He walks away and into the bathroom, leaving me alone with my thoughts. The water running is nothing more than static in my mind, the white noise pushed to the back and drowned out by the panic slowly creeping up from my stomach.
Rafael can’t just leave me here. Surely he knows I’ll eventually be too tired to stand on my tiptoes and when I am, the circulation in my arms will be cut off. There’s no logic in him punishing me and telling me to obey him going forward, if there’s no future for me. Right?
Regardless of my mind offering me logical thoughts and possibilities, I fall apart. My tears stream down my face without ceasing and I openly sob. The sound of my weeping is quiet, but the fracturing of my will? A thunderstorm of emotion ricocheting inside me. Between the booming of my heart beats and the wheezing breaths I struggle to pull into my lungs, I’m lost in a whirlwind of feelings.
Time no longer has meaning and neither does reality.
A startled cry is wrenched from me when a touch of warmth seeps into my cheeks. I blink away the newest set of tears to find Rafael holding my face between his hands, and the expression on his is placid. Whatever rage was consuming him earlier has all but dissipated, leaving behind a quiet but still intense aftermath.
He uses his thumbs to wipe away the moisture from underneath my eyes and then stares at me with a light in his gaze I’ve never seen. What does it mean? I squint up at him, trying to discern this oddity, but he shifts his gaze to the remote on the bed. After he retrieves it, the chain holding me suspended lowers and keeps on doing so until there’s enough slack in the rope for me to be flat-footed.
Rafael makes quick work of the bindings and my arms tingle as the blood flow increases within. They fall to my sides, limp and useless, and my unbound leg is next. It buckles under my full weight and Rafael moves swiftly to wrap an arm around my waist, pulling me to him. He grasps my arm and drapes over his shoulder and then moves to unravel the ties on my leg. Once my body is completely free of the knots and rope, he swings me into his arms.
Like a rag doll, I lie in his embrace. My head lolls onto his naked chest and my eyes flutter closed. I pull his scent into my lungs, needing him around me and in me. My obsession with Rafael should scare me, and perhaps it will when I’m clear-headed, but right now all I want is him.
My future husband.
The splashing of water has me struggling to open my eyes, and by that point, Rafael has lowered us into a tub full of steaming hot water. I whimper as the temperature penetrates the aches in my muscles. Whether in response to my tiny cry or not, he takes my left wrist between his hands and begins to massage it. The oil he lathers my skin with has a cooling effect and that, combined with the concise dexterity and placement of his fingers, relaxes me.
He repeats the process on the other wrist and then continues with both of my arms. I moan periodically when he thumbs a certain nerve or pressure point, and the sound coming from me is similar to when I orgasm. Embarrassment attempts to rise, but I’ve already lost whatever dignity I possess. At this moment, I don’t give a shit about anything except Rafael.
His cock hardens at the start of this whole thing, but he does nothing to act on his obvious arousal. If I wasn’t so lethargic and beyond basic thought, I’d be confused as to why he’s not having sex with me. And I’d be perplexed at the notion that I want him to.
“I’m almost done,” he says softly. He places a kiss to the crown of my head. “Do you think you can keep from drowning long enough for me to concentrate on your legs?”
I mumble what I believe is an affirmative and he huffs out a quiet laugh. Then he positions me perpendicular to his body, propping me up against the side of the tub, and takes hold of my leg. I whine when he kneads the tired muscles too firmly, and weakly attempt to dislodge his hands.
“Shh,viziata. Your body needs this. Trust me.”
I do. I trust him.
My nose wrinkles as I scrunch my face in confusion. When did this happen? Rafael has been nothing but a domineering asshole to me recently, yet I know deep down he would, and is, taking care of me.
What I want to know is: why?
Fortunately, or unfortunately, my brain is too sluggish to attempt to come up with an answer.
Rafael’s voice penetrates my awareness and I slowly open my eyes and lift my gaze to meet his. “Okay, I think that’s all you’re going to be able to handle for now,” he says with a smirk. “Otherwise you’ll drown.”
I blink at him, trying to process what he’s saying while figuring out why he’s smiling at me. But he interrupts my musings by reaching for me and pulling me back onto his lap. I sigh and plop onto his chest without any resistance. His torso shakes from the laughter flowing through it and the movement jars me.
“Hmm?” I ask, too tired to form long sentences.
He runs a loofa along my arms and my eyes threaten to close again. “I never thought that I’d ever see you so pliant and complacent, especially considering how often you look at me as though you’d like to shoot me.”
“I have and I would.” I make the shape of a gun with my hand and then jab my index and middle fingers into his chest. I end the playacting with a shooting sound that more closely resembles a dying cat instead of a pistol being fired.
His laughter begins anew, but it’s louder and stronger. Tucked under his chin, I smile too. Or at least I think I do. His laugh is charismatic, hypnotizing. Just like him.
Once his amusement dies down to a handful of chuckles, he thoroughly washes my extremities and my back. When he brings his hand to my breast and palms it, I suck in a breath.
“Still sensitive, huh?” he murmurs, using his thumb to caress my nipple.“I know I put you through a lot.”
My response is something between a huff and a groan.
I can hear the smile in his voice when he says, “But you deserved every bit of it. And do you finally understand why?”
His fingers distract me with their strokes, which has my simmering arousal heating up again. The raspy and gruff textures of his voice wrap around me, binding me to him more effectively than rope. And his energy is a source of security that might be dominant, but it’s safe.
