Why would I do that?

  Because you want to please me. And you will. Tonight. Open the last box, Kate.

  Kate did, and her eyes rounded. Two silver Ben Wa balls were laid out in a box pretty enough to have held jewelry. They were attached to each other by a short string. A small silver remote control was in the box next to them.

  I have no idea what to do with those.

  That’s okay, we’ll learn together.

  You don’t know either?

  There was a pause before he texted: I meant I’ll teach you.

  Kate knew she should be creeped out by receiving such an intimate object from a man who claimed to be an elf. However, she wasn’t. In fact, for some reason she couldn’t understand, she was beginning to trust him.

  Okay.

  Take off whatever you’re wearing and insert them.

  Right now?

  Yes.

  I feel like I should wash them first.

  Okay, go wash them, then insert them.

  Kate did. They were cold at first, but not in an unpleasant way. She clenched her vaginal muscles around them, at first afraid they would fall out. They’re in.

  Now put on the jeans.

  With them inside me?

  Yes. Don’t take them out until I tell you to.

  Kate put her undies back on, then pulled on the jeans. They fit snuggly, removing her worry that a ball would drop to the floor. The jeans fit perfectly.

  I don’t care about the jeans. How do the balls feel?

  They’re interesting.

  I think it gets better when you start to walk around with them.

  You think?

  Walk around, Kate.

  Kate took a lap around her couch and had to admit the balls’ movement inside her excited her. Not orgasm hot, but a warmth that spread through her. She texted: I heard these are good for a woman’s health, too.

  Stop thinking, Kate. Go get the remote. Turn it on.

  Kate turned the dial all the way and gasped. Whoa, that’s too high. She lowered the vibration. I can see why people like this.

  Tell me how it feels.

  Kate hesitated, then texted: It’s amazing. I can feel myself getting wet. I had no idea it would feel that good.

  That’s your G-spot, Kate.

  I like it.

  Good. But don’t like it too much. You can’t come until I tell you to.

  You can’t tell me what to do. I don’t even know you.

  I’m already telling you. And you’re doing it. You know why? Because I will get you the mind-blowing fuck you’ve always wanted. But only after you follow my rules. For the next nine days.

  I will? She thought about what little else she had to look forward to and texted: Okay.

  Then leave the balls in, Kate. Every hour, I want you to turn them on for five minutes. Then turn them off. But don’t remove them. Tonight, go to Grady’s Bar at nine and keep them in. Wear those jeans on your perfect little ass, and spray your neck with what’s in that bottle. Don’t leave until you have the phone number of a man you find attractive. That’s the man you’ll picture when you return home and I finally let you come. That’s the face you’ll see when you stroke yourself tonight.

  Will you be there?

  No. This isn’t about me, Kate. It’s about you. The bath was only disappointing because you let it be. You should have had your fingers pumping in and out of yourself while imagining someone fucking you. Try it again tomorrow, and picture the man you meet tonight. But nothing happens between you and him unless I say so. Understood, Kate? You’re mine. Not his. Only fuck him if I tell you to.

  The game was suddenly felt very real, and Kate had a rush of doubt. This is crazy. I can’t do this. I don’t like bars. I don’t like crowds.

  Kate?

  I can’t do this.

  Yes, you can.

  You don’t understand. I can’t just walk into a bar and get a guy’s number. I get nervous around people I don’t know. I never know what to say.

  Kate. You are a beautiful woman. You could say nothing and get someone’s number.

  I think I’m going to throw up.

  Even that wouldn’t stop a guy from giving you his number, Kate. But you’re not going to throw up. Get the remote. Keep turning the dial up until you stop thinking. A really good fuck starts in your head, Kate. Your head. You need to learn to turn off the noise. When you do, nothing will make you nervous.

  Kate did just that, and a warm heat spread through her stomach. Soon the intensity of the stimulation had her gripping the side of the couch. If she kept it up, she knew she would come right then and there. She thought about what he’d said and turned them off. She could wait.

  Do you have a name? I can’t keep thinking of you as an elf. It’s not very sexy.

  You can call me Master.

  Kate chuckled. That’s not going to happen.

  You might like it. Try it.

  Good-bye, Mr. Elf.

  Until tonight, Kate. Don’t forget. Turn the balls on for five minutes every hour. And don’t take them out.

  Kate didn’t answer. She didn’t have to. They both knew she was his to command. At least, for nine more days.

  ***

  Brock changed his shirt three times as he cursed himself for not getting a haircut that week. It was eight thirty and he was a wreck. He faced himself in the mirror.

  Calm the fuck down.

  He needed to get his ass over to Grady’s before Kate arrived. He’d sent her to a bar he knew would be full of tattooed, drunk rednecks. If all went as planned, he would be an island of familiarity in an ocean of otherwise scary choices, and she would beeline it to him.

