“It is.”
“What’s in it?”
Such an inquisitive little thing. I’m not a man used to being questioned, but I suppose I can indulge her quest for knowledge. There will come a time when I will expect her immediate obedience, but for now it’s understandable that shehas questions. “Milk. It’s perfectly safe and not drugged, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
The look she gives me is the absolute definition of withering. “You just chased me off a boat, stripped me half naked in the middle of a forest, and whipped me with a tree branch. I think some suspicion on my part is warranted.”
“Fair enough,” I reply with a laugh. “But if you hadn’t run, none of that would have happened.”
“Can you really blame me? I was scared.”
“I suppose not. The fact remains, however, that you were very naughty. And when Little girls are naughty, they get spanked.”
“But I’m not?—”
Taking advantage of her mouth opening so she can continue arguing, I push the nipple between her lips. As if by instinct, she immediately sucks on the tip, then glares up at me accusingly.
“Sorry, kitten. But you need to drink something and if I let you keep talking, you might never finish your bottle. When it’s empty, you can continue your interrogation.”
She rolls her eyes upward, but continues sucking, so I count it as a win. Obviously, I’m going to have my hands full with my naughty little kitten.
I cannot wait to see what it takes to tame her.
Chapter Four
Natalie
The milk is sweet, and despite Evander’s promise that it isn’t drugged, I find my eyelids drooping closed as I drink. It’s weird, but comforting in an odd way, to suck at the rubber tip like a baby. I should be terrified, and in some deep, buried part of my brain, that fear definitely lurks. But mostly I’m just too curious, too in awe of this strange place to be afraid.
My mind drifts, first to the memory of Jasper and Juliet on the top of the Empire State Building, Juliet’s blonde hair in two braids while she pouted up at her stepbrother and insisted she didn’t need a nap. Daddy, she’d called him, and at the time I’d considered it odd but assumed it was just some weird kinky nickname.
But then another image comes to mind, of the two women I ran into on the street in town, the smaller of the two decked out in layers of tulle and silk and lace. Like something a baby doll might wear. Or a toddler on their way to Easter service.
Is that the dark secret of this island? Women being kept as children for… what, exactly? What do the men and women keeping them here get out of it?
Those questions and more are still bouncing around in my brain despite my drowsiness when the car slows to a stop. Evander pulls the bottle from my mouth and smiles down at me.
“You nearly finished the whole thing. There’s more after dinner if you’d like, but for now we need to get you cleaned up and in some more appropriate clothes.”
“Baby clothes, you mean.”
His gaze sharpens, and for a moment my heart races as I worry I’ve said the wrong thing.
“You really are a very observant Little girl,” he says after a long moment, a smile curving his lips. “Perhaps too observant. But that’s something to be discussed later. First, a bath.”
He pauses just long enough to strip my overalls completely from me before leveraging us both out of the car. It’s an impressive feat, and even though I’m not keen on being half naked in front of a man known far and wide for his capacity for violence, I also know that arguing with him won’t get me anywhere. Best to just go along as much as possible and do my best not to irritate him.
Besides. There’s so manyinterestingthings happening around me.
Head swiveling, I take in my surroundings as he carries me up the stairs of a stunning, sparkling white home. The architecture is a bit out of place for the tropics, as it seems suited more to the Mediterranean area, but it’s a stunning house, nonetheless.
The interior is no less gorgeous, with its acres of white and cream and earth tones. It looks as though I’ve just stepped into a home in Athens, and my mouth falls open as I take it all in.
“Ah, I see you found your little kitten.”
Lucas.
Evander’s chest rumbles with laughter. “I did. Hiding in the woods. She’s faster than I expected.”
