Five Stars (Desire Island Series Book 5) Read online

  “Okay, okay,” she said, still smiling. “I admit there are times I think about entering the twenty-first century. I’m just not quite there yet. So, what changed with your itinerary?”

  “The Southwest Leather Conference where I was supposed to run some seminars this week was canceled due to a fire in their facilities. They’ll reschedule for some time later in the year. So, I found myself with a couple of days between gigs. I gave Ryan a shout and he suggested, after some not so subtle hinting on my part, that I spend the time here with you. It was his idea to make it a surprise. I’m just glad I didn’t miss the entire fireplay scene.”

  Though she was delighted he had chosen to come back to the island early, she couldn’t help but snag on the words, a couple of days. Why did she have to fall for a guy who traveled half the year? She didn’t say anything, however, not wanting to spoil whatever time they had together by whining that it wasn’t long enough.

  Done with the lotion, he replaced the damp, cool towel over her shoulders. It felt good against her still tender skin. He moved to stand in front of her, gazing down with those vivid green eyes outlined in dark, thick lashes. Reaching for her hand, he playfully placed it over the rather sizable bulge at his crotch. His mouth lifted into a playful, sexy smile. “Let’s go inside. I need some aftercare too.”

  ~*~

  Once back in the lobby of the resort, Adam grabbed his small suitcase and gear bag from the counter where he’d left them. He turned to Shani. “You should know, I plan to hold you hostage for at least the next twenty-four hours. Is there anything you want to get from your room? Your toothbrush? A flannel nightie?” He grinned, adding, “Just kidding on the nightie. I want you naked and fully accessible to me, slave girl.”

  “I’m not sure my bosses will be too happy about me disappearing for twenty-four hours,” Shani said, smiling back at him.

  “Didn’t you hear Ryan? You’re cleared for the rest of the evening and all day tomorrow. And if I have my way…” Again he trailed off, not quite ready to make his offer yet. Instead, he said, “I’m in room 204. How about you grab whatever you need from your room and meet me up there? The code is 7444.”

  “Sounds good. See you in a few.”

  “Wait,” Adam blurted, unable to let her go. Dropping his bags, he leaned forward and kissed Shani on the forehead. Taking a step back, he cupped her bare breasts in his hands. They were full and round, the nipples like lovely dark cherries at their centers. Her nipples hardened as he gazed at them, too tempting to resist. He glanced at Shani’s face to gauge her reaction. Her dark, liquid eyes were shining, her pretty pink tongue appearing between her lips.

  He pressed her breasts together and lowered his head to suck each nipple into his mouth. She moaned softly, leaning toward him. His cock was throbbing in his jeans, pressing hard against the denim. He took a step back, forcing himself to stop before he took her right there in the lobby.

  “Don’t be long, sexy girl. I’ll be waiting.”

  As she strode away down the hall, her gorgeous, rounded ass swaying, he grabbed his bags, turned back toward the elevator and jabbed at the button. Deciding it was taking too long, he took the stairs, two at a time.

  Once in his room, he threw down his bags. He pulled off his clothes and used the bathroom, splashed his face and hands with water and quickly brushed his teeth. Then he lay down on the bed, his cock loosely fisted in his hand, his eyes trained on the door.

  He heard the sound of the lock turning as the code was entered, and then Shani appeared, still naked, a small overnight bag slung over her shoulder, the cuffs he’d given her during his first visit around her wrists, a shy smile on her lovely face. She still wore the simple black slave collar that all unowned staff slaves wore. Maybe one day, she would wear a collar he’d made just for her…

  “That’s quite a picture,” she said, coming toward the bed, her eyes on his very erect cock.

  “I could say the same.” He grinned, adding, “In fact, I do say it.” He held out his arms to her. “I must have you. Now.”

  With a small laugh, she set down her bag and lowered herself to the bed. Adam pulled her close for a long, sensual kiss. She smelled wonderful, her skin smokey from the fire with a pleasant overlay of eucalyptus from the balm, her mouth sweet as honey. She winced a little as his hands moved over her back and ass.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “Your skin is still tender.” He let her go. “I desperately need to fuck you.”

