Shadow, p.8
Shadow, page 8
part #1 of Jaegers of the Consortium Series
Charity frowned. “Why those colors?”
Shrugging, Lucas walked over to a chest nestled in one corner of the room. “It’s something to do with signals back in the Pre-Cata days,” he said, rummaging through the chest and coming up with two different pairs of leather cuffs and a black scarf. “Different people use different words. But I like these and they’re straightforward for beginners. Stand still and keep your hands by your side.” He walked back to her, knelt in front of her, and strapped the larger of the cuffs around her thighs. Unable to help himself, he leaned forward and kissed her abdomen right above the sweet thatch of golden hair atop her rapidly warming spot. Charity laughed at the sensation of his kisses and tried to push his head away.
Lucas smiled up at her as he placed her hands back into position. “I said keep them by your side. I’m going to have to punish you for that.”
“What?”
“Relax,” Lucas said as he took the smaller pair of cuffs and secured them around her wrists. “It’s a minor first offense. We’ll start off light.” He connected the two wrist cuffs together by a simple metal clasp attached to both. Then, directing her to stand up straight and press her legs together, he did the same to the thigh cuffs.
With the cuffs attached to one another, and Charity’s hands bound in front of her, she was now hobbled. She tried to inch a step forward, but could barely get one foot in front of the other. Lucas steadied her when she stumbled into him, and gave her an admonishing wag of his finger. “Stay still for a moment.” He stepped back, and then began unbuttoning his shirt—very slowly.
He took of his suit jacket, then his unbuttoned shirt, revealing his chiseled chest. Her breathing became heavy; she felt her sex growing wet at the sight of him, at the thought of standing in front of him, naked and bound. Her eyes widened when his pants dropped. His manhood was already stiff, ready for her.
Lucas sat on the bed and helped her shuffle toward him so that she was just to his left. “Bend forward at the waist,” he said, taking her by the shoulder to guide her. Charity closed her eyes and opened her mouth, expecting, wanting to take his cock into it, but was surprised when he guided her down so that she was draped across his thighs with her well-toned ass presented perfectly for him. “So let’s start off with, shall we say, five?”
“What? Ouch!” Charity cried out as his hand came down across her bottom. A mixture of emotions raged within her: confusion, fright, and arousal all at once. It was shameful to be spanked as if a child, yet it was just like a scene from the story she’d been reading. His hand came down four more times, the last one seeming to bite into her skin. She cried out again, “yellow” hanging on the tip of her tongue. When she felt Lucas release her, she looked up at him, and swallowed hard. “R-re-really?” she stammered, trying to recover her composure. “Is that all you have?”
“I can always give you one for each of the household objects thrown at me,” Lucas said.
“Ouch! You deserved every-ow-one of-ow… them,” Charity protested between the next three spanks.
“The vase was uncalled for.” Lucas gave her one last spank, her ass cheek now a bright red. “One more for back talk,” he added, as she slid off his lap and into a kneeling position. He bent over to release the clasps on her wrist cuffs and reattached them to the cuffs on her thighs before releasing the clasp holding the thigh cuffs together. Lucas then stood and hoisted her onto the bed, laying her on her back.
Tentatively testing the new position of her bonds, Charity found herself spread wide open to him. With her wrists cuffed to her thighs, she had to keep her legs bent and parted in order to lie comfortably.
Lucas shifted between her knees, and she felt his stiff cock against her thigh as she looked up at him. Slowly, he brushed its head up and down her slick, velvety opening. Charity moaned. This was more intense than she’d dreamed.
She swallowed hard when he nudged against her waiting opening. “Please,” she said, her voice stuttering just a bit, “I’ve—only been with two other men before.” This admission brought tears to her eyes. Two other men for a grand total of eight times of actual intercourse, and most of those instances with Eddie, who’d been none too gentle. “Be kind.”
Lucas leaned down and kissed her tears away. “I’m guessing the dumbass on the phone, and that guy you hooked up with in school? Don’t think of them, or about anything else. It’s just us, here and now,” he whispered.
