Hey friends, it has been a while...

I'm still here, still working crazy hours but being very grateful for the job I have. I hope you all are well and doing fine also.

Life hasn't slowed down for me but I'm alive and well and my kids are, so I'm extremely thankful. I pray the same for you.

I extend tons of love and blessings to each and every one of you and your families, always. And I want to thank you for your continued support, patience and interest.

I do not own Glee or the characters and I most definitely do not own The Billionaire's Embrace.

I believe there are only three more chapter to come...or two and an epilogue...

SAM

On Tuesday, I arrived at Mercedes' building a few minutes early and waited on the sidewalk clutching a bottle of wine.

A man passing by gave me a suspicious look and I fashioned a look of complete innocence, because I didn't want to cause Mercedes any trouble with her neighbors.

Finally, my watch ticked over. It was exactly 6:30 pm... So I decided to climb the steps to the front door.

From a kid, my mother had driven into me that one was never early. She'd said, fashionably late was acceptable, under the appropriate circumstances, but to be early was both rude and communicated an unfortunate sense of desperation... as if one had nowhere better to be.

Well, as it was, I didn't have anywhere better to be. Not this time. There was nowhere I would rather spend my time than sitting in Mercedes' cramped apartment, watching her prepare dinner.

I went into the foyer and rang the bell for her apartment, then waited for her to come down and let me in.

Promptly, I heard her door open and her feet clattering down the stairs. I smiled despite myself. It seemed absurd to me that she lived in a building that didn't even have a working intercom system, but she was cautious with her money; and I wouldn't change that about her.

At last, Mercedes appeared at the foot of the stairs and flashed me a wide smile as she came over to open the door to let me in.

She was wearing a simple black dress...her work clothing, no doubt...paired with a ludicrous pair of shearling boots.

She followed the direction of my gaze and said a little defensively,

"They're really warm."

"I'm sure they are," I said, leaning in to give her a kiss. "How was your day?"

"Long," she said. "But it's getting better now." She smiled at me. "Are you hungry? Dinner's almost ready."

"What's the saying? I could eat a horse," I said.

She laughed and led me up the stairs to her apartment.

As I watched Mercedes climbed the stairs so effortlessly, I suddenly felt glad that I had been running so much lately; it spared me the indignity of breathing heavily as we approached the sixth floor.

The hallway outside of her apartment was filled with a delicious smell of food cooking, and it intensified when she opened the door.

"That doesn't smell like veggies," I said, shucking off my coat and hanging it on a hook screwed into the back of the door.

"It's not," she replied. Then she went over to the oven and opened the door to check on whatever was baking inside. "I made macaroni and cheese."

"From the blue box, I hope," I said.

She shot me an indignant look...

"Not that kind! From scratch. With a bechamel. The good stuff. And roasted asparagus, because I know you like to eat your vegetables."

"You know me too well," I said ruefully.

She looked pleased and I turned away so that she couldn't see my expression...which I feared, was one of sappy adoration.

While Mercedes took the food from the oven and fussed around with plates and silverware, I took the opportunity to poke around her apartment.

This was only the second time I had been inside her apartment, and the first visit was very brief.

It was indeed a small space, one open room, but bright and well-kept... except for the books stacked up on the coffee table.

But I knew she took pride in her apartment. I saw the evidence everywhere... the houseplants overflowing their pots, the shoes lined up neatly beside the door and a large print of a Leonid painting framed and hung above the television.

Her small bed was shoved against the wall beneath one window and sheer curtains draped over the pillow.

And suddenly, I thought of her sleeping there and waking up with the sun in her eyes, easing her into the day. She lived here. She wasn't just existing.

"I like your apartment," I said, joining her beside the table, which was very small, so much so, she left the food on top of the stove for lack of room.

However, I found a space for the wine bottle and set it down.

"It's a bit tiny," she said, and then furrowed her brow and said, "But I like it. My therapist told me I should stop apologizing so much. My apartment is small, but that's okay. And I like living here."

"Your therapist sounds very wise," I said, and gave her a kiss. "Should we eat? I didn't realize I was so hungry, and the food really does smell incredible."

