Vandal (Ashes & Embers 2)

I leave the bed without waking her, pull on some pants and go downstairs into the basement. I find what I’m looking for in the far corner. Kneeling on the floor, I open the box and suck in a deep breath. I pull out her blanket and a teddy bear, and hold them to me, inhaling her scent.

Fuck, I miss her. So much.

Tabitha

“Sugar Kiss?” I repeat, my head in the refrigerator. “I’ve never heard of them.” Closing the door, I pop a grape in my mouth. He’s standing across the room, arms crossed, leaning against the wall.

“Are you serious? You’re a chick; you should love them. They’re an all-girl rock band.”

“I told you I mostly listen to new-age music, like harps and flutes.”

“Well hopefully you’ll enjoy it if you come. They’re good friends of mine. I’ve known Sydni the longest. She’s a bass player too, and in a few weeks, when my band goes on tour, she’s going to be filling in for me. Her band has opened for us a few times, and we’ve played a lot of gigs together over the years, so we know each other’s songs,” he explains.

“So, what band are you in? I don’t think you ever told me.” He follows me into the living room and watches me hunt for my e-reader, which I can never find when I want it.

“That doesn’t matter,” he replies. “I’m on a break from them.”

“It matters to me. I want to know so I can fan-girl.”

“Sit,” he says, pointing to the couch. “Now.”

I do as he says and look up at him, not understanding why he’s all jittery.

“We talked about this, remember? If you’re going to come with me, I need you to be discreet. Please don’t be telling your friends or posting it on social media or any of that shit.”

“I’m not. I was just curious,” I reply, pouting a little. “I’m proud of you, that’s all. You’re in a sorta famous rock band. Well, supposedly.” I smile at him playfully. “Do you have, like groupies and fans?”

“Maybe,” he says with a sexy smirk. “You know what the female fans do when they meet me?” He reaches down and strokes my hair.

“What do they do?”

“Anything I ask them to.” His eyes are dark and lusty. I don’t want to think about fans and groupies and all sorts of women touching him.

“Is that right?”

His hand slides down to caress my neck. “Yes. How do you feel about that? About me fucking other women?”

“It makes me feel sick and jealous,” I tell him.

“So you think I should give that part of my career up? The benefit of having as many women as I want?”

I nod and answer with confidence. “Yes.”

“That seems awfully greedy of you, Tabi. To keep me all for yourself. Doesn’t it?”

“Yes.”

He strokes his thumb across my lips and I suck it into my mouth, my eyes on his, watching as he sways a little. I love that I can affect him the way he does me. He pushes his thumb further into my mouth and I suck harder.

“You’re my naughty girl, aren’t you?”

I nod, and he slowly pulls his finger out of my mouth and licks it.

“Get in your position. I need to go get something.”

I go to the floor and kneel, palms down, and wait for him to come back. The anticipation of not knowing what he is going to do makes my pulse quicken and my skin flush.

Thankfully he is not gone long. I watch his feet cross the room, and he sits on the couch.

He taps my shoulder. “Kneel in front of me, Tabicat.”

I rise and turn, positioning myself to kneel in front of him, between his legs, keeping my eyes averted as I was taught.

“I have something very special for you. Look up at me.”

I raise my eyes to see him holding a small black box. “I had these custom made for you; I just wasn’t sure when I should give them to you. Now seems like a good time.”

He pulls what looks like a silver bracelet with little bells hanging off of it out of the box.

“These are slave bells, and this is an ankle cuff. I want you to wear this on your ankle.” He kneels down and fastens it around my ankle. I shake my foot and a faint tinkling bell sound comes from them. I love it.

“Vandal, thank you.” I lean to kiss him but he puts his hands up to stop me.

“I have something else for you, but it’s very important to me. I need you to think about it before you accept it.”

“All right. I promise I will.” My curiosity is running rampant. What else could he have in that little box?

His hands are shaking slightly as he lifts the next object out of the purple velvet-lined box. I stare at it, taking in its beauty but also the intense meaning behind it. It’s a silver necklace adorned with red crystals embedded in the chain, with a locking silver heart pendant at the center of the chain.

He turns the heart over. “It’s inscribed,” he tells me, his voice deep with emotion. I squint at the tiny words.

