collar. Because you don't get to be just another girl in my bed, Lexie. None of the others has been one of us. You know where this puts you."
He'd had women in and out of his bed, always collared and always outsiders, women who came and went like clockwork. Shift change, Lex had ruefully called it.
No more.
"It means I have duties ," she said, feigning a patience she didn't feel. "Is it the word that offends, or the fact that I'm not slobberingly focused on the many things I get to do to your dick once you deign to let me touch it?"
His gaze dropped to her throat, where her fingers had come to rest on the collar. Lex tensed but refused to jerk them away, and he clenched his jaw as he turned his attention back to his task. "All right. Duties is fair enough, as long as touching my dick isn't one of them."
As if she'd been the one to deny him. "That's the funny thing about these collars." She scratched one fingernail over the rough surface of the O'Kane emblem. "Most men put them on women they plan to regularly fuck the shit out of."
His lips twitched. "I put them on women who get off on having me fuck the shit out of them however, wherever and whenever I want."
Even the words tightened her nipples, raised goose bumps on her skin. "But you think that isn't me."
"You can flip the submission on like a switch, darling, but you sure as fuck weren't getting off on it last night."
She crossed her arms over her chest. "Noelle likes punishment. I don't."
Dallas finished rolling the cigarette before offering it to her. "That wasn't punishment, which proves my damn point. We both know better than to play games when no one knows the rules."
He kept talking in circles, and they were getting nowhere. "Okay, I'll play along." She leaned forward and snatched the cigarette. "If keeping me off your dick wasn't punishment, what was it?"
His lighter was shiny silver and etched with a skull, and it reflected the light as he swept it up and flicked it open. "Foreplay."
Lex glared at him over the flame. "We've had six years of that. Do we really need more?"
Dallas grinned. "And here I thought you girls trained us this way on purpose."
She rolled her eyes and lit the tip of the cigarette, puffing until it caught in a gentle smolder. "Rules. You show me yours, and I'll show you mine."
"Control, Lex. I want it." He snapped the lighter shut to emphasize his point before starting to roll a second cigarette. "Sometimes I'll want you to give it to me. Sometimes I'll want to take it. You need to be right with both."
It pulled the air out of her lungs. Part of her wanted to blame it on the smooth tobacco smoke, but she couldn't, not with her attention riveted to the lines of his face as he stared down at the paper in his hand.
Control. Oh, how she'd hungered to let go for a little while, to have Dallas hold it all, but the way he spoke proved he didn't know. Maybe not how much, or maybe not at all.
She opened her mouth to say something, anything remotely coherent. Instead, she sucked in a rough, ragged breath.
He lifted the second cigarette, and his gaze flicked to hers as he drew his tongue along the edge of the rolling paper, licking it like a lover.
"I don't know if I can give it," she said in a rush. "Not entirely. But you can take it. Me."
After a pause, he nodded. "Here's what we're going to do. You're going to take a day and think. Really think. And then you're going to tell me what you like, what you don't like, and what's straight-up off-limits."
There were no such things as boundaries, no limits when it came to Dallas. "And if I don't need a day?"
He lit his own cigarette and exhaled toward the ceiling. "Take it anyway. Seriously consider it--for me."
"You want me to...what? Make a list?"
"Yes," he said without hesitation. "An honest one."
"Of things I don't want you to do." Jesus, it'd take her all day to think of one . "All right. You, too."
He smiled and nodded, then changed the subject. "Tell me what you've heard about
He'd had women in and out of his bed, always collared and always outsiders, women who came and went like clockwork. Shift change, Lex had ruefully called it.
No more.
"It means I have duties ," she said, feigning a patience she didn't feel. "Is it the word that offends, or the fact that I'm not slobberingly focused on the many things I get to do to your dick once you deign to let me touch it?"
His gaze dropped to her throat, where her fingers had come to rest on the collar. Lex tensed but refused to jerk them away, and he clenched his jaw as he turned his attention back to his task. "All right. Duties is fair enough, as long as touching my dick isn't one of them."
As if she'd been the one to deny him. "That's the funny thing about these collars." She scratched one fingernail over the rough surface of the O'Kane emblem. "Most men put them on women they plan to regularly fuck the shit out of."
His lips twitched. "I put them on women who get off on having me fuck the shit out of them however, wherever and whenever I want."
Even the words tightened her nipples, raised goose bumps on her skin. "But you think that isn't me."
"You can flip the submission on like a switch, darling, but you sure as fuck weren't getting off on it last night."
She crossed her arms over her chest. "Noelle likes punishment. I don't."
Dallas finished rolling the cigarette before offering it to her. "That wasn't punishment, which proves my damn point. We both know better than to play games when no one knows the rules."
He kept talking in circles, and they were getting nowhere. "Okay, I'll play along." She leaned forward and snatched the cigarette. "If keeping me off your dick wasn't punishment, what was it?"
His lighter was shiny silver and etched with a skull, and it reflected the light as he swept it up and flicked it open. "Foreplay."
Lex glared at him over the flame. "We've had six years of that. Do we really need more?"
Dallas grinned. "And here I thought you girls trained us this way on purpose."
She rolled her eyes and lit the tip of the cigarette, puffing until it caught in a gentle smolder. "Rules. You show me yours, and I'll show you mine."
"Control, Lex. I want it." He snapped the lighter shut to emphasize his point before starting to roll a second cigarette. "Sometimes I'll want you to give it to me. Sometimes I'll want to take it. You need to be right with both."
It pulled the air out of her lungs. Part of her wanted to blame it on the smooth tobacco smoke, but she couldn't, not with her attention riveted to the lines of his face as he stared down at the paper in his hand.
Control. Oh, how she'd hungered to let go for a little while, to have Dallas hold it all, but the way he spoke proved he didn't know. Maybe not how much, or maybe not at all.
She opened her mouth to say something, anything remotely coherent. Instead, she sucked in a rough, ragged breath.
He lifted the second cigarette, and his gaze flicked to hers as he drew his tongue along the edge of the rolling paper, licking it like a lover.
"I don't know if I can give it," she said in a rush. "Not entirely. But you can take it. Me."
After a pause, he nodded. "Here's what we're going to do. You're going to take a day and think. Really think. And then you're going to tell me what you like, what you don't like, and what's straight-up off-limits."
There were no such things as boundaries, no limits when it came to Dallas. "And if I don't need a day?"
He lit his own cigarette and exhaled toward the ceiling. "Take it anyway. Seriously consider it--for me."
"You want me to...what? Make a list?"
"Yes," he said without hesitation. "An honest one."
"Of things I don't want you to do." Jesus, it'd take her all day to think of one . "All right. You, too."
He smiled and nodded, then changed the subject. "Tell me what you've heard about
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