Chapter 21

Shelly’s week was full.

Full on work as she tried to clear her schedule.

Full of romance with Dean in the evenings.

Full of plans and merriment on the Wednesday evening when she, Kelly and Brian got together to arrange their ‘card drop’.

And full of frustration that Dean would not give in to her hints and discrete requests for the bedroom toys to be reinstated. He always found a reason not to go that far, insisting that he wanted her to know how much he thought of her – how much he valued her, how much she on her own and without embellishment turned him on.

Finally, on the Thursday evening, having cleared her work commitments, she was now on leave for a few days, and Dean had hinted at more tender evenings, which were wonderful and loving and fulfilling – to a point, but they were also leaving her feeling like their relationship had become a little too comfortable – too quickly. And so, Shelly decided to be honest and open with him about her desires – again.

They were sitting together on his sofa and he was nuzzling her neck, as he made slow tender love to her.

“We had such a good time – that first night in your bed,” she began slowly “At least I did ... but perhaps you did not?”

She pushed at his shoulder so that she could look him in the eye.

“I thought you enjoyed it ... you went to so much trouble to set things up in that way?”

He sighed and sat back a little. “It was probably one of the best nights of my life,” he admitted regretfully, but that made it so much worse when I saw the damage that it had done to you.

“Damage?” she frowned in genuine puzzlement. “I suffered no damage, that’s why I was so keen to try something like it again.”

He sighed again and ran his fingers through his hair. “I am still not happy about those marks,” he said “I think perhaps the restraints were going a little too far.”

“But when ... when we did what we did at mum’s house, when you...” the colour came to her cheeks. “When you ‘punished me’?”

“That I could control, I could feel how hard my hand was, and I knew that I was not causing you any real pain or damage. Those restraints though; they looked great and sexy and you looked so hot, and more important you were turned on. But I couldn’t see the hurt that those restraints were doing to you. If we did it again, I am afraid that I would get so caught up in things that I might hurt you even more.”

Shelly gave her own sigh of frustration. But she had enjoyed the encounter so much!

She looked at him through her lashes and could see the stubborn set to his jaw line. He just could not appreciate how much she had enjoyed it, how much it had not hurt her; he simply could not understand how liberating it could be to hand over total control to someone else ... if only he could understand the pleasure of it all.

A little light bulb suddenly went off in her head, and her sudden smile became positively conniving.

Dean blinked at her. Now what was she planning?

“I guess that the only way for you to understand, is for you to try them out for yourself.”

He sat upright and the colour winged up his cheeks as all sorts of unwholesome images came to mind.

“Well, I am not sure about that!”

She looked positively hurt. “Why not, don’t you trust me?”

“Yes of course I trust you ... it’s just that...”

“What?”

“Well to put it bluntly I prefer to give and not receive!”

She chuckled suddenly at his obvious discomfort and patted his cheek consolingly.

“That’s very generous of you, Dean, and your point is noted.”

He still looked uncomfortable about the idea and so she reached up and kissed him lightly on the lips, but he could see that she was going to be stubborn about this, that she as on a mission and nothing he could say would persuade her to drop it.

“I promise I won’t use any of your ‘toys’, I won’t do anything that would make you feel wrong; I promise, anything I do – you will enjoy it.” she whispered huskily.

“Come on in!” she grinned as she opened the door wider and then turned and walked back into the kitchen.

Dean followed her through and then stood in the doorway and just admired the view.

The table was full of cards and bags and all sorts of Christmassy things; and the floor had several large shopping bags full and spilling over with what were obviously intended gifts.

“Santa has obviously dropped by!” he grinned.

“Oh, I wish!” Shelly rolled her eyes, but they were bright with happiness. “There is tea in the pot – freshly made if you want to help yourself?”

She sat back down at the table and resumed sorting her Christmas cards into smaller piles.

She had several small gift bags standing open and she was murmuring as she began dropping chocolate tree decorations into one of the bags.

“Little Charlie, Lindsey ... Nathan and Neil ... and...” she picked up a small pile of cards and slotted them into the bag. “And cards,” she smiled in satisfaction.

She repeated the process with the next bag, and then again twice more in the other bags.

“Now that’s all the kids sorted ... just the rest of the cards.” she murmured to herself.

She pushed them to one side and pulled another pile of cards towards her, all neatly sealed and addressed.

“Now where did I put those stamps,” she looked around her and then her face lit up. “Ah hah!”

Dean chuckled lightly. “Can I get you a top up of tea as well?”

“Oh yes please, I shouldn’t be too much longer here, and then you can have my undivided attention.”

“I there anything that I can do to help you with?” he asked as he put two mugs on the table and sat down across from her.

Shelly smile broadly as she pushed about half of the cards to him and several books of stamps.

“Yes please.”

They sat across from each other and Dean though how delightfully domesticated they looked.

His lips curled a little; unlike his own bedroom which was set up just as Shelly had asked him to set it up – for her to ... well he would have to wait and see what Shelly had planned for him later, and for once Dean was not enjoying this sense of anticipation.

She stacked the cards and bags at the side of the table and smiled brightly at Dean.

“I will sort them out during the week. Now I think I shall just nip upstairs and change, and then we can get back to your place.”

Her eyes were brimming over with humour, and excitement and Dean felt more and more like the mouse in the cat and mouse scenario.

The Friday afternoon traffic had died down by the time that they left Shelly’s home and so the drive to his apartment was achieved in short order.

“Shall we have something to eat?” he asked hospitably as they entered his living room.

Shelly flashed him a quick smile. “Later,” she murmured as she strolled across to his bedroom.

After a moment’s hesitation Dean reluctantly followed her, and she was waiting to close the door behind him.

She was wearing a loose-fitting dress, with buttons running down the front of it; and once again her hair was thrust up into a loose topknot; but today she was in charge and so he could not complain.

“Now then,” she said in a business-like manner, and for the first time he realised that she was more than a little nervous, herself. “I think that we should start by getting you naked.”

He gave her a slow devilish smile, as some of the tension left him. “Do you want to do it for me, do you want to help – or do you just want to sit and watch?”

She licked her lips, and he suddenly felt like she was hungry and he was on the menu, and his mood shifted again.

“You’re a big boy now – and so I am sure that you can manage this one little thing.”

She sat down in the chair and crossed one leg over the other; and then fixed those smouldering blue eyes on him.

For the first time in his adult life, Dean actually felt self-conscious as he unbuttoned his shirt, and pulled it out of the waistband of his trousers.

He pulled his arms out of the sleeves and then let the shirt fall to the ground, and for a moment simply stood there whilst she admired the obvious strength of his upper torso; he was quite broad of shoulder and his biceps had developed over the years from the physical labour of his business.