Clifftop Fantasies [BDSM Menage Fantasies] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (25 page)

“Is he having problems?” Karl asked, stepping back and leaning against the wall.

Allie nodded miserably, hoping he wasn’t going to be too angry. “I told him I needed a decision from him in the next couple of days. I can’t take this on-again, off-again stuff.”

Karl nodded. “New-relationship energy isn’t something you can just turn off,” he said. “Now that we’ve started a relationship, we either need to be able to continue it, or we’ll need to stay away from each other. I think we’d better not hang out too much today. Give him time to think it over and see how he feels tomorrow. Don’t set a place for me at dinner. It’s probably better for you two to spend time together. Make sure you give him plenty of attention, especially now in the beginning, so that he doesn’t feel like he’s being pushed out.”

Allie nodded and left the barn before she lost complete control and threw herself at him. She went back to her work in the literary bedroom, trying not to allow herself to be angry at Brad. It has to be a difficult position to be in, she chided herself.
If he was sleeping with Jane, you’d probably be feeling the same way
. But that didn’t help allay the frustration she felt at not being able to be with Karl. She tried to make herself go back to the way it had been before, when she could ignore the feelings he stirred in her. But now that it was so close, so possible for them to all be together, her desire for that was all she could think about. She spent the rest of the afternoon trying to concentrate on anything other than wondering what Brad would decide. If he could only get past his own insecurities and his ingrained prejudices, this could be so good, she knew. The energy between the three of them was incredibly refreshing to her. Her place was between them, bringing them together, making them a cohesive team. They all had their places. They were all necessary. If Brad would just allow himself to feel it, too…

When Brad came home, Allie tried her best to be cheerful and normal. She knew that Karl was right. Even though she was feeling frustrated, she couldn’t act like her relationship with him was more important than Brad. It might feel more exciting at the moment, but feelings could be deceptive. How many people had left spouses because of an attraction to someone new only to find that, once the initial excitement wore off, what they had was worse than what they’d given up? She didn’t want to throw away what she had with Brad. It could be better, but she genuinely loved him. True, they’d been having some problems since they moved to California, but she knew they could work it out if they gave it a chance. The real question now was whether Brad could adjust to the way of life she was determined to try. If he couldn’t, then she had to decide whether it was something she was willing to give him up for.

Brad was quiet, almost sullen all evening. That made it more difficult for Allie to try to reestablish a connection with him. He seemed suspicious of her efforts to be friendly and affectionate. They went to bed early, having hardly spoken for the last few hours of the evening. Allie had a hard time going to sleep. She lay in bed, missing the warmth of Karl behind her, trying not to resent Brad for the fact that he was preventing her from cuddling with Karl but was not bothering to cuddle with her either.

She was roused from her sleep by Brad shaking her gently. She opened her eyes a crack to see that it was morning, and Brad was evidently preparing to get out of bed.

“Allie, wake up. I’ve been thinking,” he said, pushing the hair out of her eyes gently with one hand as he supported himself on an elbow.

“Yes?” Allie didn’t want to wake up. She had lain awake a good part of the night, and now she didn’t want to give up the oblivion she’d finally achieved. But it sounded like Brad had come to a decision, so she needed to pay attention. She forced herself to consciousness.

“I think I overreacted yesterday,” Brad said when her eyes were open and focused. She waited for him to go on.

“If we’re going to do this, then I need to be able to deal with it,” he said finally. “I can’t keep freaking out. If you guys want to have sex today, then go ahead. I’ll work on getting used to the idea.”

She scooted closer to him and pulled his face down to kiss. “Thank you,” she told him. “You know it doesn’t mean I love you any less, right?”

“Right.” He regarded her seriously for a minute. “I know that. Sometimes I don’t remember it, but I do believe you.”

Allie got up with him and fixed breakfast before he left. It felt like old times, she thought, drinking coffee together and chatting. It was like when the relationship was less established. They were more tentative with each other, feeling their way through new territory. Their relationship was being shaken up and reinvented, Allie reflected as she waved to him from the doorway. But that might not be a bad thing.

She did the dishes, deliberately putting off the moment when she could go out to the barn and tell Karl they could take their relationship to the next level. After sweeping and mopping the kitchen, she couldn’t stand it anymore. She forced herself to move slowly and calmly across the backyard, enjoying the anticipation but praying that Karl hadn’t changed his mind. She tried not to think about what would happen if he’d decided since yesterday that she and Brad were too much trouble. What if he was packing right now to leave?

But the door opened just as she reached for it, and Karl stood there, wearing only his beat-up jeans. He was barefoot and his hair was messy, as if he’d just gotten out of bed.

* * * *

Karl had been having coffee when he heard Brad’s car start up. He sat at his own table, ignoring the toast he’d made out of habit, forcing himself not to go to the house and ask if anything had changed. Not seeing Allie all yesterday afternoon and evening, knowing she was so close, had been hell. They were at a crossroads now, and it was going to be all or nothing. Even if Brad left, he wouldn’t be able to just step in and take over. Allie would need time to think about her direction, what she wanted. If Brad wasn’t comfortable with polyamory, whether he stayed or not, Karl would have to leave. He definitely couldn’t stay here any longer if he couldn’t touch her, hold her…He jerked himself back from the thoughts that threatened to overwhelm him. To calm down, he made himself remember when she was a teenager. He’d joked about Allen’s prudish daughter who couldn’t even be allowed to guess that anything sexual ever went on in her father’s house. When he’d heard that Allen was leaving the house to her, he’d been sure there was no future here for him. Allen had made him promise to give her any help she needed, but his bags had been packed and ready to go when she took possession of the house. He was sure she would immediately sell the house and go back to Kansas with the money, and there was no way he could afford to pay what she would undoubtedly demand for the place. He’d had no idea how instantly and deeply he would fall in love with her the first moment he saw her. When she had confided, while he was showing her around, that it was her dream to run a bed-and-breakfast, he’d instantly offered to stay and help for no pay. He’d unpacked his bags and called Charlie to turn down his offer of a business partnership.

