Secrets Learned Read online

  “Until when?”

  “When you’re ready.”

  “Fair enough. Okay.” She counted to ten in her head. “Ready.”

  Alex laughed and shook his head. “What on earth am I going to do with you?”

  “Well now, Sir, it’s all up to you, isn’t it? Can I help in any way?”

  “Take your jeans off.”

  “You what?” Her voice rose. “Do what?”

  “Take your jeans off. And your pants. Didn’t you say they were wet and chafed? Now’s your chance to de-damp and de chafe.”

  “I thought that’s what you said, but…” Could she do something so risqué? She was a teacher in the local community, for goodness sake. What if someone saw her and… The consequences made her want to shudder. Nevertheless, the desire to please him took hold and she’d moved her hands to the belt of her jeans when she saw where they had driven to. “You turn here and that’s my house, the third on the left.”

  Could he hear the relief in her voice? She’d need to explain her feelings once she’d sorted them out for herself.

  “Next time.”

  “Maybe, maybe not.”

  “I bet you a dinner, at any restaurant you want, that before Christmas you will.”

  “And if you don’t win?”

  “I’ll go naked.” He paused for a second and grinned. “And drive you home.”

  “On your bike?”

  “Not unless you want me to be arrested. No, in this, or my, car.”

  She chuckled. “That I’d like to see, any of it. Okay, you’re on. We’ll shake on it when we’re inside.”

  He drove onto her drive as directed and looked around with interest. It was a traditional Scottish one and a half story cottage, with a door set in the middle of the front, a window either side and three above.

  “Like the house I always drew at school,” Dominique said as she watched him. “And a smaller version of my mum and dad’s house in Dumfriesshire. I love it. Come on in.” She unlocked the door and walked inside.

  Alex followed her and she took the expression on his face as one of interest to see what made her happy and secure.

  Why didn’t he say something? Even if it was just what a bloody shambles it looked. Mimi understood her taste wasn’t everyone’s. Eclectic was an understatement. Chaotic might also spring to mind, or even junk-shop chic.

  Not that everything was junk shop. She mixed classic antiques, like the Chippendale chair her gran had left her, with a hideous chipped gnome like John Major, the ex-Tory prime minister. She didn’t care.

  “As well as your kink might not be mine and all that, I guess we could add, my quirk might not be yours,” she said with a laugh.

  “But it is,” Alex said. “I have Edwina Currie and Ted Heath.” He named two more politicians. “And a map of Scotland in stained glass in my stairwell window.”

  “Oh, wow, that I have to see.” Mimi stopped suddenly, worried she was presuming too much. “Um, well…lounge? Kitchen?” Bedroom? Over the washing machine? Hanging from the ceiling? “Before you ask, I am very sure.”

  He nodded. “So be it. Bedroom and let’s be as normal as you and I will ever be and make love for the first time in bed?”

  “I’d like that,” Mimi said demurely, even as in her mind she high-fived and danced around the room, pumping the air. “Can I say, follow me?”

  “Here, at this moment in time, you’re the boss.”

  She cocked her head. “In everything?”

  “Ah, clever, pet. In showing me the way at least.”

  “Thank goodness for that,” Mimi said frankly. “This is the last time I’ll mention boring Bryan, but if I didn’t take charge, he’d have probably screwed my ear—or my belly button indent.”

  Ales roared with laughter. “I thought you said he wasn’t kinky?”

  “He wasn’t. He just had no idea what a woman looked like and what went where.”

  “Pet, what on earth did you see in him?”

  “Not a lot, but my mum was his mum’s best friend and they wanted me to keep an eye on him when he moved to the big, bad city. I think the day I gave him a key he hyperventilated and nearly ran then. With hindsight, I wish he had. Instead it upset two sets of parents and probably scarred him for life.”

  “Serves him right, the wanker.”

  “Oh no, never that. Nice people didn’t”—she paused—“wank.”

  Mimi climbed the stairs, conscious of his gaze on her ass. She swayed it a bit more than necessary and heard him chuckle.

  “Nice ass, I’m looking forward to taking it. Next time.”

