Page 104 of Lesson In Faith

Because he obviously trusted her not to run a hell of a lot more than she trusted herself, he walked off without waiting for her answer, crossing to the end wall just ten feet away where all manner of torture instruments waited to be picked.

Okay, so they were diving right on in to the deep end of the sex pool, she thought. Suddenly mindful of the clock ticking down the limited number of seconds, she toed off her sneakers as her hands grasped the hem of her sweatshirt to wrestle it over her head.

The sleeve snagged awkwardly on her cast, causing no end of frustration until she finally yanked it off and tossed it aside. The T-shirt she wore beneath followed quickly, but she swept the room with an uneasy glance before letting her bra drop.

The jeans and her socks were just as easily discarded; her panties, not so much.

He said naked, she reminded herself. Naked in a room full of strangers. Would they know she was suffering through the Rejuvenation? Would they ridicule her if they saw the silly little string dangling from between her nether lips?

“Ten seconds, darlin’,” Merrick called over his shoulder.

What was she supposed to do?

The remaining seconds counted down silently in her head as she dithered helplessly. When she got down to the last three, she panicked and scrambled onto the box, panties and all.

She regretted it when he came back with his chosen items and saw his eyebrows fold into a frown. Her gaze immediately dropped, unable to face his disappointment.

“Did you forget something, Tamsyn?”

She winced as he dumped everything on a table and rolled it over beside the box.

Merrick laid his hand on her upper thigh, stroking the length of her quivering muscles. “Relax, little owl. I’m asking a lot, I know. Sometimes, what I ask of you will feel like climbing a mountain and obeying will be hard. It’s meant to be. Take the panties off.”

Frozen in place, she could only sit and tremble.

“It’s okay to be nervous. It’ll pass, Tamsyn, I promise.” He shifted to stand between her legs, his hands gliding over her skin to grasp her hips. “I’m gonna help you. When things get scary, I’m not gonna let you suffer through it alone. I’m here whenever you need me, darlin’. Can you lift your ass for me?”

His voice was low and quiet, for her ears only. The tone was gentle, considerate.

She felt his thumbs hook into the sides of her underwear, squeezing her eyes shut as he pulled them down over her hips when she raised them, letting him take the last part of her protection. She didn’t just feel physically naked as the panties took a hike—she was stripped down to the barest, most vulnerable aspects of herself.

“There. Everything’s okay. The world didn’t end because you’re naked, little owl.” Merrick draped his prize over the edge of the table where anyone could see it. “We’re gonna try some basic restraints tonight. Fordham is the Shibari genius, but I know the fundamentals. Until the cast comes off, cuffs are gonna be useless. Any issues with me binding your hands, Tamsyn?”

She shook her head, then remembered what he expected of her. “I think it’ll be okay, Master Merrick.”

“Good save. Hold your hands out, palms together. Perfect,” he crooned when she did as he asked, then reached for a short section of rope. “This time, I’m gonna leave the rope a little loose. Just want you to get a feel for it, to understand the restriction.”

“You—you’re not going to hang me up?”

His mouth curved as he focused on looping the rope around her wrists, wrapping it down her forearms. “Probably not the best idea tonight, darlin’. Suspending you with an almost healed broken wrist is just begging trouble to come knocking.”

It felt strange, feeling the pressure of the rope on her bare skin on one arm, but not on the other. The rope crisscrossed her arms, tying them together into one unit. She could move her hands independently, but any other movement required thought.

“How does that feel?”

“Weird but okay, Sir.”

“Tell me if that changes.” Merrick smiled and ran his thumb over her lips. He picked up one of those whippy things from the table. “This is a flogger, Tamsyn. The falls are velvet leather, about twelve inches long. It’s for soft impact play, so there won’t be any sharpness or stinging.”

It looked innocent enough, she supposed. Nothing like the barbaric, gleaming links of the one he’d used on the woman earlier. The fronds swayed as he held it up for her to see, silently hypnotic, black and gold strands drifting back and forth.

They were ridiculously soft when they trailed over her bare thighs.

Merrick flipped the flogger over his shoulder, leaving it there as he grasped her upper arms. “Slide down, Tamsyn, then turn around. Press your hips against the edge of the box and fold yourself over the top. Feet flat on the floor. Make yourself comfortable.”

What other choice did she have but to obey? There was something soothing about having her arms bound; the connection she wanted to explore was already deepening, as though he’d captured more than just her limbs with his rope.

He guided her, keeping her steady as she strived to follow his directions to the letter. Her feet were on the padded mat, spread a little wider than her hips. The edge of the box was just the right height for her to bend over comfortably, her butt slightly raised, while her stomach and chest were fully supported by the rest of the bench.

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