"Don't heap on the praise too thick before you taste it," she said, but her eyes lit up as she smiled at me.

Dinner tasted exactly as good as it smelled. And I ate until I couldn't force down another bite. Afterwards, we moved to the sofa with our wine glasses.

"Should we watch a movie?" Mercedes asked shyly, bending to pull off her boots.

I considered it...

I had planned on ending my night with her naked and begging, but there was no harm in taking it slow and building her desire to a fever pitch. I had plenty of time to tease her until she pleaded with me for release.

I asked,

"What did you have in mind?"

"Well, um..." She got off the sofa and crouched beside her television, rummaging through a box of DVDs. "I have this one movie about a boy and a girl who grow up together, and then he goes off to fight in a war and dies, but she still writes him a letter every single day. And there's another one about a man and a woman who just got married, only to find out she has cancer, but before she dies, she finds a new wife for him. It's really sad."

I stared at Mercedes, horrified. Was that really the type of movie she enjoyed? I could probably force myself to sit through one, before falling asleep. But then I noticed her mouth twitching, and said,

"My God, you're pulling my leg."

"You looked so afraid!" she said, giggling so hard that she tipped to one side and had to put out one hand to keep herself from falling over. She recovered and sat upright again. "I don't actually have any movies like that, but I could run down to the bodega if you really want one."

"Let's not, and say we did," I suggested. "Or we could skip the movie altogether and just cut straight to making out on the couch, since that's what's going to end up happening anyway."

She looked down shyly.

"Maybe we could... do more than just make out," she said.

She really had changed if she was propositioning me, however obliquely. But it was a change I welcomed.

"Come here," I said, hearing my voice drop into the commanding register I so often found myself adopting during sex.

She responded to it just as beautifully as she always did...

She rose to her feet and took the few steps to the sofa, and I reached out and seized her by the hips and drew her down on top of me.

Mercedes made a soft noise and settled against me, straddling my hips, her hair falling around both of our faces like a curtain. I squeezed her hips, mapping her curves with my hands. She was perfect, and she was mine.

I said,

"Little girl, you're going to do exactly what I tell you to do. Aren't you?"

"Yes," she whispered, and although I had fully expected her to assent, hearing her say it sent a jolt of arousal through my body.

I pulled Mercedes closer, seating her hips fully against mine and ground upward.

At that, my member, which was already noticeably interested in the proceedings, swelled to full hardness at the pressure and closeness.

Her dress rode up around her hips, and I could feel the heat of her through her stockings and whatever underwear she was wearing underneath.

It was maddening. And I suddenly couldn't bear being separated from her by anything as inconsequential as clothing.

"I want you," I said. "And I'm going to have you."

I drew Mercedes' face towards mine and kissed her deeply, tasting her soft mouth, whilst combing my fingers through her hair and relishing the way she shivered against me.

I have never known a woman as responsive as her. Oh, but I was fully aware... enough to admit that it fed my ego... that I could make her quiver and moan... that she kept coming back to me for more.

She was incredible. She was my favorite vice. One I never wanted to relinquish.

I wrapped my arms firmly around Mercedes' waist and stood up, lifting her with me, and carried her across the room to the bed.

I knelt on the mattress and lowered her down onto her back, her head resting on the pillow. Still, she clung to me, trying to pull me down with her.

But, as tempting as it was to lie on top of her and let her wrap her legs around my waist, kiss her neck, rip off her undergarments and take her like that, I had to refuse... I had other plans.

I drew back and stood up, gazing down at my beautiful Mercedes, her face heated and her dress rumpled.

God, I wanted her. I've always wanted her. But I wanted her helpless and docile, submitting to me.

And I knew she wanted it too.

Suddenly, the evening's many possibilities unraveled before me, overwhelming me.

Mercedes would do whatever I wanted her to do... and it was both a gift and a responsibility.

There was nothing I enjoyed more than having her writhing and begging...driven to the very edge of rational thought and speech.

But she trusted me.

She trusted me to make this an enjoyable experience for her, and I was determined that it was going to be.

For both of us.

Mercedes' bed was a four-post, and a germ of an idea sprouted in my mind.

