Then I follow Bella upstairs, already unbuttoning my shirt on the way up.

The socks follow, but I keep my jeans on. Not my first choice of playtime clothes, but I don't want to keep her waiting when she's done showering.

While I snatch up all the utensils from the playroom and deposit them on the floor in the kitchen I try to remember what exactly we agreed on when we were planning this scene together. As I don't think anything I want to do will trigger real unease or even fear I decide to wing it, probably not the best idea, but the only one I can come up with on such short notice.

After all, there are just two things I want to achieve. One, for her to burn off most of the frustration causing all those frowns and worried looks she thinks I never notice. Two, for me to finally get it into my head that I am someone who can be trusted. Bella's always been my salvation, somehow it's fitting that I let her prove that to me tonight.

A quick check of my watch tells me that she has two more minutes. After picking up the blindfold I lean against the hallway wall next to the bedroom door, listening to a series of bumps and low curses coming from inside where Bella seems to be fighting with the bath towel. Grinning, I once again marvel at my own luck of ending up with a wonderful woman like her. I really shouldn't need this for myself, this proof of my trustworthiness, she's done nothing to make me doubt myself ever. In fact she's been happy enough letting me escalate things on a regular basis, never hesitating, never using her safeword when things went beyond what she probably expected. It just took me this long to realize how things have been between us all the time.

The sound of partly dry feet on the floor beckons me out of my musing, and before Bella has moved further than two steps out of the room I'm behind her, drawing her to a halt as I pull the blindfold over her head. It's a padded leather blindfold, held in place with elastic strings, not much larger than a sleeping mask but cutting out all the light. Her breath hitches as her world goes dark, but after several seconds she visibly relaxes, letting me take control.

I leave her standing there for several seconds, close enough that she probably feels the heat of my body at her back, but not touching her. Water still glistens on her skin where she's been too hurried or impatient to properly dry herself, causing strands of hair to stick to her shoulder and upper back.

"Right on time, my beautiful Bella," I finally acknowledge her, lightly wrapping my hands around her upper arms. She doesn't respond but I feel her ease into my grip, her skin slightly cooler than mine.

"Do you still remember what we were talking about a while ago?"

She cocks her head, then nods. "The sensory deprivation scene, Sir?"

"Exactly that," I agree, then plant the lightest of kisses on her bare shoulder, only to be rewarded with another shudder.

"I need you to trust me tonight," I venture on, underscoring my words with a second kiss just next to the first one. "I need you not to second-guess me.

You submit to me, without question." Another kiss, this one closer to her neck. "I'm in control, and I can do whatever I want with you."

By the end of my little speech her whole body seems to vibrate, and she has to swallow twice before she can bring out a husky, "Yes, Sir," that makes my cock twitch.

"Any questions?"

"No, Sir."

I'm glad she doesn't hesitate, but she still stiffens when I let go of her and push the blue plastic ball of the gag into her mouth. Bella's hands twist as if she wants to reach up to her face, but then she relaxes again, not protesting when I fix the straps behind her head. I make sure that the leather doesn't bite into the skin of her cheek but sits snugly enough that she cannot easily press the ball out between her teeth. A light frown has taken residence on her forehead, but with the blindfold in place, I can't really tell if she's annoyed or just slightly apprehensive.

Once I'm done I step behind her again and take hold of her arms, then push her into motion in front of me. I let her take slow but sure steps, stopping when we reach the top of the stairs. Only when I start leading her down into the living room does she stiffen a bit, but I think it's excitement now rather than fear. Downstairs I let go of her and she stops, and only resumes walking after I slide my fingers against hers and take her hand to tug her along into the kitchen part of the room.

A delightfully huffy squeal leaves her when I pick her up and set her down on the island, but she doesn't even fidget and remains sitting there with her back straight and her tits delightfully right in front of my face. A multitude of things run through my mind that I would love to do to her now, but I'm simply not in the mood for a quick fuck.