When he started to press into her, she tensed; her fingers dug into the bed sheets, she squeezed her eyes closed, rolled her face away, and clenched, bracing for the inevitable pain that always came with sex. Lucas frowned and pulled away to ease the pressure on her. “Charity, look at me, darling. Relax; I’m not going to hurt you.”
“But Eddie—”
He shook his head. “I’m not Eddie, and this is Elysium, remember? Paradise, not the Theocracy. Here, we believe that sex is to be enjoyed by all parties involved.” He smiled down at her. “Now, are you going to be quiet and enjoy this already, or am I going to have to get a gag for you?”
Charity’s lower lip trembled, and she felt more tears well up from his tenderness and compassion. It was not just physical pain she feared. She shook the tears and emotions away, smiled back at him, and nodded. He eased into her then, slowly. Charity couldn’t help but release a series of short gasps as she felt him fill her most intimate spot.
Moments later, she was gasping from the pleasure radiating from her loins. It was all pleasure. There was no pain. Lucas gave a slow thrust into her, and she gripped the sheets even tighter, her mouth coming open in a silent cry.
“More,” she breathed as she arched into him, the tips of her breasts brushing against his hard, muscular chest. Lucas didn’t make her wait, pushing inside her with slow, deliberate thrusts, using one of his hands under her ass to drive even deeper. It felt easy now. She was so wet. She instinctively tried to bring her arms up to hold him, but the cuffs held her in place, only intensifying her passion. Closing her eyes and clamping her mouth shut so she wouldn’t make a sound, Charity let out a series of high-pitched moans as she felt herself come ever closer to her release.
Moving a hand up to cover her mouth, “It’s okay, let it out,” he told her. “I want you to come for me.”
That was all the permission she needed. Charity took two of his fingers into her mouth and sucked, as a few deeper, well-timed thrusts brought her to climax, screaming into his hand as the waves of the orgasm exploded up through her. Her body collapsed into a trembling fit as her limbs tensed up, but she was restrained, and unable to wrap her arms and legs around him. Her pussy pulsed around the width of his cock. Then, she felt his seed blow into her, Lucas’ own moment of ecstasy. His loins locked with hers and their bodies shuddered together. For a moment, they were one.
Lucas supported himself on his forearms, keeping his weight off her but also keeping them close. “Take these off,” Charity said, jerking her cuffs, looking into his eyes. Lucas obliged by reaching down, one hand at a time, to release the clasps. Once she was free, she wrapped her arms and her legs around him, not wanting the moment to end.
Sliding his arms between her back and the bed, Lucas rolled with her on the bed so that she lay on top of him. Charity heaved a heavy sigh, resting her head on his shoulder. “That was the best lovemaking I’d ever had,” she whispered to him, laying a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.”
“You are quite welcome,” Lucas said, returning the kiss. “I’m hoping that this is the first of many nights together.”
“I’d like that,” Charity said, laying her head against his chest, listening to the beat of his heart until they both drifted off.
It was late in the night when Charity woke again, wrestling with thoughts and emotions. Lucas was breathing softly into her hair. He still held her close in his arms and the feeling was wonderful. She could get used to waking up like this.
But, a pang of guilt swept through her when she thought of what was expected of her back home. It was quickly followed by a flash of terror at what Eddie would surely do to her if they married. Life as she knew it would be over. She would be locked away in some gilded cage for everyone to ooh and ahh over; he would take her to parties where she wouldn’t be allowed to speak, only to listen—to him. She would be his necessary showpiece, a Baron Spencer accessory.
Another pang of guilt went through her as her hand drifted down to her bare belly. What had she done with Lucas? She rolled to the side and stared at the ceiling. Granted, she had wanted to sleep with him, and had loved every exhilarating, spine-tingling moment of it; however, she was in the middle of her cycle. If she became with child….
Oh.
And just like that, a solution presented itself. She didn’t know how Lucas would take it, though.
