Page 85 of The Thief
But I held it in.
I never knew it could be like this, and now that I’d found him, I didn’t want to let him go.
As we came down from our high, Tyler pulled me to lie beside him, holding me close as we panted. Then slowly, he pulled the plug out of me and nuzzled into my neck, kissing me as we lay, my back to his front.
“You did good,” he whispered. “You’re fucking amazing, Jess.”
“You weren’t so bad yourself,” I said, laughing quietly.
“You know, when you agreed to let me take you out, I thought we’d have a drink, maybe a dance, and then I’d take you for a meal. Then maybe, if I was lucky, you might invite me in for coffee afterwards. But I never expected this.” He sighed. “Ineed to expect the unexpected when it comes to you, don’t I.”
“Ditto,” I replied.
I stroked his arm as we lay together, then I whispered, “You’ve been the biggest surprise. The best, too. When I think about that day, about walking into that bank...” He tensed behind me, but I carried on. “I have such mixed feelings, because it was the worst and the best day of my life. I hate what happened, it was a nightmare. I hate what they put us through, what they did to all of us. But if I hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have found you. And I know it’s only been a short while, but I can’t imagine what life would be like without you. I don’t want to. I had to walk through a nightmare to get to you. And I’d walk through another if I had to.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he reassured me, his breath tickling my skin as his body pressed against mine, like a jigsaw puzzle piece that made me feel complete. “You don’t ever have to worry about that. And as for nightmares, you let me take care of those. That’s what I’m here for. That’s my job.”
“Is this the part where we fall asleep in each other’s arms whispering promises and... other stuff?” I asked, my eyelids growing heavy, my body too.
“No.” He chuckled quietly, lifting his head to peer down at me. “This is the part where I ask you how you feel about spanking.”
I glanced up at him, lost in a dreamy haze as I gave him a wry smile.
“Have I been a bad girl?”
He laughed, but a darkness fell over him again as his eyes glazed over and his breathing came faster. “Always. And I have plenty of toys in here to help with that.”
“Better show me what you’ve got, then,” I teased.
He kissed my neck then rolled away from me, pushing himself off the bed to walk towards the wall of whips, crops, and paddles.
“I think I might enjoy being your bad girl,” I purred.
He turned to me, smouldering and smiling as he replied, “Oh, you will. Bad girls have all the fun.”
“Amen to that.”
Chapter Thirty-One
JESS
Tyler was a man of his word. I’d learned that very early on. So, when he said we’d make use of the playroom, he really meant it. He gave me a night where I forgot my own name and didn’t know which way was up. But I didn’t care, I loved it because he made me feel amazing, giving me the kind of pleasure I’d never experienced before, but more than that, he made me feel powerful too.
Through him, with his help, I felt like I’d had a reawakening. Becoming a desirable woman in my own right, unapologetically so. I was a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend, but I could be seductive too. A temptress. He’d opened doors for me, and I was more than willing to walk through without looking back.
In the early hours of the morning, feeling exhausted in the best way, my body aching but my mind at peace, I started to drift offto sleep in his arms.
“We should head upstairs,” he whispered, moving to sit up and placing delicate kisses on my shoulder. “Get a drink and then sleep in my room. The bed will be comfier, and we can grab a shower.”
There was a shower room attached to the playroom, and we had access to drinks, but I agreed. Being in his personal space would be better. Plus, I wanted to see where he lived, so I could imagine where he was when he wasn’t with me.
So, I sat up too, watching as he moved across the room, picking his clothes up from the floor and putting them on. Then he picked mine up and came over to the bed to hand me my dress and bra. He kept hold of my panties, though. I wouldn’t be seeing those again.
I smiled contentedly as I put my bra back on and then shimmied back into my dress.
I stood up, and he put his arm around me as he led me out of the room. Then we headed down the corridor and up the stairs to his living quarters.
“We should grab a drink first. You need hydrating after that,” he said, winking and leading me by the hand to the end of the corridor.