  He reached for her, pulling her up so she sat astride his thighs. They’d already discussed protection on his last visit. Happily, Shani was fine with no condoms, as she was on birth control and both of them had clean bills of health.

  The view above him was breathtaking, her coppery skin smooth and soft, her breasts perfect, her shaven mons perched tantalizingly above his cock. Reaching between her legs, he stroked the soft petals of her sex and slipped a finger inside. She was hot and wet, her vaginal muscles tight around his finger. Unable to wait another second, he took hold of her hips. He lifted her and then slowly, carefully lowered her over his shaft.

  He groaned with pleasure and need as her cunt enveloped him in hot, wet perfection. A shudder moved through her body as he arched upward to penetrate her fully. She began to move over him in a swiveling, undulating dance that left him breathless.

  “Jesus,” he breathed. “It’s too fucking good, Shani. I’m not going to last.”

  “Me, neither,” she gasped, moving with abandon now. She was rubbing her spread sex against his pubic bone. He could feel the hard nubbin of her clit against him, and smell the intoxicating scent of her arousal. She was panting now, a faint sheen of sweat on her upper lip. “Oh god, oh god, oh god,” she moaned. “I’m going to… Can I…?”

  “God, yes,” he urged, “Come for me, Princess.”

  She shuddered violently, her cunt muscles clamping down hard on his shaft as she cried out in climax. Her head was thrown back, a pulse visible on the side of her long, slender neck. Unable to hold on another second, Adam, too, let go.

  As he reached the pinnacle, his dominant urges took over. He reached up with one hand and gripped her throat, pulling her toward him as he came in a powerful series of thrusts.

  At her sharp cry, he opened his eyes. She was staring down at him with a look of terror in her dark eyes. “No,” she cried, her fingers scrabbling at his hand, still gripping her throat. “No, please, no!”

  Alarmed, he dropped his hand at once. “I’m so sorry, Shani. I didn’t mean to frighten you.” He pulled her gently forward so she was lying on top of him. Her heart was pounding so hard he could feel it against his chest. In his experience, most subs loved the dominant feel of a hand around their throat, especially just before and during climax. Clearly, for Shani, this was some kind of trigger he hadn’t known about.

  She nuzzled her face at his armpit, not looking up, not saying anything. He held her and gently stroked her head, speaking in a soothing tone. “Did I hurt you? I didn’t realize that was a trigger for you. Again, I’m so sorry.”

  She said nothing, her face still hidden. But her breathing and her heartbeat slowed, and he could feel the tension she’d held in her body slowly easing. After a while, he gently lifted her and lay her beside him on the bed. He reached for her cheek, stroking the soft skin with two fingers. “You okay?”

  She nodded, offering a small, embarrassed smile. “I’m the one who’s sorry. I-I didn’t realize it was a trigger, but yeah, I guess it is. I thought I was over it. I haven’t been with a guy since…” She trailed off, her eyes sliding away from his.

  Adam was confused at that remark, since, as a staff slave at a BDSM resort, she was with male Doms constantly, wasn’t she?

  He reached for her chin, gently turning her face back to his. “I’m not sure I understand. I mean, isn’t it your job to serve the Doms on the island?”

  She flushed. “Sure, I scene with the guests as requested, but it never got intimate, until I met you. You’re the first guy
I’ve connected with since…” Again she trailed off.

  “Since?” he prodded gently.

  “In a long time.”

  Conflicting emotions tugged at Adam. He was pleased to think he was the first guy she’d connected with on the island, given the heightened sexuality of the place, which catered to every delicious BDSM fantasy one could imagine. At the same time, he seized on her earlier statement, and her obvious discomfort. “You thought you were over what? Did someone in the scene do something to create that trigger in you?”

