The Mechanic Read Free Page B

position.
    "Sweetheart?" Mike's voice was gentle, soothing.
    She tried to pick her head up, but it was too much work. "What?"
    "You can move your arms now."

Chapter 4

    Alyssa felt her cheeks flame as she allowed her arms to fall to the sides. She'd been holding on to one wrist with the other hand, and her shoulders burned in protest at the sudden change in posture. She tried to push up off the car, but winced as her muscles refused to cooperate.
    "Easy there." Mike's hands slid around her waist and pulled her up flush against his body. "I've got you." He swung her up into his arms, and she held on to his neck, closing her eyes and resting her head against his chest. She couldn't remember ever feeling so much pleasure and pain in one day as he carried her inside and up the stairs. Mike put her down on his bed for the second time and she didn't fight as he removed her clothes. Then he left for a minute and came back with a warm washcloth, gently stroking it over her well-used skin even as she squirmed under his touch.
    "You really don't have to do that," she murmured, embarrassed to have him touch her so intimately even though she knew it made no sense.
    "Yes I did." He tossed the cloth in a basket across the room and stripped down to join her on the bed, pulling a quilt up over them both as he spooned her back to his front. Cuddling her tight, he palmed one of her breasts possessively with his hand. "Did you know you were a submissive, Alyssa?" Strong fingers pinched her nipple into a taut peak, sending an electrical pulse racing between her legs.
    She shook her head, consciously denying what she knew had to be the truth. "I...no. I can't be. I don't..." she blinked her eyes against the tears threatening to spill out. "I don't want to be a slave."
    Mike released her nipple, massaging gently as he kissed her neck. "You're scared to lose yourself," he said, a statement rather than a question. She nodded, unable to articulate just how much the thought frightened her. She tried to roll away, to distance herself from his alluring touch, but he only tightened his grip. "Shh...it's okay. Just lay here for a minute, and listen." He rolled her to her back, bracing himself above her on one elbow as his other hand stroked the side of her face, and she closed her eyes.
    "Being submissive doesn't mean you give up who you are. You don't have to give up working, or your friends, or the things that you love to do. It just means that you embrace another part of who you are. At least that's what it would mean here. With me."
    She sniffled, opening her eyes to look into his intense stare. She could drown in the emotions reflected back at her. "But you'd tell me what to do. I'd have to...obey your commands, right?"
    "That's right," he said, his fingers exploring her neck. "And sometimes I'll ask you to do things you're not comfortable with. But you'll learn to trust me. If not me, then it will be someone else. But this is who you are, Alyssa. You'll never be happy until you stop fighting it."
    She turned her head to the side as his hand closed over her neck. He didn't squeeze, but instead of feeling claustrophobic, the position felt better than it should have. Comforting, even. He was asking her to give him her mind as well as her body, and on some level she wanted to. Desperately.
    But she couldn't say the words. It was too much.
    "Let me go, Mike. I need to go home."
    * * *
    Mike released her with a growl and rolled out of bed. He should have known better. This was what Alyssa needed, he knew it in his gut. But unlike others he'd met, he couldn't keep her any longer if she wasn't willing. There were legal issues to consider, aside from the fact that he just didn't want to deal with a woman hell-bent on escape simply because it hadn't been her choice to stay. Been there, done that.
    "I'll fix your car tomorrow, and you're free to leave then," he said, zipping up his jeans. He reached for his shirt, avoiding those eyes that he knew would be