Perception (Club Destiny #6)(31)
Author: Nicole Edwards

It was a start. That’s all he needed.

He waited to see if she would clarify.

She didn’t, which left him in charge.

Pushing up from his chair, Xander didn’t waste time as he made his way over to her. Taking her hand, he pulled gently, encouraging her to come with him.

If she wanted to know how this was going to work, he’d show her. In his opinion, talking was overrated when it came to certain things.

Mercedes wasn’t new to this scene; she wasn’t naïve enough to think he’d be gentle with her just because they were venturing into the unknown together. Five days were barely enough time to convince her that this was the right thing to do so he couldn’t afford to take his time seducing her slowly.

Just as he expected, Mercedes hesitated briefly, pulling against his hold on her hand, but then she gave in, following behind him.

Taking his time, he led her through his office, then through the main floor of his condo before approaching the stairs. He didn’t look back at her, unwilling to give her an out just yet. Once they reached his bedroom, he’d give her another chance to change her mind, but the most important thing was to get her there first.

A minute later, they were walking into his bedroom. Once inside, he shut the door with a gentle click and then turned to face her.

Her face registered nothing of what she was feeling. Then again, Mercedes was good at masking emotions. Almost as good as he was.

Xander figured he could credit her bastard of a father for the way she kept her emotions on lock down. According to the conversations they’d shared, Phillip Bryant was a fuckup of the worst order. Xander only prayed he never ran into the guy because he wasn’t sure he’d let the man walk away with his body intact. Hell, he wasn’t sure he’d let the man walk away period.

Shaking off the thought, Xander focused on Mercedes. “Take off your shoes,” he commanded, ensuring she didn’t take the statement as a request.

Her eyes widened only slightly, but then she did exactly what he asked, stepping out of her shoes and leaving them on the floor beside her.

“Now your blou –” Before he could get his instructions out, she stopped him by holding her hand up.

“Me first,” she said.

Xander took a small step back, raising his eyebrow in interest, and pushing his hands into his pockets. He was aiming for casual, although he was having a damned hard time keeping his hunger for this woman under control. “Go ahead.”

“We’re going to do this,” she began, glancing around his bedroom briefly before meeting his eyes once more. “I’ll agree to five days, no holds barred.”

No holds barred? Oh, hell. He was definitely intrigued.

Xander didn’t smile, but he wanted to. Victory was a sweet, sweet thing. He didn’t think Mercedes would appreciate his celebrating, so he forced a bored expression.

“But, you have to agree to something first,” she informed him.

To his surprise, she reached up and began to unhook one of the buttons on her blouse, this one just beneath her magnificent breasts.

“You’ve got my attention,” he told her, trying to keep his eyes on her face. It wasn’t as easy as he hoped it looked.

The single button came free from its mooring, the crisp white fabric separating slightly to reveal the generous swells of her breasts cupped in white lace beneath.

“I’ll agree to play this game with you. You can do your best to make me submit,” she told him as she freed another button. “I’m not at all convinced that it’ll work, but I’ll give you a shot.”

His first instinct was to tell her that this damn sure wasn’t a game he was playing, but he kept it to himself. “And?” he implored her, waiting to hear her stipulations.

“You have to let me top you.”

Xander laughed out loud. There was no fucking way.

“I’m serious,” she told him, her hand working to reconnect the button on her blouse.

Had he been any other man, he might’ve succumbed to her threat, but Xander didn’t take kindly to teasing. If she wanted to work out a deal, he was game, but he didn’t play that way.

“Unbutton it,” he barked, standing up straight as his hands fell to his sides.

Mercedes’s eyes flared with what he assumed was surprise, maybe mixed with an ounce of heat. The woman might believe she was dominant, but he could see the underlying submissive inside of her.

What made him crazy was the fact that she truly believed she was more in control by being a Domme, as opposed to a submissive. He knew she was well aware of Xander and Shane’s views on Doms and subs, but she’d never embraced their way of thinking. Which was another reason he felt as though her reasons for becoming a Domme weren’t the same as most.