Hold Me by W. Winters

Zander

The days pass easily. It’s been weeks now of spoiling Ella and enjoying her in bed … as well as discovering her boundaries.

One thing I love is taking her out, and watching her light up a room when she doesn’t even realize it.

Ella looks gorgeous in soft candlelight. She looks gorgeous in every light really, but the candlelight at the Italian restaurant does something special to her features. It catches in her silky hair and makes her dark, sultry eyes shine.

And it makes me want to do filthy things to her.

I feel lighter after the hearing, and somehow heavier. Lighter because this part of my history with Quincy is closed. There are no more hearings, other than the formal sentencing. Heavier because I want Ella so much. My feelings seem much more intense than they should.  Which makes me question them.  More specifically if I’m using her emotionally because of what I went through with Quincy.

We go to dinner nearly every other night. Just like tonight.

She hasn’t stopped talking since we got in the car, and only occasionally stops to take a drink and touch her throat. She’s worlds better than she was only a month ago.

Tonight, she talks to me about surface-level things, things that don’t hurt, things like what decor style she likes and how much of the garden she’d have to take out if she wanted to change the landscaping in her yard. It’s a busy night and the waiter takes a few minutes to arrive.

It’s all seemingly mundane, but the truth of the matter is that Ella’s been discussing plans to redesign most of her home—never the blue room, though. She’s told me repeatedly she loves that room as it is.  Every plan she’s made has fallen through.  She ends up making some excuse as to why it isn’t good enough and vetoes it all.

Damon mentioned it as well.  It’s a process, whether she realizes it or not.  I’ll be here through all of it.

Ella glances at her empty wineglass. It’s late, getting later by the minute.

“Are you thinking about having a glass?” I ask her.

She readjusts the napkin on her lap. “No. Damon told me it’s not the same when it mixes with the medication. It could make me feel lower than if I wasn’t taking anything at all.”

“Come here.”

She listens. Of course she does. She’s out of her seat in a heartbeat and sliding onto my side of the rounded booth a moment later. Close enough to touch, but not so close she’s actually sitting in my lap, though I’d love that. I’d love so much with her.

I place my hand on her thigh. “Tell me more about the garden.”

“Well—” Her cheeks flush, and she looks so beautiful against all this red fabric and the cream walls. All this dark wood and candlelight. “One of the beds is overgrown, so I’d probably have—”

I brush her dress up with the back of my hand, the silky deep red fabric gliding easily up her thigh, and Ella sucks in a little breath.

“Keep going,” I command.

With her lips still parted and her voice breathy she whispers, “But I thought maybe a raised bed would be nice.”

Another inch toward her waist, then another. It’s entirely inappropriate. At the very last moment I slip my hand under the fabric and toy with the waistband of her panties. Her cheeks turn a deep rose.  All the while, my focus is on the thin paper menu held in my left hand.

“You know what to say to stop this if it’s too much,” I murmur.

Ella bites her lip, and I dip under her panties to graze a knuckle against her softness and seek out her clit. She brings her hand up to cover her mouth, trying to make the movement seem natural, and I do it again.

“Good evening,” the waiter greets us, and I feel her body stiffen. “Please forgive me for the wait. What can I get started for you tonight? Drinks?”

I don’t take my hand away. I brush my knuckle over her clit as slowly as I’ve ever done it. “I’ll have a cider. Whatever you recommend.  Ella?”

I keep the pressure light, but I don’t stop.

“I would—” Ella takes the drink menu in her hands, then lets it fall to the table. “A mocktail. Anything, really. Just something sweet.”

A smile from the waiter. “I know the perfect thing.”

He leaves, and I hold the menu in front of Ella while I play with her. She’s hot, hotter than she’s ever felt, and her breathing is shallow. “Have you done this before? Discreet play?”

She shakes her head. “The most outrageous thing I’ve ever done, you’ve probably seen.  The … swinging, recording, and uploading—”

“Exhibitionism.” I add a little more pressure, cutting her off.

Ella gasps. “Yes—yes. We stopped when we got married.” Discomfort presses out at the boundaries of my chest. I don’t love hearing about her marriage before, but I won’t order her not to talk about it. It’s part of her past. It made her who she is today. “Our lifestyle changed. Our relationship changed.”

“Do you miss it?”

I can tell how hard it is to follow the conversation against all the sensations. She’s having to struggle to keep her ass on the seat instead of rocking into my fingers.

“I don’t know what you mean, exactly.” Dark eyes on mine. It’s intense for her, and it’s also intense for me. Her heat. Her closeness. The fact that I can’t fuck her in this booth, as much as I want to.  “Z,” she begs me, her hands on mine, but I don’t let up.

“The exhibitionism. Do you miss it?”

“I don’t know.”

I pretend to study the menu again. “What if something were to be leaked? Would that be upsetting? Exciting?”  There’s a low moan as she closes her eyes and reaches for her glass of water, but doesn’t drink it.

“Little bird, I asked you a question.”

A simper plays across her lips, and it takes most of my restraint not to push her down onto this booth and kiss her until she can’t breathe. “I can’t imagine anything being leaked that would be upsetting. It only excites me.”

Goddamn.There isn’t a part of me that’s ever been intrigued by the fetish, until she refers to it as “exciting.”

The waiter returns with my drink and something red and sugary in a martini glass for Ella. When he puts it down in front of her, I take my hand away.

“Oh,” Ella says, clearing her throat and sounding so disappointed that my cock twitches.  I can’t help but to smirk.

“Would you like something else?” The waiter is genuinely concerned, his eyebrows knitting together. “I can get you anything else.”

