"Move towards the bed, sub, " he told her, his tone hard. "Kneel beside it and lean over it."

She moved to obey immediately, shuffling forward the few steps, her balance thrown by not being able to use her arms. He did not help her, but only watched and waited as she moved awkwardly into the position he commanded her to, managing with some clear difficulty to lean over the bed with her knees still on the floor. With his foot he tapped the inside of her calves to indicate she should open her legs, which forced her to take almost her full weight on her torso on the bed, her legs spread wide and thighs glistening, her hands still tied tightly behind her back. So vulnerable, so open. He stood somewhere behind her, she couldn't tell where, fully clothed and demanding and she trembled now to wonder what he was about to do.

"Hmmm. Tonight you are going to shave for me, " he told her darkly and she gulped, for her legs were already well shaven, as were her underarms, and so he could only mean one thing.

"Oh... Um, yes... yes Master, " she stammered, not knowing what else to say, wishing she could see him, but she could see little but what was directly in front of her and the bedclothes beneath her head. "Um, Master, do you mean..."

She heard him move, then felt him kneel down behind her, in between her spread legs. She stiffened, feeling the denim of his jeans against her bare legs and his hands upon her back. He traced them across her skin, down her arms, testing once again the bonds he had placed around her wrists. Then he let his hands lower, over her hips and around, slowly, to her inner thighs. She squirmed, trying not to move though she was desperate to push back against him. She was desperate for him. She gasped when one of his hands made its way up between her legs and gently slipped inside her pussy.

"Yes Charlotte, " he told her firmly. "I require you shaven at all times and presented well for me."

She was breathing fast, could only nod for the moment. "I understand. I understand, yes."

His fingers, gently exploring over her clitoris to the point where she had been desperately trying to think of anything else so as not to cum without permission, tightened suddenly. She squealed in sudden pain.

"Yes what, Charlotte?"

"Master! Yes Master!" she whimpered, his pinching hold on her most sensitive area a lesson learnt quickly. His fingers loosened and again became gentle, stroking her slowly once again.

"Hmmm. Do not forget again, " he warned her. She could only nod and gasp, trying so hard not to cum. Perhaps he knew that, for his fingers stopped and she ached for their return, for a release he had so far denied her, but then she heard a rustle of denim, felt movement right behind her as he shifted and undid the button fly to his pants.

She could not help but push back now when she felt him, his sex, his cock, at the entrance to her own body. She wanted him so badly, but he would not let her dictate events and kept himself there without entering her for the moment. It was maddening, desperately maddening, and yet she was also terrified she was so turned on that she would not be able to help cum the moment he entered her and she did not want to anger him. Yet he did not move and she was growing ever more desperate.

"Master, please..." she breathed, unable to help herself.

"You will learn, my Charlotte. Not until I say, " he reminded her firmly and she groaned in frustration. "I will use you for my own pleasure, whenever and however I desire, for I am your Master and that is my right. Whereas your pleasure is solely mine to dictate, to provide or withhold as reward or punishment, entirely as I see fit."

"Yes Master, " she gulped, nodding quickly, "I'm sorry, it's just that I... it's never felt like this before..."

"That's because I know best what you need, my Charlotte, " he told her, a little more gently. "You must trust me to make these decisions. And you should only concern yourself with pleasing your Master and seeing to his pleasure, not be thinking of your own."

A deep breath, shuddering with desire and agreement. "I do Master, " was all she said, nothing more needed, it was simply the truth. It felt so good to give up such control into his hands, even when she knew she may well be denied everything her body was currently screaming out for.

"Good girl, " he murmured as he pushed a little closer into her body and she felt a flush of pleasure for the praise as much as she did from the physical desire to have him there. His hands were on her hips, but he moved them now to her shoulders, gripping her bound arms tightly as he pushed, finally, right inside her.

She uttered a low cry at his first thrust and she pushed back against him even as she fought hard not to cum. There was not a lot of scope for her to move, she was pushed hard against the bed, her legs forced apart by his own as he knelt behind her, her arms bound behind her and gripped by him, but she tried to respond as she could, to maximise his pleasure, even as she fought against her own.

