Page 43 of Vienna Bliss

He huffed out a silent laugh.

“Punish me,” she pleaded. “And not just because he’s watching.” She nipped his ear. “But because I like it. I need it.”

“You’re mine.” He slid his hands into her hair, forcing her back enough that he could look up into her eyes. “You know that, right?”

Alena’s heart clenched and there was a lump in her throat, but she nodded. Because what he was offering her was reassurance, in a way that made sense to him as a Dom. He had no way of knowing that for her, given how deeply in love with him she was, she wanted those words to mean so much more.

Alexander stood, lifting her at the same time, in an impressive display of leg strength, then he pushed her away from him, very gently. Alena stumbled back, exaggerating wildly, and landed on the low ottoman in the seating area behind the two wingback chairs.

“Hands and knees,” Alexander commanded.

Alena resisted the urge to clasp her hands together at her breasts or throw one arm over her eyes. “Master, please, no…”

“Hands and knees.” This time he added a snap and pointed at the ottoman, as if she were a pet he was trying to control. Alena scrambled to obey, orienting herself with her ass to the door, and then turned and bared her teeth at Alexander to make sure he knew exactly what she thought of the snap.

His expression didn’t change, but his eyes sparkled with evil Dom amusement.

He ran his hand over her ass, then flipped her skirt up, baring her ass…and her pussy.

Absolon was far enough away he probably couldn’t see details, but he would be able to tell she didn’t have any underwear on. Alexander was showing her off, putting her on display, yet she was totally safe.

Alena shivered in very real arousal.

The distinctive sound of a belt being pulled through belt loops made her hum in delighted anticipation.

Alexander cleared his throat.

Oh. Right.

“Master, no, please. I’ll be good. I only wanted to show you that I can be pleasing.”

He unfastened the garter clips on the backs of her thighs, then tucked them out of the way.

Alena waited, panting in anticipation. Leather cracked against the back of her thighs, a hard, sweet sting. Alena’s toes curled, her head dropped between her arms and the heat from the blow radiated throughout her entire body. She needed this. Needed him.

A second slap of the belt, to the other thigh. Then a third, a fourth.

“Shouldn’t you scream?” Alexander whispered.

“Do it harder and I will.”

The next blow landed on the sole of her foot. That hurt, and she did shriek.

“I will punish you, truly, if you continue to top from the bottom,” he scolded, words too low for Absolon to hear.

“I’m sorry, Sir.”

“Better. Now scream like this hurts instead of turning you on and making your pussy so wet you’re coating the inside of your thighs.”

Alexander brought the belt down on her thighs, this time lashing both at once. Alena wanted to sink into the moment, but she made sure to cry out in pain, express the pain in a way she normally didn’t in a scene.

He worked her over for another ten lashes, focusing on her thighs and studiously avoiding her ass, which only made her long for him to spank her bottom, either with the belt, his hand…or the spoon. She wanted that intensity again.

“Up,” he commanded.

Alena slid off the ottoman, then swayed as if that had made her weak from pain rather than arousal.

“Strip.”