“Dan…” She hissed as he slapped her thigh, one light swat as he watched closely for any adverse reaction.
When all she did was take a deep breath and nod, he reminded her, “Master Dan, here, or anywhere else when my hands are on you, or about to be.”
Nan dropped her head between her braced arms, the pose submissive, her tone not so much. “Yeah, okay, but I should get a break until I can adjust to the new status of our relationship.”
“Mmmm, I’ll give that some consideration.” The tips of two thin scars appeared at her lower back and hip as he rolled the top up, one inch at a time, until it bunched around her shoulders. Damned if his finger didn’t shake as he traced over the first one that ran almost straight down from her shoulder blades. The second was more jagged, crossing the first about mid-back and snaking around to her hip. The rage returned, burning his gut, but this time he pushed it back with ruthless determination.
“I could kill him for this,” he rasped in a low voice as he continued to brush over the whitened lines. “Slowly, painfully. I know ways. You learn a lot of stuff in the military most people can’t imagine. Things you believe you’ll never have need of.”
“Sir.” Nan swiveled her head to look back at him. “I wouldn’t be happy with you if you did that.”
“Don’t you dare preach to me that two wrongs don’t make a right,” he growled.
“Oh,” she drawled, “I wouldn’t dream of it, Master Dan. But I would be very unhappy if my favorite Dom landed in jail instead of Gerard.”
“That’s his name? Gerard?”
She turned back toward the wall with a shake of her head. “I’m not revealing anything else right now.”
The bite in her tone signaled she was serious, and he didn’t push it. He’d rather ease the sudden tension between them. Trailing his fingers up to her bra, he released the catch with a quick, deft twist, the strap separating and falling away.
“You didn’t need to do that to see the scars,” she whispered, lowering her head between her arms again in a pose he liked.
“No, but necessary to do this.” Leaning closer, Dan slid his hands around her sides and cupped her dangling breasts, brushing his thumbs back and forth over her nipples as he placed his mouth on one scar.
“Oh, God,” she groaned in a voice that wobbled.
“No, just me, hon.” Kissing his way down the
straight scar, he kneaded her plump flesh, increasing the pressure against her hardening tips. The white lines didn’t detract from the smooth, graceful look of her or from the way she curved right above her shorts. He knew the shape of her ass below that curve, the softness of her malleable buttocks, the way she used to push back or lift up in a silent plea for more. The longing to reacquaint himself with the rest of her body as he plucked at her nipples and licked over her scars couldn’t be denied but had to be delayed until he was sure he’d gotten his unstable emotions under control.
“What did he use? A single tail?” Dan squeezed her nipples when she shook her head. “Refusing to answer is not an option, Nan.”
“Fine, yes, a very thin one, from what it felt like.”
He rewarded her by going back to plucking her nipples and tickling her side with the scrape of his teeth. “Didn’t you see it?”
Nan’s shoulders slumped, as if in resignation before she admitted, “No. The room was dark, and I… Sir.” Her voice caught as she pushed her breasts into his busy hands.
Dan couldn’t bring himself to question her further; the strain in her voice was enough to rein in the urge to keep after her until he heard the whole story. “Thank you.” Releasing her breasts, he re-hooked her bra and lowered her shirt before turning her to face him. Cupping her face, he was pleased at the need reflected in those golden eyes. Lowering his mouth, he laid his lips on hers, added pressure to get her to open and wasn’t surprised when she resisted and pulled back with a confused frown.
“We don’t kiss, or never have. You know that.”
“That was then, this is now,” he repeated before kissing her again. This time she let him in, welcomed his tongue and returned his strokes as her lips moved under his. By the time he pulled back, her eyes were swirling with frustration. Perfect. Keeping her guessing, and on edge was key to being successful this weekend when they met at the club.
Stepping away from him, Nan frowned and fisted her hands on her hips. “You’re confusing the hell out of me, Dan.”
“Am I now?” Slinging an arm around her shoulders in their familiar hug of friendship, he ushered her out to her car. “Since you insist on relating your story in bits and pieces, I’d say we’re even on frustrating each other.” Opening the car door, he leaned on the top as she slid in. “Friday afternoon I’ll be helping with some of the prep work for the county fair, which is coming up way too fast, but I’ll be at The Barn by nine. Does that work for you?”
Those soft lips curled up at the edges in one of her teasing smirks. “What if I already have plans with someone else, since you didn’t exactly ask?”
“Break them,” he returned before shutting the door and striding into the house without looking back.
“Do you think they’re an item?” Morales jerked his head toward Dan, who was walking Ms. Meyers to her car.
Pete took the nail he held between his teeth and positioned it in the corner of the water trough. “I don’t know, and it’s none of our business,” he replied, driving the nail into the wood with two rapid hits of his hammer. “But she sure is taken with the young one.”
“Yeah. It was fun to watch them together.” Handing him another nail, Morales surprised him with his next question. “You had another nightmare last night. Handling it okay, mi amigo?”