With that, I looked around the room for something I could use and spotted a collection of scarves draped over the coat rack. Precisely what I needed.

So I turned, took the few steps to the coat rack, and took two scarves in my hands.

Mercedes had apparently turned her head and was watching me, her eyebrows drawn together. Inquisitive. Though, not questioning and not moving from where I had set her either.

I went to her and crouched beside the bed, bending to kiss her and stroke her hair out of her eyes.

"I want you to raise your arms above your head," I told her. She did, obedient as ever, and I tied her left wrist to the bedpost with one of the scarves.

She made a noise and lifted her head, but I smiled at her, easing whatever worry that was creeping in. Then I reached across the bed and tied her other wrist to the opposite bedpost, trapping her there, both hands tied in place above her head.

God. What a vision!

I reached down and adjusted myself in my trousers, because just the sight of her like that was doing me in.

Suddenly, I realized a flaw in my otherwise clever plan... I wouldn't be able to get her dress off unless I untied her again.

Hell! That was a superable problem. She didn't need to be fully nude.

She did, however, needed to lose her stockings.

I slid Mercedes' dress up enough to expose her lower body and placed my thumbs under the waistband of her stockings.

With little effort, I worked them down her hips, down her legs and off, then tossed them on the floor.

Then it was just her smooth, bare skin, and the silky black fabric between her thighs.

I knew she had a penchant for lacy, sexy underwear. And I appreciated that very much.

I couldn't seem to help myself as I stroked my thumb along the crease of Mercedes' thigh, tracing the line of her panties up towards her hip.

She twitched at my touch, and I smiled.

"I like these," I said.

She turned to look at me and then glanced away again, eyelids lowering, shy.

"I thought you probably would."

"You wore them for me, then?" I asked, oddly pleased by the thought of her rifling through her lingerie drawer, choosing her underwear with my preferences in mind.

Unbidden, I clambered onto the bed and knelt between her thighs, spreading her legs further apart to make room. Then I trailed my fingers up the insides of her thighs, skimming lightly over her sensitive skin.

She closed her eyes and readjusted on the bed, lifting her pelvis... a silent invitation. And I took it.

I bent and kissed her lower belly, just above the waistband of her panties, and slid my fingers up and up, drawing closer to her hot center, until I stopped just short of the lacy edge of her underwear.

Then I waited...

Mercedes opened her eyes and blinked at me, her eyelids heavy.

"Sam?"

"Yes?"

"Are you... um..." She shifted her hips again, pressing up towards me, asking me to touch her.

"Am I what?" I asked, amused, delighting in teasing her.

"Will you...touch me?" she asked, biting her lip and looking away, so sweetly embarrassed that I felt my heart clenching in my chest.

Well, she asked, so how could I deny her?

I moved my right hand and stroked my thumb over her panties so damp between her legs, and she shuddered beneath me, her thighs falling open, revealing herself to me.

God, she was perfect.

I could have teased her like that for hours, touching her through her underwear, but I wanted to see her femininity, stroke her wet flesh directly and feel her tighten around my fingers.

It had been so long... Months and months since I had her like this, willing and wanton beneath me.

Too damn long.

I bent to kiss Mercedes again, feeling her soft belly jump beneath my lips, and drew her panties down her legs.

At first, she pulled her knees together, hiding herself, then she took a breath and relaxed, letting her legs sprawl on the mattress again.

"Shy?" I asked. "It's not the first time I've seen you like this, you know."

"I know," she said. "It's just...it's been a while. Habit, I guess."

"Must be," I said.

Dear God, she looked incredible. I wanted to take off her dress and look at her full breasts, with their dark, peaked nipples, but it would take too long...at least a minute to untie her, tug off her dress, and tie her up again.

Next time.

I was too impatient.

I wanted everything all at once, and I didn't want to wait.

I slid my hand between her legs, lightly stroking her wet flesh. And her hips jerked. But I held her down with my free hand on her hip, pressing her into the mattress.

She would move when I wanted her to move. She would take pleasure when I wanted her to. And she would come when I felt like being generous.

Her body was mine to command, and we both knew it.