You are my heart. I am your armor.

My heart flip-flops. I cannot even speak as he lifts out a tiny key, showing me that it’s a real lock. I now know what this is. It’s a submissive collar. It’s one of the highest symbols of commitment and ownership between a Dom and a sub. I know for him that this commitment is huge.

I can’t stop the tears that pool in my eyes and slowly fall down my cheeks. “Vandal …” I whisper. I don’t know what to say, and even more so, I’m afraid to speak.

“If you accept this, we take things to a deeper level. While I have the option of being with other women, there will never be anyone else. I want this with you, Tabi, only you. I have no desire to fuck someone else, and I want you to feel confident in that. You will give yourself to me in every way, and I will always take care of you and cherish you. I have no doubt in my feelings for you and what I want. The length of time we’ve known each other doesn’t mean shit to me.” He fingers the necklace in his hands. “I’ve been thinking about it, and I want to sell my other house so I can buy a house that you help pick out and feel at home in, if you are open to that. I’d like a dedicated scene room for us, and a studio for you. I don’t know how you feel about selling your house—we can talk about all that later. I just want you to know that even though I probably don’t show it all in the right ways, I’m serious about this.”

There is a fine line to be walked where we are right now. This is not to be confused with an engagement ring. This is not a marriage proposal. I’m pretty sure there is no hope of having children together. This is a deep sexual and emotional arrangement. And while those other things could possibly be mixed in, I don’t think they are on the cards with him.

However, he is offering his own version of forever that, if I’m honest with myself, will probably make me quite happy. He’s gorgeous, sexy, intelligent, incredibly talented, caring, funny, and knows how to please me. I know in my heart that he would take care of me in every way.

And then I remind myself that in light of all of that, even forever has an expiration date here with him. He might not know it, but I do, and that makes me sadder than I have ever been in my entire life.

I never expected to feel this way, or for him to feel this way about me. This twist of fate is cruel. Maybe it’s karma, biting me in the ass.

Or maybe we are just meant to be together and this is the way it had to happen. I remember what the old woman at the cemetery said to me that day a few months ago: “Sometimes falling in love can hurt. It’s a stumble off a cliff, with a lot of bumps and bruises on the way down, until you land with a heart-stopping crash, not sure if you lived or if it killed you. If you’re lucky, that other person is lying on the ground next to you, just as battered and beaten, and you pick each other up and walk off together.”

How did she know?

“Tabi?” He touches my cheek and I slowly come out of the daydream state I was in, my eyes focusing on him. “Is this what you want?” he asks, still waiting for my answer.

“You’re not giving me much t

ime to think, Vandal.”

“Do you really need to think about it? Or did you know the answer before I even asked?”

“I think you knew the answer before you asked,” I say back to him. “But just so we’re on the same page, the answer is yes.”

He places the chain around my neck and uses the tiny key to lock it in place with the heart. I reach up to my throat and touch it lightly while he puts the tiny key in his pocket.

“Thank you, Vandal. It’s beautiful.”

“You’re beautiful.” He puts his hands on my face, his dark eyes so close to mine, swimming with hope and desire. “Now I’m going to fuck you like I’ve never fucked anyone else before.” My heart lurches and gallops in response.

Swooping me up into his muscular inked arms, he carries me into the bedroom and lays me gently on the plush comforter of his bed. The electric fireplace is burning, making the room warm and amber. He takes my clothes off slowly, kissing each inch of me that he reveals as he goes, tantalizing me with his warm lips. When I am finally naked, he stands and undresses while I watch him hungrily. I let my eyes wander over his broad chest, down his flat, chiseled abs, to his long, thick cock.

I could stare at him for hours. For a man, he is incredibly beautiful. The way his long hair brushes over his perfect, smooth, dark skin and how his tattoos move with his muscles like animated artwork is mesmerizing. Kneeling onto the bed, he climbs on top of me and slowly lowers his body between my parted thighs. His kisses are soft and lingering, dancing on my lips while his hand moves down my body, gentle and caressing. I slide one hand around his waist up to his shoulder, while my other hand moves down his body to rest on his rock-hard curved ass, pulling him into me. I want to feel him inside of me so badly.