Free Strictly Business: Hooded Pleasures, Book 1 by Sheryl Nantus Page A

comments to him about how he was doing so well, adding the occasional caress and squeeze to his tortured skin.
    A bit of honey to go with the vinegar.
    He was in heaven. Or hell. Or someplace in between, he didn’t know and didn’t care.
    His ass hurt, and it was the best type of hurt, the tingling spreading down his legs and up through his balls and straight to his cock. The rhythm of Kate’s counting made it easy to follow, tensing up before the paddle hit and relaxing as she pulled back for another go.
    Alex swallowed, feeling the leather collar tight around his neck.
    Freeing him from all responsibilities, all control. His only job now was to serve his Mistress and give her what she wanted.
    The best feeling of all—no guilt.
    No disapproving look. No worry about what she’d tell her friends or what might carry back to Jane. No cruel comments about being a freak or a perv.
    Nothing but pure pleasure.
    “Let’s change up the game, shall we?” Kate’s smooth voice in his ear startled him out of his introspection. He tensed up, waiting for her touch.
    It never came.
    She waited behind him, keeping her body away.
    “You zoned out there for a bit,” Kate murmured.
    “Yes, Mistress.”
    “You need to stay focused. Let’s work on that next.” Her long hair brushed over the back of his neck.
    He shivered, and his hips shifted forward as if she’d hit him, rubbing against the smooth black leather.
    He envisioned digging a hole through the fabric with his cock, ripping it open with his repeated motions.
    Alex wasn’t worried.
    He could afford a new couch.
    If he didn’t bronze this one and set it up as a trophy somewhere.
    “I’m tired of counting. Your turn.” The command sent a flash of heat down his spine.
    He had a second to brace himself before the paddle landed, the snap of leather sparking his senses.
    “One.”
    He got to five before his mind checked out and he could do nothing but moan, the delicious friction ripping away his consciousness and replacing it with a sensual fog.
    “What number are we up to?” The question brought him down to earth with a shattering thud.
    “Uh—”
    He swallowed hard not knowing what to say.
    Ten? Fifteen?
    What will happen if I guess wrong?
    “Did you lose count, Alex?” The whispered question in his ear had him thrusting his hips against the couch instinctively, twisting under her.
    He blinked away sweat, his foggy mind trying to figure out the answer.
    “Did you lose count?” she repeated, walking around the couch to face him. The riding crop appeared again, held against his chin. She pressed it up, lifting his head so he could look directly into her eyes. “Did you?”
    “Yes, Mistress.” Alex moaned, feeling a surge of disappointment threaten to wash away his arousal. “I forgot.”
    The softness in her gaze brought tears to his eyes.
    “I’ll forgive you this time, but only because it’s our first meeting.” The leather stroked his chin. “Next time you lose count, we’ll start over again from the beginning.” She rapped the edge of his nose with the crop. “Over and over again from zero until you get it right. And while you might think that could be fun, let me point out that I’ll know if you’re trying to top from the bottom, attempting to control what happens next.” The flap of leather rested under his chin. “I am not a stupid woman. I will make you pay for it if I catch you doing that, and then I will no longer be your Domme. Do you understand?”
    He nodded.
    “That’s a good boy.” She turned to her duffle bag. “Time for a change of pace.”
    He gulped as she extracted a large metal hook from her duffle bag. For a split second, he thought about his safe-word.
    Kill switch.
    Kate looked at him and pursed her lips, her eyebrows coming together in a frown as she picked up on his fear.
    “Calm down.” Her smile soothed his panic away. “Stand up and turn around. Face me.”
    He did so, wincing as he straightened up. A few of his