“When can I come home?”
“I can’t legally keep you from returning. Unfortunately, I don’t have the manpower to guard you indefinitely.”
“I realize that. I’m not asking for an armed guard. I need to live my life, what I can of it. I can’t spend the rest of my life hiding in Montana. I have a business, a home, and family. I want my life back.” Her hand reached up to her throat. In her pocket, as Rob had ordered, she kept her leather play collar.
“I want my friends back. They’re my adopted family. This guy took my past. I’m not letting him take my future, too.”
* * * *
Rob called an hour later. Thomas had updated him and Rob was adamant. “Honey, you can’t come home.”
“Either you come out here and get me next week, or I’ll fly home and rent a car in Tampa. I’m not staying here.”
“Stop.” Dom tone.
She would have nothing to do with it. She walked into the bedroom and closed the door behind her and dropped her voice. “Sir, I don’t care if you give me two hundred with a goddamned cane. I’m sick of hiding and not being able to live my life!”
“It’s not safe.”
“What happens when he finally figures out where I am and he comes looking for me here? The police are a good fifteen minutes away at the very least. If the weather’s good and they’re not off on another call. At least at home I can bet on someone responding in a few minutes. And I can carry a gun there.”
“And you could be dead by then, so what difference would it make?”
“At least I would be home. Goddammit, you’re not hiding me up here forever.” She did something she didn’t think she’d ever done since accepting his collar. “Sir, I’m sorry, but if you’re not up here in seven days, I’m flying out of Bozeman and coming home. Do you understand me?”
She hoped she hadn’t pushed too far. He was quiet for a moment. “I’ll talk to the captain about getting off. I’ll come get you. You’re not coming home alone, understand? I waited for you. The least you can do is wait for me. All right?”
She breathed a sigh of relief. “Yes, Sir. Just hurry, please?”
* * * *
Rob called her the next day. “I’ll leave on Thursday. I figure if I drive straight through, it’ll probably take me four days.”
Thursday was only four days away, meaning he should be there by the following Monday. Hopefully.
“Yes.”
Cabin fever of a sort had set in. She missed her life, her business, her home, her dog, and her fiancé. She wanted it back, what she had of it. A risk she was willing to take.
While she was gone, Rob had installed motion-detection floodlights outside the house and rented a Bush Hog to clear out the tall grass and underbrush just beyond the fence to increase visibility. And in a move Laura called overkill, he had an electric fence installed.
“I considered burying a few land mines, but I thought Det. Thomas might not like that idea.”
She laughed, missing his sense of humor more than ever.
* * * *
Laura spent the next day riding and journaling. She would miss Bill and the serenity she found in Montana but she was ready to go home and face whatever happened. In her forced exile, her fear had turned into anger.
There was no way MedicineMan would ruin her life. She wouldn’t let it happen.
Rob left on time, calling her every day with his progress. On Monday, right on schedule, he pulled into Bill’s driveway and Laura nearly tackled him before he climbed out of the Explorer.
She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, crying with relief and joy. “I’m so glad to see you, Sir!”
He picked her up and held her, Laura breathing in his scent and absorbing every single moment.
When Doogie nosed the back of Rob’s neck, he turned. “Someone else missed you, too.”
Doogie’s entire body wagged with joy as she hugged him. He’d grown in her absence, at least ten pounds heavier than when she last saw him.
When Bill’s dogs realized the visitor had brought a new playmate, they came over and said hi. She let the Lab jump out and go play.
“Will they be okay?” Rob asked.
“Oh, yeah. All I’ll have to do is ring the dinner bell and he’ll come running with them.”
She led him inside and showed him around. Doogie forgot his new friends in his eagerness to follow his mom. She helped Rob unload his bags and Doogie’s gear and when Bill returned they went out to eat in Gardiner. Despite Laura’s desire to start for home immediately, she agreed to Rob’s request let him rest for a couple of days.
“You know, it’s not easy putting up with seventy-five pounds of wiggly Lab for several thousand miles.”
She laughed and hugged him. “I guess I can wait that long. With you here, I’m sure I can think of something to fill the time.”
They went to bed early, except they remembered to lock Doogie out of the bedroom.
Rob wasted no time. He began yanking his clothes off before the bedroom door even swung shut behind him.
“Naked,” he ordered in full Dom tone. “Now.”
She took mere seconds to strip.
He extended his hand and snapped his fingers. “Collar.”
She grabbed it and fought the urge to sob with relief when he pointed at the floor by his feet. She held her hair out of the way while he buckled the collar around her neck.
Hooking a finger through the D-ring on the front, he tugged, urging her to her feet. After backing her to the edge of the bed, he put a hand in the middle of her chest and gently pushed.
She fell to the bed with a bounce, giggling.
He smiled. “You laugh now. You just wait.” He rolled a condom onto his cock and straddled her on the bed, grabbing her wrists and pinning them over her head with one hand while he lined up his cock at the entrance of her pussy with the other.
“Hard and fast, baby,” he hoarsely said. “Because I can’t fucking stand not to be inside you.”