  Again she looked away. “I don’t—it was a while ago. He… I…” She blew out a breath. “Look, I’m sorry, but I really don’t want to talk about this. It’s in the past. It’s over. I’m sorry I didn’t warn you about the trigger. I didn’t exactly realize it myself until it happened.” She gave him a beseeching look. “Really, I’m fine.”

  He could see the pain that still lingered in her eyes. He wanted to kill whoever had put that pain there. He wanted to understand what had happened. He wanted to fix it. But, clearly, she wasn’t yet ready to talk about it. And as intense as their connection had been, he’d only known her a short time. It wasn’t his place to press her.

  So, instead, he rolled to a sitting position. Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he got to his feet. “How about a cold glass of Prosecco? And then we can share a nice hot bath with one of those fancy bath oils they put by the tub, if that works for you?”

  Shani smiled. “That sounds wonderful. Thank you, Adam. Thank you for understanding.”

  “Of course,” he replied, coming around the bed to help her to her feet. But he didn’t understand. Not really.

  Not yet.

  Chapter 3

  When Shani awoke the next morning, Adam was still asleep beside her. He looked peaceful in repose, his dark hair flopping down over his eyes, a small smile on his rugged face. She briefly considered slipping down below the sheets to take his cock lovingly into her mouth, but decided to let him sleep.

  They’d woken several times in the night, making love each time before falling back into a swoon of sated exhaustion. She put her hand between her legs, lightly cupping her cunt, which was still a little tender and a bit sticky from all the sex. With another glance at the sleeping man, she slipped quietly from the bed.

  From the angle of the sun streaming in through the sliding glass door, she guessed it was around six o’clock. Normally at this time she would be in the bathroom of her cozy room in the slave quarters, getting washed up and ready for morning exercise and positions training on the beach with the other staff slaves and trainees.

  The others would know where she was, since there were no secrets in the small, close-knit community. The girls would no doubt be discussing her and Adam, all of them desperately curious to know what was up with the handsome whip maker who had returned so soon to the island after his last visit.

  Very uncharacteristically for her, she wanted to rush down and gush to the others about her amazing night with this gorgeous, sexy man. She wanted to share every marvelous detail of his surprise return with the women who had become her close friends—as close as she allowed anyone to get to her these days.

  Since she’d arrived on the island, she’d watched her fellow staff slaves fall, one after another, for wonderful, worthy Doms. She’d listened with rapt attention to the details of their romantic adventures, both past and present. She’d tried her best not to be jealous. Surely, it was only a matter of time before she, too, found a true connection. But as the months passed, she was forced to confront the very real possibility that Sir had ruined her for any future relationship. She was too afraid to open up again—to trust.

  Yet, she wasn’t ready to give up. A part of her—the strong and noble warrior spirit her mother had instilled in her from childhood—refused to accept that one man—one bad experience—would shape the rest of her romantic life. Yet, she’d been unable to lower the barriers she’d erected in the aftermath of that trauma.

  Adam was the first man to penetrate her defenses, at least to some degree. Whatever was happening between them was wonderful and exciting. Rather than fretting that they only had a day or two together until he left again, she would make the most of it.

  She pulled the pocket door between the bathroom and bedroom silently closed. She used the toilet and brushed her teeth. After a quick shower, she reached for a towel. While drying herself, she turned away from the mirror and twisted back to regard her back and ass. Other than a single faint welt still visible on her right butt cheek, there was no evidence of the skillfully rendered fire play from the night before. She was already looking forward to whatever fresh marks Adam chose to give her today.

  She opened the pocket door carefully and peered in the bedroom, now awash in lemony sunshine. Adam was still sleeping, one arm thrown over his eyes.

  She could see the sexy bulge of a morning erection beneath the sheets and her mouth actually watered with desire. But again, she forced herself to resist. He had to be exhausted after a full day of travel and a full night of sex.

  Padding silently to the sliding glass door, she pulled it open and stepped out onto the balcony that overlooked the beach. She drew in a deep breath of the cool, salty air as she lifted her face to the sky. The ocean glittered beyond the shore. Her eye was drawn toward the graceful arc of a dolphin rising above the water, her baby alongside her. As Shani watched in delight, several more dolphin mamas with their babies appeared, cavorting in the waves, the sun gleaming on their silver flanks. She watched them until they eventually disappeared beneath the waves once more.