He dictated the speed and ferocity with which they coupled and she found he could be infinitely gentle if he so desired it, but more often he was not, pushing into her firmly, deeply, sometimes roughly, making her gasp and lose herself entirely in the sensations of him. At one point he took hold of her hair, long and falling over her shoulders, wrapping it around his fist and holding her by it, pulling back her head firmly so that she was forced to arch her neck uncomfortably, yet the more he pulled, the more she loved it. She could not move her arms, they ached from the position they were tied in and her wrists chafed against the cord which bound them, but it didn't matter, she only loved it the more and lost track of any desperate wonderings as to why or how she could feel such a way and just let herself feel it.

"Master, I... I'm sorry... please, please may I cum, " she breathed desperately, for she would not be able to help it soon, she knew it.

"Soon, Charlotte." His voice was firm. She all but cried.

"Please, Master, I'm begging you, " she sobbed, not knowing whether it was pain or pleasure she was feeling and not caring, for she was hardly able to tell the difference between the two by this point anyway. His only response was to thrust into her harder and she felt him lean down, pulling back on her hair hard. His lips kissed her bare shoulder.

"Master enjoys your pain, my love, these tears you shed, " he murmured as he pushed into her harder now, faster. "Cum, my love. Cum for me now."

She almost didn't realise he had finally given her permission, it took a second before she could grasp his words properly, but when she did she could only let go, finally, finding the release she had for so long been so desperate for. Her body shook, muscles spasming, as for what was the first time since she had lost her virginity at age seventeen she actually orgasmed from penetration alone, and it did not merely last a few seconds, but seemed to continue on and on. Even as she thought the sensations were beginning to fade, she felt him reach his own climax, pumping inside her of her Master's cum, and maybe it was that, or maybe she had simply misjudged her own body, but her body continued to plateau with his and she whimpered as her muscles shook with a further force, before finally, eventually, after what seemed like so long possessed by the force of his power, she was spent.

His hands, which had gripped her so roughly, were gentle now as he laid his chest against her back and his head on her shoulder and kissed her skin softly. He stroked her hair and they just lay there for a moment, he still inside her, she still bound, both of them exhausted. She realised her face was wet with tears, though she could not remember shedding them and for the moment she simply decided not to try and analyse her emotions or her situation, but simply accepted the here and now. Simply let herself acknowledge just how wonderful it felt, still in this uncomfortable position, but held safe in his arms, loved and protected and valued for who she was, who she truly was.

"I am proud of you, my love, " he said then, fondly, gently, with love.

"You did so very well."

Now she did feel the tears return, born of happiness, of love, of finally feeling like she had truly found her place in the world. Of knowing she had done well in his eyes, the only judge she wanted to ever acknowledge.

"Thank you Master, " she whispered, straining her head so she could turn it and meet his eyes. He smiled at her and kissed her again softly, before slowly moving, pushing himself up and then out of her. He was still mostly dressed, only his pants were around his thighs, and he hoisted himself up to the bed beside her with some evident weariness.

She did not move, because she couldn't, she was still bound, and he leant over the moment he was by her side and undid the cords around her wrists gently, then helping her kneel up straight. He raised one of her hands and kissed her wrist where he had bound it, then the other, the red marks around each evidence of how tight she had been tied. She smiled to see those marks. She did not know why, but she was proud of them.

"First things first, " he said as he lay back on the bed. "Go get a cloth from your en-suite, sweetheart."

She nodded and tried to stand quickly, then found her legs too shaky and had to reach out to steady herself. He only reached out to help her, looking very tired himself, but she found once she took her time to get the feeling back into her legs, she was okay. She did just as he had said, feeling sticky and sore and badly in need of cleaning herself, but she did not do that as yet, for she would see to him first. When she returned, she knelt herself down in front of him, cloth in hand, but hesitated unsurely before reaching out, looking up to meet his eyes.

"Good girl. Clean me up, Charlotte, " he told her with a nod and she did so, biting her lip in concentration as she gently used the cloth to clean over his balls, his cock, down over his thighs, being careful to do a thorough job. She looked up when she was finished, looking for approval from him. He only smiled from where he still lay back on the bed.

"Now go clean yourself up and return to me so I can hold you, " he told her and she grinned madly, this time able to jump up quickly without almost falling over and dashing into the en-suite to clean herself. On her return, he looked up and held one arm out to her and she climbed onto the bed beside him and cuddled up in his arms as they wrapped tightly around her.