He wasn’t kidding. She let out a soft cry as he thrust hard and deep, her swollen clit rubbing against his body with each stroke.
Burying his face in the crook of her neck, he said, “Come for me, baby. Come now.”
Then he bit down on her shoulder. Hard.
She cried out, her orgasm popping like an overloaded circuit. She thought he made a little growling sound, but then another orgasm washed through her as he kept biting her, the pain serving to amp up her release.
“One more,” he gasped, slamming his hips into her.
Laura wasn’t sure she could handle another one. Maybe it was the forced separation, but it felt like every nerve ending in her body sizzled. With his cock driving hard and deep inside her with each thrust, her body responded. As her cunt clamped down on his cock he let out a grunt of his own she knew meant he was coming, too.
He fell still, his lips now kissing at the spot on her shoulder she suspected would be nice and purple the next morning.
If she was lucky.
“Love you, baby girl.” He released her wrists and she wrapped her arms around him.
“Love you, too, Sir. I missed you.”
It sounded like he sighed. “I missed you, too, baby. You have no idea how much I missed you.”
Rob dragged himself out of bed to clean up and returned a minute later. Exhausted, he fell asleep curled around her. She lay awake for a while, listening to him breathe, remembering what she could of life before the attack.
He woke her early the next morning by burying his face between her legs and quickly erasing all vestiges of sleep from her system. After making her come, he pinned her wrists over her head and fucked her, hard and fast and with a smile on his face that she would have gladly killed anyone for interrupting.
Later, after Rob drifted back to sleep, Laura pulled on some clothes and went outside to feed the horses.
She would miss them. They were a comfort and a path to healing through the quiet rides. After filling their feed b
uckets she sat and softly talked to them. Maurie, the piebald gelding, nickered to her and nuzzled her foot with his nose. She stroked his fur, laying her face against his neck and smelling his sweet scent.
When a noise startled her she whirled around. Rob stood in the barn doorway, silhouetted by the morning sun.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“That’s okay.”
He knelt next to her and reached out. The gelding cautiously sniffed his hand, blowing a few times before nuzzling him and then reburying his head in the bucket.
“He’s a big Lab, that’s all,” Rob laughed.
“Horses are the ultimate Labs. They’ll eat themselves sick.”
“We could always buy the lot next door, fence it in, and build a pole barn. Our area’s zoned for horses.”
She scratched Peter, a buckskin gelding, behind the ears. “I’ll think about it.” Then she had another thought. “After we get this other stuff behind us.” The horrifying thought of going out one morning and finding a dead, mutilated horse nauseated her.
And with MedicineMan still on the loose, that was a possibility she didn’t doubt. There’s no way she’d ever let Doogie out of her sight outside at the house, much less leave him outside in the yard alone.
They walked back inside, hand and hand. They talked about showering but drifted into bed first. After an hour they rose once more and finally made it into the bath. Rob finished first and made a fresh pot of coffee for Laura. When she emerged, wrapped in Rob’s robe, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
“I had an idea,” he said.
“Let’s hear it.”
“I know you said you still wanted to follow our original wedding plans, but how about we fudge a little and go ahead and get married here, before we leave?” He pulled a box out of his pocket and opened it for her.
It was their wedding bands.
She looked at him. “In Montana?”
“Well, unless we’re in outer Mongolia, yeah, Montana.” His face turned somber. “Look, I almost lost you once. And who knows what’s going to happen when we get home. I know I said I wanted to collar you and marry you in front of our friends. But I love you, and I’m bound and determined I’m going to marry you no matter what. I can’t think of a more beautiful place to honeymoon than here. Hell, we were going to honeymoon here anyway.”
He dropped to one knee and held her hand. “Please marry me. I can’t beg or grovel any more than that.” He smiled. “Besides, I put up with Doogie all the way up here. You damn well owe me, baby girl.”
She playfully shoved him. “When?”
“When do you want to do it? How long will it take us to get a license?”
“I don’t know.” She managed to get in touch with Bill at the airfield before he left for a trip and he told her who to contact. By the time he returned home that evening, they had a marriage license.
A friend of his was a notary public. Bill called a couple of his friends, people Laura had come to know during her stay. The next day they drove into Yellowstone. Three hours later, on the boardwalk overlooking the terraces at Mammoth Hot Springs, Laura officially became Laura Carlton.
One of Bill’s friends videotaped the ceremony for them while a second photographed it. They all went out to dinner after, and they returned to Bill’s tired and happy. Bill went home with his girlfriend, leaving Rob and Laura alone.
“Go bring me your collar, baby girl,” he quietly ordered.
She nearly tripped over her feet in her run for the bedroom, earning her a gentle laugh as he watched her. She brought it to him, presenting it.
He took it and pointed at the floor.
This felt beyond right, beyond perfect. Kneeling at her Master’s feet, the world at large nowhere in sight. Just Him.
He buckled it around her throat before gathering her hair in his right hand and tipping her head back so he could look into her eyes.
“Who do you belong to?”
“You, Sir.”
He smiled, breaking her heart with its perfection. She knew she could never deny him anything he asked, ever, if it meant earning that smile from him.
