Slave To Love (48 page)

“She gets it. That’s all that matters.” Jace came up behind Taren and put his hand at the small of her back. “This is a business associate of mine.” He pointed to his face. “He knows what I’m into so this won’t freak him out.”

“Come on. Let’s go.” Taren climbed the stairs so fast that she probably left Jace at the bottom.

She didn’t care. She had shared with him about this dream and he listened. No one else had done that.

She opened the door to the place. It smelled amazingly clean and like flowers. She had expected the floral scent. It had the same layout as other funeral homes. It looked like a cozy home inside. Oriental rugs covered the floors. Light piano music piped into the rooms. The main office sat by the front door.

A tall, slender man came from behind the desk. “Are you Taren Kerrigan?” He held out his hand.

“Yes.” She shook it with vigor and wouldn’t let him go.

“I figured.” He smiled, showing off his crooked teeth. “My name is Brendan Roth. Please call me Brendan.”

“I know you’re going to think this is strange, but I’ve always wanted to own my own funeral home and do this for a living. I have my degree in mortuary science.” She kept shaking his hand until he pulled it back from her.

“Do you work at a funeral home now?”

She shook her head. “My goal is to own one.”

“That’s great, my dear. But first you must understand the business.” Brendan looked over Taren’s head and greeted Jace.

“I told you she would be excited.” Jaced put his hands on Taren’s shoulders.

“You were right about that. Let me show you around. Ask me anything you would like.”

Brendan showed her the different observation rooms and the caskets. Taren couldn’t concentrate on anything except what this man said. She enjoyed all of it, even the embalming room.

“If you would like, you’re more than welcome to come here.” Brendan walked her to the main part of the funeral home.

“For you to mentor me?” Taren couldn’t believe her luck.

“No, dear. A job. Work for me in all aspects of the business from bookkeeping to the makeup. I’ll teach it all to you.”

Taren couldn’t say anything. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tight.

“I take that as a yes.” Brendan laughed as he patted her back.

“Yes. As soon as I—” She pointed to Jace and the cameras.

Brendan held up his hand. “Understood.”

Jace pulled her aside away from the cameras and crew. “Cry.”

Taren looked at him. “What?”

“Cry. Loud and a lot. Cry.” He nodded.

Taren lowered her head, covered her eyes, and pretended to bawl her eyes out. “This is all so wonderful. I can’t believe it.”

“Oh, wow. I didn’t think she would get this upset.” Jace patted her back. “Where’s your restroom.”

“Down the hall and to the right by the side door,” Brendan said.

Jace guided Taren down the hall. Along the way he unclipped his microphone and dropped it on the floor. He did the same to Taren.

“You ready?” He bypassed the bathroom and went to the side door Brendan had mentioned.

“Ready for what?” Taren straightened her clothes.

“Adventure.”

Chapter Thirty-One

After a day like she had, Taren didn’t care where Jace took her. He surprised her by not only slipping out from under the camera crew, but getting Brendan involved by having a different car ready for him. Taren would have Jace for hours while they searched for them.

“Where did this car come from?” Taren asked while Jace drove at breakneck speed to his destination.

“It’s one of Brendan’s from his fleet.” He glanced at Taren. “It’s not a hearse and it’s not a limo.”

“Or one of the vans they use to haul bodies around in.” She touched his arm. “Are we almost there?”

Jace nodded. “Almost.”

Jace had driven across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel to the Eastern Shore side of Virginia. None of that worried her. He turned on a dirt road that seemed to have no end. She had no concerns. She knew Jace would protect her.

Taren managed to break from looking at Jace to glance in front of her. “Oh, my God.”

A monstrosity of a house sat in front of them with a picturesque view of the water behind it.

“Is this your home?” Taren unbuckled her seatbelt. She couldn’t wait to get out to look inside.

“No. It belongs to a friend of mine. Sometimes he goes out of town. I have the keys.” Jace pulled up in front of the house.

“First the house we’re filming in and now this. You are the key master, aren’t you?” Taren jumped out of the all-black vehicle and ran up to the porch but stopped before climbing the stairs.