Moving carefully, Charity managed to extract herself from Lucas’ arms without waking him. He turned slightly, and clutched Charity’s pillow in her absence. Charity pressed her fingers to her lips, then to his, then gathered her robe and headed down the hallway to Ayla’s room. Being as quiet as possible, Charity crept to Ayla’s bedside.
Ayla was awake in an instant, sitting upright with her hand darting beneath the pillow to brandish her beamer. Charity yelped and put her hands up in front of her. “It’s me!” she cried. “Don’t shoot!”
“Geez, don’t sneak around the house like that!” Ayla said, clutching at her heart. “You’re liable to get shot.” She looked over Charity’s shoulder, toward the open door. “What are you doing here? Where’s Lucas?”
“Still sleeping.”
“You managed to get away from him without waking him up?” Ayla looked at her with surprise. “Damn, girl, that takes some skill!”
Charity shrugged. “I kinda perfected it with Eddie,” she admitted. “Which is why I’m here.” Ayla scooted over on the bed, beckoning for Charity to join her.
Charity frowned. “You’re naked.”
“When did that ever stop us when we were at University?”
“True.” Charity clambered into the bed to sit next to her. “Lucas and I slept together.”
Ayla grinned. “I’m so happy for you! Both of you!”
“Thanks,” Charity blushed. “We, um, didn’t use any kind of protection.”
“I have contraception potions,” Ayla reached over to her nightstand, opening the drawer, and pulling out a vial of purple liquid. “Here, I bought plenty.”
“No.” Charity pushed the vial back towards her. “I can’t. I… don’t want to.”
Ayla frowned, then her lips parted and she tilted her head back. “Right,” she drawled, “your little hang-up about birth control. Seriously, when are y’all going to wake up and join the new age?”
“It’s not a hang-up. It’s what we believe. But don’t you see? That’s how I can get out of this wedding! I can get pregnant by Lucas!”
Ayla raised an eyebrow. “That has got to be one of the dumbest things I have ever heard. You want to go and get knocked up, bringing a kid into this world, just to invalidate a betrothal? Don’t they stone people up in the Theocracy for that?”
“Only if it’s formal adultery,” Charity said. “I thought that you’d be supportive. Theocracy law says that I have to be with the father of my child no matter what. If it’s Lucas, so much the better! Eddie couldn’t touch me if I were having Lucas’ child.”
“Are you even listening to yourself? Geez! No wonder pirates have such a hard-on for your country! It’s populated by pompous, arrogant men who’ve been allowed total control over women! It’s almost worse than illegal slavers out of the Wastelands!”
“Please,” Charity begged, clutching Ayla’s forearm. “I really need you with me on this!”
“Okay, okay, okay!” Ayla said, freeing her arm and holding it up in surrender. “But you’re going to have to tell him about this plan of yours.”
“Can you tell him for me?”
Ayla shook her head, her red locks waving slightly behind her. “No,” she said firmly, and then softened when she saw her friend’s fearful look, letting out a resigned sigh. “But I’ll test the waters for you.”
“Thank you!” Charity said, throwing her arms around her friend and hugging her tightly. “Thank you so much.” Elated, she bounded out of the room and back down the hall to Lucas.
Lucas had since rolled to his back, still sleeping peacefully. She stood over him for a moment, looking down with a soft smile on her face. She loved him, she realized. She loved him for everything that he’d done for her, and everything he was doing. Charity parted her robe and let it fall from her shoulders to the floor. She eased herself back into the bed beside him and reached down for his cock. A few quick, gentle strokes, and he’d become somewhat hard, even in his sleep. She gave his manhood a soft squeeze and a couple of more strokes and he was fully hard once again. His eyes opened as she rose and straddled him.
“Well… this is an image and sensation I’d love to wake up to every day.” Lucas said groggily, smiling up at her.
Tears of joy welled up in her eyes. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that.” She lifted up slightly and positioned his cock at her entrance. With a long, languorous sigh, she sank down onto his full length.
“Oh damn,” Lucas groaned, his hands coming up and digging into her thighs. “You’ve done this before?”