"Sam," Mercedes said, but stopped herself there, her lips clamped together. She was a good girl. She knew not to speak...not now. The time for that had passed.

I settled on my belly, a penitent before her, my feet dangling off the end of her bed, and set about making her forget her own name.

She was slick to the touch, hot and swollen, and I easily slid two fingers into her and curled them towards me.

I could feel every movement she made, every twitch and flutter, and she was as taut as a tightrope, wound up like a spring.

Her body was an open book though. It would be so easy to bring her over the edge. A few more strokes with my thumb, a twist of the wrist, and that would be it.

But not yet.

The waiting, the teasing, making her forget about everything except the pleasure I was wringing from her body... those were my favorite things about sex, and I intended to draw them out as long as possible.

Although...

Maybe there was a way to give her what she wanted, while giving me what I wanted as well...

There was a small table beside the bed, with a lamp on it, and a drawer in the front. A likely suspect. So I leaned over, reaching out my arm to open the drawer, and extended my neck to peer inside.

As I had hoped, there was a shiny silver vibrator... the kind that shaped like an over-sized bullet.

I fished it out, and when Mercedes saw what I held in my hand, she flushed and made an abortive movement with both hands. But she was tied up. If she could, I knew she would've probably covered her face.

"Oh, no," she moaned.

"Oh, yes," I said, grinning. This was going to be fun...

I switched on the vibrator and thumbed the control to set it to a steady buzz, even as Mercedes watched me, her brown eyes wide.

Then I moved it between her legs and touched it to her clit. At that, she squeezed her eyes shut and moaned.

Perfect.

I held the vibrator in place with my left hand and slid two fingers of my right hand back into the hot clutch of Mercedes' body.

Her thighs shook, fine tremors running along the muscles, and she turned her wrists to grasp the scarves tying her to the bed, holding onto them for support.

She was so close to losing control. And I desperately wanted to see it happen... to watch her abandon all dignity and throw herself into the mindless pleasure I offered with both hands.

"You're trying so hard to hold on," I said, kissing her thigh, fingers working inside her. "Let go. I want you to come all over my hand."

"No," she moaned, tossing her head.

"You don't get to make these decisions," I said.

With that, I circled the vibrator over her clit again, slowly and firmly. She arched against me and came, clenching around my fingers and shaking like a leaf.

Oh, she was wonderful!

I rolled my hips against the bed, seeking some relief for my throbbing cock. I could wait, of course, but it was never easy.

I held the vibrator where it was, working Mercedes through her orgasm, and as she came down, her muscles relaxing, she flinched away from the buzzing, her body over-sensitive.

I didn't move it.

"Sam," she whined, drawing her knees up, twisting her hips, and doing her best to escape the merciless vibrations. But she was trapped. And I had no pity.

So I left the vibrator right where it was, and began thrusting into her with my right hand, feeling her so wet and hot around me.

I saw in her expression the moment she realized that I wouldn't give her any time to recover. Then she closed her eyes and turned her face to the side, biting down hard on her lower lip, trying and failing to hold back her high-pitched whimpers.

At this point, I could only imagine how she felt. The delicious torment, the pleasure almost more than she could handle, her body overwhelmed by powerful sensations she was powerless to stop.

She trembled, toes curling and uncurling, hands flexing compulsively around the scarves.

And I turned up the vibrations...

Her knees rose into the air again, thighs closing around my arms, a defensive reflex, but futile. I wasn't going to let her go.

"Please," she gasped out, and I wondered which she meant... Please stop, or please keep going?

It didn't matter; I had no intention of stopping.

Mercedes writhed on the bed, tossing her head from side to side, moving her pelvis towards me and then away.

I increased the vibrations yet again and her body lifted in a perfect arch, her mouth hanging open. And she came again, in long, slow waves.

I didn't stop.

I held the vibrator where it was, as she came and as she came down, the tremors finally easing, and as she fought against her restraints, struggling to escape the sweet torment between her legs.

She opened her eyes and looked at me, her pupils blown.

"I can't," she said. "Will you...stop?"

"Safe-word," I said. "Safe-word and I'll stop."

