Cherished (Masters and Mercenaries #7.5)(57)

“Oh, but I do.” He stopped at the elevator and pressed the button, paying absolutely no attention to the people around them. “I’m going to prove something to you. There were three brothers in that book. They each had one obvious personality trait. There was the sweet one who took care of her and made sure she had everything she needed. There was the smart one who always knew what to say. And then there was the Dom, and he knew how to give her what she needed in the bedroom. I think my sister is right, and if you put all three of those men together, you get Bridget’s perfect man. Guess what, sweetheart? I’m going to prove to you that I’m that man.”

The elevator doors opened and Will entered. Bridget tried to look up before he turned. She noticed everyone else had decided to take another car.

“Will, you don’t have to prove anything. Seriously, I was wrong to push you.” Serena’s words had gotten to her. It was important that she stopped only thinking about her needs and gave a little back to him. “It’s okay. I don’t want you to leave. God, I’ll be miserable if you leave me. If you want me to sign another contract, I will. I know you need that to feel safe.”

She felt him shift and suddenly her feet were on the floor, his arms balancing her. He stared at her for a moment while the elevator made its progress. “I only need you to feel safe. I had a talk with Frankie last night. You know, he’s not a bad guy and I think your sister knows what she’s getting into. But that talk got me thinking. Then after you went to sleep, I read your book. Only the first one, but I’m going to read them all. I get it. Love isn’t just a word. It’s the most important word but we have to define it for ourselves. We can’t let someone else own what love means to us. I’ve been using a definition straight out of my childhood, but I need to figure out how to define that word as a man, not a boy. Tell me what it means when you say you love me.”

She didn’t even think about prevaricating. She told him exactly what she thought. “It means I’ll never leave you. It means I need you to be happy more than I need to be happy. It means that when I’m with you, I finally feel like myself. It’s like I was always looking for this piece of me and it turns out you had it with you all along.”

He brushed back her hair. “I love you, Bridget.”

Tears threatened again. Damn this man. She’d cried more since she met him than all the years before, but she had to admit it felt good. It felt good to not have to hide. Still, it was hard to understand how he’d gone from not being able to say the word to giving it to her with such conviction.

The door opened and he lifted her up again, this time cradling her in his arms.

“You don’t have to say those words, Will. I’m good. I promise I’m not going to throw another fit and try to kick you out. I’ll sign the contract.”

He made quick work of the distance between the elevator and their suite and settled her on her feet again. He opened the door and then pulled her inside by the cuffs. “You will sign a contract, but not the one you’re thinking of. And you didn’t throw a fit. You were scared. Your dad scared you, but I’m going to take care of that, too. I’m going to protect you and make sure he doesn’t have any power over us again.”

Her eyes widened as she took in the changes he’d made to the living area of their suite. A buffet table had been set up, and Will had laid out a wide array of toys. There was a flogger, a crop, two vibes, a butt plug. Holy shit, was that a violet wand? “What did you do?”

“I renovated. It’s okay. The room is billed to your dad. He’s going to get charged for what I did to the ceiling.”

She looked up. There was now a very sturdy hook and chain attached to the ceiling.

He grinned at her and led her over to the place where the chain dangled. “Don’t worry about it. Taggart and Dean helped me. I assure you they know what they’re doing. And the cuffs were made for bondage so they won’t hurt your wrists.” He looped the chain around her cuffs and she suddenly found herself bound to the hook. “See, that’s perfect.”

“Will, this isn’t a dungeon.” But it felt like one. With her hands bound above her, she felt vulnerable and open to him. Despite her misgivings, her body was definitely heating up in all the right places. “The maids could come in at any time.”

“Nope. I slipped the Do Not Disturb sign on the door. We’re all alone and I want you to ask me.”

“Ask you when you went insane?” She was fascinated by the change in him. He was more relaxed than she’d ever seen him, as if he’d come to some inner decision and now he was at peace.

He picked up the crop and slapped it against his hand. He turned and studied her, his eyes predatory. “I went insane the moment I saw you, and I don’t want to go back. Now are you going to be a bratty girl who gets a spanking? Or the sweet sub who gets all the treats?”

It was far hotter in the room than she’d suspected at first. “Will, you can’t make all our problems go away with a flick of the crop.”

She knew she’d made a mistake the minute she saw that tiny shake of his head. And then he moved to the side and she nearly screamed when she felt that crop come down hard on her ass. Once and then again and again until she’d counted five. The pain flared, roaring through her system and then settling down to a pleasant warmth as his hand cupped her curves through the filmy material of her skirt.