“In my dreams,” Charity admitted. “You pleasured me earlier. Now allow me to return the favor?”
“How would I say no now?” Lucas asked with a smile.
She brought his hands up to her breasts, intertwining their fingers. “Because… I want to make love to you,” she said, then closed her eyes and rode him for the second time that night, until they both reached a roaring, simultaneous climax, collapsing together again.
Chapter 8
Charity’s words from last night came back to Lucas the next morning. Lovemaking… was that what happened? He called it sex, fucking, screwing, or many other euphemisms, but never once had he ever called it lovemaking. Then again, up in the Theocracy, they liked to put pretty little bows on the most basic of human emotions in order to create the illusion that they’re more cultured and refined than the rest of the world. Maybe that’s all it was. He got up early, leaving Charity to sleep, and found Ayla in the kitchen.
He told Ayla about the night, and his unclear feelings. Ayla laughed, patted him on the cheek, and told him he was just as adorable as when Charity came to her room in between their bouts of sex. “I just hope you’re ready for kids there, buddy,” Ayla chuckled.
Lucas frowned at the joke. “Why? Have you run out of birth control potion?”
“No, stupid, she doesn’t believe in birth control, remember? That’s why she’s only had a couple of lovers. She lost her virginity with that guy I hooked her with up at Harvard, but she was only with him once. She wanted to find out what the experience was like, and to ‘prepare for married life’, and they did it right before she was about to hit her monthly—by design. Eddie, he poked her a few times since she’s been back but that was so fast I think that he just blew his load on her stomach.” Ayla shook her head. “You’re the only man, ever, to have her at her peak and from what I heard last night, you were in her a very long time.”
Lucas sunk into a cushioned velvet rocking chair and mulled that over. He wasn’t opposed to the idea of children, but he’d never thought of the possibility, what with alchemists and Doctori making birth control so simple. But he had told Charity—on more than one occasion—that he wanted to steal her away from the jerk her parents had promised her to. What am I feeling?
Reading his expression, Ayla scowled and poked a finger against his chest. “You’d better not be thinking about ditching her now that you’ve had her,” she said, venom in her voice. “I will have no problem going over your head to get a new Consortium rep, and a contract out on you, if you hurt her like that.”
“What?” The threat interrupted Lucas’ thoughts and he shot an evil glare her way. “No! Gods no. You should know me better than that.”
“Good. I’m just making sure, because even though you and I might be done fucking doesn’t mean I want to lose a friend over this.”
“The thought of leaving her hasn’t crossed my mind. Quite the opposite, in fact.” Lucas was spared any retort that Ayla might have fired off when they heard Charity walking down the hallway.
She smiled brightly at them both as she entered the kitchen. Lucas walked over to her, taking her hands into his and giving her a tender kiss on the lips. “Good morning, my dear,” he told her with a smile.
“And a good morning to you too, my love,” Charity said. She looked radiant, in a white summer dress that showed more leg than anything she’d worn before. Her eyes darted between him and Ayla. “What were you two talking about just now?”
Lucas looked at Ayla, semi-panicked, as she stepped up. “About how overworked we’ve all been on this situation,” she said, coming forward. “I was thinking that we all need a day off, so to speak. Poor Lucas has been working himself to death over this, and you’ve been worrying yourself too much.”
“We’re at a bit of an impasse right now, anyway, until your imposter is caught,” Lucas added, not wanting to voice the possibility that the imposter might very well go to ground, change names, and do her defrauding elsewhere.
“Why don’t we all take in a show tonight?” Ayla suggested. “You two can go as a couple and Jake can take me. He’s on his way over, anyway. My treat.”
“Who’s Jake?” Charity asked.
Before anyone could answer, the doorbell rang, causing the three of them to look toward the front door. Moments later, one of Ayla’s maids appeared. “Pardon me, miss, but there is a visitor for you.”
Ayla grinned. Lucas knew that smile, and smirked to himself. “Show him upstairs to my room. I’ll be there momentarily,” Ayla said, and then turned back to her friends. “So? How about it? Take in a show tonight?”
