Chapter Nine

Jeni couldn’t understand why a simple lifestyle term like master would be so very difficult for her to use, when so much about the Master/slave world made her feel as if she’d come home. The nipple ties, the cuffs and even an ID tag were all easy for her to accept – she couldn’t wait to wear his ring with the property tag dangling from her clit. But unlike the collar, cuffs, and nipple ties, which were easily removed, the tag was not. It would be a 24/7 reminder of her master, as close as she’d get to a permanent fixture, since they’d ruled out branding and tattoos. It was a symbol of his ownership, of slavery, of agreements that seemed as natural to her as long novels of love and loss, dancing into the wee hours, and long walks on sandy beaches. Things her soul demanded of her.

But calling him Master? That was a shock to her system every time she said it. Spoken. Written. Didn’t matter. The word stuck still in her throat and almost made her gag. It still did not feel real and that disturbed her.

Nothing good comes without a glitch; nothing worth anything comes without a challenge. This was a truth she accepted as fact.

Jack had already had a profound effect on her life. Her mind was moving at light speed these days. Her fiction was becoming almost obsessive; new story ideas had to be written down immediately after the thoughts first came to mind or a good plot would vanish as another one took its place. She took a notebook to work and kept it inside her purse should inspiration strike. It was hard to focus on advertising copy with Jack so fixed in her thoughts. She felt as if she’d been divinely blessed with all this beautiful creativity billowing through her. Like a drug, but no drugs involved. If this was what she had to look forward to as a sex slave to Master Hawking, she’d take more of it any day.

Calling Jack Master with meaning and conviction set Jeni’s mind searching for a reason why this small act of respect was so difficult to pull off. Since this was so important to him, she needed to find a solution, and it would haunt her until it did. Every time she practiced saying the word aloud a little piece of her recoiled. Maybe she’d get used to it, maybe not, but she certainly wasn’t going to stop trying.

Her mind remained fixated on the matter, with a lot of powerful emotion fueling this mini crisis. No surprise that her muse began to speak again. The same kind of feeling she’d had in the last couple months when she was overwhelmed by the drama of Jack Hawking couldn’t be stopped. She let it rest for a few days, allowing her feelings to steep, until she couldn’t put off the inevitable any longer. Another adrenalin rush of thoughts tumbled out in a rambling essay on shattered beliefs, and fear and the astonishing impact that Jack had had on her entire life. She ended with the question, What do I have to fear? which pretty much summed up her dilemma over that dang master word.

Fear. That was it. Plain as day.

There were times with Jack that she felt as if she’d fallen into a dream. And that dream was so perfect and so real, and tugged on her so deeply that she feared losing herself in the man and the incredible feelings he brought out in her. This was a grand experiment that could easily go awry. She had a right to be afraid of where it would lead, or not. But she refused to let fear stop her from moving forward into a relationship that seemed almost fated from the start. Master Jack Hawking was a gift, not something to dismiss or run from. If that helped her feel more comfortable calling Jack Master, only time would tell. In the meantime, she’d keep on practicing the word. Eventually, it would stick, and she would say it aloud because it felt like the right and real thing to say.

Jack was at his cottage for the next couple weeks – three hours north of where she lived, a little more than two hours from the university. There would be no time for another kinky rendezvous for at least two weeks since his graduate students were joining him for field experience. She was moving forward at light speed. Suddenly he puts on the brakes! She didn’t like it at all.

“Two weeks. Really?” She sat on the edge of her bed, phone in hand. She’d expected to be making plans for the coming weekend and this was not what she hoped for.

“Work, Jeni,” he reminded her.

Good thing he wasn’t there to see the glum, crabby, pissed off look on her face. “Well, I guess I’ll have to suck it up and make peace with your schedule, won’t I?”

“It’ll be good for you,” he returned.

Right. Good for me to sit in my house and think about you all day and night.

“I know, I’m disappointed too. And you might as well know now that I get tunnel vision when I work. There won’t be much time for emails and phone calls. But I promise, I’ll try.”

He would try – not much to go on, but at least he’d give it that old college try. Nothing in her reaction was particularly slavish. Another reason why she was glad he wasn’t there to see the attitude in her body language.

How could he be so managed, so controlled, so restrained when she felt herself dancing off the walls? Part of her problem was the damned blog. She was writing kinky pieces inspired by their relationship at an alarming rate, unable to stop the spiral into her nasty imaginings. She loved that kinky world, and could play there all day, but it was hard to put the brakes on when it came to the relationship. She wanted more of him and it seemed that he was dishing himself out in morsels with a miserly hand. Patience. Patience. Fucking patience!

Her next email:

“Good morning, Master, realizing that you probably won’t get to this for a few days, knowing how busy you are. Just some random thoughts I need to share when you have a moment.

Sunday afternoon was very special, thank you. I’m still vibrating inside, flushed with a bit of a glow. And so different from our first day together, which was wonderful, wild, intense but awkward, too. Didn’t feel much awkwardness this time. There are a couple of marks on my backside I can look at fondly…but none of the soreness I experienced before, although I wouldn’t mind if there were. My nipples and crotch are a little tender. Every time I touch myself in those places and feel that certain twinge, thoughts of you return.

“I am your master and you are my slave. You said that several times, and a warm, glowy feeling rose up in me when you did. But maybe the best part of the day was after sex, when you told me you were content for the first time in a long while.

“I wrote something for you. Obviously, I’m still having a problem saying master, but I am trying. I even repeat it out loud when I’m home – then it starts to sound silly and I’m laughing at myself for making such a big deal of such a small thing. So, here goes another piece written just for you.

“I think of you amidst your trees, in your cottage and by the lake, knowing that you’re busy, but I suspect enjoying yourself whatever you’re doing. I can’t wait to see you again. Can’t lie. I’m disappointed that your schedule is so full at the moment, but I’ll be here, thinking of you. All for now, Your dutiful slave.”

She attached her essay on the “M” word and hit send, hoping for a quick response.