  She startled at the touch of a hand on her shoulder. Turning, she saw Adam. He had pulled on a pair of shorts, his broad, smooth chest bare. There was a sexy bulge at his crotch.

  She started to sink to her knees, hungry to kiss his gorgeous cock. But before she could, he took her into his arms and gave her a long, melting kiss that left her breathless. “I was worried for a minute you’d disappeared on me,” he murmured as he held her close.

  “You won’t get rid of me that easy,” she said with a laugh.

  “Good to know.”

  Eventually he let her go. He gripped the railing as he faced the water. “Man, it’s so peaceful here.” He lifted his muscular arms in a long stretch over his head. “Even without the awesome BDSM, this place is like heaven on earth.”

  “It is lovely here,” Shani agreed. “Even in the winter, it’s beautiful, with the white-capped waves crashing against the empty shore. It’s quite a contrast to an Oregon winter.”

  “I remember you said you grew up not far from Portland,” Adam said, his face suddenly lighting up with what seemed to be barely suppressed excitement. “How long has it been since you went home for a visit?”

  “Too long,” Shani said, guilt washing over her at the admission. When had she become so pathetic—hiding out across the country, allowing one man to keep her away from the people she loved?

  Her mother still lived on the reservation with Shani’s youngest sister, Chenoa. Her other three sisters lived nearby, two of them married with children of their own. While they were all aware and accepting of her submissive sexual orientation, they didn’t understand why she’d had to move so far away from her family and home to find her place in the world. Only Malia, her closest sister, knew about Sir. And even she didn’t know all the sordid details.

  The excitement now bubbled over so that Adam fairly vibrated with it. “How would you like to go back home to Portland with me for a few days, all expenses paid? That’s where I’m headed tomorrow.”

  Shani was too startled by the enormity of his offer to do anything but gape stupidly at him.

  When she didn’t immediately respond, he barreled on, “There’s a huge sales event going on at the BDSM Connections Events Center there. Some of the most renown whip makers in the world will be there, plus all kinds of other BDSM vendors and participants. You could sell your awesome jewelry there, if you wanted to. You could share my booth. You
r stuff would instantly sell out—I’m sure of it.”

  “Huh,” was all Shani managed, still trying to process his extraordinary offer. While Portland was a big city, the organized BDSM community was fairly small. If it was a big event, Sir might well be in attendance. The thought of seeing him again chilled the marrow in her bones.

  Adam turned to her and put his hands on her shoulders, his expression earnest. “Look. I know things are moving kind of fast between us. It’s just… Ever since we met, I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind. There’s something here. Something more than finding a good scene partner. Do you feel that, too?”

  “I do,” Shani replied softly.

  He took both her hands in his. “I know it’s presumptuous of me to expect you to drop everything at a moment’s notice, but it would be so awesome if you could come with me.”

  What was wrong with her? This amazing man was reaching out to her. Something real was developing between them, if she had the courage to stay the course.

  And, no question, it was well past time she returned home, at least for a visit. She was longing to see her family again—to hike and drink wine and laugh with her sisters, and to catch up on all the reservation gossip with her mom.

  Yet, still she hesitated. She seized on the most obvious objection to his proposal. “I couldn’t possibly ask you to pay for my airfare. I wouldn’t feel right.”

  “No worries there. I have a friend who owns a private plane. He’s going to meet me in Hatteras tomorrow. He’s heading to California and is giving me a lift along the way. I’ve already checked with him, and he’s happy to take you along as well.”

  “Wow. That’s some friend,” she replied. It seemed Adam had thought of everything. Maybe she could go with him to Portland, but give the BDSM event a miss. While Adam was busy at the trade show, she could spend time with her mom and sisters. But then, there was the issue of vacation time. While she had some time coming to her, could she get approval on such short notice?