  Heat flooded her. Taking her ass. Oh, Lord, at last she might discover just how that felt. It made her wet when she’d read about it, so maybe soon…

  She wriggled that part of her anatomy and opened her bedroom door.

  Alex joined her and she waited as he rubbed his fingers over the polished wooden footboard with its knobs and curves.

  “Beautiful and lots of nice loops to hold ropes and ties. Another time.”

  Disappointment filled her. He’d said conventional this time, but Mimi realized she wanted more than conventional. She needed to discover what pleased her Sir and made him tick.

  “What do you need to scribe with?”

  “Pardon?”

  “I asked what you need to scribe with, Sir.”

  Alex pulled her toward him and did that hold the chin, pinch and tilt thing that made her wet. “Why?”

  “I want to see what it feels like, just a little bit. You said when I was ready. Well, I’m ready.”

  “How sore is your ass?”

  “What?” Mimi had forgotten all about that. “It isn’t,” she said honestly. “It hasn’t been for ages.”

  Alex scrutinized her so closely that she was hard pressed not to fidget.

  “Are you sure?” he asked finally, just as she was ready to fidget, scream, mutter uncomplimentary things under her breath.

  “Sure, Sir.”

  “Then strip, stretch out on your tummy, get comfy and give me five minutes.” He left the room.

  Mimi heard his footsteps fade rapidly as various stair treads creaked. Then there was the sound of a door opening. It broke her reverie and she shimmied out of her top. Her jeans—damp and clinging—weren’t so easy, but just as she heard the front door bang again she kicked them and her soaking knickers off and threw them in the linen bin.

  She landed on the bed in a rush and wriggled to get comfy, just as he re-entered the room.

  “That was fast.”

  “I have a small set in my jacket.”

  “Cover all eventualities? Shit, that sounds snidey. I don’t mean it to be.”

  “I’d taken them home to sharpen and forgot to put them in my locker.” He sat down on the bed so she could see his face clearly. “Theresa says my scribing pens, for want of a better word, are my equivalent of a bad penny. They always turn up when she least expects them. I reckon she’s worried Ron is going to add to his repertoire. Wax and scribe might be a step too far for her.”

  Mimi began to laugh and stopped suddenly. She clutched his arm so tightly her knuckles went white and so did his skin. “Hold on,” she said urgently. “Say that again. Are a bad penny?”

  “Are a bad penny?”

  “Ara Baperry.”

  Alex looked puzzled. “I’m not a bad penny.”

  “That’s it. Octopus Eric’s girlfriend was Ara Baperry, or something. I never met her, just heard someone at school talking about her.”

  “What?” He shot off the bed like a bullet out of a gun and stared down at her. His fists were clenched so tight his knuckled were white. “Fucking Lonnergan? I should have bloody known he was in it somewhere.”

  “Whoever spoke about her said she was a surly bitch who’d do anything for him. Then something went wrong and she was out of the equation. Ask Theresa, but I reckon she could have been on a nosy for him.” She grinned and high-fived as best she could, lying on her tummy. “But not yet.”


  He shook his head. “We need to tell the others. But I agree, no, not yet. You know, Dominique…”

  “Mimi. We’re not in a scene, are we? Is this not just a let me see what it’s like?”

  “Yes and no. I love Dominique. It makes you mine. And in one way, if I scribe you, it is a scene with all the rules and regulations to safeguard you. Love, we’ve rushed into this in some ways. I know I’m sure, that I want you, need you, both as my sub and my partner. It hit me like a ton of bricks and I couldn’t say why, except I took one look at you and knew what I’d suspected just from reading your answers to all those forms. You were the one for me. I don’t care how long it takes me to show you, I will. However, you need to be sure you’re happy with everything we do. Everything.” He stressed the word. “We’ll go as slowly as you want. I’d rather do that than you rush and run.”

  “I’m not…rushing or running. I want you, and so…at the risk of being a sassy, snitty sub, strip and scribe me, Sir. Then pretty please, fuck me senseless and do it all over again.”

