Love Unbound (7 page)

She nodded. “Yes, Master.”

“Fuck!”

Jay startled at the harsh word; she
stared wide-eyed at Brendon. He let go of her arms and stepped back a fraction,
spearing his hand into her hair, clenching his fist around it. She had no
choice but to follow when he tugged her away from the door, pulling her back
through her small apartment.

He pushed her, face first over the back
of her sofa, his hands running over her back and legs.

“Master?” she squeaked out, with alarm.

He didn’t respond, his knee lodging
between her legs. With a brutal move, his hands reached for the top of her
nightgown.
The sound of tearing resonated in her ears, before
she felt the chill of the early morning air on her naked back.

Brendon’s calloused fingers brushed the
backs of her thighs and moved up to her ass, now lodged in the air.

“Hell yeah, this is what I need,” he
growled, somewhere behind her, when his hand met her wet folds.

Jay knew she should resist, use her safe
word. He was drunk and wasn’t thinking clearly, but still she submitted. She
closed her eyes and laid her cheek on the textured fabric of her sofa. His
touch was sure, his fingers splaying wide inside her core. His thumb found her
clit and pressed against her hardening nub. She jerked up, nearly dislodging
him. He growled something low in his throat, his other hand clasping her left
hip, holding her hostage. Making sure she wouldn’t move away.

She wasn’t planning on going anywhere.
Not when one agile finger was slowly sliding inside her, testing her readiness
, pumping
once or twice, before withdrawing. She opened her
mouth to plead with him, but he was already there. The head of his cock
breached her entrance. A muffled groan escaped her, but Brendon didn’t hear, or
maybe he just didn’t care. He kept on pushing, her walls stretching to let him
through. “Oh, god,” she couldn’t help but mumble.

He wasn’t careful or slow. He didn’t take
his time acclimating her to his lovemaking. He just took what he wanted.

Heat was already swirling inside; her body
couldn’t be denied. Jay’s muscles bunched, and her hands tightened. Her breasts
begged to be touched, but there was no time. Brendon’s hands were unyielding on
her hips, while he fucked her hard, deep and fast. With short, sharp thrusts, he
took her, the movements making the head of his cock bump into her G-spot.

All too soon, her cries echoed about the
room, as her pussy tightened around his pounding length. He swore behind her,
but didn’t let go. Instead his hold tightened even more. She lay, exhausted,
slumped over her sofa, as he gave one last push and came in thick bursts inside
her.

****

B
rendon drew back and
looked down. His cum and her juices mingled together, slid down her inner
thigh, the trail of white stark against her skin. He stared at the evidence of
his forgetfulness, and yet, he wasn’t worried. He should have cared he hadn’t
used protection. He should have cared, but he didn’t.

His lack of concern was probably due to
the fact her legs were still wide open, her pussy beckoning to him in a red,
moist invitation.

He stumbled back. She pushed herself up
off the sofa, turning to look over her shoulder.

“Master?”
Her concern was evident in her soft, husky voice. “Are you alright?”

His head spun. All he’d wanted to do was
fuck. With every drink he’d knocked back, all he could think about was fucking
Jay. Before he knew where his feet had taken him, he’d left the bar, found
himself
at her apartment door, wanting her with a fierce
determination.

He shoved his cock back into his pants, fumbling
with the zipper. Guilt for his actions speared through him. Her submission was
a gift, not something to be taken for granted and abused, no matter how bad he
felt.

“God, Jay, I’m … sorry. Did I hurt you?”

She straightened, turning to face him in
all her beautiful, naked glory. Every soft, lush curve beckoned him.

“I need to get home. Ryan might need me—”

“Master, you can’t go home like this.
Come and lie down please.” She stepped forward, gripping his arm, tugging him
towards her bedroom.

No, he shouldn’t be here. He shouldn’t
have fucked her again. “No, I’m going home.”

