Tied to the Billionaire(79)

The last word was said with so much regret that it almost drew tears to her eyes. How could her Master think he was unsuitable for anything? He was brilliant, gorgeous and dominant enough to keep the most unruly slave in line with only a look. She hated the idea that anyone, even a fellow businessman, made him feel like less than the powerful Master he was.

“I’m so sorry, Master,” she whispered, leaning further into him, offering him what comfort she could.

“Thank you, pet.” He smoothed his hand down her cheek, the heat of his hand reward enough to keep her kneeling before him for days. “But I think there might be a way to salvage the deal. If I were to marry, I could show that I had a more traditional side. I believe the group would have no more reason to withhold the sale.”

All the breath vanished from her lungs. She looked up at him, pulling back from him regardless of the hold he still held upon her roots. The pain was nothing compared to the aching gap in her chest where her heart had just been. Was he telling her they couldn’t meet anymore? That he was releasing her from their arrangement so he could marry some pretty blonde who would look perfect next to him in the tabloids? Who wouldn’t put rules around their time together?

His hand curled around her cheek, his thumb stroking along the bone. “Don’t worry, pet.” He smiled down at her, and regardless of her own pain her heart beat a bit faster at the light in his eyes. “I’m not tossing you aside. Quite the opposite. I’d like you to be my wife.”

Serena stopped breathing for a second. She must have misheard him. He couldn’t be serious. Her. His little pet, standing up beside him in a crowd. Her entire body shook with the idea of everyone knowing she was totally and completely his.


What he asked for called to a place inside her she had tried to forget. The part of her that lay in bed the other three hundred and sixty days a year, longing for her Master. Desperate not for the amazing sex or the easy way he dominated her, but to be held by him, to feel cherished and desired as only he had ever made her feel.

“I won’t be able to have any affairs for the length of the contract, or they might be able to cite me for the breach and bilk me for a fortune. And I can’t think of another woman who can satisfy me the way you do, pet.” He smiled down at her, his words meant as a compliment, but instead they stole the last ounce of strength from her body.

He didn’t want her. He didn’t want some deeper connection. He only wanted a pet in the bedroom, someone to submit to his needs enough to keep him satisfied until the deal was sealed. Then he’d move on to some new arrangement. One that might not include her.

Serena fought for balance as the world tilted. Her entire body trembled. All the possibilities unfolded beneath her, each one detailing a world without her Master.

She needed it to stop. She couldn’t handle this. She wouldn’t survive it.

“Bingo,” she whispered.

She stood up, pulling easily from his hold. He could have kept her pinned there, kneeling at his feet for days if he had wanted to, yet like a good Master he understood her needs and respected that this was not the time to exert such force.

“What, pet?”

She shook her head, trying to clear the muddled thoughts from her mind, to think logically. The aching pit of need in her stomach that begged to be his in every way fought for control, to give into the opportunity he offered. But she couldn’t.

“This plan. It can’t work.”

“Of course it can. It will just take a few accommodations from us.”

She almost laughed at his words. Us. Right! Serena knew who would be the one making accommodations. Giving up her dreams, her desires, all she’d worked for. She couldn’t do that. Not even for him.

“What of my career?”

He looked out into the room for a minute, as if debating his choice, before he turned back to her. “I can’t have my wife working for me, least of all in the engineering department with all the gearheads. How would that look?”

Her heart sank at his easy dismissal of her career.

Misinterpreting her expression, he stepped closer, placing his warm hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry. You’ll have everything you need. You’ll be taken care of.”

Her stomach clenched. She’d be taken care of, like a prized puppy or a woman who only knew how to drink Martinis and write cheques at charity events. Was that how he saw her?

She might be submissive in the bedroom, but she had never wanted a man to take control of her entire life. She’d worked hard for her career, and even harder to keep her place.

That was why she only allowed herself to experience her submissive side one week a year, to give herself the time to focus on her career. Or at least that was what she’d been telling herself all these years. That her career was the reason she’d stopped going to the club, or looking for other play partners.

She’d been happy with their arrangement, happy with her Master. She had time for her career, and the opportunity to experience her true self with him.

But this…this was too much.

“I can’t.” She turned away from him, heading towards the door. “I can’t do this.”

“Stop, pet.” He reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back. He gripped her so hard it hurt, just a bit.

Any other day, any other time, his touch would have inflamed her. Yesterday she would have bent down and thanked him for his fierce hold. But today was different. Everything had changed.