"Don't worry. She'll be okay."

They watched the fireworks display for a little while and snuggled into each other.

"So, do you want to make out?" she asked.

"I don't know. My mom warned me about girls like you..." he teased as he ran his finger down her cleavage.

"Oh? What did she say?" She pushed him onto his back and straddled his hips. He groaned as she moved her hands up and down his chest. "You didn't answer me; what did she say?"

"She told me to stay away from bad girls like you."

"So what are you doing with me now?"

"I like living on the edge. I like bad girls. The badder the better," he said as he sat up and cradled her in his lap, then locked his mouth onto her throat.

"I guess you've made a mistake, then. I'm not a bad girl."

His neck kisses and nips were making it hard to concentrate. The need to possess him seemed stronger at this moment. While his mouth worked her throat she realized that no one had ever made her feel so feminine and desirable. A fresh surge of desire ran through her as she listened to his low growls while his lips moved along her throat down to her chest. Pulling him closer, she s.h.i.+vered at the unexpected nip to her neck. It was a little harder and meant to be more possessive. When they were this close she could read his mind, and he was urging her to take control from him. She had to steel herself to stay in power because Danny would wrestle it away from her every chance he got just to f.u.c.k with her.

"No? We need to fix that because I need a really bad, kinky girl," he said, biting her again.

"Do you? Are you a really bad, kinky boy?"

As he ran his hands over her back, her body quivered. No matter how much she wanted to stop her reactions, when he was around, her body couldn't maintain that level of discipline. No one had ever been able to make her go liquid with just a touch. He made quick work of the light top she wore as he swiftly swept it off.

"I want you," he whispered.

"Okay, then let's go home and get naked." She pushed against him, but he wasn't paying attention and kept going. When he lifted himself to move down her body, she wrapped her fingers around his neck and watched his eyes widen when she squeezed. "Now."

His eyes flashed something both beautiful and frightening as he sat back and helped her up. There would be nothing stopping him from physically dominating her if he wanted to. He'd grown into a powerfully masculine man, and his wanting to surrender to her made him potent and lethal because he could also be unpredictable. These sorts of games messed with his head, and with a man like him, that could be dangerous. As alpha as he'd become, he'd never surrender this easily to just anyone, and knowing that did something to her she couldn't quite identify. The power she held at her fingertips could be tenuous. The rush of commanding and him obeying was like nothing she'd ever known and made her shake a little. She compared their games to taming a tiger-with the snap of her fingers, she could have a dangerous animal do her bidding. And if she got him into the right state of mind, he'd never question or leave her again.

Now, to get him there...

Dan s.h.i.+fted slightly in his seat as they made their way home. She'd caught him completely off guard. A little investigation of her Internet browsing history needed to happen to see just what the h.e.l.l she'd been up to. To his knowledge, playing with BDSM was something totally new to her. They pulled up to her house, and Dan turned toward Rio before getting out of the truck.

"Yes?" she asked without looking at him.

Being in such total control sent a sudden rush to his c.o.c.k. The need to belong to her consumed him right now. He gripped the steering wheel and willed himself to calm down.

"How did you know?" he asked.

"You said this was what you wanted, and I've decided to give it to you. Have you changed your mind?"

"No. I haven't changed my mind."

"Good, because I'm starting to like this."

Excitement coursed through him and reminded him of the feelings he'd have right before a mission. He flexed the muscles in his thighs in an effort to focus on anything but his d.i.c.k. The uncertainty of what she had planned electrified him. Clearly in charge, she would tell him what he needed to know as soon as she was ready.

"Go to my bedroom, Danny. I'll be there in a minute."

Walking up to the bed where he sat, she cupped his face tenderly.

"I said, get naked. So do it."

The gentle but firm order made him s.h.i.+ver. Rio's authoritative nature radiated from her and made him melt when she a.s.serted herself. Reacting like he had no brain made him suddenly rebellious.

She was good at this...too d.a.m.n good.

He stood and stepped into her s.p.a.ce, but she held her place and didn't move as he pulled his T-s.h.i.+rt over his head.

"Back up, Danny." The soft growl in her voice made him smile mischievously, and he stood his ground. "I love you, but that won't stop me from messing you up. Quit testing me."

The hard edge in her soft voice made it crystal clear she meant what she'd said. He imagined that many a criminal must've heard that tone. Lucky b.a.s.t.a.r.ds. Physically, he could take her down easily but knew she'd put up one h.e.l.l of a fight in the process. He shed the rest of his clothes and stood there waiting for her next order. She snapped her fingers and pointed, "On your knees, there. Now."

