Page 43 of Take Me Darkly

“Please what?” I stood up, stepping behind her chair and leaning down until my breath warmed her ear. My hands slid over her shoulders, my palms sweeping over her exposed chest to cup her bare breasts above the unlaced corset. Her nipples were tight, aching peaks against my skin. “Tell me what you want.”

“I want you.”

“You have me.”

And I meant it. She had all of me—every broken piece, every dark corner, and every part that I thought was beyond redemption. She had it all, and she didn’t even know it.

I leaned down, my lips brushing her ear as my hands slid down from her shoulders, palms gliding over her collarbone to cup her breasts. Through the corset, I could feel her nipples harden into little points, begging for attention.

I pulled her up out of the chair, spinning her into my arms. Her corset hung loose, revealing her gorgeous, trembling body. I claimed her lips in a hard, demanding kiss, and she met me with equal fire, her hands frantically tearing at my shirt buttons.

I helped her, stripping off the fabric and tossing it to the floor. Her delicate hands explored my chest, her nails scraping over my skin, drawing a deep groan from my throat.

“You like that?” she whispered, a sudden spark of dark boldness in her eyes.

“I love everything you do to me.” I turned her, resting my hand on the small of her back as I guided her toward the glass wall overlooking the club below. The play floor was bathed in low crimson light, silhouettes of bodies moving through the velvet lounge spaces.

I pressed her chest gently against the glass, my body stepping up flush against her ass. My hands roamed over her bare breasts, pinching her nipples as I leaned down to her ear.

“Look down there,” I instructed softly. “Tell me how it makes you feel.”

“It reminds me of Florence, but different. Darker.”

“That could be us, you know.” I rolled her nipples between my fingers, feeling her shudder against me. “Would it turn you on? Knowing an audience was watching while I took you?”

Her breath hitched, and I felt her pulse quicken beneath my touch.

“I...” She swallowed hard. “I don’t know. I shouldn’t…”

“Be honest with yourself. Does the thought of being watched stir something in you?” I slid one hand down her stomach, dipping between her thighs to stroke her drenched folds.

She went still for a second, her body trembling under my touch. Then, in a voice barely louder than a whisper, she confessed, “Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

“It turns me on,” she panted, her hips rolling back into my hand. “The idea of being seen... knowing everyone down there knows I’m yours.”

A surge of fierce, possessive satisfaction roared through me, shadowed immediately by a sharp spike of raw jealousy. The realization that I hated the thought of any other man laying eyes on her hit me hard. I shoved the feeling down for later and focused entirely on her.

“Good girl,” I growled into her neck. “Tonight, I’m going to make you come until you forget your own name.”

I spun her around, lifting her by the hips until her legs wrapped firmly around my waist, and carried her to the massive four-poster bed.

I stripped the sheer robe from her arms and tossed the loose corset aside. She lay back against the black satin in nothing but her stockings, garter belt, and those crotchless lace panties.

“You’re a fucking masterpiece,” I whispered, taking in the sight of her.

I knelt between her thighs, my hands smoothing up her skin, parting her wide for my eyes. I lowered my head, pressing hot, open-mouthed kisses along her inner thigh, moving dangerously close to her wet center.

“Wait,” she gasped, her hands coming up to press against my shoulders.

I stopped instantly, looking up. “What’s wrong?”

Color flooded her face and chest. “I... there’s an issue.”

Dread spiked in my chest. “Are you in pain? Your shoulder⁠—”

“No, not my shoulder. It’s... lower. I tried to wax today. It went terribly wrong. It’s a bit sore, and…and it looks ridiculous, and I—” She stammered, biting her lip, looking away in utter mortification. “Mother Mary, this is embarrassing.”