Make Me Stay by Ella Jade Page A

for you.” She looked around the modern office. “Everything looks great.”
    He walked toward her. “I’m surprised to see you.”
    “Is it okay that I just showed up?” She lowered her eyes and waited for his response.
    “Yes.” He pulled her against his chest and gave her a tight hug. “I’ve missed you. I thought something happened to you.”
    She sighed and relaxed under his touch. He still smelled of the same soap and aftershave. She wondered if his scent would linger against her skin when he let her go. She hoped it would.
    “It seemed like you just disappeared. I tried to make contact with you, but I couldn’t locate you.”
    She was surprised to hear he’d looked for her. She’d left without a second glance. That was what he’d wanted, what he told her to do the night he’d left her standing in the rain. She obeyed him. Back then she’d always done everything he told her to.
    “You told me to leave, so I did.”
    “I said to leave me . Not this town, your friends, and your life. Where did you go that night? I was worried.”
    He let go of her and led her to the plush, leather couch by the window of his huge corner office. He sat and pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her. It was as if not a day had gone by since the last time they were together. This was the way she’d pictured their reunion to be. Effortless. She was right to come back to him.
    “I needed a clean break.” She itched to touch his thick, brown hair. It was longer than before, but it suited the strong features of his face. “Things had gotten too intense between us, and I needed time to clear my head.”
    “You were in your last year of college. You had no money and no place to go. How did you end up in Connecticut?”
    She recognized the concern in his voice. He’d always taken care of her and made sure she was okay. When he couldn’t find her, he must have been frantic with worry. She’d thought about that many times while she was away. She worried he wouldn’t be able to forgive her for disappearing.
    “I went to New York City and met an old friend from high school. She hooked me up with a place to stay and introduced me to some people.”
    “What kind of people?”
    “Good people. I met a man who helped me figure things out.” She hadn’t planned on getting into all the details of her past two and a half years so quickly.
    “Are you still with him?”
    She couldn’t be certain, but Cade looked disappointed by her admission. He still cared. She shook her head. Martin had released her from her contract. She was free to pursue another man, another Dom.
    “Does that make you happy?” she asked, shifting to look directly into his electrifying blue eyes.
    “I’ve only ever wanted you to be happy.” His warm breath caressed her face. “Are you?”
    “I am now.” She pressed her lips to his and slowly inserted her tongue into his receptive mouth.
    This was why she’d come. To reconnect with him. To prove to him she could handle whatever he threw her way. She could submit to him without any problems or reservations, and he should feel no shame in that.
    He twisted his fingers in her hair and tilted her head back so he could gain access to her neck.
    Yes, be rough.
    She moved to straddle him. He stopped kissing her into look in her eyes, seeking permission. She nodded. “It’s been too long.”
    He trailed his hands down the sides of her body and then quickly tugged her silk blouse from her skirt. She smiled as she lowered her lips to his sweet mouth and attacked with a force she didn’t know was possible. She’d waited years for this moment. They’d have time for slow later. She undid his tie and worked at the buttons of his shirt as she ground her hips against his hard cock.
    “Gracie,” he whispered against her lips.
    “Don’t think, Cade. Just do what you want, take what you want.” She moved from his lap and crawled to the armrest of the couch, arching her backside in the air and