“Why did you stop?” Jace walked up the steps and looked back at her.

“I can’t believe I’m about to go in there.” She shook her head.

“Believe it.” Jace unlocked the door. He nodded for her to come inside before he disabled the alarm.

“You make yourself comfortable. I’ll be right back.” Jace kissed her forehead before running back out to the car.

No way could Taren make herself at home in here. She never imagined walking around in a place like this. From where she stood, she admired the white leather couches in the living area and the huge, open kitchen that sat in front of the view of the pool and the water.

Jace returned holding a blanket and a basket. “Picnic.” He shook his head. “Not out there though. Too hot.” He took her hand and led her to an enclosed sunroom with simple but tasteful wrought-iron chairs and a table with a glass tabletop.

Jace sat the basket on the table and spread the blanket on the floor. “Have a seat.”

Taren sat on one side. Jace removed his shoes and sat across from her.

“So we have what looks to be a pasta fruit salad.” He held the container up and placed it on the blanket. “Assorted cheeses, crackers, cold fried chicken, some wraps, and some cool watermelon lemonade.”

“How did you plan all this?” Taren accepted a plate from him.

“After Lord No and Bubbles left, Kitty pulled me, Master Rock, and Fear aside and told us what the next challenge would be. So I asked to use their phone and set up the funeral home tour. Then I went out to my other phone to make the other arrangements. Brendan packed the meal and blanket in the car for me. I owe him big time.”

“It’s nice having good friends like that.” She took a bite of a turkey and cheese wrap that melted in her mouth. “I guess I should say thank you.”

“You already did.” He poured some lemonade into a glass and handed it to her.

“No, not for today, even though I can’t say thank you enough for this. I mean thank you for thinking outside the box. You could have been like the other guys and done something dealing with BDSM with me. You didn’t.”

“The day isn’t over yet.” He wiped his large thumb over her lips.

He reached into the picnic basket again. Taren knew he would be pulling out another dessert or maybe even an iPod and speakers to play music, not that she needed any. The sounds of the birds outside provided enough white noise for her.

Jace pulled out a piece of long, shiny, white rope. Taren stopped eating for a moment as she watched him coil it around his hand.

“Take off your clothes.” He sat up on his knees as he watched her.

Taren didn’t hesitate. She put down her food and stood. She removed her sandals first. Then she took off her dress. She did pause for a moment before she removed anything else. She didn’t know if Jace wanted her to take off her underwear. When she reached behind herself  to unclasp her bra he said nothing. She slipped it down her arms and tossed it to the side, then shimmied out of her panties.

“Kneel.” Jace pointed to the area in front of her.

Taren lowered herself to the floor and adopted the same position as Jace.

“Put your hands together and bring them forward.” He curled his finger to illustrate his directives.

Like a good submissive, she brought her wrists together and let her hands relax before presenting the union to him. Jace scooted closer to her by shuffling on his knees. He wrapped the rope around her wrists in an intricate fashion, always making sure he didn’t bind her too tightly. He slipped his finger underneath the loops to gauge the spacing. After a couple of minutes, he had her bound with rope cuffs that had a long handle on it to pull her.

“You can continue eating.” Jace moved back but maintained his control over the lead.

She stared at him suspiciously as she picked up her wrap that she had started. As soon as she brought it up to her mouth, he pulled on the rope, jerking her hands back.

Playing along, she lowered her hands and stared at him. “Sir, may I continue eating?”

“I said you could. Is there a problem?” He scratched his chin while still maintaining his hold.

The motion caused her hands to jiggle. She lifted the food up to her mouth again. He pulled on her, but this time he continued pulling until she had to drop her meal and lean forward to him.

Jace captured her lips with his. If her day ended right now, she would have been so happy. She had a man who seemed to know her every desire before she could voice them. He pushed her beyond her limits without limiting her.

When he broke from the kiss, he brushed his thumb over her cheek, using the same hand that held her rope cuffs. “I don’t think you know how truly sexy you are.”

“Because I’m sitting here naked in a strange house?” She laughed.