Regarding the “M” Word: I’m on a mission to find the answer to why I can’t say the “M” word.

Why it’s stuck in my throat,

sounds false

seems like a silly affectation of a quirky lifestyle

Yet when I think it, when I think Master now,

something fires off between my thighs.

It turns me steamy,

makes me crave you back inside my bed

But I’m afraid.

Afraid of what it means

Afraid I give myself away to you too easily

That I’m such an open book

That when you write yourself upon my pages, I’ll not bat an eye

I’ll give you anything you ask

You asked verboten things of me

acts that in another life would be mere duty

or worse yet, disgust me

And yet I sucked your cock and ass

and when I did, disgust and duty quickly fled – to my amazement –

and my horny pussy ground itself against the bed

I was hot for you

hot to suck your cock and ass forever

hot for anything you asked of me

I lied to myself about not being oral

You proved me wrong. Threw the truth up in my face

and forced me to admit that about sex, I’m not yet finished

I’ve discovered a new beginning in you

It’s some strange magic you wield with me

the way you claim the dark heart of my unbounded lust

and make that holy darkness bloom.

***

You’ve invaded all my senses

Your scent is clinging to me now

firing up my crotch

making me writhe against the bed – yet one more time

Your bed, your slave – your body now, not my own.

I see your face coming back to me

the way you confront me with a stern knowingness

and talk to me of being owned

and about how I’ve never been owned before,

and how you own me now

Such brutal honesty. Your impeccable logic shatters

a false belief as you force the truth on me and I accept

I hear the low pitch of your voice

and feel how its authority resonates inside me

makes my body tremble

your voice, your words have become my new aphrodisiac

I recall how you stuffed my ass and cunt with dildos

how the hard feel of your hand, holding firmly against my bottom cheeks

tapped a new level of surrender in me

and I am awed by that

My mouth waters reminded of your taste

My tongue longs to lick your lips, your chest, your cock

Oh, and that cock of yours is now a part of me,

like an extension of my mouth

I practiced saying Master,

then came hard against my probing fingers

when I said the word out loud.

It turns me on – that’s true, too.

Takes me right back to my fear

Fear of giving up too much of me to you

when at the same time, that is my heart’s desire.

Fear of losing what I’ve gained if suddenly you’re swept away

What choice do I have now?

Isn’t it true that I’ve already given myself to you – with collar, cuffs and nipple ties?

And an enormous piece of my soul?

Yes, I’m such a slut,

this makes me spasm, too, Master

Yes, Master…

No, Master…

Anything you say, Master –

I’ll keep practicing

If you’re Master, then I am slave

What do I have to fear? END

It took three days before she heard from Jack, during which time she practiced being patient about the slow response. He wouldn’t know about her frustration since she refused to gripe. She didn’t figure slaves would be allowed to bitch about a busy man’s response time – he had warned her that he had tunnel vision. Then finally, his email:

“That hot little piece just jumped out of my email and onto my screen, slave. You’re getting the hang of it. Saying Master will soon be as easy for you as writing hot little rants about the battles with your inner slave. I’m looking forward to hearing it from your lips in person. Soon.”

She was glad to see that he didn’t take her angst all that seriously. She shouldn’t either. Hot little rants. She laughed aloud. So that’s what he thought of what she considered were undisguised examples of her adoration.

Soon. That did have a nice ring to it. Something to focus on.

***

“Jeni,” she heard his deep voice and couldn’t stop smiling. “I want you here Sunday. Does that work?”

Thursday evening. He wanted her up north Sunday. Of course, it worked – she scheduled her entire life around the man. Sure, he could have given her more notice, but that didn’t matter with thoughts of Sunday already lighting up her libido.

“As long as it’s convenient for your schedule, of course,” he added when she didn’t immediately reply. “Sorry for the short notice.”

“Sunday is perfect for me,” she finally jumped right in.

Jeni had no idea what to expect of his ‘city house’ since there’d been no discussion about his home near the University. With a first glance at the property she had to wonder why Jack didn’t think this was important enough to mention. She smiled as she took his driveway up a small hill to the older duplex on the rise above the street. Clearly this was not your typical duplex. It looked nothing like what she expected. The property was secluded from the neighborhood with mature trees abounding all over the hillside – his was the only house on that rise. These trees were not just any trees, but several varieties of Ginkgo, and evergreens she knew were not ones that you’d normally find in the landscape of a city house. There were also Japanese maples, and several shrubs and trees that had been bonsaied into unusual shapes, situated around a free-form Koi pond near the front entry of the mid-century modern house. Either the home had been designed around the setting, or the setting conformed to the design of the house, which was in itself a unique structure made of glass and steel and heavy wood beams; just the sort of property to appeal to a botanist, even if the place hadn’t earned a mention from Jack. He’d talked of his lake cottage many times, giving Jeni the impression that the University house was just a place he crashed when he needed to sleep.

Jack lived in the ground level; the second story apartment belonged to a woman who traveled constantly and was rarely home. As far as Jack was aware, Niki would be in Tanzania for the next two months, giving him plenty of privacy for whatever pursuit he had in mind. By the time Jeni had driven to the top of the driveway, parked on the gravel path and climbed from her car, the beauty of the trees and landscape had closed in around her – as if she’d entered an entirely different world from the one she just left. She couldn’t even see the street below.

She used the door knocker to announce her arrival, and moments later, Jack answered the knock. He was dressed in a dark tee-shirt and jeans, looking a little more remote than usual, but very sexy. Just the sight of him and all she wanted to do was tear off his clothes and go over every square inch of that hard, muscled body with her hands and tongue.

Too flustered to even say “hi” Jeni waited until Jack opened the door wider and motioned her inside. She hesitated for one split second then entered cautiously, feeling as if she was penetrating his inner sanctum and her attitude needed to be one of reverence and respect. Not only was the setting new for them, Jack’s demeanor was different. Not that he hadn’t exhibited a steady confidence during their previous afternoons together, he seemed more grounded and relaxed in his own private space.