A scowl crossed her face. “I’m not
letting you leave while you’re in this state. I’ll text Ryan and let him know
where you are.”

He raised an eyebrow at her forceful
tone.

“Who’s the master here?”

“Right now, you’re acting like a fool.
I’ll not obey any more commands, until you’ve slept off the booze.” Her tone was
scolding, as if he were a mere child. “Now, come with me.”

He let her lead him through her apartment
into her bedroom, the single lamp casting shadows. She pushed him down on the
bed and began undressing him.

Brendon closed his eyes, the pillows and
the bed scented of her, like fresh flowers in summer. He felt wrapped in a
cocoon of Jay’s soft, comforting voice, along with the feel of her soft hands.

“Sleep, Master,” she
whispered,
the feel of her lips on his forehead the last thing he remembered, before
blacking out.

Sunlight filtered through the curtains of
her apartment, making striped, sunbeam patterns on the bed, where Brendon still
slept. She was already up and dressed, her resolve set to have a talk with him,
before she left for work. She set the brewed coffee down on her bedside table,
along with the aspirins he would need for any ill effects from his obvious
drinking binge last night.

The sheets tangled in his legs, as he
began to stir, gave her a better view of his wonderfully muscled torso, his
lovely skin her fingers itched to touch. Her gaze moved up to his face,
shadowed in beard stubble. His hair was disheveled, giving him a rough, dark,
sexy look. It made her body respond, her nipples tighten, and moisture pool
between her thighs. Decadent memories of his every intimate, controlling touch
made her blood burn for more.

For such a dominant, controlling man,
there was a sense of vulnerability about him. It made her heart ache and want
to spill all the secrets hidden deep within her soul. He’d given her so much in
such a short while, instilled a new sense of worth and strength.

Her heart would accept nothing less than
absolute surrender to the love she felt for him. He didn’t need the
complications of an emotional woman at this time. They both had another focus
and needed to work together, despite what feelings, love or hate, may be
between them.

Jay sighed and sat down on the end of the
bed, watching, waiting for him to awaken.

His chest rose in a deep breath, before
he let it out slowly, rolling over onto his side; a rough, hoarse groan rumbled
from his throat. His eyelids cracked open halfway. She bit down on her lower
lip, watching him glance around in confusion, before his delicious, chocolate
eyes settled on her, recognition dawning.

“Your place?”

The deeper, husky tone of his voice made
her shudder with shivers of sexual awareness running down her spine, and her
lower belly clenched.
This was not the
time to think of sex, focus.

She cleared her throat. “Yes, what do you
remember?”

He lifted a hand, scrubbing it down his
face,
then
scratched at his chin stubble. “Not much,
but I remember you, I remember fucking you. Was I a total ass?”

She held in the flinch of his stinging
words, instead giving him a forced smile.

“We all deal with stress and grief in
different ways. You were simply dealing with yours.” She climbed to her feet
and got him the coffee and aspirin. Brendon shifted, sitting farther up in her
bed, the sheet falling dangerously low. He frowned, eyeing her wearily.

“Oh, god, Ryan.
Where’s my phone?”

“It’s okay. I
sent him a text earlier. He knows you’re safe. Here, this’ll make you feel better.”
She handed him the aspirin and coffee

He sat, taking
them from her trembling hands, throwing the pills into his mouth, then sipping
at the coffee. He moaned.

“It’s good,
thank you.” He eyed her warily. “Why are you being nice to me, when I’ve done nothing
but treat you badly?”

She raised an
eyebrow. “I was upset, yes, but I’ve also had longer to deal with Ryan’s
condition than you. I love him, and I care for you, even if you are an ass. I
didn’t go along with Ryan’s plan, just for Ryan. I also did it out of selfish
reasons. I wanted what he and you have, to feel wanted, to feel special. I won’t deny it. I like the feeling of
belonging this gives me.” She motioned to her side table where the collar he
had given her lay. “But now that you know the motives, you may feel
differently.”

