“Did what?” Her brows pinch in confusion.
“Why did you come over here and give me your hands?” She tries to pull away, but I just pull her closer, between my parted knees.
“Because you told me to,” she finally answers.
“But did youwantto come over here? To give me your hands?”
“I—” She cuts herself off, uncertainty tainting her soft voice. “Yes.”
“You could consider that you were being obedient in both cases; the difference now is you have the ability to say no.”
I see the idea click as her eyes widen fractionally with awareness, and she slowly nods.
“Take off your dress,” I tell her. Her eyes widen as she gasps, taking a step back. I feel Jagger’s hand slowly wrap around my bicep, as if reminding me he’s still there and won’t let me take this too far. But I’m just proving a point.
“I… Why?” she asks in worry, her eyes darting around the room.
“That feeling right there,” I say, pointing to her chest. “That’s your inner voice telling you that you don’t want to do it. Do you feel the difference between that and when I asked you to give me your hands?”
She nods, and I see her visibly swallow. “Wren, we want you to listen to us, so we can keep you safe. Sometimes being obedient is a necessity to keep you safe. But sometimes, we might, unknowingly, ask you to do something that you don’t want to do.”
Jagger releases me as I reach for her again, and she gives me her hand so I can pull her back to me. My heart softens at how easily she already gives herself to me.
“And let me make something perfectly clear. If anyone, including us, asks you to do something sexual that you are uncomfortable with, you tell us, right then and there.” I push her beautiful, long black hair behind her ear and tilt her chin up slightly so she’s looking directly into my eyes.
“One day you’ll trust us enough to know that we might try to push your limits from time to time, but we never want to make you do something that makes you uncomfortable. We also have to trust that you’ll speak up. Youneverhave to put on an act for us, little bird. Do you understand?”
“I think so,” she says with a nod.
“Good girl. Now, why don’t you grab one of the shirts you bought today, take a shower, and change? There’s a clean towel in there for you.”
She bites her lip and nods. Is it just me, or do her cheeks seem extra rosy right now? What I'd give to know what she’s thinking. I watch as she grabs a T-shirt and a pair of her underwear and slips quietly into the bathroom.
As soon as we hear the shower running, Pete lets out a laugh as he lies back on the other bed and runs his hand down his face. “That girl is something else.”
“She’s so naive. I hope she’ll remember what I said, and tell us when to stop.”
Jagger whacks my shoulder, and I wince, turning to himwith a frown. He thrusts the phone in my face, and I read it aloud.“You should know when to stop. If you can’t tell what’s going too far, you have no right to touch her.”
I try not to bare my teeth at him in anger. “Who died and made you the preacher?” He reaches for the phone, but I pull it out of his reach. I know I’m acting like a child. The guy can’t speak, but questioning my restraint and telling me I can’t touch her just pisses me off.
He holds out his palm for the phone, and I almost hand it to him, but at the last second, I toss it over my shoulder, onto the other bed, making his eyes narrow on me. “You got something to say?” I ask with a raised eyebrow. His fists clench tightly as he glares at me. “Didn’t think so.” I move back to lie beside him, my hands folded behind my head.
In a flash, he’s straddling me, his hands around my throat as he bares his teeth at me.
“Oh shit!” Pete laughs as I try to pry Jagger’s hands off me. It takes me a few seconds of struggling to realize I can still breathe, he’s not trying to kill me, it’s a warning.
I’ll fucking show him who he’s messing with.I am not the kind of man who enjoys being taught lessons, especially by one of my former cellmates.
I lift my legs and hook my feet in front of his shoulders, pulling him back as I sit up in one swift move. His hands are still at my throat, but now I’ve got more leverage. I pull a hand back and punch him in the side. He releases my neck as a puff of air escapes him from the impact.
“Dog pile!” Dex yells right before I see his massive body flying toward us, arms outstretched. My eyes widen as I try to roll away, but he lands on top of both of us, knocking the wind from my lungs as he howls with laughter like this is the funniest thing in the world.
I grunt when someone elbows me in the back. “Whose side are you on?” I wheeze out when I realize he’s somehow pinning Jagger and me at the same time.
“Side? I’m just joining in on the fun!” He laughs, and I’m not sure if he’s really that oblivious or just that crazy.
I manage to roll myself to my back as I try to push him off. Jagger does the same, and when Dex’s feet hit the ground with a heavy thud, and only his upper body is on Jagger, Pete pops up out of fucking nowhere and slaps me across the face.