  He didn’t want it to seem like he was expecting her, nor did he want to look like he didn’t belong there. He needed just the right outfit. He changed back into a light-blue button-down cotton shirt and jeans.

  He sped over to Grady’s and rushed to order a beer as soon as he arrived. He’d barely planted himself on a stool at the bar when Kate walked in. A silence fell over the normally rowdy crowd as all turned to look at her.

  She stood transfixed at the door with her eyes opened wide, looking like she was about to bolt. She scanned the crowd quickly, passing over Brock. Then her head snapped back around as she recognized him.

  He raised his beer to her.

  A relieved smile spread across her face, and she stepped into the bar. As she walked toward him, a delightful pink lit her cheeks, and Brock wanted to haul her out of there and into his bed. His cock throbbed with the same desire.

  She stood beside Brock’s chair and looked up at him so shyly he almost felt guilty for being the reason she was there. “Hi,” she said softly.

  “Hi, Kate. You look amazing.”

  She blushed and looked away. “Thanks. Do you mind if I . . . I mean . . . if you’re with someone I don’t want to . . .”

  Brock pulled an extra stool over. “Have a seat. I’m here alone.” She sat on the stool carefully, and Brock hid a smile. She still has them in. Good.

  “Me, too,” she said simply, clasping her hands in her lap.

  “Want a beer?”

  “I don’t drink beer. I’ll take a white wine, though.”

  Brock ordered it for her, and she sipped it quietly beside him. To make sure there was no misunderstanding, Brock said, “I’m not dating anyone, Kate.”

  She smiled as she took another sip of wine but didn’t meet his eyes. “I’m not either.”

  Loud country music started playing in the background. Brock moved closer so she could hear him. “Do you want to dance?”

  “Here?” She looked around in surprise. “No one is dancing.”

  “Someone has to start,” he said as if he’d done it before. He took her hand and led her to an area of the bar that was more open. He would have pulled her closer, but he didn’t think she was ready for his raging hard-on. Not yet.

  As they moved together with the music, he watched her face. She was flushed, and her eyes sho
ne with an excitement he wasn’t sure had to do with him or with the movement of those balls inside her. He wondered if she was as wet as he was hard. God, I could fuck her right here, right now. And not care who’s watching.

  She looked up and met his eyes. “I thought your eyes were green, but now they look blue.”

  “They’re somewhere in between,” he said, hoping he didn’t come right there while explaining his eye color to her. “They tend to look the color of the shirt I wear.”

  “They’re beautiful,” she said, then blushed again and looked away.

  “Why thank you, Kate.” He strove for a casual tone. “It’s nice to get a compliment now and then.”

  She peered back up at him from beneath her long lashes. “You must get them often. You’re a good-looking man.”

  He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Kate Hale, what has gotten into you tonight?”

  She pulled back, eyes wide, and stopped dancing for a moment. “What did you say?”

  He was so turned-on he didn’t know what he was saying. “You don’t normally flirt, that’s all.”

  “Oh, yeah.” She relaxed in his arms and began dancing with him again. “Sorry.”

  He whispered in her ear again. “Don’t be. I like it.”

  She shuddered beneath his touch, and Brock was tempted to call the game off and ask her to go home with him that night. But he didn’t want to rush her. When she came to him—and she would, on the twelfth day—he wanted her to do the asking, the begging.

  “So, is there anything new?”

  She swallowed visibly. “No.”

  “The music is too loud to talk. Let’s get out of here. Want to go for a walk?”

  She shuddered again. “Okay.”

  They stepped out of the loud bar together and, despite the coats they’d grabbed on the way out, were hit with the frigid night air. He laughed. “I didn’t think this out well. It’s too cold for a walk. Do you want to go back inside?”

  She held her jacket tightly around her and shook her head.

  He gave her his sexiest smile. “Do you want to come home with me?”

  She shook her head again, but her mouth parted slightly in excitement. “No, I can’t.”

  He tucked one of her long blonde locks behind her ear. “Are you sure about that?”

  “Yes. I promised not to . . . I mean, we barely know each other.”

  “We’ve known each other for a long time, Kate.”

  She took a step back, then blurted, “Can I just have your number?”

  Brock smiled, wrote his cell number on a piece of paper, and handed it to her. “Sure.”

  She pocketed it and took another step back. “I have to go.”

  He hoped she was in a rush to get home for the same reason he was. He really wanted to sink into her wet sex, but he’d settle for talking her through an orgasm while he jacked off.

  “Good night, Kate.”

  She hurried toward her car, pausing to look over at him as she unlocked it. She frowned and shook her head, then climbed in.

  Brock broke speed limits on the way back to his apartment.

  I hope I don’t get pulled over.

  Officer, you do not understand how important it is for me to get home—right now.