They stood for a moment in the foyer, with Jeni getting used to the surroundings and Jack getting used to her being inside his home. She stared around at the wood, the glass, the variety of unusual potted plants; many of them orchids arrayed along the foyer’s glass wall like pieces of highly prized art. It was her first glimpse at the man beyond the sexual world in which the two of them played, and she was more than a little in awe.

When the silence between them became awkward, Jeni finally spoke. “So, do I drop to my knees now or wait for your command?”

A flicker of a grin lit up his face. “Dropping to your knees on a slate floor is not advisable,” he said.

“I appreciate your consideration, Master.”

Every time they’d been together was an unfolding mystery, and now in his house, she had no idea what to expect. She continued to observe her surroundings, and finally commented, “This is an amazing place. I didn’t expect anything so, um, so unique. I love it.”

“Thanks. It’s taken some time to get it looking this way. If you have to live in the middle of civilization you might as well find a way to pretend you’re not.”

“I can see, can’t even see the street from up here.”

“Just the way I like it.” He moved around her and closed the front door, then set off through a corridor toward the back of the house, apparently expecting her to follow along. Once they entered his living room, he moved toward the long bank of windows that looked out to the rest of his spectacular yard and its beautiful grove of trees. She stopped just short of him, a couple feet away, wondering what to do next, when Jack promptly answered that question by reaching out and drawing her toward him.

He kissed her several times in that light, delicate way he had with his soft lips, then bore down harder with their mouths opening wide. He didn’t touch her otherwise, didn’t bring her into his arms as she would have liked, and when he finally backed off, he placed a hand on her shoulder and said, as he gently pushed her to the floor, “Now you can kneel for me.”

There was a thick rug beneath her feet, covering a section of hardwood floor in front of a fieldstone fireplace. Once her knees sank to the carpet, he backed up two feet and sat down in a well-worn leather club chair – what she expected any University professor would have in his home. There was the scent of firewood in the air, along with wood polish and something citrusy, lemon oil, she guessed, and several stacks of books, most of them within reach of his chair for easy access. There was a table, bookcases, chairs, though she’d remember little else from the first cursory glance. She could have studied every feature and memorized the details of every item, but once she settled into her kneeling position and caught Jack’s glance, her attention fixated solely on her master and the rest of the room seemed to vanish.

“You look a little overdressed,” he said, as he viewed his kneeling sub. Already she could feel the rooted vibration of his dominant presence envelope her body. The feeling washed through her like a drug. If she had any doubt that he was master and she was slave, this feeling alone was enough to confirm the fact.

And now he wanted her to undress.

She bit her lip, momentarily flustered by his veiled command. Although she’d stripped for him twice before, it was like that first time all over again. Nervous shivers. A blushing face. Not to mention she was on her knees, in his house and more self-conscious than ever. Smiling warily, she lifted her tee shirt over her head, then reached back and unhooked her bra, her eyes gazing into Jack’s, her cheeks beginning to blush as she stared into his inscrutable face. As her bra fell away, she looked down at the nipple ties seeing them messy and forlorn. Though when she attempted to straighten them, Jack stopped her.

“Don’t worry about them now, just finish taking off your clothes. I need you naked, slave.” The urgency in his voice was enough to get her moving, although her efforts to remove the shorts and panties were awkward and graceless. The red blush deepened on her cheeks, and her body was so fired up with anticipation that she could feel herself beginning to sweat. The aroma of her crotch rose up to greet her. For heaven’s sake! Why so jittery and raw now? As if she hadn’t been before.

Jack had a way of unhinging her, taking the mature, rational woman she believed herself to be and turning her into a mess of emotions, undisguised lust and embarrassment. Weirdly, this was just the kind of feeling that appealed to the submissive in her, even if it briefly left her half-crazed.

Jack finally saved her further discomfort. “Well, you have me horny now, slave.” He needn’t say more; she couldn’t get to his crotch fast enough. As soon as her mouth was filled with his warm, throbbing erection, all her anxieties were swept away. The aroma of his body soothed her; his rooted energy settled her down. She felt as if she were home, right where she belonged, on her knees, between his legs, bringing that stiff cock to a happy finale. As his warm, sweet cum jetted into her mouth, she swallowed all she could, smiling as she did. Once she was finally done, she lifted her head and sat back on her heels and sighed. With one glance at her glistening face, Jack handed her a handkerchief to wipe the residual cum from her mouth.

“I think you needed that as much as I did,” he said.

“I think you’re right, Master.”

She was panting and still a little breathless when he pulled her into his arms and onto his lap, where his fingers went straight to her pussy.

“So now to you,” he said. He fingered her clit with just a simple tease to start, and she squirmed against that finger, feeling his energy shoot up through her body. Then he inserted that finger in her cunt. “This your g-spot?” Yes. Right there. Right where he stroked, and teased and rubbed.

“Yes, Master,” she gasped, as her body instantly responded, “you can do that all day long.”

Within seconds, those skillful fingers had her writhing fitfully against his hand. “Ohmygodyes!” She seized up several times, saying, “Yes, yes, Master. I need to cum, Sir, please!”

“You wait until I tell you,” he backed her off.

“Oh, but that’s not fair!” she whined.

“This has nothing to do with fair, slave.” His voice was brusque and masterful.

“Please, Master.” She set her eyes on his with a hopeful look, though there was a glint of evil in his eyes – he liked denying her way too much. She ground her pussy into his hand, unable to contain the orgasmic feeling. “Please…” she tried again.

He looked at her solemnly and she was caught in his unwavering stare. “You want to come, slut?”

“You know I do!”

As his fingers continued with the torturous tease, he stared into her eyes. She thought he’d make her wait forever – although it was just a few seconds before he finally said, “Then come.”

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, she let go that first climactic spasm, and her juices spurt out over his hand. Barely able to control her orgasming body, she clung to him as she seized up another half dozen times more before she finally took a breath. And then because he kept on fingering her hot wet hole and thrusting his fingers into her cunt, he had her cumming hard again, spasm after spasm until she thought the spasms would never end.