“No, no, no.” Ella offers him an apologetic yet somehow bright smile.  While he’s still watching, still trying to gauge what was wrong, she sips it. “This is delicious.”

I order my meal for the sole purpose that I know I’ll be able to pick up a piece of the tagliata and slip it between her lips.  The thinly sliced steak is simple, delicious, and I can already hear how she’ll moan from the tender taste.

Ella orders next. All the while, Ella makes sure to give the waiter special attention. Beaming up at him. It would make me jealous if I didn’t know she was only doing it to smooth things over. One thing I love about her is that she strives for those around her to be comfortable, her friends especially, but even people she’ll only interact with once as well.

The waiter steps away, and as soon as he’s out of earshot, Ella’s eyes go wide and she scolds me in a whisper, “You stopped.”  How fucking adorable for my little submissive to show her disappointment.

“I did.”

She pouts, that plump bottom lip tempting me to nip it.

“Did you think I would give you an orgasm before our food arrives? That would be too early into dinner, don’t you think?”

I’ve never seen her face redder than it is right now.

With my forearms on the table, I lean over to speak directly into her ear. “You keep your thighs apart for me, jailbird. I’ll tease you as long as you’re good.”

“Tease me?” Her voice is breathy.  Oh, she can’t hide how needy and desperate she is. Her eyes consider me for a moment, the reality sinking in.  With her fingers toying with the napkin on her lap, she questions, “You’re not going to let me come?”

“No.”

The corners of Ella mouth turn up, almost as if she doesn’t believe me. “I can’t believe you’d do that.  Tease me to the brink and leave me …” she licks her lips, glancing away at the martini glass before concluding, “unwell.”

I huff a laugh at her word of choice, but that’s all she gets.

A bread basket arrives, dropped off by a passing server, and I wait until Ella has the first bite in her mouth before I touch her again. She’s spread her legs under the table just like I told her to. She swallows the bread as I brush my fingertips over the softest part of her.

Petting her until her eyes go half-lidded.

“That bread must be fucking delicious,” I tease her in a low groan.  I’m hard as fuck watching her enjoy this without anyone else knowing.  We’re in a corner, and there’s no one who can see. So long as I keep an eye out for the waiter.

Ella, in all her stubbornness, says nothing, merely rocking into my touch.

“You’re going to keep talking to me, jailbird. No matter what I’m doing to your clit.”

“I think,” she says, her voice breathy and light, “I’d like to visit a bookstore.”

Her statement comes out of nowhere, and a quiet laugh leaves me.  I don’t stop, though, not my petting and not the conversation.

“Why’s that?”

“I haven’t replaced many of the books in the house in a long time. I don’t want to feel like I’m living in a staged apartment.”  Her lips part as warmth rises to her cheeks and her eyes beg to shut so I drop my fingers lower, no longer concentrating on her most sensitive bundle.

With an exhale of relief, her shoulders drop and she reaches for her drink.  “You know?”

“I don’t know.” Waiting for her to have a sip and place the glass down, I circle her clit, and her body tries to get more of my touch, which I deny her. “Your books aren’t yours?”

“I don’t have many on the shelves. I was into a more minimalist—a more minimalist design before. But now I think I’d like to read. What do you like to read?”

“I don’t have a lot of time for it.” Her eyes dance over my face. “I listen to music in the evenings, or podcasts. If I have time to read, I like science fiction and thrillers.”

I stop touching her.

Ella bites her lip, but she doesn’t push me on it again. She seems to sense the power between us. I’m controlling this, the way I do everything else.  And I will reward her immensely for having the pleasure of teasing her like this.

“Good girl,” I murmur into her ear, rewarding her with my hand back between her legs. “You’re letting me play with you as much as I want. Following all the rules. You are being so good for me.”

She lets out a shuddering sigh and when I dip down to her center, I find her hot and wet.

I toy with her all through dinner, and Ella turns down dessert when the waiter is still mid-sentence. Very much on edge and in need of getting the hell out of here and into bed.  It’s a good look on her.  My insatiable smart-mouthed, yet obedient submissive.

Good.Because I’m wound tight too. I’m so fucking hard it hurts. I need her. I have to be careful when I stand, opting for discretion.

I escort her out of the restaurant with my hand on the small of her back. A stiff breeze greets us as we head toward the parking garage. Ella walks quickly, doing her best to keep up with my long strides. She’s out of breath by the time we get to the third floor of the parking garage. “How do you do it?” she says as she hurries for the car. “How do you wait? Because I want you so much that I—”

“I’m done waiting.”

I get one flash of relief in her dark eyes, and then I have my mouth on her. On her lips, and the side of her neck, and her collarbone. Fuck anyone who happens to walk up here.  I’ve never experienced this desire Ella has, but I’ll share it with her. A fast, hard fuck where someone could see.  I’m careful as I push Ella’s back against a concrete pillar, and she wraps her legs around me as if she’s done it a thousand times. Hanging on tight while I deal with my zipper and push the fabric of her panties aside.

There’s no mercy for her as I slam my cock to the hilt inside of her, knowing she’s been ready for almost an hour now.  “Fuck me,” I groan in the crook of her neck.  She feels like heaven.

Ella moans, her tightness enveloping me, her hips rocking back and forth. I’ve never felt anything this soft or sweet or hot, and I want to fuck her like this all night. The chill of the night wraps around us but it’s no match for how warm and wet she is. I brace one hand against her ass and work the other between us to get to her clit.

“I’m not teasing this time,” I growl into her ear. “Come for me.”

She comes hard around me, squeezing tight, her cries echoing off the parking garage.  The adrenaline rushes through my blood, my pulse racing.  Nothing else matters in this moment except Ella.