Instead I bend down and pick something up from the floor, painting a new frown on her forehead when I place the fingers of her right hand around the rubber ball. Closing my fist further around hers I show her how much to squeeze the toy, until it emits a squeaking noise.

"If you feel like anything is amiss, you need to tell me. Speaking obvious won't work, and I intend to make you grunt and moan so much that I can't really rely on that for a signal. But the second you squeeze the ball I will stop what I do and check on you. Understood?"

Bella nods and compresses her fist, making the toy squeak loudly. Even with the gag I can see the grin on her face, and quickly punish her mirth by leaning in and biting the sweet spot on the side of her neck. I get rewarded with a low moan that goes straight to my cock and decide that I definitely want to hear this sound many times more until I'm done with her tonight.

Her playful mood evens out into relaxed passiveness when I push her down onto the cool marble slab, then push her around until I have her exactly the way I want her – her ass flush with the long side of the island, legs spread and bent right now, and her arms extended. I even fetch one of the pillows from the couch to put under her head – tonight I want her calm and relaxed, something I normally don't go for when I tie her up.

The only flaw in her position is that she can still move, obviously, but that is fixed quickly with a few yards of soft, black rope. I don't think the handles of the drawers and the rail to put the dishtowels up for drying were meant for this exact purpose, but they work really well for me. It only takes me a few minutes to restrain her ankles and wrists to the corners of the island, and add a few more bonds to her arms and legs above and below her joints to make sure that she's properly immobilized.

Once I'm done I step back and admire my work, feeling my cock grow hard in my jeans. The way she's tied down is a delicious compromise between practicality and eye candy, the contrast of the black ropes over her ivory skin atop the charcoal marble nearly a piece of art. Her slightly bent legs beckon to be touched but I hold myself back, instead letting the visual impact do its own thing to my body. I know it's about the same for her, only with the physical feedback from the contrasting signals her skin picks up from the hard, unyielding stone she's lying on and the multitude of pressure points the ropes paint all over her limbs. The fact that she can't see anything and the gag only adds to her feeling of helplessness very likely amplifies the experience tenfold.

After a while she flexes her free hand and tries to test the bonds, but there is no slack to the ropes, even though they hold her in a position that leaves next to no strain on her muscles. With her ankles and wrists slightly twisted there's also no chance for leverage for her shoulders or hips, and when she realizes that she huffs with slight annoyance. She's completely at my mercy, and I'm going to make sure that she'll love every second of it.

Unwilling to wait any longer I step up to the island between her spread legs and lean over her, careful not to touch her. My breath whafting over her body sends shivers through her, and she eagerly turns her face to where she presumes mine to be.

"I can do anything I want to do to you," I repeat my earlier words, speaking slow and in a low tone that I know she finds sexy. "I can touch you anywhere I want," I continue, while I slowly trace the curve of her collarbone with my index finger. "Here, or here," my finger trails down the valley between her breasts, deviating for a moment so I can squeeze her left tit softly. I feel her arch into my palm, or try to, but within a moment the ropes are all taught and she has to accept defeat when I let go of her again. My finger continues its journey from her breastbone down the soft skin of her stomach, but I stop short of her pussy, instead trailing a line over her hip and to the ropes that bind her left leg. "Or here."

Bella mewls plaintively and I can see the muscles in her thighs flex as she tries to move her hips, but as with her arms there is not enough give for more than a light jerk towards me. I grin, then lean down and blow air over her pussy lips, making her squeal into the gag.

"You see," I continue as I straighten again until my face is right above hers,

"I can take my time exploring your body. Minutes, even hours, and there's nothing you can do about it." While I speak I let my palms roam over her ribs but stay shy of her breasts, close enough to hint but far enough away to tease her. "Of course I could just grab you and fuck you hard," - that while I briefly grind my jeans covered cock against her pussy until she moans loudly, before I pull away - "but where's the fun in that? No, tonight I'll take it real slow."