Finally, she pulled back seeing Jack staring at her with dispassionate interest. She loved the way his cool demeanor made her feel, the way it distanced them and, at least on a sexual level, reminded her that they were not equals in this relationship. Was this all just a mind-game? A stellar demonstration of the power of their imagination? She knew it had to be more than that. Something arising from their sexual nature that was basic to them both, creating such urgent desire and desperate wanting. No, this was no game. This was real.

“You had enough?” he finally asked.

“I never have enough of you,” she said as her mind drifted off into subspace.

He gave her ass cheek a sharp smack. “I meant enough cumming.”

She blushed again. “Yes, Master.”

He held her several seconds more, with his commanding energy pouring into her body and generating a fresh wave of desire. This time however, there was something about the desire that was more sensuous and affectionate than orgasmic. The feeling didn’t just stir her body, but hit her squarely in the heart, and if she hadn’t purposefully reined in the emotion she might have teared-up. When he finally released his hold, she dropped down to the carpet between his legs, and there she stayed, resting her head on his knee.

“Thank you, Master.” This time, Master rolled off her tongue without her giving it much thought.

Feelings of surrender bloomed within her, while a dozen scenes swept before her inner eyes – her mind filing though all the dark places he would take her – spanking, whipping, bondage, humiliation. She wanted him to drive her deeper into her kink as he took control, and with that idea swirling through her thoughts, her mind suddenly kicked in, offering up an act of surrender that hadn’t crossed her mind in a long while. Now it nagged at her with such urgency that she couldn’t push it away.

“I want you to slap my face,” she spit out before she could stop herself. When she saw his reaction – something between alarm and curiosity – she immediately regretted that slap my face. “Not hard enough to hurt me but hard enough to feel the sting.”

“I’m not sure how I feel about that,” he said, “but I’ll keep it in mind.”

Keep it in mind…had he filed the information away for later or discarded it entirely?

At the moment, he was restless. “How about we take a look around the yard?”

He moved to his feet and so did she, though when she reached down to grab her clothes, he stopped her. “Leave them here. You can do this naked, though you’ll need your sandals. Don’t want your bare feet torn up on the gravel path.”

She slipped her feet into her sandals and moved with him through a door in the living room that opened to a raised wooden terrace and the rest of the yard. Jack took her hand as he led her along the paths around the Koi pond, over a Japanese bridge at the far end, then deeper into the woods.

Jeni was barely with him. Her body and mind were still swimming in the sensations of the last half hour and that spectacular cum. But every molecule in her body was wide open to the world she saw – the flowers, the forest floor thick with ferns, and the trees were just part of this beautiful dream. Oh, the trees! She could have wrapped her arms around any one of them and just remained there with the strength of that tree moving through her. What bliss that would be!

As they strolled together through a stand of tall pines, her eyes began to focus. Instead of a beautiful blur, each tree and flower and plant stood out before her eyes. She was awed by what he’d created here. How he’d kept the landscape natural, while summertime flowers were blooming where he scattered perennials amidst the trees.

Naked glory. Like she was naked now.

The sudden reality of naked woke her up from what remained of the dreamy trance.

Jeni wasn’t used to naked in the out-of-doors, and some inhibitions are hard to shake. But the sun, the air, and the gentle afternoon breeze filtering through trees, made her flesh come alive and her skin tingly and raw – even if the experience was increasingly unsettling.

“You know this isn’t easy,” she finally spoke, “I don’t do naked out-of-doors very well.”

“You’ll get used to it,” he said. “When it’s warm enough, I don’t see any reason for you to be anything but naked. When you’re with me, of course.”

She let that thought sink in. “Then I guess I’ll get used to it.”

He smiled, and squeezed her hand.

As their walk continued, the conversation shifted, and Jack began a long monologue about his woods and trees and plants, all of which was fascinating. There was so much to take in that she wouldn’t remember it all, but the passion with which he spoke made an impact. He wasn’t a particularly demonstrative man, never would be, but the feeling in his voice shifted as he talked about what he’d created in this tiny oasis revealing a piece of him she’d not yet glimpsed.

“It’s one of the most peaceful and pretty places I’ve ever seen. I love the flowers. Hard to believe we’re in the middle of the city. You did this all yourself?”

He nodded. “It’s taken a couple years and a lot of work, but it pretty much takes care of itself now.”

“You have quite a flair for landscape design.”

“Thanks. When I have a chance sometime, I’ll identify some of the plantings for you. There are some rare, exotic ones I’m pretty excited about.” He turned toward her, “Interesting for a botanist I guess, maybe not a writer.”

“But I am interested,” she said. “Everything is fuel for my muse. You never know, this garden could pop up in one of my stories.” Her eyes glittered darkly, with her mind immediately taking a naughty turn. Every fallen log was a place to be bent over and spanked – or fucked; every rough tree trunk a whipping post, every whippy sapling a potential implement of torture. Everything around her became erotic, including the feel of Jack’s warm palm against her own.

Deep into the trees, he suddenly stopped and pushed her against the trunk of a maple tree.

“You must have been reading my mind!” she laughed, then she fell into the scratchy bark and began to move on it as if it were a lover.

Jack stepped back to watch. “Go ahead and dance against it, wench. Your ass looks damn hot. You getting aroused again?”

“Yes, I am, Master…” she could have said more, but her body seemed to speak for her.

This was the first time she remembered him making any comment about how she looked; he dished out compliments sparingly, but this certainly sounded like one.“You’re quite the slut.” He finally moved in and smacked her ass a dozen times. The sound of his hand on her flesh rebounded off the trees and echoed back. Then he abruptly pulled her off that rough lover and their walk continued until they returned to the terrace, having made an entire circle of the property and woods.

Jack stepped up on the decking where several chairs, a small settee and tables were randomly scattered around the irregularly shaped terrace. Pulling a cushion from one of the chairs, he tossed the dark green tufted pillow to his feet.