  She held her breath. Had she gone too far? Mimi rolled over onto her back and put her hands behind her head. “I want to watch you strip. Shall I whistle The Stripper?” She managed the first seven bars before he laughed.

  “You do sound like a constipated sparrow. Okay, here goes.”

  Her mouth went dry as he pulled his T-shirt over his head and dropped it on the wicker chair in the corner of the room. His torso was as toned as she’d remembered from her peeping Thomasina sessions. Tanned, with a sprinkling of dark hair that circled his nipples and arrowed downward to disappear under the waistband of his jeans, it made her catch her breath.

  Then he unsnapped the clasp of the dark blue denims, with the faded crease lines, and began to lower the zipper that caressed his cock like a lover.

  Each inch revealed more of his dick. The head glistened with pre-cum, and tiny droplets slid down its length. From a dry mouth, now she swallowed so as not to drool so obviously.

  When he pushed the denim down from his hips, his cock sprang free and waved in greeting, almost as if it had a mind of its own. Tiny scars marked its length. She stared at it closely as he shucked his jeans and stood in front of her.

  “Do you have a zipper tattooed on your cock?”

  Chapter Twelve

  “You what?” Alex stared at his cock in consternation then began to laugh. “Not permanently. That, pet, is the evidence of my arousal for you. The zip held me in and made its mark. It’ll fade once you take me into you.”

  “After you’ve scribed me, just a bit?” she asked anxiously. It was imperative she felt that sting. She needed to know if it was for her. The rest of her life depended on it. Dramatic or what? But it’s damned true. It did, because she could never ask Alex to give up such an integral part of him.

  “I promise. If you roll over again.”

  “It’s a two-edged sword this,” Mimi grumbled, only half in jest. “Roll over and I can’t see. Don’t roll over, and don’t have anything to see.”

  “Turn your head and look in your mirror.”

  Why hadn’t she thought of that? She used it enough when she pleasured herself.

  Because I’m up to high doh, that’s why. She rolled over and rested her head on her arms.

  “No, pet.”

  “No?”

  He shook his head and put two pillows where her arms had been, then stretched those arms out until they touched the sides of the bed, just below the headboard and its convenient scrolls and holes. “Pet, this is a scene. We’ll use safe words and I’ll tie you. Because if you jumped, or jerked at the wrong time, I could hurt you. Really hurt you. Okay?”

  It made sense. “Yes, Sir, and green.”

  “That’s my girl.

  “Do you have ties?” Stupid question, of course he will.

  “Of course, I was a Boy Scout. I’m always prepared.”

  Mimi grinned. “I doubt the scouts had bondage in mind when they advised you to always carry some rope or twine.”

  “Maybe not, but I do.” He made short shrift of fastening her as he wanted. “Not too tight? Form a fist and waggle your fingers.”

  She did as he asked and was amused at how wet her pussy was as he repeated his actions on her ankles, If she could rub her thighs together, she would have.

  “Ooh my, what a sight. Your juices slowly covering you and making you wet for me is such a turn on. I can hardly wait. But first, color?”

  “Oh, green.” She doubted it would ever be anything else.

  “Good. This will sting. Not a lot and not enough for you to be scared.” He touched her shoulder with something and she would have jerked if her restraints hadn’t held her tight.

  “That, pet, was my finger nail.”

  Bastard.

  “This isn’t.”

  At first it felt like the quill end of a feather trailing over her shoulder. That, she could cope with. Why do people say this is pain?

  “How’s that, my pet?”

  “It’s a tickle across my skin. Okay, I want to squirm but… Hell and shit.” The tickle changed to a sting then a pain. A sharp cut yourself with a pair of scissors, paper cut, prick yourself with a sharp needle and carry on doing it pain. It radiated out from his touch. Red hot pain, pain no one should ever put up with. One she couldn’t stand and…

  “Such a good pet. I’m so proud of you.”

  Those quiet words, spoken so sincerely, broke through the film of pain that surrounded her and she felt it break up into tiny pieces and float away. Suddenly it wasn’t pain, but pleasure, a release of tension, a way of being just her and her Sir.

  “To take the pain and embrace it like you are is a special gift. Breathe now, pet. In and out, that’s it.”