It's good that she can't see my face because the frown on her forehead makes me grin, and I have to work hard to keep that out of my voice. I'm pretty sure that she has been hoping for some quick, passionate sex, but I'm in no mood to oblige the first part of that wish. The second, we'll see about.

Done with talking, I bend my head down and start to kiss and lick her upper body, spending minutes teasing her neck and breasts until more of those delicious moans escape her. I pay attention that all of my touches are soft and gentle, even when I bring my hands up to massage her tits. I want her to really feel every single touch, adding to the need and lust inside of her until she's ready to burst although I haven't really done anything especially exciting yet. And my plan works, judging by the noises she makes and how she's trying but failing to writhe in her bonds.

Then I make my way lower down her body but I stray a lot, brushing kisses all over her torso while my fingers draw idle lines on the soft skin of her inner thighs. Her moans become louder and deeper, and when I reach her pussy, she's already wet and more than willing.

A sigh escapes her when I plant a few kisses onto her slightly puffy lips but that's all I intend to do, and when she feels me step away her whole body tenses as she grunts out in frustration. This time I can't hold back and chuckle, causing another frown to mar her forehead.

"My pretty, pretty Bella, all excited and ready for me, only too bad that I don't intend to take any advantage of you."

She grunts again, this time even louder, and for a moment I think about slapping her to bring her back in line. But as much as I revel in the feeling of being the one in complete control, I don't really care about her being submissive tonight. I even want her to show her frustration, I want her angry and helpless, because for whatever reason that pushes my buttons more than anything else at the moment.

I leave her like that for another minute or two before I walk around the island to where her head is about the only thing she can move. She hears my steps and tries to keep track of them, and her frown deepens when I stop directly behind and above her but neither speak not touch her. Her teeth bite a little into the ball of the gag as she probably tries to gnash them, and I idly wipe some escaped drool from her cheek. Ball gags are always messy that way, another reason why I love them so much.

"Do you want me to continue?" I ask her teasingly, and she grunts angrily before she visibly reins herself in and nods. I even kiss her upper arm between the ropes a few times but then stop again, waiting for her reaction.

She's clearly fighting the urge to try to demand that I go on, but months of being in the role of a rather meek submissive make it hard for her. I know I'm a bad, bad man for enjoying her internal struggle so much, but my cock twitches again when a partially muffled "Please?" leaves her lips.

"Please what?"

I know she can answer me if she really wants to, but she opts to leave it at a plaintive moan, and my dick definitely agrees that that's better than a jumbled sentence. Smiling I kiss her arm again, then move to the other one before I nibble on her earlobe.

"Please touch you again?"

She nods, then moans once more when I don't continue.

"Please make you writhe with need?"

This time she moans already as she nods, and I reward her with a messy kiss and keep sucking on her neck until she moans once more.

"Please make you come?"

She definitely likes that idea and agrees with a new kind of grunted moan, lower and more guttural than I'm used from her. My cock definitely approves.

"I can do that," I go on, nudging the slowly darkening hickey I've just produced with my nose. "But I want a reward for my efforts from you, too."

She nods again, probably excepting me to tell her to suck me off or something, but that would have been too easy. I know that even with Bella being more open about her sexuality than before, she's still somewhat self-conscious at times, and I've been itching for a while to tear those defenses down, just never had the right opportunity. Until now.

"I have every intention of making you come over and over again, but in turn I want to hear you enjoy it."

A new frown appears, this one not angry but plain surprised. Still grinning, I elaborate.

"I can't really see your face with the blindfold, and the gag is making it not much easier to judge your reaction. So I want you to moan and groan, grunt and mewl in pleasure so I know that what I'm doing is the right thing."

I shouldn't be surprised that my words make her blush but of course they do, even down her cleavage to her breasts. I figure she hasn't been realizing how vocal she's been until now, and the fact that she still feels shame about it really doesn't sit well with me. She's quick to nod, though, desperation and her sense of duty to oblige my order overruling her reservations, but that simply won't do any longer.