“There’s a matter of slave business we need to deal with,” he informed her. “You’ll do this on your knees.”

Slave business? Her insides were in a sudden panic.

After having settled into such a sensuous and dreamy state of mind and body, the swift shift in Jack’s attention, back to the subject of her slavery, had her more than a little nervous. She shuddered so deeply as she carefully knelt on the cushion that she almost lost her balance, and in fact, had to use a close by table to steady herself until the dizzying sensation passed. Even then, her body was flushed with arousal, and she feared she’d come again as soon as he touched her.

When she looked up, Jack was in front of her, holding a cardboard box. Her curiosity was instantly piqued. With her eyes glued to his hands, she watched in awe as he withdrew an item from inside the box made of black leather and gleaming stainless steel. She reacted instantly with a noticeable shudder – seconds before she figured out that he held a formidable looking slave collar. She shouldn’t have been surprised; collars had been part of their ongoing conversation, but the fact that he’d already purchased one took her completely off guard.

“What do you think?” The look of the thing was almost too much for her and she didn’t know what to say. Finally, she spit out the first thing that came to mind:

“That’s quite a collar.”

“It is.”

The collar consisted of a nearly 2” band of black leather, with a smaller, yet still sizable steel band ringing the center of the entire thing. There was some sort of fastening mechanism that required a padlock, which Jeni couldn’t see clearly. Every feature of the collar’s design seemed ominous and wonderful, straight from a submissive’s fondest fantasies – including many of her own. She wanted to take a closer look, to hold it in her hands, lift it to her nose to smell its scent, but the collar abruptly disappeared from view as Jack moved around behind her.

“You’ll wear this whenever I tell you to, and can pretty much expect to when you’re with me. Not in public, of course.”

She took a deep breath, while trying to wrap her mind around what this sudden turn would mean to their relationship. As Jack fit the leather and steel around her throat, his commanding energy flooded into her body. She reacted to the touch of his fingers with a tremor of want, and when the lock clicked shut, the sound of it – though it was just a small sound – reverberated all the way to her toes.

Once the collar was in place, he moved back around and faced her, with the key to the padlock in his hand. “The lock is keyed the same as the ones that fit the cuffs. If the need arises, you can unlock it yourself, although while we’re together, the key stays with me.” As she expected. “So what do you think?”

She looked at him dumbfounded. “I think you surprised me. But I like the looks of it, at least what I’ve seen.”

“You’ll get a closer look soon enough.”

“And you, Master? You like the way it looks?”

“I do.” He nodded, obviously pleased. “Weighty, no-nonsense, not particularly glamorous. But it communicates the right message.”

“Message?”

“You’re owned, slave. You have an issue with that, you’d better tell me now.”

“None,” she said without even thinking. Her fingers grazed the edge of the leather, touching it delicately as if it might bite. The steel band was cool, while the soft leather warmed with her body heat. You’re owned. The words repeated in the back of her mind; it would take some time before she understood all that being owned by Jack would mean. But she liked the sound of being owned, and the way that owned made her feel.

“I do like it,” he stated again. Then his mood seemed to darken for a moment, with a visceral sort of feeling emanating from some shadowy place opening in him now. He nodded as if confirming his own thoughts, which he hadn’t shared with her. “It’s what I want to see you wearing. I’d planned on making more of a ceremony of it, but I’ve had it for ten days and was getting antsy to see it around your throat.” Like a substitute for his hands, was the thought that arose unbidden in Jeni’s mind. “I’m sure it’ll be too much for sleeping. You’ll go back to the training collar at night, but this goes on first thing in the morning.”

This next piece of her new reality falling into place would take some getting used to. She wasn’t entirely sure how she felt with the collar around her throat, but it did have a certain magic, putting her into immediate subspace, which would be the best place to be in the company of her master.

Pulling one of the deck chairs close to where she knelt, he sat down, so she could take up her favorite position between his legs without needing to move the cushion that cradled her knees. As he stared down at her with the full force of his eyes acutely trained on her, she felt herself shrink before him. His stare unnerved her, as if his eyes were crawling though her thoughts while she exposed herself to him. As if she were an open book and he was reading every private thought coming through her scattered emotions. Did he really have that kind of power?

That stare alone had her painfully aroused. She felt vulnerable before him.

Everything was happening so fast. What do I have to fear? Again, she asked that question of herself as she had so many times since their relationship began.

She knew that where he led she would dutifully follow, just as she always imagined she would do with a master. But had she leapt too soon? Was this what she really wanted for herself? Could her life honestly make sense in this unequal relationship? This wasn’t a fantasy, a game of let’s pretend. The emotions were too strong and the feelings too real, the desires too deeply embedded in them both to trivialize extraordinary moments like this one. Despite her doubts, and as absurd as this relationship often seemed, there was no way she could abandon it now. Nor could she dismiss the powerful exhilaration of kneeling bowed before the man she’d come to know as Master.

Jack leaned forward in his chair, his expression solemn and earnest as he grasped her behind the neck. Jeni’s eyes went wide. What was he doing? Her mind was in such a blur that she didn’t even notice when his arm drew back. But when he abruptly brought it forward and his palm landed squarely on her cheek, she was stunned. The effect was instantaneous, resounding through her body and brain as she spiraled down further into a state of surrender. He’d lit up every nerve in her body, and within seconds, she exploded in a crushing orgasm. Her body twisted inside his unyielding grasp as she seized up. “Ohmygod,” she vented in a soft and breathy whisper.

He slapped her again with the same result.

From the first slap to the aftermath of the second stunning slap across her cheek, Jack stared into her eyes with cool command, communicating the degree to which he owned her.

“You like that, don’t you?” He, too, seemed a little in awe of what he’d done.

“I love it,” she answered, breathless and bewildered. “Weird, huh?”

“Not for a slave. Hadn’t thought we’d get to this place so soon, but obviously it’s something you need or you wouldn’t have mentioned it.”

