Page 6 of The Billionaire Submissive
It was hard to explain. Mistress L had started out at the local BDSM club three years ago as Lilly tried to find what she’d been searching for her whole life. She’d dated. She’d had plenty of sex, some good, some not so good. She’d even been engaged. But there’d been an emptiness inside her the entire time, an aching, gnawing lack, even though she didn’t know what it was. She’d found it at the club once she’d taken a crop in her hand. “They test me. It’s like each time I give them an order, and they do it, then I’ve proved my strength and will again. If they don’t obey, then I have to prove I’m strong enough to punish them until they do. Regardless, I’m growing every single day and becoming even stronger.”
Marie winced. “It just sounds so…”
“Medieval?” They both giggled. “We do draw a lot of inspiration from torture chambers.”
“Take me to your dungeon,” Marie gasped out in between gales of laughter.
Lilly pretended to rise. “Really? Great! I’ve been dying to take you down there.”
Marie’s mouth fell open and her eyes went round. “You really do have a dungeon?”
“No, silly. Just a room full of goodies. I don’t even bring anyone here.”
“Why not?”
Lilly took a long sip of her wine, letting the robust red spark flavors on her tongue before she answered. “They’re not inmylife. Does that make sense? Mistress L is who they need. Not me. They don’t even know the real me.”
“That sounds…sad.”
She winced and shrugged. “I’ve had someone for Lilly but he couldn’t satisfy the Mistress. I have plenty of men for the Mistress, but no one for Lilly. Eventually I’ll find someone who keeps both sides of me happy.”
The doorbell rang, causing Hank to set up a ruckus out in the back yard. Marie’s eyebrows shot up. “Are you expecting anyone?”
Lilly set the glass aside and went to peek outside. She groaned and dropped her forehead against the door. “It’s him.”
“Mr. Douchebag? How’d he know where you live?”
Lilly schooled her face into a hard mask and opened the door. “That’s what I’d like to know.”
Mr. Morgan gave her his most winning smile and held out a bouquet of roses so fragrant she could smell them without even taking them from his hand. “Miss Harrison.”
“Mr. Morgan.” She didn’t take the offered flowers, even though they were her favorite. He’d even gotten red ones, which was probably a safe bet for most women. He wouldn’t—couldn’t—know that red was her favorite color. Actually it was more than that. The color stimulated all her senses. It was like an aphrodisiac for her. “What are you doing here?”
“Humbly offering my most sincere apologies.”
Marie joined her in the doorway. “You’re not actually going to listen to him, are you? Though I see what you mean.”
“That depends on what he thinks he’s sorry for.” His thousand-watt smile ramped up another notch, moving from smug to downright preening at the thought she might have been gossiping about how good looking he was with her friend.Naturally, I ought to bring him down a notch.“I said he was pretty. But you know that’s the kiss of death for me.”
Marie snorted and his wide smile slipped a notch as Lilly had hoped.
“May I come in?”
Lilly hesitated. She didn’t want to give him a single tidbit of information about her. Not when he’d already tracked her down and somehow ferreted out her secret identity without even speaking to her first. This was her private domain. Literally and figuratively, the place she let her hair down. She was even barefoot, for God’s sake, dressed in her oldest, most comfortable threadbare jeans and T-shirt. Meanwhile he was still dressed to the nines in the suit that probably cost more than her car.
“I waited until I knew you had company so you wouldn’t have any reason to be afraid.”
“Oh, that’s not creepy at all,” Marie said, shaking her head. “No way, Lil. Don’t let this jerk in.”
“I always get my way,” Mr. Morgan replied, clearly a threat although he kept his voice even. “It’s how I clawed my way to the top. I assumed my reputation and position in the community would give Miss Harrison no qualms whatsoever about allowing me into her shop.”
She didn’t even try to keep the incredulity off her face. “Because fine, upstanding men in the community never take advantage of vulnerable women if they think they can get away with it?”
He inclined his head again. “And that’s why I offer my apologies. Secure in the status and privilege my wealth provides, I didn’t stop to think what it’d be like for a woman, alone, to have a stranger attempt to insert himself into her life so boldly.”
His words struck an odd chord in her. Did he really see it as inserting himself into her life? Not as a creative or business opportunity? She’d given him no indication whatsoever that she was interested in allowing him into her personal life. Silently, she stepped aside and pushed open the door.
“Are you kidding?” Marie stepped closer as Mr. Morgan passed inside, like she felt she needed to keep between them. “I don’t like this, hon.”
