Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 75164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Like we hadn’t just been involved with our first huge fight and he hadn’t accused me of cheating on him only minutes earlier, Baker scrambled to the middle of the bed and grabbed his package.
“Wow. That’s a tiny puppy,” he said. “It doesn’t weigh anything.”
“Just open the damn present, Baker,” I growled. Patience, especially under intense pressure, had never been my strong suit.
I noticed his hands trembled as he unraveled the red bow. Right before he removed the lid, he looked over his shoulder and said, “I love you, Seth Wilkinson. You made my world a better place to live in.”
The box was intentionally large. The gift was small…but gigantic in emotional value. I waited, breath held, as he lifted the lid and stared into the box. He stared. And stared. And stared.
I couldn’t hold my breath any longer…nor could I force air into my lungs.
Finally, he slowly reached into the box and pulled the titanium collar out. His back was still to me as he held the commitment of my devotion and pledge to love and protect him for all the days, nights, minutes, and seconds he belonged to me. When I couldn’t wait any longer, I asked, “Do you know what it is, Baker?”
He nodded but didn’t turn to face me.
It was too soon. I’d pushed too fast…wanted too much from him…wanted all of him.
I’d given up all hope for a happy ending to our night when I saw a tear drop from his jaw and onto the collar. He turned and looked at me and tears streaked his handsome face.
“You want me? Just me?”
“You. Forever…just you.”
“It’s beautiful, Seth.” His blue eyes were glued to the titanium collar. It was nearly an inch thick and decorated with engraved letters and numbers. His initials on one side, mine on the other, and a large W in the center. On one side of the back clasp was the date we’d met and on the other side was the date we’d first made love.
“Can I wear it now?” he asked.
“I would love for you to wear it now, but I’d also like for us to have a commitment ceremony, as well. I want everyone to know we belong to one another.” I sucked in a deep breath, suddenly even more nervous than I’d been minutes ago. “I mean, I never really asked you how you felt about being collared, but I’d hoped…”
Baker scrambled from the bed and shut up my rambling with a passionate kiss. When we broke apart, he whispered, “I’ve never wanted a collar before, even laughed at people who did. When I opened that box, though, and saw what was in it…my heart nearly exploded with happiness.” He grabbed both sides of my face and said, “Yes, Seth! Yes, yes, yes! I want your collar…to belong to you and only you.”
I kissed him again and whispered, “Always mine, Baker.”
He dropped to his knees in front of me and ordered, “Put it on me. Now.”
“Three hundred and fourteen…for trying to boss me around,” I joked as I locked the collar around his neck. It had been made just for him, with much whispering on secret phone calls about proper measurements and engravings, so it fit perfectly. I felt my eyes pool with tears again when I stepped back to see how perfect and beautiful my collar looked wrapped possessively around my sub.
“Perfect,” I whispered in complete awe. “I’m so sorry, Baker. Sorry that I’ve made you worry. If what we shared was nothing more than a Dom/sub relationship, I think I would have picked up on your concerns, it’s what I’ve been trained to do. When love enters the picture, though, it makes things so much…more. I found myself more focused on our future together than your immediate needs. I’ll work diligently to mesh those two worlds together, to make our time together as complete for you as I possibly can.”
“Totally forgiven,” Baker whispered. “I’m sorry, too. I shouldn’t have doubted you or, if I did, I should have talked to you about it.”
I cleared my throat, feeling nervous once again. “There’s…uh…another present in the box. Just lift the fabric the collar rested on.” Shit, my palms were sweaty and there was a good chance some heart palpitations were happening inside my chest. It was just that I’d never wanted anything so badly in my life.
Still on his knees in front of me, Baker said, “Another one? Is it important…because I thought since I was already down here, wearing my sexy collar, I could just unzip your pants and…”
“It’s important,” I whispered. I wasn’t sure if it was the look on my face or the sound of my voice, but his playfulness disappeared and he was back on the bed before I blinked.
I watched as he carefully removed the fabric covering. This time, his entire body trembled when he reached his hand into the box for a second time. When he turned to face me, my gift in his hand and a shocked expression on his face, I was the one on bended knee. “Baker Daley, will you marry me?”