They lay in silence for some time, he stroking her hair gently and simply holding her to him. She looked up after a little while and smiled impishly.

"I have bruises Master, " she declared somewhat mischievously. "On my backside. I looked in the mirror."

He laughed. "I've never yet known a sub who doesn't check for bruises, not to mention wear them proudly when she finds them. Even when they do derive from punishment, " he told her. "And so you should have bruises, my girl. It was a hard spanking I gave you, if deserved."

"What's a sub? You've called me that twice now."

He chuckled and held her closer. "A submissive, Charlotte, which is you, " he said. "I'll explain it all, love, but later. There is much for you to learn."

She accepted that, surely curious, but never doubting his words and accepting patiently to wait until he felt the time was right. He shifted to his side, keeping his arms about her, so he could look directly at her and just gazed at her for some long moments in silence. She bit her lip, only returning his gaze, looking over the features of this man she had known since she was very, very young. A man she had always wanted to please and do well for, who she had always looked to for support and protection, even when she refused to allow anybody else to provide such for her. A man she had loved for what seemed all her life. And she was here, now, in his arms, naked beside him. Loved by him.

"I want you to tell me something Charlotte, " he said after a moment. "Answer completely honestly, I promise you won't be punished no matter what you say. I just need to know your totally honest answer."

"Yes Master?" she murmured. It occurred to her in the back of her head that she was already well used to calling him such, she didn't even think of it now, it seemed only natural. That was who he was. She gave him that right. She gave him herself.

"Tell me why you think Richard left you. Tell me what you feel about it, here and now."

She froze. It had been answering this question which had earned her the spanking to begin with. But he had promised he would not punish her, no matter what she said. He wanted to know truly, completely, honestly, and she wanted to tell him that she would not and could not lie to him, not even to avoid punishment, she could only ever be honest with him.

But it did make her stop and think, pause to reflect upon how she truly did feel. She was no longer upset, certainly. She was laying here in the arms of a man she had admired, idolised and loved almost all her life, a dream she hadn't even dared to dream before, but which had now come true. So she could not feel sad for the loss of a with another who had treated her so badly, as Richard had. Who had used her and abused her emotionally, if not physically.

Yet she could hardly feel good when forced to think on it, either. She took a breath, not wanting to answer, but she knew she had to.

"Uh... truthfully, he probably figured he could get no more out of me, " she said eventually, somewhat reluctantly. "He'd got all he could from our relationship, there was nothing left for him to take. He'd stripped me bare emotionally. And then he moved on."

"You don't say 'I'. You no longer blame yourself?"

Her eyes widened. She had not been thinking of that at all, she had simply answered honestly, told him exactly how she was feeling, how she saw the situation. But it was true. She did no longer blame herself. That morning it had been all she could think of, the guilt, the despair at not having been good enough. But now there was simply sorrow she had let herself stay so long in such an emotionally abusive situation. There was no blame. There was no guilt. She felt at peace with it all.

"No Master, " she whispered. "I no longer blame myself."

He pulled her closer and held her tight, kissing her head. "The guilt has gone?"

"Yes." It was the truth. "I guess it's... um, I feel as if I don't need to judge myself now, Master. I feel like.... I know you will be my judge and if I am found wanting, you will decide upon appropriate punishment. So I don't need to punish myself anymore."

He moved one hand to her face, then tipped up her chin so she was looking straight at him. She could not hide her tears then and he wiped them away.

"Do you trust me Charlotte?" he asked her softly.

"Yes, Master."

"Do you love me?"

"Yes, Master."

"Do you still want me to be your Master?"

She smiled and buried herself in his arms. His closed tightly around her and she knew he would always keep her safe. It would not be easy, learning these new things, learning this life which now called out to her. There would be difficult times, things he would want her to do which would scare her, things she wanted to do but for which he would not grant permission. Times when she would be punished for her mistakes. No, it would not be easy, but she would not have it any other way, either. There was a lot she wanted to discuss with him and she knew they would do that too, but for now she simply lay in his arms and knew for the first time in her life, she understood who she was, and why.

For the first time in her life, life itself began to make sense.

"Yes, " was all she answered, with a smile. "Master."