“Need? I don’t know about that, but I certainly love how it makes me feel.”

“And how does it make you feel?”

“Reduced,” was the first word that popped into her head. Then a moment later from her dazed subspace, she added. “Diminished. I feel diminished…taken down…surrendered, I suppose.”

“And horny by the looks of it.”

“You can tell?” she found herself laughing, “I’m about to explode – again.”

“Very good. It pleases me to know what a slave I have in you.”

Overwhelmed. She should have added overwhelmed, she felt that too. Like she couldn’t take more. Not another smack or command, or minute of groveling against scratchy tree bark. For the second time that day, she was nearly in tears.

“I think you need to fix your mouth on my cock, slut,” he said, smiling. “Put some of that libido of yours into me.”

Her tears were forgotten as she opened his fly, pulled out his cock and began another worshipful moment of selfless service. While she worked his cock with her lips and tongue, Jack groaned, his pleasure undisguised. Jeni’s body fired off a half-dozen spontaneous orgasms without his laying a single hand on her crotch.

***

Jeni noticed the shifting light, the shadows on the wall rapidly advancing with the day moving toward evening. She hated the thought of having to put her clothes back on and head for home. The afternoon had been a beautiful dream, just as the other afternoons in Jack’s company had been. She didn’t want it to end – ever. He’d lifted her out of the rest of her world, away from grief and sadness and the busyness of her hectic days at work. Here, she was slave and nothing mattered but pleasing her master, Jack Hawking.

In the interlude that followed the last blow job, they sat on the deck, Jeni in a chair this time, and talked about botany, her writing, Jack’s cottage and the mundane work of an advertising copy writer. This was an easy back and forth – much less awkward than previous vanilla conversations had been. And then, because she couldn’t wait any longer to ask, she broached the subject of leaving. “Master, I have no idea the time, but I should probably head home before it gets too late and the traffic south gets heavy.”

He looked surprised, “You need to leave? I planned for you to spend the night.”

She thought a moment. “Really? I didn’t expect to stay.”

“Is that a problem?”

“No, Sir, I think I’m fine. Tomorrow’s Monday—” she thought a moment, “I don’t need to be in the office until noon. I did my homework yesterday.”

“Very good. We’ll spend the night in bed.”

Her face brightened. She was almost giddy with the thought. “I’d love that. Although I don’t have a change of clothes, anything really…”

“You didn’t come prepared, did you?”

“I guess not.”

Jack shrugged. “So, you’re a slave. You make do. Besides, what do you need with a change of clothes?” There was a playful grin on his lips, as he viewed her bare breasts and naked crotch. “As far as I’m concerned, what you’re wearing right now will be just fine until you walk out the door and head for home. Since my opinion is the only one that matters…”

“I guess I’m staying,” she laughed. It had been such a long time – over twenty years – since she’d spent a first night with a lover. She could hardly remember what it was like, although she was certain that it was nothing like this. No slaves, no masters, no naked in the out-of-doors, no slaps to the face, leather belts, and very little oral sex – that was just not her thing at the time, though it was now.

“A lot of firsts for me today,” she said. She was still a little stunned by it all.

“For me too.”

“You, really? What’s new for you, if you don’t mind my asking?”

He thought a moment. “Never slapped a woman.”

“You liked that?” Watching him stare at her, she almost thought he’d slap her face again. But then she noted his rather perverse grin. “Brings out the sadist in you, huh?”

He barely nodded in agreement, still thinking it through. Those two firm smacks to her left cheek had left a lasting impression on them both. “Let’s just say that those slaps won’t be the last. Now, enough with the chat. It’s time I fucked you. Get in the house.”

Jeni could feel his impatience almost immediately, and scrambled to her feet, following him into the house, down the corridor to the foyer then heading in the opposite direction from the living room toward Jack’s bedroom. Before she could even look at the room, he had her thrust over the end of the bed with her ass raised high and shivering in wait. Her face was buried in the mattress. All of her focus had shifted to her bottom cheeks, where Jack was mauling the soft flesh. He slapped her hard with his hand and the sting on her ass quickly rose in intensity. She suffered the pain for several seconds, and was just beginning to feel a sensation of pleasure arise, when Jack abruptly stopped. She groaned in despair.

“Don’t worry, there’s more coming, pain slut.”

She opened her eyes, gazing back from her lowly pose to see Jack withdraw the belt from his jeans and double it in his fist. Her body bristled instantly. A moment later, he tore into her rear as if he were on a mission. Each smack was firm and punishing, and in response to each one, she groaned fitfully, while trying to bear the pain with some kind of submissive grace – though that was tough to do.

“Oh fuck, that’s nasty!” she blurted out. One minute she writhed as if she were begging for more, the next, she squirmed in agony, fought to get away. The uneasy paradox of pain and pleasure and that beloved leather belt was a lot to endure. Her writhing body went wild with pain and arousal; to survive his next crack of that leather, she drew on every bit of submissive grace she could muster. Though she wanted to take everything he dished out, she wasn’t certain that she could this time.

“You had enough?” he finally asked, with the belt still dangling from his hand.

She waited a moment, tempted to tell him to keep going, but another smack of that stinging leather? “I think I’ve had it, Master.”

“So have I,” he said. He dropped the belt and abruptly left the room, no explanation offered, though he wasn’t gone long. When he returned, she felt some cold liquid splash down her anal crack. He mopped up the extra with a towel so it wouldn’t drip, then began inserting his fingers into her ass. He worked her there for about a minute then changed to a rippled anal probe, which he shoved into the tight space as far as it would go.

She lunged forward and he yanked her back – the it was tighter than she expected. “Oh my,” she vented her distress.

“You’re doing just fine, slave,” he added for encouragement. Oddly enough, his soothing comment worked. Once the ass plug finally settled comfortably within her, he fucked her with it for about thirty seconds then pulled it out. “Good,” he said.