"I can't," she said. "Please. Please stop."

"Safe-word," I insisted, and she turned her head away from me and didn't.

Fuck! She wanted it.

My cock throbbed in my trousers hard as iron. I could've screwed her right then. Just un-zip my pants, shove into her, take her and claim her.

I didn't.

I wanted to make her come again.

I shut off the vibrator and set it aside. Mercedes made a relieved noise and I smiled to myself, amused that she thought this would be any sort of respite.

Leaving my right hand where it was, my fingers buried deep within her, I bent and set my mouth to her dripping slit.

She moaned loudly, her thighs clamping around my head.

She had a heady, musky scent that filled my nostrils and coated my tongue, and I buried my face against her, drinking it in.

I couldn't get enough of her.

I licked her with the flat of my tongue in long, languid strokes, tasting the full length of her.

"Sam," she moaned, straining against me. And hearing her say my name like that made me feel like a god.

With that, I moved my mouth to her clit and sucked on it, teasing with teeth and tongue, and it throbbed in time with her heartbeat.

She was so close.

She was almost there.

Again...

I held ground though, licking and sucking at her, until I thought I would explode if I delayed any longer.

Then I turned on the vibrator again, and held it just there, right where she needed it.

Mercedes let out a wail and went to pieces in a flash.

It went on for a long time, convulsions rolling through her, her face screwed up in joyful agony, her limbs shaking.

She was magnificent.

But then she finally quietened, so I turned off the vibrator and slowly, very carefully, drew my fingers from her body.

She looked up at me with her dark eyes, her face soft and her body limp with pleasure. And I couldn't resist. I bent and kissed her, and she returned the kiss eagerly, opening her mouth to mine, our tongues sliding together.

I had to have her.

Waiting any longer was impossible.

My need was suddenly urgent, overwhelming all rational thought.

I unzipped my trousers and drew forth my aching shaft, dark red and wet at the tip from waiting so long.

I fumbled in my pocket for the condom I had stashed there earlier and rolled it on. Then I lifted one of Mercedes' thighs out of the way, my hand hooked beneath her knee, and plunged into her in one smooth stroke.

We cried out in tandem, her at the intrusion and me at the feeling of her around me, tight and hot.

I rolled my hips once, experimentally, and knew that I wouldn't last long. Mercedes had that effect on me.

Everything about having sex with her...the way she smelled, the sounds she made, the way her body opened around me...seemed designed to make me lose control as quickly as possible.

I lowered myself so that I lay directly on top of her, our bodies pressed together.

I wished now that I had taken the time to remove both of our clothing, so that I could feel her bare skin against mine, but it was enough to be close to her, to kiss her neck and rock against her, thrusting slowly, making it last as long as I could.

It wasn't long.

I was too aroused, and she kept making small, contented noises that made me pick up the pace.

I drove deep, hard and fast, swiveling my hips ever so often and as I neared the end, I released her leg, shoved my hands under her ass widening her even more for my frantic thrusts.

Finally, I buried my face against her neck and let go...

My orgasm poured over me like a rising tide. And after several long moments, I came back to myself, reached up and untied Mercedes' hands.

Then I staggered off the bed and into the bathroom, feeling like I had been hit by a truck... Death by orgasm.

Mercedes was lying where I had left her, stretching luxuriously. She gave me a sleepy smile and moved her legs so that I could join her on the mattress.

I lay down on my side, in the tiny sliver of space between her body and the wall and turned her so that she was spooned against me, her back to my front.

"Sam, I won't do it again. I won't leave you again."

"You'd better not," I said.

I wrapped my arm around her waist and held her against me, my face buried in her hair. Maybe I shouldn't have believed her, but I did.

If I was being naive, I didn't care. The joy that I felt holding her and feeling the warmth of her body, left no room for doubts.

I knew then, that no matter what happened, there was no turning back for me.

Mercedes was everything I wanted and needed. And I was all in.

So, I had an early day and I decided to try something. Please forgive any mistakes I just don't have it in me to read over. Thank you.

I can't say when I will be able to update again, just know that I will as soon as I can.

Stay blessed and stay safe!