"And I don't mean only to indulge my wish. I want you to go into yourself and feel the need I'm invoking inside of you. And when there's no other way to let it out – and trust me, I won't just let you come because you need to –

I want you to voice that need, without hesitation."

I kiss her neck one last time, then move up to her cheek, brush my lips against the corner of her mouth right next to the gag.

"I love your moans, and you have no idea what they're doing to me. And tonight I want to really hear you, or else I'll keep toying with you until I'm tired enough to go to bed and untie you without granting you your much needed satisfaction. Your choice entirely."

A last kiss and I step away once more, leaving her on her own for a few minutes while I watch her take one slow breath after another. I can nearly see the thoughts behind her beautiful forehead run wild, but really, it has to be her decision, I've done all the pushing I can.

As cool and blasé as I might be acting, seeing her so frustrated is hard for me. I really want to make her come, and I definitely want to fuck her, a lot, but my ego is for once stronger than my own horniness. I'm still grateful when she finally lets her head fall to the side in a comic acceptance of defeat, offering me another of those moaned pleas that I don't hesitate to answer this time.

I draw a delighted laugh from her when she feels my fingers rub up and down her pussy lips before I spread them, and laughter turns to surprisingly loud moan the moment my tongue licks over her clit. I do it again as does she, and when my lips close around her clit and I suck hard, she nearly screams into the gag. She's blushing hard as she does it, and when I keep on licking the cry turns into a breathy laugh again that still holds a note of shame, but also sounds delightfully carefree.

My attempt to draw more of those laughs and moans from her is a little too successful, and before long I feel her body start to tense with her impending climax. I can't have that yet so I stop, only to be rewarded with a clearly annoyed grunt. At least that hurdle is gone, I realize, and continue my ministrations, if at a much slower pace. It takes some nibbling on her puffy labia and light squeezing of her breasts to pacify her again, and I at least enjoy myself greatly as I keep her just shy of reaching her orgasm for minutes. She's still a little hesitant with her vocalization, but as time progresses, that fades to the point where she doesn't seem to mind much anymore whether she's sounding like a wanton slut or not. At least her moans are real and not the fake ones of an overtly enthusiastic porn star, something I really appreciate.

After a while my jaw is aching from pleasing her with my mouth, and I decide that it's time for my last bout of evilness for the day. I know she's been as hesitant about this as the gag, but as that seems to be working out just fine, I think I can be a little daring. She'd probably be disappointed if I wasn't.

This time she sounds less frustrated and more tired when I step away from her, her pants loud in the otherwise silent kitchen as I watch her calm down. Bella even moans softly when she feels my hand back up at her breast, stroking the sweaty skin lovingly for a moment. Yet her moan quickly changes into a grunt when the clothespin snaps shut around her nipple, amplified when I do the same on her other breast. Then she's silent once more, and I reach down to rub her clit slowly to take away the sting caused by the plastic now biting into her nipples.

I keep rubbing her until I see her relax again, then I add more clothespins to her tits until the soft flesh is haphazardly obstructed with brightly colored plastic. The clothespins are by far not the nastiest I keep in my playroom, but I know that they can develop quite the pinch if left on long enough. One way to make them less painful is always to use them on an already excited victim and keep providing more pleasure, and for that sake I reach for the vibrator I've brought along with the rope.

Her first moan when she feels the vibrating dildo pressed against her clit and slid between her pussy lips is still soft, but before long she's trying to grind against it just as much as she did with my face before. I toy a little with her, pushing the vibrator against the entrance of her pussy but never really inside her, causing her to mewl and plead with me, but to no avail. I only stop when I have her on the brink of coming again, and this time she's clearly, and very loudly displeased with me. I only grin and reach for another handful of clothespins.

A whine leaves her when I put the first clothespin onto her outer pussy lip, watching the slick, swollen flesh pinched by the plastic teeth. I add another one to her other lip, just opposite the first one, then wait if she's showing any signs of real pain, but Bella stays silent and doesn't squeeze her ball.