Good what? she wondered. Then it dawned on her that the purpose of the probe was to see if her ass was clean enough to screw, and apparently it was.

He shoved the probe back in and spanked her hard a few more times until her ass heated again. Then with no further ceremony, he pulled the probe free and replaced it with his cock. His stiff erection opened her even wider, but there wasn’t a moment of discomfort. His cock easily slid into her rectum and took command. Jack grabbed both ass cheeks and squeezed them firmly, while his erection thrust in and out of her in a slow, methodical rhythm. As he continued, his desire gained strength and the thrusting became more urgent, until the fucking turned savage, into a furious clash of libido, and the two were grinding into each other, moaning loudly and nearly breathless. All Jeni could think of was his driving his cock deeper, and with that thought in mind, her inner muscles squeezed down on his organ. She knew he was about to cum. And when she did cum, she’d milk him dry.

“Dear God, yes…” she quietly hissed. Her cries were stifled by the comforter beneath her. Sparks were flying inside her eyes. What he did to her ass was goddam amazing! “Yesyesyes,” she lifted her head and started to cry out while pushing her ass into his groin to force him even deeper. Never had she been ass fucked so hard and so deeply. “Yes. Yes. Do it! Fuck me!” she screamed, as if he needed more encouragement.

He didn’t stop. He just kept on. Going deeper. Using her like he would a captive whore. Wasn’t that exactly what she was?

The fuck went on until he couldn’t stop the fire in him from exploding. When he finally ejaculated, Jeni could feel his spurting cum with every pulsing shove. She was cumming too, though in truth, her orgasm had begun with the first thrust and it hadn’t stopped. It just got bigger, deeper and more crazy as Jack finally spent himself.

“You dirty little whore!” he shot out, scowling nastily, as she squeezed down one last time. She cringed again hearing him use the word whore, but that was just the piece of her that was still prim and proper in this reborn slut. The rest of her, the slave side, loved when he called her whore or slut or dirty or whatever came to his mind – not that she was about to admit that to Jack.

“You like your ass fucked, slave,” Jack declared as he pulled out.

“Yes, I do, Master.”

“This is good. Since I’ll be taking your ass again soon. Maybe even later tonight.”

***

There was no ass fuck later in the evening. Jack turned another page, wanting something quieter for the remainder of the day. Days were long in that part of summer, the sun not sinking low until nearly nine o’clock. They had already eaten and were lying in bed together by that time. Jack had the TV on, flipped through the channels, and with nothing to arouse his interest, he turned it off.

He sat up on the bed while Jeni lay next to him.

“Okay, slut, tell me more about your kinky desires.”

“More? Really?” She pulled up and scrambled around so she could look at him face to face. “Haven’t I told you enough?”

“Not if there are things you haven’t shared.”

“But I’ve shared everything.”

“Have you?”

She was all flustered. “Well…I suppose there might be a few…” she suggested, although at that moment not a thing came to mind.

“I asked a question, slave, I expect an answer.” He didn’t seem particularly upset that she resisted, but he still insisted.

“Right, I confess my nasty little secrets, put more ideas in your head and I’m doomed.”

“Maybe that’s the point.” He smiled.

“That sounds awfully cruel.”

“Cruel? Never. I’m a gentle and caring master.” There was that twisted grin again.

“Right. How could I possibly think of you any other way?” She flashed him her sassiest grin. “It certainly didn’t take much time to have you slapping my face.”

He shrugged. “You opened that door wide, Jeni. Now, quit stalling. What haven’t you told me? I’m starting to think you’re hiding something.”

Maybe she was.

She reacted with a sudden shiver, and a pointed, “Yes, Master.” Then taking a breath, she allowed herself to recall the fantasies she associated with Jack. “Let’s see. How about our dressing up, very modestly – well, not too modestly – going someplace nice, me with no panties and a skirt short enough that I’m sitting on my bare ass, maybe that butterfly thing you mentioned strapped to my cunt, you with the remote control, me a puppet you control with the a push of the button.” She was getting hot just thinking about it.

“I like that,” he nodded. “Leave it to you to expand on my fantasies, and make them even better.”

“You see!” she jumped on that right away, “that’s what worries me. There is a drawback to all this kinky stuff going on in my head.”

“Just think of it as pleasing your master.” By the look on his face, he thoroughly enjoyed seeing her squirm.

“Right. While getting myself in trouble.”

“This is you talking, Jeni. You thrive on playing the naughty slut.” His eyes narrowed mischievously. “A puppet, huh. Nice idea.” She could imagine the wheels turning in his inscrutable brain. “So what else?”

“Well, let’s see.” She was more than a little squeamish about what popped into her mind next. When she finally spit it out, she’d cocked her head coyly like a bashful kid. “You’ve mentioned this too, golden showers?”

“You said you did that before…and liked it. Right?”

“Well, maybe I liked it. I’m not so sure.”

“And did you swallow too?” he asked.

Her face reddened and she bowed her head.

“Look at me when you answer.”

She was suddenly burning inside with embarrassment.

“Yes, I swallowed. But I don’t remember liking it.”

“And if I ordered you to swallow?”

She felt a steady throbbing in her cunt. “An obedient slave would do that, wouldn’t she?”

“Yes, she would,” he said. His studied gaze had her trembling. “And she’d be turned on, just like you are now.”

“Who said I was turned on?” Her embarrassment deepened.

“You did,” he laughed. “The more you think about drinking my piss, the hornier you get.”

Her face was bright red, and she pulled up the sheet to cover it.

“I suppose you’re turned on, too?” she shot back.

He pulled back the comforter and showed off his hard-on.

“You want me to go down on you?” she asked, maybe steer him away from this interrogation.

He covered his crotch again. “No, don’t stop now. I’m enjoying watching you suffer. Plus, you’ve got me hard again, let’s keep it up.”