He obeyed, and she cupped his face.

"Good."

The soft touch made him soften. She released him and walked away, "Rio..."

When she turned to respond, he saw her eyes narrow in displeasure.

"Did I ask you to speak? Stay there until I get back and tell you what to do next."

Dan closed his eyes and breathed slowly, inhaling and exhaling deliberately. She made him crazy with her unpredictability and the antic.i.p.ation of what she had in store for him. He'd only dreamt of having someone take him over and release him. Now it was a heady and swift reality, and he had a hard time keeping up. His emotions were a conflicting jumble that he had to get under control. While down deep inside, he knew what he wanted and needed, it was hard doing it. Taking a mental step backward, he caught himself topping from the bottom. It had been an unconscious maneuver. He'd fully expected to guide her along this path, so they could grow together in this new life.

When she returned, she sat on the edge of the bed facing him and put a few things on the bedside table.

"Come closer, right in front of me," she said. He moved to the spot she indicated while still on his knees. She held out her hands to him. "Give me your hands." The request confused him, but the moment she took his hands and laid them in her lap he felt a sense of peace knowing he'd made the right decision in choosing his Domme. Her gentleness soothed his nervousness at the change of circ.u.mstance. Picking up a wet washcloth, she patted the knuckles on his left hand. "Why didn't you take care of this when we got home earlier today?" she asked as she cleaned the cuts he'd received earlier in his fight with Jax.

In truth, he hadn't noticed. He'd washed his hands a few times today but hadn't noticed a very deep cut on his right knuckle.

"I asked you a question. Speak."

"I don't know. I guess I didn't notice them. You don't need to do that. I'm fine." He pulled his hands away.

Drilling him with a firm look, he froze, and she pulled his hands back into her lap. Her expression softened, and his body seemed to relax with her as she redirected her attention back to his hands.

"This one's really deep. You probably could've used a couple of st.i.tches."

Recalling her command not to speak, he said nothing as she continued working on cleaning the cuts. He flinched slightly when she went to work on the deepest wound. She applied some antibiotic cream, and she b.u.t.terfly bandaged the deepest cut. She looked into his eyes as she cupped his face again.

"You need to take care of yourself. If you need me, ask me for help." She kissed him. "Don't make me repeat myself."

Rio released him, and Dan glanced at the nightstand to the other things lying there.

"Eyes on me." Even though her voice was calm and soothing, it carried a firm undertone making it clear that she expected unconditional obedience. Could that firmness be what made her dogs respond when she handled them? He instantly understood she wouldn't be like the other Dominants he'd observed in the dungeons of Germany. He focused on her, and his mind raced as he tried to guess what would happen next.

"Danny, are you sure this is what you want?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Are you sure you want me to do this with you?"

"Yes."

"I'll order you a collar. When it comes in, I'll put it on you, and it will not come off unless there's a compelling reason for you to take it off. Understood? The decision to take it off I'll leave to your discretion, but it will always be on you when you're with me."

"Yes, Mistress."

Seeing her smile made him warm because he'd made her happy.

"I like that better than ma'am," she said. He got a little concerned when her expression turned serious again. "We need to talk about expectations, limits, and your safe word."

Say what? How the h.e.l.l did she know about collars, safe words, and limits? Dan was speechless for a moment. She'd turned into a quick study, but she couldn't possibly know more about this lifestyle than he did. He'd studied it in depth for years. He decided to test her, to see if she was bluffing.

"If I can't take what you give me and need a safe word, then I don't deserve you, Mistress."

The unexpected move she made had been swift and threw him off balance. She grabbed the back of his head and fisted his hair. She yanked, bringing him nose to nose with her.

"Then you're a f.u.c.king idiot, and this is just another game to you. I'm not playing games. This will be the rest of our lives, and I'm not taking chances because you're too macho to tell me what's off limits. What's your d.a.m.n safe word? You'd better get one. Or else I'll give you one, and you'd better remember it."

Holy s.h.i.+t! He hesitated.

"What's your safe word? Now!"

For chrissake, he was a SEAL, and there wasn't much she could do to him they hadn't already put him through. Knowing her the way he did, he didn't believe she would ever go that far with something she didn't understand. In time she would learn, and together they'd grow into this life. He needed to teach her, the way he'd always done. That's what he'd expected of her.

"I. Don't. Need. One. Yet." He was adamant.

"Puppies and kittens. Repeat it." He remained silent. "Repeat it right now, or this is over."

Dan stared at her, defiant to the last. The frigidness of her expression conveyed to him he'd gotten under her skin with his att.i.tude.

