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It’s a match made in heaven…or is it?
But as long as I know the stakes
that Jonathan’s heart will always belong to someone else
and that what we have is nothing more than a simple arrangement
between two broken people,
I’ll teach him everything I know.
My submission to his domination.
No strings. No commitments.
We’ll both get what we need from each other
…until the day he won’t need me anymore.
* * *
CHAPTER ONE
He couldn't have been thirty years old, tall with reddish hair and the most beautiful green eyes I'd ever seen. He was wearing a three-piece suit perfectly tailored just for him, the last button on his waistcoat left undone just as it was supposed to be. One sweeping look across the place and his gaze settled on me. He smiled and I caught my breath.
I bet he knows just how gorgeous he is.
As I rose from my chair, I let my gaze drift lower to his hands. I imagined them binding my wrists together and pulling me by my hair as he took me from behind. I felt the familiar stirring in the pit of my stomach, wetness gathering between my legs.
Stop it, Sharon. You don’t even know him.
But then, how could I not know him…or his type? Debbie was never wrong.
He’ll be different, she had told me over the phone three days earlier.
How different? I had asked, curious. Debbie managed Stock, a swanky bar high above downtown LA, but I knew her as Madame Silk, a Domme skilled in shibari or Japanese rope work. Although she worked only with men, the lifestyle we led was small and we kinky lot stuck together. She knew people and I trusted her. Most of all, she knew the man standing in front of me.
Even if things don’t work out between you two, he can be a valuable friend. Debbie paused then, just enough time for me to know that whatever she had to say next was important. And if things do work out, he’ll never hurt you. He’s not like the others.
"Sharon?" His voice was deep and soothing, a hundred times better than the version I’d heard on the phone. I imagined him giving me an order and felt my body respond even if the command was imaginary. My nipples hardened and a delicious shiver ran down my spine.
“You must be Jonathan,” I said as I held out my hand.
“Yes, I am. Jonathan Drazen. It’s very nice to finally meet you, Sharon.” He wasn’t yet a friend so a kiss on the cheek or a hug were out of the question. A handshake seemed too formal but it was a good start and when he held it a tad longer than necessary, I felt his thumb gently stroke the back of my hand. As he gazed at me with those green eyes, it felt as if he’d just peered into my soul and found me wanting. Was he going to be like the rest of them? Like Sebastian? “Debbie spoke very highly of you,” he added.
“Please tell her I said hi,” I said as he beckoned for me to sit down.
“I will.”
He didn’t have a lot of time, but we’d agreed to meet over coffee first and I'd arrived early, too nervous to plan on being late. I couldn’t decide what to wear, my wardrobe sparse ever since I left Sebastian six weeks ago, my ankle bearing raw marks where the metal had bit through the skin. With only five new pieces of clothing until I found a new apartment and got to restock my closet, I’d picked something simple, a fitted white top with a light floral print scarf and matching white pants. My long blonde hair was down on purpose. I wanted him to see what I had to offer.
Jonathan ordered for both of us, a skinny latte for me and coffee, black, for himself. I could feel him watching me, observing, and as he did, the world around us disappeared. The sights and sounds of the organic coffee shop I’d picked out for our first meeting faded in the background. I only saw Jonathan, handsome with his copper hair cut just below the ears, green eyes and a smile that had the power to devastate me if he wanted. I looked down at the crack on the table, wondering if he liked what he saw. I’d always been confident about my looks, but this time, I found myself not wanting to disappoint him.
“I’m going to be stuck in meetings for the rest of the day but I wanted to meet you before anything else,” Jonathan said.
“I’m glad you made some time. I know you’re a very busy man.”
He shrugged. “Many things may require my attention, but nothing can be as important as meeting you, even if it’s only for a few minutes. I hope I didn’t take you away from work.”
“It worked out. Today’s my day off,” I said as I watched him stroke the handle of the coffee cup with his index finger.
“I don’t know how much Debbie told you about me.”
“She didn’t tell me anything,” I replied, which wasn’t exactly the truth. “Just that she’d given you my number and you may call.”
He smiled as if my answer pleased him. “I’d like to get to know you better, Sharon. Are you available for dinner tomorrow evening?”
I didn’t answer him right away. I didn’t want to look too eager. At the same time, I’d have been crazy to say no to an invitation from Jonathan Drazen III. After Debbie called to ask me if I’d be interested in meeting him, I’d found enough information online to know that not only was he gorgeous and smart, he owned hotels all over the world and his wife had just left him for another man.
I smiled. “Yes, I am.”
“Perfect,” he said as the server arrived with our orders and he retrieved his phone from his jacket pocket. “Text me your address, and I’ll pick you up at eight. I have meetings until then.”
As I pulled out my phone and texted him my address, I felt like I was in the middle of an interview and I’d just passed the first round. “How long will you be in town?”
“Three days. I’ve got meetings with city planners and tenant advocates the next two days before I fly out to Seoul. But that doesn’t mean I don’t make time to play,” he replied, grinning as if trying to make light of the mood between us. Maybe he could see that I was nervous, and I was, for I found myself chewing on my bottom lip, something I only did when I was anxious. And I had every reason to be. Tomorrow night’s meeting would determine whether Jonathan would want to see me again or not. It would determine many other things, too, like whether he’d be my next Dominant. But even if he did become my Dominant, it would be a temporary arrangement. Debbie told me that he lived in LA and he only came up to San Francisco once a month.
“I look forward to seeing you tomorrow evening, Jonathan,” I said. “Just text me if anything changes.”
His phone dinged and he glanced at it, sighing. “I hate to do this, Sharon, but I need to get going. I have to be at a meeting in half an hour and traffic’s crazy.” He tucked a twenty-dollar bill under the napkin holder as I got up and this time, he gave me a peck on the cheek, his hand on my elbow.
“Thanks for stopping by. I know you just got in.”
“I wouldn’t have missed this for the world,” he said as his phone dinged again and he glanced at it. “Ah, and that’s the city planner. Now I really need to go.”
As I watched him walk away, I realized that he’d barely touched his coffee.
* * *
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