Free Dominating Amy by Emily Ryan-Davis

abusing her.
    She didn’t respond immediately. He patted her hip, and when that didn’t work, delivered a sharp slap to her left ass cheek. The blow startled a jerk from her. “Amy. Stand up.”
    Sluggishly, she loosened her grip and straightened. She lost her balance and he caught her before the slight sway turned into a full-out fall. Supporting her with one arm around her waist, he cupped her face and investigated her eyes. The glassy quality and dilated pupils made him frown. Salty tears reddened and puffed the rims. He’d made her cry. Again. The realization shook him down to the soles of his feet.
    Gradually, her pupils returned to normal and awareness came back to her features. She focused her gaze on his. A flush crept and spread beneath his hands, staining her face in shades of rose. “Mac?” she whispered.
    “I’m right here.” He felt foolish saying that, knowing she was looking right at him and knew exactly where he was. He needed to reassure her, though. She looked so fragile and dazed.
    “That hurt.”
    His heart lodged in his throat. “It hurt me when you decided my explanation for being away wasn’t good enough, and broke your word to stop hiding from me.”
    She flinched and dropped her eyes. He steeled himself against the instinct-voice screaming at him to hug her close and whisper apologies, and instead took her shoulders and turned her to face away from him. “Go sit in the corner until I call you.”
    Amy hesitated. He gently pushed her toward the east corner of the room. “Nose to the wall,” he added. She sniffed and wiped at her cheeks as she moved to do as he’d instructed. His shoulders slumped, the muscles releasing physical tension he hadn’t been aware of until that moment. While Amy cooled her heels, and her reddened behind, in the corner, he went to splash cold water on his face. Her arousal perfumed his fingers.
    Mac braced himself with both hands on the bathroom counter, and stared at his reflection in the mirror. He didn’t see a monster. That was his normal every day face looking back at him, minus the lines of a sleepless night. He rinsed away the beads of nervous sweat on his forehead and wished the phone would ring. He needed Elizabeth to call back because he couldn’t fumble blindly forever, not and do the job right.
    Returning to the living room, he braced his shoulder against the doorjamb and studied her. She knelt stiffly, her hands on her thighs, her nose in the corner as he’d instructed. Her buttocks and upper thighs were still bright, angry red. His erection, gone soft upon discovering her tears, roused itself and pressed eagerly against his fly. Just the sight of her skin, hot from his hands, infused him with a surge of power he’d never known before.
    He cleared his throat. “Are you thirsty?”
    She nodded. He retrieved a bottle of water for each of them, careful not to touch her when he placed her water on the floor beside her. He moved the tissue box over so she could reach that, too, and stood behind her.
    “I went out this morning to have coffee with Olivieri ,” he said. “I’ve arranged for him to feature you in a knot work demonstration he’s giving this weekend. I’ve also given permission for you to be photographed. You’ll need to buy a mask before the event.”
     

Chapter Eleven
     
     
    Amy shifted her weight but didn’t turn. Her toes curled and she inched her feet closer together. He crouched beside her and stroked the back of her head, permitting himself a slight smile for the way the ends of her hair wound around his fingers. “No reaction?”
    “Are you going to be there?”
    “Yes. And he’ll defer to me in every decision that’s to be made about you. Your comfort, the tightness of his ropes. You’ll keep your eyes on me.”
    She exhaled, the breath shaky and rough. “Are you…interested?”
    “Baby, the more I think about it, the harder I get.” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and kissed the lobe. "You've been