Page 48 of Ashes to Ashes

Ash stared up the length of my body with hooded lids. He licked his lips, and said, “I need you to do something forme.”

“Anything,” I answered.

And I meant it. Now that he’d promised to give one hundred percent of himself, I would do anything he asked, be anyone he needed me to be. At least I thoughtso.

But when Ash reached into his nightstand to pull out a ball of silky black rope, my breath hitched and my stomach lurched. “Ash?”

While we’d explored his dominant side, our play had been limited to whispered commands and an abundance of dirty talk. I knew he’d tied me up that first night together because he’d told me he had, but since finding our way back to one another, we’d never taken things that far again. He’d held me down and gripped my hands tight above my head, but he’d never actually restrainedme.

Sensing my panic, he kissed me again. “I need this, Rae,” he said, raising my right arm to the slats and wrapping my wrist against it. He tugged on the cord, testing its tightness. When he was satisfied I was restrained, but couldn’t hurt myself, he leaned across and did the same with my other hand. “I need you like this, just this once, I promise.”

Being tied to a bed wasn’t something I was comfortable with in just any old situation, but in a moment of blinding clarity I understood why Ash needed this. I’d asked him to give up a part of himself he’d held onto for years. By revealing his past, he would be giving me complete control over our future. And that made him feel out of control. Him saying he needed me bound wasn’t just a figure of speech for him. He literally needed to exert control over my body since he was giving me control of his heart.

When he was satisfied with his handiwork, Ash sat back to admire the knots. And then he dragged his eyes to mine. “I won’t ever hurt you. You know that, right?”

I nodded, and a whispered “yes” slipped from mylips.

Ash reached into his back pocket and pulled out a bandana. When he rolled it into a makeshift blindfold, I swallowed my trepidation. I closed my eyes in invitation when he brought it to my face. With the cool cotton resting against my closed eyelids, I dropped forward so he could tie the scarf behind myhead.

“Good girl,” he said, dropping a kiss on the top of my head. When he rubbed his palm down the side of my face, I leaned into his caress. “Such a good, good girl,” he whispered adoringly, the unabashed praise sending a surprising spiral of warmth through mycore.

“I’ll give you every part of me, Rae, but I’m going to ask the same in return,” he whispered seductively in my ear, the kiss of his breath against my skin causing goosebumps to dance along my body. “You can have all of me, but you have to give me all of you, as well. You’ve held back too, but not anymore. This time, I’m going to take everything you have togive.”

“Please,” I begged, not sure what I was askingfor.

“Pleasewhat?”

“I don’tknow.”

“You do know,” he whispered in my other ear, the change in direction startling me. I hadn’t even realized he’d moved to my other side. “What do you want, Rae?”

“I wantyou.”

He licked my ear, and I jumped, the bindings at my wrist pulling taut. “What else do youwant?”

I thought hard about what he was really asking of me. This wasn’t our usual playful banter where I told him I wanted his body and he told me he wanted mine. His need was deeper, and so was mine. “I want to know you. I want all ofyou.”

“Be sure aboutthat.”

“I am,” I answered. “I want everything. I want it all, Ash. The dark and the light. The past, the present, and the future. Give me all of you, and you can have all of me in return.”

“I am so fucking happy you said that,” he said. Then he ripped my t-shirt from my body, rending it in two, baring my chest to his eyes, hands, and mouth.

When his teeth clamped over my nipple, my pussy clenched, and all I could think was, “So amI.”

* * *

I lostall track of time. I was shaking and covered in sweat, my energy reserves completely depleted. From years of touring, I had better stamina than most, but it was nothing in the face of his need. Ash took me to the highest of highs, and then, when I couldn’t take another moment of his pleasure or his pain, he’d plunge me into the abyss.

“One more, Rae. Just one more.” Ash’s fingers skated to my pussy, slick with my juices and his cum, and my hips rose to meet him even as I shook my head and begged for respite.

“I can’t.”

“Youcan.”

“I have nothing left,” I croaked.

“You know how to stop me, but I don’t think you really wantto.”

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