Tell Me - Ashe Barker Page 0,12

He watched from his porch as Thea got out of her car and gazed up at him. The four steps leading up to his door helped to create the right air of authority and he watched dispassionately as she approached him.

Her long, dark hair was loose, falling in unrestrained waves around her shoulders. Her calf-length raincoat covered her entirely. She wore flat sandals on her feet, completely at odds with her usual spiky-heeled footwear. He knew her to be almost thirty, but tonight she looked very young, and more than a little lost. Her eyes were rimmed in red, a sign she’d been crying on the way over here. Tony cursed himself. He should have insisted she tell him her address, then he could have sent a cab for her.

“Sir? I got her as quickly as I could, but there are road works…”

“That‘s fine. You’re not late. Come inside.” He gentled his tone on purpose, seeking to reassure her. This new twist to their usual arrangement would be unnerving enough for Thea at any time, but given her present state of insecurity and ambivalence toward him he sensed he had to proceed with care. These first moments would be crucial.

He waited as she mounted the steps, then shifted to one side to allow her to walk past him into his house.

“First on the right.” He directed her into his dining room. The solid ash table in the centre of the room was bare except for the rattan cane he had placed there earlier, and the leather collar he always insisted she wore when they met at the club. He was well aware these would be the things she would spot the moment she entered and their significance would not be lost on her.

He followed Thea into the room. She was unbuttoning her coat, her gaze locked on the cane. She slid the coat from her shoulders, and he was delighted to see she wore only her bra and panties under it. When she’d told him she wasn’t dressed, she meant that literally. And she’d obeyed his instructions to the letter, come just as she was. He stepped forward and took the garment from her, then was gratified and more than a little relieved to watch her sink to her knees before him.

She didn't speak, just knelt, head bowed, her hands resting palms up on her thighs. Her practised submissive posture conveyed far more than words. She wanted, needed, his dominance and it had to be now. She’d seen the cane, knew what he planned to do to her, and she accepted it. Craved it.

The caning was part of his plan, but it had been his intention to talk to her first. That was his primary purpose in insisting on this face to face encounter, but his gut told him to provide for her immediate needs before his own. Tony rarely ignored his Dom instincts.

He picked up the collar and walked around behind her. “Lift up your hair please.”

She did as he’d asked. He crouched to fasten the leather around her neck. He stood, his hands resting on her shoulders as she leaned into him.

“I’m going to punish you, Thea. For breaking our arrangement to meet at the club tonight, and also for your bad manners at my office earlier this week. You left before we had finished our discussion.”

“Yes, Sir. I shouldn’t have behaved as I did.” Her voice was low, barely more than a murmur.

“I don't doubt you had your reasons, and I will want to hear them. After.” He gave her shoulders a final reassuring squeeze then returned to his position in front of her, one hip hitched on the edge of the table.

Thea followed him with her gaze, never wavering. He recognised the uncertainty in her expression, and the nervousness. But he also saw trust. He could work with that.

“Of course, Sir.” Her tone seemed perhaps a little stronger now, and he was encouraged by it.

“Stand up, please and remove your underwear.”

Thea got to her feet and reached behind her to unclasp the bra. He took it from her, then held out his hand for her panties too. He left her to stand in the centre of the room, naked, while he deposited her clothes in the hallway outside. He re-entered the dining room and leaned against the table again. At first he said nothing. Instead he watched her for a couple of minutes, during which time she remained absolutely still. He had to hand it to