Kaden was waiting for Marina
in the middle of the lobby, hands clasped behind his back and
wearing a no-nonsense, straight face. He didn't crack a smile
as she approached.
In fact, he didn't speak
at all when she stopped in front of him, just continued to
stare at her, tilting his head to
the side as he looked the length of her. Finally, he said, "Nice
dress. Thank you for wearing it."
Shock caused her momentary
speechlessness. He thanked her? "You're
welcome."
He turned and walked away. Obviously she was supposed to follow
him like some obedient servant. If this was the way he treated
his first dates, she'd bet he didn't get many second ones.
Not that they were dating. Oh hell, she didn't know where her
mind was.
They were escorted to a semi-circular booth in a corner of
the restaurant, lit only by candles. When Marina slid into
the booth along the corner wall, Kaden slipped in next to her.
The more she scooted over, the more he followed. Short of falling
on her ass onto the floor, she had to make do with the fact
he was going to sit right next to her.
The waiter approached and waited for their order. Kaden took
a brief look at the menu on the monitor behind them, then ordered
wine and both their dinners. The waiter smiled and hurried
off before Marina could get a chance to object.
"I'm perfectly capable
of ordering my own drink and food."
"You might as well
get over that. From now on, I'll be telling you what to eat
and drink."
Irritation swept through her. So this was how it was going
to be, with him controlling her every move and making all the
decisions for her. And Laren enjoyed this shit?
Their wine arrived and Kaden
poured a glass for her. She had half a mind to ignore it,
but what the hell. After taking a
sip, she had to admit it was fantastic. Smooth, mellow, not
too sweet or bitter. Just the way she liked it. "This
is good."
"Yes, I knew you'd
like it."
She rolled her eyes, hoping he wouldn't notice. What, was
he psychic, too?
"Let's talk about what's going to happen," he
said.
At least one of them could
concentrate. "Okay."
"After you're taken,
you will be brought into a preparation room. There, you'll
be stripped, bathed, and readied for auction."
"How appealing. I can't
wait."
"At auction, you will
be showcased for potential buyers. I'll be one of them, and
I'll be purchasing you."
She refused to think that
he might be the only one bidding on her. "Fine."
"Once I purchase you,
this game begins. There are some things you won't find pleasant,
considering your nature."
She looked at him. "Such
as?"
He reached for a curl of her hair and wound it around his
fingers. When she started to jerk away, he held her firm.
"Such as this. I'll
be touching you. Anyway I want to, anywhere I want to. You
can fight, of course, but I'll make
you obey."
"You can bet your ass I'll fight you." No
one told her what to do. Ever.
"That's good. They'll
expect that. But don't fight too hard or for too long or
they'll dispose of you. A little bit
of a wildcat is a good thing, especially during the auction
because that brings about high bids. Too much fight and they'll
think you untrainable."
He was making this sound
more and more alluring by the second. "I'll
try to keep that in mind. What happens after that?"
"As your Dom, I'll be chaining you to me and leading
you to the privacy chamber where we'll get…acquainted."
She watched his expression,
but he revealed nothing of what he was thinking or feeling. "You
mean we'll have sex."
His light chuckle was unnerving. "There's
a lot more to it than that. Remember, as my submissive, your
primary reason
for existence is to please me. And you will please me."
Was that a threat or confidence?
Emotions warred within her. She wanted to be pissed off at
his arrogant attitude, and yet
the way he spoke with such assurance that she would "please
him" gave her a thrill she hadn't expected to feel. "Exactly
what kind of "pleasing" will I do?"
He picked up his wine glass and swirled the liquid around
the glass. She studied his long fingers, imagining what they'd
feel like against her skin and inside her. Before her imagination
went too far, she blinked to shake off the erotic thoughts.
"The kind of pleasing
I'm in the mood for at the moment."
"Such as?"
He tilted his head. "You
seem fascinated by what I'm going to do to you, Marina. Are
you anxious to begin your training?"
"No!" She realized as soon as she yelled the word
that she was protesting more than she should. "I mean,
I'd just like to be forewarned about what could happen. If
I'm going to be flogged, I'd like to mentally prepare myself."
Tucking the errant curl
behind her ear, he traced her earlobe with his finger. She
shivered at the warmth of his touch. "I
don't want you to know ahead of time what I'm going to do.
It will be more pleasurable for me if you don't know."
She snorted. "Pleasurable
for you is the key, isn't it?"
"What pleases me, Marina,
will also please you."
She looked away and stared
into her wine. "I doubt that."
He reached for her chin
and turned her head to face him. "You
doubt that I can pleasure you?"
She smirked. "Many
have tried. Few have succeeded."
"Then you've been with
the wrong men."
