When Knox tried to pull away, she squeezed his neck in warning and he stilled.

She explored his ear, little flicks of her tongue, sucking air out, sinking her teeth into his lobe. Tremors racked his body, and she could feel him gritting his teeth. “Don’t test me, because I promise you I will win.”

He inhaled a deep, shuddering breath. “Please finish your story.”

“I finally told my mom that I wanted to end the marriage. When she had our attorney contact my husband, he demanded a huge divorce settlement.”

“Since you’re an heiress.”

“Yes. That’s when I found out he married me only for the money. And his way of forcing the divorce was to demand swingers clubs. When I didn’t balk at that, he pushed me into an even kinkier direction. So he ended up being married to me longer than he’d planned.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I never considered myself naive, so it was a brutal blow to realize I’d been played. My grandfather agreed to pay the astronomical amount of money for the divorce under one condition. I was so desperate to move on at that point that I agreed to make sure Ronin and Naomi met. After three false starts, I finally made it happen and fucked up my brother’s life too.” That still ate at her, that her grandfather had manipulated her just as much as her ex-husband had.

“As much as I hated Naomi, you didn’t force Ronin to ask her out.”

“That’s cold comfort now when we discovered what a psycho she is.”

“That’s on your grandfather more than you, since he’s the one who chose her, out of the millions of women in Japan.”

She brushed her lips across his jaw. “Quit trying to make me feel better.”

“The blame has never solely been yours.” He nuzzled her cheek. “Is there more to the story?”

“Not much. We divorced; he left Japan and probably bought a small island with the divorce settlement. Mistress Keiko introduced me in her club as Mistress B, and that’s where the wig and mask come in.”

Knox adjusted their positions and peered into her eyes. “Any long-term relationships with submissives?”

She looked away.

He touched her cheek to get her to look at him. “Please answer the question.”

“You questioning my ability to satisfy submissives?”

“Not at all. Part of me wants to know if tonight I’m just another one in a long line of many.”

Her eyes searched his. “Would it be a deal killer if I said yes?”

“It would make me sad that so many have failed to give you what you need, Mistress.”

Too smooth an answer to be genuine. Or was it? “I ended up in a Dominant-submissive relationship for a year. It wasn’t exclusive for either of us.”

“How can a relationship not be exclusive?” he demanded. “Then it’s not a relationship but just a regular hookup.” He caught himself and backtracked. “Shit. Sorry. That’s none of my business—”

Shiori placed her fingers over his lips. “I want you to trust me, Knox. So I’m going to trust you with something I’ve never told anyone. It’s always felt like a dirty secret. The guy—my submissive—liked pain. He needed it. That’s not something most people understand. He couldn’t tell his wife he needed pain regularly, because she wouldn’t have understood. Anyway, I gave him the pain he craved.”

“What did you get in return?” he asked softly.

“I learned to use every whip, flogger, paddle, and cane he brought me.” She smiled sadly. “He started my Hello Kitty whip collection.”

“Did giving him pain get you off?”

She shook her head.

“Did he ever get you off afterward?”

“He had a code of honor. Plus he was married.”

“Who was he to you?”

“My bodyguard.” She’d had to cut all ties with Jenko after he’d returned to Japan. They’d both known the relationship wasn’t healthy.

Knox tapped her ass. “I’ve got a cramp; I need to move.”

She stood and walked toward the door, lost in thought.

He spun her around. “Sex has to be part of this, Shiori. Otherwise—”

“It is. Or it will be.” Tell him you’ve never been attracted to a man like you are with him. Tell him the idea of leashing him, the big alpha dog, to your will, gets you hot. Tell him you can give him what he’s always been looking for. “Come to me tonight.”

“Will I get to fuck you?”