Free His to Protect by Alice Cain Page B

claim on his body and
soul. His cock grew harder as he imagined everything he wanted to share with
this man. "Lie facedown over the spanking bench." He indicated the
low, padded bench that doubled as a footlocker, and again held his breath as
Tyler seemed to hesitate.
    "Am I being punished for something,
Sir?" he asked nervously.
    "No, little sub. I just want to see my
handprint on your ass."
    As soon as the words left his mouth Adrian
wished them back. He'd always thought of his possessiveness over a sub as just
his natural need to protect, but the territorial feelings he had for Tyler made
the past emotions pale to insignificance. How the hell could one human turn him
inside out so easily?
    Tyler nodded and moved to lie over the padded
footlocker, not even showing any hesitation once he understood Adrian's motive.
Hell, it had been the wrong thing to say. Even if he was feeling like this, it
didn't change the fact that he had nothing to give long term.
    It didn't stop Adrian from dropping to his
knees beside Tyler, or discourage him from running his callused hands over
Tyler's soft flesh to warm his skin. The first slap was pretty hard, Tyler's
immediate reaction one of pain and surprise, but as Adrian rubbed over the
slightly pink skin, Tyler moaned softly. Adrian smacked him again in the same
spot, grinning when Tyler's soft moan of pleasure came a little faster this
time. The third in the same place obviously stung, but Tyler gasped, panting as
Adrian rubbed over the spot before gliding his hand toward his balls.
    Tyler was already hard, his cock oozing
pre-cum, but he also seemed on the verge of an emotional meltdown. Adrian knew
the slaps were hard enough to cause tears, but Tyler seemed to be reacting out
of proportion to the pain.
    "What is your safe word, little sub?"
    "T–Tomato, S–Sir."
    "Do you want to use your safe word,
Tyler?"
    Tyler shook his head quickly, rocking
slightly on his knees as he very clearly said the words Adrian needed to hear. "No,
Sir."
    "Okay, little sub," Adrian said , trying to stifle a relieved sigh as he finally realized he
needed this as much as Tyler did.
    He started truly spanking him then, the
slaps deliberate and well placed, the rest of Tyler's ass turning a very
appealing shade of pink around the still red area where Adrian's handprint was
clearly outlined. He placed his left hand against the small of Tyler's back,
trapping him against the padded surface, stopping the man's instinctive
wriggling as Adrian landed the last and hardest slap to his ass, straight over
the handprint he'd already made.
    Tyler sobbed then, the pain finally pushing
him into the cathartic release Adrian had been hoping for. He sat on the floor
beside Tyler and gathered him in his lap, rocking slightly as the man began to
cry harder. Tyler had been so strong for Logan that he hadn't truly let himself
grieve for the innocence they'd both lost. Even if Tyler somehow achieved the
unimaginable and managed to go on with his life, he would always carry the
knowledge of what had happened to his friend. He'd probably have nightmares and
flashbacks of the horrific scene he'd found at Logan's home that night for a
very long time, maybe even for the rest of his life.
    "It's okay, little sub," Adrian
said as Tyler tried to pull out of his embrace. "You need to cry."
    Tyler shook his head in denial, but Adrian
pressed a hand to the side of his head and held his face against his heart.
    "Don't defy me, Tyler," Adrian
said affectionately. "As your Dom you need to trust that I know what I'm
doing." Tyler nodded against his chest, giving his trust even as he tried
to stop himself from crying. "Sweetheart, it's been a confusing few days,
but ignoring the emotions isn't the same as coping."
    Tyler half sobbed, half laughed at that
statement. "Shouldn't you be crying, too, then?" he asked in a thick
voice.
    "Perhaps," Adrian said,
acknowledging his own grief over William's death. He'd coped by staying busy
and treating