Page 18 of Candy Cane Chains

But I don't take orders. I give them.

"Please, Julian," she whimpers, her voice desperate. "Go lower. Please."

I pull back, standing up straight. Her eyes snap open, confusion and frustration swirling in their amber depths. She reaches for me, but I step back, just out of her grasp.

"Julian?" Her voice is uncertain now, a tremble replacing the desperation.

"What do you want, Ivy?" I ask, my voice cool, detached. I need to hear her say it. I need her to admit it, to me and to herself.

She hesitates, her body trembling. Then, finally, she gives in. "I want you, Julian. I want you to touch me. To taste me."

I shake my head. "Not good enough, Ivy. What do you really want?"

She swallows hard, her eyes never leaving mine. "I want you to make me yours, Julian. Completely."

A slow smile spreads across my face. "And what does that mean, Ivy? What does it mean to be mine?"

She hesitates again, uncertainty flashing in her eyes. But she knows the answer. She's known it all along. "It means... it means I only take orders. I don't give them."

"Good girl," I murmur, reaching out to cup her face. My thumb brushes her bottom lip, smearing the last of the icing across her mouth. She darts her tongue out, licking it off. My cock throbs at the sight.

But I step back, turning away from her. Her frustrated whimper fills the kitchen, echoing off the cold granite and stainless steel. She's fighting herself more than me now. She wants this, wants me. But she's not ready to fully submit. Not yet.

I grab a towel, wiping my hands as I walk out of the kitchen. Her whimper follows me, a sweet symphony of her frustration. I smile, cold and calculating. Ivy will learn. She will submit. And I will enjoy every second of her surrender.

9

IVY

Ipad barefoot into the living room, tugging at the edges of a blush-pink silk negligee that barely skims my thighs. The delicate lace trim tickles against my skin with each step as I come after hearing Julian call for me. Julian's living room feels different in the evening - the floor-to-ceiling windows now reflect the twinkling city lights rather than letting sunlight pour in.

I stop short when I catch sight of the TV screen. The opening credits of Miracle on 34th Street play across the massive display. My heart skips - it's the old version, my absolute favorite.

Julian sits on the leather couch, his dress shirt sleeves rolled up to expose muscular forearms. He doesn't look up, but I know he senses my presence.

"How did you know?" I wrap my arms around myself, suddenly aware of how exposed I feel.

"You mentioned it the other day. When we were baking." His ice-blue eyes finally meet mine. "I thought you might want to watch it tonight."

Heat blooms in my chest. That was months ago, a passing comment in a crowded room. "You remembered that?"

"I remember everything about you, Ivy." He pats the space next to him. "Every detail of the first night we met. All your favorite things. The way you bite your lip when you're nervous. Like you're doing right now."

I release my bottom lip, not even realizing I'd been doing it.

"Come here." His voice drops lower, and I couldn't stop if I wanted to. Which I don't.

Julian's strong hands encircle my waist, pulling me onto his lap in one fluid motion. My back presses against the solid wall of his chest, and his warmth seeps through the thin silk of my negligee. His heart beats steady and sure against my spine.

"Comfortable?" His breath tickles my ear.

I sink deeper into his embrace as the familiar opening scene fills the screen. Julian's fingers trail lazy patterns up my side, leaving sparks of electricity in their wake. Each touch ignites something primal inside me, making it impossible to focus on the movie.

"You're distracting me." I squirm as his hand slides down my thigh.

"Am I?" His other hand splays across my stomach, holding me still. "Watch your movie, sweet girl."

Travis used to complain when I wanted to watch old Christmas films, always pushing for action movies or sports instead. But Julian - he tracked down my favorite one without me asking, remembered a detail I'd mentioned in passing.

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