Jeni took a long look through her fantasy bag of tricks, deliberately avoiding one subject in particular while searching for safer things to confess. When nothing of any consequence came to mind, she knew she couldn’t ignore what was nagging at her. Like a kid in a crowd with a cardboard placard. The truth scrawled in permanent ink. Blinking neon in the dead of night. There was no mystery to this. She’d been masturbating to the fantasy for years, and most noticeably since Jack appeared in her life and started talking masters and slaves, remote wilderness cottages and a level of obedience she’d dreamed of, in spite of where it would lead her.

“You know fantasy is one thing, reality something different. You want something I’d actually do?”

“There you go again,” he said. His eyes remained fixed on hers. “There’s got to be something really nasty going on in that mind of yours to have you stalling. Let’s not keep it a secret.”

She shifted positions, blushing enough to have her face as hot and throbbing as her horny cunt. “Okay…so in the past, you’ve asked about my being ‘shown off’ to other men…well, I think about that a lot.”

“Do you?”

“Yes. I wonder if that’s something you’d do, actually show me off?”

“I might.”

Her libido had been idling in a steady low gear and suddenly shifted forward. “You have anything particular in mind?” she wondered aloud.

“I still have a few friends in the scene. Though I’m not sure that scene-friendly really matters.”

Her eyes widened. And what exactly did he mean by that? She was afraid to ask, but unafraid to transmit her current state of arousal as she rubbed her cunt into the mattress.

He observed her with some amusement. “This is really turning you on.”

“Maybe.”

“Maybe?” He laughed outright then he reached toward her bare breasts, lightly stroking a nipple. Her body tensed, and she pressed her pussy even deeper into the bed.

“Now that turns me on.”

“I know it does.” His fingers continued going back and forth from one nipple to the other, stroking the hard little buds with such a delicate touch that she wished he’d be a little more aggressive. Her arousal was starting to spike, and there were spasms going off in her belly and sex. If he kept this up, she’d come.

“Yessssss…” she was nearly delirious with the pleasure bounding through her. She might have even climaxed if he hadn’t abruptly switched gears again. Taking her right nipple between his thumb and index fingers, he pinched it roughly, then twisted it to the side. “Ouch!” she squealed, and tried to pull away.

“You stay right here, slut,” he snapped. He repeated the torture with her left nipple, pinching and twisting it until she shrieked again. Finally, he tugged on both nipples, pulling her tits as he did, while she breathed deeply and drove the pain into her smoldering crotch where it fed her lust.

When he finally let go, she was panting hard and she pressed hand between her legs and fondled her pussy. “You suppose we could just fuck?” she asked.

“We could, but we’re not,” he answered. “Settle down and keep talking.”

“Really? What else is there to say?” She was frustrated and cross, and her face communicated that fact.

Jack put his palm against her face. When she tried to turn away, he gave her a pat on the cheek. “Look at me.”

She did. “Sorry, Master.”

“I like where this conversation is going. Keep talking, slut.”

She didn’t know where to begin again, but there were a lot of questions in her mind about things that had been mentioned before. She might as well spit them out now. “So, you’d actually show me off to your friends?” she asked.

“It’s a possibility. You think about that a lot?”

“Hummm. More often than you know.” She wondered just how far he would go. This was tough territory for her – frightening, yes, but with thrilling possibilities. “So how would that happen? You showing me off?”

“Not sure.” He shrugged. “Maybe here, maybe the cottage. Let’s just say, right now, if one of my friends – and it would depend on who it was – were to happen by and you were, let’s say, dressed the way you are now, collar, cuffs and otherwise bare-assed naked, I wouldn’t necessarily make you cover up.”

“Really?” She could see it now, like one of the fantasies she wrote about, but this was no fantasy.

“Yes, really. Far as I’m concerned it’s going to happen, eventually.”

She took a breath. “Now that makes me nervous.”

“Nothing wrong with that.”

“And if I balk?”

“You’ll balk. But whether you like it or not, you’ll get through it. You’re a slave. You balk enough to get me pissed, you’ll get punished right then and there, and it won’t matter who’s looking.”

“Oh, you are a hard master.”

“No. I’m gentle and caring,” he reminded her, with a tender smirk, “as long as you’re obedient.”

“I’m not going to win anything here, am I?”

“Depends on what winning means to you. I think you’ll win all the way around since you’ll be so fucking horny you’ll be begging me to screw you, which I will – eventually.” He let that thought linger between them for a moment. “So. You’ve managed to skirt my question by picking my brain. Now it’s back to you, Jeni.”

“Oh, you are utterly merciless, Jack Hawking.”

He smiled, pleased with himself. “Good. That tells me you have more to confess.”

“I don’t know how to top that.”

“Try.”

She really wanted to protest but she didn’t dare. Getting stubborn with this man wouldn’t work. She’d let him trump her. She was sub; giving in was what subs do.

“Well,” she took a breath. Why did she have to be so dang honest? “Since we’re on a roll here…I often think about how fucking hot it would be if you were to take the showing off a little further, maybe, and let your friend,” she could barely spit it out, “inspect me.” She stopped with that, then quickly, added, “There, Master! You have it! That’s all the confession I’m going to make today. You’ve worn my brain out. Just so you know, that’s what I was hiding.”

He laughed. “Well, how about that. We think alike.”

“I was afraid that’s what you’d say,” she said, though she was smiling, too.

There was a whole lot more behind that fantasy that she didn’t tell him, including possibilities she was sure he hadn’t thought of. But apparently, she’d satisfied his curiosity for now. He didn’t ask for more. He ended the interrogation by tackling her down, planting his cock between her legs, and screwing missionary style, nothing kinky about it, although as his erection banged into her hungry pussy, she felt taken and used, like she was his property, which indeed she was.

They parted ways the following morning with so many sexy kisses and hugs that she would have called in sick and kept kissing her master all day long. But as was typical for their relationship, Jack was the voice of reason. He pushed her off with a heavy sigh. “I’ll have students lining up outside the door of my office if I don’t get there soon. And you’d better get to work. Drive carefully, slut. Want to see you all in one piece next weekend. I’ll be coming down.”