His brown eyes
studied her intently; his silence cut her more deeply than any words could. She
masked her pain, keeping her expression passive.

“It doesn’t
matter. I’m a big girl; I can handle whatever you choose to do, but this isn’t
about you and me. This is about Ryan. He needs us, now, and you and I are going
to work together to make sure he is happy, for the time he has left.”

He swallowed
and set aside the coffee. “I’m used to being in control with Ryan, with
everyone and everything around me. His illness, I … I’ve never felt more
helpless. I don’t like it, and for the record, I’ve always wanted you, Jay, and
not just because of Ryan—you are a unique, beautiful person. It’s why I
couldn’t resist collaring you, but I am not sure there can be
an
us
,
without Ryan. But you’re
right,
we’ll both be there for him, together.”

“I appreciate
that.” She hovered, wanting to say more, wanting more reassurance. Mentally,
she shook her head; she needed to stand strong, even against Brendon. “I need
to go to work. I’ve cleaned your clothes. They are over there.” She nodded
towards the red sitting chair in the corner of her room. “Just remember to lock
the door, when you leave.”

She turned to
leave, but Brendon’s hand shot out, snagging her wrist, jolting her to a halt.
Startled, she glanced back at him.

“Thank you,
Jay, you’re more than I deserve right now.”

She stared into
his beautiful eyes. Her heart constricted, and she wanted to melt into him, beg
for his love, his touch. She forced herself to smile and nodded, not trusting
herself to speak. He frowned again,
before letting go of her wrist. She turned, straightened her shoulders and
walked from the room, without a backward glance.

****

Brendon and Jay put their Dom/sub
relationship to the side, while they worked together to take care of Ryan. Ryan
officially left his job. Jay took some time off from the Melbourne Library to
help care for Ryan when his headaches grew worse. The tumor started to affect
his nervous system; he had trouble with his fine motor skills, picking up
objects and even dressing himself.

When Ryan started vomiting, Jay was there
to help clean him up. Brendon left her to that duty. He’d always had a weak
stomach and low nerves, when it came to illness. He was more than grateful Jay
was there. Still, the guilty feeling that he should be doing more for Ryan
nagged at him. He did his best to make his lover smile, giving into anything he
wanted.

His beautiful boy with pale skin had
dropped weight, he looked thin and frail,
far
from the
lush young man he thought he knew. Still, his spirit remained strong. Brendon
was amazed at how Ryan could stay so upbeat and positive, while facing the end
of his life.

At the end of the fifth week Ryan
collapsed, while Jay was helping into the bathroom. In a panic, they called an
ambulance and rushed him to hospital. The doctors put Ryan through another
battery of tests.

The news was not good. Brendon and Jay
sat on either side of Ryan’s bed, while the doctors informed them that Ryan’s
tumor was growing at a faster rate than they had anticipated. It was only a
matter of days before it would finally killed him.

Ryan insisted on them helping to finalize
his funeral plans. As Brendon listened to Ryan choose the happy upbeat songs he
wanted played, the funny antidotes he wanted told and the poems he wanted read
out, Brendon’s anger tightened around him, strangling his heart.

“I want a celebration of my life, not
everyone standing around, looking miserable.” Ryan smiled, weakly. “You know, I
love to party.”

Brendon watched Jay grip his hand and
softly chuckle. “Yes, remember the time when we snuck in through the back door
of Club Steel, in downtown
Melbourne
?”

“Damn, when the bouncer caught us, I
swear the guy almost made me shit
myself
.” Ryan’s laughter
was the final catalyst. Brendon lost control, jumping to his feet.

“How the hell can you laugh, damn it,
you’re about to die!” He turned on his feet, storming out the door. He took a
moment, leaning against the hospital wall. His life was rapidly falling apart
before his eyes. Once he had everything he’d ever wanted and soon he’d have
nothing.