Jace shook his head. “Because you trust me.” He started to moved back, which meant he released his hold on the rope.

Not content with that arrangement, Taren swung her arms forward so that the tail end of the rope landed on Jace’s lap. “I think you forgot something.” She connected her gaze to his. “Don’t let me go.”

Jace held onto the rope. “Come over here next to me.”

She didn’t need to hear that invitation twice. Taren stood and padded over to Jace. She kneeled next to him and sat down on her haunches. From that position, Jace fed her. He held up items for her to take bites. When she asked for drinks, he provided that for her as well. He took care of her.

“This is good.” Taren smiled and nodded. “Yeah.”

“What are you thinking about?” Jace tugged on the rope a couple of times.

Before she spoke, she took a deep breath. “I told you about my health. I’ve always tried proving to my parents I could do more, so that they didn’t feel the need to protect me. My father told me that it would be difficult for me to run my own business because insurers may not insure me.”

“That’s only one person’s opinion. Did you ever ask?” Jace wiped Taren’s mouth with a napkin.

“No. Fear kept me from taking that step forward.” She stared at him. “I did this show to prove I could be strong. But I ended up finding out more about myself. I want this.  The house slaves told me that they feel so much freedom in this lifestyle. I didn’t get it then. But I understand now.” She put her hands on Jace’s leg. “Thank you for an absolutely perfect day.”

Jace stared at her, silent. Taren didn’t know what went through his head. Did she scare him with her speech? Did he like her honesty? She’d never been this open with anyone. She hope he understood what he meant to her.

He didn’t have to pull her to get her to lean her head on his shoulder. Taren enjoyed her time with Jace. They ate and talked about everything.

Jace glanced at his watch. “I’m sure the search is over. We’re going to have to go, otherwise I’m sure I’ll be asked to leave the show because I’ve broken some rule.”

Taren moved closer to him. “Let’s break another before we go.”

Jace pulled off his shirt.

Taren would never tire of looking at Jace’s body. His broad shoulders, that buff chest with a light dusting of hair, his muscled abdomen, and that long, thick impressive dick.

Jace didn’t wait for Taren to make the next move. He eased her down to the blanket and covered her body with his. His kisses this time came across easy and relaxed like the two of them owned this house and had woken up on a Sunday morning.

He wrapped the rope around his hand and pressed it against the floor above her head so that she had to have her hands over her. No doubt in her mind that he controlled this moment.

She flinched when he touched her breast. “Sorry. Still a little tender.”

Jace brought his head down and licked her nipple slowly, circling it with his tongue. Taren had imagined this during her session with Fear, but the real thing beat out her fantasy. She wanted to run her fingers through his hair as he moved from one breast to the other, licking them, loving them, cherishing her, but she could only wiggle her fingers.

He moved down her body to her stomach, dragging his tongue over her. To do that, he had to let the rope go. Taren honored him by keeping her bound wrists resting on her chest.

While Jace had control over her, she forgot about the show. When they made love, she imagined a life with Jace. His slow thrusts in her made time stop. Jace kept his stare on her eyes.

“I won’t tell about this.” Taren shook her head. “I want more of you.” She coiled her legs around his body. “I-I-I…” She nearly blurted that she had fallen in love with him, despite his warnings. She couldn’t help it. If she said it to him and he didn’t respond the same way, or worse, if he tried convincing her that she shouldn’t love him, it would devastate her. “I love Pop Rocks.”

Jace smiled. “I know a way to use them that you would totally enjoy.”

As soon as she came, Jace did also. He stared at her, not pulling out, like he wanted to tell her something. “Come on. Let’s shower and get back.”

Taren smiled but her heart broke. She needed to take Jace’s advice and stop wearing her heart on her sleeve. She would have to make a decision that wouldn’t be easy. She needed to use her head and not her heart.

****

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Kitty paced in front of Jace and Taren.

Jace would have laughed if he didn’t think the pint-sized Domme would kick him off the show now that they got to the very end.

“You pull a Houdini at the funeral home?” She shook her head while she marched. “I knew I shouldn’t have let you go out. Where the hell did you go?”