  She gave him the gift. Nothing mattered except the scorch of his touch on her skin. The words he spoke to her, the encouragement and the love that cocooned her in their own little world, where nothing else mattered except pleasing Sir and letting go…

  “Sweetness, my brave, precious pet.”

  Slowly Mimi returned to the here and now.

  She blinked as she realized she was once more in her subbie blanket and cuddled on Alex’s lap. He handed her a bottle of water.

  “Sip it. You were well under. Slowly now.”

  Her hand shook as she tried to put the bottle to her mouth. Alex guided her and held the drink in place whilst she took several small mouthfuls.

  “Thank you. Enough for now.” She let him take the bottle and yawned. “Why am I so shattered?”

  “Endorphins, exhaustion and a lack of sleep.” He kissed her nose. “You, my pet, were awesome. There’s no other word for it.”

  “What did you scribe? What with? Can I see?”

  He nodded and showed her what looked, to her untutored eyes, like a scalpel.

  “Careful, it’s very sharp.”

  She eyed it warily. “I can see that. So how did you alter the sensations I experienced? Angles and stuff?”

  “And expertise. This is what I did. Not a lot for the first time.” Alex held a mirror, and angled it so Mimi could see her shoulder. “But, oh so satisfying.”

  She stared at the image. “It’s some sort of symbol.”

  He chuckled. “The Chinese symbol for hope. I think we all need hope to carry on. Now, this I do have on my body, but not on my cock.” He lifted his arm and showed her the tiny inked mark under his arm. “Yours will fade, mine won’t.”

  “My hope won’t though.” Mimi stared at the mirror image for a long moment and sighed. “I want one for ever. Can you do it?”

  Alex put the mirror down and lifted her chin. “A tattoo?”

  She nodded. “I want what you’ve got.” His cock twitched under her and she giggled. “Well, not everything. But well… Oh shit. If I’m being too forward, then shoot me now.”

  Alex shook with laughter and carried her to her bed. “I could, but I won’t. I think maybe you should let Anders have a rematch and win this time. T
hat’s for later.” He dropped her gently onto the mattress and she bounced, the slight ache across her bum was nothing compared to the happy ache in her heart as he lowered himself down next to her.

  It was her turn to take hold of his chin and press a swift kiss to his lips. “Alex, Sir, I really do want this. I’ve never begged, never made love on a first date and always been circumspect. But you know, I remember my dad saying that when I knew who was the one, I needed to go for it. Well I do, and I am. And even if we don’t do the happy ever after bit, this is my happy for now, and God—and my Sir willing—and the creek don’t rise, I’m going for it.” She paused and licked her lips. As soon as his eyes darkened, she smiled. “If my Sir is agreeable, of course, and doesn’t think I’m being sassy. Or, well, even if he does.”

  “Conventional wooing?”

  “Our conventional, anyway. Like a very wise man once said to me, what’s normal?”

  “I did?”

  “Well I bet if you didn’t, you would have. So what’s conventional?”

  “This is.” Alex smiled and very slowly ripped open the condom packet he’d stashed in his jeans pocket and taken out when he’d stripped.

  “Will you do the honors?”

  “Me?” Dare I? “I’ve never done it before.”

  “Then you can pop your cherry here and now.” Alex handed her the condom.

  Mimi took it and looked at it warily. “What if I rip it?”

  “We use another one, but you won’t.”

  “Here goes.” She took a deep breath and carefully rolled it over his cock. She sniggered as a thought hit her, and Alex raised one eyebrow.

  “A few years ago I visited a rum bottling plant in the Caribbean. I got a chance to put a net over one of the expensive bottles. I thought it was a bit like putting a condom on someone and I was right. Except the guys who did the netting did twelve to my one, and they danced as they did it.”

  “Guess they put their own rubbers on then,” Alex said with a grin. “I prefer you doing it, and practice makes perfect. You’ll soon be up to their speed.”

  “Do I have to dance as well?

  “Be my guest.”

  “Nah, I might nip you. I’ll settle for this.” She smoothed the latex into place. “There, what next?”