This time my breath lodges in my chest and refuses to move.
He continues, voice smooth as ice. “You belong to me. You go where I tell you. You wear what I choose. You do what I ask.”
My pulse pounds.
“And if I say no?” I ask.
His gaze darkens.
“You won’t.”
I lift my chin. “I’m not as obedient as you think.”
Something dangerous glints in his eyes.
“We’ll see.”
He steps closer again, invading my space without touching me. The heat of him is overwhelming. Like standing too close to a fire you're not sure you'll survive.
“No refusals. No limits.”
"Do you renegotiate all your contracts like this?"
"Those are my terms, Cassandra."
And that’s when I realize the most dangerous thing of all:
He knows.
Not suspects.
Not guesses.
He knows I walked in here pretending to be something I’m not.
And instead of turning me away…
He wants me more.
Not for the party.
Not for his guests.
Not to be shared or displayed or passed between shadows.
He wants me for himself.
And I’m not sure if that makes me safer—or so much more screwed.
CHAPTER 2
CASSANDRA
“One month,” Damien repeats. “Absolute submission.”
I swallow the knot in my throat.
“No limits,” he continues. “No safe words. You give me everything I want or you can leave.”