Not a hint of the sadness, the pain, that he’d worn so heavily in the early weeks after the attack.
“That’s right. You do. My sweet, beautiful baby girl. All mine.”
Without releasing his hold on her hair, he urged her to her feet. He gripped the back of her neck firmly with his other hand and lowered his lips just above hers.
“You belong to me. I’ll die before I let anyone hurt you. You know that, right?”
She nodded, transfixed by his sweet gaze. “Yes, Sir.”
He teased her, making as if to kiss her but not letting her close the gap, earning her another of those smiles. “Tell me what you want.”
This was something else that felt right. She wasn’t sure what to say, but the words magically appeared in her brain. “I want you to own me completely, Sir. I want to be your slave. I want you to own my heart and my body.”
He never looked away, his gaze holding hers. “For the rest of our lives.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“That means taking punishment if you disobey me.”
Her breath came faster. “Yes, Sir.”
He completed the kiss, setting off explosions inside her. He kissed her hard, crushing, fucking her mouth with his tongue as she did her best not to let her knees turn to jelly. She had to wrap her arms around him for support.
He took and tasted, giving her no choice, holding her there and stealing her breath with the ferocity.
Just as suddenly, he used his grip on her to pull her away from him with a playful smile. She gasped, reeling, and he used her discombobulation to spin her around and deliver a bare-handed swat that stung even through the seat of her jeans.
“Go start a fire, baby girl. I have plans for you tonight.”
She raced to do it.
Laura kindled a fire while Rob opened a chilled bottle of champagne he’d bought the day before. They curled up in front of the fireplace and linked arms.
He gazed into her eyes as she felt the first true, deep peace she had since the nightmare began. “I love you, Laur,” he said. “You are my life.”
She leaned over to kiss him, nearly spilling her glass. This set them both giggling and they barely managed to take a sip before having to untangle themselves and put the glasses down.
“Tell me the truth, Sir. Was I always this klutzy?”
He smiled. “Yes, but it was one of the things I loved about you.” He brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes. She hadn’t had the color touched up. It had grown out a little and she was back to wearing it like she used to. “Someone so beautiful and talented and yet as human as the rest of us.” He stroked her cheek. “You used to always joke you wear your food well.”
“There’s still a lot I don’t remember, you know.”
He nodded. “I know.”
“Are you okay with that?”
“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.” He hooked a finger through the ring in the front of her collar and pulled her close. “Tonight you don’t think about that. Tonight, you completely belong to me, and I’m going to make up for lost time.” He kissed her before pulling her into his arms.
She settled against him and watched the flames dance in the hearth. “I want it all back, Sir,” she whispered. “I want all my memories back. I want to know everything.” She paused. “I want those goddamn journals!”
“Stop. That’s an order. Do not think about it. Not tonight. Regardless of whether or not your old memories come back, we’re going to make new ones, right?”
She nodded.
“Okay, then. Let’s make some right now.” He kissed her, slowly, refusing to be rushed. She folded against him, opening herself to him completely, her body pressed against his. She’d missed this, being with him, contact with him. Especially when they’d just begun rekindling this part of their relationship.
When sh
e pulled him down on top of her, he stopped her.
“What?”
“Hold on a minute.” He got up and disappeared into the bedroom, reappearing with blankets and pillows, as well as a duffel bag.
“What’s that?” she asked.
He grinned. “You’ll find out, baby girl.”
A thrill ran through her. He obviously had something up his sleeve. She had a strong suspicion what that something was.
Once they spread the blankets and pillows out on the floor, he held his arms out to her and drew her close. “That’s better.”
He took his time. It was sweet, slow torture as he traced her neckline with tiny kisses and carefully unbuttoned her shirt. As he kissed her bared skin she pushed away all thoughts that these last few days could be the beginning of the end if the stalker had his way.
She moaned softly while he slowly, carefully, explored every inch of her flesh. When she tried to work on his waistband he gently pushed her hands away. With a sigh she lay back and closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his body against hers.
He made her feel beautiful, in a way she’d thought she might never feel after seeing her reflection in the mirror at the hospital. She’d come away, physically, with just a tiny scar on her forehead.
Emotional and mental scars, however, weren’t something she wanted to ponder. Not tonight.
Feather-soft, his fingers traced patterns on her skin, making her shiver with anticipation. He nibbled on the top of her shoulder, at the junction with her neck, nipping her just enough to make her squeal with pleasure and pain.
“Such a sweet sound,” he whispered against her flesh before he did it again. And again.
Her clit pulsed, throbbing. He knew her body better than she did, it sometimes felt like.
Then he reached for the bag, hooking the strap with his finger and dragging it close. He unzipped it and held up her leather wrist and ankle cuffs. Slowly, after grazing his teeth across her flesh at every point, he buckled each cuff around her.
“Now that’s the way I wish I could keep you dressed all the time,” he said. He grabbed her wrists and pulled them up and over her head, pinning her down. His stiff cock pressed through his jeans, hitting her perfectly against her clit. “Wearing nothing but my cuffs, my collar, and my wedding ring.”