Free Invitation to Ecstasy by Nina Pierce Page B

floggers and whips. Though he’d lost the
right to be among them, he allowed his gaze to travel the length of her sinuous
body, memorizing the details that would torment many future nights of
loneliness.
    “Would you like to take a walk?” she asked. “The evening is
beautiful.”
    His stomach clenched when her gaze dropped to his thighs.
There was no way in hell he’d allow her to give him the honor of dominating
her. He would accept whatever condemnation she threw his way. Sara deserved
that much before he left. But her absolution wasn’t even an option. “Please
don’t.” With a finger under her chin, Derek waited until her questioning gaze
met his. “I will walk with you, but not as your Master. I don’t deserve that
honor.”
    She nodded and turned, leading them both out of the club and
toward the main building. Tropical flowers and lush foliage lined the stone
path, but neither competed with the heady scent of her or the stunning visual
of her bare ass provocatively swaying with each step. Her wheat-colored braid
nestled between delicate shoulder blades, but it was the ugly horror of his
teeth marks at the curve of her neck that captured his attention. Guilt
squeezed his heart. How much more would she have taken if Ethan hadn’t stopped
him? Fear snaked up his back and lifted the fine hairs at his nape. How the
hell hadn’t he sensed what Ethan had instinctively known when he’d burst into
the bungalow? Derek forced his shoulders back, fighting against the disgrace
and shame weighing on them.
     
    The sun slipped below the horizon, the last vestiges of
light swirling in pastel shades of pink and orange. In the east, the sliver of
a moon hung in the ebony sky, pinpoints of stars spreading across its velvety
darkness.
    The evening breeze blew in over the ocean as they crossed
the front of the main building. Sara was only vaguely aware of the people they
passed. It wasn’t their open admiration she sought, but the power of the man
walking beside her.
    Every fiber of her being screamed to have Derek lead. Have
him strip her bare and use her for his own pleasure. But he blamed himself for
Ethan’s misunderstanding and now was unwilling to take his place as her Master.
Sara had no doubt if her dear friend hadn’t burst in like a Neanderthal
protecting his woman, that she would happily be bound in the dungeon at the
Masters’ lodge, every muscle taut with the anticipation of Derek’s commands.
Because, if the afternoon had proven anything to Sara, it was that she wanted
more of Derek’s domination.
    Now she was forced to implement a plan B and prove to Derek
that trusting his instincts had healed a submissive’s very old and very raw
wounds.
    Butterflies fluttered in her stomach, and Sara had all she
could do to keep her feet steady on the path. Anticipation had been her
constant companion as she’d taken over an hour to prepare herself for him.
    A long soak in a hot tub of rose-scented oils and a sharp
razor had smoothed every inch of skin. She’d washed her hair twice,
straightening it until it glowed, and at the last minute deciding on the French
braid currently bouncing against her back to keep it out of her way. Makeup
covered the worst of the angry cut on her cheek and the bruises and scrapes on
her body. The butter-soft corset, fishnet stockings and stiletto heels she’d
slipped into before leaving the bungalow had been a splurge she’d brought from
home, and from Derek’s hungry look back at the club—a total bargain.
    Now, as they neared the Masters’ lodge, she could only hope
she could convince Derek she was everything he needed. She stopped midway
across the bridge overlooking the wraparound pool, the bondage equipment along
its edge currently standing idle. She didn’t want to screw this up. Sara just
couldn’t imagine leaving the island tomorrow without plans to see Derek again.
She’d travel anywhere to be with him, if only he’d have her.
    The symphony of insects blended