Page 39 of Master My Love

She studied him for several long moments before she licked her lips nervously, her blue eyes bright. “I hope I can be the more you’re looking for, sir.”

He drew her closer and, with his mouth hovering above hers, he murmured, “I’m counting on it, sweet subbie.”

Eric lowered his head the fraction of an inch needed to kiss her right as the oven timer buzzed.

“The rolls,” she explained in a whisper.

“Yeah, and a good thing, too, or my new leaf would have been shot to hell.”

Although flustered in the beginning, Val settled quickly, and they lingered over dinner, enjoying her excellent food, fine wine, and nonstop conversation. There were no awkward pauses; they had more in common than either expected.

Both hailing from Texas, they loved Tex-Mex and the Dallas Cowboys, and shared an interest in baseball (Val’s stemming from her son’s high school days), a twisted addiction to low-budget horror flicks, and an affinity for tequila. Eric took his straight, while she preferred hers in a chilled glass rimmed with coarsely cracked salt and blended with ice, lime juice, and sugar.

She talked about her kids and the impact her husband’s death had on everyone. When she worried her sad stories weren’t what he wanted to hear, he brushed her concerns aside, genuinely interested in everything about her. He’d learned her husband had left her financially comfortable.Not rich, but she’d been able to pay off her mortgage, send her kids to college, and still not have to work if she chose not to. He admired her drive to finish school at her age and her need to feel useful.

Tonight proved they had other things aside from a physical spark to base a relationship on. Valerieseemed perfect for him. He felt at ease with her, enough to share personal stories, which he rarelydid.

After dinner, since it was early, they cozied-up on her couch watching a B-Movie from her classic collection—The Pit and the Pendulumstarring the late, great Vincent Price. Then, true to his word, he left her with a long, passionate kiss but no sex.

As he drove away, it amazed him she’d had the nerve to go to the club alone that first night. Her limited experiences with men had taught her when she asked for what she wanted her needs went unfulfilled. In a relationship with him, she wouldn’t have to worry about being unsatisfied. It was his job to coax the sexual submissive to the surface without squelching her newfound independence. Both sides of her were appealing; a blend of the two something he hoped to find in a wife someday.

Wife? Where had that come from?

Stunned by where his thoughts had led, he lost track of where he was and almost missed his turnoff.

Slow down, Dupree!

After she finished her class, he planned to ask her for an exclusive contract. Then they could ease into it over the next few weeks and months and see if they had something long-term. This plan seemed logical and well thought-out. It was also complete bullshit. And nothing like the impetuous, fiery passion Valerie had inspired in him on sight.

He wanted her in his life and firmly ensconced in his bed, and he was determined to make it happen quickly. Images of her waking next to him, warm and mussed from sleep, of showering with him, her wet soapy curves beneath his hands, and making love in his big bed, her wrists bound to the headboard while she arched and quivered, helpless to do anything but take what he gave her.

Although hard and aching for her, his brain changed gears from sex to everyday things, like her cooking in his kitchen, cuddling with her on his huge sectional couch on a rainy day, and soaking with her in his hot tub—one he didn’t have yet in the house he planned to build someday.

Switching lanes, taking the ramp to I-710 N to LA, he saw his goofy grin in his rearview mirror. This was going fast, but his gut instinct told him the future he envisioned was within his grasp.

Chapter 11

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