Nicole Edwards - Perception

But in the light of day, Mitchell hadn’t been anything that he proclaimed to be. Oh, sure, for the six months they dated exclusively, he’d pretended rather well. It hadn’t been until she had officially collared him that he’d shown his true colors. He had even gone so far as to propose to her. When she’d told him she wasn’t quite ready to go that far yet, he’d shown her who he really was.

That one devastating night, she learned his true nature. He was a submissive when people were watching. He was an asshole when they weren’t. The first time he laid a hand on her, she’d kicked his ass out. Well, technically Xander had kicked his ass out because Mitchell had refused to leave her condo, while he tried to convince her that he was sorry.

How she’d been so blind, she truly had no clue, but it had been a rough few months for her.

Regardless, she didn’t take the notion of collaring a submissive lightly, and she knew by the way Xander stared back at her, not moving as he waited for her response that he did too. Now that she thought about it, in all the years that she’d known Xander, never had he collared one of his pets, even a few he’d coveted for longer than just a couple of days.

“Oh, God,” she breathed. “I don’t…”

“It’s all right, pet,” he said soothingly, lowering his hand.

No holds barred.

The thought fluttered through her mind, reminding her of why she was here and what she’d agreed to.

Before he could return the necklace to the box, she reached out and grabbed his wrist. She’d signed on for this, and she wouldn’t go back on her word. If this would please him, Mercedes was willing to give it a shot. No matter how uncomfortable it made her.

“I’ll wear it,” she whispered, shocked by her agreement.

Obviously Xander was shocked as well because he just stared back at her as though she’d lost her mind.

She had. She truly had.

“Lift up your hair,” he instructed long seconds later, his voice not as steady as it had been previously.

He was just as affected by her concurrence, and that sent a torrent of courage flooding through her. That and a sense of empowerment that she hadn’t expected.

Raising her arms, Mercedes caught her breath when the nipple clamps pulled, the weight of the chain pulling tighter. She moaned, but managed to lift her hair up.

Xander reached behind her, his large fingers moving deftly and then a moment later he was finished. How he could hook something so small with such precision was beyond her, but clearly he knew what he was doing.

Dropping her hair, she looked directly at him and noticed he was staring at her neck. She reached up, her fingertips brushing across the small rose that settled comfortably against her throat. When she swallowed, she could feel it, which meant she would constantly be reminded that it was there.

Probably exactly how he wanted it.

“Fuck,” Xander growled. “M.”

The next thing she knew, Mercedes was crushed against him, Xander’s powerful arms flexing as he held her close, his mouth fused to hers as he devoured her whole.

She didn’t hesitate, fully engulfed by the flames that ignited when his mouth met hers. The deep rumble in his chest didn’t subside as he thrust his tongue against hers. She was going to disintegrate into ash if he kept this up. The passion that smoldered between them was more powerful than a wildfire fanned by high winds.

“I’m not sure how much longer I can wait,” he said when they came up for air.

“For what?” she asked, confused and more than a little breathless from that mind-blowing kiss.

“To be inside you. I want to feel the heat of your pussy surrounding me,” he breathed, his lips brushing against the skin of her neck while his hips jerked beneath her.

She wanted it too. She wanted nothing more than to remove the barriers between them and sate the ever intensifying ache that was continuing to grow more painful with every passing second.

“What are you waiting for?” she asked him, cupping the back of his head and holding him close to her.

Xander must’ve taken hold of the chain that connected the nipple clamps because suddenly there was an influx of pleasure/pain that bolted through her nipples, making her cry out from the sheer ecstasy of it.

“For that reason,” he said on a rush. “Because I want to make you come a million different ways before I bury myself inside of you.”

She wanted to tell him that the only thing he needed to do was to continue talking like that, and she’d come from his voice and his words alone.

And she feared it would be the honest to God truth.

After Xander had signaled for Carson to make it to their final destination, he helped Mercedes right her dress, effectively hiding the nipple clamps. He hadn’t particularly wanted to, but he’d been under the impression she needed a minute.

As soon as the limo came to a stop in front of Devotion, Xander eased out into the stifling evening air and then helped Mercedes out behind him once she slipped her shoes back on. Carson came around to handle the door, handing him a small bag as he did.

“Thank you,” he told the man. “I’ll text you when we’re ready.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll be waiting.”

Taking Mercedes’s hand, he led her to the main doors of Devotion and then held one open for her.

With a quick nod of his head, he greeted the woman who was manning the desk and the security guard who was standing off to the side. The woman didn’t have much work to do tonight because the club still hadn’t officially opened to new members and tonight’s festivities were by invitation only. And he could only hope security wasn’t necessary, but one could never be too careful.

With his fingers still linked with Mercedes’s, he made his way through the next set of double doors that led to the actual club.

At that point, Xander released her hand, and placed his at the small of her back, directing her toward the first bar. He noticed she was suspiciously eyeing the small bag that he was carrying, but he refused to share the details with her just yet.

Xander had a plan and every time he eyed the collar around her neck, he became more and more anxious to get the night started. Only he wasn’t looking to rush her and being that Mercedes was the one who was going to be in the uncomfortable spot tonight, he knew he needed to give her a little time to get acclimated to their surroundings. Figuring out of sight, out of mind was the best option, Xander stowed the bag underneath the first bar that they came to. He then grabbed the attention of the bartender and ordered them drinks.

While they waited, he took the opportunity to observe the goings-on of the club.

It was still fairly early, but the place was jumping, more people than he was expecting considering this was a test run of what they hoped would become a regular theme night.

Tonight’s theme… BDSM.

He was surprised to see that the attendees had embraced the concept. At least they had if their state of dress was any indication. Last night’s attire had been formal, tonight was all about play. He noticed that, without explicit direction, some people came up with some rather interesting ideas.

Most of the early arrivals donned leather, some not so appealing, some rather intriguing, all having one thing in common: an apparent effort to reflect the glorified, often stereo-typed lifestyle many were just now exploring.

Overall, Xander liked the feel of the place. Everyone was into it, from novices to experts and varying degrees in between.

As was usual, the shutters over the windows were closed, the lights were dimmed which left the club backlit by the red lights that surrounded the bars. The music was loud, a sexy bass beat thumping through the cavernous space. There were lines of people around the bars, others sitting at the scattered tables, some on couches and even some against the wall.