Shackled by Morgan Ashbury Page A

a call later today.”
    “Do it before dinner, please.” Jonathan smiled at her. That smile went a long way toward soothing her mood. She’d rarely stepped foot inside the den since Tim had died. She’d come to hate that room.
    “Why before dinner?” Bethany asked.
    “We’re going to have company for dinner, and after the company leaves, why, then you’ll be entirely too busy to make any phone calls.” He said that with complete confidence. Then, “Beth, what is that noise I’m hearing?”
    “What noise?”
    “It sounds like a funny kind of rubbing or grinding sound.” He had his head tilted as if trying to decide where it was coming from.
    Bethany could have told him it was coming from the front passenger-side tire. Instead, she said, “Oh, that noise. I guess I didn’t hear it because I’ve gotten used to it. The car has a tie-rod end on the way out.”
    “Wow. That can be dangerous. You need to get that fixed.”
    It was a completely reasonable statement for Jonathan to have made. But the way he’d said that reminded her of Tim. Tim would always point out what she needed to do, as if she needed him to tell her, when nothing could have been further from the truth.
    Only this man wasn’t Tim. It took her a moment to tamp down the tiny spurt of resentment she felt. “Yes, I know. It’s going to cost me about a thousand dollars. I’d planned to have it done in October. I’ve had this problem before. Trust me, it gets a lot noisier before it really is dangerous.”
    “Bethany?”
    “Yes, Jonathan?”
    “You need to understand something. I do trust you.”
    Bethany thought that was a very strange thing for him to say. Then he reached out and placed his hand on her knee and stroked upward.
    “Good girl. You didn’t take the opportunity to put panties on.”
    She thought of the underwear hiding in her suitcase and nearly confessed. Then she realized that the entire time they’d been in the city, she’d completely forgotten she’d been naked under her skirt.
    Bethany opened her mouth to share that tidbit with Jonathan, and then changed her mind. She’d told him he was her master, and she’d agreed to stay with him for a month.
    She wasn’t altogether certain, though, that she wanted to share every single thought.

Chapter 10

    “You can unpack later.” Jonathan pulled her car into his drive and parked it outside the double-car garage. He turned off the engine, pocketed the keys, and turned to her.
    “It’s time we began your training. Do you remember where the play room is?”
    “Do you mean the room where you spanked me?” Bethany felt her cheeks heat and wished the affectation would leave her in peace. She was forty-eight years old. She should be well beyond the stage of blushing like a naïve virgin, especially after all the sex she’d had over the last twenty-four hours.
    “That’s the place,” Jonathan said.
    “Yes, I remember where it is.”
    “Good. I want you to go there now. I want you to undress, fold your clothes, and put them in the paper bag that’s on the table in there. Beside the bag is a blindfold. I want you to take the blindfold, kneel on the pink cushion, and put the blindfold on. I’ll give you a few minutes, but when I open the door to that room, I want to see you on your knees, eyes covered, waiting for your master.”
    Delicious tendrils of excitement began to unfurl within her and run through her. Bethany felt her nipples harden and her pussy become damp. She licked suddenly dry lips. This would be their first real scene. She could hardly wait. She nodded. “All right.”
    He grabbed her chin and lifted her face so that she had no choice but to meet his gaze. “Since the scene has begun, the correct response is, ‘Yes, Master’.”
    Bethany barely hesitated. “Yes, Master.”
    Jonathan hefted her suitcase and walked with her up the walkway and unlocked the door for her. “Good girl. Now go. I’m only going to give you a few minutes to prepare