been altered after consulting with an expert, connecting all the dots had taken a bit longer. Landon had insisted on finding the collaborating witnesses before presenting Clarissa with all the ammunition needed to convince her he'd never cheated.

He kissed her temple and snuggled her tightly. "Now that you know the truth, Marsha will release everything to the press and file a defamation lawsuit against Ivy. I guarantee she'll never work in Hollywood ever again—unless it's for a porno flick. I couldn't care less what happens to her though. All I care about and have ever cared about is you. I want you to be my wife again. I want to travel the world with you and grow old with you like we'd planned. I want it all, but only with you by my side. I love you, baby."

Clarissa burst out crying again. "I-I love you too. I always have. Even when I hated you—when I thought I hated you, I still loved you. That's why it hurt so much when I thought you . . . Oh God, all those men I dated. That I slept with!" Her tears fell in earnest again as she lifted her watery gaze to his face and shook her head. "They didn't mean anything, Landon, I swear. I was trying to forget you. To prove to you and the rest of the world that I didn't need you. To make you hurt as much as you hurt me. But you didn't hurt me. I should've believed you. How can you ever forgive me?"

"There's nothing to forgive." He stroked the back of her head. "I just want you back where you belong. Please say you'll give us another chance."

Instead of giving him a verbal response, she lifted her chin and kissed him, and Landon felt like he'd died and gone to heaven. So many nights of being alone. So many years of searching for a way to bring them back together. And yet, in that moment, it felt like they'd never been apart. The long-buried familiar arousal she evoked from him returned with a vengeance.

He shifted her until she straddled him. The blanket fell from her body, giving him full access to every bare inch of her. His tongue delved into her mouth, where it dueled with her own. His hard cock throbbed painfully against his leathers, but he didn't want to stop caressing her arms, back, and shoulders to release it. Goosebumps pebbled over her soft skin wherever he touched her.

All thoughts of the Slot Scene Spectacular fled his mind. It didn't matter that they still had time on the clock and another chip drop available. Landon finally had Clarissa back in his arms, and there was no way he would let her go any time soon. Hell, if he had his way, she'd be glued to his side for at least the next few months to prove to himself this wasn't all a dream.

Grasping her braid, he tipped her head back and kissed along her jaw to her ear. "I love you, baby," he whispered before nipping her lobe. A shiver coursed through her.

"I love you, too, Landon. S-so much."

She started to cry again, but he didn't want any more tears. He licked and nuzzled his way down to her breasts, drawing one taut nipple into his mouth and flicking it. Clarissa's sobs morphed into a low moan as she thrust her chest forward.

Landon sucked and nibbled on the stiff peak before moving over to give the other one the same attention. Clarissa's hips undulated, bringing her pelvis into contact with his groin. Unable to stand the restraint of his pants any longer, he reached down and released himself.

His mouth found hers again as he tilted her to the side and laid her flat on the bed. He then quickly stood and stripped, wanting to rejoin her as fast as possible. Once naked, he leaned over her, resting one hand beside her hip and the other above her head. His throat tightened as he stared at her, and his eyes welled up. "You're so beautiful. More now than ever. I—God, there were so many times I thought we'd never be together again. But I didn't want to give up. You're my whole world, Clarissa. I'm nothing without you."

She reached up and grabbed his shoulders, pulling him down on top of her. "Please don't make me cry again." She swallowed hard, clearly on the verge of losing it once more. "I-I need you. Make love to me. Remind me what it feels like to be yours."

He brushed his nose against hers. "My pleasure, baby—always."

Crushing his mouth to hers, he consumed her while the heat of her pussy seared his cock as it nestled against her. Grasping her wrists, he brought them together over her head and held them with one hand. He moved to the side to run his other hand down her body. It'd been far too long, and he couldn't wait to get inside her, but he needed to be sure she was ready for him.

He dipped his fingers between her legs and found her soaked for him. He circled her clit, causing her to gasp and then moan into his mouth before thrusting one finger into her. She writhed under him, her chest heaving as he added a second and then a third finger to fuck her with.

Ending the kiss, he pushed himself up and knelt between her wide-spread legs. He licked and sucked his way down her body, worshiping her with everything in him. He moved one of her legs over his head to rest on his shoulder and ran his tongue up the inside of her thigh. Lifting his gaze to her face, he only saw the love he'd been missing for years. His heart skipped a beat, and his breath caught. She was stunning in the throes of passion—something he'd never forgotten but thought he'd never see again.

"I love you, Clarissa."

Without giving her a chance to respond, he began eating her pussy—a starved man at a banquet. He feasted on her, bringing her to the edge of a climax before easing back and starting over. She begged him to let her fly, and finally, he relented. She screamed so loud as the orgasm hit her that it wouldn't be a shock to know that they'd heard her all the way out in the lobby.

As she floated back down to earth, Landon grabbed a condom from a nearby bowl. Even though they were in a committed, monogamous relationship, the club required all couples to use condoms. But when he tore it open, Clarissa reached out and stopped him. "No. I'm clean, Master. I've never let anyone take me bare since you." She swallowed hard. "And I was recently tested. I swear. Please?"

Hearing she'd never trusted another man since they'd been together had Landon wanting to beat his chest like a caveman. It'd been easy for him to forgive the fact she'd been with other men—it hadn't been her fault. With the disillusioned betrayal she'd felt, he couldn't have asked for or expected her to be a saint. Not when she was such a vibrant and sensual woman.

Fuck the club rules! No one would know except the two of them, and Landon wanted to mark her in the most primitive way.

Climbing on top of her, he slowly entered her. His eyes slammed shut as her heat enveloped him. There was no way he would last more than a minute or two.

As he kissed her, he pulled out and thrust forward, over and over, without any finesse or rhythm. He could only focus on reclaiming her as his own. Later, he'd take her again and make sure she came with him, but his climax raced toward the finish line, and there was no way he could stop it. Sweat coated his body. He fucked her hard and fast, and when the orgasm hit him, his mind went completely blank as he emptied himself inside her.

Spent, he collapsed on top of her, barely holding himself up on his forearms enough that she could breathe. Her hands roamed his back and shoulders, mapping out every inch of his skin as she kissed his neck and chest. He didn't know how long they lay like that until he had to move before his legs cramped up.

He shifted onto his side and spooned Clarissa against him. As his mind cleared, he remembered something important.

Glancing over her, he saw his leather pants were close enough that he could grab them.

"What are you doing?" Clarissa mumbled as she snuggled her ass against his groin.

Instead of answering her right away, he reached into the front pocket of the pants and pulled out the gold chain that usually hung around his neck. He hadn't wanted her to see it until now. Their wedding rings swung like a pendulum as he held them in front of her. She gasped when her gaze finally focused on them.

"I've kept them together all this time. I've always worn them, waiting for the chance to prove to you that I never betrayed our vows."

Unlocking the clasp, he removed the rings and lifted her left hand. He slid the smaller ring on her finger. "Please tell me we can start over. Marry me again, Clarissa. "

Flipping over to face him, she took the other ring from him and slid it onto his finger. "Is tomorrow too soon?"