He found himself enjoying every minute of her aggravation.

"I don't like that one. I'll figure out another one."

"Too f.u.c.king bad! I told you to pick a safe word or I'd do it for you. Repeat it, right now or it's over."

"Puppies and kittens, ma'am."

Her unwavering firmness trounced his defiance. She picked up what looked like a leather strap and wrapped it around his neck. It took him a minute to understand what she'd just done. His mind had wandered because she hadn't behaved like he'd expected, and he wanted to get one step ahead of her. He needed to guide her like he'd done when they were growing up. The thought that he wasn't needed like he'd antic.i.p.ated made him rebellious and resentful. He reared back as she started to fasten the collar around his neck.

"That's a dog collar. I'm not wearing that!"

"You'll wear whatever the h.e.l.l I tell you to wear," she declared as she quickly fastened the collar. Catching on to his insolence, she grabbed the leather she'd just wrapped around him and pulled it roughly. "I own you, Danny, and you asked for this."

He jerked away from her. She pulled the collar and yanked him close to her.

"The biggest mistake you can make is thinking I can't or won't take your a.s.s down. Unless you say your safe word, you don't get to tell me what I will or won't do. Understood?"

Relaxing, he rea.s.sessed his situation and watched her carefully for any sign of uncertainty, but her confidence never wavered. That she had full control of the situation stung him a little because she'd proven to him that she didn't need him like he believed.

"Do you understand?" Her voice took on an even harder edge.

Lost in his thoughts he quickly answered her. "Yes, Mistress. I understand."

"All right." She sat back on her hands, satisfied with his answer. "I'm tired, and fighting with you has worn me out. We have a lot of unfinished business we need to discuss before we'll continue. We'll talk about it tomorrow. Go take a shower and get ready for bed," she said as she stood and left the room.

As Dan went through his routine and prepared for bed, uncertainty about someone he'd been so sure of all of his life filled his thoughts. After her shower, she joined him, and he found himself hesitating because he didn't know how far she wanted to go with her play. This situation had been so different from before. He wondered would this be all the time, or would she just relegate this to a specific playtime? He glanced at her. Even relaxed, she was in full control of her world and the people in it. Picking up the tablet device he'd given her, she began reading. Watching her do this eased his tension and uncertainty. Recalling how he'd worked with his sister for a couple of days on learning strategies for dyslexics, it comforted him to think there could still be something familiar about their new relations.h.i.+p.

Using his knowledge of technology and computer programming, he'd been able to modify some educational freeware he'd found and adapt the program to a tablet she could easily carry with her. The modifications to the application would help her read anything she could download. His changes to the software automatically highlighted the words as it read, and she could adjust the speed for more complex material. Rio could plug in earbuds and listen as she watched the words, or she could simply watch the words highlight silently. Another application he'd been working on would allow her to verbally make notes as she read within the doc.u.ment. He hoped to finish it before he reported back for duty because he wanted her to register for some online cla.s.ses.

It pleased him to see her using the tablet with a decent amount of frequency. It made him feel appreciated. Placing his head on her lap, he wrapped his arm around her legs and stayed silent. He went liquid when she ran her hand over him, and he eased with her affectionate touch. She remained slightly detached as she read. It made him crazy because he wanted her full attention more than anything right now. He closed his eyes and smiled, understanding she had made every attempt to give him what he'd asked for. She'd accepted him without question and made every effort to make him happy. Only a woman who truly loved him would do this for him. She didn't need to say anything because he felt it in his Mistress's touch. This was the place he'd wanted to be for so long. He squeezed his arm around her.

Devious little s.h.i.+t. I need to find out what she's downloaded on that thing.

"I love you, babe."

"I love you, too. What were you thinking today?" She moved her fingers through his hair.

"What do you mean?" He tightened his grip around her.

"Why did you pick St. Elmo's to propose to me, and why did you do that in such a public way? You know me better than that."

"Because I wanted everyone to know I was serious, and I belong to you and only to you." Her hand moved away from him causing him to raise his head. "Are you sure about this, babe?"

"I've been sure about this since tenth grade. Are you sure?"

"I'm positive. I wouldn't have proposed to you the way I had if I wasn't," he said, lowering his head again.

"You need to do some thinking. I'm not sure you're as ready as you believe you are."

"What do you mean?"

"You're fighting me."

"You surprised me. I thought I'd need to help you."

"If I need your help, I'll ask. Until then, trust me."

Dan stroked her thigh and gradually worked his hand over her belly, moving up to cup one of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. She took his hand and put it back down to her lap.

"Relax," she said.