Now he wondered despondently if Charlie was still willing to help him get started again as a photographer. Living here hadn’t cost him much, except for the remodeling supplies he’d secretly bought out of his own savings to keep her home-improvement loan as low as possible. But he still didn’t have enough money to start over in Los Angeles. He had to come up with some other options.

He was taking his dishes to the sink when he saw her through the window. She was walking across the backyard toward the barn, and there was something about her face and her movements that told him she was trying very hard not to run. He froze for a moment, trying to analyze what that might mean. He strode swiftly to the door and opened it just as she reached for the handle.

It was like a movie. They stared at each other for a moment. Allie stepped forward, and his arms were around her, his head bending down so that their lips met. One hand wound itself into her hair, and the other pulled her shirt up and out of her slacks so he could caress the small of her back.

“You’re here,” Karl rumbled in her ear when he broke the kiss. “I assume this means he didn’t have a problem with us spending more time together?”

“Mm-hmm.” Allie found his lips again and reached down with one hand to tug at the button of his jeans.

“Simmer down there, missy.” He laughed, bending over and picking her up easily, ignoring her protest. His relief gave him the feeling he could have picked up the whole house. He carried her briskly through the barn toward his bedroom in the back, finding her lips again as he crossed the threshold.

“Hey,” she yelled as he tossed her onto the pillowtop mattress. She twisted herself around as if trying to sit up, but he pushed her back down, gently but firmly.

“It is time you learned just who is in charge here, my pet,” he said, trying to look serious and authoritative. “I know we negotiated what is and what is not acceptable, but it’s time to put it all into perspective.”

Allie stopped moving, watching him with wide eyes as he paced slowly around the bed. He came to rest at the end, his eyes fixed on her. She jumped when he spoke again. “You have way too much clothing on. Remove it for me, please.”

When she didn’t move, he made his voice lower and more demanding. “Slowly, my dear, and NOW!”

Her face changed. The surprise melted into an expression of submission, and her eyes dropped to the bed. She mumbled something that sounded like “My Master.”

Karl had suspected that she would react well to this kind of scene. “What did you say, pet?” he asked, hiding his smile.

“Nothing, Sir.” She got to her knees on the mattress and pulled her top over her head. She allowed the thin material to cascade down her front to pool at her knees as she held a hand over the cups of her bra. Eyes still cast down, she purred seductively, “Everything, Sir?”

With a slight catch in his voice he answered, “Yes, Allie, everything. I don’t want a single inch of your body covered. I want—no, need—to see you, now that I can take my time to appreciate the view.”

Blushing, she reached behind her back and unsnapped the clasp of her lacy white bra. A slight twitch of her upper body caused the pale fabric to slide down her outstretched arms to join the top at her knees. Karl nodded in approval, his cock twitching to life inside his jeans.

“Very nice. Continue.”

He crossed his arms tightly over his chest in order to keep himself from reaching out for her as she swayed back and kicked her legs out, pulling her slacks and panties off slowly. She was watching him through her eyelashes, and he could see her uncertainty. She wasn’t sure if she was pleasing him or not.
Good
, he thought. A little anxiety wasn’t a bad way to start a scene.

“Is this acceptable, Sir?” she asked suddenly, sounding as if she was giving in to her panic. He allowed himself a small smile to reassure her, stepping back and pointing to the floor in front of him. He could barely stand the delay, but they might as well start this out right.

“You are doing fine, my sexy little pet. Now come and kneel in front of me. I believe it is important to include ritual in our D/s to help us keep in mind the significance of what we do. As you will recall, this isn’t just about hot sex, although that is a definite benefit. It is also about personal and spiritual growth.”

Allie slid off the mattress to the floor and crawled to where he stood. Rising to her knees, she attempted to imitate the pose he had taught liege.

“No,” he said, putting a hand on her head. “Your position is different than liege’s, and when you kneel for me, I want both knees on the floor, hip distance apart. Clasp your hands behind your back, allowing me complete access to you, and look up into my face, waiting for my instructions.”

She followed his directions, gasping as he reached down and wound his hands into her hair, pulling tightly. Her breath ceased as she concentrated on him and the sensation he was creating. He bent lower and whispered into her ear, “You belong to me, Allie. You are mine.”

She gasped, “Yes, Sir, I do.”

Karl released his grasp on her hair and watched her face as the flood of endorphins hit her. Her shoulders sagged, and her head lolled back for a moment. He got to his knees as well, keeping his hands on either side of her head to steady her so that she didn’t slump to the floor. When her eyes opened, he locked gazes with her and smiled very slightly. “Your body is mine to do with as I please.”

Again, without hesitation, the words flowed out of her. “Yes, Sir. My body is yours. I belong to you.”

“This is about more than sex,” he repeated, his forehead almost touching hers. “It can be a sort of spiritual experience connecting people to each other, if you approach it with the right attitude. I want us to work to achieve and maintain that kind of connection. Are you willing?”

She nodded mutely, her eyes glistening as if she was overcome with emotion.

He allowed himself a real smile at that and pressed his lips firmly into hers. Her lips parted as his tongue demanded entrance and began to explore. His hands trailed across her cheeks, over her shoulders, and down her arms until he was gently holding her hands and helping her to her feet as he gained his own. Then he stepped back and arranged his face into its serious expression, commanding, “Lie faceup in the center of the bed with your legs spread.”