  Chapter Six

  By the time Kate drove up to the front of her house, she was shaking with pent-up sexual frustration. Her naughty elf was right: Fantasizing about someone in particular while her body awakened made all the difference. She’d turned on the Ben Wa balls during the drive home and had imagined what it would have been like to go home with Brock.

  Would he have been gentle, as his personality implied? Or did he have a wilder side he concealed, as she did? Kate pulled into her garage, and as soon as the door closed she turned off her car, unbuckled the front of her jeans, slid her hand inside the front of her panties, and began to stroke herself with her middle finger.

  She was hot even in the quickly cooling car. The balls within her moved around, now and then hitting a spot that had her gasping and rubbing herself furiously. A phone beeped in her purse and she ignored it, closing her eyes and bringing herself closer and closer to climax.

  The phone beeped again, and Kate paused. It was the prepaid phone. She groaned and rummaged through her purse to find it.

  Are you home?

  Yes and no. I’m in my car in the garage. I didn’t even make it into the house.

  Are you already touching yourself, Kate?

  Yes. Now that I have someone to think about, this whole thing is even hotter. I can’t type right now. I can’t wait any longer.

  You can and you will. Are the balls on?

  Yes. I drove home with them on. They feel so good.

  Take them out. Now.

  No.

  Yes, Kate. You almost had an orgasm without me. That’s not allowed. You have to be punished.

  Listen, I’m loving your sex tips, but I’m not into punishment.

  Get out of the car, Kate. Strip naked and take those balls out of you. Now.

  It’s fucking freezing out there.

  Yes, it is. You could have been in a warm bath tonight, but you didn’t follow my directions. Tell me you at least got a man’s phone number.

  I did.

  Good. Then you’ll get your orgasm. But not inside. I want you naked. Cold. Remembering how important it is to follow my commands.

  Kate stepped out of her car. The cold night air hit her. He was nuts if he thought she was going to be able to do anything but freeze to death out here if she stripped.

  It’s too cold out here.

  Saying no to me only earns you another punishment, Kate. Strip.

  She took off her coat. Her body was warm with excitement from their game. She stepped out of her shoes and pants, then her shirt. She turned off the balls and removed them.

  I’m naked and fucking freezing. Happy?

  Put your coat on the hood of the car, then lie on your back on top of it. Put the phone next to you and call me. I won’t talk to you. You don’t deserve to hear my voice. But I will hear you. Use the balls. Use your hand. Tell me what you’re doing. Everything you’re doing, and how it feels. And when you come, put the phone close enough to you so I can hear you. Every time you shiver, every time you think you can’t take it anymore, remind yourself you earned this. You belong to me now. And you will do as I say. After you come, hang up and text me.

  Kate wanted to say no. She wanted to tell him exactly where he and his punishments could go. But she’d never been so turned on in her life. She didn’t want the feeling to end. Even if it meant temporarily freezing her ass off.

  She placed her coat and the phone on the hood of the car, climbed up, and called him. Just as he’d said, he didn’t speak. There was something insanely erotic about knowing he could be anyone, and that he could hear her. The hood of the car was warmer than she’d expected. Not that she would have cared either way. She was so excited she could barely think.

  “I need one of the balls back inside me.” She rammed one of the balls in her. “And I need them back on.” She turned them on. “The ball isn’t deep enough. I need it deeper. I want it right on my G-spot.” She used her finger to push it deeper. “Oh, God, that’s it. That’s fucking it. Oh, yes.”

  She closed her eyes and took the other ball in her hand. “I’m putting this ball on my clit. Holy shit. That’s good. That is so fucking good.” She rubbed the ball back and forth over her nub until she found the perfect spot for it. Then she pressed down, caressing the area in small circular motions. “I wish I had something else inside me. I need Brock here ramming his cock into me right now. But this is good. I’m using my finger and imagining it’s his cock. I’m pumping it in and out. I am so wet. Shit. This is amazing.”

  As her excitement swelled, her ability to articulate what she was doing diminished. She pictured Brock above her, pushing her legs wider apart. She stroked herself harder, faster, and her words turned into moans. She ran a hand over her co
ld breasts and imagined her fingers were his mouth. Her nipples were puckered and hard. She pinched one of them, imagining his teeth biting into her, and the mixture of pain and pleasure that coursed through her drove her over the edge. “I’m going to come,” she whispered, then cried out loudly as wave after wave of heat smashed through her. She was drowning in the sensations—lost for a moment to the fire shooting through her. It didn’t matter where her body was. She was floating in the warm glow of her climax.

  She rolled off the car, pulled the Ben Wa ball out, grabbed the phone and her keys, and walked stark naked into her house, still in a daze. She hung up the phone, then texted: I’m done. I’m back in the house.

  You’re not done until I say you are. Are you still naked?

  Yes.

  Good. Where are the balls?

  In my hand.

  Go wash them off and put them back in. Take the remote with you and go lie down on your bed.

  Beneath the blankets, I hope. Hypothermia will end our game fast.