He tugs my shirt over my head and tosses it away. Then he twines my amethyst curl around his finger and boldly cups my breast with his other hand.
It’s the lightest flex of his strong fingers, but it sends a pulse of pure lust humming through my entire body.
“This is a beautiful color on you,” he says. “You’ll wear it for me more often.”
It’s not a request, and his casual authority makes me melt.
Before I can nod in agreement, he wraps my curl around his wrist and pulls me in for a vicious kiss. He claims me with tongue and teeth, alternating the softness of his full lips with punishing bites. My hair is an anchor in the chain of his hand, keeping me steady as I’m swept up in desire as strong as a storm-tossed sea. He’s the only thing tethering me to reality, the only person in existence.
He doesn’t break our kiss or release my hair as he deftly unbuttons my jeans with his free hand. I shimmy out of them without needing to be told. I’m eager to be naked with him, to finally feel his hard, glorious body against mine.
My fingers fly to his collar, fumbling at the small buttons.
He shackles my wrists, directing them away from his shirt.
“No,” he murmurs against my lips. “I want you naked and vulnerable. This is your punishment, pet.”
“But I want to touch you,” I protest breathily. “I want to see you.”
He nips at my lower lip. “You have to earn your rewards. It’s time for you to suffer for me.”
He releases me entirely and takes a step back. Cool air rushes over me, and my skin pebbles in the absence of his steady heat.
Before I can fold my arms over my chest to chase away the chill of vulnerability, he commands, “Take off your bra. I want to see what’s mine.”
I almost whimper at the wave of ruthless desire that rushes through me. My panties are wet with my arousal, and my clit pulses madly.
I’m his possession, his pet.
And he’s going to punish me.
My fingers tremble, but I manage to unclasp my bra after two fumbling attempts. The straps slide down my arms, and the soft skimming sensation over each of my goosebumps sets my entire body alight with carnal sensation.
He takes another step back, and I can’t help swaying toward him, as though I’m bound to him by invisible rope.
“Stay,” he admonishes. “I’m admiring my pretty pet.”
I manage to obey, but my hands are still shaking with the force of the adrenaline coursing through me. I want him so desperately that my swollen sex aches to be touched, but I’m compelled by his will.
A sense of lightness floods my mind, and my thoughts float away. There are no insecurities, no worries about whether or not my body will accept him. There’s no room in my world for anything other than his control. He has claimed ownership of me, but I’ve never felt freer than I do in this moment.
He strolls around me, taking me in from every angle. I hardly breathe, determined to obey and remain still for him to admire at his leisure. I feel exposed but safe. No one will hurt me while I’m in Dane’s care.
No one but him.
He’s promised to make me suffer, and I eagerly await the absolution he will offer me.
I feel his heat recede further, and I barely resist the urge to turn so that I can see where he’s going. My teeth worry my lower lip, and my fingernails bite into my palms in the long seconds that pass without his nearness.
Just when my anxiety begins to reach a fever pitch, his hand spans my lower back.
I jolt, and he shushes me gently.
His hard body is behind mine, and his corded arms encircle my waist. “Give me your wrists.”
I lift my hands in offering, and he loops hemp rope around them. His movements are quick and efficient, and in less than a minute, my wrists are bound together. He holds the length of rope like a leash and uses the tension to force my body to turn. I spin in the cage of his arms, and suddenly, I’m trapped in his glittering emerald stare.
He’s almost a foot taller than I am, but I feel even smaller in his imposing shadow—as fragile as a wren captured in his elegant hand.
