Page 29 of Winter’s Fire

His lizard brain clung to a single memory, the moment when she’d straddled him during their session in the gym. Those sleek thighs, the bounty at their apex. With each breath she’d drawn him further into the fantasy of being her Dom and her lover for real. He’d ached to put her on her back, spread her thighs with his hips, and grind into her.

His conscience doused him in metaphorical ice water. What the hell had come over him? Guilt slammed into him, annihilating the pleasure he’d found in Lucy’s presence during the day. He didn’t deserve that pleasure. His penance for the woman who’d once shared his life wasn’t done yet.

It would never be done.

Sick with self-loathing, Logan turned his face into the pillow. He’d only been fooling himself. Reality reasserted itself, on an arctic blast of bitter desolation that left devastation in its wake, except this time, after being with Lucy, the raw self-hatred promised to flay his soul from his body.

After a night characterised by wakefulness rather than healing sleep, Logan rose early. As a pre-emptive peace offering, a cup of tea probably left something to be desired, but it was the best he could do. Mug in hand, he knocked on the door of the guest bedroom.

“Come in.”

He pushed open the door, and every last drop of blood in his body headed for his dick at the sight before him. Much more of this, and it would be taking up permanent residence down there.

Lucy was sitting on the edge of the bed, clad in nothing more than a satiny bit of nonsense that would just about satisfy a non-kink definition of “decent”. She was drying her hair, and when she turned to him, a soft pink washed over her cheeks. So, he wasn’t the only one who remembered what had happened in the night.

He found his voice. “Good morning. Sleep all right?”

She switched off the dryer. Her hair was still slightly damp, and settled around her shoulders in unruly waves. “Yes, thanks. I think I’m finally getting used to sleeping in a strange bed.”

“Here.” He offered the mug. Her face lit up with a delighted smile, and another surge of arousal slammed through his body.

“Thank you—you’re spoiling me.”

“Today I have an ulterior motive.”

She sipped the brew, gave a little contented sigh, and looked up at him. “Okay, fire away, Sir.”

The rush of pleasure at her last word caught him by surprise. Not that she’d used the word—she’d done that before—but how comfortable she seemed to be with it.

He recovered quickly, and struck while the iron was hot. “So far, everything we’ve done has been in private. It won’t be like that on the island.”

“I know, Sir.”

She wasn’t quite as comfortable with the reminder, but covered it well. Even so, Logan had no choice but to forge ahead. “This evening, I’m going to take you to a club, as my guest. There’s a dress code for members and guests, so we need to make sure you have something suitable to wear, for there and the island.”

“A club? This evening?”

“As my guest,” he reiterated. “I’ll be with you every moment. We’ll be there to observe, and for you to get a taste of the lifestyle.”

Her silence spoke of a mental struggle to process what he’d just told her. The prospect was daunting enough for anyone ready to experiment, but for someone in her position, it could be overwhelming.

“You said there’s a dress code.”

For subs, it was more like an undress code. “That’s right.”

“And nothing I already have is likely to be suitable.”

“Correct.” He could only admire her courage. He hoped she had more in reserve. “There is one other thing.”

“What’s that, Sir?”

Logan folded his arms. This might go better if he delivered the news as her Dom rather than her colleague. “You’d better start getting used to the idea of going without underwear.”

Chapter 9

For once, Lucy was glad there wasn't a mirror in Logan’s guest bedroom, because if there had been, she wasn’t convinced she wouldn’t be running out of his apartment to go and hide under the nearest rock.

Logan had suggested that she change into her club gear early, so she’d have plenty of time to get used to it before they left for Aegis, but her outfit wasn’t the only thing on her mind.